dustybrand

Happy Birthday Song

2009-04-27T15:05:00.000-07:00

Miley's Ballerina Birthday Party

2009-04-27T13:59:00.001-07:00

Miley and Allison

with Katie and Kaylee (experienced ballet dance instructors : ) We had a combined birthday party for Miley and Allison since they were born a week apart.

It had a ballerina theme and all the girls wore tutus.
Emma and Miley, all fluffy, climbing into the bounce house/slide

Miley with Mommy, Grandpa Jim, Grandma Deana and Cami

Jessica and the girls, the Collins family, Felicia

The little girls eating their pizza

Emma and Cami on the slide

the Smiths, Policy's, Bayer's

Papa Jim helps Emma with her ballet slipper

Miley and Katie

So Sweet!!!

Emma and the girls dancing around

I just love her little face. Jesus did such a great job making it.

Melissa made these cupcake decorations from scratch. She is sooo talented.

This is Miley before the party.

Funny Video

2009-02-23T20:08:00.000-08:00

This is Emma having a great time in Daddy's office after church one night. She is dancing to "White and Nerdy" by Weird Al. It is a little slow at first, but then she gets quite funky and starts crumpin all over the place.

Then she falls off the couch backwards.

She is so funny, and yes-- she is a lot like her mom.

: J

Life At Home

2009-02-23T17:09:00.000-08:00

The girls attack daddy when he comes home!!!This is Miley and her lamby. They are inseperable.
I am singing on the wii

Emma, in her ballet dress, singing on the wii

Miley in her glasses, singing

Everyday when Miley takes a nap, Emma sits in her bed and has some quiet time and she reads with her Tag Reader. I found Miley in Emma's bed with the Tag Reader. Sisters going down the slide together.

Our January 1 Picnic. It was so hot.

Miley loves Psalty the Singing Songbook. She took the lantern out of our entertainment center and started swinging it. Psalty says, "Hey kids, go get your lanterns." So she did!!!

"Give me oil in my lamp, keep me burning burning burning"

Amanda's Shower

2009-01-24T16:58:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures from my friend Amanda's shower. The cake was so good; it had a cream cheese filling.
Amanda and Melissa figuring out the word scramble.

My two little ones helping Bri do her word search. Miley's belly is really good at answering questions.

The games were actually really hard.

It was such a nice night celebrating the new life for little baby Zachary.

Thank You Jesus.

Snow

2009-01-22T15:30:00.000-08:00

We wanted to take Emma to see the snow, but when we got up to the Mountains, it was so crowded that we couldn't even get into the parking lot.

So we turned around and went home :(

But then we saw a road, far from the snow, and I told Dustin to turn and we would see where it goes. Turns out it led us straight to snow, in an area that was not crowded.

It was our special secret!!!

Thanks Jesus!

We let the girls sled all by themselves. They went fast too!!!

We had so much fun.

Dustin helping the girls

Emma's precious little face

Miley's precious face.

Christmas Day- Night

2009-01-22T15:22:00.000-08:00

Christmas Day--Night

is our annual friends and family celebration at our house.

It is both crazy fun and relaxing.

Above we have the kids playing with toys,

and below we have adults playing with toys (our new Wii)
Below, we have a nice game of "Apples to Apples" Bible Edition.
It was so much fun.

Notice all the wonderful people we are friends with . . .

Melissa and Steve, our new neighbors and old friends.

Joy and Kaylee, and Kyle (talking to himself)

Joey cuddling up on Austin's lap.

It was a great night.

Christmas

2009-01-22T15:09:00.000-08:00

Emma and Grandma DeanaMiley and Grandma Linda
Emma and Jim "Santa" Clybourne
Emma, Daddy, and Miley opening presents Christmas morning
The girls got a table and some chairs
The family eating breakfast
Grandpa Lee and Uncle David playing with Emma's Clubhouse Mickey toy

MERRY CHRISTMAS

2008-12-18T11:53:00.000-08:00

I AM SO SPECIAL

2008-12-15T14:22:00.000-08:00

I Just Love These . . .And Tag

2008-12-09T11:54:00.000-08:00

I still laugh at this one.

And this is another one that I LOVE

I Have Been Tagged

Now, since Jessica tagged me, I will respond

The rules are:
- Link to the person (or in this instance, people) who tagged you, and post the rules on your blog.
- Share 7 random and or weird facts about yourself.
- Tag 7 people at the end of your post & include links to their blogs.
- Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Okay . . .

1. I am grossed out by certain things that most people eat. Onions, sour cream, mayonaise are beyond gross to me. Other foods gross me out just because they are so artificial and wrong it is a "sin"-- margarine, artificial sugar, high fructose corn syrup, msg, hydrogenated fats, hormones, and genetically modified foods. This stuff is freaky.

2. I am afraid to use bath and body works body spray or perfume on my skin so if I do use it, which is rarely, I will spray it on my clothes instead of my skin and hold my breath until it dissapates.

3. I have a hard time bringing in all the stuff that winds up inside my car. So I look like a homeless woman driving around with a million jackets and toys on the floor of the backseat.

4. I like to walk long distances, but I am afraid to go by myself.

5. I hate antibacterial soaps and lotions. They scare me. I will only use Dr. Bronner's soaps on my skin and to wash my hands. I almost pulled Emma out of preschool when I saw another teacher using purell on the kids hands before snack. It it terrible for her intestinal flora. Don't use any antibacterial stuff with triclosan!!!

6. If could do anything that I wanted to do. And if I had the talent for it, I would love to write novels. I would want them to be so beautiful and descriptive, perfectly written, succinct, a bit ambiguous and mysterious, addictive, and life changing. I love to read books like this and I wish I could do it. I would prefer to write like Hemingway rather than Faulkner, more like Charlotte Bronte than Jane Austin. That is what I would like to do.

7. If Miley was a boy I would have thumb wrestled Dustin to death in order to name her Owen. I love that name.

I am not going to tag anyone because I can't think of who to tag.

Pumpkins

2008-10-22T12:07:00.000-07:00

Last week we went to the Cal Poly Pumpkin patch.

