happy birthday

to our little cousin Jake!

one year old and cute as can be.

make sure you really go to town on your birthday cake.

once you are older it is not quite as cute to really rub your face in it.

can't even tell you how much little halle adores you.

she can't get enough of the videos of you.

she talks about you and your binky all the time.

and when she calls someone on her phone it is almost always you.

We love you!

going national

What? You didn't know that my mother in law is an author and writes wonderful books?

One of my favorites was the first book in her Butterfly Box series. I couldn't put it down.

What? You didn't know one of her books is going national?

Now you do know.

March 16th is the release date for her young adult novel called "Summer in Paris."

Sounds fun and European doesn't it? And I bet you're already imagining the fun a girl can have in France (unless you're in the movie Taken).

Better make sure you know which Paris she is talking about.

Did you know about the little town called Paris in the state of Idaho?

What could ever happen there?

You're intrigued aren't you?

Michele Ashman Bell is one fabulous author. Seriously, I read a lot so I should know.

And I am not just saying that because she is my MIL. She really is an entertaining and thoughtful writer and we are so excited for her newest NATIONAL release!

You want to know more about this amazing lady? Click here and you can check out her blog.

You want to know more about this new book? Click here and you can read a little more about the book and you can also pre-order your very own copy.

Just do it. You know you want to.

when you love someone

you will sit outside freezing your tail off watching them play just because it makes them happy.

olympic thoughts

shaun white's red hair is prettier than mine.
all those visa ads keep making me emotional.
three words to describe johnny weir: whoa. ew. weird.
kelly clark singing before her halfpipe scared me.
why are they playing "party in the usa" at the olympics?
is it just me or is evan lysacek kind of cute?
who knew vera wang designed male ice skating costumes?
that chinese figure skating couple deserved the gold. i love that they are married. weird they live in seperate dorms.
snowboard cross. four boarders racing down a course at the same time is intense.
watching people achieve their dreams makes me emotional.
i love it when the athletes are really excited about winning a medal.
skiing and g-force. whoa.
gretchen bleiler kept on smiling.
but i think my favorite part was lying in the dark with the tv on mute watching figure skating while Halle girl sleeps in my arms.
go world.

something new

This year Wes was the Valentine date planner and decided to first take me to my favorite restaurant, Kyoto, for lunch. Afterwards, he drove us to the Salt Lake temple to do an endowment session together. He chose this temple because I had never done a session here. It is a unique and absolutely wonderful experience. I loved seeing a live session. It is a special thing to behold. I couldn't help but get emotional as I sat inside thinking of the beauty and heritage of this sacred place. I can't imagine all the early saints had to sacrifice to build this magnificent house of the Lord. I would love to learn about all the architecture and symbolism seen everywhere inside and out.

I really can't believe it took me this long to get there when it is only a short drive away.

It was perfect and one of the best dates ever.

image found here

the ghost of valentine's past

One of my most memorable Valentine's Day happened when I was in 5th grade. We had recently moved to St. George and I had only been at my new school for a few months. So, it goes without saying that I was probably in need of a little acceptance and confidence. The night before Valentine's Day I remember kneeling down by my bed and praying that someone (in my mind I was thinking it had to be a boy) would give me something to make my Valentine's day special. I then promised that if something like that happened I would never eat ice cream again. This promise was a little weird because 1)who said that ice cream is bad and should not be consumed and 2)I hardly ever ate ice cream so it wasn't that big of a sacrifice for me.

Anyway, the next day at school we set our Valentine boxes on our desks and went to lunch. When I came back I found a small heart shaped box of chocolates sitting in my box. I was tickled. Of course, 5th graders can't keep their mouths shut and I soon found out the box of chocolates was from the quiet, red headed, freckle faced boy (who eventually became one of my good friends). Who knew the kid had it in him? Being the typical 5th grader I had to act like it was gross and the chocolate box symbolized cooties of all kinds, but really I was flattered and so pleased.

That day Quin Shepherd answered one little girl's prayer at the cost of much humiliation and teasing I am sure.

I am sure he had no idea what that box of chocolates meant to me.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Go be a Quin Shepherd today.

Spread some love.

I regret to inform you that I did not keep my promise about the ice cream.

i choose you everyday

We have a running joke in our house where Wes comes and finds me and says, "I choose you everyday." While this saying came about as the result of one of our silly conversations it has come to mean more to us.

To us, relationships are about choosing each other every day.

This includes the days you are mad, frumpy, dirty, tired, a pms-er, ornery, stressed, kind of smelly, inconsiderate, etc. This saying helps me to remember on the days that aren't so lovely, that I am making an active choice each day to love my husband and treat him like I do choose him all over again.

