Christmas Day (ish)

All I can say is Easton got really spoiled this Christmas. It started a few days early when he received this present from Grandpa Andy. The thing that is really cool about this workbench is it has been through their two sons, and several of the other church boys. Each time getting a little more added to it, and now it has made it's way down to Easton. I LOVE this gift and he does too. He has played with it everyday since he got it. This doesn't even show the whole array of tools that came with the bench.




Ready to go to work!

After that Christmas continued on the 25th and Grandma and Grandpa's house. Where the family opened more gifts.

This pile of wrapping and gifts doesn't even put a dent in what was there for the grandkids that morning. They are very lucky indeeed.

Then after a morning at the grandparents house we went back home and opened our gifts. We got up too late to do it before we went to grandma's, which was totally worth it!

Here he is with his new sleeping bag and blanket from Grandad. He thought they were very cool.

Daddy and his boy their 2nd Christmas together.

Had to have one with mommy too even though I'm still in my sweats and haven't gotten ready for the day yet.

THEN we went to dinner with the in laws (well my in laws) it was quite a busy day.



Easton and his best bud Erik sharing a roll.

Here the boys are again hiding in the curtains. This was their favorite game till the curtain rod started to fall and they had to stop. (Don't worry we fixed it!)

Here the kids are listening to the Christmas story about the birth of Jesus.

Then what a shock....MORE presents. Seriously we could've given him nothing from mom and dad and he still would've had way more than he needed. He definitely got more from everyone else than he did from us anyway.

This one is just too funny not to post. Logan after he "smelled" his uncle's pie.

We had a great Christmas this year and as always I am reminded of how truly blessed my family and I are. I could've done without even one gift and still had more than most people do don't have enough room under their tree for all the presents. I have an amazing husband, a wonderful son, and a family (on both sides) that can't be beat. The greatest gift of all of course is the reason we celebrate this season in the first place...Jesus. I am overwhelmed when I think of the greatness of that sacrifice for us. We have all been given more than we could ever deserve, but is His pleasure to give, if we would just accept the gift.

Chrismastime!

We decorated our Christmas tree last night, much to daddy's dismay. He loves the fact that Jesus was born, but Christmas isn't his favorite holiday. He would be perfectly happy to not have a tree, do presents, or any of that. But because he loves me he puts up with Christmas music, ornaments, and presents under the tree. He even helped us decorate. He put on one ornament, and only because Easton said "Dada, help?" Not even he could resist that. Sadly I forgot to get out the camera until he had already fulfilled his decorating obligations so there is no proof of his involvement, but he was there behind the camera for the rest of these.


Taking the ornaments out of the box was more fun than putting them on the tree.


We made quite the mess before everything was all said and done.

He put this one up all by himself.

By the time we got close to putting up the star decorating had lost some of it's appeal. He was starting to get a little tired of ornaments and having his picture taken.

I didn't get a picture of it, but when we first plugged in the tree Easton went right over and started trying to blow out all the lights. The holidays have been so much more fun this year now that he's getting big enough to be excited and help out. Next, cookies!

Smells...

There are lots of fun things about being pregnant: seeing an ultrasound, hearing that crazy fast heartbeat, feeling the baby kick, having your hair and nails grow super fast, etc. One thing that is not so fun about pregnancy is this crazy increased sense of smell. I don't know how you normally smell sensitive people handle it on a daily basis I feel for you. Luckily I'm not one that's terribly bothered by smells, except when I'm pregnant.

So far I've had to buy new deodorant, body wash, face soap, lotion, and shampoo because everything I had I can't stand now. Too sweet, or too strong, or too gross. I had to go with all the sensitive skin unscented stuff so now taking a shower doesn't make me want to gag.

It's amazing what smells I notice now more than ever. Dirty diapers are a whole new experience, public restrooms, and driving by fast food restaurants can be killer. I also really notice people's breath, and you don't have to be that close to me. (Don't worry anyone who has been talking to me recently...I haven't noticed it in my friends) Cashiers and bank tellers, Walmart greeters...It's not fun to go shopping right after someone's lunch break :) There is no way I could go to the dentist right now and have someone that close to my face unless I could be certain they had eaten an entire package of breath mints before they came near.

