The Boomerang Effect

A Happy Mother's Day to All and to All a Good Night

2011-05-08T23:52:00.000-06:00

Mother's Day is coming to a close but it was a good one. Here's what went down:

1-Went to church and received three different gifts of chocolate.

2-Came home. Took a 1 1/2 hour nap. Awesome.

3-Woke up to the smell of dinner my husband prepared. Double Awesome.

4-Was serenaded by my kids singing "Happy Mother's Day" to the tune of "Happy Birthday." (The best part was Ruby kept singing "Birrrth Daaay" at the top of her lungs instead of "Mother's Day" and Abe sang a steady monotone note just to make sure he wasn't left out.) Triple Awesome.

I'm grateful for a great husband and these three little adorable scoundrels who made this day a reality for me...

One Year Older and Cuter Too

2011-03-08T15:50:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was my baby's second birthday. I'm not going to get into all this "oh how the time flies!" or "it seems like he was born yesterday" because the truth is it seems like he's been here all along. And our "all along" is going on eight years now so it feels like little Baberam has been a part of this crew for YEARS! (And I do mean this in a good way.)

Going with the theme of two, I can't give you only TWO reasons why I love this little rascal (small tangent: a handicapped 20-ish looking kid in the Costco pharmacy line said to me the other day, "Is he yours? Wow, he sure is a cute rascally rabbit." Holy crap, it was funny!), because honestly, look at him...

I could give you TWO THOUSAND and TWO reasons to love him but for brevity's sake I'll just give you a few of my faves:

*He's got awesome hair.

*He loves his mama. Seriously, he'll rest put his cheek next to mine and just sit there, either drinking his milk or watching what's going on around him but he lets me cuddle all up to him and I love it.

*He's very reverent during prayers.

(Sometimes he'll even stop eating his chicken nugget long enough for us to

say the prayer. But hold on a second, why doesn't the boy have a plate?)

*He's the biggest ham. He knows he's the funniest person in this family. He puts on a show for anyone who comes to the door. And he thinks my friends are HIS friends. (One of his favorite ways to show off for people/his BFFs is running. He'll back up to the front door, wait a second to make sure we're all watching, and then TAKE OFF running as fast he can for the back door. The best part is though, he doesn't run fast. Not at all. In fact, he runs like he weighs 400 lbs. It appears to be a fairly laborious endeavor actually.)

*Sometimes when he gets tired opening presents, he lays down on them. Exhibit A:

(Little Randy, Christmas 2010)

*He rarely throws tantrums but when he does, he does it for important things (like when I wouldn't let him play with his Geo Trax trains first thing one morning before changing his totally peed out diaper and clothes. I mean, really, where were my priorities that day?).

*He loves his blanket. (I've never had a blanket baby before so this just melts my already weak heart.)

*He's so happy to see me when he wakes up from his nap and of course ... my heart melts.

9) He is a good sharer. With animals and people alike...

10) He takes time out like a man ... except for when he doesn't and then it's actually really sad.

*He LOVES his brother and sister.

*Is it weird that I love that he still can't talk? (The other night at dinner Henry and Ruby said, "Let's count all the words that Abe can say. 'Ow' and 'uh-oh' and 'da-da' and ... Mom, what else CAN he say?") I suspect my love for his lack of speech has something to do with me wanting him to stay small (and small he is--4th percentile to be exact but like I've said before, don't tell my mom because she has this irrational phobia that her daughters and daughters-in-law like it when their kids are tiny, but I digress...).

I could go on forever (and I'm pretty sure you believe me, what with my God-given gab skillzzz) but this last one, him being small and my wanting him to stay small probably has everything to do with the fact that he could be my last one.

Of course I don't WANT him to be but Scott feels like we should end on a high note, with our sweet little Baberam. But seriously, look at him...

How could you look at that face and not want another one?

So since Scott's a democrat, I think he would truly appreciate this -- I'm calling for a democratic vote. Majority wins. So here goes...

(Just to be clear, you're voting on Scott and I adding another adorable, sweet, purely entertaining kid to our clan.)

All in favor ... say aye.

Any opposed ... keep your opinion to yourself.

One Year Older and Fatter Too

2011-03-06T23:41:00.000-07:00

People. I turned 33 last week. Since I was born on March 3rd does that mean that it was my Double Golden Birthday? (I had never even heard of golden birthdays until last year. I called my sister Adrienne and asked her if she had ever heard about them and she said, "No, that sounds stupid." Maybe my mom never dared breath a word about them because she knew Adrienne harbored such strong, negative feelings.)

Anyhoo, my Double Golden Awesome Fantastical Birthday was chill and relaxed. A few friends surprised me with lunch and then another friend, who also happens to be my unofficial clutter coach, totally cleaned and organized my kitchen while I taught her kids piano lessons, and then we just had a little family dinner and went to bed. It was awesome.

The next night (because I can't let my birthday be just ONE day) we had some friends over for pizza and I made a "Giant Ding Dong Cake."

Not kidding.

Behold...

Disclaimer: This was not the actual cake I made (which explains why the cake is wishing "Christopher"

a happy birthday. So you can stop wondering who he is -- I have no idea who the heck

Christopher is). Mine actually looked a hot mess because I didn't let it cool long enough before

cutting it into layers to add the marshmallow-y goodness.

The funny thing is, it's not actually a Ding Dong at all. It looks and tastes way more like the Hostess cupcakes, hence the frosting curlicues. I think they just called it that because really, what sounds better -- Giant Cupcake Cake or Giant Ding Dong Cake? Kind of a no-brainer.

And seriously, it was gooooooood.

What's that you say? You don't like Hostess cupcakes?

Well fine ... you're dead to me!

....

{awkward silence continues}

...

However, if you ever decide to come back into the Hostess cupcake fold, here's where you can find the recipe:

Giant Ding Dong Cake (aka Fattening Heaven on a Plate)

The Piano Man

2011-02-25T09:38:00.001-07:00

Guess who started piano lessons?

(Disclaimer: The author of this post, who also happens to be the strict and professional teacher of this

young lad, does not condone the stick-straight fingers technique demonstrated in this picture.)

Guess who's tickling the ivories like he's been working 10 years at a dueling piano bar in Vegas?

With crazy double-jointed fingers no less (sorry Henry, that was my genetic bad)...

He's my prized pupil...but don't tell any of the my other students (especially Ruby, por favor).

I'm BaaaaaAAAACK!

2011-02-04T22:56:00.000-07:00

Umm ... hello?

I hesitate to even ask but ... is anyone still out there?

If you ARE still around ... GOOD NEWS! My super creative friend Halsey is having a giveaway on her cute blog Spunky Junky for my jane henry hats!

I guess it's true -- good things come to those who wait!!!

So get over there and win yourself a hat!!!

Just a little FYI -- Halsey makes and sells super cute headbands, modeled here by my Ruby girl. Check out all her adorable stuff here!

First Days

2010-10-09T22:54:00.000-06:00

So it's been three months since my last post and two months since this event actually occurred ... but whatever.

Although I failed to blog about my kids' first day at school in a timely fashion, I did NOT fail to take pictures of the blessed event.

I still can't believe I have a kindergartner ... so bizarre:

What the? How can he look so grown up one minute ...

... but only 15 minutes later look so small?

It was seriously mad chaos that morning. Kids and parents everywhere, crying, clinging to one another. Am I an insensitive mother if I didn't cry? I mean, I thought I would. I even tried to get a little verklempt, feeling like it was an appropriate response to one's oldest "leaving the nest." But after about twenty seconds, I realized I was perfectly okay with it. I guess because he was okay with it.

A few days later, we got to experience Ruby's first day of preschool. She's always been our more "reserved" child so I wasn't quite sure how she would respond. Luckily, she's going to the preschool where Henry went so it only took us two years to warm her up to the idea.

She sure was excited about being the main figure behind the lens. It was {FINALLY} her big day!

Roughing up her little brother one last time ...

Yes, that is a plastic croissant in his mouth. Don't ask ....

Look at my little people. Aren't they adorable?

I couldn't help but feel an overwhelming sense of nostalgia as I took this picture. Two years ago, Ruby was the little one on the right, clutching all her precious crap she couldn't leave home without, while Henry was ready to venture off and blaze his own preschool trail.

2008

Anyhoo, here's my little lady making her way in the big, wide world (with the prerequisite ginormous backpack):

That's odd. I'm suddenly feeling a little verklempt.

On the Road ... Again

2010-07-08T08:54:00.000-06:00

I don't even know how many days we've spent away from home this summer, and still it continues. We're currently in Utah staying with Scott's family for a few days before heading out on our annual river trip down the South Fork of the Boise River.

I figured before I post about that (if I actually ever get around to it) I should probably (finally!) upload posts from our day float a few weeks ago.

We got a sitter for Abram and took Henry and Ruby for a short float down the Gallatin River near our house.

The Launch (I sure hope this craft is seaworthy):

Starting off the float like any respectable person does: with lunch and cold Diet Coke.

"It's a helluva day at sea, Sir!" (Name that movie)

She was a little nervous at first and clutched my knee for the first half of the trip:

Reaction to the first small set of rapids:

Ruby finally loosened up with the help of some not-so-liquid courage. We discovered her artificial courage comes in the shape of an Oreo:

(She was saying, "MORE!")

Poor kids:

My turn at the helm. Don't mean to brag, but I'm kind of a big deal:

Wish us luck on our next adventure -- the kids are staying home as the water gets MUCH bigger. Cross your fingers no one flips their boat!

It's Now or Never

2010-05-20T13:22:00.000-06:00

Just to remind you -- the fabulous Lindsay at Just My Blog is doing a giveaway for one of my hats and it ends TODAY (@ 11:59 p.m. to be precise)!

So if you haven't entered yet, get over there and enter!

Do it!

Now!

Don't make me count!

Fine, have it your way...

5 ... 4 ... 3 ... 2 ...

(Please don't feel like I'm patronizing you by using my formidable counting threat that I use with my children. It works for them, figured I might as well try it on you.)

7 Years Today

2010-05-17T13:43:00.003-06:00

Not only is it Norwegian Independence Day and Scott's brother's birthday -- it's my anniversary.

And I can't think of anyone I'd like to share it with more than the guy who wears a "Wildlife Matters" pin on his jacket.

Because really, like Metallica once said, "Nothing else matters ... besides wildlife." (Okay, maybe they didn't actually say that and maybe a few other things matter but just go with it.)

Here's to 70 more. Bring on the wildlife.

Summer in Montana is Like the Little Engine that Could

2010-05-14T10:55:00.001-06:00

It's supposed to hit 70 degrees here today! Woot woot!

Even though that little tidbit alone is cause enough for serious celebration, I have even BIGGER NEWS!!!!!

(No, I'm not pregnant so stop spreading rumors.)

The talented and funny blogger, Lindsay @ Just My Blog is doing a GIVEAWAY for one of my jane henry hats!

So get on over there and win yourself a hat!!!!

It could be this one ...

Or this one ...

(Isn't my nephew the cutest?! The mischievous cheesy grin on that boy gets him out of so much trouble!)

So go win yourself something awesome!!!

Motherhood

2010-05-10T16:28:00.001-06:00

Here's one of the best things about being a mother ... (and I'm pretty sure God made my children sign a waiver before coming to Earth, relinquishing all rights to this part of their body):

(See how he's so nonplussed at the pinching? He was seriously concentrating on a game yet my cheek pinching is a simple fact of life around here. He's so used to it he could probably win the Scripps National Spelling Bee with me hanging off his face.)

I could do this all day. And sometimes I do.

West Coast Gangster

2010-04-29T21:22:00.002-06:00

Although she's neither from the coast nor an initiated gangster, she certainly looked like one the other day while playing outside.

Sweet tat...

(See what I mean? Total gangsta)

Graffiti artist-in-training...

(Remind me, are sky blue, pretty pink, sunshine yellow,

and light green colors for the Crips or the Bloods?)

Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to go help Ruby lay down some rhymes for her debut gangsta rap album. Trust me, it's gonna be off the hook.

West SiiiiiiiIIIIIIIDE!

A Happy Birth/Earth Day

2010-04-22T08:36:00.002-06:00

Today is my one and only's birthday.

Like I said last year, and like I say every year, Earth Day was created for him ... or he was created for Earth Day.

My favorite environmentalist ... born on Earth Day. Truly, the stars aligned that day.

This is one of my favorite pictures of him ... just caught in the moment ... just being his natural hot self. (Disclaimer: I actually dry heave a little it when girls blog about how hot/gorgeous/perfect/stunning their husbands are ... but somehow I can't help myself when looking at this picture.)

Happy Birthday Babe. We love you!

Mini Mozart

2010-04-19T22:51:00.000-06:00

So he's a musical genius apparently.

I can't say that I'm surprised ...

I mean he's just so cute ...

And funny ...

And those are the only two qualifying criteria for musical prodigies, right?

Babyzilla

2010-04-11T16:34:00.002-06:00

This is all Abe does now.

Throw things.

Sometimes it's funny.

Sometimes it's not.

Like when it's food ... or my clean laundry ... or the dog's water bowl ....

Happy Easter!

2010-04-04T11:36:00.000-06:00

May your Easter be filled with the true joy and hope that only the message of

Jesus Christ's resurrection can bring.

Happy Easter!

Two Tortoises and a Microphone

2010-03-27T22:32:00.002-06:00

(Disclaimer: There's actually no microphone in this post; I just really like the play on the awesome title of that song.)

While we were in Utah a few weeks ago, our friends Jason and Sarra watched our kids for us while we went to Scott's cousin's wedding luncheon. As natural born biologists, they both work for the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, wherein Jason has been assigned the privilege and dubious honor of ... fostering desert tortoises.

At the present time they are housing two lovely specimens, who luckily enough woke up from hibernation the day we showed up. What gracious hosts, those tortoises.

Henry quickly claimed the male tortoise, Jabo (yaw-bo) as his own.

The second tortoise, the female which Ruby naturally claimed, was still nameless. Ruby, however, was determined to fix that. By the end of their three hour visit, she had come up with a fantastic name: Jabo #2.

Seriously, they were FASCINATING to watch.

Ruby became so accustomed to them she eventually just sat herself down and let them crawl all around her as she busied herself with something equally as exciting ... a dead plant.

The herpetologist himself ... double-fistin' his foster tortoises

Thanks Jason and Sarra for babysitting and for giving your tortoises a stern talking to about waking up from hibernation to put on a sweet show for the kiddies!

"Spring" Break

2010-03-27T21:56:00.004-06:00

So Montana's got the right idea with "Spring" Break -- it's a week long. But my question is: How many kindergartners actually need a whole week off from school? The stress of coloring within the lines just gettin' to those little guys?

Montana's only problem, and the reason I put "Spring" in quotations, is that March IS NOT Spring in Montana. Try May. Or early June.

Whatever. Point is, we took advantage (even though none of us are actually "school age") and headed to Utah while Scott went to D.C. for the week.

Here's what went down:

Abram worked on his belated, but celebrated nonetheless, skill of crawling:

Abram "drunkenly" cuddled with his Aunt Kate ... a lot.

He also proved that it is not only acceptable but downright imperative to eat breakfast while wearing a M-I-C-K-E-Y hat.

We were able to go to Scott's cousin's wedding in the Salt Lake Temple. The weather was gorgeous, the grass was green, and flowers were out. I think if I were a day, I would be that day ... all sunny and warm-like.

Scott only has four cousins on his dad's side so we were so happy we could be there. The happy couple and the other Christensen clan:

So between the Mickey breakfast attire, cuddling, and a wedding -- our nine days passed too quickly.

A Boy's First Birthday

2010-03-07T22:28:00.001-07:00

I can NOT believe it. Seriously. My baby is one.

And if one is to believe my husband, he's my last one. (sigh)

All I can say is that if that's true, we're going out on a very high note.

Here are a few of the highlights from his big day today and a few of the things that I love about my boy.

(Pre-game warm-up with cake batter)

Abram thinks every person is his best friend -- he'll smile for anyone and everyone and will oftentimes dive into other people's arms to be held.

(The official cake)

(His own cake; designed purely for destructive purposes)

Abram is the best baby food eater I've had. In fact, it's getting expensive. How do I get this kid to eat more table food?!?!

(At first he went for the candle. Um ... that's a negative, little man. I've never had a baby really get into their first birthday cake. Will he actually do it?)

Abram's middle name should have been "content." He's quite possibly the happiest, most relaxed baby on the planet (just don't try and slip him a bite of carrots whilst finishing off a jar of Baby Mango Smoothie).

(Testing the waters. Will he go for it?)

Abram is a ham. If anyone so much as looks at him, he starts cracking up and making faces at them. (This can lead to somewhat irreverent behavior at church.)

(I think we might have a winner ...)

(And he's off!)

(And he meant business!)

We are truly grateful for what a blessing Abram has been to our family. He has brought so much joy and happiness to us in one short year that I look forward to a lifetime of happy memories and millions more of his dimpled smiles.

We love our little Baberam!

HELP!

2010-03-06T08:40:00.002-07:00

Dear blog homies,

Why am I suddenly getting so many comments from random people around the world? Most of the time it's just a bunch of Chinese characters left on 5, 6, or 7 of my posts. I'm pretty sure these aren't real people with real blogs so I'm slightly worried about "security" issues on my blog. I don't want to go private so I was just wondering if anyone else has had this problem and could offer any suggestions.

Thanks blogging peeps!

Celia

Going Back in Time

2010-01-24T13:49:00.005-07:00

In early December we were in the middle of switching from one cable company to another and the strangest thing happened ... we never actually switched. We turned off our service and couldn't decide on a new provider. So we're now rapidly approaching two months without any tv. No rabbit ears. No nothin'.

My hilarious sister-in-law called a few days into it and said, "So ... I heard you guys are playing pioneer. How's that going?" Funny ... yet it feels like a strangely appropriate assessment.

It was hard at first. I felt lonely and isolated. Even though we still had the internet, I felt disconnected from the world somehow.

The first couple of evenings were interesting. We seriously sat around staring at each other. Ruby just kept asking when Family Home Evening was going to start, since apparently that's the only time we'd all just sit around staring at each other.

I'd have to say the family togetherness has been the biggest benefactor of "playing pioneer." We engage so much more than we used to. Which is great, don't get me wrong, but sometimes I'd kill to just flop on my bed, turn on the tv, and zone out. And now that American Idol has started up again, what's a recovering tv addict to do? (Don't even talk to me about trying to watch it online -- they've got that thing under serious lock and key.)

I mean, how much family time does one family need? We still have very productive, informative, spiritual FHEs. Isn't that enough? For instance, last week at FHE we were talking about how Jesus and Heavenly Father love us and Ruby looked over at the picture we have of Jesus and said, "Yeah, I wuuuuuv Santa."

Santa? Oh, man ... we've ruined our kids.

Or maybe the tv did. Yeah ... let's say it was the tv.

Good riddance.

Miracle of Miracles

2010-01-22T14:04:00.004-07:00

Last fall we had our pictures taken by our friend Shannon Garber. She did such a great job with our crazy little bunch, especially considering it was FREEZING outside and one of our little people was SO not into the whole thing. Thanks Shannon!

Here are just a few of my favorites:

Thanks Shannon!
Check out Shannon's blog: shanzphotoblog.blogspot.com

What I (re)Discovered Over Christmas

2010-01-19T20:49:00.008-07:00

I learned/was reminded of a few things over our Christmas break in Utah. Here they are, in no particular order:

#1: Scott and I are still amateur parents. We forgot BOTH our cameras and did not get ANY pictures with my side of the family. So no, we don't love his family more, they're just a more "camera prone" group so the only pics we have from the holidays are from them. Thank you Becca and Kate.

#2: Ruby needs help with her "sassy" pose

#3: Scott and his sister, Kate, are weird

#4: Kate and their other sister, Becca, are weirder

#5: My kids have WONDERFUL grandparents

#6: If it's even possible, Abe looks even cuter wrapped up in Christmas ribbons

#7: Apparently frozen fingers don't have to be the result of scraping your car windows in subzero Montana winters after all!

#8: We have the best time at the cabin when the whole Christensen clan is together, which doesn't happen often

#9: My kids LOVE their Christensen cousins (as well as their Smith-side cousins, but again, no camera ... we're idiots, I know, we've established that)

#10: Scott's brother, Cody, and his wife, Nikell, are masters of Gingerbread House Decorating Trickery

#11: My kids LOVE their Aunt Becca and Aunt Kate

#12: Hen's a quick study on cross-country skis

#13: Ruby makes an adorable ski bunny

#14: Abram is quite possibly the cutest, happiest baby ever

#15: And he LOVES being outside in the snow

#16: He's so cute, I have to post another shot ... I just can't help myself

#17: I love to see my kids together. Seriously, look at them. Can you even stand it?
Neither can I.

Feliz Natal

2009-12-22T21:40:00.004-07:00

(I know, it's been forever, but that's beside the point.)

We're headed out tomorrow for the traditional holiday trek to Utah (even with a Winter Storm Warning in effect, because that's the way we roll), but I just wanted to take a minute and say ...

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

There Was a Little Girl...*

2009-10-04T21:37:00.005-06:00

*WARNING: This post is extreme Mommy Blogging. Meant mostly for grandparents and Doubting Thomases of the familial sort. You know who you are.

My daughter, who shall remain named, Ruby, has two moods and two moods only. She is either the best thing around or the ... well, I don't want to actually say, "the worst," so let's just say ... the opposite of the best.

Unfortunately, whenever we leave the comforts of home she tends to clam up, whine a lot, and cling to me, therefore greatly reducing her ability to showcase her warm and cuddly side.

I present this video as proof to my family members who believe Ruby to be a cross, whiney, near-mute.

p.s. If you stick it out to the end, you'll be rewarded with a semi-nude chubby baby.

And So It Begins...

2009-09-30T15:08:00.007-06:00

It snowed today. My kids wanted to go out and play in it. Contrary to my sometimes cranky and lazy parenting style, I got them ready and let them loose.

They loved it.

While watching them play, I felt sad for the time thinking of Henry going to all-day Kindergarten next year. We won't have days like this. Ruby won't have anyone crazy enough (and old enough, Abram still won't count yet this time next year) to go out and play in the soggy snow with. It made me sad. And made my heart hurt a little to think this boy will spending so much time away from us next year ...

But he took serious advantage of it.

Do you think he's somehow aware of his limited stay-home-and-play-in-the-snow days?

As for this girl, once she managed to pull her attention away from her graham cracker (this girl is OBSESSED with food!) ...

... she got into it a little more ...

... and then sweet release!!!

If this doesn't brighten your day, I don't know what will...

2009-09-29T12:08:00.001-06:00

(I think I love this so much because it seems like something my brothers would do.)

What A Difference Being the Third Child Makes

2009-09-25T14:15:00.006-06:00

When Henry was six weeks old, we kicked him out of our room. We (mostly Scott) were afraid that he'd get too accustomed to sleeping in our room.

When he was four months, his doctor told me I could let him cry through the night. (That's right, I'm one of those people.) So four months on the day, I steeled myself for a night of hell. It sort of was, truth be told. As usual, he started crying about three hours after going to bed. I went in to comfort him briefly after 5 minutes (without actually touching him, doctor's orders), then waited another 10 minutes, then 20, then 40, etc. And all the while, I sat outside his door "reading" a book, like a sentinel, trying to brave it out with him, every step of the way. I was dedicated. I stuck to it. And every pathetic whine broke my heart.

At 6 months on the nose I started him on cereal, waited two weeks, and slowly began introducing green veggies, then orange ones, and finally fruit (Heaven forbid the boy taste bananas before sweet potatoes), after consulting with my doctor and talking to all friends and sisters to get their input on the best way to introduce food.

