Thanksgiving

Now this is my JOY, and my great THANKSGIVING; yea, and I will give thanks unto MY God FOREVER!" -Ammon in Alma 26:37

 



7 Months Old

We're all in

RAPTURES

with this squishy, fuzzy, soft, cuddly, giggly, chubby, goofy, little guy...
now if we could just get him to sleep!!!

Another Perfect Park Day

 

It may be a little later than I'd like, but we're all overjoyed that Fall has finally arrived in Texas and

we can venture outside again!

 

 

In My Next 30 Years

Wow.  I CAN'T BELIEVE it's been more than 1 year since my last post!  The excuses for my absence compromise mostly of two HUGE changes in the life of my family.

Firstly would be this darling boy:



We had the pleasure of welcoming Ezra LaVarr into our family in April.

Lastly would be our new homeschool adventure! 

Here's our cramped little school room-
I keep reminding myself day after day to be grateful we HAVE a school room and all the clutter can be shut away!

I'm sure I'll write oodles on both subjects, but for now it's time for a different topic...

I'm 30!  My self-centered and childish twenties have come and gone and all of a sudden I'm supposed to be a genUine, mature, wise, adult.  Compared to the newlywed pictures on my walls and dressers I look much older, but I'm still sadly making SO MANY of the same selfish mistakes as that youthful child.  So, in honor of the twangy Tim McGraw here's a list of my aspirations:

What a difference 10 years of marriage makes!

"In my Next Thirty Years..."

Just like Tim, I'm hoping to REMEMBER my next thirty years.  My amnesia is not due to the consuming of alcohol however, but to a serious lack of sleep... so I'm hoping to get some zzzz's in my next thirty years.  Yep, that's the first goal on my bucket list- sleep.

 

I will find a way to control my temper.  Often I wonder if our entire block is completely accustomed to my temper tantrums as they hear the crazy, frazzled, stay-at-home mom screaming about some little mess or other slight interruption of my groove.  (This embarrassment has everything to do with sleep deprivation, so yeah, I need more rest!)

 

Our little DD is QUITE the troublemaker.

 

I will live in the moment at all times.  Constantly juggling so many tasks and priorities has left me an anxious wreck.  I'm constantly worrying about the next project instead of breathing in the beauty and delights of NOW.

Next, and most importantly, I will place the Kingdom of God first and foremost on my priority list.  Because when I take the time to allow Him in my life, everything that's TRULY important falls into place.

Our beautiful Dallas temple. 
We've noticed regular attendance to this sacred building has blessed our family in many ways.

And lastly, I won't let inconsequential strife bother me, cuz I'm getting old and I don't have any more time to waste!

 

The 2 Year Old

I'm more than two months late, but at least I'm making an effort, right?  I wish I was a better blogger.  I'm happy to say the lack of computer time isn't because anyone's sick or sleep deprived, depressed or lazy.  We are just very busy LIVING life and having lots of fun with new and exciting experiences.  HOPEFULLY I'll have make time to share some of them with this blog.

 

Here's cute little newborn DD.  It fascinating to remember this time when I didn't even know the amazing little daughter I had in front of me.  I didn't have any idea how beautiful or smart, silly or tender-hearted, curious or mischievous she would be.  I didn't know how much she'd teach me about faith and my relationship with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.  I didn't know Hyrum and Ivy would show such tenderness and unselfishness toward this little family intruder.  I didn't know we all needed her in our lives and how the family was incomplete without her.

Here she is at her First Birthday.  She was such a happy-go-lucky little baby... until she started moving and getting into trouble.

What a difference a year makes!  Here's our little girl- no longer a baby at two years.
She loved unwrapping her cards and presents this year.  This was a card from the Hollingsheads.

She's modeling her new little swim floaty.



Pretty fairy costume from Nana and Papa.

We still can't really tell what her eye-color is.  Sometimes they look brown, sometimes green, and sometimes gray- they're beautiful either way!

See those fingers in her mouth?  She was STILL teething at two- not her two-year molars, nope- her regular old baby teeth.  Thankfully teething is over for now and I can't tell you what a happy announcement that is!

 

We keep most Birthdays pretty quiet and that's the way we like it.  It was a wonderful day spent celebrating our new little 2 year old.

 

 

Here's a giant back-log of pictures I've wanted to post, but never got around to it. I apologize that they are very outdated and the story behind them is probably forgotten. When DD's awake she's ummmm... demanding is the kindest way to put it.  So, DD, in the future when you're frustrated at the lack of posts depicting you as a baby, toddler, and preschooler, just know it was all YOUR fault!  If I left you alone for longer than a few minutes you were likely to make soap, toothpaste, and toilet paper soup in the toilet bowl!

