Us

Family Updates

2011-09-21T23:31:00.000-07:00

Mabel is at such a cute age right now. She is 14 months. She is getting very particular, but is still adorable.

She loves shoes. Has to have them on all the time.
She is super chunky and I love it
She wants to do everything her big sisters do...everything.
Her favorite words are "dad" and "ellah". She really doesn't say much else (ball, mom, hi, bye, nigh)
She loves to be held.
She is friendly to everyone.
She loves to carry around "little" things (purses, toys, phones)

Sadie turned 5 last week. She has been acting really grown up and smart the last few weeks. She loves kindergarten and I still worry about her a lot, but I am proud of how well she is doing. We went to a resort for her birthday (her pick) and it was such a hit. The girls just kept saying, "I love this place"...it was great to see them so excited.

Ruby has had a hard year this year. Second grade gets a lot more intense because they can all read at this point and they do math facts every single day. It has been kind of a hard start to the year, but I feel like we are starting to get into the swing of things now.

It looks like I may have to get a little surgery on my knee pretty soon. I just had it drained yesterday and it looks like this again today. I know...gross...I guess my high school nickname, "legs" will have to retire for good. Maybe I can find a picture of me on the normal camera, but this was it for the mobile uploads:)

Dave is having fun with football season. Fantasy football. Other then that he is busy keeping up the yard and the hard work in the office.

I gotta be honest...I've been pretty stressed lately, but for now...I love my little family...

Goodnight!

Back to School

2011-08-16T22:02:00.000-07:00

My cute daughters started school last week. Sadie seems so young for kindergarten...because she is, but she is doing great. Ruby is ready for 2nd grade with an attitude that I am not so sure I am ready for, but...still cute all the same. Great first day of school attire as well:)

in other news....I am so happy that Mae has learned how to go down the stairs and she has been taking more steps toward walking.

And...Ruby had a wonderful solo performance for a youth choir that she did over the summer. She learned more about music and singing at choir then she ever will from her parents. Poor thing...she loves to sing so much! I just really like this family photo from after the performance.

July Festivities

2011-07-23T22:37:00.000-07:00

Well...we had a busy month. We went to Utah for 2 weeks. It was great to enjoy family and weather for the Fourth of July. Then two of the girls shared their birthdays the same week. Ruby turned 7 on July 12th and Mabel turned 1 on July 15th. Poor Sadie has to wait a couple of months for hers.

We had Rubys party up in Utah. We went to this trampoline place called Airbourne which was great for the adults to enjoy as well. She requested a Krispie Kreme Cake which was excellent by me.

On Mabel's b-day we drove home in the middle of the night just in time to pick her up from the airport (she flew down with my sister). We did a little family party which also included a donut and a large cupcake- cake (actually on two different days). I'm the worst cake maker in the world...but they still taste better then a store bought so who cares.

Happy birthday little gals. School starts in 2 weeks and big girl Sadie tested in so she will be starting Kindergarten and Ruby will be starting 2nd grade. Crazy, crazy.

New Blog Giveaway

2011-07-16T09:15:00.000-07:00

Many of you already know about my new "home" blog, but if you don't...head on over....I am doing a giveaway on there right now.

www.abodecasahome.blogspot.com

Had two girls birthdays last week...pics to come.

Lemonade Stand

2011-06-21T09:00:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago the girls did their first lemonade stand. I was worried they were going to be highly disappointed in the lack of customers so I texted a few friends to come do some service. It turns out they would have done just fine without my help. All of the neighborhood kids came by to get some lemonade. It kept the girls busy for the majority of the day. It was pretty cute.

Europe 2011

2011-06-14T12:55:00.000-07:00

Prepare for a long post with lots of pics. Dave and I had the opportunity to go on a trip to Europe with my dad, step mom, siblings, and spouses. There were 14 of us and we're all terrible decision makers so by default a cruise was our best option. When asked what my favorite place was, it was very hard to answer so I will just give you the "best" vote per city. Here is the play by play...

We flew into Barcelona, Spain two days before boarding our ship. Barcelona was a fabulous city. A mix of New York and San diego. A lot going on there plus the bonus of ancient architecture and character by the ocean. One of the main attractions in Barcelona is the architecture of Gaudi. There are 2 famous houses right in the sqaure that we were able to see. You can drive up into the hills about 15 minutes and view the famous Park Guell which is an amazing park designed by Gaudi. Here you will find a Mosaic bench that surrounds a huge area of the park. We had a great tour guide that filled us in with all of history and details of how the park came about. The third place that we went was the Sagrada Familia. This church was started by Gaudi over 100 years ago. He died before finishing it, but had the plans for the whole design. It has been worked on since and they just finished the inside of it. This church is the most amazing architecture I have ever seen.

BARCELONA VOTES:
MOST ASTONISHING CHURCH
MOST FAST PACED "FUN"
GOOD SHOPPING

The group in front of one of the Gaudi Houses

Park Guell

Sagrada Familia

Inside of Sagrada Familia...Gaudi used nature in his design often. The inside of the church is meant to look like a rainforest. It was light and awesome compared to so many of the dark cathedrals.

By the ocean

After two days we boarded the "Voyager of the Seas" cruise ship.

Our first stop was the port Toulon, France. From here we drove up into the hills to a dreamy little cobblestone town that overlooked wine country. It was gorgeous. After that we went and spent the rest of the day at the beach along the French Riviera.

TOULON FRANCE VOTES:
MOST RELAXING
MOST DREAMY
WANT MORE TIME THERE

Castellet

By the beach

Next stop was Florence Italy. Oh Florence. I LOVED Florence. We had a fabulous tour guide and driver in Florence that really opened my eyes to the amazing artists that came from Florence all in one period of time. It truly was incredible. The city is gorgeous and full of history. The David statue is absolutely amazing. It is huge and has detail that you cannot believe until you see it.

VOTE FOR FLORENCE:
MOST ARTISTIC
WANT MORE TIME THERE

During this stop we also got to visit Pisa. I thought this was going to be kind of lame and expected. It was actually very cool. We got to climb the tower, which was creepy. You could feel the lean as you went up the steps. Usually when you see pictures of the tower you just notice the tower. Well...the grounds around the tower are absolutely beautiful as well. There is a huge Baptistry that was also built at the same time as the tower. The grounds remind me of the Mall in Washington DC, but with much older buildings.

PISA VOTE:
MOST SURPRISING

Next stop was Rome, Italy. The thought that these buildings are from the time of Christ is overwhelming. There is so much to see in Rome. We only had one day there. We were literally running through the city to try and see everything. We did pretty good, but could definitely use a few more days there.

ROME VOTES:
MOST HISTORICAL
MOST UNBELIEVABLE
MOST EXTRAVAGANT

Colosseum

Trevi Fountian

Spanish Steps

Vatican - before going through the Vatican Museum, Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter's

Next up was a stop in a port near Sicily, Italy. We stopped at a port that the ship usually does not stop at. The city looked cool from far (Cathedrals and architecture on the hills), but it was actually quite a dirty little town. We could have ridden the bus around the bend to a beach, but we stayed in the port city. We walked along the streets and found a small beach to play on. The highlight here was that the beach was covered with broken pieces of tile. We collected loads of cool tiles that we brought home to make some sort of a mosaic.

SICILY VOTES:
BEST TILES
CHEAPEST FOOD AND WATER
NO NEED TO GO BACK

The next day was spent cruising around the boot of Italy. I'm not going to lie...our family was kind of the hit of the ship. We were very involved and had so much fun on the ship. Here are a few pics from on the ship...

SHIP VOTES:
MOST FORCED ENTERTAINMENT
MOST STUCK IN THE 90's
MOST FOOD
MOST CONVENIENT
AWESOME WAY TO TRAVEL

Troys Bday at Johnny Rockets

One of the formal nights

Our last cruise port was near Venice, Italy. When I first got here I thought this was my favorite place. It is predictable (what you see on the movies), but it is seriously so different then anything else. It is awesome. The gondolas are awesome. We stayed in a hotel that was on it's own island so we had to ride a water taxi back and forth was pretty great as well. We spent two days in Venice and although I did love all the little alley ways of shops and great architecture. I even managed to find a "garage" sale. It was the most touristy of all. No bargaining, a lot of people, and taking advantage of tourists.

VENICE VOTES:
MOST UNUSUAL
MOST TOURISTY
FUN SHOPPING
MOST ROMANTIC (if you can tune out the tourism)

The driving of boats there...is unbelievable. I have no idea how they don't crash.

From Venice we took the train and went up to Lake Como. This place is the most gorgeous place I have ever seen. Although there is not constant entertainment and site seeing here, I would love to spend a few more days here relaxing and checking out the gardens.

LAKE COMO VOTES:
MOST PICTURESQUE
MOST CALMING

Dad and Sibs

This is where my trip ended. Dave got to stay 5 extra days where he saw the Swiss Alps, Lucerne, and Paris. His favorite was Switzerland. He said the people were great and the land was amazing. He did not take very many pics, but here are afew...

I know some of the pics are huge...no time to resize...sorry

2011-05-25T21:42:00.000-07:00

I sure did miss these munchkins while I was having an amazing trip in Europe. But...why is it so hard to get home from a vacation? I feel guilty and ungrateful when I get home and have a hard time. This happens to me every time and it will all be ok soon. Tons of pictures and stories to come. I am so grateful for the moms in my life that I trust enough to take care of my most precious girls. Thank you!

Ruby's Diary...

2011-04-16T07:43:00.000-07:00

It's time for me to post some of my favorite writings from Ruby...even though they make me look like a bad mom. I posted pictures of them just for the effect, but I know they're hard to read so they're translated right above each one.

Details: Dave went to CA and Ruby hung this on the garage door a little while after he left. She gets really sad whenever he leaves. When asked why she said, "tears of joy" she said because I love him so much he gives me joy.

"Dear Dad, I wept tears of Joy when I found out you left that's why I wrote you this. Love, Ruby"

Details: So we struggled big time with Sadie going number 2 on the potty ( like for 2 years). She has always been constipated. Well...I had a melt down and was crying and Ruby came up and handed this to me. Apparently the melt down helped because Sadie was able to do it that week!

"Maybe this will cheer you up.
Mom, I am sorry you're feeling sad. I'm sad too. Tell dad, he'll know what to do. I love you. Love Ruby. Tell Sadie if she does not go poop on the potty she can't go to kindergarten next year. xoxoxoxoxo"
Compassionate Ruby...

"Dad! Don't be sick anymore. Get better now. xoxoxoxoxox. I am into writing back and forth. I hope you like all the xo's. Happy Valentine's day."

"My Goal for this year is doing my homework better. I will sit down at the table and do it. Cuz usually I throw a tantrum."

She already writes lists for everything...here is one...

"Things I need to Remember:
Remind mom to get my green crayon
Be Good
Give Grandma and Grandpa a hug and kiss"
And my personal favorite journal entry...

"I wish I could build a tree house. Me and Sadie would play in it all day. Mom would be surprised. We usually bug mom so it would be nice to have a tree house."

There are so many more that I could post too. I love this little first grader of mine. Here she is playing the xylophone at her school music program.

She's ready...

2011-04-03T07:42:00.000-07:00

8.5 months and she is ready to crawl. Poor baby had the flu last week and now she is finally trying to push through her first teeth. It's been a rough week for her. She's growing up too fast.

Mabel Ann...a couple of weeks ago.

Dirty, Dirty Vegas

2011-03-20T21:33:00.000-07:00

A few weekends ago I went on a girls trip to vegas. I am super excited because my sister in law that came with us wrote a great post about it on her blog so now I am just gonna do a little editing to make hers...mine...

