Catch Up

 The kids made this "trampoline" for Eloise today. They were so proud of themselves.

 While in Dallas last weekend for Kate's baptism, we went on morning walks with my Mom almost every morning. We found this GIANT frog on our last morning walk. I have never seen a frog even half this big in my life. It was so gross and it didn't help that it was also dead.

 Lauren and Amelia having fun while Rachel pushes them around in the car.

 Eloise spending some time with Cousin Tessa at church while in Dallas for the baptism.

 Fourth of July Parade in Belton. We had heard from some of the locals that it was a nationally rated parade so we were expecting big things. It was very small-town and there wasn't even any candy! It made me miss the Kaysville 4th Parade BIG time.

 My parents spent a few days with us before going up to Dallas for the baptism. We visited the darling little town of Salado and my Dad stopped in this cute little antique shop.

 Just going out on the town.

 My sweet, little, sleeping angel baby.

 Work it girlfriend!

 This is actually from when we were still in UT but I thought it was too cute to pass up.

 This is also an oldie, but again, a goodie.

 Eloise got to join Christian and I as we celebrated our 7 year anniversary. She was the perfect 3rd wheel.

 We ate at the yummiest restaurant- La Duni in Fairview, TX. Rachel watched Oliver and Amelia so we could enjoy a night out on the town to celebrate 7 years:).

 I am so proud of this amazing deal I got on hotwire: $58 for a 4 star hotel!!! It was such a nice hotel and we even got upgraded when we told them it was our anniversary. It was on the 20th floor with incredible views which Christian is taking in here.

 Amelia and Oliver have definitely made the most of our apartment pool. We go swimming just about everyday and they love it. Amelia "remembered" how to swim a few weeks ago and she is our little fish in the water- a real natural.

 Oliver is also an expert swimmer.  He has gotten so good and loves it.

 Getting ready to head to the pool, taking care not to forget the cowboy boots.

 We went to Lake Belton for a dinner picnic a couple weeks ago. It was so beautiful and the kids have been begging to go back ever since.

 Cow Appreciation Day! 

I thought Chick-fil-A would be jam-packed, but we were some of the only customers there for Cow Appreciation Day.

   In no particular order (because I can't figure out blogger right now and I'm too lazy) here's a little catch-up. We've had a really fun and very busy month or so here in TX. We've made 2 trips up to Dallas- the first for our anniversary and the second for Kate's baptism. My parents came to town to visit over the 4th. We've been swimming a ton and made some great friends here already. We still really like it here and the heat and humidity haven't been as bad as we thought they might be come July. Oliver and Amelia just finished swim lessons and did so good. Eloise is still the sweetest, most content baby around. I think that's it for now, but hopefully my posts will get a little more regular from here on out:).

If there were a way to freeze time, I might have frozen tonight. I was tired and a little worn down by the time dinner rolled around but I knew Christian would be working late so instead of making what I had planned for dinner, I asked the kids what they wanted to eat. I already knew the answer: pancakes. So, I whipped up a quick batch and started thinking about what I wanted to do for family night. For the past couple weeks, I had been really feeling like we needed to talk about "The Family: A Proclamation to the world." The kids have been listening to a Scripture Scouts CD about it and I wanted to make sure they really knew what they were hearing on this CD everyday in the car. So, I decided that we would read it together as a family for FHE. I suspected that it might not go over all that well because 1)it's long 2) it has "big" words and 3) there are no pictures. But I plugged forward with the plan anyway, hoping for the best. We sang the song, "If the Savior Stood Beside Me" for an opening and closing song because the kids are singing it for their cousin, Kate's baptism in a couple weeks. That song gets me every time. It's simple testimony is so inspiring. So after the song and opening prayer I began reading the Proclamation. As soon as the first few words came out of my mouth, I was immediately struck by it's power. I'll admit, it's been a long time since I've read it in it's entirety and I had forgotten how inspired it truly is. I tried to hold back the emotion as I read on. But, I was so overcome when I got to this paragraph:

"The family is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities. By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners. Disability, death, or other circumstances may necessitate individual adaptation. Extended families should lend support when needed."

