Christmas Eve 2010

Tyler and KellyAnne came down for Christmas and invited us over for a Christmas Eve swim at their hotel. Jayson, Robert, Sean, Brynn and the kiddos all came too. Tobi was a little fussy so we got him out of the water a little early, but little Miss Rachel was LOVING it. It was so much fun to watch her play. She was absolutely fearless. Jumping and splashing, she was a total fish. Afterward we all had pizza, and Kelly and I got to visit while the boys played video games. I love spending time with Tyler and Kelly, and Rachel is so much fun. She's the cutest little girl. I wish we could spend more time with them.

We also went to my Grandparents house today to exchange gifts with them. Tobi got to open his presents from them and he got the cutest little truck that makes noises and he loves it. He also got a really cute cookie monster track suit, and some soft winter jammies. Jordan and I got some of my Grandma's SUPER delicious homemade treats. We then got to give my Grandma and Grandpa their calendar that I've been working on for the past couple of months. It turned out SO good and I couldn't wait to give it to them. They both really liked it a lot. It was nice to visit with them before they go back to Arizona for the rest of the winter.

Happy Birthday Jordan!

My fantastic husband turned 24 yesterday and we had quite the day! Tobi and I took him to lunch at Chinese Gourmet in Orem, where we got our favorite Mongolian stir fry, and Tobi sure loved those noodles! The waitress gushed over how cute Tobi was. We got home and put Tobi down for a nap, and then played Fat Princess together on the playstation. I've watched Jordan play the game before, but I've never played it with him. It was actually a lot of fun!

Later that night, my parents came by to babysit for us while we went to dinner and a movie. Our good friends, Jocelyn, Steve, Adam, and Shannon all came with us. We started at Happy Sumo and ordered sushi (so good!) and then we went over to the Cinemark to see Tron. Jordan had a lot of fun and we were so glad our friends could join us in celebrating his big day.

Happy Birthday Jordan!

I love you!

I see my baby!

I was going through some of my old pictures today and I came across these pictures of myself, from when I was little. I could swear I was looking at little Tobi's face! He looks a lot like me when I was little, and yet he still looks just like Jordan. Jordan thinks he looks like me too, what do you think?

Can you see his face?

These are very old pictures so please excuse the poor quality. :)

Family pictures

Our little family last year

We were able to go this week and get some family pictures taken. Our friend Jessie did them for us and I am SO grateful! It's still so weird for me to have a one year old. I look at these pictures and I feel so blessed. I have a great husband and the cutest little boy in the world. I'm very excited to enjoy what's left of the holiday now that I'm done with this semester at school. And we have Jordan's birthday coming up too! I think this week is going to be packed with birthday and Christmas fun, I can't wait!

The three of us this year

The Christmas Sleigh

We went to Shannon's grandma's house today to take some Christmas pictures and the boys were so dang cute! I just had to post some pictures. :)

Snuggles

Tobi has been so much fun this week. He's starting to be a lot more cuddly and we are loving it. He's got so much personality and he's learning so much. I love to watch him figure out his toys and sometimes it shocks me how quickly he picks up on things. He decided this week that he is done with Gerbers and it's been a challenge for me to find more solids for him to eat and still keep his diet balanced. So far his favorites are green beans, bananas, apples, macaroni and cheese, and spaghettios. It's so fun giving him new things to try. He's so good, he'll try anything at least once and there isn't much he doesn't like. We've been sharing a lot more with him from our own plates and he loves it. He giggles when he gets to eat new things that he likes, it's the cutest thing ever!

Turkey cupcakes!

Jocelyn and Steve came by Wednesday night and surprised us with the CUTEST turkey cupcakes. This girl is AMAZING in the kitchen and she always makes the yummiest foods! Jordan and I were so excited, it was such a nice surprise and the cupcakes were DELICIOUS. Thank you Jocelyn and Steve!!!

Thanksgiving

Jordan and I hosted Thanksgiving at our place this year and it ended up being a small group of us, which was really nice. Jordan got up and started the turkey which turned out PERFECT, he did such a good job. Chace came over early and he and Jordan played Fat Princess on the PS3 while Tobi slept between them on the floor. My mom came next, then Robert, and then my dad came by at four. He had to work earlier in the day. We all gathered around the TV to catch up on The Walking Dead (best show ever!) and enjoyed our super yummy turkey day dinner. Robert made some delicious pies that we got have later once our food had settled. After everyone left, Shannon, Brandy and I all went to Walmart for their midnight sales. It was CRAZY but we all got some pretty cool stuff. I had a lot of fun going out with them and I'm so grateful to my fabulous hubby for staying home with Tobi so I could go. He is so great!

Lazy days and mondays

Jordan got up with Tobi the other morning and got him all dressed nice and cute. When I got up, Tobi didn't have any pants on. Jordan said it was because they were too big and he crawled out of them. The apartment was kind of cold, so I thought we should at least put his leggings on. Then he started playing with his lion hat, so we figured we'd put that on too. This was his finished look...

