What in the world have we been up to???

Well. Good question! I've just been in a blogging funk, I guess. This may end up being a massive recap of the who-what-when-where-why I've missed over the last bit.

My youngest sister Brittney moved in mid-August with her dachshund doggie Scarlett. Britt has one year left of dental hygiene school and her husband Jesse just went off to California to start his first year of podiatry school so she's staying with us til she graduates in May.

We got a new kitchen table. The kids help us put together the 8 chairs. Blake thoroughly enjoyed being able to use a power drill!
This past Sunday, after conference was over, we took our little family to visit grandpa LeBaron. Unfortunately, over the last couple months, his health has really started to decline and he has been in a care home for a few weeks. It's hard to see those you love get older, but I'm so glad we took the kids to see him. We even came at just the right time because they got to enjoy popsicles with Grandpa!! :)

I've been busy growing a human, the end. I'm going to do a more detailed blog on that next because it deserves a post all on its own. :)I think busy would be an understatement for Matt. We're both still trying to adjust to his calling in the bishopric. Weekends are hard because he often has commitments on Saturday, then puts in 12 hour days at the church on Sunday. Last weekend was heavenly because it was General Conference and we got him to ourselves BOTH DAYS! I think he is becoming more comfortable in his calling and I love seeing him learn and grow as a person through the experiences he is able to have. Work is still going well. Matt is helping with training at another office so that has meant a few long days recently. Last weekend, Matt was on the local news again, talking about vision. The kids love seeing daddy on tv! Here's the clip-

Brooklyn was long overdue for a new pair of glasses; imagine that, being the child of an optometrist!!! Matt's office doesn't have an optical so we have to go way out of the way to get glasses. Thanks to Rosalie at the Tempe office for helping us pick out her new specs!This feather-in-the-hair is a fashion trend that is hot right now and Brooklyn has been dying to be a part of the trend. So this week, we went to our hair girl and got a feather in her hair. She loves it and I think it makes her feel hip and cool. :)Yesterday, she accidentally got her hand smashed in suburban door while being picked up from school - yikes! I wasn't sure if her fingers were broken because they instantly bruised and started swelling, but we just kept them on ice and an hour later, she could bend them just fine, thank goodness. Her first two fingers got it the worst (around her knuckles), you can see it here in this picture...Brooklyn still is taking two dance classes a week and just moved up to beg/int jazz, so she has the same teacher for both ballet and jazz. This girl can't get enough of books, especially books that are full of facts. She picked a National Geographic "Strange But True" book at the school book fair and peppered us with random weird facts for days and days! She still likes regular chapter books too and reads several of them at a time. She is currently working on Ramona the Brave by Beverly Cleary. I think I'm all to blame for my kids being soooo into books!! ;) She got all A's & O's on her 1st grading period report card and her teacher adores having her in class. She says she can just SEE Brooklyn soaking in the information and can tell she wants more!

Blake, ah Blake. I don't think I ever mentioned this here, but Blake was officially diagnosed with ADHD combined type (both hyperactivity and inattentiveness) back in May. We started him on medication and let me tell you, it has made a WORLD of a difference!!! His overall demeanor has improved and although we still have a few struggles here and there, I think we made the right decision. We just had parent/teacher conferences last week and his teacher said his behavior in class has been wonderful (which is a huge improvement from last year) and if she didn't KNOW he had ADHD, she'd never know. We've been working on a reward system here at home for good behavior at school and he really responds well to that. Luckily, we've be blessed for Blake to be matched with good teachers that are a perfect fit for his personality.

Blake also has really started to pick up with reading. Before, it was kind of hit or miss and he'd read for his homework requirement then be done, but I've had to start teasing him a bit that I'll have to ground him if he doesn't STOP reading! haha He read several of the Chronicles of Narnia books (the ones we own) and has moved on to 39 Clues series.

Blake continues to move forward in karate. His mind is very quick and he is excellent at memorizing the steps and sequences to the techniques he has to master in karate. I can't believe it's been over 2 years since he started! Yesterday, he tested for his blue belt and passed! It was fun to be able to have the WHOLE family there to watch, including Daddy and aunt Brittney. :)

Fun photo shoot with mom-

Gavin is doing well in kindergarten. He is picking up quickly on phonics and math. I sit with him at the table each day while he does his homework and I'm impressed with his handwriting. He seems to be following Brooklyn's footsteps in that he is very much a people-pleaser and wants to do everything just right. He has asked several times if his kindy teacher can come over to play at our house!!! LOL! I love the time that we have together after Preston goes down for his nap and we snuggle on the couch and read library books together each afternoon.

{pic from 3rd week of school}

Gavin has quite the appetite these days and is constantly asking if he can having something to eat. The other day after dinner, I asked him if he wanted some dessert and he said, "No, can I just have an apple or something?" Cute kid!Preston is getting old. He's just looking/acting old these days!! The closer I get to having this little baby, the more I realize that Preston is not a baby any more. He never stops jibber-jabbering and says the most RANDOM and funny things. I wish I was better about jotting them down on a daily basis. :\ He loves playing games on my phone (the few that I have) and can get to them all on his own! Angry birds, Ant Smasher or Bubble Blast, take your pick!

First shiner, courtesy of big brother Gavin. In it's healing stages here --> His new morning routines includes watching "Misses Street" (aka: Sesame Street) after the kids leave for school, with a bowl of blueberries and sippy of milk. We've also started going to library storytime weekly and he really loves it and looks forward to our little Mommy/Preston time. I'm enjoying outings with my little sidekick as much as I can before he has to share me with baby sister!