Although it may seem like it, this isn't a complaining post. I actually find it more funny than anything. I was just thinking about it today when I took a shower and looked around at all my new products. I'm the one of the cheapest people you'll ever meet, but it was worth it to buy temporary replacements to give my poor little nose a break!

Wow it's been forever since I've posted!

I haven't been on here in such a long time, but today I was thinking about some things that just made me happy to be a mom. I'm glad I'm a mom everyday, but some days this kid of mine is just too cute and he makes me laugh even more. How can I not love it when...

He stops in the middle of playing runs over and says "Mama, hug. Kisses!" He gives me a big hug and kiss and then goes back to playing.

He is a little gassy and says, "PU mama, stinky" and then laughs and laughs. (Who taught him to think that was funny?? One guess!)

He really wants something (animal crackers, juice, etc) and he comes over says, "Mama, animal cackah, please" accompanied by raised eyebrow and cheesy grin.

I start to take out the trash and he drops what he's doing runs over and says "Help!" and grabs the recycle trash can to carry it outside.

At night when we put him to bed he says his prayers and we sing songs. Then when its time to lay down he whispers "Night night, love you." (It's the whipsering part that's so stinkin cute!)

I just love this kid of mine! I can't wait to see what kind of personality the next one will have. Hopefully a lot of it just like Easton. Never a dull moment when he's around and I love it!

Miracles of Modern Medicine...and of God!

Tonight I'm home thinking how very thankful I am for medication. (Just a warning this is going to be long so hopefully you can bear with me!) But let me back track. I need to begin by saying how very thankful I am for my concerned friends and family who remind me of what I should already know, but often don't. I spent last week being miserable, as you saw from my last post. I had been terribly sick and kept nothing, not even water down for about 4 days. I figured it was just part of the pregnancy curse and wasn't going to worry about it too much. Just whine and complain and wait for it to pass. Well, last Sunday at church several of my concerned friends told me I NEEDED to call my doctor. This wasn't normal and getting dehydrated would only cause unneccesary problems. I was also asked if I had been administered to. I hadn't, I was thinking getting administered to because you've got morning sickness is like getting administered to so labor won't hurt. It's part of the process and you just have to deal with it right?

Well, Monday came and went and I didn't call my doctor. I had an appointment on Wednesday anyway and thought I should just wait. That day I got phone calls and text messages from concerned friends making sure I had called the doctor. I sheepishly told them I hadn't, and knew they were still worried. So after promises to call the next day I went to bed sick again. The next morning I almost didn't call, but remembered my promise and decided I had better do it. So I did, and they called in an anti nausea prescription for me. The next day I went to my appointment and was told by my doctor I had waited much too long to do something about this. It was not healthy for me or the baby I'm supposed to be taking care of. Well, after a few days of being on the medication I haven't been sick once! My stomach still feels upset, but the pain level and nausea have decreased significantly. This is definitely bearable. Just goes to show I should've listened to my friends earlier and taken care of this. Would've saved myself a lot of grief.

Well, I listened to one piece of advice and called the doctor and got on medication, but I still hadn't listened to the second to be administered to. The first few days on the meds seemed amazing. I could eat crackers and sip broth and it stayed down. This seemed like a miracle in itself, but I really shouldn't spend the next few weeks or months living on broth and a few crackers. The medicine helped, but I still couldn't really eat. Wednesday night at church we were going through prayer requests before the season of prayer and I knew I needed to ask for administration. I was administered to that night and now I am able to eat small amounts of regular food without getting sick. I know the continued improvement is due to that administration.

I know God has blessed me tremendously already. He has blessed me by giving me people in my life who are concerned for me and who give excellent advice. He has blessed me with a doctor who is caring and knowledgable. He has blessed me with the child I'm lucky enough to be carrying. He has been with me and I know he will continue to be. After my last post I knew I couldn't leave it at that. I had to share God's blessings to me throughout this pregnancy so far.

