Lovin the Holidays

I can't believe it's been three months. It feels like yesterday since I last updated our blog. I really should be better. Some of you are quite inspirational in your efforts. Our camera is broken so I don't really have pictures to update with but we have been taking a lot of videos. I will have JP download one on here when he gets a chance. Things have been good on our end. Our biggest news is that we are new home owners. We actually moved in sometime in September but I haven't had a chance to really sit down and write about it. We feel so blessed and are loving it! It couldn't be a more perfect fit for our family. Corbin loves having his own room and sleeps like a dream in it. Kayla.... well lets just say she doesn't sleep like a dream, but we're getting there. JP and I really aren't night people so that whole crying it out thing has never worked for us. The kids are so dang cute! And growing up so fast.

Kayla stands up on everything now and is trying to take steps. She'll actually just stand up without holding on to anything and stand there for awhile. She is getting so close. Her hair is still slow on coming but she is gorgeous all the same without it. She is such an easy going little girl who smiles all the time and just wants to be loved or be loving. If you ask for a kiss she open mouth slobbers you. Its....slobbery.... but too cute. She loves saying Uh oh for absolutely no reason. Kayla is developing an incredible singing ability... the problem is she only practices when its quiet in church. Relief Society is her favorite because she gets the most attention from all the women. Oh and why i buy her toys I don't know. She is thoroughly entertained with a piece of hair. I'm not kidding. She will grab a piece of my hair and sit and pull and play with it for an hour. It's crazy.

Corbin is going 24/7. You think a cold winters day might slow him down, but no. He has an amazing imagination and creates fun out of nothing. He is 100% boy!!! And he says the funniest things. We are watching my Mom's dog for her (by the way we no longer watch dogs for people unless they are potty-trained - love you mom) She peed and pooped on the floor and I spanked her and put her outside. The next time I put her outside I was telling her through the glass you don't get to come in til I see you go outside. Corbin comes and stands by me and says you can do it Luna. Finally she did. Corbin got so excited and when I let the dog in Corbin ran up to her and gave her a big hug and said "we're so proud of you Luna". I couldn't help but laugh. That is exactly what we told Corbin when he was potty trained. Smart little guy. He still likes to play with my ears as I put him to sleep. I absolutely love it! If he does something bad he says "I'm sorry.. I'll be a real good boy" because he doesn't want to get in trouble. One of my favorite times of days is saying prayers at night. You never know what he is going to bless or be thankful for. Every night he blesses his Auntie Becca and her two daughters Sienna and Mylee. Then it goes to Santa clause, elfs, his friends, his cousins, his corn, shoes, books, etc.... sometimes I see him looking around the room to see what to bless next. When we say the prayer he just keeps saying Amen to try and make it end. He is full of adventure and excitement.

We couldn't love our children more. I won't lie we are often drained emotionally and physically, but it couldn't hurt better. We are grateful for the memories and love of our children.

I know this is a novel because I never write and when I do I try to catch so much up. If anything it is for my own records. But before ending I wanted to make mention of my brother TJ. I do so gently because it is a very tender subject and he is more of a private person. For the last two months my little brother TJ has been facing major migraines, anxiety, and sleep apnea. The pain is so great that he can't keep any solid food down. When he tries to eat he begins vomiting violently. He has been from doctor appointment to doctor appointment, and is currently in the Mayo clinic in AZ with my parents. We are hoping they will be home for Christmas but don't know if it will happen. I tell you this not because I am looking for sympathy, although any prayers are welcomed. But because I feel that there has been allot to learn from this experience. I have watched my mother and father fight harder than I have ever seen them for the life of my brother. TJ has wanted to give up many times, but my parents through sleepless night after sleepless night won't leave his side. They take shifts watching and tending to his every need. JP was out of town the other night so my Mom slept with me at my house, in the morning my Dad showed up early to come see her.. He brought her a drinky(short for diet coke) It was like I wasn't in the room when they wrapped in each others arms. I felt the exhaustion and pain that they have been going through, and it brought me to tears. I remember well when I lost my first husband Trent.. The first day was a blurr and I don't even remember falling asleep, but when I woke up at 4 in the morning I couldn't move. As I looked around me I realized I couldn't move because all 5 of my siblings were asleep next to me with arms and legs wrapped all around me, and my parents curled up in each others arms at the head of the bed. I'll never forget at one of my lowest moments in my life how I was filled with so much hope from the love and support of my family. My point for telling you all this is that this Christmas I can't help but think of the love, sacrifice, patience, and enduring love of my parents and the importance of family. None of us know when our journeys here will be done, but we should live life savoring each moment. It is easy to get caught up in the struggle and catch ourselves saying I can really begin living when...... but instead being happy today. Taking our pains, struggles, and even our greatest joys and realizing its all part of the journey. True happiness, I believe, comes from faithfulness to God's commandments, and coming unto Christ. I am so grateful for my family, the gospel in all its entirety, my husband and children, all of the blessings the Lord has given to me, and most especially this season for my brother TJ. I love him and know that we will win this fight. I love Christmas time and hope this season we might embrace all that life has to offer..... beginning with family.

