Isabel's dance recital

Another spring, another dance recital! Isabel was so excited that my parents were in town and thus able to see one of her recitals for the first time, as were my parents. And Brian's parents also came, so she was thrilled to have all of her grandparents in attendance.

I love love love her ballet costume this year; the dance had a picnic theme. The tap costumes were supposed to look like bums. Not sure that's really what the outcome was, but the girls thought the costumes were fun so that's all that matters. She did another great job, knew her routines perfectly and executed them as such. She really likes to be on the stage. And she's a joy to watch.

These are from when they had professional pics taken a couple of weeks ago-

 And her recital pics:

She loved getting flowers from each set of grandparents and from daddy and her brothers. I am so proud of my beautiful little dancer, who was moved up earlier this year to the older girls' class; she has kept up beautifully and did a fantastic job. Way to go Isabel!

Connor's baptism

On a lovely summer evening, July 23, my Connor Patrick was baptized. It was such a beautiful, exciting and important day for him, and the rest of us.

Go HERE for more info on why we baptize children at the age of 8.

We worked hard to prepare him for this important step, and know that he was ready. We had so many family members and friends attend his baptism and show their love and support; it was wonderful.


Love this picture of my SIL Alli and nephew Parker-

my parents-

Our family-

Brian's family members who were able to attend: his parents; and his sister Kelley, her husband Leo and their sons Cameron and Parker (from Dallas)-

My family members who were able to attend: my parents (from Minnesota), my sister Kristina and her sons Nolan and Parker (from St. Louis) and my bro and SIL Nate and Alli (who live nearby in CO)-

Thanks to everyone who attended, participated in the program and gave him such thoughtful gifts. We love our family and friends. And we are so proud of Connor and his decision to follow his Savior's example. He has such a strong sense of right and wrong and tries to choose the right. Love him so much!

Cameron was here

Brian's sister Kelley, her husband Leo and their son Cameron were passing through on Sunday, and spent the night with us. If you remember, Cameron was born at 25 weeks gestation and weighed 1 pound 7 ounces (sadly his twin, Ressa, passed away three weeks after being born). It is always so great to see how far Cameron has come. After a teeny tiny start, he now weighs a lot more than Lucas - like 7 pounds more - and 4 pounds more than Isabel. And he is only about 6 weeks older than Lucas. Can you believe he actually has some baby fat? It's so fantastic. He is the sweetest little boy, and my kids love their Howell-side cousin.

The ABCs of our Minnesota trip

I just finished my sixth load of laundry and I'm mostly unpacked, so I am blogging while the memories are still fresh. We had a terrific trip to Minnesota. Here's a recap in ABC style.

I got a new sister-in-law, Alli, who married my youngest brother Nate on Saturday. She is a sweetheart. They are a great couple, and we are all so happy for them. Connor and Isabel were the ringbearer and flower girl, along with their cousins Ben and Grace. They all did beautifully.
The happy couple:

With their flower girls and ringbearers:
Me and Isabel:
Alli and the flower girls:
Connor and Isabel before the wedding:
Grace and Isabel walking down the aisle:
The five of us:

We were able to be there for the baby blessing of my new niece, Emma. She is the cutest little doll!

Also, the bugs were out in full force. My kids clearly are not being raised in a buggy area, because one day when I told Isabel I was going to put bug spray on her, she got really confused and said, "But I'm not a bug!"

There is something very special and fun about having cousins. There are 7 grandkids on my side, and the four oldest (Connor, Ben, Grace and Isabel) have become increasingly close. They really all got along great and had tons of fun together, including a cousin sleepover. Connor and Ben are 8 months apart, and Grace and Isabel are only 5 days apart, althought it looks more like a year or 2 because Grace is so tall and Isabel is so tiny.

At the wedding reception, all three of my kiddos were dancing stars! Seriously. I was very impressed. Isabel and Connor danced for 2 hours pretty much nonstop. At one point, Connor was trying to dip and spin Isabel. They were a total riot, pretty much stole the show along with their cousins.

Spinning Isabel:
My mom dancing with Lucas:

Nate and Alli dancing with the flower girls and ringbearers:
At one point, Lucas was squirming in my arms, so I set him down thinking he was getting tired and grumpy. Instead, he made a beeline for the dance floor and proceeded to do this (it's a video):



A circus was passing through my sister's little town, so we took the kiddos down to see the elephant and ride on ponies. Must admit, I'm not a huge circus fan, but the kids love elephants and thought the pony ride was fun, so it was worth it.


