DeGiulio Family Pictures

With new members in our family, babies who have grown into toddlers, and all of us all together, it was time for new family pictures! I love having updated pictures, they are so fun to look at. And the kids especially love them too! Even though they are young, they know family is important and love reminders around our house of our big families. 

  

 

 

 

  

August Roundup

We didn't get to go to the DeGiulio family reunion, but I did snag these pictures of my grandparents there from another family member. It sounded like a fun time, although a bit rainy! I like these pictures of my lovely grandparents. Sometimes it is nice to have pictures that are calm and relaxed like these. And maybe someday we will make it to Antelope for the reunion!

 I got this picture from one of Kevin's cousins the same day, of his Grandma and Grandpa Anderson. Such a beautiful picture! It's fun to catch a glimpse of their younger selves. 

 Kevin and I have regular date nights now. We've been doing it almost all of this year, and I love it! We have a regular babysitter on the first and third Thursday of each month from 6:30-9:30. We had been going out about once a year since we had kids, which just isn't enough. Now that's it's set and we don't have to worry about finding a sitter, it is fun to think of things to do together. Sometimes it's just shopping and dessert, or we've also gone out to dinner with friends, seen a movie, walked through the gardens at Thanksgiving Point, or worked in our plot at the community garden. The goal is to have a date once a month, so if we (or the sitter) have to cancel or reschedule because of sick kids or whatever, we are still getting out more than we ever have. It's nice to have some time to talk and focus on just us with no distractions of housework, computers, or kids. And, since we don't care if we celebrate on the actual date of a holiday, doing fun things for those special days actually happens! (And the kids love it because then they don't get left out when we celebrate birthdays and our anniversary on the actual day). 

So, anyway, date night fell the week before our birthdays and we went to the Roof! Ribs, prime rib, shrimp, creme brulee, so many delicious foods with such a pretty view! 

 Evidently we still need some help taking selfies!

 

 Our DVD player in the van finally stopped working. For the last six months we had to pry out the dvd each time with a spatula (thankyou google!) so it wasn't a big surprise. Luckily all the wiring was still just fine, so Kevin was able to install one we ordered online pretty easily and much more cheaply than the original! Ah, the van is a haven for me once more! 

Our garden is growing! The cooler summer has delayed a lot of tomato ripening, but I'm still hoping for a good harvest.  

 First batch of enchilada sauce! Yum! 

 We visited the newly renovated Bean Museum as a family on a Saturday. The live animal show was fun, and the kids got to learn about, see, and touch a big lizard, a tarantula, and a turtle. Evelyn was noisy and missed most of the show, but Luke and Violet bravely touched the tarantula! (not Cora!). 

 

 It was really cool to see all the changes and what had been done to improve and expand the museum. 

 Violet has become quite the list maker. She has piles of them on her nightstand and makes new ones to check off each night. She has always been excited to tell me her plan for an afternoon or activity, but now she has the capability to make a written record. I've got my own huge supply to post-it notes, so I know where she got it from! 

 Birthday lunch with my mom and Evelyn-yum! I love that I can go to lunch with just one kid this school year (on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday). I'm going to have to take advantage of that-- such freedom! And nice to avoid paying to children's food that they may or may not eat! 

Evelyn was thrilled Kissie surprised her with a new cuddly stuffed animal. Even three weeks later, she insists on having it with her at bedtime every night. 

 

Toddlers are so fun! It's been great to see how much Evelyn has changed and how she can communicate more and show us her preferences and personality. I think it's even more noticeable with her than with the other kids, because there is no baby she is sharing the attention with. It's fun to watch her think things through and make sense of what's going on. The other day she got up so early, so I told her "I'm pooped! Come snuggle with me in bed." since she was ready to get going for the day and I was not! She told me she was going to daddy's side instead because I was poopy. Different meanings! Here she must have been done with her popsicle, better on the counter than the floor I guess! 

 Evelyn has strong preferences of what she wears now. Most days it is a swimsuit, or a 'nastics' (gymnastics) outfit. She loves Minnie Mouse, so when she spied this one in Costco, we had to get it. She can't comprehend that Halloween in 2 months away! I'll have to hide it for a while I think so it still looks good for the holiday-- but she sure enjoyed trying it on early just once! 

My birthday morning greetings from Evelyn. Happy Birthday song and a request to wear her swimsuit because it is wet!

Ogden Temple Open House

We combined family dinner at Shad and Jen's house with visited the Ogden Temple open house. The kids were so excited that they could go in! They see Kevin and I go to the temple each month, and although we've talked about the temple a lot, they still were very curious to see for themselves. The open house are such a neat opportunity for everyone to see how beautiful temples are, and learn more about them. We are very lucky to live in an area with many chances to visit an open house! This is the third one we have been to with our kids in the last 5 years, and there will even be another one next year. Each time we go to one, I remember the week I spent as a missionary working at the Boston Temple open house as part of my mission. Such a neat opportunity! The Ogden Temple is beautiful, and Cora is especially excited that she is old enough to attend the temple dedication too. 

There were quite a few people there, so it did take a while to walk through (you can tell that by the time this picture was taken, Luke was really done!), but it was a great opportunity. And look at cute cousins Evelyn and Bentley. I think it's great to be able to make these kinds of memories together as a family. 

Kissie and Pata with the couple of grandkids left who were willing to smile!

