Smith Family Happenings

Happy New Year!

2012-01-04T20:21:00.000-08:00

So a few days into the new year and there was a water main leak on our street and we have been without running water for two days. Today we finally have water to drink and flush the toilet but there is still problems. Tomorrow I may have to run over to Mom and Dad's and shower seriously you would think I lived in a third world country!! See the little trailer on the right side of the picture that was the water supply for the street thankfully we have a water supply in our storage room and I didn't have to run out there to get water.

Besides that little obstacle I love this time of year. I love setting goals and trying harder to be better. I love trying to make lemons out of lemonade. For instance yesterday I was super frustrated about the water situation but today we just hung out, played games, and enjoyed living simply??

Natalie was giving kisses to her dinosaurs because they were sad they didn't have water!! Yeah that was the story Abby and her were telling. Do you think I might have been focused a little too much on that the past two days???

Jared is growing like crazy and puking like crazy. Seriously this kid spits up so much I can't believe he is even getting any milk but he obviously is. He smiles and laughs and is pretty easy going. He has been trying to take cat naps the last two days and is totally messing up any sort of schedule I might have had him on. Already three months old yikes does time go faster the more kids you have?? I sure feel like it does!

Christmas Fun

2012-01-04T20:09:00.000-08:00

I can't believe how fast the Christmas holidays went. It seemed we were so busy preparing and making things that it zoomed by. Here are some of the fun things we did this year!

Decorating the Gingerbread House. Always so much fun for Abby and this year Natalie got into it. Mostly they both got excited about when do we get to eat it Mom? Here it is in all it's glory!

Santa's elves were very busy this year and the girls got a puppet theatre. It turned out so cute and we have been having some amazing puppet shows from the girls. They also got some sock puppet kits from Aunt Beth and had a blast making their own puppets. Abby has been teaching me all sorts of things about marriage, honesty, and forest animals. I know a random list you never know what will come out when she says,"Mom hurry I have a puppet show for you"

You can see Jared's clothes hanging on the theater. He pretty much got spoiled with clothes this year.

Here is a picture of one of my projects that I think turned out super cute! Abby is addicted to crafts and we are slowly getting her craft area all set up. She makes at least 5 cards a day for people so I wanted to give her a place to hang them up on. Natalie also got one to match and so far has nothing on it but I am sure she will eventually catch on to the fun of crafts especially if Abby has anything to do with it.

All in all we had a great magical Christmas even though Jared looks as if he didn't enjoy it at this particular moment. We loved having Daddy home for over a week. We played lot's of games and watched lot's of movies since Santa brought us the projector for our theatre room. It has been Ryan's project pretty much since we moved in. I will have to take a pic soon .Still doing some painting and such but it is pretty sweet!

Since it has been so mild we enjoyed lot's of time at LaBarrier Park. One of our favorites and there was actually a hill that had enough snow on it to sled down. I shouldn't say hill more like a slope. Abby discovered trees and climbing on them and almost got a branch in the eye. Luckily disaster was averted and it just hit the eyelid.

We enjoyed our usual fondue with Ryan's family a favorite tradition for everyone. This year for Mom's birthday we planned a big lobster dinner well to be fair Dad did most of the planning but we participated and it was so fun. Abby is not a big seafood fan we found out and Natalie loved it and kept asking Grandma for more!!! Abby did enjoy putting the lobsters to sleep before we cooked them.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!!

Smith Family Christmas Letter 2011

2011-12-23T13:30:00.000-08:00

2011 was a year of fun

We renovated our house then moved to a new one.

Two trips to Alberta brought a lot of joy.

Now everyone is anticipating all the Christmas joy.

Abby is our busy girl who turned four this year.

She loves being in joyschool and shows no fear.

She took soccer and swimming had all sorts of fun.

Mostly she loves doing arts and crafts a ton.

Her first presentation in primary was a hit.

She said her memorized scripture without a fit.

Natalie turned two and loves to climb.

She is always on the go wasting no time.

Her baby brother is her new favorite toy.

Giving everyone hugs and kisses brings her joy.

She loves to sing and dance,

Banging on the piano whenever she has a chance.

Jared was slow in coming to earth

Mom had an induction and a slow birth.

He loves to smile and make a lot of sound.

His sisters love having him around

He loves to sleep which Mom adores

He’s growing like crazy and never a bore.

Ryan has been really busy this year.

Doing our renovations with no fear.

Many wood projects and house projects too.

Serving in young men’s and ward mission leader too.

Being a Dad brings him great joy.

Playing with the kids and making them toys.

Jessica has become a mother of three.

And often runs around like a busy bee.

Making our house into a home.

Taking the time to write this poem.

Serving in the Primary and Relief Society too.

Trying to balance life as we all do.

Family visitors came for special days.

Away from ICU with maternity pay.

Thanks for reading about our year.

Hope it wasn’t too much to hear.

Merry Christmas to you and all those you hold dear.

We wish you the best in the coming year!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

Christmas time is here!!!

2011-12-23T13:24:00.000-08:00

As usual I am behind in the blog but here as some of the fun things we have been doing to get ready for Christmas!! Making snow angels in the front yard and decorating with colored water in the backyard!

We went and chopped down our own tree again this year. It was so much fun. You don't get the perfect tree but the experience is well worth it!
We also are doing the 12 Days of Christmas this year which has been so much fun. The kids get really excited to run, ring the doorbell, and watch as the people open the door!
We went carolling on Monday for FHE to a few houses and Abby was so excited she sang jingle bells all night long both in and out of the car!

Jared is mostly taking in all the girls excitement, screaming, giggles you know.

Only two more sleeps and then hopefully Mommy will be able to get some sleep!!

Merry Christmas!!

Happy Halloween

2011-11-10T18:55:00.000-08:00

Better late then never I always say. Well actually I hate being late and never say that but I am finding these days the blog is getting pushed out to the no time category hence writing about Halloween two weeks late. Anyway had to share our cute Halloween pics. It was so fun this year. Abby was so into it. Natalie burst out crying at the first door but once she got some candy she was really into it. Jared came to a few houses then handed out the candy with Grandma. All in all we had a great holiday here are my cutie pies in their costumes!! Natalie was a giraffe and Abby was a dog.
I didn't dress Jared up but he has some pretty good facial expressions without a costume so I figured he didn't need one yet.

This is us on the way out. Yes I was a total lamo and dressed up as a nurse. Ryan went as a cowboy but we didn't get his pic for some reason??

This is one of my favorite pics of the night. The two girls looking so independant and so eager to get to the next place. I feel like they are growing up soooo fast!!!!! Oh and by the way the weather was so fantastic like probably the warmest Halloween I have ever experienced thus far in Winnipeg!! Pretty awesome!!!

Happy Turkey Day!!!

2011-10-09T20:31:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to say I am so grateful for these fine people!!! Have a great Thanksgiving!!!

Oh and for this awesome guy!! Check out Jared's tie that Ryan made this morning before church. He is so excited to have a little boy to get ready. Pretty fun stuff!!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Jared

2011-10-05T19:56:00.000-07:00

Jared Alan Smith

Well here is my handsome little man who finally decided to come with a little help from the medical world. Since I was 12 days past my date I got put onto the induction list. I got called on Saturday afternoon while I was at the RS Service Project. We headed off to the hospital but nothing started to happen with the first step so we got sent back home. I finally started having regular contractions in the night and we headed back. Anyway to make a long story short I ended up on the IV and Jared came after a long day of labour. He arrived on September 25 at 6:45pm weighing 9lbs 1oz and measuring 21 1/4 inches. He has beautiful blue eyes like both his sisters and a nice head of strawberry blonde hair. Everyone keeps asking who he looks like I never know so here he is for you to decide. He does have his Daddy's fingers, toes, and personality. So far he is consistently eating every two hours and is growing and changing.

The second most asked question is how do his sisters like him? As you can see from this pic they both are pretty happy. They are always asking for turns to hold him and wanting to take pictures with him. Natalie is a little agressive and I am patiently repeating the word gentle about 1million times/day and maybe not so patiently by 4pm but we are working on it.

We are all very excited that he finally arrived and I am loving having a newborn to rock and cuddle.

Welcome to the world Jared!!!

HEHEHE!!!

2011-09-19T18:53:00.000-07:00

So remember my last post. I was so excited to be done work and eagerly awaiting arrival of number 3 preferrable before the 12th because that was way too far away. Well it is now September 19 and this little one has still decided not to come. HMM maybe a stubborn personality????
My doctor spoke the dreaded word induction today. Not that I don't want the baby to come I just had this dream of doing it all by myself. The kids keep bugging me because I told them it was coming and it still isn't here. Abby asked me today,"Are you sure you are having a baby?" I am pretty confident that it will come soon enough and if it ends up being induced quite frankly at this point I would be quite okay with it.

Abby has been enjoying her joy school so much. She loves to learn and we bought her a kindergarten readiness book which she pores over everyday. I love her desire to learn and how excited she is to be a part of some type of school. At church a couple of weeks ago she volunteered to sing a solo for the primary presentation. I was nervous for her at first. However she has been practicing her little heart out and tonight for FHE she sang the first half of the song pretty much independantly. I can't believe how grown up she is getting. Where do kids get their confidence. It is pretty awesome.

Natalie is still going strong. She is starting to say lot's of words now which is such a relief. She has not been a big talker for so long I was getting ready to visit a speech language therapist. She has a new friend in nursery and they run to it together each week. She is full of spunk with her curly locks and she repeatedly comes up to my belly and bangs on it while saying baby!!!

I promise my next update will be pictures of our new addition to the family.

Finished

2011-09-01T18:57:00.000-07:00

Worked my last 12 hour shift in the ICU today. YEAH!!!! I am so excited to start the journey of mother of 3. I know it's going to be challenging and hard. Everyone at work kept saying 3 Are you crazy?? I am pretty sure that is what makes motherhood so amazing is that it is super hard and it makes you grow as a person and hopefully in the end you have children who love you and go out into the world as capable, independant, and loving adults.
Here's hoping that number 3 decides the 12th is too far away and comes soon. Will keep you posted!!!

Oh Summer!

2011-08-30T07:45:00.000-07:00

Well as you can see I haven't been on my blog for awhile. It has been a really busy/tiring past month and the trek down the stairs without kids hasn't been happening too much.

Natalie turned two in July we had a little family party. We gave her a water table which she loves to splash around in. At two she is my energetic explorer. She loves to climb and often gives 8 1/2 month pregnant momma heart attacks since I can't quite run as fast on the playground as before. She is starting to talk a bit more and is very independant. She is waking up at night again of course right before the baby comes just to remind me that she is still the baby. She can sneak around so quietly that I often find her downstairs before I even hear her. Last week we had the Barfuss's here and she found a jar of vaseline which she promptly styled her hair with. Mostly what I love about my two year old is she has the biggest smiles and gives the best hugs.

Abby has been sick off and on all summer fighting this pneumonia she got. It has been tricky because she has so little energy poor thing. She is getting excited to go back to joyschool and restart her swimming lessons. She has become Mom's little helper and informed me that when the baby brother comes she will be ready. We don't know what we are having but Abby is insistent that it be a brother. We shall see how that works out.

Only a couple more weeks hopefully of pregnancy for me. I am so excited to welcome number 3 to our family. It has been a super hot and dry summer and I can't wait to enjoy it a bit more without this extra baby inside. Hopefully it will be a long extended summer. Now if only I was ready for the baby to come. Oh well soon enough.

My neice is going through the temple today and getting married on Friday. I can't believe it!!! She is such an awesome girl and I am so excited for her. Wish I could be there. I got to throw her bridal shower and help out with the Winnipeg party we had so much fun. It was fun to have company in our new house and not feel so crowded like our old one however it was a little tiring. Tonight I have a RS activity that I am in charge of , Thursday I work my last shift and then I am clear to have a baby!!!

My camera is up on the second level so forgive that lack of pics. I can assure you my kids are still cute and my prego belly is huge.

Strawberry Picking!!

2011-07-19T12:34:00.000-07:00

We headed out to a new strawberry picking farm this year. It was so much fun. They take you out on the wagon and you pick to your heart's content and then there is a petting zoo.

We had a lot of fun picking and if you notice Natalie she had a lot of fun sampling with her red face!!

Last night for Family Home Evening we had a ton of fun playing in the yard with the sprinkler. It has been so crazy hot here. So sad that I am 7months prego and am not totally enjoying the hot mostly mosquito free summer but my kids sure are!!!

Abby was practicing on a two wheeler last night without training wheels. She has been begging her Dad for months to do this. It is very interesting to watch your kids try to learn new things and see how they handle it.

Hope you are all enjoying the beautiful summer!!!

Summer Holidays!!

2011-07-13T19:48:00.000-07:00

We were so lucky this year to be able to go out to Alberta to visit the family for about 10 days. We had such an awesome time. Here are some of the highlights::

1. We got to stay at Auntie Leslye's new amazing condo. Abby got introduced to Charlotte's Web and Leslye and her shared quite a few laughs and are still laughing.

2. We got to visit with Joelle and meet her awesome fiance. I can't believe she is getting married. I was so glad we were able to spend some quality time since my baby is due pretty close to her wedding date so I am probably not going to make it. So sad!!!!

3. I loved watching the girls enjoy the farm. We did some rock throwing, fishing, quad riding, and visiting the cows. Daddy enjoyed torturing the gophers just a little bit.

4. We went to Waterton for the day when we first arrived. We had fun hiking and exploring. The girls enjoyed sticking their feet into the water when there was still ice on it. Crazy how much snow there still is up there. Of course we saw some wildlife and enjoyed some yummy ice cream.

5. We were so lucky that my brother Phil and his family came up close to the same time. My kids actually had some time with cousins close to their age. Abby was in heaven. My favorite memory was riding in the back of the truck and looking at the cows and all the kids making moo sounds along with Grandpa-pretty priceless!!

6. Of course we got to go to the temple. I love going to the Cardston temple. It is my favorite because of all my memories of it growing up etc. It was fun to teach the girls more about it and to take some pics and just talk about how important it is. So grateful for everything that goes on in that building!!!

7. On Canada Day we headed to Raymond for the big parade and then lunch at my Aunt and Uncle's house. That brought back so many memories of going there when I was young. It was fun to see all the cousins and to see my girls enjoy a summer parade. They were so excited.

8. To end off our trip we headed to Calgary to visit Ryan's brother and my sister and their families. The pics are on the other camera. We had such a great time and are so blessed to have such awesome families!!!!

We Moved!

2011-07-13T19:28:00.000-07:00

We sold our starter home on Berrydale and entered our new home on Quincy Bay. We love it.This is a pic from possession day. We are slowly getting organized and doing some small renos so I will keep you posted. My favorites of this house thus far are:: 1. fenced in backyard- no more almost two year old running away!!! 2. A master bathroom- if you have toddlers you know how nice it is to have your own bathroom. 3. Space!!!!
We are enjoying every minute of making it our own.

Wow where does the time go?

2011-05-25T20:07:00.000-07:00

Since the last few weeks/month have been focused on packing, moving, and all other such exciting things I feel like I am living in a blur. This is the first move for us since marriage and kids and oh my we seem to have accumulated so much stuff. Oh dear. Gone are the days when I moved to Winnipeg in my car with a few boxes being sent via Greyhound.
As usual the girls are keeping us on our toes. Since I am so bad at printing pictures here is the one I promised to a certain amazing sister that I haven't printed yet. Sorry just haven't got to it.

We have been enjoying some great spring like weather and then some days fall like weather. I can't complain it isn't a tornado or flood so we can deal with it.

As usual Natalie is our little charmer with her curly locks. Pretty much wherever we go I get a comment about our curly haired cutie. I have to tell you this hat is a bit of a funny story. Ryan bought it for his Dad for a belated birthday present to go with a matching coat. I am pretty sure Mom is not going to let him out of the house wearing it but Natalie sure looked cute in it.

Another attribute of natalie that I have noticed lately is her love of music. Whenever I try to sit down and play she comes running over and tries to play with me. She also starts swaying away whenever music comes on. It is pretty cute unless I am trying to actually practice something then it is challenging.