My mom, 2 sisters, and sister in law went on a girls only/no kids trip to Vegas. We all spent so much time laughing. I knew it would be a good trip when my sister Amy mass texted all of the girls telling us not to forget our slutty shoes and lip gloss. (Not a single one of us had a shoe with a heel higher than one inch) We stayed at the Planet Hollywood hotel in a Legends of the Fall themed room. There were pictures of Brad Pitt all over our room, and a steamy one of him directly above the romantic over-sized bathtub. Here are the highlights of the trip...

Mom and sisters...

Friday night we went to a piano bar to see this killer piano duo that took requests w/tips from the crowd all night. We all thought we were big shots when we each gave him requests with $5 attached to each request, until they started announcing their $20, $40, $60, and $100 requests. Turns out $5 won't get you "Only girl in the world" by Rihanna- they totally ignored that request.

Sooooo much shopping went on in Vegas. ( So much, in fact, that we became delirious from shopping and didn't notice the thief that pick pocketed Tara's purse and stole her wallet right from under our noses. Passport, cash, cards, license. I HATE thieves.) Vegas shopping is a little different in that it entails being attacked by SUPER loud and aggressive club music no matter where you go. Actually, not just shopping, I think there is some kind of city ordinance in Vegas that tourists MUST be bombarded with absurdly loud club music at all times, in all things, and in all places.

My mom was really antsy to go to a club the whole trip. I think mostly it was because she genuinely thought us girls wanted to go and that her "old mom" self was holding us back. We tried to explain to her MANY times that we truly had no interest in going clubbing, but she thought we were just being nice. Finally we decided to educate her on what actually went on in a club so that she'd lose interest in going. We asked her what she thought happened there. She said, " you know just dancing" and then she did a little dance kind of like the mashed potato or the twist. Then we taught her the horrors of what kind of dancing actually went on there. (The sneaky bump you feel from behind you while your minding your own business dancing.) She laughed so hard she almost peed her pants but she didn't believe us. So later that night we get "VIP" passes to go to some club JET for free, and we decide to finally just show her what really happens there. All we had to do was walk down the dark corridor of the club entrance and be attacked by some Pitbull song and she finally understood it was a whole different ball game. We wanted to go in to show her what it was like but we had forgotten Tara no longer had an ID.

Ready to club...our attire did not really fit in...far too many clothes...

We got to go to the The Beatles LOVE Ciique du Soleil show! It was absolutely amazing. The music sounded so incredible. It was almost like the amazing sound of a record but more perfect and way louder. They had such good song selection. I think we all were expecting the same old hits that are over played, but they did a great job at choosing Beatles songs that haven't been run into the ground. It was super entertaining and actually clean so that was refreshing. I am kind of impressed with my splits in my skinny jeans...I also want to be a trampoline flier in the show...

We ended the trip with a bang though. Literally. As we were leaving the parking lot of a strip mall off the Vegas strip, I was driving with Nichelle caravaning with the other girls. We were driving slowly through the parking lot as a man runs right past us on the side of the truck. We both laugh and say, "woah, he for sure just robbed some place. he's running from trouble." He was truly running for his life, sweaty and panicked, but we just kept going and then saw two men that were chasing him. We told them which way he went. We go a couple hundred more feet and see cops zooming into the gas station in front of us and there is a dead body on the ground. Immediately in seconds, ambulances and tons of cop cars swarm into the gas station. There was a woman screaming crying and people everywhere. We told the cops what he looked like and what direction he went. No one really seemed too interested and no one of authority was really moving at all. We were really frustrated that no one went to go chase him. We looked up the story in the news and it turns out the victim who was shot multiple times, hasn't died but is is critical condition and they haven't gotten the guy that did it yet. SO FRUSTRATING. I had such a fun time with the girls and we made some great memories, but I think Sin City is a pretty accurate nickname for Las Vegas.

Thank you to our wonderful babysitters.

Ragnar Del Sol 2011

2011-03-07T20:58:00.000-08:00

Great times...

A few weekends ago I ran Ragnar Del Sol with a bunch of great friends. Here are the stats...

200 team miles (Wickenberg to Tempe, AZ)
30 hours total
2 hours of sleep
5th runner
18.5 personal miles
2 vans
12 Babes
30.5 Babies (making our team name...Babes with Babes)
3rd place
Lots of laughs!
Ready for next year...

Babes with Babes

Van #1

starting the night run

18.5 miles done...

Little Me

2011-02-06T20:52:00.000-08:00

A familiar face underneath...notice the smearing around her mouth...that was the ice cream cone...I love Chic Fil A.

What a sweetheart.

This little girl really pushes my buttons. She has been my more challenging child. Partly because she is a little me. She is very clumsy, moves very fast, loves treats, and is highly emotional. On my most patient days I still feel like I am not quite getting through to her, which is very hard as a parent. Well...she goes through phases of growing up where I just couldn't love her more. Today was one of those days. Her actions showed me that she has learned something from me. I just want to remember some of the cute things she did today so I can try to remember them on her hard days.
For starters I straightened her hair. I have done this a few times and it looks so darling because her hair not done is half curly and it doesn't look the greatest. Well...she looked at herself in the mirror and she said with so much enthusiasm and confidence, "I don't even look like me." She continued to tell me she wanted to look one more time and just kept telling me how much she loved it...it was cute.
After church we were driving to the grandparents and on the way she began singing a song about Jesus. I asked her what song it was and she told me it was one she had made up. Ruby has been doing this for a long while and she has also been more understanding of the religion concept. Sadie, not so much. I loved hearing her use her imagination. She has been saying more sweet comments about Jesus and Religion in general which also makes me happy.
This last little memory made me tear up. We were watching Shrek the final chapter. She was a little frightened of it (it's kind of dark), but still just watching it like normal. All of a sudden she comes and sits next to me and grabs my leg and says, "this part makes me cry"and begins to full on cry. I look up and think it will be a really scary part or something. She continues to tell me it's just so sad because he finds the toy his daughter used to wake him up with and now he is just so lonely. It was so sweet. It made me so happy that she truly does understand how much love there is in a family.
These are small things that are probably very boring to anyone reading this, but it is very rewarding when Sadie does these things.

We already misplaced the glasses...

2011-02-04T19:33:00.000-08:00

Tonight I took the little gals to Barro's for dinner. While they ran around causing chaos I got to chat with friends. It was a fun night...I always enjoy adult conversation. My darling friend Christy and her husband joined us. They were there with their 3 nephews. These two are just a great couple. So happy and positive and in love and down to earth. I watched Christy cut pizza for all those little boys as I talked to her about recently completing their adoption certification. These two are awesome and are going to make such great parents. I had to add their button to my blog and say a little blurb about them because anything I can do to help these two find their children makes me happy. Click on their heart button to the right to view their profile and keep them in mind...they deserve it.

Who is this child?

2011-01-26T14:06:00.001-08:00

Ruby has always been a one of a kind kid. You will never meet another kid like her. She talked crystal clear from before a year old. She has craved attention her whole life as a result of getting extra attention at the beginning. She thinks like her dad, if you know him then this makes sense. "Outside the box" might be a good explanation of it. She challenged me in her toddler years because she is the most determined and opinionated little squirt I know. She was the only one at her preschool graduation that absolutely would not wear her cap. Even yesterday she came home from school with a hat that had 10 little strips of paper sticking straight up off it. Come to find out that every other child in the class stapled the strips together to make them loop across the top. Not Ruby, she wants it the way she wants it. And the great part is, she does not allow other peoples opinions to alter hers. I hope she stays this way. I always said that if we can just make sure she wants to choose the right, her determination will do wonders for her as she grows up. She is a good kid. She has occasional melt downs of tiredness after school, but she truly most of the time wants to be good. A few months ago she tried on Dave's glasses and informed us that she could see better with them on. A trip to the eye doctor and here she is (even though the Dr thought she was faking it just so she could get glasses). She is young for her grade and small for her grade. She is one of the only kids in the class that had not lost a tooth as of yesterday. Glasses and losing a tooth all in one week and I don't even recognize this eldest child of mine.

Munchkin Mabel

2011-01-20T20:58:00.000-08:00

She's 6 months old... a few things to record...

We finally found her on her back one morning...meaning she finally rolled over.
She is very ticklish and laughs when we kiss her
Food makes her tummy hurt, but she so desperately wants all food...it's sad
Her hands shake with excitement when she sees her bottle
Her eye goop is finally gone (mostly)
She laughs at the sound of almost empty bottles being squeezed
She is scared of plastic bags rustling
She sucks her thumb with one hand and grabs her blanket with the other while going to sleep
She sleeps all night and eats every 3 hours during the day
She loves fans and her mobile in her room

This Mabel girl is such a sweetheart. She loves to be happy. She just loves life, which makes me love life. Ruby was my first child and I was in school so I missed out on a lot of the enjoyment. Sadie was colicky and I had a 2 year old running around so she was also hard to enjoy as a baby. Mae had a rough few months, but I seriously enjoy this baby so much. I am busy with 3, but the older girls share in the excitement of Mabel. They love her so much. They are constantly chanting "Mae" in baby voices and smothering her all over.

Christmas 2010

2011-01-11T12:54:00.000-08:00

The blog seems to be a monthly thing these days. I can't believe Mae is almost 6 months, Sadie is learning to read and write, and Ruby is fully reading and only has one more year of junior primary. We had a great San Diego Christmas. All my siblings were there. It was out of control as usual. I got a new camera which was a huge highlight. I hope I can learn some fun tricks on it. Here is a small selection of Christmas pictures. Hopefully the next post will be more heartfelt and before next month.

Amy and the girls

Typical troy...it was great to have him back

Pretty Rubes

Oscar the great

Mom, Rand, Sadie, and Mae

Grandpa and Grandma opening their kindle's...so cute

Uncle Matt bugging Sadie

Rubes and Kate enjoying the new karoke

Dad and Mae

New Uncle Christian

Mabel the sweetest!

Tired Sadie and Daddy Dave

2010-12-12T20:03:00.001-08:00

I can't believe it has been almost a month since my last post. Mabel will be 5 months in 3 days. Ruby and Sadie adore her. They love to laugh at every new thing she does. Yesterday I walked downstairs with Mabel in my arms to Sadie and Ruby dancing around being crazy, like they usually are. Mae just looked at them and started cracking up. It was so darling. It is so cute to me that she knows how to look at those two and think they are funny. She already knows that they are something special in her life. It's pretty sweet. Thanksgiving was good. Cousin visit was good. The Rockettes were good. San Diego was good. Christmas shopping is on its way. A few bumps in the road, but overall we're growing and learning, which is good. Happy December!

Mabel Ann- 5 months

Sadie Rae- 4 & Ruby Marie-6
(I french braided their hair today...first time ever. Wait...why I am a mother to 3 girls!?!)

4 months

2010-11-15T09:16:00.000-08:00

Sweet Mabel is 4 months today. She has been so precious this last month. She smiles like crazy, plays with her toys, laughs at her sisters, and sucks her thumb. She is trying so hard to roll over...maybe this week. She woke up with a cold yesterday...the sick season begins. That has kind of thrown her off a bit, but she still manages to smile at me through the teary eyes. She's growing so fast. We love our Mae...still no camera:(

2010-11-03T22:08:00.000-07:00

Seriously so sad...I can't find my camera so I don't have very good Halloween pics. We didn't even get a shot with all three kids because Mae slept through trick or treating. On separate occasions Ruby was a peacock, Sadie a cheetah or Wonder Woman (not the witch that we actually bought for her this year), and Mabel was an ice cream cone with a cherry on top. Hopefully the camera will show up, but here are a few good quotes from this week

"Mom, I think that Mae thinks that I am in charge of her and she thinks that you two are just giants." Sadie (to Dave and Me)

"So, Heavenly Father like does nothing." Ruby (after learning all that Jesus came to do on earth for us)

"giggle, giggle, hahaha" Mabel ( her first laugh in the bath)

Pumpkin Patch

Sadie cleaning the pool with her cheetah gear on...why not!?!

