Miles turns uno!!!

Yes, it's true, we officially have a toddler in our home. All throughout yesterday, I just kept running through the events of exactly a year ago. "Okay, a year ago right now, my water broke." "Exactly a year ago, this instant, we were in the hospital" etc etc. I still can't quite get over how fast time seems to go. I always go check on Miles before I go to bed, but it was a tender moment to check on him last night and realize that almost a year ago exactly, I saw him for the first time!

We had some friends over to help celebrate (thank you for coming over) and had a really low key celebration. I made a lion cake because it was the first animal he recognized and could say the sound for. After I got finished with it, I wished I would have had a picture to look at or something, cause it didn't turn out like I wanted. But, truthfully, Miles could have cared less! He still didn't quite get the opening of presents, and really didn't get blowing out the candle, but he LOVED eating the cake and ice cream. He cried every time we took it away or someone else finished their helping. He is his mother's son.

A bit of this and a bit of that

Our Mac is officially fixed! It cost a pretty penny, but we're glad to have it back. We're still waiting on the lap top, but until then, I thought our blogging public was due for an update.

We went ice skating for FHE one Monday and had a blast! Richie got Miles so bundled up that he couldn't put his arms down. Randy from the "Christmas Story" anybody? Once he was all bundled, he fell down and couldn't even turn himself over. We laughed pretty hard. We went to the rink on campus and just brought the stroller and pushed him around in it. He did really well.



As some of you know, we've tried our fair share of money making ventures the past 6 months, and none of them have panned out quite like we expected. We kept feeling the pressure build, and in an answer to prayers, I got my old job back waiting tables at "Da Pineapple Grill", where I worked for the first year Richie and I were married. I only work a few nights a week and make pretty good money. So far, so good.

Miles and I get a little antsy being inside all day, and getting out to run errands just doesn't cut it anymore. So, I bundled him up the other day and we went out and 'played' in the snow. He face planted a few times, but was still a good sport. Miles is at the age where he doesn't just want to play with his toys all the time, but there's only so many activities that he understands and likes. So we build a lot of forts and blow lots of bubbles. Any suggestions for inside activities for a 1 year old?


Yikes, can you believe it?? A one year old!? On Saturday! He's a champ at walking these days and can get anywhere he wants. He still says "uh-oh" and "day do" (thank you) sometimes and "rahr" when he sees a lion. But recently he's mastered pointing, picking out dogs and saying "da", signing "all done", "more", "shoes", and "brush teeth". (Of which I think he's getting a bunch. Teeth, that is. He's extra cranky these days) Unfortunately, he's also learned to hit and throw tantrums where he grunts and tries to gag himself. ??? Where does this come from? But on the plus side, he's also learning to give soft kisses, and when you ask for one, he'll usually give you a bunch!

Busted Computer...s

Just wanted to let all the avid readers of our blog know that our computer is having some issues right now, so any truly interesting posts complete with pictures will be postponed until said computer is working correctly. In the meantime, I'll be posting boring stuff from the office computer here at the storage units. "Why not use your lap-top?" You may ask. I'll tell you why. It's broken too! It seems like when it rains, it pours. I just wish it would pour $100 bills instead of broken computers and broken cars.

As long as I'm here, I might as well pose a question that I've been giving a great deal of thought to lately, and I'd like to get some feedback from other people. The proposal is:

Home School? or Public School?

I was going to write my thoughts about it here, but I think I'll hold back so that I have the least amount of influence on your opinion. I know that we are at least 4 years away from school for Miles and other kids, but I'd like to have a plan in place. I would really love to get everyone's honest opinion. I think it will help me a great deal make this very important decision.

New Primary Class

The past year, Richie and I have been teaching the 12 year olds in our primary class. Everyone said what a handful they were and how it was going to be challenging. After the first week, Richie and I didn't see what the big deal was. They're 12, they like to talk and be social. That's how it is. Over the course of the year, Richie and I developed systems etc that helped reduce the natural symptoms of such an age and we loved teaching them! I think they mostly loved Miles, but it was hard to say goodbye.

