Fun with Grandma and Grandpa

Last week we were lucky to have Grandma and Grandpa come visit us AGAIN! Seriously, living in Texas is the best because people actually want to come see us.

Because we have already done all the touristy stuff with them we were able to just relax and enjoy time with them. We shopped a lot, ate a lot, went to the zoo, took them to daddies work, swam, and finished off a fun week with going down to Houston for Memorial Day with Shanna and her family.

My kids really hit the jackpot in the grandparent department. They had so much fun!

Avery's 3rd Birthday

Miss Avery Lee

We celebrated Avery's 3rd birthday today with some of our amazing friends that we have met here in Texas. They have become like family and we are so grateful for them. 

Avery is obsessed with the movie Trolls so we did a VERY low-key trolls themed party, I'm talking about only color themed and a table cloth.  We set up a slip-in-slide which was a HIT and had a water balloon fight. We basically let the kids run free. 

It turned out extremely well. The kids had a blast and the moms got to hang out inside while the dads were outside playing Corn-hole while watching the kids.  

Avery loved being the star of the show. She was telling everyone it was her birthday and she was such a little sassy-pants. 

After opening her gifts we kept trying to have her say "thank you" to her friends but instead she kept on saying "your welcome".  She is super smart so I'm sure she knew exactly what she was doing. She was so happy all day and kept trying to tell us all about her amazing day. 

I seriously cannot believe she is three-years-old. She is such a funny little girl. She seriously makes us crack up non-stop. She knows how to be funny and she spends her days trying to make us laugh. Her hugs are smothering and we still get so many cuddles out of her. She is the best and we love her so much! 

We are now TEXANS!!!

Lance was offered positions at both Verizon in New Jersey as well as USAA in San Antonio Texas. Both paid similar, and both were CDP rotational programs.

After looking at pro's and con's of each and praying day and night. We have chosen to take the USAA job in San Antonio. We are so excited.

Not only is it a beautiful place, but it is very christian oriented and family friendly. The weather is amazing and I am so excited!

Now it's time to start the house hunting!!!!

Officially Homeowners!

Lance and I have been working with a realtor in San Antonio for the past couple weeks trying to compile a list of homes to view when we go down to buy a house. Unfortunately/fortunately, the housing market is crazy down there so with only a few days before our trip most of the houses on our list were already sold.

Luckily for us, one of our top homes was still available. We feared it was going to be sold before we had the chance to see it so we bit the bullet and put an offer on it.

It was accepted!

Yes, we bought a home online without even seeing it in person.

Luckily, our realtor told us that we would be able to back out within 10 days if we decided we wanted to go another route.

We get to see it in person in a few days. We are so excited for a kid-free trip with some of our best friends who are moving down with us!

When kids are mean.

The other day at a play group I was sitting around chatting with some of the other moms when I overheard Haylee and a group of kids behind me talking.

I better start off by saying Haylee is only 2 years old but she is as tall as most 4 and 5-year-old children. Naturally, she gravitates to those kids who are the same size as her which happen to be those who are 2-3 years older.

So here we are at a play group, Haylee is running around with the 5-year-old group when I hear one of the kids say "Haylee, say something", then another "Come on, talk Haylee". One kid then said loudly "Guys, she's not smart, she can't even talk." followed by "Yeah, she's dumb."

When I heard that last comment my heart broke, I seriously was on the verge of tears.  I was so sad and hurt, I wanted to turn around and yell at those kids letting them know that Haylee is smart, she's only 2, she gets shy when put on the spot, and she's learning.   My "mama bear" was out in full force.

As I turned around, I saw Haylee sitting with the kids, and I realized a couple of things. I realized that those kids are only 4 & 5 and they didn't say it trying to be mean and they weren't intentionally trying to hurt her feelings. I also noticed that, luckily, the comment didn't even phase her. All the children promptly got up called for Haylee to follow them and they continued to play like nothing happened.

I sat there seriously choked up because I didn't even want to think about my child being hurt or bullied. I didn't want her to even know the feeling of having being called a name, or put down.  Because let's be honest, it sucks.

You know that saying "sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me." It's a lie. Words do hurt, and they can hurt badly.

Unfortunately, in the future there will be bullies, those who intentionally want to hurt my kids' feelings. I wish I could always be a mama bear and be right next to them, ready to jump and defend them at all times. I wish I could be at their side constantly cheering them on, telling them how awesome they are.  But I can't.