For his first year I was pretty "by the book." It was for the best after all.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Fast forward four years. At six months old, I started considering moving Abram out of our room. He's my baby, could be my last (according to my husband, bah humbug), so I'm hanging on to this one. After regressing in the sleep department I finally decided he might need to go it alone at night. The first night I tried I'm pretty sure he was the tiniest bit congested. Oh well. I'd rather bring him into my bed anyway.

But then I got serious after another week of bad sleep. He was healthy. He was getting chubbier every day ... all systems go, little man. He woke up at 2 so I walked upstairs, consoled him a little (don't tell my old doctor I actually touched him) and left the room. I turned on the bathroom fan to muffle his sad crying (more whining than actual crying), came downstairs, and thought, "Poor little guy. I know I'll just lay here straining to hear every noise he ........ zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz."

People, I lasted like 5 seconds. I'm not kidding. We didn't hear another thing from Abe until 9 in the morning.

And then there's the food. I haven't even started it.

What a Difference a Day Makes

2009-09-15T21:13:00.014-06:00

5 years ago today God gave me the greatest gift: motherhood.

I became a mother on September 15th, 2004 at 6:57 in the morning. I still remember suddenly realizing I was alone in my room only 30 minutes after Henry was born. He had inhaled meconium during his delivery and was rushed to the NICU right after. Naturally, I sent Scott to follow him.

The sun had come up and spread a beautiful light over my room and I became overwhelmed. I felt like God had hand-delivered a gift to me that day. And then, at last, I cried.

I didn't get to really see him for a few hours and when I did, I cried again. I couldn't believe he was mine. I had this overwhelming desire to take him out of his NICU bassinet and run (or waddle) away. I believed that all he needed was me but I KNEW that all I truly needed was him.

1 Year Old

2 Years Old

3 Years Old

4 Years Old

5 Years Old

I love you Henry Murdock!

And the Winner Is ......!

2009-09-14T21:35:00.002-06:00

Comment #3 -- CLAIRE!

CONGRATULATIONS!

To all of you who didn't win ... I'm feeling kind of generous tonight so I put the numbers in again and got a second winner ...

Comment #21 -- MANDY R!

Congrats to you too!

And now to the rest of you who didn't win, I'm still feeling generous (it's probably only because my kids are in bed and I'm feeling relaxed) and have decided to give you all a 10% discount on any of my hats in my Etsy shop!

So go to janehenry.etsy.com, place an order, in the "message to seller" box tell me the size and color you want and mention the Giveaway Loser Discount (lol!), and then I'll refund you the difference after the order goes through. Also, shipping is free right now in my shop so you're not going to get a much better deal than that!

I really wish I could just give you all one but a girl's gotta make a little money to live in a town this expensive! But thank you all for playing my little game -- I had so much fun!!!

Please come visit my Etsy shop and get yourself something cute!

Claire and Mandy, email me at celia_christensen@hotmail.com and tell me which hat you would like, what color and size, and where to send it!

Thanks again ladies!

(Just so you know, I went to Random.org to get the winning numbers. I tried to "print screen" to show you the actual result but my keyboard has never been able to do that -- so you'll just have to trust me.)

Oh, the Humanity!

2009-09-12T21:13:00.005-06:00

Today as I was pulling out of my parking spot while running errands, an elderly man patiently waited in his car for my not-so-petite minivan to get out of his way. He smiled as he waited and then smiled and waved again as I drove past him. I just drove away thinking, "What a cute old man!"

This afternoon I found out the ski shop in Idaho Falls where I used to work has decided to take a chance on me and ordered quite a few of my hats for their store this winter.

And so, I feel like I need to pass along the good karma I've received from other human beings today, to you, all three of my readers.

Finally, the Giveaway!

I will be giving away one of my hats to one lucky commenter. All you have to do is leave me a comment. I'm not going to make you do anything because I hate those giveaways where you have to add someone's button to your blog, or tell them something funny, or jump through any type of hoop.

Just leave me a comment. That's it. The winner, who will be chosen at random, gets to choose any of my hats which can be found in my Etsy shop: janehenry.etsy.com.

p.s. Only two comments per person, please. Don't be greedy.

Now, get commenting and win yourself a cute hat! Maybe this one:

Or this, for all you ski bunnies out there!
p.p.s. I will "close" the comments on Monday evening at 9 p.m. (MST). So get 'er done before then!

Resting from our Labors

2009-09-10T21:24:00.006-06:00

Last weekend we went to the cabin for some serious fun and relaxation. The weather was absolutely perfect, the fattening sweets were abundant, and the company was first rate. Plus, we packed in the activities.

For starters, we were able to pull out our riding boots, strap on our spurs and become a little more familiar with the equine species. Henry was in hog, or horse, heaven.

Abram was all, "Pants? You wusses insist on putting on pants to ride horses? I go pant-less, not to mention, I don't even wear shoes."

The horses were such a huge hit, even Grouchy Girl got on one. Doesn't she look thrilled?

We celebrated Henry's birthday a week early with the grandparents. That kid is so freaking spoiled!

One of his presents was a batting tee. After a little coaching from softball pro, Aunt Kate, both the kids were hitting like all-stars ... at least Henry was, Ruby ... not so much.

This one's outta here!!!

Ruby's problem was keeping her eyes open. Who knew it was difficult to hit the ball with closed eyes?

Ruby did have a sweet pair of binoculars though. Maybe she should have used those while hitting.

Poor Abram. There's nothing more degrading than being put in a baby doll stroller.

On Monday we went for what was supposed to be a leisurely hike in Yellowstone Park along the Bechler River. However, only 2 1/2 minutes into the hike, while carrying a sleepy, whiny Ruby, I pulled a pretty classic move and totally tripped! People, I fell on my face. HARD! All I can say is, our little faceplant did little to improve Ruby's whining.

At least the rest of the hike was beautiful.

His father's son, a natural hiker.

After getting over the fall, I'm pretty sure Ruby didn't even notice the beautiful scenery. She was mostly there for the licorice.

and a p.p.s.

2009-09-04T09:37:00.005-06:00

Sorry for the delay but the huge, fantastical, awesome, unbelievable Giveaway has been postponed until next week.

Not to kill the suspense but maybe to garner a little more interest, here's a sneak peek of what it could entail ...

or a little something like this ...

(The hat, not the boy. Sorry. He is awfully cute.)

Killing Me Softly

2009-09-03T21:48:00.005-06:00

Disclaimer: I stole this post title from my sister whose pop culture reference is quite obvious.

Another post about Ruby. I can't help it. The girl is seriously killing me. It's true what people say, "Cuteness has saved a lot of kids." And boy it couldn't be any more true than it is with Ruby. She's a few months shy of turning three but the Terrible Twos are in FULL FORCE.

It's like awful foreshadowing of what her teenage years are going to be like. I simply can't do anything right by her. She wants to do everything for herself, freaks out when she can't, and then freaks out when I help her. And heaven forbid I try and do anything with her hair. (Mark my words, one day she will look at old photos and say, "How could you let me go out looking like a homeless ragamuffin? Seriously, could you at least have tried to do something with my hair?" When she asks this, I will stare at her long and hard and then walk away. It's probably best that way.)

One day when I did manage to get pigs in her hair, she cried for over an hour, and walked around almost the whole day with her shoulders hunched like this:

She is a drama queen. Even worse, she's a paranoid drama queen. The other day while making dinner and holding Abram, I told Ruby she couldn't have another snack and she absolutely lost it. All of the sudden she yells, "IT'S! NOT! FUNNY! ABRAM!" I look down to see him just smiling and kicking his chubby little legs at her. Poor little lamb, so misunderstood.

When we were in Utah a few weeks ago we went to Lagoon with all of my siblings and their spouses (with the exception of my brother Spencer). Our group was HUGE! Of course we had to get the token pic of all the cousins together and you know how most kids have no concept of personal space? It's like they can't get close enough to each other? Well, which one of these kids is not like the other?

(Ava, Ellie, Abram, Henry, Max, Paige, Olivia, Brooke, Gabi, Ian, Christian, Ezra, Taylor, Cameron,
Kate, and ... oh wait, could that last little girl be Ruby? That's odd.)

Ruby has this thing about getting too close to other people ... obviously.

Ruby does NOT try new things. Henry was never a dare devil, per se, but Ruby is ridiculous. Seriously? You won't go on the little boat ride at Lagoon? We should have known this was never going to work...

She's a packrat. One day she was walking around with a nail file, my empty glasses case, her doll, and a toothbrush travel case. I asked her what she was doing and she matter-of-factly responded with, "I'm just carrying this stuff around." Well okay, as long as I know what the game plan is ...

She's still the queen of random accessories. The other day with a perfectly adorable dress she was wearing one cowboy boot on the wrong foot and a Disney princess snow hat. Then today I came outside to find her wearing ...

... Henry's bike helmet ... backwards.

If nothing else, this girl is full of surprises.

and a P.S.

2009-08-31T16:49:00.004-06:00

Pssst!! Stay tuned for a giveaway sometime later this week.

(Yes, I do realize my blog isn't a big enough deal to be entitled to do "giveaways" but I'm doing it anyway. That's the way I roll.)

The Greatest Great Grandma

2009-08-31T11:15:00.007-06:00

Our kids have one great grandma, Scott's Grandma Mary. She is perhaps the funniest, spunkiest, most sarcastic one of them all. Have I talked about Grandma Mary before? All you need to know is: she's funny and Scott's family ADORES her. But seriously, how could they not? Just to give you an example of her wit and humor, here's what she said one day as we were getting off the phone:

Me: Okay, tell Grandpa Hal we said hello and we love him.
Gma Mary: If I'm still speaking to him. Good-bye dear.

On one of our many trips to Utah this summer my kids and I drove down to Beaver to spend the day with Grandma Mary and Grandpa Hal. It was a surprise visit so it was really fun to just pull up and see the confused looks on their faces. Of course, Mary was thrilled to finally meet her newest great grandson who is particularly special to her because he was named after her father, Abram (Abe) Murdock, the great Democratic Senator from Beaver, Utah. He was so great, in fact, he had a post office named after him.

Proud Great Grandma Mary and Baby Abe with his very own Beaver, Utah t-shirt.

Great Grandpa Hal was also a big fan of the little guy.

With the lovely Grandma Sharon

Mary couldn't get over Henry either. He handled the repeated hugs, kisses, and cheek pinching very well.

Could this be any sweeter?

And where was Ruby during all the hugs and kisses? Hiding on her Aunt Becca's lap. When I finally made her get close to someone other than Becca or Sharon, this is how she reacted:

(Good thing they love her just the same!)

Of course we couldn't take Baby Abe to Beaver without taking him to his very own post office. How many kids have their own post offices?

I love this last picture. You can see how proud both Mary and Hal are of their family members who came before and the ones carrying the torch on. Mary takes such pride in her father's name and his heritage as well as her own children and their families. She got emotional quite a few times saying, "I can't believe you named him Abe." I'm so thankful to know Mary and that she loves my children.

Isn't it nice when other people love your children too?

Campouting

2009-07-20T14:09:00.005-06:00

We went camping last weekend. Abram's a whopping four months and not sleeping through the night, so why not?

The good news: Scott made dinner, the kids slept well, the scenery was beautiful, the kids had fun, and Ruby invented the word "campouting."

The bad news: my pictures turned out dark (could somebody teach me how to use my camera already?!? or at least make me put in the effort to correct them in Photoshop?!?!), Scott and I slept like shiz, we were exhausted when we got home, and Ruby got a mosquito bite on her bottom eyelid (which is notable enough to make it on the "bad news" list only because her crazy allergies caused her eye to swell almost completely shut. We got some crazy looks at church on Sunday so I'm pretty sure DCFS is going to come knocking any day now. Anyone willing to be our character witness?).

