{4 months}

I have a 4 month old. SO weird.

Time has flown by. Her doctor’s appointment went well today – minus the shots – no body likes those. straight up mama’s need a little something to relax us before that happens…

16 lbs 4 oz. 24.75 inches long. she is GROWING like a cute chubby weed πŸ™‚

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OH that eyebrow raise. She is a PROfessional at it. It is to die for. She does this one eyebrow raise with a smile every so often. I can’t. I laugh almost every single time.

the silly faces she makes. the smiles. her personality slowly starting to come out. it’s exciting.

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she has found her toes. it’s adorable. she is also crazy fascinated with her hands these days. like staring at them and moving them one finger at a time. it is seriously the best to watch her be so intrigued and interested — i love watching that little brain work πŸ™‚

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she loves her daddy. beard. mustache. shaved. crazy energetic man. sleeping cuddle buddy. loves him. it’s my favorite to watch her melt tyler.

she has also started teething…I am 90% sure of it. drools like a river. gnaws like champ and will let you rub her gums…plus THAT drool. {bibs are our new friends}

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she had her first Vegas trip with the Richards family. girls shopped til we literally dropped and Avyn got to be strolled/carried around while we did so. she had had enough after 2 days. {a couple freak outs here and there but she did pretty good in my eyes}

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she is really starting to take notice of who she is being held by, what they are doing and just so much more aware. it’s fun to watch it all. I especially love seeing Ty’s parents or mine interact with her. It’s nice seeing someone love her close to how much we do. I really wish I could hire a videographer to just capture her whole life as she grows up and goes through all these changes. I don’t want to miss or forget any of it. instagram will have to do πŸ™‚

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that fur vest.

sleeping Avyn. can’t get enough {just check my phone — too many sleeping pics}

her sideways look with the smile. 1 of my million favorite things about her.

yup she has us wrapped around her chubby little fingers. love her more & more each day.

Cancun Life part dos. Thanksgiving 2012

Tulum was a pretty awesome experience. We had a LDS guide who was very beneficial as we toured the ruins. THEN it was off to the monkey sanctuary. I was nearly in tears when we couldn’t find this place for the life of us because I wanted so badly to play with monkeys (one of my life’s goals/dreams). And I figured this was probably one of few chances this opportunity would arise so THANKFULLY we had Ty turn on his phone to call and get better directions. We arrived and first thing I saw was the woman with an absolutely adorable baby monkey wrapped around her neck. I was SO close to the cute lil guy but we weren’t allowed to play with the baby ones…we had “too many germs”. We were stripped off all possible things the monkeys could snatch from us πŸ™‚ and then the fun began.

We were given snacks to get the monkeys to come to us. Advised that if Luna came for our snacks in our hands that we MUST give it to her. She was a monkey with a tude. Straight up a sassy chunk of a monkey. Took all the food from your hands and went over to her own corner away from everyone to eat it. The rest of the monkeys were fun and playful. Victoria, Mya and Nena were my favorites. I think Nena and I were besties for like 30 minutes. She cuddled up to me and nuzzled me. I was seriously in heaven. Cloud 9 or 10 orΒ 9 ΒΎ. It was so crazy how intelligent and close to human like these creatures were. I loved EVERY moment spent with them. Again I was BEYOND words of gratitude to my in-laws for making this happen.

 

Butt load of pictures to capture this once in a lifetime event πŸ™‚ #happiestgirlever That was me.

Once we left the land of the monkeys, we were going to go to a cenote (natural sink hole). But we wer all starving and since it was really nice out we wanted to get some sun. We went to the local taco shop, El Fogon. Ty and I went there on our honeymoon. It was fun going back. Ty LOVES those places. We went and lounged around at La Haciendas in Playa Del Carmen. Then headed back to the Royal Mayan in Cancun.

The next day was beautiful and was Thanksgiving. Unfortunately, Nolan wasn’t feeling so well. But we all did the same daily events, lay out, volleyball, games, food and play in the ocean. Then we got ready to go to the Marriott for the Thanksgiving buffet (see pictures above) Epic. Meat stations. Crepe station. Salad. Bread. Seafood. Everything. THE only thing it hasn’t got is good desserts. I did miss having pie. I could always go for some pie πŸ™‚ banana cream, chocolate cream, coconut cream, apple pie…okay done sorry. I still loved it immensely. Food comas occurred right after. We had a great family get together after and although we may not say it to one another, I really am grateful for each person in my (relatively) new family. They each bring something great into my life and I am blessed to have them.

Thanks again John & Sue for helping us create great memories that will last forever. We love you!

