The One With Photo Friday

One of the blogs I read did a photo post to share the top 11 photos of their family from 2011... I think I will do the same!

Here's my top 11 of '11...


I had a hard enough time picking 11, so I'm not going to try to put them in order of my favorite.  Instead, I'll try to put them in chronological order to make my life easier.  :)

This one is of Paige's first birthday.  She didn't like being naked in front of tons of people and being made to eat cake.  :)

 Happy Easter!  I loved this picture.  She is just too cute.

I LOVE her smile in this picture.  It makes me happy every time I look at it.

I like this picture a lot.  It's cute of both of them and fun that the ferris wheel is behind them.  Fair 2011.

I took this on my camera phone at one of Rick's flag football games and was pleasantly surprised with how it turned out.  It sums up our time at the games.

Rick is going to kill me if he ever sees this... What can I say?  I love it!  We're a bandanna lovin' family.

  

As a mom, how can you not love this picture?  Especially when your cute little almost 2 year old has only cuddled like this once or twice with you when she was sick.  It makes my heart so happy to think back to that 30 min plus cuddle.  

I think I took this picture at the pumpkin patch with my family.  I just like it.  :)

PS- don't her eyes look GREAT!?

This is possibly my favorite picture ever because of what it means to me.  It's 4 generations, and we all look pretty good (and even color coordinated!  we didn't plan that).  The 3 people in this picture with me are some of the people that mean the most to me.

Oh Paige!  You have the cutest expressions!  I was playing peekaboo with her behind my camera and she thought I was the funniest person alive.  It was so much fun.  I'm pretty sure this is one of Rick's top 5 favorite pictures ever.

I like how this one turned out.  This man means a whole lot to me.  Christmas time 2011

 

The One With The Year End Review

At the end of every year I try to do a blog post looking back on the past year & looking forward to the new year.  Every year I think to myself... 'what a year!'.  A lot happens in a year, I guess.

This was our 2011...
5 surgeries in 5 months between the 3 of us (and we are all doing well now!)
4 animal sounds that Paige can say
3 haunted houses visited
2 new jobs
1 graduation... Rick finished his masters degree!

Other notable memories:
Paige turned 1
Watching Paige take her first steps & growing some hair!
Watching Rick play lots of flag football & basketball games
Spending LOTS of time with our close family & friends.

This is what I hope our 2012 looks like:
Possibly adding another two feet to our home ;)
Doing at least weekly mommy-school activities with Paige.  Possibly starting a blog about it...
Possibly buying a house
LOTS less surgeries
Potty training Paige & de-cribbing Paige (wish us luck!)
Lots less time wasted (for Michelle) on FB :)

The One With Photo Friday - "It Always Makes Me Smile"

I'm trying to do a Photo Friday most Fridays, thanks to inspiration via my Pinterest.

Today I decided to do "a picture that can always make you smile".

I have a few of these, actually!

I have a couple pictures of Paige making funny faces.  For the one below, I told her to smile.  Can't you tell?  :)

Christmas Time 2011

The picture below was Paige's first Christmas.  We woke her up early to open our presents before visiting our 3 extended families.  She gave me a look like, 'Mom... really?  You are taking pictures of me NOW?'

Christmas 2010 - Paige's first Christmas

Last year for Halloween I was slightly camera happy (surprising, I know!), but boy am I glad I was.  I LOVE the smile she is giving in this picture & the way her head is tilted, it makes me smile every time I see it.

Halloween 2010 - Paige's first Halloween

Last, but not least, is my hilarious husband Ricky.  He took this picture to send to me and make me laugh, and it still does years later.  It's everyone's cell phone wallpaper in his family.

Rick the Rickster

I love looking at these pictures.  They all make me so happy & I love to remember back to those moments I was lucky enough to capture.

 

The One With The Beard That's Long And White

...must be Santa!!

(That's one of our favorite Christmas songs this year)

Santa makes time in his super busy schedule to come to Grandma Jaleen's house every year.  Well, starting last year anyway...

Thanks to some cropping, Paige actually looks happy in this picture :)

Paige didn't love Santa this year, which surprised me actually.  She's usually not afraid of anyone & is very overly friendly to even the gruffest guys (like the big typical biker dude she waves at at WalMart).

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas!!

The One With Photo Friday... "A Smile"

I decided that most Fridays I would try to do one of many photo challenges (you can find some of the challenges on my Pinterest).

