Yes, we are still alive

Please accept my apology for the lack of posts of late, but I have been unable to get a turn on my computer. Hopefully, the peace will last so I do a quick list of the highlights of the last month or so.

• Andrew has started taking a few steps. He's still shaky but getting more daring by the day. We are still waiting on his first tooth, but he still has a great giggle.

• Nathan is making good progress with his speech. He's really doing great playing the Wii and computer games (one of the reasons I don't get a regular turn :-) He also loves to color--especially with markers. He always wants to help, is very polite and thoughtful. Watch out for this kid, he's got a great imagination and sense of humor.

• Abbie LOVES school. She was placed in a gifted and talented class at school last week to provide higher level thinking activities. She has started singing with the Eastern Idaho Children's Choir and loves it. I hope it'll be a good introduction to music and theory. She's still doing well at her reading, too.

• Michael is still working at BYU-Idaho and started his last semester as a student. Eleven more weeks--but who's counting?

• I do laundry. I read a blog post from a friend who's goal was to do at least three loads per week. I think last week I did 12-15 loads. We either need a bigger washer/dryer or a larger wardrobe :-)

• I blinked and missed fall. We went from 80 degree weather one day to 40 degree weather the next. Even so, Abbie insists that we are still having Halloween. Currently seeking costume ideas while watching the snowflakes fall.

• New dishwasher! Hurray. The new one is quiet and works wonders. A working (as in really cleans the dishes) dishwasher is a great blessing.
  

Now for the popular part of any post--the pics. Man, my kids are cute.

Helping Andrew learn to walk.
Big brother, little brother
Little brother trying on hand-me-downs. A little big, but it'll work
One day (without my permission), he decided to get big.
Ironically, one of their favorite games is getting haircuts. They both detest the actual procedure.
Enjoying a day at the park
Tooth Fairy reward
It must be genetic. The kid was trying to type--probably some code in Ruby. :-)
So just how wrong is it to bribe a version of reverence out of your children during General Conference with iPods?