Little sweetheart with her cow buddy, Ellie. ( she didn't love the wardrobe)

Dave+Nate+Amazing Race= Winners

2010-10-21T21:52:00.000-07:00

About 4 years ago Dave and his brother Nate had a plan that when Nate got back from his mission they would try out for Amazing Race. Well..he's been back for a couple of years now and it is time...we need your help thinking of some creative ideas for their video to get them on the show. My awesome sister in law wrote a much more detailed and heart felt description so check her post out here...and bring on the ideas...
http://nateandnichelle.blogspot.com/2010/10/i-love-nate-do-you-show-me-then.html

Dave and Mabel

Nate and Oscar

So many events...

2010-10-18T22:42:00.000-07:00

I can't keep up with my life. I feel like I do everything 1/2 way...I hate this feeling. It's been an exciting month though...

First little Mae got blessed. Her Grandma Laurel made her a beautiful smocked dress and her dad did a great job...I love him!

Next Uncle Troy got home from his mission in Albania. He is strangely normal and it is fabulous to have him back.

At the airport

While in CA we enjoyed a pre-wedding open house for Tara and Christian. We also made a stop at Disneyland before we headed up to Utah...saw the red headed gay guy from Modern Family and Jan from The Office there.

The fam

Cousins

Lastly..little sis (aka....bff) got married. It has been an interesting 6 month engagement since she is indecisive and particular, but the wedding turned out so beautiful and I am so happy that my 7 years of marriage can now be more related to by my best friend little sis. Just some of the interesting things about the wedding...I have to document this stuff.

Neices wore Forever 21 adult sized shirts that we altered into small dresses with blazers...turned out so cute!
We spent the day before filling 100 3ft balloons and forming them into molecule clusters and attaching them to the ceiling. Stringing moss balls. Hanging fabric flower garlands and tissue paper laterns.
One week before the wedding Tara was still looking for a dress because she "hated" the perfect one that she ended up wearing.
I had to be a bridesmaid next to supermodels...luckily we wore different dresses and the bridal party wasn't that official.

So cute!

Moms fam

Cute cousins

Sisters

Bridesmaids

Dad's fam

Balloons

Nieces

Nieces and Nephews

Fabric News

2010-10-03T23:22:00.000-07:00

Craftiness is Not an Option is a fabulous blog that is doing a ton of great giveaways this week. I happen to be participating and giving away a few yards of fabric for one of the giveaways. If you like free stuff...check it out. Click on her blog and then scroll down and you will see the giveway posts for each different giveaway. You just leave comments on any of the items you would want to win. I have also started a fabric blog that shows some of the fabric projects I have done...the pictures are not the greatest, but people always want to see ideas so I have started posting them in one place.

Cousins

2010-09-30T12:10:00.000-07:00

These two little (or rather big) munchkins are only 8 weeks apart. I'm pretty sure they will always be best buds. This little photo sesh was so cute...Oscar kept holding Mabel's hand.

I took Mae in for her 2 month visit and she's 90% for weight 75% for height. My little chunky girl. She is smiling a ton now and sleeping through the night. Her days are still pretty rough...just not sleeping very well.

WT Party...

2010-09-21T13:45:00.000-07:00

I'm so glad that kids don't know when something is totally WT. Sadie turned 4 a couple of weeks ago and she wanted a swim party just like Ruby's. I have been kind of overwhelmed with a new baby that doesn't sleep during the day, busy calling, lots of family events and drama, fabric etc. Let's just say I didn't have much time to get this thing organized. I was not about to swim with ten 3 and 4 year olds so we decided a water party was better. We got a slip n slide and a blow up kiddie pool. Now comes the white trash part...for games I wanted to play go fish, but did not have time to make a cute little booth or fishing pole. Instead I took my yard stick, attached some bright orange yarn and since I couldn't find a clothespin...a chip clip became the "hook". We went fishing over the cinder block wall in our front yard. I'm pretty sure every kid had at least one turn before the yarn started to break from tugging over the wall...haha. Next game...no time to print out the cute fish I wanted to so I quickly drew a fish on a piece of paper and cut out some triangles to play pin the fin on the fish. I had miscalculated the number of kids coming to the party and was short on just about everything...Dave at least ran and got some more cupcakes so that was good. I had bought some Hawaiian punch packets to pour into water bottles for each kid. What do you know that I bought these special kind of water bottles that you cannot take off the lid...what are the chances....so the kids got water. The girls and I had filled up a bunch of water balloons to do games with. I completely forgot about them until the end of the party. When I went to get them in the backyard they were all popped because they had been sitting out in the hot sun. Yes...I am a terrible party planner. They had fun, but it was not pretty! I love you Sadie...even if youre party wasn't all cutesy!

After the friends were gone Sadie also got a power wheels which she has been wanting for a while. Ruby is the driver and Sadie is the passenger most of the time...they're pretty cute in it and they love it.

Newborn Shoot

2010-09-14T10:29:00.000-07:00

Amazing pictures of my girls by Camille Gould Photography. Mabel was NOT cooperative and she still managed to get great ones! She's the best! I did have to save one of the best for the newborn announcements that I might get to...

Davids really are more fun

2010-09-03T08:59:00.001-07:00

It was a random Wednesday night and he told me that his mom was coming down for a bit to see the kids that night so we could go out. I thought we were going to get some food and maybe run some errands. When we got in the car he told me to look in the glove box for some coupons. When I opened it there was a sweet card and tickets that told me we were actually going to the David Gray concert right then. David Gray is a significant part of our relationship. The first row of his concert was our official first date 7 years ago. We tried to go to a second concert a few years back, but after trekking up to Utah and showing up to an empty Kinsbury Hall that didn't work out. So now we got the chance to go again. We had great seats on the sixth row. Although I did not have make up on, my shirt had spit up all over it and I was a little nervous to leave Mae for that long... it was great fun! A perfect surprise! Thanks to my great husband!

Here he is with Ray LaMontagne who opened the show...which was also excellent!

Dad is way more fun...

2010-08-23T21:31:00.000-07:00

It rained one night last week, which is very rare. Ruby was so excited to wear her sweater. I didn't have the heart to let her know it would still be 100 degrees out there. Dave went out with them as they ran around barefoot in the gutters. He took some cute pics...

A few days later the big girls (we have to say "big" now that we have Mae around) and I came home to this. She looked pretty relaxed for her first pool experience.

This Week

2010-08-11T22:23:00.000-07:00

Ruby started first grade, had to wake up before 9am every day, and was still picky with what she would wear.
Sadie met her new class and teacher, told funny stories, and loved dance class.
Mabel turned 4 weeks old, gave herself a hickey, and smiled at me.

We're making progress in growing up...

Big First Grader

Sadie misses her so much all day!

Thumb sucker...she can't find it all the time yet, but when she does it is cute...

7 years

2010-08-02T12:01:00.000-07:00

Dave and I got married on a beautiful San Diego day 7 years ago today. This is the second time we have had a 3 week old baby on this day...making it kind of hard to do much. In honor of my wonderful husband...here are some things that he has helped me realize...

I shouldn't worry about things that I can't control
there is a right and wrong way to put a toilet paper roll on
patience is a virtue
take time to hold my newborns
slow and accurate hangs a picture much straighter then eye balling it
the church is true
it is much better to rinse your dish and set it outside of the sink then in the sink with food on it
grandpa tours on a trip can actually be fun and insightful
not talking in the morning does not automatically mean someone is in a bad mood
comfort over style
everything will be ok...always
spending hours entering sweepstakes can win you a great prize
dads are better at playing then moms are
unselfishness is awesome to be married to
just sitting in the same room with someone I love can be fun

My list could go on and on. I am so lucky to be married to somebody as great as my Dave. He is the same funny guy I married 7 years ago. We have a lot more on our plate then we did back then so sometimes I forget to laugh, but I still know he is funny and I am glad. He is the most helpful husband and father I know. Thank you for 7 great years...many more to come. I love you!

1 week

2010-07-23T10:52:00.000-07:00

Mabel has lived on earth for 1 week as of yesterday. The dr said she looks good. She has passed up her birth weight and is now 7lbs 2oz. It makes me sad that she is growing so fast already. I am trying to enjoy her. My unpredictable emotions, the fact that my boobs still hurt, baby being up all night, and the fact that my clothes still don't fit keep me excited to get through this stage though. She is a sweet baby. She really only cries when she is hungry. Ruby has really stepped up as a big sister. She makes their beds and does their hair every morning. She will sit and hold Mabel for an hour or so...she loves it. Sadie is doing really well too. She has been a little bit more needy, but nothing too severe. Here are some 1 week comparison pics...

Mabel at 1 week

Ruby at 1 week

Sadie at 1 week

The birth story and pics

2010-07-19T09:49:00.000-07:00

So last Wednesday July 14 I went to my weekly Dr. visit hoping to hear I was dilated to a 5 and be sent to the hospital. No such luck. I went in...had not dilated anymore then the week before, found out my Dr was going to be out of town the following week and that my chart had been going by the wrong weeks and I was not far enough for him to induce me. Basically I left crying because I thought I was going to have to be pregnant for 3 more weeks. I had already had in my head that she was coming for a couple of weeks so I was pretty disappointed. Anyway...you would have thought I went home and did everything in the book to try and get myself to go into labor, but I was far too emotional to do anything like that...went to bed feeling down.

On Thursday I woke up to a normal slow morning. Later that morning I started noticing contractions that felt more like labor contractions, but they were totally irregular and I would have like 1 an hour or so. This was kind of annoying to me because both other times I just went into labor and progressed exactly like the books say...5 mins apart getting stronger...etc. Around 1pm I texted Dave that these contractions felt like labor contractions but I couldn't even time them because they were so irregular. We went and ran some errands. I called my mom to tell her about the contractions. She was a little concerned because this labor sounded like when she had my sister who was born in the shower at home. She just said her contractions were never regular with Tara. At 2:30pm we were out swimming and I was trying to time contractions. They were still totally irregular like 15 to 25 mins apart...some really intense ones that were like 60 seconds long and some that I couldn't even tell if they were contractions. Weird. I called Dave and told him I thought I was in labor and the contractions were super painful but not close at all. With Sadie we barely had time to get an epidural so Dave was not about to let that happen this time so his response was..."I'm heading home". We dropped the girls off at friends and got to the hospital around 3:30pm. As we were driving there I thought for sure we were going to get sent home because they were so far apart. As we checked in the registration lady saw me go through one contraction and I guess she could tell it was pretty intense. She hurried me to the back so they could check me. They got me all hooked up to the machines and sure enough I was actually having contractions every 5 mins or so, but I couldn't feel any of them except the super intense ones every 15- 20 minutes. They finally checked me and I was dilated 6cm. Now they were starting to believe me that I have quick labors. They hurried and got the IV going and called the epidural lady. It seems to take forever to do paper work and stuff at the hospital, but we finally got up to the delivery room where I was able to get the epidural at about 4:30pm. I was still only feeling contractions every 10-15 mins so it was really weird, but they were like 2 mins long and really painful. Around 5 the epidural was kicking in and I was just hanging out. They hadn't checked me and I was pretty sure I was probably close to a 10. All of sudden I felt like I was ready to push. Dave checked the screen and sure enough the contractions were constant intensity and my water had broke. We called the nurse in who checked and said...theres a head..."call the dr". We waited around for him for a few minutes and then we were ready to go. I pushed once and out came baby Mabel at 5:41pm.