 

This is my last “November” post. So I am listing the things and people I am grateful for:

-Tyler. There is far too much to write about why I am thankful for him. Married almost 2 years, known each other for almost 4 years and I am happy for each moment I have been given with him.

-My family. Every singe one of them. My mom who I wouldn’t know what to do without. I am thankful for her safety and for her unconditional love for her kids. My dad who is one of the best men I know, he has a heart of gold and I am proud to be his daughter. Sydney, for being such a great wife for my dad and taking on 5 more kids. My lil sis, she has so many great qualities. She is tough but tender (when you catch her in the right moment πŸ˜‰ ) She is fun and intelligent. She is so many things I aspire to be and so many things I see that we have in common. Sisters really are such a joy. ALL three of my brothers. They are great brothers and I love them dearly. Scott is such a thoughtful, loving guy. Sam is a funny, sweetheart. Chris has my dad’s heart of gold and he is someone I could count on to help me out, no matter what. My sister in law, Lindsey, she is such a doll. I learn new things about her each time we are with them, all of them good! My NEW nephew, Nicholas. I am yet to meet him but I am grateful for him already. He is so freakin cute and I have always wanted to be an auntie! All my step siblings, they all have different qualities that are wonderful and although I don’t see them often, I am grateful for family that I can count on if I ever needed.

-Ty’s family. I already voiced this but I do love each of them. Sue is super mom. She is amazing. Plain and simple. John is a caring, wonderful father, who has far more knowledge than I will ever be able to retain. I have spent a lot of time with Ty’s siblings now and feel like they are almost like my own. All of them awesome in their own ways.

-Being born in this time.

-The life I was blessed with. The knowledge I have obtained thus far.

-The gospel and the strength & assurance it brings into my life

-All my extended family.

-Our friends. From Ty’s friends that have become my friends, their wives & girlfriends, as well as my life-time friends like Devin, Aubrey, Amanda, Danielle, Kezie and all the wonderful girls I have made endless bonds with.

Well this list could go on forever. I am learning gratitude makes life much more enjoyable.

Much to be thankful for. Thanksgiving 2012

What did the Chicago Bulls do in ’91 and ’92? What did the Green Bay Packers do in ’66 and ’67?

WELL if you can guess that this trivia question was what eventually enlightened us that we were going to Cancun again for Thanksgiving. YOU would be spot on! Like for real, you are a genius if you figured that one out without me saying anything else.

John kept nudging us trying to get us to say back to back AND finally someone did. AND as soon as whoever said that….I KNEW it. We were going to Cancun again! I was stoked. Cancun is a blast. Who can complain about a vacation right near Christmas with sunshine, warmth, family, fun, sand, laying out, reading, eating, happy hour, beach volleyball, sand castles, tennis, card games and much more? NOT I! I am more grateful than words can say to my in-laws for doing this Β again this year. It really is a wonderful time for all of us.

Here it is. Cancun Thanksgiving 2012 Part 1.

We played a ton of beach volleyball and tennis. Games were played just as frequently. During lunch, by the pool, waiting for others to get ready. I definitely love it but I find by the end of the week my competition tank is empty.

We found these cute little turtles by the pool that we played with and took some pics with πŸ™‚ You would have thought we all have never seen a live turtle. We are funny.

I took many sky/beach/our view shots. I just get so taken back with the beauty Cancun has. We try to stick around for happy hour which is FREE chips & salsa and half off drinks (strawberry coladas!) We also become ravenous when we get that free chips & salsa. It is a sight πŸ™‚ another thing I love about Cancun trips.

One of the nights we decided to go to the outdoor mall again to see the Dolphin show we went to last year. Yep! It was that good! It was my 3rd time and I still loved it. Johnny and Nolan had never seen it so we thought it was a worthwhile show to go see. It always just leaves me wishing I was a dolphin trainer OR that I could have a dolphin as a pet.

Which brings me to my next post…which will be on our day in Tulum and our epic hours spent in the monkey sanctuary πŸ™‚ hours I will never forget!

Ty’s SURPRISE Birthday Party

Well now that it is nearly a month later I will share this event quickly with you before talking about other snippets from our life.