Here is our other little grown up at the zoo last week. Abby is so interested in learning about so many things and I can't believe how much she retains. She blew me away last week when she brought up something I had taught in sharing time a week ago. She can tell you the whole story of a library book after reading it once. It is crazy to me.

She was asking about mermaids the other day and then Dad took this picture of her in the tub and I told her she looked like a beautiful mermaid. Her hair is beautifully straight how I always dreamed mine would be someday. I am sure in about ten years I will have two daughters wishing they had the other one's hair.

Here is our jaunt to La Barrier Park on Victoria Day yeah it was cold out. The dandelions are crazy this year and Ryan was having a blast taking pics with all the yellow in the background.

I have been immersed in a couple of books by the Eyre's lately

1. 5 Spiritual Solutions for Parents and 2. A Mother's Book of Secrets

They were so inspiring and encouraging in my parenting endeavors.

On a sad note I taught my last sharing time in our ward on Sunday. I will miss our great primary and serving with some great sisters. I was so glad my last two sharing times were about the Restoration and the Book of Mormon: Another testament of Jesus Christ. I love teaching the basics probably why I love being in primary.

This Sunday we have our visiting teaching workshop and another sister and I are doing a duet hopefully I won't be too hormonal/emotional. I told the RS Pres. it wasn't really fair being my last Sunday in Dalhousie ward and I have to sing in front of all my sweet RS sisters. Oh well I have learned so much in this ward and I am looking forward to new opportunities to serve and learn in a new ward.

Oh and yeah I feel like an official Mom now we bought "the van" last weekend. A 2007 Chevy Uplander. We got a great deal and traded in our Focus Wagon. I already love it. The first few times driving I felt like I was back on the farm driving a big truck but now I am getting used to it and love the convience.

Wow okay I will quit typing this turned into a novel of sorts!!!

My Princess is 4!!

2011-04-27T19:23:00.000-07:00

For the last few months Abby has really gotten into Disney stuff and princesses so this year we had a princess and prince party for her 4th birthday. I can't believe she is 4 already. AHH!! Oh wait she isn't really until Saturday but today was her little party. Here were her invitations we printed onto little crowns.

A princess party is being planned.

Prince and Princesses come from far and wide.
At 1:30 have your carriage arrive. The 27^th is our special day,
At Smith Castle your mom knows the way.
Everyone wear your prince and princesses clothes,
for treasure hunts, treats, and the royal bubble blow!

We hope you can come to our royal ball,

Queen Jessica is requesting a call 257-4729.
Love,
Princess Abby

She dressed up as Cinderella and I attempted to do an upkeep of her hair. It was adorable we had three princes and one other princess. We played treasure hunt, princess and the pea, crown decorating, and ate snacks. One little prince showed up with a flower and said,'I'm going to be your prince charming" So adorable. It was a bit of work but so much fun. We ended off with a Royal Bubble Blow and blew many bubbles into the sky.

At 4 -Abby is still into crafts and books. She got a ton of craft supplies for her birthday so that will keep us busy for a while.
-She loves riding her bike and keeps asking when the training wheels are coming off.
-She is into playing board and card games now and loves to win.
-She loves playing pbskids on her computer
-Much to my dismay she loves playing Super Mario with Dad on the wii. I only say dismay because I am horribly bad at it and can't really play. I am pretty sure she could surpass me if she wanted to.
-She is my super sensitive girl and when Mommy is upset she will tell me "Mom it's okay or Mom I'm sorry"
-She loves to sing and requests her primary CD whenever we are in the car. It is amazing how many songs she knows already.
-She has a great imagination and loves to play with other kids and imagine different things.

She is a great daughter and we are so happy to have her in our family. She is definitely our little princess!!!

Happy 4th Birthday Abby!!!!! We love you!!!!!

Easter Bunny!!!

2011-04-27T19:08:00.000-07:00

Easter was so much fun this year. To prepare we had a special FHE on Jesus Christ and the Atonement and Abby gave her first primary talk. We made up words that start with the letter of Easter to help us remember the true meaning. E- The atonement is for everyone. A- Jesus performed the atonement for each of us individually. S- The Atonement helps us overcome our sins and sicknesses. T- The Atonements helps us overcome trials and temptations. E- Eternity is our reward if we faithfully keep our covenants and repent using the atonement. R- Because of Jesus Christ and the Atonement we will all be resurrected.

I couldn't have been prouder as she said all the words wasn't shy at all and gave a great talk.

We did the annual Easter egg coloring which was so much fun. A little bit chaotic as Natalie wanted to dip all her eggs at one time in every color.

The next day was our Easter egg hunt always a treat as Grandma and Poppa supplement our eggs with some special candy eggs, stickers, and jelly beans. Natalie had so much fun she kept wanting to look for more eggs after it was done. Here are the results of their hunt.

I have to say the best part for me this year was how magical it became to Abby. She couldn't believe that the Easter Bunny actually came and brought her stuff. Isn't it cool Mom? It wasn't even bad to be woken up at 7am to hear the screaming of the arrival of her Easter basket!!!
Hope everyone had a wonderful Easter!!!!

Natalie

2011-04-27T18:57:00.000-07:00

Natalie is my little ball of energy and I love it. However she often catches me off guard a few feet higher than I expected. Here while I was making lunch she climbed on top of the couch onto the shelf there and was saying AH AH!! I got Abby to pose.

Now here is a Mom's favorite thing. I had just finished mopping the kitchen floor and vaccuming the carpet when as I was putting the vaccuum away I hear Abby "Mom come quick!" Once again Natalie on the shelf pushing the plant off so she can climb up. I was so proud that instead of losing it since I had a birthday party in a couple of hours and not really any time to clean I would take a picture and then clean it up!!!

Natalie is the best teacher of patience!!! I am glad since I am really low in that category!!!!

Sold!!

2011-04-27T18:49:00.000-07:00

Not the best picture but after only a week on the market our house sold. We feel pretty blessed that it went so fast and we were able to get a great price!!

I wish I had more pics of all the before and after pics of all the things the guys did but this is all I got!! Too bad Poppa is looking so serious and not at all focused on the camera!!!

The last few days I have been a bit sad thinking of all the great memories here. I met, dated, and married Ryan all while living here. We started our life together in this house and brought home our two beautiful daughters home to this house. Sniff Sniff. Ok enough sappiness but we will miss our cute little bungalow.

Soccer and BDI

2011-04-27T18:43:00.000-07:00

One of the fun things we have been doing lately with Abby is soccer. She goes once a week for an hour. Here is a photo op of her and Dad doing some stretches before it started. You would think it was super serious but really it is just an intro into the sport. Abby really likes it so far and when Daddy brought home a soccer ball a few weeks ago she was pretty excited.

After one soccer night we headed with Grandma and Poppa to BDI. It seems like a little tradition for our family we bike there each spring to look at the rising Red River and enjoy some ice cream. The girls were pretty pumped to have a yummy soft ice cream!!! Not sure how much Natalie actually got into her mouth but she enjoyed it anyway. Horray for spring!!!

Times they are a changing!!!

2011-04-01T10:24:00.000-07:00

Well folks I haven't blogged in a while and while looking at my camera I haven't taken a picture in a while either. However we have some big news and so I will tell you all about it.

First off we are going to have baby number 3 in September and I was really hoping to not be feeling lethargic and yucky still but here I am. Hello totally done the first trimester. Anyway we are uber excited and the girls can't wait. Abby has started rocking her doll again which is so sweet and when you ask Natalie where is Mommy's baby she comes running over and hits me in the stomach. Yeah we haven't perfected that yet.

Secondly we are moving to a bigger and newer house in June. This is super exciting for us since it feels somedays we are bursting out of our little bungalow. I have to admit it makes me a wee bit sad. I bought this house before I even knew Ryan and have so many fond memories but it is time to move on!!! Due to the move my amazing husband and father in law have been working around the clock to update and beautify with some reno's. In fact they are so good the other day I told Ryan I like my new kitchen too much to move. Anyway wish us luck our house goes on the market on Monday. So if you know of anyone looking for an adorable starter home in Winnipeg we have a perfect one for you!!!!

Other than that life is great we are busy and happy and enjoying life!!! Hope everyone is having a great spring!!!

To blog or not to blog!

2011-02-07T19:27:00.000-08:00

Lately I have not been feeling the need to blog. Occasionally life overwhelms me and quite frankly my blog is the last thing on the list.
We have been quite busy with the upcoming Valentine's day. Abby has sent out Valentine's to all her cousins and is having a Valentine's Party on Friday with a few of her friends. Should be fun.
Her new favorite saying is "I'm running out of energy!" For instance I might ask her to make her bed or pick up a toy and she will respond with Mom my legs are running out of energy. Oh boy! She successfully dunked completely in the water at swimming lessons today which she is quite proud of. It still shocks me that she is in Sunbeams and as I was doing sharing time on Sunday and watching her with the other kids it just amazed me how grown up she really is.
Natalie is now 18 months and a bit and constantly keeps me on my toes or running wherever we may be. A couple of weeks ago I lost her twice and felt completely incompetent. One was at the library and the librarian was like Ma'am are you missing a child because there is a toddler standing on top of the table over there. Yeah that would be Natalie. Then the next day at Superstore you know putting my loonie in and having to put her down she bolts into the store and next thing I know an old man comes up to panic stricken me and says if you are missing a little girl she is over by customer service. It is a great thing she is so cute and always keeping us smiling.

The other day I came into the kitchen and this is what I found. Natalie with her spoon in the bucket of ice cream. Abby and Natalie needed a snack and I wasn't quick enough. A definite negative at having a bottom freezer. Ice cream is far too accessible.

As for me I turned another year older in January we went out for a nice dinner the day before and on my birthday we had some friends over for dinner. It was awesome.

Mother Nature teased us last week where we had a few really nice days. We played outside all afternoon. Now it is back to -20 and if I go to work one more time and someone else tells me about their tropical vacation they went on I am pretty sure I will cry.

I know it's only February but -5 to -10 would be so nice!!!!

Yeah I can totally relate to the song California Dreaming right now!!!

Alberta Bound

2011-01-20T12:42:00.000-08:00

Road Trip 2011 was a blast. On the way out the girls were totally amazing. We had the green box of toys and lot's of snacks. Minimal crying and lot's of fun. We gave Abby our old camera and she took lot's of pics on the way.

At the farm we had a great visit. Of course our first morning we headed out on the tractor with Poppa to feed the cows. Abby loved watching Poppa pick up the huge bales and then watch the cows chasing us to eat it.

The definite highlight at the farm were Grandma's new kittens. Abby loved feeding them their milk and petting them. Lucky for us they were really friendly!!

What trip to the farm would be complete without a trip to the Hutterite colony.Abby refused to be in the picture she insisted on taking it. They loved seeing all the chickens and watching the eggs roll down the chute.

Abby and Grandma have something in common. They both love to do puzzles. They had fun putting together Abby size puzzles!!

I am pretty confident I scared my kids off sledding for a while. I took them down a "real" hill on the farm. I say real because Manitoba is pretty flat well at the end Abby was like "Mom that was way too fast, I am done sledding!" Oops!!!

The cats again.

The reason for our trip was my Dad's 70th birthday party. My sister Vicki hosted it and it was super fun. Of my siblings these are the ones who could come. It is so nice to get together and celebrate things together as a family. I am pretty lucky to have such a great family!!!

It was so fun to hear my Dad's siblings reminisce about things and laugh together!!

My girls and I in front of the St. Mary's River at Woolford Park.

Our trip back was lengthened by bad weather but we were able to spend the night at a motel with a swimming pool and have some fun.
We had a great trip and it was so nice to be home, visit with family, and share lot's of memories with the girls. We owe a huge thanks to Grandma from the city for coming. It was so nice to have another adult to help distract the kids during the drive and be a huge help throughout the visit!!!
We can't wait for our next visit in the summer!!!!

Christmas 2010

2011-01-03T20:07:00.000-08:00

Cutting down our Christmas tree.

We had such a fantastic Christmas. Abby was totally into it this year. It makes it so magical. We also made a lot of homemade gifts and I was only out shopping twice that was heavenly.

Not the best pic but this is the fantastic kitchen that Santa brought for the girls. They love playing restaurant and making all sorts of yummy food. All the family helped out and they got dish set from someone and Aunt Beth made them 3-D food. This was the biggest hit. Grandma also made them the cute matching aprons. Abby is holding the banana. It makes for hours of playing restaurant so much more fun.

We did our gingerbread house and can you tell by Abby's face how excited she was? Everyday I got asked Mom when can I start eating it?

Christmas Dresses. I can't find the pic with both girls so here is Abby. A better pic of Santa's awesome kitchen with Natalie.

We had a wonderful time visiting with family and friends. Tomorrow I head off to Alberta with the girls for my Dad's 70th birthday. I'm so excited to be going but sad that Ryan can't come. It will be so fun to be back at the farm with the girls again. It is always awesome to go home and be in the peace and quiet of the country and the dark night where you can see all the stars. I can't wait!!!!

Family Christmas Letter

2010-12-20T13:18:00.000-08:00

Smith Family 2010

Some adventures of our family can be read here.

Yes 2010 has been quite the year.

Hope it makes you laugh and smile too.

Enjoy our story we wrote it for you.

Our Abby turned 3 and is quite the big sister.

Her imagination always leaves our home looking like a twister.

She took a music class and started joy school.

But her favorite things are the lessons in the pool.

Natalie is one and is very busy.

Always climbing and running keeping Mom in a tizzy

She loves being cuddled and teasing big sis.

She always loves giving a big sloppy kiss.

Mom joined the gym and is doing quite well.

Working part time in the ICU always a story to tell.

Serving in Church and being a Mom.

Visits from sisters and Mom are the bomb.

Ryan's been fishing, hunting, and biking.

Losing a job twice not to our liking.

Serving in church with the young men.

Blessings have come with a great job again.

Our chapter this year has come to an end it is true.

Hope you enjoyed reading our story for you.

May you be blessed with joy in the coming year.

Our love goes out to all of you we hold dear!

Merry Christmas

Love,

The Smiths

Christmas Traditions

2010-12-08T14:02:00.000-08:00

With Christmas fast approaching I have been thinking about all the wonderful tradtions we have and want to have. This year Abby is actually understanding Christmas a bit better which is so much fun. I feel a little behind this year but we will get there soon.
1. A real Christmas Tree- I love having a real tree. I love the smell of pine throughout my house and the pine needles filling up my vaccuum cleaner. I love having part of nature inside with me. This year we are going to head out and chop our own tree down. SOOO excited!!!!
2. Acting out the Nativity- I am not sure how this will go this year since we are the only ones in Ryan's family with kids and I am not sure how excited the adults will be to be donkeys etc. I am sure it will still be a blast!!!
3. The Christmas Train- We just started this last year and I loved it. It is a small train that takes you around a forest full of different light displays. Hopefully this year it won't be -30something it was a wee bit chilly last year. Super fun!!
4. Fondue- One of the traditions of Ryan's family that I love is having a fondue dinner. It is so fun to sit down and visit and eat slowly and just enjoy each other. Of course it is also very yummy!!!
5. Christmas Letters- Ryan and I started this tradition when we were first married of writing letters to each other expressing our gratitude etc. to each other and now we do it for our kids. It is a super fun thing. I know one day the kids will love reading the letters!!
6. Music- I love Christmas Music. This year I wasn't able to be in the choir due to work but I love singing all the Christmas songs and hearing them. I love sitting and singing away at the piano!!

Well those are some of my favorite traditions. This year is kind of exciting as Ryan's family decided to do an old fashioned Christmas and Ryan has turned into a little Santa in his workshop building all sorts of cool things. I will show you all after Christmas. It makes it so much more exciting when you actually make your own gifts!!!

I am so excited that in January my Dad will be turning 70. Oh boy and I get to go home. It has been over a year since I got to see my family and the farm and the mountains. Oh I love the mountains. Anyway I am uber excited even though Ryan can't come and it will be a long drive with two young kids but it will be so fun to see everyone!!!!