It was kind of sad because we sent out a text to all of our family members...mine don't live here and Dave's parents happen to be in Utah. No one received the text until way later. After my mom hadn't heard from us for a while she just decided to start driving over here. Isn't she awesome!? We called her about 6:30pm and she had started driving, but didn't know baby was here. Luckily Nate, Nish, and Oscar and some other friends of ours were so willing to help out before she got here.

Right away I could tell she looked like Ruby and Sadie. It was fun...that is what I had hoped because they look so different. Now Mabel can be the one to make them more sisterly. Mabel swallowed a ton of amniotic fluid which was kind of scary, but they got the tube in her and sucked it out. She barely cried at all during all the clean up and poking and stuff. Our hospital stay was short (24 hours)...I am the type of person that likes to be at home in my own bed, even though the thought of starting this new life at home is kind of scary. This time my tail bone was really achy after...don't know why, but the hospital bed was not the best for that. The name was a big challenge for us...we knew it would be...it always is. We had 9 months and couldn't figure it out. The birth certificate lady came to our room 4 times and finally she was leaving for the day so we had to decide. The top 5 as of right before that were Mabel, Bonnie, Betsy, Betty, and Daphne. More on this later, but I think Mabel fits with our names...it's growing on me as I get used to calling her that.

Labor and delivery are my favorite part. It's the easy part for me. Pregnancy, breastfeeding, hormones, change and schedules are a whole different story. She has a fussy, starving time that just happens to be in the middle of the night, right when were about to get in bed which is expected, but challenging. She must have been a thumb sucker in the womb. She loves that thing, but hasn't totally figured out how to find it all the time yet.

Her sisters are super cute with her. Ruby loves to help get things for us and totally loves being the biggest sister. She has even started helping do her own hair...and Sadies. Let's be honest...it's not much worse then when I do their hair, but she does have a bit of a hard time getting the back brushed:) Sadie moves fast...she might get that from me, but the point is...it's a little scary around a tiny being. She loves her and has done a really good job trying to be careful when we ask her to. She will just have to learn and I need to be patient with her which is one of my challenges. My mom has been here which has been fabulous. She has entertained the older girls, made us eat, cleaned for us, and let us sleep in. Sad day when she has to leave. Dave is the best dad. I got so lucky. He loves newborns and is always willing to be the one to get up, change her, rock her, etc. We're hanging in there and I just can't wait for the boob pain to be gone. Seriously...I think breastfeeding needs to be talked about more then labor because it is much more frightening.

This little story is pretty lengthy. It is really important for me to get details while they're fresh. I do not remember movies I saw last week...it is very sad!

Mabel Ann

2010-07-16T17:47:00.000-07:00

7/15/ 2010
5:41 pm
6 lbs 14 oz
20 1/2 in long

Perfect mix of her two sisters.

Birthday Weekend

2010-07-11T22:35:00.000-07:00

Not the actual "birth" day of this baby, but of the eldest child...Rubes! She turns 6 tomorrow...weird. We did a family party on Friday night and then a friend party on Saturday. Her family party was fun with every cousin from Dave's side of the family here. My cake skills were pretty good...funfetti again.

9...soon to be 10 cousins (plus two moms)

Ruby mostly only does hula/ swim parties considering it is 110 degrees every year on her bday. It's a good thing she loves to swim and that is what she wanted. This year it was a fun one though because all the girls were old enough to swim by themselves...yes...all 18 of them...kind of crazy in our tiny pool, but they had fun and we all survived. I think it would have been different if they were all boys. Ruby wanted to teach them the hula so what could be better then that...check out her hips in the video...

Her cake for this party was slightly more amazing then my family party cake. Her cake was very important to her so we got our great friend and amazing cake maker...over at Sassy Cakes to make her a Hula cake. It was perfect!

They all loved it!

Thanks to great friends and family for celebrating Ruby!

Take a guess...win a prize...

2010-07-07T21:22:00.000-07:00

Ok...I really hate belly shots, but here it is for the sister. 38 weeks...sorry it's fuzzy. SO this little one has us all a little confused...here are the facts...

both other girls born on their due dates
this ones official due date is July 19, first ultrasound measured due date was July 31, second ultrasound measured back to July 19...dr said..."just plan sometime in between"...so no real due date.
went in today 3 cm dilated, 75% effaced
was dilated to a 4 with Sadie for 2 weeks before having her
Ruby was 6lbs 12oz, Sadie was 7lbs 2 oz
I'm super uncomfortable this time around...she's really low

So the questions for you are...
What day will she come? How much will she weigh? What should her name be?

Closest guesses...I'll send you a prize.

2010-06-23T22:37:00.000-07:00

Stuff I missed writing about because I'm tired, uncomfortable, in pain, ornery, impatient, and ready to be done with this pregnancy (4 more weeks!) or maybe because I have been too busy complaining...who knows...

The ward camp out this year just happened to be the most freezing weekend in April. It was a little rough when Sadie had to pee in the middle of the night. Taking off all of her clothes in the frost and getting her to pee on the tree..thats why I made Dave do it:) Thanks love! Our night went much better then a lot of the campers. The kids loved playing with the other kids, finding lady bugs, and horny toads (thats a funny name). The girls in their classic camping outfits after our little hike to the water holes. It was a great time.

Ruby graduated kindergarten in May. I can't believe she will be gone all day next year. I'm a little frightened that other people will have more time to influence her then I will. She is a strong, good girl so I think she will be just fine.

Sadie is a swimmer. She had one session of lessons this year and she is good to go. It is great. She loves it. Poor girl got her first ear infection since her tubes which probably had something to do with all the swimming, but I'm so proud of her. Her hair is getting blonder in the sun.

Ruby finished her tumbling class for the summer. They did a little show which was fun to watch. Here she is doing one of her favorite tricks. Good job Ruby girl.

Swagger Wagon

2010-06-13T09:26:00.000-07:00

Have you seen these commercials!?! I have a special love for them. A friend of mine that is about to be a new mommy just posted all about being seen as a "mom" on her blog and how there is so much pressure to be the coolest mom. Great post with the swagger wagon video at the end. This one is a fav commercial of mine. I started driving the Sienna when I was 22...and didn't love the thought of that. My Sienna is getting a little outdated, but it is a champ and I can't wait to get a new one when this one fails me. There is no other choice until all children can open doors without banging the car next to them (including all children that are in the carpool), climb up, shut doors, and buckle themselves without complaining or making me climb in the back. Those automatic sliding doors are worth every bit of embarrassment that I don't care about anymore. Priorities...

New Loves

2010-05-24T14:20:00.000-07:00

For the past 6 years I have had a special spot in my heart that has felt pretty lonely. I got married and had Ruby very quickly and left most of the people closest to me at a different place in their lives. At times it has been really hard not having the same interests or priorities as the people that I was used to being closest to. I lost closeness just because of the differences, but the types of friendships are so that I will always be close even if we are different. The past year has been exciting for me. Some events that I have to reflect on from the most recent backward...

Last week my best friend from high school and sister in law just had her first baby. It was so fun to see baby Oscar right after he was born. The only other person that I have been close enough to do that with is my sister Amy. Oscar sure is a cute guy with tons of hair. Poor, brave Nichelle got this 9lbs 9oz of baby out of her and is enjoying every minute with him.

Nichelle and Baby Oscar

The girls love him SO much

About a month ago my other best friend and sister, Tara got engaged. It has been a joke that I bring up every time I would talk to her for the past 9 months that she has been dating Christian so it was sort of a surprise when she was really, actually engaged. She is excited to be planning the wedding and it is fun to see this side of her.

Christian and Tara

A very close cousin that I lost to the East Coast and Continuing Education a while back has also become a parent in the last month. My Chels has been so fun to watch become a mommy. She is genuinely loving it and hearing how she has changed because of it has been so fun for me to hear and watch.

Cute baby Eden and her cute mom and dad

I know I will never be in the exact same stage of life as these friends again, but some of these big events that have happened to them recently have made me excited to have them relate to things I have been through...that they never could totally relate to before.

Cliche as it is....marriage and even more so...parenting really changes a person...a lot. Everyone told me that when I was pregnant with Ruby and I hated it...it terrified me. Now I know that the change is for the better. You lose the selfishness that you didn't know you had...you have to. Life becomes more meaningful. You are doing what you came here to do. Preparing to be with these people that you have an undescribeable love for and that you are the happiest with for eternity.

Congratulations to these best friends and I am excited for the "new loves" you and I have in our lives.

The Graduate

2010-05-14T23:26:00.000-07:00

Sadie was pretty cute at her preschool graduation. She kept making her dirty faces at everyone. At Ruby's first graduation she refused to wear the cap. We didn't have that problem with Sadie. Congrats Sadie girl.

It's just time...

2010-05-03T00:15:00.000-07:00

I have been so bad about blogging. I had a rough couple of weeks around the house. A much needed break to CA has given me enough drive to post a few things. We head back to AZ tomorrow. It's always hard to go home, but responsibilities are calling my name. A few things to remember...

Ruby has 3 weeks left of kindergarten. She is interested in time, bugs, the statue of liberty, cats, words, and real life. She has an excellent memory and therefore knows a lot of facts. Fun things she can do are hang a spoon on her nose, do back bends, and go on talking forever...and ever.

Sadie is 3 (which is a very, very hard age for me). She is finishing up preschool, which she loves! She knows most of her sounds, is proud of herself when she writes her letters, and knows things I wouldn't think she would. She loves to be at home, is known for her really long tongue, loves babies, kisses my belly constantly, and doesn't listen very well.

Dave has been really busy at work...it's a bitter sweet thing because we miss him. He officially finished the bbq in our backyard, has been camping a lot, and keeps busy going to the gym and jumping on the trampoline with the girls. They ask him the second he walks in the door every evening.

Easter

2010-04-14T21:34:00.000-07:00

The girls got to hunt eggs multiple times this year, had tons of family time, had fun and love candy. My favorite story is when the kids got to pick a prize out of the prize bucket that consisted of jump ropes, balls, play dough, you know kid stuff. Sadie managed to find the other end of the table where there were unopened packages of peeps for someone else I assume. She picked that. Poor girl had a rough weekend...fell a lot and scratched up her face pretty well. Ruby is a good little stinker. At a fun, good age. She was really into her eggs that had $2 bills in them.

Hunt #1

Hunt #2

Peeps pic

Happy Birthday Dad!

2010-04-07T21:39:00.000-07:00

One more note from Ruby...today Grandpa had a birthday. We haven't had the chance to talk to him yet. Poor Grandpa did not plan his birth well as his birthday is April 7th and he is a tax CPA. Every year we think about how he really can't do much on his birthday. Hopefully he uses it as a small excuse to take a small break. Anyway...Happy Birthday Dad! We love you! Here is your birthday card from Ruby that we haven't sent yet.

"Hi Grandpa, I hope you have a good birthday. Before I go...xoxo."
The picture is you two sitting on her window seat looking out the window.

Kindergarten is the best...

