Spencer Amber Logan Addy & Sadie

Hwacheon Ice Festival

2012-01-17T01:46:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a US holiday so we decided to take another little road trip, this time to a small town called Hwacheon. Hwacheon is home to "Korea's representative Ice Festival." Since this winter has been pretty weak with regards to snow... we were all excited to go out and play in the cold. So we jumped in the VOLV and about 3 hours later we had arrived.

Going on a US holiday was a great idea since the crowds were smaller, we could find a parking spot, and the traffic was not too bad.

Cool trout...

The kids loved the ice tunnel, Logan couldn't believe he was walking "through an ice cube."

Little Sadie's nose and cheeks got a little rosy.

The snow sculptures were really cool.

This is one of many ice slides.

Next... four wheelers on a frozen river... yes, those are cracks in the ice... it was a rush. We had a blast building up speed then spinning out on the corners. Logan and I practiced turning right to go left just like Lightning McQueen.

Addy looked like a snow princess patiently waiting her turn.

Thank goodness we had a tire and some bike helmets to keep us safe from the other riders...

Now it was Addy's turn. What a trooper, she kept telling me to go faster...

So we did:)

I think Amber was jealous of our extreme fun.

Next was the huge ice tube hill.

Pictures don't do this justice, it was really steep.

In Korea it is not uncommon to see special areas for the foreigners... I felt bad for the Koreans because they were fishing in a much bigger crowd.

Back to the hill... did I mention it was steep?

Next was ice fishing. Addy got the first bite right after she put her hook in.

Unfortunately, it got away... How about the awesome fishing gear... It almost felt like flying a kite.

The river was probably about 6 feet deep and we could see the bottom through the hole. It was frustrating to see the fish swim right up to the lure look at it and swim away. Luckily as we were fishing, trucks full of fish kept arriving to stock the river with fish.

Amber couldn't resist getting in on the action.

Here is the hole.

Logan is a fishing machine... thanks to Uncle Ryan. He caught 3 huge trout.

Logan told me that one fish came up to look him in the eye to see who was trying to catch him.

Addy likes fish almost as much as she likes frogs. She wouldn't kiss it though...

After sleeping through most of our "vacation" little Sadie began to stir.

What a cutie.

Back to the tube hill... what a blast.

One family picture.

A snow dragon for the new lunar year.

The drive home took about 3 hours and boy was I hungry for some trout.

So I showed the kids how to clean them, fried a few up and had a delicious meal.

Amber tried a bite (this is a big deal since she could hardly stand the smell of them cooking). Sadie ate half a trout by herself, she loved it. We have a few more for a later date.

Our little Lady Sadie

2012-01-13T16:51:00.000-08:00

Yeah... I helped make that:)

Our white Christmas

2012-01-13T16:38:00.000-08:00

Christmas morning, bright and early, Sadie and Addy.

Cookies eaten: CHECK

One last pose before the madness....

And here we go! Logan is now a lethal NERF weapon.

We asked Santa to come a little early this Christmas. Thankfully, he obliged and he also brought us some snow. WE HAD A WHITE CHRISTMAS!!!

Not quite enough to sled it or make a snow ball but just enough to make our season bright.

Logan loved his new Legos.

And Addy and Logan both loved their new dance video game.

Our night before Christmas

2012-01-13T16:28:00.000-08:00

On Christmas eve, we bundled up and set out on our little traditional outing.

This is our 3rd Christmas in Korea. When we first got here, we tried really hard to come up with activities to make our time here memorable and special for the kids. Sure we would rather be home enjoying a meal with our families in the states, but with the situation as it stands, I believe we have made the best of the situation, and made some great memories. I think that when we finally find ourselves back in the states, we are going to miss these times we've had here.

Pizza Hut picnic on Christmas eve. The kids love walking around the DHL to see all of the Santas, elves and presents.

These two sure have grown up since we came here.

We drove up and down the main drag a couple times to enjoy the lights while listening to Bing Crosby and Jonny Mathis.

Back at home, we laid out our picnic feast and enjoyed the night before Christmas.

Gingerbread house... Cottrell style

2012-01-13T16:13:00.000-08:00

First you take the grahm.... then you take your hot glue gun.

Add some frosting...

some candy (the ones you didn't already eat)

Nothing is bringing down this house.

Logan sings

2012-01-13T16:03:00.000-08:00

Before Christmas, Logan's class put on a program at the Dragon Hill Lodge. He did such a good job. The biggest surprise was when they all began singing Jingle Bells in Korean. He makes us so proud!

Addy and Amber looking mighty festive.

Addy testing out the Rambo arcade game at DHL.

Decking the Halls and Thanksgiving

2011-12-11T01:32:00.001-08:00

Here in the Cottrell house we put up the tree early. This year it was before thanksgiving.

Logan and Addy were a big help getting all the ornaments on this year.

We had some issues with our lights, a couple of trips to the Christmas market and we had it looking pretty good.

Logan and Addy spent some time coloring their ideal turkeys.

Now for the food. Addy helped peal carrots.

Logan helped construct the fruitcabobs.

The rolls were almost as good as Grandmas.... almost:)

This year we ordered a turkey having wasted 2 birds in previous years due to an impossible oven.

What a feast, wish I could have some more right now.

Here is Logan and his seed collection.

Sadie loves to crawl under the tree and pull ornaments from the bottom.

King Munmu and Bomunho

2011-12-11T01:15:00.001-08:00

Our Volv near Donghae just outside of Kyongju.

Kyongju has lot of cool things to see but one of our favorites is the remains of the temple of king Munmu. He was a Shilla king who was obsessed with protecting his country from invaders. He told his people that after he died he would become a sea dragon to protect the shore. So his fortress had under ground water passageways to the sea so that he could come and go as he pleased in dragon form. His remains are in a golden box out on a small group of rocks off the coast.

Over time the fortress disappeared. The two gigantic pagodas were moved to a different location and then brought back in pieces after the Korean war. Now the rest of the grounds are being excavated for preservation. I first came to this place in 1999 and it still remains one of my favorite spots in Korea.

I love this picture of Addy running. I hope I can talk her out of ever cutting her hair :).

In the parking lot of the pagodas there is shop where the wife of a master potter sells some really cool pottery. We pick up something every time we visit. She threw in some cool necklaces for the kids.

This is Korea!!!

Our rock star children.

Next... on to Bomun Lake in Kyongju. We love to rent the little 4-wheelers there.

Logan was big enough this year to ride his own. He even gave Addy a ride.

Sadie loved cruising as well.

Road trip to Donghwasa

2011-12-11T00:39:00.001-08:00

Back in November we took our first big road trip to Donghwasa just outside of Daegu. We missed the fall colors by a couple of weeks but Logan had no trouble finding some to play with on the ground.

PB&J never gets old. Saide sure loves to play with big brother and big sister.

Still no teeth, but she sure loves to gum veggies and fruit.

Addy playing around with Logan's hat.

Our Volv near a bamboo forest.

The temple grounds were beautiful. Every time I go to a temple in the mountains it reminds me of some magical mixture of Lord of the Rings and Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon.

I can only imagine how pretty this place must have been when the leaves were just changing.

Most Korean Temples have a 'gate of four guardians'. The four kings inside serve to frighten evil spirits into submission. Love the faces!

Addy riding Falcor.

Logan and Addy riding Falcor.

The lamps were being set up for Buddha's birthday.