Hope you are all having a wonderful Christmas season.

Sadly our camera is on the fritz so no pics.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas!!!

2010-11-18T18:58:00.000-08:00

I couldn't resist we finally have some lovely white stuff falling and it feels closer to Christmas. I got out the old Reader's Digest songbook tonight and played some of my favorites. It brings so many memories of home and of my family and especially my sisters sitting and singing at the piano!!!

As a tribute to my Uncle Roger who passed away today from cancer I thought I would share my favorite memory of him. I remember when he came to visit and I must have been 7/8 ish and he was trying to teach me to have power over my body by not laughing when being tickled. My brothers would constantly tickle me and he thought if I could get enough power over my mind I wouldn't laugh and then the tickling would stop. Well it never worked and I am still ticklish but we had a great afternoon trying to train our minds. I am so grateful for the gospel and for the knowledge that families can be together forever!!! He will be missed!!

If you ever wonder?

2010-11-09T11:41:00.000-08:00

Do you ever wonder if you are doing a good job as a parent? Well I often do and probably stress out about it more than necessary. Yesterday however Abby did something that made me think I must be doing pretty good.
First of all Abby is into making cards and most recently giving them away. We were at the gas station and she was coloring her card while the gas tank was getting filled. As we went into pay she was like Mom I want to give my card to the clerk. I was like why? He was a teenage kid who probably wouldn't care so I kind of blew it off.(Bad Mom) Anyway on the way out I was like how about the guy who actually puts the gas in our car. A nice retired gentleman who loves doing his job. Well Abby marches over and says thank you for always filling our car with gas and gives him a card. Who knows what he thought but as I drove away he had the biggest smile on his face.
All in all I think Abby is a pretty great kid and I was so happy she wanted to say thanks to someone for doing a good job.

I bet if you think about your kids you can see something in them that makes you realize that you are doing a good job too.

Trick or Treat

2010-11-02T20:11:00.000-07:00

Halloween was an adventure this year. Abby had a party at her joyschool and then we celebrated on the Saturday with all our church friends. It was loads of fun for everyone.

First the costumes:

Abby the clown

Natalie as Little Red Riding Hood

And here is "The Great Pumpkin"

The best part of Halloween this year is the weather. It is amazing. Even yesterday on November 1, 2010 we went to the park in light sweaters to play on the structure. In Winnipeg this is amazing!!! Hope everyone had fun trick or treating!!!!

We started a new tradition of watching fun cartoon Halloween movies and I have to say I do love Charlie Brown's "The Great Pumpkin" A definite keeper in future years!!

The other best part of today is my husband got a job offer!!!!!! Hooray!!!!!

Still Here!!

2010-10-26T06:49:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that it has been so long since I wrote a blog entry. It has been a crazy couple of months. On the weekend though we had Stake Conference and I was so inspired I was like I need to update my blog. More on that later.

October has been such a beautiful month. I think we have spent more time outdoors than in the summer.

Here's our Natalie. What is new with her? Well Miss Natalie is my explorer. She now loves to climb on anything. For example I was on the phone with my sister and I couldn't hear her playing so I went to check yep on top of the piano!! Another time on top of the bathroom sink. She definitely keeps us on our toes--or should I say running!! When we go for walks now she insists on walking because she is a big 16month old. She loves driveways because they lead to a big sidewalk known as a road to most of us but to Natalie it is just a big walking area!!! Oh my!! Her curls are growing longer although you can't tell because they are still super curly. She still isn't talking too much but she loves to communicate her love to her sister with big hugs and kisses!!! She also discovered the pots and pans drawer which is always lots of fun.

Abby has turned into a craft junkie. It is good for me since I have always felt like a non-crafty person so it has been good for me to explore my craftiness. She has been going to joyschool once a week and loves it. She gets so excited on her "school days" and packs her backpack and waits by the door even if there are two-three hours until it starts. She is busy with her swimming lessons and loves going to swim with the family even going down the big waterslide now!!

Anyway those are some new things about my two cutie pies!! So on the weekend we had this awesome leadership for Primary. I learned so much but it really hit me how important it is to just love people no matter what. Just love those kids and everything else in primary will turn out okay.

The Barfuss family were in town for the weekend and it was so fun. I would be lying if I said I didn't miss them. I feel pretty lucky seeing as I am family I will see them more than most people here but it still isn't the same as running over to my sisters house on a hard day her giving me some of her great advice and then leaving feeling awesome again. My sister even made time to do my hair for me which I can't even tell you grateful I am for that. Anyway they did this fireside and it made me miss them all over again. Lucky Calgary!!!

We are getting excited for Halloween. Abby is going to be a clown and Natalie is going to be Little Red Riding Hood. We have Abby's joyschool party and then a primary party on Saturday lot's of fun.

Happy Halloween!!!!

Fall is in the Air!

2010-09-16T14:04:00.000-07:00

September is one of my favorite months. It is still warm enough to play outside and there are many beautiful colors and sights to look at. We have been enjoying the outdoors getting to the parks and going for walks and bike rides.

Abby roasting marshallows on our camping trip to Brandon.

Natalie trying to be like her big sister and ride a bike!!

Abby has now started swimming lessons and joy school. She is so excited!! You should see her on the days she has joyschool she is pretty much in heaven and asks every five minutes when is it time for school.

Natalie and I now have some time just the two of us and we have been having fun reading together and singing songs. She gives the best hugs and waves whenever I leave for work.

Hope you are all having a fabulous fall!!!

I want to talk about our day!!

2010-08-05T19:32:00.000-07:00

Lately our adorable Abby has been so funny at bedtime. We do our routine and tuck her in then she calls myself or Ryan in to her room and says,"I want to talk about our day!" After telling her what you did then she tells you what she did. What a precious girl. I love how she makes me stop and enjoy every single moment.

Summer Time

2010-08-02T13:42:00.000-07:00

Wow July seemed to zoom by. We have done so many things and been to so many places where to start?
Well here are some highlights:
1. Natalie turned one on July 17, 2010. That is crazy this year has gone so fast and I feel like she is growing way too fast. We had two family get togethers. One with Grandma and Poppa and then one with my two sisters and family. She of course was spoiled but had fun. She is talking more steps and has lot's of fun laughing with her sister. She is still pretty quiet in the word department but she lets you know what she wants!! She makes a funny clicking sound with her mouth all the time and she loves to be cuddled.

Happy Birthday baby girl!!!! We love you!!
2. We have had a few visitors this month. Uncle Matt and Aunt Candace came and Abby was so excited to play with them.

My sister Leslye also came for 10 days. We had such a great time. We headed off to the train at Assiniboine Zoo (mostly for Abby's sake) it was super fun. We discovered a new beach at Selkirk Park (love it). We had some fun sister time and went for a cruise on the River. It was really neat. I am so lucky to have such great sisters!!!

We also found out this month that my sister will be leaving us to move to Calgary. I am pretty sad I will miss her and her family tremendously however I know they will be awesome there too. Lucky Calgary!!!!

This picture pretty much says it all!!

Lastly we had a family camping trip. It was so much fun. We went out to Bird's Hill Park set up the tent and had a blast. So much so that I keep telling Ryan we are going again. I love camping and being outside and all that fun stuff. The girls were amazingly great. We had only one downfall sleep!!! Oh well it was well worth it!!

Hope everyone is having a fabulous summer!!

Best Husband Ever

2010-06-30T11:01:00.000-07:00

I know I just told you in my last post he was the best ever but I just had to share with you how sweet he was yesterday! He completely surprised me with a date afternoon/evening. It was awesome. We dropped the kids off at Grandma's and headed to the bike shop. I got my first road bike well actually cyclocross bike and we headed to Bird's Hill Park. The weather was beautiful and my new bike was fantastic. It is a little tricky changing gears on a road bike so I felt a little wobbly at times but I had a great ride with no wipeouts! After the park we headed home changed and headed off to dinner at "A Night in Bangkok" A yummy Thai restaurant where the food was much better than the service!!
We headed back to Grandma's where Abby insisted on a sleepover so she stayed at Grandma's. We came home and put Natalie to bed and started watching a movie. We watched Mr. Deeds which brought back some memories. That is the movie I watched when I was in labour with Natalie. This time however I quickly fell asleep. OOPS!!

Anyway it was a perfect treat as tomorrow night I head back to work parttime in the ICU. I was thinking about my job and how I feel like I need to study or something to go back. This maternity leave I really embraced my family and didn't think about work at all. It was so wonderful. I guess I may be hitting the books a little tonight to review but really I think it will all come back once I am there. I was thinking what do I love about my job. I came up with my top three:

1. I only have to work 1-2 days a week which is just enough for me.

2. I get to talk with and help people in some of their most trying times and I get to learn about their lives and families. This is essentially why I love nursing really getting to know about people.

3. I use my brain for things other than potty training, breast feeding, bedtime routines, etc. etc. etc. However at the end of the day I love being the Mom the best and if I could stay home full time I definitely would but for now I am heading back to work refreshed and looking forward to seeing all my co-workers.

Reflection

2010-06-26T20:32:00.000-07:00

Today I went to a funeral for a wonderful gentleman that I had the opportunity to live with when I first moved to Winnipeg. Call me crazy but I love going to funerals. I love learning about people's lives and being reminded to be grateful for what I have now and not to take anything for granted. I loved listening to stories about him and really gaining an appreciation for what he accomplished in this life and all that is waiting for him in the next! I love all the neat stories. Today all his grandchildren shared their favorite memories. It made me wonder what my kids would share someday.

This picture is from Father's Day last Sunday. I hope I never take these amazing people for granted. They make everything worth it.

2010-06-08T16:52:00.000-07:00

Abby loves the swings. Last week she really wanted to go to the swings even though there were huge puddles underneath them. So off we went. Well after I gave her a "super push" (Her new word for underducks.) She let go and took a big tumble right into the puddle. No major injuries just a lot of screaming and muddy clothes. After we calmed down thirty seconds later "Mom I want to go on the swing". She is one determined girl.

Natalie is growing like crazy. She is into everything. She is trying to walk and is now standing on her own. She goes to take a step then tumbles down. Today she was headbanging the stairs at my sisters it was all good and fun until she decided to go a little further and actually make contact with the stairs. She has a nice goosegg on her forehead. She is constantly making noises and having conversations that no one understands.

I have been so tired lately. Natalie is not doing well with the whole teething thing. She finally popped one through and is now getting about 3or 4 more. All my nonmedicinal tricks aren't working so we are back on the Baby Advil.
I have been soaking up the Conference Ensign lately. Isn't it just inspiring? I feel so much peace knowing all the advice and counsel given to us on how to raise our families is right there and we just need to follow it and use it. Don't you feel lucky? I sure do.

Enjoying the Moments!

2010-05-26T19:01:00.000-07:00

Here is my cute 10 month old. I can't even believe she is that old already. She finally has a tooth poking through and I think that is why she finally slept through the night twice last week! YEAH!!!!
She is now crawling up the stairs and pulling herself to a stand and creeping all along the furniture.
She loves her sister and is always laughing. Abby was having a three year old moment in the bathtub and Natalie crawls over stands up and starts laughing and then Abby started laughing. I think this will be a great quality as they get older and she will be able to help Abby relax.
She is also my noisy girl. She loves baby talk and is constantly babbling away. It is so fun to be her Mom!

We have had lot's of walks to the park lately with the nice weather and she loves the rocks at the playground mostly eating them so her favorite area for now is the swings.

Abby is growing every day and has such an independant personality. Maybe it's the age or stage I don't know. I appreciate that she wants to do so many things herself and most of the time it is not a big deal. Today in fact she went to the park with a runner on her right foot and a sandal on her left foot and I didn't even notice until we were at the park. She got a few new books from her Auntie and we have been reading them daily. She loves "Cupcake" it is a super cute story about an ordinary vanilla cupcake. A must read with your little girls!

Mother's Day was awesome. I never blogged about it but I was treated like a queen. I do have an amazing husband. I am also lucky to have two fantastic Moms so it was a great day overall. I am just trying to enjoy the moments of motherhood each day with these two cuties!!!
Finally planted my garden last week. What an adventure with Abby wanting to help constantly. I am sure my carrots will be so close together that they will not be very big at all but the memories will outweigh the small carrots!!

Change

2010-05-05T15:12:00.000-07:00

It seems like there is a lot of change going on in our lives.I guess this is typical of everyone's lives it kind of overwhelmes me in the blogging world and I quit blogging for a while and then realize I have way too much to write about. Anyway let's see:

-Natalie is 10 months old this month YIKES!!! Can we all say slow down. She is crawling everywhere,standing herself up against objects,making lot's of noises, and still loves to explore by putting everything in her mouth. I guess it is good in a way it keeps me on top of vaccuuming and mopping!!

-Abby turned three last week.! I can't believe she is three. We had her first party with three friends. It was pretty chaotic at times but in the end everyone had a fun time. I made her a bunny cake and she got spoiled by her friends and later by family as we had everyone over for a BBQ. She amazes me everyday with her memory skills and all the things she picks up when you just say them once. I do love how she loves music and we are enjoying her music class together. On Monday we went to the Barfuss's for FHE and she sang most of the words to Nephi's Courage. Yep I am one proud momma!!

-Ryan is loving the spring weather so he can ride his bike a lot!(He he poor guy the weather has been so terrible not the best for bike riding). He is looking for a wonderful new job at the moment so we are lucky to have him around a lot more.

-Myself I am just trying to enjoy the moments as they come. I was so lucky to have my Mom here the past week. It was so fun to have her around. Abby was pretty spoiled having someone to play games with her all the time. We had lot's of adventures: fabric shopping, flat tire during rush hour on Main Street/Portage (So fun), bubble tea, and oh yeah my Mom got her ears pierced for Mother's Day. What an adventurer.
I got released from RS and put into the Primary Presidency. It was a bit of a shock but now I am enjoying being with the children and working with my sister it is pretty fun. Today is my four month mark of going to the gym,working out etc. I have been measuring and doing my weight etc. I won't give you numbers but I am slowly attaining my goal and I am super excited about that!!!!
I can't wait for the sun to return and start planting my flower and vegetable gardens and going to the park daily!!!

Easter

2010-04-07T21:28:00.000-07:00

Wow time has flown by. I feel like I say that a lot but seriously since the weather got nice I feel like my time is taken up by walks to the park, riding my bike, and playing outside..I love this season. Well the past weekend was Easter and we had such a fun holiday this year. We had a playdate early in the week with Abby's friends and made bunny cookies, had an Easter egg hunt, and made Easter hats. Do your remember making Easter hats in school? I used to love making them and have many pictures from elementary school of my Easter hat. We had a special Easter family home evening and since then Abby is insisiting on having egg hunts daily. It has been quite fun.

Despite threats from Mom. Yes I used the threat of no Easter Bunny if you don't behave the bunny did come. Abby received a small Easter bunny and a Disney movie. She was so excited that the bunny came. Natalie got some yummy treats too!!

One of my favorite Easter traditions is the Easter dress. Growing up my Mom always made me one and I was doing good until this year. Grandma and Poppa bought the girls their Easter dresses and boy were they cute!!!

We had a really fun family activity last week and got to go fly in a small plane. One of our friends is a pilot and is moving away so we took the opportunity to go fly with him. It was so fun watching all the sights from above and watching Abby be amazed at everything she saw!! Ryan even flew for a bit.

Of course both of the girls are growing up like crazy here are some of the things they have been up to.

Abby has started riding a bike. It has been so much fun to help her and watch her catch on and just go. She is so excited to ride a bike just like her Daddy and wants to know why she can't go on his hour long bike rides with him?

She has also started saying mealtime and bedtime prayers seriously one of the sweetest experiences of parenting is watching your children's testimonies grow.

Now see this cute face. Our little Natalie started crawling last week and unlike her sister is into everything. I remember people asking me why I didn't have my DVD's locked up or my CD's put away but Abby was just never interested. Well here comes trouble. Natalie gets into everything she can she would still eat all the flyers if I let her and loves crawling straight towards the entertainment unit. Such fun!!!!

Now the past week we have had this little gal at our house.

