Merry Thanksgiving?

We just couldn't wait any longer. The girls were very excited about putting up our Christmas stuff and since we really didn't have much to do that day and I was just laying around with injured ribs, we decided to go for it. So, Nate helped me get it all out, then Nate turned on some Christmas tunes and off we went. Hailey got to put the star on the tree this year and was pretty excited about it. So here it is, two weeks before Thanksgiving and Christmas is already blooming at our house!

Tis the Season!

Ribs HURT!

The morning of Hailey's birthday, I had a cough attack. During the attack, I felt something crack/pop in my ribs. It hurt like no other. I was bent over in the girls bathroom on the floor holding my rib cage trying to not burst into tears. Addy was right there watching me so I didn't want to scare her more than she already was.  I got up, shook it off and went about my day. It hurt all day long and into the night. The next day, it didn't bother me much. In fact, either I was so busy planning Hailey's party that I just didn't pay attention or it was numb because I really didn't notice it at all. 

The next morning, Saturday, the day of TWO birthday parties for Hailey, I woke up and couldn't raise my arm above my head. I knew I had to suck it up and get the house decorated as well as make her cake and get ready for parties.  I was blowing up balloons and I was in so much pain doing so that I wasn't sure how I was going to handle the rest of the day. Nate was working so he was no help. Rachel, however, stepped up and blew up balloons for me and wrapped Hailey's present, etc. Thank goodness for her.

The time for the party came and I was so happy that my friend Jenn Mecham and Malia Lopez stayed to help me out because by this point, I was in a whole lot of pain. 

The kids party was over and it was time to prepare for family to come.

Thank goodness again for Rachel because she was so much help. She stayed with the girls while I went to get pizza so I wouldn't have to worry about them. 

Family came and I lost it. I couldn't handle the pain in my ribs anymore. 

After being told several times to get it checked out, I agreed and Nate and I left the family at our house while we went to instacare.  After an exam of my ribs, the doctor said that I had either fractured my rib or sprained the rib joint.  Both are treated the same so we opted out of an X-ray.

He sent me home with Percocet, cough meds & naproxen.

My instructions were LOTS of rest and try not to cough to make it worse. 

yeah right.

Monday came around and I was still in so much pain. My friend Malia offered to take the girls to school for me which was SO great. Jenn brought Addy home from Kindergarten for me and Rachel offered to do my grocery shopping!

I have the best people in my life.

After Rachel did my shopping for me, she made me an amazing panini sandwich for lunch. She's the best.

I'm so grateful I have her around. She was such a lifesaver.

This picture was my view for a few days while I rested and got caught up on my blog.

A few days later, I coughed and something cracked even more. Again, excruciating pain and back to laying around. Hopefully we can get this post viral cough under control so that my ribs can heal once and for all. It feels like someone is stabbing me with a knife every time I cough. It's ridiculous.

I'm so grateful for great friends and family who are willing to help out and take care of my kids when I need a little help. I don't know what I would have done without them.

Princess's and Pony's

Or, a princess and a horse in this matter. Hailey had the opportunity to have an 'individual experience' with a horse named 'Cruise'.  She was beyond excited to have this experience. And, I have to admit, I was pretty excited for her.  She spent an hour with this horse and absolutely fell in love with him.  She rode him and led him all by herself. She was pretty happy about it. Nate and I were quite impressed with how well she did with the horse.. she looked like she had been riding for a long time. Everything comes so natural for this girl, it's amazing to watch.

We were so happy that this turned out so well and it started off her birthday week in a great way!

Happy Birthday Little Cowgirl

My little princess is 7. I'm a little shocked, i'm not gonna lie. Hailey is a special little girl. She is to me, anyways. This little girl has an amazing concious. She is honest, loyal, happy, caring, loving, funny, intelligent, beautiful, athletic, spunky, forgiving, obedient (for the most part), kind, energetic, positive and so much more. I am so proud to be her mother. I feel so blessed to be part of her life. She brings so much happiness into our home.  I love this little girl more than I could ever describe. In the last 7 years, I have been through so much happiness, heartache, love, sadness, worry and gratitude and I would do it all over again if I could. Some days, I wish I could. I miss my baby Hailey. I miss her so much some days that it hurst. However, I also look at her and I am so grateful for the person she has become in the last 7 years. I'm so grateful for all the times I have shared with her. I'm so grateful that she is my daughter and that I have to chance to watch her grow and learn.

Hailey, one day when you read this, I want you to know that it has been a privilege getting to know you and it has been one of my biggest blessings to be your mother. I love you to infinity and beyond and I look forward to a lifetime of even more memories to come with you. You'll always be my little girl, no matter how old (or tall) you get. I love you love you. 

Happy 7th Birthday Monkey!

Halloween!!!!

This year was sort of a last minute kind of year. Hailey has known for a while that she wanted to be a peacock, but Addy took forever to decide what she wanted to be. A few weeks before Halloween, I got busy making their costumes. I'm pretty excited about how they turned out.

As usual, we like to go up to Nate's parents neighborhood for trick or treating. We ordered some pizza and took the kids around to get their candy. As always, it was fun to see everyone in Nate's parent's ward.

This year was a lot of fun. Hailey and Addy were both very into it and were just running from house to house. It was so fun to just walk with Nate and watch our girls soak it all in. That night ended up being a beautiful night. The sky was orange and it was beautiful against the snow capped mountains. We couldn't have asked for a better night for trick or treating.