Happy Birthday Caleb!

Today is my brother Caleb's birthday. He doesn't read my blog, but I still want to say happy birthday anyway. Caleb was one of my best friends when I was little, even though there is almost a 10 year difference in our age. He helped me with science projects and one time he helped me build a model plane for school. I remember my mom sending me down to his room on Saturday mornings to wake him up. He would have me climb under the covers so he could go back to sleep and I was quite happy to hang out. When Caleb was in high school they had a donkey ball game. The basketball team played basketball while riding on donkeys. I'm sure Caleb's friends all had dates, but he took me with him. Afterward he took me out for ice cream. What an awesome brother. Caleb is still a good friend, I know he would do anything for me. He is such a hard worker and a great dad. I love my big brother!

10 years ago today

I said okay. Okay to what you ask? Ten years ago Ben and I were watching a movie at his parents house with his sister. During the movie, Ben leaned over and pointing to my CTR ring asked if I wanted to get a new one of those. I wanted to make sure I understood, so I asked what and he replied by asking me if I wanted to get a new ring. Once again, I wanted to really understand, so I made him come right out and ask me. He finally asked if I wanted a diamond ring and would I marry him. I said, okay! I wanted to yell, YES! But for some reason I just said, okay. Immediately we searched for a calendar. Neither one of us wanted a long engagement, we decided on April 5th, a Thursday. The next day we announced to our families and on Monday we went shopping for a new ring. Good memories!

Addy the Romantic

Addy has been reading the "Little house on the prairie" series of books. She has been cruising through them and loving them. Saturday she came upstairs and said "I can't believe it, it finally happened." "What?" I asked. "Almonzo finally asked Laura to marry him. (sigh)"
I haven't read the books yet, I know I can't believe it either, I asked Addy if Laura called Almonzo "Manly". I remembered that part from the TV series. A few days later she told me that Laura calls him Manly in the books. Then she started to gush about how he really is manly. It gave me a good laugh. Its funny that she gets grossed out if Ben and I kiss, but she likes to read about Laura and Manly and their romance. Now that she is finished with all of the books, maybe I can borrow them.

I'm not on a diet, I'm on a journey

After a meltdown a few weeks ago, I decided it was time to make some changes. I want to be healthier and hopefully lose some weight too. My plan is to exercise 6 days a week, eat healthier and drink more water. I'm basically following the eat less move more plan. I hate diets. Every time I have tried a diet, I feel worse because I am hungry all the time. I also hate saying that I won't eat certain foods, because then they seem all that more desirable. My eating plan is working so far. Nothing is "off limits". I'm trying to be conscious of my portion sizes and the foods/calories I'm eating. I exercise for about 45 minutes in the morning and drink about 1 gallon of water during the day. I eat 3 meals and at least 2 snacks every day. What's amazing to me is that with all of these little changes, I don't crave the sweets and junk food I normally do. And if I do crave it, I give in, but I don't binge, I just eat a little chocolate. So far, I have lost 6 lbs. and I feel a lot better. I have a lot more energy during the day and I am definitely getting more done. My knees hurt pretty bad, but they are hanging in there with a little help from glucosamine and ibuprofen. I also have been praying for help and I am receiving it.
Have you seen those commercials for Progresso soup? You know the one where the lady is at the store in her wedding dress? I told Ben I wish I could fit in my wedding dress, he told me that was a great goal. My first goal is to be able to fit into my wedding dress again by the end of summer. That means I have to drop 3-4 dress sizes in the next 7 months. Don't worry, I don't plan on wearing my wedding dress to the grocery store and talking into a tin can. I'm just giving myself a realistic goal to start with. I am so lucky to have a supportive husband. Ben has always told me I'm beautiful and that he loves me no matter what. Lately he tells me all the time that he's proud of me, that helps motivate me a lot. Wish me luck on my journey!

Memories...

I'm always amazed at how smells can trigger memories. Yesterday I polished my old scuffed up shoes. When I opened the can of shoe polish, I had a flashback to my childhood. I was sitting at the counter in our kitchen watching my dad shine his shoes. He had this big shoe shine kit in a wooden box. My dad wore a suit and tie to work every day and so it seemed like he shined his shoes a lot. I remember watching him brush and buff his shoes until they were shiny and looking like new. My shoes are looking shiny and new too. Its nothing special, but it was still a sweet memory to me.