Watching Skiddles for my sister has been a lot of fun. My girls love having her Natalie is constantly chasing her and Skiddles is running away. Abby loves walking her and acts like such a grownup holding her leash. I am quite happy to return her to her family tomorrow. Not totally sold on the dog thing but it has been fun.I also think Skiddles is slightly overwhelmed being in our noisy baby crying house. I think she will be quite happy to return to a home of quiet days!!!

Wasn't General Conference awesome? Loved it. I was so thrilled to get so much counsel as a parent although I was telling Ryan it worries me about what might be coming!!

I also loved watching the final half of the NCAA finals. I haven't watched basketball in so long and I was so rooting for the underdogs but Duke won. So sad. It was such a fun game to watch.

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday!!!

Spring or Not Spring that is the Question

2010-03-24T05:39:00.000-07:00

Well it has been some time since I last blogged. I took a nice long break. Mainly because Abby has discovered you can play games on the computer and every time I sit down,"Mommy I want to play one of my games."

The last week we have been enjoying some warmer weather and lot's of outdoor time. I love it when I can take the girls outside. Abby loves being outdoors and loves exploring. It is so refreshing to take a walk with her and watch as she appreciates the simplest things.

Natalie has been growing like crazy. She is now 8 months old. Still no teeth but man she is sure acting and sleeping like she is getting teeth so we will see. This is her favorite place on earth. On the floor surrounded by paper. She loves anything paper and you have to watch her otherwise it is straight into the mouth. She is starting to get mobile these days not technically crawling but scooches her way across the floor.

What can I say? Here is my little reader. Abby has started reading books outloud. Obviously not truly reading them but saying the basics of the story that I have read to her. It is so fun to watch and see just how quickly she learns a story. Since she went to a princess birthday party she is really into princesses these days. I picked up the book Cinderella on the weekend and she loves reading it. The other day she said she was bored so I was like go read one of your books. "Mom I can't read I am too little." Then she proceeds to sit down and read her version of the story. I love how their little minds work how they want to be independant and dependant at the same time.

We have had some fun family times the past few weekends swimming, looking at show homes, and last weekend going to the primary Olympics party.

We were the Dinos and had traced a dinosaur on the back of our uniforms. Abby insisted we be called the Smith Family team so original. We all won a gold medal so I say pretty good performances by all. Abby's favorite were the scooter races. Dad was pretty excited to beat Mom in the tug of war. We are so lucky to have such a fun ward who plan such fun activities. It was a great time.

This morning when I woke up there was snow on the ground. Hence the title of my post. I know it won't last super long but I was really hoping it was spring. Please come back spring we love you!!!!

Abigail and Natalie

2010-02-26T10:56:00.000-08:00

Well I have officially finished all my family memories for February and to be honest it was exhausting to do a blog entry everyday. I admire those who have the energy and time to do it. After today I may take a break for awhile. Just thought I would share what we have been up to this month at our house.

First off we discovered Natalie has a head full of curls. It is super cute but they don't really stay unless her hair is wet and I am not about to start hair products with a seven month old.

Abby and Ryan had a great time building a "castle" in the backyard. The weather has been so mild we have been outside a lot the last couple of weeks.

Natalie decided she does like to eat after all and is now eating veggies and cereal. Still not interested in meat. Here she is eating her first Mum Mum cracker.

Bedtime is occasionally a challenge and one night Daddy was so tired he took them both into bed with him. Eventually everyone got to sleep.

We love hitting the parks and going for a walk or playing on the structure. The girls both love being outside!!

These two are pretty great kids and I am glad to be building many memories each day with them.

Now for those of you who read about my family and my great memories I don't want you to get any crazy ideas that my family is all perfect and wonderful. We are just like any other family and have our moments but in my effort to focus on the positive I wanted to share what I love and remember the most about them. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful family!!

Grandparents

2010-02-25T13:41:00.000-08:00

I have had many great influences in my life some of which are my grandparents. All of my grandparents have passed away. Ryan has one set of Grandparents still alive. I will share some of my memories of my grandparents. I was pretty spoiled and grew up close to my Grandma and Grandpa Smith. I remember them coming to the farm almost every day when I was little. It was so fun to see them and play with them. I remember my Grandpa driving me to piano lessons and home when my parents couldn't. One such instance proved a little more exciting than planned when the police pulled us over because my Grandpa was driving on the wrong side of the road. OOPS! I made it safely home but Grandpa soon after wasn't able to drive anymore. My other favorite memory is he would come out and push me on the tree swing in their backyard and just take time to play with me. I loved that about him.
My Grandma Smith was pretty special. I used to sleepover at her house whenever I had early morning basketball/volleyball practice. She had the coolest house ever. She would always make me yummy suppers and we would sit and visit in the living room after. Usually ending with some tv. She loved watching her shows. In elementary school I interviewed my Grandma about the depression and gained such an appreciation for what I have and what kind of heritage I have. During the summerof my high school years I lived in town at my Grandma's so I could get to my Flamingo Hotel job. She was always worrying about me getting enough rest and hanging out too much with my friends. Never fail though she would always have dinner ready and waiting for me after work. She was such a special lady and I am so glad I had the opportunity to live with her and really get to know her.
My Grandpa Thomas I don't remember very much because he died when I was pretty young. He was an awesome fisherman though and I do remember going out in his little silver boat and spending the day fishing. I especially remember my brother Phillip getting the hook caught in my hair.
My Grandma Thomas was a really neat lady. She was super talented musically and I loved that about her. She played the organ well into her 90's for her ward. She also played the violin beautifully. I remember staying at their little house in Donnelly Idaho and walking to the corner store for an "Idaho Spud". It was so fun to go and visit them.

Ryan's grandparents on his Mom's side are the Rand's. I don't really know much about them since I never met them. I do know that they lived in a small town. His Grandpa was a judge in the town. Grandma was a very proper lady from what I gather. I know that they must have been great parents.

This is Ryan's Grandpa(His Dad's side).
We were able to go and visit them when Abby was just over one in Nova Scotia. I learned a lot about Grampy while I was there. He is an expert bird caller and he was calling the crows one morning and I told Ryan I think Grampy has lost it. He then informed me Grampy is skilled at this and he was truly calling the birds.
My other favorite memory was when we went for breakfast with the boys. Grampy goes to breakfast/coffee every day at the same resaurant with the same guys. It was so cute. He was telling everyone that he had his Great Granddaughter with him. Ryan and I were just a sidenote. It was super cute.

Of course we had some fun times with Grammy as well. She is such a sweet lady. She has sent me these two adorable quilts for both of my babies. One of my favorite memories of her is playing scrabble with her here in Winnipeg. She is like the best scrabble player ever and I was just amazed at how talented and smart she is. Every Christmas we get two things from Grammy that I love. One is hand painted cards that are amazing the other are hand painted eggs to put on the Christmas tree. They are so special to us and we look forward every year to see what picture is on the egg/card.

I am so grateful to have been blessed with such great heritage and grandparents who are such great examples to me!!

Leslye

2010-02-24T19:32:00.000-08:00

My sister Leslye and I have had a lot of great memories together. I don't remember a lot of things from when we lived together on the farm but since I have grown up a little we have had a lot of fun times together.
One of my favorites is when we drove out to Winnipeg together to visit my sister Vicki. I learned so much about her just by being in the car with her for such a long drive. She helped me as I got my first speeding ticket and then we surprised our sister together for her birthday. Super fun times.
After I had Abby she was so cute when I was really exhausted and the tears were coming easily she was like somebody help her. She didn't feel like she could help me because she didn't have kids. I think she was a big help because she is good at recognizing when we need some help. I was so grateful for her coming and being able to help me.
I love when she comes to visit and we get to do fun sister things together. Going for lunch at Olive Garden, shopping for nursing uniforms, and talking about our favorite books together.

I don't know if this qualifies as a memory just something about Leslye that I love is she is so considerate about giving gifts and showing appreciation. She always sends the sweetest things and is such a great Auntie to my kids.

Today is her birthday and I hope she has a wonderful day! Love you Leslye!!!!

Tara

2010-02-23T12:27:00.000-08:00

Tara is my sister in law and married to my brother Phil. She is an amazing person that I have gotten to know a little bit over the past few years.
I remember a family reunion at Woolford Park on the Smith side with all the cousins and we sat on the blanket and just visited. She has had a really interesting life and overcome a lot of challenges and I learned so much from her. I remember being in awe at how talented she was. She is super musical and into dancing. We shared a common bond of being stake music chairperson for awhile and it was so nice to have someone to bounce off ideas on. She is so easy to talk to.
I think my other favorite memory is when her family came to visit us in Winnipeg. It was right after I had Abby and was adjusting to motherhood and was pretty much feeling overwhelmed. She totally talked to me about how hard it was after she had Landon and gave me some awesome practical advice that totally helped me. I am so grateful that my brother found her and that she is part of our family.
Love you Tara.
It is her birthday tomorrow so have a wonderful day Tara!!

Cole, Naomi, Adam, and Noah

2010-02-22T13:07:00.000-08:00

This is a really old picture of my neices and nephews but they have moved so far away that I can't really take many pictures of them anymore.
Cole is the oldest and my favorite memory of Cole is from when we had a family reunion at the farm and he was running around chasing all his cousins and trying to tickle them. He is a really funny kid and has a great sense of humour. When I went to BC to visit them I think a took a whole roll of film of Cole and Adam they are super cute and photogenic. Can't you tell by Adam's sweet smile?
Naomi is the only girl in a house full of boys. She is super cute. She is really quiet and sweet. She loves babies and was happy to play with Abby at the family reunion.
Adam is the cute one with the glasses and he is my cute little daredevil nephew. I know he is always trying new things and playing tricks on his parents I am sure. Noah is the baby and as such I don't have a ton of cute memories of him.
They are all great kids and I am so glad that got to be a part of our family. They have great parents I know and I hope they are loving the beach in New Zealand. So jealous. In fact Dave was telling me they went surfing on Christmas Day. How fun is that?
Love you guys!!

Madyson, Jordanne, Dallas, and Reid

2010-02-20T11:26:00.000-08:00

Madyson is my oldest niece. I remember when she was born. She was the first grandkid on both sides and of course was spoiled. I remember her being a bunny at Halloween and she was sooo cute. I remember watching many a Disney movies with her while babysitting. She is a super amazing writer and is now in college pursuing her dreams.
Jordanne is my cute redheaded neice we used to lovingly call "carrots". She is my social butterfly neice at least she was when I lived there. I remember when they were taking highland dance and they would perform on their front lawn in front of the town house. She used to ask me to read more stories at bedtime when I babysat. A girl after my own heart or maybe just avoiding bedtime?? I guess we are a little alike because she is applying to go to nursing school in the fall. I know she will be a super awesome compassionate nurse!! When we had a family reunion a few years ago she left me a little note in my scriptures. Yeah we are totally alike!! Love it!
Dallas is my halloween neice. Yeah born on Halloween and full of tricks. She was a dancing queen, musicican and I remember running to the Mac's store with her. They used to live right behind a Mac's store and every time I babsat they used to beg Auntie to go to the Mac store.
Reid was born when I lived in Edmonton and looking back I feel like man I wasn't any help to my sister in law when that occured. OOOPS! I remember visiting him in the hospital. He was very welcomed after three girls. He is a total trickster and has grown up so much since I left Edmonton. I can't believe he is in YM already and going on Scout camp and all that stuff.

I love all these guys and am so grateful that I was able to live in Edmonton for a few years and really get to know them better. They are awesome members of my family that I love!!

Mom

2010-02-19T19:24:00.000-08:00

I first met Mom when I was serving in the Young Adult ward RS Presidency. She was a really great leader and always had great advice for our little presidency. I admired how dedicated she was to her calling. Every calling she has had in the church since I have known her she always gives it her all. That is a great example to me.

One of my favorite memories with her is driving out to Alberta with her on the way to my wedding. She drove out early with me so I could spend some time with my family. Ryan had told her I liked to sing in the car when I drive so we sang together. It was fun.
We had some great girl outings going to the Nutcracker with Beth, going for sushi, and other things before the grandkids came along.

Really since I have had my kids I have really come to appreciate her so much more. She is such a thoughtful loving Grandma. I am so spoiled to have her so close. She is always calling to see how my day is going. She takes Abby for sleepovers to give us a break and they are always willing to babysit.
I love that my kids love going to their Grandparents house.
I really appreciate that we live so close and have so much time to make lot's of memories together.
Love you Mom!
I honestly cannot find a picture of Grandma with Natalie oh my we are such terrible photographers. I am sure Poppa has one!!

David

2010-02-19T19:17:00.000-08:00

Growing up with Dave was always fun. I remember doing chores with him like cleaning the barn and hauling water for the cows. I think one of my favorites was going to watch him play basketball. He was really good at basketball and I was so proud to go and cheer for him.

When he was on his mission in Tennessee I remember writing him letters and he would write back so many cool experiences that he was having. He has always had a strong testimony and served in whatever calling he has had. I remember in BC he told he me his calling was to help fellowship so he organized a basketball game every Saturday morning. Sounds more like playing to me!! HE HE HE!!

He is now married to my amazing sister in law Kerri and has four cute kids. He is enjoying the life of living in New Zealand right now lucky dog while Kerri goes to school. He is a great brother and great example to me.

Love you Dave.

Kolten, Kaitlyn, and McKinlay

2010-02-17T19:34:00.000-08:00

Some more of my cute nieces and nephew. These are my brother Kevin's kids. I remember Kolten as being the cutest baby ever. He has since turned into a young man. He reminds me to a T of Kevin. I love watching him follow his Dad and Grandpa around when they come and visit the farm. He loves to takes risks and always teases me to drive faster on the quad. One of my favorite memories of him is playing the game Apples to Apples. He would always try and guess what Ryan would pick so Ryan would win. I always thought that was so sweet!!

Kaitlyn is the one in the middle. She is our little beauty queen. She does a lot of rodeo pageants and loves horses. When we were home this Christmas when Abby was just 8 months old Kaitlyn wanted to curl her hair. I remember being at the farm and Kaitlyn loves to do things with Grandma. They always have little projects together. These guys usually spend a week or two at the farm in the summer and I know my parents love having them around.

Mckinlay is the one holding Abby. She loves babies. She is always cracking jokes and making me laugh. She wanted to hold and play with Abby the whole time we were there that Christmas.

Kaitlyn and Mckinlay both decided to be baptized in December. I am so proud of them for making this decision.

They are awesome kids and I love that they are part of my family!!!

Beth

2010-02-16T13:10:00.000-08:00

I have a few memories of Beth before and after I met Ryan. I think Christmas was probably the funniest.

Ryan and Beth played a trick on Mom and we pretended to give Beth a dog for Christmas. It was hilarious watching Mom try to be supportive. There you have it. Beth is as big as a jokester as the rest of the family.
I think the first time I met Beth was at a friends house after I had just moved to Winnipeg. We played two games that I was not very good at Trivial Pursuit and Crib. She was super smart and I wished she was on my team.
I remember playing the piano for her to sing before she left on her mission. She was correcting me on my technique. He he I have to say counting was never my favorite!! She is super talented on the piano and French Horn. I wish!!!
I remember when we had Abby and she came home from school to visit and she wasn't too sure about holding the baby. Now she is a pro Auntie and Abby loves it when she comes over.
It is great to have another sister that I can chat with and do some fun things with.
It has been so much fun having her around the last while as she is figuring out what to do. No matter what happens I know she is going to be awesome at whatever she decides!!
Love you Beth!

Dad

2010-02-15T19:34:00.000-08:00

Memories of my Dad mostly revolve around the farm because he loves that place. As I have gotten older and looked back I realize how much he really likes being a farmer and working on the farm. Growing up I sometimes didn't understand that and didn't realize why we couldn't do so many things that others were doing.

This picture is from this past October when we were there and Dad had fallen and hurt himself. My Dad is a little bit accident prone and I have many memories of my Mom running him to the doctor for stitches/dressings etc. Since I became a nurse he is always asking me health advice and wanting me to take his blood pressure and other such things. I guess this is a memory to me because I myself am accident prone nothing serious just little things but I always think of my Dad when I do it.

