It's my birthday today! I'm 36 and slowly creeping closer to the big (and scary) 4-0! This has been a good year and I feel like I've grown a lot.
A few things that I did this year:
1. Visited both coasts – Florida and California
2. Read 37 books (so far)
3. Gave birth to and nursed 4th child
4. Finally learned to chill out about post-child weight loss. It’s such a short time in the grand scheme of things.
5. Taught 6 Relief Society Lessons before being released
6. Learned how to make cinnamon rolls
7. Joined Pinterest (and promptly became inspired and overwhelmed by ideas)
8. Washed/folded approximately 520 loads of laundry
9. Started a scripture journal
10. Enjoyed date night almost every week with Allen
11. Read “Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother” and it changed my life
12. Spent countless hours sitting at the piano practicing with my kids
13. Bought almost NO seasonal home décor (1 thing for fall, 1 for summer and 1 for Christmas)
14. Crossed 3 more states off my “To Visit” list : Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama
15. Loved my weekly lunch dates with my girlfriends
16. Decided that a table saw is the next thing on my “must have” list. I have a lot of projects on my list
17. Worked very hard to cut processed foods out of our diets
18. Joined a local organic produce co-op that we love. Love how it has expanded our taste buds and made our kids ADVENTUROUS eaters. We have eaten fresh fig, kale, eggplant, various squash’s, turnips, pluots and beets and have loved it all
19. Was so sad to see the Harry Potter saga come to an end through the movies. I cried at the end of the last movie – just because it is over.
20. Made at least one batch of homemade cookies every week
21. Favorite TV shows included: Project Runway, Modern Family and Harry’s Law
22. Drove Approximately 200 miles per week to my kids school/activities (yes, I calculated this)
23. Best purchases were my new camera lens and my first pair of Frye boots – both totally worth every cent!
24. Thoroughly enjoyed every sip of my morning diet Coke runs
25. Started a list of things I’d like to accomplish before I turned 40 and had a mini midlife crisis in the process
26. Nearly completed my third year of Project 365 and still going strong and loving it
27. Spent a good portion of the fall reorganizing and dejunking my life. I still have a long way to go but I’m drastically improved.
28. Wonder how I ever nursed a baby without the convenience of my iPhone
29. Had my first ever mammogram and full-body skin check
30. Felt so much gratitude for the abundant blessings in my life – family, friends, health, the gospel, etc.
31. Fell even MORE in love with living in NM and hoping I can squeeze in one more year of living here
32. Almost bought a new van, bought Allen a new car instead, almost bought a new van AGAIN and then decided to hold out until the car blows up or I’m no longer commuting a million miles to school so I can get an SUV instead
33. Fell in love with watching my older kids fall in love with their baby sister
34. Felt totally heartbroken that Emery is my last baby and have savored every second of her babyhood. I feel pretty at peace with our family size now and am excited to move on to the next stage in life.
35. Learned to stop and enjoy the moment a little more this year. I've had some stark reminders this fall about how fragile and temporary this life can be and I'm determined to make the most of every second of mine!
I'm hoping 36 is another great year!
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Monday, November 28, 2011
Thanksgiving Recap
We had such a nice Thanksgiving weekend. It was very relaxing and fun to spend time with friends and family. I haven’t posted in forever (I have about 3 half written posts in my drafts folder – someday I will finish them!). First up a few Thanksgiving projects.
I saw this wreath post idea on Pinterest and I had Allen build me one a couple months ago. We made a few design tweaks and I LOVE it. This is actually my Halloween wreath on it and I had a cute Harvest sign on there for Thanksgiving. I loved my porch this fall!
I also made a Thankful tree with my kids at the beginning of the month that we decorated with leaves that we wrote the things we are thankful for on. The kids thought it was great and we really enjoyed discussing our abundant blessings. For the record, most of Addison’s leaves had to do with Disneyland!

Addison has been attending a once-a-week holiday preschool that a friend in my ward put together (separate from her regular PS class). She is running it October-December and has done some DARLING projects with the kids. One week they made pilgrim hats, Mayflower art and a turkey advent countdown to Thanksgiving (we pulled off a feather every day until turkey day). The next week they made these cute scarecrows and homemade pumpkin butter. Addison is having a ball with it!

