The Lowedown

1st day of School

2011-09-09T21:12:00.000-04:00

I'm just as shocked as you are. It really is a blog post. Apparently, I feel it is important to document the 1st day of school...LOL (as opposed to all that has happened in the last 9 months)? So maybe it's just time! I'll share all that has gone on with us (little bit of sad, lots of happy, and more big changes), but for now, it's all about starting school! So here are my sweet girls on their 1st day of school: Kassie is in the 4th grade

Amberlee in 2nd grade

Emma is now in Kindergarten

and Laicee is in her last year of pre-school

Nutshell

2011-01-16T18:43:00.005-05:00

Here it is in a nutshell...a glimpse into our life for the past few months! So forgive this trip down memory lane, but if it doesn't get recorded, you know it never will!!! I honestly think my personal journal is the same way..."I haven't written for a while so here's a little synopsis of the last month (or like 3 years)"!!! Apparently, that's how we (I) roll around here! If you only knew how many things I've really missed blogging/journaling about!

The first day of school (yes, really!):
Here are all my cuties on their first day of school way back in September. Kassie is in 3rd grade, Amberlee is in 1st grade, and Emma and Laicee are going to pre-school three days a week! I've really enjoyed sitting in my quiet house for couple hours every week...Ooh, and Kev and I get to have lunch dates!

Emma and Laicee also started taking a dance class together. It's so fun to get them in their little leotards and watch them twirl and dance.

And then we celebrated Laicee's 3rd birthday! She had so much fun with all her cards, balloons, and presents! I really can't believe our youngest is now 3!

For Halloween we had a disco diva, a Japanese girl, super-girl, and little red riding hood join us for a few days! I love how each of their personalities showed in the costumes this year. These girls totally crack up me!

Apparently, Kev figured that if I could run a 1/2 marathon, he could as well! We cheered him on in Indianapolis where he came in under the time he was shooting for! It was so fun watching and cheering for him! He is now starting to train for a FULL marathon over memorial day weekend in May!

The girls caught a little bit of the running bug and joined him in the frosty 5k! Kassie and Amberlee were so excited about their medals!
And there it is in a huge nutshell. Now, if I can blog about Christmas before Valentine's Day...I'll be feeling pretty good...almost.

A Running Tale

2010-09-28T17:21:00.002-04:00

Once upon a time there were some wonderful friends. They are amazing women and fabulous runners. One day, one of the friends said "I've been running a lot and I think it would be cool to train for a 1/2 marathon!" Some of them thought it would be great. And others thought, "Ah, that's nice. I'll do a 10k...you silly running people...why would you want to run that far :)!"

So some of them were really cool and started training for the 1/2 marathon. And they were so very cool...keeping to the training schedule and racking up SO many miles! And then there were the others...training for the 10k. And the miles racked up...and it felt good!

Then it came time to register for the race. And surprise...there was NO 10k!!! And they (the 10k chicks) had to decide between a 5k, a 1/2 marathon, or they could have husbands pick them up once they ran the 10k. So, they really tried. They ran and ran and ran and ran. Their miles started racking up, too. They ran 6, then 8, then 8, then 9...and they thought...we might actually be able to do this! So they signed up for the 1/2 marathon too...and it felt scary...and good...and exciting!

Oh, but one of the amazing friends...she just had a baby...a very cute baby! And this very amazing friend said, "I'm trying to run too! I'm tired, and my baby is so wonderful, and I want to be a part of this and to try to do the 5k!" And they all loved her so much more because they knew how big this was!

So they ran, and laughed, and cried, and ran, and ran, and laughed! And they all thought of their families...how all the children will see their mom's running and working and struggling and achieving! And these children are all wonderful! And then there are the husbands...the wonderful husbands that loved, supported, encouraged, and cheered on these wonderful women. These husbands mopped floors, took care of children, and missed basketball because the runners were so very awesome and sore!

And the time came. They packed bags, ipods, and families and headed to a land of dutch shoes and windmills to run the race. They were excited and nervous and anxious! And then the race started and these wonderful women ran. They ran like they have never run before. They had goals...and they reached their goals! And it was hard...so very hard. The miles went on. Some miles felt good, very good. And some felt so very bad. But then they came to the last mile. They knew that it was almost over, that their families and those that had finished before them were there waiting...waiting for each amazing woman to make the final turn to the finish line...to achieve what they never thought was possible! And their wonderful families were waiting with cheers, and smiles, and hugs that could be heard and felt from miles away!

And they finished...they made it...and they will never be the same. They accomplished, they grew, and they felt the impact on themselves and the souls of their families! And the wonderful friends laughed, cried, hugged, and went home.

The End

Links to the other amazing friend's blogs and their running stories:

http://thecarnaroonies.blogspot.com/

http://sweetpeafamily.blogspot.com/

http://123jonesfamily.blogspot.com/

Birthday & Baptism {part 2}

2010-08-22T22:10:00.001-04:00

I really can't believe that we have an 8 year old daughter! It just doesn't seem that long ago that Kassie was born in Japan, and I was holding her cute little pink bundle---scared out of my mind when there was a huge earthquake while we were still in the hospital!

(Don't mind me, my eyes do not open after I have babies...I have no idea why!)

And now, 8 years later, Kass has grown into a beautiful and wonderful daughter! We were able to celebrate her birthday while we were visiting our family in California. But even better, she was baptized there as well. We are so proud of her for choosing to follow our Savior's example to be baptized! For those of you who aren't familiar with baptism in our religion...click HERE.

