Four is a big deal

Alex woke up today and said, "Mom, am I four today?"

"Yes, Al," I replied. "Today is your birthday!"

"But Mom, I'm not any taller!"

Alex has been impatient about life from the beginning. She has these deep, soulful blue eyes that tell you exactly what she’s thinking. She has a mind of her own and is not afraid to use it. She loves to help her dad in the kitchen. Al loves to help anyone, or rather, tell anyone what to do. She has so much energy and is a super fast runner.

Al, Gator, Princess, Sweet Pea, Allie - is four today.

We're so grateful for our beautiful daughter!

Post 100

In honor of my 100th post, here is a great list of 100 of the blessings in my life.

1. A Heavenly Father who knows me and loves me

2. Aaron

3. Benjamin

4. Alexandra

5. Audrey

6. My Mom

7. My Dad

8. A body that works, and can keep up with my energetic bursts

9. My brother, Jared

10. My sis, Bekah

11. My sis, Heather

12. My sis, Rissa

13. My sis, Kate

14. Aaron's Dad

15. Aaron's Mom

16. Sissy

17. Robby

18. Peanut

19. The knowledge that Bobbie Jo is safe, whole, and waiting for us in Heaven

20. The knowledge that I will meet Aaron's brother one day

21. My Grandparents

22. Janelle

23. Dave

24. Mark

(so glad that those 3 married my sibs and keep them pretty happy!)

25. My darling nieces and nephews

26. Emily and...

27. A really good haircut/color

28. Luke's wit and Blake's smiles

29. Heidi W. and...

30. the blessing of random calls to re-connect

31. DIET COKE

32. my home that keeps me and my children safe and warm

33. Air conditioning (oh, how I miss air conditioning in my house!)

34. My "ortho-wife" friends

35. birthdays

36. cell phones

37. a good pedicure

38. Flowers - if they didn't die, I would buy them more.

39. A warm blanket on a cold night

40. green grass, freshly cut, under my feet

41. The ocean

42. The smell of salty sea air

43. fresh lemonade

44. the internet

45. tampons

46. Girls' Night Out

47. Ben's report card day

48. Audrey's kisses

49. Red Robin's Guacamole Bacon Burger

50. Knowing that the Temple blessings seal my family together forever!

51. a pair of jeans that fit just right

52. a great deal on something I have wanted for a long time

53. chocolate

54. Roller Coasters

55. Alex asking for "curlies" on Sunday morning

56. fresh vegetables

57. my van - I never thought I would love it so much!

58. hard work appreciated vocally

59. learning something new

60. singing to a great song in the car at top volume

61. Shakespeare

62. watching a child learn something you have been teaching

63. my silly preschoolers

64. the dog cleaning up after Audrey eats

65. TV shows that make me laugh

66. A clean house

67. overhearing Alex sing the newest primary song to herself

68. NCAA basketball

69. Aaron's surprises

70. being able to sew

71. brownies

72. having enough money

73. knowing that I have an education and could go back to work if I needed to

74. NOT needing to!

75. unanswered prayers

76. going to the Theater to see theatre :)

77. Facebook, and not having to wonder "what ever happened to them?"

78. living in a country that is free

79. the men and women who keep this country free

80. the families who love and support those men and women

81. Christmas

82. watching Aaron grow into this amazing doctor-guy while still being the same goofy guy who asked me to marry him

83. Nick Jr and Disney Channel

84. hearing my kids ask questions about Book of Mormon stories

85. clean and folded laundry

86. Chick-fil-a chicken sandwiches

87. swimming

88. my girls in matching dresses

89. a beautiful sunset

90. ice cream

91. a great date with the love of my life

92. the ability to delete digital pictures and only print the good ones!

93. getting my day's checklist done

94. seeing that I can go "just a little bit more" at the gym

95. the Eagles and Dave Matthews Band on a long car trip

96. watching my baby fall asleep in my arms

97. a hot shower after getting really dirty/sweaty

98. my children noticing when I give change to the poor

99. my testimony

100. Knowing that Jesus Christ is my Savior!

This was an easy list to write - I have so many blessings! Thank you for reading all the way to the end!