They called us to a new age group. The 4 year olds!! There are only 3 (compared to our last class size of 8), but one child is particularity high strung because of a disorder her has. Everyone said what a handful they are and what a challenge it was going to be. After our first week, Richie and I don't see what the big deal is. They are 4, the wiggle, they don't understand some rules, and they get off subject. That's how it is.

Although it was different from our last class, it was fun to see how quickly I could change modes and get into "little kid" mode. I was immediately back in a student teaching mind-set, and thankfully, felt comfortable there. I'm so glad Richie's there with me and humors me when I tell the kids to "get your bubbles in your mouth" to go into the hall, (So they don't talk), among other silly things.

We decided we're going to have to start keeping a journal of all the silly things they say. At one point, this one little boy who struggles keeping still talked out while I was talking. I told him that from now on, we're all going to try and practice raising our hands before we talk. I started my sentence again, and he immediately interrupted me again with the same thing he was saying before...but his hand was raised. How do you get mad at that?

Holiday in Review

No matter how long of a break you get to be with your family, it never seems like long enough! Although it was nice to get back to our apartment and start getting into our routine again. We had about 10 days off and in that time we went to St. George for Christmas and Bluffdale for New Years. Such a great time. Rather than writing a whole lot about it, here's a bunch of pictures. They're worth a thousand words, right? Just so you know, not all of the captions line up with the correct picture. I trust you can figure it out.

Miles sharing with Great Grandma Crosby


Lining up youngest to oldest! Tradition!


Christmas morning! How many chins can you count on Miles?


Lunch with some old GBP members!


Miles' first sledding excursion!




Lunch with the old exec sisters!


Oh Tai Pan, how I love thee! I can't believe I'd never been to this store before!! I was in love only 10 steps in. My mom and I made this wreath! All Christmas decor was way cheap and I found the wreath at DI for one dollar!! Wahoo! I love bargains!


k...picture loading is malfunctioning right now... I'll add more pics later

Hallelujah!

What a funny looking word! "Hallelujah!" Maybe it's just cause I looked at it too long. This post is dedicated to the 8th wonder of the world: Miles' completed stocking, as of 1:35 AM last night.

Richie's siblings all have this style of stocking, and even made me one last year. Let me tell you, you may 'ooh' and 'aahh' over it, maybe call me and praise me with tears of admiration, but you will never understand what a pain in the neck these stockings are until you make one. Every stitch, every sequin, every tiny little piece....hand done. And while you may think this particular stocking is the greatest thing you've ever seen, just wait until you see the one Richie's mom made for him and the one his sister made for me. Holy Hannah!


I kept pushing myself to finish it last night saying "I'm so close!" and then an hour later, "I'm even closer now!!". Good thing I finished just as I was delusional enough to begin sewing the top of the stocking closed.

I also thought I'd post a few pictures of Christmas around our house this year since I will be taking all these down within a couple of weeks.




Here's our tree. Weirdest thing happened. Much to Miles' chagrin, after we got all done decorating it, it grew about a foot and a half!


Remember the "Thankful 4" tree? Maybe you didn't recognize it after it's incredible transformation by Clinton and Stacy. It's our Christmas card tree now and I think I like it even more this way than with the leaves.



I can't believe Christmas is this week. Time has been flying unusually fast the past couple of days and it's driving me nuts! I try so hard to plan in advance so that I don't feel stressed at Christmas time and I can just enjoy the spirit of the season. I have yet to experience such a result.

I'm not one of those girls...

I'm not one of those girls who walks out of the hospital after giving birth in her regular jeans. In fact, I barely walked out in my sweats. "Who cares", I thought, "if I gained some extra weight. It will all melt off magically once I start nursing, right?" *Cricket chirps* "RIGHT? Please someone tell me it will come off and I can fit into my regular clothes again???" Sadly, this was not the case. True, a lot of it did come off in a few months due to water weight and yes, nursing. But there were those pesky inches that kept me in my maternity clothes and buying bigger sizes than ever. I know a lot of ladies lose the weight in a matter of a few months. Like I said...I'm not one of those girls.