I love the moment when he remembers to come find me and tell me he chooses me everyday.

Happy Valentine's Day

...tomorrow...but we're celebrating today!

the diaper shack

I recently read that in Holland the people take special care of their homes and cottages making them look beautiful and making them feel like peaceful sanctuaries. Many people actually name their cottages and place those names above their doors. They often choose names like Sunbeam, Sunny Corner, Peace Haven, Tranquility, etc. I was talking with Wes about what name we would give our home and we jokingly came up with The Diaper Shack.

I am sad to say that lately we have been living up to that name. This past month we have been bombarded with illnesses of all kinds. My housekeeping has taken a hit and some disaster usually strikes just after I clean, so it usually only stays clean for a day or two. I can't grab a shower most days till after 5, which means I am in my pajamas most of the day. I'm also lucky if I get Halle dressed at all. I find myself barely getting my prayers said before I collapse on my bed in exhaustion wondering what I actually did that day. I have to shove medicine down Halle's throat twice a day. I broke our blender. We found one of the windows in our basement is cracked. It looks like the culprit is a bb gun. My calling is taking me out of my home more than I thought it would. It kills me that I don't have the opportunity to put Halle to bed on Wednesday nights. I barely paid our bills on time this month because I forgot about them due to the fact they were hidden under all my stuff on my desk. Wes is in the middle of an intense semester. Our library items were overdue. I have a mountain of laundry that needs to be tackled and Halle has no clean pajamas. Halle asked me if she could go "nigh nigh" today and if you know her then you know that means something is way out of whack.

We are not drowning, but it feels like we are on our way down.

Our home definitely feels like a chaotic diaper shack.

I am in need of some major organization tips.

Ideas? What works for you? Please.

thank heavens

The ear infection of misery came to visit this week.

And thankfully after one long night of screaming and a whole afternoon spent at the BYU health center

She finally dozed off.

Thank you mom for taking my practically hysterical phone call at 6 this morning.

Thank you mother in law Michele for coming, holding her while she slept, letting me sleep, and enduring a very long doctors visit.

Thank you ibuprofen.

Thank you antibiotics.

i am mama

Last night I found myself holding my crying, sick Halle.

I found myself up at one in the morning watching Finding Nemo because she couldn't sleep.

I found myself up at two in the morning laying in my bed in the dark watching Halle crawl all over me until she eventually fell asleep propped up against me.

I found myself looking for binkies tangled up in bed sheets all night.

In the morning I found myself wishing for just a little more sleep.

I found myself eating three cookies for breakfast because I felt like I deserved them.

I found myself reading the same books over and over in my bed with Halle.

I found myself discovering and then smelling unidentifiable brown smudges on pajamas and furniture and eventually determining that they were in fact poo extracted from a diaper.

I found myself canceling a playdate we had scheduled for the day, due to her nasty cough and extremely runny nose.

I found myself changing Halle into her infamous elephant pajamas because 1)there was poo on her other ones and 2)they make her incredibly happy.

I found myself making Halle mac and cheese and letting her eat it on her princess couch in front of monsters inc. because it makes her happy.

And now I find myself blissfully happy that this little girl calls me mama and knows mama can make everything better.

check up on it

No, not the Beyonce definition of "check up on it."

The type of check up on it where I check up on how I have been doing with my goals for the year.

• Attend the temple at least once a month: We barely made it on the 30th. We can do better. However, it is absolutely wonderful no matter what day you go.
• Eat better: Made some great eating choices this month and lost some poundage. But, I still don't have complete control over myself. Still snagging one too many spoonfuls of Halle's mac and cheese.
• Read some classics: So far I have finished Jane Eyre (my new absolute favorite book), The Picture of Dorian Gray (A great story about vanity and being a good person), and To Kill a Mockingbird (loved it!). I am in the middle of Anna Karenina and really love this goal.
• Plan a trip: Still in the works. We are thinking Disneyland. We just need to make it happen.
• Learn to bake something: I baked blonde brownies and cupcakes last month that actually turned out. I am working my way up to baking this beauty.
• Serve my family, neighbors, and nursery tots: This goal should be revised to include my young women. And I think taking care of a sick baby is enough serving for a whole month. Now, serving my neighbors is another story.
• Do pilates: It's easy to accomplish a goal when you love what it is. I love pilates. For a couple of weeks I thought Ana Caban might seriously injure me, but I got the hang of it. I have never felt so strong or flexible before.
• Teach Halle to share: Let's just say that yesterday at nursery she had to be kept away from the other children because she was a little too aggressive.
• Be lovely: Not fair. This month I was sick. It is impossible for me to be lovely and sick at the same time. At least that is my excuse for this month.