Jealous

On President's Day we all enjoyed a fun day off together. I will have to post pics later. After much debating, we made another crazy late afternoon trip down to WX. One of the highlights was that Louis and I finally went to the Salt Lake Running company to get him some new shoes. He has been having some complications with his ankle and it has been pretty discouraging for him. We are hoping these new shoes and inserts will help out. He has also finally promised to take it easy and work his way back into running. As opposed to the last few times he's jumped back in to go on a ten plus mile run with me cold turkey after five months of my own training..... not always a good move, besides totally offending my ego! He's going on his first run tonight and I surely hope it is motivating and stress-relieving and fun! I am jealous. This is a good sign. Last year I tried to get back in touch with the runner's high, but my emotional instability just wasn't allowing for it. Here's hoping that after this baby I will be able to find my peace and sanity in a daily run. How I miss it! In the mean while, I will just keep being jealous of all of you who are blogging about your amazing workouts and runs and this crazy Olympian who makes me look like a lazy bump on a log.
http://sports.yahoo.com/olympics/vancouver/blog/fourth_place_medal/post/Canadian-curler-is-five-months-pregnant?urn=oly,219941

Happy Valentine's Day!

Eight years ago today I was lucky enough to have a handsome man propose to me, and thankfully, I was smart enough to say Yes!

Although time has gone by, some things haven't changed.

Hope you all had a great Valentine's Day.

(Kaylee is the artist.... pretty good, huh?)

Hurrah! I Made IT!

Just a quick post to say that I really feel like celebrating. Today is the second day of February, and despite that stinker Puxatawny Phil, I am feeling hopeful that Spring will be here soon! I made it through January without the usual January blues! I think school was definately a help, and some other wonderful highlights, but it's over and I hardly even noticed! :)

Oh, What Do You Do in the Wintertime?

I have a really hard time with winter. I have been doing better this year, so far. Let's hope it lasts. To help keep myself and the children entertained, I have found a new favorite activity. Green Gorilla. It's a new huge carwash just like I remember from my childhood. The kind that drives your car for you and has huge brushes and long streaming seaweed looking things and super turbo fans at the end to blow your car dry. Wow. We went as a family last week, and loved it so much I made my sister go because, frankly, her car was disgusting. We decided to buy a punch pass so we can go even more for less. I'm a nerd. I know.

Lest you think I really have no idea what real fun is, I did go to a movie last night with Donna and Charlotte. We saw Blind Side and it was so good! I loved it and want to see it again. Awesome story, amazing acting. Just a great movie. I really love Sandra Bullock and it was crazy to see her blonde and hear her southern accent, but I loved it!

In other news.... I completely forgot in my last post to mention the greatest event of the week! I passed my math test!!! So.... this week I was able to begin school again. I am feeling more excited about this semester, because I am more interested in the classes, but I am also super anxious because it's going to be tough. I am taking Business Statistics and Microeconomics. May the force be with me.

Goings On....

This past week was full of fun and festivities. A great way to end the old year with a BANG!
First up, I turned 28 on Monday. I was very excited for this birthday. I was determined to have a better day than last year. Not that people didn't make my birthday awesome last year, because they did, but because last year I felt OLD, frumpy, and depressed with life. Well, this year was SO much better! I felt younger, more energetic, hopeful for the future, and determined to have a super year! Plus, I can finally remember how old I am without doing the math! Lame, I know, but I turned 28, on the 28th. Eureka!


He was biting right through the peel of this orange! Crazy kid, I love him!!!

Second big event, we went in for our ultrasound. It was so fun to take the kids! Much to Kaylee's dismay, we are having a boy. Charles was thrilled. I hope this little boy is a lot like Charles. He has really been such a sweetheart. Kaylee is excited, still and I am so glad to have such a good little helper. I have some cute shots of this new little guy, but no scanner.... sorry. At first he was wiggling all over the place so the tech had a hard time finding him to get measurements, then when she was trying to get some cute 3-D face shots, he just snuggles right up and stays put. Oh, I hope he is a snuggler! I just love snuggly babies!!!
Next up, my friend got married on New Year's Eve. Awesome way to end the year and begin the next, eh? I got to decorate and set up for the luncheon. It was my first attempt at doing anything like that without my right hand woman, Amber to make it all beautiful. I tried to convice her to fly out and help me, but no go. Fortunately, she left behind all these awesome decorations from our RS days together and so I utilized her talent. Her legacy lives on!!! The wedding was beautiful and the new family was super cute in their new duds! Congrats, Colleen!!!



