Engagement Pictures!!

Okay, as promised.....here are a few ( we took over 100! ) of our engagement pics. They actually turned out great! There is one I threw in here, though, that is not so great :) She told us to make a serious face...something I cannot do!!

It's only been a week, I promise....

Okay, okay, so it has been more than a week since my last post. I'm sorry :) I thought I had a ton of updates, but now as I start to type, my mind is drawing a blank. I guess this is the exact reason why I need to update WEEKLY. Maybe as I ramble I will remember it all.....bear with me :)

Umm, let's see....our church decided to start a "Parents' Night Out" once a month. Free child care for 3 whole hours! We hardly could pass that up! We decided to eat at Tepanyaki and, sorry Benihana's, it was the BEST hibachi I had eaten. Very good service and very awesome food. Two thumbs up! Then we went to Target. Target without kids is like a vacation for me. I love that place so much I could live there. We bought some candy and some Cocoa Krispies haunted house kits for the kids. Good times!

Speaking of which, a few days later, we made the haunted houses, and they turned out really cute. Easy to make and easy to clean up...highly recommended :)

On Sunday the 12th, I got baptized at my church. Awesome and one of the best decisions I have made in my life. Pictures to come as soon as I download them off of my camera.

Nathan went to Chandler's class to help the other "moms" participate in the pumpkin decorating. They made a mummy that stood up, pictures are also coming from that as well.

We took the kids to the dinosaur museum at Thanksgiving Point and also took in an IMAX movie while we were there. I think it was called the Wild Ocean. It was awesome and the kiddos loved it!!

Nathan and I had our engagement pictures done this last weekend. As soon as I get them back I will post them. Our photographer was AMAZING and so sweet! Watch for those pics for sure!!

I think that may be all of the updates for now. I will try and be better about posting every week :)

Alright, things I am grateful for this week:

I am grateful for Nathan and the kiddos never ending love and support. I only hope I do the same for them.

I am so grateful for the beautiful weather and fall leaves this past weekend so our pictures could be so wonderful.

Until next week.........

Deer, Chipmunks, and Moose....oh my!

Okay, so I am not sticking to my weekly update like I promised I would. It has been so super busy that I hardly have time to check my email some days. Well here goes....

I can't remember all that has happened since my last post. The kiddos are doing well in school and Hannah is growing everyday. She is quickly filling the princess drama queen shoes that Ceda has left for her. I remember now why I dislike age three so much. The stage of talking back and testing the boundaries nearly puts you in the looney bin some days! Cooper is well, Cooper :)

He is actually turning out to be a really funny little kid. He has a career in comedy if he continues these antics. He cracks us up a couple times a day. Cute kids. Here are some pics of what we have been up to the last little while.....

We took the kids to the Healing Field on September 11th. We took some time to explain what happened to the victims of 9/11. The kids looked at the flags and took some pictures with the local miltary guys walking around. We have some great pics below.....

This next picture would prove my point about three year olds being terrors, but it is really just the timing of the picture :) Funny picture though....

Me and Nathan went to my grandparent's cabin ( above Oakley ) this past Friday and Saturday. It was SO incredibly beautiful there!! We managed to completely relax and we had so much fun riding around on the 4-wheelers and fedding deer. Yes, feeding deer. As in straight from your hand, close enough to hug, feeding deer. It is absolutely amazing and you really cannot picture it unless you are there. It is like nothing you have seen before. We joked that my grandparents are the Dolittle's. Below are some great pics....sorry there are a lot, I went a little camera-crazy :)

As we rode on the 4-wheelers, we found out that many animals just hang out under porches and in shady spots near the cabins. Hereis a deer under a deck and a moose hanging out in the front yard of a nearby cabin. A little scary to be that near a moose :) Awesome though...

And so you believe us...here is a couple videos of us feeding the deer. It truly is amazing!!

Bridal Veil Falls

And so another week goes by and I hardly notice. Sheesh. It's like we live in warp-speed sometimes. At least while we were in the week it seemed to go by slowly :) What a good week! We took the kiddos to Bridal Veil Falls and let them splash around. They had a great time! We went early in the morning ( around 10:30 ) and there was this couple there all dressed up and we thought they were taking engagement pictures. They stood on one of the rocks out in the middle, in freezing cold water mind you, and then got married. It was kind of weird. It's not like it is this highly romantic place and it was just kind of odd. You can see them in one of the pictures below, I think. Good times though.

Bridal Veil Falls



Mommy and Hannah

The kiddos climbing all over the rocks

There's those people getting married...interesting...and our kids in the background. Nice.

Hannah and Nathan

Me and Nathan also got away this last weekend for a date :) We went up to Creekside at Solitude for brunch. It was okay. Great view, awesome company and a beautiful drive up Big Cottonwood Canyon. Not a bad way to start off a Saturday :) We then headed up Little Cottonwood Canyon and went to Oktoberfest at Snowbird. I found some great sunglasses and we rode the Alpine slides. It was really good to get out without the kids and I am sure the kids were happy to spend the afternoon playing with a babysitter!!
This week I am grateful for my friends and the love and support I am getting from each and everyone of them ( you know who you are!! ) I am so blessed to have people in my life that I care for and that care for me.
Also, I am grateful for the extra 5 hours I got to spend with Nathan this week. It is always nice to spend time with the ones we love :)
Until next week.........

Craziness!

So last week I was lamenting that life was a little uneventful....I should be careful what I wish for. It has been a CRAZY week to say the least :) I will try to remember everything that happened--here goes.....

Wednesday I got offered a position at one of my best friend's preschool and accepted. Yay :) It works well with my schedule and I get to be around friends, who could ask for anything else? Side note here, my headaches have been SO much better lately and I have not had a major migraine in a couple of weeks!! I am certainly grateful for that!!

