The Nutcracker

It was so much fun to have Lydia with me to enjoy the tradition of the Nutcrakcer. She did really well for the first half but pretty much lost interest for the second half (I thought the DC during the intermission would do the trick-no luck) It's been a long time since I've been, so it was fun for me too. It was nice to have so many of us there together too. Thanks mom, for the idea!

Christmas was Merry

We had a really nice Christmas this year. I'll admit-we didn't do as much done as we (I) would have liked, but it was very relaxing and we managed to make some good memories (and lots of sugar cookies)!

We had mom's party Christmas Eve. It never dissapoints. The food was great, the gifts were plenty and Amy and I even threw together a quick devotional which turned out to be a success. Mom spoiled all of us to death as usual and got me some super cute boots and leggings and the coolest cookbook called Mad Hungry...can't wait to cook my way through that one!

Christmas morning was awesome! Watching Lydia's surprised look upon seeing her gifts from Santa was absolutely priceless (maybe I'll post the video later- when I'm feeling less lazy). As for us big kids, I managed to get Gary exactly what he wanted which may have been a first in our 6.5 year marriage! He got me the cutest Patagonia coat (look for it in future posts) and a netbook so I can work in bed next to him as opposed to out in my office into the wee hours (nice!) I hope Christmas was as good to you as it was to me!

Birthday Boy!

Happy Birthday to the best daddy in the world! We were so excited to start the day off with bacon and eggs and presents to open. We love the daddy and we're so thankful for him and all that he does for us. As Lydia would say, "my daddy is a fixer cuz he can fix ebything." She's right! Gary holds all the talent in the family when it comes to anything requiring the hand and eye to work as one. We love him for this and so much more! Happy 34th Gar!

My Little Princess...

Today Lydia insisted on wearing her favorite dress (tights, church shoes, and petty coat included) to school. All of her friends were dressed in snow boots and jeans, but she never second guessed her decision. I guess this ranks right up there with last week when she chose to wear her Little Mermaid costume (over her clothes)to the mall. She was the main attraction in the Nordstrom shoe department as she danced around while my mom and I tried on and deliberated over shoe purchases for over an hour. Oh how I love this girl! I hope she never loses her independent little spirit!

I never seem to have a good block of time to write anything thoughtful on here(sometimes I don't even have time to spell check it)Nonetheless, I like to make sure I take time to record my thoughts so I at least have a little bit of a journal to share with my girls...

Today I've been thinking how good my girls are. I can't get enough of them. Lydia is so much fun right now. We just got back from a fun trip to Winnemucca and it made me realize how much she's grown since last time we were there. She used to be A LOT of work to take on road trips. This time she jabbered the whole way home and kept us entertained the entire time.

We had such a fun time in Winnemucca. Lydia loved seeing all her cousins, aunts and grandparents. I failed to get pictures. But the Cannon girls and Gramma Janice put on a beautiful wedding for Brad and Clarissa and Steph did a super cute Sesame Street birthday party in true Cannon fashion with home-made EVERYTHING! Gary got some hunting in and had some success with that. I ate all weekend and probably gained five ponds. We got to see aunt Jen's adorable new house. Which is actually an old house full of charm and character. Paula was kind enough to host us and made us feel right at home.

Now it's back to the grind stone...Gary and I have both had a little bit of a hard time adjusting back after so many fun-filled days with family. Being in the midst of the holiday season has definitely helped ease the pain.

November in Review...

November has come and gone like the wind this year! I can't believe it's almost over. My work has been uncharacteristically busy for this time of year (which I am definitely not complaining about!) Gary has been busy with work too and life has been crazy as we've juggled this with taking care of our two loves.

Sadie is getting so big and continues to be a sweet, happy, healthy baby. Though she did start the family off with colds. Lydi and I followed. Gary has escaped it so far (as usual).

We were able to bless Sadie on the 14th and many of The Cannons came to town for the occasion. We, of course, got some shopping in while they were here. It was a nice weekend. Gary gave a beautiful blessing.




