Birthday Cake

I made a cake for Grandma Hopkins birthday and made some of my first fondant roses to decorate with so I thought I would post a few pictures.

Happy Birthday Little Boy

This last weekend we celebrated Jakes 3rd birthday. Fitting all the Grandparents and Aunts and Uncles in the house was a challenge but we did find a place for everyone and had a great time. Jake has loved Toy Story for the last year or two so it was an easy choice for a theme. And they just released all the toys to promote the new movie so it worked out well.





His cake was one of my few tries with fondant and I would of done a few things different looking back but I am happy with the overall way it turned out. Jake loved it so I cant complain!











I think he likes it!

Jake is 3

Today my little monkey turns 3. We have had so much fun the last three years with this one! He has been so much fun to watch grow and learn new things. He is such a loving little boy full of hugs and kisses.

3 things Jake has done in the last year-

1. Jake is potty trained! Yea! Waited a long time for that one!
2. Jake is now sleeping in a big bunk bed. He is suppose to sleep on the bottom but I often find him sneaking up to the top with Emilee
3. Jake has become a camper. A lover of the outdoors and all things fish!

I cant wait to see what the next year holds! Happy Birthday Little Boy!

Shooting.....

The first weekend in October the girls and Al and Ken came home from Pocatello for General Conference and we went out Saturday afternoon and played around with the guns. Emilee and Jake got to try out the pellet gun with a little help of course and were really excited.
I shot Wills shot gun for the first time and that was fun.




It was so cold!






Sam and me trying out the shotgun



I love this pic of Emilee. I am sad though that somehow I didn't end up with any pics of Jake shooting, next time!



Tricha modeling the gun







When we first got there it was so cold that we watched Joe sight in his gun from the car



Will has the cutest sisters!







The boys decided they needed pics looking tough. I think that if you mixed Will coat and gloves with Joe's sunglasses... I wouldn't want to run into that at night!

Food Storage

We finally got all of our food storage organized! We try to do a big shopping trip right as Will starts school and we had been storing it in the garage but I really wanted to move it into the house. So after a few weeks of living in a mess of a kitchen Will got some shelves and we are in business. So now we have a laundry, office, pantry room but at least I am not tripping over it while trying to cook dinner!


Before:


It was okay til I needed in the freezer.... or counter space.



Now:

Happy Birthday Trinity and Cooper

This last weekend we went to a birthday party for my cousins kids who were turning 1 & 3. Trinity and Cooper had a pony party so Emilee and Jake got to ride for the first time. They were both a little intimidated at first (especially Jake) but once they started they didn't want to stop. I thought it was a great party idea for that age group. It was out on a farm in Kuna and they had sheep, llamas, bunnies, chickens, turkeys, goats, and horses for the kids to look at and pet.


Jake and the bunny.


and sheep



Emilee did really well with the horses. I thought that she might be scared with them being so big but she loved them.

The lady that did the party was great. She did a really good job making the kids comfortable around the animals and the ponies were really well behaved.

Art in the Park

This year we decided to take the kids and check out the Art in the Park. There was some really neat stuff that I would of loved to take home! The kids had a really great time looking at the pictures of moose and bears. We also spent some time in the kids area doing arts and crafts. The kids made stuff with recycled cardboard. Will helped them make swords and Emilee and I made a crown.





After they got tired of walking around we decided to take them on a paddle boat. We took Emilee before Jake was born and she loved it. The only thing was they would only let 3 on a boat so I walked around and took pics while Will took them around the pond.


Emilee was posing while Will took their art projects to the car.



Emilee really wanted to ride in the swan boat and we got the last one. She was pretty excited.

Pocatello here we come!

This labor day Will went hunting so the kids and I took a spontaneous trip to Pocatello on Sunday. We got up and ready and out the door we went. We took a detour at the Shoshone Falls. The kids had fun watching the water. Emilee got a little uneasy on the lookout but she warmed up.











The kids got to smash pennies with the design machine and pick out postcards so they thought that that was pretty exciting. After the falls we stopped in the Garden of Eden Travel Center. The kids have really enjoyed stopping there on our trips east so I decided it would make a good pit stop. (With Jake potty trained and this being the first big trip we stopped a lot!) Emilee wanted a picture with the snake in the tree but I couldn't get Jake to stand by it.



When we got to Pocatello Al and Ken were ready and waiting for us..... with this! I think they missed Em and Jake! Nothing like getting all that energy out after a long car ride.











Uncle Ken had to adjust the straps and Jake got a little squished.







And if that was not enough..... Nothing like sugaring them up after wearing them out!





Em and Jake got to learn how to make cotton candy. And they ate lots of it. Who know there was more than just blue and pink. We got introduced to all kinds of cotton candy and the kids tried all 15 flavors of it.


Orange


Green Apple


Pina Colada


I love this picture.... I think it was towards the end of the flavors.

The kids got to spend the night at Al and Kens new apartment and then we went the next day to help Ken get some new fish for his tank.





They also got to see Tricha, Sam, Dani, and Dusty that day. What could be better than a weekend filled with that! Will actually met us in Pocatello (he was hunting just outside of Soda Springs) and drove home with us. It was a great weekend and a big thanks to Al and Ken for making it such a fun time for the kids! We love all you guys in Pocatello and we are really glad that it is as close as it is!