I cried because I felt the great responsibility I have as a mother to my sweet children. Mine is a solemn responsibility and I am so grateful for my calling. And, I cried because I know that I can only fulfill these obligations when I have the help of my Savior and His Atonement. I love being a mother and I love my family so much.

After I finished, I told Oliver and Amelia that I was crying because I knew the proclamation was from Heavenly Father and that if we follow His commandments in it, we will be able to live together as a family forever. It was such a special, spirit-filled moment and one that I hope I will remember for a long, long time. I could tell they felt it as well because they snuggled up to me and sat totally silent the entire time (rare).

After FHE, the sprinklers came on and the kids asked if they could go run through them. What better after-FHE activity?? I didn't even make them change in to their swimsuits which gave me major cool Mom points, I'm sure.

Sidenote: Oliver is supposed to be in bed right now and he keeps coming out of his room telling me he's hungry. Our rule is that once bedtime prayers are said and teeth are brushed that eating time is over (I realized that the kids will use hunger as an excuse to stay up later). He keeps telling me that he's going to die now b/c he's too hungry. "I'm going to die in the middle of the night, you No-Food-Giver."  All of this at the end of our wonderful night just goes to show the highs and lows of motherhood.

TEXAS

We've moved to Texas, y'all (I can finally say that again without being ridiculed.). After spending most of my life in the Dirty South, I've finally returned to my roots. Christian got his first facility as a SNF administrator in Temple, TX, so we moved about 3 weeks ago to Central Texas to a little town called Belton. We really miss living close to our Utah family and my kids frequently ask when they are going to see their cousins and grandparents in Utah, but other than that, we are loving it here. We live right next to a gorgeous lake that makes me feel like I'm on vacation all the time and it's green, hilly, and hot. VERY hot. Not as humid as I thought it might be, though, which is great. We're living in an apartment until we find/build a home. Anyway, we really are liking it here so far and are excited to get out and explore more of Texas.
BTW- interesting fact: they have Texas Edition Chevrolets here. They are bigger and brighter and they say "Texas Edition" all over them. I guess everything CAN be bigger in Texas. Also, they have cowboy churches. Yep, that's right. You might ask, "What's a cowboy church?" Good question. Don't know. Oh, and Blue Bell ice cream. 'Nuf said.

 Pigtails and 'puters.

 First try at rice cereal and it's a no-go.

 Just doing some new boot scootin'.

Meet Ezra

I was really sad to move from Utah before my sister, Julie had her baby. We were scheduled to move about a week before she was due with Ezra. So, I was SO happy when she went in to labor like 2 days before we left! Yay! Ezra was the cutest newborn and he made the cutest little squeaky mouse noise. I got there about an hour after his arrival and it was so fun to hold such a fresh little one! Julie did awesome and is still doing awesome. She's going to be the best mom, mostly because she's had so much practice being the best aunt.

Eloise's Blessing and More

These past few weeks have been kind of a whirlwind. My parents came to town for Conference weekend and so we decided to bless Eloise at our house that Sunday between sessions. The night before, we threw Julie a baby shower with all our cousins. Then, I left on Monday for Dallas for the week to visit Rachel. It was a lot of fun even though I didn't do the best job of documenting it all.

My beautiful cousin, Andrea, Jessica, and me

Eloise in her beautiful blessing dress that my sister Claire found at Marshall's years ago. It was stunning, and so was the baby inside it!

Sweet Baby Eloise prepping for the blessing

A VERY proud Daddy. Christian did an amazing job of inviting the spirit before, during, and after the blessing. I'm so grateful for the man he is and the example he sets for our son.

The "Blessers:" Bishop Jones, Greg, my Dad, Christian, Ryan, David, Seth, and Dave

It's official: I'm a midget.

