Already Ready?

We had a lovely Christmas. We simplified (per my declaration to simplify last year and per the upcoming move) and it was so nice! The kids have been able to actually enjoy their gifts because it wasn't major overload...and everything has a place already! Yay! We have been enjoying lots of events and visits with family and friends and have more to come...lots of late nights, missed naps, good food, funny memories, and sweet moments.

And yet, for the first time in all of my life, I am ready to take down the twinkly lights and the pine garlands and the tree and the stockings right away. Usually I want to sip hot chocolate by the tree for at least a few days after new years...maybe even until the end of January, but this year, I would be quite content to have packed Christmas into boxes yesterday. I wonder if I have missed the true spirit of Christmas this year...or if I am just anxious to get started on my very long preparation for the move to-do list...or if I am wanting to make sure everything is done before Seth starts his semester? Or maybe I am just learning to live in the moment as I get older...to enjoy the holiday while it is here and then just keep moving along. I'm not sure what it is, maybe a combination of everything, but I am already ready to box up December and move into January!

More Christmas Fun

Sleepover Under the Tree!

Hitting Grandma's piniata

Counting the Days

Finding Jessie in her sneaky hiding places every day!

Exploring ornaments on every tree she sees...this one is Grandma Becky's.

More to come...I have another card to upload.

What's Cookin'?

Our kitchen has been in factory production mode this month. Between goodies for the neighbors, potluck dishes for parties, meals with the family at home, parties we have hosted and my complete obsession with baking random things, the oven and stove have been puting in some serious overtime! I have been trying lots of new recipes and lots of old favorites and am finally getting around to posting them on my recipe blog. Head over there for recipes for everything from sugar cookies to enchilada soup to almond poppyseed bread a.k.a. my new favorite food. :)

So many people contribute such wonderful recipes to the blog and I go there first when I need some dinner inspiration! I know that I am always looking for new awesome recipes, so if there is anyone out there reading that would like to contribute, you can post as a guest (directions are in the sidebar on the blog) or send me your email and I will invite you to be an author. I just love the idea of sharing favorites among friends (and the idea that when people ask me for my recipes I can just give them the blog link so that I don't forget to send the recipe!)

Christmas Magic

Just some lovely shots of my beautiful baby girl enjoying the magic of Christmas! It all just seems more magnificent when you see it through her sweet little eyes!

Christmas Card mishap

It is with saddest regret that I must inform all of you that the Christmas Card order I placed a few weeks ago never materialized to my lab despite me receiving a message that it had gone through (system glitch apparently). So, while I am a huge fan of the tradition of sending Christmas cards and have so enjoyed receiving them from so many of our wonderful friends and family and even though I did go through all the effort of getting pictures and designing a card (or 2 or 3 just to make sure I loved it)...nobody will be getting a cute little Christmas greeting from us this year. We still love you all and hope you have a merry Christmas! Also, I promise to make up for it on a different holiday! I'm considering New Years...but I really am a huge fan of Valentine's Day, so we shall see!

breathing a sigh of relief

We survived crazy party filled weekend #1...whew!

News item #1 - Seth and I are officially calling-less as of today. As I have mentioned, for almost a year and a half now we have been in charge of the activities committee in our ward and have headed up planning all of the parties. Well, about a month ago, our church restructured how activities are to be handled and dissolved the activities committee. We were asked to proceed as planned for the Christmas breakfast, but today we were officially released (and not given a new assignment). We have enjoyed this calling so much (well, I have probably enjoyed it more than Seth) and are sad to be through, but I have to say I am breathing a huge sigh of relief to have no church responsibilities right now. It has been a very long time since we have been without a calling and we certainly have enough to keep us busy in our home life that it has come at a very good time. I am a tiny bit hopeful that the "looming" move will prevent them from giving us a new calling...

we can hope anyway. :)

Completely off the topic of my post, but very much on my mind, today one of the sweet older ladies in our ward told me that she is just so sad that we will be moving and there is a house on her street that is just lovely and for sale and a great price...it was endearing that people don't want us to go and we do love our ward very very much, but I can say with certainty that we will most definitely be moving out of our current ward with this move! I read a post on my dear friend's blog today about her adjustment to a big move and change in her life and her sweet words made so much sense to me. I already toss and turn about where we will go and what our new ward will be like and who our neighbors will be and whether they will be ok with my child sneaking through their doggy door and waking them up in the morning (seriously...not sure we can possibly find better neighbors than the ones we have here). I worry about whether we can find another ward as loving and warm and "non-clicky" as this one and I stress about the schools we will send our kids to and the friends they will grow up with. And though I have already mentally moved out of my little house here with it's creaky stairs and tiny bathroom, I feel nervous to leave it behind because despite its flaws, it has been a home of sweet memories, new beginnings, successes and heartaches. It is the home to which we have brought 3 sweet babies home from the hospital and the ward that has brought us meals and oohhed and aahhed over our precious little ones. It is the home where we have potty trained 2 kids and 2 dogs, where we have baked cookies and sung songs, where we have celebrated birthdays and babies and weddings and frindship. It is the neighborhood where we have taken family walks, where I have learned so much about being a mommy from the wonderful examples that have surrounded me, where we have made some of the dearest friends I think we will ever find. And it is hard to imagine that a different life could be so wonderful as the one we know here, but I know that we will be led where we need to be. A place where we can have a life that is wonderful in a totally different way (and hopefully with a bigger bathroom, a fireplace and a banister)!