Last week I was able to have a GNO with my USU buddies. We always have a fun time catching up and enjoying our favorite..TRIO. Later that week my mom and sister and I saw The Color Purple at The Capitol Theater. I love The Capitol Theater and I especially love Broadway musicals. It was an excellent performance.

Thanksgiving was...interesting. But it is always a great time for me to reflect on everything I have to be grateful for. I'm overwhelmed at the blessings that surround me.

Gary and I did some Christmas shopping tonight and had some success getting ready for the big day. I look forward to being done with the shopping part of this holiday very soon.

When Daddy's Away...

Gary has been on another hunting trip this weekend and we've been doing what we can to pass the time around here...here are a few iphone images I thought I'd share...
Nerds for breakfast (not really, but she likes to eat them with a spoon!), Lydia's self portrait of her doing yard work (is it just me or is that REALLY good for 3 years old!?!?) and Lydi and Mitch enjoying dinenr at Tio's

Baby's First Halloween

we were so excited for Halloween this year. It was the first year Lydia has been really excited and aware of it! She had so much fun. After many, many costume ideas she settled on a butterfly. I found a cute wand and halo to go with the outfit and thought she could be a fairy. But she wanted no part of the halo or wand...just a skirt and wings. She looked so cute. Thanks to aunt Jen for the perfect skirt!

She had her class party on Friday. we got to go see her, but she wouldn't do any of the singing or dancing the other kids were doing. A little shy of the stage...just like me and her dad.

Saturday was the annual Halloween party at my mom's house. Mom went all out as usual. It is always so fun! Of course the rain put a damper on trick-or-treating, but for a bunch of spoiled kids who get candy whenever they want anyway, that was no big dal :) Lydi's favorite part was when everyone left and she had her Grammy all to herself. She was in heaven when she got to sleep over and watch a movie, just her and Grammy.

Saide girl was as sweet as could be. She looked so cute in the outfit Lydia wore three years ago.

Lydia 2 months

Sadie 2 months with GG

Just Average

Our little Sadie girl is TWO MONTHS already! She had her well check this week and did really great with her shots. Lydia and I were bracing for the worst but she hardly whimpered. She was a little fussy over the weekend, but not too bad. SHE is so AVERAGE (on the growth chart that is). Here are her stats:

Weight: 11.35 lbs 61%
Height: 22.44 in 49%
Head: 15.4 in 59% (I had to double check this one...I think Lydi was bout 159 percentile. Sadie has lucked out...I wanted to go buy her a hat to clebrate. She'll have to wear a few for me and her sister)




So there you have it. Average on the charts and anything but in our book. We are loving this little piece of heaven more and more by the minute. She is starting to grin and has the cutest little dimples. She is just as sweet and as healthy as can be. What more could one ask for, really!

LoVeLY LittLE GIrLS...

I'm feeling so blessed today thinking about my two sweet little ones. I just love them to pieces. Sadie is such a good baby. I hesitate to type this...but she has been a good little sleeper lately. She is a wonderful blessing in our home. Lydia just can't seem to get enough of her. The thought of the two of them sharing life's journey makes me so happy. I am so lucky to have a wonderful sister of my own and I'm so glad to know that they'll have each other.
We are back to life as usual trying to juggle two full time jobs and now two kids. I looked at Gary last night and said "how is that we have two jobs, two kids and no baby sitters or day-care?!?" His reply: "We're livin' the dream." Sometimes it feels more like a nightmare, but maybe he's right- we are pretty lucky!
These thoughts, of course, come on a quiet Sunday night. We'll see how I feel tomorrow morning...:)

Birthday Bliss...

It's been an action-packed weekend for our family. We've had lots of fun with Jen and Steph in town for Lydia's party! The party was a success thanks to the help of my mom and sister who are pretty much always picking up my slack. Once again, I couldn't have done it without them!

