A Dobbins' Day

Our first winter in Iowa has been quite a change from Las Vegas!  We are learning about layering and getting bundled up.  Most of the time we love the snow, but the cold blowing wind we could definately do without!

We went to another fun activity at the library for Valentines Day.  The librarians had set up a "restraunt" for us.  We got to pick 3 items from the menu and then they served us.  We didn't know what we were getting because the menu had items like: The Cat's Meow (milk), Frosty's Delight (icecream) and Mouse's Treat (a cookie: like the book If you give a Mouse a Cookie).  Hunter chose ice cream but didn't choose a spoon!  It was a lot of fun!

The kids started their Valentine morning with cards and treats from Grandpa Mike and Grandma Rebecca.  After dinner they got a box of chocolates from Mom and Dad.  It was so hard to capture a picture of all of them!  Either somebody wasn't looking at me or else they were being silly and it ruined the picture! Audrey and Hunter made valentine boxes for their class parties.  Hunter made and i-pod and Audrey made this robot.  Cannon also had a party at school, but didn't need to bring a decorated box.  They all said that they had fun and way too much sugar!  We made cards that said "I hope your Valentines is colorful"  We made colorful crayons by taking our old crayons and chopping them up and remelting them in a mini muffin tin.  So their friends would have a fun crayon to color with and I didn't have to buy candy (which they obviously got too much of anyway!) My Sweetheart was in Las Vegas visting with Isaac, but I had a fun day wi...

We went to storytime at the library one afternoon because the kids were out of school.  They were celebrating Clifford's birthday.  I couldn't believe that he is 50!  Crazy!  They read some Clifford books, played some games and had some cupcakes.

I've started a "Biggest Loser" contest with some friends from church.  So far I haven't seen much change, but I do feel a small difference in the way I can move my body.  My goal, besides losing weight is to have a healthier lifestyle.  I'm doing things that work for me and my life at this stage.  I don't enjoy exercising, but I've been doing it.  I've found that I like yoga a little.  I can stretch and move and feel stonger.  I've done some strengthening exercises I found online and I've also done some cardio videos on youtube.  A lady in our group teaches Zumba and I did that, it wasn't completly horrible, so I've done and will do it again.  Mostly I'm just trying things that will get me moving without feeling like I'm dying.  I've also been working on my diet.  Smaller portions, less sweets, more water and fruits and veggies.  I'm going slow because I really want this to by a lifestyle change, and not something that ...

We got an amazing package of  theatre tickets for kids shows as a Christmas present.  Because of our two small girls that aren't able to go we only got one adult ticket to go with the other 3 kids. The first show was an orchestra that did fun things for the kids to watch as they listened to the music.  Before the show they did some crafts.  Russell took Audrey and Cannon, unfortunately Hunter wasn't able to go because of his basketball games. Russell said it didn't really capture their attention.  I'm hoping that the next show will go better.  I think its a play so it should be more animated and interesting for them. It was a beautiful day in downtown Des Moines.  I think overall they enjoyed themselves.  I'm grateful that they get the opportunity to be exposed to some cultural events.

We are still getting used to Iowa.  It snowed and the kids were thrilled!  What they didn't realize is that in Iowa it doesn't go away right away like it did on the rare occasion that it snowed in Vegas.  When it snowed in Vegas, they would play in it and then save it because it would be gone in a few hours.  I guess old habits die hard because I  found this in the freezer!

Audrey likes to hold Maggie.  She is a good helper for me. Coral also loves to hold Maggie.  These two have adorable smiles! Cannon loves to just hang out!  He's so silly!

We went to Monster Jam on Friday night.  It was AWESOME! I've really been wanting to go ever since I took Isaac and Hunter when Audrey was just a baby.  So its been six long years, but it was worth the wait.  This was so fun!  Russ said I might be a little "redneck" but I don't care. Coral is showing her "grumpy" face because the trucks got kinda loud.  I love it when the monster trucks go flying in the air.  Its so cool!  The girls loved the "puppy" truck.  They played "Who Let The Dogs Out" whenever it was racing and the boys sang along. Gravedigger is always a hit! This guy flipped!  He was fine and his truck didn't have any damage.  They had to bring a tractor out to flip it back over.  Coral said "Yeah tractor!" I'm not sure why I can't get this picture to flip, sorry! I had to add it though to show my big smiling face.  I had a blast! And despite the fact we wouldn't buy them anything ex...

One of our favorite things to do in Missouri is ride 4 wheelers. On this day Russell took the kids on a short ride around the new farm house. They loved it, but wished for a longer ride!

Thanks Kristy, Mike & Rowan for letting us stay with you! We had a great time. We can't wait until the next time we can hang out with you!

We took a drive up Provo Canyon on Sunday after church. It was really pretty, even if it was cold for our desert blood!

After picking up Isaac in Cedar City from Youth Conference, we headed north to Provo. Isaac was going to go to football camp at BYU and it started on Monday, so we had a weekend in Provo. I called my very good friend from college who happens to be living there while her husband is in school. They have one little boy and a small apartment, but gladly agreed to have 7 more pile in! We were so grateful. We took them out to dinner at the Brick Oven Pizza place. YUMMY! Then off to bed!