My Christmas Countdown

Shannon and I got together this week and made our Christmas countdowns and they turned out so cute! It was so fun and so easy to make. I can't wait to hang mine up!

Friendships renewed

I've recently started hanging out with Shannon again and I am so grateful that there is still a friendship there. She is such a happy, spunky, energetic girl and I really enjoy being around her. Not to mention she has one of the cutest little boys!

I love watching Kayson and Tobi interact with each other, and it's nice for Tobi to have a little friend who's close in age.

I was very nervous at first because I was afraid of what my friends and family members would say or think, but then I realized I just don't care. I think that life is too short to hold grudges for so long and it's easier to just get along. I think my lesson learned for this year would have to be forgiveness. I feel that I've come a long way since the beginning of the year. We had quarrels with several family members and friends that I didn't think

would ever heal for me. I've managed to move past my anger and I'm so much happier! I'm starting to build and strengthen relationships I never thought I'd have and I am SO grateful.

My brother is happy for Shannon and glad that she and I are friends and that's enough for me. I hope to set an example not just for those around me but for myself. I care too much about the opinions of others and for once I'm going to do what feels right for me.

Wow, now that I feel like a total preacher.....back to my post!

I'm starting to expand my social network and I'm so happy that Shannon and Kayson fall into that net. Kayson is a total cutie and spending time with both of them has really been a joy for me lately.

How cute are these two boys....seriously!

Tobi's One Year Pictures

Here are Tobi's one year pictures. I think they turned out so cute. I cannot believe how fast this year has gone by!

Twelve months!

We've hit the big TWELVE month mark!

Tobi is now sitting in a forward facing car seat, woohoo! He is also pulling himself up on everything and trying to crawl on his knees. He is keeping himself entertained for longer and plays with his toys very well. He's eating more and more solid foods and I am so proud of him! He's been very cuddly and lets us snuggle him a lot more often, I am loving it! He's learning a ton! He knows how to give high five's, clap, and scold anyone who makes him mad....the little stinker. He is so much fun and so happy all the time. He makes me so happy. And I have I mentioned yet how much I love his red hair? This last year has been amazing and I feel so blessed to have such a wonderful little boy.

Here he is at twelve months!

Happy Birthday Tobi!

I'm seriously fighting tears as I write this....my baby boy is one year old today. I cannot believe how quickly this last year has flown. He is growing like a weed and learning so much. He's at such a fun age right now and I love to watch him roam around and play. He entertains himself very well and he's figuring things out super quick. He has such a sweet little personality and it is such a joy for me to be his mommy.

We woke up this morning and opened his first couple of gifts, which turned out to be bathtub toys (he doesn't really have any) and then we put him in the tub with all his new water toys. He loved it! Then he got to go with Daddy to the store to get his party stuff and he took his first ride facing forward in his car seat. So exciting!

We then had his birthday party. He was super tired and a little cranky but he made it. We had yummy sandwiches and chips for dinner, opened gifts, and then did cake and icecream. He got a lot of really cool new toys and super cute new outfits. He is very very loved. After that, we took him home and put him right to bed, poor little guy was tuckered out.

Happy Birthday monkey!

I love you!

The Jelly Sandwich

We had jelly sandwiches for lunch today.

Tobi LOVES jelly sandwiches and I love to watch him eat them. He's doing so much better with solid foods lately and I love to see how happy he gets when he eats something he likes.

He's such a cute little boy, I'm so proud to be his mom.

Fire Mario

I finished Tobi's Halloween costume and it turned out so good! I'm so stinkin' proud of myself too. I used to sew in high school but since graduation I've kind of forgotten the sewing machine and all its wonders. Lately I've started doing quilts and baby blankets...which I love! I found a pattern for some little baby jumpers and thought I'd try it for Tobi's costume. The pattern I had was super easy and his little jumper is adorable on him. I have to admit though that I did screw up the colors a little bit. Fire mario is supposed to have a white hat with a red "M" and I got it backward. Oh well, he's still cute as a button. We're all set to go trick or treating....woohoo!

Kelly's Birthday

This last weekend we were able to go to Logan for KellyAnne's birthday. Tobi and I rode up with Jayson and stayed all day Saturday, and then went home Sunday. Jordan drove up on his own when he got off work and met us up there. Sean and Brynn also came with the kiddos. We had a yummy lunch on Saturday, carved pumpkins, and had a really yummy dinner at Cafe Sabor. The guys got to go to a haunted corn maze Saturday night while the girls and the kiddos stayed home and watched movies. Sunday we had homemade pizza (Kelly did a fantastic job, it was delicious!) and I baked a really yummy chocolate jello cake that was a big hit. I had so much fun hanging out with Tyler and Kelly and little miss Rachel is just SO adorable. We had a blast and wish we could go up more often.

Happy Birthday Kelly, we love you!

eLeVeN mOnThS

I cannot believe my baby is eleven months old. Where has the year gone?