It was the most beautiful pumpkin patch I have ever seen.
The girls got to wander around and taste rocks.
Miley (19 months old)
Sittin on the hay
Finding baby pumpkins
Emma and the scarecrow
Emma (almost 4)
laughing

We had such a fun day.

Pretending to be Dragons

2008-10-22T12:04:00.000-07:00

These were such silly pictures!!!

Black and White PJ Pics

2008-10-22T12:01:00.000-07:00

OC Kids Fair

2008-10-04T15:23:00.000-07:00

Emma and Super Why! My dad's business All Points Residential Inspections had a booth at the fair.

I was so proud of him.

Emma wanted to jump with the bungees,

but in the end she chickened out. We got this cute picture though.

Emma and the pink care bear

We got her face painted.

LA County Fair

2008-10-03T15:14:00.000-07:00

We got to go for free, with our Crosstrainers Bible study at our church.

As you can see, the day began with a healthy breakfast.
Emma playing in the old school house
Emma doing laundry
A washboard
Emma making cornmeal
Needless to say, she got pretty tired.
She is so cute
Emma got a second wind We saw baby pigs
And mommy pigs, really close

They got to pet a goat
Emma got to milk a goat (so cool)
smell pretty flowers
Children of the Corn

Emma's First Day of School

2008-09-05T15:28:00.000-07:00

So here she is. She is quite excited.

Daddy praying with her.

After Daddy prayed with her. She had such a great day!!!

John's Pizza

Dustin wanted to take her to John's Pizza for dinner to celebrate her first day of school.

She got to drive the car on the track

Miley had fun playing in the toddler area.
Riding in a fire truck together
On the horsey
We just rolled Miley up there

Our Aniversary (10 years)

2008-08-16T15:05:00.000-07:00

This is one of my favorite pictures EVER We are at the Jetty at Dana Point
Dustin used to bring me here when we were dating.
Now we are bringing our children on our dates, ha ha.
Getting warmer clothes on.

I was loving my new hat.
We had gone to Ruby's for dinner
And despite these pictures, Miley threw a mad fit and ruined our dinner. :)
Emma and Daddy

Time Has Passed

2008-08-16T14:18:00.000-07:00

I am sitting here right now and it is our ten year anniversary. Today we are going to pack up the girls and spend the evening in Laguna as a family. The Lord is doing so much in our lives. We have been so busy this summer and today I feel pretty tired.

But I feel so bad, because I haven't blogged or posted pics since April and SOOOO much has happened in that time. I am planning to update this blog with our summer activites this week.

D-Land

2008-08-15T14:57:00.000-07:00

Prince Dustin and Princess Brandi Our Magic Castle
Our littlest freak
flying on the Zephyr, Emma was the honorary flight commander
Our other freak
Emma and an Indian Princess
Emma dancing. She was cracking EVERYONE up!!!
Pretty girl

Shady Grove

2008-08-13T14:55:00.000-07:00

Warner Kids (Don't show Steve)

2008-08-10T14:50:00.000-07:00

Emma and Elianna Stephen dressed to kill (or give his dad a heart attack)
Looking cool!!!
the girls making mud pies
digging in the dirt

Mammoth Vacation

2008-07-20T10:55:00.000-07:00

Here is our family picture.

We drove for such a long time, I decided to just let the girls out of their seats. They were happy to ride in feedom. (j/k)

Cute picture.

Our first stop was my Grandpa Bill and Grandma Gerda's house in Maripossa. They have a beautiful view of the valley out the back of their house.

It has been a long time since I have seen my grandpa. And the first time he has ever seen my girls. I had never been to his house before, so it was so nice to have lunch with them and to have him show me around.

We had to drive through Yosemite National Park to get over to Mammoth. It was the most beautiful place I have ever seen (asside from the helicopter ride on Hawaii).

So amazing. The pictures can't do this justice.

Half Dome was so big.

Many places still had snow in mid July.

FAMILY CAMP

We finally made it to Mammoth. And the next day, we went on a hike with a group from our church to Devil's Post Pile. It was a little difficult with four little ones. Then Dustin got sick. We were stranded, and praying for a bus to come pick us up. We got lucky.

We had to cross a raging river by walking over a fallen log. It was crazy.

When we got back to Mammoth Lodge, we let the kids go rock climbing.

Emma didn't really like it. She let go, swung around and hit her head on the side of the wall.

The next day we just wanted to relax and take it easy. We spent the day at the pool.

I think that one of my favorite memories was the night we had everyone over to play cranium and we made brownies. We laughed so hard.

Here is the big group of people playing games with us.

One morning the guys went fishing and Mollie and the kids came over and Stephen read a book to Emma. It was so cute. "Brown Bear, Brown Bear . . . "

Fishing

A stream going to Lake Mary

Me and Miley, naturally repelling mosquitoes (thanks Burt's Bees)

Emma, waiting for a bite.

Dustin with his Barbie tackle box at Rock Creek.

The kids horsing around the bear.

Dustin and Emma, fishing

Sometimes we would go relax in the jacuzzi in the evenings

We had worship on the lawn, but we would just sit on the balcony at Mollie and Steve's condo, so the kids could play inside and we could hear the worship.

Miley and me at the picnic on the last day.

Our trip was so much fun. We got to bond as a family, and we were able to bond with our church family too. Family Camp was a blast.

More Pictures of the Girls Playing

2008-07-15T14:39:00.000-07:00

My friend Amanda made the girls these beautiful aprons. They are double sided and they are so sweet and girly. They look so perfect when Emma and Miley play in their Rose Petal Cottage.

She also made me this bookmark and this letter organizer

Emma's Swim Lessons

2008-06-22T14:46:00.000-07:00

Look at my little swimmer!!! She loved it
Her and teacher Melissa learning how to scoop and kick
Here she goes
Look at the other teacher with the hat, that is Louie!!!

Family Pictures

2008-04-13T17:00:00.000-07:00

We hadn't had a family portrait done since Emma was one, so we decided that now that Miley is almost one, we should have a new family picture taken.

I just LOVE it.