But I'm happy to report that about a bazillion salads and countless stairs climbed, I am at pre-pregnancy weight and pre-pregnancy clothes. I'm not going to kid myself and say I'm not bragging or being proud, cause gosh-dangit, I am! And I expect all the comments on this post to be flowery words of congratulations and much praise. I'd like to thank the academy, South Beach Diet, Richie, for doing much of the diet with me and watching Miles while I went to the gym, and loving me at post and pre pregnancy weight, The Biggest Loser, for getting me pumped up to go to the gym and all the little people. I won't forget you. And remember, if I can do it, anyone can do it.

BUT...(Of course there is a but, albeit a somewhat smaller butt) my lovely, large, bigger-than-average head son caused my ribs and my hips to spread out significantly. Therefore, I am still on my quest to keep losing weight. I would LOVE to hear how you guys have lost your weight. (Pregnancy related or not) to keep me motivated and give me some fresh perspective and ideas.
Happy Gym-ing!

Heeeere's Santa!

Miles met Santa at our ward party last night.
This isn't so bad....

Wait...who is the guy with the fuzz holding me?

Dad!!!! Help!

Gingerbread Ornaments

We had some people from our ward over on Monday for FHE and we made Gingerbread Ornaments! They are easy to make and make your tree smell delicious. We forgot to take pictures of our friends when they were here, so I guess you get these amazing and way flattering pictures of Richie and I. Here's the recipe for the ornaments if you're interested:

10T applesauce
4 oz cinnamon
about 1 t elmers glue

Mix it to the consistency of Play-dough and roll it out like Sugar Cookies to about 1/4-1/8 inch thick. Dust the surface and rolling pin with cinnamon, not flour. Cut out whatever shapes you want and put a piece of paper clip where you'll want to hang your ornament from. Bake at 200 for about 20 minutes, sometimes longer. Then you can decorate them with puff paint or whatever you can think of, and loop some yarn through them! Ta-Da! So easy.




Life is pretty normal up here. Miles is learning to walk and both of his front teeth have broken through. He's starting to climb on things now! yikes. He's also found the toilet flusher and toilet paper to be lots of fun. I babysit this cute little girl a few hours a week and to keep us busy, we like to build forts out in the office area with all the uhaul boxes. What would I do without all those resources? It's pretty fun.

Good Tidings of Great Joy

The other night, we made some "gingerbread houses" with our friends the Christensens. The girls definitely had more fun with it than the boys, but I guess that's expected right? Can't you just see their excitement?? We had 1 cottage, 1 government housing complex and 1 stunningly accurate replica of Stonehenge, lovingly re-named grahamhenge. Who says you have to make a house? :)


I also thought I'd post a Christmas video here to get in the spirit. I haven't posted a "Mormon Message" in a while, so I figure this is overdue. This version of "Silent Night" is one of my all-time favorites. The spirit seems to be present immediately when they sing. Being a parent, even for a short amount of time, has taught and re-taught me some very important lessons, and one of those is a fresh perspective on Christmas and Heavenly Father's role in that sacred night. I'm so grateful for the 'good tidings of great joy' for which we celebrate this season.

This Thanksgiving we.......

Went to the Garners in Bluffdale


Ran a 5k to raise money for the food bank on Thanksgiving morning


Played the piano, fed the neighbors animals and Miles fell on his face, and passed around the flu, because families share. :) Hope everyone eventually feels better!


Richie played frisbee golf to his heart's content and I started a new craft project of Miles' stocking.


My favorite part about this Thanksgiving was that I've been a part of Richie's family for enough time now that even smells in their house bring back memories! I know that probably sounds weird to some people, but it is what it is.