I saw this wreath post idea on Pinterest and I had Allen build me one a couple months ago. We made a few design tweaks and I LOVE it. This is actually my Halloween wreath on it and I had a cute Harvest sign on there for Thanksgiving. I loved my porch this fall!
I also made a Thankful tree with my kids at the beginning of the month that we decorated with leaves that we wrote the things we are thankful for on. The kids thought it was great and we really enjoyed discussing our abundant blessings. For the record, most of Addison’s leaves had to do with Disneyland!
Addison has been attending a once-a-week holiday preschool that a friend in my ward put together (separate from her regular PS class). She is running it October-December and has done some DARLING projects with the kids. One week they made pilgrim hats, Mayflower art and a turkey advent countdown to Thanksgiving (we pulled off a feather every day until turkey day). The next week they made these cute scarecrows and homemade pumpkin butter. Addison is having a ball with it!


The kids made these cute turkeys that we used as centerpieces for the kids table. I gave them the supplies, briefly explained the project and they did all of the work themselves. I was so impressed!

On to the main event! Adam, Laurie and Hyrum came from AZ to spend Thanksgiving with us. It was so fun to have them here. On Thanksgiving morning, the boys got up and played football for a couple hours and had a grand time. Carter loves that he is old enough to play now too! The girls stayed home to work on food preparation and watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving parade. My kids were such good helpers all day and really loved getting involved this year.
Makenna peeling sweet potatoes:

Addison scooping stuffing into muffin tins (my favorite way to make stuffing – bake in muffin tins for slightly crispy, non-soggy individual portions – yum!)

Carter helping with pies:
Laurie made SIX pies in the morning (apple, sweet potato, lemon meringue, chocolate pudding, pear and almond joy):
Carter loved taking care of the babies while we worked:
I had fun setting tables this year. Adult table:

Kids table place setting:

I covered the table in brown craft paper so the kids could draw on it. The sugar cone/cornucopia was filled with some yummy trail mix that I made. This was a perfect addition because it kept the kids full and busy until we were ready to eat dinner.

On to the main event! Adam, Laurie and Hyrum came from AZ to spend Thanksgiving with us. It was so fun to have them here. On Thanksgiving morning, the boys got up and played football for a couple hours and had a grand time. Carter loves that he is old enough to play now too! The girls stayed home to work on food preparation and watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving parade. My kids were such good helpers all day and really loved getting involved this year.
Makenna peeling sweet potatoes:

Addison scooping stuffing into muffin tins (my favorite way to make stuffing – bake in muffin tins for slightly crispy, non-soggy individual portions – yum!)

Carter helping with pies:
Laurie made SIX pies in the morning (apple, sweet potato, lemon meringue, chocolate pudding, pear and almond joy):
Carter loved taking care of the babies while we worked:
I had fun setting tables this year. Adult table:

Kids table place setting:

I covered the table in brown craft paper so the kids could draw on it. The sugar cone/cornucopia was filled with some yummy trail mix that I made. This was a perfect addition because it kept the kids full and busy until we were ready to eat dinner.
Laurie, Adam & Hyrum (my only regret of the day was that I did not take a picture of my own family :(

Adult Guests:

We had 18 people at our house this year. Our family, Laurie & Adam, and two families from our ward. It was a fun group and we had an AMAZING meal. Afterwards we played games while the kids ran amok and had a grand time.
I am so grateful for this time of year to reflect upon my many blessings and express gratitude to the Lord and my family. In no particular order, I am feeling especially grateful for: Allen, Eternal marriage, my children, motherhood, my extended family, good health for my family, forgiveness/repentance/mercy, humor, friends, good books, reliable cars, the scriptures, latter-day prophets, the temple, vacations, a comfortable home, modern conveniences (iPhone, pinterest & DVR), getting to stay at home with my kids, the Atonement, book club, cute clothes, General Conference, healthy food, Allen’s good job, my kids amazing school, modern medicine, my camera.

