Bye Bye 2012 Hello 2013!

Family 2012 Recap!

Man I can't believe I haven't blogged in over a year! Goodness! Well 2012 was an eventful year. We've named it the year of austerity!

Steven has been finishing up the last of his Certified Ayurvedic Specialist program and will be graduating in June! I started school again majoring in Accounting but who knows when I'll graduate as we have the biggest news of all...a new baby on the way! Baby is due June 13th. I've aptly named this surprise 'my wish baby', as many know I always wanted one more.

We finally got to visit Voodoo Donuts! It was everything we hoped it would be and more!

 

 

 
We had a chance to hang with Mom & Dad Lawrence. They were kind enough to host us for a few days while we were in town. We got to see almost everyone and made it over to the coast and to a baseball game. Great trip over all and we can't wait to see everyone again very soon!

We had an exchange student for all of about 1 1/2  months from China. I'll be as nice as possible in saying it just didn't work out. It was an experience though.

We had our first ever family camp out with my brother Cam's family and Grandma Shanny & Pappa Scott! It has been nick named 'Earth Mouth'. This came about because my brother had a tatoo done years ago that he thought was the transliteration of GOD. For fun we had our Chinese exchange student read the tatoo and it turns out that it actually said 'Earth Mouth'. Cam was pretty bummed but Shanny always warned him that it probably said something other than GOD.

We decided after we found out that we were expecting another child that we would play a game of Hang Man to tell the boys instead of just ripping the band-aid off. Thad guessed it right away but we pulled it out a bit longer until Ashton had the message as well. It said 'We're going to have a baby!'

The sad thing was that they thought we were talking about Thad's Mom, Julie and not me. LOL! Then it hit Ashton! He said 'Oh No!' After that there was a lot of fake fainting and rolling on the ground.

Steven and I celebrated our 5th Anniversary! I can't believe it's been 5 years! We had a wonderful night out and Grandma Bea came and had a sleep over with the boys.

 

Thad's 2012 Recap!

Thaddaeus got in to the Treasure Valley Math and Science Center program! He's taking Algebra, Physics and a Researching class. Thad has been working his buns off and his grades show it. It is an accelerated program and even with that he pulled an A and 2 Bs his first semester! We're so proud of him and all his hard work. He's had a lot of changes this year and is doing his best to stay focused and find the positive.

 
Thad continued rock climbing and snow boarding as his sports of choice in 2012.

 
I got some sweet pictures of Thad flying his Grandpa Scofield's plane. He was a natural.

Ashton's 2012 Recap!

Ashton is as active as ever! He's continued homeschooling and is doing very well. His favorite sports are still Rock Climbing and Snow Boarding.

 His reaction to being a big brother was less than happy, but has come around to the idea and actually got to feel the baby move recently. I think Ashton is going to make a wonderful big brother!

2012 has come & gone and we're super excited for 2013 and all the fun times it has in store for us!

 

Happy Holidays!

Merry Christmas!!!!

We hope this finds all our readers well. We are ready for the holiday, but I must say it isn't the same not having Bogus open! I hope all of you are wishing for snow as much as I am. If not please do it for the children! LOL!

Look how much fun they had last year!

Here is our holiday prep in review. Our "Treedition" continued again this year as we visited the Tree Elves in the parking lot at Albertson's on Apple and got our tree. I have to say the owners loved the coining "treedition"!
 

 
Here is my funny Ashton letting his lego guy take a hot air balloon ride in our tree and sporting some fantastic facial hair! He is constantly making me laugh!

We visited Winter Garden aGlow with the kids again this year on our Anniversary. It was so fun. Here are some great pictures from our adventure. You'll notice a small little while owl that made its way into our family pictures. Leave it to Steve to help it come to life and trick small children into thinking it is alive!

My sweet friend Kristie and family moved back to Boise this month and she has been my friend miracle! She always brings wonderful insight to everything, has the biggest heart in the world, and has an ability to unite and heal people and situations. I have quickly become so attached to her and her sweet family and hope Krsna will keep them here for years to come!

We just love you Delff Family!

A special gift for a special Gopi! My sweet little friend Sugopi was in much need of a companion to help her in all her Gopi adventures. I took on the challenge with the help of my sweet Grandma Bea. With her help I was able to design and sew a Gopi skirt inspired by Gopi Skirts by Radhika for my sweet friend. I then transformed the doll into Radharani. I hope they will have years of adventures serving Krsna together.

 

Sugopi and her Mom are my rocks in Krsna Consciousness. They are constantly inspiring me in my service and are always there when I need them. They are so sweet it makes me cry. Just the look on Sugopi's face when she opened the box made me feel so loved my heart overflowed. I look forward to many more years of wonderful association with them and can't wait for our next sewing project. Let me know how you think it turned out.