I can be their biggest cheerleader, I just have to do it from the sidelines.

I dread the day when they'll come home from school in tears because someone was mean to them. I'll cry right along with them, if not harder.  I dread the day when they start even considering that what other people say is true.

Kids will be mean. Teenagers will be mean. And, unfortunately, adults will be mean.

My goal as a mother is to teach my kids that they are important, that they are loved no matter what, that they are smart, that they can accomplish anything with hard work and determination, that they are beautiful regardless of the "world's standards", that being kind is more important than being popular, and that they'll never be alone.

My role as a mother is essential in helping them build up their self confidence and realizing their self worth, and that's a huge responsibility.

So today I'll tell my kids they're important. I'll praise them when they succeed, I'll encourage them when they fail. I'll tell them I love them. I'll teach them to be a friend and to never ever be a bully. I'll teach them to stand for what is right.

My spot may only be on the sidelines but I can cheer very, very loud.

New Jersey here we come!!

The question of "Where would Lance do his summer internship" has been on our minds well before he even started the program. Landing a good summer internship can give you the exposure and experience needed to land an awesome job after graduation so to say we've been a bit stressed is an understatement. He has had the opportunity to meet and interview with some amazing fortune 500 companies. All the hard work has paid off because he has landed an AMAZING summer internship.

Lance was hired on with Verizon to their Marketing Leadership Development Program internship out in Baskingridge, New Jersey. 

Leadership Development Programs (LDP's for short) our somewhat coveted programs. They are the fast track to upper management and senior jobs within a company. They give you the opportunity to work in various parts of the company so you get an overall understanding of how everything works. That way you are on the fast track to a senior level job. 

So we are packing up and heading out to good old New Jersey  this summer. We are excited for this opportunity and can't wait to see where it leads. I'm excited to finally see New York City! :) 

Bedtime...

The other day we were up in Logan at Lance's parents house and we were discussing bedtime routines.

We had just put Haylee down for bed and after having her run out of the room multiple times we ended up getting a tie-down to tie the door shut so she couldn't escape.

They were all laughing at the steps we had to take in order for her to stay in bed. I made the comment "She's actually pretty good, she usually goes right to bed at home." 

Lance began to laugh...

He then began to list off the steps that we take each night to get Haylee to sleep. Having him list out all the steps I realized bedtime at our house is ridiculous.

No, seriously. RIDICULOUS. The things we have to do in order to keep our wild, crazy two year old in her room each night is pretty extensive.

Each night starts our peaceful with Haylee and Avery having a blast splashing and playing in the bathtub together.

Pajama time is next.  Safety pinning the zipper up is required due to her tendency to become a nudist at night.

We brush her teeth then give her a glass of water because we know from experience that the minute we shut her door she will ask for a drink.

We then go into her room and make sure her room is completely clean. She will not sleep if anything is left out on her floor.

We remove all her "big" toys so she won't play with them. These toys are placed in the hallway outside her door.

After removing all toys and making sure they are out of her sight we go through the room and lock up all cabinets, closets, anything that she can open and get items out of.

Next step... scripture reading, prayer time and kisses and hugs.

Haylee then insists she "makes Avery laugh" for a few minutes. This is a crucial step. This can seriously make or break our night. If Avery refuses to sit still why Haylee does everything she can to make Avery clap, giggle,shake her head, basically do anything, Haylee will throw a fit.

After making Avery laugh we move onto the next step where Haylee makes us sing the  "I Love You, You love me" song. Lance and I have to sing it separately complete with hugs and kisses then Haylee has to take a turn singing it to Avery.

Finally we are ready for bed.

Once tucked in and the lights are off she gets to choose one more song for us to sing. While we sing Lance sneaks down the hall and flips the breaker and cuts the power to her room. Yes, we cut all power to our child's room. We've tried tape and even countless layers of duck tape. She still manages to turn on the light and run around her room. Cutting the power is the only way we can make sure the light stays off.

The last step in our crazy night is to tie her door shut with the door across the hall so she can't open it.

I know that the steps with take are probably excessive but honestly I've adopted the mentality of "Whatever Works". I can either fight her and have to put her back in her room a million times or I can do a few extra steps to make my life a bit easier.

Come 8:30 each night I'm done being a mom for the day and am in desperate need for me-time. If crazy routines are what it takes for me to achieve me-time sooner. So be it.