This particular temple is home to many stray cats. We counted 15. I imagine the monks keep them fed and are grateful for the natural rodent control. This kind of reminded me of the stray cat park in Rome.

There is our crouching tiger.

Logan is so fascinated by the sound of the monks chanting and the smell of the incense.

What a pretty family I have.

Never seen a spider like this before.

Donghwasa was named for the mythical phoenix. It was originally built in 493 AD. And is famous for its 33 meter 'unification' Buddha.

My beautiful family on a beautiful stone bridge.

I set the camera on a rock and ran up a hill and over a river to get this flick. Sometimes rocks take the best pictures... we don't get our heads chopped off...

My little princess in front of the unification Buddha.

I love this one of Amber and Sadie. Some day this will all feel like a dream.

Tail gate picnic at the Han River

2011-12-10T23:11:00.001-08:00

After getting the car all registered and insurance taken care of, we decided to take a little trip to the Han River and have a picnic.

We had PB&J and then put the seats down and watched a movie.

We are super excited about our new car.

THE VOLV

2011-11-06T20:44:00.000-08:00

After several months of waiting, today our car finally arrived!!! Here it is being backed off the trailer into "the lot." (the side of the road)

I can't lie.... it is beautiful, everything we wanted and I can hardly wait to break it in over a little road trip.

Addy helped me sign the papers... and found a huge leaf.

Pictures from New Mexico

2011-10-17T21:48:00.001-07:00

Old town albuquerque

Grandma and Sadie

My girls

Pals

Family pic

Addy loves the the balloons

Beautiful balloons

Leaving New Mexico

2011-10-12T11:16:00.001-07:00

We have had a wonderful visit and are getting ready to take off for Utah.

2011-09-18T02:38:00.000-07:00

Another day trip to Yongin... this time we went with the Patersons. Pictures courtesy of Logan and his new camera.

Addy Logan and Sadie are road trip veterans...

This water did not look sanitary too me but... the kids couldn't resist a stroll in it.

I bet you can't guess who tripped and ended up under water....

pretty flowers

That is a map of the hike we took.... the lakes are all lies though... someone must have turned off the water.

Cute smilin Sadie.

The weather was a little hotter than the first time we went to Yongin.

Cool wooden ducks everywhere.

Daddy and Sadie

The road got washed out during the rainy season so Logan and Luke had to do some real climbing.

We came upon this rest area with what appeared to be a genuine Harry Potter broom. Logan was pretending to catch the golden snitch in his mouth.

here is a little video of our hike down through the jungles of Yongin.

Yongin Recreational Forrest

2011-09-18T01:40:00.000-07:00

Our friends the Reynolds told us about this awesome campground in Yongin so a couple of weeks ago we went and checked it out.

We were pleasantly surprised. This exceeded our expectations for camping only an hour from Seoul.

Though we couldn't stay the night, we spent the day exploring and searching for wildlife...

Mom packed us a picnic...

The kids enjoyed their camp chairs...

and Addy enjoyed being outside.

Logan and I practiced tying knots.

Korea is beautiful!!!

The playground at the site was tons of fun.

Logan and Addy loved the Zip line. We loved it so much we did it again yesterday... post to follow.

Froggin and buggin

2011-09-17T23:16:00.000-07:00

Logan was assigned some tough homework... catch a bug.... We were all over that!!!

In our search for bugs we came upon a plethora of frogs... we caught 8 and nearly caught a few more than that....

Even Addy was getting into the action. She caught a couple of grass hoppers.

For Logan's class we caught some Korean grasshoppers. One of them was so huge he almost didn't fit in the jar. We learned that 'yoji' is Korean for these critters.

Logan loves froggin, he caught one at the playground a few days before.

Sorry, we can't figure how to flip these.

Me and my huntin crew

This guy taught us all of the Korean words for the bugs we caught.

Last of all we caught this little beauty... can you see him? I almost stepped on him then I heard him munching on a 'yoji' and we caught him up.

We had to let the frogs go to have a place for our 'sa ma gi'.

What a beautiful bug!

Content with our catch we called it a day.

Unification Church

2011-09-17T22:50:00.000-07:00

About a year ago the Unification Church opened its world headquarters next door to our apartment. I had a couple of experiences with them on my mission... lets just say they are unique. Anyhow, they unveiled a new statue over the weekend.

Confucious

Buddah

Jesus

and the Koran

Logan-O-Lantern

2011-09-17T22:43:00.000-07:00

A few months back, Logan was riding his scooter and failed to stop in time before kissing the stone wall in front of our apartment. Besides the big bruise on his head, he had a few loose teeth. We told him to chew softly and to be careful... last week, he wiggled one loose and out it came.

The one next to it was flopping around as well so... Dad tried his hand at dentistry...

Ultimately Logan pulled both teeth by himself. What a stud.

The next day at Taylor and Luke's birthday party, he tried to bob for apples but for some reason had a little difficulty gripping one:) Logan is growing up too fast!

First day of 1st Grade/Girl Fun

2011-08-29T05:04:00.001-07:00

Logan looked mighty handsome for his first day of school! He was really excited to go especially sporting the fohawk!
Ms. Yoshida is super organized, clean, and experienced.
He has been anxious to use his new camo backpack and shoes so we had to show them off.

We have had a fun summer and I'm sad to see him off again but I know it is best and time.
I sure love these kiddos! Logan we will miss you.
We drove Logan to school this morning and had fun seeing all his new classmates. On the drive over we sang Dads song he taught us..."Today is a wonderful day for we are going away, not to the circus not to the zoo, don't you know we're going to SCHOOL!" Logan seemed pretty relaxed. But then while we were standing and waiting for Ms. Yoshida to pick up the class we saw girls crying and then I noticed he started to pick his fingernails. (I think this is a nervous thing he does.)
Hugs and kisses and he was off and I was praying for a good day and YEAR!
While our men were off to work and school the girls had fun! We went out to breakfast and Addysen was so happy to have most of my attention. I got her green and purple grapes from the buffet and she was hilarious she said "Mom these green grapes are BAD where are all the purple grapes?" I guess I always buy purple so she didn't even know green grapes existed and they must have been bad. (I think she might be a bit biased toward the color!)
Then we were off for hair cuts.
Sadie always gets snatched up whether she likes it or not. She tolerates it for a little while but then if she sees me she starts to whimper and reach out for me.
Just so Daddy doesn't have a heart attack it was just a trim! :-)
While at the Dragon we of course rode the carousel and played at the playground.
One of her many faces.
She has grown up so much while living in Korea. I remember when we first moved here she was barely walking and now she is running and climbing with all the big kids.

It was a pleasant surprise to see a smiling face when he got off the bus. A huge difference from last year. He was full of good, positive comments. He told me his teacher was so nice and that he was excited to go to school tomorrow.
Our friends invited us for ice cream from the nearest 7-11. The kids love the Korean strawberry on the outside and apple flavor on the inside popsicles. It was a fun way to celebrate the first day of school. We sure live in a great place!
And of course we can't forget our sweet Sadie always along for any new adventure. This sweet baby gets dragged all over the place. Here she has found her thumb and she doesn't really suck but gnaws on it every now and again.

Happy Birthday Logan!!!

