Pennington Place

Valentine's Weekend

2009-02-17T18:11:00.000-08:00

Who can resist the SNOW? Well, I tried to but my family won! We took a quick trip to Flagstaff for some sledding. I'm actually glad we did because we had a blast! I love all of my valentines and think this was my favorite V-Day ever!

Getting ready to hit the hill!

Lucy was pretty excited! She looks like a true winter athlete!

After our first day on the hills we went to a local mexican food place, Casa Bonita, and stuffed our faces on some really good food!

When we first got back to the hotel (Little America) the kids walked in to see Valentine gift bags for each of them. They were really happy and surprised!

I took this in the morning before I woke the kids up. I couldn't resist how sweet they looked!

We hurried to get ready so we could hit Cracker Barrel for breakfast before attacking the snow again!

Here is our little Kamikaze! He didn't stop for a second! He loved catching air on the jumps!

Emma did pretty well considering she hated going down the hills. She preferred to hang with mom at the top!

Picture Break!

2009-01-29T15:30:00.001-08:00

2009-01-26T16:29:00.000-08:00

Who doesn't love a day at the salon?

This was Emma's 1st haircut:) She didn't have much to work with but we said goodbye to the mullet! She went to Lollilocks and also had her nails done. I'm trying to work up the courage to get the ears pierced. I waited with Lucy until she could decide for herself but I'm not sure I have it in me to wait!

2008-11-30T06:06:00.000-08:00

So, long time, no blog:) It's been a hectic year for the Pennington crew! I've been slacking terribly in the blogging department!

In an effort to catch everyone up to where we left off, I've pulled a few pictures to show some of the things we've been up to!

When I left you last it was late summer and Lucy and I were preparing for our trip to....Choir Camp! Yep, almost like "Band Camp":)

Here she is and the picture following is her choir (which is the smallest of the four choirs) before family day! You will all be proud to know that I went with her and actually made it home in one piece!

Then our school year started right away! This is my 1st grader with his teacher, Mrs. Huish!

Here is Lucy and her 3rd grade teacher, Mrs. Geisler!

Shortly after school started, Will joined the cub scouts and is proud to be a Tiger Scout!!!

So cute!

Emma had surgery on her feet on September 30th @ Phoenix Children's Hospital. The surgery was a success but it was the hardest yet of all of the kids procedures! We were in the hospital for a lot longer than we had anticipated:(

Here we were watching Polar Express 3-D and the kids had milkshakes!!!

This was some random shopping day that we hit a DQ for a break!

Mother Nature's Farm picking out our pumpkins and as you can see not everyone was into it:)

Better late than never! Emma was baptised on October 26th! She had Aunt Mandy, Aunt Amy & Uncle Nate as God-parents! It was a happy day for us!

Aunt Amy & Uncle Nate

Here is the Halloween crew!

We went to a Halloween event at school and got to dress up!!!

Tinkerbell

Grandma and Emma's boyfriend!

Aunt Mandy was able to come!

We went to see High School Musical 3 on Saturday afternoon!

Lucy and Will before school one morning looking sweet!

We have been remodeling our kitchen and Lucy was a HUGE help when it came time to paint!

These next few were from the school fun fest out at Schnepf Farms!

Emma loved the corn!

Emma was scared of the tunnel:)

Buddies! Will & Spencer!

Party till we drop!

2008-07-29T13:53:00.001-07:00

With schedules being so crazy we always end up giving the kids what seems like the

never-ending birthday. By the time we celebrate with my mom, my dad, BJ's parents and Will's friends, we end up stretching July 17th until August!

This was at the party with Grandma T-Bear! Will got LOTS of cool stuff including Guitar Hero for his DS which is pretty cool from what I'm told!

Grandma & Grandpa Leah (Pennington) had the BEST cake ever! They even put in a sparkler!

Will had a sleepover with his closest friends this past Friday! We went to Makutu's Island and then to Streamers for dinner & ice cream! They were so excited as you can see here in the car! Later that night night the entire group played army, made forts, watched movies and followed up by toilet papering the room of the first group to fall asleep. Sorry Boys!!!

Will Turns 6!!!