It worked out perfectly that our niece (Sadee) was getting baptized at the same time...just 2 days earlier and before Kass turned 8! Kevin's parents, grandma, and brother were already planning on being in L.A. for the baptism. So we left my family in San Diego and met up with Kev's fam in L.A. for Sadee's baptism and then headed back down to my parents church in San Clemente for Kassie's baptism on her birthday! It was such a fun few days with Kevin's family. The girls were so excited to see their cousins!!!

I am such a stickler for car seat rules and I make sure that everyone is properly buckled in and everything...so why on earth is it ok to drive like this when you're around family...even if it is just around the block?!?!

We are SO SO grateful and happy that so many members of our family could be there! Kevin's mom made Kassie's dress, my brother conducted the meeting, Grandma Louder (yoo-hoo) and Grandma Bregg gave the talks, the cousins sang a special musical number, and Kevin baptized and confirmed Kassie. Everyone made it such a special day for Kassie!

Kassie and Sadee
After the baptism, we went to a park overlooking the ocean in San Clemente and had a picnic and birthday cake.

And then, Kassie and her cute cousins Abby and Sadee (who all have birthday's within a few weeks of each other) were so very excited when we took to them to the American Girl Doll store to pick out birthday presents!

Kassie and Abby

Kass and her new doll Lanie (she picked her because she is a nature girl! love it!)

When it's all over and done with, Kassie had a wonderful, memorable, and very special 8th birthday!!!

The 8 Best Things About Kassie...because 8 is Great!:

1. Nothing is boring when she's around!

2. She has such a creative mind!

3. She LOVES to perform for a crowd!

4. Her contagious laughter

5. Her love of animals

6. She's green! (Her love of nature...and protecting nature)

7. Her thoughtful love and concern for ALL generations of her family!

8. Her self-proclaimed (and supported) greatness!!!

We Love you Miss Kassandra Ann!!!

Up Next: Life's a Beach!{part 3}

So. Cal {part 1-Family Reunion}

2010-08-01T23:25:00.001-04:00

4 years! It had been that long since my (steph's) family (consisting of my parents, sister (with her husband and son), and my brother (with his wife and 3 boys)) had been together. So this year, my parents were kind enough to treat us all to a wonderful family reunion!!! We started our week of fun with the cousins getting to know each other...it really didn't take too long! The girls LOVED their big cousins!

And then all the real fun began! #1--Sea World! Kassie has declared this is what she would like to do when she grows up! She loves animals and performing...so a Sea World animal trainer and performer would be perfect! We had so much fun feeding the dolphins, watching the shows, and of course, a few of us got drenched by Shamu!!!

The Starfish was the only animal that Laicee wasn't leary of...everything else, she loved from a far...very far!

Kassie, Amberlee, their cousin Eric, and Kevin were brave enough to sit in the soak zone at the Shamu show!!! The rest of us were happy and dry!The 16 of us! (just so you know who we all are. From Left to Right: Dad, Mom, Shae, Eric(top), Amberlee (top), Jerry, Kristin, Jackson (held), Steph, Emma (below), Kevin, Kassie (below), Jody, Jerry, Michael (top), Laicee (held)!)

#2--Disneyland! Usually, going to Disneyland in July is crazy. The lines are long, people are cranky, and the weather is hot! We got completely lucky. We went on a Wednesday, the weather was perfect, and the lines were perfect!!! We had so much fun! We took this picture at the entrance (yay...F for...Family Fun) and then tackled Disneyland in our own ways!

Is it just me...or is Sleeping Beauty's castle not as big as it use to be???

The 3 older boys got to ride all the rides they wanted...many times (it was fun running into them as they dashed from one side of the park to the next). Kristin and her family went where Jackson went. We ran with the girls and my parents to do all the girly things the boys would rather die than go to :)! Pixie Hollow was a huge favorite!!!

Kassie and Fawn had a great conversation about being animal talent fairies...and they even practiced animal sounds together (seriously...adorable)!

and Tinkerbell taught the girls how to pose as fairies!

Laicee, who could care less anyway, couldn't go on the roller-coasters...she and grandma had a great time together waiting for the rest of us! Her favorite thing at Disneyland was Small World...of course! She could have ridden that ALL day!

Emma was even tall enough to go on almost all the rides. Her favorite...Space Mountain!!! I LOVE that my girls are not afraid to go on these things!!!

The *littles* crashed! My mom and dad did, too! So, they took the girls back to the hotel and then Kev and I got to take the *biggles* on the only ride Emma couldn't go on (Indiana Jones) and then we ran around the park trying to get as many rides in as we could before it closed...at midnight!!! It was SO so SO much fun being able to do that with our older girls!

P.S. the tea cups make me sick...and we went really really fast!

#3--San Diego Zoo and Dinner at the Corvette Diner! Our last family adventure was to the San Diego Zoo! The girls were ecstatic and beyond thrilled to go there! They love seeing and learning everything they can about animals and this put them right in their element! The favorites were the panda bears, kookaburra birds, elephants, giraffes and hippos!
We worked really hard for this picture! Sorry to the man that I had to elbow out of my way so that Kass could have a picture with a hippo!

This gorgeous peacock kept trying to follow us...that made you know who very happy!

Can you see the giraffe...that's right...it's Emma!

And then my brother found a great restaurant for our final dinner together, the Corvette Diner! It came with dancing waitresses with huge wigs and a fabulous balloon artist! Emma loved her mermaid hat...and I couldn't resist it either!We truly had a wonderful 5 days together (we also had down time between all these things filled with other activities), and great family pictures, too (thank you Amber Katrina!)! It was so fun seeing everyone again and I especially loved watching the girls hang on their cousins!!! We already miss you all!!!