Whew...sorry for the tangent...back to my post!

News item #2 - The kindergarten party was a smashing success! The kids really had a great time and everything was lovely! You already know the details, so here are some pics....

These didn't turn out quite how I had planned...I had planned to just have straight sticks and a north pole sign taped to the stick, but we couldn't find the right candy canes and we ran out of time, so these just had to work!)

playing conductor says...

the snowball fight was the ultimate hit! The kids had a BLAST!

party plans

I am in the midst of some serious party planning with 2 big parties this Friday and Saturday that I am in charge of and another one tomorrow that I am helping with. I, being the naive overambitious mother of my first Kindergartener, signed up to be the head room mom for Morgan's class. While most people seem to think that was a crazy thing to do, I (not-so) secretly LOVE it. I LOVE planning parties. Seriously...LOVE. If we had a bigger house and any free time, I would throw a lot more parties (feel free to hold me to that when we move...oh wait, free time was also a requirement)!

I found this crazy awesome idea online for a Polar Express party...and then the wheels started turning and about a half an hour later I had concocted a very cool party for Morgan's cute little class. I have been mentioning the planning process on facebook and had several requests for me to share the plans, so, I don't have the pictures yet and I can't tell you whether anything worked or didn't because the party hasn't happened, but I am sharing the plan in case it is helpful to anyone else out there who isn't as thrilled that they signed up to be the head room mom. ;)

Invitation:
- I sent home tickets with all the kids early this week. POLAR EXPRESS ADMIT ONE. They outlined the date and theme of the party and instructed the kids to wear their jammies to school that day and to bring their ticket so they could board the train.

Set Up:
- We are setting the room up with all of the rectangle tables in a line like train cars. The chairs will all be facing forward

Party Schedule:
- Read The Polar Express book
- Play conductor says (a version of simon says)
- Make magic Reindeer food (add oatmeal, red and green sugar and birdseed to little baggies and add a tag...the kids will take these home to throw out on their lawns on Christmas Eve)
- Load Santa's Sleigh a.k.a. Musical Presents (their class has a Christmas Wishlist of supplies they need, so parents are bringing these individually wrapped. We will pass the presents around while the music plays and when the music stops whoever doesn't have a present gets to pick a present from the someone in the circle to load in Santa's sleigh -they are also out- it will continue until the last present is loaded and then the winner gets to take Santa's sleigh and deliver the gifts to the teacher's desk...basically like musical chairs)
- Sock Snowball fight (you fold/roll individual socks into a ball and the kids stand on either side of the room and have a snowball fight with the socks...yes we will tell them to throw nicely)
- TREATS (hot chocolate bar with all the fixins - peppermint sticks, marshmallows, whipped cream, sprinkles, chocolate shavings, andes mint crumbles, etc - north pole cupcakes - vanilla cupcakes with white frosting and clear sugar sprinkles and a mini candy cane poking out the top like the north pole - donuts and chocolate chip cookies)

And that's it. Hopefully we will fit it all into our 1 hour time allotment. :) Anyway, I will post pics after the party!

approved...and now it begins

Seth's capstone project was approved! Yay! It has been a lot of hard work already, so I am not sure I am ready for what the actual doing of the project will bring, but I am so proud of him! We also found out his clinical assignment for next semester...and while he is excited for it (which makes me excited for it), it means 5 to 6 12-hour work shifts every week...plus the capstone project...plus listing/showing/selling our house and *hopefully* moving...plus a pregnant wife who will undoubtedly be cranky from showing said house...plus 3 little people who expect a little love and attention from their daddy on a regular basis... and sleep...well, who really needs sleep?

So, as soon as this semester ends (which isn't until next Friday...that's right...a week from tomorrow...does that seem really late to anyone else?), we are going to savor as much time as we can with him! We are going to snuggle up in our jammies and watch movies, go sledding, build snowmen, eat delicious goodies, go on dates (anyone want to babysit?) and give lots of hugs and kisses. We are going to see Santa and have family dinners, and go to Christmas parties, and sing songs, and read books. You probably won't find us mopping the floors or folding the laundry or scrubbing the bathtub or cleaning out the garage...so don't expect a clean house should you decide to pop in and say hello (which you are always welcome to do, but honestly, you should really never expect our house to be clean)! We also have a to finish up a few house projects mixed in there, but we are going to do them together and make them quick, because we need to stock up on daddy time!

