The Earl Family

Ugly sweater party

2012-01-08T18:39:00.000-08:00

We went to the Comstocks for an Ugly Sweater party. I borrowed mine from Briana at work and Joel bought his from Goodwill. I had some white flannel and we cut up snowflakes (those are Way Harder than you would think!) and Joel poured red sprinkles on the tape when he put them on the sweater. It was fun to see everyone's sweaters!

Grandpa and Gamze

2012-01-08T18:32:00.000-08:00

Grandpa and Ryan: 2 guys with blue eyes!

Laura and Gamze in the matching jammies, too cute!

LA Auto Show

2012-01-08T18:25:00.000-08:00

Joel got free tickets to the LA Auto Show. This was our 6th year that we have gone; suprising? Not really, Joel loves looking at all the cars. He found his dream truck, a 4 door diesel long bed.

Laura and I enjoyed the new Beetle.

While Joel pushed sleeping Ryan in the stroller, Laura enjoyed playing on the bouncers that were set up in the corner. She played on those for about 45 minutes! She feel asleep as soon as we got in the car to go home!

Knotts Berry Farm

2012-01-08T18:19:00.000-08:00

We had a fun time at Knott's Berry Farm wth Gramps and Grams for Vetran's Day! Thank you for taking us, we appreciated spending the day with you!

It's NOT Girly!

2011-11-13T12:52:00.000-08:00

I got this Ralph Lauren outfit at a fancy smancy store with Ashleigh. We both thought the blue mark at the bottom of one leg was a stain, but it is the "RL" mark signifying it is a Ralph Lauren outfit. (Oh yes, of course, because my kids wear so much Ralph Lauren clothing I knew that.)
Joel was a little iffy about the outfit, but I put Ryan in it and we went to church. While nursing him during sacrament meeting I tok off his sweater and then didn't put it back on because he seemed too warm (and the sweater is an argyle/wool blend). 3, yes 3, people told me that my daughter looked so sweet, and that her eyes are so blue, and that my daughter's dimples are so cute. I had the outfit drycleaned and am going to return it. I thought it was so classic looking, but obviously others didn't think so.

Random

2011-11-13T12:42:00.000-08:00

Bath time, I love Ryan's wink!

Our outfits to church the Sunday before Halloween. I love Laura's fall jumper

Grrr, I'm Tigger!

2011-11-12T19:24:00.000-08:00

First and last time in these pjs; I had to squeeeeze him into them!

Going Hawaiian!

2011-11-06T14:02:00.000-08:00

Ryann is wearing an outfit we got from Aubry. When I pulled it out of the box of clothes Sunday morning, I said "This is so cute, and I know the perfect outfit Laura will wear today to church to match!" Laura is wearing Gamze's Hawaiian dress that Gokhan and De bought for her when we went to Hawaii for Kelly's 18th birthday. Wow, how often do you hear of someone going to Hawaii for a week for their 18th birthday? I guess when your sister works for Pleasant Holidays! We had free airfare from LAX to Maui and upgraded our hotel from a room to a suite so De, Gokahn and Gamze could stay with us. I can't believe Gamze was the age Laura is now. Although I miss Pleasant Holidays and the free trips (I went to Hawaii 6 times, the Caribean, and Washington DC) we are happy where we are now. Life is good.

Are you my friend?

2011-10-24T09:45:00.000-07:00

Ryan wasn't sure if this was another baby to play with or Laura's doll, but he was happy trying to find out!

Laura or Ryan?

2011-10-24T09:41:00.000-07:00

I tried to recreate the scene, can you tell who is Ryan and who is Laura?

Halloween pjs

2011-10-16T16:06:00.000-07:00

Halloween Sweetie!

Babushka

2011-10-16T15:50:00.001-07:00

Joel and I were watching a show and Laura walked up to us with the blanket on her head and said "I'm cold." She loooked like some Russian babushka in the middle of a snowstorm. I told her this is what Mama looked like at school in Idaho in the winter!

Healthy Snack

2011-10-16T15:46:00.000-07:00

I was nursing Ryan and Laura said I want a snack. I told her to wait and I would get her something in a minute. She walked into the kitchen, opened the fridge and then came back into the living room. "I have a healthy snack!" she said and proudly held up her peach.

She sat next to me holding her baby, patting her back, and eating her snack. Too funny!

Frog jammies

2011-10-09T17:33:00.001-07:00

Laura and Ryan in their froggy pjs. Ryan is starting to show more of his personality. He's a mellow guy but doesn't put up with all of Laura's silliness!

Vegas Baby!