2010-03-31T12:35:00.000-07:00

If I actually used my teaching degree it would be to teach kindergarten....and this is why. I love when they start to read words in preschool and kindergarten, but when they start to write all on their own...it's the best! My girls get dragged around to all sorts of meetings and things and this is what Ruby did while she waited for us old ladies to jab today...I don't know where she comes up with this stuff.

"the home is of God so we should not fight we should be nice".

Yay for Energy...

2010-03-22T23:02:00.000-07:00

Although I have never felt so gross...at least I have some energy back during this stage. I am not a good pregnant person...I want my body back. Anyway...what we've been up to...

Valentine girl party...this was the fashion show portion...

Ruby's patriotic performance...proof of being dressed before noon.

Saturday hikes...yes that is a fanny pack.

Crafting...mostly skirts, headbands, and blankets

Trip to Utah...the girls had so much fun with cousin Kate and her cat...
Pics from...The Mayan, Aquarium, Children's Museum, Temple Square.

One of my highlights from the trip was the fabric warehouse I got to go to...
I got a bunch of new fun fabrics...check them out here.

Fabulous Finds

2010-03-09T21:38:00.000-08:00

Well...it is officially a girl so it was time to start thinking rooms. My girls have been sharing for a while now so the baby will now have Sadie's old room. I had half way finished Sadie's room about a year ago before this bundle was in the picture. I still love the twin bedding that I have in her room and I knew they had a crib set that matched it. A little craigs searching and a willing and helpful mother got me a brand new crib set to match my half way finished room for $100 instead of the listed $350 for this set...

After being excited about that find I really just figured I would have to splurge (my kind of splurge) and buy a new crib that would go with the modern bedding. I had been searching and found nothing below the $310 including shipping I would have to pay to get the one I wanted from Target. My lucky day came when I found a brand new in the box, crib I wanted from Target in Phoenix for $140. It's so cute too!
So...I still have my old crib to sell and a trundle bed to sell. Already sold two old crib sets for close to that $100 and saved myself some good money this week. New stuff and breaking even...that's what I like.

A little wallpaper and some rearranging and we are good to go in baby #3's room.

Half way there and officially...

2010-03-02T12:49:00.000-08:00

ANOTHER GIRL! I gotta be honest it's been a little bit hard for me to think about. I just have some weird things I worry about. Luckily the Dr predicted it a girl 4 weeks ago at my 16th week so I had sort of a heads up with a little hope for a boy because it was an early and quick ultrasound. Now we are official...another girl. I am grateful she looks all healthy and I think she looks like a little mix of my girls which will be fun to see. We have a few names we like and I will be working on cleaning the many girl clothes I have hidden away. The girls came to the ultrasound and Ruby was extremely into it. Sadie didn't get too into the weird looking photos, but she is excited for a sister. She has been wanting that all along. Ruby wanted a boy, but the last week has been saying she would be happy no matter what it was. Dave as always, has a better attitude then me.

Here she is...

I'd say those legs are on the lengthy side

Just Kidding...

2010-02-28T18:18:00.001-08:00

So I guess we have miracle on our hands or an unqualified Urgent Care Dr. We never heard from the radiologist who was suppose to re-read the xrays and let us know. The next morning I took off her splint for a bath and her arm was still really bugging her so I put it back on. Later that day we took it off again because it was driving her nuts again and what do you know...her arm is totally fine. I'm glad that it is and that we don't have to endure the real cast, but I am a little nervous about what was really going on with her arm. I guess something may have just been popped out of place and it eventually popped back in. It's a mystery, but we are cast free for today.

Poor Sadie

2010-02-26T10:32:00.000-08:00

How did Sadie break her arm?

a. Riding on the van door (see post below)
b. Jumping on the trampoline
c. Climbing the pantry shelves to get fruit snacks
d. Falling off the bunk bed
e. Fighting with Ruby. Kicking each other on the floor. Just as Dave is going to go break them up, I say "Just let them fight it out". Sadie hits Ruby in the face, Ruby gives Sadie a good kick, Sadie falls back on her right arm.

Yep...that's right..."e". We can all feel guilty now...except Dave. Sadie for starting it, Ruby for the hard kick, and me for not letting Dave break it up. But mostly me because I am the parent. Hopefully they will learn their lesson. We're waiting to see if we need to get a real cast. Luckily it isn't a bad break, but she doesn't love having her arm restricted at all. She's doing good though.

This was the first smile we got...about 2 hours later right after they wrapped it up.

Just thoughts and memories I want to keep...

2010-02-24T20:41:00.000-08:00

It's just so weird to think about what my life is like right now. On carpool afternoons I am in and out of the car running kids to school, tumbling, the park. I cross paths with the same mini vans over and over as we wave to each other. Ruby had a "growing pain" in her leg tonight and as I rubbed her leg to help it feel better I thought about how my mom used to do that on the nights I had growing pains. It is so weird to think that Ruby thinks of me the same way I thought about my mom. It's not a bad thing, it is just weird. My mom was so young and I had no clue.
It's rewarding watching these little girls grow up so fast. They have both really just gone through a growth spurt...mostly a mental one. They both have their dads analytical mind. Ruby chooses to express those thoughts much more freely then Sadie does. Ruby worries at night about earthquakes, divorce, and tornadoes. Sadie worries about being left alone and being in too big of a crowd. Ruby is trying to comprehend the English language, which is pretty exciting to watch. She had a conversation with my mom about how "English is a crazy language". She was trying to explain that her name Ruby should just be spelled Ru "B". She said Sadie is the same way Sad "E". As well as her friend Ivy...why is it not just "I" "V"? She really thinks about everything. Taylor Swift songs...another thing to analyze. Someone already told her they love her!?!
Sadie keeps us entertained. She was watching the Olympics and as soon as Bob Costas came on the screen she got so excited and said, "that guy looks just like my old nursery teacher". We're still trying to figure out who she is talking about, but it was pretty funny. She also absolutely loves the ice skaters. Don't tell her dad, but she learned how to go hang on the mini van door and if she pulls the handle it makes it open automatically so she is like a little monkey hanging on for a ride. She loves it. I told her no more, but she'll sneak a ride in every once in a while. They are both so smart.

Pretty much...I thank my mom, love my mom, and I am my mom.

Free Photography...

2010-02-18T08:00:00.000-08:00

My cute sister in law started taking photos a while back. She is having a give away on her photography blog. If you are in need of some great pictures or just like free stuff...check her out....

http://www.lialensphotography.blogspot.com/

Oh Fabric

2010-01-27T19:50:00.001-08:00

I had to hurry and snatch up some of these yummy favorites because they are on the closeout list. It is so fun to get these things on my doorstep because they are always so much better in person. Special shout out to lil sis...Happy Birthday T!

Most likely for my new bedding...

Another bedding assignment that I have been procrastinating

Just because...

Thank you Amy Butler for the photos...

Sisters...

2010-01-20T14:26:00.000-08:00

My girls have been so cute lately...not so much individually, but the way they interact is the best! OF course they have their moments...and even months that aren't the best, but they are best friends. I wanted two girls pretty close because I had that growing up and we were always best friends. The great part is that as I got older I also got the chance to become best friends with my older sister too...just at different times in our lives.
Ruby is very protective of Sadie and Sadie doesn't want to go anywhere without Ruby. Rubes is the bossy one and Sadie just does whatever (most of the time). Ruby and her friends always include Sadie which makes me SO happy...knock on wood. They go from jumping on the trampoline to art projects to birthing baby dolls (pretty funny....Sadie has one under her shirt, she says..."it's coming, catch it", Ruby catches it and they announce if it is boy or girl...no idea how they came up with this).
I told Sadie she got to go to the big primary with Ruby now and she was so excited. When they got to go last week Sadie was highly disappointed that she didn't actually get to sit by Ruby...she kept trying to sneak back there. She did actually learn something in primary though...I was reading her a book with a dog and she pointed to the dog and said, " I think that dog has a spirit." She said she learned that in the small class.
Ruby's tumbling teacher so kindly allowed Sadie to join the 4 and up class. She is the youngest one and she is SO excited that she gets to go with Rubes. Last week she had to go potty during class...those inside out leotards can be rough so when she came to the door in front of the whole class buck naked so that Ms Hawli could help... that was quite a laugh for the class.

Yesterday evening it was sprinkling rain. I guess the sprinkling turned into a full out rain when I wasn't paying attention. I found them like this in the backyard...

Christmas and more...

2010-01-04T21:59:00.001-08:00

It was once again a majorly overdone, fun filled holiday for our family. It was such a treat this year because we got to have my mom and brothers and sisters here for Christmas. It was so much fun having them in my house. I am lucky because I still didn't have to plan the big Christmas Eve meal and the girls stayed thoroughly entertained by cousin Kate, aunts, uncles and Grandparents. The girls enjoyed every minute of Christmas. They loved all of their gifts and they seemed pleased with every moment. There were no complaints about Santa forgetting things like in years past. We watched a ton of movies and played a lot of Scene It Xbox (a fav game). The gift exchange was smaller, but still fun. Among the holidays we always get to throw in Dave's bday and my bday which always seems to be too much, but we can't have much control over that now. All we can do is make sure we have summer birthdays for our kids...the lack of planning for our two has turned out quite nice with a July and Sept birthday. After Christmas we got to spend a few days in CA, which is always nice. We had two weddings to attend during the holidays...one here and one in CA. Those are always fun too. I didn't take any pictures as usual. I took this little video of the girls coming down on christmas morning. It is kind of long, but I will post it for my Dad who wasn't here that morning...we missed him. There is no lack of fun and gift giving at our house, but I am grateful for the season. We got to do a few Secret Santa's this year and although Ruby has a little bit of a hard time giving something if it is something she wants... she was so cute and interested in it this year.

Ruby-
asked for: swimming dog (so lame, but got it)
favorite gift: trampoline

Sadie-
asked for: swimming doll (also so lame, but got it)
favorite gift: each mini snicker in her stocking. She pulled one by one out and kept saying all excitedly..."Oh wow, another one". She LOVES sugar...no really...she does.

Oh ya...here is our Christmas card pic that you may or may not see on the late Christmas cards that are sitting in my drawer right now.

2009-12-08T21:11:00.001-08:00

So sad that is has been more then a month. What have we been up to?...Ruby is growing up very fast. She is in real school now (sort of..half day), but she just has grown up attitude and spunk. She helps out quite a bit and is very, very curious. She is learning to read...I am not the best at helping with that (regret). Sadie is busy as ever. Loves to make messes involving lotion, water, shampoo, or all. She loves to play baby and to play with her sister. She knows the majority of her alphabet animal sounds from school and it is so adorable when she does it. She sings the little chants...Ali Alligator sounds like this...a..a...a. And there is a cute little action that goes with each one. She just seems so young. They have a bunk bed now and they share a room on the nights that Sadie is tired enough. Ruby is still a major night owl, which makes it a little challenging. It is working better then I thought though. I have been busy with fabric and Dave is busy with dentists. We're getting ready for a fun Christmas! Happy December!

Sad attempt of a family pic

Sadie loves the minky fabric

Ruby matches her American Girl...thanks to Grandma Laurel

Halloween

2009-11-03T07:26:00.000-08:00

This time of year is pretty much from one thing to the next. Trunk or treat, pumpkin patch, pumpkin carving, school parties, booing and by the time it was the real Halloween we had too much candy and we were sick. That didn't stop us from our opportunity for more free candy. Ruby was an Angel for all of the festivities and Sadie switched between Superman and Superwoman (so funny) from one event to the next. Now we begin boutique and Christmas shopping time!

