Johnson Party of 4

One Day...

2012-01-28T07:23:00.000-08:00

One day, I'll get to bite into a delicious steak or sandwich. But, as I found out yesterday, it won't be for a while. Yesterday I was driving and found that something just didn't feel right in my mouth where all my surgery occurred. I was right. After checking things out, I found that one of my grafts had come off.

REALLY???????

So, after calling the Periodontist, we found that there is nothing that can be done and that the doctor isn't in till Tuesday. (which is when my scheduled appointment is anyways) I'm suppose to go in to get my stitches removed, but due to trying to remove them last week, I have swelled up a bit again and that hasn't gone away as of yet, so I don't know what they'll do. They said over the phone yesterday that they'll have to just redo that tooth. Yep, you heard me, MORE SURGERY.

I went to bed last night with a pit in my stomach and this morning woke up with a boulder in my stomach. This has been such a traumatic situation and i'm so ready to be done with it. With this additional surgery will come the same diet i've pretty much been on since my wisdom teeth came out mid December. Very soft foods and liquids. Wahoo! I'm pretty annoyed.

If it wasn't for the fact that my blog has become my journal, I wouldn't spend this much paper space on this annoying subject, but for posterity sake, you all get to endure my rants. :-) Apologies all around.

A little Rant...

2012-01-24T15:27:00.000-08:00

So, I had to call my regular dentist this afternoon, on the way to my periodontist. I had to call him because I have something sharp sticking out of my gums where my wisdom teeth were removed a month ago. My sister in law who is a hygienist, said it was most likely a piece of tooth that broke off or a root that is stuck. Awesome. It hurts. So, I made an appointment to go in and have that checked.

Back to the part where I was on the way to the periodontist. He checked my stitches and couldn't take some of them out due to all the crazy swelling I had. He also told me that my swelling and bruising (which extends all the way down my neck) is something he has NEVER seen before. Awesome. My kids call me shrek. Nate told me I shouldn't go to church yesterday because my face was SO green. Also, due to the swelling, I have to go back in next week once the swelling is (hopefully) completely gone so he can TRIM the gum graft. Apparently, the graft moved a bit so they have to do some cosmetic stuff to my gums. Awesome.

I am still on the soft foods and liquids diet for a few more weeks at least. That includes the fact that I cannot bite into anything. At. ALL.

I just want to go to Outback and have a steak already!!!!!!!!! I'm STARVING for some REAL food.

A Little Slice Of Heaven

2012-01-20T19:54:00.000-08:00

I was privileged this past week to take pictures of my new little nephew. He is absolutely adorable. I can't get enough of him.

Love you baby Benson!

Jay Leno Called...

2012-01-15T19:47:00.001-08:00

"He wants his chin back!" was amongst the many jokes I heard this past week. Let me explain. I went in for Gum Graft Surgery last Tuesday the 10th. I've known about the fact that I needed this sugery for about 5 or 6 years now but have been dreading it. Finally it came to the point when I needed to just bite the bullet and do it.

Note: Graphic information (if you don't want to hear it, skip the next sentance)

Basically, they had to scrape the gums away from my bottom teeth, then insert some donor flesh, yes, I said donor flesh, then sew it all back together after stretching my gums up over the new insert.

I was awake the entire time and even though I couldn't really feel much, I could see it and HEAR it. I almost threw up a couple times and I swear that if I were to do it again, heaven for bid, I would pay the $500 cash and let them knock me out.

They hooked me up to a heart monitor, put scrubs over me, pulled my hair up in a shower cap type thing and put surgical glasses on me. Then, the surgery began. They shot me up about 20+ times in the mouth to numb it and off they went. Pretty sick.

By the time they were done, I was numb and a little swollen. They gave me two prescriptions. One for an antibiotic and one for Ibuprofen 800. When I got my wisdom teeth out, it was the only pain killer that didn't make me sick. It doesn't work fabulously, but it takes the edge off. I got a bottle of some cleaner they wanted me to dab with a q-tip in the effected area and some ice packs.

Thanks to my sweet friend Megan for bringing my family dinner that night and to Megan and Kristi for my trashy magazines & flowers and to my mom for being here through this whole mess and helping me out at home. I'm blessed to be surrounded by awsomeness. :-)

That night, while putting the girls to bed, Addy swung around and whacked me right in the face. I'm not gonna lie, it hurt like no other. I took a deep breath and continued with mommy duty. The next morning, Hailey jumped on my lap, quickly leaned back on me and in the process threw her head right into my chin. Yep! That hurt too. By the end of that afternoon, my face swelled up so big I couldn't talk. I did get some free ice cream out of it though.. the owner felt bad for the elephant woman in his yogurt shop. Why I went out in public, I don't know, other than that I promised the girls some ice cream. I should get the mom of the year award or something.

That night, was excruciating. I don't even know how to describe that night. I couldn't sleep, watched a couple things on Netflix with my Nook, tried to sleep, read a book, tried to sleep and something snapped. I was in so much pain and agony that I ended up in the shower... at 3am. I was shaking and had the water turned SO hot that my skin was bright red, but I was still shivering. Nate brought me some water and all I could do was cry. I didn't know what to do to make myself feel better and even worse, neither did Nate. He felt awful and I could see he was trying so hard to figure out what to do. I was really close to having him take me to the ER because I felt like my face was going to explode or get stretch marks or something. It was swelling so fast and so bad that I could feel my skin stretching and it was AWFUL!

Two days later, I ended up back at the doctors office. My swelling had gone down minimally, and it scared the doctor. He didn't expect it to be that bad and told me it was at a point of dangerous swelling due to trauma. He asked me to think back to the day of surgery and try to remember if I had bumped my face AT ALL. After I told him about the incidents with my kiddos, we quickly realized that the extreme swelling had a reason. Later that day, I had to run to the store for some groceries and Addy was in the cart. She stood up and elbowed me right in the chin AGAIN! Seriously???

Now, i'm down to a fat chin and lots of green and yellow coloring. My entire chin and neck turned into a bruise. My lips are completely purple and I look like a circus freak! Good times.

Day 1

Right after surgery

Day 2

The next morning

That afternoon

(after my nap)

Day 3

(this is what I would look like with a horrible lip job)

I was so swollen, I couldn't close my mouth. Look how huge my bottom lip is in comparison to my top lip. EWE!

Day 4

(Bruising begins)

Day 5

(swollen + green chin & neck = attractive)

It's a pretty scary sight, it's true, and it hurts like no other, but at least I don't look like as much like an elephant anymore. :-) It can only get better, right?

Welcome Home!!!

2012-01-15T19:47:00.000-08:00

Carmen and Ben were finally able to bring little Benson home on Friday the 13th of January. We were all too excited to see him again, that we had to go be part of the welcome party. Besides, Nate hadn't had the chance of meeting the little guy yet, so he was super excited as well. The girls had seen him through the window at the hospital, but this was their first time holding him and they were SO excited.

More on why I look like a freak on the next post.

Aunt Rachelle

Uncle Brett

Uncle Nate

Vegas Cell Phone Pictures

2012-01-11T17:43:00.000-08:00

The girls and I took off for Vegas last week. If you read my previous posts, that would be obvious. Aside from waiting for little Benson to arrive, we spent some time in the Sun. One day we decided to go meet my dad for lunch. My dad works for Otis Elevator and is stationed at the Palms Hotel. This hotel houses one of the very best Mexican Restaurants, Garduños. It's great because my dad knows all the cooks and they definitely take care of us when we are there.

After an amazing lunch, us girls (mom, Hailey, Addy and I) decided to go walk the strip a bit. We've never taken the girls down to the strip. In fact, WE never go down to the strip. Once upon a time, the strip went through a few years of being extremely family-friendly. Now it's back to it's old trashy self. Since my parents live there, we don't ever go to the strip. We are too busy doing other things when we visit. This time, I thought it would be fun to show Hailey my very favorite place on the strip, the Bellagio. Across the street from the Bellagio is Hailey's favorite thing, the Eiffel Tower and the Paris Hotel.

waiting in line to ride to the top of the Eiffel Tower...

It was a pretty freaky ride to the top, all glass walls on the elevator, but the view from the top was breathtaking.

That night, I told my dad what we had done, and showed him the pictures. He proceeds to tell me he's actually worked on those elevators before and even CRAZIER, he has had to ride on the very top of the elevators before. He said when riding on the top, its all open and you feel the open air as you are riding hundreds of feet into the air. What the? Who in their right mind does that? I've heard a TON of crazy elevator stories over the years, but that made my stomach jump for sure.l

After the Eiffel Tower ride, we walked down in front of the Bellagio to enjoy the water show up close. When I lived in Vegas, I use to go there ALL the time with my friend Cassandra and we would just sit for hours and hang out enjoying music and the atmosphere.

The girls were in love with this crazy sparkly horse inside the lobby at the Bellagio.

Great Cell Phone Pictures, eh?

A couple nights later, we met up with my brother Jared and his family for dinner at my favorite restaurant, Sweet Tomatos. The girls were so excited to see their cousins. They were pretty awful the whole time at dinner because of their excitement.

Preston, Marley & Addy

Hailey & Gavin

Baby Girl Macy

It was just a great getaway from the cold air. I'm glad I got to spend time with family and friends.

It's the perfect winter vacation.

More About Benson

2012-01-10T17:38:00.000-08:00

Sunday, the 8th, I went back to the hospital to see Benson again only this time I took the girls with me, along with my mom and dad. We were all so excited to see him. The adoption papers were signed Sunday morning and Carmen and Ben couldn't be happier. I really am not sure I've ever seen Carmen so happy. Even though I was able to hold him once already, I figured we would just be seeing him through the window at the NICU, but the adults were all able to go in and snuggle his little cuteness. He was in the NICU due to a few spurts of Sleep Apnea, but he is now healthy and was discharged from the hospital yesterday, Monday the 9th.

Hailey and Addy absolutely adore their Uncle Ben.

Everyone getting a little peak at the superstar.

Pure Joy

LOVE yawning pictures of babies

My favorite look of Carmen's... And Valerie's. :-)

All the girls present

I don't think I have many, if any, pictures of my two moms.

Aren't they beautiful?

We are so glad that things went well this weekend and we are so happy to have Benson join our family.

He's the perfect addition.

Benson

2012-01-07T20:44:00.000-08:00

Today I had the honor of meeting my new little nephew Benson. Through the wonderful miracle of adoption, Nate's sister Carmen and her husband Ben are able to hold this little GEM and call him theirs. He is absolutely beautiful and precious. I got to sit and hold him and love on him today for which I am so grateful. It's amazing how immediately you feel that family bond with him. He was a whopping 19.5 inches and 9 lbs. I am so excited and proud of Carmen and Ben for all their diligence and hard work in welcoming this little guy into the world and into our family.

I can't wait till they get to bring him home and I can love on him more. I'm sure there will be more pictures to come soon, but for now....

So Sleepy...

Opened his eyes long enough for a photo-shoot with Aunt Tiff.

Congrats Carmen and Ben!!

Pumpkin Anyone?

2012-01-03T12:36:00.001-08:00

My family has a tradition of making Pumpkin Pie Cake for Thanksgiving. Well, since we spent Thanksgiving alone, I didn't want to make a huge pan of it, since there is a lot that goes in to making it. So, instead I made it for Sunday dinner at my inlaws. Ok, well, I went to the store, bought what I needed and made it. It looked beautiful, then, we had a little problem on the way to the oven...

I almost swore, I was so mad. Nate could tell, so he quickly ushered the girls upstairs for bath time.

After 2 rolls of paper towels, it was finally cleaned up and I was on my way back to the store to buy more stuff to make it again.

