2012 in review, part 2

July

In July we moved in to a new place just a couple of miles from our previous place.  As my father-in-law put it, "That's a money saver!"

 
Elliott and Lily each did a summer class through the city.  Elliott did a sports class and Lily did a music and movement class.  She had a great time, can't you tell? 

 We also attended several of Brian's concerts up at a beautiful ski resort. Yes, you have to wear fleece jackets and the musicians have heaters on stage. Mind boggling for July, right?! 

 Elliott lost his first tooth on Pioneer Day. He was pretending to be a doggie and Lily the owner. Elliott was biting on a blanket like a puppy might and Lily grabbed another part of the blanket and jerked it and Elliott's tooth came flying out. It was quite a shock as we hadn't even realized it was loose.

August

Our close friend Juliann happened to be in town and together we hiked up Mt. Timpanogos, toured the caves for an hour, and hiked down.  It was AWESOME!  But not for the faint of heart!

 Also in August we picked up my returned missionary brother Jonathan and took him to the zoo...I mean BYU. 

 The kids love going to Bees games! 

 And a highlight of the end of summer was taking our kids to the new Brigham City Temple open house.  After a new temple is built, but before it is dedicated, the temple is open to the general public for touring.  It was a very special experience to be together as a family in the temple for the first time. 

 So lucky to live an hour from a brand new temple to take our kids to the open house! 

We also checked out the Ogden children's museum for the first time.  It was awesome. 

Elliott helped out in a bird show at the Tracy Aviary by holding a bowl of food for this emu who came out running at him full speed. 

Brian and I became cub scout den leaders!  Oh boy! 

September

Elliott started 1st grade in a new school.  He had the BEST teacher! 

 Lily started preschool.  Yes that's right, I was all by myself for 4 hours a week! 

I went on a little run out tour with the MoTab to the great metropolis of Rexburg, ID and got to see my talented, beautiful, former roommate Laura!

 On an autumn Sunday walk on the Legacy Trail.

 Brian suggested we "go up the canyon" and make fire, like the locals do.  It turns out you need a LOT more wood than one shrink wrapped, grocery store package of wood and a lot more time to make a roaring, warm fire.  We still stuck it out in the cold long enough to have some hot dogs and marshmallows.  We had a great time and the kids have always referred to this evening as when we went "campfiring."

 We took the kids ice skating for the very first time.  They were terrible at it but LOVED it!  They loved it so much we went back a second time just a few days later. 

October

In October we visited Utah's State Capitol. It was so grand and had huge murals. For the next 3 months, anytime we would drive on I 15 towards downtown, Lily and/or Elliott would exclaim, "THE CAPITOL! We've been there!!!" I'm glad it made an impression.

Also, Brian made the ad campaign and we had to go downtown to capture his likeness with his likeness.

And finally, Elliott was a Bakugan and Lily a cowgirl on a pink horse for Halloween.


November

Near the beginning of November we found out that Brian's job was suddenly, surprisingly, ending.  =(

We ate Thanksgiving dinner at Chuck-a-Rama (the local buffet chain).  Which after the 1 hour wait to get in the door of the restaurant, turned out to be the best decision ever.  The kids ate what they wanted (pizza and macncheese) and Brian and I ate as much as we wanted to of Thanksgiving food.  There were no dishes to wash and no leftovers to get fat from. 

Brian turned 29.  Two days before his birthday our Bishop's wife brought over a birthday cake from a bakery and that was one of the nicest things anyone has ever done for us.  I mean I don't mind making a cake but this cake was a complete surprise and was SO tasty and I'll just never forget that thoughtful gesture.

On his actual birthday, his great uncle and aunt happened to be in town from Seattle.  It was awesome to visit with them and it turns out that when you eat at The Garden on your birthday, they retract the roof and let you release a balloon.  So cool! 

December

In December we visited the Lights on Temple Square.  It is an absolutely breathtaking experience.  It was much warmer this year than last year and we got hot chocolate as well, making it a great evening. 

December really needs its own posts but suffice it to say that it was one of the busiest months of our lives as we had to wrap up my teaching studio, my mom visited to come to my week of Christmas concerts with the MoTab, we had to pack all of our belongings, have last play dates, get family pictures taken and send out Christmas cards (because I'm neurotic like that!), attended the MoTab fancy Christmas dinner, Brian and I played a gig, then we moved out, and started driving.  We have 2 cars so we each had to drive, (taking turns on the car with the kids) to the Grand Canyon, then Fort Worth for Christmas morning, Houston for Christmas afternoon, and the next day Lily turned 4.  

Then a couple of days later, Brian and I left the kids and drove to Atlanta (just another 14 hours one way!) to see some old Interlochen friends get married!  It was such an awesome trip!  We stayed with some friends of ours from our newlywed days and met their 6th baby. We weren't able to attend our 10 year Interlochen reunion so this mini-reunion made us so happy to see these people again.  Not to mention, it was awesome having a weekend long date with my husband, after such a stressful month, even though we were mostly in the car.

Ta da!!!!  A whole year's worth of blogging brought to you in 2 lengthy posts!