Dustin and Brandi

While we were there we took "couples pictures"
Ten years ago, Dustin and I took pictures together at JC Penny. Now that we've been married almost 10 years now we thought we should do it again.
Here is the collage (we didn't buy it)

Emma Lee

Emma took pictures with her guitar.
Before our sitting, she walked around the waiting room singing to everyone like a mariachi (sp?). She was singing "Jesus Loves Me."

She didn't want to take more pictures. She just wanted Wetzels Pretzels.Her sweet face

Miley Elizabeth

I LOVE her crying face!

She got tired too :(Here are some other really cute ones.
And . . . her sweet face

Then we went and got pretzels :)

Easter Morning

2008-04-13T16:56:00.001-07:00

We all went to the 8 o'clock service and afterwards we went to my mom's house for a beautiful breakfast out by the pool. After breakfast we went swimming and Miley took a nap.

Emma and Miley got cute matching bathing suits and towels for Easter.
Emma getting her water gun ready
Having a blast.
When Miley woke up she went swimming too.
My back got so sunburned. We went home and took a long nap before going over to Grandpa Lee and Grandma Linda's house for dinner.

Easter Portraits 2008

2008-04-13T16:49:00.000-07:00

We took the girls to get Easter pictures taken. And I have to say that while it is always crazy getting pictures taken, I was so blessed by Emma. While I was ordering the pictures she was playing with the other kids off to the side. There were about 5-6 other kids, all older than her. Well, she told them to sit down and then she got up and preached a message of salvation to them. She held this monkey book in her hand like it was a Bible and she told them about God, and Jesus, and how people don't know God and you can know God if you know Jesus, and if you want to go to heaven you need to raise your hand. And then she passionatley said, "If you want to go to heaven raise your hand!!!"

ALL THE KIDS RAISED THEIR HANDS

:) It was such a blessing to see her love for Jesus and her boldness.

I wish I shared my faith like her . . . just tell people to sit down at JC Penny's and listen to a Bible study. It was rad.

Anyways, here's the pics.

SistersMiley is eating the fake rabbit and Emma just killed the other bunny.
Emma is being a princess and Miley is throwing up! :)

Emma

Miley

The Night Before Easter

2008-04-13T16:43:00.001-07:00

The night before Easter we went out on a double date!!!!

We went out to Espiau's with Mollie and Steve and had a really nice (QUIET) dinner.

There were no interuptions to the conversation, no whining, no crying!!!!

Just 4 adults talking about Jesus and laughing together.

Here is a picture of Mollie and I trying on weird sunglasses and dog purses at a silly store. Mollie in a psycho tweety bird jacket
Dustin and I together
Dustin and I being silly
It was such a blast. We walked around after dinner and got Starbucks. Dustin dropped his frapp and I went to go buy him another one, but the girl was so nice and she made him another one for free. It was so nice. I think the highlight was learning about beef stew.

Pre-Easter Fun

2008-04-13T16:17:00.001-07:00

Since Dustin works all morning on Easter (he leaves by 4:30 and gets home at 3pm) we have decided to start a different tradition--having an Easter egg hunt the Saturday before Easter Sunday. It was really fun. Emma and I dyed the eggs on Friday night. And Dustin hid them Saturday morning. And before we went on our hunt I gave them their Easter baskets. Inside Emma's basket was her first Barbie doll--I got her Cinderella because she has a modest dress and light makeup. :)

Miley carried around the egg carton. Here they go . . .

Here is Emma finding her first egg

Here is her basket. The eggs got pretty tore up after we hid them 3 times.
Miley getting an egg. She actually grabbed it too hard and pieces of it flew everywhere!
See!!!Miley with Emma's basket
Miley with the swings

Miley climbing up the burning slide. Oww.Emma eating a hard boiled egg after the hunt.
Counting her eggs.
It was so much fun.

Some people don't celebrate this stuff because they think it is pagan, but honestly you can teach so many spiritual lessons with these things--lessons about being made new, the resurection, and how God changes us when we let him into our hearts. When we celebrate this holiday as "Easter" we are really demonstrating our right to celebrate our belief in Christ no matter what persecution comes against us!!!

HOSANNA!!!!

Emma's Second Ice Cream Experience

2008-03-19T10:20:00.001-07:00

Look at how the light shines on that ice cream cone.

I am sure it was heavenly!!! What you have all been waiting to see.

The time has come!!!

Emma has outgrown her allergy to MILK!!!

This wasn't actually her first time having the wonderful treat.

When she went to spend the night with my parents this weekend she ate a

"Big Mountain Fudge Cake" at Black Angus.

I will post those pictures when I get them!!!!

I guess she is totally into hot fudge.

Here is Smiley Miley

Here is Emma with Lianna and "Steve-O"

Here is the Chick-fil-A Cow and Miley

Lianna and Miley (So cute)

When we got home Emma put this puzzle together all by herself.
Miley took this one apart and threw it around all by herself!
Emma cleaning up
Emma doing the kitty puzzle.
Then we played "Going Fishing" and then it was time to get ready for bed.

The New Disney Show

2008-03-19T10:12:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday, we went to see the brand new Playhouse Disney show

at Disney's California Adventure. It was so cool.

Emma loved seeing Mickey's Clubhouse, Handy Manny, The Little Einsteins, and My Friends Tigger and Pooh. You can see Emma standing next to some boy that she met in line; she loves to meet new people, "Hi my name is Emma. Do you want to meet me?" Miley feels super cool too, standing up and walking around, and eventually hanging on the lady in front of us!? She fell alseep before the show was over; I guess all the excitement wore her out.
After the show we saw the new Disney Pixar Play Parade (this was the special premier).

I didn't take pictures because Emma was on my shoulders the whole parade *ouch*

But it had Nemo, Toy Story, Monsters Inc., The Incredibles, Ratatouille, Cars, etc.

It was pretty cool; they shoot water at you.

Overall, it was a nice day. We got to hang out with Christina and Sebastian, Ana Alicia, and Vanessa and her two little nieces. But by the time I got home I was DEAD tired. It is so hard having Emma and Miley all to myself at an amusement park.