One of my favorite memories with my Dad is doing irrigation pipes at the flat. We used to go down with my two brothers and I would help Dad and the boys would do the other end. When I was younger I thought I was special because I was able to be Dad's partner. Really I was just the wimpy one and he was strong so he could do it with just a little help. I remember sometimes having a picnic by the river at irrigation pipes and Dad would come off the machinery long enough to eat and then back to work.

I am so grateful that he taught me to work hard!!

One of my other favorite memories is when I graduated from University and he and Mom came up to Edmonton for my convocation. I remember him telling me he was proud of me and that I was going to make something of myself. My Dad is not big on words or compliments and so this meant a great deal to me. I am grateful that because of him I was able to put myself through school, buy a car, and buy my own house. I know it stems from him teaching me to be frugal and independant.

I am glad that he is a great Grandpa to my kids when we get to see him!

Love you Dad!

My Valentine

2010-02-14T08:45:00.000-08:00

I feel pretty blessed to have the love of this guy in my life. I often wonder what I did to deserve such a great guy. I can't believe we have been together for five years this year. Time sure flies.
Our love story began just five short years ago. I am not sure of the first day we met but the first time we noticed each other was on a double date in which we were not together. I was so impressed with how he treated his date and how respectful he was. He is quite the gentleman.(Thanks Mom!) He had some great training!!
Our first date we went to an exhibit about the history of the toilet! It was really quite interesting and very unique. I remember thinking wow this guy is so easy to talk to. We had some really fun times. I knew he was a keeper when he stayed at the church all day while I was preparing a meal for the ward potluck and helped me with the food. He is definitely the romantic in our relationship. Stopping in the middle of a parking lot to dance with me is another memorable experience. Taking me to dinner with a live jazz band! Lot's of fun times!!
Watching him become a Dad and see how great he is at it has been amazing!!
He is fabulous and I am so grateful he is mine for all etenity!!

Over the past five years we have had some amazing times. We have two beautiful daughters Abigail and Natalie. He has given me so much confidence and love. I love how we grow together and build each other. It is exactly how I pictured marriage would be. Love you Ryan!! Can't wait for the rest of our life to unravel together!

Happy Valentine's Day

Joelle/Nicole/Ben

2010-02-13T12:30:00.000-08:00

So we are pretty spoiled and get to live close to my two neices and nephew here in Winnipeg. Joelle, Nicole, and Ben.

This is a pic the night before Joelle left to go to University in Lethbridge. I think my most favorite memory of Jo and Nic is from back in the day when I was single. I used to come and visit from Edmonton. I was the cool Auntie back then because I could afford to buy them treats and spent all my spare time with them when I was here. We would have little sleepovers. One in particular we were in Nikki's room and we were playing the game where you have to finish each other's sentances. We were laughing so hard and having so much fun!! These two are awesome.
Joelle and I have had many heart to hearts about taking it easy. We are similar in the way we react to stress and she always knows just when to say let's go for a walk right before I may spontaneously burst into tears. She is so smart and motivated and just a really awesome girl.

I loved when she was in our ward and playing the organ and every Sunday Abby would ask if she could go and sit with Joelle on the front bench. After Joelle left Abby was so sad she couldn't got and sit with her. Lucky for her Nicole is still here to play with.

Nicole has such a sweet spirit. She is so awesome and good at just saying relax it's all good. She is so good at playing with her cousins at church. If Abby comes to church in a cranky mood she just has to sit by Nikki for a few minutes and everything is all better. We love watching Nicole dance. She just started taking lessons but we went to her school recital and Abby was so excited to watch her cousin up on the stage. When Nicole was 8 and got baptized I remember going to her baptism and she had invited all her friends. I was so proud of her for being such a great missionary

Ben is uber talented in the baseball department. He is our chief babysitter these days and has done so well with both of the girls. I was worried we had scared him off kids forever the first time he babysat Natalie but he did it again so I figure we are all good. I love watching him and Ryan play together. They both love video games and it is so cute how Ryan becomes a little kid for awhile when they are together. One of my favorite memories of Ben is one time when we were out here and the kids were putting on costumes and trying to put on a play for us. Ben just kept running out and trying to scare us.

It is crazy how grown up they are now. I guess that means I am getting old.

We are so blessed to have these awesome guys close to us and we totally love them to bits.

Candace

2010-02-12T21:40:00.000-08:00

Candace is my sister in law married to Matt(Ryan's brother). This is her on her wedding day. As you can tell she is full of adventurous spirit like her husband.

I love listening to all her experiencies and travels all around the world. She is a great example of someone who gives to those in need. When she was in Africa doing her research for her Master's I was so impressed with her research and the experiences that she told us about.

When we visited them in the fall we had so much fun with her and the girls. Abby had so much fun playing with her stuffed animals and singing to Rock Band in their cowgirl hats.

At Christmas she even played school with Abby! She is a great Auntie.

So glad that she is part of our family!

Kerri

2010-02-11T16:53:00.000-08:00

My sister in law Kerri is married to my bro Dave. They have four cute kids. Here they are on my wedding day.
Some of my memories include: The first time I met Kerri she was staying at our house until she found a place in Lethbridge. She was super nice and had a cool accent. She is from New Zealand. She drove with us down to my brother Kevin's wedding and I remember she was flossing my brother's teeth. I was in high school and I thought man she must really like my brother. (She is a dental assistant.) Guess it was love because they got engaged on that trip.
One Christmas we went to Lethbridge for dinner and she made this yummy dessert that was her family's tradition it was trifle now one of my favorite desserts.
She is super fun to hang out with and whenever I have gone to visit them she has treated me like a queen. It was so much fun when I went and visited them in BC and she took me to all these cool places. She is super good at making you feel at home!!
Now they have moved to New Zealand so far away so she can get her midwifery degree. I think this is so cool. When I was in nursing school I wanted to work in Labour and Delivery which never happened but I think she will be so great at this. I admire her for going to school when she has four kids I don't know how on earth she can manage it all.
Anyway she is a really smart girl and is one of those people who is always on top of what is going on in the world and can discuss it with you. It think that is so admirable.
So glad she is part of our family!!!

Matt

2010-02-10T11:16:00.000-08:00

I first met Matt in the fall after Ryan and I were married. He and Candace were off on a canoe trip with a big group of friends and weren't able to come to our wedding. He is such an adventurer and when we saw all the pictures I was pretty amazed. I later read his story of when he canoed across the prairies and I really gained an appreciation for what this guy can do. He is a pretty cool guy with a ton of adventurous spirit!!

In October we got to spend some time at their house in Calgary. He came to the zoo with us and he was making it so much fun for Abby. He is such a great Uncle and I love how he takes the time to play with Abby.

This Christmas he and Candace really went all out having to play school/nap time and other fun things with Abby. Abby had them both laying under a blanket on the family room floor.

Like his brother and Dad he is also a big tease at times. I often wonder how Beth ever survived with all of these jokesters and teasers around?

Mostly Matt is such a considerate and just all around nice guy. He always makes an effort to talk to all of us and calls us on special occasions.

On a special note today he enters the 30's of his life.

Happy Birthday Matt!!

We love you!!

Deanna

2010-02-09T12:05:00.000-08:00

Today is my wonderful sister in law Deanna's birthday so I thought I would share a few memories! When I lived in Edmonton I really got to know her better and do some fun things with her. Here are some of my favorite times that stand out.
Whenever I would babysit or come over and she would drive me home I remember cranking up the tunes and singing away. She has a beautiful singing voice and I thought she is the coolest Mom ever.
She is like ultra organized/clean. I used to be amazed at how clean and obedient her kids always were. That was before I had kids now that I have them I am in awe??? I still really don't know how she accomplished it but I used to tell my roomates I could eat off her floor!!! Now they have a cute little dog so maybe he gets to eat off the floor? As for having obedient kids she is just a consistent parent I think. I wish I had that all figured out for my own kids!!
I think she has been in Young Women's since she got married and I think it is because she is super easy to talk to and always has great advice. I remember lot's of boy advice just the nice kind like you are great don't settle etc. I am sure she is doing amazing things with those girls.

What else can I say? She is awesome and I am so happy that she is part of our family!! Happy Birthday Deanna!!!! She is married to my oldest brother Mike and these are there four kids.

Kevin

2010-02-08T18:29:00.000-08:00

Today is my lucky brother Kevin's day. He is a pretty great brother and I have a few memories that I want to share.
He is so mechanically minded. Whenever I had a question about my car or anything else mechanical I always called him first. I remember on the farm one time the swather broke down and my Dad is not really a fixer he usually just gets a little frustrated in that department. I remember thinking how grateful I was that Kevin was coming home from Rexburg that day and could fix it. He came home and within a few hours Dad was back to swathing the field.
He is the most laid back Dad I have ever seen but his kids still totally respect and love him. I love watching him interact with his kids because I think there is such a cool relationship there.
When I got married Kevin did so much for us. He helped with the decorations, picked up the flowers, and a bunch of other little odd jobs. He is so dependable.

Here he is taking Abby for a quad ride on the farm!!

Vicki&Darren

2010-02-06T18:29:00.000-08:00

Well today I am lumping two together since I don't like to do computer stuff on Sunday. I am going to tell you about my awesome brother in law and sister.
The first time I heard about Darren it was Christmas 1988. My sister was intrigued by this guy and kept talking about him all Christmas holidays. He was so nice about all the wedding plans far more relaxed than his wife to be. Thank goodness! Actually Darren is pretty awesome. He is always helpful and dependable. When I moved to Winnipeg and had some car troubles he helped me replace a lighbulb in my car/headlights and all sorts of car stuff. He is really good at keeping secrets and helped us surprise my sister one year for her birthday. He loves his baseball and is happy to leave us sisters to chat whenever a game is on!!

Now my sister Vicki is pretty awesome. One of my first memories of her is when I was in Grade 1/2 and she was trying to do my hair for school. I was crying for my Mom because it was hurting my head. Thankfully her skills have improved vastly and she is my favorite hairdresser ever!!! I pretty much grew up admiring her because she was my closest sister in age and she seemed always so beautiful and popular. I mean who wouldn't want to be like her?

When I was in University I used to call her probably once every week/two weeks and she would always have plenty of advice and plenty of boys to set me up with. In fact every trip out here I think she set me up on a date with someone! I appreciated that she took the time to talk with her baby sister even though she is super busy!!

One of my favorite memories are the hours we used to spend singing at the piano together. So much fun.

Mostly I admire her testimony and dedication to the gospel. She is always giving to others and thinking of others. I wish I could be more like that.
She is an awesome Mom and has helped me many times gain perspective and really do the important things when it comes to parenting.
Lately we have become gym buddies and it is so fun to go work out with her. We are always pushing each other and attaining our goals together. It is so great to have her so close and to feel like great friends and sisters!!

I put in pictures of them holding our kids because they are both awesome to my kids it is great to have auntie and uncle so close!!!

Poppa

2010-02-05T12:46:00.000-08:00

Today I am going to tell you about Poppa. Of course this is Grandpa/Ryan's Dad. I have a few funny memories of course most of them are funny because he likes to tease and I am terrible and get embarrassed/turn red and all other such reactions that people who like to tease love to see.

My first memory that always makes me laugh happened before I ever even knew Ryan. When I first moved to Winnipeg I lived in a basement suite of an older couple from Church. It was awesome. Since I didn't know many people they invited me to their "Rook" tournament. Since I love playing Rook I was game. Well the entire evening Al teased me about one thing or another mostly about being single and hanging out on a Friday night with a bunch of oldies he he he!!! Good times. For the record after it was over I went over to some friends house and stayed out really late to make myself feel socially cool!!! Anyway he made an impression on me as a really funny guy little did I know he had a son that would soon be eligible.

One of my other things/memories I have when I think about Al is his perfectionist/OCD tendancies. They make me laugh! He did our slideshow and I don't even want to know how many hours he spent working on it. Pretty much every project/game or activity he is in it has to be organized. I love playing cards and he is sitting there organizing the piles. So funny!!!

Now I couldn't do a post about Poppa without mentioning his amazing photography that he has done for us. He is always snapping pics of us and the kids and has captured many moments that we haven't so I am super grateful that he shares that talent with us!!!

Most of all he is a super awesome grandpa. Abby simply adores spending time with Poppa. He has taught her very useful information like "eggs come from a chicken's bum". Just the sort of stuff you want your daughter spouting off at nursery!! They made this purple birdhouse together and Abby is always telling me it is Poppa and hers. Natalie I am sure will follow suit in her adoration of Poppa.

We are so grateful to live so close to him and to have his love and attention.

Mike

2010-02-04T06:58:00.000-08:00

Today I am going to tell you some of my favorite memories of my oldest brother Mike. Since he was the oldest and I was the youngest and only 5 when he left the house I honestly don't remember much growing up. I do remember when he came home from his mission and Leslye and Vicki babysat all the rest of us. It was one big party. I was so proud to have a brother who was a returned missionary!!
One of my favorite memories of him involves when he brought Deanna (his wife) home for the first time. This was a pretty big deal. My Dad is kinda scary when it comes to bringing people home and so we were all a bit nervous. I remember having a nice meal and then we had canned cherries for dessert. Of course my brothers started spitting cherry seeds at one another. I was pretty sure Deanna wouldn't come back but she did thankfully. They asked me to be a bridesmaid and at 11 years old I thought I was pretty cool stuff. Especially singing "The Glory of Love" at their reception.(Oh my). I might add I didn't make him do any embarrassing performances at my wedding. He is the handsome one in the dark suit.

Most of my favorite memories are from when I lived in Edmonton and I got to spend some family time with them at their house. Of course all of these fun photos are on my old film camera.West Edmonton Mall waterpark and galaxyland, going to the movies, and going out for dinners. It was so fun to watch him being such a great husband and Dad. I was so grateful to him for coming to Cardston with me when I went through the temple for the first time and really for all the support while I was at school. It was nice to always know that I had family I could call on and they would come and help me if I needed it.
He is one pretty great brother!

Mom

2010-02-03T13:40:00.000-08:00

Today I thought I would share with you some favorite memories of my Mom. I think everyone thinks their Mom is the best and I am no exception but I think I really started to appreciate my Mom once I had kids. First of all how on earth was she able to be a Mom to seven kids? Two keeps me busy enough. Anyway out of a lifetime of memories I picked a couple of my favorite.

(On a side note I have learned something in the three days I have been doing this 1. I don't take or have enough pictures of my family and 2. I really need to get some of my old printed pictures onto a digital format.)

Ok back to my Mom.
One of my favorite memories was in Grade 11. I was getting ready to take my Grade 9 piano exam and was of course stressed out and being a teenage girl. My Mom was always telling me to relax and have confidence in myself. I remember her taking me to the Cardston Alberta Temple Open House right before my piano exam because she said it would give me peace. What a wise woman!!! Sorry no awesome pics of me in high school all on the old film camera!!

Here is a pic of her at a baby shower they had for me when I was born. She was so excited to have a baby shower for number 7 can you imagine? Check out those outifts and hair do's!! Check out my sister Vicki in her styling red and white dress!!

Another favorite memory was all the talks we used to have driving back and forth to volleyball, basketball, choir, and piano lessons. I remember all the recitals and games she always tried to come to. What an awesome lady.

Now that I have kids of my own I get to see her as a Grandma and although my kids don't get to see her as much as I'd like they love her and talking on the phone to Grandma Smith on the farm. She is pretty much amazing and I am grateful to have been raised by such a great lady!!!

Landon and Taylor

2010-02-02T17:11:00.000-08:00

Today I am going to tell you about two adorable boys named Landon and Taylor. They get February 2 because it was Landon's 8th birthday yesterday. Same day as his Dad's.

The first picture is of Landon with his parents at my wedding reception. I can't believe he is 8 and getting baptized this Saturday. I wish we could go. He is super talented into sports, music, and dancing. When they came to visit us after I had Abby he was so cute playing video games with his Uncle Ryan and following his cousin Ben around.

