Christmas 2009

ORANGE you glad it’s Christmas? We are! It has been a very COLORFUL year at our house! Here is a recap of the Holland family in 2009...

Kylee (7) has a new found love for playing the BLACK and WHITE keys of the piano. She started lessons this fall and loves it. She is a great big sister and enjoys kissing Summer’s cheeks until they are RED. She wore PURPLE in soccer this fall and can now be found tumbling on the BLUE mats at gymnastics every week. She is in 2nd grade and loves it!

Nick (6) bleeds BLUE...Aggie BLUE. He has enjoyed following Utah State football and basketball with his dad. He also wore PURPLE playing soccer this fall and TURQUOISE playing t-ball for the first time. Nick just finished a basketball clinic where he worked on dribbling and shooting the ORANGE basketball. He started Kindergarten this year and has become a great reader.

Austin (3) has a love for BROWN (chocolate) donuts and GREEN Laffy Taffy. Tuesday is his favorite day (mine too!) when he goes to a neighborhood joy school to learn about RED, YELLOW, and BLUE. He loves his preschool friends and has grown a lot in the last few months. He loves the BROWN ball (football) and looks forward to tackling his dad each night!

Summer (6 mo.) arrived in June and has been tickling us PINK since she was born. Her sweet disposition and big BLUE eyes have captured all of our hearts. Her YELLOW hair is slowly growing but not as quickly as the rest of her body! Her chubby little knees are RED as she has mastered the art of the “army crawl”. We are grateful for her calm and even tempered personality.

Tyler and I keep busy chasing four COLORFUL kids. At this time of year we reflect upon our lives and realize how lucky we are to be surrounded by so many wonderful people. We are especially grateful for the life and sacrifice of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We wish you a Merry Christmas and a COLORFUL 2010.

Beautiful Babies...

Tavah Marie Hill
5 lbs. 8 oz. 17 3/4 in.
12-5-09 6:52 am

Thompson Steed Hill
5 lbs. 13 oz. 19 in.
12-5-09 6:53 am

Seriously, these two have to be the cutest things ever! My brother and his AMAZING wife Aleena finally had their twins. They were born on Saturday and I am in love already. Welcome to the family babies!

Thankful...

I know that I am a few weeks behind but give me a break, life has been crazy! We had a great Thanksgiving with the Hill family and have been very blessed this year. We focused our family nights in November around recognizing our blessings and being thankful for the things we have. We had a piece of paper on the fridge and each day the kids would add a few items to our list. I loved seeing the new additions to our "gratitude list" each day.

Family, Heavenly Fathers, Jesus, school, Church, sports, Renee, kids, health, Joseph Smith, brothers, food at the grocery store, friends, cousins, scriptures, prayers, good books, teachers, football, grandparents, everything, cooking supplies, Aggies, grandparents and holidays.

I loved watching them talk about what they were grateful for each day. It was fun to see their thought process and see some of their very random answers. Austin would say that he was grateful for himself every single day. I don't think he quite understood they point of our list!

Thanksgiving at the Hill house was HUGE and crazy as usual but it wouldn't be Thanksgiving if it were any different! Here are a few pictures from our fun evening with family...










Our cute little Summer is now 6 months old...time flies! She is such an amazing baby...I don't know how I got so lucky! She had her 6 month appointment this morning and here are her stats:

Weight: 19 pounds (96%)
Height: almost 28 inches (94%)

Yup, she is chunky, chubby, large and in charge but so stinking cute that I want to kiss her all the time!

My heart aches today. Aches because a friend lost her husband yesterday in a motor cross accident. He was young, healthy, and full of life. He left behind a pregnant wife due to deliver their third child in the next few weeks and two other young children. I am still in shock. I hate thinking about it but it has once again served as a reminder that I need to refocus my life and my priorities.

As I helped my children hang the Christmas ornaments on our tree yesterday, my perspective changed. Rather than hurrying to "fix" what they had already hung to fill in spots that needed decorating, I just watched my kids faces as they helped with excitement. So, if you visit and think that my tree looks a little heavily decorated with ornaments on the bottom right side, you are right.

