Christmas Tree

I just wanted to spread the word about a great place to buy your Christmas Tree this year to all my blogging friends in Meridian if you have not already done so. I noticed a tree lot really close to our house on Ten Mile across from Bridgetower's main entrance the other day when I was coming home from the store. I decided we should check it out since it was so close so we went there tonight for family home evening. It turned out to be a really great place to buy it because it is a fund raiser for the Make a Wish Foundation. It is just a family who decided they wanted to teach their son the true meaning of Christmas by starting this tradition. All of the trees were grown here in Idaho and were donated by Precision Plumbing (the company he owns or works for, I am not sure) so all of your money goes to the foundation. It turned into a really neat teaching opportunity for Ayden and so I just wanted to pass along the info. They have 8 ft and 7 ft trees for $45 and $55. I really can't remember what we paid last year for our tree, it might be a little bit more but it is for a great cause.

A Burley Thanksgiving

We had a great time in Burley for Thanksgiving. We loved spending time with family, having a great meal, skeet shooting, playing games, working on Travis and Becky's house, and fishing (for Brad). We arrived on Thursday to Dana and Lorrie's house right before the big meal and then played games and hung out that evening. On Friday Brad got up early for some fishing with his Mom, Mike and Jeff then we all headed back to Lorrie's for some skeet shooting which was a lot of fun (pictures to come in the future) and more games. Saterday everyone got together at Brad's brother Travis' house where we all worked really hard and helped them with their remodel (adding a whole second story to their house). No pictures were taken that day, but I sure wish I got some of Brad wearing the tool belt, oh my... anyway the girls did a lot of mudding and taping inside while the guys hung out on scaffolding applying tyvek and foam to the outside. It was great to all get together and work hard together. I always think it is a great bonding experience when a family works together. We headed back to Boise on Sunday morning just in time for some of our best friend's baby blessing which was beautiful and spent some time with them in the afternoon. Overall, it was a wonderful long weekend. Today I am just so grateful for good family and friends. I really think it is what makes life worth it and I am overwhelmed with the love I have for the people in our life. Our family is very blessed but, in this category I think we must have accidentally gotten a double dose of blessings, but I am not complaining!
(All of you reading this is included!)

Here are a few pictures from our Thanksgiving meal-

Amanda with Grandma and Grandpa Merrill

Brads Mom with her Mom and Husband, Mike.

Ayden and I waiting for some yummy grub.

(I have to say this is the ONLY picture with my eyes open (well almost open), there is something wrong with me and the flash. I always close my eyes, it is ridiculous! I don't know what to do about it, one day I should do a post with all the closed eyes pictures. It would be pretty funny.)

Ayden with some of her favorite uncles Travis and Jeff. Jeff making her laugh as always.

Just had to show some of the yummy food.

Alex waiting by the dessert table like a dog hoping some scraps will fall to her.

The kids table.

Ayden and her cousin Sydney playing with black olives.

Resting so our body can but all the energy into digesting all the food we just consumed (so we can go back for more of course).

See, back for some chips and salsa.

Brad played a lot of guitar hero, Ayden wanted to try it too. Maybe some day she will be a real guitar player like her dad. She looks pretty comfortable with that thing.

If there was ever a day to just stay home, today would have been it!

Even though there were signs everywhere telling me to just skip going to the gym this morning and stay home, I didn't listen. Sign number 1, it snowed last night. Boise drivers (California transplants) freak out at the sight of the year's first snow fall and drive like two year olds. Do I dare go out on the roads this morning? Sign number two, the girls have nasty runny noses accompanied with a little cough. I know shouldn't take them to the play center this way but then I tell myself that they probably got sick from the gym in the first place since that is then only place they go. Besides, if I didn't take them every time they had a runny nose I would NEVER go. Plus I have missed going the past 6 days because of their cold and I couldn't take it any longer. I need to go. For my sanity, I need to go. So I decided that kids with colds and a litle snow on the ground wasn't keeping me home, I was going.

As time came close for me to leave, Alex still wasn't awake. Here I go again, going against my intuition and decide to wake up my sleeping child, who is sick, and take her into the snowy weather. It's all for my sanity, it's ok. Feeling guilty, I get Alex dressed, make her some toast for on the way, stopped her from brushing her teeth with toilet water and loaded the kids in the car. I was on my way.

