Two years old!!

 We barely caught her excited face when we told her she was going to get presents..

this face, accompanied by a big gasp ha

 Trying on her Dora dress from Memaw and Tickie tie

 Rangers shirt from Auntie Lauren...

surrounded by all of her princess presents...all of her grandparents know her well!!

Our baby girl is now officially TWO years old!!! Not a baby anymore for sure!! We were so happy that her birthday fell on Presidents day this year because David didn't have school, so we had the whole day to play! One thing we didn't plan on was me waking up looking like I had elephantitis on one side of my face. I have had a tooth that was in need of a root canal for some time now, we wont say how long, and it had finally become a real issue. I was worried that it was abscessed and I know that can be dangerous, so I called several dentists and was able to get into one for early afternoon. They were awesome!! Even though they had to pull my tooth, while it wasn't completely numb because the infection was preventing the numbing medication from fully taking affect. I was really kicking myself for objecting to laughing gas...who rejects laughing gas?!?! But I didn't want to be loopy for the rest of the day. Luckily it was pretty quick. Then we were off. My already swollen face was now swollen in a ridiculous way!! I couldn't help but laugh every time I looked at myself in the mirror. And I was definitely getting some double takes haha. But I was in some pretty serious pain for about an hour afterwards. I just kept praying that I would be able to get past it because I just wanted to give Eliza a great day!! Heavenly Father Definitely answered my prayers. But I looked like a mess in Toys R us...our first FUN stop of the day. Picture puffy face, eyes and a mouth full of gauze haha! But anyways, on to the good stuff!! We let Eliza loose in Toys R Us, so to speak, and she lead us around picking out what she wanted. Which was, wouldn't you guess, EVERYTHING!! She was in Heaven!! But we left with just a few things we knew she would actually play with. Then we were off to the mall! She go cute new dress, and we wanted to get her some shoes, but couldn't find any we liked. But she didn't want shoes anyways...every time we would look at a pair, and try them on we would ask her "what do think Eliza?" and she would say "no shoes...more toys." We were dying!! Not like she hasn't  been completely spoiled rotten by our families already. The whole week leading up to her birthday packages were arriving. Spoiled. She is going to wonder whats going on when she isn't getting any more presents! After the mall, we went to a cute little cupcake shop and let her pick out a cupcake. She picked chocolate with pink frosting, and did some major damage to it! I wish I had the pics but they are on Davids phone. We had a great day celebrating our sweet little angel! We are so grateful that we are blessed to be her parents! She brings us such joy, and we couldn't love her more!!!

This is so new to me

So Today is the very first day of my life as a part-time, away from home working mommy. The situation is actually pretty perfect for us right now, allowing David to work EARLY in the mornings, go to school and then be home with the girls/do homework while I work a couple evenings a week. Nothing too grueling or strenuous, but definitely weird for me. We knew that unless it was absolutely necessary that I wouldn't have to leave my babies with someone else all day to work, so I am so grateful for this opportunity to help our little family progress in our goals. It won't be forever...I can definitely handle that.So what is this job, you ask? Well, I am working for a market research company. Sounds pretty fun and important when I say it like that. But really I am going to be TRYING to get people to do phone surveys for products and politics and such. Probably not the most fun. I heard a girl that worked there during orientation talking about how many times she has cried when someone has yelled at her for calling. Yikes. I sure hope that kharma doesn't come back to bite me for all the times I said "no" to phone surveys. But I was always nice about it :) It is definitely something I never even thought about doing, but I gladly take on the challenge! I am so grateful that David will be home with the girls, but I am really actually sad that I wont be there to give them a bath, and put them to bed like I ALWAYS do. It will be weird to say goodbye to them when I leave for work, and not see them (awake) again until the next morning. But again, it isn't every night. And in fact I love this job because I can set my own hours! So wish me luck!! And ALWAYS say yes to a phone survey!! Ha ha, just kidding....

