Family Pics

Here are my favorites from the photos by my friend Annie at Little Fire Photography.

Rome

First Snow '08

We finally got snow before Christmas. (Not that I missed it.) I took Rome out and he loved it!

Ooo! Snow! I have it on my head!

Thor Loves it too! My reindeer

My attempt at being artistic

Vacation Overload

That is how I feel today after finally getting home from Christmas vacation. We went to Tucson and had a great time seeing all of our relatives and many friends. Rome Love his cousins, especially the crazy blond one! They would just scream at each other. She would help him play with all of his new toys. They were so funny! Rome made out for Christmas! He got so many cute outfits and stuffed toys. I filled one entire bag with them and we had to carry it on the plane to get it home.
Pics coming soon.

Baby Christmas

I thought that Grandma Thomas should get to do Christmas with her new grandbabies. So, we did a Baby Christmas. Everybody was good sports and we did a gift exchange too. It was fun seeing everyone and celebrating with the babies!

Rome and his Cousin Abi (and Aunt Jenny)

Being cute

Does it taste good? Don't worry, I'll share

Dolls are tasty, It's Pink, Can I eat it?

Thomas "recycled" wrapping, Gigi Johnson

Today's Favorites

• Hanging out in your PJ's until noon
  
• A hot shower. Mmmm, So Nice!
  
• A happy baby
• Friends that come over to visit
  
• Being snowed in when you want to be
• Warm socks
• Pictures with Santa
  
• Christmas treats and chocolate that I am eating way too much of
• Josh getting more work. He was so worried
  
• My Dove Fortune: Chocolate therapy is, oh, so good.
• Going to Tucson tomorrow
  

My Not-So-Favorites

• Cranky, screaming babies. Like the one behind me
• Laundry. I don't mind doing it, it just takes Forever!
  
• Snow that needs to be shoveled
• Surprise bruises from teething babies. Who knew he bit that hard.
  
• Stressing about vacation. I always do.
  

7 Months

My little Rome is growing so fast. I don't think he looks much different than last month, but he is definitely bigger. I had the doctor weigh him today when he went in for a flu shot. He is now 19 lbs 15 oz. Huge! I also missed his newest talents last month. His new thing (besides shrieking to get attention) is to breathe in to make a funny noise. He also thinks he can walk. He watches his friend Addy and she can do it, so he thinks he can. He is much better at standing on the coffee table by himself. He is getting better at pretend walking. He doesn't step on his own feet as much. He is not crawling yet and still gets angry when he is on his tummy. He can push up to his knees but only goes backwards. In church the other day he did get up on his feet and hands, and then he nose dived into the carpet and started screaming. The whole Relief Society turned to look. He is very motivated to get what he wants. I think that is why he screams so much. He is doing much better with finger foods. He doesn't have the pincer grasp yet, but he can put the cheerio on top of his fist and then in his mouth. Pretty smart kid! He dislikes carrots and avocados, and loves baby cheetos. (Thanks Alicia!) My grocery store just got them. Yay! I think he will be wanting to feed himself soon. I can no longer eat without him. He wants my food and if I am eating then he should be too. He is still such a happy baby and such a good eater. I wish he would take better naps, but I think that is asking for too much. He is a Mammas Boy all the way and sometimes I like it. Sometimes... I am so excited to see what he will learn next!

Catch Up

I have been so super busy lately. I have been making cookies like mad and going to Christmas parties and staying up really late. It has been three weeks since Thanksgiving and I have not done any pictures since then. Oh my goodness! Not that I stopped taking them. That will never happen. So, here are some pics I know you missed.
Thanksgiving:

At GG Thomas's; Swinging with Uncle Ty

Yum, pumpkin; Playing with cousin E and Uncle Andre
Dinner Adventures:

I made steak soup at Josh's request, wierd; The hashbrown breakfast-for-dinner disaster

The bracelets I won, Cool!
Rome:

With Angelu; Brushing my "teefs"

Breakfast was yummy(click on it); I got stuck under the table, so sad!