So, today starts off the first Photo Friday, and I chose "a smile".

Who better than to take a picture of my (usually) happy girl?

I want to challenge myself to take new and creative photos, so I tried to take one today, and with many odd attempts, this is the best one I came up with...

It's a good thing she's so cute.

I thought of taking a picture of my smile up close... only to find out I had something in my teeth... yuck!  So I flossed & threw on some lip gloss and here you have it...

I was going to zoom in on my smile, but I liked the lights in the background.

A few weeks ago (back when I thought I would send out Christmas cards... yeah right!), I took some of Paige.  We played peek-a-boo behind the camera and either she thought I was hilarious  or she was faking it the whole time.  Either way, I got some fun "smiley" pictures of her.

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 24

Today is the day.  Today is Thanksgiving.  I am a very lucky girl with a ton of great things in my life that I am so grateful for.  I don't always remember them, so I am glad I have done this challenge of blogging about what I am grateful for.  I have enjoyed thinking each night about what has happened through the day & what was so good about it.  Some days were easier than others.  But, it was probably on the harder days that I needed the reminder more. 

So today, for my final day, I am grateful for this holiday.  I'm thankful that it helps me to be a more grateful person.  I'm grateful that it is a holiday that lets us focus (mostly) on family.  I'm grateful for the time I am able to spend with my family because of this holiday.

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 23

Ever since right before General Conference, I have really been trying to do service on a regular basis.  I knew it was hardly realistic, but I wanted to try to do something for someone once a day.  It was very hard to come up with ideas.  Call me crazy, but I usually enjoy serving other people.  So, I was kind of bummed that it wasn't something that came easier to me.  I kept trying, but came nowhere close to my goal.

Well, November rolled around, and I started doing my 'grateful posts', and the thought occurred to me that we should not just talk about why we are grateful, but act like we are grateful too.  To me, that includes serving others.  So, I tried to renew my goal again and focus more this month on serving other people.  I still haven't met my goal of serving someone every day (unless you count changing diapers numerous times a day as service), but I have been much better about it.  It has started coming a little bit more naturally & opportunities are falling into my lap more often.  

Although I have a HUGE & never ending to-do list, I am so happy that I can help others, even if it's just by writing them a simple thank you note, or visiting someone who needs cheering up.

So today, I am grateful for the opportunity to serve.  I'm grateful that it teaches me to not be so self centered.  I'm grateful that I can help make other's lives just a little easier or happier.  I'm grateful that it makes MY life happier (I had to throw something selfish in... huh?) when I do it.  I'm so very grateful for those that have helped me when I was in need of their service.

I'm not sure how this post comes accross, but it is something I am grateful for.  I'm not trying to say I am perfect, or toot my own horn.  I just wanted to blog (the reason why I blog is for myself... like a journal, and if people want to read it, I'm happy for them to) about something I am grateful for.

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 22

Yesterday, I was at Target (shocker, I know).  I overheard a lady on her cell talking about how someone had just stolen her wallet.  I was super protective of my wallet from then on.  But today I couldn't find my wallet.  I searched everywhere.  I said a prayer and thought I should call Target.  They had it.  I swear that I saw my wallet in my purse as I was putting it in my car, but I must be crazy.  I must have left it in the cart.

So today, I am grateful for that honest person who returned it.  I'm grateful that I found it, and especially that everything was still in it (maybe they saw my temple recommend and felt bad... haha).  I'm grateful that there are good people out there who do the right thing when we need them to.

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 21

Paige & I are always so excited when Rick gets home from work.  Sometimes we hear his car outside, so we go wait at the door for him.  When he gets home, lots of times he is able to play with Paige (you know, the way only dad's can).  This is a really good time for me to get a couple of things done, whether it's finishing dinner, sending out schedules for work, or even just having "me time". 

Occasionally, though, I watch them. 

It's the cutest thing.  They adore each other.  Paige runs and does her cute little happy squeal.  They wrestle & chase each other.  They play in her room.  Whatever they do, they have a lot of fun doing it. 

Today was one of those days when I was able to just watch, occasionally participate, and enjoy.  When that happens, I realize that this is what life is all about, this is all that matters in life, and that this is what makes me the happiest.  Not to sound too cheesy, but it's almost like time stands still for a moment so I can just breathe and enjoy.  Everything on my (huge and continually growing) to-do list melts off my mind (which is a very rare occasion).

