Speaking Larsen

This year at the fair, we gorged ourselves on good food and made sure to do all the things we wanted, because the farm is slated to be sold in December. The kids have worked so hard to help break the heifers to lead. We drove out to the farm twice a day for weeks and weeks to teach Mel B, Hazelnut, Cocoa, Paige Turner, Red Pepper, Dancer, and Lil Red to lead to water. We had extra help at the fair, too. Alex Chandler, a return missionary who served here in Idaho Falls, came back to the area to go to school but she had exactly two weeks where she we never was free to help us on the dairy and at the fair.

Well, on the morning of April 8th, a beautiful Saturday, we woke up and got all dressed up for Brooklyn's Baptism. I'm sad to report that I didn't take a lot of photos of the after party, but I can you some of the fun details of the day. ► Brooklyn was one of twelve kids being baptized that morning. ►She ended up being thee very last one to be baptized. ►Because of this, she was asked to "swim down to the bottom" and pull the plug to drain the font. ►Because of this, the drain whistled and gurgled quite loudly while she was surrounded by the priesthood holder who were conferring the Holy Ghost upon her. ►She opened a golden birthday gift immediately after getting home, as it was a black and gold outfit from us for her to wear for the rest of the day. ►Grandma and Grandpa Larsen gave Brooklyn her first set of scriptures, and an adorable stuffed animal. ► Grandpa and Grandma Pack gave Brooklyn her heirloom baptism Barbie doll. ► The Park...

While the boys are at the General Priesthood Session, we girls snuck in a photo of ourselves and spent the evening at Grandma Pack's. I milked the cows while they watched MOANA. And as I look at these girls, my heart overflows with a million smiles that are like bright stars, full of hope and promise. There is a weight I cannot describe that comes with it, too. I love being their mom and am grateful, every day, for their enduring strength, their positive attitudes, their sass, and their friendship. They're ridiculously beautiful, inside and out. In 20 years, I hope they're still my dearest friends and will snuggle me like they do now, because if this keeps up, they'll still be beautiful, inside and out, and I'll be beside myself on what a lucky woman I am to have them.

It's almost this sweet girl's birthday. She'll be turning 8 on April 8th, and getting baptized on this golden day. Our hearts are full, and we are so excited to celebrate her!

If you can't tell Brooklyn's flying through the Post-it notes. I found these ones, at the bottom of her school bag. So I took them into the school, handed them to her teacher to read and giggle at, and then told her to have Brooklyn deliver these kind messages to her classmates. This girl is single-handedly going to keep the Post It note company in business, and bring the art of passing handwritten notes back into style.

Here is the mastermind behind Fablehaven, and now, Dragon Watch.  We were so excited about it we waited in line for 2 hours at the mall, with  Serene Heiner and her kids, to get our copy of it signed! It's really fun to meet authors the kids love!

I'm not sure this needs much explaining. Other than I found these notes while cleaning. At least they're communicating with each other, right?

Your dater. She means, YOUR DAUGHTER. Still, can we just take a minute here to laugh at how badly she wants her own Plug In Scentsy warmer? I mean, she even had it back dated. How was I supposed to get it for her when she wrote the note ten days later? We did go to PPC, just in case you were wondering. We go about once every three months. Update: As of March 15, she officially has her own warmer, purchased with her own money. She earns wax for it by keeping her room clean.

Lately, when we get home, we have notes stuck to doors and mirrors from Brooklyn. She's fearless when it comes to spelling things and getting what she wants to say on paper. Mostly, it's adorable. Tonight, it appears that Brooklyn's note making has rubbed off onto her bigger sister. Jocelyn's note is especially funny with the whole LOVE AND PEACE bit. Gosh, I sure love these monkeys of mine.

The following photos weren't taken on January 31st, but that was the day Leena was born, so I'm back dating it a bit. Blaine and Paula welcomed Leena after months of waiting, and the whole family is excited to have another Pack baby in the family. Born after an 11 hour labor, Leena came into the world at 6 pounds and 15 ounces, and 20 inches long.

We made an impromptu trip to SLC and Provo right after Thanksgiving. We spent time with Chad and Courtney and kids, and they played while I helped Courtney decorate her Christmas tree! Then we met up with Janelle and walked around a cute area of town. We found this funny Santa costume piece and laughed and had a really great time kicking off our holiday season!

Brooklyn pulled out a tooth. Compared to losing her first one back in May , this is an Olympic jump in how she feels about it now. See this VIDEO!

This beautiful girl turned seven, and she is such a blessing in our home. She's a fierce and special girl, with the way she takes on each day with no fear. She's strong and independent, a bit on the messy side, and very creative. Which tends to be a part of the reason she's messy. We sure love her and her adorable smile. We went to dinner at Applebees and opened a few gifts. It was a low key year. Next year, things will be different as she'll turn 8 on April 8th. Wow.