Where to begin.....

Where to begin....

Have you ever felt like you've gotten so far behind you would rather just start over and not try to catch up? Well that's how I feel about this post. So much has happened since our last post I'm lost for words. This Summer was such a blast! And can we say busy!!! Never a dull moment. We actually make a goal every day to have a dull moment! They're great, if you haven't had one recently. I'm not complaining though because I think I would go crazy if I sat around all day and did nothing, not to mention that Corbin wouldn't let that happen. Life is entirely too exciting for him at this moment. Everything is an adventure. He soaks up everything around him and is learning so many things, so fast! I love watching, and stress that its happening too fast. He has an incredible imagination. We were lying on a blanket making pictures of the clouds the other day and ever since he imagines everything to be something else. Our couches are Pappie's boat, our kitchen chairs are airplanes, and our neighbor's one year old is his horse.(We're working on that one) I love encouraging his imagination. I'm not sure if we mentioned this earlier, but Corbin is potty trained!!! We love it! He has had a few accidents, but those are usually my fault because I'm rushing somewhere and forgot to take him. He is so loving and so patient with me. I love his smile, it melts me every time.

Kayla is also doing great!!! She crawls backwards to get everywhere.. Well actually its more of scooting backwards. Or she will roll over and over til she gets to where she wants to be. She use to sleep really well, but recently she has been sleeping terrible. She's been teething for a couple months, but still no teeth. Her gums are swollen and we are expecting them any day. Or maybe its wishful thinking, for one night of rest. When we went to her six month appt she was a tall skinny girl. 20th % for weight and 70th % for height. It's funny how different Corbin and Kayla are. Things have been good with JP and I too. JP has been working a lot! I miss him, but am so grateful that he has a job and is giving it his all. We feel like we have been so blessed in so many ways.

When JP's parents were in town Michelle took some fun family pictures. She is doing amazing things with photography and we're so grateful for all the memories she captures for us. you should check out her site at www.photocreationsbymichelle.com.

Giles news...

Kristen Gross, JP's sister, had her baby Riley. We got to go up to Idaho and see the baby. She is absolutely gorgeous!! It's fun to watch Kristen and James be mommy and daddy. I knew it would come so naturally to them. They are amazing and Riley is so lucky to have them as parents. She has lots of adventure coming her way. Kristen and her husband James also graduated from BYU Idaho the same time we were up there. It was fun to be a part of that. Corbin and JP got to go flying with Papa in his plain. Corbin still talks about it!!! He loves his Gigi and Papa.

I got to see my sister while we were down that way and it was such a blast to have that time with her. She is such an amazing example to me. I love her so much. She would do anything for anyone and is an incredible mother!

Xan, JP's other sister is ready to have her baby any minute from what I hear. We're so excited for the new addition.

Sheri, my brother Brandt's wife, is pregnant and just found out its going to be a boy. There seems to be a lot of pregnant women right now and all I can say I am happy to not be one of them. My time will come again, but I need a break.

