The twins turn Three!!!

Jadeyn and Cortland's birthdays were so much fun. Having both families here gives us an opportunity to celebrate twice! In our family we kind of like to make it a birthday week celebration. The morning of the birthday we always decorate their door with notes, streamers and balloons! They love walking out to it. We celebrated with my side of the family on the 13th and Andy's side the 15th. We had such a great time!

A little Sign I made and with each birthday I can change out the names!

Their three year picture!

Cortlands car cake!
Jadeyns castle/princess cake. I have never claimed to be good at decorating cakes. I do like doing it though. It is so fun to see the finished project after just picturing it in your mind!

Our family minus 2!

Paxton asleep as usual.

We were so lucky to have the party Monday night because Cherise and Karl were here. It was fun having them be a part of their birthday celebration. We actually had a turkey dinner supplied by Andy's dad's work. It was his Christmas gift from his company. It was so yummy and they even supplied us with a equally delish chocolate mouse cake! They had such a fun time.

The Loot...

J-

Sleeping Beauty Movie

Sleeping Beauty Dress up

Sleeping Beauty Doll

Pink scooter

Cute clothes
Magnet Doll Book

Bear

Puppy Dog"Emily" from build a bear

Princess stuff

C-

Gator Golf

Cute Clothes

Red Scooter

Bear

Monkey "monkey" from build a bear

Wall E movie

Cars stuff
Big sticker book

Build A Bear

In efforts to keep this little place in buisness we decided to patronize this place for the twinsbirthday. Just kidding. My parents took Bennett there for his third birthday and they have decided to make that a tradition. The kids loved it. They were so excited to go pick out whatever they wanted. They even got darling little outfits. J got a ballerina/princess outfit...no surprise there, and C got a soccer uniform. No surprise there either, that boy is obssed with ANYTHING sports! It was so fun and such a fun thing to do with Grandma and Grandpa! Thanks so much mom and dad for making these two feeling so special just like you ALWAYS do!

They each had such a hard time chosing which animal they wanted.Kissing the heart.

Filling his monkey.

Caught on tape...

It never seems to fail as soon as your bring out your camera child will stop doing whatever it is you want to snap a photo of, especially when it is first smiles. Luckily on this particular day I could tell while snapping a few shots he was going to smile and sure enough he did and I caught it! Love this boy!

Do not mind the onesie! My mom thought he was hot at the shower and quickly disrobed him!

Baby Shower

My present to her! It is a basket of "my favorite things"! My favorite soap, bottle, nursing pads and cream, diapers, wet wipes, sleeper, and a few other things. It was fun to make!

My cousin Nichole is having a baby next month. We are all so excited. This will be the first great grandchild other than my children so it is pretty big deal. It is weird to think of my Aunt being a grandma! She seems so young! They do not know what they are having so it will be fun next month to see what we will be adding to the mix!

I made this little board book as well to include in her basket. We were all supposed to bring a book in leiu of a card. It was so fun to make and super easy. It was a really great unique gift too. On each page I had mom, dad, grandma, grandpa, aunt, great grandma, great grandpa and a family picture. With each page it says..this is my... On the back I have a little photo of me saying made by your favorite second cousin!

She had a great shower. It was held at my moms house. She got amazing gifts! It was so fun! We all had a great time and now are just counting down till baby Tyler(maybe) or Emma
(maybe) is here!

Aunt Nan practicing!

Office Party

YUMMO!!!!

So SO good!

This a dentist that shadowed Andy for a few months. He and his wife came too. It was funny because between these two couples at this table there are 9 children!

This year Andy's office decided to have the party at the Melting Pot. Believe me I was NOT complaining! It was so fun. I can't get enough of that place. I have only been there twice, but once a month would be nice...now only if we could afford that! I should try to get some recipes to try my own! It makes my mouth water right now just thinking about it!

At his office they decided to do a gift exchange this year. It was so fun. We got a beautiful clock that will look perfect in our basement. The girls gave Andy a nice gift certificate to Red Lobster, my fave, and a picture frame with his whole "team" in it. They gave me a gift certificate and a sweet family book too. They are such a great group of girls. Andy is so lucky to have found such a great group of girls. We gave them gift certificates as well with a little pamper yourself kit from bath and body.

Another fun thing is all the fun stuff Andy got from local Orthodontists and Endodontists and Periodontists! We got SO many gift certificate/cards and delish treats the whole month long! It was SO fun I must admit. What they will do to get a referral from one of the best dentists around!