Why would I do that, you ask?

BECAUSE I WAS IN THE MOOD FOR IT

I WAS GOING TO WIN

the pumpkin pie cake battle.

It turned out great for the next day.

Christmas Morning 2011

2012-01-01T20:09:00.000-08:00

Christmas morning was the BEST!!! I absolutely love Christmas morning at home. There's just something magical about being in your home with your tree and your stockings hung where they've been all month long, etc. It was so fun to wake up and have our own little Christmas morning with our little ones. We started off at about 6:45ish. The girls came in our room to wake us up, but we were already awake. I was getting myself ready for the day since we needed to leave extra early to get to church in Orem by 9am. I came downstairs to turn on all the lights and get the video camera rolling.

See, when I was growing up, our stockings were STUFFED full.

It was one of my favorite parts of present-opening.

Empty Plate and Note from Santa

There is nothing more magical than KIDS on Christmas morning. Nate and I agree that we are both more excited for them on Christmas than anything else.

Hailey's Santa gift she asked for was an Easy Bake Oven and

Addy's was a Build-A-Bear Gift Card.

We met up with Nate's family at his parents ward for Sacrament Meeting, then on to the house to finish opening presents. A Johnson Family Tradition is to read the story of Christ's Birth before opening presents. After that, it was INSANE with wrapping paper and cardboard covering the floor. It was such a fun mess. Valerie made her famous waffles with ice cream and strawberries. I ate way too much, but it was so good.

We draw names among the siblings and also among the grandkids and this year we drew Carmen & Ben, Spencer and Regan. After all the opening, everyone kind of went their own way, took naps, played with new toys, etc. It was a great day.

Christmas Eve 2011

2011-12-31T21:46:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve at the Johnson's is always magical. The tradition has always been LOTS of food and PAJAMAS!! This year was no different. I made some yummy treats to add to the table of deliciousness. The girls were elated with excitement and just couldn't believe it was the night that Santa would come.

We ate... and ate.. and ate. Well, most everyone did. I tried, but I was still pretty sore from getting my wisdom teeth pulled that I stuck to the soft stuff.. which is the best stuff anyways. :-) Then, we played a little game solving some Christmas Carol word mix ups. After that, it was catch phrase. After a couple rounds of some competitive guys against girls, it was time to open pajamas.

Hailey and Addy absolutely loved theirs... especially their slippers.

Hailey and Addy showing Uncle Adam their 'Flexing' they've been working on just for him.

Mmmmm... Food.

My Beautiful Babies and their new jammies!

Traditional Pajama Photo + Ben

Addy, Regan & Hailey

The Johnson Clan

The TRUE Johnson Clan :-)

When we got home from the fesitivities, Hailey and Addy were so excited to set out some milk & cookies for Santa as well as carrot sticks for the reindeer.

The girls went right to sleep after peering out the window and listening intently for sleigh bells.

Merry Christmas Eve!!!

Trax & Temple Square

2011-12-31T20:17:00.000-08:00

Nate and I decided it would be fun to take the girls to see the Christmas lights at Temple Square. We haven't taken them before and knew they would love it. So, Tuesday the 20th, the girls and I picked Nate up from work and headed to Salt Lake. We stopped in Sandy and got on Trax. The girls were SO excited to ride a train. They really thought it was pretty cool. It was pretty packed on the way to Temple Square. Once we got there, we went to dinner at JB's and then walked over to see the lights. It was FREEZING, but it was fun. The girls really liked it a lot. On the way home, the girls fell asleep in the car and it was a great night.

(sorry for the blurry cell phone pics)

Next time I won't wait till the week before Christmas to go.. it was WAY too packed.

Disney On Ice

2011-12-31T16:15:00.000-08:00

Since I was a little girl, I've wanted to see Disney On Ice. What most people don't know about me is that I'm pretty obsessed with anything Disney. Oh, and Ice Skating. When I was a teenager, I had Disney movie posters on my wall as well as pictures I had laminated from my Ice Skating magazine I had a subscription to. I cried the day that Sergei Grinkov died and I read the biography of he and his wife Ekaterina Gordeeva. I watched the winter Olympics intently and recorded on our VHS as may ice skating shows and competitions I could find. Those who knew me as a teenager would say that my obsessions were a little different from most teenagers. I still have just about every Disney cartoon memorized and recite them every night for my sweet girls. Nate makes fun of me every time but deep down, he's glad that I have that connection with my kids and that I can entertain them in ways that most cannot. Not sure if that's a good thing or not, but they like it. :-)

So, after that tidbit about myself, we took the girls in November to the big show. Here are some pictures from our night at Disney On Ice!!

I'm not sure who enjoyed the night more, me or the girls. It's a toss up, but mostly I enjoyed seeing the looks on their faces every time a new act would come out or listening to them sing all the songs at the top of their lungs. They have me to thank for that... :-)

I have a little connection with someone at the ESA so we got some pretty sweet tickets for a pretty sweet price!

Facial Art

2011-12-31T15:50:00.000-08:00

This is what I get for not paying attention to Addy during the Primary Program at church...

Lil' Gymnast

2011-12-23T08:15:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday, the 17th, Addy had her showcase at the Candy Cane Classic at All American Gymnastics. I was really torn up about it because I couldn't be there. I got my wisdom teeth pulled the day before and was really sick. My amazing in laws were kind enough to come get the girls and take them so Addy wouldn't miss out. I really was so sad to miss out. This was Addy's first big deal that neither of her parents were able to attend. When Scott and Val came to get her, they informed me that Carmen and Ben would be there as well to take picture. This made me feel a lot better. I'm so grateful for my supportive family.

Addy is the one in green and black with legwarmers.

Thanks again to my inlaws for stepping in for me and being so supportive of little Addy.

Letters To Santa

2011-12-19T20:38:00.000-08:00

This year was AWESOME helping the girls with their letters to Santa. Hailey was very excited to be able to write her letter all by herself. She obviously needed help with the spelling, but she wrote the letters all by herself. Addy told Nate exactly what she wanted to say. So cute.

Hailey's Letter

Addy's Letter

Same as last year, these are Santa's email responses:

Hailey's email

Addy's email

The girls have been asking me every day since they mailed their letters if Santa has emailed them yet.

My, how the times have changed.

Santa Girls

2011-12-19T17:22:00.000-08:00

Call me cheesy, but I absolutely love Santa dresses at Christmas time. So, I found these, and couldn't pass them up. I had planned to have the girls wear them ON Christmas, but my mother in law had something else in mind, so we let them wear them yesterday. The girls were SO excited to wear their dresses and Hailey couldn't stop posing. She thought she was pretty hot stuff. She wore it all day and even asked to sleep in it that night.

48 hours after getting wisdom teeth pulled.. what was I thinking going to church looking so drugged??

I'll blame that one on Nate for not telling me how terrible I looked.

On the other hand, Nate looks hot. As Usual.

I love these girls.

They make me smile.

Merry Christmas!!!

Miss Creative

2011-12-18T21:01:00.000-08:00

I took the girls to McDonalds one day last week for lunch. Ok, I went through the drive-thru. It was one of those days where we had been running errands all morning and we were running late on Addy's nap and the girls were starving. So, we grabbed lunch and headed home. I went in at one point to check on them in the kitchen and this is what I found...

Nothin like artwork made out of french fries!

Crafty Crafty

2011-12-18T20:42:00.000-08:00

Addy is in need of wearing dresses or something "pretty" every day. Since it is 30 degrees outside, I was running out of excuses. So, I made some leg warmers. They are pretty addictive. I've made quite a few and Addy wants to wear them every day, so it's a win-win.

Complete Opposites

2011-12-18T20:28:00.000-08:00

This particular December Sunday morning I woke up to Addy informing me that she wanted her hair done curly with a headband. She knew exactly what she wanted to wear. Behind her came Hailey who said, "I just want a pony tail mom." Only when she said it, it came out in a 'I so don't care' sort of tone.

These girls are the best of friends but when it comes to fashion or particular needs, they are complete opposites.

Holiday Happenings Part 4

2011-12-18T13:19:00.000-08:00

Saturday the 10th, we decided to meet up with Jessica and Avery who were in town visiting for Carmen's baby shower. We went to the Riverwoods to ride on the Horse Drawn Carriage. This is our 3rd year with this tradition and we were glad to share it with Jess and Avery this year.

It was FREEZING, but luckily they had firepits glowing. Christmas lights blanketed the entire outdoor shopping center. It is truly a sight to see.

We spent half our time hanging out in Blickenstaffs, a toy store, to keep out of the cold. The only problem was that I think a lot of the other families had the same idea.

We stood in line for the carriage ride for a very long time, but in the end, the girls really enjoyed it.

Holiday Happenings Part 3

2011-12-18T13:03:00.000-08:00

We had some family in town for the weekend and they all came to hang out at our place and order some chinese and play games. The game that was pretty much forced because my kids are obsessed with it was "The Name Game". They are pretty good too, for how young they are.

We all had a blast that night. As usual when we all get together. I'm sure once Christmas comes around and everyone is here for a while there will be much more game playing going on.

Holiday Happenings Part 2 Guinea Pig Babies

2011-12-18T12:54:00.000-08:00

This post doesn't have a lot to do with the actual Christmas Holiday, but it's something we have been watching and hoping for EVERY day this month. Our sweet guinea pig Pepper had babies!! I came out of the girls room after putting Addy down for a nap to see a new little friend staring at me from inside the cage. I could NOT believe how big they were. How in the heck do they carry such large babies??? Crazy. So, Friday Dec. 9th, these two made their debut into the world.

this is Pepper, the poor mother in her last days of being prego.

The idea has always been that we would keep a girl to live with Pepper, and then probably give the male or males to a family member or close friend.

I think my plan failed, because I'm pretty sure both babies are boys.

Now, we have to re-think our plan. :-)

They have been a lot of fun. Hailey takes really great care of them.

Holiday Happenings Part 1

2011-12-18T12:46:00.000-08:00

This Christmas Season has been SO. MUCH. FUN. Hailey and Addy are at such fun ages and they really have brought the Christmas Spirit into our home. They really have grasped the role that Christ plays in this holiday and every night in prayers never forget to say, 'we're thankful for Jesus'. We are so grateful to know the true meaning of Christmas and love being able to share that with our sweet girls.

The first post about Holiday Happenings includes our:

Gingerbread House

Looks pretty awesome if you ask me!

Wisdom Teeth Day 2

2011-12-17T18:11:00.000-08:00

Today was really rough to start. I ended up sleeping on the recliner for half the night since laying in bed wasn't really working well. I also had a moment of getting really mad at Nate for leaving me to go to an auction, but in the end, I completely understood why he had to. I was just worried about how I was going to care for my little ones in the condition I was in, which was not good. However, my sweet cousin Rachel stepped in this morning and took really good care of them and got them dressed and fixed their hair so that they would be ready for my in-laws to step in and take them off my hands for the afternoon. I have the best family. After getting some rest and still feeling awful, I decided to change my meds from Lortab to Ibuprofen and i'm so glad I did. The lortab did nothing for the pain, but made me sick instead. The ibuprofen was an answer to prayers. I'm feeling much better, and can actually sip on a smoothie that Nater so graciously made for me. (Probably the best smoothie I've ever had--no joke.) I am starting to swell a little, but I can't complain.

Hopefully it's all up from here!