My brother-in-law Josh is a volunteer firefighter, and he drove the firetruck in the Fourth of July parade and my kids got to ride on the truck in the parade. I'm not sure Connor has recovered from this experience. He is totally obsessed with firetrucks, ambulances and police cars, and Alli (who along with Nate rode in the truck with them) reported that Connor just kept saying, "'I'm in a firetruck, behind an ambulance!" Happy boy indeed.




Two days before the wedding, my entire family went mini-golfing at Pier 77, a fun northwoods-themed course near our cabin. It has been a family favorite for years. We had a blast! Some of the crew:

The kids loved it:

We had to tear the girls away from this little log cabin on one of the holes, they wanted to stay and play house:
The five of us on the chairlift/skiing hole:

My mom, sisters and I love shopping at Herberger's, the department store in my hometown. There isn't a lot of good shopping where I grew up, but we love Herberger's. We had a shopping afternoon, and spent hours in that one store! So fun.

What is better than ice cream on a hot 4th of July day?


Being with my family brings me so much joy.

Maybe he's a know-it-all almost kindergartner, but Connor kept totally knocking the way my mom talks. He was constantly correcting her strong Minnesota accent. It was actually really funny. He'd say things like "Grandma, it's not house (said with a MN accent), it's house (with a non-MN accent). Can you say that?"

My parents have a log home in the woods of northern Minnesota. It's always so peaceful and relaxing to visit there.


How did families survive on road trips years ago without DVD players? Movies on the road keeps us all sane!

The climate up north is always unpredictable, and often cooler than the hot Colorado summers. We had several cool days where the temperature didn't climb out of the low 60s. It almost felt like fall! I loved the reprieve from the heat.

According to rocker Bob Seger, there's a long and lonesome highway east of Omaha. But I beg to differ. I really think it's northeast of Denver. I-76 from Denver to the Nebraska border stinks.

My brothers love to play sports, and my kids had fun getting in on the action. She may be tiny, but Isabel held her own!

Slam dunk Lucas:

My mom and I were able to get started on the quilt for Isabel. My mom convinced me it needed one more fabric, and thought brown was a good option. I wasn't sold on it at first, but it has grown on me. I think it adds a lot. We got all the fabric cut, and sewed the first two rows. I brought it back to work on. I feel confident in sewing the squares together, but the tying and then binding the edges has me a bit worried. My parents are planning a trip out here in the fall, perhaps we'll finish it then.

Close up of the fabrics:

My mom hired a sitter, so Brian and I were able to attend the rehearsal dinner. It was on a lake, and was great to get out with adults and celebrate the upcoming wedding. The cute couple:

Another cute couple ;)

My kids loved the swing in grandma and grandpa's yard.

The previously mentioned Josh (my BIL) is a diesel mechanic. One afternoon we took an outing to see all the big trucks he works on.

My kids are fortunate to have lots of aunts and uncles who love them.

My dad's family has had a cabin on beautiful Lake Vermilion since 1953. Growing up, it was like a second home. I love the cabin and the water, and grew up swimming, boating, waterskiing, fishing, and just about anything else you can do on a lake. Love it. And love watching my kids love it.

Why am I posting me in a swimsuit?

My nephew Nolan is a water baby. We couldn't believe how he liked being so submerged in the lake! It's been a cool summer there, and the water was pretty cool.

Isabel and Connor playing in the lake:

The view from the cabin:
Isabel, Lucas and cousin Grace lounging in the hammock:
The cabin in full use. I have so many memories here:
We spent the night at the cabin, which always includes a marshmallow roast:
More water play:
Isabel and great-grandma Downing:
Going for a boat ride:
Isabel between my sister Kristina and her husband Ted:
On the way to Minnesota, we stopped at the Winter Quarters temple, pioneer cemetery and visitor center outside of Omaha. It was really beautiful and also sad. I am so grateful to live at this time.


The kids loved loading up wagons for their "journey:"
Two things happened to Lucas while we were gone: he got weaned (freedom for me!!!) and he started walking! I'd only been nursing at bedtime for the past month, but we're totally done. And he's been slow to repeat the steps he was taking days ago, but he's done it a few times, so full walking is on the horizon.

Video of his first steps:



I got so used to all the extra hands, I am missing them already!

Years go by so quickly these days, and I am grateful for times like these and the memories they create. One of my favorite quotes is by J. M. Barrie, who said, "God gave us memories so we could have June roses in the Decembers of our lives."

Overall, it was fun but exhausting. We all need to catch up on our Zzzzzzzzzzs.