I turn the ignition and whammo, sign number three presents itself in the form of a little gas light. Of course Brad drove last and who knows how long the light has been on. I call Brad and he tells me that it wasn't on long and that I should make it the 8 miles to the gym and then get to a gas station. So I accepted the risk and drove to the gym. As I pull up to the gym Alex sneezes the juiciest, yellowiest, nastiest stuff from her nose. Oh boy, they are going to chew me out for bringing her but I wasn't turning back. I leave my kids in the play center and go to my class, feeling guilty the whole time, fearing that when I picked them up I would get an ear-full. Because of this my workout wasn't the rejuvenating experience I was hoping for. After the class I pick them up expecting to see snot oozing down Alex's face but instead found two happy, healthy looking girls. Phew, I got one break this morning. As we are walking to the car and just when I am thinking "oh, that didn't go so bad" I see it, the flattest tire you have ever seen. The thought of me sitting in an icy puddle, putting a spare on, with two screaming kids went through my head. No, I was not going to do that, not today. After calling Brad and being reminded of our tire warranty I called Les Schwab. They told me to put the spare on and bring it in, but I had already decided that was not an option. After playing the damsel in distress, I got the guy to agree sending someone out to me and putting air in the tire so I could drive it to Les Schwab. Twenty minutes waiting in the car is better than 20 minutes sitting in a puddle with freezing fingers changing the tire myself, right? After 20 some minutes of screaming, fighting kids and a torn up coloring book Mr. Les Schwab finally shows up, but not for long. He forgot a part he needed to put air in the tire so he was off again. Oh, so close. Another 10 minutes goes by and Mr. Les Schwab tire shows back up. After filling my tire with air I drove to the tire center hoping all the way that I would not run out of gas and add another fiasco on top of the one I was already dealing with.

At the tire center, we were in a waiting room with about 8 other people, all of them kid-less. Therefore, we became their entertainment as they watched the girls fighting over the few toys in the room and of course I feel like I am being judged because of my can't control-the kids-skills I was exhibiting. Don’t you just love that felling? The girls started getting really restless just as I noticed the complimentary popcorn. Yes, something to keep them happy. I got them each a bag and sat back down. Not much time had gone by before Alex decided to spill her whole bag on the floor and as I was self-consciously bending down trying to clean up the spilled popcorn with all the onlookers staring right at me I smelled something. Oh no, what is that? I did a quick smell of Alex’s diaper that only a mom would do and sure enough my suspicions were confirmed. This was not good because I didn't have a diaper with me. I thought I had one that I had brought to the gym in the car. The same car that was up on a lift getting the tire fixed in the farthest possible bay from the waiting room. I decided to wait and just let it be but the smell got stronger and stronger until it was unbearable. I don’t know if it was just because I was worried about it or not but it seemed that everyone had disgusted looks on their faces while they were holding their breath and shifting in their seats trying to block the smell from entering their nostrils. So I decided to try and get the diaper from the car. I grabbed Alex and asked the guy at the desk if there was any way I could grab a diaper from my car. He said sure and began walking me to the garage. As he took off, I looked at Ayden and she was busy coloring so I figured she wouldn’t even notice I was gone. So decided it would be better to leave her and not have to deal with two girls in the garage full of dangerous tools and pits in the floor. I got to the car of course I found nothing. As I turn to walk back to the waiting room I see Ayden in one of the stranger's arms crying at the glass door. Shoot, what kind of a mom am I? Luckily the stranger was just trying to comfort her and show her where I was, but that could have been a bad situation. Once again, that motherly guilt sweeps through me. We sit back down, but ahh that is one SMELLY diaper. I loaded all our stuff in my arms and took the girls to the bathroom. Maybe it is just one of those poops you can just plop into the toilet and then put the same diaper back on. I opened the diaper and as my luck was going it was diarrhea (from all those dang grapes I fed her yesterday)! So I did what I had to do and I closed the diaper back up. Gross! Poor Alex. I walked back to the waiting room and only a minute goes by and my name is called, YES, we can get out of here. I loaded the girls up in the car and took off. I was so anxious to get home that I forgot about my empty gas tank. I was only a few miles from the house when… I run out of gas! Just kidding, but that would have made the story even better if I had.