Wisdom Teeth

2011-12-16T15:57:00.000-08:00

First off, I got my wisdom teeth pulled this morning. It went as good as could be expected, I guess. Only, they left me looking like this:

Pretty, I know. But blog pictures don't always have to be perfect right? Then it wouldn't be a blog. I'm glad it's done. Although the procedure was less than exciting, I was looking forward to an afternoon to just chill and relax and sleep. The truth is, I really really miss my babies. My wonderful mother in law has been taking care of them for me all day and I am so grateful for her. It's 4:46 and I keep watching the clock waiting to see them. However, my meds are starting to kick in and i'm feeling extremely tired. :-)

I'm also grateful to my friend Megan for picking me up from my appointment. She was pretty excited to do so, since she knew it might be a very entertaining car ride with me. Thanks to my father in law for giving me the ride TO my appointment and to my brother in law Ben for being so willing to take on a 3 and 5 year old for a while to give my mother in law a break at some point during the day. :-)

Now, I just have to figure out a way to relax and not do TOO MUCH while Nate's at an auction all day tomorrow. Luckily, I have my sweet cousin Rachel who has offered to take the girls for a bit.

To my amazing family who has stepped in to help me, I truly am grateful. To my amazing husband for loving me regardless of my physical state. :-) You're the best.

Here's to a speedy recovery and the excuse to eat pudding all day if I desire.

FACEBOOK

2011-12-07T19:36:00.000-08:00

I sit here writing a new post while I look like I just got in a fight. I went to the dentist this morning and got the heck numbed out of me. My kids think I look weird. Not that I haven't heard that before. :-) But since I don't really feel like doing anything else that I should be doing like cleaning, laundry, etc, I'm looking back on the last year without Facebook and realizing that i'm STILL so glad that I got out of it.

It's been a year and 3 months since I cancelled my Facebook account. It's amazing how time flies. After all this time and hearing about things people are posting on there, I have to admit, I really don't miss it. Sure, there might be little things here and there like pictures and videos that I don't get to see, but for the most part, I'm grateful for the freedom I feel with having more time to do more important things. I realize that to many people Facebook is important and that's ok. To each their own. But, for me, I don't need it. I don't want it. I'm glad to be out of the drama that it sometimes brings. I just really can't believe that it's been so long!!

One thing I do hate. I hate that with some websites that I would like to join or get emails from, yadda yadda, I have to have a Facebook or Twitter account and I think it's lame. It makes me hate Facebook that much more. :-) Just kidding.. I know it's not their fault. But still, come on now, really? I guess those sights don't deserve my business anyways. (now i'm just making myself feel better.)

One year and counting.... thanks to freedom and more time.

Oh Christmas Tree!

2011-12-04T21:16:00.000-08:00

Years past, I have looked and looked for a great tree skirt. I haven't ever found one that i'm in love with. So, this year, I made one and i'm pretty darn proud of how it turned out.

Now all it needs is some fun presents!!

Thanksgiving & One Other Thing

2011-12-01T21:35:00.000-08:00

Before I share the amazing Thanksgiving weekend I had with my little family, I have to rewind a month and share this adorable picture that I forgot I had.

My inlaws informed me of this great train ride near their home. This family and the neighborhood surrounding pull together every year to put on this great & FREE train ride. It's filled with tunnels of spooky goblins and mummies and music and lights. It was a great time. Damon and Summer joined us with their kids. I was amazed at how awesome this was. This will definitely be a tradition of ours. I can't wait to see how their Christmas ride is.

Ok, now back to Thanksgiving.

Nate and I made the mutual decision to stay home by ourselves this year. Nobody from his family ended up being around. We were suppose to head south to my parents for Thanksgiving this year, but with an accumulation of STUFF that has come up, I was about to lose my mind and therefor, needed a bit of down time. It turned out to be one of the best weekends ever.

Thanksgiving night was a little sad and lonely till we made the final decision to just go and eat at this little place that we figured might not be busy. It wasn't. That was only PART of the good news of the night. They had a full Thanksgiving Buffet with every kind of pie you could think of and a salad and fruit buffet all for $15.00. Kids were free!!!!

Wahoo!

We had the place to ourselves and it was AWESOME!!

That Saturday we went ice skating!! The girls have been wanting to go ever since we went to Disney on Ice, which will be another post. (I know, i'm a little behind on posts)

In the past, Addy hasn't really been interested. She was really wobbly and therefor, didn't want anything to do with it. This time, it was a different story...

After they ice skated their hearts out, we took them to the mall to see Santa and get some ice cream.

At this point, Hailey has many things on her list for Christmas.

Hailey:

Horse and Stable

Crayon Maker

Princess Dolls

Easy Bake Oven

Dora Phone with Makeup

etc. The list goes on...

Addy:

Strawberry Shortcake Stylin doll

Crayon Maker

Build-A-Bear

Dora phone with makeup

Princess Dolls

Princess Purse

We stopped at Coldstone on the way out of the mall...

Sunday was a pretty chill day... we had Nate's family over for dinner and just spent some good quality home-time.

Monday morning came and we were pleasantly surprised to remember that Nate had the day off since he worked Thanksgiving.

We decided to take the girls to the ZOO.

We love the zoo. Especially on days when nobody is there and the animals are left to us alone. It was GREAT!

After the zoo, we went out to eat lunch at Red Robin where this little comedian had us all laughing...

After lunch, we went and got ice cream then headed home to relax for the rest of the night..

The next nigh, Tuesday, Nate surprised us with taking us to Tucanos for dinner. Since we have carnivors for children, it was the perfect place. They ate so much steak, it was ridiculous. After we ate, the girls wanted to run around the Riverwoods since it is all decked out for Christmas. Of course, Santa was there and they of course had to go talk to him AGAIN. They are obsessed with seeing Santa this year.

That concluded our amazing Thanksgiving Days together as our little family and it was perfect. Now, we're off to making lists and checking them twice!!

Girl Time

2011-11-24T13:18:00.000-08:00

It's something I don't get a lot of. In fact, it's extremely rare around here. The only girl time that happens around here is with a 3 year old and a 5 year old. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE my girl time with my little ones, but you know, sometimes it's great to have Adult Girl Time.. and that's just what I got.

Since finding out the date for Breaking Dawn, my friend Jamie booked her flight. She lives in Louisiana and aside from the quick trip she made for a funeral last summer, I haven't seen her in 2 years. We don't classify the last trip as 'seeing eachother' because really, we didn't. :-) I've been looking forward to this trip for a very long time and so has Nate. I informed him of this well in advance so he would know what to plan for on his part. So, basically, Jamie was staying at our house for 6 days and he would be in charge of the girls once he got home from work during her stay so we could go play.

I have a SUPERB husband. Not only did he agree to this plan, he was excited FOR me. Well, the day finally came and we (the girls and I) drove to the airport and picked her up. It was cold but beautiful out and a bit of a shock to her southern system. She managed though.

That first night, we went to Color Me Mine. It's a Jamie-Tiff tradition. As usual, we had an idea in mind of what we would be making, however, that idea quickly got thrown out the minute we got there and discovered these beauties:

Cookie Jars

We couldn't pass them up. After carefully planning them and taping them and color scheming, we were ready. There weren't many people there that night, so it was awesome. One of the great things about our relationship is that we can hang out and say NOTHING to each other and it's not awkward or weird. I love that. This is how our masterpieces turned out. Pretty dang cute if you ask me.

The next day, Thursday was the BIG night!!

BREAKING DAWN!!

My awesome sister in law is kind enough to include me on the opening night parties she does with her friends. Only those who are die-hard fans, such as ourselves are allowed. She has connections to someone who rents out big theaters for special early showings of big movies. So, that evening, Jamie and I got all dolled up in our Breaking Dawn t-shirts and headed out to pick up Carmen, my sister in law. Upon arriving, we noticed that Carmen needed a little something extra with her attire, so we forced her to buy a t-shirt as well to wear with us. :-) Although, there wasn't much forcing needed. She was equally excited once she tried it on. Then, we met up with some of her friends at Paradise Cafe in American Fork for some yummy, soup, salads & sandwiches. After eating, we headed to Thanksgiving Point at the Mammoth Theater and waited for our showing which was at 9pm. It was CRAZY!!! They were serving 'Wedding Cake' (for Bella and Edward's Wedding) and giving out ring pops with an invitation to the wedding attached. It was pretty awesome.

We snapped a couple pictures, purchased the Twilight Special which was a small popcorn, a candy & large drink for $5. (AMAZING) Then, it was our time to go in. Because it was a special showing they were giving out water bottles, hats, etc. Also, there were no previews. We just jumped right in to the movie. SO FUN!

The next day, Friday, Jamie spent with her family. Then on Saturday, as soon as Nate came home from the auction, and after we put up our Christmas Decor, we left for another girls night. We picked up our finished pottery, then headed over to the Theater to see Breaking Dawn again. Yep, we are that awesome. After the movie, we met up with our friends Megan and Kristi for dinner at Macaroni Grill. We had so much fun talking and laughing, especially with Kristi's wad of receipts in her poor little wallet. When asking her why she still keeps them all, her response was "just in case I have returns!" I pretty much couldn't stop laughing or crying, because it was JUST that funny. I have the best friends.

After dinner, we bid farewell and headed home. We were so exhausted after so many late nights that we just went home and Jamie hung out with me while I decorated our tree.

Sunday we spent being lazy, pretty much all day, till Jamie went to see her family again while we went to see ours for dinner. Monday, the dreaded day came and it was time to take her back to the airport. Our goodbyes pretty much stink. I don't know what it is, but we just can't seem to keep it together. Much thanks to Ben, her husband for supporting this en-devour even though he just got back from a year long service to Afghanistan We needed it and it was a blast.

Become One...

2011-11-21T20:46:00.000-08:00

Today I went to Walmart. I know, that's nothing new. However, this story is. And it's hilarious, so get ready.

I'm at the checkout when Hailey and Addy ask me for a quarter to go get a little something out of the machines in the Fun Center. So, being the ULTRA-COOL mom that I am, I oblige and give them their request. We go into the Fun Center and Addy immediately sticks her quarter in and out comes a miniature little rubber bunny. She's ecstatic. Hailey just can't choose. This is nothing new. Hailey has a really hard time making decisions. She gets that from me, poor girl. Finally, she decides she wants to do 'THE CLAW'. I explain to her that it's not very likely that she'll get something from those kinds of machines.

She looks at me and says "mom, I know how to do it, I learned from Spongebob. You have to become ONE with the claw".

After trying to get myself together from laughing SO hard, I agree to try. She of course wanted me to do it for her. She pointed out that she wanted the blue ball, so that's what I went for. And guess what?

I GOT IT!

Hailey is jumping up and down and saying "I told you! I told you!!"

Oh man, I walked out of that little room laughing so hard that I had to call Nate and immediately share our little experience. He laughed hard, as I knew he would. So for you future 'CLAWERS' out there, here's a bit of advise from a 5 year old.

He Passed!!!!

2011-11-18T20:49:00.000-08:00

A while back, I posted about Nate getting a new job. It's been going great, other than the stresses that come with starting something THAT new after a very long time at a different job. We feel extremely blessed. Nate seriously amazes me. He is a very intelligent person. Way more intelligent than I ever expected. Lately, at work, he's been studying for the ISM test. It stands for Information Storage & Management. Basically it's all about networks and how companies store their information and how it's secured. It's a pretty insane test. To give you an idea of how insane it is, the trainer told the group to not even plan on passing this test the first time. Also, they only needed a 60% to pass. The company paid for their training and for them to take the test as much as they needed before December. It was VERY important that he pass this test. However, most of the people hired were having a very difficult time passing. Nate took the test the first time after a couple days of training for it and bombed it. It sucked. So, back to more training. He took a break from it for a couple weeks merely because he said it just wasn't sinking in and that he didn't have the motivation to study for it... time was ticking. We only had a few weeks till December and he started more studying. He stayed late at work for a few days to continue studying. Those days he would leave at 7:30am and not get home till 8pm. It was crazy. The night before the test which was Tuesday, November 15th, 2011, he took a practice test online and barely passed it so he was pretty worried for his test the next morning.