Also...a complete and total sidenote from my professional-photographer-self...because of this utter chaos and craziness, I will be taking a very very limited number of photography sessions in the early part of the year. So, if you are hoping to get pictures with me between January and June, don't wait to book or I may not be able to work you in. I have had a lot of people asking about mini-sessions and I am planning a mini-session before mothers day as long as I am feeling good and have no pregnancy complications. I am looking for some turning 1-year-old models to do cake smash photos with in January. Contact me for details if you are interested.

And with that, hold on to your hats people, because the next few months are going to be a crazy crazy ride!

photos found

On my little rampage from earlier today, I decided to continue my sorting

of pictures and just couldn't resist sharing a few gems...for no particular reason!

I can't get over how colorful the leaves were just a few short months ago!

Now all that we can see is a blanket of white!

Wonderful in a totally different way!

My attempt to document my presence in the life of the family...

camera on auto...focus on auto...unsteady hand...still priceless!

does this picture even need words?

I find such delight in knowing that these girls have each other for sisters!

catching up

Now that I am feeling a little more human

and a little less first-trimester-zombie,

I am catching up on things.

Things like...

cleaning my house,

decorating for Christmas,

buying the kids clothes that fit,

rotating summer clothes out of the drawers,

decluttering,

wrapping Christmas presents,

going through pictures,

updating the Project 365 blog!

What? There are updates on the Project 365 blog?

YES, friends! I have finally added some new pictures.

I am now more than halfway through September! Yay!

Today as I added each post to the blog, I got weepy.

Looking at each picture filled me with such emotion.

It is quite unbelievable to think that my little babies are literally growing up right before my eyes,

and yet, until I start looking back, I don't even realize how very quickly it is happening.

The tears flowed freely...partly because each image is so meaningful to me,

partly because of the pregnancy horromones,

and partly because I am so sad that I have not been

diligent in taking pictures every day since the beginning of October.

One could safely say that I have fallen off the wagon.

But I am feeling inspired today.

Inspired to capture those little pieces of life,

because they can't be recreated.

I must get them now or I will never get them back...not even the memory of them.

And I can't stand to lose a second of this sweet life while my babies are babies...

not a second of the tantrums, or the fights in the car,

not a second of the girls getting hard boiled eggs out of the fridge for a snack

only to crack them open and find that they weren't hard boiled after all,

not a second of kids going in to take naps only to hear them enacting some

grandeous storyline for an hour and a half behind their bedroom doors,

not a second of fighting over who gets to do which advent calendar today,

not a second of demanding the boots SHE wants to wear even if they

completely clash with her outfit (yes, all of this has happened in the last 2 days),

not a single second of this beautiful life!

Because in between these moments are the gems:

the sweet  mischevious faces 

and the sweet laughter,

the cuddles that come after time outs

and the delight when daddy gets home and little ones are still awake.

All of it is worth remembering, and loving, and crying about!

All of it is worth sharing and telling,
so I am making it a priority again.
Check out the project 365 blog for all of the pictures above and more,
and come back here soon for some of the more recent stuff,
like, oh, I don't know, how about Halloween...
or maybe we will just skip right to Christmas!

I didn't think it was possible...

but I am quite certain that the first trimester fog is finally lifting!

I was absolutely convinced that I wasn't going to make it through this pregnancy, but since Monday, I have been feeling a hundred gazillion times better! Here's how I know...

1. Food tastes good. I actually enjoy eating again!

2. The world looks brighter...and I don't mean that figuratively. I actually feel inclined to pull out my camera and take pictures because there is just this beautiful light all around me and I feel like I haven't seen it in months!

3. I can handle errands with 3 kids...for example Costco on Black Friday mid morning did not make me want to pull my hair out or sit in the middle of the store and cry. Clearly this must be a sign that I feel better because even my non-pregnant self considers this an accomplishment!

4. My house is beginning to get put back together. Floors are getting swept, toys are getting put away, groceries are actually making it all the way to their cupboards and not staying in grocery bags on the kitchen floor for weeks.

5. I do not need to take Zofran twice a day...or even once a day...in fact, I have had more non-zofran days than zofran days this week!

6. Daily naps...no longer neccesary, although still nice!

7. I have started nagging Seth about the honey do list...he is super happy that I am feeling better! ;)

8. My kids are thrilled that mommy who doesn't yell all.the.time has returned! (she still yells sometimes, but time outs and losing privileges and general discussion have made quite the comeback!) I didn't even realize that the yelling was more related to how I was feeling than how they were acting. Hindsight is 20/20.

9. I bring home actual food when I go to the grocery store...real ingredients so that I can make a meal, not just random essentials like milk and eggs and tortilla chips and lifesavers candy.

10. I started feeling better on Monday...Monday was my 12 week mark. It is pretty weird to me since I have never had such a stark change so early in a pregnancy, but oh, how I am thankful that the change came fast and soon!