Being Cute

I have this Play Gym thing figured out

Chew Toy?

Rome has been tired lately which means a lot of entertaining for me. Hours and hours of it. Usually he is pretty happy to play by himself for a while. No, I have to be holding him and playing with him. He has also started screaming, no, shrieking to get attention. Or just because he feels like it. It really hurts your ears and he does it aaaall daaaay loooong. Well, the other day I was losing my patience with the little boy. I was on the computer and put him on the floor next to me. (he had already tried to eat the mouse and pound the keyboard and thrown the mouse pad on the floor) Anyway, he was happy for 5 whole minutes. I was so glad. Until I noticed what he was doing. I called Josh in to see because it was so funny. He had found on of the dogs ropes that they chew on and was eating it himself. In Josh's words,"Gross!"

Baby Time:
---;/1Pq',IS/Wwzs07HY BNT UIH ,KOm<

Little Fire

Annie did such a great job taking our pictures! Check them out on her blog. Little Fire Photography. Oooh I love them!

If Momma Aint Happy...

I am such a bad mom when I don't feel good. I only have a headache. And it was self inflicted as Josh would say. I ate some canned cheese, yea, I should have known better. The point is that Rome is so tired and cranky today and I just can't handle it. I don't feel good either. My patience is gone. Josh is holding him while he screams (because I am not holding him) because he just pulled out a handful of hair and I was done. I came in here to calm down. He took 3 naps today, but none of them left him happy and playful. He has a little cough, but nothing bad. I did watch my friends kids today again. Maybe that helped his mood. They aren't hard to watch. The other little girl was tired and didn't take her nap, but I was fine. Until 4:30. It was waaay too early for Baby to be clingy and tired, but he was. It doesn't help that I have been in a listless mood all week. I am hoping that decorating for Christmas will help. I haven't gotten through the laundry to even get the boxes out. I was so glad to be done with all of my Cristmas shopping and ready for the fun stuff. Singing and cookies and friends and excitement. Yea, its not here yet. Still hoping...

The End!

Super long weekend review OR review of the super long weekend. Either one.

We left Thursday morning early and drove up to Salt Lake. We started out at Grandma Thomas'es house. We played with babies and my cousins kids and then ate a great meal with all of my Thomas family relatives. It was very nice to see them. It has been a long time. Then, we drove to Alexa's house and ate our second Thanksgiving dinner. It was gourmet and delicious, of course. I personally loved the mushroom stuffing and the truffles shaved on top. Mmmm, Good! We hung out with S and E and Grandma and Papa Perotti. They all had fun playing with Rome. Next, we headed off to Park City to spend the night with my parents. They came home and watched movies with us. I stayed upstairs and put together puzzles with Jenny. It became hilarious because I was so tired that delirium was setting in and I could not find anything. It did not help that Jen mixed 10 puzzles together. Yea.
Friday we got up early. Mostly because Rome did not sleep and decided to get up early. Yea, just what I wanted! Grandma finally came to take him and we got an extra half hour of sleep. Then, we had to get up and get ready for our pictures. Annie came up to Park City to do our photo shoot. I was very impressed that she found good backgrounds at my parents house. It is not that I don't like it, it is just well used.. I mean loved. Rome was a stinker. He was still tired and grumpy and did not smile at all. Oh well, not much we could have done. I am super excited to see what she got. Ooh, I Love Pictures! Then, I went to the outlets for some super great Black Friday deals. Cam came with me and was the best shopping helper. We left for Salt Lake again and Rome stayed with Grandma. I dropped off Josh at Alexa's and picked up Lyndsey and we went to see Twilight with Lacey. I liked it, but I am not a super crazy fan. I had a serious and thought out review, but I forgot it. Pooh. Anyway, it was nice to have a girls day activity. Afterwards, we met Chase to switch cars and babies. Then we went back to Alexa's and got ready for dinner. Rome stayed with S and E and thier babysitter Ann. The rest of us went out for sushi at a great place that Alexa and Andre know. It was good and very gourmet. They had very unique flavors and interesting kinds of sushi. We went back to the house and watched a funny show. (I don't know what it was, I went to sleep early)
Saturday we tried to sleep in. Rome made it until 7 am. We got up and Alexa made excellent french toast out of cinamon bread and really good eggs. I think I need to ask her how she made them. They were really tasty and I don't really like eggs. We played with S and E and went in the hot tub. Josh taught them about stinky bubbles. Such a boy... We got dressed and met our friend Angela and her son at the Spaghetti Factory for lunch. It was nice to see her and catch up. Finally, we drove home to CO.