2011-10-09T16:30:00.000-07:00

Our 5 year anniversary was August 12th, but August was too busy of a month so we celebrated in September by going to Las Vegas! I have wanted to see the Lion King play at Mandalay Bay for a Longgg time and this was the perfect trip! We dropped off the kids at Mary's house, Joel's mom in Victorville. The week before was crazy, getting everything ready. Joel got off early from work and we loaded up the car we dropped off Laura and Ryan and all their stuff and then got on the freeway! We made it there in about 2 ½ hours. We had booked a 2 ½ star hotel because we figured we would rather spend our money on the tickets for the Lion King play. The room had a little kitchen which was nice so I could store the milk I pumped in the fridge and wash out the pump in the sink. We got there about 10:30 pm and went right to bed because we were tired! We woke up at 5 am (yes, we were on vacation but remember I am traveling with Joel) and I pumped then we drove to the Las Vegas temple. It was about 20 min away from the strip. I expected it to be more glitzy but Joel said not every temple can look like San Diego. True. Then we had a buffet breakfast at Terrible’s casino which lived up to the name. (They were close to the temple) We changed into our swimsuits and walked across the street of our hotel to the Hard Rock to swim in their pool. The waitress said the pool chair rentals were $50. What? If we drank a bottle of water at $7 each, that goes a long way to $100… So we walked back to our hotel and swam in our very boring pool that didn’t have a lazy river, or lagoon area, or hot tub with swim up bar that I wanted to order a pina colada at, just a plain circle. We were in our hot tub when it started to drizzle but luckily it only lasted for a few moments. Then we changed and went to Paris and got our Buffet of Buffet passes. They were $49 for a 24 hour pass good for 7 casino’s buffets. We enjoyed that buffet at Paris. Inside the hotel they painted the roof light blue with clouds and had street lamps on so you felt like you were walking around outside in a Parisian atmosphere. Very fun and their buffet was very good. They had a good selection of food and delicious desserts. I had a mixed fruit tart, éclair, and 2 mini lemon meringue pie (because they were so good!) Then we drove to Mandalay Bay for Lion King. Joel booked the tickets online and I glanced at the receipt when he did and read to pick up tickets 1 hour prior to show time. Hmm… doesn’t leave much time for everyone to get them, but whatever. He handed the receipt to me while he was driving and I really read it then and it said tickets must be picked up 1 hour prior to show time!! Aagh, the show starts at 4pm and it is now 3:15! I said we must valet park, your name is on the ticket stub so you must show photo id and I will drop off the car. We pulled up and he jumped out and I pulled into the Valet line. The guy asked if I was staying with them and I said no and he said then I’m sorry but we have 3 events going on today and if you’re not a guest you can’t valet park. Aagh! I pulled into their self parking structure but there was NO parking anywhere! Now it is 3:30, Joel called and said he got the tickets and where are you? I said I am trying to find parking! I finally found a spot at Luxor and started running. Literally running in my flowy skirt and nice shirt. Taxis were honking at me because I crossed a green light but I was in a hurry. I finally got back to Mandalay Bay and it is 3:52. Joel calls, where are you? “I am (gasp) running there (gasp) as fast as (gasp) I can!” I saw two workers taking a snack break and I yelled to them, I’m going to the Lion King, am I going the right way? “No, turn around and turn left! The theatre is at the back!” they yelled back. So I turned and kept running and finally ran into the hotel and I’m running into people, “Sorry, excuse me, sorry” and it is 3:57 and I finally see Joel. He gives me my ticket and we run into the theatre. I sit down and immediately stand back up. I have to go to the bathroom Right Now. The usher was closing the door but I slipped out. When I came back in the usher had me go in and then he closed the door and the lights dimmed. Wow, just barely made it! We were in row 5 from the stage and not quite center of the row but fairly close. Amazing seats! Well worth the extra money we saved from booking a lesser hotel. The show was great, the costumes were amazing! We had a great time! They added a few songs and it was very enjoyable! Then we went back to the hotel so I could pump and we took a nap as it was then 7 pm and we had had an early start! Joel set his alarm for for 9 pm but we slept through it and woke up at 10pm. We got dressed and went to Planet Hollywood for dinner but all the buffets close at 10 pm. While we were walking around some guy came up to us and asked if we wanted to go to a club. We said sure and he told us to tell the people at the line that he sent us. They moved the cord at the line for us and we went right up the escelator. Everyone in line was looking at us wondering who we were. Joel said it hypes it up and makes people in line think the club is really cool when they do that. We danced for a while and then they said on a microphone "The pussy cat dolls will be on stage in the other room in 1/2 hour!" I thought cool, I like some of their songs. So when it was time we went into the other room and then 8 girls came out. I thought, I don't remember there were that many.. amd then they started dancing and I realized that it was not the music group that I was thinkig of! We went back into the other room and danced for a while more and then went back to the hotel. When we woke up we went to Ceasar's Paace for breakfast. It was delicious! Very nice and they had an omlet guy who cooked your custom order. Joel ate 2 omlets and 3 pecan rolls! Then we walked around the hotel for a bit as it is fancy smancy and then went back to our hotel. We packed up and checked out and then walked around the stip for a bit and saw the water show at the Venetian that they show on Ocean's 11 the movie. We went to Planet Hollywood for lunch and wow. They had a diferent section for each place, Asian, Meditranian, etc. I had a little bit of everything, nan bread with hummus, crab salad, I can't even remember what else. I did have 4 peices of backlava which was so sweet! They had cotton candy which I though was display for the dessert section but then I saw a kid eating some so Joel grabbed one on our way out and ate a bit as we walked out the door so they would think we were really eating it. I do not like it and Joel only ate the one bite so we could save it for Laura as her 'we missed you' present. We drove back to Victorville, had dinner with his mom and then came back home. A very nice vacation and it made me miss and appreciate Ryan and Laura which I could not have done if I'd never left them!

Happy baby

2011-09-23T13:57:00.000-07:00

Ryan is such a smiler! Everywhere we go people will say "What a happy baby!" He loves to smile and coo at you which makes you smile right back! (This is good when you are changing a poopy diaper that's shot up his back and requires a wardrobe change.)

Baby food

2011-09-04T14:57:00.000-07:00

Ryan had his first baby food on Sept 1, his 5 month birthday! I think he enjoyed the rice cereal.

2 cute girls

2011-09-03T15:15:00.000-07:00

Rocking the sunglasses!

Too sunny!

Sweet

Thank you Gamze for sharing all your toys while we stayed with you. Thank you for paying extra special attention to Ryan and giving him lots of LOVE and kisses!

