Wrestling Hall of Fame

On February 18th, 2012 Josh was inducted into the Iowa High School Athletic Association Wrestling Hall of Fame. To say we are proud of him is an understatement! He devoted such a large part of his life to this sport that it's nice to see him being recognized for his accomplishments. It is a huge honor and he is humbled to be a part of such an elite group of wrestlers. Thank you to all of our family for being there to celebrate with us!


Waiting for our turn on the mat! The girls were SO good! I would be lying if I said I wasn't a little nervous on how they would react... adults don't like being in front of that many people let alone when you're 2, 5, and 7! But they were perfect! They stood still and smiled and no one even picked their nose or pulled up their dress like mommy was worried about ;)


Standing on the mat listening to all of Josh's accomplishments! Very proud moment! But we look so serious in all the pictures!


The guy was walking towards us with Josh's award... look at the excitement on Maryn's face! Gotta love that kid's enthusiasm!


I'm so glad that I was actually there for a good portion of Josh's wrestling career. Not only do we have awesome memories together, but I think it makes our relationship stronger because I understand a part of him that is hard to explain. I am so blessed to be his wife and best friend.


Our three beautiful girls!!! Who were all so excited for their Daddy! We spent weeks picking out pretty outfits just for this event!


Me, my mom and my sister Jeanne.


The girls eating dinner in our suite after the Hall of Fame. Josh pulled a few strings and was able to get us seats up in a suite (and food!) for the finals of the State Wrestling Tournament.


My favorite picture of the entire weekend! Look at all those smiles!


A huge thank you to my Dad for the pictures! We were so surprised to be standing on the mat waiting for our turn and see Poppy across the mat in the media section! He got some awesome pictures!

Maya's 3rd Birthday Party

Maya picked a Dora theme for her 3rd birthday party! Lots of fun was had by everyone, especially the birthday girl :)


Birthday girl posing with her "cake"!


The Dora cupcake creation that Target made for me with dairy-free topping!


Maya's new Dora dress and Zinkies


Maya's new big sister doll that came with twin little brothers and sisters :) So sweet! Plus a pack n play to put them in!


Gotta love Dora jammies! She insisted on wearing them for clothes a few days later :)


Happy Birthday girl with the Dora cupcakes she picked out!


Blowing out her candles


One of Maya's all-time favorite games is "Just Dance" on the Wii... so of course we had to play with our cousins at the birthday party!


More "Just Dance". Maya is amazingly good at this considering she's only three!

Reading Time

I'm pretty sure Maya was suppose to be resting and Daddy was suppose to be reading to her to get her to fall asleep :) I think they got their roles reversed!

Big Girl Gymnastics

Maya has been going to a Mommy and Me gymnastics class this year and she loves it! A few weeks ago the teacher told me that Maya is ready to move up to the big kid class in the big gym! It was a big deal at our house as this meant she finally wore a leotard instead of just comfy clothes! And she went all by herself instead of with mommy, but mommy was the only one that was sad about that ;) She has gone three times now and has done great every time! I love my little gymnast!

Maya - 3 Years Old

Nicknames: Gracie, Grace, Maya Gracie
Weight & Height: 33 lbs and 39 inches tall. She's 76% for weight and 88% for height, making her BMI in the 49% which is perfect!
Hair: I finally trimmed her hair for the first time just after Christmas. The back was a little too bushy and the front wasn't keeping up... it was looking a little mullet-like. She still doesn't have much hair for a three year old but it seems to be growing a little faster since I trimmed it. Right now she loves her hair in pigtails :)
Favorite foods: Her special dairy-free pizza, french fries, scrambled eggs, most fruit (except melon), carrots (dipped in ketchup... gross), broccoli, cauliflower, peas, plain wholegrain rotini pasta, ice cream (either soy or sorbet... and she likes to have gummy bears mixed in if we go to Coldstone :)
Favorite Drink: Rice milk and apple juice

Her very first ponytail!



Favorite toys: Squinkies, the computer, MobiGo, bike, scooter, Marble Works, Thomas the Train tracks, puzzles
Favorite books: Fancy Nancy books, Curious George books, Dora books and 5 Little Monkeys series
Favorite stuffed animal: Teddy!
Favorite Person: She prefers mommy right now :)
Bedtime: She's pretty much right in line with her sisters... get ready for bed at 7:30 and in bed by 8:00
Wake-up time: Between 7:30 and 8:00, although since the time change and Spring Break I think she'd prefer 8:15 or 8:30
Naps: She's a sporadic napper, which is fairly typical for my children at 3 years old. She will take a handful of naps each week but definitely not every day. Spring break was horrible though and she didn't nap once. The good thing is when she does take a nap she is out for a good 2-3 hours.
What she's saying: Everything. Including things she shouldn't :( How is it that the third one picks up on that stuff so much faster than the first? One of her favorite words right now is "certainly". I'll ask her if she wants carrots for a snack. Her answer "Certainly no, Mommy." Makes me smile every time!
Latest Accomplishment: Sounding out words. She's very close to reading already. And right before Thanksgiving she started staying dry through the night! She's also practicing printing her name.
Likes: Gymnastics, music, snuggling with Mommy in bed in the morning, playing with her big sisters, playing Wii with Daddy, taking baths



On her 3rd birthday!