Christmas 2014

So picture this...Haylee runs into the living room see's the presents gets super excited. Avery is jabbering and super happy. Sounds like a perfect time to get a picture huh?  So I hurry and whip out my camera all ready to take pictures of the present opening extravaganza. And nothing. My battery is dead. Seriously, who doesn't check the night before. Dumb move on my part.

I immediately went to plug my camera hoping to get a little bit of a charge but I pretty much missed all  the picture taking opportunities until after she was done opening. I did get a few on my phone so that is a plus.

Other than the camera mishap we had an amazing Christmas.

Our festivities started on the 18th when Lance got out of school. After an incredibly stressful week of finals it was time to lay back and have some fun.

That night we went to temple square to look at the lights. Haylee once again was in HEAVEN! Avery just sat there like an angel so it was a great night.

The next day we put together some ugly sweaters and went to a party that night with some great friends. 

After the party we headed up to Logan so we could spend as much time with out family.

It was so nice to see friends and family and have a mini-vacation. We had our annual Brown Christmas Eve party where Lance and I were in charge of the Christmas Program. I think it turned out pretty great. We spent the night at Lance's parents, got up opened our stockings, skyped our nephew Jason who is serving an LDS mission in Peru, then headed over to my dad's house so we could open gifts. 

Christmas is a million times better with kids. I loved watching Haylee's expression. Growing up I remember opening presents taking only like 20 minutes. We just ripped into everything. With Haylee it seemed like it took a couple hours. She would open a present, then insist on playing with it for a few minutes until she was ready to open up another one. It was adorable. 

Haylee was spoiled with lots of toys and clothes. She mainly got Frozen stuff and was absolutely thrilled.

Avery was content with trying to eat the paper.  

Here's some pictures of Christmas morning (the moments I was able to capture).

Family pic in our new Christmas PJ's

Haylee and her shopping cart. 

Avery's First Christmas. 7 months old. 

Haylee and I both got new Softball gloves! 

After Christmas we were able to stay up in Logan until the 4th of January. We were able to attend a USU basketball game where Haylee is still terrified of big blue and Avery absolutely loved him. We had lots of fun with family. Haylee LOVES her cousins. We took Haylee sledding for the first time and froze our butts off. Seriously is was brutal. Then we were able to celebrate our 5 year anniversary on the 30th. It was an awesome break and so much fun to spend it with family.

Haylee waiting for the Aggies to make a free throw! She now knows all the moves and most of the words to the Scottsman and the fight song. Wer're raising her right. 

Anniversary date night picture. Haylee insisted on being in it with us. 

One down, three more to go!

On Thursday Lance took his last final and finished up his first semester of his MBA. He is pretty dang excited but I honestly think I'm even more excited. This semester was absolutely crazy. 

They told us the first semester would kick your butt and they weren't kidding. I felt like a single mom because he was always gone or cooped up doing homework. 

Lance will tell you that he learned more in this one single semester then he did all of his years at Utah State combined. He is getting excited for the next stage of our lives. He is getting a passion for entrepreneurship, and eventually wants to start his own company. 

Some of the highlights of the semester:

In September Lance went for 3 days to Philadelphia to attend NSHMBA. He was able to meet some great people and made some important connections.

In October Lance interviewed and was accepted to Nestle's Brand Management Boot camp. Nestle' flew him out to their headquarters in Glendale California to participate. While there he won a case competition and was awarded with some great prizes. 

Lance has been involved with the entrepreneurship club up on campus.  He and 6 other guys actually won the Jump-start innovation competition for their idea to create a new product that would help those growing tomatoes. The product they created is a better functioning tomato cage. They were awarded funding to create the prototype and start their new company. We can officially say Lance has now started his own company called Home Garden Solutions.  It has been extremely beneficial. 

Also with the entrepreneurship club he has had the opportunity to sit in with the board for their "Get Seeded" events up on campus. This program is really cool. It is a program where students and any one in the community can bring their ideas in front of a panel and be awarded funding. It is like a mini "Shark Tank" (Lance's favorite TV show). He has really enjoyed that and comes home with lots of stories about awesome ideas and some really dumb ones. 

He is hoping to be more involved with the club and hold a position on the club leadership next year. 

Lance also applied and was accepted to a ethics competition. The competition is in Colorado. Each year around 20-25 colleges around the country put together a team of 5 or 6 people to compete in this competition. The University of Utah has won it the past 2 years so they are hoping to continue on the winning streak. Lance is excited. It is going to make for a busy February but it will be super beneficial. Plus 20% of the final score of the competition is a ski race. Lance is especially excited for that part.

