I know I haven't kept up with since Kaci was born. Winter has been a bore. Snow, ice, wind, and more ice...typical Kodiak. Not much going on so I thought that I would talk about the kids and how much they are changing.
Starting with A.J. He is saying a few things these days like: "thank you", "baby", "puppy", "mommy", "ooce (juice)", "hi", "bye", but the cutest has to be "strawberry". He pronounces it "strawbee". He is a strawberry fiend. He gets so excited when he sees them, eats them or even hears some else say the word. One day I bought some and not thinking I put them on the bottom self in the fridge. Low and behold I open the fridge to get something and A.J. sees them, grabs the whole box and runs over to the corner and starts chomping them as fast as he could. It was so funny!
There is only one other word that brings that much joy to A.J. and that is hockey. He pronounces it, "hoc". If he hears either of us say hockey he shouts "hoc" and runs to get his gear. A.J. gets so upset when he sees Randy get his gear ready and then leave without him. Just to show how determined A.J. is to get on the ice: one night he saw Randy getting ready for hockey. Randy left the bag by the door to do something else. A.J. opened the hockey bag and started taking unessential gear out. Once satisfied that there was enough room inside the bag he climbed in ready to go play hockey!
A.J. is a hoot. He turns 2 on April 2nd. Can't wait to see what crazy things he has in store for us.
He loves his little sister. He calls her "baby" since he hasn't figured out how to say Kaci. They smile and giggle. I love it when he gives her kisses or puts his arm around her when they are watching TV. She smiles from my shoulder as she watches him play. 
Kaci is almost 5 months old already. She has huge dimples and the biggest grin; her whole face lights up when she smiles. She is starting to sit up by herself she giggles when I catch her as she tips over. She just started eating things other than formula. She shuddered the first time I gave her applesauce and then continued to eat it. 
We are really looking forward to getting of the "Rock" for a spell. Sounds like we are going to have a blast with Moab, a sealing, Randy-Ike-n-A.J.'s birthday party and just getting to visit. Kaci will finally get to meet some of her aunts, uncles and cousins. I have a feeling that she is going to have them wrapped around her little finger.
Due to his late night it seemed like he had never-ending energy. The day continued with General Conference, the break between sessions was filled with cake baking, once the second session was over it was time to frost the cake. When I was about done frosting I asked Randy if it looked alright. He said, "we'll find out in a minute." He picked up A.J. who pointed at the cake and said with delight, "strawbee". Randy said, "the cake was perfect." Then with no nap we were off to the Pizza Parlor for dinner and then a movie. By the time we were halfway there A.J. was out like the sun during an Alaskan winter. This is how his birthday party started...
Our friends met us at the parlor to share the "strawbee" cake and to catch the movie "I am number 4". A.J. woke from his coma by the time we started eating our pizza. Kaci was her happy self. 
During the movie A.J. started adding his own commentary..."oh no's" and excited squeals; so I took him into the quiet room. (At our theater there is a sound-proof room so you can see and hear the movie, but no one has to hear a noisy little one.) I think the dog was A.J.'s favorite character. He would exuberantly shout "puppee" every time he saw the dog. All and all I think he had a great day.
It's amazing to think that 2 weeks ago 
We had a good time and are anxiously waiting for our new family member!
We followed the American flag and our Title of Liberty. 
We had three stations: one on America, one on the Title of Liberty and the third was face painting. A.J. actually let me paint his face, although it didn't last long.
The parade was a hit.
We had a BBQ at our house with some friends. We were sad that Randy wasn't home. A.J. and I were glad that we had friends to celebrate with. 
Joe and Marissa brought their kayaks over and we got to cruise the lake in style!
A.J. didn't seem to excited about the fireworks. The truck tire was more interesting.
We saved the big fireworks for when Randy gets home!
We had some fun playing on Pillar Mountain. This mountain overlooks down-town Kodiak, the harbor, the Coast Guard base and has some pretty scenic views. On a clear day you can see just about everything on this side of the island.
These energy windmills were installed last summer. The can be seen from many locations down below. They hum as they spin.
We started the day off in the truck...by the end of the day we had the top and doors off the Jeep. So far we haven't had a lot of rain free days so we decided to take advantage of the moment. It was worth it because we had fun.
Every time Kodi gets to take a ride she gets so excited. It's amazing how obedient she becomes the moment she is free to run. As we were walking around she would run out ahead of us and turn around as if to say, "Come on guys!"
A.J. loved cruising around Grandma's patio on the four-wheeler. After spending a few days with his cousin, Ike, A.J. started walking. He is loving his new-found freedom.
We got to do many things while we were in SL: we had picnics in the park, grandma's backyard, a bbq at Uncle C.J.'s, we went to the zoo,
Our trip to UT was followed up by a trip to Anchorage via the ferry. We like taking the ferry because we don't feel rushed to get anywhere and can enjoy the ride. The views are awesome it's a mini AK cruise. 
Our trip ended with putting A.J.'s new bunk bed together. He has been out of the crib for a few months now and it was time for him to sleep in his own big-boy-bed. 
We had one amazing sunrise usher in the new year and had to share it. Randy and I started the new year off with a bang. We partied with some of our good friends: Ruger, Winchester, Walther, Leoupold, Benelli, Smith & Wesson, and Colt to name a few. Happy New Year!
Randy got to wear is Carhart overalls without my protest, and I got to relax. The kids acted out the nativity. AJ was a lamb...I was happy that he wore his ears as long as he did.
We played a game with "Too-ta-doos". Our host's version of the white elephant game. It was really fun because none of us knew what was in the wrapping paper. We cleaned house. I got a match car motorcycle...that the boys wanted bad so I traded them. AJ opened a match box Scrambler...his uncle Cory would be so proud.
We spent the evening with with friends with another huge dinner. We had a blast! Bring on the New Year!
