It's Great to be 8!!

Leneah turned 8 on December 22 and was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints on January 2. It was a fun way to start a New Year, though I am still shocked that my baby girl is that old. She was EXCITED for the big day, as were we!

Apparently, Kaela was EXCITED too. Michael is just a goofball. Every time he's in front of a camera he's got some ridiculous pose. This is mild.

Leneah is a sweetheart. She has grown from our chubby baby to a beautiful, thoughtful, sensitive, energetic little lady. We are so grateful to have her as the big sister and example for her siblings. She is patient and forgiving with her parents as we are learning to raise our kiddos, and we are so proud of her decision to follow the example of our Savior and be baptized.

Another Merry Christmas from the Elfsingchs (yes, we're still alive)

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Quiet Times with Cousins

It's always FUN to get together as a family.  Here are 12 of the 22 Crippen grandchildren (plus a darling Gleason cousin)  enjoying one another.  Sorry, I should have warned you to turn your volume down.  If you'd like more of this (it's even better live!), ask me for a calendar of our summer get togethers.  We're expecting the Chris Crippens here in CA very soon, the Lows in May, Hopoates in June, and since we don't get to see each other much, a family reunion in July. . .  

Bunch of Fools

Growing up Mom frequently treated us to theme dinners on the holidays, one of our favorites being April Fools Dinner where we ate messy foods with crazy utensils, tried to drink colored water out of cotton filled straws, wore toilet seat cover bibs, ate babyfood squash dressed up as butterscotch pudding. . .  Thanks Mom!  She's always made everything so fun.  I want to be a fun mom too now and then!

Here are the fancy fools waiting for their delicious dinner and the lovely waitress bringing them their first course.

And the meal:  the rice crispy sushi was by far the hit, though Kaela devoured two meatloaf cupcakes once I removed the mashed potato frosting and convinced her that it really was the meatloaf she typically loves.  The disquise really disturbed her.  Leneah was quite surprised that the "dirt" Angie dropped her apples into smelled so good.  Could my kids really be this gullible?  

Harvey got home from work late and didn't eat his dinner but opted to bring it to work the next day and received a few strange looks.  Boring accountants!

Poor Michael

Pretty sad, isn't it. . .but, everything is cuter smaller, don't you agree? We spent a nice day at Disneyland for my birthday and ended the night having Michael fracture his leg while dangerously walking on a newly dumped pile of crayons on the kitchen floor.  Yes, he really lives on the wild side.  For all of the crazy things he does (and survives w/out a scratch) he breaks his leg slipping on crayons!  Thankfully it isn't a bad break and he will only be casted for 3 weeks.  He was quite the trooper through it all and has started hobbling around on his cast the last few days already.  We'll be anxious to have him healed up soon.  I must admit that it has been much easier to keep up with him, but no fun to put up with his frustrations nor try to give him a bath while keeping his leg dry.  

STUFF

Since I'm not so hot with blogging, he's another random update on the Olsingch Family:

These pictures are to lure many of you snowbirds out here to visit.  What did you do at the beginning of March?  I'll bet you put your bathing suits on and went outside to wash your car, didn't you?  I was looking for some pictures I took in November of the kids playing on the slip-n-slide outside, but couldn't find them though they do exist.  It's been almost too hot this week here and I am not looking forward to summer weather yet, but I sure do love our winters!

Here's proof that milk does do a body good.

Here's our little man Dallin.  This picture shows Dallin as he typically is.  He is just a happy fellow full of smiles for anybody.  He just turned 6 months yesterday and sits up so nice and tall and straight.  He's got Kaela's good posture.  He figured out how to scoot around recently and is very pleased at how accessible things are to him as he scoots around the living room.  I found a nice little scrap of paper in his diaper yesterday and could still make out the print "california" on it. Amazing.  

And here are our future olympians.  Leneah and Kaela started taking a tumbling class and are really enjoying that.  I truly impressed them by showing them I could do a pretty good cartwheel.  I truly depressed myself by realizing that doing a cartwheel takes a lot more effort than it used to, and though the girls were proud of me, I'm positive it wasn't near as graceful as it should have been.  At least I didn't break any bones. . .sorry Amelia.

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Your guess is as good as mine.  

I missed the best part of the performance, but this was a fun thing to come downstairs to find.  Here we come PCC!