Visting the Gunvers

2011-09-03T14:53:00.000-07:00

We enjoyed our visit to San Diego immensely! We arrived Friday night and woke up Saturday morning to abelskievers with lemon curd, or strawberry jam or syrup! Yum! Then we went to the lagoon and had a wonderful time! Gokhan did his great BBQ and De made a delicious pasta salad to go with the corn on the cob and watermelon. What a great summer dinner eaten outside!

We enjoyed our visit!

Yup, that is 107 jars/containers of baby food. GTM had Gerber, Earth's Best and Beech Nut on sale so we stocked up! Thanks also to Aubry for giving me some chicken and beef!

Misc

2011-09-02T16:49:00.001-07:00

Happy 5th Anniversary! Joel surprised me with 2 dozen long stem hot pink roses! Jed babysat for us so we could go to dinner at Chilie's and see the final Harry Potter. A nice night. We are looking forward to September when we go to Vegas (without any kids!) to see The Lion King!

We went to Nommy's school to "help" her get ready before school started.

Laura loved all the toys and books!

Did you forget there was a crack in between the beds?

Yes, YOU are the little brother!

Joel's races

2011-08-14T13:57:00.001-07:00

Joel went to the Fontana NASCAR speedway to race his motorcycle. He loaded up the truck the night before and took off first thing in the morning. He had on all of his protective gear, his knee high boots, gloves, helmet and body suit with a spinal column protection that makes him looked hunchbacked.
We showed up about 11am and watched a race. Then we went to the garage and had lunch. Racers were allowed to use the garages built for the NASCAR drivers. Joel brought his BBQ and cooler and cooked hamburgers and sliced a watermelon and a pineapple. Delicious! We watched him on another race and then went home for naps. He was in Class 1, which is beginners. On the straightaway, he said he got up 160 mph! His starting lap tie was 2 min 30 sec but when his last race of the day he clocked in at 2 min 5 sec. Practice makes better!

Laura the night before "helping" Joel load his bike into the truck.

I know it's hard to tell, but that's Joel!

Grammie's Birthday at the Races

2011-07-14T20:48:00.000-07:00

Ryan says happy 4th of July!

Laura waves to the horses

Happy Birthday Grammie! We love you!

4 generations

2011-07-11T20:13:00.000-07:00

4 generations of women (and baby Ryan)
Marnell Peard Morton
Marlynn Hansen
Kristen Humphries
Laura Earl

Peaceful

2011-07-11T20:05:00.000-07:00

I didn't want to turn on the light in case it woke them up, so the only light is from the flash on the camera. They look so peaceful and serene.

Random

2011-07-11T20:01:00.000-07:00

Ryan is such a sweet baby with a beautiful smile! We're home from church, doesn't he look handsome in his sweater vest?

Laura put her bear in the chair and got her a drink of water. Then she sat down opposite her and had a little conversation. Too cute!

Chick-fil-A

2011-07-08T19:55:00.000-07:00

Today, Friday July 7th, was Chick-fil-A's "Dress like me and get a free chicken sandwich" promotion. Their mascot is a cow.
Joel wore the vest I sewed him for Halloween when he was Woody from Toy Story and also wore for Laura's first birthday party which was cowgirl themed. Laura wore her pillowcase dress that I sewed when we lived in Victorville. I didn't have anything with cow print and neither did Ryan.
Joel and Laura both got free chicken sandwiches since they were wearing their cow clothing. I had a coupon that if you bought a drink and side, you got a free chicken sandwich! So dinner consisted of 3 free sandwiches, a drink and fries! (And the fruit & yogurt parfait for Laura since Joel ate his and hers sandwiches)
The place was hopping (or should I say...stampeding!!) You've never seen so many cow costumes in your life!

Uh-oh

2011-07-08T10:38:00.000-07:00

It was quiet...too quiet. Joel went to investgate...and found this mess. Laura had taken Ryan's baby powder and liberally sprinked it all over the carpet. Sigh.... At least it vacumned up. (And I was nursing Ryan at the time so I didn't have to do it!)

Our football player

2011-07-03T13:44:00.000-07:00

Ryan is the cutest football player you've ever seen! Look at that smile! At his 2 month check up he was 13 lbs 10 oz and is in the 95th percentile for weight. He is 24 inches and in the 90th percentile for length! I'm just positive that he is going to be a pro football player! (Or maybe a wrestler like Daddy, Gramps and Papa were)

Laura's big girl underpants

2011-07-03T13:12:00.000-07:00

Laura now goes on the potty! She is showing her bear that has panties too! We are so proud of her! At first she got a jelly bean when she went on the potty, but once those ran out we went to plain MnM's. But now she says, "I want a BIG MnM!" (A peanut one. Smart girl! Plain ones are a waste of chocolate!)

The worst accidents: we went for Ryan's 2 month checkup. I left the car seat in the car and figured I would hold him on my lap. We checked in and while waiting to be called I started nursing him while Laura was playing with the toys at the office. She ran over to me and said I have to go potty! In the 10 seconds I ran through the scenario in my head, 'Ryan doesn't have a car seat, I'lll have to lay him on the floor, eww gross' she peed. I thought, At least I have an extra pair of underwaer and shorts in the diaper bag. We got in the room and I changed Ryan. The nurse said she would bring me a bag to put his diaper in. While she went to get it, I smelled something...Laura had pooped. So I changed her into the clean pair and threw the dirty ones in the bag with the diaper. I had no regrets letting those go! Then we went straight to the library. We had story time and craft time. I let Laura do one puzzle and told her it's time to go. She said, Mama, I went. I looked down, and there was a puddle on her chair. Ohhhhh..... I was so embarassed to have to tell the librarian that we had an accident.
She has been pretty good the last few days, only a few accidents. Having Aizlyn here helped because she would sit on the big potty. Laura now likes to sit on the big potty too, which is easier that cleaning out her potty!