What a great long weekend! I am so glad we could see and visit with so many family and friends in Salt Lake. Sorry, no pics yet. Maybe next week.

An this is The End of NaBloPoMo!

Sorry No Post

I know you are all concerned that I missed a couple of days. I was too busy driving to Salt Lake and seeing family. Details and review to come later. Good Night!

The Gospel

Today I am thankful for the Gospel. I know I don't think of it often enough. I have a really hard time putting my feelings about it into words. I am much better at doing things. I love the life I have now and look forward to life after this world. I love that families can be together forever. I have so many good friends and great experiences from going to church. I have not gone to the Temple, but I want to someday. I would love to bring Josh and our children there too. This one is my favorite.

Happy Birthday To Me!

Birthdays are great and I have always loved mine. Really, it is because it is next to Thanksgiving. My whole family is there and everyone wishes me a Happy Birthday. We would always sit down to eat and each say something we were thankful for. I always said family. It sounds contrite, but I really mean it. Now, it might be because everyone HAS to wish me a Happy Birthday. I don't even need presents. I like it just as much if they call me on the phone. I just really like that everyone thinks of me once in a while. So, today I am thankful for Birthdays and people remembering you on your special day. Or close to it. I am so not picky.

My Rome

Today I am thankful for my little boy, Rome.
This kid is just the cutest and I love being his Mom!

Look at those eyes!

Hot Stuff!

The cutest smile and outfit!

Cuddles

My Josh

Today, I am thankful for my Husband. There are a lot of Joshes out there, but this one is mine. Josh is such a great husband. He teases me and makes me laugh and snores and never picks up his socks and leaves dishes wherever and is always lucky. He loves tang and sausage and chocolate chip cookies. He hates vegetables, but he eats them because he loves me. (and I will make him eat them) He could eat spaghetti for every meal if I let him. (which I won't) He knows about sports and the Army and politics and music. His favorite game in the car is to change the channel and name the artist and song. He wins because I don't know any of them and he is very often right. He closes the bathroom door when he leaves because in one of our houses I told him to close all of the doors. Of course that was over 2 years ago. Funny that he catches on now. I love him so much. I really can't picture my life without him. I have no idea where I would be or what I would be doing. I am glad that he takes care of me and Rome so that I am able to stay at home. I could have chosen someone else, but I don't know how. I used to tell people that he stuck around until I had to keep him. The real story is I kept trying to get rid of him and I just couldn't live without him. When we were engaged we would fight a lot because we lived 2 states away and we kept trying to get married or break up. It was really tough. It was hard to stay with him, but hurt too much to think of being with out him. I never got a long with any LDS guys anyway. I know that he will come around when he is ready and that is okay with me. I have a really great life. I am seriously happy with where I am and what I have and He has everything to do with that. He doesn't need to hear it, but he might read this, so I Love You Honey. I am glad you put up with my crazy self.

Dear Mother

I wanted to take Jaley's challenge and post something that I am thankful for everyday. I was kind of glad I read her blog because I feel like I have been complaining on my blog a lot just to have something to post. Yes, I am a complainer. I know it. I am also very sarcastic. I try to work on those. Well, I also came across this blog that is compiling Dear Mother Letters for his wife for Christmas. I LOVED it! So, I decided to combine them. If you want a good cry check out this site and maybe send one of your own.