Now this is the first time I met Taylor right after Abby was born and I have to tell you he was the happiest kid I had ever met. He was always smiling and carefree. When we had our family reunion a couple of years back I couldn't believe how big he had gotten. He is still the laid back easy going kid. I think he inherited that from his Dad. I have to admit I was so jealous at the time I met him because I was pretty new at the Mom thing and Abby made a ton of noise still so I thought this kid was pretty amazing!!!

Just two of my amazing nephews that I am so grateful to have as part of my family.

Love Month

2010-02-01T13:00:00.000-08:00

In honor of February being the month of "Love" I thought I would do something fun. I am doing to do a post about people I love/respect/admire every day. The majority will be family but of course a few great friends/influences in my life.

On the first day of February I am going to tell you about my brother Phillip. I have a ton of memories but I will share just a couple. Phil is probably my sibling who knew me the most because he lived with me the longest as we were the closest in age. I am sure as the baby sister I occasionally annoyed him but he is a great brother that I love.

My first memory is from when I was in high school. He was home working and waiting for his mission call. I was super frustrated with my math class(one of my weaknesses) but I was determined to do well so I could get into nursing school. He took the time to go over concepts downstairs in his bedroom. I am so grateful for that and for the time he took to spend time with his baby sister. I remember his also giving me boy advice about the boys that I liked. So fun!!

When he went on his mission one of my YW goals was to write him a letter every week and I remember how fun that was to get letters from him about being a missionary.

My other memory is from a few years ago. He and his family came to visit me in Winnipeg shortly after I had Abby. Now anyone who has had a baby knows how crazy you are after having your first. I remember him telling me to just relax and take it easy. He is super easy going and a great brother to have around.

It is his birthday today so have a great day Phil!! Love you!!!!

Well this is the best that I can do since I can't seem to find my wedding disc which is the last time I took a pic of my bro. He is the cute one in the blue pj's!!!

Obviously missing my two sisters. This is a pic of my four brothers and I. I was three at the time!

Be Grateful

2010-01-28T08:36:00.000-08:00

I am a pretty private person and as I was reading over what I wrote on Monday I was like man I am not being very grateful for what I do have. I decided to write some things I am grateful for and stop worrying about things that I can't change or that will eventually change with time!!!

Super grateful for this guy. He always makes me laugh and I think I only get on his nerves occasionally. Love you Ryan.

Grateful for this cutie pie who challenges my parenting skills or lack of them on almost a daily basis but is so cute at other times that you gotta love her.

I can't believe we are going in for her six month checkup and shots today. Time flies and I am so grateful for a cuddly baby.

Super grateful for the gospel, the temple, and everything else that goes with it.

Grateful for the beautiful world we live in. Super grateful for this beautiful land that I grew up on with the mountains in the distance. I love the mountains...

I feel so blessed to have what I have and looking at all the suffering and devastation in the world it sure makes me appreciate it even more. What are you grateful for today?

Monday

2010-01-25T11:16:00.000-08:00

Mondays are typically my most productive days. I get out to the gym early and then on to the rest of my day. Today however I got to the gym with the kids dropped them off in the daycare area. About 30 minutes into my step class the lady brings me Natalie who has been screaming the whole half hour. Poor thing. She is making strange these days. I missed the last 15 minutes of my step class but discovered the play area with Abby who cried and cried when we had to leave.
After the gym we headed home and the wind had drifted the snow all over the driveway. After getting stuck trying to shovel around the car and still stuck I decided to just leave it. Our car has the most pathetic tires on and whenever there is a lot of snow we get stuck. So my apologies to all the pedestrians because the sidewalk is partially blocked but I am too tired at this moment to care.
Happy Monday!!!

Dreaming of winter tires!!!!!!

6 Months

2010-01-19T20:00:00.000-08:00

Wow my baby is already six months old. I can't believe how fast the time goes by. Here is some of what our cute little Natalie is up to. First and foremost this girl is so full of joy. She is always smiling whether it is 6am or 10:30pm. She has such a happy go lucky personality. Now she does have her moments like every other person in the world but overall she is a really laid back girl.

She loves to sleep and sleeps really well most of the time. Lately those darn teeth have been bugging her and she has been waking up at night more but usually only up once a night if that. I feel so lucky and blessed to have such a great sleeper. Most of the time when she is sleeping we find her thumb stuck firmly in her mouth. I have tried multiple things to stop it but so far nothing is as sweet as the thumb.

She had her first taste of rice cereal on Sunday and she still isn't too sure about it.

She started rolling over today. She loves to sit up and be surrounded by toys. Her new favorite thing is to sit in her high chair and whatever you give her it goes to the floor. It's great exercise bending over every minute or so.

It has been a great six months and it is so fun watching her grow and develop.

Love you Natalie!!

Imagination

2010-01-14T14:41:00.000-08:00

I am so grateful to have a daughter with such a great imagination. This morning as I was trying to get the laundry going and the bathroom cleaned she says," Sit Down Mom" Why I ask? We are going to school on the bus. So out comes her blanket with all her stuffed animals and we sit down and head off to school. Then "Mom school is downstairs can you carry all the animals please?" We head downstairs where Abby pulls out her books and pretends to read them to her stuffed animals and I.
This afternoon we were out enjoying -7 yeah!!! She was climbing mountains and was asking why Natalie and I weren't climbing with her. She wanted to work on her castle but Mom just isn't as good a builder as Daddy so we have to wait for Daddy to come home.

The world is so exciting to her. I just love it. It is so much fun to sit and play with her and see just how her mind is developing. This is a picture from Christmas time playing at her cousins. She is my little actress.

New Beginnings

2010-01-11T11:53:00.000-08:00

Well today Ryan headed back to work. Yeah it has been almost two full months of no work. Abby is going through Daddy withdrawl. I finally distracted her with Caillou. She loves that show and will pretty much do whatever I ask if Caillou is involved. Pretty cute though how she totally got attached to her Daddy. It was my first day of going to the gym and having to take the kids. It was a little more work but still super fun. I am grateful for two kids who are not shy or nervous and will play with pretty much anyone. So far so good.
I finished Three Cups of Tea this morning. Such an inspiring story. I couldn't believe how much one person can accomplish in such a crazy place. Worth the time to read it will inspire you to somehow be better to mankind.
Here's a funny rant that I have so I will write it to get it off my mind. Today after my step aerobics class I was in the locker room and this girl was complaining about how the class was too full due to all the New Year's Resolution people. I can understand her frustration at the lack of space?? However from my nursing perspective I think one should take a step back and cheer on all those people who are trying to live a healthy lifestyle instead of becoming a burden on our already overburdened health care system. For some reason it has been bothering me all morning. I think it's from reading this book can't we all just love and support one another in our journeys of life instead of bickering and trying to outdo someone else. Just a thought??

Here comes 2010

2010-01-06T19:56:00.000-08:00

We had such a wonderful Christmas season and New Year's with family and friends. I sort of took a vacation from the computer.

Before Christmas we hit the train over by Assiniboine Park on a crisp winter night. When we arrived the line was quite long and it seemed to take forever but Abby loves trains and was pretty much in heaven the whole time. Well worth the wait.

We hit Tim Horton's after for my favorite Hazelnut Smoothie and a timbit. Abby was pretty much in heaven.

Christmas was totally awesome. Having a two year old around sure makes it fun. We were able to spend Christmas Eve and my sister's house we ate a ton of food and acted out the nativity. I love this tradition. Abby was the shepheard and Natalie was baby Jesus. They were both totally adorable.

Christmas morning was pretty low key seeing as how lately my kids have taken to sleeping in?? I don't know why but hey I am enjoying it. I got up to make yummy cinnamon buns and orange julius and the blender woke up the girls. Abby got her doll from Santa and Grandma Smith sent her matching pj's for her doll. She was pretty happy. Natalie was pretty happy and got totally spoiled for being so little.

All in all we had a great time visiting with Uncles, Aunts, Grandma's and Grandpa's.

Ryan and I got YMCA membership from my brother and it is awesome. I love going and getting some exercise out of my house. Somehow it is easier.

I love setting goals and this time of year always makes me happy and almost giddy as I write down things I want to improve about myself. I will share one with you all out in the blogging world. As a mother and woman I am determined to stop comparing myself/children to anyone else's. We are all individuals and it really is not important.

It sounds easy on paper but somehow for me it is big so that is something I am going to work on. I hope you have all set some awesome resolutions and good luck achieving them.

2009 top 10

2009-12-19T13:54:00.000-08:00

This year instead of a Christmas letter we decided to write our top ten list of things that happened to us in 2009. In no particular order here are some of our favorites of 2009.

1. Ryan graduated from University with a Bachelor of Arts in Geography. Had fun participating in bike races and came first place in the Wednesday Night Mountain Bike Series this summer.

2. We bought a piano. We saw it at a garage sale and snatched it up. I love playing with the girls and singing away.

3. We welcomed our second beautiful daughter Natalie Ann on July 17. She is such a sweetheart and we love having her as part of our family. She is growing and changing everyday. My favorite attribute is her happy attitude. She always wakes up with a smile no matter what time of day or night it is.

4.We were able to go on a family vacation to Alberta in the fall. We loved seeing our family and friends in Alberta. We had a lot of fun on the farm visiting Grandparents. Abby loved the baby tractor (the quad). We were also able to go up to Calgary and visit relatives. A definite highlight for Abby was the Calgary Zoo with Uncle Matt.

5.Abby is turning into such a big girl. She is a great big sister. She loves to read books, play house, and be outside. She is very independent and seems to know what she wants all the time. She took her first swimming lessons and loves going to nursery on Sundays.

6. Ryan got his first job as a Materials Coordinator for Aero-Inventory. He was enjoying working there until the company ran into some financial difficulty and he got laid off. Lucky for us he was able to find a new job with Air Canada starting in January.

7. We were able to do some work on our house this year. We put in four new windows and tore out a wall. We have our fence half pulled down and plan on putting up a new one next year. This is us in front of our empty window space in the kitchen where we had to replace the entire wall.

8.We are both keeping busy at church. I am serving in the Relief Society Presidency and Ryan is the Young Men's President. Abby is keeping the nursery leaders busy and Natalie is still happy to just stay with Mom and Dad.

9. I enjoyed working part time in the ICU as an RN until June when I went on Mat. Leave. It was great to be able to keep my skills up and have a little Mom time.

10. Our family is such a big part of our life. We are so blessed to have Grandparents, Aunties, and Uncles so close. We wouldn't be able to do everything we are able to do without their love and support.

All in all we have been so blessed this year and are so grateful to be part of such a happy healthy family.

Merry Christmas to you and your family
Love,
The Smiths

Laughing babies, how fun.

2009-12-17T14:27:00.000-08:00

Haere's a little video of Abby making Nat laugh.
What good "buddies"

hmmm... it appears not to have worked. I'll fix it...

well, it seems to be working with Google Chrome, but not explorer. Maybe it will work for you!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas!!

2009-12-15T20:48:00.000-08:00

I can't believe it is almost Christmas. The last couple of months have flown by. We are mostly ready at our house just a few odds and ends. This year has been really fun as we are trying to start some new family traditions and enjoy the season together.

Abby and I enjoyed going for a walk during the first snowfall and looking at all the pretty lights. She is fascinated by the lights and considers it her job to plug them in everyday even in -35 degrees.

We are enjoying the advent calendar found in the December issue of the Friend magazine. It is so much fun to learn about all the different cultures around the world and how they celebrate Christmas. After we pin the picture up she runs to the traditional advent calendar to get her chocolate fix for the day. Sometimes Daddy's calendar appears to be missing days we haven't had yet I wonder who???

Grandma made cute matching Christmas dresses for the girls which they have enjoyed wearing each Sunday this month. So cute.

We decided to simplify our season and bought some Charlie Brown Christmas Trees. They are super cute, adorable, and really inexspensive. They smell great. We call them our Abby size trees.

Abby participated in her first Christmas play as an angel. She was too cute her costume constantly falling off and having to run to the bathroom in the middle of it. She did really great though and wasn't shy at all.

Natalie is still growing like a weed and will be five months this week. At five months she is sleeping through the night occasionally (Yeah!). She is starting the drooling, red cheeks, teething phase. She is almost rolling over and tries to sit up occasionally. She loves to smile and laugh. She loves the jolly jumper, exersaucer, and sadly her thumb still. We have tried to push the soother but no the thumb is better in her opinion. I know just enjoy it. Mostly she loves to be cuddled and I just enjoy cuddling her.

Here's a super fun thing Abby has started doing lately. I don't know why but she is starting to have school. She sets up all her stuffed animals on the bed and teaches them the ABC's it is so cute. It reminds me of when I was little and I used to have my own primary on my bed with my stuffed animals.

Other than that Ryan and I are enjoying some extra time together which will be ending at the beginning of January thanks to him getting a new job. It has been great having him around to help more with the kids.

Well off to bed since both kids are fast asleep. Hope everyone is having a wonderful Christmas season.

Times of Change

2009-11-20T13:04:00.000-08:00

I have totally neglected my blog lately. Not because my life is boring whose life can be boring with two kids running around? I have neglected it mostly because I am too busy to sit down and take the time to share the exciting events. Today I have a sleeping baby and Abby decided she had to watch her movie. I love that I put the movie three quarters of the way through and she still hasn't figured it out. It gives me a 20 minute window and it gives her the movie.We have had some exciting events around here. My amazing husband finished his school and had his convocation. He really wasn't that interested in going but he did since some of his family thought it was a good idea for him to go. You can sort of pick him out in the sea of graduates. It made me reflect on my university graduation. Dare I say almost 10 years ago?? YIKES!! Yes it is true I am getting old and I can't believe I have been a nurse for that long already.

We headed to the dog park last weekend. No we don't have a dog but Abby loves them and having all those dogs running around is enough excitement for her.

Natalie is four months old already. We moved her into the crib this week. She is such a great sleeper that I figured she could handle being in the same room as her big sister. Of course Natalie is doing fine but Abby still wakes up at least once a night and runs into our room. Still working on that.

Natalie is trying so hard to roll over. She has the best smiles in the morning when she wakes up. She is still a spitter-upper (is that a word?).

That girl will ruin any outfit that isn't protected by a bib. She is enjoying her exersaucer but isn't too excited about the jolly jumper. Mostly because the first time we tried it big sister wanted in on the action and pulled on it so hard it fell down and gave Natalie her first goose egg. Haven't braved that a second time yet. I am soaking up every cuddly moment this girl will give me. I can't believe how fast Abby is growing so I am trying to soak up Natalie as a baby as much as I can.

Abby is so cute these days. She is so interested in the world. It is amazing how quickly kids pick up on things. She has figured out the Santa business and wants a new doll. We are going to write her first Santa letter in a few weeks.

It totally doesn't feel like Christmas or even winter here in the peg. It is crazy. Usually by now we have heaps of snow but today we walked to the park in our shirts and played on the swing. I love it. No complaints here. I do love a White Christmas and hope it comes for then but for now I am enjoying this beautiful weather. We have so much to be grateful for!!!

Happenings

2009-11-04T09:31:00.001-08:00

Well since holidays life has slowly gotten back to normal. We are trying to get back into our routine he he he. We are so not a routine house but I like to think we are. We had a fabulous week last week. We headed off to the zoo for Boo at the Zoo on Tuesday. It was so much fun. Abby loved riding the ponies and going for cool rides. She wasn't too excited about the haunted house her Daddy took her through but settled down when her Daddy won her a stuffed animal.
Natalie just took it all in stride and stayed bundled in the car seat. I didn't really get too into Halloween with her this year just a cute pumpkin bib. Abby loved carving pumpkins and wanted a pig pumpkin. Here is the final result.
We had some special visitors as well and had some fun times with the Drennan's. We love it when they come to visit. Natalie got her first kiss from a boy. Isaiah was so cute he loved the baby.
After all the commotion I finally took the kids to get our H1N1 shots last week. What a nightmare that was. We spent over two hours waiting outside and then once you got inside all you hear are screaming children. It was really quite awful. In fact one of the nurses came up to me and was like it really isn't that bad. I guess my facial expression showed how I was feeling a little anxious as I watched Abby look around and start to cry. So not cool as she is usually a gem a the doctor's for her regular immunizations and now she has been marred. I hope it doesn't continue when we go for her next shot. Oh well since then we have all gotten sick with the sniffles. Hopefully that doesn't last too long.
I am starting to get excited for the Christmas season now that Halloween is over. All the stores are putting their stuff out and pretty soon I am sure the music will start. I can't wait.