On the flip side, I still cannot drink Dr. Pepper (which is kind of a bummer) and I was not prepared for the change in the waistline to come so soon. It is safe to say that I am not particularly happy about it, either! Goodbye darling pants that fit so easily. Goodbye getting ready in the morning and putting on whatever I wanted out of my closet or drawers and feeling completely happy with how I looked in it. Goodbye non-pudgo stomach free from love handles and rolls. Hello pregnant body. I haven't missed you and I can't wait for you to be gone away forever...after you so miraculously bring me another sweet little soul to love and snuggle and kiss and cuddle, of course!

In the end, it is all worth it, but in the meantime, it is a major bummer!

just a little proud!

First of all, I updated the recipe blog today with some fun new stuff so head on over and check it out if you need some inspiration for baking or Thanksgiving. And while you are there, feel free to post your favorite easy dinner because I am in serious need of some easy (and preferably crock pot) dinners that don't involve touching/looking at/gagging at the sight of raw meat. :)

Second, I just wanted to take a minute to post about my sweet husband. And yes, the following is going to involve me bragging about how awesome he is. I am so proud of him! He has been working like crazy on his capstone project concept that he is proposing tomorrow. His project is really great! It is something that really could make a difference and something that he is passionate about and he has been researching and writing and making calls and finding experts to make it happen. I am so excited for him to get it approved and really start the beginning of the end!

For those of you who don't know what Seth is doing (because I get asked this a lot...often by his family - lol), he is finishing up his 7th semester of the 8 semester Doctor of Nurse Practice (DNP) program. When he finishes the program, he will be a nurse practitioner and treat patients just like a family practice doctor. He is in the first class to go through the program since it was transitioned to a doctorate degree and there has been a lot of craziness associated with that, in addition to the craziness of the program itself. It is super intense, long hours, lots of information to soak up and then you add in a full time job and a family: he has done SO well (amazingly, because I am not sure where he finds the energy or time to study)! A few of his clinical locations have told him that if they have anything open when he finishes his program that he would have a job with them and he has been approached about some other really exciting opportunities as well (that I am not-so-secretly keeping my fingers crossed for). Then, there is the option of a job that offers loan repayment, but that would require that we move out of the city...and more likely out of the state. Regardless, it is so nice to know that his awesomeness is being recognized and that there is a lot of interest in him as graduation approaches!

So, we aren't sure where the end of school will take us. While I am seriously leaning toward staying here in Salt Lake, buying our "forever" house and just starting that new part of our lives (because doesn't it sound totally awesome to buy your dream house, plant your roots, and never move again? Umm, yes!), the opportunities if we decide to venture somewhere not here are pretty enticing. So we are a little torn right now about what options to persue and where we might be headed.

Anyway, as the weeks and months seem to slip away quickly for me and slowly for Seth, the light at the end of the tunnel gets brighter and brighter and the looming decisions grow closer and closer. We are now down to 5 months (and since part of that is winter break, it is really only 4 1/2 months)! I am so proud of Seth for all that he has done and is doing to get us here! Keep up the good work sweetie! We are all cheering for you!

A good day

Woke up this morning feeling yuck, but after munching crackers in bed while Seth took care of all the morning stuff for the kids, I got up and going feeling better than I have in a long time. I had so much energy and no nausia. I had my first appointment with my OB...got to see the little one in there dancing around on the ultrasound, cleaned the house, made granola (and the house smell amazing in the process), and switched out the holiday decorations. When the kids woke up from their naps Chloe said, "Ooooh, our house looks spooky, but not scary spooky." Apparently Thanksgiving decor is still some sort of spooky.

Hoping that this energy sticks around for about 7 more months...a girl can dream, right?

bed buddy

This morning a little blonde headed girl climbed into bed with me to snuggle and give me kisses...

and I just couldn't help but be happy happy happy.

It was a pretty normal morning - sounds of the man I love making breakfast in the kitchen,

(yep, that's normal lately - aren't you jealous - best husband ever) 

a little boy getting ready for school all on his own,

a little girl gabbing away in her almost-2-year-old language that only she really understands,

and the sound of my sweet middle baby girl saying, "I love you mommy."

"I love you too," I said, "will you just be my best buddy forever!"

"yeah, " she replied...and then she hurried off to the breakfast table

as she heard the sound of plates hitting the table.

But me, I just layed there, thinking about how much I love my sweet little family,

how grateful I am for the three sweet little spirits that Heavenly Father sent just to me,

and how happy we all are to meet #4 and learn all about another little personality and

another spirit and another piece of our family that we'll wonder how we ever lived without.

I hope that the 4 of them never get too old to still be best buddies with their mom

or snuggle into my bed to give me hugs and kisses.

I hope that Chloe always wants to tell me about every minute of her day.

I hope that Brynn will keep on needing kisses from Mom to overcome bumps on the head,

scrapes on the knee and all the other little things that hurt her feelings throughout the day.

I hope that Morgan still demands his 3 hugs and kiss before bed for a good long time to come. 