So today, I am grateful for moments like these.  I'm grateful for Rick taking time to show Paige he loves her and give her some attention & fun time (lets face it, being with mom all day can be so boring!).  I'm grateful for the relationship they have with each other.  It's so sweet.  I'm grateful for the reminder of what life is all about. 

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 20

Today (and for that matter, every week) we drove a lot.  When we go somewhere together, we take my car because Paige's seat is in it.  I bought my Lancer in 2006.  It is a 2006, but it was slightly used.  Although, it may or may not have been the smartest way to purchase a car, I am so grateful I did.  It did leave me with a car payment that took a little while to get paid off, but with some budgeting help from Rick, we got it paid off in no time.  It feels so great to have it paid off.  Once it was paid off, Rick & I debated selling it & buying a super cheap car to get by & have a little extra cash to put towards a house.  After months of discussing it, we decided not to do it.

I know that we are now in 2011 (almost 2012!), which makes my car about 6 years old (that seems so old, time has flown by). 

My car isn't the nicest car, but my car has given me no problems (besides needing a rock chip filled, and maybe new tires... but that was my fault), and I am so grateful for that.  (Knock on wood!)  That is the reason why I bought this car, because it was newer, had one of the best warranties, and I knew I could count on it for years to come. 

So today, I am grateful for my Lancer (ps, that's it name... clever huh?!).  I'm grateful that it has been a good reliable car.  I'm grateful that I like the looks of it, and think it's a cute car.  I'm grateful that it has 4 doors, so it's easier to get Paige in and out of it (I did that on purpose...).  I'm grateful that we decided not to sell it.  I'm grateful that it is paid off, and officially ours.  

I love my car.

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 19

As I type this on my lap top, my battery is about to die.  It says I have T minus 10 minutes remaining.  Rick is watching football, and I am playing on my lappy. 

So today, as silly as it sounds, I am grateful for my lap top.  I'm grateful that I can still be with Rick, but we can both be doing separate things that we like to do.  I'm grateful for technology.  And in about 6 more minutes, I will be grateful for a rechargeable battery.  :)

The One With Todays Grateful Post: Day 18

This morning I was feeling overwhelmed.  When this happens, it usually helps for me to make a to-do list so I can prioritize & accomplish as much as possible.  So, I did that.  While in the shower a few minutes later (one of the things on my to-do list), I realized I really needed a lazy day.  I could put off most everything on my to-do list & just have a relaxing day.  I even appreciated that thought so much, that I planned on writing my grateful post about being grateful for my lazy day.

Well, that didn't happen. 

It was another super busy day.  It seems like I have had a lot of those lately. 

So today, I am grateful for the weekend.  I know I probably still won't have a relaxing day, but it will be a change of pace, and I need that.  I am grateful that Rick doesn't have to work on the weekends.  I'm grateful for a little extra help from him on the weekends (since he's home a little more).  I'm grateful for a little break.  :)

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 17

Today, I got my check in the mail.  Not unusual, after all, it happens every two weeks.  Although my checks aren't all that big (after all I do work part time), but I'll be honest.  I work extremely hard for this pay check.  This is the hardest I've ever worked for a job.  I could go into details, but I won't.  :) 

So today, I am grateful, that even though it's not the easiest, that I have a  job.  I'm so grateful that I can work at home, and not have to leave Paige.  I'm grateful that Rick and I both prefer that I stay at home, it makes life easier knowing that we are on the same page. 

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 16

Both my side of the family & Rick's side of the family are BIG ice cream lovers.  When I was in high school, I would come home and have a bowl of ice cream every day.  Because Rick & I are trying to save up for a house, we have been on a tight budget.  So, I don't buy ice cream very often.  I splurged the other day, and we had ice cream tonight.  It was a fun little mini date.

So today, I am grateful for ice cream and other yummy treats.  I'm grateful that ice cream just makes your day better.  I'm grateful that this season we have lots of treats at get-to-gethers.  I'm grateful that food helps bring people together.  I'm grateful that I splurged a little and got some ice cream this week.  :)

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 15

Sheesh!  It's already day 15!  This month is flying by.

Well, in my last post, I wrote about how I am grateful for my friends.  I decided I can't talk about my good friends without talking about my best friend.  Ricky.  Rick.  Ricardo.  Richard.  I'm so lucky to have him as my best friend and husband.  I can't imagine marrying anyone other than your best friend.  Because I married my best friend, I am so happy. 

