About Me

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Our adventures started in amazing Alaska, but have since taken us to beautiful Spokane Valley, Washington. Our family consists of Nick (Dad), Becki (Mom), and our four boys: Alvin, Alex, Rilie, and Jackson. I enjoy homeschooling our kids and we're excited for what adventures Spokane has for us.

Saturday, March 30, 2013

Crawling and Strawberries!

So what do you do when you're home, useless, and on drugs... update your blog!

Jackson loves strawberries!




They are great motivation for crawling. He only does a few steps at a time. 


Friday, March 29, 2013

Videos!!

Jackson and Kael's photography session

Pinewood Derby: Alvin won his first heat!

Alvin is 4th from the top. 
Alvin tied for 7th! Three cars ahead of him were not "legal"... but we didn't tell him that.

Rilie discovers a loud speaker in the hallway. 

Pinewood Derby and other exciting things

First Pinewood Derby for the Anderson family!

"Green Golden Dragon"

Dad adding graphite!

Setting up the track. Alex enjoyed helping out wherever he could. 

 
  
The boys have enjoyed taking pictures.
I told Alvin to go around the room and take a picture of anything special to him. 
These are just some of them.
 



So cute, I made it on his list!
 

Such a handsome boy!



We love our new pack! It is a great group of boys with wonderful leaders. 
I was amazed at how good of a job they did at keep the competition light and happy. 


Nick's (and Alex's and Rilie's) Pinewood Derby Car


To encourage the dads to let the boys make their OWN car, our Elder's Quorum hosts their own pinewood derby the Saturday before... with only a few house rules:
CO2 cartridges, okay. Gas powered engines, not okay.

Alex and Rilie both helped dad make his car. Next year, we'll buy those $1 kits from Michael's and let EVERYONE have their own car.

(Nick enjoyed setting up his work area in the garage.) 

Other Exciting Things

March is interesting here. It can be warm, cold, sunny, rain, and hail... all on the same day.

Thing One and Thing Two

Andrea made these adorable onsies before the babies were born. We were hoping to wear them for Halloween, but we're just now fitting into them. 
Binky Boys

Kael's sweet smile.

Kael: Cousin! Where are you going? We're not done!

Alvin and Alex wanted pictures too. They love their brothers!

Baby Gate!
"Nobody knows the troubled life I lead..."

Having a backyard exhausts, even, the best of us.







Saturday, March 16, 2013

AND... it's March!

February was spent finding a new home, wrapping up Cub Scouts (Blue & Gold), packing, exams/evaluations... well you get the point. March will be filled with Cub Scouts (pinewood derby, for both Alvin and Nick), unpacking, setting up in a bigger place (shelves, baby gates, outdoor fun - swings, teepees, etc.), and catching up on school. We love our new place! We may stay here longer than planned. We'll see what life brings us.

Riding Scooters
(at the apartment)




 Rilie loves his scooter! He says, "Vroom! Vroom!" when he rides it.

 We were building towers as high as we could. 
Rilie is upset in this pictures, because he couldn't knock it down yet.
Alvin and Alex want more blocks!

Now at the new place

The backyard was bare and the boys were complaining. 
I bought a few things to get their creative juices flowing. This is a rocket launcher. 

They each came up with their own special way to launch the rocket.
Alex does a running jump and Rilie uses his bum.


Daddy gets a Sunday nap nowadays. 
Typically on his own, but this Sunday he didn't make it to his bed. 



Jackson striking a pose!



Rilie has needed extra snuggles at night, so he's been sleeping with us more.

First bath together! 

They loved it! 

Jackson is splashing Rilie. Rilie is learning how to splash gently back. 

Digging in the Backyard


Alvin and Alex can't wait to plant something. 


Rilie was nervous to pick up earthworms.

Alex helped him.




Jackson's first time in the dirt!



I took something away :(

 Nest in our tree. 




There are so many birds in our backyard: robins, quails, and something we haven't identified.
 I'm not sure what lives here... if anything at all.


Our Swing
Alvin helped dad set up the swing.


Overall, it's been fun!


Alvin's eyes are doing well. I really like the ophthalmologist a friend recommended. He even knows Alvin's last doctor! It made for an easy transition. Alex still wants glasses, but his eyes are strong. I'll have to get him some accessory glasses. Right now, he enjoys sporting his sunglasses. 

Alvin received his Wolf Badge at Blue & Gold. We're very proud of him. I was pushing for it at the end, so he's a little burned out with scouts. He enjoys going, but isn't interested looking at his book. I'm trying to wait for him to take the lead again. He can work on Arrow Points, Conservation Badge, and his Religious Knot. Alvin's enjoyed swimming lessons last month and this month. Next month, we'll be doing soccer. He is very excited.  

Alex loves swimming. He wants to join the swim team. If we continue with group lessons, it will probably take a year. If we start up private lessons, he may be ready to join sooner. His group instructor really likes him and compliments him all the time. This makes Alex so proud. We're considering doing a few private lessons, when Alvin starts up soccer.  As for Cub Scouts, Alex loved the Blue and Gold. We introduced the future cub scouts there. He is helping dad make dad's pinewood derby car. We're hoping his enthusiasm continues. If so, he will be passing things off very quickly. He's memorized most the Bobcat stuff (with Alvin) already. 

Rilie loves swimming. Rilie does not like swim lessons. We signed him up, because he is doing cannon balls in the deeper end (not a true "deep end"). The class is set up to teach swim safety for little ones. He was excited to play in the water, but not so much follow instruction. Daddy joined him for swim lessons to help keep him focused. The instructors were AMAZING! They were both very patient, and Rilie did warm up to them. He did great with a kick board and learning how to float (floating made him nervous). He loves the backyard and the freedom of going out whenever he wants. 

Jackson is growing and developing a mischievous attitude. He's learned he can make Rilie scream if he grabs his hair. He doesn't even have to pull, just touching it will do the trick. Alvin and Alex can't help but feel sweet justice. Jackson is just starting to scootch around, mainly pivoting from one spot to another. He can pick things up and put them in his mouth. If he's hungry and I'm busy, I just sprinkly Cheerios on the floor around him. He eagerly picks them up. Definitely, revisiting the "Why did you put me down!?!?!" phase.