Happy Birthday Donovin!
Donovin was so excited for his birthday this year. He started off the day opening his presents, then he pretty much put together his presents (Legos) for the rest of the afternoon until it was time for his birthday barbeque. We invited over a few friends and Tyler's sister and her family were visiting from Utah. Tyler did not want this to be your typical BBQ, so he came up with a special menu of "Sargent Vinny's Boot Camp Burgers". The most popular was "The Widow Maker" which consisted of a fat patty sandwiched between two bacon grilled cheese melts with a fried egg, American cheese and jalapenos. Very manly. The only thing Donovin wanted to make sure the BBQ included was lots and lots of fruit, his favorite food!!! We had a GIANT fruit salad and that is all Donovin ate for dinner. Two giant plates full of fruit.



He was very happy to get this GI Joe jet. Tyler said he had one just like it when he was Vinny's age. Hmmm... who did you buy that jet for Tyler?




Donovin was really excited to share a birthday treat with his Kinder class.




I tried to make some cool cupcakes for Vinny, but like usual, my attempt to make professional looking baked goods failed miserably. But, oh well...
At least the other birthday cake which I did get at a bakery looked and tasted great.

Things to remember about Donovin at age 6:
He is a giant flirt
He talks about who he is going to marry. The other day he said in the car to Halle, "I have given up on M (his current girlfriend). R is prettier and she laughs at my jokes."
His favorite color is orange
He is very funny, our little comedian
He loves to startle people
He is kind, caring, loving, snugly and a great big brother.
He wants to watch Jaws when he is old enough. He is really into sharks.
He still loves to eat!!!
He stopped sucking his thumb because he is six now and "only babies such their thumbs"
He LOVES building things, especially Legos and Lincoln Logs.
He is a very independent learner. He does not want help putting things together, or help with reading words. And he always figures it out on his own.
He loves sharing stories and songs and what he has learned at school.

There are so many other things. I could go on and on, but these are the things that stick out the most.
Happy Birthday Vinny! We love you so much and hope you have another great year!

Oh Lolin...

It was one of those moments when you think to yourself..."It has been really quiet for awhile..oh no!" Yep, despite the many, many, many times I have asked this sweet little girl not to touch mommy's make up, she decided to try on some mascara one Sunday morning. I had to get a picture. A couple of days before a similar situation happened, only that time I caught her right before she put a sixth piece of strawberry Orbit gum in her mouth. She had eaten the other five. BTW, don't worry if your child swallows a wad of gum. It will pass through their system just fine. I called the doctor's office just to make sure.

Week one

I always want to capture the essence of a new born each time a baby comes along. We all know how fleeting those moments are. They are gone within a matter of weeks. I wish those moments could be bottled and kept for those times when that sweet, precious baby is two and throwing a massive tantrum, or six and telling you that you are the worst mom ever!, or nine when they tell you that you just do not understand them and never will! How I wish I could pull that bottle off of a shelf, go into my bedroom, shut the door and spend just a few minutes with that precious baby again.


I love the fat rolls on the back of a new born's "neck", if new borns had a neck.



Ahh baby feet. How i LOVE baby feet. I love to kiss them, rub them, tickle them, count those sweet itty bitty toes, rub the soft, soft skin across my cheek. I miss baby feet when they are gone.



Vinny is so exicted to have a little brother. When Tyler asked him at the hospital what he was most excited to teach his little brother as they grew up together, his response was, "How to get girls to kiss and marry him." Oh boy... yep. That's Vinny. That is exactly what I thought he would say. Hopefully Gunnar will be a good wing man.




Oh Grandma Claudia. How would we ever survive without you? It is always so sad when you have to go. Thank you so much for keeping us going during those tough first few days. I wish you could stay for about two months, but I am grateful for the time we do have with you. We love you so much!

Welcome Gunnar!

Gunnar Duke Atkinson born January 14th, 2012 at 6:52 pm
8 lb 9 oz 19 inches

Donovin with his new baby brother.


Lolin is so excited to be a big sister!


Going home from the hospital.

Happy Easter!
We had a great Easter holiday and were fortunate enough to be able to spend it with Tyler's parents and our dear ward members. We went to Universal Studios on Friday with Tyler's parents, Saturday we had a ward breakfast and egg hunt, Sunday was of course church and an Easter dinner with some friends.



We had an egg hunt in the morning. Needless to say, Lolin figured out pretty quickly that candy was in the eggs and she would ask Tyler (she knows to ask dad and not mom) to "Open it? Please my daddy?" Who can resist. Soon enough though, she figured out how to open them on her own. Yes, she ate candy for breakfast that morning. Lovely.



Halle. This was after church, so her hair is a little worse for wear, but you can see what a beautful young lady she is turning out to be.




Three generations of bowties. Vinny was so proud that he got to wear one like dad. Not so sure grandpa enjoyed it, not really his style, but he was a good sport.




The fire department got called to our Easter dinner. A little boy pulled the fire alarm. Oops! At least we had some entertainment. The kids really enjoyed seeing the fire truck and fire figthers.

Of course we tried to teach our children about and focus on the real meaning of Easter which is the significance of the atonement and resurrection of our Savior, Jesus Christ. I am so grateful to have a knowledge of this incredible event that will allow us to repent of our sins and gives us all the gift of eternal life. That death has no claim on any of us. That ALL will live again. He was willing to give his life for us and suffer for our sins, our pains, sorrows, trials, sicknesses, and all else that we have to go through in this life. I am so grateful I have his example to follow and I pray each day that I can develop those attributes that will help me be more like him.



A random picture of Lolin. I just think she looks cute and I know I do not take enough pictures of her. I am sad she grew out of her dancing piggy shirt! It was my favorite.

Happy 5th Birthday Vinny!

For Vinny this year I thought up a "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" theme since it is one of his favorite movies.





For breakfast there was a storm of giant pancakes followed by a down-pour of syrup.




It rained spaghetti and meatballs for the party



For dinner the wind blew in some giant hamburgers. Well, actually just one giant hamburger for all of us to share and there were still left-overs.



I made the spaghetti and meatballs a cake which he thought was really fun.

We had a few friends over and he had a great day.

We love you so much our little dude. Happy birthday!

Giving Thanks

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving this year because we were not alone! We had Tyler's parents staying with us for the week and his sister and their family were also in town and we got to see them. It was really wonderful to share this holiday with all of them. We have so much to be thankful for.



Lolin really enjoyed Thanksgiving dinner this year. She really suffed herself.



We had Christmas with Grandma and Grandpa Atkinson while they were here.



Halle had a 3rd grade feast at school


Vinny also had a Thanksgiving feast.

I am so grateful for all of our blessings. There are of course too many to list, but I thought I would mention just a few:

We are all healthy. What a blessing this is to have the health and strength to do all that you desire to do and all that is needed of you to do.

We are working. This is such a blessing in these days.

We have the Gospel of Jesus Christ in our lives to use as a guide in all things. I do not know what I would do without prayer and the knowledge that I have a Father in Heaven who hears my prayers and answers them and knows me and my family and loves us. He knows what is best for us and wants nothing more than to help us learn and grow so that we can return to Him.

I have my wonderful children and husband and we have family and friends who have shown us so much love alnd kindness and generosity. I am so grateful to all of you.

We wish you all a merry and bright holiday season and the very best for the new year.