I think my dad summed it up earlier today when he wrote this: In perhaps my favorite novel, Chaim Potok's wise father, David Malter, says it this way,

"I learned a long time ago...that the blink of an eye in itself is nothing. But
the eye that blinks, that is something. A span of life is nothing. But the man who lives that span, he is something. He can fill that tiny span with meaning, so its quality is immeasurable though its quantity may be insignificant. A man must fill
his life with meaning, meaning is not automatically given to life. It is hard work to fill one's life with meaning."

The "meaning" of our life is worth pondering. My heart goes out to this young mother who is now left to raise three beautiful children on her own. How lucky we are to know and understand the plan of salvation. She will be reunited with her sweet husband someday. For now I like to think he is there preparing their unborn child to take care of his mother.

Happy Birthday Mr. Austin...THREE!!!

Love this little boy and love the we celbrated by putting a candle in a donut. He loves donuts and we love him equally as much. Happy #3 Austin!

Austin is THREE!

Happy Birthday to my handsome boy Austin. He is 3 today but if you ask him he will tell you he is 6. He makes us laugh every day with his funny comments and his stubborn acts. He loves doghnuts, pizza, rootbeer and anything sweet. He loves cars, balls, Dragon Tales, Brady & Easton, playing "monster" with his dad and hide and go seek with his siblings. He was my hardest baby but has been my most fun toddler! We love you Austin!

Rolling, rolling, rolling...

Sweet Summer has been rolling for a while but only back to front. I put her on the floor yesterday to play while I scrubbed a bathroom. I heard her crying and went to check on her and she had rolled across the room to my entry tile...about 3 feet from the top of the STAIRS! Time flies. Before I know it she will be crawling. Time to baby proof once again!

Cheeks!

Is it just me or are these cheeks super kissable!??!

Happy Halloween from the Hollands! The witch, the football player, the bunny and the creepy skeleton! The kids had a blast roaming the neighborhood filling their bags with way too many treats. The weather was actually quite warm this year - you just never know what Halloween in Utah might be like! Summer enjoyed a good nap in the stroller and Austin was in heaven just being with the "big boys". Crazy I have 4 little monsters to tote around this year!

October Tradition...kind of!

Welcome to Halloween in Utah where it is rarely warm and often snows just in time for the trick-or-treaters to be out! I love the seasons in Utah but hate that Halloween is usually a very cold and miserable holiday. I am kind of scrooge when it comes to Halloween anyway. I hate spending money on costumes and I hate buying candy. I like to eat candy but I don't like to have an endless supply around for myself and the kids to munch on. Does anyone dislike this holiday as much as I do?

We kept our October tradition this year and carved pumpkins. We usually get together at my parents house the Sunday before Halloween, but because we are a family full of coughs and runny noses we decided we would stay away from the twins and the new baby and invited our neighbors to join us instead. It was a really fun night and though I missed our usual tradition it worked out great and the kids loved it...which is the point, right? My mom, Kelsey and Wes came and joined in the fun which made the night almost as perfect as it would have been otherwise. The Gibson and Holland kiddos.
The Holland kids.
The Gibson kids.
Mr. Nick working hard on his pumpkin which ended up being two faced...happy and mad.I posted this picture just because. I think these two are pretty cute girls if you ask me...but then I might be a bit biased! :)

Thanks to the Gibson's for joining in the fun of pumpkin carving!

Fall Break Fun

With Tyler out of town and the kids out of school I decided to load the car and head to Logan for the weekend! The weather was PERFECT! We had a great time hanging out with Grandma & Grandpa Holland and the Cache Valley cousins. We went to the Heritage Center on Thursday afternoon and the kids had a ball riding horses, jumping in the haystacks, getting lost in the corn maze, going down the "big slide", enjoying ghost stories told by witches, and riding the train! It was well worth the $6.00 entrance fee! The view from the visitors center...it makes me miss Cache Valley...for a minute!
The kids and the goats. They spent 30 minutes petting all the nice smelling animals. The goats were their favorite!
A trip to the Heritage Center wouldn't be complete with out not ONE, not TWO but THREE rides on the train.

I think I will make a trip to Logan over Fall Break our new tradition. Cache County was out of school the week before so the Heritage Center was not busy at all. It was the perfect way to spend a few days having fun while dad was gone!

Welcome Baby LUKE!

