Sarah, you are a friend like no other. You push me, encourage me, challenge me, & inspire me. Thanks for skiing next to me in our first "Ski for Women" race!

bball girl

Ella completed her first year of basketball. She participated in an afterschool program at school in the fall and loved it so much that we signed her up for Valley Youth bball. It was so fun to watch her grow in her confidence & abilities on the court. Her coach was awesome and their team did really well. They only lost one game all season. Go girl!!

Healed little guy

It's been over a month, so you may be wondering what the Smith's have been up to. Here's a peak...

Not the best picture, but this is Thomas all smiles at Chuck E. Cheese in February. We learned that he is a 100% healthy little 3 year old so we had to celebrate! In December, he had a colonoscopy & biopsies done to try & see why he develops abscesses. The doctor really thought he may have Crohn's disease, but everything came back clear. Then, the biopsies were sent to lab and they came back clear as well. The final step, was to do thorough allergy testing. That all came back clear as well! Those tests also revealed that he is no longer allergic to dairy products. The medical community can't explain it, but we are confidant that God healed this little guy's body...Thank you Jesus!

double digits

Last month, my first born entered the world of double digits. Ella is 10! Wow. What a beautiful young girl she's growing up to be. We spent her birthday morning at AIC as she had strep throat, so that wasn't the most fun she's ever had on a birthday. She had planned on "delaying her birthday" this year anyway and celebrating this summer, so at least we didn't have to postpone a party...I made her bday requested dinner of Grandma's noodles, chicken & potatoes & we took turns telling her what we loved about her. She's a keeper, for sure!

to all of Ella's far-away friends & family

Common sites at our house...Dishes, moose & kids playing outside! Here, Owen is watching a moose as I wash dishes & the kids are playing outside in the dark with friends.

Ella's class has been studying Alaska this year. Here is one of her recent writings...

Alaska

The best thing about living in Alaska is all the boating and fishing.

The bad thing about living in Alaska is sometimes it is too cold to do a lot of that.

The good thing about living in Alaska is there is not a lot of daylight in the winter so you can go to sleep easily.

The bad thing about Alaska is there's a whole lot of daylight in the summer so it is hard to go to sleep.

The worse thing about Alaska is the cold weather.

One thing that is good about when it is really cold, you don't sweat or get too warm.

A great thing about Alaska is we get a whole lot of snow.

The not so good thing about snow is when it gets warm and the snow turns to ice.

The great thing about Alaska is all the animals you kill and fill your freezer with.

The bad thing about living in Alaska is the animals like moose are so big they fill your whole entire freezer.

Another good thing about Alaska is in the summer there is a lot of daylight to see all the amazing scenery.

The bad thing about Alaska is you can't see all the beautiful sites in the winter because...it is so dark.

The good thing about Alaska is, I live here!

The bad thing about Alaska is you don't.

So what are you waiting for? Why don't you come and join me!

My T's are flying!

This morning, Tom & Thomas left for Minnesota. They are flying to Minneapolis and then driving to Iowa to spend time with Great Grandma Freida and Great Grandma Darlene. Grandma Sheryl will pick them up from the airport and do the "Iowa Tour" with them. They will end their adventure with some time with all four grandparents....my parents & Tom's. What a special time for the two of them! Tom took both Ella and Claire on a trip to Minnesota when they were this age. LOVE that he does this with his 3 year olds! My one on one time with just Owen this morning was sweet, & I enjoyed not being a "referee" or having to break up fights between the two boys! The house will definitely be quieter without these two around for 9 days... I think I miss them already:)

christmas yum

Noodles drying

Food is such a big part of the Holidays and there are certain things we look forward to enjoying all year long. The girls and I made rosettes & krum kake this year. I can't tell you how happy it made my heart to have my girls by my side rolling & frying just like I did as a little girl with my momma! Unfortunately, I have no pictures of this...next year! And then there's the Norwegian wedding cake....can't remember what it's called. Didn't make this, but enjoyed it at Steve & Marla's at their Norwegian dinner. And lobster....Tom's family tradition for Christmas. How do you stop a tradition like this?:) Then there are caramels from Grandma Sheryl. When I asked Claire what she wanted for Christmas from Gr'ma Sheryl & Gramps Tom, without hesitation she said, "caramels! Grandma's caramels!" We now have a bag of caramels in the fridge that say, "For Claire ONLY." I really should make these for Claire, but never have. Maybe next year! And finally...the grande finale......Grandma Freida's noodles. I successfully made...FROM SCRATCH...Great Grandma Freida's homemade noodles this year for the first time ever. I watched her make them two years ago and scratched down a "recipe" if you could call it that, but have been afraid to try making them until now. After two phone calls to Grandma, we sat down to enjoy a meal that made us all miss home. Both girls said, "It smells like Grandma's house in here!" as the noodles were cooking. Ah...the sweet smells of Christmas.