January in a nutshell

January has been quiet and crazy all at once. Matt gave me Wii Fit Plus for Christmas and we love it. It is so much fun. We have played it with some of our friends and it is way fun to play with a group, which is a big advantage to Wii Fit. It doesn't allow you to have multiple players at one time. Any of you are welcome to come on over and play whenever (just give me a heads up so I can clean up first).

I cut both Matt's and Beckett's hair. I think I did a decent job too. Beckett's was easy. I just buzzed it. But I used scissors for Matt's (well, buzzers for the lower part, but scissors for the top and to blend). I am really proud of how it turned out. It took me about an hour and a half to do the whole thing. My back and feet were killing me when it was all done, but I felt pretty good that I was able to do a decent haircut all by myself. I think Matt was pleasantly surprised too. He forgot that I had attempted to cut Beckett's hair in his sleep and so he was a little skeptical when I first offered. Hopefully next time it will go faster. If any of you cosmetologist have any suggestions on how to cut it faster and easier, please feel free to leave a comment.

We have been getting ready to potty train at our house. I have been contemplating training them both at the same time, but I think I am going to train Belle first. She is more ready than Beckett. She asks to sit on the potty every day, unfortunately it is after she as already pooped, but hey, that is a good start. She has even asked to go potty right after she woke up one morning. I hope that is a good omen as well. She is also obsessed with the underwear we bought her and Beckett. She actually likes Beckett's more I think.


She is always trying to put them on over her clothes, but she usually just gets both legs in on hole and then she can't pull them up over her knees. She gets so frustrated. The other day she kept asking me to help her put on more and more underwear. By the end of the day, she had one on top of her onsie, and 4 on top of her pants. and they were all Beckett's. We got a good laugh out that. She also carries them around all over the house like they are a stuffed toy or something. It is hilarious. Beckett could care less. He just likes the pictures of Thomas and Lightning McQueen that are on them. I don't know if Beckett will be interested in potty training for a little while. At least not until he realizes that he can get treats if he actually does something on the potty. I think that will be his great motivator. The almighty fruit snack or candy have great sway with that child. I am thinking the first part of February is when we are going to give it a go with Anabelle. We'll see how long it takes Beckett to follow in her footsteps. Wish me luck!

I had a birthday this month. It was awesome. I kind of celebrated all week (which I totally recommend). It started the Wednesday before my birthday when my mom came up to my house and helped me rearrange my house and make it look more put together. (I still need to post pictures up here of what we did. I want to finish the picture hanging first, but that might be awhile) Then on Friday, my parents came up and took Matt and I out to dinner at Windy's Sukiyaki. It was so good. Their Beef was amazing! By far the best beef teriyaki I have ever had. And their tempura veggies were pretty amazing too. The sushi was pretty good too (but not as good as that place up in Logan). It was a very delicious meal. I recommend that restaurant to anyone in the vicinity. They have private tea rooms that you can reserve and you sit on the floor, like they do in Japan. So cool. On Saturday, I opened my presents from my family and I got some new clothes (which I needed badly). They are super cute and in style, thanks to my sister Sara. I love them. I have already worn them and I feel so hip. On Sunday, my actual birthday, we went to my brother's house and had dinner with them and played games. It was a blast. We always have such fun with family. Thanks to everyone that made my birthday great!

Well, we finally did it. We got rid of the thorn in our side. The Saab story has come to an end. We are now the proud owners of a 04 Mazada 6 wagon. We love it.


It has zoom, zoom (which Matt really likes). We love all the storage space in the back and the seats are super comfy. I think this might be one of our best car purchases yet. We wont be in the market again until we have baby #4 on the way, so that gives us at least two years (hopefully more).

Beckett is still in love with our fish. Whenever anyone comes to visit, he says "Want to see our fish?" He even said that to me. Such a cutie. He reminds me to feed them and he talks to them and shows the fish his toys. I have even caught him playing pretend with them. I love it.

The last week or so, Beckett and Anabelle have started playing together really well. I will often hear them giggling in the other room and surprisingly it isn't always because they are getting into trouble. They are just playing together and having a good time. I do have to remind Beckett that he has to calm down when he starts getting too wild and rough with Belle, but for the most part, they have become great little friends. It is so nice. I am so glad they like to play with each other and that they get along. I hope they stay this way.

Belle is still trying to become as much of an adult as she can. She doesn't like to sit in her high chair anymore. She loves to eat what I am eating, including cucumbers and many other veggies. She knows how to take off her pants now (which is great for potty training) and will run around the house pants-less most of the day. She loves to pray. I will be going about my daily routine, when I will turn around and there will be Anabelle with her arms folded and she will say, "Amen?", meaning she wants to pray. She always remembers to bless our food. It is so cute and has made me stop to think about how often I pray throughout the day. Kids sometimes teach you more than you teach them. It is awesome.

Beckett is getting better with his prayers too. He sounds a little like a baptist in that he kind of shouts his prayers and looks up as he says the words. Sometimes it is hard not to laugh. We still have to tell him what to say, but he says almost all of the words now, instead of just the end of the phrase. And today, he said "in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen", which is a big first. He only says "Amen" after I say the first part. These are the moments that are truly rewarding as a parent. Less than a year ago, I was worried we would never be able to get Beckett interested in prayers, but now he asks to say the prayer at almost every meal and he is excited to say them. As a mom, that makes me feel so good inside and that I really can make a difference. I hope that both my kids keep up this love of praying.

And just in case you happened to vote for our friend that was in the competition for Xbox, he made into the final three and now he is one the final two contestants. They are in the process of making his game right now. That is so awesome and we are so excited for him. The game will be out in the Fall for everyone to play for free and then we vote again on which of the two we like the best. Thanks to all of you that helped him out.

