projects

Okay, so I have a lot to post today. First here's a couple of projects I've been working on.

Food Storage!! We decided to use some savings and buy our year's supply of the basic basics. It would have taken me 8 shifts at the cannery to can it all, and I wouldn't be able to get in for a shift for weeks, so we decided to just buy in bulk and do buckets. Here are our first ones!
I made me and Whitney's stockings!! to match the ones I made previously for Katelyn and Eric. Yes it should say Mom and Dad, but I didn't think of that until I had already made Eric's. :)

And Mary gave me the idea for this cute Halloween decoration- pictures of Kate's previous costumes! I can add to it every year with new pictures/frames. Awesome and easy.

Next up are my "candy" Christmas lights and the quiet book I've been "working on" for over a year now, we'll see if I finish it in time for Christmas...

pumpkins

Katelyn designed our pumpkin this year! She drew this face on him, we love the big eyebrow and the 6 little eyes. Sorry it's not the greatest picture!

But then classic Katelyn, she wanted nothing to do with pulling out the goop or carving. This was not staged, this was her actual reaction- pulling her hands away and shaking her head.

Whitney wanted to help carve though. :)

tradition

Whitney finally decided she wanted to do this, and now she LOVES it and just smiles so big every time. Well, lets face it, she smiles really big about everything.
My dad always did this with us kids, I'm trying to find a picture of me doing it when I was like 10. or at least 8. And Eric did it with Katelyn, although now she refuses, too scary. Anyway, it's a fun trick.

PJ's

Kate and Whitney have been playing together more, and obviously for a mom it's THE cutest thing in the world, I just love it. I really need to get a video of them laughing together! Anyway the other night we busted out the warm pajamas and Katelyn said they were "all cuddy" [cuddly] and they sat together for a while. So cute.

Then Monday I went through the next size up box of clothes and found tons of stuff that fits Whitney, including these pajamas:for some reason Eric and I LOVED these pajamas with Katelyn, and it was SO CUTE to see them again on Whitney! Have any other parents had this experience??

Plus we think Whitney's looking more and more like Katelyn. Or maybe she's just following the same pattern of the lightening hair. Whitney has a much chubbier body than Katelyn ever had though!! Here's a picture of Katie with Allison and Kent in the same pajamas, see for yourself.

And our happy little Whitney!!

October 15th

Today is a special day for Eric and I, and our whole group of friends from our awesome freshman year at BYU. Today we celebrate the 8th anniversary of the Window Well!! 8 years ago tonight, Kristi, Brenna and I sat in the window well of Jon and Matt's room in Heritage Halls after midnight when we had to be out of the building. Then we thought it would be funny to drag over some blankets and pillows and say we were going to sleep there so we could see all the funny things the boys usually did after we left. And we ended up actually sleeping there... thus cementing our friendship forever :) Here's a picture of us re-enacting that night one month later.


So this post is dedicated to memories of freshman year. Here's one of the first fun things Brenna and I did with some boys from Penrose 80, and several other friends in our ward. Oh and Deanne!
Here's a shout-out to my freshman roommates! They were wonderful, I was so lucky. This is Natasha, me, Brenna, Emily, Elizabeth, and Christina.


So the boys lived in the basement of Penrose Hall, which provided many opportunities for fun, such as:
shopping cart rides
around the world ping pong!! and also bike rides, soccer games, locking people in storage cages, climbing the fireplace... oh and they had a second bathroom with free toilet paper!
One of my favorite memories of those boys was their act in the talent show, and I can only imagine how much fun they had preparing it late at night! A picture can never do it justice, but here Eric's drinking water, Matt is doing interpretive dance, Jon is telling an embarassing story from his childhood, and Ben, Taylor and BJ are providing appropriate background music. You'll have to imagine the rest! Sorry your face is cut off Ben.

This was our Christmas celebration, before Robbie left on his mission and Benjamin (BJ) joined the apartment. We girls got the boys a bunch of random dollar store gifts, and hung stockings for them out on the fireplace.

This was the best, mud soccer in the rain!! Remember this picture, with Eric's magic super long arms??


I had to put this one in, it's my only picture of Jenn! We didn't hang out much freshman year, too bad! I remember when I found out that Ben had a girlfriend and I was like "really??" :) It was a Valentines Day dinner, and Jon came home in the middle and we played interpretive countries to find out where he was going on his mission!

Mainly my freshman year was full of a lot of random fun such as doing trust falls off the telephone booth outside Carroll Hall.
And if I was ever bored or tired of studying (right, like I really studied much that year, although I thought I did!) I could always come over and find the boys doing something crazy and fun, such as:

123 Pass? Was that the name of this game?

playing with duckbar, kitchenastics, etc.
I enjoyed my friendship with each of the Penrose 80 boys, and obviously had crushes on several of them at one time or another, but fortunately for me Eric was in that apartment, and it didn't take long before he emerged victorious in the quest for Rebecca. Just kidding. We did end up dating though, cute.
The greatest thing I gained freshman year, besides Eric, was the friendship of these two girls, Kristi and Brenna. What great friends they were to me and still are!!