Holiday Favorites-Picture Overload

2009-10-22T13:12:00.000-07:00

Here are some fun pics from our wonderful holiday. It was so great to be back home at the farm and visiting family in Calgary.

1. Road Trip- My kids are the best travelers. They did great both ways. I love how Abby is in her mimic stage and follows whatever we do. Natalie pretty much slept/ate the whole way. Despite the horrible icy roads it was a fun ride out.
2. The Farm- It was so great to be back at home. Walking to the creek to throw rocks in. Riding the quad. Going to the river. It is more like a stream in this picture with Grandpa. It is amazing how much it has changed.
More farm pics. Abby loved cooking with Grandma and just helping her out in the kitchen. Abby went for a horse ride with her Dad. I have to admit even though I grew up on a farm I don't love riding horses. I left that up to Daddy. Here's a pic of Natalie who has recently discovered her thumb and isn't giving it up easily. Uh Oh.

3. Family- My sister and my niece came for Thanksgiving. It was so great to see both of them and spend some quality time with them
Well after all of these adventures and believe me there was more. A visit to the ER for my Dad, dehorning the cows for Ryan and other great farm adventures. We headed off to Calgary despite tears from Abby "No leave Grandma" She wanted to stay at the farm.

4. Calgary- In Calgary we visited Ryan's brother and his wife. We had a great time eating Mexican food, going to the zoo, and walking in the park. Abby loved playing Rock band and especially going on the teetertotter.
By far my favorite part was going to the Cardston Temple. I love that building and everything about it. I am so grateful to have the gospel as part of my family and life.

Happy Thanksgiving

2009-10-07T09:19:00.001-07:00

Since we are going to be gone for Thanksgiving and I won't have internet access for a week I thought I would write a little note about my favorite holiday. Don't get me wrong I am uber excited to be away from technology for awhile. Won't it be nice just to walk to the river or over to snake hill or just listen to the silence or look at the stars without glaring city lights. SOOO excited!!!
I love Thanksgiving because it is usually beautiful outside with the different colored leaves. I love walking along crunching the colorful leaves. I love the crispness in the air. I am so excited to be at the farm for Thanksgiving. I can't wait to show Abby all the fun things to do there.
I am so grateful for so many things in my life. Of course I am grateful for my family this is where our new kitchen window was put in last weekend. Ryan calls it our redneck pictures.I have two wonderful sets of parents who are super supportive and helpful. I have brothers and sisters whom I look up to and though we live far apart I still feel their support and love usually through the lovely genius of the internet.
I have two amazing daughters who teach me something everyday and who love me unconditionally. That is amazing to me as I am still learning the motherhood ropes and often do things that aren't the best.
I have the gospel and know the plan of salvation which gives the faith and perspective to go on each day. I have wonderful friends who love and support me. I am also grateful for the many talents I have been blessed with. I am super excited to go home and play on the piano at my parent's house. I love going back to the piano where I first learned where middle c was. It has some sort of special place for me.
I know I have tons of blessings that I am grateful for and if I had more time I would list everyone but don't have that much time.
I just wanted to end by telling you how grateful I am for this guy. I can't believe I have only known him for just over 4 years and how he is such a part of my life that I can't remember what it was like before. He gives me the motivation to be the best I can be and is always supportive and encouraging. He is pretty much amazing and I am so glad that we are going to be together forever. It is his birthday today and I just wanted to tell everyone out there in cyberworld how amazing he is. We had his birthday celebration yesterday Abby was pretty excited to make her yellow cupcakes for Daddy. Happy Birthday Ryan we love you!!!

2 Months Old

2009-10-02T11:36:00.000-07:00

I can't believe how fast time flies. Our little Natalie is already two months old and working on three. She has the greatest smile now and makes all sorts of cute baby noises. She is still sleeping like an angel. I can't even begin to say how grateful I am for that. We got some pics done a while ago by our good friend Ruth. Here are a few of our cutie pie.I love the feet pics she has these crazy long toes but still so cute.It is so amazing to watch little ones grow and develop. She seems to have such a laid back personality and as soon as she gets what she is wanting she is as happy as can be. Let's hope she is a great traveler as we head out to Alberta in less than a week. Can't wait to see the family.

Canada's Best Handymen

2009-09-28T12:33:00.001-07:00

So this spring our kitchen window started bubbling and leaking with every rainfall. Not so good. We ended up ordering four new windows and my amazing husband and father in law started the work this weekend. It started by ripping out the kitchen window. I don't know if this picture does it justice it was pretty much dust down to the floor. Yikes!!!
Good thing we had Poppa here to help Ryan it was a long day and a lot of work for both of them.
Here is Poppa posing by his job. He ripped out pretty much the whole wall. I was kind of getting nervous by this point hoping the other three windows weren't so dramatic.
Now my job was to take care of the kids and keep them out of the way. Pretty hard when Abby adores Poppa and was so excited he was here. I did get her to the park for an hour or so and we read a few books but eventually she just sat on her bed coloring watching Daddy and Poppa do all the work. By the end of the day she was ready to join in on all the action and got out all her construction gear. Pretty cute she was breaking up the styrofoam from my new crockpot I bought.

By the end of the day we had three beautiful windows in place. The kitchen is going to take a lot more work so that is happening this week. I am so grateful to have such talented men in my life.

To top it all off at the end of the day I headed out to the Relief Society Broadcast which was totally amazing. My favorite talk was about minding the gap. Some awesome advice for us women who tend not to see the potential in ourselves. Now little Natalie was a gem all day with the hammering, sawing, and overall confusion she did amazing. I am so grateful for such a wonderful family.
How was your weekend?

Like Mother Like Daughter

2009-09-27T13:32:00.000-07:00

I am grateful that Abby has picked up on one of my loves and that is reading. I love to read and although I don't have as much time these days to sit down and read we love going to the library together and just looking at all the books.

Last week we went to the downtown library with Abby's friend Kennedy and we had a great time. I love the downtown library there is such a large selection of books to choose from. I think it almost overwhelmed Abby.
The other day when Daddy came home from work Abby dragged him outside on the front lawn with a few of her favorites and I caught this pic of them. So cute. Her two current favorites are "When Pigs Fly" by Valerie Coulman and "Grumpy Bird" by Jeremy Tankard.
The Grumpy Bird is great for two year olds I always pull it out when she is having a moment and by the end of the book she is laughing. It is like magic.

Summer in September

2009-09-16T19:47:00.001-07:00

It is amazing how great the weather has been since school started. Since no one in our house is in school this year it has been great fun to get out and enjoy the outdoors. Of course we hit the zoo. Grandma came along and spoiled Abby by letting her ride the horse. She was so excited and not scared a little bit. In fact the lady behind us reminded us that kids under 5 must be accompanied by an adult. OOPS! Grandma and I were so shocked at how much she loved being on the horse we forgot she isn't a pro yet.

We got started on a summer project tearing down our fence. While it really wasn't that much work since it was practically falling over. Well actually I wouldn't really know since Ryan tore it all down I just took a picture!! We are excited to have a fenced in back yard again hopefully soon.
We headed out on the LaSalle River for our annual canoe ride. I say annual since we only got out once this year and once last year. Abby had a great time and only lost her baby paddle once. It was super fun to relive the spot where we got engaged. Actually neither Ryan or I could remember the actual spot but hey we were on the right river and all the trees looked the same to me.
I love this shot of my two girls. It looks like Natalie is smiling at her sister as they share some story. Hopefully there will be many more shots of these two getting along this great in the future.
Lately Abby has started playing house and nursery. It is absolutely adorable. She puts all the stuffed animals on the bed and pretends to teach them. I love it. I remember doing it with my cousin as a kid and we had a whole primary of stuffed animals. It is so fun to watch and amazing how much she knows and catches on. We laugh at her silly antics and are like who does or says that since she pretty much mimics everything she sees.
Natalie is already two months old tomorrow crazy!!! She is such a cute kid and pretty easygoing. She loves her car seat. No matter if she just woke up from a nap she will fall asleep in that thing. Since she sleeps so good at night I have never had to use the car seat for that purpose but it is always good to know.
Today we headed out to the Farmer's Market/Spray Pad in St. Norbert. It was so much fun. Aunt Beth was so great and got soaking wet. Abby didn't want to leave until I said treat. We bought some popcorn at the market and she was so thrilled to have a "baby size" bag. That is her new saying for anything small it is baby size!
Well we feel all grown up today as Ryan called from work to tell me he has to go to Montreal for a few days for work. It seems crazy that he has a job and he gets to travel. We are so blessed.
We are on the countdown for our holidays in October. We are heading out to the beautiful mountains of Alberta, treeline farm, Cardston Temple, Calgary Zoo, and lot's of other fun stuff. Can you tell how super excited I am??? I haven't been outside this province in over a year!! YIKES!!!

Farewell to Jo

2009-09-16T19:32:00.000-07:00

We are pretty excited for Joelle to be out of her house and onto university. Abby has her picture posted above her bed and every Sunday looks at the organ and says Jo?? Super cute. Seriously my niece is pretty amazing and although we are sad to see her gone we are excited that she is already having so many adventures. Abby will miss walking across the chapel every Sunday to go and sit with her favorite organ player.Good thing she is spoiled and has two other great cousins around to keep her entertained.

Summer Fun

2009-08-25T13:45:00.000-07:00

It has been an interesting summer thus far. The weather here in Manitoba has not been that stellar a few nice days here and there. This past weekend it finally felt like a summer weekend with lot's of fun things to do.
On Friday my amazing husband came home and saw that both Abby and Mommy needed a break from each other. He suggested we set up the tent and Abby and he would spend the night outside in our backyard. Abby was so excited. I feel pretty lucky to have such a great hubby. I was so surprised when she stayed out the whole night. My baby is growing up.
On Saturday we headed out to the Morden Corn and Apple Festival. It was so much fun. It was a nice drive then we hit the festival. The crowds were pretty crazy and we really only spent time at the petting zoo but it was fun to get out and dosomething different as a family.
Abby was so brave and rode the horse by herself. She didn't even look at Mom or Dad during the whole ride she was just so excited. She also loved seeing all the different animals and petting them.
Natalie is doing great. She is an awesome sleeper so far and such a laid back personality. She seems so content and only cries for a reason. No all nighters with this girl. I am so grateful to have such a wonderful baby. We did a photoshoot with Grandpa and our friend Ruth just waiting to get some pics back. Here is one that Daddy captured of her in her blessing dress.
Tomorrow is canning day. Grandma and I are each doing a case of peaches. I am so excited to have them in my pantry for the winter. Everyone at this house loves peaches!!! Yum Yum!!

2009-08-14T20:08:00.000-07:00

I love my two year old. She is cute and cuddly. She loves to go to the park, go swimming, and read books. Lately what she doesn't love is going to bed. It's a phase that is what everyone is telling me but it is one exhaustive phase. It sure makes me appreciate my Mom who raised seven kids I don't know how she did it.
Ryan and I had a special day on Wednesday that's right it has been four years already since we got married. We had Subway for supper(my fav.) then headed out to Bird's Hill Park for his last bike race of the season. I know we are super romantic. It was fun and it is great to see your husband doing something that he loves. I wish I was in the kind of shape he is. He is a great husband and I love him more and more each day. He is especially great with my lovely two year old when I am done. Kudos out there to all the single moms I don't know how you do it. We were hoping to go for a bike ride together tomorrow but alas Mother Nature is not cooperating. Rain Rain go away.
Tonight I got to go out for sushi with my good pals Romy and Joelle. Yum Yum. I love sushi and when you go with such great company of course it is a blast.

Whirlwind

2009-08-04T20:16:00.001-07:00

I can't believe it is August where did July go? We had some fun times with family the last while. My parents were able to come out for a few days and we did some touristy things with them.
We headed out to Lower Fort Garry, had picnics, and just enjoyed each other's company. My sister and Mom spoiled me by picking strawberries for me and even making some into jam. I am ultra grateful because I love strawberry jam and the fresh strawberry pie I was able to make. Don't they rock?

We also had some fun times with Ryan's brother and wife who came out. We got to try flying this huge kite. Well I didn't try the first night because I was a wimp and then night two it was so windy my sister in law Beth almost got hurt bad and I wasn't too interested after that.
Natalie and Abby got spoiled by everyone and enjoyed every minute of it.

Lastly here is a picture of Abby watching the popcorn popper go. She loves it and gets so excited she is giggling every time Grandma makes popcorn. She is missing them right now as they are on their annual canoe trip. Yesterday she got on her play phone and was asking for Poppa (Grandpa) and today when I dropped off something for Aunt Beth she burst into tears because there was no Poppa or Grandma at home.
All in all we are enjoying a great summer and trying to have as much fun as we can.
Check out this pic. If only I could arrange nap times. This has only happened once or twice where they are both sleeping at the same time and boy did I enjoy that.

Natalie

2009-07-28T09:47:00.000-07:00

We are so excited to have a new baby girl in our home. She is such a gem. I am not sure why but I am enjoying the newborn stage with number 2 far more than I did with Abby. I guess it is just experience and knowing more of what to expect.
I did end up being induced since nature didn't seem to want to do it naturally. It turned out great Ryan and I watched a movie and were just hanging out for about 3 and a half hours after they started the oxytocin. Labour finally hit me at around 12:30 or 1. When they finally got around to checking me I was already 8cm and pushed her out at 0222. It was an awesome labour and delivery. Nothing is so exciting as when a beautiful baby comes out and you know that you had a small part in it. She was 8lbs 140z and 20.5 inches long. Her name is Natalie Ann Smith.
Due to the quietness of the postpartum ward I ended up staying for a couple of days. It was great since my girl was up eating all night the first two nights. Luckily for me that has settled and she is a great little sleeper for her age.
Abby was pretty excited to meet her new little sister and loves to give her kisses. When people come over she is super overprotective. Yesterday some friends came over and Abby wouldn't let them touch anything that belonged to Natalie.
Now we are all adjusting to having a new baby around the house again. So far so good on Mom's part as I guess I am used to sleep deprivation and with the 3-4 hour stretches Natalie is giving me I am feeling not too bad. Our poor little Abby is having a tough time sharing her family with Natalie. Hopefully with time it will all settle out. We have had lot's of company around and they have been spoiling her.
All in all we are a pretty happy family and we are enjoying having a new beautiful baby girl.

Mission Accomplished

2009-07-11T13:30:00.000-07:00

No I didn't have the baby and am posting about it already. Today I decided to seize the day and I successfully weeded all my flower gardens and my vegetable garden. Only the back lawn left to mow. Yeah!!!! Just thought I would share because it feels really good although now I feel like I could sleep for ever.
Hope you are all having a productive Saturday.

Patience

2009-07-10T12:46:00.000-07:00

I figure that sometimes we are given experiences to teach us things and lately mine has been learning of patience. My adorable two year old is great at doing this lately. It seems like almost any event from putting on clothes to going to the park requires a little match of wills to see who will give in first. Today I was at the park with Abby and I met this lady who gave me some perspective. She says my granddaughter screams every time we try to get dressed I just do it and then she is none the wiser two minutes later. True enough. I tend to forget how time sensitive these little munchkins are they don't remember everything and so I am going to stop letting myself get so frustrated. Here's Abby enjoying her first smore of the year.
This frustration also stems from the lack of baby coming out. I was completely spoiled with Abby who came 10 days early all on her own. This little one is now almost a week late and I am not feeling any sort of labor starting yet. Another exercise in patience.
Lastly is any one out there interested in weeding my horrendous flower beds? Seriously every time I look out the window I get slightly depressed but it is so uncomfortable and I would rather spend the time with Abby. Oh well it is just a garden. I make myself weed the vegetable garden which is doing awesome.
Well cross your fingers that something happens this weekend and my baby decides it's ready to face the world. Here's hoping.

