Thankful Thursday (on Monday)

I've been a slacker...I could go down the list of things that have otherwise torn me from the computer, but I'll spare you. Either way, I've missed a few Thursdays, Christmas being one of them, and what other day of the year do I have more to be Thankful for than Christmas!!
Gratitude has filled me this season, I honestly couldn't ask for more. My immediate family is healthy, happy and provided for. We have numerous extended family nearby, and we are lucky enough to frequently enjoy their company. We have the gospel of Christ in our lives and have been blessed with His example and knowledge of the Plan of Salvation. We've experienced hope, joy, love, disappointment, regret, sadness and peace this year, and at this moment I wouldn't take any of it back. Experience and time have been our teachers and we are the wiser for it.

Thank you to everyone for your love, patience, friendship and words of encouragement, we have you to be thankful for this year especially.

And alas...Christmas pictures...well, apparently my camera can take pictures without a memory card in it, but that means I have to find the cable to connect it to the computer. Just know we had a great Christmas, spoiled as always and smiles on all our faces! (Even though Hannah didn't get the Barbie Jeep she wanted, she has quickly forgotten all about it-PHEW!)

Did you see the tornado??

I am utterly amazed...there was a tornado that hit my house and completely missed everyone else's. It has left every room a complete disaster, nothing is where it should be, you can barely find anything. What other reason could there be for my house being torn apart from top to bottom?! I can't believe that I can spend 2 solid days tidying my house, and 1 or 2 days later it looks like a natural disaster...

...(I'm just taking deep breaths)....

Anyway, on a better note. I got the pictures back that we had taken the day after Thanksgiving, Kolby's cousin did an AMAZING job!!! (Thank you Nichole!) We are putting some of them on our Christmas cards.

Yumm-O!

Rice cereal...I don't remember it being so messy, but then again I've heard that boys tend to be messier than girls. Maddax didn't really like his first taste of cereal, but he liked playing with the spoon! (As if he needed another excuse for a bath, this kid seems to get lint in every crevice, just WHERE does it come from??)

The Most Wonderful Time of Year...

I love and hate this season...I'm not a grinch, but I have this talent/curse that I see the very best and very worst in everything, I think it is a by-product of debate in high school that I have yet to shake. Anyway, I love the anticipation, the decorating, the beautiful scenery, the worldwide recognition of Christ and the general buzz of kindness and charity in the air. However, I also do not enjoy the work it takes to decorate and take it down, to bake the yummy stuff then do all the dishes.

Oh well, I do it over and over again every year, because you can't have anything good or worthwhile without putting work into it.

Yesterday I made homemade fudge and today I tried cupcake bites. Both required a dishwasher full of dishes, but Hannah and I are creating a tradition, I guess that is ultimately something to cherish. Here are some pictures of our work tonight for Family Home Evening:


(I totally stole the idea from Candace who made them for Thanksgiving, so no credit is due here, plus she did a MUCH better job! Don't know if you can tell, but they are like 1" square, just tiny little bites!)

Thankful Thanksgiving Thursday

This has been a great day, and I'm getting my post in just before it's Friday! Where to begin on a day like this? Family, food, friends, faith, freedom & the knowledge that they are all blessings not to be taken for granted. I took some fun pictures today of the great family & friends we got to share the day with, and the delicious food we were so fortunate to eat, but I loved taking pictures of everyone singing while playing Rockband. I don't think anyone can carry a tune in my family, but that's what makes it so entertaining!

The big game...BYU vs. Utah

Today is the day for the big rivalry. Kolby is going to the game dressed in Utah attire, so I had to put Maddax in BYU stuff so we could accurately represent the fan base in our house!

Thankful Thursday: 5 YEARS!

This Thursday is our 5 year anniversary, and looking back in the last 5 years, our lives have changed tremendously! I can't really pinpoint one thingI'm thankful for, but today goes to Kolby. I'm so thankful for such a great husband and father to our children!
Here we are 5 years ago, don't we look SO much younger?! (and now that I'm looking, Kolby doesn't look all that happy does he?! Hmmm, well, he's stuck with me now!)

Thursday already?!