2011-08-22T01:05:00.000-07:00

6 years ago today in Orem Utah, Logan joined our family and changed our lives forever. for some cut baby pics, click here. Logan we love you so much. We love your silly personality, the way you talk and laugh. We are so proud of how smart you are and how hard you try in everything you try. We love how "new food is an adventure." and how you are a "fan" of somethings and "not a fan" of other things. This year you have started reading and doing addition. You are also an awesome swimmer, you touched the bottom of a 10.5 foot pool. You can jump off the diving board and swim to the side by yourself. You can hit a baseball and catch one too. And today you almost mastered tying your own shoes (goodbye Velcro). We love the way you try to speak Korean and the way you have such a great attitude about being far away from your grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and friends in America. We love how you can recognize mustangs, volvos, GTOs, S2000s and Jeeps. We love it when you dance to good music. Most of all we love you as a pal and as a big brother. HAPPY BIRTHDAY BUDDY!!!
Logan was so happy to have to use both hands to show us how old he was turning.
I love my cute kids.
Thanks to grandma, Logan gets to enjoy some classic toys. Ninja turtles circa early 1990s.
Matching shirts for best pals.
And a mom got a great deal on WOOT.com for a new big boy camera.
Daddy unfortunately got called in to work for a few hours, so Logan and Addy got to work on the new lego set. Logan is getting so good at following the instructions and paying attention to the details.
At night, we set up the kiddy tent and surprised Logan and Addy with headlamps. Just to make sure they worked, we did some late night froggin. The lamps worked great but the frogs were nowhere to be found.... too hot during August in Korea.
Logan got a new bird book.
These kids are champion campers... now someday we need to try camping outside.

Autobot cake

2011-08-22T00:40:00.001-07:00

Since coming to Korea we have done a few custom cakes: Minnie, Mickey, Mario and now Autobots!
This one was Logan's choice and was a lot of fun to make.

Logan's bowling party

2011-08-22T00:28:00.000-07:00

Thank you to all of Logan's friends who were able to come out bowling with us. He had a wonderful time!

After bowling and pizza it was time for cake.

We absolutely loved Samantha's card!

Congratulations Bryan and Jexy Wong!!!

2011-07-31T00:26:00.000-07:00

Wish we could have been there!

Seodaemun Museum of Natural History 2nd time with Seoul Seachers

2011-07-10T08:45:00.000-07:00

We had a fun time with friends from church at the museum. Always a lot of work to get out the door but always worth it.
Logan liked the museum but also commented on how it wasn't as good as the one we went with Grandma and Grandpa to in Utah.
Most of the kiddos.

I love all the green. Being here made me a bit melancholy for those friends who were here last year with us but have now moved away. Thinking of you all!

Sadie 3 & 4 months old

2011-07-09T23:57:00.000-07:00

Here is a ton of pictures of our sweet Sadie from the past month. She is already 4 months old today. Where has the time gone? We are all enjoying her so much.

She loves her Daddy.

Good ole' Mr. Banana is our great friend.

3 months old

She loves her brother and is already in control!

Sadie's 4 month stats:
13.4 lbs 63%
24.1 inches 62%
16.7 head

She is doing so great! We love our little girl so much and can't imagine life without her. Since I am so behind on posting here are her 3 month pictures and now some 4 months.
This is what she has been up to:
*Learned to roll over from front to back
*Laughs more everyday
*Sadie found her thumb and has figured out how to suck it! I am doing all I can to stop this.
*You sleep in your crib in the same room as Logan and Addy
*One night this past month you slept from 9:00 pm until 6:30 am BUT this only happened once you usually wake up between 12:00am-2:00am then 4am-6am and then between 7-8am for good.
*Sadie you are such a chill baby. It took you about 6 weeks to figure life out and get your belly to quite hurting and ever since then you are so happy.
*You love your mommy and give her lots of loves
*Daddy loves to hold you when he gets home from work. You smile for him and have started to pull his glasses off his face. He tickles you with his facial hair.
*You eat about every 3 hours and just lately you have been staring at my food and water....I try holding off feeding you baby food as long as possibly with the Cottrell food allergies.
*This past month you have really loved playing with toys. You love holding onto rattles and stuffing everything into you mouth.
*You love talking on skype with Grandma, Grandpa and Bri, you smile for them and stare right into their faces.
*Started to sit in the bumbo seat and like it only for a short time.
*You like your bouncy still but don't like having the attachment on in front of you. You like to be able to see what is going on.
*During the day you have started to be like Addy was and want to be laying down in your bed for a nap. You take the pacifier, blanket and then you hold on to Winnie the pooh. You rub his ear it is super cute.
*Started to ride in the stroller like a big kid! You are growing up so fast.
*You have become more vocal and squeal and coo so much.
*We don't use the Ergo non stop anymore. You are big enough now not to use the infant insert either.
*Your hair is still getting lighter and longer.
*Your eyes are so blue just like your daddy we will see if they stay.
*Logan and Addy still love holding and talking with you.
*You get mad if you are hot...don't know who you got that from?? :-)
*Banana (from Renee) is still a family favorite, you love chewing him up!
*One of my favorite things about you is when you are finished eating you will look up at me and smile so big and stare and talk to me for so long. I cherish every second of my time with you sweet baby.

Addy Update

2011-07-09T18:04:00.000-07:00

Addy girl you are something else! You make us smile everyday. Thanks for being our happy little girl.
You are my "SWEETIE"!
We do homework with Logan everyday and now you like to do homework with him. You now know how to write your favorite letter 'A'. I bet you can't guess why?

This summer is your first time getting to sleep in the tent with Logan. You love every minute of it.
We think you are so pretty.
Thanks for loving your little sister.
You love going to church and getting to go to your class. You always ask "is it time for MY class yet?"
You were so excited for Logan to be finishing school too.
Something funny you said the other day was "Mom I'm gonna bring my phone so I can call a taxi."

We love you Addy Bri.

Summer Times

2011-07-08T23:43:00.000-07:00

Playing video, board and card games has been a blast. The older the kids are getting the more we can do!
Enjoying the 6:00 pm water fountain in front of our building has been a blast. They even put music to it this year. So we get to enjoy 30 min of fun.
These kids sure have my heart!
Lazy Saturdays are so fun. This was Addy's first time in joining the boys in some gaming.

Logan is happy for SUMMER

2011-07-08T17:55:00.000-07:00

We are doing a lot of camping, in the family room. Riding bikes, and scooters, going on picnics and playing at the park.
He loves his sisters and is my big helper. Thanks for being a great brother buddy.

Last Day of school! We are so happy to have SUMMER BREAK!

First day of school August 2010
2nd to the last day of school 2011

Logan you did a great job in Kindergarten and are ready for 1st grade. We are both happy to have SUMMER BREAK!
I love having my buddy around more often.
Handsome little devil!
Spencer was able to go on Logan's last field trip to the Seoul Zoo. I am so happy that they were able to go together.
Logan made Spencer a crown for Father's Day. He was so excited about it that he couldn't even wait for Father's Day.

God Bless America

2011-07-08T17:18:00.000-07:00

We are able to watch the base fireworks from the comfort of our own home!

We spent the day on base enjoying all the fun activities for the kids. Then on Monday we went to the bowling alley and had a total blast bowling the day away and enjoying pizza! I sure do love my little family.
Happy 4th to all of you. Like Addy would say "Can I wear my JULY outfit!" They looked so festive.

I love the 4th of July! It seems to make me miss family but I am grateful for the memories we are making together.

Lost in Korea

2011-07-01T18:28:00.000-07:00

When I got my driver's license my dad always told me to go drive and get lost. Well.... We did it here. We got so lost that the GPS was confused.
Finally we had to pull over for directions and a map and then we got to looking around and realized how beautiful it was. The rice was just planted and the skies were clear and blue.
We just had to take some pictures.

