Happy 2nd Birthday Audrey!

 I am going to try and do better at starting, if not finishing, blog posts on time. It's much harder to remember details two months after the fact. (Go figure) (It's now December 26th and I'm determined to finish this) 

- Audrey loves Halloween inflatables and ooh's and aah's as we walk/run around neighborhoods. (So much that I created a whole post to show how much she loves them. 

- Audrey's mind is picking up new words every day and we don't realize she's learned them until she starts saying them. Audrey knows her colors and added brown and black to her store of knowledge recently. She tries to count and do her ABC's, but there are a few holes. (L..OP) 

- She can identify basic shapes and her "Octagon" is distinguishable and adorable. 

We bought her a balance bike for her birthday but decided to give it to her early so she'd have more practice time before it got cold. She had fun and although she still mostly walks on it, she figured out how to balance better. 

For her birthday party we went with an alpaca and desert theme. Sarah decided we should not only make succulent cupcakes, but should also make her a succulent cake. I'm happy with how it all turned out and give Sarah most of the creative credit. 

For her party we hired a petting zoo. It wasn't the cheapest option, but was fun. It was adorable to see her feeding the baby goat. The alpaca was cranky and didn't want to be held or pet and tried to run away. In today's world it's all about the pictures, and we got some good ones. 

Here's a video of her with the goat. 

When we sang her Happy Birthday she kept blowing out the candles. She was just a little bit excited. 

Audrey is a joy and gift to our family. We could not love her more, and am grateful she left heaven and Erik to come and join our family. Happy Birthday Baby Princess!

Goblin Valley with the Stewarts and Millers

 The last time we went to Goblin Valley with my sister and her crew was...not the best. We love Goblin Valley, so we talked them into going in the fall when the weather would be better. It was! We found a fantastic spot that had two little mini canyons. We used one of them for playing, and the other for shooting guns. 

On the gun side the kids had fun shooting 22s and Steven's bb gun and Dave brought his AR out as well. They had some good targets set up with weighted soda cans. The kids, both little and big, had a lot of fun. (I'll add more when I get more from the men) Dave brought his AR15 and the kids took turns shooting it. I didn't shoot it, but my dad did, which was a surprise. I wowed them all with my .22 shooting skills. ;)

The kids favorite part besides the campground was going into Goblin Valley. We played some Hoodoo Hide and Seek and wandered around exploring. Mike brought out his drone and took some cool shots. 

We hiked Little Horse Canyon again and afterwards figured we'd probably seen all there was to see. I took a picture of the kids on a tree we'd taken one on before. I couldn't figure out why it seemed so much harder, and then I looked up the old one and realized they were in a different spot. Oops!

Here are a couple of the videos Mike shot with his drone

I'm grateful I'm able to talk my family into driving long distances to hang out with us. Thankfully, they all love the Utah desert. 

Hogle Zoo

 Audrey loves animals, so we thought it was time to take her to the zoo. We had to wear masks, but it was a small price to pay for visiting. Since it costs so much for one visit we decided to buy a season pass. Now we need to go back more often. 

Forced Family Fun up Yellow Fork Canyon

 Mike and I are big believers of "forcing" our kids to have fun. They oftentimes complain about doing things and then 99% of the time thoroughly enjoyed what we made them do. This happens almost every time we go for a hike. Afterwards they're in a better mood for having gone out in the sun and fresh air. On this occasion we "made" them go on a "hike" up Yellow Fork Canyon. We were going at the speed of toddler, since the Audrey likes to walk now, so we didn't get too far. It was still nice to get out for a bit. 

He's 40...FINALLY!

 It's one of my favorite times of the year when my husband is FINALLY the same age as me again. Why? Because he's an eternal child and torments me for the five months between our birthdays. Considering the fact I turned 40 this year, he's been especially...vocal. ;) We wanted to make sure he felt especially loved so the kids started the day by pouring a few garbage bags full of black balloons over him. He then got to have a good breakfast and ditch us to go on a much needed ride. 

I could definitely think of 40 different things I love about Mike, but it's December and I have a couple months of posts waiting. Suffice it to say the world is a much better place because Steven Michael Starley was born 40 years ago. He is a blessing to everyone that knows him, especially me. Happy Birthday Handsome man!

I guess I'll go eat worms...Audrey edition

 I think a lot of people develop fears of creepy crawlers because of their parent's or other people's reactions to them. When Audrey discovered worms I made sure I didn't act like they were gross. Her reaction was great. She wanted to hold them in her hands and sang to them. It was cute. We kept tools out there for a few days so she could dig them up in the flower garden where they lived more abundantly.