In other news...We are moving into our own apartment on March 16th! Two days after our three year wedding anniversary, and probably the exact time my family will be here for spring break! Oh well, we will have lots of help... :}  This apartment will be great because it is literally across the street from where David works, as well as walking distance to BYU, which is something he really wanted. And I'm not complaining because that means I will have the car available for cruising really important stuff only ;) There is also a playground in the complex so that will be great for when the weather gets nicer. All in all, we are in one continuous transition, but hopefully after this move, we will be staying put for a while! I have loved this adventure thus far though! It hasn't been without it's hiccups for sure, but we are learning a lot, and are so excited for the future we are building! Plus I have the best partner I could imagine going through this all with, not to mention our two little buddies, who really help put it all into perspective. It is a little worrisome at times having not only us to take care of, but our two babies, with so much uncertainty at times. And we joke about our logic in starting a family BEFORE either of us was done with school, but like we would change that....Not a chance!!

Sorry this is a boring post with no pictures.

making more of "those" days...

Some days it seems like everyone wakes up on the "right" side of the bed, we don't visit the time out spot 600 times, Eliza is at least wearing socks, Presley takes a nap at the same time as Eliza, and we have the exact ingredients for dinner. The perfect day. haha. Other days it seems like a zombie monster dinosaur has taken over my (almost) two year old, and practically nothing productive gets done, dinner is barely ready on time, and I feel like I am running around like a chicken with my head cut off! I seriously treasure those sweet days, and there are a good amount of them for sure. But there are also quite a few days where I have to try a LOT harder to stay patient and not let myself feel overwhelmed. No day is actually perfect of course, but some are definitely better than others. I remember being in high school, and struggling with the normal teenage things and it felt like some days were just destined to be "horrible days". I depended too much on what happened that day to determine whether I was in a good mood or...not so good mood. But I started realizing, after many pep talks from my mom and dad, that when I made a more conscious effort to make my days better by seeing all of the great blessings in my life, I felt so much happier, despite the fact that the "boy of my dreams" hadn't even talked to me that day. Yeah that is embarrassing to admit. And by the way, I didn't even know the boy of my dreams yet!! ha  And obviously the same goes for my days here at home. If Eliza is having a rough day, and I start letting myself get into the funk of "ok, here we go again, I wish this day was OVER", almost automatically I start to feel like I am sinking into a bog of tantrums. But I constantly have to remind myself that If I just take more time to see things in the eternal perspective I find we all have a much better day around here. It is pretty amazing!! I am constantly saying little prayers throughout the day, and I know Heavenly Father hears me! I really wish I was better at this. But I am so grateful for the sweet little moments that make the hard ones so worth it. Like when I was sitting on the floor with Presley and Eliza playing, and Eliza came up to me and gave me the biggest hug, out of no where. My heart melted. I have to remind myself sometimes that the dishes can wait til later...sometimes Eliza just needs mommy to dance to the village dance scene on tangled with her a couple dozen times, and Presley just needs a few extra minutes of mommy time, all by herself  before a nap. Sometimes toddlers poop in the bathtub...twice in one week. Or wake up out of the blue at 6am on the morning you want to get up early to work out. Sometimes a two month old will have a blow out in two or three different outfits a day. And somewhere in between all that, a smart little toddler learns how to open the door to the pantry and dump out an entire container of hot chocolate...as you are trying to leave the house. I find myself constantly drawing out of the well of "sweet moments" when I feel like the day is surely going to test me to my limits....and thankfully, with two precious babies, that well is always overflowing! I am constantly praying for more patience, and I truly believe that our loving Heavenly Father gives us opportunities to do just what we ask for. That is what we are here for, to learn and gain experience. And one way or another, hopefully I will learn what I am supposed to !

Here are some of those sweet moments

 Eliza found some old ballet slippers in the play room,

It gets to me so badly to see her walk around in those big, floppy, worn out slippers

especially because I know it makes her feel like a pretty princess...

 This picture says it all

 and this one <3

 If she doesn't tell me "no mama" when I pull out the camera

then this is the face I get....love it....

oh and notice the stickers on Presley's forehead..

 Big sis will show you how its done

 tracing her hand...

Showing off her pretty clip on earrings

with her kitty cat ears crown on.