Father and Son

Ever since Van was a baby boy Drew has taken him fishing. Some days the whole family goes, and some days it's just father and son. They always come home with fun fishing stories and catch of the day photos that make my heart skip a beat. This video was taken last year and now Liv is big enough to fit in that backpack. Soon enough Van will be old enough to cast his own line and bring in the big fish. I'm so thankful I have a husband who includes his kids on his adventures and teaches by example the important things in life.

Happy Father's Day Drew! Thanks for being mine and for being the best dad ever.

Mama & Liv

Photos by Kylie Turley / September 2015

Today is Mother's Day and I am finally getting around to sharing these beautiful photos my sister took of Liv and I last fall. Since Livvy decided to come so early I never got to get my maternity photos taken. It's so special to share them with her all these months later. 

Already Liv has grown so much. Van is looking less and less like a toddler and more like a little kid. My mama heart grows to love them more every day. With every milestone and every setback I am so proud to be their mother and feel so thankful I get so share my life with them.

Happy Mother's Day!

Family

Photos by Kylie Turley / July 2015

Right now our family is in a slightly weird transitional phase of selling our house and trying to figure out what to do next. It's been stressful keeping the house clean and leaving periodically for showings, but mostly it's hard not knowing when it will sell so we can move on to our next adventure. On the bright side it is super exciting knowing all the new opportunities that will come available to us.

It doesn't really matter where we live or what we're doing, as long as we have each other. 

Tenkara Alaska

Last Summer we decided it was time to really test the strength and versatility of our Tenkara rods. So what better place to go than Alaska. We managed to find some big rainbows, salmon, and good times in the last frontier. (no rods were harmed in the filming of this movie).

www.tenkararodco.com

Home For Sale!

It's official! Our house is on the market! It's bittersweet to say goodbye to our first custom built home.  Not only were Van's first steps taken here, but we brought Liv home here and in just two short years we have created so many beautiful memories. Aside from that, we handpicked everything in the house. I am ok letting go of these things (except for my clawfoot bathtub) because I know we need something more. The search for our next home hasn't officially begun, but we are excited to get a yard and have more room for our family to grow.

I've been so stressed about packing and cleaning that the sadness is finally hitting me. Hope the buyer loves it as much as we have! 

White Christmas

This year we had a white Christmas! It was Liv's first Christmas and everybody woke up happy. We sat around the Christmas tree next to the cozy fireplace and watched our kids open presents. Van is finally at the age where he gets really excited to open presents and he helped Liv open hers too. Van's favorite presents are his Octonauts toys and he stayed up late several nights until he finally fell asleep tucked in with all his Octonauts characters. They go with him everywhere! Liv's favorite present is her kitchen utensil set and she especially loves to stir imaginary soup in a bowl with her big spoon. She's so cute I can hardly stand it.

After presents we went to my parents house for a Christmas pajama party. We hung out with family in our jammies all day, ate lots of yummy food, opened more presents, built a giant snowman, and went to see Star Wars. The next day some people in our family started throwing up and dropping like flies! It must have been some sort of mysterious flu outbreak since we couldn't chalk it up to being food poisoning. Those of us that dodged the sickness went skiing the next day and enjoyed the fresh air away from germs. What an interesting Christmas! Definitely one we will never forget. 

Hope you all had a Merry Christmas!!! 

Christmas Tree Hunt

Idaho City is the place we typically go to chop down our Christmas tree. They are never the strongest or prettiest trees, but the adventure along the way is what makes it a fun family tradition. While Drew and Jimmy hiked until they found the best tree, I played with the kids in the snow. Afterwards we warmed up in my new "mama mobile" and went into town for some dinner and hot chocolate. Can't wait to decorate the tree and sit next to the fire waiting for Christmas!