Adult Guests:

We had 18 people at our house this year. Our family, Laurie & Adam, and two families from our ward. It was a fun group and we had an AMAZING meal. Afterwards we played games while the kids ran amok and had a grand time.
I am so grateful for this time of year to reflect upon my many blessings and express gratitude to the Lord and my family. In no particular order, I am feeling especially grateful for: Allen, Eternal marriage, my children, motherhood, my extended family, good health for my family, forgiveness/repentance/mercy, humor, friends, good books, reliable cars, the scriptures, latter-day prophets, the temple, vacations, a comfortable home, modern conveniences (iPhone, pinterest & DVR), getting to stay at home with my kids, the Atonement, book club, cute clothes, General Conference, healthy food, Allen’s good job, my kids amazing school, modern medicine, my camera.
Monday, November 14, 2011
9 Months!
Miss cutie patootie is 9 months old! I seriously can't stand how big she is getting!
Ems is OFFICIALLY mobile and has been crawling for a couple of weeks. She thinks it is so funny to get herself caught in tricky spots or when I can't find her and have to go searching. I don't think she yet realizes how mobile she is because she doesn't come looking for me when I leave the room. She will sit until I come back for her.
She is still sleeping through the night but will occasionally wake up for a binky or to get a blanket over her.
Emery also started clapping this month. This also makes her feel like she is pretty big stuff. She won't clap on command yet but she does it when she gets really excited.
We think she has a milk allergy or at least a lactose intolerance. She does NOT do well when she has milk products. She loves yogurt but it causes her to have 6-8 stinky diapers a day. Once we have cut it out she is doing much better. We'll try again in a couple months to see how she does.
She is definitely getting harder to photograph. It is hard to get her to stay still long enough to take pictures!
Ems is OFFICIALLY mobile and has been crawling for a couple of weeks. She thinks it is so funny to get herself caught in tricky spots or when I can't find her and have to go searching. I don't think she yet realizes how mobile she is because she doesn't come looking for me when I leave the room. She will sit until I come back for her.She is still sleeping through the night but will occasionally wake up for a binky or to get a blanket over her.
Emery also started clapping this month. This also makes her feel like she is pretty big stuff. She won't clap on command yet but she does it when she gets really excited.We think she has a milk allergy or at least a lactose intolerance. She does NOT do well when she has milk products. She loves yogurt but it causes her to have 6-8 stinky diapers a day. Once we have cut it out she is doing much better. We'll try again in a couple months to see how she does.
She is definitely getting harder to photograph. It is hard to get her to stay still long enough to take pictures!She is nursing 3 times a day (morning, noon, night) and still gets distracted SO easily. I know I could wean her right now and she'd barely notice but I am definitely not ready! I have to send everyone out of the room while she nurses because once she's distracted, it's all over!
Has become a bow-puller-outer. Ack! I've never had a baby fight hair accessories like she does. It doesn't stop me from putting a bow or hat on her every day, even if it is out in a few minutes!

Emery loves music and she will do her own little dance whenever it is on or someone is playing the piano. It is so cute to watch her wiggle around to the beat!
Has become a bow-puller-outer. Ack! I've never had a baby fight hair accessories like she does. It doesn't stop me from putting a bow or hat on her every day, even if it is out in a few minutes!
Emery loves music and she will do her own little dance whenever it is on or someone is playing the piano. It is so cute to watch her wiggle around to the beat!
Points to her nose on demand! So funny! Allen was telling her where her nose was the other day and a few days later I said something about her nose and she pointed right to it. Adorable!
Emery is loved and adored by everyone more than I ever thought possible! I can't imagine our family without her and wonder how I existed without her in my life every single day!
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Disneyland - Days 2 & 4
The girls waiting for the shuttle to take us to the parks. The whole outfit frenzy started when I couldn't find a single short-sleeved Halloween shirt anywhere. I made these shirts and added the ruffle to some plain jean skirts:

Bug's Life Bumper cars:

Waiting in line for the Toy Story Mania ride Emery fell asleep. That was the longest line we stood in all week so we only rode it once. Kind of a bummer because we love that ride!