Happy Father's Day Joel

2011-07-01T21:30:00.000-07:00

Happy Father's Day! You are a great dad Joel, we LOVE you!

Fun with cousin Aizlyn

2011-06-30T17:51:00.000-07:00

Aizlyn came to our house today! We met Tobin at work in Ontario to pick her up. We went to library story time, which was followed by library craft time. Laura and Aizlyn made 4th of July windsocks. Then we came home, had lunch, took a short nap, and went in the pool! Joel blew it up for me this morning and I filled it with water before we left to pick her up. This way the water was warm when they got in! Then we had a snack and it was time to meet Tobin again and return Aizlyn.

Ryan's Blessing

2011-06-29T20:38:00.000-07:00

Ryan's blessing day was enjoyed by all. We had a fun spending time with the family! We went up to Lake Arrowhead Saturday afternoon to see Deanne, Gokhan, Gamze, Grandma and Grandpa. They all stayed the night at my parent's home and drove down Sunday morning for the blessing. After church they left and Joel's family came over for lunch. We had costco croissants and a really good chicken salad, chips and fruit. For dessert we had a delicious assortment! Lemon bars, brownies, peanut butter cookies and chocolate chip cookies! Wow!

What am I looking at? Obviously someone was doing something that they shouldn't have been doing!

FHE with the Fam

2011-06-16T21:14:00.000-07:00

We all met at Ashleigh and Shenn's house for Family Home Evening and had pizza for dinner! Then we went bowling, which Laura loves! It was a fun evening!

Gramps and Grams with all the grandkids

Joel's birthday bowling ball from Tobin (that he has to store with a towel wrapped around it because it's creepy to see it out of the corner of your eye, or even looking head on!)

My Favorite Things

2011-06-16T20:44:00.000-07:00

My favorite things! (For today anyway!) I love this dress Laura is wearing! I've been waiting for 5 years for her to wear it, ever since I saw Gamze wearing it the week Joel and I got married. And I love Ryan's outfit from Pason, love the plaids!

Sweet kiss!

Handsome Guy!!!

You always need a little pick up around 3 in the afternoon, and this chocolate is so silky and smooth!

I love a clean room and made bed. Thanks for the help Laura

My newest fav thing, Laura's upholstered chair! I bought it on Craigslist (and it was UGLY!) and found this great material at 'The Pink House' and found a local guy to upholster it. Its a rocking chair AND it swivels 180 degrees! Fabulous!

Pillowcase dress

2011-06-12T14:59:00.000-07:00

I love this pillowcase dress that I made in my Victorville ward before we moved. The cow material was left over from the vest I made Joel for Laura's 1st birthday party. She's too cute!

Where's Waldo?

2011-06-10T09:16:00.000-07:00

Ccan you find baby Ryan in this picture? Obviously Laura thought he needed some company!

Mother's Day

2011-06-10T08:50:00.001-07:00

It was a great Mother's Day! I wore my new shirt and new sandels from Joel, Laura and Ryan. I only changed one diaper all day, Horray!

I love you! Give me a kiss!

Tobin's birthday party

2011-06-10T08:37:00.000-07:00

I can't remember if this is the 4th or 5th year that I hve worn this same jersey to Tobin's party! It's fun getting dressed up in our sports outfits for the annual Earl cup contest and party!

Ryan looks like he is the same size as Aizlyn!

Bowling in Arrowhead

2011-06-10T08:28:00.000-07:00

The Lake Arrowhead ward had a fundraiser for Girls Camp. We had a great time, Laura loves bowling!
Joel had a "Guys Night Out" with his dad, Tobin, Justin and Shenn watching the new Fast and Furious movie.

Ryan and Brielle

2011-05-29T17:55:00.000-07:00

On Thursday Ashleigh, Pason and Brielle came over to go to the park with us. Then we went to the library for storytime and craft time. Twn we came back home and had lunch and played with toys. It was a fun cousin filled day!

Cinco de Mayo

2011-05-19T16:06:00.000-07:00

Laura wore her Cinco de Mayo dress to Library storytime. The librarian was so pleased, she showed Laura to the entire library that she was in her Cinco de Mayo outfit. She has two of these dresses so she wore one Wed and the other Thurs. I've been putting Ryan in Laura's crib when it is time to wake up. She likes to open her eyes and see her brother.

Hot chai

2011-05-19T16:04:00.000-07:00

Would anyone like a drink of hot chai?

We LOVE you Gamze!

2011-05-19T16:00:00.000-07:00

Gamze, You are a GREAT sharer! You share your clothes for Laura and your toys for Laura and Ryan. Ryan loves his octopus that Laura shakes for him. We are looking forward to coming and staying with you in August! Laura is excited about having a sleepover in your room!

Love this shirt!

2011-05-19T15:56:00.000-07:00

When I saw this shirt I HAD to get it! Caught mid-yawn in the photo!

Early morning suggle

2011-05-19T14:43:00.000-07:00

I nursed Ryan and laid him n the couch to get Laura's breakfast. She jumped on the couch and snuggled right up next to him. So cute I had to take a photo!

What's that say?

2011-05-19T14:41:00.000-07:00

I love this outfit. Thanks Deanne!