I spent the morning getting ready for my friend Jamie to come to town and kept looking at the clock wondering how he was doing and if he was done yet. I was at the gas station getting gas when Hailey yells at me from inside the car that "daddy was calling". So, even though it's 'against the rules' at the gas station, I called him back and walked out to the parking lot away from the gas so I could find out how he did. His response after asking him how he was, was "i'm ok". My next question was, "how did you do?" His response: "I failed miserably." I felt so bad for him. This test is terrible. Then, he said "just kidding, I passed!"

I couldn't believe it. I started screaming on the phone and turned around to see everyone in the gas station looking at me like I was some crazy person. I was so excited for him. He and two other guys in his department took the test that morning and he was the only one to pass.

I really am so relieved and so so proud of him. He deserves this. He has worked so hard to get us where we are and I just want him to know how proud I am. He is amazing.

Way to go BABE!!!!! Love you!

Released

2011-11-15T13:18:00.000-08:00

4 1/2 years ago, I got called into the bishops office of the Rivergrove 3rd ward in Provo, Ut. As Nate and I sat there, wondering who the appointment was for, it was suddenly very clear when the Bishop asked me to be the 2nd counselor in the Young Women's Presidency. I immediately felt good about this adventure. Then, the Bishop told me that they would be sustaining me in sacrament meeting THAT day. Crazy. I remember walking into sacrament meeting, sitting down, then a few minutes later, Kristi Parker walked by and winked at me. I didn't know who she was or why she winked, I just thought it was a little strange or overly nice? I wasn't sure. :-) Now, she's one of my closest friends.

Rewind a week earlier.

Its a Sunday afternoon and it's beautiful outside. Our renter who lived in our basement was the girlfriend of one of Nate's good friends. Amber was her name and we loved her instantly. Danny decided that day to show off his new motorcycle he bought by trying to pop a wheelie down our street. Well, one of the tries turned tragic when he lost control going about 65 mph we are guessing and flew threw the air launching his bike through our neighbors garage door while his body slammed into the brick wall on the side of the garage door, you know, the one that has the address numbers on it. Next thing we know, Nate and Amber run to his side while Jordan, Nate's brother and I call 911. I look over to see Nate slapping Danny's face trying to bring him to, since he was unconcious. Nate was yelling at him and Amber was sitting on the grass freaking out. I won't go into detail what he looked like after that because it wasn't pretty. There was no helmet involved. I sat there holding Amber when we heard the ambulance rushing down the street. I then remembered that my 9 month old was asleep at home a couple houses away and I hadn't checked on her. As I started running toward my house, I saw a couple walking toward the accident that I recognized from church, but didn't know. Even still, I folded into her arms and broke down crying. She asked how they could help so I asked her if she could just stay at my house and listen out for Hailey while I went back to the scene.

One week later.

I'm sitting there in sacrament meeting and I stand up along with the winker as the 1st counselor and the accident friend who stayed with Hailey as the President, Megan Cook. I remember Megan coming up to me after sacrament meeting and saying "I promise I didn't submit your name just because we met last week at the accident." :-) All three of us became instant friends and have been since. About 6 months later, Kristi got put in as Primary President and I was made the 1st counselor.

Fast forward 2 years and Megan got released as President. They asked me to remain 1st counselor even through the change of presidency. The new President was announced and her name was Lezlee Partridge. Once again, I found a great life long friend. I've been very blessed in my calling. Fast forward 1 year and our ward got dissolved. I didn't know such thing was possible, but I get a text from Lezlee saying that at Stake Conference that morning, (we were home with sick kids) they released EVERYONE in the Rivergrove 3rd ward from their callings. Nate had been in as the Executive Secretary for 2 years and knew NOTHING of this change. We asked our bishop and he said he got the call the night before Stake Conference notifying him of this change. It all happened so fast and next thing we know, we are meeting in a new building the next week with people we had never met before. One week later, I get called into the bishops office with the same request to take place as 1st counselor in the YW Presidency. I gladly accepted especially after being informed that Lezlee had accepted the call to continue as President in the new ward. So, off we go.

2 years later, and after a pretty dramatic timeline, I was released. It's been a total of 4 1/2 years and even though its a bitter sweet feeling and a little stress relieved, I feel a little lost. That's all I've known since having kids! Crazy!! But I have to say, it will be so nice to have my Wednesday nights to spend with my family. It will be better on our bank account for the money I spent on lessons and such, but I will miss it. I will miss the girls and their drama. :-) I will miss the women I worked with. Out of the 4 1/2 years I was serving in Young Womens, there was a total of about 2 1/2 of those years when it was just me and the President because our ward was small and sparse, allowing for limited help. Those were some crazy times, but looking back, it was a blast. I'm grateful for the friends I was able to make during my time in this calling. To Megan and Kris... You guys are the best! Or should I say, Winker and Accident girl.. I'm glad it brought us together. I would be cheesy and say something like 'BFF's!!! or something but I won't. And Lezlee... We made a great team. I'll be praying that you're next! Just kidding. I loved being in there with you. It was a good time.

It will be interesting to see what comes next.....

All About Hailey

2011-11-14T20:55:00.000-08:00

I still can't believe that 5 years ago you made your appearance into this world and my life. I still remember that day like it was yesterday. You were immediately nicknamed our little papoose! You had really dark skin and black hair. A lot of it, too. You were quite the little snuggler, even though now, you'd rather throw a punch to the gut than to snuggle. :-) You snuggle me, it's Daddy and uncle Ben that you like to 'wrestle' with. Over the years, I feel like I have really gotten to know you. I know that you love people with all your heart. You really get attached. I know that when you laugh, I mean REALLY laugh that your chin folds into your neck a little.. it's really cute. I know that you love to go to the store, but only if you can get a donut. I know that you could care less what clothes I put you in every day, but I also know that you are great at picking out your own clothes to get dressed in when i'm not around to help. I know that when you're sad, really sad that you bury your head so nobody can see the look on your face. I know that when you try to be serious, you can't. You laugh every time. I know that if you don't want to do something that's hard, you usually do it just to prove to us you can. I love that about you. I know that you love sharing a room with your sister and that you try to be sneaky and play after we put you to bed. I know that you don't really like going to church. You say it's boring. I can understand, especially for you who is so busy all the time. It's hard to sit that long. I know that you are the best negotiator I've ever known OR seen on TV. Seriously. It's amazing. I know that you LOVE treats and you ask for them pretty much all day long. I know that you love animals. You would have every kind of animal living in our house if you could. Especially reptiles. Silly girl. I know that you love art. Even just the other day your art teacher at preschool was telling me how amazing you are for your age. I know that you love to run and jump. Literally. Everywhere we go, I have to remind you that you need to just WALK with me, not run. You would run everywhere if you could. I know that you try really hard to be nice to people. You have gotten so good at using good manners. I know that you are the top reader in your age group at school. It amazes me. I know that you excel in everything that you try. I hope you keep that up. I know that you make my heart melt... a lot. Sometimes the things you say or the ways you act just make me want to squeeze you forever. I know that you LOVE to snuggle your dad in the mornings when you first wake up. He loves it too. I know that you always wake up in a good mood. I know that you love to play tag and ride your scooter or bike. I know that you are good at taking turns with people. I know that you are a responsible girl with things we ask you to do or take care of. Most of all, I know that I love you with all my heart and that I don't know what I would do without my monkey. You have really become my buddy and I just can't get enough of you. Happy Birthday baby girl! I can't believe you're 5!

Love, Mommy

This is a questionnaire that I filled out according to Hailey's answers. Such a fun thing to look back on some day.

All Things Tangled.. The ACTUAL Birthday

2011-11-11T12:16:00.000-08:00

Hailey's little 'friends party' was a blast. I had asked her a while ago who she wanted to invite to her party and her response melted my heart:

"I want to invite Maya, Zoe & Addy"

The fact that she would choose her little sister to be a friend at her birthday party was so sweet. So, the plans were made and when the day came, it was a total blast. As usual, Hailey wanted to be fully engaged in helping with making the food. And, she was.

The cupcakes turned out so cute, as well as the caramel and chocolate dipped pretzel sticks. (Nate helped me make those.. he was the sprinkler.) My mom was here also which is always nice. She helps things run a little smoother. It's also nice to have someone around so that I can spend a little more time 'enjoying' the party than to run around doing the background work.

First off, we had the girls paint on a picture on canvas. I thought this would be a cute idea months ago when planning this party, then I saw it all over the place on Pinterest so it must have been a great thing to do. The girls absolutely loved it. They all came up with some really creative stuff as well.

Then, it was time to eat.

Cupcakes and Ice Cream.. doesn't get much better than that.

They all got to have a little photo op with Rapunzel...

Then it was time for presents.

It turned out great, the girls had a blast, and that's what it's all about, right?

2 parties down & SUCCESS!!

Tangled: The Family Party

2011-11-08T21:09:00.000-08:00

This year, Nate and I decided to have a family party for Hailey with just our family members and then she could pick a few friends to have a 'friends party' with on her actual birthday. We also scaled down a bit and didn't have dinner along with the festivities. Birthday's can get out of control and dang expensive, so, cake and ice cream it is.

Hailey wanted to be very involved with making her cake this year, and she was.

Speaking of cake, since this was a long awaited Tangled Birthday, this is what I came up with for the cake:

The cake took me a couple hours, but it was worth it. Hailey absolutely loved it.

Of course we had the movie playing for all the kiddos and adults alike.

Hailey had some of the best expressions when opening her presents this year.. it was quite entertaining.

But the best one of all was this one:

and this one...

Meet Pepper, the newest member of the family.

Hailey has been waiting a long time for this and was absolutely sure she'd get a guinea pig for her birthday. Pepper had been hiding for three days in Nate's office where we don't let the girls play or hang out, so it was tricky, but it worked.

She is so in love with her and can't wait to hold her ALL the time.

Next, it was cake time and horse riding time. (Hailey was kind enough to be the horse)

The night came to an end and Hailey gave out her hugs and it was a success.

After everyone left, we got Pepper out to play for a while.

Hailey had such a fun time and loved her party... that's what it's all about right?

She was blessed to have so many family members there to celebrate with her.

(Damon, Summer, Lincoln, Savanah, Hudson, Grandma J, Grandpa J, Rachelle, Spencer, Carmen, Ben, Grandma L, Jay, Rachel, Jordan & Melissa.)

Thanks Everyone!!

One party down, one party to go.

Halloween 2011

2011-11-06T14:01:00.000-08:00

So, i'm a little behind on blogging. This week has been crazy, nothing new. Halloween was awesome this year. Hailey and Addy are at such fun ages for it. Addy has known for a while that she wanted to be Belle, but Hailey on the other hand kept changing her mind a million times. She finally decided on Mulan which was PERFECT for her. They both were absolutely darling in their princess attire and they loved every minute of being dressed up. Although, when I put the turtleneck on Addy, she made choking motions and said the shirt made her throat sick. It was a priceless reaction.

After making them wait ALL day, we finally got dolled up and headed out for some fun at Grandma and Grandpa Johnson's neighborhood. It's tradition, we always trick or treat in their neighborhood and its always a blast!

Typical...

We got to Skype with their cousin Avery who was Ariel this year.

Savanah

Hudson

The Twins.. Hudson & Savanah

My brother Damon & his wife Summer brought their kids to come trick or treating with us.

Addy wasted NO time in eating some candy...