Up next: Part 2 {L.A. with Kev's family, Kassie's birthday and baptism}!!!

Extracurricular

2010-06-13T23:21:00.010-04:00

The past 6 weeks have been crazy with the girls finishing their many sports and activities...and here is a glimpse into that!

Emma's dance recital

Emma LOVED her dance class and was SO cute in her little dance recital! She loved wearing make-up and getting all dressed up in her ballerina costumes! She's also very excited that Laicee will be in the class with her next year.
Miss Kassandra Ann had her dance recital a couple weeks later! I love watching her perform. She just loves being on stage---I can't wait to see where that love takes her :)!

Kass also started piano lessons. She had only a month of lessons when her teacher asked if she'd like to be in the recital. And sweet Kassie was more than excited to perform once again! She did great---totally rocked out Old McDonald's Farm!!!

And yesterday was the end of spring soccer! I've never seen Kass play so hard and determined...it was awesome!!!

Emma and her BFF were so cute to watch. They'd kick the ball every so often, but it seemed like they were more concerned about giggling and running around together than actually playing...it's all about the snacks anyway!!!

And now summer has started! It's great not having a huge schedule. The girls have each signed up for a week long camp---and there will be fun pictures to post soon. We'll also be heading to Southern California for a family reunion...and we are all SO excited!!!

I ♥ summer!!!

10

2010-04-25T22:56:00.010-04:00

I knew there was a reason I married Kevin 10 years ago. Among a huge list of greatness...I knew he would forever surprise me with incredible things!!!

We celebrated our 10th anniversary this past weekend and Kev took me to a bed and breakfast that overlooked Lake Huron! Here is a shot of our room...it was gorgeous...and the view was incredible! That's not all...we also got our own private hot tub, on our own private deck, overlooking the lake. It was so relaxing to listen to the waves and watch the stars. Here is our view from the hot tub. And this is what we woke-up to...a spectacular sunrise that we could just lay in bed and watch. This picture is taken from our bedroom window.
So Thank you, THANK YOU sweet husband of mine. You knew that a couple nights away is just what I needed and wanted...you are amazing and I'm so grateful for all that we have shared and experienced for the past 10 years...and I look excitedly forward to decades and decades and eternity more!

And thank you, THANK YOU sweet friends of mine who took in my little girls so I could enjoy all of this for a little while! The girls all loved their slumber parties and thoroughly enjoyed your homes! I owe you all :)

So, here are My top 10 Favorite memories of the past 10 years:

1. Walking into our first Japanese home for the 1st time...all 400 sq. feet of it!

2. Hiking Mt. Fuji and Mt. Timp

3. Living in for 5 years, experiencing, and leaving Japan

4. The birth of our 4 daughters...with failed epidural each time!

5. Sitting on the floor in our empty Japanese townhouse, checking the email one last time, getting accepted to Tepper for MBA school... and off to Pittsburgh!

6. One week camping and hiking trip to the Grand Tetons--while I was 6 months pregnant!

7. Job searching--Job searching--and more Job searching!

8. Buying, building, and moving into our first home for our family!

9. All of our family vacationing experiences!

10. Every little small moment that adds up to so much happiness!

4 and 6

2010-03-08T14:00:00.009-05:00

Birthday's in our house are grand and festivus! The birthday girl gets to wake-up to lots of balloons and decorations and then they have the whole day to choose what they want for every meal. They also get to choose a special family activity for us all to do together (but only on the years they don't have a party...and this is a no party year). We celebrated Emma's 4th birthday in January and Amberlee's 6th birthday this past week. I can't believe how fast these little cuties are growing up. Remind me to cherish every second with them!

Emma: wanted lucky charms for breakfast, cupcakes with friends, and wanted to have cotton candy at the circus. It was a fun weekend!!!

Amberlee: wanted a movie night where she got to pick everything from the movie to all the treats/snacks, wanted a violin (which meant a road trip to Ann Arbor to pick it out), and swimming to top it all off!

Happy Birthday Sweet Girls!!!

New Addition

2010-02-27T20:48:00.010-05:00

This is a HUGE bridge for us to cross---we got a dog! The girls have been asking for years if we could get one and their little wish finally came true. Kevin's Aunt Connie (in Utah) found a little morkie for us. Luckily, a friend was traveling to Utah and was willing to bring *Lilly* back with her! We kept it a surprise for as long as we could and the night before she came, we told them the news and took them shopping for all of Lilly's things. They were SO excited and could hardly wait until the next day to meet her.

Coming Home.

The only person who wasn't as thrilled was Laicee. She cried and cried for the first 24 hours and ate with her feet up on the table (she gonna eat mine feet). Gratefully, she is now loving Lilly just as much as the others!

...she no longer eats with her feet on the table. Apparently the threat of Lilly eating her feet is gone :)

a GRRREAT time

2009-12-30T13:47:00.008-05:00

As an early Christmas present to ourselves, we took the girls up to Great Wolf Lodge. It is a themed hotel with an indoor water park. We absolutely love it there and were more than excited to get out of town--even if it was a quick trip.

We had fun playing in the water, flying down the water slides, sleeping in bunk beds, getting in our pj's for story time, and getting snowed on indoors! Kassie and Amberlee were both barely tall enough to go down the big slides by themselves. I was a little nervous, and they were so brave and proud of themselves. Emma had fun running away from sharks in the lazy river, and Laicee cried each time she went on the water slides...but, she kept going. So, somewhere deep inside her I'm sure she loved it as well!

I can't even tell you the pure joy and laughter that came from all of us on this trip!