Wow, I can't believe it is Thursday already, this week went by WAY too fast. (probably because I had to go back to work, it makes time fly.) Maddax is 3 months old today, I just can't even believe my little prince is growing up so fast! Ugh-anyway, back to Thankful Thursday....(I'm thinking)...(yup, still thinking, but only because I have SO much to be thankful for)...um, OK, I'm thankful for forgiveness/second chances/grace, whatever you want to call it. I think kids are the best at this, and it's a good thing or I'd feel like a failure as a mother. Whenever I over reacte to something or get upset with Hannah, she'll forgive me two minutes later. The Savior offers forgiveness if I just ask, and my husband easily forgives as well. It's so nice to look back and see my mistakes in life and then look at my life today and know it's because of the grace of those I love who continue to forgive and love me!

Thankful Thursday

Oh man, I just typed my post and it got deleted...don't you hate that. Well, what I said was, I am thankful I have a job to go back to next week when my maternity leave ends. Even though I'm dreading leaving my kids, I'm thankful to have a decent paying, flexible job where opportunities and a solid future await me, and in this economy, that is TRULY something to cherish!

SnOw!

I can't believe the amount of snow we got yesterday, I'm guessing it was around 4-6", it hardly quit all day long! Given that everything was coated in the fluffy stuff, Hannah begged to go play outside. I put on her new snow coat and pants (which I bought too big thinking she will grow into them, and she probably will...) But they are HUGE on her right now. So she waddled outside, played for a few minutes then called it good. I'm glad somebody enjoys it!

Costumes

I haven't uploaded my Halloween pictures yet, but here are the kids in their costumes when we visited my parents house late that night. Hannah's witch doesn't exactly look like a witch, but she refused to wear the hat and wanted pink hair...oh well, she was happy with it. Maddax actually outgrew his costume, he couldn't put his legs straight in it! This kid is getting SO long!

Thankful Thursday

I'm getting to Thankful Thursday early today!! We are getting ready to go on a family walk, I'm so thankful the weather is nice! I love the Fall, it is the perfect blend of Winter and Summer, the colors are so beautiful. I'm also thankful that we are all healthy and able to be out on such a great day. Maybe I'll post pictures from our walk when we get back.



I guess walking for an hour put Maddax to sleep, if I tried this every time I wanted him to sleep I'd be in great shape!

Pumpkins...

So it would seem I'm not the only one who thought Pumpkins were a good idea until they actually did them. I swear they are more hassle than they are worth, and who came up with the idea to carve a squash for Halloween in the first place?! Anyway, we started late tonight, Hannah was so grumpy when we finished since it was past her bedtime, and Maddax was wondering why I stuck him in the big cold orange thing to take his picture...!

Catching Up...

So it turns out that having the computer in the same room as the baby isn't the best idea. I'd rather let the baby sleep than wake him up and try to hold him while typing, so needless to say, I've been short with my blogging, e-mail, banking, basically EVERYTHING. But...for the moment, he sleeps and blogging sounds better than online bill paying! So, updates-
*We blessed Maddax yesterday, and fortunately, Kolby named him Maddax even though he truly wanted to name him Kolby John Jr., to which I opposed. It turned out great, had lots of great family come, but my camera was dead, so I'll gather pics from my mother in law and post them later.
*We cut 7" off of Hannah's hair today, and I did get a picture on my phone, but can't find the USB cable in the dark and don't want to wake Maddax, so again, a picture will be posted later.
*A couple of weeks ago we went to the Scarecrow Festival, what a nightmare with all of those people on UEA weekend, what was I thinking?! We waiting in line 45 minutes for a 2 minute train ride...well, at least Hannah got to play on the jumping slides, that's all she remembers!

*I finally caught Maddax smiling on camera, this is one of his many smiles, but he likes to smirk a lot, he really makes you work for the big open mouth smiles. I sure love this kid!

Coming on 2 months...whoa!

I can't believe Maddax will be two months old on Monday! Where did the time go? He is finally plumping out a little and showing some personality, we fall in love with him even more every day :)

Derek Zoolander School For People Who Can't Read Good

Well, it works! Hannah came home from pre-school 2 weeks ago with a book she can read. I was the proudest little mama, I couldn't stop grinning, so I just had to take her picture as soon as we got home. Yesterday she brought home another one, I'm truly amazed at how much smarter kids are now than when I was little!