This year was another FUN and SAFE year and the girls are already planning their costumes for next year..

Hailey wants to be Jasmine or Rapunzel

Addy wants to be Pascal.

We'll see if that comes to be.

All Things Halloween...

2011-10-30T21:01:00.000-07:00

This year, we made flying bats to add to our Halloween Porch decorations. Our Butler is a family favorite, although it freaks most of our neighbors out. But, that's what Halloween is about, right? Mission accomplished, although I do feel a little bad that some of the kids HATE him in our neighborhood, but then again, some kids LOVE him.

Usually it's me who is dragging everyone to the store to buy Pumpkins. This year, Nate was all over it. We picked out some GREAT pumpkins and told the girls we would carve them the following night. Hailey, as usual was LOVING sticking her hand in the pumpkin guts and making awesome faces to go with it. Addy, on the other hand, wanted nothing to do with it.

Having children in the house makes Halloween and any holiday or special even SO much more exciting. I am the parent helper in Hailey's preschool class and she was so excited for DAYS about her Halloween party and program at school. Leading up to this, Hailey had a really hard time deciding what to be for Halloween this year. She wanted to be so many things that she really couldn't narrow it down and decide. I think the end result of Mulan was perfect. She was absolutely adorable.

Once she decided on Mulan, she was extremely excited to call her Aunt Carmen to tell her. She knows that Mulan is Carmen's favorite Disney movie and character and she couldn't wait to ask her how to say 'Trick Or Treat' in Mandarin.

Hailey's teacher Miss Farrah

Hailey's best little class buddy Zoe

Hailey and Grandma J

Addy was very excited FOR Hailey.

She loved watching her get all dressed up.

It got her even more excited to dress up on Halloween.

Time Out

2011-10-25T21:12:00.000-07:00

I've realized in the 5 years that I've had children under my wing, Time Out is a very important aspect of life. Now, as important as it is in helping children learn boundaries and discipline, I firmly believe that adults also occasionally need a time out.

I feel a bit selfish in writing this post at this time. I have friends who are in much more distressed times than me but I also know that everyone has their different challenges and right now, i'm facing quite a few. Tonight, I feel as though I might throw up at any time, and it's not because i'm sick. There is just TOO much going on and i'm DONE.

I'm done with a lot of things right now and one of those things is Photography. I have a few shoots that I've already committed to and i'm happy with that, but I wanted to get the word out there that I will no longer be doing photo-shoots. It's been a blast and I have loved it, but it takes a lot of time and that is something that I don't have much of these days and it's precious, the time I do have.

I have things coming up in my life that haven't even happened yet, but are extremely stressful and causing some crazy anxiety. My weeks are literally PACKED and i'm pretty sick of it. My kids are neglected (not in the pure sense of the word, but in general speaking.. don't go calling the authorities on me) :P and I want more time with them. My time with Nate is very limited and somehow, as the mother and wife of this family, I need to figure out how to make this work better.

I apologize in advance if I cannot commit to any needs that may arise, I just need a time out. Thanks for your understanding.

They Were Picked

2011-10-22T09:29:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday started out like a regular Sunday night at Nate's parents. We go there every Sunday for dinner. Carmen and Ben made a delicious Chicken Poppy Seed Casserole and everyone brought something to go with it. It was a bit of a family effort. :-)

After dinner when we were all settled and just hanging out visiting, I notice Ben kept video taping things. I was wondering what he was doing and just figured it was 'silly ol Ben'. So, a few minutes pass, then Archie, their dog comes running in the room wearing a t-shirt. I read the writing on the shirt and then just passed it off as a 'silly ol Ben' joke or something so I didn't respond right away. I then hear Ben and Carmen say something quietly about how I saw it but didn't react. So, I looked again, read the writing a little slower, then it dawned on me.

The shirt read: I'm Going To Be A Big Brother

I looked at Ben and Carmen and said " WHAT DOES THIS MEAN????" I repeated myself a couple times while seeing the grins on their faces and the camera in my face, when I turned to everyone else and got their attention while pointing to Archie's shirt. Then, the magical and LONG AWAITED words escaped from Carmen's mouth:

"We've Been Picked !"

Tears flooded the room at that moment and we all were LITERALLY jumping for joy!

They had found out a couple days before on Friday that a sweet young girl had decided that Ben and Carmen would be the perfect parents for her baby boy due December 30th. I cannot express the intense emotion I felt for Carmen and Ben upon hearing the news. We have all been praying and rooting for them for SO long. It's their turn! Every time I think about it, it gets me all choked up.

I know they will be such great parents, given their relationship with their nieces and nephews. We are so so so so happy for them. Last night, about every 20 minutes or so, till we fell off to dreamy land, Nate and I would just look at each other and someone would say, "I can't believe it! I am so excited for them!"

I can't wait for Carmen and Ben to meet their new baby boy at the end of the year, and I can't wait to meet my new little nephew.

Congrats Carmen and Ben!!! We are so excited for you!!

Lincoln's Birthday

2011-10-17T21:00:00.000-07:00

Last week, while we were in Vegas, we were able to attend Lincoln's 4th Birthday Party. Hailey and Addy were so excited to go to Lincoln's Birthday. They love him to death and could not wait. The party was at the 'Butterfly Park' in Las Vegas and it was a beautiful night for an outside party.

Summer was so sick with who know's what. She had a throat, cough, sinus thing going on, but was able to pull off this superb

Dinosaur Cake.

I took a plethora of pictures. I love my family and when I get to see them, I can't help but snap away. It helps that I have the cutest nieces and nephews ever.

I can't believe how everyone is growing up so fast.

Little Lincoln turned 4 and it amazes me.

Bella fell and got a rock in the bottom of her chin. She was pretty upset about it as you can tell.

at one point, Hailey was climbing on this fence that was really high up. It scared me. I yelled at her to get down. When she got down eventually, I explained to her why I was so upset about it. I said to her,

"You could have fallen and broken an arm or a leg..."

Just after I say this, Little Preston chimes in from behind and says:

"or split your head open or something."

It made me laugh. Thanks Preston for the help.

I love watching these kids grow. I love watching these kids become friends. I hope it stays that way forever.

Happy Birthday Linc.

Bella's Baptism

2011-10-09T20:53:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I got to witness the baptism of my niece Bella. First of all, I can't believe she is 8!! I can remember clear as day, the day she was born and the first time I met her. We were best buds. I'm so proud of her for making this great and important decision. She is such a bright and cheerful girl and we all just love being around her so much. Hailey and Addy were so excited to go to her baptism and they thought it was so amazing. They got to go sit on the carpet right in front of the font and watch. We sang church songs and talked about the Holy Ghost and what it means to be baptized. What a great event.

Aside from the event of Baptism itself, it was a great excuse to get together as a family. It was a full house for this occasion and even though at times it was a little out of control, it was a lot of fun. Chad, Andrea, Bella, Senna, Damon, Summer, Lincoln, Hudson, Savanah, Hailey, Addy, Mom, Dad & Me, were all the people that stayed at my parents house. CRAZY! But so fun.

Grandpa & Mimi came, as well as Jackie and Danny and after the baptism, we headed back to mom and dads for some seriously great food! My mom set up the yummiest buffet of food and we chowed!

It was definitely a neat experience for all of us. We are all so grateful that they made the decision to make the trip from Tacoma Washington to have her baptized in Las Vegas so we could all attend.

Gratitude

2011-10-04T13:02:00.000-07:00

I wish I could say that I'm sitting here blogging because I have all my chores done and have completed all things motherly and wifely. But really, I just ate a GIANT plate of homemade nachos and I can't really move at the moment.

Which, leads me into the reason for this post. I love food. I'm grateful for it. :-)

Something else i'm grateful for:

My Beautiful Girls

You can view more pictures from this shoot here.

Have you seen such precious faces? I haven't. But i'm allowed to say that, i'm their mom. I'm grateful for the beautiful life I have been blessed with and the beautiful people I get to share it with.

Recently, I stumbled upon a website I was informed of by a friend of mine. I have kept a gratitude journal off and on for a while now. Usually, I write in it when i'm feeling ambitious and in the "I'm going to be organized and keep journals and READ and blah blah blah" Who really has time for ALL that, right? But, this website is fantastic. You sign up your FREE account, then every evening, they send you an email with a simple question:

"What are you grateful for today?"

You simply reply to the email with 3-5 things, including pictures if you like and it gets posted to your account on that calendar day. You can review any posts and you can even print it all out!

Easy Peasy!!!

I'm hoping on this journey to being more aware of the things i'm grateful for on a daily basis, I can in turn become a more positive person. Try it, You'll like it!

Here's to being grateful!

Home Improvement

2011-10-02T09:26:00.000-07:00

I've been a little busy lately. I've had some ideas for a while of things I wanted to do around the house.

I finally did them.

Aside from the usual surface clean and deep clean, these are my latest projects.

The Pantry

I'm always thinking of things I need next time I go to the store, but I never can seem to find anything to write it down on. Then, I usually forget till I get home from the store. Now, I have made a solution to my problem.

Besides, Hailey and Addy love to draw on it while i'm cleaning the kitchen! It's a win-win for everyone!

Bathroom Mirror

I saw this idea on Pinterest and when I set my mind to something, I have to just do it. I've seen it before and i've wanted to do it for a long time, but since seeing it there, it motivated me. So, after a trip to Lowe's and a little painting followed with some sanding and liquid nails, we were set. The next morning I showed Nate the completed project.. (he had no idea I was doing this) and he loved it. Phew!! That would stink if he didn't.. :-)

Before:

After:

Cute Chairs

I began this journey of making these chairs at a craft night with some friends. I finally finished them last week after cementing the pipes together so they would quit falling apart. They turned out pretty cute and the girls sure love them.

I have a list full of PROJECTS that i'm working on, but these are a few of the ones i've finally completed. Stay tuned for more home improvement projects!!

Sweet Dreams & Silly Ones To

2011-09-25T20:14:00.000-07:00

We have a tradition. It was started by Nate. Every morning when the girls wake up we ask them if they had any dreams. After they answer yes, we ask them what they were about.

With Addy, her response is always the same: "Elephants & Giraffes & Zebras"

Hailey, on the other hand, has had some pretty lively dreams. I wanted to write some of them down before I forget them.

*****

Hailey: "I dreamed that our whole family was in Tom and Jerry, the show on tv. Only Scratch was friends with Tom and they were chasing Jerry. You were in it, and Dad was in it and Addy was in it. Me and Addy were watching Scratch and Tom chase Jerry, then Jerry did silly things and me and Addy were laughing really hard."

*****

Hailey : "Me and Addy were running through a castle and we were trying to save the princess."

Me: "Who was the princess?"

Hailey: "Princess Aroura.. or maybe it was you"

Me: "Awe, well who were you trying to save the princess from?"

Hailey: "Daddy"

*****

Hailey: "I was at Daddy's softball game and I had bug spray on me, then a mosquito landed on my arm and said 'I suck!'"

Me: laughing hysterically since we never say that word around the girls and it was just funny.

*****

Hailey: "I had a dream last night that I went with Maya's family to the store!"

(Maya is Hailey's BFF that lives next to us)

*****

Hailey: "Mom! I had a dream that a T-Rex was chasing me!"

Me: Oh no! That's kind of scary!

Hailey: "Naw, he was my friend"

*****

I love hearing about their adventures they had while sleeping safe and sound in their bed. There is just something magical about a childs dreams. I've made a commitment to write down their dreams in the mornings, that way I can make them a 'DREAM BOOK' some day. (Or maybe it's just for me to cherish, but I think they'll appreciate it too.)