I think I will just stay home the rest of the day. :)

Ayden and Alex

As Thanksgiving is drawing near, there is nothing I am more grateful for then my family. I have been so blessed with a great husband, parents, siblings, in-laws and children. In regards to my children I feel like I need to be better about writing down the little things they do so that I can remember them. I have been wanting to do a blog about my girls for sometime now. So I am going to write down a few things about them before I forget; then I can start to do it regularly. As this entry covers my two daughters whole lives in a nutshell it might be long. Right now my mind is blank so hopefully things will start flowing. WARNING- this might be a bit of a bragging session. What Mom doesn't brag about her kids?

Ayden- 3 1/2

-Ayden was a very hard baby for the first 4 months. Hard in that she was very fussy and needy. It seemed like she was always in pain and that she wanted to be happy underneath all the crying but just couldn't. She hardly ever slept and cried a for a large portion of the day and night. It seemed only baths and car rides (with zero stopping) would sooth her. Ayden had multiple baths a day as a baby and we put a lot of late night miles on our car. There were times we would regularly put Ayden in the car and go on a two hour drive at 2 in the morning to keep our sanity. We would playBeethoven and Bach music loud enough to drown out her crying (to this day Brad hears crying in his head when he listens to Bach and Beethoven). We had the drive mastered; it would take the first hour for her to fall asleep and the second hour to allow her to fall in a deep enough slumber that when we stopped the car she wouldn't wake up and start crying all over again (fortunately Logan Canyon is long, has no stop signs and suprisingly zero traffic at 3 am (ideal for parents with grumpy babies). There were a few times we would get home, she would wake up and the drive would begin again. Once after two drives we were so tired and scared to wake her up, we slept in the car in our driveway. Our pediatrician said that she was the "fussiest baby [he had] ever seen". At four months I came into the office with a screaming baby and I told him I was done. He told me there was never a baby he couldn't sooth. I handed her to him and after swaddling her, turning the lights down, bouncing her, humming in her ear and switching to a bunch of positions with no luck he handed her back to me and walked out he room and came back with some medication. It turns out she had acid reflux and the acid would just go up and down her esophagus eating it away. Poor little baby. After a couple months of medication her esophagus healed and she turned into a very happy and engaging baby.

-Ayden is a smart little girl. She has always been ahead of the curve. I used to love reading about developmental milestones because Ayden was always way ahead of where she should have been. She came out of the womb holding her head up and made the top on another one of our pediatrician's lists as the "strongest baby [he had] ever seen". She was always very active and learned to crawl before she was 6 months (was army crawling before 5 months). Before walking she developed a weird crawl that we dubbed the "monkey crawl" where she would sit on her bum with her legs in the butterfly position and put one arms out in front of her and lift her legs up and swing them through to the other side. It was so funny and she was extremely fast which is probably why she didn't walk until 12 months (see video below).

She started talking at 9 months. She knew over 50 words when she was 15 months old and was putting sentences together at 18 months. She knew all her colors, shapes and body parts before she was 18 months old. At this same time she was a pro at animal sounds and when we would drive she loved for us to play the animal game with her. She would say "lets play animals," and we would name an animal and she would tell us the sound. She was SO fast and it amazed brad and I. We would often have competitions with her and she would win every time. Brad would say an animal and I would try to say the sound before Ayden did but could NOT beat her. She is still very smart and loves learning. She is the youngest one is the preschool co-op but you would never know it, (except maybe because she has a few more tantrums then the rest of the kids. At my house anyway). Ayden also pays special attention to detail. She remembers everything. Just this morning she was talking about a snack we had in preschool in September and she was telling me the color of fruit roll up everyone had. I am learning that if I can't find something in the house I just need to ask Ayden because she will know. She remembers what people wear, whose clothes is whose, the color of all of the Disney princess characters hair and dresses, etc.

Ayden is also very competitive. At the age of three she would rather not play a game because then she would risk loosing. She hates loosing more then she likes winning. For those of you who knew Brad when he was young (there are still hints of it now) then you know she got this from him. We don't know what to do about it except beat her at everything she does until she gets over it.