I'm grateful for Rick & his friendship.  I'm grateful for the fun we have together.  I'm so grateful that we can be ourselves around each other.  I'm grateful that he is pretty dang hilarious and he makes me laugh all of the time.  I'm one lucky girl.

The One WIth Today's Grateful Post: Day 14

The other day I realized that I have known one of my friends, Magyn, for 18 out of my 25 years of living.  We were in the same class in second grade.  We still keep in touch, and try to get together as much as our crazy schedules allow us.  I feel so lucky to have been her friend for so long. 

I am super lucky to have 2 cousins my age (Becca & Candice), who I consider good friends too.  They, of course, have known me for my whole life.  We also try to get together as often as possible.  We have a lot of fun memories growing up.  It has meant a lot to me that they make it a point to be friends and not just see each other at family functions. 

I have one friend who I met in high school.  It was one of those times where you were friends from the first day we met (it's a pretty funny story actually... I smile every time I think about it).  Her name is Jessie.  She is such a great, positive sweet girl.  Once again, we aren't able to see each other very often at all, but when we do, you can't stop us from talking.  We don't miss a beat & time flies when we are together.  I look up to her so much.  She is always so happy & a great example to me.

I have one friend, who I haven't known for very long, maybe a year.  Her name is Kari & I met her at church.  She is so friendly and kind & has invited me several times to do activities with her and her kids.  She just moved out of the ward, so I'm kind of bummed.  She and I still get together, but it hasn't been as easy for me to find friends in this ward (and we've lived here for 2 years), especially to do something outside of church, so her friendship meant a lot to me.  

I am lucky too, because I have lots of other GREAT friends, even if I haven't known them as long.  Time doesn't permit me to see them as often as I would like, but I always have a fun time catching up with them when I do get to see them.

I look up to all of my friends.  They mean so much to me.  They put up with me.  They give me something to look forward to.  They are amazing (chances are if you are reading this, you are one of them!)  They help me to be a better person. 

So today, I am grateful for my friends.  I'm grateful for the happiness they bring into my life.  I'm grateful for blogs, texting & Facebook so I can keep in touch with them easier & more often.  I'm grateful that they put up with me.  I'm grateful that they add so much to my life.

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 13

Today, I was on Pinterest.

Shocker.  I know.

But I saw something that one of my cousins pinned, and I knew I had to make it.  Now, I know that's not big news, because this happens to me (and I am sure many of you) many times a day.  But this time, I realized that this is something that I would benefit from asap, it was little to no sewing (I don't mind sewing at all, I just have a REALLY hard time getting it done because I have to do it when Paige is asleep, but something always trumps my sewing crafts), and I knew I could make it pretty quickly and do a cute job.

What is it, you say?  It's really nothing special, but to a mom it might just be a life saver.  It's this:

I know it's nothing special, but I am almost done already, and I know it will make our church meetings much more reverent.  (I'll post pictures of it towards the end of the month)

So today, I am grateful for Pinterest.  :)  Pinterest makes me happy.  It took me a long time to join.  I just didn't get what all the fuss was about.  Well, the minute I broke down, I understood.  You see, I am kind of an organizing freak (you wouldn't be able to tell from the looks of our house), but Pinterest helps me to put all of my thoughts out visually and in an organized way.  I am also grateful for crafts that give me an outlet and let me be feel creative.  I'm grateful for technology & all of the fun aspects it brings into our lives each day.  I'm grateful that I finally decided to join Pinterest.

On a very random note, I am also grateful for Paige's adorable run.  It is impossible to describe how cute it is, but it makes me so happy whenever I see it.  Her cute little excited squeal helps to add to the cuteness of her run too.

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 12

As some of you know, every Saturday in the fall is a big deal at our house.  Rick is a huge enormous college football fan.  I'll be honest.  I had a hard time with it at first.  I remember having an emotional break down in front of my parents when Rick and I were dating (after about 1 year of dating... and I was totally PMSing... Rick was not there BTW), and while I was crying about who knows what, I remember mentioning about how obsessed Rick is with football.  I looked up at my cute dad, and I am sure he thought I was being so ridiculous   He was probably trying to hold in a smile, and if you know my dad, that's saying a lot.  :)  (I adore my daddy)  After that point, I was embarrassed that his love for football bothered me so badly.

Each year after that was less and less dramatic.  Last year, it was just the first week that I was uneasy, but it quickly faded.

