Time Flies

When you're having fun. On Thursday Brandon and I celebrated our 10th anniversary. We have had a wonderful time building our lives together. We love our children, we love our home. we love each other and for the most part we love the life we're living. I wouldn't want to do it with anyone else. He's the best! Ten things I love about him are....

11. cultivated confidence (one to grow one, it's one of the things that attracted me to him and it keeps working)

10. hard working

9. money matters

8. when he writes..about anything

7. perfect patience with people

6. his appreciation of me being a mommy and always helping out with no complaints ever

5. he wouldn't knowingly hurt anyone, well not w/o a super good cause

4. his handsomeness, eyes, lips...you get the point

3. he always tries to be a better husband, as if he could be :)

2. the multifabulous job he does with our kids, that they have him to look to for an example

1. his desire to always be righteous and the discipline to get it right most of the time. I know his holding the priesthood makes an invaluable impact on our lives as a whole.

Has anyone seen my baby?

Hannah turned two today and it really seems like she was just born. She is such a treasure to our family. She was born the day before Cole started Kindergarten. Her life has been pretty much on the go...going to drop off, pick up, help in class, parties, plays, emergencies, etc. I'm not sure if it's a result of that or not but she's a pretty good sleeper. The first night we brought her home she was awake every 20 minutes, since then we haven't had much to complain about. She loves, milk, popcorn, belly buttons, elmo, Caillou, balls, bubbles, ballons, books, her family, going to nursery, talking talking talking, swinging, salty foods (no sweets for this chick, with the exception of ice cream). I believe she is going to be a social butterfly, possibly much more so than Cole and Laura. She loves to help clean or work in any way. I love being her mom and spending so much time with her. She is a wonderful child! Happy Birthday Hannah Nanna!



one day old


The kids wanted to sleep by Hannah the night she came home...so sweet!

Her blessing.


Pretty in pink


She'll pay me back for this one :).














Learning to crawl she would back herself under the couch.










she still loves the backpack with Daddy!

Hard at work!

This is how you would typically find her.

All grown up!!

Books

So I love a good book. I'm not one to sit down and read anything but when I get into a good book I love it. I've recently started reading A Tree Grows in Brooklyn because I heard it was good and evidentally an oldie. I'm hoping like some of the other great books I've read that while getting into it is not as much fun, getting through it is wonderful. Some of those in the past have been, The Book of Mormon, The Poisonwood Bible (I almost didn't get past the beginning on this one and I'm so glad I did, it's one of my very favorites) A Hiding Place... Like most things in life I suppose you have to dig in, put in the work and afterwards the rewards come. I really hope the brooklyn book turns out this way, but I'm not banking on it. Has anyone read it?

Great Day!

So a few weeks ago Brandon said he wanted to meet up with a guy who works for the state that lives down south and they had decided to get together one Saturday at Ichetucknee springs. I was less than thrilled although I think I was really good and did not express this to Brandon. I was secretly hoping this thing would fall through. My memories of this place is arctic land and potential gator slaying of humans. So the day comes and it didn't fall through and I am bracing myself for miserability on many levels. We get there and after getting a little lost, driving through rain, tying our tubes on top of the van. We get there and meet up with the guys from BRandon's work who are really nice. We go hope on the river and it is crowded, Brandon found out that this river is floated more than any other river in the United States, approximately 5000 float the river a day...whew.
So it was a bit crazy getting us actually on the river and floating, but we got there and it was so nice. It was chilly, but with most of your body in the tube it was just refreshing. There was seaweed, maneuvering, limbs and I did look to the side a couple of times to double check for gators. But it was really just so nice, it even rained. The funny or not so funny part was thinking we were getting on a 1/2 float that turned out to be an hour, it made it feel much longer than an hour. We went and ate and went back again, even Hannah w/o a nap. She loved it! Laura swam the first part of it with her swimminies which was a little nerve racking. Then she got cold, but even after the second run everyone was ready to do it again. They have little rafts for kids or people who don't really want to be too wet. Hannah wanted to stay with me in the innertube. It was so nice I would highly recommend it. It was better than sweating it out at disney and much cheaper. :) Nothing against Mickey. Here's the link....
http://www.floridastateparks.org/ichetuckneesprings/
We didn't take the camera for obvious reasons, but so many times I wanted to take pics of the kids, so next time we'll definitely spring for a water proof disposable.
Thanks Brandon for a wonderful idea and trip!!

Taggin'

I think I was tagged so here goes....