Dislikes: having snow or anything wet on her shoes, getting sleeves wet after washing hands
Best known for: How happy and cheerful she is, but also has a bashful side when you first encounter her
Health: She has been a very healthy kid. Nothing but a cold that I can think of. She is slowly growing out of her dairy allergy, but we still notice that some things bother her tummy. Slowly but surely we will get there.
Interesting Tidbits: She has a new freckle in her belly button that she discovered and she is VERY proud of it :) She's also already adopted the three old "ATTITUDE" already!

Maryn's Ear Tube Removal

This is a VERY late post but I wanted to include it. Back in May of this year, Maryn had to have her right ear tube removed. After three years, the tubes pose a risk of puncturing the ear drum so the doctors want to remove them. Luckily her left one fell out just weeks before the surgery but we weren't so lucky on the right side. It was a very simple, fast procedure and she was back to her normal self that very day. Now the unfortunate part is that she's having ear infections again now that the tubes are gone :( We may be looking at surgery #3 to have the tubes put back in. Poor baby.


Mommy getting in a few more snuggles before she had hand over her baby.


Big girl before surgery... she was so brave.


Mommy, Daddy and of course Puppy were there to support Maryn :)


Maryn getting some snuggles and a popsicle post-surgery

Christmas 2011

I was a bad memory keeper this year. No pictures of the girls before church, no pictures of the girls in front of the tree, no pictures from Christmas with either side of the family, and absolutely no video. What is my problem? I was slacking obviously. This is how our Christmas morning played out this year... Makenna woke up first and we made her snuggle in bed with us and wait for her sisters. Maya woke up next, she had to snuggle and wait as well. We finally tried to wake up Maryn and she was grouchy and having nothing to do with it so we all went back to Mommy and Daddy's bed to snuggle. Next thing we hear is Maryn downstairs "Hey Santa ate all of our cookies!" Talk about making all of us patient waiters mad! She somehow snuck past us and went downstairs to check it all out without us. That is so Maryn.

So here are the few pictures that I do have from Christmas morning and Christmas day.


My three loves on Christmas morning... before the chaos ensued :)


Maya's big gift from Santa... a double baby jogging stroller. Now she has plenty of room to wheel around Teddy and all of her babies :)


Unwrapping the Wii from Mom and Dad :)


Doesn't she look like a happy little girl. The one thing she wanted from Santa :)


Makenna's big gift from Santa... a cakeball maker with all kinds of fun sprinkles to decorate and create!


Maryn's new sunglasses from Makenna. So sweet. Makenna earns "money" for the school store by being good at school. She used her money to buy her sister these sunglasses for a Christmas gift. She has such a giving heart.


LOVE this! Maryn thanking Makenna for her new sunglasses.


Maryn and SKINNY markers... she is a big fan!


I'm telling you, it was the simple things at our house this year that were a big hit... marbles were one of Maya's favorites!


Maya and her gummy bears


Some headbands for Makenna


Daddy and the girls trying out the Wii for the first time


Mommy and the girls doing Just Dance on the Wii Christmas afternoon


Christmas cocoa!

Church Christmas Program

This year was the first and only year that all three girls will participate in the church Christmas program together. Makenna will be too big next year :( It was fun seeing little Miss Maya as an angel. She played the role perfectly. All three girls did a terrific job. We had a hard time seeing Maya as she was kind of hidden in the back row, but she was easier to spot for the last song when all the kids sang together.


My angel (with her very sad looking chapped lip)


Maya singing


Makenna's turn on stage


Maryn singing


Trying to get a glimpse of Maya Gracie from the back row. She did a great job on stage for a 2 year old!


Makenna and Maya singing the final song together. Maryn somehow got separated from them going up to the stage and she was on the other side and I couldn't get any pictures of her. But we do have pictures of our friends Landon and Owen who were standing in front of the girls!








My bashful angel Maya


My girls all dressed up for Christmas! I know I'm biased but I think they are the three prettiest things I've ever laid eyes on. I love them so much!