 

 

This is just a pretty picture, that's all.

I love catching her actually behaving and entertaining herself in a constructive way.  Here she is reading a book without any bribery!  If you notice the kitchen chair and think it looks a little odd right in front of the side table full for drawers and cabinets you are very perceptive.  Well, if it wasn't there a certain little girl would throw out every item stored there and rip, pour, smack or otherwise mangle whatever she could with that same angelic smile on her face you see in the picture (that smile doesn't look quite so angelic now does it?)  Every room in our house has some sort of DD proofing which makes my decorating habits look a little odd.  Some rooms are just plain locked because we can't stay ahead of DD's inventiveness.

In an effort to lighten the sugar load in our house, we've replaced Popsicles with frozen fruit (mostly blueberries).  So the kids usually look like they have hypothermia on their fingers and mouth.

DD loves to laugh and make others laugh.  She's most likely saying "tickle! tickle!" at this moment. 

She loves to "help" mommy cook, clean, and organize the house.

The girls were playing tea party on the floor and I missed the picture!

Another favorite cupboard.



And another...



DD LOVES shoes.  Emptying them out of closets and boxes and trying them all on is a favorite pastime.

Her obsession started very early... even before she could walk.

She doesn't even discriminate if they aren't pretty.



Any will do...

as long as you stick it on your feet!

As you can probably tell I love, love, love books.  So catching my three darling kids reading together on the couch is quite a treat for me.  For that moment I'm a good mom, my kids are angels, and the world is right.

We love our DD Faith.  She's an angel with a hurricane attached.

 

This video demonstrates another of DD's favorite pastimes- singing.  She is constantly singing, it's lovely.  It also shows her attitude, which is cute now, but I'm not excited for her teenage years...

 

 

Family Pictures

We were so lucky to catch our friend Andrea while we were in Utah and snap some family pictures.  She is super talented and we got some adorable shots!

This writing was originally for a bride and her groom.  When they were done we decided to steal their idea!



Nana and Papa with MOST of the grandkids...one of them was off tantruming at the time...

Couldn't get even a flinch of a smile out of DD...

Can you tell he was done posing?

Luckily Ivy's NEVER done charming the camera!

The girl cousins

The silly boys



The big girls!

Even though it's kind a a pain in the booty and TORTURE for some of the kids, it's so nice to have these beautiful pictures with my fabulous family to enjoy for years to come!

Yep, It's Utah...Again

I'm pretty darn excited to LIVE in Utah instead of VISIT Utah... I feel like the blog is one long list of these trips.  Not that we don't LOVE our Utah trips and the people who make them possible and super fun...backtracking!

Here's what we did:

Trump family swim fest.



I love Ivy's cute little booty as she jumps in backwards.



Hyrum had a blast "helping" his Uncle construct the playhouse.  He was so darn patient and kind.



Ivy with her closest cousin by age.
(I'm sure they'd be best friends if they could see each other more often:)



This is one awesome seesaw in the basement of another cousin's home.



We sent off a beloved nephew on a mission to London (he's in the middle of Bry and his twin brother).

We were brave enough to take family pictures with the entire Webb family, which I will (hopefully) post on a later date.
(These aren't the professional pics, but we HAD to snap a few since everyone was actually clothed, bathed, and there wasn't an offensive amount of food particles or dirt on those cute faces!)



I love these men in my life!



When the boys weren't needed for pictures they were wrestling... I don't understand the compulsion...

Webb fam swim party.

Strolling through SLC with Nana and Papa (that's their new names) in stinken cool hats- which, by the way is a BEAUTIFUL city.  I can't help but galk at the mountain views everytime we visit.  It's amazing how I hardly noticed the mountains as a child.

Hyrum by his name sake's statue in Temple Square.

By the reflection pond.



We visited the new City Creek... what do you call it?  Complex?  Mall?  Anyway, there are fountains and Hyrum was the only child willing to brave the scary shooting water.

Baby snuggles



We ONLY lost (and found) both Hyrum AND Ivy at this particular zoo visit.  I'm still traumatized!

On the roof of my parent's place.

DD relishing her pizza (which we NEVER order).  But when it's Pier 49 BBQ Chicken, it's irresistible!  Mmmmmmm

I feel so horrible this is the ONLY friend picture taken!  (Bry's pictured with one of his Dental School buddies)  We were VERY lucky to see lots of cherished friends on this trip.

Relaxing at the condo.



Sweet Nana playing games with the kiddos.



AND... last, but definitely NOT least, my FAVORITE picture of the trip: Hair Style (more like complete torture ending with serious headache and hair loss) by Ivy. Profile picture anyone?