Dear Mother,

I love you so much. I always have. I have not always liked you however. There was a time that I was very angry at you. I did not understand why you did things. I did not like what I had to do. I was so hurt that I didn't have a choice. But, that is what you get. You don't get to choose your parents, or your children. I had to learn to like what you did. I had to look at my experiences through your eyes. I see now that what I had to do, made me who I am . I needed those experiences to be what I am now. I learned to listen and follow directions. I learned to be a leader and take control of a situation. I learned how to make things fun even when I did not think they were fun. I learned to control my temper so that I could teach others how to. I learned how to do things for myself. I learned to not be afraid even when everything tells me that it is scary. I learned to trust whole-heartedly in a man who is a little crazy, because you do. I learn that no matter how messed up a thing can be somehow it works out. I learned that no matter how many leftovers you see go into dinner, you must taste it before you decide it is disgusting. It turns out delicious every time. I learned to experiment with things just to see if I can make them work. I learned that hard work is very important. I learned that you can get anything you want if you work hard enough, have a plan and go in the right direction. I had to learn how to be friends with you. We are very different people. Sometimes I don't think you understand me very well, but that is okay. I understand you and love you anyway.

I always wanted to be a mother. I wanted to do it differently. I wanted to be there and do things for my children. I wanted to show them that I could do it better. I told my friends that I wanted to mess them up my way because I was messed up. Ha! That is pretty funny now. I never knew how hard it would be. I never realized how much heartache and worry would come with it. I am so glad you are here to help me. I rely on your expertise and advice. You did raise 6 children after all. I thought I worked hard before. I work hard now. I thought I had forgiven you before, but I understand now. My son is only 6 months old. Yet, I know what a sleepless night is like. I know how your heart hurts when you don't know why they are crying. I know how isolated you feel when your only conversation is one syllable sounds all day long. I know how it makes friends and relatives more important that ever. I know how proud you feel when they do something new all by themselves. I know there is a long way to go and I am looking forward to it. I wanted this. I wanted it all. The good parts are really good and the bad parts make you remember the good ones even more. Thank you Mom. Thank you for being my Mom. Thank you for messing things up and showing me that it is okay. Because I am going to mess things up sometimes and he will be okay. He won't know the difference.

I have to say my favorite thing about being a mother is the way he looks at me. He stares at me like I am the most perfect person in the world. And for him I probably am. It humbles me. I want to be the best mother to him because he already loves me like I am. I had a friend who would tease me that I would have a "momma's boy". I would protest and think I did not want one of those. Now, he is here and I don't mind so much. He just loves and needs me. It is a confidence boost everyday. Like he can do anything as long as I hold him. The world is wonderful as long and I am behind him. I only hope I gave some of this to my Mother. I can do anything and go anywhere becasue she is there to come back to.

Love, Jocie

My Soapbox

WARNING!! This post contains my opinions and they may make you angry and want to kick me. So, if you do not want to hear it and possibly start fuming from your ears DO NOT read on!! I warned you!!