Can't wait to get lost again.

Koje

2011-07-01T17:52:00.001-07:00

After nearly 3 hours of driving the southern coast we found our destination, the Koje port for Haekumkang. We parked the car and made our way out towards the shore through a winding passage... Amber said she felt like she was in Italy.... clearly I need to take here to Italy:)
The ocean is a beautiful shade of blue it kind of reminded me of Bear Lake in Utah.
The dock was empty except for this old man reading a newspaper so we asked him about the boat tours and he said they had all been canceled due to high waves.... then he asked for me to take a picture of him and Addy.
We decided to make the best of the trip and just enjoy being at the ocean.
The beach was made up entirely of stones. When the waves came in the sound was an amazing mixture of the water and the stones rolling on top of each other.
Addy unfortunately tripped on the pier and landed right on her face. The good thing about this was that daddy got a lot of Addy love:)
Logan was so fun to watch. He has been so stressed out at school and it was fun to see all of that wash away and to see the little boy emerge again. We sat for about an hour counting the waves come in and trying to doge the big ones.

Sometimes, Logan did not quite dodge in time.
My girls.
Next was the rock throwing. Little boys need to throw rocks. Luckily there were millions to throw.
What a kid.
If you look close you can see Addy's road rash.
Me and Logan had a blast trying to skip stones and see if we could hit a buoy.
A street peddler provided us with some waffles with apple syrup.
Here is a picture of the place we wanted to go... maybe next time.
My pal Logan.
Finally found a sturdy bush to hold the camera.
One thing I love about Korea is how much national pride they put into everything. Even the bricks out in front of our apartment have a little peninsula imprinted on them.
As the sun was going down, Addy found a pretty flower.
We are definitely going to try this again.

Kimcheon

2011-07-01T17:16:00.000-07:00

One of our favorite stops on the peninsula is Kimcheon. The small town is beautiful, Jikjisa temple is magical, and the large park at the base of the mountain is amazing.
This spring the weather was perfect. the sun was out but it was not too hot yet.
Addy, Mommy and Sadie are sure pretty.
A children's group gave the kids some balloons to play with.
The playground at the mountain is a blast. We could have spent all day there.
Logan is such a great big brother.
Sadie was only a month and a half old, I can't believe how much she has grown since then.
There is a huge man-made waterfall that really adds to the atmosphere.
There are thousands of stone statues all throughout the park. Addy loved this one.
What a beautiful place.
We never pass up the chance to catch frogs.
Addy thought she would try her luck turning this one into a prince... no luck.
She is pretty fearless when it comes to handling critters.
After we had our fun with this one we let him go by the stream.
Nothing like a cold drink to make things perfect.
Logan found this really chubby caterpillar.
I am sure this won't be the last time we go to Kimcheon.

Brother Lee

2011-07-01T16:25:00.000-07:00

In the spring I received a call from an old friend from my mission. Brother Lee was the branch president of the Kimcheon branch when I was serving in my last area. Amber's brother Judd also served in Kimcheon and had the opportunity to meet Brother Lee.
We arrived in Korea about the time that Judd was finishing his mission. When Amber's parents came out to visit, they all got the chance to go to Kimcheon and met Brother Lee and his family. I had to work so I did not get to go with them. Now it has been 2 years since we arrived in Korea and I still had not had the chance to meet up with Brother Lee. After getting his call, we made plans to go down and see him.
Brother Lee took us to an awesome restaurant that specialized in duck steamed in a broth derived from poison oak. The flavor was amazing. It was great to be able to reminisce about old times and old acquaintances. Brother Lee has not changed a bit. He is still the same sweet quiet but powerful man that he was 10 years ago.
If you ever find yourself in Kimcheon be sure to check out the restaurant.
Here is an old photo of Brother Lee and me.

A couple of books we've been puting together....

2011-06-26T01:16:00.000-07:00

Last fall we went back to the states for our R&R. We spent some time in Utah, California and New Mexico. We had a blast, made tons of memories and took tons of pictures. We finally got around to organizing the best pics into a couple of books. Now all we have to do is wait for a good deal to print. Here is the link for the Utah book: UTAH R&R. And here is the link for the New Mexico book: NEW MEXICO R&R. Hope you all enjoy!

The Best Dad Worker Award

2011-06-24T15:31:00.000-07:00

I am so proud of my man!! Spencer got an award yesterday for what exactly....(I don't know :-) ??) But what I do know is that he sure deserves it! It was a pretty big deal for one because he isn't at the end of our tour and also because he is a civilian. The General presented the award it was super cool.
He looked so handsome in his suit.
Logan showing off the medal.

I really loved being able to see Spencer recognized for his hard work. He does whatever it takes to get the job done no matter what the circumstance. He doesn't toot his own horn and isn't a big talker so it's great to me when others see his worth. I appreciate all you do Spence. Thanks for supporting our family so that I can be at home with the crazies!
Logan & Addy were excited all morning to go see Daddy at "work". When he was called up a co-worker behind us was cheering for Spencer so that gave them the go ahead and they started cheering too. It was super cute to see them so happy for him.
We were all so glad to see Mr. Wally at the award ceremony. From the time we stepped off the plane in Korea till now he has been a huge support. I feel like he really gave us the jump start for a great tour. He was able to meet Sadie for the first time.
We finally got our friend Ben to come to church with us! :-) The kids were excited to see Ben and sit next to him. They kept busy before the award ceremony looking thru the English and Korean Bible. Thanks Ben for your help.

Spencer, I'm so happy we were able to be a part of your special day. Thanks for being so awesome. I love you so much. You make my life so great! Keep up all your hard work.

Happy 31st Birthday Spencer!

2011-06-23T17:50:00.000-07:00

I'm so behind on blogging but I don't want to forget our busy month. Spencer turned 31 on May 30th. I love you handsome.

Random pictures

2011-05-19T17:15:00.000-07:00

Sadie is holding her head up so good these days.
I love her little monkey bum!
My sweet girls!
Addy saw this picture and said "I love it me holding MY baby!" :-)

Taylor gave Addy all her old clothes. This is just one of her favorites. Thanks!
Her little attitude with her hands on her hips...we are in for it!
Luke also gave his old clothes to Logan and this was his first pick.
Logan you are a SUPER KID!

Minnie & Mickey Cookies

2011-05-19T16:18:00.000-07:00

My friend Laura --Taylor & Luke's mom started her own cookie business called The COOKIE FIX. --check her out on facebook.
She was so sweet and made Addy these cookies for her birthday. They looked amazing and tasted great too.

Addy's Fun Filled Birthday

2011-05-19T15:44:00.000-07:00

I love my sweet family!
Addy was excited to have the pink bow.
Logan thanks for being a great brother. Addy was so happy to have her best friend enjoy her birthday with her.
This is such an Addy face.
Her hair caught on fire, luckily just a little bit it.
Look at those gorgeous eye lashes on Spencer and Addy.
She loves her Daddy so much.
"Almost three" --Addy has been saying this for so long that now she is still saying it!
Spencer working hard, he is a good Daddy.
Minnie Cake just for ADDY!
Swimming was so much fun.
Addy loves swimming on Spencer's back. I remember doing this with my Dad and loving it.

4 great friends!

Sadie and Daddy watching the kids paint. I love our tradition of Spencer taking off work for the kids birthdays. I hope we can always keep up this tradition.