Come on over

Saab bonfire at our place. I've got plenty of marshmallows for everyone. I'll even spring for smores fixin's.

Update!!

Man has it been crazy. I'm sure you all know what I am talking about. I think we have had something every weekend. I'll prove it.

The first Saturday of November we had a lovely get together with my old roommates from the Maple House. It was the last beautifully warm Saturday of the year. We met up at a park in North Salt Lake and let the kids go crazy on the playground, while we chatted and got caught up. The dads were even kind enough to watch the kids on the playground so we weren't distracted too much. Every one's kids were adorable and getting so big, and they all got along and played well with each other (which is always very nice). We had a wonderful time. (Hey, if any of you roomies want to send me a copy of the pictures we took, I would very much appreciate it)

I also went to a baby shower for a cousin that afternoon. It was so fun to see her all big and pregnant. I don't get to see my dad's family often and so it was so fun to catch up and see everyone. It was day full of catching up.

The next weekend we got out of dodge and visited my grandparents and aunt up in Idaho Falls. We had a wonderful time. The kids didn't break anything and were pretty well behaved. They didn't even break into their treats hidden in the cupboards. I was very pleased with them. We went out to dinner to a place kind of like Chuckie Cheese, only it had a train theme. Obviously, Beckett loved it. We ate burgers and chicken nuggets and fries while we watched a model train go back and forth on a wall. Beckett hardly ate anything. He just wanted to watch the train. When it came time to leave, Beckett disappeared. There was a lot of people around us and we were all distracted by putting on coats and things. I was very scared because it would have been very easy for someone to just pick him up and walk out with him and no one would have noticed. We all started searching frantically. After about 5 minutes, we found him over near the arcade like this:



After we all calmed down, we realized that this is the first place we should have looked for him. We then did what any normal parent would do at a time like this and proceeded to take pictures of the event.



Belle liked the tractor lots more.


We had a wonderful time in Idaho and hated to leave. Thank you Grandma and Grandpa and Karen for being so hospitable and letting us come visit. We love you!

We got our Saab out of the shop the next week and have been driving it since. We are looking to sell it now though. The warning lights are still flashing on and off, so we would like to buy a more reliable car before we have to fix another thing on that car. So it looks like the Saab story is almost over. Hallelujah!

That Saturday, Matt went to the BYU/Air force game. Thankfully, this time he did not come home with the flu. He had a great time and BYU won.

The next week, Beckett and I made something together:



In case you couldn't tell, he is a robot (robok, as Beckett calls it).

Thanksgiving was that week as well. We spent it with my family. It was wonderful, complete with a kids table, fine china, and amazing food. I even learned how to cook a turkey.



The food was so delicious and we had a fun time together. We watched the Gods Must be Crazy and had some good laughs. I had forgotten how good that show is. There is some good stuff in that show. We also saw Blindside. That is such a good movie. I recommend it to anyone. It teaches you what charity and being a christian is all about. Plus it had some good football scenes too.

We came home Thanksgiving night because Matt had to work the next day. It turned out to be a good thing because Beckett got really sick. I am not sure what bug he got (possibly bacon fever), but he had a bad hacking cough and a fever and he just laid there on the couch like a slug. I could hear him breathing from across the room. It was kind of scary. I wasn't sure if I should take him to a doctor or not. When Matt got home from work that day, he and his friend, John, gave him a blessing and his breathing improved dramatically. It was still a little raspy, but I had to sit next to him to hear it. I am so grateful for the power of the priesthood. I know it works miracles.

Beckett was sick for about 4 days. Belle got sick too, but not very bad. She had the cough and runny nose, but was up and running around and playing all day. She only wanted to cuddle with me part of the day. She also cut one of her fangs, as I like to call them. Now we are just trying to get rid of the runny noses left over from whatever that bug was. Oh and getting Beckett to do things for himself again. The little stinker thinks he still needs help to get his blanket out of his bed and to press play for his movies, which are things he was perfectly capable of doing before he got sick.

It was a very full month. Despite all of that, I managed to finish some projects of mine. When I was pregnant with Beckett, I made him a receiving blanket with the crocheted edging. I have been feeling bad that I hadn't made one for Anabelle, so I bought a kit over the summer and finished it last month. Well, technically it isn't finished, I ran out of thread, but there isn't much left once I buy more. Here it is:


Belle got another blanket, a quilt from my mom. She has made a quilt for all of her grandchildren. It turned out so cute. I love it and so does Belle. It has such bright colors. My mom was also really excited because she learned how to do some new stuff when she made this one. She is working on Beckett's right now and I will post pictures of that one when she is finished with it. I can't wait to see it.



I just love the flowers.


Well, I think we are mostly caught up now. I hope you all are ready for the holidays and have a very Merry Christmas.

Saab Update

So the Saab is running. We are going to pick it up tonight. I can't wait. I have a good feeling that this is it. I really hope and pray that it is. I feel so good that I am sending all of you good vibes too. Another good thing, the mechanic that fixed the car was kind enough to charge us for only 4 1/2 hours of labor, instead of the 6, and at a discounted rate. What a good guy! I hope they were able to get it completely fixed. If they did, I will tell one and all to go to their shop. It is so hard to find a shop that you can trust to fix your cars, but once you do, it is like gold.

Saab

So we just had the wretched Saab towed to a shop today. Lets hope this is the final time we will need to do this and that it is not as expensive as all of the other repairs that car has cost us (i.e. new engine, transmission). We already have the part, a turbo, so how bad can it be? Right? It has also been basically sitting in a garage or outside for the last three years (minus the month and 1 week have been able to drive it), so that can't be too good either. If it brakes down one more time, I say we have a Saab bonfire. Anyone want to come? I'll bring the wienies and smores.