Carmen Miranda

2011-05-19T14:38:00.001-07:00

We got this outfit from my sister in law Aubry who got it from someone else. I put it on her, we took these pictures, and at the end of the day I put it in the washer and then back in the box. Not really my style, but we got a funny picture out of it! I love her dancing picture!

Feed the ducks

2011-05-19T14:33:00.000-07:00

We went to Riverwalk and fed the ducks. Laura LOVED it! She loves going to Gamze's house and going to the lake to fed the ducks there. She wanted to pet one, but we told her no, because they might bite her finger. For days after that she would randomly say "Bite your finger!"

Ouch!

2011-05-19T14:22:00.000-07:00

Laura was running so fast outside and fell down and scrapped both knees. It was the first time we've used her Winnie the Pooh bandaid. Having such a fun bandaid made her feel happier. She did milk it though, and walked with a limp with both legs and needed to "watch a show Mama."

Easter morning egg hunt

2011-05-19T14:17:00.000-07:00

After I fed Ryan Joel and I hid the eggs in the backyard. Then we went into Laura's room and opened her blinds. "Wow, look outside! I can't believe it!" Laura jumped up, "I want to see out the window!" We showed her that the Easter Bunny had come to her backyard and left her some treats! She was so excited she slipped her sandels on right over her pj's and ran into the backyard!

Egg hunt at the park

2011-05-19T14:09:00.000-07:00

We went to a park in Riverside Saturday before Easter for an Egg Hunt! Laura had great fun! For children 3 and under a park official would walk your child around the gated park while you waited by the gate. Strange, but that was the rule. So I waited by the gate after dropping her off and Joel pushed Ryan in the stroller while taking pictures of Laura. She loved to see the Easter Bunny, but didn't like getting close to him!

Beautiful Easter outfits

2011-05-12T09:17:00.000-07:00

Laura and Ryan looked so cute in their Easter outfits! We love them!

I'm not sre why the slide show isn't working. Click on the button "View all images" to see the photos
This photo shows Laura having a meltdown because we told her she could not take her basket of eggs to church.

Disneyland!

2011-05-03T12:16:00.000-07:00

We went to Disneyland and had a great time! I learned that there is a 'Mother's Room' at Disneyland that was fabulous! They had a seperate room for nursing your baby, with padded wicker chairs t sit on; a room for changing your baby with about 6 changing tables, mini toilets for little children to go potty on, a room to pump, a kitchen to warm up milk/food, highchairs, and a spot for children to play while you nursed/pumped, etc. Wow! It was really nice to have an air conditioned room to feed Ryan in! While we were in the Mothers room, Joel and Laura went on Peter Pan and the Merry go Round. I caught them at the end of the ride to get their photo! Laura always wants to go on the Merry go Round, but usually cries once she is on it! This time she was happy the whole time! We're looking forward to going again in late May once our blackout days are done.

Happy Birthday Mom!

2011-04-14T16:49:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Mom! You are the best mother in the world! I love you!

My turn for baby Ryan!

2011-04-14T16:42:00.000-07:00

Laura enjoys holding baby Ryan. She'll come up to me or Joel and say "my turn!" We're happy she loves him!

Easter Wreath

2011-04-14T16:19:00.000-07:00

I saw a wreath that was wrapped in hot pink ribbon with pink bunny peeps hot glued to the wreath. It looked so festive and springy I decided to make my own! I glued the peeps directly to the ribbon so when Easter is over, I can cut off the ribbon and throw the (by then) stale and crunchy peeps away and still have a great twigy wreath to use for another project!

I added a smaller ribbon saying "Happy Easter"

Laura wanted to have her picture taken. Anytime I get the camera out she automatically says "cheese!"

Why are my fingers sticky?

We love Visitors!

2011-04-13T08:53:00.000-07:00

We love to have visitors! The very first people to meet Ryan (besides Joel and myself) was Laura and Mom. Sorry Ashleigh and Shenn, we forgot to take a picture when you came to the hospital!

Who won the baby pool?

2011-04-05T20:19:00.000-07:00

Here are the winners of the baby pool!

Closest day and time: my brother Bart
Guess: April 1st 5:16 pm
Actual day and time: April 1st at 9:46 am

Closest weight: my aunt Deanne
Guess: 8 lbs 2 oz
Actual weight: 8 lbs 5 oz

Closest length: sister-in-law Ashleigh, my dad Kevin, mother-in-law Holly, and my grandma Marnell
Guess: 19" long
Actual length: 19.5" long

Wecome home baby Ryan

2011-04-04T14:47:00.000-07:00

Ryan Michael Earl was born Friday April 1st at 9:46 am. He weighed 8 lbs 5 oz and was 19" long. More details to come later!

Going on a ride!

2011-03-31T15:38:00.000-07:00

You can see that she is smiling but holding on with one hand to the seat! Excited but slightly scared! We were getting a patch sewn on Joel's leather motorcycle vest and this ride was outside. Joel told her she could go on the ride and after she got used to it she really enjoyed it! Look at her big smile in the next pictures!

Eating lunch outside

2011-03-30T05:07:00.000-07:00

Last Wednesday Laura and I had lunch outside because it was a beautiful day! Laura's outside chair makes the perfect booster seat at the picnic table.

Going on the slide

We have flowers in our backyard! Here's our rose

And here is our hibiscus

Laura loves to say cheese for the camera!

Resting with a book

2011-03-22T19:11:00.000-07:00

While I was typing on the computer Laura dragged her pillow, blanket and book over. She looks so cute reading and relaxing!