I read another blog today. Yes, I was blog stalking again. (Twice in two days, what is going on?!) Well, this girl had a lovely post about how she has an extra 10 lbs left after having a beautiful baby girl. She very politely told her baby fat to go away and the part that got me was it had been 12 weeks. YES! 12! And ONLY 1o lbs! I was happy when I started losing weight right away after having Rome, however I have a VERY different opinion.
When Rome was born I thought that my job right now is to take care and nurture this little person that I was blessed with. Yes, I feel fat and lumpy. Yes, I do not feel even close to normal. I just hope it gets better and I feel better sometime.
I did start to feel better. It did get more normal to have him around. No, I didn't lose weight. And I didn't care. I just bought some trusty Wal-Mart clothes and did my best to care for my baby. I wasn't going to buy super expensive trendy clothes (I don't like them anyway) because I knew I would not be this size forever. I have to eventually fit into my old clothes again, or else, I will just keep buying clothes that fit until I have a new wardrobe. Whichever comes first. I totally did not worry about dieting. I tried to eat healthy, but not real hard. I was more worried about having enough milk and eating things that did not bother him. I had to add a snack in the afternoon and cut out milk and yogurt. After that Rome was happy and I was too.
Then, my sister-in-law decided to start a biggest loser diet and workout thing. I thought she was crazy and I still do. She just had a baby 3 weeks prior.
I do however, have to thank her profusely. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!! I really don't think I would have started working out had you not done this. I only started walking 3 times a week for maybe 30 minutes, but it helped. I actually started losing weight. I didn't diet. I am no good at it. The more I try, the more I cheat and it does not work. I really only cut out ice cream. (and I DO miss it! I am totally having some for my birthday next week. And I don't care!) I do not lose weight easily. I started running and it took me a year and a half to START losing weight. Yea, I was convinced that this would not work. I am still very surprised that I am continuing to go down. I was perfectly happy to stay at 170 forever. (180 was not so cool though) I am so happy to wear my old clothes again and I honestly felt like I was back in college when I could put on my old jeans and my SUU T-shirt. My girls have not gone down. I had to buy bigger shirts to accomodate them. I am sure that I will lose 5 lbs when I stop nursing. My girls are HUGE! Still! And, I now have a belly. Okay, it probably isn't that big, but Autumn I totally understand now. Okay, I got sidetracked.
My point was that I don't care what I look like. I don't care if I have 10, 20 or 30 extra lbs left. I have a baby to show for it and I need to take care of him right now. Now, I won't not care forever. I like wearing my old jeans and looking good. But it comes second. My baby comes first. Always.

I'm a Winner!

So, when I am bored I check out my friends friends blogs. Yes, it is kinda stalker-ish, but sometimes I am bored. I like seeing what other people are saying and doing. And they are Almost people I know. Well, a while ago this cool girl was having a give away of super cute jewelry that she made and hardly anyone was entering. I had to enter to make her feel better. And I totally wanted one! Well, then I checked back and I won! Yay! Okay, it wasn't that hard, still I am soo excited to get my bracelets. Yea, two! Did I mention how cool this girl is? Check her out, and my prize. :)

Kiss and Jimmy: Everyone's a Winner!

Shoulda Coulda Woulda

Yesterday did not go just how I thought it would.
Here is what should have happened: I get up at 8 or 8:30. Josh plays with Rome for a little while and then goes to work. I feed Rome and get him ready. I get ready and take him in the stroller with the little dogs and we walk for at least 30 minutes. We come home. Rome took a nap while we were walking so he plays happily while I shower. I get dressed and eat lunch. We leave to go shopping. I only have 2 items, a movie and a game, that I need to pick up. I find them easily at the same store and we go home. Rome takes his second nap. We then go to the grocery store and I find everything on sale. Then, I make a new recipe for dinner. Chicken Tetrazinni. It is delicious. I also make mini cheesecakes for my friends jewelry party tonight. I go over to the party while Josh watches Rome and I have a great time. I go home in time to feed Rome, give him a bath and put him to bed. Then, I have a couple of hours to read, work on Christmas presents, watch a show, whatever. Ahh!

This is what could have happened: I get up at 7 because Rome is awake. Josh sleeps in. I feed Rome and get him ready. Josh watches TV and eats breakfast, leaving for work at 10. Rome takes a nap. I eat lunch and then get ready. We go out in the stroller with the dogs and walk for 40 minutes. Rome only sleeps for 10 minutes and is still tired. He is not quite happy when I go to shower. He is screaming when I come out of the shower. I think I have about an hour before he needs another nap so we leave to go shopping. I can't find anything and it takes 3 hours. I feed Rome late, he misses his nap. I try to put him down at 4 when Josh comes home. He only sleeps for 30 minutes and I have to hold him or he screams. Josh offers to make dinner and I try not to "help" him too much. I sneak dinner while on the floor playing with Rome. I am tired, he is tired and I finally feed him and put him to bed early at 7:30. I am no fun and go to bed at 9:30.