This picture was taken the morning we all moved out :( at the end of the year.
The boys went on missions and Brenna and Kristi and I continued to get together and celebrate October 15th anniversaries. And play Ultimate Husband. :) Kristi and I were roommates for the next 2 years and Brenna and I again our senior year. So much fun! Now we've all gotten our bachelor's degrees from BYU and moved on.
I had a ton of fun my other years for college, but there was nothing quite like freshman year. Maybe it was because my classes weren't THAT hard and I wasn't working yet. Maybe it was thanks to my roommates and all the awesome fun people in Carroll Hall and in our ward. But mostly it was because of these hilarious boys and Kristi and Brenna. Thanks for the good times! Happy October 15th!!!

My Sisters

I've been wanting to do this post ever since my friend Kristie Gardner did a post about her sister. I love my sisters, and I was spoiled to live in Provo with two of them for 3 years 04-07. It's now been a year and a half since they left me and I really miss them!! Also I've always missed my two little sisters who are still at home, ever since I left 8 years ago. Here's a random picture of the 5 of us two years ago when Katelyn was born.

and here's the Provo-ites before we went our separate ways.
So now I'm going to introduce you to each of them.

1. Allison. She's 24, married to Kent, mother of my only niece Natalie. She and her husband graduated from BYU and now live back east, at least for a while. She is one of the most full-of-ideas, enthusiastic, upbeat people ever. She's so kind and compassionate, ALWAYS helping someone, always ready to give and serve. She's all about DOING things and learning and FUN.
Top 5 things I would love to do with her:
- TALK. I love to talk to her because she thinks more deeply than I do most of the time, and she's always making me think about things differently. Also she's hilarious, so talking with her is always a good time.
- RUN. We both love running, and one of my favorite memories of her is when we ran the Top of Utah Marathon in Logan and it was like 4:30 am and we were checking in for the race and we were laughing hysterically about something, I don't know what. I guess that leads to the next one:
- LAUGH. she has an awesome, infectious laugh.
- I would love to go to a play that she was ACTING in, DIRECTING, or DRAMATURGING. She's great at all of those things, and I've loved attending her events.
-SING- we grew up singing together, and with our whole family. We may not have the strongest voices, but we blend well and it has become a bonding experience for me and my family.
Okay and one more, I love to PLAY with our kids together. I wish we lived close and could have a playgroup.

2. Katrina She's 22 and on a MISSION in Moscow Russia!!! I just love this girl. She had a really tough year before she left on her mission and I couldn't be prouder of how she handled herself. She is one AMAZING missionary, it has been wonderful for me to feel of her strong spirit and testimony and love for people through her letters. She is HILARIOUS, a little rebellious and crazy, and a little blunt sometimes, but usually people just love her for it. She's very hardworking, but she also loves to SLEEP maybe more than anyone else I know!
Top 5 things I would like to do with her:
-TALK and LAUGH, she really is one of the funniest people I know and I really miss talking to her! She's also very complimentary and always makes me feel good about myself.
-SING, once again the family bonding thing. She has a really cool voice too.
- do something CRAZY
- go on MISSIONARY splits with her! I'd love to see her in action.

3. Melissa. She's 14 and a high school freshman! She was my cute little sister, and now she's a gorgeous, fashionable, water-polo-playing, way-cooler-than-I-ever-dreamed-of-being-in-high-school girl! I've enjoyed becoming her friend, not just a big sister, the last couple of years. She is so sweet to my Katelyn and Whitney, and all kids, a pro babysitter! She gets along well with many different kinds of people, is always up for a good time, and she is WAY creative. I've also been impressed with her strong testimony and willingness to share it.
Top 5 things I would like to do with her:
- TALK, LAUGH, and SING, same! She is really fun to talk to, always has a good story to tell. I love her laugh, and I need to sing with her more because she has gotten really good at it lately. She may end up being to best singer out of all of us!
- GO SHOPPING. Seroiusly this girl has great fashion sense. I need some tips, and I usually hate shopping, but I'm sure she could help me out.
- Do some kind of ART project. I have a hidden love of arts and crafts in me, and it would be fun I think to go out with some easels and paint something with her! Or make a pot or something, I don't know, it just sounds fun.
- Watch a CHICK FLICK.
- Watch her play water polo! I need to see that eggbeater in action!

4.Jenae! She's 11 and she still IS my cute little sister. Well, not so little, she really has grown up in the last couple of years. I just love her for the sweet buddy she's always been to me. Jenae is very loving and thoughtful. It seems to me that she's always had a lot of faith and been close to spiritual things. She is optimistic and fun and like a lot of youngest children I think, she loves traditions and having everyone together. I am excited to see more of her talents and personality as she keeps growing up so fast!
Top 5 things I would like to do with her:
- RUN- she's a running girl after my own heart, she's loved it as long as I can remember!
- PLAY with my kids- she's closer in age to my girls than to me, and Katelyn quickly recognizes her as a fellow young person whenever we're around my family. They will continue to have lots of fun in the years ahead I'm sure!
- TALK- she's good at asking questions about my life and how the girls are doing, it's cute.
- LAUGH and SING too, those really are the best!
- WATCH Michael Phelps swim, she's a fan :)

Okay that took forever, no time to put more pics in, but I love you my sisters! As that saying goes, A Sister is a Friend Forever!!!