A healthy Superman and Angel for Trunk or Treat

All sugared up

Pumpkin carving

School party

Not so healthy superwoman and angel for Halloween

Being a Soccer Mom

2009-11-03T07:17:00.000-08:00

We started out October with a monumental day...Ruby wore shorts for the first time in 4 years. She is on a soccer team, which I happen to be co-coaching. Our name became the Dolphin Sharks by default because the boys and girls had different opinions. We have one little boy on our team that scores most of our goals, but lets just say we are undefeated up to this point. I love being a soccer mom!

2009-10-10T23:26:00.001-07:00

Sadie never stops talking when Ruby isn't around...it's so good to hear her stories. I have enjoyed bonding with her while Dave and Rubes were at Lake Powell. Ruby called from the lake on the first day she was gone and as she asked me if Sadie wanted to talk to her, it made me realize that we had never spent time alone with them. I am starting to feel like this one on one time is so important. Can't wait to have Ruby alone time too and I am glad to have us all back together!

Havasupai

2009-09-30T22:42:00.001-07:00

Everyone thought we were a little nuts when I told them we were going to Havasupai and going to hike in and out in the same day. Well... due to scheduling conflicts and good friends...we did it. We drove 5 .5 hours last Thursday and got up to the trailhead at about 11pm. We camped up on top under the stars and then woke up in the morning and started hiking around 8am. We hiked 12 miles in and then hung out at the beautiful falls for a few hours. At around 6pm we started hiking back out the 12 miles and got back up at around 9:15pm to camp up top again. Sounds not worth it, but it totally was. We had a great time with friends, the weather was beautiful, we didn't have to hike in big packs, I have now done Havasupai, we made a great dog friend that hiked the entire way out with us and then slept next to us. It was great!

So energetic before we started.

Auburn, Kim, Me...the Indians loved our tie dye

Havasu

The girls actually got in...at least for a bit

Dave being manly

Not gonna lie...I was scared

Mooney

Another year older

2009-09-30T22:30:00.000-07:00

Sadie turned 3 a couple of weeks ago. At the family party she received a superman costume, which has been quite the hit around here. She also received a beautiful handmade dress form Laurel which we haven't had the privilege of wearing yet...we're excited though. We had a little princess party for her, which was a success...thanks to Nichelle helping me. She has been cracking me up. Love that girl even though 3 year olds are way worse then 2 year olds!

My Babies

2009-09-12T21:55:00.000-07:00

To start with the happy news or the sad news first...
Happy news...
My baby girl started preschool last week. She was so excited to get to wear a backpack and go to school like her "big" sister. She had to take a snack just like her sister does. She is the youngest little stinker in her class which makes it even cuter and more unbelievable. She had absolutely no problem going and was sad when she didn't get to go the next day when Ruby went to school. She loves being "so big".

For the sad news...
I experienced something this week that many people have experienced. I've heard many times that you don't know what it's like until it happens to you and I can now say that is true. I was 10 weeks pregnant and I miscarried. I always thought if it happened to me it wouldn't be too hard because I am more of a person that bonds once the baby is here and in my arms. I was wrong. When something sad happens you can't help but think of all the positives. All of a sudden I didn't want Tuna anymore, I wanted to take prenatals, and I wanted a sore body and to be tired. Everything seemed to trigger thoughts of the heartbeat I saw and the tiny picture I have hidden away. Pregnant girls and babies everywhere brought little tears to my eyes. I tried to help Ruby and Sadie understand that "the baby" wouldn't be coming as soon as we thought. I feel guilty that I wasn't more sympathetic to my loved ones that have had many, many of these experiences....I just didn't know. I had so many wonderful people that cared about me. I appreciate that so much. I didn't want to talk to anyone but just knowing people cared felt so good. I know it's not the end of the world. There are many worse things that could have happened. Timing will be different then I had hoped. It's scary to not know how long it will take to get another little one, but we know now that we are excited. I had to blog this event because it is a part of my life. During this ordeal we were in CA. I am so glad that the girls still got to enjoy their favorite place ever...they know everything will be ok...

Day 2- Check

2009-08-29T21:58:00.000-07:00

It was time. Her whole day was consumed by the thought of her binkie. I had in my mind that I could deal with taking it away when she turned 3. She's not quite 3, but it had gotten bad. My visiting teachers came over yesterday morning and after hearing what one of them did with their 3 year old I decided that her method was the one I would try and I was going to do it that day. I let Sadie find all of the binkies in our house. We put them in her purse and headed to Target to buy toys with binkies. Although the cashier was confused and I really spent close to $100...well worth it my opinion...we are binkiless for 2 days. She asked for her binkie a few times yesterday, but when reminded that she used them to buy her new toys she was ok. The much dreaded bedtime also went quite smoothly...hopefully that can continue. I rocked her and sang to her for a few minutes and she drifted off to sleep last night. She slept all night. Tonight I laid by her and sang a few songs after saying, "binkie store" once... nighty, night she went. She has actually been a lot happier too...her life doesn't revolve around binkie anymore. We probably won't get naps ever again, which is a bit hard on her, but I have to say I have dreaded this day since she was a baby and I am so happy to say it is going so well...I hope this can continue.

Here she is with her stash...6 binkies...each worth about $12.

First Day

2009-08-10T22:08:00.000-07:00

I'm one of those moms that likes to get to the next step of parenting. I don't enjoy it as much as I should (although I have gotten a lot better at that). I thought the first day of kindergarten would be no big deal for me. As we went to meet the teacher we walked through the big school and I did feel a little tear deep inside. Ruby has graduated from princesses to super heros, which happens to be amazing. Old Navy had these great super hero shirts which worked out perfect for Ruby's first day of school (yes...the shirt says, "It's a girls world, boys just live here"). She came down this morning with her outfit on, ready to go. When I told her we didn't have to go until 12pm she ran back up to put her nightgown back on. Her first day went well. She said she really liked it. She already knew 9 kids in her class and its majority girls...what could be better. My sweet little kindergartener...

Stuff to remember

2009-07-30T16:48:00.001-07:00

My Rubes...
So Ruby turned 5 a few weeks ago.

One of the gifts she got was her very own digital camera. She absolutely loves it and brings it with her everywhere. It has come in quite handy at multiple times when I didn't have my camera. So maybe not the best quality photos but here are some of Ruby's masterpieces...

Her Collector Barbie Collection- For Aunt Amy

This girl had no idea she would be on my blog

We have about 75 pictures of this dvd

Cute Sadie and Dad

Every camera should have the option to put a Disney princess with your subject.

Now...this photo actually has a good story. So a few weeks before we went to UT, Ruby's grandma invited her over to paint a picture so that it could be entered into a Childrens Art contest for Freedom days in Provo. Ruby barely made the 5-6 year old age group (which was the youngest) because they had to be 5 by July 31st. So I guess the judges actually judged the artwork on composition and style and what not. My little lefty won 1st place (which meant some great gift cards and her picture in the paper)! I was so proud of her. It might look like jumble to you, but her painting was called "Fairy Garden". It is two fairys flying in a garden with clouds and color throughout the sky...and as always her name at the top.

A couple more stories that I want to remember about Ruby. She has shown me that she has so much faith which has been so fun to see. She was really sick two days ago. When she finally felt better she leaned over to me and said, "I think when daddy blessed me to feel better that is why I feel better". Then, last night Dave was carrying Ruby up to bed and said to her, "do you think I will be able to carry you when you get big?" Ruby looked at him and said matter of factly, "No, daddy...you won't because you will be dead when I get big, but mommy told me I will see you in heaven so it's ok." Kind of sad, but I just love that she knows everything will be ok...she is a good example to me.

My Sades...
Unfortunately I don't have as many stories or pictures with Sadie except for that she is just cute. She loves to get her nails painted and she loves that her hair is curly (I finally got it cut and bought some product so that it can stay curly...never used product in my life). Many people don't realize how much Sadie can talk because she is overpowered by an older, talkative sister. She has struggled with going number 2 on the potty. Number 1 has been fine for a long while, but she has had constipation issues and so number 2 is just a bigger deal. There have been two occasions where we had this conversation...Me: "Sadie, let's try to go poop on the potty." S: "No, it hurts the poop". Me: No Sadie it doesn't hurt to poop on the potty. S: "NO, it hurts THE poop, it hurts the poop to fall". So funny and so not funny...oh ya...shes getting pretty good at saying prayers too so that's good. She turns 3 in about a month so there will be more of her then... Love that girl.

On a side note...we ran away to CA again and went to Legoland for the first time...fun times!

P- town memories..

2009-07-10T21:53:00.000-07:00

We got the girls up at 6am last Wed morn to head up to UT. As we got on the freeway the car started shaking like crazy....my curb checks had finally caught up. We had to wait for the tire place to open so we could get the alignment and tires checked. Two hours later we were on our way with new tires and a bad attitude about how the trip would go. I was wrong...I think that it was Heavenly Father protecting us from what could have happened... anyway...We had so much fun going back to UT for July 4th. Both Dave and I remember going up there as kids and now we got to take our own kids...kind of fun. It was a great trip...filled with just the right amount of activities and down time. The kids traveled great! We did the parade with a perfect spot, the Freedom Days festivities, Temple open house, fireworks in front of the Temple, beautiful gardens at Thanksgiving Point, celebrated Ruby's bday at the new water park, met new people, hung out with the fab 5, ate at Pizza Factory, had tons of cousin and Grandma time, saw AZ friends, played games, attended a family reunion, went to urgent care (always do...this time an earache for Ruby), even garage saled for a bit and made one scrapbook page. I love being with my family...we missed our brothers though. Ruby's birthday is coming up in two days so I am sure we will have a post for that pretty soon...big 5.

Project Blog

2009-06-26T00:30:00.000-07:00

I plan on sharing my projects on the following blog...I want to try and make it fun with tips, giveaways, and stuff...

www.projectsbysally.blogspot.com

My buddy Craig

2009-06-16T21:28:00.000-07:00

It's kind of common knowledge at this point, but I am a big craigslister. A big part of the furniture in my house is a craigslist find...I'm super cheap so it works out well for my decorating obsession. When I buy something...I sell something. My latest find is one of my favorites...it was $40 and for being pretty old it is in great shape. I just had to share my new sofa...

Here is a little sneak peak of Sadie's room...her bed was also a Craigs find...I painted it yellow and I am excited to someday finish her room, but I do love the color scheme I went with. I am slowly helping out a friend with her little boys room so that is fun. Project blog soon to come...

"Go Diamondbacks"

2009-06-10T23:00:00.000-07:00

I'm pretty sure the surrounding fans probably got sick of Ruby yelling that phrase over and over, but I thought it was kind of cute. We rode the metrolink downtown to the game. Just our little family and it was pretty great. Summer is kind of driving me bonkers (Sadie doesn't get her naps in with Ruby around), but I had a great girls scrap weekend with friends, sisters, and even a visit from my mom. Thanks to my wonderful in laws for watching the girls. I have big plans to keep myself busy...not really "big" plans actually, just anything inexpensive will do.

2009-05-24T22:16:00.001-07:00

Its true...this happened...we pull up to the Krispy Kreme window and as the girl hands us our donuts she says, "I recognize you...is it just from here?" Yes, yes it is and you probably shouldn't say that to your customers. I might have a little complex this week considering as I get up off the couch Sadie franticly starts chanting, "Mommy don't eat mine, don't eat mine"...referring to her half eaten cookie on her plate. So ya...maybe I usually finish off my kids uneaten treats...and I might have a Krispy Kreme card where I get a free donut everyday for a year...come on...I don't use it everyday! I feel sick! Kinda funny though.