Whining and Complaining

No cute pictures of Easton today. Today I'm taking a moment to complain about Eve. She messed up and part of her punishment was travail in childbirth. Did that really have to extend to the rest of us?? So many think this just means labor. Honestly labor really wasn't all that bad, and that is without an epideral. It's the prelabor part I'm whining about today. This morning I woke up feeling especially sick and I've been moping about it since I got out of bed. I know I was sick when I was pregnant the first time, but the puking didn't start till almost the 8th week. I was less than 6 weeks when it began with this one, and it has been going full force ever since. The last few days I have thrown up everything that has gone into my mouth within minutes of eating or drinking it. I'm very tired of looking into my toilet bowl. And I'm very tired of feeling sick to my stomach all day every day. I hate to be "that" preganant lady. You know the one...the one who looks completely miserable all the time, the one who moans and groans with every movement, the one who will talk your ear off about every little ache and pain, the one who got the pregnancy waddle the day they took the home pregnancy test...that one! I don't want to be her, but today I see "that" lady's face in my mirror (gasp!!) Where did she come from? Why am I being sucked into that temptation to complain? Well, to all my friends out there who will be spending the next few months around me I promise I will try my hardest not to continue being THAT preganant lady. But today, just for a moment I am her. I am whining and complaining and wishing I was one of those lucky women who never felt the pain of morning sickness. But now I say good-bye to the grouch and hello to the one who knows that no matter what the end result is completely worth it. I can't look at my son who is already here and think anything else!

Putting Away the Dishes

I've learned that it's just easier to let Easton help most of the time when I'm doing housework etc. He throws away garbage, sweeps the floor, picks up toys, carries laundry to the bedrooms, and helps unload the dishwasher. As you can see he's quite skilled at putting silverware away. Hey I'm impressed at least it all ends up in the drawer :) He thinks it's great fun to carry spoons to the drawer and hand me plastic plates and cups. I have to be quick and take out breakable stuff and then close the door before he can grab something. It's so cute though. He will pick up a cup, hand it to me and say, "thank you". He repeats this process with each thing he gives me. It actually has made putting dishes away a lot easier, and I don't have to wait until he's napping which is great. Of course I do have to go back and rearrange the silverware when he's done, but that's ok. He's getting to be such a big boy. I can't believe how much he has grown up!

Ok Alesha here it goes....minus the posting the award part and all that. By the way if I hyphenate a word does that count :)

1. Where is your cell phone? pocket
2.Your hair? clean
3. Your mother? awesome
4. Your father? great
5. Your favorite food? ice cream
6. Your dream last night? Easton
7. Your favorite drink? coffee
8. Your dream/goal? eternity
9. What room are you in? computer
10. Your hobby? none
11. Your fear? potty-training
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Phoenix
13. Where were you last night? home
14. Something that you aren't? thin
15. Muffins? sometimes
16. Wish list item? paint
17. Where did you grow up? Arizona
18. Last thing you did? read
19. What are you wearing? capris
20. Your TV? silent
21. Your pets? crazy
22. Friends? amazing
23. Your life? WONDERFUL
24. Your mood? happy
25. Missing someone? husband
26. Vehicle? mediocre
27. Something you're not wearing? lipstick
28. Your favorite store? Target
29. Your favorite color? red
30. When was the last time you laughed? today
31. Last time you cried? unsure
32. Your best friend? best
33. One place that I go to over and over? bathroom
34. One person who emails me regularly? cceg
35. Favorite place to eat? gelato

Wordless Wednesday

Give Me Jesus

To anyone who saw my FB today this is more of the same so sorry for the repeat, but I'm not restricted by a maximum number of characters on here. Since I tend to be wordy that can get in the way somemtimes :)

I was listening to the song "Give Me Jesus" by Fernando Ortega this morning and it touched me more than it ever has before. Hearing, "You can have all this world, but give me Jesus", made me think about how that really is enough. Trials, friends, family, money, status, and possessions all come and go but Jesus never leaves. He is the one who makes it possible for us to have so much more than even the best of this world can ever offer. For me that is unimaginable, but I have hope in it. So today I am so thankful for the greatest gift God has ever given me, his son. I only wish everyone knew the gift was theirs as well if they choose to accept it and endure to the end.