Kev and Laicee on the lazy river

Amberlee floating along

We treated the girls to chocolate fondue.

They couldn't believe all they could dip into chocolate!

2009 Lowedown!

2009-12-26T21:04:00.002-05:00

Dear Family and Friends,

The Christmas season is one of our favorites. Not only is it a wonderful time to celebrate the birth of our Savior, it is also a great time to connect with old friends and family. We hope this year has been a great one for you! Here are our top highlights of 2009…

Kassie (loves to go by Kassandra) 7 years old-
2nd grade. Star performer. Ring leader. Soccer, basketball, dance and Brownie girl scouts. Loves everything about life. Wants to be veterinarian or a rock star. Turns 8 next year and is thrilled to be baptized!

Amberlee (5 years old)-
Loves kindergarten. Great student. Her teacher said she wants to photocopy her. Donated hair to locks of love. Loves gymnastics, cooking and finding new recipes. Loving, sweet, kind. 1 marriage proposal.

Emma (4 years old in January)-
Resident party animal. Ball of energy. Happy, bright, fun. Loves soccer, dance, and gymnastics. Coach said she was freakishly strong! Rides two-wheeler with NO training wheels. Bag lady. Such a fun girl!

Laicee (2 years old)-
Great talker and singer. Adorable smile. “I do it myself!”. LOVES being entertained by older sisters. Tries her hardest to keep up. Won’t stay in bed. 1st daughter to get stitches. Amazingly thoughtful and caring.

Stephanie-
Loves being busy with the 4 girls. Exhausted. Loves dates with the hubby. Volleyball. Book Club. Girls nights out. Organized Santa Parade float. Nativity Exhibit Committee. Freezing in MI. Lovin’ life!

Kevin-
Lone man of the house. Healed Achilles. Grateful to walk and run again -- 5Ks. Daddy-daughter dates. Varsity Scout Coach -- horseback high adventure. Promotion…lots of work. Excited to celebrate 10 years of marriage next year.

Have a wonderful Christmas Season and a very Happy New year!
Love,
The Lowe Family

Nutcracker Outing

2009-12-06T22:24:00.003-05:00

I love the holidays! I especially love when I can find fun, unique, and memorable things to do. In our little town, the Nutcracker ballet comes every 3 years. I decided, along with my fabulous friends and their daughters, to take our older girls (Kassie and Amberlee) to see the ballet! The girls wore their fancy dresses and we took them out to lunch before the show. The best part was watching their excited little faces light up when they saw Clara, the fancy dancers, the mice and the mouse king, and most importantly...the Nutcracker! They literally were on the edge of their seats and I could see their minds just soaking up the whole thing. This is one experience that we'll cherish and one that will hopefully become a tradition!Here's our adorable group of girls practicing their ballet moves!

One ends and another begins

2009-11-15T19:39:00.003-05:00

Kassie and Emma both played soccer this season and it was so fun to see them play. Emma was so very excited to score a goal and Kass did an awesome job.

This was such a cold day!!! Freezing rain pelted us in the face and the girls were bundled up in tons of layers. I'm just glad our next sport is inside!

But now that soccer is over, it's time for basketball! Kassie is lovin' it. She's had 2 games so far and has had a couple of basket shots and lots of great blocks and steals.

Kass is the one shooting the ball. It makes our Saturday mornings early and busy...but it's great to see them having fun and excelling in activities!

Once I get pictures, I can show you that Amberlee has been in a gymnastics class. She has the best time and loves doing cartwheels, round-offs, and splits all over the house...and when I say all over the house...I literally mean ALL OVER the house. She is ALWAYS doing her little acts ALL the time! She can't get from one end of the room to another without doing a little cartwheel or something along the way!

I love these girls!

Our trick-or-treaters!!!

2009-11-01T19:06:00.003-05:00

Kassie was super-girl, Emma and Amberlee were cats, and Laicee was a spider witch.

Harry Potter's Little Sister?

2009-10-04T20:30:00.005-04:00

This is how we spent our general conference morning after a game of turtle tag.

Poor Laicee was running away from her sisters and fell right into our speaker.

She had to have 2 stiches on the inside and 5 stiches on the outside. She felt much better once the ER nurses gave her a little cute teddy bear. Apparently, she is doing fine :)

...and we're off!

2009-09-14T00:12:00.004-04:00

I admit it, I did get a little misty-eyed taking Amberlee and Kassie to their first day of school. They were so excited, anxious, and cute and I was so happy for them and it made me thrilled and sad all at once. But then, as I was leaving the school parking lot...I turned the music up and did a little car dance! Yay for a new school year! Kassie (who likes to go by Kassandra at school) is in the 2nd grade. Amberlee is in Kindergarten and Emma is going to pre-school 3 days a week.

Something special for each...

2009-07-26T20:17:00.007-04:00

1. Kassie turned 7 years old on July 12th and for her birthday she wanted to get her ears pierced! After a couple weeks of debate, we decided to surprise her with a trip to the mall to get it done. She was so excited and nervous but she put on a brave face and entered into this rite of passage!

2. I am jealous of Amberlee's hair. It's long, silky, thick and beautiful. It obviously does not come from me. She has been asking for months to get it cut...not just trimmed...she's wanted it super short. I finally relented this week and took her (and all the girls) in for a hair cut. Little did I know that Amberlee had enough to donate to Locks of Love! She was so excited that she could help kids who didn't have any hair. And yes, I did tear up and cry a little...but it really was so sweet to see her be so excited about helping other kids (ok, and I was a little sad to see all that beautiful hair be chopped off)!