Congrats to Sarah and Ryan on their newest addition! He made a quick entrance into the world early this morning and is just perfect. I have yet to meet him but LOVE this little guy already! Welcome to the world Luke!

Chubbiness and Drill Camp...

Summer had her 4 month appointment this week and it is official...SHE IS CHUBBY. She weighed in at a whopping 16 pounds 7 ounces which puts her in the 95%. I love each and every roll and think that chubby babies are the cutest! She HATES being on her stomach so she decided that she better learn how to roll those rolls. She smiles all of the time and is seriously the best baby ever. I am convinced that Heavenly Father decided that having three difficult babies was enough and so he sent me an angel. Love her!Since we no longer have any cheerleaders at MVHS we decided to switch gears and support the Lehi High School drill team. To say that Kylee loved it is an absolute understatement! She had a fabulous time and loved every thing about it. She performed at halftime of the LHS football game tonight and did great. She was pampered by the Paul Mitchell hair school girls before the game who did her hair in a very funky do. She was thrilled! A few of the cute neighbor girls attended the camp with her which made it even more fun. Go Pioneers!!! (Seriously, that has to be the lamest mascot ever!)

Lexi, Krishelle, Kylee and Emeri

Sleepy...

I love the look on a baby's face as they sleep. I often wonder what they are dreaming about that makes them look so peaceful. We are hoping that Aunt Sarah doesn't have a baby anytime soon because that means that we have to give back her favorite sleeping spot, the swing! Anyone have one I could borrow for a few months?

Fun with the buddies!

We had Brady and Easton over the play with Austin this week and it was a riot. They seriously had me laughing the whole time they were here. I fed them lunch (chicken nuggets) and they all enjoyed shredding them to pieces and throwing them at me. I asked them to put their shoes by the door so we would know where they were and I found them all nicely lined up. For some reason it made me giggle. We LOVE that these cute kids are back in Utah and enjoy the time we get to spend with them. We call them the triplets and these three together can make you laugh and make you cry - depending on how evil they decide to be when they are together! Thanks for playing buddies!

N (Nick's) F (Football) L (League)

So the NFL party went off without any major problems other than we were almost out of propane while trying to cook hotdogs for all the hungry mouths. It was the perfect day for a football party and the kids had a great time. We have great neighbors and Nick is surrounded by wonderful friends who came to help us celebrate big #6. Here are a few pictures... The cupcakes that are supposed to look like footballs...don't judge my decorating skill...Kelsey and I really tried hard! :)
Not the best shot but I thought this was a fun picture of all the kids that were there. I was tired after it was all said and done, wonder why?
Kelsey's boyfriend Wes taught the kids how "real football players" warm up. They all thought that it was pretty cool that Nick's "uncle" played football.

A day of HATE and LOVE...

I hate kids that are mean. I also hate knowing that it is possible that my kids are mean to other kids. I hate that I picked Kylee up from school today in tears because she didn't get invited to a birthday party of one of her friends as "punishment" for a fight they got in. I also hate having to hold her why she cries while trying to explain to her that sometimes things just don't go the way we want them to. I hate that I suddenly feel like a very overprotective mother who wanted to call the mother of the "birthday girl" and give her a piece of my mind. (Seriously, who passes out invitations at school anyway?) I hate that the world we live in today is evil and our kids have to deal with so much crap. I hate that I can't be at school with my kids to mediate every fight. I hate that this whole birthday party issue is bugging me so bad and has officially ruined my day. I hate feeling angry.

On the flip side.

I love my kids. I love that I was blessed with 2 boys and 2 girls with very different personalities. I love that my husband is a great dad and seems to fill in the gaps in our kids lives where I struggle. I love that Kylee has good friends that hopefully cancel out the bad ones. I love that we are surrounded by good neighbors and I have good friends that will listen to me when I need a sounding board. I love Kylee's teacher, Mrs. Davis, and think we are lucky she is in her class. I love that our house is a place of refuge for our kids from the evils of the world we live in. I love my Kylee and hope that she bounces back tomorrow and will try and be a better friend.

P.S.

Dear Obama,

Please don't make my kids be in school any more hours in the day than they already are. I need them home with me where I can love them, teach them, and protect them. That's what they need.

