Ruby is TWELVE!

Ruby turned 12! I can't believe my baby is 12! She is such a fun kid. At twelve, she is always making lists of goals she wants to accomplish, and when I find them around the house I really love it when they say things like, "spend thirty minutes playing with Betsey every day". They include things like, "don't be nasty", "read the scriptures daily", etc. I love her good heart full of desires to be her best self. Ruby is a talented swimmer and works out often as much as five times a week, swimming miles each work out. She doesn't love to compete so we don't usually sign up for the meets, but she is competitive with her teammates at practice. She does not like being passed. Ruby works really hard at gymnastics skills as well, and is in the most advanced class offered at the local YMCA. She can do back handsprings, kips, and other things I don't know the names of. She loves her friends from her gym class and especially her coach, who never cares if Ruby is even officially registered for the class. She lets her come pretty much as often as she wants when the new rule is once a week when registered. Teacher's pet. Ruby is a good friend but she would rather be with her one best friend, Kiley, than any group of other friends. She prefers to focus on friends and give them her undivided attention and quality time. She is smart, she loves to write and is very good at creating interesting characters and plots. She a natural speller and is interested in the science and learning about nature, animals and the world around her. Ruby is obsessed with music. She spends lots of time on Spotify tracking down songs she likes and memorizing the lyrics. She is actually a good little rapper and enjoys songs with fast lyrics like that so she can keep up with the artist. Ruby is a dedicated piano player as well as a horse lover...if given the choice between gymnastics, or mucking a horse stall, she'd much the stall just to be close to the horses.

For her birthday, we had her friends over for a makeover party. We had an esthetician come do facials for each girl and while she was working on that we did non-professional hair and nails. It was fun. At the end, the pro did simple makeup on Ruby and taught the girls about good skin and hair care and how to apply makeup. We ended up with a crazy photoshoot.

Kaisa has known Ruby from church for about five years.

Ella Reed was Ruby's first friends when we moved to our current house eight years ago.

We were happy that cousin Sarah could come to the party at the last minute with my mom!

Oh, we had to host the party at the Bushnell house because they were out of town and had so nicely allowed us to use their home while they were gone since our kitchen was all taped and masked off and they were painting with really intensely fumey paints. So we discovered that day that the process wasn't yet done and we ended up asking if we could not only use their kitchen for our family but if we could host a huge birthday party too. They are so good to us!

This is Ruby's "bae". Her best, best friend, Kiley. They have known each other since they were six months old and we just moved into our first house in Puyallup. Reading their Instagram posts about their best friendship is one of the highlights of my adult life. It is so much fun having a girl this age.

The homeschool girls....

The church friends...

Kiley

Reina and Brooklyn being crazy.

Brooklyn moved into our ward like three years ago and is a fun friend for Ru.

Ruby has known this Kiley since she was probably only two or three years old...again, from the old house in Puyallup.

Reina is a fun girl that moved into our ward just like a year ago.

At church when you turn twelve it is a big huge deal because you graduate from primary. Tear. So The next organization of youth is 12-18 called "Young Women" and they came and kidnapped Ruby from primary (I cried, so did Ruby) and it was super emotional and sweet and exciting all at once.

We celebrated Ruby's birthday at my folks' house the day after thanksgiving.

Super cute scarves from Sarah's family.

My mom made her a candy bar card and she bought the supplies and made a nice quilt with Ruby which wasn't quite done yet so we didn't get pics of it yet.

I was so happy that my grandparents could be with us to celebrate, they have been sunbirds for a very long time and we haven't seen them during the month of November in decades.

Alice's Happy Ninth Birthday!

For Alice's 9th Birthday we had a fun Saturday just for her. We went to the pumpkin patch first, then off to Trampoline Nation for a few hours and then to California Pizza Kitchen (her very favorite where everyone in my family besides me literally orders a pizza with JUST PEPPERONI) where my folks met up with us. Alice and my mom made a quilt together for Alice's birthday. My mom took her shopping for the fabric and then they cut and sewed and Alice actually did a ton of the work herself while I was in Hawaii and she was at my mom's. She loves it so much. She learned so much she even knows how to load a bobbin and thread the machine now. I was impressed!

Grandma and Grandpa Pierce got Alice a used bookstore certificate and it's amazing how those places work. She got so many great books for such a great price and we had a great time there together. 

Alice is such a rare girl. She is without guile. She is pure, kind, sensitive, well-intending, innocent, easy to please, thankful and smart. She is a whiz at putting things together, building things and understanding how they work. She is not one to be the center of attention but she is willing to try new things and challenge herself and she doesn't feel bad when she does her best even if the results aren't what she'd hoped. She is very tender with Leo and really works hard to be his favorite by answering his every wish. She loves dogs and riding bikes, and rollerblading. She loves gymnastics and swimming. I love her presence in our family.

Leo is ONE! (And I am 37)...

I love this little man. So. Much. However, he isn't always that easy to hang out with all day, every day because he isn't that happy. I sometimes wonder what is wrong with him, but then all it takes to have the happy guy emerge is a change of environment...usually a change to a new place, he doesn't like the same old thing all the time. Leo thrills us with his progress. The girls and I literally watch his every move. He isn't walking, he pulls up to standing, but doesn't' really even walk along the furniture yet. He is very offended by the possibility of spending time with any other humans more than just his five family members. Like he screams and cries and wails passionately even ten minutes after being left with anyone other than the five of us. He prefers daddy to EVERYONE else and giggles when he hears Chris's voice at the end of the day. He. Just. Loves. His. Dad. A lot. He is a good sleeper but isn't a random sleeper, he only sleeps in his bed. 