Little Challenges

2011-09-18T14:22:00.000-07:00

Over the course of Addy's life, we have come to realize some things about her personality. She has always been a little more 'attached' than we were use to with Hailey. Now, for most people this is normal. We though it was too, until we began to realize that deep inside this precious little girl was a heightened sence of attachment that was accompanied by fear.

Aside from being a mommy's girl, she doesn't like to be alone. She freaks out if she is the only one in a room. She won't go upstairs to find a toy or her blankie because she's afraid we'll leave her while she's gone. She gets extremely upset if I start to walk out the front door while she is still putting on her shoes. "Don't Leave Me!!!" she'll yell and then burst into tears. Every time she goes down for a nap, she'll ask me if i'll be downstairs when she wakes up for fear that I might leave while she's asleep. Same thing for bedtime at night. She trusts me enough to know that when she asks and I tell her where i'll be, I will stay true to my word. She wants me to stay on the main floor at her gymnastics gym. She does NOT want me going upstairs to watch through the glass wall because there is a barrier that disconnects her from me. Even though she can see me through the glass, she can't handle it. Every Thursday morning, she asks on the way to gymnastics, "you're gonna stay downstairs at the gym, right mom?" I can leave her with friends as long as Hailey stays with her. She won't stay in nursery by herself. She has a fear of men as well and doesn't handle things well unless Nate or myself stay with her.

These are just a few of the many things we've noticed with her. There is something in the look on her face or the cries that is much deeper than just being at that age, you know?

So, at her 3 year well check, I talked with her doctor about it. He smiled and said, "I was waiting for this". After asking what he meant by it, he said he has several notes in her file from previous visits that he was waiting for this ages well check to discuss with us. He said he was hoping it would be the alternative issue of 'just that age' but instead he diagnosed her with some intense anxiety. After discussing this with him for quite a long time, we came to the conclusion that it's definitely something we can't ignore. He informed me that at this age, we need to work hard to help her learn to cope with it so it doesn't become a problem in her life. If she doesn't get help now, it will continue to grow and get worse to the point where she will have such anxiety that she will stop eating and stop being able to go to school and things like that because she's too nervous and too scared.

I can attest to this. I had this very problem growing up, only back then, nobody noticed those things as being something to pay attention to. I still remember the day I got to call my doctor at HOME to inform him that I ate dinner for the first time in months. I would only have a sleepover at my cousins house because every time I tried anywhere else, I would end up calling my mom to pick me up late at night because I would freak out. I couldn't use the bathroom without leaving the door open a crack so I could hear my family and make sure they were still there and didn't leave me. I would get sick when my friends would come over for a birthday party just because I was so anxious. I became one of those 'salad' girls on dates because I was too anxious and eating too much would make me sick. I had a re-occurring dream when I was little that lasted over the course of two years that I got kidnapped. I still remember it well. To this day, I cannot let Nate go to bed before me, because of my deep down anxiety of being left alone. I hope with all my heart that we can do something about this because there have been times in my life where this problem with anxiety has been pure hell. I don't want that for her.

So, back to Addy. I feel for her. I know how miserable this is and I only hope that we can do whatever we can to help her learn to cope with this so it doesn't control her life. We've been given some ideas and some things to try and I just hope they work. This is something that she can learn to cope with but something that will never go away.

The good news that came out of her appointment is that she's super healthy, besides the fact that she had a fever of 103 degrees that day. She's in the 85th percentile for her height and the 50th percentile for her weight. She's in the 18th percentile for her BMI. So, basically, she's tall, skinny and lean. I wish I could say the same for me. Fortunately, I think they got their daddy's genes. :-)

Luckily, she has a great example for an older sister. Hopefully we can help ease her worries and get control of this before it gets control of her.

10 Years

2011-09-11T21:54:00.000-07:00

I still remember where I was and how I felt the minute I heard of the news that Tuesday morning. I was getting ready for work in Las Vegas when my dad called me and told me to turn the tv on. I did. I watched. Anxiously. The first tower had been hit. He asked me to keep trying to get a hold of my mom since she was in Washington visiting my brother and his wife. She was suppose to travel home that morning. I finally reached her and she said she had been stuck at the airport and flights had been cancelled. After I got off the short phone call with her is when it happened. The second tower got hit. I watched in disbelief. I knew i'd be late for work but at that moment, I didn't care.

I remember driving to work that morning with the radio up as loud as I could to hear EVERYTHING that was going on. When I got to work, at the Title Company I worked for, the radio was on and everyone was paying close attention.

I knew that Nate was meeting with his uncle and his dad that morning to check out some stock stuff and I wasn't sure he was done, but I called him anyways. He answered and admitted that he was glued to the tv as well. We stayed on the phone for what seemed like an eternity, hardly saying anything, but just wanting to be connected. Next thing I remember was my boss walking through the door and sending everyone home. There was hightened security that day in Vegas due to the government believing that Vegas was a target. The local news was advising everyone to go home and stay there. So, we did. My dad came home early that day as well and we continued watching the news and talking to everyone in the family to make sure everyone was ok.

I talked to Nate several times that day. I wished so bad that we were together, but he was in Provo and I was 400 miles away... I'll never forget how I felt that day. I'll never forget the footage I saw, the footage that I still have a hard time watching to this day. I pray that the families that lost loved ones can feel comfort on this memorable anniversary.

Where's Addy Been?

2011-09-11T20:31:00.000-07:00

I have noticed lately that I blog a bit more about Hailey than I do Addy. There's a reason for this. Hailey's personality is much more outgoing and 'willing' than Addy's which means, there are more events to take pictures of in Hailey's life than in Addy's. However, that doesn't mean I don't have things I want to remember about Addy at this point in her life.

First off, her poor foot has taken a serious beating lately. She fell off her bike, then cut the top of it at the park, then somehow tore half her nail off on the other foot. All in the same week.

Recently, Addy has started a gymnastics class at the All American Gymnastics Academy. I was really leary at first since Addy is a 'hold on to mom with all your might' kind of girl, but she jumped right in to this like a Pro. The first day was especially fun since big sis got to join her.

After that, she was all about gymnastics. She absolutely loves it. She asks me almost every morning if it's gymnastics day. She loves her coach, Coach Nola and always has a big smile on her face most of the time she's there. Her favorite thing at gymnastics are the trampolines. She has actually gotten quite good at keeping a pretty good balance on them. They do this thing called a tornado where they have to have their hands straight above their heads like a pencil and spin while in the air. She loves that one. Another thing they have to do is seat drops. She also has figured this out very well. If you don't know what that is, you can Google it. :-)

For warm ups, the coach turns on Disney Music and rolls hula hoops out on the spring matt and they have to run and catch them before they fall flat on the ground. It doesn't sound that funny, but it's pretty hilarious actually. They do a lot of stretching and back bends, yadda yadda. Then they rotate stations. The stations include: Bars, Balance Beam, Trampolines, Floor work (back bends, back walkovers, donkey kicks, forward rolls, rope climbing, etc.), spring board flips, and handstands. She's been really working on the ending stance in gymnastics and it's so dang cute.

Her first day, she wore one of Hailey's old leotards from dance. But I quickly remembered from back in the day that dance leo's and gymnastics leo's are very different. So, we got her a gymnastics leo that she picked out and it's so very cute on her.

Okay, aside from gymnastics, this girl is my little buddy these days. She just emulates happy. Her little munchkin voice melts my heart and the things she comes up with are just plain funny. She really thinks she is a comedian and I have to agree. When i'm spending time with her one on one, she is seriously just so funny. She makes the silliest faces. She loves to sing, but is often over-shadowed by big sis in that area so when it's just me and her, she'll sing in the prettiest little voice and it also melts my heart a bit. Addy gives the best hugs. No joke. They are the 'wrap your arms around the neck and squeeze' type of hugs and I can't get enough of them. She usually is the first one up out of the two and she ALWAYS comes in and wants lots of morning snuggles. She is the snuggliest little bear in the mornings. She LOVES her big sis with all her heart. She sometimes gets left out of play time when Hailey has a friend over and it makes her sad a little. She can't stand to not be in the same bed as Hailey. They LOVE to sleep together. Sometimes in the morning, I can hear them talking before they even come out of their room and i'll find them in reading books together. Addy looks for Hailey first thing after her naps and can't wait to pick Hailey up from school. Addy is also a pretty big fan of her dad. She always asks to go see him at work. She misses him a lot throughout the day. She loves to cheer him on at softball games and she's Hailey's biggest fan at her soccer games. One day at Hailey's practice Addy kept yelling 'Go Hailey! Kick that ball!' and Hailey finally turned around and said 'Addy, be quiet, i'm trying to listen to my coach!' She loves to color... anything.. coloring books, the walls, you name it. She's a mamma's girl. She loves spending time alone with mom or baking things in the kitchen. She loves to help unload the dishwasher and she loves to dance to music on the radio. She's very curious about what words mean that she hears on movies and cartoons and she doesn't ever stop talking. She has a lot to say. Addy HATES nursery. She doesn't like to be away from her family. She gets that from me. She has a fear of being left alone and I was very much like that when I was little. She always wants to either see or be in hearing distance of the family or she pretty much freaks out. If I take two steps toward the front door while she's still putting on her shoes she yells "Wait! Don't leave me!" It's a bit of a problem. I hope she grows out of it though because I STILL suffer from a bit of the 'alone' syndrome. I've been trying to work with her on it. Anytime she gets a treat or toy while away from Hailey she always asks to get her sis one too. She's very thoughtful. She loves getting dressed in the morning. She has a very strong opinion about what she wears and always asks if there is pretty stuff on her shirt as i'm putting it on her. If it doesn't, off it comes. She has a love affair with her blankie and at times when she has ANY intense emotion brewing, she yells "BLANKIE" and runs through the house looking for it. She loves her little white puppy that barks and growls when you pet it. She doesn't like when Hailey sits in the back of the van where she can't see her. She loves her grandparents and talks about them very often. She gets picked on a lot by Hailey's friends for being the '3rd wheel' if you will but takes it pretty well. She considers Hailey's friends her friends and doesn't really feel the need to make her own friends. She's pretty content with Hailey by her side.

This is Addy in a nutshell and it has been a pleasure being her mother. I love our little dates we get to have and I love her sweet personality. I couldn't be more grateful for such a great little munchkin to hang out with on a regular basis.

Love you Baby Girl!

Mean Mom, Sad Addy

2011-09-08T21:05:00.000-07:00

The other day, I had one of those 'not so proud' mommy moments. I got really upset with Addy. The 'mean look' upset. You know, the kind where you don't yell or cry, you don't really know what to do, so you just give them a mean look. Don't lie, I Know you've all done it. Anyways, a few minutes later, I hear a few little whimpers of sadness coming from the corner of the dining room and this is what I found..

That's right, instead of consoling sad little Addy, I chose to take pictures instead.

There are just some days when I question why I was entrusted with these little Angels with all my imperfections. Then in the same moment, i'm filled with the most intense gratitude for having the opportunity to raise such amazing children.

Don't worry, Addy and I made up and we're friends again. :-)

New Job

2011-09-08T20:49:00.000-07:00

A couple of months ago, Nate got word about a company opening a new office and hiring a good amount of people. So, for grins and giggles, we put together a superb resume (if I may say so) and sent it in. He got a call back asking him to attend a job fair they were going to be having a few weeks later. Knowing that it's a shot in the dark because job fairs are ridiculous with TONS of people applying, he went anyways. We had talked about the possibility the night before of him getting an offer 'just in case' and I pretty much just left it up to him. Whatever he wanted to do, I was fine with. So, the next day, he went to this job fair and without hesitation, they asked him to go directly to HR. A little confused, since he hadn't even been interviewed, he walked over to HR where they handed him a Hire Packet with a great offer. Since they had so many people apply, they needed verbal confirmation that day if he wanted the position or not.