That night we partied as hard as two old timers can! I was surprised that this year the kids stayed up until after midnight! They even ran outside to bang pots and pans! Thanks, Donna and Steve for helping us to celebrate! Sorry I was so lame. I was feeling a little sluggish from all the day's activities and it was all I could do not to fall asleep. Next year, a little pick me up.... or a nap first.
I must say, 2009 has not been my favorite year.... I am not very sad to see it go. But I'd like to leave it on a positive note by saying that although I found my weaknesses in great abundance, and greater strength than I originally though, I also discovered strength I didn't know I had, and hopefully I will be able to become a better person (eventually) because of this year and all it's glorious "opportunities" shall we say? I am really looking forward to 2010 because it holds the promise of being so much better!!!

Merry Christmas!

We had a really nice Christmas this year. We began our festivities on Christmas Eve. We went down to Perry to meet up with the rest of the family for Squirmy's first birthday! We had yummy soup and Lion House rolls. Mmmm! Then it was time for presents! It was pretty funny trying to get Squirm to focus on opening all the presents. There was so much to play with. Charles and Kaylee were certainly enjoying the new toys as well.

Then on to the cake. Tressa made a separate half circle cake just for Squirm to devour, and he ate almost half or more! It was really cute. He'd just stick his whole face in it and try to get a bite.

We left a little while after that and came home to watch It's A Wonderful Life. Love that movie. Then we tucked everyone in bed and awaited the excitement of Christmas morning.
About 7:30ish I heard the kids getting up and hurried in to the bathroom before they came down, but I was too late to see their faces right as they found their gifts. They were pretty excited with their presents.

This year Kaylee wanted ballet slippers and a pink ballet dress. She also wanted a jewelry box that played music with a twirling ballerina. She got a Cinderella barbie horse and the book Fancy Nancy's Splendiferous Christmas. I love those Fancy Nancy books. They are so Kaylee!

Charles wanted a new Buzz Lightyear because his other one broke. He also wanted Rex the dinosaur and swords. He was super excited with all of it. Though a bit disappointed that Buzz doesn't talk or have wings, but I think we've convinced him this one is just as cool! He got the book Bye, Bye Big Bad Bullybug. We read that at a neighbor's house once and he just loved it.

We spent some time admiring the Santa gifts and reading the new books they got and then we had a quick breakfast and headed upstairs to open presents.

Louis' parents have a fun tradition of giving the grandkids a science gift each year. Charles and Kaylee were very excited with the Solar System books. Kaylee learned about the Solar System for her science fair project earlier this year and I was surprised how much she remembered. Kaylee got a kit that has you grow a praying mantis. I think she's a little nervous about it, but it will be fun. Charles was so funny! He got a serious look on his face and says, "There are no bugs in the house!" So we explained that we'd be doing it outside when it got warmer... maybe at Uncle Jake's house! ;)

Kaylee and Charles helped to pick out a new griddle for Louis so he can cook his famous breakfast for us with greater ease. They really were quite helpful in picking and they were so excited to give him something. It was really cute.

Jake, Tressa, and Squirm chose the perfect gifts for all of us! Kaylee saw that unicorn a month or so ago and really wanted it so badly. She was thrilled to get it! Charles was overjoyed with his new game. He loves to play this at Grandma Jake's and he said to me, "Now I don't have to go to her house to play it, I can play it here!"