Getting back into the game - camping with a four month old:

Good thing this kid can't roll yet:

Chef Christensen and his tiny sous chef:

Abram thought sleeping in a tent was the coolest:

Hen even got some bouldering in:

Could there be anything cuter than a chubby four month old?

The Tobacco Root Mountains are gorgeous, full of wild flowers, even in the middle of July. Reason #1,073 that we love Montana:

Remember When ...

2009-06-29T10:50:00.005-06:00

... I told you Scott does funny tricks with the baby?

Exhibit Q:

Father's Day Morn

2009-06-22T22:18:00.002-06:00

Seriously?

Seriously.

Summertime's Siren Song

2009-06-12T10:40:00.004-06:00

And so it begins...

Our siren's song is quite unique -- one minute she's blasting Christmas music, then makes a strange transition to an extra-ordinarily patriotic rendition of the Star Spangled Banner, and continues on with an even stranger bridge to Rocky's Theme Song.

At least her ice cream's good and even better, my kids still think getting the 50 cent cup, rather than the insanely overpriced, unnervingly unnaturally colored push-pop, is the coolest thing ever.

Ahh ... summer days. Guess I better get my cup of quarters at the ready.

Amen, Frank!

2009-06-10T22:27:00.005-06:00

Here's me on my last post: Oh Ruby! You are the light of my life. My days are dark and dreary without you!

Here's me today: Ruby, so help me, if you don't ...

Actually, in order to keep up the ruse of being the perfect mother, perhaps I'll leave it at that. Some things are definitely better left unsaid ... out loud anyway.

So all I'll say is ...

SERENITY NOW!!!

Ain't No Sunshine

2009-06-02T16:31:00.007-06:00

Last Thursday I went to the cabin with some girlfriends for a scrapbooking/ladies' weekend and it was glorious. The weather was beautiful. Warm mountain breeze coming through the windows and everything.

But I have to be honest. Something was missing.

And her name is Ruby.

Seriously, when she's not around I feel just a little off, though I might actually be a little less stressed (because let's face it, she can be the teeniest, tiniest whiner nearly ALL THE TIME).

She's my shadow. My girl. My favorite little lady. My raison d'etre as well as my raison d'insanite (I minored in French, okay? It's okay if I make up French words because I don't really remember any).

She's also my comic relief from the all-too-familiar stresses of motherhood. Yesterday at lunch I was harping on her and Henry to eat and she looks at me with those big eyes and funny smile and says, "You. Are. Driving. Me. Crazy!"

In short, Ruby's funny little personality is my sunshine.

Meeting a Great

2009-05-07T19:45:00.003-06:00

On our way home from Utah a few weeks ago, Abram started whining about making a quick stop in Rigby, Idaho. We thought it was a little bit strange he wanted to go gallivanting around the podunk town and tried to talk him out of it but he wouldn't relent!

We were pleasantly surprised when he drove us to a familiar-looking house so he could meet this dapper gentleman ...

His great grandpa!

Scott is lucky enough to still have THREE grandparents so we know it's a huge blessing that our kids have three wonderful GREAT grandparents.

As you can see, Abram was entranced by the whole meeting ...

Thanks Grandpa George for letting us stop by and introduce the little one!

A Baby Blessing

2009-05-01T20:13:00.006-06:00

A few weeks ago we blessed our beautiful Abram in Utah. We were so happy to have so many friends and family come and celebrate the day with us. Scott did a great job and Abram behaved himself quite nicely during the blessing (not quite as well during the after-blessing photo shoot but whatever).

Here's a recap of the day.

Abram in all his angel-white glory, during his dress rehearsal (aka the day before trying on his sweet shorts outfit):

(Why can I still not get over that dimple? I'm pretty sure it's the most adorable thing on the planet.)

Scott apparently looking exhausted before the guests even arrived and the big event actually took place:

The littlest mousketeer and her balloon-hat-wearing brother amusing themselves before everyone showed up:

Family portrait (minus 2):

Our darling girl gettin' her grub on afterwards (thanks Sharon, Mom, Liz, and Jodanna for delicious food!):

Abram is grandchild #18 for my parents!

And grandchild #5 for Scott's parents.

(We're so lucky to have such great parents who make perfect grandparents for our kids!)

My siblings who live in Utah:

(Nick, his girlfriend Mairin, Blair, his wife Kim, and my sister Liz)

And Scott's two sisters, Becca and Kate:

(No, I'm not usually such a camera hog but Scott was running around trying to get all of our stuff in the car for the 7 hr. trip home. Poor guy, with three kids, a dog, and snacks and drinks out the wazoo, that is NOT a fun job. Thanks Scotty!)

Even though he's only been with us just shy of eight weeks, he has brought us so much happiness and joy -- it's incredible. We feel blessed to have him in our family and hope that we make him as proud as we know he will make us!

31 Years

2009-04-22T09:40:00.013-06:00

31 years ago today my very favorite person was born.

31 years ago today my very favorite person was born on Earth Day. (I don't think his parents knew how prophetic that was.)

31 years ago today my very favorite person started the long journey of becoming the incredible person he is today.

Here are just a few reasons why I love my very favorite person:

Our son wants to be just like him.

He does crazy things with the baby (usually when I'm not around).

Exhibit A:

(I came around the corner to find him holding Abram up like this, just staring at the two of them in the mirror.)

Exhibit B:

(Don't ask because I don't know either.)

He's a cuddler.

(Although it looks like Abram might still be trying to find out how much of a cuddler he is.)

He practices what he preaches.

(Planting a tree today with the kids for Earth Day)

He's been known to take Henry and Ruby out on all-day adventures just to give me a break.

And most of all, because he takes good care of us.

Happy Birthday Scotty!
We love you!

I forgot one: He's funny. After posting this I emailed him to make sure he'd see it and he said he was disappoined that I couldn't come up with 31 different reasons that I love him. He said, "After all, this is my Baskin Robins year -- 31 flavors of Scott."

Sacrilegious?

2009-03-18T21:49:00.007-06:00

I feel like it's almost blasphemous to make fun of one's tiny, precious, perfect 11 day-old baby but I just can't help myself.

I took a picture of our little guy yesterday and when I saw it on my computer I died laughing.

Here's the pic:

And here's the first thing I thought of after seeing the above picture:

Isn't that horrible of me? I'm sorry Abram, I truly am. But I appreciate you brightening my day. That's gotta count for something, right?

p.s. Don't you agree though that the absolute best part about Abe's picture is his dimple? Isn't that the cutest thing ever?

FINALLY!!

2009-03-09T22:31:00.007-06:00

He's here!!! Introducing ...

Abram Michael Christensen
7 lbs. 8 oz.
20 inches

After being induced on Saturday, March 7th at 7:38 pm (to be exact) our cute little babe was born at 11:37 p.m.

He's been good to us so far. Quiet as a mouse. And he already loves his daddy.

The labor was fast and relatively easy -- phew!

(Obviously, I haven't really had the time, not to mention the desire, to edit any of these photos so you're just going to have to deal with the off-center, straight-out-of-the-camera photos. Hopefully better ones will follow shortly.)

After he was born he just sat wide-eyed, totally chill on Scott's lap for about an hour. It was so incredible.

We are so blessed to have such a cute little boy in our family. Wish us luck on our first night home (this is when all the baby's polite hospital etiquette goes out the window, right?)!

Is it so much to ask?

2009-03-03T13:26:00.003-07:00

To Whom It May Concern,

All I want for my birthday today is for this baby to come out.

That's it. That's all I want.

Sincerely yours,
Celia

(And maybe a few cupcakes if you just happen to be making them)

Cha-Cha-Cha-Changes

2009-02-24T20:51:00.004-07:00

So the thing is, I'm large -- very large -- with child. My life has changed quite a bit in the past few months.

For one, I just ate half a pint of B&J's Peach Cobbler ice cream, followed by half a doughnut for dessert. And you know what? I feel fine about it.

I am now the proud owner and crazy driver of a minivan. That's what having (almost) three children will do to someone like me. People, I drive a minivan and I used to drive a Toyota Tacoma. Beesh. Talk about changes. (Don't tell anyone but I secretly love my van.)

I'm supposedly going in to be induced one week from this Saturday. Seriously? We're that close? Apparently so. The weird thing is, I haven't been half as uncomfortable with this one as I was with the first two. I do, however, have a lot more bizarre aches and pains that I never had with the first two.

For the first time, I'm going to kind of miss this little guy slithering around on the inside. It kind of gave me the creeps with Henry and Ruby but I have a new appreciation for it this time around. I can relate to what my sister Adrienne said about feeling your baby move -- it feels like it's our little secret.

If you ask Ruby what our baby's name is going to be, she'll tell you it's "Jesus" (except she pronounces it more like "Cheese-us"). I can hear it now, "And here are our lovely children Henry, Ruby, and Jesus."

Let's Give 'Em Somethin' to Fight About

2009-02-10T22:33:00.003-07:00

Being the awesome parents that we are, we've educated our children on the beauty of the classic and timeless hairstyle -- the mullet. We've even gone so far as letting our children know that one of them has one.

So the other morning at breakfast, Ruby offers up to Henry and me the line we've coached her on before, "I ... have ... a ... mullet!"

To which he replies, "No, I have a mullet."

And of course, Ruby will not be denied her claim, "NO! I HAVE A MULLET!"

This intense debate continued back and forth for about 4.2 minutes until one of them was in tears and I had long since stopped laughing.

In my previous life (pre-pregnancy), I would have provided you with a great picture of Ruby's said mullet but I haven't picked up my camera in over a week. It's sad really.

But speaking of my pregnancy, is anyone noticing the kind of creepy, twirling baby in the corner? WE'RE GETTING CLOSE PEOPLE!

How Did I Miss These?

2009-01-11T18:26:00.005-07:00

So I forgot to post a few of my favorite Christmas photos from last year. Do you think it's too late to talk about Christmas? Don't be such a Scrooge.

Here are my kids in two of their finest moments last month: Could she seriously be any cuter? She was such a great helper decorating that tree!

And probably the best picture I took the entire month of December: Henry *gracefully* putting the star on the tree.

I'm not sure which is better -- Henry's face or Henry squashing Scott's face. The moment was not quite as magically serene as I had imagined it to be.

Is Anybody Still Out There?

2009-01-05T21:50:00.011-07:00

I know, it's been 72 years since I blogged last. Between pregnancy, Christmas treats, Christmas decorating, Christmas shopping, Christmas travel, and Christmas un-decorating (which still hasn't happened yet -- maybe I'll just leave it up this year, save myself the trouble), I have had NO time to blog. In fact, I didn't even blog about my dear old dad's birthday in December or my favorite little sister's birthday today. Maybe, just maybe, I'll get my life back sometime soon. (Who am I kidding? All hell, aka adding child #3 to the fam, is about to break loose in two short months.)

Since trying to come up with witty comments takes the longest, I'm just going to cut to the chase and give you the photo re-cap of our Christmas experience.

Christmas Eve: Hen, Tau, and Rubes leaving cookies out for Santa at Grammy Kay's house

Christmas Morn: One good-looking, fresh-faced, eager-for-the-show-to-start family (especially Ruby, can't you just taste her pure excitement?)

Henry and cousin Ava getting cozy with Papa Mike

Ruby sporting just a few of her new gifts:
Christmas Afternoon: I walked in to find my mom in our bed with Henry, Ava, and Ruby watching a new DVD. My mom cracks me up.

A few days after Christmas: Serious sledding was going on behind Grammy Kay's house. Henry had so much fun out there with two bigger cousins (Christian and Gabi) who took one for my team and pulled him up and down all over that hill. Henry learned one important lesson that day, when wiping out is fun:

And when it's not:

Thanks again Gabs (and Christian!) for being such a great cousin to Henry!!
Sister-in-law Shelly catching some of the sledding action on West Mountain:
Me and my big sledding boy:

After Christmas we made our annual trek up north to the Christensen cabin in Idaho. And again, sledding was on the agenda. Due to my delicate nature, I was only allowed to take pictures so that's why you're getting more action shots than usual. I'm usually really selfish and don't stop to take enough pictures. I am a die hard sledder after all.