My Mom and Dad recently got new horses and have been going on romantic weekend get aways in the mountains. Good for them, right. JP and I want to do that soon too. Dad just finished building a playground with sand and all in their backyard and Corbin can't get enough of it. He could build sand castles all day long.

Becca just go a new Shitzu dog, Haven. She is adorable. I think a puppy is so good for children. We'll have to try that one day. Actually my Mom shortly after got two miniature shitzu's too. Lots of new additions to the family. These pictures were taken up when we went to Becca's husband Joes' sister's cabin. Hopefully I got that right. I love her kids to death. They are so much fun and so good with my children. There are very few greater blessing than to live close to your sister. No my mission in life is to get my other sister Jessica near us all. We miss her every time we're all together.

JP and I just had our four year anniversary. JP happened to be out of town for work, so my Mom surprised me and came and took me on a date. It was nice to get away for the evening. But when JP got home from his trip he brought me a dozen roses and took me out for a day date. We haven't had much time to go on dates lately so it was really nice to be together.

Recently our friends Heidi and Joe Willis invited us to their cabin in Kamas. Three other couples came, and let me tell you it was fun!! It was exactly what the doctor ordered! They all had children and played so well. We spent two nights there, and played games all night long. There's a new golf course there so the boys went golfing and the women stayed behind to go on a walk and enjoy nature. We went swimming in the river, and played horse shoe. That's a lot harder than it looks. I embarrassed myself pretty bad. But JP nailed it! We left there and decided we need to do more things like that more often. We loved it! Thanks Heidi and Joe!

I could probably go on and on to try and catch up but don't want to try. Just wanted to say Hi, and let everyone know we are doing well. Hope you are too.

JP's parents, 4th of July, and Corbins Bday

Last week was a blast. Sunday the 28Th of June JP's parents surprised us and showed up a day early. They actually flew from South Carolina to Utah in Jonathan's personal plane. They took there time and enjoyed their flight. We played hard all week long. Monday we went to seven peaks for a day in the sun. Tuesday we sort of just got little projects done, JP had to work during the days so I would do my best to entertain during that time. I didn't do much they just loved playing with the kids. We ate at Tucanos afterwards. JP and I can't help it we love that place. We actually went up to a Becca's sister-in-laws cabin Wednesday to go 4-wheeling and just relax in the mountains. We grilled out and started a fire to make smores with. Thursday night we invited my mom and Dad and Becca and Joe over for a big game night. We played a game called Snigglets. It's sort of like Balderdash done backwards. It was tunz of fun. Then they actually had to fly out early Friday morning to their next destination, their daughter Xan's house in Post Falls ID. They had to head out early to avoid bad weather. All in all it was a busy but super fun week. We already miss them and can't wait to see them again. Kristen, their youngest daughter will be having her baby in a week, so we are all going there the end of July for the baby blessing and for their graduation from BYU Idaho. I would post pictures with this, but they are all on Michelle's camera. As soon as I get some I will add them. The Summer seems to just keep on bumping! Never a dull moment.

For the Fourth of July we went to the new ice age movie(which Corbin didn't even blink during the entire thing) he loved it! Then we headed out to my parents for dinner and fireworks. Corbin wasn't so sure he liked the fireworks at first. He couldn't figure out why it was okay to blow things up on purpose. He kept trying to escape back into the house. Finally we went up on the deck and watched them from up above. Then later he was okay to come down and be closer to the action. Kayla slept through it all! She's a sucker for constant loud noise. It puts her to sleep every time. I wish I could do that.

Okay so I'm a firm believer that "a chocolate a day, keeps wrinkles away" My favorites happen to be milk chocolate Dove. Oh man its glorious. I love eating healthy but just onelittle morsel of cholcolate a day really does me good. And the Dove chocolates come with little quotes that make it even better. So I thought I would leave you with a few of those profound quotes today :)

"In chaos there lies opportunity"

"Too much of a good thing is wonderful"

"Smile when you want to, cry when you need to, laugh whenever possible!"

"Forget the potholes in the road and celebrate the journey instead"

Have a great week!

