California Vacation 2011

Some of our highlights from our California Trip! We had a wonderful time and we look forward to the day when we can go back! It seemed that every day that we were there there was something special that happened.
Disney Land!!!!!

Visiting and enjoying many moments with Grandma and Grandpa Amandus
We were able to stay with them and had a wonderful time enjoying their company.

Mid-evil Times

Mike and Loralee at Santa Monica Beach

Kids posing at Santa Monica Beach...can't help but smile when I look at this picture!

Family Picture right by Santa Monica Pier

Our feet on the beach...2011 We loved our time there!!

Mikey is 4....WHAT????

Oh Dear!! Yes that is me...the so VERY HUGE prego woman!! I hated at the end where you get so bloated. So here is the quick version! Mikey was a tough one to get out. I was in labor forever it seemed! I was hoping to go in and have my 3rd natural birth, but he wouldn't have it that way. I sat on a ball bouncing and bouncing, walking the halls, trying to get that boy to turn. He wouldn't finish his turn. So they tried to give me an epidural. I was so mad! I didn't want one! But they thought it would relax me so he could maybe turn. He still wouldn't. By this time it was way too long from when my water broke, so they took us to emergency C-section. I was mortified and so scared! Dr. Elliot (Trent) and Mike gave me a blessing and off we went. I'm so grateful for Trent and for Mike giving me a blessing. It was such an emotional time and without it, I don't know if I could have gone through with it without more stress. In the end, it worked out! Mikey was grunting (literally) at the nurses and Dr.'s as they were pulling him out and cleaning him off! It was so funny! A healthy 7lb 7oz baby boy.
Now you are 4 my boy! I can hardly believe it!





Here he is at about 1 month old!! He was such a good sleeper!!

4 months old


8 months old

about 2 years old.
I will post his most recent picture in a few days when we have his birthday party. He wanted to go to the Amazing Pizza Machine here in town with a couple of his buddies, Reece and T.J. He is so very excited!
Here a are a few things that he loves:
-He loves to play puppy pals and is learning a lot with Leapster first computer. (great gift Mom and Dad)
-Buzz and Woody are still his best friends
-Every yellow car is Bumble Bee from Transformers
-We have been watching Little House on the Prairie and he LOVES it! All three of the kids do. When he wants to watch it he says "Can we watch Pa?" (Thanks Ammie)
-He loves to ride on his scooter and he has started to learn to ride a bike. It will be nice when the weather stays warm so we can get more practice time in.
-He is all boy. He loves tools, helping Dad with tools, lifting tools, and working with tools. If we let him, he would have the whole house taken apart one screw at a time!!
-Going to Preschool on Tuesday's and Thursday's is one of his favorite things to do. He will talk your ear off about it!
-He is still such a snuggle bug and a bit of a Mammas boy! I don't mind one bit! He is such tender heart, but when faced with his sisters, he is learning to hold his own.
We love our little man so much! He adores his Dad and tries so hard to be just like him! He has a great imagination. He makes up some of the cutest things!
Happy Birthday son!

Merry Christmas December 2010

Well everyone, another year has come and gone and we at the Amandus house have been rather busy. We completed the hardwood floor, put in new white doors, textured and painted the main rooms, finished the garage (we now just need to get rid of a bunch of stuff and organize it). We also were able to go to Boise for a week and had a wonderful time there...OH I wish I could just stay!! We loved going up to the mountains and seeing some good friends there. It was so great to see and hug everyone while we were in Boise.
Mike is still on the Dean's List in college. He is still working at the guard unit in Lincoln and recently went to Germany for two weeks! He had a great time there and ate a lot of really yummy food! He really enjoyed the Christmas markets and liked the slower pace. He also has been very busy with the projects around the house and keeping the kids organized. He has taken on a couple Website jobs on the side and I sure love to look at the work he does. It blows my mind every time he comes up with the designs and layouts. He works very hard and it shows in his websites.
Loralee is very busy working in the ER as the Medical Secretary. She enjoy's all the people she works with and says the ER and the pace is very addicting. She has also been very busy with photography and had a very busy wedding, senior, and family portrait season. She had the opportunity to take her own brothers wedding pictures in March and cherrished every moment! She stays busy also with scrapbooking our family pictures and attends a swap every month with her friends. The kids keep her very busy as well with all their activities.
Kaitlynn started first grade and is doing so well with reading. We have been very impressed with her and her drawing. She also loves to sing and dance and is doing so well at both!! She also started playing soccer this year and even though she is small, she is very good at being the goalie! That is her favorite position.
Hailey started Kindergarted and any time you mention school her eyes light up and she gets the biggest smile. She is such a joy! She is really good with numbers and is learning her sight words. She loves to play, run, dance and burn that energy she has so much of!!! We love our little ball of fire!! She is also in dance with Kaitlynn and they just finished doing the Nutcracker. They had such a wonderful time as the cooks. Hailey loves to color and work on her bead crafts.
Mikey is all boy. It's all about Trains, Toy Story, trucks, Buzz, riding bikes, Woody, running around outside and getting dirty, Evil Dr. Pork Chop, the rest of the Toy Story Gang, and playing his leapster. He is FINALLY potty trained and we think what really helped him was the motivation to go to "school" like his sisters. He LOVE's preschool and also LOVES nursery at church. We can hardly believe he will be a Sunbeam!
We love our time together and adventuring around and exploring as a family. We are enjoying our time here in Omaha, but sure miss the mountains and our family and friends in the west...as usual. We loved watching the Broncos this season and proudly sport the Orange and Blue where ever we go. We are the Broncos biggest out of state fans!! It's nice to see other colors besides a sea of nothing but red and white.
We miss you all and hope you have a wonderful Holiday season!