Family Sledding Photo:

Ruby turned out to be an even bigger sledding fan than Henry -- she wouldn't quit! The best part was that after about two seconds down the run, she'd cover her eyes for the rest of the ride. It was hilarious! Here she is catching some sweet air with her sledding BFF, Aunt Becca:

Kate's awesome wipeout due to Scott setting up a tiny roadblock in her path (who knew that ramming full speed into another sled propped up on its side would cause such problems?):

Hen taking the reins with his co-pilot, Grandpa Hal:
Ruby and her two favorite sledding aunts:

To liven up the cold, quiet evenings at the cabin this year, Kate came up with the brilliant idea of a Gingerbread Decorating Contest. We paired up: Scott and I, Kate and Hen, Becca and Ruby, and Hal and Sharon. It was hilarious. I have to say, I feel Becca truly had the hardest task as her teammate had multiple meltdowns after being told to stop eating so much candy and then pooped her pants during the contest. Poor Becca, she really had her work cut out for her. But she truly was in sublime Christmas spirits, she kept asking Ruby, "Hey Rubes, how's our team morale? Pretty good? You doing okay?"

Here's just one of Ruby's many meltdowns (am I a bad mom that I just laugh when I see that? She just kept crying so much, it became almost comical, but probably because she wasn't on my team):

We did have a great Christmas holiday and I'm glad to be back. Hopefully blogging will become more of a regular thing, rather than a favorite pasttime.

And for those of you still reading, Holla If Ya Hear Me!!!

The Newest Addition

2008-11-26T09:26:00.005-07:00

No, she's not ours, although she's so cute I wish she were.

My sister Adrienne had her little girl two weeks early.

Introducing ...

Ivy Bean Zimmerman

8 lbs. 15 oz.

Isn't she cute?

Man! Those Zimmerman genes are unstoppable -- she does not look like Adrienne's child. Jim, you gettin' friendly with the mailman? Wait ... that's not how that works, is it?

Great job Adrienne! Hang in there these next couple of weeks! You can do it! We love you guys!

A Baby No More

2008-11-20T15:01:00.009-07:00

So my little lady turned TWO yesterday! Unbelievable. It feels like I was just posting about her first birthday and now here we are. Here's a little recap of my sweet little girl's journey in this world so far:

38 weeks and 6 day old fetus, just hours before her grand entrance
1 day old, basically the cutest thing you've ever seen
6 months old, still the cutest thing you've ever seen

1 year old, definitely the cutest thing you've ever seen (even without hair, thank you very much)

And today (still cute even though she's finally got some hair but refuses to let me do anything with it)
Here's the rundown of the big day:

Pigging out on a birthday doughnut (she's so much like me it's scary)
Trying to shake off the birthday nap/coma (not to mention the wicked case of bedhead)

Employing her big guns to really get into the meat of that present!

Obviously, the exertion was well worth it in the end

My humble efforts

Blow, Ruby, blow!!

There are so many things I love about my girl. She is so funny and quirky, and she knows it. There is a big side to her though that is G-R-O-U-C-H-Y and we're not afraid to admit it. She is my little grouchy girl but for whatever reason, perhaps it's because she's mine (just a hunch), it makes her that much more endearing to me.

We love our little Ruby Jane and can't imagine our life without her!

Are We Still Talking About Halloween?

2008-11-04T19:27:00.004-07:00

Yes, for one more day anyway. Here's what went down in Montana:

Proudly displaying our freshly-carved, super traditional jack-o-lanterns (Henry insisted on wearing his costume during the festive activity)

At the ward trunk-or-treat

Ruby's super scary Halloween face

Ruby's first real trick-or-treating door of all time (for being a shy lady, she sure wasn't shy about trying to bust into people's houses once they opened the door)
We had unseasonably warm temps this year so we couldn't bring ourselves to stop trick-or-treating because it felt so great to be outside. Being people who don't enjoy dressing up, this is definitely one of those times where Scott and I had such a great time simply because our kids were unbelievably excited about the whole process. We had a great Halloween!

The Frog Prince

2008-10-31T15:39:00.004-06:00

Yesterday was Henry's Halloween party at preschool. Of course as the only boy in the group, I knew his costume would probably be different than all the little girls.

Turns out, it was pretty different. It did, however, fill a role that all those little princesses were missing ...

Something Big ... REVEALED!!!

2008-10-29T10:34:00.004-06:00

Well, it's only happened like once or twice before and I guess there's a slight possibility of it happening again sometime in the next millennia but I was WRONG and Scott was RIGHT ....

...

...

IT'S A BOY!!!

Something Big

2008-10-27T10:39:00.004-06:00

People. Something big is going down. I'm 20 weeks pregnant, which not only means my "kumquat" has grown a great deal in size but also that we find out what we're having today! Hooray.

So I'll let you in on a little secret:

I think we're having a girl.

I tell you this because it's what I'm thinking, but have to warn you that I don't necessarily feel like it's a girl. With Henry, we KNEW 113% he was a boy. With Ruby, we were pretty dang sure she was a girl. But with this one, I'm not totally convinced one way or the other.

Here are the rest of the family's guesses:

Scott: A boy (I think he was just saying that to appease me by giving me an answer. I just called him at work and I think he just wanted to get off the phone.)

Henry wanted to get a little more scientific with his guess so he felt the need to be a little more hands-on:

He says it's a boy.

And Ruby: (Let me ask her ....) Oh great, that conversation was helpful. Here's how our conversation went:

Me: Ruby, what are we having? A girl or a boy?

R: A boy.

Me: A boy?

R: Nope.

Me: So, is it a boy or a girl?

R: Girl!

Me: A girl?

R: Nope.

Maybe this is why 2 year-olds aren't asked for help that often.

One Year Older and Wiser Too

2008-10-23T08:00:00.000-06:00

Today is my little brother Blair's birthday. By turning 27, he has successfully made me feel old. Thanks for nothing.

There are a few reasons, however, why I will forgive him for this major trespass against me.

And they are (in no particular order):

He is crazy. Seriously, he makes me laugh so hard. Between his spot-on impersonations of random people (B-rad from our cruise) and random things in life (our Grandma Hazel's golf swing), he can get us rolling on the floor in no time.

He married one of the cutest, sweetest gals I know. We love Kim and are so glad she chose Blair (although, really, how could she not?).

He is a GREAT uncle. I know those of us who have kids in our family feel so grateful for the relationship both Blair and Kim have with our kids. They truly are the fun couple and the kids flock to them. I am so grateful for what a sweet uncle Blair is to my kids.

Blair, you truly are one of my most favorite people in the world and I am so grateful you're my brother.

We love you!

Do You See What I See?

2008-10-10T14:52:00.003-06:00

I looked out my front window this morning to see this:

Okay, so that's not exactly the quaint little view from my front window (it's actually the Norsey Wood in the UK but pretty, right?) and we didn't exactly get that much snow (but it would be cool, right?).

But it's snowing! Has been snowing lightly all day!

Usually I'm not a big fan of snow coming so early but I am this year because that means the seasons are changing and changing seasons means the bun in the oven is one season closer to being born! Wahoo! But seriously, if I had to live through one more Indian Summer day of beautiful temps in the 70s I was going to kill myself.

There's something about the first snowfall that makes me want to do crazy things. And Henry too, apparently. After staring at it out the window, he turned to me and said, "Mama, we need to put away this Halloween stuff and get out our Christmas decorations."

I think he's onto something.

Just don't tell Scott, he's weird about putting up Christmas decorations in early October. Sometimes I just don't get him.

I love Fall (not falling DOWN, but the season)

2008-10-07T16:17:00.008-06:00

We spent a glorious General Conference weekend last weekend in Yellowstone Park and then at the cabin. I love the cabin. How could you not when it looks like this?
Watching the wildlife

Overlook of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone

Watching two "unique" sisters gazing at the waterfall in an inappropriate embrace
(Is it mere coincidence that Kate asked me this weekend if I thought they were weird?)
Enjoying the overlook with my original baby
Watching Old Faithful (which, by the way, is becoming less and less faithful. What is happening to this world when even Old Faithful starts letting us down?! First the economy and now the geyser!)
Helping Grampy Hal stain the deck
(Henry and his Grandpa call each other "Good Helper Guys." Henry becomes Hal's shadow whenever there is work to be done around the cabin.)
Enjoying Disney's pure digital magic inside while it rains outside
Just melting my heart, chapped lips and all

Unbelievable Fall colors
(I told Scott on the beautiful drive home that the colors of Fall prove God's existence. If it were up to simple nature and evolution, the leaves would just turn brown, die, and fall off. But of course God could do much better than that. I'm so grateful that God thought of making our Earth more beautiful, even when things have to die.)

Exhibit A
Exhibit B
Exhibit C

Parenting Ruminations

2008-09-25T14:18:00.004-06:00

Today I was running errands with Ruby, just trying to kill time until Henry's preschool let out.

At 10:55 a.m., I felt the need for some nourishment and coincidentally happened to be passing McDonald's. I'm usually not a big fan of Micky Dees but I needed SOMETHING. So Ruby and I made a quick stop through the drive-thru, ordered a medium Diet Coke (it's slowly sounding more appealing to me -- I'm comin' back to my old self!) and cinnamon roll (mmmm) and as we're pulling out, I heard it ... a little voice from the back seat saying,

"I wanna fench fie!"

How is it that my not even two year-old daughter has gotten so accustomed to drive-thrus and their evil purpose? How is it that there are some people in this world who only feed their children organic foods and then there are others, who shall remain nameless, whose 22 month old kids recognize drive thrus and beg for french fries?

Look at them! They're darling!

I seriously started wondering today, am I failing them? I don't mean to be all dramatic. I'm not going to draw a juxtaposition between feeding my kids fast food and giving them cigarettes but stilll ... I can't help but wonder ....

Slightly Belated

2008-09-16T14:19:00.000-06:00

Yesterday was Henry's 4th birthday.

I could easily write a very long list of why I love him so much but I have one main reason,

God chose him to make me a mother and for that I will be eternally grateful.

Here are a few highlights of the day.

Making his birthday cupcakes
Finally getting the fire truck he's been asking for for months

Learning to ride his new bike

Enjoying one of the last warm days of summer

Pure joy over one lonely cupcake (Reason #233 that I love easy-to-please little kids!)

We love you Henry!

Into the Great Wide Open

2008-09-12T12:11:00.000-06:00

Anyone who knows my husband well knows that the boy can NOT sit still. I, on the other hand, feel perfectly fine sitting (or lying) still for hours at a time.

So these days, what with my "delicate"condition and all, Scott has taken to getting both kids (and dog) out of the house and into the great outdoors.

Of course one of the main activities is fishing.

Henry, reeling in a big one in Yellowstone Park.
Fishing and wading on another outing.
Even when I try and put the kibosh on his plans, Scott adapts. When I said they couldn't go camping a couple of weeks ago because it was too late and I didn't want them to go far away, he was not to be deterred. Here they are camping in our backyard:

(No, Ruby was not invited for the actual sleeping part of this camp out. Lucky her, she was completely unaware upstairs in her comfy crib of the 5 a.m. crawl into the house when Henry peed his pants and had to come in for dry clothes and a warm bed. Also, please note the mountain man beard Scott grew for Alaska, which has since been remedied. )

Hanging out at Ruby Reservoir.
Throwing rocks (who knew Hen had such a mean arm?).

We've Only Just Begun

2008-09-08T10:49:00.000-06:00

Henry started preschool last week. I realized that morning as I ate breakfast that it was only the beginning of a very long chapter in my life. He's just the first of my children to embark on the journey of education and everything that entails. Exciting, but makes me a little sad at the thought of my babies growing up.

Here he is just rearing to get out that door (notice the awesome two week old tattoo that my sis-in-law put on him in Utah. That stupid thing still won't come off! Thanks Kate!).