We finished off the day by watching the new World of Color light show which was amazing. On our way to our seats a cast member told us a secret spot to watch it so we could avoid the crowds. It was awesome where we watched it from!
Day 4
Thursday was our magical morning so we took the opportunity to get a few more pictures at Disneyland. My friend owns an embroidery business and made our shirts for us. You can’t see in the picture but it says Frost 2011 underneath the Mickey head in the Disney font. Everyone loved our shirts and though Allen fought the idea at first he ended up loving our matching shirts (and even has some new ideas for next time!)
We had a little camera scare for a few minutes on this morning and I could not get my camera into focus. I totally panicked but changed some of my settings and it worked great after that. It freaked me out though because we hadn’t gotten some of the shots I wanted yet.




After spending the morning riding a few rides and stocking up on Fast Passes for the big kids to use later that night, we headed back over to California Adventure. The parks were dead because the forecast was for another HOT day but it ended up being very pleasant. We were able to ride Ariel’s Undersea Adventure 5 times back-to-back. It was Addison’s favorite ride and she has begged to ride it every day since we have been home. She was the BEST age to take to Disney this time because everything was so magical for her. This is a brand new ride and she still loves Ariel so it was perfect timing.


We hit our other favorites in the park – Soaring over California, Tower of Terror (for Allen and Carter 3 times!), Bugs Life (the splash pads were a life saver on this trip!), Grizzly River Run, the Ferris Wheel and tons more. We were so sad that California Screaming was closed for the entire week we were there. Makenna is finally tall enough to ride it and she was so sad she couldn’t. We also played in the Wilderness Lodge park for a long time. We’ve never done it before and the kids had so much fun. They have a zip line, rock wall, slides and a treetop rope climb. It was one of our favorite things on this trip.

On our second day we spent the day at California Adventure. I was so bummed on this trip that they have taken out the huge CALIFORNIA letters in front of the park. We usually take a picture with the F and I was so excited to have our entire family in the picture this year. I hope they bring them back! There is a lot of construction happening at the park right now so that was a bit of a bummer but still fun. We hit a few of our favorite rides right away – Soaring over CA and Grizzly River run (where Makenna ended up SOAKED). We headed over to the Aladdin show, which we had never seen and loved. They handle the animal characters very similarly to the Lion King Broadway show so it was awesome (think life sized Elephants and camels). We also hit Turtle talk with Crush which is always one of our favorite activities.
Allen and Carter were so excited to ride Tower of Terror and they persuaded me to go on it this year. I hate those kinds of rides and TOT was no exception. FREAKY! But my boys love it and rode it over and over. Makenna and I rode once and that was plenty for both of us!
Allen and Carter were so excited to ride Tower of Terror and they persuaded me to go on it this year. I hate those kinds of rides and TOT was no exception. FREAKY! But my boys love it and rode it over and over. Makenna and I rode once and that was plenty for both of us!
C&M before Tower of Terror:

Bug's Life Bumper cars:

Waiting in line for the Toy Story Mania ride Emery fell asleep. That was the longest line we stood in all week so we only rode it once. Kind of a bummer because we love that ride!

We finished off the day by watching the new World of Color light show which was amazing. On our way to our seats a cast member told us a secret spot to watch it so we could avoid the crowds. It was awesome where we watched it from!
Day 4
Thursday was our magical morning so we took the opportunity to get a few more pictures at Disneyland. My friend owns an embroidery business and made our shirts for us. You can’t see in the picture but it says Frost 2011 underneath the Mickey head in the Disney font. Everyone loved our shirts and though Allen fought the idea at first he ended up loving our matching shirts (and even has some new ideas for next time!)

We had a little camera scare for a few minutes on this morning and I could not get my camera into focus. I totally panicked but changed some of my settings and it worked great after that. It freaked me out though because we hadn’t gotten some of the shots I wanted yet.




After spending the morning riding a few rides and stocking up on Fast Passes for the big kids to use later that night, we headed back over to California Adventure. The parks were dead because the forecast was for another HOT day but it ended up being very pleasant. We were able to ride Ariel’s Undersea Adventure 5 times back-to-back. It was Addison’s favorite ride and she has begged to ride it every day since we have been home. She was the BEST age to take to Disney this time because everything was so magical for her. This is a brand new ride and she still loves Ariel so it was perfect timing.