We went from one birthday party to another...After devoting their Friday and Saturday to my cause, my mom and sister spent Sunday preparing a birthday dinner for me. It was so nice. I have felt so blessed to have such great friends and family around me all weekend. Thanks to everyone for all the birhtday wishes and gifts. Gary surprised me with breakfast and a gift certificate to Nordstrom. I can't wait to re-vamp my wardrobe once I shed the baby belly :) What more motivation does a girl need!

Turk is THREE!

Lydia had her 3rd birthday on the 31st. We celebrated with a special breakfast of our favorite pancakes and none other than McDonalds for lunch. Grandma paid a visit in the evening and we went out to get supplies for the big cousins party which will take place tomorrow.

I can't believe my baby girl is already three. Next week marks the start of pre-school and dance lessons for her too. She's growing up so fast! Lydia has always been a little ray of sunshine in our house. We seem to fall mor and more in love with her every day! Recently we have seen a big increase in her vocabulary and her curiosity. It's been fun to listen to her put words together and interesting trying to answer all of her curious questions (especially with the new baby and all that that entails?!?!)She has also been big on dancing and performing for us lately. We are getting a kick out of her shows and her signature bow(sp?).

We love you Turk! Happy 3rd Birthday!

She's Here and We Love Her!

Sadie is here and we are home and adjusting to being a little family of four.

I had a quick labor and delivery which was surprising (and nice). We checked into the hospital at 5am on Thursday and had Sadie here at 10:30am. What a relief to get her here and know that she's healthy. She's been a little angel from day one. We've Had a big "support staff" as we've tried to adjust to having two little ones. Lydia has been sweet and seems to be adjusting well.

while we wait...

We've been trying to stay busy waiting for our newest addition, and we've been having fun (for the most part) doing it...

-We took a little camping trip with the Gouldings and Darren and Caitlin. It was really nice to get away! We didn't have much luck fishing, but we were in excellent company and had lots of fun!
-We are in nesting mode to the tenth degree (make that one of us!) I may or may not have started a little re-model which was sparked by a dishwasher leak...what's a girl to do?!?!
-Lydi got a new bedroom and has been a very big girl sleeping all night in her big girl bed.
-Last but not least, Gary, in an attempt to get some of the hunting fever out of his system, took a trip to Northern Nevada and successfully slayed an antelope archery style. Apparently it's a pretty big deal and may even make it's way into a magazine or two. The boy has some mean bow and arrow skills :)

PICTURES...


-The Kill

-The worst part...days in 90 degree temps trying to dry out our floors (re-model pics to come...)

-Cute Sundie and the cute campers

-The summer blonde...Love it!

-Loving her new bed..yes that's a bottle, yes she's almost three, yes this is my attempt to help the rest of you you feel better about yourselves and your parenting skills :)

Baby Update...

Well, this baby is now overdue. She works on her own time like me, I guess! No surprise really! Pray for labor, but for now we are scheduled for the 19th if nothing happens before then. We'll keep ya'll posted.

Summer Fun...

We've been doing everything we can to make the most of this summer! Since our newest addition joins us in August we're trying to cram it all in up front. Lydia is at such a fun age and we are loving every last minute we have with her til we have to share our minutes with the new sissy (I'm so scared and nervous for that, I can't even tell you!?!?)

Some of the fun things we've been able to do so far include; a short camping trip on which Ava and Mitchel accompanied us. We fit a lot of adventure into the overnight trip. We saw 2 momma moose and their babies and we caught about ten fish. We had a little two point buck that hung out in our camp and even slept there. We also had some good cooking, but there is definitely room for improvement in that department.
Next we had a much anticipated visit from Aunt Jen, Aunt Nancy and Cousin Emily. We fit some fun into the week with them that included lots of yummy food, shopping, swimming, game playing, rodeo going, and relaxing. Lydia has been missing her "friends" ever since they left on Sunday. They really spoiled her with attention and gifts. Aside from that we've been doing a lot of swimming to stay cool. Lydia also started swimming lessons with cousin Mitch and is really loving it. She's a fearless little fish!

The fun in photos...