Here he is again with the first day of preschool prerequisites: a backpack that is bigger than he is and a baby sister who has to show off all of her cool stuff too.

A Message of Hope

2008-08-28T10:57:00.001-06:00

I really haven't been on my computer much lately (obviously), but when I do I almost always check out a blog called C jane enjoy it.

Do you guys read her? I'm sure a lot of you do because she's hilarious. And if you're one of her readers, chances are, you read her sister's blog as well, nieniedialogues.com. If so, then you already know that Stephanie and her husband were in a plane crash two weeks ago and were badly burned and still remain in critical condition. Her sister (C jane) is keeping everybody updated on her progress. Over the past weeks, C jane and many other friends have said incredibly inspirational things about tragedy, God's love, and hope. They seem incredible.

The Nielsen Family

Anyway, they have declared today Nie Nie Day and TONS of people are auctioning cool stuff off with all proceeds going to their recovery fund (they estimate their medical bills will be astronomical as both of them will be in the hospital for MONTHS).

So check out C jane's blog. She has a link to other blogs that are hosting auctions (DesignMom has TONS of stuff being auctioned on her blog). I've checked some of them out and I just may have to get into the bidding ... if people don't get all crazy, which I'm sure they will as it's only 11 a.m. and a signed BYU football helmet is already going for $500. Yikes. If, in the end, we all decide we can't afford a $100 hair bow for our daughters, there's a button on C jane's site that is set up to accept donations in Stephanie's behalf.

Happy auction bidding and good deed-doing!

Say whaa?

2008-08-16T13:31:00.000-06:00

So, I'm pregnant. Seems like old news. I am 10 weeks afterall. Woo hoo. A whopping 10 weeks.

Truthfully, I'd like to die. Okay, not die but maybe go to sleep for the next seven months. Wake me up when the babe gets here, okay?

Every week I look forward to my weekly pregnancy email, showing me how big my baby is getting, what is currently on the development forefront, etc. Well, today I open the email, practically praying that they reveal something incredible that will hopefully give me the strength and emotional stability to carry on...

A kumquat.

That's what they give me?!? My baby is the size of a freaking kumquat. Who even knows what a kumquat is? I'm thinking, maybe it's like a mango ... no, sorry, go directly to jail, do not pass go, do not collect 200 dollars.

Your kumquat sized baby is about 1 1/4 inch long.

Sweet. A whopping 1 1/4 inch long.

At least my gut isn't sticking out yet ... oh wait.

I Ain't Heavy Father ...

2008-08-08T12:07:00.001-06:00

... I'm just PREGNANT!

That's right. We're crazy/smart/masochistic enough to do this again.

I'm still only like two hours along (okay, more like 9 weeks but it might as well be two hours) so I'm currently wandering aimlessly through Yuckville. Honestly, call me spoiled, call me ungrateful, call me whatever you feel like calling me (except fat because I'm a little sensitive about my already-expanding gut), but I'm not going to lie, I HATE BEING PREGNANT. I do. I'm sorry. I just really do.

So on that positive note, stick around until March and you might get to see pics of our new little one!

p.s. Double Jeopardy question, can anyone tell me the reference to my post title? Here's a clue, the original quote is, "He ain't heavy, Father, he's my brother." The first one to get it right gets ... a $500 gift card to Target!! Okay, not really, because you and I both know I don't have one of those "sponsored" blogs. I'm SO not that cool. But what you will get is ... title of "My Smartest Friend," or at least "Best Internet Searcher."

These Boots Were Made for Walkin'

2008-08-05T16:15:00.000-06:00

Ruby is the craziest little girl. She has become quite the yakker lately (although my family probably thinks that's a straight out lie because she clams up whenever they're around). At home, she is constantly yakking, trying out new words, repeating everything we say, singing, etc. Besides her yakking, she still has quite the affinity for adding crazy accessories to what otherwise would have been perfectly acceptable outfits.

Over the 4th of July (Yes, I realize I'm a little behind -- so sue me!), we were at the cabin in Idaho and Ruby became obsessed with one particular accessory. I think she insisted on wearing them every day.
Her pink cowboy boots

Outfit #1

Outfit #2 (on the 4th, her little patriotic jumper was suddenly sassed up a little by her pink boots)

Outfit #3

Outfit #4A (Yes, those are PJs. She looks so hot.)

Outfit #4B (Same PJ bottoms, coupled with her other favorite accessory -- pink, floppy sun hat. She sure does know how to make a statement.)
One other favorite accessory -- Henry's "fishing" hat (fyi, we don't know why exactly he calls it his fishing hat, he just declared it to be so one day)

I sort of feel bad for Ruby because apparently she's taking an interest in fashion. Unfortunately for her, her parents know nothing of fashion and therefore have not passed on any fashion-know-how genes.

This dilemma would be sort of akin to one of Brangelina's kids devoting him/herself to Dungeons and Dragons and all the dweebiness that it entails. Sorry kid, it's just not in your genes.

But maybe someday being completely fashion blind will be really hip. I hope so. Because then I'd never have to worry about my daughter and her "unique" style being made fun of.

Rollin' With My Homies

2008-07-08T15:25:00.000-06:00

I hung out with a group of 12 girls through most of my high school career and we were C-R-A-Z-Y (right Mom? Although she probably shouldn't be the one to judge because I'd bet that if she were Mother Theresa's mom, she still probably would have found some reason to ground her. Like how about when Mother Theresa blew up a tv up the canyon and then lied about it or when she got caught BIG TIME sluffing Honors English three times in a row? Geez MT, those probably weren't the smartest things to do so maybe you deserve the grounding afterall). So anyway, a couple of weeks ago in Utah I got the RARE chance to hang out with six of those friends (some of whom I hadn't seen in YEARS!) and their kids.

Speaking of "that group," our group of friends was called The Freaks. Nice name, huh? Pretty sad that we actually embraced the name even though it was given to us as a gesture of insult. All I can say is we had a pretty good amount of self-esteem.

So we went to Harmony's new BEAUTIFUL house in Alpine and had a BBQ. The food was great (which I take no responsibility for at all since my assignment was a bag of chips and I failed to even work that out in the end -- hey! I'm a travellin' (wo)man!) and the company was even better!

Here's Henry getting to know Mandy and Tyler's darling little Olivia. I don't mean to brag but I think the boy's got skillz:
Skills? I should say! Look who we found a few hours later trying to elope in a Radio Flyer! Like I told Mandy, let the record show that I wholeheartedly support betrothing these two. How cute would their kids be?!?!

So here's the crew:

Me, Harmony, Nicole, Mandy (Parker), Mandy (Ivie), Jane, and Aime.

Between the seven of us, there were 14 kids so it was awesome. It was so much fun to see my friends as real, "grownup" women! I'm sorry that not everyone was there but we need to plan a reunion soon!

Thanks again ladies for a hilarious night!

Woh, Mexico, it sounds so simple, I just got to go.

2008-06-28T21:14:00.000-06:00

Wait! Before you say anything let me explain my absence -- I've been out of town like crazy these days AND I maxed out the memory on my computer so I had no way of uploading pictures. My computer is from the Ice Age so it's no surprise that I managed to fill all 40 gigabytes of memory. (And don't even think about harassing me because your iPod has like 67 times more memory than my pathetic computer. Don't you think I know that already?) Moving on ...

VIVA MEXICO!!

A few weeks ago I went on a girls' cruise to Mexico with Scott's mom (Sharon), two sisters (Becca and Kate), his brother's wife (Nikell), one sister's friend (Ally), and a partridge in a pear tree. And boy was it fabulous!

(Nikell, Me, Becca, Kate, Ally, and Sharon)

Here are some of the highlights:

Parasailing in Cabo San Lucas.
We decided to go three at a time so I went with Becca and Sharon. How awesome is it that the guy on the boat asked us our weight and decided that the heavy one (ME!) had to be in the middle and there's my skinny mother-in-law and sister-in-law evening me out?

Eating, eating, and more eating! Our food was, for the most part, fabulous! I think I honestly gained five pounds on this trip (and worth every calorie if you ask me!).

Bunking with Nikell. It was so fun to spend some quality time with her as we only get to seem them a few times a year and our crazy children never really give us a chance to talk. So now we know each other's life stories because of our late night pillow talks. Well, realistically, it's more like she knows mine and I know some of hers (I talked more than she did -- shocker, right?). But I love her unexpected, dry humor -- she would have me cracking up in our room. I think most nights the crazy young moms were the last to go to sleep and subsequently, the last to get up in the morning. It was glorious!
Formal Nights (beautifully modeled above by Nikell and Becca). I love dressing up -- I mean, seriously! How often do we get to do that as moms? At home, my idea of dressing up is wearing a white shirt because you know THAT doesn't happen often!

Laying on the Beach. We had beautiful weather after parasailing so we took full advantage and had lunch on the beach and then spent the afternoon working on our skin cancer. It's the simple pleasures in life, really, that just get me excited. Like guesstimating how many times I can badly burn my face before being diagnosed with skin cancer. Ahhh ... feel those rays!

(our ship in the background)

Kate's Humor. Seriously, Kate is the craziest girl sometimes. After asking their room attendant, Percy, where he was from (she was unaware it was proudly displayed on his name tag), he replies, "India," and she gives him the "air gun" action and drawls out, "Excellent," and then walks away.

Gettin' my Groove On. I love cruising with the ladies because we went dancing. I didn't dance on our last cruise because Scott would never go and I just couldn't get into it (maybe it was because I was there with a former drill team member and two former cheerleaders who actually knew how to move their bodies in a non-Elaine fashion). Becca and Kate's styles are much like my own -- crazy and totally unrepentant of how we may look.

All the Love the Single Ladies got. Exhibit A:

This was about the most any of them got. Who knew Pinocchio could be such a good time?

La Noria. Our tour guide, Marco, took us out to this small, country town about 45 minutes outside of Mazatlan called La Noria. We got to see a few different shops and the way things traditional things like leather sandals, belts, saddles, and tortillas are made. It was really cool to see a "real" Mexican town. What I like most about this next picture is NOT the fancy new saddle but how Becca looks like she's about to attack Marco from behind. Don't worry, Marco, I got your back.
Speaking of...

Marco. He was definitely a highlight. He was the one who told us he's "kind of married," a "family man on a bad day," and also said he had some soda, water, and "pouquito beer" for us in the cooler, and most importantly, that he "checks ID ... most of the time." Wow, thanks for instilling a lot of trust in you.

Cute little guy. This darling little guy followed us all around La Noria giving us tiny little flowers. I wanted to think it was because we were so gorgeous he just couldn't help himself but we knew his real intent. So Becca threw him a bone and gave him a stick of gum. She's got such a big heart, that girl.
Phillip. Becca and Ally met this cute, dedicated Christian young man in the hot tub one night (like I said earlier, there was no funny business to be had by any of our super cute, available, boyfriend-seeking, single ladies ... now that I put it that way -- what was their problem?!?! Oh, was it that every guy their age was drunk every night up in the Viking Crown Lounge dirty dancing with all the drunk, skanky girls? Oh, that might explain a thing or two...)

Anyhoo, back to Phillip. He told the girls he was a singer so they convinced him to do karaoke (for his first time) and he blew us all away! The crowd was so into him! He sang Bryan Adams and honestly, I don't think I can ever listen to another Bryan Adams song the same way. My Bryan Adams' heart now belongs to 19 year-old Phillip from Turlock, CA.
Ally can be seen above sporting Phillip's friend's, lens-less glasses, to which she most "seriously" asked upon first seeing him in them, "Hey Mark, are those prescription?"

The Zip Line in Mazatlan.

Green tank top and white shorts: 45 dollars
Petzl Harness: 75 dollars
Petzl Helmet: 100 dollars

This picture of Ally: PRICELESS!

Kate, showin' us how it's done:
She's got style, she's got grace, she's a winner.
She's a Lady. Whoa whoa whoa, she's a Lady.
Sharon, demonstrating the lady-like way to zip line. Go girl!