I was so nervous when he told me he wanted to go back to school, but it has turned out to be the best decision we've made.  He is learning so much, meeting so many people and positioning himself for an amazing future once he graduates. I couldn't be prouder of him. 

Now we get to spend the next 3 weeks relaxing before it all begins again.  

Mobile Baby, Two is Hard.

It's official. Avery is mobile. I both love and hate this.

I love it because it is adorable and so much fun to watch her explore.

I hate this because it means she is getting bigger. And I have once again realized how unsafe my house is. It's crazy how you have to baby proof for each age. I feel like it's on-going process.

Avery has always been a mommies girl and her being mobile only reiterates this. She attempts to follow me through the house like a puppy and whines if I walk too fast away from her. She's adorable.

Haylee is trying to be a little mommy and it's honestly so ANNOYING! It's cute some of the time but she insists on determining on what is and isn't OK for Avery to play with. She is yelling at Avery constantly telling her no. I'm still trying to figure out how to stop this.  I am constantly telling her I'm the Mommy and while I appreciate her help, she needs to ask me and come to me first before she takes something away from Avery.

I'm convinced I'm never having a clean house again. Avery attacks and pulls out anything low to the ground and Haylee climbs and get anything out of reach. It's like they are a team conspiring against me to make it so I have to constantly clean.

I've resorted to living in a messy house and cleaning once they go to bed so Lance and I can enjoy a few hours of peace in a clean home.

I won't even start talking about bedtime with Haylee. I'll sum up our experience with one word. Nightmare.

Having two kids going in two different directions is hard. And having a two year old is plain exhausting.

But, I love it.

Good day.

Today was one of those days where I kept on thinking over and over how grateful I am to be the mom of these two little girls.

While we were out shopping Avery started getting fussy in the car so Haylee took it upon herself to cheer her up. She got Avery's attention, started making silly noises while shaking her body and hitting herself in the head. She looked hilarious and Avery broke out laughing hysterically. Once Avery started laughing Haylee broke out in a fit of giggles. They continued this for about 10 minutes. I don't think there are many things that sound better then your child laughing. I kept peaking in the rear-view mirror with the biggest smile on my face.

I love being a mom. Even during the bad days, or during our nightly fight at bed-time. I love watching my kids play, smile, and laugh together. I'm so excited to watch them grow up together and become best friends. I love them.

A little life update

First of all, is it really December?  I am LOVING this weather. Seriously 53 degrees in December?? Yes please! And holy cow we've been in Utah over 7 months now. We are absolutely loving being back. Being so close to family has been so much fun. It is so nice to be able to participate in the little family get-together's and not have to miss out by being across the country.  I absolutely love the relationship Haylee has with her grandparents. She constantly asks for them and her aunt Steffy, and never wants to leave their houses when we're there.

Lance is busy with school but he is loving it. He has had some really cool opportunities so far that he has been able to participate in. In October he was invited by Nestle to their headquarters to attend their Brand Management Boot Camp. He learned a lot and met some great people. He even won one of the competitions that resulted in him winning a coffee maker. We sold it on ebay for $100 :)  He is learning so much and I'm hoping it pays off in the end with a good paying job. He did give in and buy a Utah Ute shirt that he wears occasionally but he wears his Utah state stuff to school most days. I got a Ute pullover as well and I still have yet to wear it out of the house...I feel like i'm cheating on USU.

I'm staying at home with our two little ones. They are crazy and it is so much work. I made the decision recently to go back to school and finish up my Degree in Family Life Studies. The plan was to start this Spring semester and graduate in the Fall. However, because I'm not a Utah resident any more, tuition is triple the amount. So I'm going to wait 2 more months, get residency, then start in the summer. This means I'll graduate in the spring with Lance.

Now onto the girls, this very well could take up an entire blog post itself. They are absolutely adorable, crazy, fun, loving, and exhausting.

Haylee seriously wakes up running and doesn't stop till I put her down for her nap. Then it begins again and continues until she goes to bed at night. I've learned that terrible two's are a real thing and there is absolutely no sense in trying to negotiate and compromise with a two year old.  There are lots of tears and tantrums (some even by me) in our house but we are slowly getting through it.

Even though having  a two year old is hard the good times completely out shine the bad. She keeps us laughing constantly.