Novemeber still

In Novemeber my sweet little Paxton started to become vocal. SO sweet! It melts my heart to here all his coos. Jadeyn would always run to me and say "Mom Paxton said A-GOO!" We are all a little impressed by his sweet sounds. I have to say though I am rather embarrassed by MY voice. Just don't listen to me:)!http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrBWj1opXIk

Seriously everytime I watch this I LOVE IT MORE! When he squints his eyes I seriously can't contain myself!

My Goals

One of my goals today is to get updated with my blog.

Since this is my family journal of sorts,

it is frustrating when I fall behind because this is our family history.

Today I downloaded my photos and finally here come the posts.

I am like three months behind.

I am also adding photos to posts I have already posted.

So throughout the day I will be posting post after post.

Wish me luck...my camera had 552 photos on it!

Sweet boy Maddox, Happy Birthday

Tomorrow is my little darling boy's birthday. I cannot believe he is TWO YEARS OLD. Well I can, but it has just gone by so fast. He seems so much older than one, so of course he should be two, but still, my babies are growing up!

Most of you know that Maddox was a huge SURPRISE. I am talking HUGE! Not only were we covering all of our bases with birth control, I was nursing twins and it had taken me three years to get pregnant with the twins. To say I was shocked by a positive pregnancy test would be a huge understatement. It is weird though when something you weren't planning for comes and makes SO much since.

Maddox is such a sweet little boy. He walks around so content and rarely is in need of something. His smile is like no other smile I know. There is something so bright and familiar to it, something almost magical with a sweet sparkle in the pupils. It just melts my heart. He is a sweetheart through and through and I honestly know that he was sent to me because of his disposition, just calm and tender. It helps that our fourth child born a year after twins, has these attributes.

He thinks and acts like he is one of the twins. He is so sweet to baby Paxton and is Bennett's best friend. He is a TOTAL daddy's boy! I think he likes his mama a little bit too:)! He so fits in to our little home. I have to say though the best part of my sweet little Maddox is...HE IS MINE!!!!

Maddox, Happy Birthday buddy! I love you so much. I know there is no way to express to you the love we have for you. You are truly a sweet spirit. I have always said the toughest thing about being a parent is knowing there is no way my children could possibly know how much I love them. That is hard for me. But I promise to every day try to make you understand it and feel it.

Fun

Saw this on a blog and thought it was neat. I've done all the ones that are BOLD
1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii {is planning on going for her 10 yr anniversary!}
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris {will someday!}
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child {will someday, hopefully!}
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France {I will when I do #12}
20. Slept on an overnight train {no, but have always wanted to}
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon {does hubby count:)?}
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice {on my to do list}
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise {hopefully soon!}
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person {probably this year}
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language {am trying and have tried in the past!}
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied {working on it, probably never though till school is paid off!!!!}
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa { I want to go on a safari SO bad!}
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance {child did}
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Gone without food or water for 24 hours or longer
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris {again, will be done once I do #12}
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling { I don't want to, but I am sure I will get suckered into w/ A!
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business {started a killer babysitting buisness in 7th grade}
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Stayed up for 24 hours with NO sleep at all
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma {never will be able to again!}
65. Gone sky diving {no, but I am sure Andy will get me to do this too!}
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar {Thanks Leute!}
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square {again, hopefully this year!}
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Changed a lightbulb
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Mowed the lawn
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
Man, I really like to travel and want travel a lot in the future according to this!:)
TOTAL:55! How many have you done?

From one year to the next

I am not sure how it is the end of the year already. It is hard to believe that 365 days have passed since the last year at this time. It is always kind of weird to me that from one day to the next we have changed years. One moment it is 2008 and the very next moment is 2009.

Last year on New Years Eve we were all in bed early. We were all VERY sick and we just kept passing it around to each other. It was miserable. The year before we were in Chicago just our little family. We just had gotten back in town that day from being with family. We rang in the New Year together and made candy cane popcorn. It was so fun. Just us. It has since been one of my most favorite New Years Eve.

