Christopher's Favorite Things

Christopher is now 9 months old. Here are some of his favorite things:

Reading with daddy.

Playing with dolls.

Mowing the lawn

Being adorable.

Demonstrating his army crawl.

Hike to Stewart Falls

Erin, Christopher, and Chris at the base of Stewart Falls.


Chris, Christopher, Erin, and Geoffrey on the trail.

One of the first views of the falls from the trail.

Stewart Falls

My department offers the opportunity for faculty members to bring colleagues from other institutions to BYU to collaborate on research projects. This week I finally took advantage of the opportunity and brought another young professor to BYU. Aside from brainstorming and doing some initial data analyses, we took some time off to enjoy a hike in Provo Canyon to Stewart Falls. Chris and I originally thought it would be a perfect family hike, but my sister Eleanor convinced me that Elena and Eva might not do so well given some of our time constraints. Emily graciously offered to watch the two girls so we could still go. Since Christopher is still really stranger anxious, we brought him along in a hiking back pack.

The weather was fantastic--sunny and clear, but still cool enough for a hike. I had forgotten how enjoyable the hike is, how beautiful the view is, and how refreshing the mist from the falls is when you hike down to the base. After the hike we had to gert back to work, but not before we enjoyed a little Cafe Rio lunch.

Dance Recital

Preparing to pray with the other dancers before the show.

The flower barrette we made for the recital.

A congratulatory kiss from Mommy after the show.

A congratulatory kiss from Daddy after the show.

Eva, Christopher, and Elena

Elena loves to dance. Even when she was only 3 years old she loved to try new dance moves. Remember her salsa dance?! This past year she thoroughly enjoyed taking a creative dance class at BYU. The big dance showcase was Saturday May 16th. Elena's class performed a dance called "April Showers Bring Dancing Flowers." To accessorize her costume, Elena asked me to help her make a little flower barrette. We chose a coral color flower we already had in our craft drawer, and added a little yellow center because yellow is Elena's f avorite color. Grandma and Grandpa Kramer, and Grandma and Grandpa Holmes came to watch. Elena danced beautifully. We were so proud!