2009-05-20T18:22:00.001-07:00

Ruby just prayed...please bless daddy to get home safe everyday from work and please bless mommy....pause....pause...to not be on the computer so much. Awesome! I am a good mom.

I have a Kindergartener

2009-05-16T23:22:00.000-07:00

So big!
Sadie was excited too! How do they look so different!?!

Ruby and her great teacher!

Part of the class...

Ruby officially graduated from preschool on Thursday. I'm one of those moms that really likes to get stages over with...I know...kind of sad. I didn't think this would happen, but I actually teared up watching my little girl grow up. I was thinking about her being one of the little Kindergarteners I taught and I couldn't believe that she was just brand new back when I did that. Now she will be the silly one who ignores it when the kid next to her does a loud toot. She will be the one to raise her hand when she knows an answer or the one that will have her turn to use the pointer in the front of the class as the kids repeat their sight words. I feel like it still isn't going to feel that different because she will only be gone for half day, but it's all too real as I plan vacations that can really only be done on weekends starting in August. I love my little Ruby Tuesday and I am so proud of her smart little mind... like her dads...I am sad to say that the cutest part of the graduation I didn't get, but here is a little snip-it from it.

It's here...

2009-05-12T22:16:00.001-07:00

many future days like the one we had today. We went from swimming with friends in the am, water day at school, swimming with friends in the pm, to playing in the hose. Multiple bathing suits, multiple towels, lunch outside, tired kids.

Happy Mother's Day

2009-05-10T21:18:00.000-07:00

...to the best mothers I know! Thank you! We love you!

How I Met Your Mother

2009-05-04T22:34:00.000-07:00

These kind of posts usually bore me, but I thought about the things that would be fun to remember when I am old and reading my blog book to my grandchildren and I figured...it's fun to remember favorite shows. My little missionary brother, Troy got me hooked on this show and it's probably my favorite to watch each week. The show is narrated by Ted Mosby who flashes back to his younger years and is ultimately trying to tell his kids how he met their mother. Tonight they revealed the mom...awesome... but it's a good laugh each Monday night. Thanks Troy...can't wait to talk to you on Sunday!

Sadie Girl

2009-04-28T22:30:00.000-07:00

I still don't have a camera or any new photos so it is time for a tribute to my Sadie. This little girl has a special place in my heart. I know there are a few people that feel that same way about Sadie, but I get to be her mommy so you can imagine how I feel. Something about her just makes people smile. She snuggles, she listens, she learns, she follows, she leads, she wants to do good, she tests the boundaries. She's flexible, silly, expressive, and messy. She's been hard and she's been easy. She's growing up fast. I think the only way I can explain the special bond that I have with her is just that she has a big heart. I remember crying one time when she was really young and she came over to me and just gave me a hug and kiss. When Ruby cries, she cries. Her feelings get hurt when people are unhappy. Her compassion has shown since before she could talk. Her terrible twos have begun and I am sure we will soon endure the even more terrible threes. I don't know if it is me having more patience or the personality she has...or maybe some of each, but she seems so reasonable. Her and Ruby have different strengths and I love them dearly. I love that they get along so well...most of the time. My own little Apple ad...

2009-04-19T23:06:00.000-07:00

My patience has been short these last few days. Sadie threw up this morning and I felt so loving as I sat next to her hot body snuggled next to me. Her energy level increased...which I should be happy about, right!?! But then it took all my strength to not yell about every mess she made or person she hurt. Ruby is another story, but the point is...I need to...
because I am heading to CA again on Friday...anyone want to come meet us over there!?! We'll be there for the following week. Hope the camera gets here soon...

Our special pets

2009-04-12T22:48:00.000-07:00

Hoppy Easter...from Ruby, Sadie, and our tortoises Bully D Rhino, Anna, and Little Buddy. My poor cheap camera has been sent in for warranty work so I have no pictures from the past few weeks. We did get three tortoises that have been the highlight of our life... especially Ruby's... mine is kind of more that my hair is brown now. She begged for a dog long enough that we skipped a fish and got three tortoises. They are about the size of my palm right now...don't ask me what we are going to do when they get to be toddler ride toy sized. They live behind our pool where Dave made them a great little enclosed habitat. Ruby found out that dogs eat these tiny tortoises and so now she does not want a dog so that is a plus too. The girls had a fun Easter. They were so excited about every little part of it. Multiple Easter egg hunts...one in the rain, coloring the eggs, church, toys, fun. They were exhausted tonight but we're grateful for such a great meaningful holiday. My sister in law just sent me a few pictures from our rainy Easter egg hunt. I just love the colors in this one...Thanks Janae!

If I weren't a mom...

2009-03-30T22:52:00.000-07:00

I would call this handsome (and single) guy brother instead of Uncle Matt...

Kidless trips to Santa Barbara to see Jerry Seinfeld with my husband and my brother would be less appreciated...

I would never be ok with buying sandals like this...

Trips to San Diego would look more like this...

and less like this...
Children's Museum

Dance Performance

Beach trip

Aquarium

I would have never transported these all the way to CA so that we could watch them hatch and release them...

Although I don't enjoy the bags under my eyes, the extra skin on my thighs or the fact that the thought that I was organized enough to be someone that folded the laundry the same day I washed it has diminished...I am glad I have something to take pictures of and something to write about. Happy Day!

2009-03-21T00:12:00.000-07:00

Isn't this picture so cute? Camille took it a while ago but for some reason I never posted this one of them together. We've had a very busy, kid filled spring break week. I've been being the "good"mommy and I have to say I am now getting back into project (my own project) mode. I tried to let them share a room tonight which did not conclude with the two of them in one room. One day they can play the silly, "what if I fell asleep like this?!?" game and laugh for hours. Maybe only Tara and I played that, but it will have to wait until Sadie is a bit older and doesn't need the sleep quite as much as she does right now.

My Ruby

2009-03-15T22:33:00.001-07:00

This kid has an extremely hard head and tends to push my buttons. There are plenty of rough times with her. She is smart and determined. We've had some great weeks. I hope that doesn't mean this next one will be hard. As a parent I can only hope that as my girls get older they can be the confident, safe homebody nerd or the confident good example. I can only hope that they gain their own testimonies early enough to save me some heartache in later years as they become more independent. Little smart Ruby is fascinated by learning. Her mind works well. She has been very into the principles she learns from her church lessons and around our home. She constantly wonders things about our religion. It's fun for me to try and teach her some of the truths I know. I try to teach her in a way that she can gain knowledge and have the faith herself. I've watched her mind venture to new ideas that I didn't think she could comprehend. This morning she woke up and the first thing she said to me was "Mom, I felt bad last night and so I said a prayer." I answered with "Oh, that's good. Did that help you feel better?" A simple "yes" and the conversation was done. Later this evening I found out that the reason she felt bad was because she had lost a necklace that she had been wearing (it was mine from when I was a kid) and she was too scared to come and tell me (I'm mean, but not that mean!). She continued to tell me in an excited voice that she said a prayer and then she found it. It was under her clothes. It is fun to watch her little heart and mind work together and learn about faith. She's getting to the age where she has to learn things about the world that I wish she didn't have to learn. As Sadie cried out tonight from what we thought was a bad dream Ruby said "Maybe she was having a bad dream about her mommy getting divorced." I want to protect her from knowing and getting older, but her tender heart seems to be going in the right direction. I hope that her smart, determined self puts all that determination in the right direction. I love her to pieces.

Spring means...at least a few things...

2009-03-04T21:10:00.001-08:00

Snowboarding together for the first time. Over five years later and on a beautiful day...with great friends...and great babysitters (thanks Glen and Laurel).

Watching mother nature...caterpillars and seeds (we actually grew something and kept it alive)

Zoo trips barely before it gets too hot...in awesome high heels...

with an orangutan named Hazel...
and with friends...one also named Hazel...so cute.

Snow Day

2009-02-17T22:20:00.000-08:00

The girls have pretty much never seen snow so after months of begging we went on a little family adventure up to the snow. $5 boots from the Payson Walmart, mom's beanies and scarves, cotton gloves, a big plastic bin for sledding, Ruby's favorite dress with the only pair of cotton pants she has under, Dave being macho and getting stuck in the snow, a tiny snowman named Rosabelle...a great day!

2009-02-11T20:36:00.000-08:00

Something that weighs on my mind from time to time is the fact that none of my siblings are at the same place in life as me. It makes me really sad that my side of the family is going to be the boring side for my kids growing up because they won't have cousins their ages. It bums me out that I don't have as much in common with my sister that is two years younger then me anymore because we were always best friends. Although each one of them is probably happy with where they are I get sad because I want them to have what I have. As I get all mushy about this depressing subject I have to reflect on one relationship that will never be the same because of my growing up young. Our little surprise named Ruby came 8 months after my sister had her first baby. This sister is the one that is 6 years older then me. We had grown closer through Sunday dinners at her house during college years, but motherhood is one thing that gave us a different bond altogether. We parent differently, but we relate the same. I'm grateful for this commonality between us. When I went in to kiss Ruby last night I found this. This is a picture that hangs high on a picture collage wall out in the hall. She had climbed up there to get it so that she could have that picture displayed next to her as she fell asleep. She adores cousin Kate. She brings up Kate often at random times and when they get to see each other they play so well. I am so grateful that little Kate and Ruby have the bond of first children for me and my sister.

My Missionary

2009-02-03T20:52:00.000-08:00

Ruby made a little Joseph Smith first vision visual aid in primary. It was a pretty entertaining one and hung around for a day or so before it got smashed. She was outside playing with our neighbor. These particular neighbors are not members of our church. Regretfully we are not the best of friends with them, friends, but not swapping kids everyday close. So out walks Ruby with her Joseph Smith visual aid..."I'm going to show this to J." I say "Ok" thinking this might be awkward...his dad is right there too. I explain J might not know who Joseph Smith is because he doesn't go to our church. A confused look and moments later Ruby comes back to report, "I told J so now he should know who Joseph Smith is". Great job with the missionary work Rubes...way better then I ever do! She's really into learning about church right now. It is really cute.

Speaking of amazing neighbors...check out a sneak peak of the latest Camille Gould Photograhy shoot of my girls. They are awesome once again...more to come. Thanks Camille! Book her to do some fun "love" pictures!

Tubes

2009-01-30T09:22:00.000-08:00

We woke up bright and early to take Sadie to her surgery. Less then 15 minutes in the OR and an hour or two of fussiness and we are pretty much back to normal around here. It's unfortunate that this will not be our excuse to miss 3:00pm church so that we can watch the Super Bowl. We always have the coughs that the girls have had to fall back on. JK...we can tivo it. So rumors say that kids after tubes are SO much better. I expect this surgery to...

ween her from her binkie
potty train her
quit her whining
have her not want to get out of her bed

Should be great:)!

She was a trooper. Love my Sadie bug!

Before

After

Tiny Party

2009-01-28T19:07:00.000-08:00

I found this cute little Martha Stewart party kit on clearance at Micheals and I had to get it. The whole party was a tiny theme. Came with tiny cups, plates, forks, party bags, banners, invites, boxes, party hats. We decided to have a tiny party one Saturday. It was a no pressure "just because" kind of party. Played some games and mostly just ate. Tiny cupcakes, baby goldfish, munchies... which come with small sun chips and cheetos, tiny rice cakes, small cheese sandwiches. It was just great. The girls had fun! Speaking of parties...Happy Birthday to my little sis Tara... yesterday she turned 25!

