A Lucky Girl



Usually when I get home from work I'm tired. I'm ready to flop down on the couch and not move until I get up to zombie walk to the bed. I rush to get the kids ready for bed and rationalize not giving them a little more time when I haven't seen them all day. Part of me misses them, but the more exhausted part seems to usually win.
Tonight, as usual, I rushed through the bed time routine with the kids, flopped down and focused the rest of my energy on Pinterest. It wasn't long before Tegan was yelling for water. Annoyed I stomped down to her room to give her some water and then saw her sweet little face. I squished next to her on the bed and she seemed so happy I'd decided to join her. She listened to me sing off key to her and smiled the whole time, and then grabbing on to me told me she wouldn't let me leave. We played and chatted for a while and it was one of those moments where I realized that as she gets older there will be less and less of these moments. Someday she might be annoyed when I'm begging for a little attention.
I know myself well enough to know that I won't be cuddling up every night next to my girls to watch them sleep or ponder on what a lucky girl I am to have them in our family, in our life, but I'm grateful for these moments that come from time to time to remind me that I really am a lucky, blessed girl.

Fun in the Snow!

There are a few advantages to living up top a big bad hill. We get a little more snow than the rest around here. Jessie didn't let us lounge for long before physically dragging us outside to play with her. I realized the novelty of enjoying a fresh snowfall doesn't wear off when you get older.
Tegan didn't last quite as long as Jess but she rolled and patted down the snow like a pro making our snowman.
Our steep driveway was the perfect hill to sled down for the kids...and Tom too.
Eager to head outside.
Our great creation.

A Funny Conversation

Jessie: "Mom, I really want to see Heavenly Father and Jesus."
me: "Me too! What did you learn in church today?"
Jessie: "About Jesus. Either we're on his side or the devil's side-- the snake's side."
me: " Whose side are you on?"
Jessie: "Heavenly Father's side"
me: "Tegan, whose side are you on?"
Tegan: "The debel's side, the snake's side."
Jessie: "No Tegan that's the bad side you want to be on the good side!"
Tegan: "Ok."

No January Blues this Year

Usually January is my least favorite month of the year, but this year has been different. Maybe it's because I'm finally starting to feel better, maybe it's because we've been blessed with lots of dry sunny days, or it could be that I'm loving the excuse to just curl up on the couch for a good book or movie. Whatever the reason I'm loving it. I'm enjoying the slower pace. It has given more time to relax with Tom and the girls. We've been able to read more books together, play more games, and discover more cold weather activities. It feels better not to be cursing this month and longing for warmer days. I guess January might have it's place in this world after all.

Take a Guess

Tom and I, or maybe just I am dying to know if this little babe inside is a boy or a girl. We find out in four weeks. My coworkers have informed me that the Chinese birth chart says boy, and Tommy said that if the Ducks won the Rose Bowl it would mean a boy, but I'm not so convinced given our current track record. I'd love to hear your opinion/thoughts. What do you think???

Jessie's Proclamation

Today Jessie informed me as she was chowing down that she loved her tuna fish sandwich so much that she was going to marry it. I had to laugh thinking that this was coming from a girl who ate nothing but chicken nuggets and canned green beans for like the first 3 years of her life. Doesn't tuna fish seem way off that path??? The girl requests it morning noon and night. There is no wrong time to eat a tuna fish sandwich in Jessie's eyes. So here's to tuna that just might single-handedly help Jess gain a pound or two this year, supposing her mercury levels don't get too high first :)

December was a great month for our family. I always find myself mildly overwhelmed, but craving the chaos at the same time. I wish I would have been more diligent about taking pictures, but for reasons previously mentioned, I wasn't.


Jess had her 2nd dance performance. Unfortunately I couldn't get any good pictures with the camera but she made us proud. She's taking a break from dance and will be doing karate for the next couple of months. A little blonde ninja in the making...

We went to one of our favorite parades in Keizer. It was cold, but we dressed warm and filled up on hot chocolate while the kids waited for Santa to pass by.
We did our annual cookie "stocking" with the Fullers. The delivery of our tasty treats was one of our most thrilling years yet, including a dog sniffing us out.
We attended our first Ugly Sweater Party at the Johnson's house. Sadly our last minute pick of sweaters on the way to their house weren't as hideous as we'd hoped. We were very impressed by the picks of our friends though. I thought Jessie's sweater was pretty nasty, but I couldn't for the life of me get her out of it. With some bribing we finally peeled it off of her.


The kids had fun on Christmas day and we got a kick out of the result of the girls dressing themselves.
We made the rounds on Christmas day to Tom's family and my family. Here's the newlyweds my sister Rachel and her husband Jeremy.

After Christmas we made our trek to the Hathaway's house once again to enjoy the New Year. The dry weather allowed us to go hiking one day with the kids.


The young kids celebrated their New Year at 9:00 pm banging pots and pans and probably confusing the neighbors.
This is most of the kids waiting for Tom's famous Blue Man Story. Gotta love that blue man.

We got to finish our break by watching the Ducks take the Rose Bowl with friends. I can't think of a better way to end it. We were sad to have it all come to an end and were quickly growing accustomed to our new life free of much responsibility. It didn't help that today when I went to work I was unpleasantly surprised with mouse droppings in my file cabinet. Well, speaking of real life, it's time to end this and make my shopping list because our fridge is EMPTY. Happy New Year!