4 Generations: Mom, Grandma Lucille, me, and Eloise

The one picture of my trip to Dallas: sweet Lauren holding Eloise. Lauren is a little angel and was right there helping me whenever I needed something. We had such a fun and relaxing time in Dallas. My Mom and JoLynn watched Oliver and Amelia and I took Eloise to meet her cousin, Tessa for the first time. They loved each other instantly:). Rachel was a perfect host and I even got to catch up with my first BYU roommate, Sheree and her new little baby.

Christian is the Baby Whisperer

Happy Pink Birthday Amelia!

Our little Amelia turned 3 last week. The buildup for this day has been unprecedented. Amelia's been talking about her "pink birthday" for months and months. So, we had a lot to live up to and since I have sworn off friend parties for the next 10 years, we were going to have to make it special with just the 5 of us (and Seth and Julie and our neighbor, Kaylee). We decorated the kitchen with pink balloons and streamers and made pink pancakes for breakfast. She got to open one of her presents at breakfast- a pink dress to wear on her pink birthday. Then, for lunch we went to Chick-fil-A and came home and had pink princess cake. Then, we went swimming at an indoor pool. She loved all her new things (which included a LOT of pink stuff).

Helping Momma make pink pancakes. They were pinker than they looked.

The pink decor

Chick-fil-A for lunch

My only pic of the princess cake. Christian thought it was just a doll drowning in a pink cloud, but it was ball gown.

Amelia in her pink dress with her pink horse purse and cowgirl boots (compliments of Grandma Becky and Poppy).

Showing off her fancy boots. She can hardly wait to take them horseback riding!

Lest we forget about this guy- Oliver was so excited to "snuggle" with Eloise this morning, he begged me to take a picture. Obviously, he shows a lot more reserve than Amelia when cuddling with his baby sister.

11 weeks today!

Potty Training and 2 Months

It feels like Spring here today and I am loving it! It's been a super mild winter, but when it starts to warm up here, I seriously get giddy inside. Oliver, who prays every night that he'll get to wear short-sleeves and shorts, was so excited to put on a short-sleeve shirt today! He's outside playing as I write this. I fully expect to not see him until dinner time. He made a "camp-site" in an empty lot by our house where he found an old (disgusting, but I'm biting my tongue in the name of imaginative play) lawn chair pad that he "sleeps" on and has arranged a pile of sticks in to a "fire." Amelia and he love to go out there and "camp." It made me remember my days of "camping" in our backyard growing up, though I think I remember it more as playing "being homeless." Weird how times change. Anyway, on to recent happenings...



Amelia's friend, Kailey, gave her this Spiderman (woman??) dress. Fits her like a glove, though it is a tad bit revealing.

Christian and I both joke that when Eloise sees Amelia coming, she gets really scared and with a fast wiggle and arm-wave, tries as hard as she can to get away. Amelia loves Eloise- sometimes a bit too much, as you can see from Eloise's face.:)

Oliver and I hit up Home Depot last weekend for their kids' workshop. We made this really cool car. It was so fun. They do it the first Saturday of every month and it's totally free and they make the coolest toys. I highly recommend it. So does Oliver.

Amelia has discovered the power of the stool. The sky's the limit now with what she can get in to.

Sledding at the cabin in Sundance. We went up there and stayed with Davis and Melissa last Monday night and it was so nice and fun. We ate chili, sat in the hot tub for 3 hours, and unfortunately did not get around to roasting s'mores.

Christian took the kids out for a few sledding runs before it got dark at the cabin.

Snuggle time on a Saturday morning watching Animal Planet with Daddy.

Eloise "waking up" for feeding time.

Guess who's potty trained?? AMELIA!! Yeah! She earned this awesome Sleeping Beauty wand when she went a whole day without any accidents.

She loves going on the potty and seriously goes like 12 times a day. To say I hate this phase of toddler-ship is an understatement. Her hands are seriously dry and cracked from all the hand-washing.

2 months old

She's still the best baby and I'm still 100% in love.