This year we are having a little family party. Lots of snacks and treats. Lots of games and lots of fun. Our grub for the night...
PW Queso Dip
Bufallo Chicken Dip
Bacon Cup Thingy's
Little Weinies
Chips and Salsa and Guac
Veggies and dip
Rye Bread and dill dip
Fruit Pizza
BTS cake
and a Chocolate Peanut Butter Fondue with Fruit, Marshmallows and cake {We are going to try out chocolate fountain out tonight! We have only had it for 3 years!}

I absolutely loved 2008. Although I was sick for most of it due to a rather interesting pregnancy, I still loved it. Each year we have had as a couple has just gotten better and better. 2008 was a year of great family time, stable job, making our house and home, having a sweet baby, learning and growing together and constantly on the move.

I have great hopes for 2009. I have hopes for a healthy family {no pregnancy here}, continued growth for us all physically, mentally and spiritually. I have great hopes to loose my mommy tummy as well as 30 pounds. I have hopes of reading my scriptures more and by my birthday. I have hopes for being to actually being able to say no to things. To have enriching family nights. To teach my children the important things. To have fun with our children. Oh, and the list goes on and on. And I hope I can finally download some pictures to post on here and catch up on my blogging!

I hope you all have a safe and happy New Years Eve and that whatever goals and resolutions you may make this year you will be able to accomplish them and beyond!

Two updates...

Andy dug and dug the day after Thanksgiving...13 hours to be exact. Frozen ground + too small shovel+little man power=not getting the couch in the basement!

I am not sure if I have actually posted on here, but we did get our couch into our basement! I am so surprised by how many of you have been so concerned by this. I had over 5 people ask about them in the Christmas cards and have had several emails. All I can say is now I am wishing we would have chose the walk out basement, but those things creep me out!My brother Kyle and his vast amount of tools came to the rescue and after about an hour of digging the decided to just cut the well to the window in half and then after the couch was in just put it back together with some tools and stuff(no idea), but it worked! Kyle got a whole cheesecake to take home. That was the least I could do to get our couch in the house FINALLY!!!

I mentioned a few months ago that we have a million dollar baby. Paxtons stay in the hospital was not cheap. That being said, there is NO dollar amount you could put on your baby's health, so I am not complaining. It was just absurd how expensive it was. Over 200,000 grand! After it was all said and done, we were responsible for a large amount. Over 30 thousand dollars. Well after calling the insurance company and talking the hospital, we got our final bill yesterday. Six hundred and forty two dollars. We do still owe to two other hospitals, but I have to say getting that bill brought tears to my eyes. It is amazing what having faith and paying your tithing will do! I think we will get away with owing around 5 thousand and that is including both of us! That is far from what we were needing to pay in the first place. I feel so grateful being blessed as much as I am.

Another funny update...I have mentioned that I have been getting a whole new mouth thanks to my hubby, the dentist! We have three sides done. We only need to do one more side and the front. That is what I am dredding. A needle in the front of the mouth is NO good! Anyway he needed to make an impression so instead of me going into the office he brought the office to me. This brings a whole new meaning of bringing your work home. I walked upstairs and it was all laid out ready for me. I was shocked! It all worked out now and I have a beautiful new white bridge to show for it!

Today

Three years ago today, my life changed forever. My life changed in miraculous ways. My life changed for the better. Not only did I have a beautiful four year old little boy, but I had two precious little babies, that still make me tear up when I picture Andy bringing them over to me laying on the surgery bed. That was a moment. To think since that day three years ago today I have had two more. I am a lucky gal.

Tonight while I was putting the twins to bed, I laid down by them each individually and talked to them about the day they were born and how blessed I feel to have as my children and I will admit I shed a few tears and Cortland said "oh, mommy your sad?" I said oh no Cortland I am SO happy. "Oh you are happy mommy?" I said ah, yes you cannot imagine how happy I am. He then said, ok, good night. I just love that boy so much. While putting Jadeyn to bed I told her how much I love her and how three years ago she made me the happiest mommy in the world. All she said back was, yeah mom you love me. I know she cannot possibly know how much I really love her, but I am so happy that she has an idea.

I will sure have more about their parties and special birthday traditions we have done this weekend. Those will be up soon.

J and C, you are my everything, ( wait is that a backstreet boy song?). There is nothing in this world more important that you in my life.

Thanksgiving!

I am so mad at myself for not taking pictures during our Thanksgiving dinner at my mom and dads. I am so mad. My mom goes all out. There is normally about 25 family members at her home for T day and we all eat on her good china, including my kids! It is so fun and she has it all set up so nicely and all her beautiful Christmas decor out! It is just so fun. The meal was amazing and I am still craving my grandmas stuffing. After the dinner was done, we retire to the table to check out the ads for the next day. I didn't find too many things I had to have, and certainly not if I had to get out of bed at 4 am!