I am so glad to be their mommy, and since I know that these sweet moments probably won't

last forever (despite my wishes that they would), I am cherishing them right now,

and in 10 years when Chloe is 13 and awful (because all 13 year old girls are awful)

I will remind her that one morning, when she was 3, she climbed in my bed to snuggle and told me

that we could be best buddies forever. She'll surely roll her eyes and say "whatever"

(as only 13 year old girls can), but I'll keep loving her anyway, cause that's my job as her mommy.

root beer candy

In the line at Hobby Lobby today there was one lonely bag of old fashioned root beer hard candy hanging next to the nasty cinnamon and horehound stuff, and I nonchalantly mentioned to Chloe that she needed to leave everything alone, but if she wanted she could grab that one bag on the bottom and we could share it. Of course, she took me up on the offer...and of course, I have eaten most of the bag of candies.

They are like the perfect amount of "something" to take away that nasty I-need-to-eat-or-throw-up-right-now feeling. And when it comes back, I just pop another one in! Plus it is like a little carbonation dance in your mouth...how do they make those candies actually taste like you are drinking a sparkly carbonated beverage? However they do it...awesome!

in conclusion: I love hard root beer candy today, pregnancy is clearly making me a little loopy, and I am really really missing my Dr. Pepper in all its carbonated glory.

taking each day one zofran dose at a time

I definitely spoke too soon with my last post...

(and consider this fair warning that this post is sure to be filled

with my complaints about the awfulness of pregnancy!)

Last Friday I literally called my mom from my bed at 10:00 am to see if she would bring me an asiago bagel from einsteins because every time I tried to stand up, I literally fell back down. Thankfully she came to the rescue with multiple asiago bagels and did my dishes and straitened up my kitchen (not an easy task, but, as she told me later...she knew I needed the help because my face was literally green when she got here).

I have yet to actually throw up this pregnancy, but the nausia doesn't ever go away...ever. 24/7 nausia. It is horrible! I have been able to eat quite a variety of food, but I absolutely cannot survive a full day without an afternoon nap (and usually that nap is 2-3 hours...and still not long enough). I take zofran with apple juice every 4-8 hours...and drink a whole lot of apple juice since it is the only thing I can drink that doesn't make me gag. I go days without even turning on my computer...which is quite unusual for me...good think I have email on my phone, or I would be completely out of the loop!

Today I am 9 weeks. This little one is the size of a grape and the heart is dividing into 4 chambers. It has eyelids and all of the major organs in place. The kids are LOVING tracking the growth...they look forward to Mondays when I get the email update complete with picture of the growing baby. "Is your computer connected to the baby?" Morgan asked me today. LOL! It is such a beautiful miracle to watch how this little one is growing and developing each week...and kind of incredible that something the size of a grape can make my entire body feel so utterly horrible!

I need to update about all of the Halloween festivities too, but since I am never on the computer, suffice it to say, we had a lot of festivities - and a lot of fun. Our activities committee threw a fabulous trunk or treat/dinner/carnival, Grandma Colleen hosted her annual trip to the pumpkin patch and halloween bash, I was in charge of Morgan's Kindergarten Halloween party, and the kids got to have a sleepover with Grandpa Mark and Grandma Char the night before Halloween (which meant a morning of sleeping in without interruption for me and Seth, but a night of no sleep for anyone having a sleepover). And finally a night of trick or treating in the rain with the Barlows...we were literally soaked to the bone! Anyway...lots of fun!

a little better...

Woo Hoo! Feeling a little bit better this week than I was last. Still feeling yucky overall, but my naps are getting shorter and my food options are expanding a bit. I had a can of Dr. Pepper tonight and it didn't make me gag...so I consider that a major improvement...one can was as much as I could handle though.

Morgan is still being a good helper and we are having fun charting the progress of the baby. It is now the size of a pinto bean and the kids are pumped that it can bend its elbows and knees this week. Plus fingers and toes are starting to appear! Morgan can't wait to hear the heartbeat and see the ultrasound...it will be a long 10 weeks!

Seth's application for graduation is due MONDAY! I can't believe how real the end is seeming and how close it is! I have my fingers crossed that we survive the next 6 months...we'll be selling our house, finding a new place to live, finding a new job, getting ready for baby #4 and of course graduating (and all the work that comes with that!). But, we are looking forward with excitement and anticipation!

So, yeah, things are a little better this week and we arehoping it will keep getting better from here!

I need a nap...

This weekend has been uber crazy...we got through the ward trunk or treat last night, primary program practice and party this morning and a halloween party with the cousins this afternoon. The kids' costumes are well worn and in need of serious cleaning before next Thursday, my body is exhausted, my car looks like a messy spook alley, and my house...well, we won't even go there. Anyway, we are having fun, keeping very busy, and in serious need of frequent naps!

knowing...

Written Friday, October 1


On Monday I felt like death. My body was heavy. I couldn't lift my arms or stand up for longer than 15 minutes at a time. Awful.