We sent Logan to school in the morning and that gave Addy sometime with just Mom & Dad and her new toys. Then we picked Logan up at about 10:30 and went to the Art's & Crafts Center. They had so much fun painting ceramic animals.

After that it was lunch time and Addy wanted Burger King and to go for a picnic. It was so windy we ended up eating at BK and the kids played on the play set for a while. The coolest thing ever was that Luke and Taylor showed up with their Mom and Dad because they were out getting passports. Addy screamed "TAYLOR" and ran over to her. It was perfect timing and made Addy's birthday that much better.

Then it was on to the BEST part of the day that they had been so excited about...SWIMMING! Luke and Taylor were able to join us and it was so fun. We loved the indoor pool and wish we would've been going all winter! I still can't believe how neat it was that our best friends were able to join us. Addy sure loves them and both the kids are so sweet to her just like Logan.

We (Spencer & I) were exhausted....got home and finished decorating the cake. Addy was so patient with her awesome Daddy. She was excited to have a Minnie cake this year. I thought for sure she would pick a princess cake but no Minnie it was! We didn't have the right tip for the black so it made it a bit tricky for Spencer, but I think it turned out great. I love that Spencer would do this for his sweet baby girl. He loves his little girl.

Addy thanks for joining our family 3 years ago. I can't believe how fast time is going. You sure do light up our lives! I love your happy spirit! Thanks for loving me and making me smile.

Happy Birthday Addy!!!

2011-05-17T16:06:00.000-07:00

Three years ago today Addy entered our lives. Click here for the whole story.
She is my mini-amber.
Here she is at 1 year.
Here she is at 2 years.
We stayed up late last night putting together her gifts and getting ready for her big day.
It all payed off, Addy had a wonderful morning and was so excited to see her princess presents.
Logan picked out a jewelry box and a pink cell phone. I think she loves the pretty flower pattern.
We set up streamers and blew up balloons. We put on some princess music and once she was all dressed up, we crowned her and watched her dance around the room.

What a happy little girl. I love how much she is just like Amber. She has this magical ability to make everyone around her happy.
Addy gets a birthday hug from mommy.
After a quick breakfast, Addy snuggled up on the couch to watch her favorite movie Tangled.
She is so cute when she tries to sing the songs and act out the scenes.
Addy, We love you so much. No matter what kind of day the rest of us is having, you are always happy. We love your smile and your laugh and your silly personality. You are a great little sister to Logan and a wonderful big sister and example for baby Sadie. Before I went to sleep last night, I was kind of sad that you are growing up. I hope you will be my baby girl forever! Happy Birthday!

Sadie 2 months old

2011-05-15T20:53:00.000-07:00

May 9th our sweet baby girl was 2 months old. Time is going so fast. Sadie is growing up already and getting a little more meat on her bones! We love those cheeks. I am getting excited for our families to meet her in person. She is a sweet heart! Look at those super blue eyes that I love...just like her daddy, but no telling if they will stay!
Sadie does a lot less crying now and a lot more smiling.
We are getting the hang of this 3 kid thing and enjoying every minute with her special spirit in our home.

I love being with her all the time. Watching her smile and hearing her cooing and talking to me is the best! She is holding her head up so good these days. Logan and Addy adore her and can't get enough time with her. I love seeing them interact together. She is sure to give them both smiles.
We love you so much. Sadie, thanks for making our family even better. I love being your mommy. Thanks for making me so happy.

Here are your stats:

11.4 lbs --86%

22 1/2 inches long --79%

40 cm head --51%

I'm so gald when DADDY comes home.....

2011-05-15T20:02:00.000-07:00

It was so great to have Spencer return home. I missed him so much. It was neat for me to realize that we have really become a great team in raising our family. Having a family is a lot of work but so worth it when you have someone to share it with. It's nice to have my best friend with me to help me along the way.
The kids and I decided we needed to do something to help our super dad feel special upon arriving home. We had so much fun making a candy poster and surprising him. :-)
Spencer brought back the girls these pretty dresses and Logan some cool t-shirts...I can't believe I don't have any pictures of Logan wearing them.

Addy was so excited! She loved her dress and her hair clip. We couldn't even wait to do our hair. :-)

Cheese ball!
She loved showing off her new dress. Spencer thanks for making us all feel so special and appreciated. We love you Spence and I am so happy to have you back.

...Way out where the dandelions grow....

2011-05-08T00:25:00.000-07:00

This year is Logan's second year playing tee-ball. A few things have changed.... he has a cool jersey, and his team actually plays games against other teams.
Logan is getting so good at scooping up those ground balls and has a pretty good arm.
At yesterday's game, one of the dads hooked the team up with black paint to keep the glare down.
What a handsome kid!
Logan plays tee-ball just like he does most other things... whilst imagining he is doing something else:) What a space cadet... like father... like grandfather........
But when it comes to smacking that ball, he does it blindfolded.
Gee.... what cool holes on the helmet.....
Yes Bern, he is a Yankee.... not quite sure what the ' is all about.
By the end of the third inning, Logan was pretty tired. According to his awesome coach, he took the hardest hit of the entire game. Last inning, he was on the pitcher's mound and took one right to the chest.... and caught it, threw it to first before the runner got there! What a stud. Maybe he will be good at baseball like Grandpa Allen.
Some of the sights near the field... must be what it feels like to play in prison.
The blossoms are all gone but the bank tree leaves are still beautiful to me.
Almost feels like America.

Happy 30th Birthday to ME!

2011-04-29T19:14:00.001-07:00

It has been a great 3o years and I look forward to 30 more!
Logan thanks for loving me even when I am not perfect!
Addy thanks for being you!
Silly faces, they crack me up.

These scooters are the best ever.
We took a walk to Tom n Toms coffee for a pretzel!
Bought vitamin yogurts from the lady pushing her cart.
The kids loved watching our pretzels being made. The employees loved practicing English.
On the way home Logan biffed it and hurt is head.

Sadie all ready for bed. Such a sweetheart.
On my birthday with Spencer away...Logan and Addy took good care of me. Logan woke me up at 5:30am saying "Mom I woke up Addy so she didn't miss out on your Birthday...together they said Happy Birthday Mommy!" It was so sweet. Then he said "Mom, where are all your decorations?" He then went and found our Happy Birthday sign...he is so thoughtful. Then a little later he said "Where is your birthday cake? You can't have a birthday without a cake." I told him my sweet friend Liz made cupcakes...he said when Dad gets home they will make me a cake. Then it was "I can't go to school on your birthday I need to stay home and celebrate with you." So that is what we did. I made us pancakes and started our day all before 6:30am! Thanks to great family and friends for phone calls, Skype video calls, face book messages and all to make it a fun day.
**I'm a lucky girl because I will get to celebrate 3 times. On my Korea 29th, America 29th, and when my best friend and hubby comes home! **

Sadie misses her Daddy!

2011-04-29T18:52:00.000-07:00

I miss my daddy!
Love you Spencer.

Addy & Mommy outdoor fun

2011-04-29T18:35:00.000-07:00

I love SPRING! Addysen and I have had fun going on walks and checking out the spring flowers.
I live in a pretty place.
Addy enjoying her doughnut from Paris Baguette.
Logan and Addy love collecting these "baby beads" --pellets.

Daddy check out my fingernails. --Addy was showing them off just for you.