Happy St.Patrick's Day

2011-03-22T18:54:00.000-07:00

Laura and I are in our green for St. Patrick's Day. I hadn't done my hair or makeup yet, but we wanted to take the picture before Joel left for work. Laura is wearing her new bow from Aunt Terry from my work.

Dirty faces

2011-03-22T18:48:00.000-07:00

Joel watched Laura and Pason on his day off. They got very dirty playing outside while Joel mowed the front and back lawn.

Busy Saturday!

2011-03-22T18:23:00.000-07:00

While Joel put new tires on Tobin's truck, Tobin, Aizlyn, Laura and I went to the park to play!

Then we went to Pason's 4th birthday party! Joel, Laura and Aizlyn loved the bouncer!

After the party was over Laura and I went shopping with Gramps and Grams and got sheets for baby Ryan's crib! Then we drove home. Laura was so worn out she fell asleep reading her new book from Grammie.

After a good nap we went to Aubry's Walk teh Red Carpet Birthday party! It was fun dressing up!

Decorating Ryan's room

2011-03-07T19:25:00.000-08:00

Yes, I know these are Benjamin Bunny pictures, and we're doing Ryan's room in Peter Rabbit, but still... They are so great! Now I've decided that it is a Peter Rabit/Beatrix Potter theme!
I had a Dr. checkup today and I feel VINDICATED! The Dr. said my due date is April 7, not March 30. What have I been saying ALL ALONG? That my due date is April 9!!! I guess we'll see when Ryan is born who is closer!

Orange rolls and curly hair

2011-03-06T18:53:00.000-08:00

I made orange rolls for breakfast and thought they were very good! The dough had cottage cheese mixed in and the filling had orange zest. The frosting on top had butter, powered sugar and orange juice. Joel took a few bites and then very calmly walked into the kitchen and got a bowl of cereal. When he sat back down at the table I looked at him and he said "I didn't like it." This is a big improvement from the applesauce incident!

I bought sponge hair curlers and last night after Laura's bath put her hair in the curlers so they would dry while she slept. She looked so cute in her herringbone jumper with her curls!

No more photos please!

Someone at church brings a laundry basket every Sunday FILLED with oranges! I always take a few, and this Sun took 6. Once we got home I stripped Laura down to her diaper (because she gets Very sticky and juicy) and together we ate 4 oranges! They were Delicious!! A big Thank You to whoever is bringing them!

Making Cookies

2011-03-05T17:02:00.000-08:00

Laura and I are wearing our matching aprons from Judy! Laura helped pour ingredients into the kitchenaid, with only minor spilage. Good thing I have my new Dyson with wood floor attachment to suction up the sugar!

Pony Ride!

2011-03-04T12:38:00.000-08:00

Laura and I went to Joann's today but we got there about 8:45 and they didn't open until 9am. I thought Laura could run up and down the sidewalk while we were waiting so I got her out of the car. We walked a few car lenths from the store and there were two ponies tied to a trailer being brushed! We walked over to speak to the groom and he was getting them brushed and ready to go to a pre-school for a visit. Laura got to pet the pony and touch their hair and tail. Then the owner came over and asked if Laura wanted a ride! I said Yes! so he saddled up one of the ponies and walked her around the parking lot for a minute. After we got out of the store we called Joel and Laura told him all about the horse she rode! Then we called Papa, who grew up on the farm, and Laura told him about riding the horse! What a fun morning!

Nail polish giveaway!

2011-02-11T15:17:00.001-08:00

The collection includes:
Last Friday Night
Not Like The Movies
The One That Got Away
Teenage Dream
Black Shatter
Go to: http://www.burbbeauty.com

How I feel right now

2011-02-09T20:25:00.000-08:00

Read me a book Daddy

2011-02-08T20:05:00.000-08:00

So sweet!!!

Laura's table

2011-02-04T21:08:00.001-08:00

Once Joel got his new tv, he decided that this table wouldn't cut it anymore as the tv stand. So he decided to build a custom one. Photos to come later. So this table was the perfect height for Laura to use! The rocking chair is from Great-Grandma in Camarillo. Someday we'll get around to painting it! I've carefully positioned Duchess the lepoard to watch over Laura and make sure she is ONLY coloring on paper and NOT on the table or herself!

Cowirl boots

2011-02-04T21:05:00.001-08:00

Laura got cowirl boots from Nommy for Christmas. She LOVES them! I love the pink and red ensamble!

Random Dec photos

2011-02-04T20:55:00.001-08:00

Joel received his vest from his Motorcycle Group, which made him an official member of the Inland Empire Chapter! Laura and I were happy to have been invited to the meeting so we could see him receive it. We are also happy that he takes his safety very seriously and always wears his protective jacket, helmut and boots.

Laura and I before we left for Joel's motorcycle mtg.
Laura had a different Christmas dress to wear every Sunday in Dec and the last Sun of November! I wish I had taken a pic of each Sunday! Here's the two that I did take! She loves wearing my shoes!

Christmas dress with Nommy

2011-02-04T20:44:00.000-08:00

This is my mom's Christmas dress that came from Norway that she has worn every Christmas Sunday for I don't even know how many years. I'm not sure if she made this dress for me or for Kelly. All I remember is my matching dress from when I was 8. I LOVE special sentimential clothes, like the blessing dress and this dress!

Christmas morning

2011-02-04T20:30:00.000-08:00

Laura was so excited that Santa gave her a car for Christmas. She kept saying "Thank you Santa!" She also loved her doll stroller. She couldn't make up her mind which one she wanted to do more, sit in her car and pedel herself around, or push the stroller!

