We made the voyage out to the Strawberry Farm again.  I always forget how far out there it is and how long it takes to get there.  I’ve started to wonder if it’s worth it.

Simon tried picking a few strawberries, but they seemed to just squish in his hands, so he just instructed me on which strawberries to pick instead.  The pickins’ were sooooo good this year.

Jane came along for the fun and did a fantastic job of staying in her stroller the whole time.  After picking the berries, we went to check out the goats, but Simon and I were both too chicken to feed them.  Oh well.

For the first time, we got strawberry popsicles at the end.  OH MY YUMMINESS!  This is a must!

Much later in the day when we weren’t even talking about it, Simon said, “Mom, That was so fun!”  I asked him what he was talking about and he said, “Going to the farm.”  He repeated this several times the next day.  So…. I guess it is might be worth the hour and twenty minute drive.  Plus, the strawberry crepes we had for dinner were pretty delish too.

This was Jane’s first year experiencing the bluebonnet fun.

Simon is such a funny kid.  He loves to dance or make funny faces or just to make people laugh… which happens quite a lot with three silly sisters.

Kate turns into quite the model when the camera comes out.  She’s got some sass in her poses…. (not to mention other areas of life).

Audrey is our deep, contemplative girl.  So sometimes, it takes a “Ooga Booga Booga!” from Dad to get her to let loose for a smile.

I love these kids of mine!

Jane was blessed on October 9, 2011.  It was great to have so much family around for it.

I have made the clothes for each of my babies blessings.  And Grandma Baldwin has made a slip for each of the girls to wear under their dresses.  This one was so cute.  Seriously, it could have been the blessing dress itself.

I think this is my favorite of all the blessing dresses I’ve made.  My friend Erin, (who taught me everything I know about knitting) helped me out with the cute flowers on the front.

Aunt Michelle made these super cute booties for Jane’s feet.

What a loved little girl Jane is.

Erin also made cute little flowers for Audrey and Kate to have barrettes that matched Jane.

They make me so happy!

It was kind of nice because the track team from BYU ran with the kids so we just got to sit back and watch.

Simon was obsessed with Cosmo the cougar the whole time and wanted to go see him, but Audrey and Kate didn’t even notice him as they came in for the finish.

We had very short notice for this race, so I was impressed with these girls for just completing the mile.  They’re awesome!

My friend, Erin, knitted that awesome hammock above for me.  She also scored an awesome photo shoot for us from one of her photographer friends.  I really shouldn’t include professional pictures in the same post as my own pictures, but oh well.  Here are some of my favorites:

Audrey and Kate go to a charter school, so they get to wear these cute uniforms.

Simon didn’t want to be left out of the photo ops and really how could I refuse him when he looked so awesome in his high water Lightning McQueen jammies.

This is Audrey and Kate’s first year of going to the same school and it has been so fun listening to them make plans of meeting each other “on the bridge” at recess.

We had so much fun with our own little Amazing Race and Minute to Win it games.

The women-folk got some much needed R&R with some delicious breakfast, pedicures, and shopping.

A few weeks later, we headed to Stanley, Idaho for the Baldwin family reunion.  Each family stayed in our own little cabins.  We spent most of our time outdoors which was kind of tricky with temps in the 30′s at night and 80′s during the day.

This picture was taken right behind our cabin.  We had the most beautiful view.

We spent one day at Red Fish lake and had so much fun playing in the water and canoeing around.

Somehow we talked Audrey into doing a dive off the dock and swimming back to shore.  We told her we would canoe right along beside her in case she was tired. She got her goggles on and got all ready to go.  She dove in and then came up screaming because of the freezing water and jumped right back into the canoe.

She inspire Mason and Uncle Stephen to dive in too.

Jeana’s parents came to town to help take care of kids while we were in the hospital. From what we hear, Simon was respectful of their napping.

One of our family traditions is that the older children bring gifts to the baby, and the older kids receive a gift from the new baby. Jane gave Audrey and Kate some sticker books and she gave Simon a Cars 2 sticker book (well played Jane, Simon loved it). Audrey and Kate made some burp cloths and I think Simon piggy-backed on the gift.

Audrey was really cute when both Kate and Simon were born. Kate was excited to be a big sister when Simon was born. I had no doubts Audrey and Kate would do well with their new sister. Simon, on the other hand, is at that “loose cannon” age where you can’t predict much. Add to that the fact that he’s a boy, and you can start to imagine the trepidation of placing a newborn in his arms.

To my surprise, Simon was so gentle and soft with baby Jane. I think he sensed the sacred nature of his newborn, baby sister. One evidence of his concern for her is found at prayer-times. When he says our family prayer and forgets to ask Heavenly Father to bless baby Jane, he puts on a really sad face and says, “Pray baby Jane!” He insists on saying a follow-up prayer just for baby Jane.

It has been a few days now since Jane was born. A couple people have told us how the transition from 3 children to 4 was difficult. I’m starting to realize some truth to that statement. I wish I could have another week off of work to make it easier!

Welcome to the family sweet baby Jane!

Mid-June, I decided to run a half marathon. The race was scheduled for the end of June. I allowed myself two weeks of training. Brutal may be a bit exaggerated to describe the training, but it wasn’t easy.

The race started 7 miles or so up American Fork canyon. I was on a bus at 4:30am to get up to the starting line, where I sat for an hour. It was dark, and chilly – cold air floating from the reservoir and over the starting line.

I ran well downhill for those 7 miles. My pace was rocking (compared to my normal pace). Jeana and the kids were cheering for me at the mouth of the canyon. The feeling of support in a race is so motivating. Then, they’re gone, and the downhill is now flat. And your leg muscles are used to compensating on the downhill, and fatigue sets in.

Sure, all you marathoners are thinking, “Quit your whining!” Go ahead think that. For all you who don’t run half-marathons, I’ll accept your admiration of my perseverance. I finished the race in an acceptable time. I don’t remember what it was now, something like 1 hour 47 minutes.

My parents spent some time in Utah this summer, baby-sitting our oldest niece (who is now 22 years old). While they were in town, Jeana and the kids joined them at the zoo. They got a good laugh when a fountain sprayed Kate in the face.

We spent the 4th of July at Sundance resort. Our original plan to walk around the grounds and shops turned into a ride up the ski lifts, and then turned into an impromptu hike. How can you resist when it’s so beautiful up there?

While riding up the lift, we could see a fantastic waterfall off in the distance. Later we learned that this is Stewart Falls (and Jeana would hike it 37 weeks pregnant). Of course, we were not prepared with water, food, or even proper hiking footwear, but we decided to hike until we could get a good prospect of the falls.