These flowers are so pretty. I have a million pictures of Addy doing all her different faces and poses.
This is Addy and Logan's hill they love to go down. It is right in front of Paris Baguette where we enjoy getting french bread.
Yes ,she is balancing just like her cousin Brody does. All the Koreans stop and stare! They are shocked every time they see her. We also go down a hill in front of the police station. The other day Addy was flying down it and at the end it is a street. About 3 or 4 policemen were watching her and then started running after her because they didn't think she was going to stop. I was laughing so hard...they probably thought I was a terrible mom! They all laughed too when she stopped before they could get to her.

I took a couple pictures of places in Korea we enjoy walking to and getting treats. At the 7 eleven the kids love getting banana milk.
She loves flowers and picks one a day!

Thumbs up for sure! We love this BBQ place it sells the best BBQ Chicken ever! It is fried in olive oil and it has a little bit of a kick to it!

Smiling Sadie

2011-04-29T18:21:00.000-07:00

Our little photo shoot that didn't go so well. It was dark and not put together right...but the kids had fun. They love having a little baby around too.

Sadie is smiling and cooing more everyday. She had this bit of face acne/heat rash from rubbing on my shirt. It's gone now so that is good. I will have to get some new pictures of her.
Smiling, and happy.
I love her so much.

Easter Bunny

2011-04-29T17:59:00.000-07:00

Reading new Easter books before bed.
This has been me all week while Spencer has been gone.
I love you Spencer!
The kids had so much fun looking for eggs.
Logan getting excited to see what the Easter bunny left.
Logan's goodies.
Addysen's basket.
Clever bunny.
We had a good time!

Logan's "BIRDING" Kindergarten Science Project

2011-04-29T17:36:00.000-07:00

Logan explaining his project to Diana and her language student. He is the cutest old man and was so interested in his birds. Logan knows his birds and loves teaching people about them.
Addy wanted to be in the picture.
Birds Logan knows by heart.
He really loved painting the board and making the binoculars and helping Spencer with the pictures.
Thanks Spencer for helping your sweet boy do a great Science project. Logan and Spencer really enjoy hunting for different birds. It's turned into a great hobby.

Easter Best

2011-04-29T17:26:00.000-07:00

Sweet angel Addy.
Here is one of Spencer getting home from work holding sweet Sadie.
One lucky mother.
These two kids are something else. I'm so thankful that they love each other most of the time. :-)
Logan is such a great big brother!
Sadie on her first outing to church. She was fantastic as long as she was in her Ergo carrier.

Kids in the Spring

2011-04-23T18:57:00.000-07:00

Some more Cherry Blossoms

2011-04-23T18:43:00.001-07:00

Welcome Spring

2011-04-23T18:28:00.000-07:00

We had hoped to make it down to Chinhae this spring but I was unable to get work off. Instead we enjoyed the cherry blossoms around base.
Addy loved the pretty pink and white flowers.
What a handsome kid.
Brother and sister.
My beautiful family.
Everywhere we looked there were signs of spring.
Big and little sisters.
The kids.
We are sure excited for spring to be here.

Hunting for Easter eggs

2011-04-23T17:49:00.000-07:00

Last weekend was the annual Easter egg hunt.
The kids line up on the sidelines of one of the soccer fields and then take turns running out on to find eggs. Addy was very particular about which eggs she would pick up. Only pink and purple eggs found their way into her bag.
Grandma Pauleen provided the perfect Easter bags / pillow cases for filling with eggs.
It was a perfect spring day, the cherry blossoms were beautiful.
Once one age group was done picking up eggs they would trade them in for some candy and then they would scatter them again out on the field.
Next was Logan's turn.... not so picky about picking up the pink ones...
Love the bags.
Daddy got an Easter kiss from Addy.
Silly daddy, those aren't for eating...
Logan practically filled his bag to the brim.

Though Addy was a little nervous about the giant Easter bunny we did get one picture.

Sadie at 1 month

2011-04-09T23:12:00.000-07:00

It is hard to believe that Sadie is now one month old. It was the same with the other children; once they came to our family, it was as if they had always been here. We can't imagine our family without her. She is a sweet baby and makes us all happy.
Most of her time is still spent sleeping, and most of her 'awake' time is spent eating. My favorite is the few minutes each day after feeding that she just stares through us all. We are all anxious to continue to get to know her.
My other favorite thing...

Sadie seems to go from the extremes of completely calm to loud and bothered in a short period of time. When she is hungry she doesn't take her time to let the world know.

Sadie B we are happy to have you in our family... you have many months ahead to get to know us.

General conference

2011-04-09T22:52:00.000-07:00

Today we watched Conference over the internet. It sure is a blessing to have the means by which we can watch and listen to the talks from the other side of the world in the comfort of our home.
The kids loved playing bingo and did pretty good listening to the talks.

Our Night at the Dragon

2011-04-09T22:24:00.000-07:00

Last week I had a couple of days of leave that I had to use so we decided we would go on a little outing to the hotel on base. Logan loves to go there just to look around so Amber and I thought it would be fun to surprise the kids and not tell them where we were going. When we pulled into the parking lot, the kids could not hold back their excitement. One of the best things about the Dragon Hill Lodge is the indoor pool. It has been a long winter away from the pool and Logan and Addy were happy to go swimming.
Addy has grown into a very independent little girl and demands to do everything on her own. 5 minutes after getting into the pool I went to bring her to the side and she told me she would go on her own. She said it in such conviction that I half expected her to swim to the side. I let go of her arm and as she began to panic and sink I grabbed her and from that moment on she was stuck to me like an octopus.
Logan is our little fish. He can dive to the bottom for long periods of time and can swim/paddle better than any 5 year olds I have ever seen.
I am relieved to see that Addy is not afraid of the water and look forward to her starting lessons this summer.
Little Sadie slept in the semi-tropical environment provided by the enclosure.
Amber is a trooper and and enjoyed from the sidelines.

Back at the room we watched a movie and ate pizza.
We had a wonderful view of Seoul tower.
What a fun night!!!

The kids

2011-04-09T21:35:00.000-07:00

So here they are. Our 3 kids. It is a spooky feeling when you look in the back of your little Honda and see that there is no room for any more. Each has their own unique personality and each provides a glimpse into genes they came from.
Logan teaching Sadie how to say 'cheese' in Korean.
Logan is learning to read/(memorize and repeat) and loves to read to his sisters.
Our good friend Laura made these awesome sugar cookies for our big brother and big sister.
Here is Addy enjoying her presents from Grandma Pauleen Grandpa Court and Aunt Kr.
Logan loves Buzz Lightyear.
Addy loves to pose.
Logan loves to climb the tree in front of his school.
This is how you show off your fingernails and toenails at the same time.
Logan loves to eat lunch with the girl's soccer team.
Addy loves to chill with her bears.
Logan is one awesome kid.
Addy loves to wear dresses.
Don't break Logan's achy breaky heart.
See what I mean about unique personalities???

Dana's Visit

2011-04-09T21:00:00.000-07:00

It has now been a few weeks since Grandma Dana left Korea. Since she left, we have been so busy trying with two adults to do the work that was so conveniently done by three. (probably not 100% true, I had it pretty easy while she was here :)) Anyhow, I have been going through the pictures and wanted to post a few, and add a note to thank her for all the help that she was to us.
With both Logan and Addy coming as early as they did, we were not sure when was the best time to have Dana come to Korea. As it turned out, she was here for a week and a half before Sadie finally arrived. Though we wish that she could have spent more time with baby Sadie, we were grateful for the time that we got to spend before Sadie's birth.
Addy loved doing arts and crafts with Grandma.
March madness was all the more fun with one of our fiercest competitors living in the house with us... even if BYU didn't make it all the way....
Grandma's skilled hands were appreciated when it came to bath time.