I am so excited to have an ice cream machine! Our first batch was vanilla with chopped reeses peanut butter cups mixed in. Delicious!

Here's Joel's new sweater which looks great with his baby blue eyes! (and his great biceps!)

Taking care of baby

2011-02-04T14:50:00.000-08:00

Laura loves taking care of her baby dolls. This is good and bad, good because she will want to help out when baby Ryan is born, and bad because she might try to take over! One of her favorite phrases right now is: "I do it!"

Funny hats

2011-02-04T14:47:00.000-08:00

Joel got a new VW hat and Laura wanted to wear it. So Joel got her hat with chin straps out of the closet so they could match. Don't you love matchy-matchy!

Disneyland with Gamze

2011-02-04T14:29:00.000-08:00

We met Deanne, Gokhan and Gamze at Disneyland for a fun filled day! Gamze had her casts on so she had a pass that gave her handicapped priviliges to move to the front of each line. The lights at Small World were amazing! We had a GREAT day!

Christmas card photos

2011-02-04T14:04:00.000-08:00

We had a fun time posing for the pictures! I can't believe next year there will be four of us!

Naughty Laura

2010-12-18T14:23:00.000-08:00

I went in to wake Laura up from her nap and found this. I didn't even know she had crayons in her pocket! Later that afternoon she was helping me 'clean up' but instead of putting things away she was putting them on!

1st Presidency Christmas Devotional

2010-12-05T20:25:00.000-08:00

Joel is in the Elders Quormn Presendecy and today they asked all the Elders to leave church, go home, change clothes and come back and help a family who had to move today. (Really? The family didn't have any advance notice that they were going to move? Nothing like procrastination) Laura and I went home once church was over, and I put her in her high chair with a bowl of yogurt. I had the 1st Presidency Christmas Devotional on tv (I am so glad for BYU tv! No going to the stake ctr!) I was folding laudry and realized that Laura was falling asleep in the high chair! I wiped off her face and took her out, but didn't want to put her in her crib because I didn't want her to sleep too long. So I laid a blanket down on the floor and laid her down. I think she enjoyed the music and Presidency's soothing voices, because about one minute after the closing prayer was said, she woke up! Joel came home about 1/2 hour later, ready to relax and have a brownie and ice cream!

Thanksgiving fun

2010-11-27T14:37:00.000-08:00

What a fun Thanksgiving! We enjoyed spending time with Grandma and Grandpa, Deanne, Gohkan and Gamze, Brian, Heather, Bella and Maddie, Bart, Jed, Nommy, and Papa! Papa left the boat in the Carribean and flew home to be with us for Thanksgiving and will fly back next week to finish sailing to Jamaica. All the girls had matching frog pjs. So cute! We love spendng time with our family!

Looking for new title

2010-11-23T13:20:00.001-08:00

Since we are expanding our family from a trio, our blog name doesn't work anymore! I've decided to have a contest; send me an email or post a comment on the blog with a fabulous new name for our blog!
The winner will receive a $5 gift card to In-N-Out! Good luck everyone!

Halloween Costumes

2010-11-18T12:56:00.000-08:00

I finally got my Halloween pictures up! Laura was the cutest pumpkin ever with funny pumpkin tights. She loved her pumpkin bucket! She and Joel trunk-or-treated at the ward party while I passed out candy and she told Joel, "Heavy!" Joel tried to carry it for her, but she didn't want that! She'd already seen his hand go into her candy bucket and eat her licorice, and knew that she didn't want any more of that! As I passed out candy, I put some in one boys bag and said, "Happy Halloween!" He looked up at me and said "You're mean!" His dad said, "No, she's nice, she just gave you candy." "No" the boy said, "She doesn't like dogs!" And then he started to cry! His dad quickly hurried him away to the next car. I thought, well kid, you're right! Why do you think I picked this costume?
Hope everyone had a fun and candy-filled Halloween!

Disney fun!

2010-11-11T16:35:00.000-08:00

We went to Disneyland Monday afternoon with Tobin, Aubry, Aizlyn, Esppin and Ambria, who began in the morning. We had a fun time going on rides and spending time together. The parade was great fun as well! Espin was a HIT! We are happy we did the Give a Day of Service, Get a Disney Day and then got to turn those tickets in for a season pass! We are even more happy that since we moved from Victorville to Riverside we are now only 1/2 hour away! We are planning to go Mon or Tues of Thanksgiving week with cousins Elizabeth, Bella and Maddie!

CRAZY hair!

2010-11-11T16:25:00.000-08:00

Laura's hair is getting so long! Especially after her nap it can get kind of crazy! She found my Cruella wig and wanted to put it in. Then she asked Joel, See? That means she wants to go to the bathroom and stand on the stool and see herself. We do a lot of "seeing" like when she is wearing a costume, has a tiara on, a pretty dress, etc. She is such a crack up!

Halloween Sunday Best

2010-11-11T16:00:00.000-08:00

I love croched things! Remember that great pink dress Laura wore when she was about 6 months old? When I saw this peach dress for Laura, I HAD to have it! We're matchy-matchy in black tights, and orange crochet top! Halloween Sunday, here we come!

Carving the Pumpkin

2010-11-03T12:17:00.000-07:00

Carving the pumpkin was a fun and messy business! I forgot to take a final picture once we were done though. It sat on the windowsill in the kitchen and Sunday morning when I walked into the kitchen it had fallen over in the night and smashed! So that night as we passed out candy we had to use the fake one.