Give Me Jesus (Fernando Ortega, album Home)

In the morning when I rise
In the morning when I rise
In the morning when I rise, give me Jesus

Give me Jesus
Give me Jesus
You can have all this world,
But give me Jesus

When I am alone
When I am alone
When I am alone, give me Jesus

Give me Jesus
Give me Jesus
You can have all this world,
But give me Jesus

When I come to die
When I come to die
When I come to die, give me Jesus

Give me Jesus
Give me Jesus
You can have all this world
You can have all this world
You can have all this world
But give me Jesus

My First Fort

We built Easton his first fort out of couch cushions the other day. He had been pulling them off onto the floor so dad decided we might as well make a fort. If they're going to be on the floor anyway they can at least be doing someting useful :)



We put him in the super cool fort with a book, but as you can see he wasn't quite sure how he felt about it.



Grabbing the pillows was much more fun than just sitting there looking at books.



Grabbed one too many and now it's starting to tumble.



He's under there somewhere!!

Finally, digging his way out! Although he doesn't appreciate the coolness of the couch fort just yet he did have a lot of fun destroying it. Shouldn't have been a bit surprised since destruction is his specialty. Gotta love him though and I do!!

Playing in the Fountains

Brooke and Easton running around. I could never get a picture of them facing me! My camera has an obnoxioius delay between pictures so it's just enough time for the kids to run.


Easton and Erik wait for the water to come back and get Logan.

I love this one. The water is right in his face. I'm pretty sure he loved it too!

The only picture I got of anyone even sort of looking at me. But it's a cute one. He LOVES the water.

This was so much fun. I took Easton once by himself, but it's way better when you have a friend, or two, or three! Can't wait to do it again. I know Alesha got much better pictures than I did so I'm looking forward to seeing those too!

What was I thinking?

So, I let Easton eat a yogurt by himself today while I put some groceries away. As you can see he's not quite ready for that yet.


Things started off messy.


Then got worse when he ditched the spoon and decided fingers were the way to go.


Don't want to leave a drop behind!

Finally the yogurt cup had disappeared and all that was left was a sticky spoon and tray, and an entire body (literally) covered in peach yogurt. At least I thought to take his shirt off first. I should've taken the shorts too!

I Can't Complain

As I struggled today to shove one more thing into an already full to capacity closet today I found myself frustrated by our lack of space in this house. Closets maxed out, kitchen cupboards overflowing and drawers filled with junk that has nowhere else to go...you get the idea. Anyway as I thought about how much I wished we had more space, an extra bedroom, another closet, I began to think there are actually some positive aspects to a smaller home. Cleaning takes much less time and effort, and as one who is still trying to perfect her role as stay at home mom that is a definite plus! Less space means lower utility bills, not as much to cool as a bigger house. Smaller home equals smaller mortgage, which is a huge blessing. When the size of your yard far exceeds the size of your home you have lots of space to play. Room enough to put golf balls, practice archery, and run around in several sets of sprinklers. There is also room for a pretty sweet vegetable garden. There is also enough room for two adults, one toddler, two dogs, and a houseguest, with no one running into each other and no line for the bathroom. So although I began my morning murmuring I have since changed my tune. God has given me and my family everything we could ever need, and much much more! I can't (and shouldn't) complain about anything in my life. As the song we sang at our Thanksgiving program said, "I am blessed beyone all measure".

We're home...Finally!

We have been travelling so much this summer that it feels like we've been living out of a suitcase for a month now. But we are home and staying home for awhile. Well, at least until September when we go up to the Ranch for scripture camp. That isn't the same though. It doesn't require going to an airport, long flights, or staying in someone else's house. I love being able to visit with friends I don't normally get to see, but there is nothing quite like sleeping in your own bed.

Well, I'm sure this comes as a shock to no one, but I left my camera at home. I downloaded all my old pictures onto the computer to be sure to have plenty of room for new ones on the trip, and then proceeded to leave the camera sitting on the desk for the ten days we were gone. I was so mad at myself, but oh well. Jane Ann and Aimee got some very cute pictures of Easton while we were there...maybe one day I will get to see them :) Especially the ones of him and Olivia. They were SO adorable.