Thankful Thursday

Whew, almost forgot, but it's still Thursday so I'm getting better at this!
Today I am thankful for "Family Home Nevening." Tonight Hannah begged me to do Family Home Neve-ning (as she calls it..) Hannah is such a sweet girl, she truly has a choice spirit. We sang a song, she picked a lesson from the manual and she played me a song on the piano. I'm not sure what I did to deserve such a sweet kid!

Taggies

I've been tagged twice (Candace and Tonya), and I'm combining them (aren't I so effecient?!)
...

What's your husbands name? Kolby John

How long have you guys been married? Just shy of 5 years

How long did you date? Not long enough…only like 2.5 months until we got engaged.

How old is he? 28 (old man!!!)

Who eats more sweets? Used to be me, but I think Kolby’s taken that title!

Who said I Love You first? Kolby

Who is taller? Kolby, nobody uses the word “tall” to describe me!

Who is the better singer? Hmmm, neither of us are that great but Kolby sings more often!

Who is smarter? Me, we both agree on that one! But to play fair, he is nicer!

Who does the laundry? We both do, but neither of us do it often enough

Who pays the bills? Me, not sure Kolby knows what bills we have!

Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Yeah, I’m not answering that either.

Who mows the lawn? Some college kid the HOA thinks is wonderful, I beg to differ.

Who cooks dinner? Me, unless I beg Kolby to.

Who drives? Me, we all get there a lot happier since I’m not patient enough for Kolby’s driving.

Who is the first to say they are wrong? Me, Kolby is silent when we disagree.

Who kissed who first? Kolby

Who asked who out first? Me actually, long story...

Who wears the pants? Definitely, I’m a little bit of a control freak!

Who eats more? He does.

Who is more sensitive? He is, I grew up where we had to tough it out!

Who is more stubborn? Hmm, I think we are equal in that dept. Hopefully it’s not genetic, our poor kids!

Who has more siblings? He does, he has 4, I have 2

What do you like to do together? It doesn’t happen often, but we like to shop, go to dinner, and go on walks.

Guilty Pleasures? 1 soap opera and Halloween candy lately!

How did you meet? He was hanging out with my friends and I thought he was so weird!

How long have you been together? Not much longer than we’ve been married, see previous question.

Who proposed? He did.

His best features and qualities? He is always concerned about others, very kind, wonderful father and a great friend!

Whew, now I tag: my mom, Emily and YOU!

Thankful Thursday

Technically it's Friday (closer to Sat.) but since I haven't been on the computer for a few days (I know, can you believe it???), I figured I'd fake like it's Thursday so I could do my weekly post, and then I will get around to doing my tags.

So this week I am most thankful for.....my husband! Nothing special happened, but looking back over the last few years, the good, bad and ugly, I've realized he is always there for me. We are best friends, even if we don't act like it sometimes. Words can't describe our relationship, I wouldn't say it's typical, because quite frankly, I wouldn't call either of us, or our beginning, typical. But, I love him now, forever and always.

Thankful Thursday

So I've decided to try and do Thankful Thursday with Andrea (Kolby's cousin), it's a great idea to think about and recognize what is right in my life rather than what's not...so for the first Thankful Thursday, I'll thank Andrea for calling me and sending a binky clip for Maddax. She makes them and they are adorable, it has a football clip with his name on it. You can get them at www.sweetbabybeads.com.

Today I'm really most thankful for my family. I'm loving being home with my sweet kids, and I dread the day my maternity leave is over, but I'm soaking it all in and am truly blessed to have such a sweet little family.

1 month

I can't believe Maddax is a month old already! He is still so tiny and I feel like we are just getting to know this sweet little boy. He is a great baby, we are so blessed to have him in our family!

(He is SO wiggly, it is hard to get a single picture of him that isn't blurry!!!)

Update...