This year has been even better for me.  I don't think I had one uneasy moment this season.  Partly because Rick has made it so much fun for me.  He cleans each Saturday morning while we watch (and sing to) College GameDay, he usually makes his famously delicious french toast for breakfast (part of the reason why I gained almost 60lbs when I was pregnant...), he's even stocked up on snacks loosely designated for Saturdays (that could be a whole other post one day, he got SO many snacks, I can't believe we fit it all in our apartment... and even got some great deals doing it too!), he grills something on the grill each Saturday night for us to eat for dinner (and they are always yummy!), and his brother & his wife usually comes over to watch some games with us (we have a really good time together).

Now, Rick is still super in love with his football Saturdays.  He still tries to watch as much football each Saturday as possible.  We still talk about (possibly) planning babies around football season.  We knew going into our marriage that we would need a DVR for our marriage to be a happy one (because of football).  But I have been able to let whatever was inside me go.

So today, I am grateful for... GULP... dare I admit it???... football.  I'm grateful that Rick has something that he loves and is so passionate about.  I'm grateful for the fun we have each Saturday.  I'm grateful that Rick wants to make it fun for me.  I'm grateful for all of the yummy snacks that Rick makes & buys for us to eat during the games.  I'm grateful for Bryce and Bre coming over so often.  I'm grateful that I was able to get over that uneasiness about football, and let it be something that we could enjoy together.

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 11

As you know, I am a couponer.  I'm not an extreme couponer, and I don't always use them, but the more time I put into it, the more money I save.  And, as long as I put in a decent effort, I am able to save 40-60%, often more.  I also love coupon codes for online stores.  Because of my cheapness thriftiness, I have been able to spend much less and save lots of money. 

So today, I am grateful for coupons.  I'm grateful for the money I have been able to save for our family. 

For some reason I have had a harder time thinking of good things I can write more than a sentence or two about why I am grateful for that thing.

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 10

The past week or so have been, well, not as easy as normal for Paige & me.  Today, when I was giving her a bath, I noticed something new in her mouth.  Then I noticed 3 something news in her mouth.

Three. New. Molars.
 

No wonder she's been so grumpy!

Don't mind the cell phone quality picture.  I sent this to Rick on a day when Paige was possibly the grumpiest. 

Yesterday & today  she was her happy self.  I needed that.  It's been good to have her back.

Happy Paige

So, today I am grateful that Paige is normally a happy girl.  I'm grateful that (hopefully) she's back for a little while (she's a toddler, I know we will have hard days sometimes).  I'm grateful for the harder times, so we can appreciate the better times.  I'm grateful for how happy she would get when Rick gets home, even when she was having a really hard day.  She adores him, I can't say I blame her.  :)

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 9

As a family, you go through good times and harder times together.  It seems, though, that we need our family the most during the hard times.  Whether it's the death of a loved one, health problems, or other trials.  Thankfully, your family is a unique group of people that love and support you, and are hopefully always there for you.

I got a call from one of my sister this morning that reminded me that that's what family is all about.  Family is made to help us.  Family is there to serve each other.  Family is there to laugh with and to cry with.  Family is a friendship that cannot be broken.  

Our family has grown A LOT since then!

So today, I am grateful for my family.  They are amazing, words cannot begin to tell how great they are.  I am so grateful to be a part of my family.  I'm grateful for their friendship.  I'm grateful for their support and love.  I am also grateful for the family I married into & the family that Rick and I are beginning.  

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 8

Once a month, my ward's relief society gets together to go to the temple.  The relief society president offers to watch any and all kids so their mom's can go.  Because of my work schedule, it just never worked out for me to go, but today, I made it a priority.

I was asked to work this morning, but turned it down for once.  Paige and I woke up not feeling the best.  The time overlapped with Paige's nap time.  I almost didn't go again.  It had been far too long since I had been, so I was so grateful for a couple of small changes made to the plans (requested by other ladies from the ward), that made it easier for me to go.

I felt at peace.  I was happy to visit with such happy ladies from the ward.  I was happy to get out of the house too... :)

Source

So today, I am grateful for the temple.  I am grateful for an escape from this world.  I am grateful for the peace that is there.  I am SO grateful for our sweet relief society president who wasn't only willing, but excited to watch our kids for us.  I wouldn't have been able to go without her.  I'm grateful that Paige was good for her and loved every second of it.