Easton did really well, but sometimes the church services got kind of long for him so he entertained himself by flirting with all the nearby girls. Smiling and waving, batting those long eyelashes. He really impressed them one afternoon when he was standing up facing the pew behind us. He was just getting going with waving and smiling at his admirers when decided he needed to pass gas (or whatever phrase you prefer to describe it)...and it was long and LOUD! Then he shouts out "Poo poos!!!" It was so funny! And of course slightly embarrassing. I had to really control myself to not laugh out loud.

Well, this would be better with pictures, but since I'm a loser who never takes any you will have to use your imagination. Imagine how cute Olivia is. How funny Easton and Dylan were chasing each other around. How much fun he had playing at the Missouri grammy's house. As any good teacher knows being able to picture what you're reading in your mind is an important part of comprehension. So really I'm just helping you improve your literacy skills.

It's good to be home!

My Little Dancer

Easton gettin down in Brandon and Tara's living room. I'm sure they were quite happy to see us go home so they could get back to a little peace and quiet. He LOVED this drum and was banging on it every chance he got. It was excellent entertainment for the little guy, and daddy too as you can see.

NY Reunion

We had a great time visiting our friends and family in upstate NY this past weekend. Although it took us three planes and ALL day to get there and back, it was worth it to have the chance to see everyone and attend the reunion. Even though it was small, only about 30 people, the services and sermons were great. I'm so glad we were able to go.




This is the plane that took us to and from Massena and Albany. It only holds ten people total, including the pilot so as you can imagine it was tiny! The flight takes about an hour, and it super loud because of the propellers, but it was awesome!




Just another closeup view of the ramp leading inside the plane.

I didn't have my camera out on the way there when the weather was perfect. The views that day were amazing! It was cloudy on the way back so the pictures aren't as clear, but this is just some of what we could see from our aerial view. There is water everywhere you look in this part of the country, but I couldn't get any good pictures of all the rivers there. But you can see how green everything is. I really don't think they have ever seen the color brown unless they dig under ground, or look at a tree trunk. Not like home at all, but I still love it here anyway.

Anyone who knows this guy understands how perfect this toy was for him. He loved playing this piano at Eli and Gretchen's house. He would sit and play something, then stop and clap for himself and look around to make sure everyone else was too. The cutest was when he would sing and play. He wouldn't do it for the video camera though, too bad.

Our first day there we went out on the boat. Easton didn't care for the life jacket too much, but he had a great time.

We all enjoyed being out on the water. Luckily we got some time in that day because the rest of the weekend was rainy and a little cold for boating. Although Aadam, Chase, Mya, Rhoades, Brandon, Bill, and Louie went out in the cold later on. They were going on the speedboat and being pulled around on the tube behind it. A little too fast to take the little guy out. So we visited with the ladies on the shore instead. Easton tried to drive the motorhome and destroy everything. Luckily the owners are grandparents and they didn't mind :)

Easton, Louie, and Chase swinging.

Checking out the fish. Thanks for holding on so tight Chase! This was pretty much his favorite thing to do while we were there.

Now it's Rhoades' turn to hold him. Anyone else willing??

These are what kept his attention for so long. Eli and Gretchen's backyard was a never ending source of adventure for Easton. He even got to feed the fish. So cool!

These are just a few of the pictures, a video of the boys playing the drums and a sweet headdress are coming soon

Future Food Network Hosts??

I've been hanging out with my boys this week and it's been so much fun! These two are quite a pair and have definitely entertained me (and each other). Today was raspberry banana bread day. Yes I am crazy for geting two toddlers to help me bake. But really they didn't make too much of a mess. They were pretty good helpers and had a great time in the kitchen.




We stared out by mashing up the bananas. They each took turns squishing them up while saying "squish squish squish" as they smashed.


Next we added the water.

Then the oil...and yes I actually did let them pour it and neither of them spilled.

Then we added the flour mixture and the boys stirred that in for me as well. This was the messiest step of our baking adventure. They would look at the spoons and shake them around. Getting some on the floor, and on the dogs, but none on their shirts!

Finally we poured the batter into the pans and got it ready to go in the oven. There would be a picture of the little chefs with the finished product, but one of them got sleepy and had to take a nap before it was done. Cooking can really wear you out!