Alex- 20 months

-Alex was the best, sweetest little baby ever. I could not believe babies came the way she did. She was so cuddly and quiet and only cried (whimpered more like it) when she was hungry, tired or messy. The only thing she didn't like was baths. This baby came a COMPLETE opposite from her sister. It was a welcomed change. She only woke up every 4-6 hours at night in the morning and started sleeping through the night at 2 months. I thought she would always be really easy going and quiet but she is turning out to have a little personality of her own. She knows what she wants and as calm as she is, she and a Porsche 911 Turbo Cabriolet have something in common because they can both go from 0 to 60 in 3.5 seconds. Another trait passed along from her Daddy. Alex is a thinker not a talker. She always has a little contemplative look on her face. She is soaking everything up and one day I think she will start talking up a storm. Sometimes she will go off talking a whole sentence like she knows exactly what she is saying but I have no clue what she has said and then say, Okay. She surprises us every now and then because she will say a word I had no clue she knew or point to a letter and tell me what it is. It's common when she is quietly playing by herself to hear her counting to three or something. She LOVES books. She would be very happy reading books all day long. She loves to read them to Brad and I also. She will point to something and say something we once again don't understand and then if we don't make a comment back she looks up at us and pulls our face down and says it again, until we respond. She has the sweetest little voice and my favorite thing she does is sing to herself. She seems to really like music. She has always loved when Brad plays the guitar and once music is on she starts dancing.

Both of my girls are so special in their own way. I am so grateful for their differences and that each one of them is their own little person. They are both so beautiful with their curly hair, big lips and beautiful eyes yet their beauty is very unique. Once again opposites, Ayden is small with blond hair and blue-green eyes, Alex is almost the size of Ayden with brown hair and brown eyes. I am so blessed to have these girls in my life and I am blessed to be able to raise them with my best friend, their Dad. I hope I can be the mom/wife my family deserves. It can be overwhelming because they are all so great and I feel like they deserve more but each day I strive to be better. Brad, Ayden and Alex, thanks for being mine.

Rollin' the Cookie Dough

Any one want to come over for cookies?
The other night we made some cookies and then I turned the rest of the cookie dough over to the girls to play with. I just had to let loose and let them have some fun. Alex was COVERED in flour. I was so proud of Ayden for sharing and letting Alex roll out the dough.

Jammin Alex

Alex wanted to listen to the I-pod but the head phones kept falling out so brad tied a bandanna around her head to hold them in and it turned out being super cute. It was adorable watching her walk around pushing buttons and dancing. What a cutie.

Ayden and Cassi

Ayden and Cassi are interesting little friends. Since their very first meeting almost 2 1/2 years ago their friendship has been complicated. There was a time when they couldn't be around each other for more then a minute before a full on fighting session would break out (hitting, pulling hair, kicking, screaming). Kim (cassi's mom) and I used to tell ourselves that one day they would be best friends but it was hard to imagine. However, before we knew it these too little cuties really became best friends and even though there is still the occasional quarrel they get along very well.


This is how I found them watching Peter Pan today. A year ago this would have NEVER happened. Also, today is Cassi's birthday so HAPPY BIRTHDAY CASSI!

A Visit from my Girls Favorite People

My parents came from Park City for a weekend visit. They missed the girls and they wanted to see my framing shop and bring some stuff for me to frame. We had a really great time. What did we do? Well we went to dinner at PF Chang's, went to the ski swap (brad and my dad), ate at our favorite pizza place, went on a hike, went to the old state penitentiary, made taco soup, watched Wild Hogs, made cookies, went to the park, went to church and then after creating some tears (Alex) they went back home. It was so nice of them to come up, my girls love them sooo much. They are really lucky to have such great grandparents.

Here we are at our favorite pizza place, Guido's.

Then off on our hike to Table Rock.

And we made it all the way to the top...

Ok, technically we made it to the top but not by way of our feet. Eventually at about the halfway point we turned around because Ayden was really done hiking and then we drove to the top.

This is at the old state penitentiary. We were not able to go on the tour because we didn't have time but we will definitely go back and do it someday.

My parents took the girls to a park and left Brad and I to some peace and quiet. It was sure nice and the girls had a blast.

My dad pretending he has been hit by Ayden. What energetic grandparents, huh?

I love this picture of my mom with the girls. You can just see how much they love her.

My mom brought the cutest pail of ABC cookie cutters. She and Ayden had a ton of fun making all of our names with cookie dough and we all had fun decorating and eating them.

Alex woke up from her nap just in time to eat one. But NO frosting. This little girl likes them plain.

My parents did a TON of reading to both the girls, it was nice for me to get a break from it. I know that is bad, I just get tired of reading books all the time to them but they can't ever get enough.

two energetic kiddos + two energetic grandparents = some refueling

Thanks Mom and Dad for coming and spending the weekend with us. We had a wonderful time. Thank you for everything!