We hit our other favorites in the park – Soaring over California, Tower of Terror (for Allen and Carter 3 times!), Bugs Life (the splash pads were a life saver on this trip!), Grizzly River Run, the Ferris Wheel and tons more. We were so sad that California Screaming was closed for the entire week we were there. Makenna is finally tall enough to ride it and she was so sad she couldn’t. We also played in the Wilderness Lodge park for a long time. We’ve never done it before and the kids had so much fun. They have a zip line, rock wall, slides and a treetop rope climb. It was one of our favorite things on this trip.
Zip Line
How Addison felt about not being big enough to go on the rock wall or zip line:
In fact, the only tears on this trip were due to the fact that Addison was still too short for a few of the rides. She is BRAVE and wants to do everything C & M do!


Emery was beat by the end of the day. She was such a trooper on this trip and napped in her stroller when she could and did great with very limited sleep. This trip made me realize how hard it is to travel with a baby and it helped me get over my baby hunger a little bit. This is at the end of the day. She had been munching on a bagel and fell asleep with it in her hand. Poor baby!
At the end of the day I took Emery and Addison home to go to bed and start packing up. Allen took the big kids back over to Disneyland to ride a few more big rides before heading home. The park was open until 11:00 p.m. but they were beat and gave away a few of their fast passes and were back at the hotel by 10:00.
We had a fantastic trip and made some really great memories. We had a great balance of doing a TON but also slowing down to enjoy a few things off the beaten path. We LOVE you Disneyland! Until next time.....
How Addison felt about not being big enough to go on the rock wall or zip line:
In fact, the only tears on this trip were due to the fact that Addison was still too short for a few of the rides. She is BRAVE and wants to do everything C & M do!

Emery was beat by the end of the day. She was such a trooper on this trip and napped in her stroller when she could and did great with very limited sleep. This trip made me realize how hard it is to travel with a baby and it helped me get over my baby hunger a little bit. This is at the end of the day. She had been munching on a bagel and fell asleep with it in her hand. Poor baby!
At the end of the day I took Emery and Addison home to go to bed and start packing up. Allen took the big kids back over to Disneyland to ride a few more big rides before heading home. The park was open until 11:00 p.m. but they were beat and gave away a few of their fast passes and were back at the hotel by 10:00.We had a fantastic trip and made some really great memories. We had a great balance of doing a TON but also slowing down to enjoy a few things off the beaten path. We LOVE you Disneyland! Until next time.....
Monday, November 07, 2011
Disneyland - Day 3
{Day 2 was spent at California Adventure and I didn't take very many pics so I am combining them with Day 4 pictures}. Day 3 was spent back at Disneyland and it was HOT. The temperature reached 105 by mid afternoon, breaking every heat record in Anaheim on that day. The good news was that the lines were pretty short by mid-afternoon because people were leaving the park to escape the heat. We had A LOT of cold treats on this day and I'm pretty sure I can tell you where every single drinking fountain is in the entire park! I actually did not have matchy outfits for us on this day which worked out fine since the girls spend most of the day in princess attire.
As soon as we got to the park Allen took off with the big kids to grab some fast passes and ride a couple rides while the lines were short and I immediately headed to the Fantasy Faire to stand in line for the princesses. In all our trips to Disneyland I've NEVER seen that line shorter than 60 minutes even though we go at non-peak times. It's just what it always is. The girls were excited to see who they would get to visit with (you can't see ahead of time who is there so it's always a surprise).
Snow White:

Sleeping Beauty:

Pocahontas (my girls don't even know who she is but they loved her anyway!):
In case you are wondering what Carter did while the girls chatted it up with the princesses:

Ems looking cute as always:
After meeting the princesses the girls wanted to do some souvenir shopping at the princess shop outside the FF. We spent a looong time there looking for the perfect souvenir. Carter and Allen kept busy (when I see pics like this I am reminded at how grateful I am that they have each other in the midst of the girly princess hoopla!):
Mom & 3 princesses:
Makenna ended up buying an Aurora dress (I think it's a nightgown but it didn't stop her from putting it on immediately) and Addie bought the Tangled mini figure set. This thing is hilarious and includes figures of 3 of the thugs from the "I have a dream" bar scene. She loves that thing and carried the people around the parks for the rest of the trip! Emery got a princess Minnie doll and her set of ears (we have bought all the girls a Minnie doll on their first Disney trip).

