Family Pictures

Wow! We finally had family pictures taken. We haven't had our pictures taken since Belle was a baby (I refuse to take family photos pregnant). Here are some of our favorites.

Halloween

Okay, so Abby would not pose in a picture...she was Tinkerbell. Anyhow, the girls had fun and Belle really caught on to the whole "Halloween" routine.

Change

Lots of change is going on in our home. That would be why I haven't "blogged" in a while. First off, my little Tess is now eating baby food. I really couldn't ask for a better baby. All my children were good babies, but she is the best. The top reason is because she doesn't spit up! Another reason is she's easy-going and only cries when something is really wrong.

Another change is that Whitney lost her first tooth last month. She was so nervous to have it pulled out. My dad finally just reached in a "yanked" it out. I tried to get her to pull her own out, but she was hesitant. (I always pulled my own out)

I think the biggest change is that Steve went back to school and I am a working woman as of the end of September. I am working at a brand new elementary school as a Special Ed teacher for K-3 grade. Many of you might ask me, "I didn't know you had your Special Ed degree..." Well, I don't....I don't have a current teaching license either. Anyhow, I am taking some online classes to renew my license and I have to sign-up for a Special Ed program by next Fall to keep my job. I really love it, even more than teaching general education. Many of you that know me realize that I love paper work, so it's the best combo for me. I will have my Special Ed degree in 2 1/2 years along with a Masters...kind of nervous. Steve is a stay-at-home Dad. It's gone better than expected, although, there are days I need to pull my hair out! Anyhow, just wanted to let you all know that we're still doing great.

Tess' Blessing

Tess was finally blessed last Sunday. I waited a month longer than I wanted because I was waiting for Jordan to come home from his mission. I decided since he wasn't around for the birth of Abby, for the birth of Tess, and Abby's blessing...I could wait for him. Anyhow, things went great except that she cried during the entire blessing. That was very unlike her because she is such a mellow little thing. I'm still unsure of her eye color, but after looking at Belle's old baby pictures, you can hardly tell them apart. I realized after church that I hadn't even put a headband on her. In fact, she has never worn one...what a poor excuse for a mom. We're so happy to have her in our home!

Happy Birthday...Me!

Okay, my birthday was a week ago, but I thought I would post this anyway. Here are some things that I like about myself:
1. I'm very humble :)
2. I look way too young to be 32 :)
3. I make very beautiful babies :)

First Day of School

Here's Whitney ready to head out the door for her first day of first grade. She was so excited that I asked Steve to wake her up and she was waiting for me in the kitchen and was completely ready to go. Apparently, she didn't sleep much the night before because she was so excited...I wonder if this is a peek into what it will be like at Christmas. After school, I asked her what her favorite part of her day was and she said that she had a corn dog and chocolate milk for lunch. She also mentioned that someone complimented her cool scarf she's wearing. It's so cute to see how she is so conscious about what she is wearing. Whitney picked out all of her own school clothes this year because I know she loves shopping.

Day at the Zoo

Steve and I took the girls to the zoo on Monday. We hadn't taken them this summer and the weather was perfect. Last year we went on the hottest day of the year and melted. Abby was so amazed with the animals. She was so cute because she kept trying to talk to us about them. All I could understand was when she saw some birds she said, "quack, quack".

Welcome Home!

My little bro, Jordan, just returned from his mission in Manchester, England on August 13. It was great to see him back even though I know he really wanted to stay out there longer. He definitely looks older now and he speaks very proper English. Luckily, I believe the Davis fam can break him of that!

Frogs

We went to the Natural History Museum at the University of Utah last week with one of my friends and her 3 kids. They had a whole exhibit on frogs. The girls had so much fun. Belle loved to watch the frogs hop around in their aquariums and Whitney was fascinated by all the little frog facts. We later went upstairs to the small dinosaur exhibit and had the girls sit in a dinosaur foot print.

Happy Number 3!

Belle turned 3 on Wednesday. We had a little family party for her on Saturday afternoon. Steve and I bought this little pool for her and the girls had a blast! We had homemade ice cream, homemade rootbeer, hamburgers, hotdogs, and melon. Belle has been asking me for weeks if she was "3" yet, and finally I could say "yes". Here are a few funny phrases she has said and facts about her:

-"Can I hit Whitney?"

-"I am going to run away from home. Okay, I'll just walk away. Okay, no running away or walking away."

-As she drops a hexagon-shaped cracker: "Mom, could you give me my pentagon, please?"