Friday was my first day at Children's Academy. It was good to be back :)

Saturday my good friend Kristen, her mom, her sister, and her sister's friend and I went to a bridal show at the Grand America. It was great. I got some good ideas and a lot of the vendors had my colors so it was good to see my options. Now I just need to start planning!!! I only have 6 months! YIKES!!

Saturday night was Kristen's mom's surprise birthday party at the Tavernacle. If you have never been, you should go. Good times :) Me and Nathan had a lot of fun and the weekend flew by ( as always! )

And so the craziness begins....

Sunday night, Hannah was running around right before bed in her Crocs shoes, which we now hate :) It was just after 8 and Nathan had just gotten everyone settled into bed and Hannah tripped and smacked the wall/door and split her head open......ER here we come.....

CROCS = BAD NEWS BEARS

Here is Hannah Banana at the ER. At this point she is calm and a little bored. She wanted something to drink and they said no :( She wasn't too happy about that......

They put a topical anesthetic to numb it up a little bit before the local. It stung a little bit, but then she was all smiles. The pictures didn't really capture those smiles, but I promise she was happier for a minute. They gave her a purple bear, too :)

Hannah ended up cutting through 2/3 of her muscle and needed 3 or 4 stitches inside to stitch the muscle and 8 stitches on the outside for the cut. She gets the outside stitches out on Friday and the inside ones will dissolve in about 6 months.

So then on Monday night, Chandler was riding around on his scooter and hit a crack in the cement. Bam! Faceplant on the concrete. He thought he knocked out his front tooth, but it only pushed it back a little. He had a huge fat lip that was much worse the next day........thank goodness it was not another ER trip. Sheesh!! What a busy week!! Time for the things I am grateful for....

I am grateful for less headaches. It is so nice to wake up without a headache! To quote McDonald's...I'm lovin' it!

I am also grateful for a new job that works for my schedule and my health. Also, for the opportunity to work with my friends. Yay!!

I am grateful that the kiddos, though scratched and scarred, are okay :)

Until next week.........

Okay, time for another weekly update :) I know you are all so excited!! The remainder of last week was uneventful, we finished up school shopping for the kiddos and got them registered for another year of school. I can't believe Chandler is in 3rd grade and Ceda is in 1st. Time flies by so quickly....sheesh!
Sunday was a long day. Hannah and Coops both woke up with some sort of stomach bug. I stayed home while Nathan, Chan, and Ceda went to church. They started feeling better around mid-afternoon and by the time everyone got home they were doing well again :)
I have realized this week that I get out of life exactly what I out into it. I am starting to see my relationships with people from a slightly different angle and have come to appreciate the blessings that I have been handed in this life. These last few weeks off of work have allowed me to think a lot and spend some time with Nathan and the kids and my friends. It has been really good for me and I am happy for the time I have been given to spend with them. It has been so nice!
On the other hand, this week has gone by kind of slowly. I have really enjoyed watching the Olympics and will miss them when they are over. I actually forgot what "regular" TV was on :) Also, I finished "Breaking Dawn", but I will not discuss it on here in case any of you are still in the process of reading it! I wouldn't want to spoil it for you. I will say I enjoyed it though!!
That is about it...sorry this post is so boring. Hopefully next week is full of events and updates!
This week's things I am grateful for.........
I am grateful for cooler weather. The closer it gets to Autumn, the better. I love this time of year!
I am also grateful for my wonderful bridesmaids and maid of honor. You ladies rock! I am excited to start planning my wedding with you :)
Speaking of my wedding, I am grateful for the opportunity to marry my best friend :) I know how cheesy that sounds, but I'm a girl, so I am entitled to throw out the "chick statements". It may actually be in my job description :)
That's all for now, I hope you all have a great week!!

Life...

Okay, so I know it is not New Year's Eve and the 2008 ball is not about to drop, but I have a few resolutions. The first is that I am going to start updating my blog at least weekly. I promise. For those that keep tabs on me, if I fail at this, you have my complete and utter permission to berate me in email format :) Second, and in conjunction with the weekly update, I am going to be more postitive and grateful for the things I have. So, to kick things off, here is my first weekly update and a few things I am grateful for......

We just ushered in another crazy season of birthdays. Hannah turned 3 on July 21st, Cooper turned 5 on August 8th, and Ceda turned 6 on August 10th. Whew! Done for another year :) Chandler and Ceda start school on the 25th and are excited to go back and I am equally excited for them to go back as summer activities have subsided and warm weather excitement has settled into boredom. Cooper is hanging back a year instead of starting kindergarten, but we will be working with him a whole bunch to make sure he is ready for next year! Go Coops! Hannah is ready, just a couple years too early! The kids are all doing so well and I feel so blessed to have a happy healthy family :) Also, to update, for anyone I haven't already.....we have set our wedding date! Saturday March 7, 2009. It will be here in Utah and we are super excited!! I haven't done ANY planning besides booking the church, and I didn't even do that, Nathan did. So, hopefully I can set aside some time soon to start really planning the majority of this before it gets closer to the actual date! Alright, I think that is it for updates...time for things I am grateful for.........
I am grateful for my friends and family. I could not get through the hurdles of life without all of you.
I am also grateful for my wonderful fiance, Nathan, who flew back to Texas a couple Saturdays ago only to hop back in his truck bright and early Monday morning to drive the 21 hour trip back here to Salt Lake to be here with us. It means so much to me to have him here and it definitely means the world to the kiddos!
I am grateful for my health, even as bad as it has been lately. Just to hear the cardiologist say that there is nothing major and that the tests have come back normal is fantastic. As frustrating as more tests are and as we search for more answers to what is going on with me, it is comforting to know we have knocked out all of the major concerns and for that I am grateful.
More to come next week, as promised :) ......................