A snapshot of 2010

Dear Family and Friends,

Merry Christmas 2010!

Emmett is 17 months and a ray of sunshine. He loves to give and get kisses (his favorite are butterfly kisses), play with balls and cars, spin in circles to get dizzy, and climb. His language is starting to blossom as he plays with imitating our words. He loves wearing shoes and playing outside. Emmett is our little couch potato or “Tater Tot” as we call him because he loves TV. I have mixed feelings about this since he is too young to watch, but it sure makes long trips and making dinner easier. He loves to snuggle his pillow and blankie, and roll around in the pillows and blankets of Mommy and Daddy’s bed after bath time. We love, love, love him!

Isaac is three and is very passionate. He is very excitable and entertaining to watch as he jumps up and down flapping his little arms like a humming bird with excitement at a new toy, anticipation of a yummy treat, or news of a fun outing. With his passion come a quick temper and a stubbornness which is best pacified by a few moments alone and then loving arms to comfort him. Isaac loves to help Daddy work in the garage and in the yard, and help Mommy sweep and cook. He likes playing with his Jeep, digging in the dirt, swinging on the swings, and wearing zip jammies, and his froggy rain boots. At school he likes to paint and cut paper (until it’s in a million tiny pieces). His favorite color is green. He impresses us with statements such as, “That’s incredible!” referring to a rock crawling Jeep, and prayers such as “Thank you that that the angels (missionaries) could come and bless him.” Isaac’s laughter is contagious and we love, love, love him!

Jarom is our hero. He works hard for our physical needs and dedicates his spare time to our emotional wants playing with us and making sure that we feel loved. Jarom’s business keeps him busy but he loves the freedom of being the boss. Jarom injured his tailbone over a Thanksgiving motorcycle/campout (doing a wheelie going full speed was not such a buena idea) so life for him has been literally a pain in the aft. Rachel has had to drive him around to his appointments the last couple weeks as he still cannot sit to drive. We are grateful he was not hurt more seriously and look forward to when he is feeling himself again. We love, love, love him!

I enjoy the special time I have each of my boys (big and small). The kids and I attend a “Mommy and Me” class twice a week to play and see our friends. I have loved my calling this last year planning the monthly activities for the sisters at church. We have had some really fun and really beautiful evenings (if I do say so myself)! My new passion and hobby is cake decorating. I relish in making something look too good to eat!

We are grateful for this Christmas Season to remember and celebrate the gift of our Savior. We know he was born, lived, died, and lives again for us. We are grateful for His example of sacrifice, love, and service. We love spending this special time of year with our families and hearing from family and friends who we love and miss. Here is our year at a glance.

Hugs from The Renfeldts- Jarom, Rachel, Isaac, & Emmett

January: Cute boys and potty training Feburary: Snow trip, and Jeeping trip
March: Jeeping and camping at Lake Morena


April: Strawberry Patch tour and picking with Grammy and Aunti Kaelin

Anniversery: Celebrity homes tour through Beverly Hills on Segways

May: Isaac's fall out of 2nd story window landing on his head, a trip to the hospital, he walked away with scrapes, all is well, THANK YOU HEAVENLY FATHER!

July: Renfeldt Family Reunion at Campland on the bay

July: Emmett's 1st Birthday

August: Backyard fun, eatting dirt, cousin Wesley

September: Isaac's 3rd Birthday Construction Party

September: Back to school for "Mommy and Me"

September: Utah and Idaho Roadtrip, Utah Fair, and cousins

September: Fishing with Grandpa

October: Superbaby vs. Itsy Bitsy Spiderman

November: Pretend City, toy trains

December: Merry Christmas!

De Jong Dairy Tour

Our playgroup went on a tour of our local dairy. My battery died three minutes after we got there, so thanks Amanda for the great pictures! The kids had fun feeding the cows, goats, and sheep; they learned how the cows are milked (and even got to test out the pumps on themselves), and then got cookies and Herman's famous chocolate milk. Yummm! Can you tell that Isaac takes his cookies very seriously; it must be genetic! In the video Isaac had a near escape from a cow kiss.

Temecula Duck Pond

We took the kids the Duck Pond for a picnic. I love Spring time. The weather has been so pleasant for all of our activities, and this was no exception. The kids had fun eatting as much bread as the ducks, Isaac got to show off his "duck smile", and we enjoyed the sunshine and company of friends.

Sea World

We were able to go to Sea World for the sweet price of $5.75 on an “educational field trip” with a home school group. Grandma Nancy was able to join us for most of the day which we were super thrilled about. Isaac particularly liked the sea lion exhibit, the flamingo parade, and the feeding of the white whales (beluga?). He was not so much into the shows as he is a busy boy and sitting for any amount of time gets old real fast. He would try to push me up off the bench and say “go, go”. It was a fun and sunshiny day!

McBride Beach

Some friends in our ward live on the beach of Lake Elsinore and we had a fun play day there during our recent heat wave. The kids could not get enough of the ducks and were always trying to chase or find them. It was a great way to deal with the heat and the kids had a blast!

Tom's Farms

Dad and Patti invited us to Tom's Farms for a fun day out. We ate pizza and snow cones, rode the train and carrousel, and had a great time. It was an really hot day so the snow cones were fabulous, and Isaac ate as much pizza as anyone else! Thanks Dad and Patti!

Santa Rosa Plateau

We went on a little hike with our friends the Petitts. It was a lovely day with lots of blue sky and sun. These trails are only 15 minutes from our house, and several are stroller friendly, so I think it will be a place we visit more often. The kids had fun running, playing in the dirt, picking flowers, and being happy.

San Diego Zoo

In Feburary we went to the San Diego Zoo with our fun friends, the Petitt's. The day was sunny and beautiful! The kids had a great time! Isaac had a hard time transfering in and out of the stroller (mostly going back in); so sometimes he just had to stay on "lock down". His favorite times were the exibit walkways when he only had one direction to go so I could let him run wild. Haley held onto his leash and ran with him down the trail; she loved that too. Thanks Petitt's for the fun day!

Camping and Jeeping Adventures

Over the past few months we have gone camping several times with our Jeep club or with friends from our ward. Camping is much easier now with our new truck and camper set up. Jarom picked this truck up with only 26K miles for a sweet deal because the insurance company had totaled it just for having all the interior ripped out. The camper makes a warm and more comfortable place for eating and sleeping with a toddler. It has provided some good times already and more to come. Isaac always loves a new adventure and new dirt and rocks to taste.

Aren't they cute!?

The new set up.

Isaac exploring some abandoned mining equipment.

What a bunch of sweeties!

Nice ride! Sweet skills!

Isaac loves sitting in the driver seat and is always happy playing there.

Florida Trip- Our Rad Hotel

Amidst all the business of buying a house, moving, and holiday preparation, Jarom was invited to attend and present at a manufacturing and engineering expo at the convention center in Orlando Florida with his expenses paid. Pretty sweet! So we paid for my plane ticket and made it a family vacation with really bad timing.
Here are some pics of our AWESOME hotel, The Gaylord Palms Hotel. It was huge to start with, and was divided into 4 regions: Key West (the pics with the boat) with a Caribbean feel, The Everglades with lush vegetation, mist, and sounds; Emerald Bay with a giant octopus pool and waterslide (in picture), and St. Augustine complete with a Spanish castle. All the vegetation in the pics is real and amazing.