2008-07-29T11:06:00.000-07:00

Oh my gosh, Will is 6! I swear my life is flashing before my eyes! I can hardly breathe when I think about how fast life is! One minute I'm wondering if Will is going to be able to breathe on his own and the next he's telling me that the only way a girl will ever marry him is if he stops drooling...FOR GOOD!

More than the other two, BJ and I never know what is going to come out of Will's mouth! Seriously, a song, juice, naughty words, vomit (on demand - it's amazing, really), belching, a chunk of food or something TOTALLY sweet and unexpected! He is NEVER boring and definitely keeps us on our toes! Here are a few things about Will that you may not know.

He's a great helper! I always know I can count on him!

He is very strong!

He LOVES his cocktails! His favorite bar to hang at is Riazzi's! Ted gives him all the cherries he wants!

He is a dare-devil!

He is VERY sweet and sensitive!

He is a GREAT brother to Lucy and Emma!

He loves the beach! He could spend all day playing in the water!

He has a beautiful smile!

He is a loyal friend!

He EVEN lets his sister play Transformers with his friends!

He is handsome smart and fun! He never shirks at a new adventure!

Happy 6th Birthday Will! Your dad and I love you so much!

2008-07-19T11:47:00.000-07:00

I guess I wasn't finished with the California Pictures! I forgot the last day photos!

Our last day in San Diego was a big one! We went to Coronado...

Seaport Village Carousel...

The Harbor House for lunch...

The Village Hat Shop...

and last but not least, NORTE (best mexican food in CA)!!!

California Dreaming!

2008-07-19T10:19:00.000-07:00

We had such a great time! Carlsbad NEVER disappoints! We bought a little grill this time so that we could have fires on the beach! It was so much fun! Smores with a beach breeze, perfection!

We had quite the group for 4th of July! All of BJ's family was there with us! We set up on the beach @ 7am to save our spot! When we finally left it was 10:30pm!!! We couldn't get enough! We literally had a "camp" set up! We had a canopy and 5-6 umbrellas! The only thing we didn't bring was a potty! Great food and great company!

Will and Grandma having fun!

Emma and Andrew playing!

The sparklers were a HUGE hit!

Cousins!!!

Emma, Lucy & Will took me to see Walle!

During our stay we went to the San Diego County Fair! You can't beat the weather! When the fair comes to AZ it still gets up in the low hundreds so we NEVER go! The kids had a blast!

Yeah Emma!

We also went to Legoland where my children got tatoos! I hope it's the only ones they ever get!

The kids LOVE the waterpark in Legoland! We spent lots of time there!

One of our BEST vacations yet!

Rock it Will!

2008-06-26T01:49:00.000-07:00

Emma Sings @ The Beach!

2008-06-26T01:38:00.001-07:00

Emma Kate turns 2!!!

2008-06-26T00:48:00.000-07:00

I can hardly believe you are two! Time is going by WAY too fast! It seems as though every time I look at you something is changing. Weather it's your hair finally coming in or you blurting out a new song my baby is turning into a little girl!

You were the most beautiful newborn! Perfect skin, bright eyes and a perfectly shaped head!

You have always been very even tempered. It takes a lot to really upset you!

Oh, and you slept the night at a very early age! Dad and I rarely lost a nights sleep from you!

You love and get along so well with Will and Lucy! They love being your older siblings and are always willing to help out with you!

We LOVE your sense of humor! You definitely take after Will in that department!

You are NEVER afraid to go after what you want!

You are so smart and sweet!

I love you so much Emma!

Happy Birthday Sugar!

2008-04-24T17:11:00.000-07:00

Lucy turned 8 years old April 21! I can't believe how fast the time has gone. I wanted to pay tribute to Lu Lu by letting you know a few things about her that you may not know!

She is in Phoenix Children's Chorus! She had her 1st performance April 19th @ Westminster Village in Scottsdale. She did an awesome job!!!

She loves to dress up! Halloween costumes are carefully selected so that they can be reused all year long!

She is TOTALLY a BEACH GIRL!!! She should live in California for sure! She can get to the beach @ 10am and we're dragging her out of there for dinner!

She is an excellent big sister! For two years straight she ended her prayers with "God Bless for a Baby Girl." So, she basically begged for Emma! I guess Will doesn't look as good in makeup as she had hoped!