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 7

Paige is almost 21 months and not talking.  She was talking before her surgeries (probably only words that I would understand, since I am home with her all of the time), but then after her surgeries, she kind of digressed.  I didn't think much of it, until my mother in law told me that she saw a story on the news.  Basically the study says that children under the age of two who have had more than one surgery have a high chance of having language delays/problems in their life.  The more I thought about this, the more I realized that that's exactly what happened to Paige.  She had 3 surgeries, and there was a difference in her language development after the first one even.  She often will talk with her mouth closed, and that baffled her pediatrician.  She said that she has never seen that before.  By 18 months, a toddler should be saying between 10-20 words.  Paige was saying none.  

Rick and I have tried for several months to get her to talk, including tough love (that one is not fun), but nothing seemed to work.  So, with prompting from her pediatrician, a neighbor (who is a speech therapist), and my sister, I contacted a program a month or so ago who is helping us.  

Our therapist came this morning, and she is so cute and great with Paige.  She plays with Paige, and does activities that will help Paige want to talk.  She often gives me tips on what I can do on a regular basis to encourage Paige's speech to develop.  Some of those things are sign language, holding an object by my mouth and labeling it (so it draws her attention to my mouth), mimicking her noises (like you do babies), making picture albums for Paige to want to show other people, and much more.  

Rick and I had tried some of those things on our own, but didn't feel like she was making as much progress as we were wanting.  But, this past week, Paige has learned 3 more signs, and says them without us prompting her to.  This is a very important step.  She also is trying to say, "moo" and "quack", which count as words.  

So today, I am thankful for the Early Intervention program.  I know Paige would have started talking on her own at some point, but as a mom, you just worry and want the best for your child.  I am so grateful for Paige's cute therapist.  She knows what she is doing, and connects well with Paige.  I am grateful for communication.  Part of toddler-hood that is so hard is the lack of communication, and I am grateful that this will help us a little bit in that journey.  I'm grateful for Rick helping Paige.  He has been very helpful in getting her to be excited to make noises with her mouth open.  I'm grateful for the progress Paige is making.  

The One WIth Today's Grateful Post: Day 6

I've had a crazy day.  I can't wait to go jump in my comfy bed and go to sleep.

So today I am grateful for sleep.  I am grateful for a big cozy bed to sleep in.  I'm grateful I have Ricky to snuggle with in bed.  I'm grateful for the comfort of my home.  I'm grateful that Paige is a good sleeper.  I'm grateful that Rick wants to go to bed early tonight... sweet dreams.  :)

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 5

Today, I was able to spend some good, quality time with my mom & grandma.  It was a really good experience.  I wasn't planning on it, but I was also able to drive my mom home from my grandma's care center & we had a very good visit.  We had a lot of fun together.

So, today I am grateful for both of my grandmas and my parents.  I'm grateful for all that they have taught me.  I'm also grateful for my grandpas (who I was never able to meet), and those others who went before me and made my life what it is today.  I'm grateful for the friendships I have with my parents and grandmas.  I consider my parents some of my best friends.  I love them dearly & love being with them as much as possible.  I'm grateful that I live as close to my family as I do.  I often think about how cool it would be to live in different places, but then I think about how I never could be that far away from my family.

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 4

Lately, Rick and I have been reading The Miracle Of Forgiveness together.  Although we aren't very far at all, I have learned a lot.  I have also felt closer to my Heavenly Father by reading this book.  I don't like to get very churchy on my blog, but this was the only thing that fit when I decided what to blog about today.  I have thought about it all day (don't get me wrong, I am a very grateful person), and just now at almost 10:00pm I finally decided on something that I really felt grateful about today & that I could write more than a couple sentences about.

Today I am grateful for; good books, our ability to continually learn, and for good music that makes me feel at peace.  I'm grateful for the chance to still come to know our Heavenly Father, even though we cannot see him.  I'm grateful that we are always able to keep trying to become better people, no matter what your religious preferences are.  I'm grateful for forgiveness & repentance & the plan of happiness.  I'm grateful that I know that God loves & cares about me.

Sorry, I'll try to post more grateful posts with pictures.  They are the most fun.  

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 3

Paige is so fun.  She is, though, nearing the dreaded age of 2.  There are lots of great things & hard things about this age.

