January

We're getting into the swing of things now!
We took the little boys to the zoo on a sunny, balmy Saturday in Houston and thought of our family cuddled in blankets up North and wished they could come down here and join us!
Benson wasn't ready to venture into the groundhog tunnels alone so I gracefully joined him.
Peanut butter playdough!
Benson's 2nd birthday party x 2! We had two jungle safari's to celebrate Benson this year! We parachuted into our base camp, crossed crocodile filled ponds, sifted through vines, hunted animals in the dark night, ventured into a bat cave, and made it safely back to camp for Tiger and Elephant cake and ice craem. Benson is a delightful little boy who brings smiles and laughter into our home everyday! We love him!

December

December was filled with family and Christmas! We welcomed Spence and got to know this sweet little boy.

Benson helped Daniel set up the Christmas tree and get ready for the holidays since I was spending a lot of time with Spence. I had my first piano recital for my students at our home so Daniel and Benson put together all the Christmas decorations in time for that! The kids all did a great job and it turned out to be a really nice little recital...but I didn't take any pictures. :( So, you get a picture of an undecorated tree!

Mom and Dad came to help us out for a couple weeks while we adjusted to life with two little boys! Benson adores his Grandpa! They are kindred spirits with a couple generations between them.

We had a fun Christmas in Ohio with the Watkins family! Traveling with a one month old went surprising well. It was the almost two year old that we had the issues with! As soon as we parked the car at the airport (we hadn't stepped out yet) Benson threw up over everything. We frantically cleaned him, the carseat, the car, the clothes...and rushed to catch our plane. It was a bad start to a great vacation.

In our nativity this year Daniel was the wiseman and Allison was "Virginia" Mary!

We brought Spain to us complete with luminarias, flamenco dancing, nativities...

Spencer's blessing day! We are sure grateful to have him in our family! We love you Spence!

Spence had his first bath! He loved it!

And we enjoyed some more Spence!

Much to be thankful for...

Check out the great form on his follow through. He makes his daddy very proud.

In shorts and t-shirt on Santa's lap--a true Texan!

Welcome Spencer Wayne Foster!

Spencer Wayne Foster joined our family on Tuesday, November 23rd--just in time for Thanksgiving. A few weeks ago I had some signs of decreased liver function due to the hormones of pregnancy which worsened as due date neared. So on Monday it was decided that being induced a little early would be the best choice for the baby. That night I checked into the hospital to prepare for induction the next morning. 4 hours after receiving pitocin (and just a few minutes after the epidural kicked in) baby Spencer was born. He was 8 pounds 10 ounces and 21 inches long. His head was 14 inches around--lots of brains! We were discharged a day early so we could be home for Thanksgiving. Spencer is a beautiful baby boy who looks just like his Dad. He has a broad chest and long feet and toes. We think he'll be another blondy. He is a cuddly little guy who just likes to be held and has a hearty appetite. We love him!

Fall Fun

A couple wonderful friends (pictured above) threw a baby shower for me and my little guy on the way--he will have a name soon, I promise. It was beautiful and lots of fun thanks to lots of good friends! We can't wait to welcome our new addition in the next few weeks!

We were the Potato Head Family for Halloween. Mr. Potato Head did recover his other eyeball by the end of trunk-or-treat.

But he was also all mixed up. Luckily Ian Larson was quick to point out his problem and helped him fix it. Thank goodness for little boys!

The cutest little Mr. Potato Head Jr.! He was very good at taking off his facial features. I was lucky to get this picture with them all on. As we went from trunk to trunk Benson would point out every pumpkin he could find. It was more like a seek and find for him. When people tried to put candy in his bucket he'd hide the bucket behind his back. :) Eventually he got the hang of it and really enjoyed catching candy in his bucket.

A Trolley Ride through the Woodlands with great friends. Benson has the back of his head towards me--surprise!

Benson with his friend Lily. Benson shows his love for his friend by stomping in the water right by her side and splashing mud all over her. Luckily Lily doesn't mind but I think a few years from now she will so we'll work with Benson on his love languages. Squinty-eyed boy with his sand pail.
Good friends and mud--life doesn't get much better than this!
Riding the carousel with Dad and waving to picture happy mom.
One more great joy in life...ABCs. His little ABC dance is my favorite! Too bad he gets distracted by the camera so easily--if only we could catch all his funny moments.

Utah/Idaho Vacation

We escaped Houston's August heat and headed up to the mountains to visit friends and family a few weeks ago! It was wonderful! My pictures are in backwards chronological order but I'll just tell the story backwards.

On Monday night several Long family members had dinner at the Vandegrifts since Tricia was in town and we crashed the beginning of their party. Benson spent his time chasing their new little puppies and playing basketball with Grandpa Long.

We saw Carter for just a few minutes but snapped a picture to compare these two boys to a picture we have of them and Orry a year ago. Look how much these boys have grown! We stopped by Grandma Foster's place and visited for a little while. Grandma Foster found some cool matchbox cars for Benson and he plays with the buses all the time now! Tricia, Brittany, and her friend came by at the end. We were so glad we crossed paths with Tricia as she heads up to BYU-I this fall.

We spent the weekend at the Erickson family reunion just outside Yellowstone. We stayed at a girl's camp up there. It was really fun! We ate lots of yummy food, caught up with family, went 4-wheeling to Sheep Falls, canoeing at Horseshoe Lake--hijacked Holly and Hal's boat :), played games, sang songs, performed skits, and spent a good portion of the time chasing Benson around the camp! Here we are at a quick stop we made after canoeing to see Cascade Falls!

Benson is helping Grandma down the path! Here are the 4-wheeler folk beginning their adventure. Their skin and clothes were a few shades darker when they returned from their trip.

Friday night we played Minute to Win It around the campfire. With a couple exchanges and minor rule changes throughout the evening Watkins family did represent! :) Here Hal and Holly (hiding behind the cup) were stringing penne onto spaghetti noodles. Hal advanced but this was Holly's exit point--her spaghetti noodle broke as she lifted the last penne noodle.

Benny stayed up way past bedtime to enjoy the campfire fun and slept like a rock each night! He has our campsong book in hand ready to sing.

We stopped by Logan on Friday morning and were able to see a few folks from the Watkins side. We swung by Alisa's place on our way in and saw little Carter! Adorable! We visited with Grandma and Grandpa Watkins and caught the Scotts and Suey working out back.

Uncle Bob created this perfect picture taking oasis! Isn't it beautiful! Benson thought it was the greatest jungle gym and the Scott boys showed him how to hop from rock to rock.

Grandpa and Benson stopped for a minute to swing out back! I spent many years playing on that swing set when I was little. It's fun to see Benson enjoying it now.

We were able to get a 4 generation photo! I come from great stock!

Our first few days in town we went to Education Week at BYU. It was wonderful nourishment! I attended some great classes and loved sitting next to family while learning! We don't get to do that much these days now that we're spread across the nation. Benson was such a trooper through these long days and everyone pitched in and took turns sitting out of classes to have some quality time with him! I was so spoiled and so was Benson!

Our first day we took a break at lunch and met up with college roommates for lunch at Kiwanis Park. Tay, Laura, Ash and their babies all came to play! (We got to see Bryce for a few minutes too!) It was fun to meet their little babies and catch up with them. We miss them!

And this was the first time Benson was able to see both his Grandma's at the same time! We had to snap a picture!