Still feeling like I'd been hit by a train, and per Seth's suggestion, I took a pregnancy test Tuesday morning. Negative. Ruling that out, I figured Tuesday would get better, but it didn't...we had playgroup, so I rallied the kids into the car, loaded the bikes and couldn't get my chair out fast enough to sit down and watch them ride around the church parking lot with their buddies (in the scorching heat of...late-September, really?). We survived, came home to crock pot dinner and I couldn't get the kids into bed fast enough because I was exhausted.



Thinking I had slept it off, Wednesday met me with hope. Seth was home until lunch time and took both kids to school (and picked them up). I got lots of work done, but still felt icky...and like I really wanted Little Ceasars Pizza...but Seth made lunch instead. Then Seth headed off to school and I literally could not keep my eyes open and fell asleep in the middle of editing a session (which is completely unheard of, by the way, because I get usually get so excited about the images I can't tear myself away from the screen). So I slept...a good solid hour or so...and when I woke up, I knew. Luckily those pregnancy tests come in a double pack. So I took another test...again, it looked negative...what in the world...and then Seth came in the door from school, and a faint line started to appear...and then that line got darker and darker and by the time he had said hello to the kids and came to say hi to me, it was official... baby #4 was on the way (and I was feeling much better about the fact that I had felt like a total bum all week)! So we celebrated with Little Caesar's Pizza and breadsticks and movie night in the middle of the week.

So yesterday marked 7 weeks and I feel plain old awful. Apparently I really did forget how horrible pregnancy is (I didn't think that was possible...I am certain I didn't forget the other times). Morgan has been a complete champ (and the only way I have been surviving). Yesterday he made lunch (toast and string cheese), fed the girls, helped everyone get into their beds and covered my very sick and exhausted lump of a body with a blanket after I collapsed on the couch. When I was able to function again, I gave him a hug to tell him thank you and how wonderful he is and realized that he was burning with a fever - 102 degrees. Seriously, the kid is amazing (and I feel like a completely delinquent mother)! After that, I made sure he got a little pampering of his own and some motrin! My sweet mom called and offered to bring dinner over...which saved us considering dinner was looking like cereal or more toast and string cheese. The kids were in bed by 6:30 pm and I was asleep by 7:00. Today has been better...mostly because I discovered that when I read the dosage instructions for my zofran perscription, I was actually looking at my folic acid perscription - turns out I can take zofran every 4-6 hours...not once a day as I thought. :)

Kind of early to be announcing this, Jen...
Right, right, I know you are supposed to wait until you are out of the "scary stage", but I have been through the miscarriage thing before, and frankly, for me, it is much harder to go through it alone. So, I have decided that I'd rather have a community of support than a private battle if anything goes wrong, but by the way I am feeling, things are looking good. Also, it is quite possible that this baby is our last, and I want to remember all these little things. Plus, pregnancy brain is already well on its way to taking over my brain, so details get very fuzzy the longer I wait to write them down.


So little baby Tate #4...your mommy and daddy and big brother and big sisters and puppy are awating your arrival! We are tracking your growth every week and looking at pictures of what you are becoming! ( as of today you are the size of a blueberry...Morgan loved finding that out). We are thinking of names - like catsup nose (thank you for that suggestion Morgan) - and hoping like crazy that you are a boy! Mostly because Morgan says if you are a girl, we will have to give Chloe away because he can only handle 2 sisters...and I think he may be right! ;) Plus, Chloe says that we got a girl baby for her (Brynn) and now we need a boy baby for Morgan! But even if you are another girl - we will still love you like crazy...and we won't really get rid of Chloe!!!! Chloe started working very hard to be able to do her own buckle as soon as we found out, so the big kids can move to the back row of the car to make room for you, and she has totally mastered it! Keep on growing, little one, and we will see you at the end of May! love love love you!

P.S. Dear friends and family - I tend to become a cranky, opinionated, know-it-all, stinker when I am pregnant. I am seriously SERIOUSLY trying to keep this in check so that I am not the world's meanest pregnant lady this time around, but please, when I say something stupid or self-centered or opinionated, do not be offended...it is just the pregnancy horromones...pregnant Jen and real Jen aren't even friends. Thanks!

7 years

Yesterday was our 7 year anniversary! (and our day was so crazy I didn't even have a chance to post) 7 Years ago was one of the happiest days of my life...the perfect day, the perfect party, the perfect man by my side...and it has been a perfect 7 years since! We pulled out the wedding album and looked through it with the kids...my how much has changed, but one thing has not: how much I adore my sweet husband!

We went out on our anniversary date on Tuesday since that is all that the schedule of clinicals and work would allow, but it was wonderful in every way! Wonderful dinner, wonderful pastries, wonderful movie, wonderful company, and wonderful to come home to kids snugly sleeping in their beds!