Well more Christmas fun will continue tonight at the Casper home as we celebrate Christmas Eve. I look forward to getting lots of great shots of my super cute nephew!

I hope all of you have a very merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year!

Love to you,

The Lawrences

Eight is Great!

Guess who turned 8 today? I'll give you a hint....it's the sweet baby boy pictured below. Eight years ago today he entered the world and stole my heart.

It's Ashton!!!!

He already got to start the celebration early with a gift from Grandma Shannie and Papa Scott and our friend Deborah, and Raw food guru made him a raw pie! 

You can't imagine how much fun he's been having with these!

This morning we started his special day with heart shaped pancakes and candles! We'll be doing a party this weekend. He really wants cobbler instead of cake! Talk about growing up! Pictures coming soon from our breakfast.

Ashton got some birthday calls from Grandma Bea and Uncle John which he loved! All and all a great eighth birthday. So great in fact he sang about it at lunch! I'll have to get a video of that because Daddy and I couldn't stop laughing!

We love you so much Ashton! Happy 8th Birthday!!!!

My boys are Rock Stars!

My sweet boys have started the Rock Stars Climbing Club. Looks like they will be having a blast. Their coach is Travis and they climb at our downtown YMCA on Wednesday evenings and Saturdays(weather permitting) at Table Rock.

Here is some history of how the club began.

John W. Jackson "Rock Stars" Climbing Team

The John William Jackson Fund was established in memory of John Jackson in 2000 by friends and family. John Jackson was raised in Meridian, Idaho. He graduated with distinction from Centennial High School in 1994, and went on to Georgetown University where he received his degree in psychology in 1998. As a member of the Boise National Soccer Team, John was an accomplished soccer player. Off the field, he had many interests that included music and rock climbing/mountaineering. At the time of his death, in a climbing accident in Central Asia, John was conducting graduate research at the University of Montana in Missoula.

The John William Jackson Fund hopes to capture the enthusiasm, passion, contemplation and enterprise that John exhibited in his life and individual pursuits. To learn more about the John William Jackson Fund, please visit their website at johnwilliamjacksonfund.org.

The John W. Jackson "Rock Stars" climbing team is for anyone who is interested in bouldering or top rope climbing or both. Whether a beginner to the sport, or an experienced climber, the Y Climbing team offers the chance to practice each week with a group of committed team mates who are focused on becoming the best climbers, and people, they can be. Climbing is also an amazing way to teach kids and teens about patience, perseverance, confidence, and achieving more than you thought possible. The climbing coaches work very hard to pass along the skills needed for the team to achieve their climbing goals; they work twice as hard to teach your child and teen the importance of the Y core values as well as the difference a positive attitude and a strong belief in oneself can make.

The climbing team will practice one to two times per week and will have the opportunity to compete in United States Association of Climbing (USAC) competitions on the local, state, and national level. Climbing competitions usually take place on the weekends and the team travels and stays together during these trips. Take advantage of one or both climbing seasons.

When I got their to pick Ashton up he was in mid climb. Check it out!

 
Here is a shot of Ashton at the wall at the end of practice.

Thad missed practice but will be there on Saturday for the Table Rock climb. Next Wednesday is Ashton's 8th birthday. What a fun way to celebrate!

Stay tuned for more climbing adventures from the Lawrence boys!

Things they are a changin'

Well lots of life changes have come our way...

We had a fabulous Radhastami celebration at Krsna Camp, affectionately renamed this year, Radha camp. I know we have truely made some life long friends here. To view all the fun I've uploaded the pictures to my Picasa web album.


Papa Bob had a birthday and Ashton made him a cake all by himself! Here is a shot of the baker after he finished his masterpiece.

Ashton finally lost that pesky loose front tooth! No more Carni smile!

Steven will begin his Ayurvedic Practice starting Mid November. We just signed a lease for his office space yesterday! We are super excited. Got a great price in a great location. Here is a picture of the exterior. We'll get to move in October 1. This will give us plenty of time to paint and get everything set up.

Steven's got several more trips down to Nevada City planned through November and then he'll be home for a while! YAY! A trip to India may also be in the near future due to some great connections he made on his last trip to California. A pilgrimage is being organized by a local Pujari to tour various holy places. He'll also have an opportunity to meet other Practitioners in India!

I couldn't be more proud or excited for him!

What a Loaf!

Oh yeah! Can you believe how awesome this loaf of bread is? Well don't look at me. My wonderful, talented, intelligent, handsome and caring husband made this for us. If this is his idea of loafing around, I'm all for it!

Thanks Steven we love you and appreciate all you do for our family!