He is such a little cutie. He's gotten his second tooth in the front and I love his little toothy grin. It cracks me up every time I see it. He's also learned how to clap for himself, and how to wave (most of the time his wave is backwards, but at least he's trying). He is now dancing when he hears music that he likes and it is SO stinkin' cute. He dances the most to the Office theme music, it's hilarious!

He's doing really good with solid foods. He had his first jelly sandwich and he totally DEVOURED it. His hair is getting longer and it has more red, which I love. I really hope it stays that way. He's trying so hard to pull himself up but hasn't quite gotten the hang of it yet. He LOVES the bathroom and we've had to try extra hard to remember to close doors. He is also obssessed with the cat. He follows her around and tries so hard to catch her. He likes to pull Jessa's hair and makes her cry. I figure she needs to learn to stay away from him. I've been planning his birthday party for next month, I still can't believe he's going to be a year old, and I'm very excited.

That's my little man at eleven months.

My favorite from today's work:

This is my favorite page that I finished today. I was able to do about ten pages.....wow. I really like digiscrapping and I'm excited to print these pages for Tobi's book.

What do you think?

My Zoo Pages

October desktop!

How totally cute is that?!

I love it!

Dad and me

Yesterday I went to my parents house to hang out and my poor dad was trying to find someone to go to the BYU v. Nevada game. Every year he buys two sets of season tickets and my brothers take turns going with him to the games. Well yesterday, Andrew was still in Hawaii on his honeymoon (woohoo!) and Chace had to work. He wondered if Robert would go, but he works every Saturday. I felt so bad and I didn't want him going to the game by himself. Then it hit me....I could go! So we arranged for my mom to sit with Tobi while my dad and I went to the game. It was my first college football game and it was so cool! It totally brought me back to my high school days. I went to as many football games as I could. I loved the school spirit, the support of the team, the excitement....and the BYU game was no different. My dad actually had some pretty decent seats so we weren't sitting right in the sun. I'm so glad I got to go and spend that time with him, just the two of us, doing something that he likes. We haven't done that in while.

Mr. and Mrs. Olson

My little brother got married this last weekend and I am so proud of him for finding such a fantastic girl! Their wedding was absolutely beautiful and they were both stunning in their wedding apparel. It was a fun packed day and I'm very excited to have Bronwyn as a member of the family.

Congratulations Andrew and Bronwyn!

Mom the student

I have started school...again....and I have so many mixed feelings I felt I should write about it. I'm thrilled to be back in school, I've always loved taking classes at UVU. I like my classes and I'm very excited to finish my Associates in University Studies. I've applied for graduation this semester and I've also declared my major, which will be Accounting. I'm VERY excited to begin my exploration into the world of accounting but I'm also very nervous because it's difficult. I hope I can do it. I'm looking at an expected graduation date of Summer 2012 with my Bachelors, assuming I pass everything ha ha. I really want to be able to have something I can fall back on if we need it, and I'm also excited for the opportunity to contribute to our income again, with something that's actually decent. In the meantime, I've been balancing my life as a mother with my life as a student which has been going pretty smoothly up until this week. I've had my first round of tests this week which has seemed to kick off a very big stress marathon during which my homework has started to slip and I'm desperately trying to keep it under control while still giving my sweet little guy the attention he needs.

I CAN do this.

New decorations

Last weekend, Grandma Bourne took Kelly and me to Roberts for a little shopping. Kelly found a super cute set of jungle vinyl and I just HAD to have it for my Tobi's room. I put them up right away and I love it! I still have a lot of work to do before his room is exactly how I want it, but I feel like it's coming along pretty good.

Ten Months!

How cute is this little man? I mean seriously! He is now ten months old and I am in a very weird zone right now. Two more months and he will be one year old. I cannot believe that much time has passed already. This last week I had to retire some of Tobi's clothes that no longer fit and I hate that. It always makes me so sad. At the same time though, I love how much he is growing and how much his personality is really starting to shine through. This last month he has been so SILLY. He's so happy and he loves to play. He learned how to crawl, finally! And we ended up ordering a gate to keep him out of the kitchen. He's crazy about kitchens for some reason. He also has his first tooth....finally. He's a very good eater and we're starting to slowly trust him with more solid foods now that he's getting the hang of chewing. He is also now on formula, yay! He does really well which is a huge relief for us. He's starting to get a little more clingy and freaks out when one of us leaves a room or leaves the house. And he's also starting to get shy around strangers depending on his mood. He really is such a special little boy and I am so happy to be his mother. Every day I have with him is so much fun and he's always making me laugh. Here's to month eleven.....may it come very, very slowly.

Labor Day Weekend

We had a very busy labor day weekend. On Saturday, while Jordan was at work, my mom took Tobi and me to the Grand America for a spa day. She treated us to massages (my first one!) and we played with Tobi in the pool, he had us both cracking up. He loves swimming. My massage was INCREDIBLE! I went home feeling so relaxed and so calm. It was so nice.

Then on Monday, my dad took Jordan fishing and my mom and I drove up later to join them. They had caught two fish and when my mom and I got there, we caught three more. I haven't been fishing since I was pretty little so it was nice to go and take Tobi with me. We all had a pretty good time.