I love my little curlylocks

Twirly Skirts

Grandma and Grandpa Williams gave the girls pettiskirts for Christmas. Needless to say they love them.

All about Maren

marker and runny nose on her face

Maren has changed so much in the last few months. She's growing up way too fast. Here is a little update on what she is up to.
Maren can walk, run and climb. She is quite the climber. She loves to climb up on the piano bench and play the piano. She also loves to climb up on the kitchen chairs.
Maren doesn't say many words yet, but she communicates pretty well. She can say mama, dada, un-uh(no), Stella (her doll), bye, uh-oh, nana (bedtime),look and what's that. She also nods her head yes or no and is usually accurate with her answers. She is quite the tease. She loves to run away and be chased, especially when it's time to leave the house. She loves to explore and play with her sisters toys. She likes to "help" mom with the laundry and cleaning. She loves playing with her big sisters and loves when daddy comes home. She likes to color. She got a hold of a dry-erase marker the other day. She colored all over herself, the windows, the window-sill and my book. She's a good girl, but she certainly has a temper. If she doesn't get her way, look out. She can scream and cry for a very long time.
We often call Maren the Gremlin, or Little Miss Mischief. She is always getting into something. She dumped out all of the pictures in our gospel art picture kit and spread them all over the floor. It amazes me how much damage she can do in seconds, let alone minutes.
Maren has been more lovey lately. She will give hugs and kisses at bed time, and she will also kneel down for family prayer. She is such a sweet, good girl. I'm so happy she's part of our family.

January...the blah month

After the first day of nursery

Another tooth gone

I'm so tired of seeing snow and feeling the cold. I'm ready for the warmth and sunshine and flowers. January is the blah month for me. I don't make resolutions, because I just don't keep them. I try to reflect and think of things that I need to work on, but no resolutions. This year I was reflecting and kind of hit bottom for a few minutes. My weight is so out of control right now, and all of my joints hurt. So, I'm trying to do something about it. I've been getting up at 6 so that I can exercise. So far, so good. I'm trying to eat healthier, it doesn't always happen, but I think I'm doing okay. I upped my water intake by about 400 times. I've never been much of a drinker;) I'm feeling better, eating less and moving more. Hopefully by next January, there will be a good bit less of me.
In other blah news, Maren is still sick. She's been sick since before Christmas. She has a nasty cough and runny nose and has been so grouchy. Some days I'm ready to pull out my hair because of her tantrums. I just figured we had hit the terrible ones. I finally took her to the doctor on Friday. Dr. Glade looked at me and said she has reason to be grouchy, her left ear drum was ready to burst. She has a sinus and ear infection. Great! Another awesome mom moment. She is now on the yummy pink medicine and is starting to feel better. She was actually pretty happy today. Poor kid.
I try to be a positive person, so here are the good things from this month. Sydnee lost another tooth, Maren went to nursery for the first time last week (her nose wasn't running and she wasn't really coughing last Sunday) She loved nursery, hallelujah! Last night we went to the baptism preview meeting for our stake. Addy learned all about what it will be like when she is baptized, she is so excited. I'm excited too. She will be baptized with four of her friends from our ward. Today we went to BYU with my parents to see the Carl Bloch exhibit. It was a small exhibit and crowded, but it was very nice. He was such a talented man. His artwork is beautiful. Afterward, we went to Brick Oven for lunch. The pizza was tempting, but I stayed away from the gluten and stuck to the salad bar. Tonight Addy has her second piano recital. January isn't all blah, but I'm still looking forward to spring.

Christmas 2010

The cast of the Nativity play

mesmerized by Grandpa's train

Silly nephew

sorting

WOW!