 Anyway, for his (our) birthdays we went away for two nights to stay in Port Townsend. We invited my parents to join us and it was a fun little celebration. BUT before we could go, I had to get him the one year old big boy haircut I had been awaiting. 

Let's just say that the last place in the world that Leo wants to be is the new environment of the local Kids Cuts. No toys, cool chair, candy, animal cracker could distract this kid from sheer horror as the kind lady worked her shears around his head. It got painful enough to witness that I seriously didn't even care if the cut was finished. I just wanted him out of his misery. This is a big reason why his first cut was very full of choppy, uneven cuts. 

All ADORABLE and safe and sound in sissy's arms. 

Seriously, this kid is so darn cute, and look at Ruby with her lipless Pierce smile that I have come to adore so much.

A highlight for me this weekend was going a second time to the Olympic Game Farm in Sequim. It is seriously one of my most favorite things to do as a family. It is a game farm where the animals can walk up to your car, and it is a riot every time. We parked my parents' car at the entrance so we could all experience it together and it was so much fun. Due to driving 1 mph around the farm, Leo got to try his hand at driving.

At the overlook, before you enter the free range area...Betsey and Opa.

It is so crazy what goes on at this place!

I've never been so close to a bald eagle before!

These bears are in contained areas, and they don't seem scary at all, but this yawn sure makes this guy look fierce.

So close! Chris was a scaredy cat and kept rolling the window up when they got close.

Betsey looking at the animals...jut the shot I wanted...

Oh! She noticed I was taking a pic and that cute poser came out. I can hardly remember the time when she wouldn't let me take a picture of her for anything.

HELLO!

The condos are on the water at Discovery Bay and they have a nice dock in the condo timeshare. It was fun for the kids to go exploring down there and they did find some great sea creatures...

 Are you impressed? I'm impressed! How did they do that!?

 Daddy cuddles.

 Opa feeding Leo breakfast...which is a pouch of pureed fruits and veggies and Leo's favorite thing in the world. Seriously, he loves these pouches so, so much. It's like his bottle...like it is a comfort to him or something.

 Are other babies this cute? If they are, I haven't ever noticed. He is killing me with those daddy eyes. 

The view from our condo.

My little birthday boy with his presents. I didn't get him anything because he doesn't NEED or WANT anything. I figure this way, stuff will come up this year as he will change and do so much before he turns two and I can get him things he really does want/need then. My mom got him some beach toys for our summer at the beach...

He liked his beach toys! I love his little claps!

He looked like he was trying to blow that candle out...but he was really just preparing to grab at it.

Cake smashing...or just Safeway cupcake eating...we don't have a kitchen currently do to the remodel so it wasn't the usual homemade cake first birthday scenario.

He loved it. Was so happy!

Joy!

Bathtime!!!

So of course there was a birthday celebration for me too. I have some good people who love me because I didn't ask for anything or think it really mattered that we focused on the big first for Leo. So anyway, first, Chris had a gift for me that blew my mind. Like ten years ago, this image was on the cover of the adult magazine for our church, The Ensign. I loved it. I'm not really an art person like some are...so for me, there is art that speaks to me and art that doesn't speak to me really doesn't affect me generally. Anyway, so this strong reaction to this painting wasn't usual and hasn't ever repeated. It is a painting of Adam and Eve with Cain. When I first saw it I thought it was more of a nativity painting but the artist set me straight. I contacted the artist, Jay Bryant Ward and asked how I could buy a lithograph or canvas or SOMETHING of this painting. Well he told me the original was sold (of course for thousands of dollars) and that he hadn't had any replicas created in any price range. I told Chris about this and hoped someday it would change and be available, but honestly, I never even gave another thought to contacting the artist although the painting never left my mind. Somehow, Chris never forgot this and has even tried over the years to see about getting me a replica. This time when he contacted the artist (guys, who are reading...okay there are none...), he actually offered several options!! So when I opened this painting I was really shocked and impressed. It is a beautiful framed canvas signed by the artist who Chris contacted directly. I love it and I love Chris for being so thoughtful and thorough.

 My mom made me some really, really yummy chocolate lava cake which I have to say is the best thing ever. 

On our actual birthday...which was Sunday, the day we left our condo, it was time to go to Jeff's house and attend his ward to be with their family as Isaac was blessed. It was well timed because we were a short ferry ride away from their house on Whidbey Island.

Leo: You and I will have a picture like this for all of our birthdays that we are together. 

 He liked the ferry.

 Rubs.

 I live in a ridiculously beautiful place. It is so pretty that you don't become desensitized to it. I just gawk after all these years and all the beauty being always all around me...it never gets old or boring.

 More birthday kid selfies.

 Oh how I love these kiddos. Leo is so lucky to have these two constantly adoring him.

 We had ALL the cousins present for this event...and they like to sit together...and they like to chat and laugh and rile each other up. I loved sitting behind the bulk of them.

 I walked outside and Chis was walking with Molly on one leg, Betsey on the other and Addy up in the air. He is definitely one of the more hands on, playful in a big way men I have ever known and the neices and nephews all look forward to time around him. I didn't get the camera out fast enough to get it all at the right moment before Molly got up but it was cute.

 Leo and Isaac will someday look the same age and be best friends! On this day, Leo really just wanted to pull and tug at Isaac so I had to keep him at bay.

 Reeeeaaaacchh!!

 I was so happy that my cousin Jimmy and his wife and four boys came to the event. It is so good to catch up with him and his kids are always a fun addition according to my kids. 

More crazy beauty. No edits.