3. Emma, my 3 1/2 year old party animal, decided that she was old enough to ride a 2 wheel bike without training wheels! She asked Kev to take them off and viola...within minutes she was riding like a pro! My kids definitely do not get their balance from me! It's so funny to watch this little cutie riding down the street!

4. Is it illegal to lock a child into a crib? I would love to make a crib top that you can lock each night! Laicee can now climb out of her crib! This is what we found last night...so cute!!!

Pure Tenderness

2009-06-28T22:50:00.005-04:00

We have been absent from our blog for a little while...mostly due to our unexpected trip to Utah when our sweet little niece (Kevin's brother JJ's daughter) passed away. Although we knew her life would be limited when she was born a little over 2 years ago, we were not expecting her to go at this time (Heather, her incredible mom, just had a baby girl 2 1/2 weeks before this).

Hannah Jane was born in January of 2007. She was born into an imperfect body with a chromosomal disorder causing her to have only 1 eye; She couldn't really see or hear. She had weak lungs, heart, kidneys, muscles and a body that didn't really grow as it normally would. And although she had this body, her spirit was absolutely perfect. She was the most genuine, purest, most wonderful person you could ever be around. When her Dad blessed her as a newborn, he prayed that she would be able to fulfill her life's work, that people would want to be better because of her, and that her life would glorify our Savior Jesus Christ. In the short years of her life, she and her family were able to realize in very touching and personal ways how she had fulfilled each one of those. She is such a beautiful and special girl and we are so very grateful to have her be part of our family. Her dad relayed a quote he found in the book One Tattered Angel that really touches my heart..."In our church we believe in the ministering of angels...You and your family have been privileged to minister to one".

It was early Wednesday morning on the 3rd of June when we got the call from Kev's mom telling us about Hannah. We quickly realized throughout the day how important it would be for us to be there and how important it would be for the girls to get a real and genuinely personal lesson about eternal families. We packed up the car and by Thursday morning we made the 3 day drive out to Utah to be there for her burial on Monday. It was truly amazing to see how our entire family came together during this time. The girls loved being with their cousins again and most of all, they more fully understand that because mom and dad got married in the temple, we can be an eternal family when we die. We are grateful to our loving Heavenly Father for His abundance of tender mercies. We know it was time for Hannah to go, and we know we are better because of her. We love you Hannah.

Kevin and JJ

Here's to my little performer

2009-05-17T21:08:00.003-04:00

Kassie had her first dance recital last weekend and I was loving every minute of being a girl's mom! Because she really loves being on stage, it was even more fun to put the make-up on her and dress her up in her costume. So here are the recital pics...and the video footage will be added soon (especially since she was SO funny bossing everyone around on stage!)

Kassie and couple of her cute friends! (abby, Kass, alex)

Afterwards we treated all the kids to ice cream!

Emma's Little Puppy

2009-05-01T21:16:00.005-04:00

What cracks me up the most is that Laicee assumes this role very well. She barks and/or meows, is happy to be on a leash, and eats out of bowls and hands! Who needs real animals?!?

I Love Dance Recitals!

2009-04-26T20:53:00.007-04:00

Amberlee had her first dance recital yesterday and it was adorable! She, by nature, really does not like performing in front of people (she still has yet to give the prayer/scripture/talk in primary and ends up in tears every time)...so the fact that she was up on stage was amazing to me. It was so fun dressing her up in make-up and her little costumes! We had so much fun!

Amberlee and one of her best friends. They have had so much fun taking this class together!

Amberlee was SO excited when her pre-school teacher came to watch her!

And here's a little snippet of one of her dances! She really does smile when she dances...just not in front of everyone...and notice how she's the first one to run off the stage...totally cute and funny!

talent runs in the family...hopefully

2009-03-29T21:41:00.007-04:00

I hope that through pure genetics, my kids can somehow be as talented as our amazing cousins! Kevin's Uncle's family (his wife and 7 kids), stage name "The Lowe Family", has been performing in Branson, MO for the past 10 years. They have now taken their show on the road. A couple weekends ago they came up to MI and we were able to go to the show with our 3 oldest kiddos! All together their family plays 50 different instruments-beautifully, they dance, they sing, and they put on such an amazing show! The girls sat mesmerized during the whole performance! It was so much fun to see them all! Here is a link to their YouTube page. Check out the snippets from their shows and also their new music video, "We Will Go On"...it's really awesome!!!

http://www.youtube.com/user/thelowefamily

The next day, we were so excited to have the Lowe's all over for lunch before they headed back to Branson.

Uncle Bob and Jer-Bear have something in common...besides being brothers, they both fell asleep in this chair...with little girlies smothering them with random hugs!

Kassie told Doug she would rub his feet if he paid her...and she held him to it!

We love you guys!!! It was GREAT to see you again!!!

As a little side note, our cousin Kendra, who's part of this whole family, is now the Keyboardist and female vocalist for David Archuleta!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vu7khh8VZBs

A little Bit of Amberlee

2009-03-22T21:31:00.010-04:00

We celebrated Amberlee's Birthday a little while ago (ok...it was 3 weeks ago on the 4th) and she's been looking forward to seeing her pictures on the blog! So here's a little 5 year birthday blog celebration of our sweet Amberlee...starting with our 5 top reasons we love her!

1. She is the most thoughtful person. She always thinks about others before herself. For example, she got a few dollars for her birthday and the first thing she said was that she could go to the dollar store and buy presents for her sisters! This is how she thinks...all the time!

2. She is quiet and very shy outside of our home, but once you get to know her she is incredibly goofy...and I'm always finding pictures on my camera like this...