Comfy Night at Home

2008-03-19T10:08:00.000-07:00

I actually had a new recipe for alfredo sauce and so I made a really nice dinner for Dustin and I and I got the girls dressed up (that didn't last) but it was so YUMMY (better than Olive Garden).

Miley really loves green beans!

She is clapping The girls after dinner
I love the lump on her forehead
Emma and daddy relaxing before bed.

Butter

2008-02-06T15:52:00.001-08:00

Okay, so right now I am learning a lot of things and I am just blown away by the health benefits of using real butter. I am throwing out my margarine!!! I am embracing the delicious medicine of yummy milk fat!!! Check it out http://www.westonaprice.org/foodfeatures/butter.html

Last Friday's Disneyland Trip

2008-01-17T12:22:00.000-08:00

So the holidays are over and we can go back to Disneyland again, YAY!!!

Last Friday we decided to go and enjoy the nice warm weather.

This is Miley excited to ride Space Mountain. Actually, they didn't let her on Space Mountain, but here is a picture of us all on Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters. I was space ranger 1 and Emma was space ranger 2. She does pretty good for a 3 year old.
Emma and I on the LadyBug ride.

"The Lady bug is a guy, Mommy? She is a guy?"

Ugh!!! She is already being socialized in corruption!!!
Minnie Mouse and the girls. Emma pretending like she is a tourist from out of state. She did a good job acting "Okie."
We posed with Pluto too. (I totally need to get my hair done, ick)

We went on Casey Jr. and it was so cool to see Joe and Dyanne and Natalie and the kids when we got off. We also ran into Emily, Brandon from youth group, and my cousin Eric.
"It's a Small World After All"

Emma riding the Carousel at night. It is so beautiful and sweet.
Emma and daddy watching the parade before we leave.

We have seen it a zillion times but she just loves it.

One thing we noticed, the signs out front still say "Year of a Million Dreams."

But they have said that for over a year. Why? Is it the "Years of a Million Dreams" because if so, that is just a rip off. What is going on Disney? I'm on to you.

Rainy Morning After Church

2008-01-17T12:01:00.000-08:00

A couple Sundays ago it was really rainy. And when we came home from church, Emma asked if she could play out in the rain while Miley took her nap. So I bundled her up and gave her a reason to have rain boots.

She played on the swings. She played with her frisbee.
She made friends with a slug.
She dug a hole in the mud.
And then Miley woke up. :)
And we went inside and dried off.

Miley's Dedication

2007-12-25T10:42:00.000-08:00

This Sunday, December 23 2007, we dedicated Miley to the Lord at church.

It is such an honor to have these girls and such a huge responsibility to raise them right in the ways of the Lord. I am so excited that they will know Him from infancy and they will hear the holy Scriptures from birth. May they know the voice of God from childhood, like Samuel. May they even now hear Him call their names. Wow. Miley pulled Pastor David's microphone completely off his face as he was praying for her!!!

You can see her holding onto it.

Afterwards he is putting it back on.
I am going to get some more pictures from the church this week and so I will update this blog with them soon!!!

Please pray that the Lord will capture the hearts of my girls and that they will be obedient to God, pure in heart, loving, safe, and in love with God all the days of their lives. May God equip Dustin and I, and give us wisdom love and grace to be an example to the girls. And may our home always be overflowing with the love of God.

Christmas Morning

2007-12-25T10:28:00.001-08:00

This morning was so cool. Before the sun came up Dustin and Emma read Luke 2 and talked about Jesus' birth. Then we prayed and thanked the Lord for the best present ever. About 6 am my mom and dad and Dustin's mom and dad, and David and Diana came over and we had breakfast and opened presents. It is so nice to have our family get to share in the magic of Christmas morning. Emma is still so young. She has no endurance for opening presents. Plus she had so many, but we had to keep telling her, "No you can't play with that yet, open some more." and she wanted to be done.
Miley was just happy with the paper!!!!
Miley and Daddy
We really do need to think about taking family pictures. The only ones we have are like this.
Emma with Auntie Diana and Uncle David.
The girls getting started
Miley and her twin uncle, right before she tooted on him!!!
She is so cute on her first Christmas!!!

I need to get off the computer and clean up the living room, and then get Emma ready.
We are going to go to Aunt Glenda and Uncle Russels house and then come home and have our dear friends over to relax and eat. So expect more pictures later!!!

Christmas Eve

2007-12-25T10:20:00.001-08:00

Christmas Eve was really nice. My dad and I took the girls to my aunt Marsha and uncle Brad's house. Dustin was at church and my mom was sick, so I really missed them, but it was so nice seeing all my family again. When I was a little girl growing up we would always visit my dad's side of the family on Christmas Eve. I miss those times so much, especially missing my grandma and grandpa, and it feels so wonderful to just be with my family. It was such a blessing. It was so cool. We all gathered in the living room around the tree and we read from the Scriptures out of Luke 2, then we read a Christmas story. My girls were a little distracting, but here is a picture of Emma and her cousins and my cousins, reading along.
My cousin Billy looking at Miley. And Miley looking at my cousin Billy.
Emma and her cousins Jacob and Dakota. She was glued to them all night.
Emma and Dakota doing a Nemo puzzle
The kids with my uncle Brad, playing games.
cousins

My Life

2007-12-25T09:49:00.000-08:00

Okay, most parents will tell you things like, "I don't let my kids watch TV."

But, hey this is Psalty. He is the best. I just had to take this picture.

The first time Emma and I watched this video I cried, because he sings about how much God loves us. Emma loves this video so much. I know all the words beginning to end.

So I had to take this picture of Miley, in her sleep sack, before bed watching Psalty and hearing about the love of Jesus. Emma was at the table, eating her regular bedtime snack, a bowl of cereal. Emma in her jammies, and shoes and hat, tap dancing before bed.
Miley sweetly smiling
Emma was sitting down and Miley just crawls over to her and sits down so close.

