January

Well on New Year's Eve it dumped snow all day on us, more snow that this valley has seen in lots of years. The kids had so much fun playing in it for days. Unfortunately since we don't get snow often, we don't have the right equipment and the kids got wet and cold quickly. But it was fun, and novel, and especially great that their dad was home the next day to play with them in it.

Addie turned 8 last weekend. Really it is crazy to me that it is possible that I have a child old enough to get baptized. We love Addie and we are so lucky we get to have her in our family. She is such a great helper and good big sister. She is sweet and sensitive to others feelings and to the spirit. Addie is also very intelligent and loves to read and think deeply about things. She is becoming a really great writer too. She learned about segregation in school and she has been thinking a lot about it. She woke up the other night in the middle of the night crying and said she had a bad dream that segregation was back. I asked her why that was scary for her in the dream, she said that she felt so sad for the African Americans and how they were treated badly. 

She had a great birthday. We just did a family party, but she got to go to dance in the morning and swimming and to dinner in the evening. Jackson's favorite part was and still is days later, Addie's birthday balloon. He is obsessed with it and holds it every second of the day. If he can't find it, he is constantly asking where it is. 

just eating breakfast with a balloon in hand....

                                              

Jackson went upstairs and was really quiet (which is usually bad), so I ran up stairs to find out what he was getting into and came around the corner and he was laying in the middle of the hall like this. Too cute.