-She gets extremely car-sick (within 10 minutes) and recently was able to take her off prescription medicine and use dramamine to take care of it.

-She loves Barbie's, ponies, dress-up, and babies

-As she shuts the door before Whitney is able to walk in the house: "No more Whitney's."

-She loves to be held like a baby in a blanket

-She hates to be thrown up in the air

-She talks a lot, but she hardly talks in church and most people don't realize how "chatty" she is

-Every time I tell her something, she responds, "oh"

Open House

We decided to go the Open House at the Oquirrh Mountain Temple. They allowed strollers, which was awesome. Our double stroller fit through almost all the door ways. Anyhow, Whitney loved the temple and especially the chandeliers. It was a great teaching experience to explain the different rooms, ordinances, and just experiencing the beauty inside. She said that one of her favorite things was the self-playing piano. Unfortunately, that wasn't in the temple, but the reception area at the end. I think Belle's and Abby's favorite thing was the sugar cookie at the end.

I really didn't want my picture taken because I'm still carrying a bit of baby weight (my excuse for now), but it's not often that we have the opportunity of all of us being in the picture... I'm usually holding the camera.

New Baby

Tess was born on Tuesday, June 16. She was 6 pounds 15 ounces and 18 inches long. Delivering her was so easy that it seemed strange when it was over. She is such a good baby. My biggest challenge is to keep her away from Abby. Abby wants to hold her all the time. That's not so bad, but she also wants to pinch and poke her in the face. So far, I am doing pretty good keeping track of the 4 girls, but it will be much nicer once I can sleep through the night.

Easter

Here are some pictures of the girls coloring their Easter eggs. Well, the one of Abby is of her hanging on my leg while I helped Belle. Whit was excited and Belle was happy to go along with what we were doing except you could tell that she was a bit confused as to why we were coloring eggs and why we were hunting for them in the trees the next day.

Steve's Birthday

Steven's birthday was the beginning of April, but my camera batteries died and I just barely replaced them. Anyhow, the girls were so excited to celebrate. The first picture with he and Whit is so cute. She had given him a couple of her pencils and she said that he needed them for work. She put a lot of thought into what pencils that she was giving him. I love the picture of Steve and Abby together. He loves his little girls! Here's a few things I love about Steve:

-He's ALWAYS spontaneous

-He's not afraid to take a risk

-He is rarely serious

-He loves our girls

-He doesn't show it on the outside, but he has a soft heart

-He loves to read (only information and motivational, of course)

-He loves to research

-He is extremely patient

-He calls me in the middle of the day when he's at work

-He loves to be around people

Happy 1st Birthday!

Abby turned 1 on March 5. I had a little family party for her on Saturday. Her actual birthday was spent at the doctor's office for an ear infection. She's feeling great now. I can't believe that she's already 1. Here are a few things about Abby:

-She hates oatmeal

-She yells louder than any other of my children, especially when food is being placed on the table

-She likes to give hugs

-She rarely has her hair done because she eats the hair clips and rubber bands

-She does an "Abby Dance" where she lays on her back and twists her hips back and forth

-She makes a constant growling noise every time she looks through a book

-One of her favorite toys is the Magna Doodle

We Moved.....Again!

Well, we packed our valuables and headed out of the good old Uintah Basin. Things didn't really work out there, so Steve decided to go back to being a loan officer (which he loves) and we moved to Utah County on Saturday. This has been a crazy year with all this moving, but we're staying here for a long time.

Did We Get Our Boy?

Well.....nope! We're expecting girl #5 around June 18. Whitney has not decided what she thinks the name should be and Belle, being the creative girl she is, said the baby's name is "Baby." Personally, I just hope Abby is walking by then and Belle will get over her extreme, scream-fest fear of the potty so I will only have two in diapers.

Christmas

We had a great Christmas! Steve had to work that day, but by some miracle, he was home before the girls were awake. I was so glad. Abby loved the boxes and wrapping and Belle was trying to figure out why we were shoving presents in her face. Steve and I unwrapped our presents from each other and we ended up giving each other the same thing. I never thought that would happen.

For New Year's Eve, of course, Steve had to work the next morning, so he wasn't up for celebrating. I told Whit and Belle that we could stay up late and put puzzles together, eat chips, and watch some movies. They were so excited. I thought that I would let them stay up until around 10, but around 9:15, they were exhausted and Whitney said that she had stayed up too late. I put them to bed. I thought it was so funny that they could only stand to be up an hour past their regular bed time.