This is what did happen: We all got up at 8. Rome is pretty happy, but I feed him and get him ready. Josh decides to stay home today. He watches a movie. Rome takes a nap. I get ready. We eat lunch. I leave to go shopping. I can find the movie I am looking for, but not the game. I try 3 stores and finally just buy the movie. I go to Michaels and Rome will not sit in the cart. He needs to be held while I look for crafty Christmas things. I find a couple and we go home. I put Rome down for a nap. Josh plays on the computer. I go to the grocery store. I find what I need and try not to buy extra because I missed my snack and am hungry. I forget my perscription and have to go back. I am now late to make dinner. I start my new recipie and Rome starts to scream. Josh does his best with Rome and then we trade. We cook together (this NEVER happens). Finally Rome is happy and I stir the sauce. And stir..and stir..and STIR. It probably cooked for 45 minutes. The recipie just said until it thickens. It never did. I was suposed to bake it for 35 minutes also. I was starving and just stuck it all in the pot together. There was waay too much sauce and it turned to glue. I add broccoli because we need to eat vegetables. I don't think Josh ate them. I try to eat while on the floor with Rome. He keeps hitting my bowl and wants to eat it too. I have to fend him off along with the dogs to get anything to eat. I never got to make my treat for my friends party which started an hour ago. I take Rome and go over anyway. He is perfect for her and plays on the floor with her kids. The stinker. I am exhausted. I just sit on a chair the whole time. We go home at 7:45 and I hurry to put Rome to bed. No oatmeal. No bath. Just bed. I go to work on ordering prints from online because they are having a one day free shipping sale. I need to order them anyway so, great! It takes forever! The sale ends at midnight and I finish at 11:30. Lucky. Josh goes to bed without me and I sneak into bed trying not to wake him up. I try to sleep while feeling guilty that I didn't bathe the baby or feed him his oatmeal and Josh stayed home from work and I did not hang out with him at all. I tell myself not to feel guilty. Yea, like that works.

Here is what Would have happened had I not tried to do too many things: Rome wakes up happy. Josh decides to stay home. I rearrange my plans. We get ready and we all go shopping. It is enjoyable because we are together. Rome takes a nap because shopping does not take 3 hours. I go to the grocery store, but scrap the new recipie and do something easy and quick. I manage to make cookies from a mix. I go to my friends party early. My friend is happy. I spent time with Josh. He is happy. Rome has a good hour with Mommy and goes to bed happy. I am not tired or stressed and I am happy. Why do I keep overplanning things anyway?

And if you read this whole thing...I am not apologizing for it being way too long. You read it.

I Don't Wanna

I am not in a bad mood, I just don't feel like doing certain things today. Like getting dressed. Or working out. I usually go outside and walk with the stroller for 30-60 minutes. But it might be cold. And even if it isn't cold, I think it will be and I don't want to go. I need to return my library books. I think they are a week overdue. I tried to renew them online and they have been renewed too many times. Pooh. I don't really want to leave the house. I also need to clean the house and say the dishes, but...I don't feel like it. I feel like visiting that garden with the trees and flowers and a stream and a path and a bench. The one they talked about during my birthing class that was supposed to calm me down or distract me. I am not sure which. Yea, where was that when I needed it? Huh? Oh, well. Back to the real world. Maybe I will go workout just for the hot shower after. I am sure I am going to freeze outside however. Sometimes being healthy is stinky, and cold.

Challenge

I take the challenge! Really, I was thinking of doing this before so, Thank you!
Here are some self portraits.

First Attempt: Babies don't help.

With Flash

Without

This was a lot harder than I thought it would be. I didn't like any of my smiles.
Also, the camera kept focusing on the door behind me.

Oh, And I forward the Challenge! Show yourself on your blog!