I guess it's been a while! Time flies when you are having fun, or at least that's what I'm told. This last weekend we decided to spend some time as a family and we went to St. George, but before going we ventured downtown and visited the planetarium, did some shopping and went to Build a Bear. Here is Hannah with her bear that she named "Sammy."
We also built a bear for Maddax and I'm going to have his picture taken with the bear with them both in the same outfit, we'll see how it turns out.
In St. George Hannah loved swimming! Maddax hung out in the stroller, and I "forgot" my swimsuit so I supervised :)



Of course during our shopping Hannah found the little machines in the mall that she rides every single time she sees them, she never gets tired of that ice cream machine moving forward, backward, forward, backward...best 50 cents I ever spend!

Baby Wipes

Do you know what a great deal you are getting when you buy ordinary baby wipes? Let me just tell you!
They are great for when your son's diaper leaks all over the side of you at 6am. They are even better for when he projectile vomits all over the other side of you 20 minutes later. But wait, that's not all! Although they are of course great for diaper changes (the 20 or so that you do in a day...), they are even better for when the little boy pees while you are grabbing a clean diaper and the pee squirts all over the wall, carpet and nearby changing items. Finally, when you decide the little one has been coated enough in body fluids and you decide to bathe him, the wipes once again come in handy after he poops in the bath towel after you've just given him a very nice bath in the kitchen sink. So next time you see baby wipes for sale in the grocery store, just know that whatever you pay for them, they are worth EVERY penny--after all, they're not just for changing diapers!!

(Maddax after finally getting clean and ready for bed, even if it ended in another baby wipe bath!)

Our Bili Baby

Saddest thing, Maddax has Jaundice and is spending a few days in the bili lights. Our house glows blue at night, and it looks like I've already got him working on a tan! He just loves to be held and it is so hard to not just pick him up and snuggle with him! I hope he can be done with the lights (and them poking his heel every day to test his blood) very soon! Wish us luck :)

Our Little Prince

Kolby's birthday!

So I guess it's been almost two weeks ago, I can't believe I forgot to post these pictures. Kolby celebrated his 28th birthday on July 28, (fun huh?) We had a little family get together at a local park and Kolby played football well into the night with his dad, brothers and nephews while Hannah and her cousins played on all the swings and slides. It was a lot of fun to just sit back and relax while everyone else ran around!

In honor of the great man himself, I ought to put down some of Kolby's most admirable traits (I've been hard on him lately, no particular reason other than extremely elevated hormones...lol).
He is extremely generous, always thinking of others. He is very kind and thoughtful. Kolby is a family man, in every sense of the word, and he is a great father and husband! I couldn't have asked for anyone more suited for me, he is my opposite in every way and when we don't let our opposites get in our way, we are very complimentary!
Happy Birthday Kolby!

Tagged: Tanya in pictures!

So Candace tagged me this week and I'm finally getting around to posting, here goes:

1. Favorite Room: For now it is the office/nursery because it rarely gets messy since I'm the only one who uses it-go figure!


2.A fan of...TIVO/DVR! Love this invention!


3. What are your children doing right now?
Hannah is supposed to be cleaning up her stuff that has migrated to the living room and Maddax, well, he's not doing much other than still baking in my belly!


4.Closet...(ugh, once I added the maternity clothes to the too many we already own, it got kind of out of hand...)

5.Dream Vacation? Paris (this is the same as Candace, but our Grandpa had planned on taking us there for high school graduation before he passed away and I think we'll forever want to go since we didn't make it!)


6. Something you can't live without...Indoor Plumbing!! Need I say more, plus I'm visiting this lovely room much more often these days so it was the first thing that came to mind!


7.To get from here to there: Company car (and this is the loaner since mine broke down the other day for no apparent reason!)


8. Self-portait: Um, I'm due to have a baby any day, self-portraits are horrible since I'm all swollen, but Hannah took this playing with the camera last week...



9.Yard: Yeah, our back yard is like the size of a postage stamp, but here it is in all it's glory!


10.Something you're procrastinating: We've been procrastinating doing the deep cleaning of the pantry and kitchen cabinets and started it this morning!


11.Collection: I like jewelry!


12. Favorite shoes: I call these my Cinderella shoes, I've had them for 2 years and barely worn them because they are so dressy!


Now I tag my Mom (who just started her blog, it will give her something to post!!) and Emily!