Corbin turned 2 years old June 26Th. I can't believe its been two years!! We invited all of his cousins over and had a super fun pizza and pool party. As you can see above the ice cream cake was a hit!

Kayla loves swimming!! We go to seven peaks a few times a week and she has become a little fish. Corbin is actually starting to try and swim by himself now.

Brandt and I got in a big cake fight. I of course won! JP dared me to smother it across Brandt's face and that's all it took. Brandt has to have revenge so I got my fare share of cake.

Uncle Brandt got this ball for Corbin and within in minutes with the cousins it turned into a hat instead of a ball.

Nannie and Pappie got Corbin a great big slide for his backyard! Mimi camped on top of the box and had a blast with the cake too.

This is Sienna and Raina on top and Jared, Avi, Joe and Sienna on bottom. Corbin considers all of Beccas kids as his best friends. We can't go anywhere or do anything without him wanting them to be with him. Overall, it was a great birthday party. We had a blast!

Wow, time flies!! I didn't realize how long it had been since we last updated our blog. Summer fun has been keeping us super busy. We have been soaking in the sun at seven peaks, going to the zoo, dinosaur museum, and lots of horse back riding. Corbin loves animals.

We recently got back from a trip to New Jersey and New York. JP had to go back for a business trip for two weeks and they invited his family to come with him. We stayed with the Bird family and Corbin had a blast. When Corbin was born we actually lived at the Bird home for a couple of months. You would have thought he remembered everything because it took him no time at all to fit right in. There are so many fun things to do there that we didn't have to go far to have a good time. We had the opportunity to go to the beach several times, boating, 4 wheeling, and swimming in the pool. We even went to a shark fishing contest. JP would go to work every day and I would take the kids and hang with Becky Bird and her children during the day. It was actually nice to get away from my own to do list and just relax.

The first couple days we spent in New York. JP arranged it so that we could see our good friends the Sine family. Ruth took us all over New York City and showed us a little of what it would be like to live there. We had four children with us and traveled the subways everywhere we went. It was a fun adventure. Corbin was in heaven, and Kayla seemed to be just as happy. We went to the Broadway "In the Heights" It was absolutely amazing! FYI if you didn't know this you can put your name in a drawing to win front row seats to most of the Broadways if you show up two hours early. Our tickets were only $25 each and we sat on the front row.

I lost Corbin's bottle the first day we were there and therefore cured him of his bottle. He now will drink from a cup or sippy cup with no problem. He actually started asking me to go to the toilet. The first time was at 3 am. I thought I was dreaming when I woke up and he asked to go poop on the toilet. I though it was a ploy to get out of bed, but nope, he really had to poop. That was one of those bitter sweet moments. The next day when he had to go again, he sat on the toilet for a few minutes turning red because he was pushing so hard and then all frustrated looked at me and said "Its not working Mom" I burst out laughing. It was so cute. So essentially we are going to start potty training him now. How do you do that????

Oh by the way, Corbin's birthday is tomorrow!!! I can't believe it's been two years. I think he sort of gets it because he started singing happy birthday to himself this morning.

My new goal in life is to slow down. I pack my plate so full sometimes I don't have time to go the bathroom. Starting yesterday I've decided to do a better job at smelling the roses. The days are flying by and I want to make sure I'm taking the time to play with my children. To teach them the little things. Help Corbin collect bugs, rocks, and sticks, and to just savor every moment with Kayla.(Before she learns to walk and my world changes again)

It sounds cliche, but they teach me so much everyday. It can be tough in so many ways being a parent. I have so much to learn and can only hope my kids have patience with me while I figure our this mom thing. It's trickier than I thought. My respect for my own mother grows deeper every day. She is and was a super Mom.

Okay I better end here.... I've now written a novel.

Kayla's Blessing, Graduation, and Family Fun

Our little princess

Kayla was blessed Sunday April 26th, 2009

Nanna, Pappa, and JP's cousin Joanna and family.  This is Pappa, Gigi, Corbin and Ayden at the blessing.

This is my sister Becca, Grandma, JP, Me, Corbin, Kayla,Mom, and Dad.