Going to the Fair

This past weekend we took the kids to the state fair to see the animals and play on the rides and eat junk. It was great! Here is Anna and Russ ready for their first challenge.
Come on guys, you can do it, hit it really hard!!! You're so strong!!!
Winner!!! Princess Anna gets the prize! She loves that hammer and we play with it every night now.
She also got to race in a really fast car, she was so excited about this, and picked out the ride probably because it made her think of Lightning McQueen, but she was a little tense, maybe a little too fast for her. Still, no tears, so we were very proud.
Anna gets to ride a pony! She was so cute about it, and so excited! She kept saying "giddy up" the entire time, and "yee haw!" Very cute. I think this picture is so funny. Russ, did you step on something? Hmmmm.
There they are. So cute together. Anna felt very safe having daddy walk beside her and hold her hand. I think Daddy was quite proud to get to walk next to such a princess!
This is Emma watching Anna ride the pony. I love her expression, just awed by these little ponies walking round and round.
Here's Anna at her next pick, the hot air balloon ride. She was so happy to try it, she went up and down and round and round, and had a blast!
Yay Anna! You're so cute!
This is what Emma had to say at the end of our adventure: ZZZZZZZ! She fell asleep before we left the parking lot! Good sport, Emma!

We saved the best for last. When we stopped for lunch, the only place we could find to sit down was near a little Mexican party, we were near their stage, and we could hear their music playing the entire time. This is how Emma feels about the music, you've got to watch this!

Fondant Lesson

 

My very first lesson in decorating cakes with fondant.  It's amazing how simple it was, and how fun it was!  John was a great teacher in the arts of fondant making.  It's sticky stuff, let me tell ya!

 

Excuse me, we're working here!

 

For the second part of my lesson, the actual decorating, I was under Nicholette's skilled teaching.  She made that awesome Mario.  I made the clouds.  Don't look to closely, ok?  Isn't it cute?

 

On the sides of the cake we added some more fun Mario stuff, aren't Nicholette's bricks just awesome?  I made the bushes.  Again, don't look too close.  

Fondant cakes are so much fun!  They've made a fan out of me, and I can't wait to do this again.  What was Russ doing during all this Mario cake making you ask?

 

He felt inspired.  He beat the game!  He saved the Princess, with a little Mario none the less!  Wow Russ, you rocked it!  Anna calls Mario Running bear, we can't make her see that he's an actual man.  When she saw the cake she said "Wow, that's my darling Running Bear!"  Poor Mario.  

Jack's baby blessing

 

Check out the little man!  Jack's baby blessing was on September 6th, and we felt privileged to be a part of it.  How wonderful to have another little person in our family!  Isn't this the cutest little face?  I have a "Jack addiction" it's very hard to control, so I've quit trying.  I just love this kid!  Doesn't he look dapper in his little outfit?  

 
 

I love this picture.  Anna was trying to get Jack to smile, and it was so cute to see them interact.  He was really interested in what she had to say there.

Congratulations John and Nicholette on your beautiful, scrumptious baby boy!

Happy Birthday to me!

 

Happy Birthday to me!  My birthday was September 2nd, and I got to celebrate in so many wonderful ways.  Russ gave me a "mommy vacation" which included a hotel stay and all the treats I could have wanted.  I went out to dinner, saw a movie, got a pedicure, read a book and slept in late!  Did I say I got to sleep in late?  Yup, it's true.  Best birthday gift ever.  My family in Provo got together to have a delicious meal, with lots of meat included, of course.  It was wonderful!  

Here is my little brother and I goofing around.  Love this kid.  Tio gave me a very cute jacket (and Tia Pri too) for my birthday, I can't wait till it gets colder so I can wear it.

 

On the actual day of my birthday, I get surprised by John and Nicholette with this beauty!  Don't you love my Brazil cake?  I loved it!   It was delicious, but it sure hurt to cut into something so pretty!

I loved my cake!!! 

I also had a very fun treasure hunt made by Daddy and Anna to find all kinds of very fun presents all through the house.  I wish I had saved the maps they made me.  It was so cute to see Anna try and keep from telling me where she hid the gifts, but excitement got the better of her.

I have to say I totally had a blast for my birthday, and I got such thoughtful gifts from my family this year.  Russ was wonderful, my mom and dad gave me a rice cooker, which I've been wanting for a long time, John and Nicholette not only made me an awesome cake, but Nicholette picked up some awesome jewelery for me, including a pair of earings I had showed her weeks before and told her I was in love with (and I happen to be wearing right as I type this).  Jeanne and Jake gave me Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child, which brought me to tears.  Yes, I cried over a cookbook.  I love it so much!  Mom and Dad Sperry took us out to lunch at Braza grill and she gave me this totally cute leather purse that I had actually gone to pick out with her under the impression that Mom was going to keep it!  Very sneaky!  I loved it!  I love gifts that show people are paying attention to you, does that make sense?  I loved all the gifts, but even more, I love the fact that my loved ones were so thoughtful.  Thank you all so much.  You've touched me deeply right here (I'm pointing at my heart).  :)

Major X Anna Minor Batonder

 

Meet the newest superhero.  Major X Anna Minor Batonder.  Anna dressed herself up like this one Saturday morning and then told us that was her name.  She made this up.  We thought it was hilarious!  We love Major X Anna Minor Batonder, even though we have no idea what it means.  We love our Super Anna!

Depeche Mode Concert

I am so behind on posting it's not even funny.  I have so much to catch up on, so hold on to your hats.  For Russ' birthday back in June I gave him tickets to a Depeche Mode concert.  He's always loved the band and was very excited to go.  This is Russ and I making very mysterious faces as to represent the mood some Depeche Mode songs put you in.
 Pensive, mysterious. We think we're so cool!

Here are some of our favorite parts of the show.  It really was an awesome stage, and they did a lot of impressive stuff with lights and special effects.

Russ enjoying one of his favorite songs.  I'm so glad he got to do this!  Love you lots cute Russ.

This was one of my favorite things they did during the show.  It looked like a typewriter and as they sang, the words to a poem was written in the back.

If you're wondering why I haven't mentioned any of my favorite songs, it's because I didn't know a thing about Depeche Mode, to be honest.  There were maybe a couple of songs I knew, and it was awesome, but don't ask me for details, I really don't remember.  It was really an awesome concert to go to, though, even if you've not that acquainted with the band.

It was a GREAT experience, and now Russ and I are planning our next concert!