3. She loves to cook with me and she's always finding recipes for me to try.

4. She's a little (possibly a lot) OCD and organizes almost everything...and her favorite color is orange!

5. She told me that her most special talent is swimming! (We'll see!) She likes playing soccer (but not on game day) and she loves animals!

Amberlee was born in Japan...and she was cold. She had a hard time regulating her body temperature so they put her in a warming bed and put this little hat on her...it was so cute. She now asks to see the picture of her wearing the bunny ears! You can even see the top part of her little newborn kimono!

3 months old1 year old at Disney Sea in Japan2 years old3 years old with her 1st bike4th birthday...she wanted a princess tea party. She invited her friends over and wanted them to wear their princess dresses. On the day of the party, all she wanted to wear was her polka-dot dress from grandma!5 years old, 2009Birthday party at the gymnastics center with her favorite friends

(Lauren, Emma, Amberlee, Morgan, and Maggie)

Sewing and Sock-hops

2009-03-01T20:26:00.005-05:00

Ok...I LOVE to do projects. However...let's understand one thing...I do not sew and I really REALLY do not like it! That being said...I love that when I do attempt to make something, it turns out crooked and lopsided and always adorable!

Every year, there's a sock-hop at the girl's elementary school. I thought that we would not be able to make it this year...but at the last minute, the girls needed those poodle skirts! So, in my creative and crafty ways, I headed out to Joann's to get my needed supplies and spent the afternoon whipping these cuties out!

Oh, as a disclaimer...my sewing sister came to my aid...yeah!!! After I used our large wall clock and tape measure to cut out two circle skirts...she called and was more than happy to help with my project. So while I can claim the *concept* of this project...she was the sewing chick behind it all (I ironed the poodle on...does that count???)!

Can you believe that the kids were totally rockin' out to AC/DC at an elementary dance!

Kassie and one of her BFFs---Rachel

She was so excited for the hula-hoop contest...look at all of those skirts!!!

Amberlee, Sophie, and Kassie

Happy Birthday Emma!!!

2009-01-21T13:27:00.009-05:00

We have a tradition of decorating the house after the birthday girl goes to bed...so when they wake up we can tape them coming downstairs with eyes full of excitement while exclaiming..."It's my birthday!!!" True to Emma's character, she slipped out of our room and ran downstairs to see all her balloons without us capturing a dang thing!!! Happy Birthday to our bright little Emma!!!

Emma was born in January...in Pittsburgh...in 2005 when the Steelers won the last Superbowl...with a terrible towel in her bassinet! The maternity ward was one big tailgate party!!! It was so fun!!! I think I should have clued in at that point that we were welcoming a little party animal into our family!

Emma brings a huge ray of brightness and excitement to our home. When she was a little baby, her Grandpa Bregg gave her the nickname "Sunbeam"! She loves life, is always smiling, and is the most energetic girl I've ever seen. She is beyond curious and is always exploring everything...which unfortunately results in the worst messes to clean up! She is the most nurturing person. She's always trying to help her little sister and her favorite thing in life is her dolly!!! She has NO volume control and she thinks everything is stinkin' hysterical!

I asked Kevin a while ago to tell me one word that describes Emma. He replied, "!"...yes, an exclamation point! She does everything with emphasis. Everything from the way she walks to the way she hugs (so tight you can't breathe), and the way she tells you get off the carpet because no food is allowed on the carpet (remember...no volume control)!!! She cracks us up all the time!!!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Emma!!! We love you so much!!!

Kicking and Screaming

2009-01-06T13:11:00.004-05:00

Poor Amberlee bumped her mouth a little while ago (embarrassing mom confession...I have NO idea when it happened!), and her front tooth has progressively begun to die. When I took her for her check-up before Christmas, our dentist said the tooth had to come out! So today, I had to literally lay across her kicking legs and hold yelling/screaming Amberlee down while they gave her the numbing shot. You should have seen the looks of everyone once they opened the door!!! It actually made me laugh a little! How often do you really hear someone yelling while you're in the waiting room??? She really did try to be very brave, and was so happy that it was finally over! I think she only finds comfort in knowing that the tooth fairy will come tonight!!! Here are her before and after pictures! She's been having fun showing off her missing tooth to her little sisters and I keep finding her looking at herself in the mirror!!!

What goes down when Mom's on the phone!

2008-12-19T13:13:00.000-05:00

Christmas Trees and Snow Days...Yay Winter!!!

2008-12-01T22:05:00.011-05:00

This year marks our 4th year back in the states and the 4th trip to a tree farm to find our Christmas tree! This is a tradition we love and the girls are finally starting to love it as well. They were so cute as they hunted for the perfect tree---quirks and all! For some reason, we have the uncanny ability to pick out the most crooked trees!

Today was our first snow day of the year...YAY!!! I was so glad to wake up to 5 inches of snow and we didn't have to rush out the door to go anywhere! We had a great day of sitting by the fire in our pj's, sledding and playing in the snow, drinking hot chocolate, making cookies, and decorating our Christmas Tree! Winter is finally here and it is beautiful...remind me of this in February :) !!!

Here's a little video of my penguins...backwards and forwards!!!

What would I do without you?

2008-11-27T19:28:00.004-05:00

As today is Thanksgiving, I wanted to write a post for one thing I am especially thankful for this year! As you may know, my parents bought the house next door to us. My mom and dad have been here periodically since then...but my mom has been here for the past 2 months!!! I'm so sad that she will be leaving for California tomorrow. My life now has to get back to normal :(!Here is my list of why my I am so thankful for my mom and why she is the BEST neighbor in the world!

She came over almost morning to help with breakfast and watch Laicee while I took my older girls to school!