Addy and Sadie sure love grandma.
This was Dana's second time coming to Korea (her first was when she and Allen came to pick up Judd from his mission) We did our best to show her a good time and let her experience good Korean food.
The flower market was a blast.
Grandma loved the aquarium. (especially her pal the seal)
Gotta love the "sweet love love zone".
Dana, we love you and are so thankful for the time you spent here with us. Thanks a million and come again any time! We will even let Allen come.

Wish we were there!

2011-04-03T03:08:00.000-07:00

For more pics, follow the link for Janet's photos.

Baby Sadie

2011-03-18T18:07:00.000-07:00

Little Sadie has sure changed our lives. Even though she is still 'new' she sure has shown us her unique personality. She never holds back telling you how she feels. We love the new addition to our family. Thanks to Liz Malone for the awesome shirt she made for Sadie.
Amber knitted the blanket when she was pregnant. Sadie sure loves how soft it is.

Soaking up the sun

2011-03-18T18:00:00.000-07:00

A few days ago Sadie started to look a tad yellow. The other kids were this way too so we knew just what to do... lay her out in the sun. Who wouldn't like this?

We sure love our Sadie!

Addy the big sister

2011-03-18T17:55:00.001-07:00

Addy has sure loved having a real baby around. She is always so concerned about making Sadie happy. Addy has done her share of growing up too. Lately she will not wear anything if she can't wear a dress or tights. Addy is beautiful and we are excited how much Sadie appears to look like her. We are sure to have a house full of pretty princesses.

Logan the bigger brother

2011-03-18T17:45:00.001-07:00

When we brought Sadie home, Logan asked me, "how old am I now." It was funny at the time but it has also been sort of sad because he really has grown up so much since Sadie arrived. Logan is a big helper, he loves Sadie and Addy and it is so fun watching him interact with his sisters. Logan is the best pal ever!

This is Logan's science house for school. His teachers are going to play the part of the big bad wolf and see if they can blow it down. Personally, I don't think that they have a chance.

Made In Korea

2011-03-10T17:34:00.001-08:00

What a crazy couple of days! Life is a miracle and experiencing little Sadie's arrival has just confirmed this. Ten years ago when I was knocking doors in Pusan I would have never believed that some day I would be here again with a wife and two kids getting ready for another. When I was a kid, it seemed like every once in a while the teacher would have each of the kids in the class tell everyone where they were born. Most everyone was born in Utah. One time I tried to be different by telling everyone that I was born in Yellowstone National Park.... needless to say I could not back that one up. Now I have three children, one born in Utah, one in Maryland and now one in Seoul Korea. What an experience!
So here is Amber on her "third" last doctor's appointment. This was preceded by here "forth" last trip to the commissary... With Logan coming a month early and Addy coming 2 weeks early, we were sure that Sadie would be early too. Sadie had other plans. The doctor had Amber's due date as 3-6-11, Amber had calculated 3-9-11. So last Friday we had an appointment and the doctor was really anxious to be the one to deliver Sadie so he scheduled Amber for another appointment on the coming Wednesday (3-9-11) to see if he could get things started while he was still on-call. Wednesday morning at 0900 Amber was examined and Amber began having regular contractions. They monitored her for a couple of hours (which she hated since they wanted her to lay still on the bed) and then sent us home. By the time we got home Amber's contractions were pretty strong but she was just happy to be able to walk around the house and not be stuck in a bed. Once Amber starts labor, she cant stand to have anything touching her. I think this is one of the reasons she likes to put off going to the hospital as long as possible. By noon, she was in considerable pain and we started making sure we had everything ready to go. At 1420 we called up our good friend Diana to come and watch Addy and pick up Logan from the bus stop. We arrived at the hospital at 1430 and had the nurse check Amber again. According to the nurse she was dilated 3cm. Amber got in the shower and began laboring pretty heavily. I went and talked to the nurse to tell her Amber's history of fast labor and got the nurse nervous enough that she wanted to check Amber again. By 1450 Amber was dilated to 3.5cm and the nurse was still skeptical. She told us that she could not move Amber into the delivery room until she was to 4cm. We all kind of gave her a look and she made an exception to start getting us into the delivery room. Once in the delivery room (1500) Amber was having really strong contractions, luckily, the hospital staff was fine with Amber doing all of this standing up. We spent the next 15 minutes refusing medications and I.V. preps, which really freaked out the nurses. I don't know if they had ever had somebody turn it all down. They told me I would have to sign release forms and they actually went out and made a form. At 1520 the room was prepped and the nurse was out at the check-in station calling the doctor. Amber's water broke so I ran out to tell the nurses. When I got back to the delivery room, Amber looked like she was about to be finished. The nurses came in and told her to stop pushing and to get on the table. The nurse tried to reach the doctor again but was forced to put the phone down because Sadie's head was beginning to crown. The nurses told Amber to stop pushing again but by then, there was nothing anyone could do, Sadie was coming. First her head came through and everyone was tense, then the silence was broken by the phone blasting the "disconnected" tone. One of the nurses went to turn off the phone and then when she came back the other nurse helped Sadie's head turn and then with all of the pressure building behind her, Sadie shot out into the air (1555). Luckily the nurse had a hand above Sadie's shoulder, because the force pushing her out probably could have skipped her right off the end of the delivery table. The first thing I noticed was her long wavy hair and her fingers and toes. The nurse rolled her onto her back and at that moment I saw a large quantity of slimy stringy substance get sucked into her mouth. It was as if she went to take her first breath but instead was nearly drowned with the membrane that was holding her in. The nurse did not appear to see this and was calmly prepping the cord for cutting and that is when Dana and I started saying, "she's choking." The nurse grabbed the suction bulb and with one good swab, suctioned a huge mass out of her throat, then came the best sound ever, crying. Right about then the doctor came walking in, disappointed that he had missed the whole thing.
Compared with the births of Logan and Addysen, despite her being our largest baby, Sadie's birth was probably the least rough on Amber. Not long after giving birth she took a shower and was feeling pretty good.
Sadie is a wonderful eater, and was on the prowl for her first meal.
Her stats: 8lbs 8oz, 20.1 inches, O+ blood
She has shared her father's birth mark with both Logan and Addy.
As far as looks go, her hair is much lighter than Logan's or Addy's. Her face is very similar to Addy's when she was born. You can click the link to see each of the kids at birth. I will put up some comparison pictures soon.
We are home now from the hospital and both Amber and Sadie are doing wonderfully. We are so happy to have her here she has brightened up our house.

Sadie Brighton Cottrell has finally arrived

2011-03-09T04:00:00.000-08:00

3-9-2011
15:55
8lbs 8oz
length ???
3 days overdue
Came so fast that the doctor missed the birth. More details tomorrow!
Amber and Sadie doing great.

Family Dinner eating Meat & Leaf!

2011-02-26T21:16:00.000-08:00

This food is sooooo GOOD! I love the meat, rice, and leaf. We thought one more time before our sweet baby comes. Well she is taking her sweet time so we might get one more time in next week with Grandma. :-)
Logan is a trooper and tries everything. It is so fun...he says "eating new food is like going on an adventure."
Can you feel the heat? It feels so nice with the warm floors etc.
Waiting to be seated....they are so cute.

We had a really great dinner and can't wait to go again. I am sure going to miss this when we leave Korea. The meat it just melts in your mouth. Dad you need to come visit again.