Hey!?!? Why didn't anyone tell me Elton John was in our group?!?!
Buh-buh-buh-Becca and the jets!
Cobblestone Streets of Puerto Vallarta (or Puerto "Why-arta" as our Norwegian boat captain called it).

Puerto Vallarta 's "boardwalk" was filled with weird modern sculptures.
Watching the Mexican kids trying to catch the pigeons. They were so into it! One little boy finally caught one and all I can say is, I felt really sorry for that pigeon.

And finally, our waiters! We loved our waiters! Mekjimo was from India and Francisco was from Chile and we wanted to bring them home. (I definitely miss Mekjimo, particularly this week because Scott's out of town and I feel like all I do is make and clean up meals for my kids. I never realize what a big help Scott is until he's gone! But I digress...) Oh Francisco, where are you to bring me Diet Coke after Diet Coke, followed by the best sourdough rolls I've ever had? Your English wasn't great but I feel like we really had something there ... was it just me? or was it just the sourdough rolls?

Well, thank you ladies for such a wonderful trip! We had so much fun and I look forward to making this a yearly event ... right ladies?!?!

This One Goes Out to the One I Love - Part IV (Seriously? Another b-day? Yes, actually)

2008-05-30T15:22:00.000-06:00

Get your party hats out again 'cuz here we go.

Today is my older sister's Liz's birthday. I don't know if she's passed the age when you stop telling people how old you are but she's a confident woman so I don't think she'll mind.

Yay Liz! You've made it to 34!

Here are just a few things that I love about my older sister:

She is a caretaker!! She is one of those people that sees when people are in need and will go WAY out of her way to take care of them and their family. Adrienne reminded me of the time Liz, my parents, and I went down to So. California for Adrienne's little boy, Ezra's, baby blessing. Liz was just so stoked to be somewhere without her 5 (at the time) children that she just hit the ground running. She made all the food, got up early to make her famous homemade French bread, cleaned the house, and spent all of her down time reading books to Adrienne's little girl. Seriously, she probably did more than my mom, Adrienne, and I combined! And on top of that, she was sick the entire time, started coughing up blood and later found out she had a bad case of bronchitis! She is a workhorse!

So it probably comes as NO surprise that as a natural caretaker, Liz has SIX children -- four girls and two boys -- and they are all two years apart! They are: Taylor (10), Christian (8), Brooke (6), Paige (4), Ellie (2), and Cameron (3 months--who is so chubby that my brother Spencer calls him the Happy Sumo! Ha ha!). My parents had seven kids but I am still baffled by women who are capable of keeping their sanity while successfully running a home and raising good kids.

Which brings me to my next point, Liz is an INCREDIBLE mother. I know all moms have their faults but besides threatening her kids with ridiculous threats like, "So help me Brooke if you don't stop that you're going to get sit outside in your carseat for two weeks!" she really seems almost perfect. I feel terrible that my siblings and I used to giver her a crap when she was first to have children and now?!? We're all just wishing we could be as patient, tender, nurturing, PATIENT, and loving as she is to her children. Her six kids are so lucky to have her as their mother. So lucky in fact that I think it's unfair how lucky they are so I'm going to send my kids to her house so they can get in all that free luck.

She has adorable, good-natured children. Here's Brooke in all her princess glory.

She is a crazy good cook / baker. She seriously can bake like nobody's business. Before my grandma Hazel passed away, Liz made it a point to spend quality time with her and learn some of her baking secrets. Even while pregnant and now a busy mom of six, it's routine at her house to always have homemade wheat bread, fresh, homemade meals, the craziest, sweetest desserts you've ever had. In fact, "homemade" is such a huge part of their lives that she made her little Paige a sandwich on white, Granny Bread (which to me, is quite a treat), and Paige looked at it and said, "Mom! You know I don't eat white bread!"

Liz is a crier. She is one of the most tender-hearted people I know. If I ever need someone to really feel my pain, I call her. She would be the first to cry with me and offer support like no one else could.

She is an iron woman. After about six weeks of having her sixth child, she was out pounding the pavement in the early hours. She runs about three times a week (at least three miles every time) and then does Tae Bo on her off days. Excuse me? Where are all the excuses? Here were mine: "Oh, I just had a baby six months ago, I better not overexert myself, I'm still recuperating." "Uh, yeah, I'm still nursing my 11 month old and I'm afraid running on a regular basis will affect my milk supply so I better not." Not Liz. She is out there at 6:30 a.m. running her little heart out.

Speaking of running, she is a bit on the Speedy Gonzales side. After having finally dusted off my running shoes and gotten into a somewhat regular running routine, I still don't think I could beat my 34 year-old, mother of six, sister in a running race. She played full-back on her high school soccer team and I still remember her haulin' her B-U-N-S (as she calls them) back to defend the goal. She was also quite the screamer at those games. Kay, the mom, didn't like the yelling so much but we were proud of our speedy sister.

She has beautiful blue eyes and passed them on to her kids. This is a straight-out-of-the camera shot of Ellie, her second to youngest.

Liz is a trooper. She hardly bats an eye at the idea of packing up all her kids up and going camping -- even when the weather might be bad. I seriously don't know anyone like her. She believes in really helping her kids experience life and the daunting task of packing, driving, quarrel-stopping, and camping hardly seems to phase her.

Liz, Adrienne and I talk about you all the time. Now that we're both moms, we're in even more awe about how patient and loving you are. Parenthood is not easy, we know that, but you make it seem truly manageable and fun. I look up to you and respect you as the perfect older sister, who has set such an incredible example for me to ATTEMPT to follow. Thank you for being my best friend.

I love you!

Happy Birthday!

This One Goes Out to the One I Love - Part III

2008-05-29T11:28:00.000-06:00

And to my other sister-in-law who is turning the big 2-3 today ...

Happy Birthday Becca!!!

Becca is Scott's other sister (third in line in the fam). Here are the just a few of the weird, wacky, and unique things about Becca that I love:

She is not afraid to be herself. I've never known her to compromise her standards to appease other people. Seriously, she is an outspoken lover of all things teen. Adolescent literature (or "juvenile reading" she once mistakenly called it)? Loves it. Teeny-bopper movies and shows? Unabashedly crazy about them. She is a person with a strong sense of self and self confidence. Take a look at this picture. Need I say more? (Becca is the 12 year-old looking one on the right -- this picture was taken last fall).

She is funny. She is one of those people who probably won't compete for air space so you might think she's kind of quiet. However, get her in a smaller, more comfortable group and get ready for her hilarious, snarky comments. She can be quite the feisty one.

Becca loves her mom. I think it's so sweet how much Becca (and Kate) love their mom. It seems like they are the center of each other's universe and I feel like that's the way it should be between mothers and daughters.

Becca is a scrapbooker. She is my scrapbookin' buddy at the cabin and I love the bonding time we have while messin' with the Cricut, croppin' photos, and tellin' Kate to back off 'cause she just doesn't understand.

She loves her sister. Becca is the caretaker in her and Kate's relationship. If they both live to be old maids, Becca would be like my great-aunt Afton who lived with her sister, Isabelle, until they both died in their late 90s. Becca would take care of Kate, make their doctor's appointments, schedule their hairdo appts, and arrange for their older brother to take them to those appointments ("older brother" being my grandpa Dan, in this case ... but it's a toss-up for who it would be in the Christensen family ... let's just say, Scott over Cody, because then I would get to sit in the back seat too and we would be three old ladies driving to get our hair done and we would laugh and laugh 'til our dentures fell out, although Kate would probably not have hers in because Becca failed to remind her that morning). But seriously, I have never seen two sisters who are so different in personality yet who get along so perfectly and who love each other so much. It's like their souls are intricately connected somehow. Like spiritual identical twins. They were made for each other.

As Kate said on their blog, Becca sure does love a good nap.

Becca has this crazy tendency to dress up in 80s attire and hit the dance clubs ... or to just go out to dinner with Kate and Seth. I'm not one for dressin' up, but then again, if I looked that good while trying to be a doofus, I think I'd dress up more often.

She is one of the most organized people I know. Even as a kid she was very thorough and dare I say ... anal? Every year, on the day before school started, she would strip her bed and remove all of the tags from her new clothes and wash them all (along with her towels), just to make sure she got a good fresh start to her academic year.

Becca has such a sweet side that my kids, especially Ruby, love. This past weekend at the cabin, Ruby reached for Becca after being there less than an hour. This might not seem like a big deal to some of you who have outgoing children. But mine? Outgoing? Not so much.

Although she can get herself gussied up with the best of 'em, she has a tough, flexible, athletic alter-ego. She might seem skinny and girly but she is one of the most aggressive tubing competitors I've ever gone up against. She will send herself flying recklessly through the air to pull people off the tube to put them in her place. She and Kate fight for the title of who's the "scrappiest," and sorry Kate, I think I have to give that title to Becca. Becca the Scrappy. Hmm ... it has a nice ring to it.

Notice the hot bod in the picture? (I realize that my last three posts have focused a bit on my sisters-in-law's svelte physiques but really, can you blame me?)

She is beautiful. Seriously one of the cutest girls I know. Sort of weird but she used to date my little brother. The reason I bring this up is not to embarrass anyone but rather to provide more example of this "natural" beauty. My mom has always loved Becca so when she was dating Nick my mom was thrilled. Once she said, "You know what I like about Becca? She is beautiful and just exudes femininity. Some women feel they have to force their 'sexiness' (that's right, Kay used the word 'sexiness') on men but Becca has this subtle feminine beauty about her that I just love." Well said.
Becca, thank you for always making me feel welcome in your family. I have always felt like I belonged and it was in large part due to your (and Kate's) acceptance and love for me. Thank you for being such a great friend and sister.

We love you!
Happy Birthday!

This One Goes Out to the One I Love - Part II

2008-05-28T22:56:00.000-06:00

Today is a special day -- the birthday of TWO of my sisters-in-law.

First up is Heather, who married my older brother, Spencer, in 2000. It's hard to believe she willingly consented to join our loud, crazy family but we're sure glad she did!

Just a few things that I love about her:

She is DO-er. I think it was an adjustment for her to join such a big, crazy family that pretty much does nothing. We have what you might call, "homebody tendencies." But Heather has always been there to help nudge us along, help us make plans, and get us out the door. And if she's unable to get our lazy b-u-n-s off my mom's glorious couch (that I think I've decided I want to be buried with, at least one section of it), she's still happy and content to just hang out, Smith-style (aka sit around and watch the brothers berate each other in German, humiliate ourselves via Karaoke, and eat and eat and eat. We're not THAT gluttonous ... okay, maybe we are. Thanks for loving us anyway Heather!).

Heather is quite the athlete and takes risks. For example, she signed up for a co-ed soccer league with Spencer -- she's never played soccer. Sure, she was a star track athlete in high school and college but picking up another sport to play, in front of and with other people? You can count me out. I even played high school soccer but most likely would not enter a co-ed league with Scott because I'm that big of a wuss.
Heather can SLEEP like nobody's business. And I'm not sure why, as I feel it's a bit of an injustice, but the Lord blessed her with a child that SLEEPS IN! Excuse me? I didn't even know they existed. When we were at my mom's house a few months ago, one morning Heather and Ava slept in until 11 a.m. Secretly -- or maybe not so secretly -- I was consumed with jealousy.

She's got great L'eggs. Seriously. Shortly before she married my brother, my dad made this comment, "I have to say, and I mean this in no perverted way, shape, or form, it'll be a sad day for mankind when Heather has to cover up those legs" (all you other Mormon folk know what I'm talking about). I took this picture while in Vegas last month and here she is over six months pregnant and still sporting the stunning, sculpted legs! As far as I'm concerned, this is a form of cruel and unusual punishment ... at least to leg-of-mutton peeps like myself.

