Wow! Christmas already!

It's been FOREVER since I last posted here. We have moved to another area within the Greater Kansas City area, Ella started kindergarten, Miriam is taking dance classes, and Adah is growing up way too fast!

 

First day of Kindergarten! 

 Movie in the park!

 Fire station tour with Miriam and Adah!

 Halloween 2012...Ella wasn't feeling to festive.

 A drawing I found on our coffee table. By yours truly...Miriam.

First snow of 2012! Adah wasn't too thrilled once she realized what it was. It was too cold for her. She has inherited my Florida genes!



By the way...another Tinsley BOY will be arriving in April! We're excited! 

Summer Fun

 Miriam sunbathing at the pool.

 Family paddle-boat ride. The girls loved it!

A visit from Papa. They love him so much!

 James and I went on a canoe for part of our anniversary date. It was fun to be alone with the beauty of nature around us. We re-enacted the scene from Tangled. ;) Or at least I did. Ha! We watch that movie a lot. 

 We also went to this burger joint that had gluten-free hamburger buns. It was a neat little place.

 James is ready to dig in to his burger! It's been a while since he has had a decent hamburger with a bun.

 I ran a 5k. It wasn't my best 5k time, but it wasn't bad. It had been a while since I ran outside. Running outside is a lot harder than running on a treadmill.

 Adah colored herself with a marker, luckily it is washable.

 Enjoying the cooler weather with a picnic outside!

The summer has flown by! It was filled with lots of swimming at the pool, visits from Papa Peter, family paddle boat ride, our 6th year wedding anniversary, races, cute girlies, picnics, markers and Ella starting Kindergarten! It has been a blast!

Happy Birthday Ella!!!

Today is Ella's birthday! I can't believe she is 5 years old. I remember the morning before her birth, I felt like I had really bag gas pains. I didn't think they could be contractions! As they started to come more often and closer together, James insisted that we go to the hospital. After I took a shower, we headed to the hospital and 2 hours after the start of the "gas pains" our little Ella was born. After we took her home, James said that it felt like we were just "babysitting". Five years later we are still "babysitting" a wonderful little girl, who is so smart, beautiful and precious! We love our ELLA!

 Ella decorating her "Rupunzel" cake.

 Birthday breakfast: Fruit Loops! I told Ella she could pick whatever she wanted for her special birthday breakfast and she chose Fruit Loops, "like at the hotel". :)

 Making pizza for the party!

 Cheese! YUM!  Tater: "Give me some of that cheese."

 Ella with her cake. She kept saying all morning, "This is the perfect birthday." :)

 Slip-n-slide fun! I remember having a slip-n-slide as a kid and it was a blast. Hopefully this will be a memory for Ella too.

 Having fun with friends! Lucy (striped bathing suit) and Molly (polka-dots) are sisters. Lucy is Ella's age and Molly is Miriam's age. They are already good friends. I hope we can grow up with them and they can make fun memories with each other.

13.1 MILES BABY! WOOT!

On June 2, 2012, I accomplished a goal that I set for myself. That goal was to run a half-marathon!

Half-marathon recap:

Well...it was hilly, exhilarating, tiring, etc. etc, but I gave it my all and it felt amazing! I thought that I would finish around 2:30 but I finished around 2:50. The course was super hilly, I guess they don't call it Hospital Hill for nothing! :) The whole experience was amazing and very spiritual. This whole experience (training and racing) has reminded me that we can do ANYTHING that we aspire to do and the Lord is there to help us and strengthen us. Our spirits are in control of our body and I've proven that over the last 12 weeks.

I'll be running in another half-marathon in October with a friend. It's going to be GREAT! The course is similar to the Hospital Hill half, so I'll train more on hills. I am excited for another race!

Fun videos!

Catching up...

The last 12 weeks, I've been training for a half-marathon. That's 13.1 miles. The race is tomorrow. I am nervous and a bit excited. I've never ran in a huge race like this. There are going to be thousands of people. I'm a little scared. Will I finish? Will I pass out? What if I fall and hurt myself? I pray that all will go well and that I can achieve this goal that I set for myself...and who knows, if I enjoy tomorrow maybe...just maybe I'll train for a marathon. That's 26.2 miles...of running.... ;) 

Here are a few pictures from the last few months.

 This was taken when Grandma Kellie came to visit. We were able to go to the Kansas City Temple Open House.

 This was at Miriam's 3 year checkup. She just looked too cute with the hospital gown on. I had to take a picture.

 James' work had a family discounted night at Worlds of Fun. We went (without the kids) and had a blast riding all the roller coasters. Very fun date night!

 James went to Rhode Island for a conference for work. He was there a whole week. While I was changing diapers, wiping snot, executing timeouts, trying not to go insane, etc...

 He was touring beautiful buildings...

 eating fancy food...(except for this because he's allergic to wheat)

 and seeing the East Coast...but I wouldn't have it any other way. (I say that at this very moment because it's nap time and all the kids are asleep ;))

 Summer has begun! The girls love their little pool.

 Having some fun at the park!

 WHOOO HOOO!

 We celebrated Miriam's birthday back in April. I can't believe she is 3!

 Miriam loves her primary teacher! She looks forward to seeing her every Sunday, and when she isn't there she is really bummed!

While James was in Rhode Island, this happened. A guy backed right into me in a parking lot, while I was waiting in the isle for another car to back out. The claim still isn't resolved....

Grandma Kellie's Visit!!

 We had a LOT of FUN when Grandma came to visit! We ate some good food, explored new things, rode ponies, caught fish and had a blast! We loved having Grandma here! We can't wait until next time!

 Bates City BBQ: THE BEST RIBS EVER

 We went to the movies and saw the Lorax. Super cute movie and the kids did really well.

 Jellyfish!

 Miriam LOVED riding the pony. She didn't really well sitting still.

 Ella named this pony "Echo" even though it had a name.

 The fish that daddy caught with Ella's fishing pole! The fish fell off the hook onto the deck and started flopping around and Miriam had a cow! It was F U N N Y!

 Adah enjoying a ride on the tractor.