Alaska

This summer we will be living in Alaska. We have only been here a few weeks, but quickly realized this will not be like any of our summers in the past. Reason #1 - The warmest it has been here is 58 degrees. Reason #2 - We can't go out on a walk without having a little anxiety that we may run into a bear or a moose. Reason #3 - We have yet to even see a pool (indoor or out) let alone get in one. I didn't even bring swimsuits or sunscreen. Reason #4 - The meat in our freezer consists of salmon, halibut, and moosedogs. Tan or no tan, we are happy to be here and are excited to see what memories we will make together as a family this year.

This is the window in our apartment. Marli and Laney love to wave to Reno as he leaves every day. The rest of the day they entertain themselves by watching all the people walking their dogs go by. Ok, so life isn't too exciting around here yet.


Discovering Alaska doesn't come without its fair share of bumps and bruises - The first hour we were here, Laney fell and hit her eye on the corner and gave herself a black eye and the next week Marli fell at the playground and had this instant goose-egg on her forehead. It was so scary and so big! Marli was very brave and hardly even cried until I mentioned that we should probably put some ice on it. Luckily the bump actually was gone by the next morning (without any ice) and the bruise is slowly healing. I think Reno is getting nervous about leaving me alone with the kids anymore.
(Laney has no pants on because I had just caught her playing in the toilet water and her pants were soaked! This girl is always getting into something)



Dinner goal - Nothing like taking your kids out to eat at 10pm. We will do anything for a free night out:)

Mother's Day - Sunday's are especially cherished this time of year because its the only day we get to spend with Reno. We had a great day just hanging out as a family. Reno even let me sneak in a nap while he and Marli went "grocery shopping" and had "dance class". Marli is queen of making up games and imaginative play these days.


We have some great trails by our apartment and have had fun going on walks and exploring the woods around us. We are so lucky to have so many fun friends to play with out here.



Laney's Birthday - Laney officially turned one last week and actually liked her birthday cake this time! I swear it was just yesterday that Reno was racing through the airport to make it to the hospital before she was born. Laney was the sweetest, most calm baby and all that changed when she started to crawl. She is still sweet, but no longer calm:) She is all over the place and into everything! (Hence the chipped tooth and black eye) Her stubborn, fiesty personality comes out more every day, I guess she is just trying to keep up with her older sister. Her latest tricks are playing peek-a-boo and blowing kisses. She still has her signature smile that she will flash at anyone who will look her way, and knows how to use it to get pretty much anything she wants from her daddy. Happy birthday Laney, we love you!

all I want for christmas...

...is a NEW front tooth! Poor Laney slipped in the tub last night and chipped her front tooth. It was sooo sad!! She has only had the dang tooth for like a month. I think I probably shed more tears than she did. And of course it was the weekend of Spring Break so every dentist we called was out of town. When we finally got ahold of someone they told us there is really nothing we can do. I am just praying that it didn't get to the nerve and the tooth doesn't turn gray. I seriously felt like the worst mom ever! Good thing she's so stinkin cute because she's not going to have a tooth for like the next 7 years. I tear up just thinking about it...

F-Y- {Eye}

My sister-in-law Lyndsey is now doing eyelash extensions. She put some on me last week and I love them! They make your lashes look so much fuller and darker, and you can get them at whatever length you want. I am loving not having to ever wear mascara! So if any of you are interested just let me know and I will give you her info. She does such a great job, she will come to your house after your kids go to bed or whatever works best for you. Just thought I'd pass the word along:)

Look "Hoo's" Turning One!

Laney is turning one at the end of this month, but since we will be in Alaska for her birthday we decided to throw her a little party so that our families could help us celebrate. So how did Laney feel about her big day? She hated her cake, liked the presents, but LOVED being the center of attention! Thank you everyone for making this cute girl feel so special!

Whats a party without yummy food?

Grandparents are the best!

I think Marli was more excited for this party than Laney was.

Ok, this picture pretty much sums up how Laney felt about her cake. She really wanted nothing to do with it! We tried feeding it to her, letting her use a fork...nothing worked. She must just be a healthy eater like her mom (haha!)

After the party, all the kids went for a ride in the back of Papa's truck...loved the warm weather while it lasted!

a little fresh air

Reno had to go meet with a recruit down in St. George this weekend so we decided to all tag along for weekend away from the freezing cold. It was so nice to let the kids run around outside, ride bikes and even swim in the pool. Thanks for such a fun weekend everyone! We will definitely have to do it again!!

{little} ladies man - Reno had these cute girls wrapped around his finger as he tested their knowledge of animal sounds
On Sunday we went on some hikes up Snow Canyon. Of course Reno and Troy had to make a competition out of everything so here they are showing off their rock-climbing skills:)


These three had so much fun together. Noah was a good sport being the only boy (besides baby Bowdy) surrounded by some pretty cute girls. Afterall, he is a Goeckeritz so I don't think he minded at all:)
We did get a little girl-time - when the guys got home from golfing, I mean "working", we made a trip over to TJMaxx for a little retail therapy.
Sunday night we decorated Valentine cookies while they guys played pool
Unfortunately the cookies were a little crunchy, butt they sure looked cute!! (pun intended, haha!)

5k for a good cause!

For all you runners out there! My sister-in-law is helping put on a 5k to benefit this sweet family. Here is the info. for anyone who would be interested. If you'd like to know more about there story or would like to donate to the cause you can check it out at http://beanbenefit.blogspot.com/

One of our peers is a BYU student trying to finish his undergraduate degree; his name is Josh Bean. Recently, his wife passed away due to a tragic occurrence with cancer. Josh put his education on hold to care for her and his two children. Josh needs our help because he is working hard to finish his degree, care for his two children, and pay off medical and tuition bills.

We are trying to raise money for Josh because he is SO DESERVING of our help. We are raising this money through a 5k benefit run located at The Shops at Riverwoods in memory of his wife, Janeece. This run will occur onSaturday, February 26, 2011, beginning at 8:00am. We are titling this event “Bean Benefit 5k”.

9 months

They always say "9 months up, 9 months down". All I can say is these last 9 months have gone a whole lot faster and have been a whole lot more enjoyable than the 9 months this little one spent inside my tummy. Laney has brought such a light to our family and brightens our day every time she gives us one of her signature smiles. Here are some of her milestones as she has reached the 9 month mark:

*Started crawling!

*Pulls herself up to stand against the furniture

*Started growing more hair (I promise it is starting to grow, unfortunately only in the back)

*Loves to steal her sisters toys

*Tries to eat her sisters toys, and anything else she finds in her path

*Got her first tooth.