She has THE BEST sense of humor! It's actually pretty grown up for such a young girl. Living in this family she definitely needs it so Thank God she has it!

She doesn't like cakes, pastries, candy & most sweets! (No kid o'mine!) But she LOVES ice cream! Favorite flavor - Coffee!

She doesn't want her own kids! She will play with Will's (since he said he's having about 10).

She and Will fight like crazy but they miss each other if they aren't constantly together!

She is so beautiful! She has a great sense of style! From day one she knew how to put herself together!

On her birthday I received an email that made me think of Lucy, Will & Emma! So, here it is and Happy Birthday Lucy! I love you!

We convince ourselves that life will be better after we get married, have a baby, then another. Then we are frustrated that the kids aren't old enough and we'll be more content when they are. After that, we're frustrated that we have teenagers to deal with. We will certainly be happy when they are out of that stage. We tell ourselves that our life will be complete when our spouse gets his or her act together, when we get a nicer car, when we are able to go on a nice vacation or when we retire.
The truth is there's no better time to be happy than right now. If not now, when? Your life will always be filled with challenges.

It's best to admit this to yourself and decide to be happy anyway. Happiness is the way.

So, treasure every moment that you have and treasure it more because you share it with someone special, special enough to spend your time with..... And remember that time waits for no one.

2008-03-29T20:09:00.000-07:00

Carli & Dave's Wedding!

2008-03-29T19:00:00.001-07:00

BJ's cousin Carli was married to Dave on Saturday March 23, 2008. It was a beautiful night and we couldn't resist taking some photos of our family. We are only missing BJ's brother Nate.

Other than BJ, Lucy, Will, Emma & myself we have Bill and Marline (BJ's parents), Bret, Amy and Andrew (BJ's brother's family).

We never have shots of the entire family! Especially ones that look nice!

My kids we absolutely PERFECT and BJ and I were so proud!

Will & Emma dancing!

Will and Uncle Bret were twins!

Emma liked the chocolate cupcakes!

St. Patrick's Day @ The Zoo!

2008-03-29T18:45:00.000-07:00

The weather was PERFECT for the zoo! The animals were actually out for us to see. On the way out we ran into some friends so our day turned out great! You never know!

We had a blast!

Snacks for all!

We had to rent a stroller because I had no other way to push THREE kids around!

Not everyone enjoyed the train!

2008-02-17T15:10:00.000-08:00

Lucy had her 7th surgery on her feet Friday, February 15th. This was BY FAR the most extensive reconstructive work she's ever had! Dr. Shindell was very pleased with the surgery and feels that there was a lot of correction. BJ and I are glad it's done and we can't wait until she is feeling better.

These first two pictures are in pre-op waiting for the surgery to begin.

Now that Lucy is older and can remember previous procedures she was extremely nervous to do it all again!

She was breaking my heart! It was so hard not to cry along with her! She barely turned the corner and I lost it! It was so hard not to let her see the worry on my face.

This was in recovery when we first saw her.

Grandma T-Bear and Grandpa Pope gave her lots of balloons to cheer her up!

Everyone always comments on how sweet and good Lu is when we are in the hospital. She is such a great patient and doesn't fight the nurses! She even had a nurse from recovery come in to visit Lucy before she went home.

Dad was a great slave! He made sure we were well cared for!

When it was time to go we loaded up in a big wagon so we could keep Lucy's feet elevated.

Unfortunately, Lu was in a lot of pain from being moved so she had a really rough ride home!

Happy to be home!

Dad and I are so proud of you Lulu! You are so brave and such a trooper! You are truly a blessing and we are so grateful to be your mom and dad! We love you so much!

Check out my Slide Show!

2008-02-09T10:11:00.001-08:00

Will learning to ride a bike!

2008-02-08T16:18:00.000-08:00

2008-02-08T15:35:00.000-08:00

Starting a blog is completely foreign to me. I looked at many pages and loved what I saw. It will take a while to get the hang of it but I love it so far.

So, here we are... the Pennington's. Getting group shots is always challenging! I love how terrified Emma looks!

This is our most recent photo. The kids were enjoying one of the few rainy days we have! Who doesn't like to play with umbrellas?

This was taken at the school's Fun Fest out @ Schnepf Farms! We were hot, sweaty and dirty but we had a great time!