I love it.
Emma wanted to get in Miley's crib. She pretended that it was the Casey Jr. Train Ride at Disneyland. This must be the monkey cage :)
Emma playing her guitar and Miley helping.
The girls playing with their toys.
As you can see, they have so much fun together.
Okay, so I was making dinner and the girls had been playing, and I looked at the mess. I was like, "Wow, look at the mess!!!" I had to take a picture before we cleaned it up. Yes, my house looks like this off and on every day!!!
So this is my wonderful life.

Our Christmas Pictures

2007-12-06T16:08:00.000-08:00

Emma was trying to pose like Tyra Banks. She is SO FUNNY.

Hallelujah Night

2007-10-30T20:30:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures taken from the Hallelujah night festivities at our church.

Here is Miley as a turtle. I sewed the flower on her head (all by myself) so that nobody would think she was a boy. Here is Emma with Papa Jim playing games.
Here is Emma with Grandma Deana, playing more games.
It was pretty fun, except for it being really COLD and WINDY and CROWDED.

The Night Before Halloween

Tonight Dustin came home from work with a pumpkin.

I was SO excited. I had wanted to take the girls to a pumpkin patch, but we ran out of time and I really don't like the way pumpkin patches are right now. All the slides, pony rides, and bouncers really take away from the excitement of picking out a pumpkin. Plus they are SO expensive. So Dustin got us one from the grocery store!!!! He's amazing.

Here is Emma in her pirate costume.

We got her a sword and hook from Disneyland and surprised her with them tonight.

For the record, I wanted her to be Tinkerbell, but she wouldn't have it!!!

Miley is a turtle, and I sewed a flower on her head (All by myself!!!)

She doesn't really like her turtle head. Hopefully at church tomorrow she will be too distracted by everything to notice.

So cute

Checking it out

Posing together with the pumpkin

Pretending to carve the pumpkin with her sword
getting tired
It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown

I loved this when I was little. *smile*

Dustin's Turns 35!!!!

2007-10-29T15:12:00.000-07:00

We celebrated Daddy's 35th Birthday last Thursday.

Emma had so much fun making him a cake and a card.

We had such a nice time together. We made individual pizzas, had cake, sang the Birthday song, and opened presents. Emma wanted to get him a pinata so bad, but I just know that it wouldn't be as fun for him as it would be for her! Emma blowing out the candles
Dustin making his "FAT FACE" Emma covered in cake
I made this card. Nice lighthouse, if I do say so myself.
We got him a new shirt
He tried it on . . .
After we put the girls to bed he rented a movie (free on your birthday, I guess).
We watched Evan Almighty; it was pretty good.

Miley's First Meal

2007-10-29T15:11:00.000-07:00

The date was Wednesday October 24, 2007

Mmmmmm. . . .

Warm, bland rice cereal.

This is actually her first bite EVER!!!This is her 4th or 5th bite

My Sweet Second

2007-10-29T15:09:00.000-07:00

You can kinda see her bottom teeth in this picture.

She is SO sweet
I love her little face.

My Funny Firstborn

2007-10-29T15:05:00.000-07:00

The other night we were getting the girls ready for bed and Emma comes into my room like this. She said it was a hula-hoop and began moving her hips around. (For those of you who can't tell, it is her toilet seat!) GROSS!!!! When Emma woke up and saw the rain, she begged me to let her have her umbrella. She had such a good time with Daddy outside, in her pull-up.
We got her a new reading chair for her bedroom. I love it and so does she.

With the Steven's Family

2007-10-29T15:00:00.000-07:00

Okay, I really love this picture, because I was just sitting on the floor

and Cami just planted herself in my lap, like it was her normal seat.

So I took a picture of us. I love it. Here is a picture of Emma and Cami playing
Here are some pics of Miley and Caylee. It was so cool, because

as I was taking these pictures, Jessica showed me the pictures she has

of Emma and Cami playing when they were this age. I was blown away.

Playing and Sharing!!!

SO CUTE

Disneyland with Christina and Sebastian

2007-10-29T14:30:00.000-07:00

I love this picture of the kids with Tigger.

Sebastian is so cute; he LOVES to hug the characters. Emma was so excited to see Princess Jasmine and "the guy"

I just love the look on her face.

Emma and Sebastian outside the Jungle cruise
Me and the girls on the Jungle Cruise Me and the girls

Our Trip to Santa Barbara

2007-09-07T12:02:00.001-07:00

This week we went on vacation to Santa Barbara.

We did so much fun stuff.

DAY ONE

Our first stop was Westmont College to visit Bianca. It was so nice to see her. She gave us a tour of her new school.Standing on a bridge
It was so beautiful there
The gardens
This is the church from A Walk to Remember
After we left Westmont we went to Starbucks and then to our hotel. After resting for a little while we went to California Pizza Kitchen for dinner, then we walked up and down State Street.

DAY TWO

We went to Sambo's to breakfast, and it really didn't seem racist! It was amazingly good. We had the Santa Barbara Omelet (egg, cheddar, bacon, and avacado). Then we went to the Santa Barbara Zoo.

Tropical Birds

When Emma saw the lemur she started yelling, "Hi Zaboo!" That is the name of the Lemur in her favorite morning show Zaboomafoo. She was so excited to see him!!!
The elephant

The turtles
The train that didn't work
Smiley Miley Miley and daddy.

We got to see him eat
The gorilla
We told Emma that she came from monkeys.
Just kidding.
She thought the gorilla next to her was a penguin. We said, "No, it's a gorilla." She said, "It's a PENGUIN, named Peep."
Beautiful Snow Leopard
The Lion was right there, BAM!
Dustin and the Lion
Emma and Mufasa
ROAR!!!!

okay, he was really just yawning.

After the zoo, we went to lunch. When Emma went to the little girl's room, dad made friends with another guy in the restaruant. The guy was wearing a nice shirt and tie, and he was talking to Emma. She looked at him and said, "Are you a doctor?" It was SOOO funny!!!

Then we drove around while the girls napped. We passed the mission and then went all through the hills and looked at mansions.
Beautiful
The beach

State street
When we got back to the hotel we went swimming.

Miley didn't want to get her hair wet.