Escape

I escaped the zoo that I call home this weekend - for a sunnier locale! (At least this weekend anyway - it rained in El Paso.) Heather had my new nephew on May 7th and named him Adam. I had to meet him.

Here is Adam and his big sister, Jenna. Jenna was my best buddy on Saturday - I had her giggling until I thought she was going to fall down! She's pretty cute - almost as cute as my Audrey. :)
I drove the 5 hours there and back through several rainstorms (note to self: Aaron's car needs new wipers - perhaps Father's day present?), and was greeted by a lovely rainbow that filled the sky yesterday. It was great. More about my trip later.

it's all fun and games until...

Thursday, it was hot. The Easter Bunny brought us a little pool, and it seemed like the perfect time to blow it up! Ben and Al retrieved their swimsuits from the depth of their drawers. Audrey pulled at the tapes on her diaper, and we haven't bought any swimmy diapers - so it was an 'au naturale' swim for her. They loved it!

Audrey kept up with the kids - she would steal the hose and spray Ben and Al when they weren't looking. This kid is sneaky.

Alex kept saying, "Watch me swim, mom! I can do it!" Nevermind that it was only about a foot deep.

Ben was loving it. Like his new smile?

It was time for dinner, so we pulled out the hamburgers and hot dogs. Audrey got a diaper and dove into the guacamole. She was green-faced throughout dinner.

After dinner, we broke all swimming rules and went in immediately. Aaron even joined in the fun, teaching the kids how to splash.

It was a fantastic night!

Until....

Yuck.

I'm not sure who got out faster - Aaron or the kids. Audrey was pretty proud of herself. Our yard got a good irrigation and swimmy diapers made our shopping list.

The end.

Guest Post

Dear Nana and Grandma, Auntie Heather, Dave, Larissa, Mark and Rose, Uncle Robbie, Sissy, Eli and Jacob, J-J, Pawpaw, Peanut, Katee and Grandpa, Auntie Bekah (oh, but she's in Iraq, remember?) Uncle Jared and Aunt Janelle (and everyone else),

It's 29 sleeps until my birthday. I've been a very good girl this year. I'm going to be 4 now, and I am gonna' be a very very very big girl. And, I'm glad that I love my mommy and daddy, and my brother and my sister. And my mommy.

This is what I would like for my birthday:

1. I would like some new clothes, like this much (motions with hands) clothes. (My mommy says size 6.)

2. Pretty hair thingys.

3. I want a shiny volcano.

4. A fur-real friend named Sassy and the dogs. (From Homeward Bound...)

5. A unicorn dress that is a princess one. And a tiara.

6. A pretend makeup stand. And a popcorn stand. And a lemonade stand. And a marshmallow one, too.

7. And a shiny volcano.

8. Dinosaurs, like a t-rex, a poke-asaurus, a fly-a-dactyl, and a baby dinosaur.

I think that's it. Mom, that's it. Thank you.

Love,

Alex

Today...

is my Temple Day! Feliz Cinco de Mayo!

What we've been up to

Back in December, we packed up the van and drove 13 hours to Houston for a visit with Aaron's family. While we were there, Jessica dragged us (haha) to Gallery Furniture where we found a table and chairs set that we couldn't part with. She found a new bunkbed and dresser set for her boys. So, our ride home was a little crazy. We had a table, 4 chairs, and a bench on the roof of the van, and our nephew's old bunkbed inside the van. It was a little crowded. The tarp shredded on the drive, and we had to drive slower to get home - making the epic drive across Texas even longer.

The bunkbed needed some TLC, and there were so many things that were more important this spring. But now, life has slowed down. Aaron is almost done with his month on Anesthesiology - a light service, thank goodness - and he's been home a bunch. We've gotten so many of the jobs we've been putting off done. This week, we sanded, stained, and assembled the bunkbed. It looks fantastic. The kids love it!

Audrey gets to be a big girl now. When she wakes up after nap or in the morning, she just gets up - no screaming from her bed. She loves the independance. I love not having to drop everything to go rescue her. :)