Kate Loves to Swing

I am so grateful for Kate's swing. When Kate gets fussy, she calms down in her swing. When Kate is sleepy, she falls to sleep in her swing. When mom needs to do chores, Kate just swings. The other day the batteries died on the swing and I was worried that Kate wasn't going to be happy. So instead of going to the store to buy batteries, I tied a ribbon to Kate's swing and pulled the ribbon to make the swing move. Brian was going to tell me that I was lazy for not going to buy batteries, but he could not tell me that since I was making more work for myself by pulling a ribbon to make the swing move. I thought that I was pretty intelligent for coming up with that idea. When Brian got home he had batteries in hand and made life happy again. Do they make indoor swings for toddlers?

Kate's First Trip to Utah

For the first three years of our marriage, Brian and I lived in Provo Utah. We lived at the base of the Wasatch Mountains at the foot of Provo Canyon. We loved watching the trees change color, playing in the snow, enjoyed the spring tulips and overall enjoyed Provo. We made some really good friends and had many memories. When we moved a year and a half ago we left behind friends and family.

Although Kate was only 7 weeks old she did very well on the drive. We had to stop twice on the way to Utah so that she could eat and stretch. She does not like being stuck in her car seat for very long, she is a mover. Also, she does not like being in the car seat when the car stops for any reason. She does very well when the car is in motion, but stop at a stop sign and its doom.

As soon as we got to Provo we went and visited with family.

We visited Aunt Ashley. We visited Uncle Todd.

We even got to visit with Uncle Eric for a few seconds. I hope Kate remembers how much she is loved.

After we visited with some family it was time to eat dinner with more family. Kate met Uncle Brian on this trip.

She even met our special friend Tasha on our trip.
After dinner, my brother Brian had a bowling night. He showed off his bowling shirt. His bowling name, "Uncle Brian"!
The next day was my good friend Leslie Aston's wedding. She married Adam Cuppett and is now Leslie Cuppett. She looked so beautiful. We loved going to her reception.



The next day, Kate had her first trip to BYU and ate at the Cougar eat. She was so excited to be at BYU.

I was so grateful that the Brunner family had time for us to come visit. We love Sara and David and their beautiful boys Eli and Ethan. Sara and David were are greatest friends when we lived in Utah and I still call Sara for motherly advise because she is such a great mother. We miss being a block away and we enjoyed spending an afternoon together. Aren't the Brunners a great looking family?

We had a fabulous weekend in Utah. I am so glad that we had this opportunity. We love visiting with friends and family and sharing our Prove vacation with Kate was also really special. I know that Brian and I will always have a special place in our hearts for Provo. It was the place we met and fell in love. I had fun walking around BYU and remembering the fun classes and experiences I had. I also loved being able to go to Leslie's sealing and be a part of her life. I am so grateful for the Brunners and the great friends they continue to be and I am so lucky to have wonderful family who puts up with our crazy life. Thank you Bryan, Ashley, Todd, Eric, Brian and Tasha for taking some time out of you weekend for us. It means a lot to know that you love us. Hopefully we will make it back to Utah soon!

Kate's Four Generations

Kate is fortunate enough to have all of her grandparents living and many of her great-grandparents living. It has been fun getting together with family and taking four generation photos. I still need to work on one, but this is what I have so far. I hope Kate will like looking back to see pictures of her family.
Pictured: Shirley Pawlowski, Diane Anderson, Courtney Marie Andersen, Kate Marie Andersen

Pictured: LuVerna Anderson, Leighton Morse Anderson, Courtney Marie Andersen, Kate Marie Andersen
Pictured: Sylvin McAffee Andersen, Steven Lewis Andersen, Brian Steven Andersen, Kate Marie Andersen

Pictured: Colleen Grace Patten, Kate Marie Andersen

Pictured: Gaylord Penrod Patten

Halloween Fun

For Kate's First Halloween we went to the Hesperia Stake Trunk or Treat with Aunt Kari. We carried Kate around and collected candy. We had fun, but didn't stay long since it was cold outside. Kate wore a pumpkin beanie and Kate and I had matching clothes that said, "This is my costume." Next year when she is older I promise to be more creative.