My mom spoiled the kids as usual. One of the things she gave them was an ornament. They were thrilled! Growing up my mom gave each of us a new ornament every year. It is so fun for me to pull those out and remember why she gave me each ornament and the kids love it, too. They have been so sad that they don't have very many, and so each time they get one they love it! Kaylee's is a girl sledding on a tube and Charles' is a penguin. Perfect! Uncle Weston spoiled us with three shipments of fresh fruit from California and UP. We all just love that movie!!!

Kaylee and Louis had gone shopping together Wednesday and I was very excited to find out what they'd picked out. Kaylee insisted on giving me these awesome pj's. Louis was worried, but she refused to leave without them. I got a good laugh, but once I put them on.... I never wanted to take them off! They are so comfy! Yay for Kaylee!

They also got me a new pocket-sized hymn book because Kaylee chewed on my old one when she was a baby and a lot of the page numbers are missing. I got a good laugh out of that, too. The last gift was from Louis and it was a receipt showing that he'd gone out and purchased a new dining room table and chairs for me! And the best part was it was already on a super sale, and then he got to reach in a stocking and pick a prize for more of a discount, and he pulled out the biggest one.... an additional 20% off! Yeah for good deals and thoughtful husbands! Yeah, I cried. So my table wasn't in stock, and the company takes three months to make it, so in March I will get my table and maybe I can host a big St. Patty's Day dinner party!!!! I am so excited!!!
After presents, we headed to Donna and Steve's house where the kids were again spoiled. Charles got this awesome remote control helicopter. He started flying it and attacked Donna's brother with it! It was pretty entertaining. Kaylee got a jewelry making kit. She was thrilled!!! She and grandma made her first bracelet on Saturday and she was in heaven! They also got the kids UP to add to the kid DVD collection for when we are over playing games. They even spoiled the new baby.... Donna found an adorable snugly blanket that is a creamy white. She was pretty sad to have to go so neutral, but we won't know until Tuesday what we're having.
Next we headed down to Woods Cross to hang out with my family. We enjoyed lounging around playing games and eating, eating, eating! I had a super awesome surprise when Dan Hinckley showed up to drop off some shirts for my kids that his amazingly talented wife had made for me. The kids LOVED the shirts and wore them the next day to show off. (I'll have to put up some pics of them in their new shirts later on because I was too lame to take any pictures that day.) Megan is awesome! That evening Zach called and we got to chat with him for a little bit. It was much different not having him home. We had a delicious turkey dinner that mom made and stayed up super late playing Shadows over Camelot.

The next day we lounged some more and played even more games. My parents got a fun new game called Word on the Street. I love word games, so I had a blast playing it. A highlight for Louis was getting a RISK game going with my mom, dad and Josh. I was surprised my mom played! She even won!!!

We ended the day super late with a pinochle show down between Louis and me and my parents. My parents won. We are looking forward to a rematch! Dad was such a good sport to stay up so late with us even with his early morning meetings only a few short hours away. We arrived home very late (or super early...) and tired but happy. We were all very spoiled this year. Thanks so much to all who gave us such nice, thoughtful gifts! Thanks to everyone who helped make this holiday weekend so fun for us! Hope you all had a super holiday as well!

Hardware Ranch

For seven plus years I've heard about Hardware Ranch and kept saying I was going to take the kids up there around Christmas time. While Lynn, Daniel and Karla were here for a visit, we finally did just that. We piled in the car and headed up Blacksmith Fork Canyon to see the elk. It was a beautiful drive and I loved all the snow everywhere. I had built up in my mind, and the kids' minds, that there was a Christmas village and we would take a sleigh ride..... not quite. We still had fun wandering around the visitor's center and the wagon ride was good, but I must say I was a bit disappointed. Kaylee was especially upset that it wasn't an actual sleigh. Louis found out that they do put runners on the wagon, but not until later on. What does Charles remember? Well, he was watching the elk and said, "Mom, what are they doing?" I looked over to see and well, they were pooping. Never seen that before. All of a sudden I realized why it's so funny to give people a box of whoppers with reindeer antlers and a tail with a hole underneath.... that's pretty much what it looks like. I never did care much for whoppers.

A MUCH better family picture than the Christmas tree shot!