Ear Day

2009-01-20T18:32:00.001-08:00

Sadie's never-ending ear infections will soon come to a stop. She is scheduled for tubes a week from Friday. In the meantime she decided to have one more ear infection so off to the pediatrician we went today. Ruby was actually up by 9 this morning and decided that she wanted to join us at the dr. Two little ones in their princess nightgowns and unbrushed hair. Sure enough Sadie had another infection and got a shot of antibiotics. Somehow the shot reminded Ruby that she wanted to get her ears pierced. A few texts to daddy Dave and the next thing I know we are at the mall, jammies and all. She was ready for those earrings. She picked the cute little diamond star ones. One pinch, two pinches later and we have a grown up Ruby. That was our ear day!

Which one...

2009-01-14T21:32:00.000-08:00

looks the most like Sadie? or me for that matter since this will be one time in her life that I can do the room without her opinion? Probably won't actually get any of these, but looking for inspiration...

A serious consideration

This one is amazing

This one is named Sadie bedding

Simple, but different (my slogan since planning my wedding)

Can't go wrong with polka dots, unless you're a man

Her favorite color is blue (partly by default)

This is a possible fabric choice as well...

with this

Sunday Funday

2009-01-12T23:43:00.001-08:00

So I thought 3:00pm church might be a better time for our little family. The 8:00am time was a constant battle, but after last week I am not so sure 3:00 works for us either. Here is the rundown. We leave for church 15 minutes early, it starts with a fight with the 4 year old about bringing her blankie into church (this was suppose to stop when we started this 3:00 time). When we walk into Sacrament 5 minutes early this guarantees us a seat in one of the last 5 rows...no not the soft rows, but the back, back rows. We start off pretty good until Ruby has to go to the bathroom for the first time. By this point Sadie has pulled out all objects in her "play" bag...at the same time spilling her sippy on the floor. As the Sacarament progresses so do little wandering minds. They wander right over to the chair racks that are now empty of chairs, but look like perfect monkey bars. Not only monkey bars for the 2 year old, but also for a defiant 4 year old that thinks she can do whatever she wants. By the second potty break and second round of monkey bars it's almost time for a breakdown in the hall. As Dave tried not to do the whole breakdown in the hall thing, he gets this quote from Ruby. "No, don't take me out here. I don't have to listen to you. I am going back in there to listen to the prophet." By the end of Sacrament I am tired and now we start into the second round of blankie fights and Sadie's tired insecurities. I feel like mine are the only ones. My days of rest are usually not, but I love them anyway. Happy week!

Since I don't have any church pics here is some eye candy of hot Nate and Nichelle's wedding.

The nieces and nephews

The wedding party

My dad's yard/ reception

so Hot!

Seriously!

My Therapy

2009-01-06T21:06:00.000-08:00

The nightly, hour long, bedtime routines wear me out...it's time to ponder the good stuff...

Dave telling me I look cute today.

Ruby being so excited every time she writes her name all by herself.

Sadie telling people at the store about her new big girl bed.

Having a new project...Sadie's big girl room...and many other unfinished ones.

Having girl nights.

Troy flying to Albania today for the next two years and being totally thrilled about it.

Ruby, Sadie, and Ellah riding bikes together.

My favorite one recently...Sadie loves to go on "runs" with me. One day I caught her putting on these shoes (because they have laces) and getting this stroller ready as she claimed she was going "running". This has happened multiple times and it's the cutest.

Birthdays, Weddings, Christmas, New Years

2009-01-02T22:10:00.000-08:00

Christmas was bitter sweet this year. It was one of the hardest trips I have had to CA, which left me emotional and ornery a lot of the time. Sadie started climbing out of her crib and wouldn't sleep. The girls had fun with cousin Kate, got along great, and loved getting fun bikes and a big dollhouse for Christmas. The wedding went great. After set up at my dads house it all came together pretty well and the bride and groom looked wonderful. It was pretty cold outside, but worked out ok. I will always love Christmas and the memories it leaves. My family could see my stress and everyone helped and loved me in every way possible. I didn't get very many good pictures on my camera, but here are a few Christmas memories...more to come when I get some from other cameras. Dave and I are both a year older now. New year's was fun with some friends. I always love a game night. I will tell you my resolutions at the end of the year.

Party Day!

2008-12-13T21:46:00.001-08:00

It's true...Ruby had a birthday party from 11-1, 1-3, and 3-5 today. At 5 we headed to the ward Christmas party and then left the kiddos home to go to yet another grown up party. We had a fun, festive day. Sadie was still slightly scared of santa, but did manage to run up for a candy cane. Ruby was a trooper and never even got "partied out". Did I mention the two parties we had last night. Moral...we will try not to have kids in December...there are plenty of birthdays this month already. I did manage to get a cute picture of the girls in their red dresses....oh and one with Dave on the hay ride.

2008-12-12T12:55:00.001-08:00

I'm not gonna lie...I am ready for Christmas clutter to be put away already. I'm contemplating putting it away before we leave for CA....I won't though. Tis the season, but I can only take picking up the village snow, ornament balls, and rewrapping gifts that Sadie has opened so many times. It would be nice if I had one room that was just for Christmas...it would come already set up with lights, tree, music, a christmas tree/ cinnamon scent. We could go in whenever we wanted to enjoy the feeling and then after Christmas it would disappear. The girls are hard to keep up with. I'm a bit ocd about a neat house and I've had to let that go a bit just because I physically can't keep up. Joy to being a mom of tots! Great for the table I'm sure.

Tis the Season

2008-12-02T21:20:00.000-08:00

I am the typical "holidayer"... last weeks events included

Recruit as many out of town family members to join me for Thanksgiving.
Make sure mom is one of them so that once again I don't have to cook the meal.
Invite the whole gang to the in- laws to avoid cooking the "big meal" even more.
Run the 10k with best friend and brother.
Get an amazing new niece (Dave's brother adopted a little girl who was born last week).
Check out black friday ads and make a plan of action.
While checking ads notice that Michael's is open on Thanksgiving and get that store over with...even though it feels wrong to be there.
Wake up at 5 on Black Friday to get some not so great deals and lots of lines.
A few days later return unwanted black friday items.
Put away Fall, get out Winter decor.
Hot glue gun the many broken ornaments.
Buy Ruby her own pink Christmas tree because she is so excited about it this year.
Balance out Sadie's "ball" section on the tree...pic below.
Sit on Santa's lap while it is still November before the lines start.
Eat at Grimaldi's because yes it is the same one as New York...the owners son opened the ones out here...yum!
Catch up on sleep
Take part in cyber Monday
Lastly...make lots and lots of lists...

I had to add this picture that my mom had on her blog. My cute girls!

Seriously though...

2008-11-24T23:15:00.000-08:00

why did they do this? So funny!

2008-11-23T20:15:00.000-08:00

They have been pretty cute with each other this week. Tonight they played "house" together. Ruby bossing Sadie around reminds me of myself and Tara ...it makes me happy...and sad that my mom had to deal with me. Although...I have to think I was easier then Ruby...I was a middle child...not the oldest. Sadie copies everything Ruby does...including putting on Tinkerbell Pj's with Belle nightgown on top of them (see photo). She even had one day this week where she wore panties most of the day. She didn't have any accidents, but I think she is just kinda busy to care about that whole ordeal right now....I am too. Funny quote from Ruby...Dave asked her jokingly..."where is all my earwax coming from?" She responded, "maybe it's from the Scentsy's". Silly girls...mostly I am glad that Sadie decided she wasn't done napping for good...

Clarification...

2008-11-18T21:52:00.000-08:00

the last post is not a hint to some sort of secret...although it will be fun to see the mix between these two little ones...

I would not like this (meaning my husband taking pictures of me in the middle of contractions in front of the hospital) anytime soon so therefore it will be a while... or until an accident occurs...

Daily Happenings

2008-11-11T20:49:00.001-08:00

I'm not going to lie. The wiggles have a special place in my heart. A while back, before they were big I saw them live at Disneyland. Now...15 years later I am on my second kid that has started their TV obsession with the good old Wiggles. Australian natives...most...except the purple one of course are married with kids. Two of them started in a normal band and then decided dancing old men in colors was the way to go. Catchy songs and grown men dancing...what more could Sadie want...I guess her bike too now that she can pedal and steer all around town.

Ruby on the other hand would love to ride her $6 Goodwill bike in her bathing suit with no shoes on all day long if she could. Oh ya...she does most of the time...except for some occasional breaks to have a "drink and a show". We went on our first family bike ride the other night and Ruby rode her own bike. I always wondered when I would be "that" kind of family. I am now, and that means there is one more spot in the trailer. Oh no...more and more signs telling me it's almost time to be pregnant again. Will I ever feel actually ready!?!

2008-11-05T07:44:00.000-08:00

I realized that Ruby might watch a little bit too much Dora and Diego as I heard her say gracias and hola multiple times to a fully english speaking slightly darker skinned boy. Seriously though...how awesome is this picture of Sadie on Halloween!?!

The rest of the crew...except I am so sad because I didn't get a good picture with Ellah in it too.

Bryten, Ava, Ruby, Sadie, Lily...Brody in front

Pumpkin Patch and Trunk Or Treat

2008-10-27T08:57:00.000-07:00

We had our trunk or treat over the weekend. The girls had a lot of fun. Ruby was a flower princess (she had to be some kind of princess) and Sadie was an Indian. They looked cute. I bought Sadie some little moccasin boots, but she wouldn't wear them and then insisted on her green boots. Ruby announced that everyone was going to think she was so pretty as we walked over to the crowd. Sadie was afraid of the cotton candy...that was pretty funny.

Out of their mouths...

2008-10-27T08:36:00.000-07:00

My girls are getting way too old. I feel like they are reaching ages that are a little bit easier. They have their moments and their days, but I love to hear them have conversations with each other...its so cute. They'll talk about their Halloween candy or their littlest pet shops. Sadie is a little bit less opinionated then Ruby which makes it an ok mix most of the time. Ruby's passionate personality brings out sayings like, "I love my sister so much" or "this is the best day of my life" (whenever she is at a birthday party). Sadie's lovable personality pulls me in when her deep little voice mutters, " Can I please have wiggles mom?" (we almost missed church because of this one...it was so sweet as she looked in my eyes and said it). A common one for her right now is , "I want my Halloween mom"...aka...she wants her candy basket. Speaking of conversations...I just had this conversation with Ruby...

R- I think I am feeling way to sick to go to school today.
Me- Well, you probably should go because today is show and tell. Maybe you could take your piggy bank from Disneyland and tell them about that.
R- Well, maybe we could just send them an email or a card with good news and bad news. The good news is I went to Disneyland, but the bad news is I am not feeling good enough to come to school.

I don't know where she comes up with this stuff. She is seriously such a smart little girl. Sometimes it makes it really hard.

Holiday and Craft Boutique- Sat, Nov 1

2008-10-23T19:38:00.000-07:00

I have been busy making and organizing stuff for the boutique that I am having on Saturday, November 1. We are going to have so many great things. It's all one of a kind, quality stuff. I am SO excited. We will have tons of home decor, holiday decor, baked goods, womens clothing, photography, baby, purses, frames, tutus, accessories, Scentsy and much more. Be sure to come by my house on Saturday, Nov 1 from 9-4pm...and I promise that this blog can get back to being my journal instead of an advertisement very soon! Here are just a few of the items...

By Dani's Designs
By Kim
By Tutu Heaven

By Vintage Bliss

By Pearl and Pauper
By Holidays Made Magic

By The Corner Boutique
By Frills and Thrills

By Sassy Cakes