I thought he was going to make a silly face.
We went to Ruby's for Dinner. Emma's Menu was a car.
Daddy and Miley
Emma took a picture of Daddy and Miley. She really thinks it came out, but as you can see it is really Mustard and Ketchup.

DAY THREE

We got coffee and muffins at The Daily Grind, and walked State Street. Emma got a cool microphone toy. Then we went to the Mission for a tour, but didn't get very far.

a flower in the fountain in front of the mission

It would be a nice view on a sunny day. You can see the ocean in the background.

family freezing
I promise I saw Jack Johnson, while Dustin was shopping.
We went to The Habit for Lunch. BEST BURGERS EVER.
Befor and After
Then we came home. It was a horrible 4 hour car ride, but we made it.

Now we really need to take a vacation.

Miley Moving

2007-09-07T12:00:00.001-07:00

She gets up on her hands, then lunges . . .

Sisters getting PJs on

Camping at Doheney State Beach

2007-09-07T11:50:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we went camping. We stayed with Grandma and Grandpa, in their trailor at Doheney State Beach. We had such a good time relaxing, playing, and spending time together. Here are a few pictures.

Emma playing in the sand
she got a little dirtyMiley and Grandma
The girls in the morning

Miley and Grandpa
Miley relaxing
Emma and Grandma playing in the water
Emma watching the waves

New Pictures of the Girls

2007-08-19T13:01:00.000-07:00

SISTERS

I cried when I first saw this one.

It reads, " A sister is a childhood playmate who grows into a forever friend. Sisters are forever." EMMA

They had a fan blowing her hair like Tyra!
Innocent, yeah right!
Sesame Street
She's looking at me like, "Mom, you're really gonna make me do this?"

The "Brandi's School Picture" pose

MILEY

"Sleeping Beauty" Collage
Big Smile!
She's actually looking at the Elmo Emma posed with earlier.

This is how the day started,

boo boo face

This is how my mom would sleep when she was a baby, and this is how Miley sleeps too!
Dustin's little baby girl!

The pictues actually came out pretty good! We went with Christina and Sebastian, and even though it was his first time getting pictures, he did so good! But Emma wouldn't do any of the poses they asked her to, her smiles were weird, and she kept walking out of the room to watch tv in the waiting room! Miley was screaming for no good reason, and they had to give me a break to get her calmed down, and then she fell asleep. When she woke up, she smiled a bit. By the time we were done I was covered in sweat and all stressed out. I think this happens for a reason, if all the pictures were amazing, I would spend way to much money buying them! At least Christina and Sebastian were there to give us some support. What a day!

LEGOLAND

2007-08-19T12:06:00.000-07:00

Last week we went to Legoland with Grandma Linda, Justin, and Miranda

Our first stop was this little playground where Emma first decided to give this piggy a ride.Here Justin, Miranda and Emma are going for a ride.

I think it was a tractor?
Playing with Legos
My hip-hammock came in very handy!!
If she ever needs to get to the doctor to get some "medcine,"
she now knows how to get there in a jiffy.
My little girl has this crazy imagination, so she had such a blast pretending she was a doctor and here she pretended like she was working at ranch burger, "What you want?"
Pouring a bowl of water in a thingy.
Being Silly

Dustin made Justin do all the work

They had to get the fire truck to the fire, put out the fire, and race back.

They came in 2nd Place.
Flying in a plane
Riding in a boat
Playing in the water

Riding in a helicopter

New York

Grandma and Miley
We had such a good time!!!

Finger Painting

2007-07-30T12:44:00.001-07:00

This morning I took Emma outback and we did some fingerpainting.

She is so cute, she calls green "blue" and blue "red."

but she is really good at mixing the colors and praising her work.

"Oh, that's cute!" she says.
Emma, trying to put her passion into her artwork.

She reminds me so much of my grandma Betty in this picture.

She said, "This is so fun."

The finished product. We talked about it having an ocean with grass above it and a tree, with turtles dancing on the right, a sun in the top right corner, and flowers in the top left corner.

sweet smiles
laughing

"like a monkey"
little hand prints
and ice cream.

Today was a beautiful day.

July 30, 2007

Saturday night with family

2007-07-30T12:39:00.001-07:00

This Saturday Night Dustin was teaching at a Retreat so the girls and I went over to grandma and grandpa's house for dinner. It was so nice; David bbq'd carne asada, he made homeade tortilla chips with yummy guacamole, and the tortillas were thick and warm like pancakes.

Here is Miley with grandma and grandpa

Here is Emma with Uncle David and her new favorite person, Diana.

Miley making grandpa smile.

Emma and grandma in front of an amazing coconut creme pie.
It was a fun night.

Cami's 3rd Birthday Party!!!

2007-07-30T12:12:00.000-07:00

Waterslide!!!Okay, Well Emma didn't actually go down the slide

(she couldn't figure out how to climb up the back).

But she sure had fun pretending!!!

Emma and Cami.

Pinata!!!

Cami is swinging and Emma is rooting for her.

She kept screaming, "Hit it!!! Hit it Hard!!!"Emma's turn
Emma waiting for candy.
So patient . . .
Collecting her candy.

CAKE!!!

Emma and Cami eating their cake

Yummy
Cami opening her presents.
This was her scooter from Emma.

Babies!!!

Miley on the left and Caylee on the right
They are friends already!!!How cute
July 28, 2007

A Night at the Beach

2007-07-26T23:47:00.001-07:00

This last Sunday night, Dustin had the night off work. It was a little blessing

from Pastor David to all the staff guys, to rotate a Sunday night off.

So we decided to go out to the beach.We got out there a little later than expected.

But we got to eat pizza at BJ's in Huntington Beach for dinner.

Then we walked out onto the pier to see the sun set.

It was so beautiful. It was pretty crowded too.

The US Open brought out a lot of very happy partiers.

I almost asked the waitress if she wanted the autograph of my famous surfer hubby.

We saw some dolphins swimming and we saw a guy catch a shark off the pier.

(not a tiger shark or sand shark--a baby SHARK!)

We got Starbucks on the way home and caught a good glimpse of the fireworks show at Disneyland from the freeway.