Halloween Oct 2010

We had a very fun time at the ward Halloween trunk or treat! They did it a lot different this year. It was just the trunk or treat and nothing else. The evening went fast and I missed having the chili, but oh well. We still had a great time. The kids loved dressing up and wearing Mommy's make up!

Pooleys Pumpkin Patch Oct 2010

The kids loved the tire swing. Mike pushed them for quite a while! "More Daddy More!! Push higher!!"

We took a very long hay ride out to the pumpkin patch where there was an abundance of pumpkins waiting for us! We had a wonderful time and the ride was calm and relaxing! Another great tradition!!

Kaitlynn with her great find! She searched and found the best pumpkin and had to carry it back all by herself!!!

Hailey is such a natural! They sure love to ride!!

Mikey is really getting good at riding horses. Even though this is just a Pony, he sat up there very confident and happy to be riding. What a handsome little man!!

This is my John Deer!

I totally could be a farm girl!!

I wanna be a cow boy just like Woody!!

We had a very fun day at Pooleys pumpkin patch!

Kaitlynn's 7th Birthday!!

Sooooo....I was hoping this was going to be organized, but it ended up being a mess and all out of order when I loaded them up! So it's kinda all over the place!SORRY! I can hardly believe that Kaitlynn is now 7!! It seems like she was just a tiny 4lb premie in my arms!
Her birthday was the 16th and we had a great couple of days. On the 16th we had lots to do. School, Soccer practice, Open house at school and then we went to dinner at Texas Road House! We actually were seated right away, which I don't think has EVER happened in all the years I have gone to TRH! SWEET!! She ate up her dinner and then they brought over a saddle and they sang to her while she sat on top of the saddle whipping the white cloth around! She thought that was great fun! My Mom sent her such a sweet gift and she opened it up after the song! She read most of it and then Mike took over and read what my Mom wrote! I was glad that the pictures turned out because I couldn't help but cry! (I miss you MOM) Then Kaitlynn opened her gift! A 1964 Barbie! HOW COOL! I can still remember the special days that my Mom would let me play with her Barbies from the 60's. I think we will keep that gift in its box for a while!!
The next day (Friday) we picked up the girls from school a few minutes early and went to Kimmel Orchard! We had a fun day. That weekend was the Apple Jack festival but because Mike had drill, we went a day early. Which was nice...no crowds of people! The kids road around on the ponies! 15 bucks for a few minutes! What a rip off, but oh well. The kids had a wonderful time. Mikey was a bit worried and just as he was getting the hang of it, it was over. I figured that since there were no other kids around that they would give them a little longer ride. Ya right. But the best part was watching their faces fully of excitement! After that we went down to the orchard and picked a bunch of apples. It was fun to sit after picking and eat one! Nothing better than a fresh apple off the tree! We then went home and had cake and sang to her and she blew out her candles. She opened up a super sweet card from Ammie and Great G&G Amandus and a few presents from us. A new Barbie, movie, and a kit on how to make friendship bracelets! She has already started one and really loves it! It was a GREAT couple days! I wish everyone could have been here to share her special day! Love you all and thank you for all your cards and gifts! Enjoy the pictures!!!