The Good:
She is learning so much.  She's learning to sign on her own, without us prompting her.  She's learning to tell us when we need to change her diaper.  She's learning to play on the playground without us following her every step.  She's working with a speech therapist, and doing well with that.  She's just about mastered playing with us (especially her dad... did I mention she's a total daddy's girl?).

The Hard:
She's started throwing tantrums a little bit.  She sometimes takes some convincing to eat.  She likes to be out and part of the party, so going down for naps or bed is not as easy as it used to be.  She is non stop, always going & doing something.

Don't get me wrong, she is still a really good baby/toddler.  We lucked out with her.  For the most part, she is obedient & people are often impressed (in public) at how well behaved she is.

So, today, I am grateful for Paige.  I'm grateful for her fun personality.  I'm grateful for her cute smile.  I'm grateful for how much she adores her dad.  I'm grateful for the happiness she has brought into my life.  I'm so grateful that I'm her mom.  Oh yeah, and one more thing... I'm grateful for nap time too.  :)

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 2

Yesterday, after almost a year of applying & interviewing, Rick got offered an accounting position.  He currently (not for much longer) is working for the police department in gang investigations, and owns his own small accounting/bookkeeping job that he does from home.  A couple of months ago, he even got his masters degree, but still has had no luck.  I told him several times that when God thinks it's right, he will get a job, and that we needed Rick to keep his current job for his insurance (since we met our out of pocket and got his surgery & Paige's last surgery free... we needed that).  Our insurance was renewed in July, so I kept thinking he will get an offer any minute.  His feedback from interviews was that he either didn't have as much experience as other interviewees, or people thought he was too over qualified because he has a masters degree.

On Monday, he told me that they wanted to check his references & that it sounded like as long as those calls went well the job was his.  On Tuesday, they emailed him an offer.  Although, it's not much more pay than he is getting now, we are thrilled.  This is what he needs to be doing & what he wants to be doing.  I'm so excited for him.

For this month, I am trying to post one post a day about something I am grateful for.  Probably something that has to do with my recent days.  And I promise, to try to post pictures more often than not, because a post with a picture is so much more fun.  :)

So, for today's grateful post, I am grateful for; Rick & how hard he is willing to work for our family (at one time he had 3 jobs), for his willingness & determination to go to so many interviews (I hate interviews), and for God & answering our prayers.

The One With Today's Grateful Post: Day 1

Tonight, Rick & I were bored, so I suggested we go for a jog.  I may or may not have been joking... I'll let you decide that.  Keep in mind, it was 43 degrees outside, Rick hasn't jogged since before his surgery in May, and we were both completely worn out from one heck of a day.

Well, he surprised me.  He said yes.

We threw on some running clothes and we did it.  He jogged one more lap than I did.  It felt good to get out and move a little bit.

For this month, I am going to try to post one post a day about something I am grateful for.

So, for today's grateful post I am grateful for modern medicine, insurance, God for helping us to get through (and time well) Rick's surgery, and for our healthy family.

The Other One About Halloween

Well, shortly after the last post, my mom invited me to her school's Halloween parade (she's a teacher).  We decided that we all 3 wanted to match, and my mom was thinking about being a cheerleader.
So...
I whipped out Paige's half finished costume from last year, and finished it on Saturday & Sunday.  We had a lot of fun visiting her school and walking in the parade.

Paige always goes straight for the books in my mom's classroom.  She pulled out, 'If You Give A Mouse A Cookie' so my mom read it to Paige & the class.

I was a coach, and Paige & my mom were cheerleaders.  I even made up my own play on my clip board... :)

Paige was pooped after.

Happy Halloween!

The One Where It's That Time Of Year Again!

We love Halloween in our house.  We watch scary movies (I'm not fond of that part), go to haunted houses, decorate, prepare to scare innocent children when they trick or treat, and my favorite of all... my family gets together to go to the pumpkin patch every October.  I don't know why, but it's one of my favorite traditions.

Lots of wheel barrel fun.

Our little Eskimo.  It was chilly!

More wheel barrel fun with grandpa.

All of the girls that were there.

Afterwords, we go to my parents house & have a costume parade.  All of the kids dress up & walk around for a while.  I don't know why, but I love it.  

I didn't get any pictures of her without a grahm cracker in her mouth.

I found a cheap elephant costume online, and that's the only animal Paige knows how to say (more on our speech adventures coming soon...), so I thought it was perfect.  Click here if you're wondering what an elephant says.  :)

This is the first time I put Paige's costume on.  She HATED it.