Kate quotes

Eric: Let's take you over to the stove, I mean the sink, and wash you off.
Kate: No Dad, you're not gonna cook me!

(watching a nature show about baby tigers and they went to play in a river)
Kate: Look, they're going swimming! But they forgot their swimming diapers!

"Look Mom, there's your red deodorant, you can put it in your shoulder!"

(when she wanted to go with me somewhere)
"no mom, you don't want to go by yourself, that's not a good idea!"

"I'm talking Whitney's head off!"

(I promise she really does say most things with exclamation points!)

(totally randomly at dinner)
"did you know, Mom? Heavenly Father made grass?

(During Whitney's first time eating rice cereal)
Me: Katelyn, what's Whitney doing??
Kate: she's spitting out that ice cream.

And lastly, she has this habit of repeating herself over and over again with no break until you respond. It can be a little irritating, but as long as you're in the same room with her it's not a problem- you can answer her before she repeats herself more than about 3 times. But the other day I was upstairs and she was down in the toy room and I could hear her saying "where's that coming from? where's that coming from? where's that coming from?" I couldn't go immediately to her, so I started counting as I heard her coming up the stairs to me, and she said it 13 times before I could talk to her and try to provide an answer. (she heard some overalls clinking in the dryer) Later we had another problem with "where did you put it? where did you put it?" it only took 9 times before I found the missing object and called down to her. I'm going to keep counting, it's hilarious.

general conference

Just wanted to mention that General Conference was wonderful. I think I actually liked Saturday better than Sunday though! One thing that really hit me was when President Monson said that if we Pray in Faith, the nations now closed to the gospel will be opened just like when President Benson told the Saints to pray and the communist nations would be opened. To me it was a powerful prophetic promise.

There were many talks that I needed to hear, but probably my favorite was Elder Bednar's about prayer. I was REALLY impressed with the idea "Morning prayer is the spiritual creation of the day, before the actual physical accomplishment of it" and he really made me think about couselling with the Lord in ALL my doings-- many times I have thought through the events of my upcoming day and decided there wasn't much worth praying about. I still prayed, but it was been very exciting for me to realize that I can and should counsel more with the Lord in things that seem routine- you never know what kind fo help you can get until you ask for it! I've had a great week this week.

MacKay Visit

My sister's husband Kent had to come to BYU for a recruiting trip last week, and so Allison and Natalie came along, hallelujah! It was SO FUN to hang out with them for a few days. Allison and I took the girls for a run in Provo:

We had an awesome BYU game BBQ on Friday and my cousin Kendra and her family came, but I didn't take any pictures :(
Then we watched lots of General Conference and ate lots of snacks!
Katelyn built this beautiful "temple" out of MegaBlocks. I asked her which one it was and she said " the one Uncls Kurtis is getting married in." I asked her who he was going to marry and she said "AOP" I said " those letters will be in her name?" and she said "no, ALL the letters of the alphabet!!" Good luck finding that girl Kurtis! She did say that the girl would also have a pretty dress, it was funny.
Monday Allison and I took the girls up the canyon for a picnic lunch, and they were really excited about the river.
I was sad I didn't get any pictures of Kent, but my girls had fun with him too. And Natalie was SO cute, she's almost walking and talking and she was really funny. She does these CUTE baby signs and she was so nice to Whitney, making her laugh and smile. Katelyn loved having another little person around to talk to and play with, she keeps talking about "Aunt Allison and Natalie". Thanks for coming guys!!

growing up!

last week Whitney started doing several grown-up baby things, I can't believe she's so old. It's funny because my friend Kristen has some of these EXACT pictures on her blog right now with her little girl!
Anyway she's liking the exersaucer now (and so is Katelyn, except she climbed in and couldn't get out- funny!)

she started eating rice cereal and she LOVES it! hooray! Kate never really enjoyed ANY baby food, so I'm totally happy, hopefully she continues to like all the different kinds we'll be trying.

she's rolling!!
yay!!

we're having tons of fun!

timeflies when you're having fun!!

Aaaahh! It's been forever! We've been trying to have lots of fun before it gets too cold, I started a playgroup, and Allison came to visit! All excuses for not posting. Here's some pics and I'll write more later!

after we took the rag curlers out of Kate's hair one Sunday morning
Katelyn reading to Whitney in my bed one morning, SO CUTE, they both loved it.

Katelyn said these cars were "blessing their baby Lightning McQueen"! I guess Whitney's blessing a couple of months ago had an impact on her!
up in the mountains above Santaquin! It's beautiful with the trees changing colors.
more playing in the mountains
unfortunately we lost our keys in all those leaves- this is me and the girls waiting for Eric to come back and get us after he hitched a ride home!

More soon!