Sincerely,

Renee

Priceless...

Thanks to my mom for insisting we get a picture with G&G Hill with as many of the great grandkids as possible. As you can tell, it was not an easy picture to take but one that I will always be grateful for! We love G&G Hill and I am lucky that my kids KNOW who they are and have a relationship with them. I know that I will look back at these pictures someday and will able to remember wonderful stories with my kids!

Happy Birthday Nick Buddy!

My buddy Nick turned 6 today and what a day it has been! He has been so excited for his birthday that he woke up at 6:00 a.m. to open presents before Tyler left for work. He liked all of his gifts we got him but LOVES the NCAA basketball game we got him for the XBOX....it is almost 10:00 and I can hear Tyler and Nick taunting each other as they play downstairs. We love Nick and a grateful that he was "accidentally" sent to us just 13 months after Kylee. He makes me laugh daily and I LOVE looking into his blue eyes with his amazing eyelashes. He has always been my little buddy and I am lucky to be his mom! Happy Birthday Nick!

Rise and Shout...

It was so much fun to have all of the cousins in town last weekend and even more fun to try and take this picture! We are only missing one, Ms. Laila, who had the chickenpox. It was an adventure to get this picture but I LOVE IT! It is so fun to have them all together and so close in age. We will add 3 more to the Hill mix before Christmas and the picture taking will only get more crazy! Go Cougars!

Getting big...fast!

Looking at my kids you would never think they were chunky babies...they never start out large (except for Kylee) but all seem to have no problem gaining weight. Sweet Summer is no exception to that rule...she is getting big and so dang FAST! I love her chunkiness...all of it. It is frustrating to change diapers sometimes because there is so much skin to move around to make sure she is all cleaned up! I wouldn't have it any other way and LOVE her plump little figure!

Last Summer Fling...

Since the Kindergarteners start later than the rest of the Elementary School kids, Nick and I had a week to just have fun! Our new favorite hot spot is the "splash pad" in Highland. It is a shallow man made river with fountains that come out of the ground. The kids LOVE it and I LOVE it because it is free. We invited Nick's buddy Peyton to join us and they had a blast. Next week Nick will be gone every morning and I will miss my little buddy! Good thing I have two more kiddos still at home to keep me company!

Lucky Me...

Great eater. Great sleeper. Rarely cries. Smiles all the time. I love this baby girl.

And He's Off...

Here is what my cute Nick looked like on his first day of Kindergarten... handsome if I might say so myself. The morning went something like this:

Tyler: "Nick, I stayed home so I can go with you on your first day."

Nick: "Why?"

Tyler: "Well, it's your first day and I just thought you might like me to me there."

Nick: "Why?"

I would give anything for just a fraction of his independence to wear off on Kylee! I drove him to school and while driving explained what the routine would be... he would be dropped off at the curb, would run to the playground, listen for the whistle, line up with his class in front of his door and wait for his teacher to guide them in. My explanation was supposed to be for future days, not his first. We pulled into the parking lot and I parked. He opened the door, jumped out, said "Bye Mom" and was off! I quickly caught up to him, camera in hand, and told him I would walk him there on the first day. His response was, "Why?" Again, I love his independence but I needed my Kindergarten mom moment... no tears were shed because I feared that if I did cry he would just ask "Why?"

I am grateful that he is excited and hope that it lasts!!!

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Happy Birthday to our wonderful daddy! We are lucky you are our dad and hope you have a great day!

And She's Off...

I must admit that my heart sunk this morning as I waved goodbye to Kylee. I can't believe that she is in 2nd grade! I cried when she started Kindergarten and I almost lost it in the parking lot as I left the school today. She woke up at 4:30 this morning because she was too excited to sleep. The outfit has been on her bed since yesterday afternoon and for the first time in a long time she requested sleep earlier than normal. There have been days this summer that I have wished school would start so I could have MY space and MY time. This morning I realized that I wish I could just keep my kids in bubble for a bit longer. I went to pay her lunch money and realized that I had no checkbook so I walked back to her class to give her enough money for today's lunch...there she sat in her desk...ready to learn with her papers and school supplies nicely lined up in front of her. That's my Kylee. I love her and can't wait for the time to fly so I can hear all about her first day!