While he was there, I was at my in laws letting the girls go for a swim. It was BLAZING that day. I had no idea what to expect since he's never been to one of these AND he hasn't changed jobs since I've known him 11 years!! That's dedication, I tell ya. All I knew was that he would call me when he was done. Well, I didn't get a call but rather a text. It said "I think I just accepted a new job". Um, WHAT? I asked him to explain, but I got no answer. As you can imagine, I was on the edge WAITING to hear what happened.

The next night, we went out to dinner to celebrate. Of course, we went to a favorite, Tepanyaki in Lehi. We were excited that some family joined us. We even got our FAVORITE chef who we thought no longer worked there.

Once reading through all the benefits (which was a new thing for us) and researching the company, which he had done plenty of, previously, we were very excited. His start date was set for the 29th of August, and as long as his background check and drug test came through he would be in the clear for that date. All cleared and he was ready. Sort of. A little nervous. K, a lot nervous. This was a HUGE change for him. And for us, but mostly for him.

The day came, after a fun week of hanging out with dad while in between jobs and he was ready. I'm use to seeing Nate leave for work in flip flops and a random t-shirt. Not anymore. He was all dressed up in business casual and ready to go. The first couple months are training, which he is paid for, then on to the real stuff. Part of this training is a trip to the main office in Massachusetts. This on-site training will be about 18 days sometime in November. CRAZY!! He's hoping it doesn't actually happen because it means he will miss Hailey's birthday, but I guess we'll see.

His first day, they had breakfast and drinks and snacks waiting for them. SPOILED! A couple days ago, I tried to call him on his lunch break, and he responded with a text that read "sorry, I'm in a conference meeting". So, when I asked him what he did for lunch, he said they catered lunch from Rumbi Island Grill for them. SPOILED!!

The only drawback, is that once the office is built, he will be working in Draper. He'll have a bit of a commute, but we don't have to worry about that till December. For now, Pleasant Grove isn't too bad.

I'm very excited for Nate. He deserves this. He's provided such a great life for his family and I am so grateful to him for that. He is extremely loyal and it shows in everything he does, including his work. I'm very impressed with him and his ability to transition so well.

Here's to a new adventure!!!

Potty Breaks and Going Insane

2011-09-01T21:50:00.000-07:00

I don't know what was up with my girls tonight, but it was just exacerbating.

Have you ever had days where you just feel overrun? Today was one of those days.

Let me explain.

Tonight, at 5pm, Hailey had a soccer game, to which she made 1 goal. Yippee!! Go Hailey!! Before her game, she had to go potty. Addy as well. Nate took them since I was busy setting up our umbrella and chairs.

After the game, we were heading up the dreadful Geneva Rd. a midst awful construction when Addy says "mommy I gotta go potty really bad". After being stuck in traffic and having nowhere to go, I finally pull off the road and find a plastic baggy. Yes, you heard me. It was a sandwich bag. You gotta do what you gotta do right?

On we went.

We pull up to Home Depot less than 10 minutes later when Hailey announces that she needs to go potty. So, we go running to find the restroom at the back of the store.

My GOODNESS..

We go on with our shopping when Addy turns to me and says "I need to go potty". SERIOUSLY??
To the back of the store we go, AGAIN.

This time, the potty-ness HAS to be over. So, back to shopping we go, which by the way, wasn't really shopping. It was picking out color for the paint on our deck. That's another story.

I'm standing back in my spot with Nate for no more than 1 minute when Hailey tugs on me and says "I need to go again."

I'm about to swear at this point, but instead, I bite my tongue and head to the back of the store a third time.
After making our decision, we leave and head to Nate's softball game. We arrive after about 15 minutes and Addy announces she has to go again, so guess what? Luckily I had another sandwich baggy in the car. I'm such a prepared mom, I know.

A few minutes later, while sitting in the van eating Del Taco for dinner, Hailey says she needs to go again. Heavens to Betsy! So, we rush off to the bathrooms at the park.

She drank a ton of water at her softball game and it spiraled into a series of potty breaks that were oh-so-frustrating. I feel bad getting frustrated because it's not like it's their fault or anything, but my goodness. After all that, i'm just glad we had no accidents because I was NOT prepared for that. :-)

Barrus Family Reunion

2011-08-29T11:33:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, we had the opportunity to attend the Barrus Family Reunion. We almost didn't go because in the morning, Hailey had a soccer game and Nate was working in Salt Lake all day, so it was just going to be the three of us going. I wasn't really sure I wanted to drive out to the cabin myself and not be home when Nate got back from Salt Lake. But, at the last minute, I decided to go. I'm SO glad we went.

The cabin we went to is owned by very generous family members who threw one heck of a party! It was definitely a day to remember. This place was amazing. Seriously one of THE MOST gorgeous cabins and property I have ever seen. It was so nice of them to allow us such a fun and exciting day.

Jordan, Melissa and I were realizing that jumping on a tramp isn't as easy as it use to be. We all got tired REALLY fast. But Carmen also got some great pictures.

I have to give props to Jordan for his flips looking the best, although, he needs to point his toes. :-)

This video is of Addy and Me on the swing. She was pretty nervous about it, but loved it.

Hailey on the other hand... She's CRAZY. This was her second time going almost to the top. The first time she really did go ALL the way up and it scared the pants off me. It scared her at first too, but then she loved it. The second time she still went pretty high, but not like her first. Also, it's a little decieving. Videos and pictures don't do it justice for how high it really is. Aside from that, you have to really hold yourself in since it pulls you up from the back of the swing. At times you feel like you'll just fall out while being pulled up, hence the reason I was so nervous about Hailey doing it.

This was Hailey going on the Zip Line all by herself. I didn't want her to go alone, but she insisted and I

finally gave in, but it scared me so bad. She of course, loved every minute of it.

She did end up getting stuck over the water and they had to pull her in, but she loved it.

It was such a great day and one that we will remember forever. The girls had a blast and woke up this morning asking if we could go to the cabin today. :-)

I don't blame them.

Thanks Steve and Kalleen for such a great day.

Indian Summer

2011-08-26T22:20:00.000-07:00

It happens every year.

And it doesn't take long.

And every year, I am amazed.

I know she gets it from me, because of our Indian blood, but DANG! I WISH I could get a great tan like this.

Pictures don't do it justice.

Looking back at pictures when I was little, I got pretty tan too, but not like this little monkey. I'm so grateful that my girls have skin that doesn't burn. We have been out in the sun a lot this summer and no burns. Addy is pretty fare, but still, she manages to keep from getting burnt. I am so grateful for that.

While that's not the only thing i'm grateful for lately, i'll have to save that for another post.

Till then, i'll continue to apply sunblock, and she'll continue to get more tan.

And i'll continue to worry about skin cancer.

Here's to beautiful AND healthy skin.

First Day of Preschool Year 2

2011-08-23T21:20:00.000-07:00

Today was Hailey's first day at the Kid's Village Preschool. She has been so excited about going to this school. At the beginning of the year, we took a tour of the school and I knew immediately that even though it was a little more expensive than the school she attended last year, it would be worth every cent. I am very impressed with this school. If you want to see more about it, you can see my post here.

Last week, we had a 'meet & greet' with her teacher Miss Farrah and she is amazing. Hailey loved her instantly.

Her schedule is as follows:

Tuesday Thursday
Class time: 9am - 9:30 Class Time: 9am - 9:30
Cooking Class: 9:30-10:00 Science: 9:30 - 10am
Class time: 10:00- 10:30 Class Time: 10:00 - 10:30
Arts & Crafts: 10:30 - 11am Music: 10:30 - 11:00
Class time: 11:00 - 11:30 Class Time: 11:00 - 11:30

She said they learned about manners and when to use your fingers to eat or when to use utensils. Then they got to have a snack that they could use their fingers for. :-)

The cute little bags the school provides for each child so they don't have to carry crazy huge back packs. They also wear aprons with their name on them as their 'uniforms'. I think it's such a great idea.

We get there to drop her off and i'm thinking she's going to be a little emotional or at least want us to walk her in to her class but instead, she jumps out of the car, runs into school all the while waving at us saying 'BYE!'

Our little free soul.

Here's to a great preschool year.

WAHOO #2!!!!!

2011-08-20T20:54:00.000-07:00

Today was Hailey's first soccer game.
I didn't have very high of expectations since
1. They're 4
2. They really have no idea what they are doing besides kicking a ball.

So, I was looking forward to a fun and comical soccer game and that's just what it was. It was SO hot and every time Hailey came to me for a drink, she was super sweaty. Even with the heat and the sweat, she was a trooper. She played the entire game and she really had a good time.

Hailey with Gavin & Preston

Hailey & Avery

Her reaction after her First Goal.

Her reaction after her Second Goal...

Video of the second goal and the accidental tripping of the apponent.

Addy was pretty intense at cheering her sister on.

It was pretty dang cute.

She had so many people there to cheer her on. It really made her feel so happy that everyone came. I have such a great family.

Jenna, Becca, Gavin, Preston, Marley

(and some of their cousins)

Carmen & Ben

Jessie and Avery

Grandma and Grandpa Johnson

and of course, us.

I love these next 4 pictures. Such a great series of photos leading to her 3rd goal.

Her reaction after her Third Goal!!

I still can't believe she made 3 goals!!

But most of all, she had a lot of fun and is very excited

for her next game.

We were so proud of our little Orange Butterfly.

Not too shabby for a first game.

A Fish has Emerged

2011-08-15T12:46:00.000-07:00

I don't have a fear of water. However, I have a fear of my CHILDREN & WATER. I've just heard SO many stories lately and especially after my little cousin passed because of a drowning accident, I'm just a little Crazy Stressed about it.

My in-laws have a pool. Now, there are good things and bad things about it. The GREAT thing is that it allows us a free place to hang out in the summer. It allows my kids the chance to become very familiar with water and their boundaries. The bad thing, any time they babysit at their house, i'm quite nervous the entire time i'm gone. The good news is, every one is pretty cautious about the pool so that gives me a little piece of mind.

As of lately, Hailey has become a little fish. This summer she has really emerged to being a great little swimmer at age 4. I taught her a series of lessons at the beginning of the summer (not really sure what good they did) and she just can't get enough of it. She never wears a life jacket anymore and she is all over the place.

She has gotten very good at diving. Although, she dove in too deep on the shallow end one day and bonked her head on the bottom of the pool. But as always, she just brushed it off and dove in again and again. One evening while having a family get together, my nephew Spencer was swimming with the girls and had his underwater video camera with him. He was taping them in and out of the water when Hailey climbed up the slide and jumped off the top into the water instead of sliding down it. I was not happy with her about it since it could have been a very bad situation, but at the same time I couldn't help but think about how fearless she is and willing to try anything. I love that about her. She definitely didn't get that from me. I'll post that video once I get it from my nephew.

Now she continues to ask if she can just jump off the slide ONCE. The answer is always the same. No. The other day, she figured out that she has a love of doing back dives into the pool. WHO IS THIS CHILD? She's crazy. But, I firmly believe that because of her fearlessness, it might keep her from getting hurt, if that makes any sense. It does to me. :-) Or that if she DOES get hurt, it won't break her heart and cause her to be scared. It will just be more of a lesson to her than anything.

Addy has also gotten very familiar with the water this year and had a few episodes of just jumping in without a life jacket and had to be saved. Once, it was Hailey who pulled her out of the water. Oh dear, I'm not sure i'll survive these two. I wouldn't trade them for anything. I think next year will be Addy's year to become better at swimming but for now, i'm just fine keeping her in a life jacket. At least that way, I really only worry about one of them and not both of them.