Maren got a "quiet book" for church, hopefully it will work

matching jammies

I love the look on her face

We had a great Christmas this year. I tried really hard to focus on the real meaning of Christmas and to just enjoy things. I did pretty good, except for the frustrations of finishing the doll house.
We spent Christmas Eve with my family. We had a yummy dinner and the kids played the piano for us and acted out the nativity. I love spending the evening with my family, I love watching my kids play with their cousins. I think one of the funniest events of the evening was watching Maren try to steal baby Jesus from Mary (Sydnee). She threw quite the fit, luckily Ben caught it on video. The girls loved their new pajamas and got ready for bed pretty fast. We tracked Santa on NORAD and then went to bed. Santa visited our house and left us lots of presents.
The girls were up and ready to open presents, but Maren was still asleep. We fed Addy and Sydnee breakfast to try to distract them. Finally, Maren got up and they tore into the presents. Addy and Sydnee loved the dollhouse. I had a chat with Santa and between him and both sets of grandparents, their house is fully furnished. Maren loves her new little kitchen and tea set. She didn't tear into the presents like I expected her to. She loved seeing everything and toting it around. Next year, I'm sure she will understand more. After opening everything, we went to my parents to exchange gifts with my siblings and nephews. I think I won favorite Aunt this year. We gave my two older nephews remote control helicopters and the younger one a remote control train. They were a huge hit, so much so that we had to go to Macey's Monday morning to get a few more helicopters. We ended the day with Ben's family. It wasn't as chaotic there as other years and was fairly relaxing. We left when Maren hit melt down mode. It was a nice day and I am so grateful we could spend time with our families. I am so grateful for the best gift of Christmas, my savior Jesus Christ. I am grateful for his birth and for his atonement. It truly is the best gift of all.

Where did December go?

Ben the reindeer and the mystery girl

two of my favorite uncles playing penny hose

playing face the cookie

Maren wasn't too sure about Santa

Sydnee singing

The only good shot of Addy at the school sing

Mr. Macho, I don't need a coat

Sydnee the snow angel

Addy and her snowman

The finished doll house

Matching Christmas dresses (the girls asked to dress alike)

G&G Williams playing the Wii

Maren ate so much that she had to lean back
if you look close you can see all the rice stuck to her shirt

GF dinner at Thaifoon=Yummy!

Didn't we just start December? I can't believe that Christmas is over and the new year has started. Since I am way behind, I will just re-cap the events of December.

• Carter Christmas party-my favorite Christmas party. We had lots of fun and even had some new family members show up that we had never met. Okay, they really weren't related, and we don't know who they are, but we showed them a good time. We played games from the show Minute to Win it.
  
• School Christmas sing-I love to go and hear my little angels sing. They looked so cute, Sydnee looked a little scared, but still cute.
• Neighborhood party-what happens at the party stays at the party. We laughed so much that my face hurt. Good times!
  
• The Nutcracker-I have loved the Nutcracker ballet since I was little. This year I took my girls to see it for the first time. They loved it. Addy kept saying "wow, this is so cool" We took Grandma and Grandpa Williams and Aunt Camille. I would love to make this a yearly tradition.
• The Polar Express-the miniature version. One of Ben's co-workers and his family have a miniature railroad in their yard and they let us come and ride the polar express. It was short and sweet.
  
• Sick kids-not a highlight, but we have all taken our turn in the last few weeks.
• While everyone was sick, we also had cabin fever. We remedied this by going to JCW's for dinner (when you eat at 4, there aren't any crowds) then we drove through the lights at Thanksgiving Point and had custard at Coney's. This took care of our cabin fever for a day or so.
• Woke up to lots of snow one morning, Addy and Ben built a snowman.
• Top secret project-I fixed up my dollhouse to give to my girls. It tested my patience and I made many trips to Hobby Lobby, but they love it and that's all that counts.
• Christmas-I'll do a separate post for this, but it was great!
• Temple Square-We have never taken the kids to see the lights at Temple Square. Everyone was healthy enough to go and we had a great time. The kids loved it. We had a fabulous dinner at Thaifoon, yummy!
  
• Temple date-Ben and I were able to go to the temple together and then go to lunch. It was the perfect date.
• Christmas take-down-I have to admit that the decor and all were really starting to cause me anxiety. I love the Christmas spirit, but the chaos was getting to me.
• New years eve party- We had my parents over for a dinner of appetizers, or hors duvers as we like to call them. We ate until we were stuffed and then played Wii. We even got my parents to play. We had a great time, and I was asleep by 10.
• Today is the last day of vacation. I have enjoyed having Ben and the kids home for the last two weeks, but I am definitely ready to get back to a steady routine.
  
• 2 o'clock church-not a highlight, but hopefully when Maren is well, we can actually stay for the full 3 hours of church. We usually take Maren home after sacrament for a nap. Only 3 more weeks until she can go to nursery, yeah!