Post ride paris doughnut

2011-02-26T21:07:00.000-08:00

After the ride we headed down the road to Paris Baguette and got each of the kids their favorite doughnut treat.
Deep fried covered in sugar.... can't go wrong there.
Then Addy rode daddy home.

Logan is "one rad dude"

2011-02-26T20:25:00.000-08:00

On Saturday, the weather was beautiful outside and Logan has been itching to get out his bike. Just as we were about to leave he said, "can I try it without the wheels?" Logan is pro at riding his scooter but since his bike is big and bulky we don't take it down the 36 floors too often to go riding, so I was a little worried about his ability to do it.
Last time we went to Albuquerque Logan's cousin Brody had the coolest bike called a "STRIDER". It is basically a bike without pedals that teaches kids to balance on a bike and never need training wheels. Addysen got one for Christmas but Logan has done his share of trying it out and has obviously gotten the hang of balancing. So after I took off the training wheels, we headed outside and right out of the door, he took off and went about 20 feet before stopping. Within about 30 minutes he was riding up and down the sidewalk like it was no big deal. I remember being 5 when I first rode without training wheels and I crashed so many times I had skinned knees on top of skinned knees. Logan has a few bruises from the pedals knocking him in the legs, but for the most part came out unscathed.
Then there is Addy, she is loving the STRIDER. If you have a toddler, you should definitely pick one of these up.
She is already lifting up both feet and balancing for several yards.
Shes good...
And knows it:)
So here are our not-so-little kids on a day that Logan will probably never forget.

Back in the house I showed Logan the opening credits for the 1980's movie "RAD"

Needless to say he got really excited to do some more biking.

Here is a video of Logan doing his thing.

My daughter and the future ruler of North Korea

2011-02-26T20:17:00.000-08:00

Aren't they just a couple of cute, silly kids.....

Addysen update

2011-02-17T21:56:00.000-08:00

This sweet little girl is no longer my baby! (Of course she always will be, but she doesn't think so.) Addysen has grown up so much the past couple months. I really am just shocked at all she has done. Here is a list of just a couple of major changes...
-Giving up the binki and that was AWESOME and pretty painless!
-Then sleeping in a big girl bed super easy. She still hasn't ever gotten out of her bed without permission. I don't know why, and how I got so blessed!
-The next major achievement at our house started the first Monday in January. She woke up and told me she wanted to wear panties. For the past year she has been going off and on in the toilet. At least for the past 6 months always going #2 on the potty. But I couldn't get her to tell me all the time or she couldn't hold it long enough so we would barley miss making it. Or she would be playing and not want to stop etc. She knew exactly what happens on the potty but this one is a bit stubborn. She likes everything to be on her own timetable. So when she told me about wanting to wear panties I was excited but didn't get my hopes up to high. This time she was serious. I can't tell you how great and easy this was. She just did it! I was still nervous for a couple weeks when we went out, nap, and bedtime she would wear a pull up. Finally after never having any accidents outside the home I had to be BRAVE. Not her it was me. I packed a sack full of extra clothes and we wore panties all the time out and about. Then after a week of no accidents at night I stopped the diaper then too. We are diaper free! About a month later at the store we passed the diapers and she said "Addy no need diapers only for babies". So we bought baby Sadie some diapers instead of her! SUCH a BIG GIRL!!
Some of the fun things we get to do together is paint our fingernails and toenails. It has been such a great bonding time for us. It happens at least once a week if not twice.

I know she is naked and I probably shouldn't put this on but I love it! She is so proud of herself and you might just get your own little show if you were around. For a while she kept pulling down her pants showing people her pretty panties. Her favorites--Dora, Little Mermaid, Cinderella, Tinkerbell, Any princess etc.
Addy has always loved books and babies. So when our sweet friend Zara comes to visit Addy loves to read to her. She also will sing her songs it is so cute.
Having fun feeding her babies. She is going to be my big helper I'm sure. :-)

Another favorite activity is painting. She really enjoys doing it everyday.

We played Yahtzee the other night for FHE and of course had to take a picture of Addy's first YAHTZEE! I still remember when Logan got his and the excitement we all had. We sure like spending our family time playing games together.

Addysen is so great! We sure enjoy her sweet personality. She is also talking up a storm. I can't think of a thing she doesn't say! This little one is our pretty princess and our spit fire all at the same time. She has her own ideas and likes to be heard. She loves playing with Spencer when he gets home from work. When he lays on the floor she begs him to do "up down touch the ground." He holds her an lifts her up and down while singing the Winnie the Pooh song. It is precious. I am grateful she has a Daddy and brother that love her so much. We are blessed to have her tender spirit in our home. If she gets her feelings hurt you will know about it and she will need a hug. :-) We love you Addy!

Logan update

2011-02-17T21:55:00.000-08:00

I feel like it has been forever since we posted. I figured it was time to give a little spotlight on each one of my special little ones. Logan has had a great time the last month learning about Dinosaurs. Yes, a whole month what a cool teacher right! For the class Valentines party we did an "I love Dinosaurs" theme.
My amazing, talented husband drew, colored, cut, and lamented, this Triceratops. We have 3 horns for them to try to put on the dinosaur. (Like pin the tail on the donkey.) Logan was so proud that his dad made this for him. I LOVE IT!
Mrs. Donaho giving Logan a good tickle for a smile!
Dinosaur cake for dessert.
They made the spotlights because they are all Paleontologists. Addy loves going to Logan's school functions, she feels like such a big girl.

Logan you are always so nice to your sister. I am so thankful for your kindness and the love you show her. You are always so patient when she plays with you and your friends.

The other day we were at the play ground and Logan helped Addy on all the big slides etc. He doesn't leave her for his friends and in return all his friends follow him and include Addysen.
I made baby Sadie a new blanket which was my first one I've ever made. The kids both loved it so I decided they both needed a blanket too. I have now finished Logan's but haven't taken a picture. I still need more yarn for Addy's...hopefully this weekend I can pick some up.
Logan was trying and trying one Saturday to draw a dinosaur. He was getting so frustrated because he couldn't get it right. Then Spencer came to the rescue. They sat down together and Spencer gave him a little lesson in drawing. I am amazed at the talent they both have. I bet Spencer was just like Logan when he was little. It's fun to see them working together and Sp helping Logan with his talent. I loved hearing Spencer teach Logan about seeing the shapes etc. Logan keep it up buddy!
Logan is getting so big and it's so fun to be a part of it. He is learning how to READ right now and LOVES it! He picks it up really fast. I think the other awesome quality he received from Spencer is his ability to memorize. I have to test him on words out of order just to make sure he really knows them...smarty pants!
Logan and Addy are also my big helpers around the house. They have the job of cleaning the windows. I usually help them and do the top and they clean the bottom, well this day I was busy and Logan figured out how to get the job done without me. :-)
Another example of a creative mind. Addy & Logan were playing in the playroom and then called us to come and see the zoo they made. Do you see the jeep drops people off and they walk down the path to the zoo. I was amazed!
Logan sure gets worn out with school and other activities. He is a special little boy with a HUGE heart. I hope that I can always keep that soft side of him in a crazy world! I love him so much. I have enjoyed seeing his excitement about our new baby coming. Lately he has been asking me if today was going to be the day she comes?? I wish I knew? He loves babies in fact the other day he said "I might like babies even more than a dog!" That is pretty huge. I am grateful that both of my little girls have Logan as a big brother, he is the best.