Ninja, Witch, Cowgirl, Butterfly

 Oh man, these kids!!! I could not possibly love them more!  Does every mom feel this much crazy mad, adoring, out of control, squish 'em to death love!

It was the perfect Halloween night with this crew!

We all marveled at these cute, sweet kiddos, and how blessed we all are to have this fun bunch.  

Love them all!

Surviving Zombies!

Here's a little taste of what our 9th Annual Halloween Bash looked like:

 Previous years seen here:

2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015

Playing Hooky

The kids have had perfect attendance at school thus far this year and so when Ryan had a rare day off- we decided everyone was getting the day off!

We surprised the kids that morning as they were getting ready for school and told them we were off for the zoo not school!  So glad we did it- it was the perfect zoo day- cooler weather and playful animals made for lots of fun experiences!

We headed straight to the giraffes to get to feed them before they got too full from all the other guest.

  They were waiting for us and hungry!

Emee was all in until one actually decided to come eat her lettuce leaf; then she couldn't pull her hand away fast enough.  

Brynlee roared at the Lions

Sat and watched this guy for a while- he was defending his territory from one of the new zoo keepers who was around- it was quite funny to see.

I wish this picture wasn't so dark.  Gorilla crazy eyes!  This guy was pretty entertaining!

The Nile Crocodile- with his mouth wide open!

Emee and this guy were quite interested in one another- lots of glass kissing went on ... I wonder where Emee's cold came from the next day- haha.  

Being cougars, wearing cougars, in front of cougars :)

Sometimes you just need a day at the zoo.

Spunk

She's got it!

Anderson Family Photos (Summer 2016)

 I'm so blessed to have married into such a wonderful, fun, charismatic family!

AND especially blessed to have this guy:

and together we are SO incredibly blessed with these munchkins!

Not a day goes by that I don't think about how blessed I am to have these kids.  To be their momma and to feel the love I feel from family!

Family is the Center of Life. It is the Key to Eternal Happiness! -L Tom Perry

CARRIE!

It been the year of Country Concerts around here.  First with Swift, then Brooks, and finally Underwood!

All of the concerts were super fun and entertaining, but Carrie is definitely the best!  Wow- this girl is SO talented and her voice is absolutely amazing!!  All the songs she sang were vocal powerhouses and I have no idea how she sings them night after night with such intensity!  

Thanks for a spectacular night!

Now it might be time for a break from concerts, although I'd still love to see Keith Urban and Tim McGraw- hint hint! 

Good-bye Gigi

A few Sundays ago our last rat passed away.  Maycee made her a beautiful note and we taped it to the top of a box, wrapped Gigi in a small blanket Maycee cut from some of her sewing cloth, and buried her in the backyard right next to Diego.  It's been an interesting experience with our first pets. Who knew one could come to love a rat!  They gave us some opportunities to teach our kids many things- caring for something, responsibility, and also about life and death and blessings.
Right after we finished with the grave site, a pretty butterfly fluttered right over the top.  Ryan reminded Maycee of how she'd drawn butterfly's on Gigi's box. I told Maycee it must have been Heavenly Father's way of letting us know that Gigi was ok and happy. 

Fun Run 2016

Truth:  I not a fan of the Apex Fun Run fundraiser (the begging and bribery for pledges, the wasted money on silly toys and silly people to put on the fun run, the fact that the school only gets a small percentage of the money raised...etc.)   

BUT   

I am a HUGE fan of my kids!!!  

I love watching their excitement in competing and accomplishing a goal!  They are definitely fighters and give it their all.  

Way to go Jase!

Go for it Maycee girl!!