During the day, I made my mashed potatoes, and yummy yams and we watched the parade and made some treats to celebrate the day! So cute! We had a really good day, we sure have a lot to be thankful for!

Jadeyn and Cortland think the stocking are really socks...it is so funny!

moments

so i was sitting on the couch feeding little paxton and i see bennett holding jadeyn. so cute. he is not that much bigger than her. she has an ouie and he is tapping it and i ask him why he is doing that and he proceeds to tell me that when he gets ouies he taps them and then they don't hurt. how nice of him to help her in her time of need...so.darn.cute.

i hear cortland at the table eating a peppermint stick that was just dropped off with a bunch of treats with a card attached reading you are loved, and he is telling daddy his candy corn fell in his water. all candy to him and jadeyn and maddox is candy corn. i may or may not have bribed them with to their beds for nap time during the last two weeks of my pregnancy with candy corns...shh do not tell my husband the dentist!

andy is "hosing" down maddox after a scrumptious dinner of spaghetti.

cortland is sticky.

jadeyn and bennett have now gone downstairs to the play room.

paxton is full.

my heart is SO full with SO much joy. I AM LOVED.

This week

Just sitting here typing my title has made me realize seconds are passing and I am not up doing what I need to be doing. I feel like this week is going to be slightly stressful and very busy. I have several engagements, a house to clean, laundry to keep up with, pictures to take, crafts to make, cards to address, a basement to decorate, a guest bedroom to prepare( we visitors coming Saturday for the holiday), a twin birthday party (princess & cars), oh and keep up with four small children one being a newborn, one being a one year old and two two years (not for long). Ok now I really am stressing out. Not to mention I have to download so many pictures, which is why I haven't really blogged lately because I don't have my picture available! I have a lot to do. Not to mention I am about 4 blogs behind on here. I have a lot to catch up on. Hopefully those will be posted later on today, that is on my list for the day. If you see them on here later you will know I am keeping to my list, if you don't you will know I am lazy!

Upcoming blogs...
The couch saga...ended!
Baby shower
Basement pics
Monday Makeover...master bedroom edition
Decorating for Christmas
Andy's office party at The Melting Pot
Smiling little Paxton

PS my little Cortland is SO sweet. He is just a sweet little boy with WAY WAY much enthusiasm. When sent to time out which is hardly ever he sits there forever and does not ever get up until I tell him he can, and sometimes I forget. He sits and sits like such a good little boy. So sweet. I love that boy so much. He is also just so over joyed by his upcoming birthday and Merry Christmas which is what he refers to everything Christmas. It is so cute how very excited he is ALL the time!

doing our part to help the economy

Last night while putting all of our unwrapped gifts away, Andy said to me, "well I am sure glad we are doing our part to help the economy." Funny stuff. I personally think we keep it on the small scale as far as gifts go. We do have five kids though and dozens of family memeber we gift to. Now to wrap it all. That should be fun.

*sorry to those of you who already voted on my poll, but a few of you said they spent more than what I listed, so I altered it a little bit...happy voting!

the couch saga continues...

i am so happy so many of you get my frustrations with this whole couch situation. i have gotten over 20 emails or facebook messages or replies on my blog on whether or not we have gotten our couch into our basement. the answer is no my friends...sad i know.

it is sitting in our living room at the moment. the couch for the living room should be here any day so we are hoping the big ole sectional will be in the basement any day. we finally got a hold of the guy who is doing our basement and he said, oh we will get it down there, we have gotten a couch down there for an old lady once. well he kept telling andy he would get it in there and was supposed to be here at 1 to "get it in there". andy told him that we have tried three different times with three different groups of guys and no one has been able to do it, but he still seems to think he can.

andy spent all day friday and some of saturday digging around the window well and finally gave up claiming the well never ends. he had me believing it comes out at the other end of the world. it is that deep he thinks. his poor back, legs and arms are killing him. what a trooper. he apparently really loves this couch.

anyway, we are hoping that guy can come and magically get it down there. whatever it takes he said, even if he had to rough up the house, he could just fix it. i am pretty sure it would rough up the couch before it would rough up the house, but we will see. hopefully the next update on the couch will be that it is down in the basement and will be for the life of the home...when we sell it will say something like free couch with purchase...lucky new homeowners!