Iowa Winters

The winters here in Iowa can be BRUTAL!
There was one early morning when I was coming home from the gym when I noticed how beautiful it can be too!
There was ice on everything and it made it all look so amazing I had to go out and take some pictures.
I was armed with my heavy coat, some gloves, a hat, and some of these...
The Iowa winter essentials...

After a beauty like that we get can get hit with one of these...
Mountains of snow EVERYWHERE!
Everyone in our circle and everywhere else was snowed in for the day. We were at the mercy of the snow plows and even than, we weren't going anywhere. They just made the mountains higher and higher.

Can't wait for Spring!

Just chillin'

These three make me laugh!
Brady thinks he's "one of the guys" and usually his big brothers don't mind it.
We've caught them a couple times having some down time and squeezing little brother in the middle.
How cute is that!

Christmas 2010

Christmas was a huge hit again this year! (I would hope for nothing less)
The highlight was that this year we didn't have Landon and Chase coming into our room every hour all night long begging to open presents! We threatened them that if they came up stairs out of their room before the clock said 7:00 a.m. than they wouldn't get to open presents until noon. It worked! :) In fact, we were awake before them thinking they had been up all night waiting for the clock to strike 7, but they were fast asleep.
I LOVE spending Christmas with just my little family. I love all our families, but it's just something about waking up with your kids, opening presents and spending the rest of the day playing together and enjoying the day. In a few years when we finally move home I think I'll keep the tradition. Grandparents can come and see us!

Landon got everything he wanted this year... everything sports!
His football and BYU hat from Grandma Josh were some of the highlights.

Chase also got everything sports... we're raising boys here!
His highlight was definitely his Madden 2011 game for the Wii

Brady was so cute this year! For him it was all about the Dino's!
He LOVES Dinosaur Train so he got a few action figures from the show and a few other things.
He had so much fun in all the excitement!

Bryce got the boys a new hunting game for the Wii, but I'm not sure who he really bought it for...
He's logged WAY more playing time on that game than the two boys combined!

School Activities

These were some of the kids school activities before the Christmas Holiday...
Chase had a class party and here he is with his best bud from class, Jack. I here about Jack ALL the time! I think these two are ALWAYS together during school.

Lando had a school singing concert and this year they had all the students sit with their parents and we were given a sheet of paper with all the Christmas songs they had been singing so that we could sing along. It was so cute and I loved singing with Landon!

(Landon almost looks chubby in this picture, but let me reassure you... He's not!
He's the same skinny-minny you all remember.
His nick-name on his basketball team is BONES! )

New Hat

Thanks for the new hat Grammy!!!

Rub-a-Dub-Dub...

... Thanks for little BOYS in the tub!

Annual Haslem Christmas Party

The Haslem Christmas Party is always a good time. The kids all get to make Gingerbread houses that Grandma makes and there is ALWAYS a pinata... also one the Grandma makes.

This year the party happened to fall on the same day of the BYU vs. UTAH game... WOW.
I'm sure those of you who know the Haslem boys can only imagine the emotions (and language) flying through the household that day...
To relieve some of that pent up emotion and aggression they decided to let the kids take it out on the pinata...

Aunt Barb

My dad's little sister came to visit for a couple hours while she was in town one afternoon.
I LOVE my Aunt Barb and I LOVED having her visit.

Picture courtesy of Landon

Chase

Chase is such a cute kid. He is so loving and such a momma's boy and I wouldn't have it any other way. He is so shy, but so sweet!
He had a school program a couple weeks ago and did so amazing. He sang to all the songs and performed so well for someone who hates being the center of attention almost as much as I do.

Hallowen

This is SO overdue, but I have to catch up somewhere...

This is the annual picture on the front porch after we carve pumpkins.
We decided NOT to buy a kit this year with those ridiculously time consuming pictures you put on your pumpkins. Instead Bryce drew up his own ideas from what the boys wanted and these were the final result... GO HAWKEYES!

I helped out with Landon's class this year for his Halloween party.
This is him with some of his classmates in line playing a game.
His class had SO much candy it was ridiculous! I signed up to bring a treat and so I did, but I definitely didn't need too.
Here was the cute treat I made that took more time than was appreciated...


Later I stopped by Chase's class to snap a couple pics...

They made these cute Halloween bracelets...

Brady was the highlight of the Holiday.
He was SO dang cute with his little hawkeye helmet hat on and had SO much fun!
This wasn't his little green bucket... He kept stealing everyone's buckets at the ward party so I had to go and get him his own the following day.

This kid caught on very quickly that there was candy in those bowls.
He has a sweet tooth like his mother!

The joys of having two older brothers...
They have taught the little brother how funny it is to stick your finger up your nose.
Hence, the following picture...

Cutest Hawkeye Players on the block!

These Never Get Old...

Personalize funny videos and birthday eCards at JibJab!

Happy Halloween!

I have a cute countdown Halloween calendar that I fill with treats for the month of Oct.
(I know, I fill my calendar with candy. Like they need candy leading up to Halloween right?)
Those ugly teeth that are suckers on the end was one of the fun treats my older boys got one day. One of them left it where Little Man could reach it and I came downstairs knowing he was into something he shouldn't be and I found him with it in his mouth. The second he saw me he took off running knowing very well that I was going to take it away... but not before I got some cute pictures first. :)
Landon and I played around with some editing software and this picture was the final result.

We Got Ourselve a Little Football Player...

Chocolate Chip Cookies Are GOOD!

Field Trip to Honey Creek

I hate to admit it, but I'm not one who goes on every one of my kids field trips...
in fact, I rarely go. I am selfish, I would rather get my workout in at the gym than accompany a class to the fire station or grocery store or wherever else these they can think of to go.
I know, I am a horrible mother!
I will however pick to go on a few and the apple orchard sounded like one that might be a little more fun than some of the others. It was actually a great field trip and the owners did a great job explaining everything they do their to keep the place running and the kids all loved it.
We did start out on a hay tractor ride that about 2 minutes into it could have turned out much worse than it did. Something broke between the tractor and the wagon and we, on the wagon, were headed strait into the tractor. Luckily, it stopped quickly and the kids didn't seam too affected by it and were just bummed we couldn't finish the ride and that we had to walk back.

All the kids got to sample an apple from their very large refrigerator.

Listening to them explain how they keep bees on the property to help grow the apples and pumpkins, who knew?. All the kids got to taste some of the honey that they produce and they were all very interested in the bees.

Cute Kindergartners!

Pumpkin Patch

I went with a friend who has boys just the ages of Landon and Chase to a great pumpkin patch this year. The kids had SO much fun and we spent hours their letting them play and run around.
They had these huge hay bales is a row for a small maze for some of the younger kids, but all the older kids played on top of them and tried to just across form one to the other. I think they spent the most fun playing on those things! I couldn't get them to leave!

Landon and Evan play on the same football, basketball, and baseball team this year!
I have a feeling we are going to be seeing A LOT of him and his family this year.


Chase, Owen, Evan, and Landon
Cute boys!



Chase and Owen are the same age and this was the first time they played with one another.
They had so much fun!

Brady was treating every pumpkin like it was a ball. He kept trying to pick them up and when that didn't work he would roll or kick them.

Cutest little ghost I ever saw!