The Color Run

Woohoo!  On Saturday we did the Color Run 5k!  It was awesome fun!  There are people that throw colored powder on you at certain intervals throughout the race.  It was at Tempe Beach Park and there were a TON of people there!

This is the before shot. Crystal, me, Sara, and Brick. (Sorry, you got cut off Crystal!) We didn't stay white for long!  It took a long time to actually run the 5k, because everyone stopped in the color zones and created a huge bottleneck.  That's okay, though.  It was just for fun and they didn't even time it.

Proof that I did actually run a little.

 

And the end result!  I'll be washing color out of everything for a week!  I think we'll make this an annual thing.  It was so fun!  Thanks for running with me Crystal, Sara, and Brick!

6 Months

Preston is 6 months old!  We've had him for half a year, not even as long out as in, but I already can't remember life without him.  He is the sweetest, best little baby.  And when I say best, I mean BEST!  He hardly cries, sleeps through the night, and is always smiling.  He has definitely been the easiest of my kids.  

If you see Preston, he may look like this.  He often has at least two fingers in his mouth.  Usually those middle two.  He won't take a pacifier anymore, but those fingers keep him happy.  He's growing up.  Almost all of his dark hair is gone and he's starting to look like a little boy.  He could probably sit up, but he's the squirmiest child alive.  So he can't balance sitting, with all that rocking and wiggling going on.  He is getting in crawling position, but so far no movement.  He can scoot a little, mostly around in a circle.

Preston is eating baby food.  He loves to eat.  He screams when the food is gone.  So far, he seems to love it all, unless it's green.  Then he spits it out all over his bib.  He is starting to be okay if I just sit him in the highchair while I get stuff done in the kitchen.  Not too long, though, or he'll expect some food.

He loves to go on runs with the stroller.  He always seems happy and doesn't cry.  Noelle, on the other hand....  Well, let's just say it's better when she's asleep.  But she does love to look at Preston next to her.  She loves him so much.  They are my closest together.  I hope they'll be good friends.

Preston, at 6 months:
Weight: 17 lb. 1.5 oz. (50%)
Height: 27.75 in. (90%)

Happy Birthday Noelle!

Happy Birthday Noelle! Bring on the Terrible Twos!

 

 Noelle had a fun low-key birthday.  We had peanut butter chocolate chip sandwiches and played at the park.  It was nice.

When Dad got home the party started.  I think she was excited about her cake.

I swear! That girl has the best expressions! She is sooo funny.  This next picture was the disbelief and the love she felt for her present.  She was so happy.  Sleepy Time Dora = hit.

Happy Birthday Possum Pie!

Oh, and her 2 year stats:

Weight: 24.2 lbs (10-25%)

Height: 33.75 in. (25-50%)

Merry Christmas!

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas! Ours was crazy, but good-crazy. We stayed the night at Bryce's parents' house on air mattresses. So fun! But we forgot to bring a few things with us. Like Avery's inhaler and like our camera. So, unfortunately, we don't have very many pictures and the ones we do have are camera phone pics (bad). Oh well. We'll always have our memories, right?

I don't have any excuse for these first two.  They were taken back at home, but still with my phone.  Lazy.

Ethan had kind of a hard day.  He had to learn that you don't always get everything you want.  And it's not okay to be a brat about it.  To be fair he had to go an extra long time without playing with any of his toys.  I'd be mad too.  Poor kid.

 Caitlin had a Monster High Christmas.  What? You think you're having deja vu?  No, you're remembering her Monster High Birthday a month ago.  Yeah.  She's in love.  Only 3 of these dolls were actually from Christmas, but she loved to line them all up.  What a happy girl.

Avery got a Lalaloopsy and a book that goes with it.  She had a great day.  She was so happy.  4 is a really awesome age for Christmas.

 Noelle didn't care too much about opening presents.  She did want everyone else's after they'd been opened, though.

And Preston didn't know what was going on.  He was happy to be held a lot and look around.  Happy 1st Christmas Preston!

I got spoiled again this year and will hopefully have better phone pictures from now on (new phone).  We had a great time, but I'm always ready for the new year to start and Christmas clean up to begin.  I am so so thankful that we have been so hugely blessed.  The real gifts in the above pictures are those adorable kids.  I love them to pieces!

Christmas Love From the Dopps

Jingle Jog

I love my kids' school. They do a lot of fun activities. They do a Jog-a-thon in the spring, but this is the first year that they've done the Jingle Jog. They got to wear jingle bells and run around the back of the school. Each grade had a half hour to run around as many times as they could. Parents could run, too, but we didn't. Yeah, poor sports. I probably should have. It was freezing, it would have warmed me up. I was so glad that Bryce had started his Christmas vacation and was able to come. He usually misses all the school stuff.

This is Caitlin with the Kindergarteners, getting ready to start.

And Caitlin running, she ran 3 laps.

 And the 2nd graders at the starting line.  They were much more into it than Kindergarten.  You can't even see Ethan in this picture.  He was back with the girls.

And Ethan running his 6 laps.

I was glad that they could do this.  I know they don't get as much active time as they should.  I would love for my kids to be in good physical shape.  I was always one of the slowest when we had to run the mile in school.  I've got to make sure I don't pass that trait down.

Repeat after me:  Exercise is good.  Exercise is good....

The Dopps Visit Santa Claus

Thank you Bass Pro Shops for offering pictures with Santa for free.  You made it worth the three hour wait, missing spouses, skinny Santa, snowball fights, and one bloody nose.  I think....