Canada Day

2009-07-01T10:42:00.000-07:00

Hope everyone is out enjoying the beautiful Canada Day. Unfortunately my two year old is not feeling well and is sleeping. We were going to take her to the zoo and play at the park. Oh well such is life. It means I get to enjoy the wonderful blessing of my air conditioning!!! Have a great day!

Love Her

2009-06-29T11:47:00.000-07:00

I have to say I have really been enjoying the last few weeks in the sense that I have been spending all my time with Abby and not worrying about work or other such things. I got called into the RS Presidency at church but they are taking it easy on me until the baby comes. A couple of weekends ago we headed out to La Barrier Park. It is a beautiful park with walking trails and a small creek running through it. Abby was very upset however that there was no play structure. Ryan tried to appease her by taking lot's of photos! It was super hot and we didn't really walk on the trails much due to large numbers of mosquitoes. All in all it was a fantastic day. Here are some great photos my hubby took of our adventure. Abby is beckoning us to hurry up in this picture. She will turn around and say come and except you to come running.
Still waiting for number 2 to decide to arrive. Hopefully it won't be too much longer. Ryan is really busy with work next week so we were hoping for this week. Keep your fingers crossed!!!

Hot Weather

2009-06-18T13:30:00.000-07:00

Here is my proud two year old on the day of her swimming graduation. She successfully passed the sea turtle level. It wasn't really that intense but she made awesome progress in ten weeks and now loves being in the water.

Well I have to say that it has turned into summer here with temperatures in the high 20's which is fantastic as my garden has been growing like crazy. I love seeing all the little green guys popping out of the dirt. I have learned however that being 8months pregnant in the heat is not so much fun. I have definitely enjoyed an increase in energy the last week or so which is awesome.
Last night we got out the bassinet and rearranged the bedroom to accommodate a new baby again. I am really starting to get excited to see and meet our new little one.
I have been enjoying being off work I ended up getting a doctor's note seeing as how I was really feeling exhausted and our unit was full of patients with H1N1 which I don't really wish to be around so it was a blessing in disguise.
I have been enjoying just being at home with Abby. She has grown up so much and is such a sweet girl. The last few days she has been coming up to my belly and saying "baby out". Despite her sweetness she is sure trying us in the sleeping area. I guess it is just prep work for what's to come. She is not enjoying going to bed these days but I am hoping it is just a phase. She loves going for walks and thinks dandelions are the prettiest flowers and is always asking to pick them.
Other than that we are looking forward to celebrating Father's Day this weekend with Ryan's family. I feel totally lucky to have such a great husband and for Abby to have such a great Dad!!! He is awesome and puts up with a lot from his pregnant wife. One skill Grandpa and Dad have been teaching Abby is how to play basketball or just get the ball in the net.Abby loves it when they lower the net and she can just throw the ball in.
Well I am off to turn up the air conditioning and I hope you are all enjoying some nice summer weather.

June

2009-06-04T09:00:00.000-07:00

Well we have finally started to have some nice weather and got the garden planted. So sad everything in my parents garden is coming up already. Oh well I feel accomplished in the fact that I actually got a garden in and planted. Correction Ryan and Abby planted it and I supervised. I am on Ryan's computer today since I am too uncomfortable to walk down the stairs. How pathetic!! I have been feeling really crummy lately secretly wishing for the baby to just come early and then get back to life as I know it. HA HA life will never be the same with two. I know.
Yesterday as I was laying on the couch with my flu like symptoms my little independent Abby wanted a drink of water so she pulled a chair into the bathroom filled up her glass and got it into the living room without spilling a drop. She was so proud of herself. A big thank you goes out to my inlaws who once again saved me today and took Abby to the playground for a while. I don't know how one ever repays their parents but I am so far behind I doubt that I ever will.
Other than that life is continuing on here Abby is growing and talking more and more. Ryan started riding his bike to work and he does it in only 40 minutes. He is amazing it is way over by the airport. He is definitely my inspiration in the physical activity area. Yesterday however he went to do his mountain bike race and he crashed had to get some first aid from one of the many residents in our ward. Poor guy so no biking for a few days. Oh well more time for Abby and I!!!
I'm not complaining!!
Other than that not too much new around here. I have six shifts left to work and am at the 35 week mark. I know I am cutting it a little close. I was really hoping to work to the end in case I have to go back then I don't have to go back till the baby is pretty much one!!! Here's hoping I make it!!!!!

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

2009-05-22T15:49:00.000-07:00

Well it has been a week since my sister left but I have been being pregnant so not up to much activity like updating my blog. You know that stage in pregnancy where you just feel huge and uncomfortable and are looking forward to the labor and delivery because then the end is near that is how I am feeling this week however I still have a few weeks yeah like 5 to go so I should just find joy in this journey.
Anyway back to fun stuff I had so much fun with my sisters. Vicki was off work most of the time as was I so we just got to enjoy hanging out with Leslye. It was so great. Abby loved being out and about everyday and loved getting to know her Aunt. We ate some great food, played some great WII, and just had some great laughs together. My sisters are the best and it was really a fun time. Of course we hit BDI. Abby felt pretty special getting her own kids cone for the first time.
On Victoria Day our plans were to head to Bird's Hill Park for a picnic but the weather wasn't really cooperating so we headed out to do some shopping, driving, and hit the pet store. Abby loves the pet store and holding all the animals. We got the bird on her shoulder but the bird wanted Abby's kleenex so we had to put her back before she ate it. All in all it was a very fun family day!!!

Sister Visit

2009-05-12T09:33:00.001-07:00

My sister Leslye is in town. We have been having so much fun. I haven't had to work the entire visit and it has been great. She is an awesome sister who doesn't like me taking photos of her but today I am taking the camera. Stay tuned!!!

For my fellow garage sale junkies out there. It is garage sale season yeah!!! I love finding a great deal at a garage sale. On the weekend we found a piano for $400. Oh yeah a real wood piano I am so pumped to have a functioning beautiful piano again. I can't wait to get it to our house and start sharpening up my skills again. Hooray for garage sales!!!!!

Pure Joy

2009-05-12T09:12:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it my baby is 2 already. We had her big birthday party on May 3. It was sort of a combo event seeing as how my sister and nephew's birthdays are the same weekend. Abby was so cute she was wired all day knowing it was her birthday. We had put balloons up. She wouldn't take a nap and wouldn't go to bed that night either. We had a nice BBQ although we ate indoors as it wasn't super nice.
I brought out the cake I made. It turned out super cute but was really a labour of love since the night before I was ready to throw it out the window because it wouldn't cook properly. Abby loved it and it tasted great. What more can you ask? We call it the ladybird beetle cake. I always thought it was a ladybug but my great father in law always corrects me. The reason I called this entry pure joy is because when Abby opened her presents she was so happy and thrilled with each one. It was amazingly cute. She got a bouncy ball, bubble blower, and slide. She was so excited she had to have a lovely two year old temper tantrum that night when I tried to get her to come inside. Anyway I love watching children get someone they love and are just so full of joy!! There is no hiding their emotions and I think that is an amazing quality!!
As per tradition I will share some of my favorites about my two year old
1. She loves food and you always know when she loves it. She is always saying yum yum or no!!!
2. She has an amazing giggle that can make anyone smile or laugh.
3. She is ultra sensitive and when she sees Mom or Dad sad or upset she gets the same way. Now it is sweet not sure how this will pan out in the teenage years but for now it's cute.
4. She loves the outdoors. She would play outside all day and night if I let her and if we lived somewhere a little nicer weather wise.
5. She is saying many words now and out of the blue comes out with a new one. So cute!!
6. She can curl her tongue and does it on demand.
7. For the most part she is sleeping in a big girl bed and going potty with few accidents.
8. She has her first crush on her nursery leader. Him and his wife are moving out of the ward soon so I am sure she will be sad when he leaves. It is pretty darn cute though.
9. She still loves books and loves to read. My favorite thing is listening to her at night reading to her stuffed animals before she falls asleep.
10.She comes up to my belly says baby and gives it kisses. So cute!!!
I can't believe what a blessing and joy she has been in our life. We love our Abby and are so excited to continue to watch her change and grow!!!
Here is a pic of her first portrait done by her Great Grammy Smith. She did an amazing job for someone who can't see well. She is a pretty amazing lady. Abby loves looking at it on her wall.

Yeah for Spring

2009-05-01T12:59:00.000-07:00

I am so excited that the snow is finally gone. We were able to get our yard raked this week and Abby and I are back out doing our daily explorations of the neighborhood. It is so much fun.
We headed out to Bird's Hill Park last weekend for Ryan's first race of the season. It was pretty fun although Abby and I truly missed all of the action as we were walking back and forth looking for the action. Silly us.
Abby turned two yesterday but we aren't having the party until Sunday so I will save my post about her for that day.
I have started to really "blossom" as everyone calls it with number 2. I am feeling huge and not so lovely with the pregnancy but starting to really get excited. I am over 30 weeks now and am on the countdown of shifts left to work.
We bought Abby a big girl bed a few weeks ago and surprisingly it has been going amazing at night time. She loves going to bed now if we can only get her to get back to sleeping all night again that would be super fantastic!!A few weeks ago we had company the Drennan's. It was so fun to see them again and have them stay for a few days. Isaiah and Abby have so much fun together. Hopefully it won't be too long before we get to see them again. It is so nice to have such great friends who you don't see for a while but you still have lot's to talk about.

Happy Easter

2009-04-09T13:44:00.000-07:00

It has been a fun few weeks adjusting to Ryan's "normal" work schedule. He is loving his new job and I am loving having a husband home every day at a quarter to 5. I know not everyone is this lucky but I am super grateful. It has been the typical spring with lot's of flood forecasts and predictions. Yesterday they opened the floodway and we headed on down to see the major ice jams.Check out the poor shed buried in the water.
It also helped that BDI opened up and we enjoyed our first ice cream cone of the year. Abby was pretty much in heaven being outside and getting ice cream. You will notice in the second picture Abby trying to run straight into the mud!!
Once again I decided to take on the project of sewing an Easter dress. I guess part of me wants to keep up the tradition that my Mom always made me dresses when I was growing up. Let's face it however I am not a natural seamstress and usually it comes with a lot of sweat and yes occasionally tears. However with my mother in laws help I was able to do it again this year and of course I think she looks adorable.
Today Abby and I decorated some Easter eggs. Usually this is a Good Friday tradition but we are heading to the temple tomorrow so it happened today. She had a great time but wanted more eggs. OOPS. I only boiled 4. It reminded me of Easter when I was little. My cousins would come to the farm we would all color Easter eggs then the parents would hide them outside. After all the eggs were found we would have races with the eggs down the hills at my parents house. My Grandma always made these delicious chocolate covered gelatin eggs. YUM YUM!!! It was such a fun time at the farm with all the new animals being born. One of my favorite seasons and holidays. Of course I love the true reason for Easter and the miracle of the Resurrection and the Atonement. For primary on Sunday Ryan and I get to act as people who knew Jesus and teach the children about the event. Ryan gets to be Joseph Smith and I Mary Magdalene. I am sure it will be great.
Today as Abby and I headed outside for a walk she was so independent wanting to pull her own wagon by herself. I guess this is good because soon I will be carrying another one and won't be able to do it all but she seems so independent already. She cried when we came inside. This girl of mine is all outdoors. I love it.Hope everyone has a wonderful Easter!!!!

Materials Coordinator

2009-03-22T13:57:00.000-07:00

Well I got a lot of comments asking what exactly will Ryan be going so here are the details of his new job. He will be the Materials Co-ordiantor for a company called Aero-Inventory. It is over by the airport so we are getting a second car on Tuesday. It is a total Mommy car but it is newer and it will run smoother. It is a 2006 Ford Focus Wagon. Ryan also got called as YM President today. Life is never dull at our house.
After enduring five days without running water I can truly say I am grateful for all the conviences that a modern home has. I used to dream of being a pioneer because I thought it would be so adventurous not anymore. However we were able to utilize our home water supply from our food storage and it really made me grateful that we were obedient to the counsel to keep a small food and water supply. A water main brake on our street caused them to turn off the main supply and when it got turned back on our houses pipes were frozen. Luckily it was on the city side so we didn't have to pay for it. Another blessing.
The snow is all starting to melt and yesterday Abby and I headed off to St. Vital Park and although we came home soaking wet it was so much fun to be outside.

Good News

2009-03-14T19:33:00.000-07:00

It is true my amazing husband got the job he applied for. He will begin working at the end of the month. Yeah for us. So exciting to start saying goodbye to the student life.
A new chapter begins in the Smith home and we are both looking forward to the changes whatever they may be!!!
Thanks for everyone's support we appreciate it.

(I just realized I posted this under my husband's profile. oops!)

How can you not smile?

2009-03-11T13:29:00.000-07:00

I finally found our computer cable and have some new pics. How can you not love this girl?

We have been stuck in the house again for awhile due to some extreme cold weather. It makes for creative times. Yesterday Ryan created a slide with a mattress and Abby is in heaven. Oh I can't wait for spring!! Until then we are having fun in the snow when we can get outside without freezing. Abby loves building snowmen.
On a side note baby number 2 is going to be a boxer I am sure of it. The amount of moving and kicking this kid is doing is insane compared to how Abby was. Hopefully we can come to a happy medium soon or else there will be one tired Momma on everyone's hands.

A Day in the Life

2009-03-05T18:46:00.001-08:00

It has been some time since I last posted. I keep using the excuse I can't find the camera cord to download pictures so why post when I don't have pictures then I decided this is a silly reason.
I thought this was fun on someone's blog so I am copying it.

A Day in my Life
8am-Abby wakes me up by talking to her penguin "Puffy". She doesn't really talk yet we are still working on this. It is slightly baffling as she loves to read and is constantly reading her books but time will tell. I am sure one day the sentences will just pour out.
8:10-Off to breakfast. Abby loves oatmeal what a trooper. We had oatmeal every morning growing up and I can honestly say I do not miss it. I love my Mom for making me such a healthy breakfast every day.
8:30-Honestly I had a pounding headache and Ryan was still in bed since he didn't work until 10. I turned on Sesame Street and hit the pillow. Feel slightly guilty but after my 20 minute nap I felt a whole lot better.
8:50- Started getting Abby ready for the day. Today was a good day lately this has been a fight with her not wanting to get dressed but wanting to run around in her beautiful skin. Put on the Dora panties. Here's hoping for a good potty day.
9-10- Ryan left for work. Got ready for the day. Read a few books. Lately Abby's favorite is The Giving Tree by Silverstein. Really good book with a lot of good meaning.
10-11 Headed outside for a walk. Yeah it is finally nice enough to head out for a walk. Abby loves pushing the trailer instead of riding in it and falls often on the ice but still loves being outside. I discovered those nursery teachers are amazing. I started singing the Snowman song and Abby starts doing the actions. Love it. Put up three stickers on the potty chart so far. YEAH for no accidents.
11-2 Went shopping with Grandma. Bought material to make Abby an Easter dress. Appointment with the obs/gyne (everything looks good). Went to natural bakery and bought some bread. SO YUMMY!!! Grocery Shopping and then home.
2-3 Looked at my package that arrived in the mail from Cardston Book Shop. I spoiled myself and Abby with some new books, CD's, and coloring books. So much fun. Got a phone call from Ryan and he is invited for part 3 of an interview process for a great job. YEAH!!! Here's hoping.
3-5Went outside again because Abby loves it and built a snowman. Took the camera to try and catch the huge amazing snowflakes but by the time we all got ready and out it had quit snowing.
5-7 Made a yummy stifry, cleaned up the kitchen, colored with Abby and relaxed.
7-8 Read some more stories, got Abby into bed and packed my bag for work tomorrow.

That pretty much sums up my amazing day. I have been pouring over websites looking for creative ideas for my new calling as Enrichment Leader. Anyone who has any fabulous ideas give me a shout.
All in all I have a pretty great life and just wanted to share some of my exciting moments that happen around here.