So, to the sweet man I love, thanks for a beautiful life. Thanks for keeping all of your promises and excdeeding my expectations in every way! Thanks for putting up with my crazy, my ambitions, and my insecurities! Thanks for making me feel like a princess! Thanks for being a stunning example to our 3 little ones and for loving them like crazy! Thanks for pretending to care about things like what graphics I should use for my logo, which color scheme to wear for family pictures, and whether Brynn's pettiskirt looks floofy enough. Thanks for working hard to provide and taking care of all the stuff I would never even think to do! Thanks for still giving me butterflies after 7 years of marriage! Most of all thanks for being you! Happy anniversary...and many many more to come! Love love love you!

In regards to my post about responsibility...

I just thought I would share a few articles that have been ENLIGHTENING to me. I think there is quite a bit of misinformation regarding what my church believes...so much that I did not fully understand until reading these articles. If you are interested to know the official position of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in regards to homosexuality, discrimination, or equal rights, these articles are both great reads!

http://beta-newsroom.lds.org/official-statement/same-gender-attraction

http://beta-newsroom.lds.org/article/church-mormon-responds-to-human-rights-campaign-petition-same-sex-attraction

Confession: this issue is still weighing heavily on my mind! I'd like to tell you I will stop posting about it and get back to random things my kids say and cute pictures, but I can't guarantee it. Seth would also like me to stop giving him dissertations on what I am learning about this issue...but he's 'gonna keep putting up with me anyway! Hope you all will too!

I'm giving away a free session...

And thought I'd let you all know! I have made some fun updates to the smileabunch photography facebook fan page and since it was so much work, I want to share it with the whole world! lol!

So, if you want to get the free session, all you have to do is:

1. Go over and "like" my page if you haven't already (click the link above)
2. Tell your friends to go and "like" my page and leave a comment on the wall telling me you sent them
3. When we hit 200 fans, whoever has referred the most friends will get a free session!

Some other stuff to know:
If all of my fans play, you will only have to refer 2 or 3 fans to win.
The free session can be given as a gift and must be used within 6 months.
When I tally it up, both you and the people you referred must still be facebook fans.

That's it! Just wanted you all to know!

where there is great responsibility

Last week was the most beautiful weekend of fall. Not because of the changing leaves or the cool breezy weather or the smell of fall (though all of that was wonderful too), but because it was general conference for my church. I write about it every 6 months because it is always so inspiring to me, but if you are not familiar with general conference, it is 2 days (4 sessions + 1 for men only) of talks by leaders of our church giving us guidance, hope and tools to strengthen us in our resolve to live our religion more fully. The talks, as they always are, were inspiring and uplifting and beautiful.

Over the past week, 2 things have weighed hevily on my mind. First, because of teachings shared in one talk from general conference, my religion has been attacked publicly, very personally, and even by those of my own faith. I have tossed and turned at night, read countless articles and information and stewed about the attacks. While I do not want to get into the details of the debate here on my blog and feed any more controversy, I feel a deep responsibility to proclaim my feelings. I am proud to be an American! I am grateful for freedom of speach and freedom of religion. To those who feel differently from me, I am so grateful that I live in a country where that is respected/tolerated/appreciated! Sadly, I feel that this very controversy is threatening MY right as an American to listen to a conference for my own religion and be taught principles that are key to that religion. I have a right to learn my own faith, I have a right to teach my own faith to my children, and I have a right to live my religion (which happens to teach love and tolerance and respect for people who do not agree with it). I live this religion to the best of my abilities: I am not perfect, but I teach my children what is right. I teach them to have faith in God. I teach them that the scriptures hold eternal truths and that they should read and study them. I teach them that every person on this earth is a child of God and that he loves them. I teach them to respect differences and to love people - whether or not they believe as we do. I wish that people could respect my right to do so without applying a degrading label (which is completely unfounded, should you care to actually study our beliefs) to me or my church leaders. Disagreement and respect can and should cooexist and I will defend that! I will defend my right to learn and practice religion as I so choose. I will defend the right of every human being to be treated with love and respect - and not just those of the minority, but those of the "majority" as well. That is all I have to say about this, for now. I, of course, have strong opinions regarding the issue on debate, so if you want to hear them, feel free to send me an email, and I will be happy to share! ;)

Second, I feel an overwhelming responsibility to teach my children what is right! This world we live in has so much good, and I am quick to look for the good and ignore the bad, but I feel such a need to teach my children how to seek out the good and stay far from the bad! Their minds are little sponges that soak up everything around them...and while that has been wonderful as they have spent their days in the safety of my home, it scares me to death as they venture out into the world of school and making friends and making choices. I worry for them, I pray for them and I hope that what I have taught them stays with them. I want to swoop in and protect them from influences that can change the course of their whole lives, I want to swoop in and guide them to be kind to everyone. I want to swoop in and remind them to show respect and appreciation to their teachers. But I know that they must make these decisions on their own. It is a great responsibility to teach children to avoid evil in our society (particularly when society readily accepts so much of what I think is evil), but I will do it, because I know that where there is great responsibility, there are great rewards!

apple picking

i'm pretty happy with my little family...

tonight, when daddy got home, we headed out for some apple picking

he was all about picking apples.

she was all about filling that basket...bet happy to let dad do the picking.

sneaking an apple...look at that guilty face!

could she be more beautiful?

they ate about this many apples on the drive home

a momma's delight!