It was a good night.

Our Trip to Sea World

2007-07-18T08:27:00.001-07:00

We just got back from San Diego. My mom and dad took us to Sea World on Monday and Tuesday. We had a really good time. Here are just a few of the amazing pictures we took.

Breakfast with Shamu!!! My mom took us to the "Dine with Shamu" breakfast. It was the coolest thing ever. We had an amazing buffet breakfast while we sat right next to Shamu's pool. The whales played for us and we all had an amazing time. As you can see, we got really close.
Giving us a quick pose. I was so close, I had to keep backing up to try to fit her in the camera.
This is what we were looking at while we ate.

Dining in the "24 Hour Splash Zone"
Shamu had a little breakfast too!!! The trainers gave us all kinds of information and answered all our questions.
With all that was going on behind me, Emma refused to pose for a picture.
They were having fun and so were we.

Miley wanted to look around too!

Emma and Papa looking at Shamu
This whale surprised us, she passes by us and we didn't even know she was coming!

Mommy and baby

Family Pictures

The Harrison Family
The girls with Grandma and Grandpa

Getting ready for Shamu Rocks!!!

Sisters getting ready for the "Shamu Rocks" nightime show.
All warm and cozy.

Tidepools

Emma, bravely, holding a sea star

(we didn't know you weren't supposed to take them out of the water!)

Daddy and Emma

Looking at starfish

Emma's little hand petting the "baby"
We did know that we weren't supposed to drop them, Emma did it anyways. Sorry Mr. Sea Star. Mommy and Miley getting some shade

Mechanical Penguins

"They look so real!!!"
Emma with a real penguin
Looking at Sea Lions and Seals
Emma with "O.P. Otter"

Happy Fourth of July!!!

2007-07-05T13:02:00.000-07:00

They really do love each other.

Red, White and Baby Blue
Smiling before Church
Emma was on her way to see "Surf's Up"

with Grandma and Grandpa.

Friday Night at Disneyland

2007-07-05T12:56:00.000-07:00

The family after

It's a Small World

Lightning McQueen was reving his engine
With Papa Jim
Excited to go to Disneyland
With Grandma and Grandpa

and a lolipop!

Father's Day

2007-07-05T12:34:00.000-07:00

Miley in her first bathing suit!

It was a little big on her.
Get the girl some beads!
Emma flying like Peter Pan.

30th Birthday party

2007-07-05T12:25:00.000-07:00

My Birthday party was so nice. I wish I had a nice picture of Dustin and I though. He did a really nice job making it a night I will remember. Here is a picture of Joy and I.

Caitlynn. Mike and Lacy.

Uncle David and Miley. Mellisa, Steve, and Allison. Molly and Steve.

Emma wore a birthday hat and told everyone that it was her birthday and her birthday cake. My friends and family all came and made my party extra special. You can see Christina with Sebastian, her new son.

It's Been A While!!! Here are some new pics.

2007-06-24T11:36:00.000-07:00

Okay so it has been almost a year since I have posted my last blog here and alot has happened. I wish I had posted Emma's birthday, halloween, christmas, and my pregnancy, but this will do for now. Introducing . . . Miley Elizabeth!

25th Anniversary Celebration

2006-08-15T16:17:00.000-07:00

Here is a pic of Emma at the Church's

25 Aniversary Celebration

She is soaking wet because
she poured my water all over her lap.

She dried quickly though!

Emma June 2006

2006-06-19T13:49:00.000-07:00

Close up
Sitting on her ducky prop

Laughing

Grandpa Jim's Father's Day Pics

2006-06-19T13:46:00.000-07:00

Mommy and Emma
Emma in her new shirt

representing "papa's" business

Nemo Chair

2006-05-29T09:46:00.000-07:00

Here is my girl sitting in her Nemo (meemo) chair, drooling all over her cute self. She loves her patio set that my mom and dad got her for Easter.

Even More Disneyland

2006-05-29T09:43:00.000-07:00

Emma in the parking lot

with her new bandanna

Emma and Gwen

--Peter Pan--

Mommy and Emma

Emma alone

--before the tantrum, when I had to let other children have a turn--

Emma's First Job

2006-05-29T09:37:00.000-07:00

Emma in training
Emma making calls
Emma crunching numbers

Easter

2006-05-29T09:18:00.000-07:00

Emma looks like Little Bo Peep

with Great-Grandma's cane!

Playing with Grandma's bears
and begging Grandpa for food
This is Emma getting ready for church in the morning.

She looks pretty tore up with that scrape under her nose!

she looks pretty tough when she wants to

Bubble Machine!

2006-05-29T09:12:00.001-07:00

Auntie Jenn got Emma a bubble machine for her birthday. These are pictures from the day that we played with it for the first time in our backyard. It was sunny and warm, so we had a lunch and drank iced tea. It was so much fun!

Bubble Machine!

2006-05-29T09:12:00.000-07:00

More Disneyland

2006-05-29T09:09:00.000-07:00

Emma's First Sandwich Ever!
--before she picked it apart--

Emma running toward the waterfalls

--actually, running away from mommy--

Emma, Aunt Jenn, and Gwen
on the way

2006-05-29T09:02:00.000-07:00

Emma sitting in her chair
Emma reading Jane Eyre

Christmas Day

2005-12-28T21:10:00.000-08:00

Emma opening presents with mommy

Emma watching the bear decorate Aunt Glenda's tree
Emma's cute little face
Emma dancing with Santa for Grandma
Emma and her grandpa

Christmas Eve

2005-12-27T10:17:00.000-08:00

Me, Emma, and my mom and dad went to my Auntie Marsha and Uncle Brad's house for Christmas Eve. Dustin had to work, so he couldn't come. We missed him so much. Here are some pictures of Emma with my family.

True Friends

2005-12-27T10:09:00.000-08:00

Emma got a sweet bear from her friend Cami. She loves it!

Emma's Birthday Party

2005-12-27T09:39:00.000-08:00

Eating her yummy cake
Trying to steal Lianna's hat
Linda, Deana, Dustin, and Lee
Joy and Loreen

Sugar Shampoo

Thank you all for coming and making

this day so special for us!