She watched Emma and Laicee while I took the older girls to dance class and soccer!

She picked up things for me at the grocery store whenever I need them!

She would bring me coke and sandwiches for lunch!

We'd go shopping together!

She watched the girls while I volunteered in the girls classes!

She came over during nap time so I could run errands!

She'd surprise me and clean-up dinner and do the dishes while I gave the girls their baths!

She let the girls come over to play at her house for HOURS at a time!

She never complained to help! She was just happy to be with her grand-daughters!

She read the girls bedtime stories!

She had numerous movie nights with the girls so I could go out with my friends...and Kevin too!

She gladly let the girls hug her to death every time they saw her!

She has helped so much with everything as Kev has been studying ALL THE TIME for his HUGE test that he is taking soon!

Mom, I love you and I am so thankful for how amazing you have been! You have made it so that I haven't lost my mind dragging all my little ones around while Kev has been out of commission! You have stepped in when I have needed you the most! I LOVE LOVE LOVE you and I'm seriously going to miss you!!!

I hope you all have had a great day! Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

What else do you do with a house of girls???

2008-11-17T20:57:00.001-05:00

As we were walking out of blockbuster, the girls noticed a poster for the new Tinkerbell movie. They were so excited...but even more excited when they thought to invite their friends over to watch the movie. The idea went on from there and we had a super fun girly night with pink cookies, cupcakes with cherries, and pajamas! There was one boy who came. He told his mom that he, "wasn't afraid of Tinkerbell"! Later that night as they drove home he said, "that wasn't Tinkerbell, Captain Hook wasn't anywhere in the movie!" I think he was sorely disappointed! In the end, the girls and their friends had a great squeally time! AND--a few quirky extras!

I only let the older girls paint and do messy crafts when Emma and Laicee are napping. If you knew Emma, this would make total sense! Yesterday, Emma woke up without us knowing and snuck into the kitchen and got into the paints. At what point did she think that painting her face was a good idea?

Amberlee is our cute little eclectic one! It is not unusual for her to put together an outfit that makes her totally happy. My only rule is that she has to match on school days and Sundays!

Pumpkin Festivus - For the Rest-of-us

2008-11-02T23:59:00.003-05:00

Why limit Halloween celebrations to just one night? Our town certainly doesn't. There is a pumpkin festival downtown a week before Halloween. The kiddos get all dressed up, trick-or-treat at all the businesses, play games, and roll pumpkins down hills! It's lots of crazy fun.

This year, Kassie (who played her part very well--I can't tell you how many times I had to say, "Kass, will you please use words to answer me, not meows!") and Amberlee were cats. Emma was a princess and Laicee was a butterfly.

Rolling pumpkins down the hill!Emma is trying to smile and eat her chewy candy at the same time!

On Halloween night, our neighborhood full of Halloween enthusiasts decided to have a progressive party. The kids started with trick-or-treating, and then moved from house to house playing games. At our house the kids did pumpkin bowling and went on a scavenger hunt to find their candy stolen by the wicked witch! Throughout the night, I kept finding Emma hidden under tables ravaging her candy!

The neighborhood kiddos!

Farm Fun with Amberlee

2008-11-02T21:54:00.007-05:00

Amberlee went a field trip with her class to a baby animal farm. They had baby animals that you could pet, hold, and feed. Amberlee was chosen to feed a bottle to a cow. She was so excited and talked about it for days! In addition to the animals, the kids got to go on a hay ride and pick out their very own pumpkin.

Also, every year our ward has a fall party at a member's farm. The kids play in the hay barn, we go on hay rides, and this year Amberlee got to ride one of their horses! She is such an animal lover and it's so fun to see how happy and excited she gets around them!

In the dark of the night!

2008-10-30T00:15:00.004-04:00

Every night before I go to bed, I check on the girls. I tuck all their blankets back on, kiss their little heads and head off to my bedroom to go to bed. Last night, after I finished my bedtime routine, I heard the toilet running in the girls bathroom. I walked back down the hall....no one was there. I looked back into their rooms...no one had moved...AT ALL...not even an inch. They were EXACTLY as I had left them! So naturally...I completely freak out! Who flushed the toilet??? I know it wasn't Kev because 1. He isn't a quiet person and 2. He was also dead asleep. So I ran back to my bedroom and woke him up..."Kev, go check the house. Someone flushed the toilet and it wasn't the girls!!!" (Please tell me I'm not the only wife to make her husband go check out freaky noises in the middle of the night !). Now, Kev IS THE WORST person to wake up. He is completely incoherent and has no idea what is going on! He starts complaining that I'm waking him up! Somehow he manages to get up, stumbles down to the bathroom, and looks INSIDE the toilet and exclaims, "There's no one here"! No kidding! So I make HIM look behind the shower curtain (because there's no way I'm looking there) and then I proceed to make him look in every closet, room, crevasse of the house! I even made him look in the garage and in the cars (just in case)! Unfortunately, once he "came to" he just laughed at me the entire time he was checking for the mysterious toilet flusher! So in the end, I still have no idea who flushed the toilet. It's just another night of many where I make him check out the freaky noises!

Where do I put all the leaves?!?!?!

2008-10-19T15:27:00.012-04:00

(BTW, I can't even tell you how impossible it is to take a decent picture of our 4 little ones...seriously!)