Well, as Dr. Phil would say, "It's time that I start gettin' real." Heather not only has great legs, she pretty much has a bangin' bod all around. (Now what, pray tell, is the deal with all of my sisters-in-law? Seriously -- all three of my brothers' wives and both of Scott's sisters have incredible bodies. Not sure how this happened but I think it's the tiniest bit unfair ...) Here's Heather with Ruby on a beach on Maui. Um ... yeah ... my arms and shoulders totally look like that.

Heather has what I like to call, "Mom smarts," it's kind of like street smarts but specifically related to running a household. If you ever have a laundry question, call Heather. If you ever want to know how to decorate a house, call Heather. If you ever want to learn how to style your child's hair, call Heather ...

Or there's this fancy 'do ...

Kidding. (I only joke because I need an excuse to put pictures of Heather's little girl up. Basically, Ava is one of my favorite little kids of all time. Even when her hair isn't crazy, she puts a smile on my face every time she walks in the room. I sure do love me some Ava!) But seriously, her Mom Smarts are killer. Here's one of my favorite tricks I learned from her -- to remove a pesky stain from clothing, try washing it and then drying it in the sun!

Heather is one of those people who can always see what needs to be done and just jumps in and does it. Try as I may, I am NOT one of these people. I finally catch on to a project that needs to be done when people like Heather have already completed about 90% of it. Even at my mom's house, she's always the one helping with the meals, cleaning up after dinner, picking up the toys, etc. And my favorite example: when we were getting ready to move from Idaho, she called me and asked if she could fly up with Ava and ... help me pack! Seriously? Who does that?

And I could go on and on, but as you know, I'm doing two posts in one day, which is a record for me, but finally I'll say, Heather has always been such a good friend of mine. I still remember meeting her for the first time at Utah State at Spencer's house. I thought she was so nice and such a darling girl. One of my favorite memories is right before I went on my mission (Dec. '00) I was crocheting a scarf. I asked Heather's input (due to her impeccable taste) about the colors and design and she helped me create a "cute" scarf (as "cute" as my mediocre crocheting abilities allowed me to create). Christmas came just a week after I left on my mission and she opened her present from me and guess what it was? You guessed it Sherlock Holmes -- the scarf. When my mom later told me Heather cried when she opened it, I cried too. I've always loved Heather and am so glad she is part of our family!

We love you Heather!
Happy Birthday!

This One Goes Out to the One I Love

2008-05-22T01:06:00.000-06:00

Today, one of my favorite people in the whole world, who also happens to be my sister-in-law, is having a birthday...

Happy 21 Kate!!!

Here are 21 reasons why I love Kate:

1) She's not afraid to look awesome.

2) She was, is, and always will be a huge troublemaker. The proof is in the pudding ... this one started young (and also started months of investigation and visits to her home by DCFS).

3) She can make me laugh harder than almost anyone. Once, Becca {Scott's other sister} ripped on Kate's nose and said she {Becca} had the best nose in the family. Surprisingly, Sharon {the mom} sort of agreed with Becca saying, "Yes, you do have a great nose." Kate got all up in arms about Sharon not defending her schnoz and then turned to Becca, "Well?!? What about me?" Becca sarcastically replied that at least she had good lobes. I about died! That was all she could come up with? Good earlobes? But Kate looked at me, shrugged her shoulders, smiled and said, "I DO have good lobes. They're meaty!"

4) She is a HUGE part of my kids' lives. I think she might almost love them as much as I do. With newborn Henry...

5) She was brave enough to be in the delivery room when I had Ruby ...
6) ... and took beautiful pictures with her mad photography skillz.
7) She doesn't care what other people think. In high school she'd wear a full sweat suit, moccasins, and pull her hair back in a wet bun (as many days in a row as she could get away with). She has since solemnly declared Monday as "Sweat Pants Monday." Please join her in her religious observance of this holy day.

8) She can bring the freak out in me like nobody's business. Like the time in the car I just bust out singing along with Eminem, "the moment, you own it, you better never let it go, do NOT miss this chance you've got 'cuz opportunity knocks once in a lifetime..." or however that goes. Kate, apparently, thought it was hilarious. She cracked up laughing so hard that I suddenly realized she was NOT laughing with me, she was laughing at me -- here I was, her prehistoric sister-in-law, who has borne children into the world, singing -- or shall I say rapping? -- along with Eminem.

9) She knows how to make time out FUN! {Only a fun aunt would go behind mom's back and sneak over to time out boy and start messin' around. Kate, that's not what time out is for! All my hard work just went down the drain!}

10) She is the biggest Christmas fanatic I have ever met. Last year Sharon said she was too tired to put up and take down Christmas decorations (mind you, Kate lives away at college). She might as well have just told Kate that she herself killed Santa, the Easter Bunny, and Bambi in one fell swoop. Kate was shocked, horrified, outraged, and deeply, deeply hurt. Which leads me to my next point...

11) Kate is the master of all major manipulators. She can convince almost anyone to do almost anything. So ... guess who ended up putting up all the Christmas decorations last year?

12) Speaking of Christmas ... she is shameless about her excitement for opening presents. Birthdays, Hanukkah, Memorial Day -- you name it -- she wants presents! Every year she rigs the siblings exchange in Christensen family so things work out just right {she and Becca refuse to "draw" each other's name because they still want to get presents from each other and us! Shameless I tell ya! LOL!}. I think in this picture she was sad that she hadn't gotten enough presents.

13) She eats, breaths, and sleeps Dr. Pepper, which she has been quoted as saying is "the only good thing I have going in my life." She would give up the following things in exchange for Dr. Pepper: legos, water, food, air, ninja turtles, and men {okay, maybe not men but definitely the rest of those useless things}.

14) She is one of the sweetest, most caring people I know.{and also has a pretty bangin' bod!}

15) She and her BFF, Seth, were serious filmmakers while in their youths. They took their Disney music videos VERY seriously, at least until the age of ... 16!!!

16) She is picky when it comes to men! She always complains that she doesn't have a boyfriend and I say, "Look around! Everyone else with a significant other has already lowered their standards! What are you waiting for? Chad Michael Murray?" {Or are you of the James Lafferty sort? I can never remember. And hey! Are you proud of me for googling OTH to find out their names? Oh the things I do for you!}

17) She's not afraid to look hot and let people know how she feels about herself. She was studying the following picture shortly after it was developed, finally turned to Sharon and said, "Man, I look HOT!"

18) She is a die hard Cubs fan and gave Henry his first pieces of Cubs paraphernalia.
19) She is the most coordinated, die-hard "tuber-ist" I have ever met. She only complained for like nine months when Scott drove the snowmobile maybe a little too fast and she went whipping off the tube and sort of broke her collar bone or something super minor like that.

20) She is definitely one of my best friends!

21) And last but not least, I think she has proven herself through trials of the refiner's fire this past year -- trials more difficult than I have ever experienced. Somehow, she is coming through it and has become a stronger person, even though she may feel differently about the "stronger" part. She teaches me every day with her humor, her absolute passion and loyalty for friends and family, her love for life, and most of all, her belief in something greater than this life.

Happy Birthday Kate!
We Love You!

I Bet My 5th Anniversary Was Crazier Than Yours

2008-05-20T22:00:00.000-06:00

Last weekend was our 5th anniversary. I like to think the climbing and hippie gods smiled down on Scott because he could NOT have had a better 5th anniversary celebration even if he had planned it from day one.

One of Scott's best friends from high school, Jason (aka "Bones") and his girlfriend Sarra threw together their wedding in the last few weeks. They're both biologists and headed to Panama for two years to do field research so in order to get the deal done while still in the country, they decided there was no better place than the City of Rocks in Idaho, a mecca for rock climbers around the world. So their wedding date (May 17th) was also our five year anniversary. And the best part was ... they asked Scott to perform the ceremony, which meant he had to become an ordained minister. Awesome. I was just thinking we were missing one of those in our family. This 5th anniversary story just keeps getting better and better (as far as Scott is concerned anyway).

Knowing we had a weekend of climbing and partying (ours being the Mountain Dew/Diet Coke partying sort) with the hippies ahead of us, we opted to leave the kiddies at home with friends (THANK YOU GUYS!).

Friday, climbing in The City. It had been quite a few years for this old gal. I sort of freaked out on the rock ... don't tell anybody. In my defense, the route was pretty freakin' exposed and the mother in me just took hold of my thought process. While on the rock I kept thinking, "Why does Scott's mom let him do this? This is DANGEROUS!"

The City

Action shot of Scott . DON'T WORRY! I didn't just walk away from my belaying duties. He's RAPPELLING down from the chains, therefore my skills were no longer needed. (I'll have you know, I'm one of the best belayers around! I protect you like nobody's business while positioning myself in such a way as to soak up as many harmful UV rays possible. It's a win/win.)
Jason, the groom, morning of the wedding. I think he should fire his pillow as his hairdresser.

Best buds. Awww... (is it appropriate for the Reverend to be more dressed up than the groom?)
The bride, Sarra, making a beautiful entrance. She is such a smiley person -- I love her!

Tau, keeping the riffraff away from the ceremony site. He's such a thoughtful dog.

So Scott, one of the newest reverends with the Universal Life Church, performed a beautiful ceremony. He was funny and even the tiniest bit emotional. He and Jason have been friends since Scott was about 16 and Jason and Sarra are such COOL, GENUINE people that I think Scott felt honored to be performing their wedding ceremony.

Here's the ultra-casual, but beautiful ceremony location (you can see Tau down on the right side -- it was a little bit wacky that there were dogs practically running through the bride and grooms' legs but Jason and Sarra were all for peoples' dogs being there as they own two canine creatures).

You may kiss the bride!
30 seconds later ... (hey Scott, how's the view?)

A few more seconds later ... can you say "PASSION"?!?! I don't know about you all but our "kiss the bride" kiss was DEFINITELY NOT like this!
The happy -passionate- couple
Although it wasn't MY first choice in how to spend my 5th anniversary, we love these two and are so happy to share our anniversary with them that it was all worth it!
Happy Five Years of Bliss, Babe! May the next five be filled with just as much fun and laughter! Love you!

Scott -- Definition: A Fun Dad

2008-05-14T15:30:00.001-06:00

I'm struggling with blogging, can you tell? Oh, who cares if my posts aren't funny and end up really lame, right? At least I'm here.

So last weekend I had a little scrapbook "getaway" with a few girlfriends. Actually, we didn't really get away that far. We were supposed to go to Scott's family's cabin near Ashton, ID but due to complications, we ended up staying home but scrapping Friday night and all day Saturday at Traci's husband's dentist office (thanks again Jaeson for having us -- I had a hard time keeping those tiny pesky eyelets under control so if you find any stray ones on the floor, send 'em my way!).

So, Scott faced with a Saturday alone with the kids, did what I would for sure do -- headed to Yellowstone Park (the joke there is that is NOT what I would do, far from it; not that I'm anti-Yellowstone, I LOVE Yellowstone, but driving around all day with two wiggly kids is not really my favorite activity). But guess what? They loved it!

The highlight of the day? They watched a grizzly bear from less than 100 yds. away for about an hour! Scott said the kiddies were fascinated! Henry wanted to be up close and personal with the bear so his binoculars were a necessity. Ruby kept growling at the bear. (She's so cute these days, I can't even take it!)

The spring is our favorite time to visit Yellowstone because all the animals are so active, trying to replenish their depleted reserves from the winter (which was especially harsh this year).

The animals, however, don't look their best in the spring. The bison always look so mangy. But the baby bison are SO cute, we're willing to put up with a little mangy-ness.

If you look closely, you can see that baby's face. Awww!

Speaking of mangy ... someone get this fella a new hairdresser!

Here are the kiddies checking something out ... (sorry, I'm not such a great tour guide. I don't have the specifics.).

A few weeks ago on our way home from Utah, we passed a pair of bison cows and their new calves near West Yellowstone. One mother still had the afterbirth hanging out, which was pretty gross, but still, very cool to see such a new little wobbly baby.
We are so lucky to live so close to Yellowstone -- it's definitely one of our favorite places to visit!