Our New Family Picture

2005-12-11T20:08:00.000-08:00

We just went to get new family pictures. Well actually I had taken Emma to get Christmas pictures and it was a disaster. She would not pose for a picture. So I told Dustin that if we took family pictures we could hold her and get good pics. Here is one of them.

The Snow at Victoria Gardens

2005-11-27T20:55:00.000-08:00

These are all pictures of Emma looking at or pointing at the "snow" that was falling around the tree at Victoria Gardens. It was actually quite a moment, because there was Christmas music and all the children were so excited. My mom and I got a little misty (that means emotional, not drunk right?). It was a really nice evening. By the way, in this first picture it looks like my dad has a golden tooth. No he was not in Public Enemy.

The Tree at Victoria Gardens

2005-11-27T20:45:00.000-08:00

Dustin, Brandi, and Emma

in front of the tree

We ate dinner at the food court at Victoria Gardens

and then we walked over to see the huge

270 foot Christmas tree

(minor exaggeration)

Me and Emma

Ignore the hair; I was wearing a hat

Emma and Grandpa Jim in front of the tree

Thanksgiving

2005-11-27T20:39:00.000-08:00

Okay, yes we are idiots. Thanksgiving is super important and we did not take any pictures. We went to Dustin's mom's house and had a great time; we even took our camera inside and everything, but we were too dumb to take pictures. I mean it would be great to have them because last year Emma was like 4 days old. Maybe we can get some pictures from Linda to post. She is smart and took pictures. Here are some things we would like to have had pics of:

Emma playing with grandma Linda's bears
Emma opening her birthday present from Aunt Glenda and Uncle Russel
Emma playing with her new school bus wagon
Emma eating her first thanksgiving turkey
Emma dancing for the whole family
Emma attacking Aunt Glenda's earings and laughing
Emma and the family
Dustin eating a chip
Miranda's Christmas list

Oh well, use your imagination.

Emma's Birthday Present

2005-11-27T20:37:00.000-08:00

Here Emma is riding her horse that she got

for her birthday.

This is what her face looks like

when she rides her horse.

Emma's first Halloween/ Hallelujah Night

2005-10-31T21:11:00.000-08:00

Emma and Gwen at the church
Emma at home reading the church bulletin

to find out what time Hallelujah Night starts

Emma walking down the hall

By the way she was a butterfly
Emma carrying the reciept.

Can you believe it last year at this time she was still in my belly.

She is the most precious little gift from God.

Dustin's Birthday Party

2005-10-31T21:00:00.000-08:00

For Dustin's 33 b-day we had a small party. We had so much fun. Jeff and Jenny came, and so did all of our friends. We ate nachos, taquitos and carrot cake. Our children played together and we all had fun. We did say that we missed Christina.

Emma

2005-10-31T20:53:00.000-08:00

Emma standing in front of the flowers at church.

She actually fell in the planter and got mud all over her.

Dustin just got the mud out of her pants.

Emma in her bedroom

Again in front of the flowers

Emma and Gizmo (featuring Elmo)

2005-10-31T20:50:00.000-08:00

Emma loves her kitty and her Elmo. This day it was cold and rainy.

Emma and Gwen

2005-10-31T20:48:00.000-08:00

When Emma first started walking she would grab onto Gwen's clothes. Gwen would freak out and try to get away and Emma would just hold on and try to keep up. She would laugh so hard. Here Gwen is losing her shirt and Emma is going for a ride.

Jessica, Cameron, and Cambrielle Visit!

2005-10-31T20:27:00.000-08:00

This is a picture of Emma waiting for Cami to wake up

from her nap.

She got cozy with a puppy.

This is Emma wanting to steal Jess's Camera

Look at the happy couple

This is Emma trying to hug her friend.

We sure miss the Steven's family

Our Angel

2005-10-13T22:33:00.000-07:00

September 2005

Rasberries

2005-10-13T22:22:00.000-07:00

Emma and I had a blast today. She sat in her high chair and laughed because she could blow rasberries. It got a little messy, because I was feeding her at the time--good thing her high chair has a vinyl cover! What a blessing she is. Oh! and check out those teeth.

Guess What Adrie?

2005-10-13T11:59:00.000-07:00

Adrianna, I know you are in England so you haven't seen me in a while. So I wanted to let you know that I copied your look. I now have short brown hair and bangs!

Emma's New Hobby

2005-09-22T14:07:00.000-07:00

Emma's new hobby is destroying the entertainment center. She is a little wrecker!

The LA County Fair 2005

2005-09-22T14:01:00.000-07:00

Sheep Eating
Emma and Grandma

looking and weird British birds
Emma talking to goats

Brandi's New Job!

2005-09-22T14:00:00.000-07:00

Nice legs

I really don't work here.

Our Girl's Day at the Park--Wed. 9-7-05

2005-09-10T20:57:00.000-07:00

Raquel eating a salad Molly and Lianna

taking a walk

Gwen and Emma

(Emma was topless because she was eating a messy biscuit and her mom forgot a bib)

Laura and Jenn

and Rebecca and Gwen

Laura Warner and Kaitlyn

Laura Ramirez and her beautiful girls, Annie and Rebecca.

Emma and Her Doll

2005-09-10T20:51:00.000-07:00

Isn't this precious! It was taken right before she bit down on the babies head.

Dustin's Neck Surgery

2005-09-10T20:49:00.000-07:00

Praise God! He is doing good. This picture was taken Friday, after we got him home from the hospital. 4 weeks in a neck brace and some vicodin and all will be better.

Labor Day Swimming

2005-09-10T20:42:00.000-07:00

We went over to Brandi's mom and dad's house and BBQed hot dogs. Then we went swimming in the pool. Emma has so much fun in her inflatable raft that Grandpa got her.

Our Family Trip to Long Beach Harbor -- August 2005

2005-08-20T22:11:00.000-07:00

Our family picture

We are stuffed after eating a huge meal at

the Bubba Gump Shrimp restaurant.