There is something so warm, cozy and nostalgic about the fall time. I love turning on the fire place for the first time and I love running to Starbucks (for hot chocolate of course) on those first really cold mornings! One of Michigan's fall traditions is to have apple cider and donuts. And it's a tradition I am loving! I also love going to the apple orchards and pumpkin patches. We went to the patch on Saturday and had so much fun! It was so funny to watch the girls pick out their pumpkins. The smallest ones were obviously for Laicee---and the largest ones were for Kev. While we were there, we went on a hay ride, the girls rode ponies, and they also went on a cow train that they LOVED!

They loved the hay ride...although we all ended up covered in hay (which I'm still finding in their hair). We were the only ones who thought throwing hay on a hay ride was funny!
(The little boy in the pics is my sister's little boy, Jackson)

Amberlee was THE MOST excited little girl to ride the ponies. This was by far her favorite thing!

In addition to our fall fun, Kev took the girls camping in the backyard! They loved it, of course, and learned that the moon is a natural nightlight. They were so amazed! Emma kept saying (over and over and over) "Emma (3rd person speech) camping outside with Daddy"...adding a cute little cheesy grin each time she'd say it!

Another great thing about the fall...the scenery! It is so amazing around here with all the different colors of the leaves. Our neighborhood is gorgeous at this time!

...But then it all falls! It takes us a couple hours every Saturday to rake up all of our leaves. It's probably quite funny to drive by our house and see Kev with his crutches trying to rake up leaves, me doing the majority of the work, and the girls "helping" and then jumping in the HUGE piles when we're finished. It's all part of fall...and I love it!

I have to give you an aerial shot...so many leaves and I don't know what to do with them!!!

Laicee -- 0 to 60 in 10 minutes!

2008-10-11T23:57:00.004-04:00

This is mostly for the grandmas...Laicee is finally walking! Yeah! She has been cruising for about a month. She hasn't even been standing on her own...until tonight. All of the sudden, I found her standing...and then walking. It Happened just like that!! She was so proud of herself, as were we, but not nearly as much as her squealy sisters in the background!

New Neighbors

2008-10-10T13:32:00.008-04:00

Our house is on the right, theirs is on the left

I realize that you probably could care less about who our neighbors might be...unless it's someone interesting...

Last May, Steph's parents were visiting and saw the house next door to us was for sale. They had been thinking about making our town their "home base" so they put in an offer and bought the house! Just last week, Steph's sister called and told us that she is now moving into the house next door! So now, Kristin, her husband, and her little man will be our new neighbors!

We know what you're thinking..."I don't know if I could live THAT close to family"! It will be interesting...and ground rules have been set, of course :), But we are overall excited. We have never lived close to any family so this will be a new experience for us.

So, we love polls! Our question is...could you do it? Could you live Raymond style by your family???

Who takes polaroids anymore?

2008-09-21T21:18:00.024-04:00

Kev's surgery to repair his completely torn Achilles tendon was successful. We asked the Doctor to take pictures of the surgery and I almost gave him my digital camera when he said he had his own equipment. Little did I know, that by "equipment" he meant "a measly Polaroid camera"! So, for all of you who voted "Bring it on" to see surgery pics, here you go...

and to give you a better idea of the procedure here are pictures of the same surgery on a different guy. You can see the tendon torn and then repaired.

He's doing well, but he is still in lots of pain. He'll start physical therapy in a couple weeks and that will last for 8-12 weeks!!!

So, as a side note to all you awesome weekend warriors out there (this is what the doctor called Kev when he was drug in by his equally sweaty, middle-aged friends)...just stretch a little bit more than you usually would (although this really is a freak of an accident) and maybe play just a little bit lighter than you normally do...We, your wives, know how awesome and steller and amazing and austounding you are...and you play just as great-if not better than you did 10 years ago...really...but please just don't get injured and put your poor wives through this!

Laicee's 1st Birthday

2008-09-17T22:19:00.006-04:00

Last year at this time, I was sitting in church with contractions that I was positive were fake. Can you believe they actually had the nerve to extend a primary calling to me while I was in labor? Little did I know that three hours later, Laicee would arrive! She has blessed our lives so much! She brings such a calming peace to our home. It was great to finally celebrate her first birthday today as Kev's surgery yesterday lasted waaay longer than expected (we'll follow up with that in the next post). Anyway, happy birthday to our itty-bitty-cutie! We love you Laicee!

Laicee Naomi enters the world on 9/16/07

7 lbs 20 in

She's already a daddy's girl!

All bundled up for her 1st MI winter

3 months old

8 months old

4th of July - Freedom Festival Parade

Man Down!!!

2008-09-14T21:23:00.004-04:00

Last Saturday morning, Kev followed in the footsteps of many other stellar athletes, including Emmitt Smith (He keeps comparing himself to pro athletes to make him feel better!), and ruptured his Achilles tendon while going for his signature rebound in basketball. It looks like surgery will happen on Tuesday 9/16 (Laicee's 1st birthday... way to go Dad). Recovery will be looooooooong. It couldn't have happened at a better time. Just imagine Kev hopping along with his crutches during a Siberian - I mean Michigan - snow storm. Wish us the best!!!

By the way, thanks to all of our awesome friends for everything!!!

Check out the poll to the right. Disclaimer: Steph doesn't want gory pics on this cute blog, but we'll let the majority speak. Plus, Kev may just do it anyway (Steph groans).

School Days!

2008-09-09T22:40:00.009-04:00

The girls were so excited to go back to school! Kass started 1st grade and both Amberlee and Emma are going to pre-school this year. I'm so excited for the time that Laicee and I get to spend together!!!

Out with the old and in with the new

2008-09-09T22:22:00.002-04:00

All right...we got it. After endless complaints and harassment about our lowedown website being old school...we finally caved to peer pressure and here it is, our first blog. Out with the old and in with the new!