After lunch it was FINALLY time to meet Rapunzel. Watching my girls meet Rapunzel and Flynn Rider is hands down my highlight of this Disney trip (and maybe the top memory from all our trips). The girls were so looking forward to meeting Rapunzel and very patiently waited until our third day. The line was short in the afternoon due to the heat so we jumped at the chance. Addison was in awe from the moment we stepped into Rapunzel’s house. They have it painted to look like her room in the tower with her paintings covering the wall. Rapunzel immediately noticed Addie’s dress and started gushing over it. Addie was smitten. Rapunzel said, “oh look, my picture is on your dress. How about if we take a picture of you and put it on MY dress?!”

We spent the rest of the day riding a ton and left when the park closed! Another truly magical day at Disneyland!
As soon as we got to the park Allen took off with the big kids to grab some fast passes and ride a couple rides while the lines were short and I immediately headed to the Fantasy Faire to stand in line for the princesses. In all our trips to Disneyland I've NEVER seen that line shorter than 60 minutes even though we go at non-peak times. It's just what it always is. The girls were excited to see who they would get to visit with (you can't see ahead of time who is there so it's always a surprise).
Snow White:

Sleeping Beauty:

Pocahontas (my girls don't even know who she is but they loved her anyway!):
In case you are wondering what Carter did while the girls chatted it up with the princesses:
Ems looking cute as always:
After meeting the princesses the girls wanted to do some souvenir shopping at the princess shop outside the FF. We spent a looong time there looking for the perfect souvenir. Carter and Allen kept busy (when I see pics like this I am reminded at how grateful I am that they have each other in the midst of the girly princess hoopla!):
Mom & 3 princesses:
Makenna ended up buying an Aurora dress (I think it's a nightgown but it didn't stop her from putting it on immediately) and Addie bought the Tangled mini figure set. This thing is hilarious and includes figures of 3 of the thugs from the "I have a dream" bar scene. She loves that thing and carried the people around the parks for the rest of the trip! Emery got a princess Minnie doll and her set of ears (we have bought all the girls a Minnie doll on their first Disney trip).After spending so much time doing the princesses we hit a ton of rides. As we were walking through Adventure land I saw that they were just opening up the line for Aladdin and Jasmine and we jumped in to see them really fast. It was just lucky to see them there and not have to stand in line because we've never seen them at DL before.

After lunch it was FINALLY time to meet Rapunzel. Watching my girls meet Rapunzel and Flynn Rider is hands down my highlight of this Disney trip (and maybe the top memory from all our trips). The girls were so looking forward to meeting Rapunzel and very patiently waited until our third day. The line was short in the afternoon due to the heat so we jumped at the chance. Addison was in awe from the moment we stepped into Rapunzel’s house. They have it painted to look like her room in the tower with her paintings covering the wall. Rapunzel immediately noticed Addie’s dress and started gushing over it. Addie was smitten. Rapunzel said, “oh look, my picture is on your dress. How about if we take a picture of you and put it on MY dress?!”

The girls sang songs with her from the movie and asked her a TON of questions. Really good questions I might add. Things like, “where is the brown piece of your hair that Mother Gothel cut off?” “Why isn’t your hair lighting up when we sing the flower gleam and glow song?” “Where is Pasqual right now? Can we see him?” A few minutes into their visit Flynn Rider came into the room. The girls were in heaven – you can tell how totally smitten they were by him (this guy played the character PERFECTLY). 

Addison clammed up a little bit once Flynn walked in but Makenna was SO into him. She asked if she could try hitting him with a frying pan (there was one hanging on the wall). Then she asked him if she could see Max. At one point I tried to wrap things up and the handler (the guy who supervises the characters) told me that they were having so much fun that we should just let them enjoy it. I think they were able to spend a good 15 minutes with the characters and it was so wonderful. It really made their trip. I am tearing up just looking at these pictures and typing out the story. I even wrote an email to Disney thanking them for the excellent experience and service!
Group Hug!
We spent the rest of the day riding a ton and left when the park closed! Another truly magical day at Disneyland!
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