We had a great lunch at Shad and Jen's house afterward. It was great to relax and reconnect, and the kids always have fun playing together. 

 

Afterward, our family drove up the road a little farther to Brigham City. I have heard for years about fruit way, and all the yummy fruit you can buy. This was our first time, and I was impressed! A big bushel of delicious peaches for $16! I cut up and froze a bunch for smoothies and to stir in oatmeal, we gave away a few, I made some yummy peach bbq sauce, and the rest were gone within two weeks. The stores are spaced a ways apart (driving distance) so I can see how it would be fun to go browse a bunch of stores next time... without kids. We just visited the one place my neighbor recommended and that was perfect for us. Yummy treat, and good timing to combine it with our trip to Ogden. 

School time!

Luke was the first to start school this year. He keeps asking when he gets to go to kindergarten, but he really does love preschool with Miss Angie! 

 Cora and Violet started the day after Luke. 

 

 Silly faces!

 Since Violet had afternoon kindergarten next year, the super noisy gym with all the kids lining up for their classes was totally new to her. But she was excited to find some friends to stand by! She is most excited about (and most nervous about!) eating lunch at school this year. 

 Here's Cora, all confident and ready to go! 

They all had great first days of school!

Last Days of Summer Break!

Cora and Violet chose to do an art camp this summer for a new activity. It was in the far, far corner of Eagle Mountain (I had no idea it went so far west!) but wasn't too bad of a drive. They were two hours a day for three days and did 6 projects. It was fun for them to focus on something new! 

Since it was farther away, Luke, Evelyn, and I found things to do in Utah County while they older kids were at class. One day we went to a splash pad and took a walk. 

 Another day we did the grocery shopping and went to a park. Evelyn was pretty tired to fall asleep with a sucker in her mouth! 

And the third day we went to the Dinosaur Museum at Thanksgiving Point. 

 

 It was fun hanging out with the littles and doing what they wanted to do! Since the class ended at noon, two days we took a picnic lunch to an awesome park in Saratoga Springs and played for quite a while after lunch. After trying it out after the second day of class, the kids all begged to go back after class the third day. It was such a cool park, and only 15 minutes away, I'm sure we will go back again sometime.

I loved that there was a separate playground with equipment especially for the 2-5 age range. 

 

This toy was kind of like a teeter-totter, but the bar was at the top, and it swung in circles as well as up and down-- so fun!

There's Cora and Violet at the top!

 

The clouds were dark and heavy, but we didn't get rained on! It stayed nice and cool. 

In other news, Evelyn learned how to climb out of her crib. (Sigh.) She was really mad about going to bed one evening, and screamed, and all the sudden she was out of her crib and down the stairs! So I asked her to show me how she got out so I could see if it was a one-time thing, or a real skill. She did it several times in a row, so out she goes! 

She spent that night with her mattress out of the crib, and Kevin took the front panel off her crib later so it's now a toddler bed. The first week or two she got up a bunch in the middle of the night (yawn), but it seems like she is settling in now. Just getting up a bit too early in the morning!

Here are a few pictures the art teacher took during art class. 

 

And here are the girls with their finished projects! Dog on canvas, cut paper and print aquarium, pastel chameleon, tissue paper mosaic, and paper mache penguin. I was impressed!

Ever since she was bitten by a dog, Cora has been pretty nervous about them. Especially a big mean dog who lives on our street (and thankfully just moved out a week ago!). We've been encouraging her and trying to figure out ways to help her, since that's no fun to live life with a fear like that. Our neighbor has a wonderful, calm, no-shedding, little dog, and we asked if we could dog-sit her the next time they went out of town. This dog is so wonderful there is a waiting list for dogsitting opportunities! The kids have been begging for a dog, so they were in heaven-- for this weekend at least!

 

Her name is Winnie, and she got a lot of love and attention for those 4 days! Sometimes she needed to take a break from the kids (especially an ever-loving Evelyn) and hid out under my bed, but I think she had fun. 

She did seem to like me the best. The kids were so confused and kept asking what I did to make her like me so much. She probably knew I was the safest one! With all she wanted to be right next to me and snuggle and be held and underfoot, it kind of felt like she was a 5th child! I think, much to everyone's disappointment, we are pretty far away from having a dog of our own. But for a weekend was just right! 

The green and yellow zucchini is growing really well in the backyard growbeds! It's nice to have them close by to keep an eye on the fast-growing squash. Our plot at the community garden is doing really well too. It's so fun to see it all grow!

I caught this pic of Cora when I went in to check on her one night. All snuggled up with her favorite blankies!

All four kids can participate in crafts now! Evelyn was especially thrilled to be included and using real paints!

We went out for icecream to celebrate the last day of summer. Luke got quite the blue goatee with his cotton candy flavored icecream!

For Family Home Evening the night before school started Kevin gave the kids father's blessings. Even Evelyn! She always makes sure she gets included. Taking turns with one stool didn't cut it, so everyone had to bring their stool into the family room. While we waited for Kevin to change into his Sunday clothes, the kids started singing one of the Primary songs we had been practicing for their upcoming Primary program. It's called The Family is of God, and it such a beautiful song. The kids all know the chorus the best, of course, and they were belting it out with JOY and trying to hold hands while they sang it. It made me teary! I truly believe our families are a gift from Heavenly Father. Those few minutes are a precious memory!

"God gave us families to help us become what He wants us to be--

This is how He shares His love, for the family is of God."