Disgusting...but awesome!

Ok, so I started my month long Valentine gift shower to Josh. The gifts are very Josh specific, and free, that's the most important part. I just wanted to post these pictures of Josh's first gift because they are disturbing yet very satisfying. Enjoy.


Silly poem to Josh.

Before, what has he been doing to his carpets?

I had to empty the carpet cleaner tank three times. Here is the first tank.

Ta-dah!

Two too much!

Cash is two months old! He celebrated by getting two shots. Cole celebrated by getting two new lightsabers. Finn celerated by getting two ear infections. I celebrated by eating two pieces of Jacqui's oatmeal cake...isn't life TOO much fun!

"Da Da"

Everything in our house is "da da." No that is not how Finn says daddy, that is how Finn says Star Wars. You see, Cole walks around the house incessantly singing the Darth Vader theme song "da da da da-da-da da-da-da." Finn must have thought "da da" was it's actual name because Star Wars is now "da da."


Cole with his coveted double-bladed light saber

Christmas morning we're opening presents at Momo's house. Cole unwraps a very cool human anatomy book and becomes engrossed in it. He is still reading this book even as he unwraps, what I thought he would love, The Clone Wars light saber duels for the Wii. He doesn't even give the game a second look he just tosses it to his pile where it slides down underneath some clothes. Finn sees this and comes tearing across the room, he crawls over Josh and pushes Cole's head out of the way as he dives for the new Star Wars' game. He grabs it from under the pile and thrusts it triumphantly in the air (think Arthur unsheathing Excalibur) and yells "DA DA!" Best Christmas morning memory for me (other than the truck surprise!).


Finn jumping off the ground in his "da da" t-shirt.


Finn coloring his "da da" coloring book.


Finn hitting himself in the face cause he's so excited about "da da."

P.S. I swore I would never buy my children licensed merchandise (I hate Mickey Mouse, Spongebob, Barbie, etc crap). The things we do for love!

Dear Santa...

I think I have already said this was the best Christmas ever. As I go through pictures I feel high from the sheer joy I felt this year. I stood in the living room on Christmas night and listened to the crying trio of three exhausted and overstimulated boys and still felt so invigorated and alive!

I wanted to include these pictures in my blog because I feel so grateful, daily, that Heavenly Father entrusted me with Cole. I feel he is special. I love my other children and adore them with equal ferocity but I have always felt Cole was golden. Does that make sense? He just gets it, and he's only 4! I think of him as my own little John Connor (does that make me Sarah Connor... I don't know). Cole was amazing this Christmas, I can't share why because it's our little secret. I will simply say he is so selfless for a little guy and only asked for one thing from Santa... a double-bladed light saber.


Cole writing his letter to Santa.


"Dear Santa, I want a double blue light saber. Love, Cole."


Cole sounded out, by himself, the word sleigh (top left corner "SLA"). Not bad for his first try!


Cole's picture of Santa and his reindeer. Can you see Rudolph at the front?

7 years, are you itchy yet?

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY MY LOVE!!!

Seven years of marital bliss... can you believe it? About six months ago a very well-meaning friend warned me about turbulent waters ahead as we entered our "seven-year itch." It paniced me. I am a less than stellar wife... plenty of reasons for you to get itchy. But I realized, I don't think we'll ever have the itch. The same well-meaning friend warned us about the "newlywed period" wearing off just after we got married. I can only speak for myself, but I still feel like a newlywed. My stomach still does flip-flops when I catching you looking at me from under the brim of your baseball hat. I still get unreasonably excited when I haven't seen you all day. And I still feel desperate when you leave, be it a business trip or a trip to the gym. To steal from ABBA, you're my vice and everything is you!


My Senior Prom

















At your Prep-school graduation

















At an Air Force football prefunk















Checking under the hood... usually that happens BEFORE you buy the goods.














If it's possible, I love you even more now than on that day!

"Oh that we might always see such spirit through the year..."

This Christmas was the best Christmas to date. Let me tell you why... we practiced what we preached. This year Josh and I committed to relish the season by serving others. We agreed to go light on the gift giving amongst our well-cared-for family and instead use our money to help others. I focused on giving of not just my sustenance but of my time and talents as well. This meant swallowing my pride/fear and singing for the Christmas Eve Devotional. This meant braving HOT TOPIC to find the perfect "Twilight" tee-shirt for my Excelsior girl. This meant that even with all that I gave to serve my Heavenly Father the scales are still tipped. You see our Savior, Jesus Christ, gave us the ultimate gift. To show my appreciation I live to serve, a small way to try and balance the scales. But there's a problem, service doesn't balance the scales, not really, because the overwhelming feeling I got as I gave freely is so all-encompassing and amazing that I am once again indebted to my Heavenly Father. Giving is so selfish!

"The new old-fashioned way..."

Someone please explain to me what this means? I seriously want to know.