This video is a little long, but you get the idea of how familiar Hailey is becoming with water. At about 3:30 on the video is when she shows off her swimming if you just want to watch that. If you do watch the whole thing, check out her CRAZY tan line on her legs when Nate is helping with her goggles.

Zoorassic Park

2011-08-06T21:37:00.000-07:00

Last Friday, Nate took the day off work to attend an auction preview. He knew he'd be done by about noon and we made plans to meet him in Salt Lake at the Hogle Zoo. As usual with these kinds of events, the girls were ecstatic. We chose to forgo Addy's usual nap and have a little family time, which was MUCH needed. We've been so busy with plans, company, callings, etc that it was definitely time. Our girls absolutely love animals. They love to read books about animals. They love to watch shows about animals. We had heard that they were doing a 'Zoorassic Park' theme so the girls were especially excited about that since they love dinosaurs as well. Although, when taking a picture in front of the t-rex, it moved and roared and Hailey ran off faster than I've every seen her run... which is pretty fast, I might add. It was pretty funny.

It was so hot and muggy that day. By the time we had seen everything we wanted to see, we were DONE.

Rachelle's Shower

2011-07-31T21:14:00.000-07:00

Last week, I had the opportunity to help plan and attend my sister in law's bridal shower. I was super excited about it and was grateful to be a part in planning it. You see, she's getting married in Hawaii in less than 2 weeks and I cannot be there. I've known this for a while, but the closer to the wedding it gets, the more sad I am. I've been blessed to have the opportunity to take her engagement pictures, design her announcements and this week, I am so excited to take her bridals. It doesn't change the fact that I still feel sad about not being at the wedding. It pretty much sucks. But, as my mother in law always says, 'it is what it is'.

Ok, enough about all that, here are some of the pictures from her shower.

Carmen and I decided to write down things Rachelle says as "Things she will say on her wedding night." Basically you pick random things the bride-to-be says while opening her presents, then you read it at the end of the shower. Well, we read it prematurely while it was mixed company in the room and it definitely wasn't as funny as it could have been, nonetheless, she said some REALLY great things. HAHA.

Sisters

2011-07-29T22:11:00.000-07:00

These girls just love eachother so so much.
Currently, their favorite things to do together are:

playing in the sandbox

running around the neighborhood

playing dress-ups

coloring

playing at the park

staying up talking in their bed

riding their bikes

watch movies with popcorn

Last night, as Nate put them to bed, he kept hearing them talk and laugh. Well, it got really quiet so he went up to check on them and as he looked into their room without them seeing him, he noticed that they were sitting up in their bed, facing eachother and just talking quietly. As they chatted to eachother they were touching eachothers face and just being so sweet. Its moments like that I melt over.

Kitten's Galore

2011-07-29T21:23:00.000-07:00

First off, our neighbor got kittens, and my kids are SMITTEN. They don't really remember when Scratch was a kitten, so this was all new to them. Every day for a few days, they would bring the kittens over to our house for a kitten-playdate. They are super sweet and the girls had so much fun with them.

Second, they rescued a little kitty. We weren't sure what kind of cat it was, because it had a VERY unique look, but it was so sweet. It was very lethargic and sick looking when we first took him in, but after some water and cooler air, he perked right up. We tried to take him to "The Pet Medical Center" and that was a mistake. They wouldn't even look at him. I refused to just leave him outside because first, he wouldn't leave our doorstep, and second, he was just not well. Plus, he was de-clawed, s he was obviously someone's new pet. He came home with us, slept on our bed for the night and the next day, the pound came and took him to the shelter. If he and Scratch got along, I would have kept him for sure. He was so sweet.

Hailey was so sad to see this little guy go but hopefully his family found him.

Color Me Sweetness

2011-07-29T21:05:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, my mom was visiting and we took the girls to Color Me Mine. I've been there before, but the girls haven't and they absolutely loved every minute of it. You get to choose your porcelain piece, then you get to just paint away. The only problem is, you have to wait a few days before you get your finished product back. A few days to children might as well be a lifetime. Addy asked me EVERY day where their plates where. Well, the day finally came, and we went to pick them up. They were so excited to have their artwork in their little hands.

Disgruntled Neighbor

2011-07-22T13:37:00.000-07:00

I got yelled at this morning.

We have a new neighbor. Well, sort of new. She's been here for a few months, but we all know that she basically is disgruntled. I've heard stories from other neighbors but never really saw for myself till this morning. A while back, I got an email from a friend warning me that she's a little crazy and doesn't like anyones animals in her yard. Well, I was grateful for the warning, but still hadn't really had any of my own run-ins so I hadn't thought about it much.

So, we're getting ready to leave, the girls and I when Hailey runs inside and is frantic because she says 'a mean girl is hitting scratch.' (Scratch is our cat-and a great cat at that.) So I go outside to see this person going after our cat with a huge stick. Scratch runs across the street to our house and is sitting on the porch by us when she starts waving the stick at us from across the street. At this point, the girls are scared. I'm trying not to laugh because I cannot believe someone could be so crazy. I tell her that i'll put him inside, to which I did, and the entire time i'm putting him inside and walking my kids to my car, she's YELLING at me at the top of her lungs. Half of which I cannot understand. So I continue to hurry in my car, and make the u-turn to head the other direction from which I was parked, to see her slam her front door at me, then peer out her window and glare like you would not believe.

Now, I understand some people just don't like cats. That's ok. But REALLY? He is the sweetest cat ever and i'm not the only one in this neighborhood with cats, that's for dang sure. I just don't understand why people get so stinkin' disgruntled. I can't tell you how many times I have gone outside and found dog poop in my yard when we don't even have a dog! But I don't go outside yelling at people and waving a stick around to ward off bad spirits or something. Sheesh!!!

My girls are so so so scared of her now and keep asking me if we can move so we don't live by her anymore. haha. It was a bit of a traumatic morning. I guess there has to be ONE in every neighborhood, right?

Really? On the Weekend? Why?

2011-07-18T20:30:00.000-07:00

I'm sitting here listening to an unfamiliar sound, but one that makes me oh-so-happy.

Backup a couple days, and this is what happened. We got a text Friday night that our basement was flooding. Again. The last time this happened, I fixed it. Yes, me. All by myself. I was proud. This time, it was out of my control. The water heater busted a leak. Those of you who are homeowners or know anything about this KNOW that it's not a cheap fix.

After researching this till my eyes popped out and worrying about our tenants that live with us, I was just about to the end of my rope until I asked my neighbor if he could by chance be of assistance. He quickly agreed that he could help and I have to admit, hearing those words gave me immediate comfort. :-) After telling him of the quotes we had received, he laughed. He agreed that between $1500 and $7000 was QUITE redonculous.

The sweat on my forehead began to recede as he made me feel a little more calm about our situation. So, after using my in-laws house to shower the last couple days, I'm happy to say that we got a new tank, one we are happy with and now I can clean my dishes that have been sitting in the sink since Friday and bathe my children. And myself.

You never realize how much you rely on something till it's gone.

I'm just grateful to be surrounded by awesome neighbors and friends. I cannot even describe how grateful we are for that.

I really shouldn't get myself over-excited till it's actually done being installed. Which is what's going on right now. I really should be offering some assistance to Nate and Joe, but instead, I sit here typing away and listening to that unfamiliar sound of changing out pipes. Music to my ears.

Princess Festival 2011

2011-07-16T07:07:00.000-07:00

I have to do a little backtracking... My mom and I took my girls to the Annual Princess Festival Held in Utah County. This happened in June. The 24th to be exact. I realize it is now well into July, but that's what happens when you have five million things going on right after another. So, here we go.

The long awaited morning finally came and the girls woke up already in Princess Mode. They could not keep their excitement contained. All I can say is that it's a good thing that I signed them up for the morning session because if we didn't go till the afternoon, that would have been torcher ALL morning long.

This year it was held at Thanksgiving Point and I have to say, even though it was magical with the shrub maze to find Alice in Wonderland and the 12 dancing princesses in the cave, I liked it MUCH better when it was in Lindon at Hatfieldadelphia. But, we didn't let that stop us from having SO. MUCH. FUN.

Upon arrival, they got little princess nametags to put on and everywhere they went, everyone referred to them as Princess Hailey and Princess Addy. So cute. Enjoy the slew of pictures.

They were so exhausted by the time we got home. It was super hot that day and running around outside being princesses is definitely tiring. But FUN!

Little Star

2011-07-14T20:33:00.000-07:00

I'm not really sure how to begin this post. I knew I wanted to write about this, but I never really knew what I wanted to say. I still don't. But i'll try.

I have an uncle. Uncle Dave. Since I can remember, we've had this little connection. We don't talk much. We haven't seen much of each other since my family moved from California, but there's always been that little something. That little spark that each time you DO cross paths, you just can't get enough of each other. That's how it's always been with my Uncle Dave. Since I was a little girl, he just made me feel like I was SO special to him. The feelings were mutual.

Almost a week ago, we got a phone call that his little boy Kaleb who would be 2 in August, had climbed into their above-ground pool and drowned. Although I've only met Kaleb once, I'll never forget holding him and hearing his sweet story from his mom of how he came into this world. I'll never forget how much his daddy adored him. I'll never forget how snugly he was.

Since hearing of this news, my heart aches. My heart aches for my Uncle Dave. My heart aches for his mom, Kaliko. My heart aches for them and for the many others who have suffered similar losses. I wanted so badly to go and give my uncle a big hug. To be of support in this sorrowful time. I wish I could have.

It's times like this especially that I am grateful for the gospel and the promise of Eternity. I hope they know they are loved. I hope they know of the many prayers of comfort that are extended. I hope they know that I love them. I hope my Uncle Dave knows that I love him. And I think of him often.

And to you, Little Kaleb... You will be missed. What a perfect meaning to your hawaiian name: The Star. What a great way to remember you when looking at the night sky filled with bright stars. I'm grateful to have known you for the little time I did.

Kaleb Ray Kahoku Martin

'The Star'

Aug 2009-July 2011

American Idol 2011

2011-07-13T19:55:00.000-07:00

I had the AWESOME opportunity to go to the American Idol Tour Concert this year. Those who also planned to go were my sis-in-law Tonna (who planned the whole thing), and my In-Laws, Scott and Valerie. Well, the time came and at the last minute, Scott didn't really feel like hanging out with a bunch of girls by himself, so he gave up his ticket and my mom who was in town visiting graciously accepted it. We were all pretty stinkin' excited about it, I must say.

So, the afternoon came and we headed up to Salt Lake. We stopped at Red Robin and ate some grub, then on to the concert we went. We walked in and immediately saw the stands outside the arena dressed with all kinds of apparel and memoirs from the American Idol season. We all decided we were going to buy t-shirts till we saw the UNBELIEVABLE price of $40.00. Yeah RIGHT! Could you imagine the look on Nate's face when I show up not only wearing an American Idol t-shirt, but then tell him what it cost? WWIII is all I can say!

Tonna pulled out her phone and took some pictures to remember the night by. I of course had to buy some Kettle Corn and we could NOT stop eating it.

Nevermind the fact that I look like an oompa loompa.

Thanks Tonna for the invite and Thanks to my moms for a great night out with the girls!

American Idol 2011

I have to say, while watching this season, I had certain favorites, but after being at the concert, I really enjoyed everyone SO MUCH. I cannot believe how much talent there was this year. And, to make it even more fun, Salt Lake was their kick-off concert.

The very first one.

I loved every minute of it.

Especially Pia.