The Pumpkin Patch

2010-11-03T12:14:00.000-07:00

We went to the Pumpkin Patch and had a great time! We didn't get our pumpkin there though. After we left, we went to Stater Bros grocery and bought one for $2.27! The same one would have been $15 at the patch! We also bought 3 mini pumpkins for fun!

Sit down

2010-11-02T13:24:00.001-07:00

When I am getting ready in the morning, Laura will come into the bathroom and say "sit down" even though I am already sitting, and will get her comb and crawl up on the edge of the stool to comb my hair. She'll also get her comb and come sit next to me on the couch and comb my hair. I tried to get her interested in combing Joel's hair, but since his is so short, it's not really as fun!

Gramps and Grams

2010-10-19T12:54:00.001-07:00

On Friday I met Gramps, Joel's dad, in San Bernardino after he got off work. He took Laura home for the weekend! I had to work on Saturday at the volunteering project to plant trees at Glen Helen Regional Park with my work, and Joel had to work Sat as well. So it was a great time for Laura to go to Gramps and Grams house for the weekend! Friday night Joel and I rode his motorcycle to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner. Neither of us could finish our dinner so we got to-go boxes. Then we walked next door to Macy's for their Clinique bonus days sale. We went back to the motorcycle and wondered...Hmmm...how do we get all this stuff home? Each food bag went on a mirror, and the Macy's bag went in the tiny compartment underneath the seat. Sat we went to Ontario Mills to get new work shoes for Joel. I had a forever 21 gift card and got a new jacket and Joel got a new shirt. Two fun evenings! Sunday after church we drove up to Arrowhead to get Laura and have a really good dinner of BBQ chicken and ribs! We missed Laura, but it was fun to have a couples weekend!
Laura loves shoes, here she is trying on Grams shoes. I didn't pack a church dress for Laura and my mom found this one somewhere. She looks like a princess holding the hem up!

We were getting ready to leave and I changed Laura into her pjs. She took her blanket and spread it out and laid down on it. She was obviously very tired from her fun weekend!

Thank you Holly and Steve for watching her! We love you!

New Rain Boots

2010-10-14T17:20:00.000-07:00

My mom and I were shopping at Target for boots for her. She wanted to get a tall pair so she could continue kayaking at Lake Arrowhead even though the water is cold. Well, they were such a good deal I decided to get a pair for myself! Of course, the real reason I bought them was the color! Hot pink with white polka dots!!! Since then I've been looking for a pair for Laura. She needs rain boots as well. I couldn't find them in her size at Target so my next stop was the Children's Place Outlet in Barstow. Wow. They were having great sales. We are now done with our Christmas shopping for all the nieces and nephews!! I found this cute pair there; I love the cupcakes on them. We tried them on her that night and she wouldn't take them off. The next day she wanted to wear them all day again. She loves them!

Return of THE MACHINE

2010-09-28T13:09:00.000-07:00

Poor Laura. Saturday she didn't feel very well, and on Sunday Joel did an emergency drive to Victorville to borrow our friends Liz and Justin's nebulizer machine. Laura had the same breathing problem last year and the Dr. checked out a machine to us to use while the one they ordered for Laura came in the mail. Since the move, I can only find the machine, but not any of the tubing or mask. She is doing better, but is still not back to her normal cheerful self. Joel gave her a blessing on Sunday night but keep her in your prayers.

April 9

2010-09-15T07:53:00.001-07:00

Yep, those two blue lines mean what you think it does! April 9th!
Laura will be two on Jan 31, and she will be a great big sister!

San Diego Beach

2010-09-09T12:21:00.000-07:00

Joel was the only one brave enough to go all the way into the water. He took the boogie board and rode some waves!

Here's one ball...

Wow! Two balls!

San Castle. A little while later an old couple were walking by on the beach and the woman just walked right through the castle, knocking down some towers! The man pointed with his cane, showing her she had just messed it up and she just shrugged! The man, still leaning heavily on his cane, nicely walked around.

Warming up on the hot sand

Heavenly breakfast! Trader Joe's whole wheat waffle mix with fresh peaches and whipped cream! Delicious!!!

Yummy dinner

2010-09-08T09:41:00.000-07:00

Yum! Here we are outside eating a very good dinner. Joel bbq'd chicken drumsticks and we also had corn, pasta with herb sauce and honeydew. I had thought to roll Laura's high chair outside, but Joel put her little chair in the regualr chair and it was the perfect booster! After dinner we went to the Halloween store to get the wig for my costume. Joel will be Woody and Laura is going to be so cute!
I had to take this picture of Laura in this very cute outfit! She posed for the first shot, but started running towards me in the second. What a cutie!

Feed the ducks, tuppence a bag

2010-09-07T15:24:00.000-07:00

Here we are in San Diego! We took a walk to feed the ducks and then the geese started to come! Joel had to scoop up Laura because he was a little worried. Deanne got matching shorts for Laura and Elizabeth to wear. Laura had a fun time imiatating Elizabeth. If she climbed a tree, Laura wanted to as well. What a fun trip!

Tragic Demise

2010-09-07T12:23:00.000-07:00

Here we are in San Diego Aug 20-22 visiting Deanne, Gokhan, Elizabeth and Rosie. Rosie was on summer vacation from my mom's 1st grade class spending the summer with Elizabeth. Laura loved to pet her and wanted to pick her up and squeeze her, but we had to say, No, only soft touching. Sadly, when Rosie came back to my parent's home last weekend the oxygen change was too great for her heart to handle all at once. My dad showed Gokhan and De how to massage her heart, but all to no avail. Bart and Gokhan dug a hole where Elizabeth placed the box. That night at dinner we all said something nice about Rosie.
Good bye Rosie!