Then it was off to carl's jr...because the one in sandy has a playland

our dinner conversation went like this...

Morgan: "i want to keep my dad, but i want a different mom."

mom: "oh yeah? what kind of mom do you want?"

Morgan: "i want a mom with short hair."

mom: "i have short hair."

Morgan: "no, short hair like grandma becky's."

mom: "what else do you want in a new mom?"

Morgan: "she needs to have one brother and 2 sisters."

hmmm....which brother could I get rid of? anyone want to be my sister?

halloween photo booth...a little business

A few people have asked if I will be doing halloween mini-sessions to get pictures of kids in costume.
The answer is no - I do not have any more mini-sessions scheduled until 2011,
however, I am in the process of planning a date for a

Halloween Photo Booth!

I am still working out the details, but they will be

about 15 minutes,

costumes (or halloween outfits required),

and around $30.

Before I set all the details in stone, though, I wanted to feel out the interest in a session like this to determine how many days to schedule. So, let me know if you are interested.

If you have any questions or want to send me a message privately, contact me here.

P.S. On the subject of mini-sessions - there are a couple of people who couldn't make the dates work, but would still like to do a mini-session. I am willing to add another day of Fall mini-sessions in October if there are at least 3 people who want to book so let me know if you are interested in that as well.

(and I will make sure it is a dog friendly place as I know that has been of interest)

Why are you posting this here, Jen?

A lot of friends don't check the smileabunch photography blog and are bummed when they

miss out, so I post specials here so nobody has to be sad! :)

If you want to be the first to know about deals and specials, though,

I usually post them on the facebook fan page first!

lollipops

today we got the kids lolipops

(and I didn't take any pictures...crazy I know)

chloe: "what are lolipops made of, mom?"

me: "sugar mostly"

chloe: "SUGAR??!! I knew it!"

morgan: "Yep, lolipops are made of sugar and hard gravel"

there you have it folks...lolipops are made of sugar and hard gravel

my kids have it all figured out!

picking tomatoes

we have a lot of tomato plants (24 to be exact)

on them are many green tomatoes...and if we happen to be faster than the kids - who eat tomatoes like candy - we pick lots of red ones too

today, I noticed that a lot of them had turned red, so as Morgan was carrying around a bucket for me to put them in as we picked them I said, "Wow - we have a LOT of red tomatoes and a lot more that will be ready tomorrow!"

"Well, my prayer worked."

"huh?"

"My prayer worked...when I prayed that our tomatoes would grow...it worked.

It is a good thing I prayed for our tomatoes to grow...now you can make salsa!"

Yes my sweet little boy so full of faith, it worked!
(And thank you for not cutting your own hair until after last night's pictures)
xoxo
- Mom

today was high tea...

I guess I'm not technically sure what high tea is, but working under the assumption that it is

tea at high noon a.k.a. "tea party lunch"

the combination of

pj's

tea sets

tuna and cucumber "tea sandwiches"

pink lemonade

carrots with ranch dip

mini marshamallows on toothpicks



And yes..I think this is some kind of record:
2 posts in the same day and same day pictures!

overheard...

yesterday while eating breakfast...

"Morgan do you want to be Raja and I will be Jasmine?"

"I have to go to school, but I will when I get home."

today while choosing a movie...

"Chloe, do you want to watch 101 Dalmations?

...there's a princess in it...do you know who it is?"

Just the simplest little exchanges between Morgan and Chloe make me so happy!

I love that they love to play with each other.

I love that they know each other so well that they know how to "sell" anything to the other.

I love that they know how to talk through things to find something that makes both of them happy.

I love the sibling relationship.

First day(s) of school

Chloe has been anxiously awaiting the beginning of preschool. After watcher her big brother do the preschool thing for 2 years, she has had her backpack ready and her outfit picked out for weeks!

Since we went back to school shopping she has been asking every day

"Do I get to wear the dress that looks like pants?"

It took us a while to figure out that she was talking about her new denim dress for back to school!

So, the day finally came for the preschool open house.

Backpack on, dress that looks like pants on, and a few quick pictures

and we were off to school!

When you make faces like this...
you need to know they will end up on the blog!

Princess backpack, of course!

She made her placemat...

Played pretend...and took ownership of a baby doll...

She didn't want to leave and was so excited to go back the next day for her official first day,
I told her that mommy would not be staying with her but that I would be back to get her...
"Ok, bye mom!"

Little sister missed her...

And big brother wished her luck...
"You don't need to be nervous Chloe, school is fun!"

Not sure that I am ready for all of this growing up,
but so happy that she loves school so much!