Tagged

So this "6 things about myself" thing that is going around got me too thanks to Kim (and Angela from a while ago). I really like reading other peoples tags but I guess after blogging for a while I feel like I have done a ton of them (like here and here) but I will try to think of six more things you all may not know. I don't think there are many since I am a loud mouth who doesn't hide much from anyone.

1. When I was about 13 I used to compete in target shooting. I was good too. I just didn't like it much because I had to compete with a bunch of hick boys mostly from Heber (sorry Amy) whose Dad's would get mad that I beat them, my afternoons and Saturdays were always used for practice and I was supposed to stop eating sugar (to eliminate any shaking). My goal was to do biathlon events (skate skiing and shooting) which would have been awesome but like most things in my life I just didn't stick with it long enough. My parents hoped it would get me college scholarships and hopefully a chance at the Olympics so they were a little bummed that I quit. Oh well.

2. I own a custom picture framing business named Framing Jenni. Most of you already know this but I have to include it to let you all know that this I am NOT quitting. I have tried many things in life trying to find something I really enjoy and I think I have finally found it. It just fits me well and I love it.

3. My husband saved me. He really did. I was headed down a path that probably would have led me to a much more unhappy life. He was my little angel that came into my life at the perfect time. Sometimes I wonder why I got so lucky because he made it so easy for me to choose the right path. It should have been more difficult if life was fair. I guess my mom really did know what she was talking about when she said "life isn't supposed to be fair." Thank goodness for that.

4. I seem to have a lot of acronyms in my life. I have ITP, IBS, and OCD and I am LDS.

5. I am really good at getting what I want but not in a spoiled brat kind of way. I really don't take no for an answer. This can be applied to anything really but one example is when I am dealing with businesses/CC companies/realtor's/doctors/customer service etc. I am just not a pushover. I have learned that if you try hard enough people will eventually give in. I have to add that I do this honestly. I don't fight for something I am not entitled to I just hate getting cheated and I won't allow it to happen.

6. I love people. I love getting to know people and what makes them tick but unfortunately I over analyze a lot and try to read into things more then I should.

Trick or Treating

I didn't take any pictures of them actually trick or treating. These ones I stole from Kim (thanks again kim). It was a beautiful night, perfect for trick or treating. We only went down one street and back and Ayden got 5 normal sized candy bars and a bunch of other junk. I don't like having all the tempting candy in the house. My mom used to throw ours away when we weren't looking. Maybe I will do that.

I know you can't really see Ayden is this picture but her little side profile is cute.

Doesn't river look great. (thanks Nikki for the costume!)

Trick or Treating at CH2MHill

Yesterday we got to go Trick or Treating at Brad's work. Ayden always loves going to see her Daddy at work. She always tells everyone that when she grows up she want to be a hard worker just like her Dad. I once asked her if she wanted to be a hard working mommy like me and she said no.

Ayden is Fiona from Shrek and Alex is a lady bug (i know, sad that she got a hand-me-down from Ayden). They were a big hit at Brad's work and everyone thought they were adorable.

I had to force Ayden to put the wig on for the picture so it is a little disheveled but still cute.

Alex was being a stinker and this is the best picture I could get of her.

Preschool Haloween Party

It was my week for Ayden's preschool so I got to be in charge of their little Halloween party. It was simple. We just played a game, had a little healthy snack, decorated cookies and made a little Halloween craft.Here are all the little preschoolers (plus two little siblings). Ayden is Fiona, that is what she wanted to be and I had no clue how to do it but it all turned out really great. I found her wig online and then I found a picture of a Fiona costume, bought the materials and then my friend Kim sewed it for me without a pattern and everything. Kim also sewed her daughters Ariel costume. Quite the talented gal ay? Thanks Kim! (for the picture too)

One of the moms, Stephanie, made some yummy monster mouths for their snack. Aren't they cute? Ayden did not want to eat them, I swear I don't know how that girls is going to live with her picky diet. They even had marshmallows in them but that wasn't enough sugar to make them Ayden worthy.

Ayden saying that she doesn't want one. Yes she is in the high chair. I didn't have enough chairs for all the kids so she got stuck in it.

But she will lick frosting off a knife!

Here are all the kiddos playing skeleton, skeleton where's your bone.