I am NOT very good at keeping surprises. Either I wig out and my mood/actions will ruin the surprise or I just would rather it be fun instead of stressing about it being a perfect surprise so I just tell them. So I was slightly impressed by my ability to make this 25th Birthday Surprise happen! BUT I must thank those who helped make sure it happened smoothly (namely Ty’s friends, Jeff, Matt, Matson, Spencer AND even more so for their wives/girlfriends who helped me, Victoria, Lexi, Erica and my lil sister, Marissa) (AND thanks to Ash & Nolan for detangling those dang balloons)

The plan was Ty’s friends were taking him out for his bday and all the girls were going to a movie. Then we would call him after our “movie” and the boys would be back at Ty’s parents house watching the basketball game. When I went to leave for the “movie”, Ty didn’t ask what movie, what time…nothing! I even had valid answers for if he did. NOPE. Unnecessary with my easy going husband πŸ™‚

I used the balloons from his actual bday for decorations, made some treats & waited for the boys to get done with Tucanos. They were all inside watching the game at the Richard’s. I called Ty and told him we were done with our movie and all the girls wanted a treat and that his mom said there was caramel apples out in the pool houseΒ refrigerator. So I said can you go get those out and let them warm up? He grudgingly said yes (no joke like even sighed). So we all waited in the pool house for like 5 more minutes and finally he headed out to the pool house. He opened the door and we hear “come on Rookie!” (in his Rookie talking voice which was kinda funny) Then he went to turn on the lights and I turned them on (dumb me. Will tell you why later) and everyone yelled SURPRISE!! He nearly jumped out of his skin. He jumped back and held his heart. Almost gave him a heart attack apparently. He had no idea πŸ™‚ Mission accomplished. Thanks all!

We had a fun rest of the night with treats, guessing game (hot tamales & peach o’s), a round or two of couches then the boys wanted to go watch the end of the Jazz game. So they did and the girls played Telestrations.

NOW onto why I am so dumb. Why did I have to turn on the lights you ask? Don’t know. Guess I thought it would be better? Now looking back I should have been back there with everyone else so I could take pictures because….NO ONE did. Nope. My bad for not thinking of asking or doing it myself but literally I took 2 pictures the ENTIRE night. I am dumb. DUMB. Oh well. Can’t change it now. All I can do is blog about it so in 25 more years I can remember my mistakes πŸ™‚

November. Being grateful

This month is such a great month to warm you up for the next season. Christmas. The season of giving, remembering Christ and trying to be more like Him. I really do love Thanksgiving. I love reminding myself to be grateful for the wonderful life I was given.

I was blessed to be born into this gospel. I was blessed to be born in America, to an incredible father and loving mother. I was blessed with trials in my family and my life, to strengthen me to be the woman I am today. I was blessed with a healthy body and knowledge of the importance and purpose of my existence on this Earth.

I was blog hopping (yes that would be blog stalking in some people’s books. nbd. I am not a creep) and I came across this girl’s blog and she intrigued me. I kept reading and reading. First off she lives the life I always wanted to live. (Thou shalt not covet. I know. It is not coveting, quite yet) She lives in NYC with her husband and two kids. They are adorable. All of them. I was so intrigued I kept reading from the early days of her blogging. I came across some really amazing things. One that touched me the most was this article on eternal marriage by Richard G. Scott. I won’t deny it. I cried. First, when elderly men speak about the love between them and their wife, it is the most tender, heart touching thing I can come across- Next to new born babies of course. ( πŸ™‚ ) Second, his words are undeniably the sweetest, most sincere words of love for his late wife and that kind of love is why I am writing this post. I feel like that is the love we all work for. Readin this post made me grasp onto a few things I could definitely work on. The one thing I love about reading words of such wise men, is that no matter who reads the articles, they will get something beneficial from it. Each person needs to hear something different for whatever trial/decision/opportunity, they are facing at that time. I know what I got out of this article. I hope it benefits anyone else who reads this. Enjoy πŸ™‚ I know I did.

 

Happy November! Turkey day in 11 days πŸ™‚

Here are some photos of life lately.

P.S. I will blog about Ty’s SURPRISE 25th Birthday party later. I didn’t get pics so I am kinda upset about it. Sore subject.

Our Weekend

I am starting this month off with a grateful post:

  • Tyler. I can always count on him for a smile no matter the time or place. He is so hardworking and dedicated. He is very talented and keeps me feeling silly & young πŸ™‚
  • Amazing family, both Tyler and mine.
  • Incredible friends who we love being able to have fun and laugh with.
  • Healthy and {mostly} functional body
  • To be capable of working and for Tyler getting an education
  • All our awesome opportunities and talents we are given
  • The gospel and Jesus Christ’s example of selfless & unconditional love & sacrifice.
  • My future

{Pics from the UVEF Event honoring the Osmonds (George & Olive Osmond). Sushi with friends. Provo Beach Resort surf, bowl & games with Jeff & Victoria. Ty and I being us.}