3 JOYS
What the gospel brings to my life everyday and that it led me to Brandon.
My family.
Food :).

3 FEARS
Bridges that are being contructed/only half there. I have dreams about driving and the bridge just ending.
My kid's teen years and their subsequent choices in life.
Divorce - completely paranoid about it.

3 GOALS
getting back to my prepregnancy weight - uh, not Hannah's pregnancy, Cole's!
organize my laundry room
finish school

3 CURRENT OBSESSIONS
computer activities that include: scramble on facebook/facebook/blogging/hunting for a good deals
getting back to my prepregnancy weight or just in the same neighborhood
getting satellite tv installed on Thursday, my surprise from Brandon, thanks babe!!!!

3 RANDOM SURPRISING FACTS
hmmmmm
My high school graduating class only had 32 people in it.
I was on television in a regional spelling bee and came in fifth place.
I didn't like chocolate when I was younger. Don't worry, I'm making up for lost time.

So I tag
Rachel C.
Harmony :)
Stephanie G.
Mary Ann
Tricia P.

Orlando

So last week after hem hawing all week and not sure whether we were going to make the trip, we headed to Orlando for Brandon and I to attend the temple. We had a great time. On Friday we went to po' man's Disney, Dowtown Disney. Cole loved the lego store, he and Laura spend a lot of time playing in their own little Lego land at home. Laura and Hannah enjoyed the princesses (fake, not live) and we left a little bit poorer, sweaty, tired, just like you do at the real Disney so not so bad :). Getting the kids to sleep in a strange place was miserable!, but we eventually all slept. I went to the temple early the next morning and then we all enjoyed the hotel pool by ourselves and had a blast. We played Cole's new game of chasing the kids around in the water. Threw Hannah back and forth, she loves that. Then it was Brandon's turn at the temple so the kids and I a picnic at the park down from the temple, went to the book store, went to Albertson's for the free cookie and a/c!!!! and then it was about time to pick up Brandon. All in all it was a good trip.

Whee!!

"How did they do that!?"


pretty neat


Laura to Cole "We could so do better than that"



Hannah - "I could have so much fun in there, but just like at home they keep me locked out".



"This is so cool"


After not much sleep, swimming, playing at the park
in the heat and not being able to go back to legoland, Cole had
had it, unfortunately this was at the temple, but Hannah's trying to help. Laura's hanging
in there, after all she did get to swim that very morning :).

While there were those moments, my experience on this trip in the temple and our experiences in general make it all worthwhile. I am so glad we weren't deterred from going. I wouldn't trade it and I hope the kids grow up knowing this and are able to have their own experiences that they wouldn't trade. Here's hoping and praying and living.

"Attend the temple. You will be blessed for so doing. Every man or woman who goes into the house of the Lord leaves there a better man or woman than he or she was when he or she entered the house of the Lord. The house of the Lord will have a refining effect upon you. It will cultivate unselfishness within your lives. It will build righteousness. It will impress upon you the importance of doing what you ought to do. Go to the house of the Lord." Presdient Hinckley

I believe this to be true, I didn't come out perfect, I really hope I came out a little better.

Summer school

So we started our home summer school last week. On the first day the kids were super excited, second, somewhat excited and then it kind of went down hill from there, but the important thing is we're still going. This past week Cole had a hard time joining us but he did after a couple of threats. So here's what we did....

I already knew that we would do devotional and exercise as we had started that before school officially begain. So Laura started the idea of getting in our recliner and driving to each venue..."church", gym, school. If Laura wasnt' so into the school thing I don't know if it would've lasted as long as it has. So we sing a couple of good morning songs, say the day, date and what they think the weather is going to be that day. We then read a story. Then we talk about our topic of the week. The first week was our senses, the first day was touch and I had them feel into a bag and tell me what was in it, and we went along like that each day with different senses. Then they're given their worksheets and it's free time until after lunch where I would read a chapter book out loud (this didn't last too long, we finished one book, but have yet to start another one, we will though) and we would do a craft later in the day. I topic this past week was ....surprice, United States. I've got to get on next week's!

so all told we spend a couple of hours working together and the rest was pretty much normal. I really think it helped give structure to our day and even when the kids didn't like it they liked it in the end.

Hannah is adorable doing the exercises and she's pretty good at counting to 10 and saying her abc's. She doesn't like "circle time" though, but she's getting there.

The week we start back at swimming lessons twice a week, so it'll change our school up a little bit. But so far so good.