Let see....some of the things she has done recently.......
-Whenever we sneak up on her or catch her doing something she's not supposed to do she exclaims "Oh! Mommy! You scared me!"
-She insists on wearing the same color of shoes I'm wearing, Putting on lipstick and lotion whenever I do, and she begs for perfume on a daily basis. Then she proceeds to do the "smell good dance" that her aunt and her came up with when they put on perfume.
-She is a little Mommy and tries to boss Avery around and take care of her herself.
-She insists on getting naked whenever she can. especially during nap/bedtime because she knows we then have to come into her room and get her dressed.
-She asks everyday if she can go to church.
-She doesn't even sit by us at church any more. The C.O.O of the Utah Jazz is in our ward and Haylee has somehow managed to adopt them and their teenage kids as her own and insists on sitting with them each Sunday. They love her and she is WAY more reverent sitting with them then she is with us so we are totally OK with it!
-She sings her little heart out all day long and it is the cutest thing ever
-She wears her Elsa dress more than her regular clothes and insists on watching Frozen everyday
-She can proudly name pretty much every Disney princess, and finds it fun to randomly list them throughout the day. Tiana is her favorite and we watch Princess and the frog constantly (Prince Naveen is a hunk).

Now onto Avery
Avery is a chunk, and the happiest baby ever. She is mellow, quiet, and just wants to be loved and cuddled. She constantly smiles and loves her sister.
She has been sitting up since about 4 1/2 months which is way sooner then Haylee did and she is already starting to try and crawl.
She loves eating and I'm praying she isn't going to be a picky eater like her sister.
She mainly spends her day rolling around the house, pulling Haylee's hair, eating, giggling, and being cute.
She is a total Momma's girl which I LOVE!

Already Best Friends!

Basically that is what has been going on as of late. I'm pretty much a single mom because Lance is gone so much but luckily things should slow down a bit next semester. Overall we are doing great, and we are loving Salt Lake.

Meet Avery

This post is 6 months in the making....seriously I've been terrible and just plain lazy about blogging.

On May 13, 2014 we were blessed to welcome another perfect little girl into our family. We named her Avery Lee Brown.  She weighed 8 lbs 2 ounces was 20 inches long and was born at 5:30 pm

About her Name:
When we went into the hospital we had two names that we couldn't decide on. She was either going to be Avery or Leah. We loved both names but when we saw her we knew she was an Avery. Her middle name has family meaning on both sides. My sisters middle name is Lee and Lance's older brother who passed away was named Lee. So we named her after both of them. Looking back on it I wish we went with Leah because we didn't realize how close Avery and Haylee are when you are actually saying them out-loud. We end up calling her "Havery" most of the time. But Avery fits her perfectly.

About the birth:
Once again, I was ecstatic to say that this was quite uneventful just like Haylee's birth. I went in to the doctors for my 40 week check up (on my due date). I was dilated to a 3 so he gave me the choice of getting induced or waiting it out. After going 9 days late with Haylee I figured I would most likely need to get induced any way so I opted to getting induced that day.
It was quite strange going in for a check-up then having him ask "Can you be back here in 3 hours to have a baby?" I was freaking out.
Luckily we had out bags packed so we were all ready. So we went out for lunch to waste time before I needed to be back.
We got to hospital, they got me a room and a gown, then came in to start the IV. Oh, how I love Logan Regional. When I had Haylee honestly the IV was the worst part. So when the nurse came in with a small needle to inject numbing medicine before she did the IV I was ecstatic. They started the Pitocin and once again my body handled it perfectly. I was on the pitocin for about 4 hours and having regular contractions that I couldn't feel but were strong according to the machine. They decided they wanted to break my water to speed things up. When I had Haylee I let them break my water before I got the epidural but with Avery I asked for epidural before they broke my water. So I got the epidural before I felt any pain, they came in broke my water. 30 minutes later she came to check, I was at 10. The doctor came in and 3 pushes later Avery was born. It was calm, painless, and we got to joke around and hang out during the whole process.

About Avery:
Avery is now 6 months old and is seriously such a joy. She has been sleeping through the night since about 6 weeks old, and she LOVES to eat.
She is the happiest baby, you can just look at her and she will be grinning at you as big as she can. She adores Haylee and laughs so hard and anything Haylee does. I cannot wait to watch them play when they get older. She loves playing with toys and making her bubble noises.
She is all rolls, seriously this girl is a chunk. Her and Haylee are in the same size diapers and Avery is already wearing 12 month clothes.
She still has so much hair, she never really lost it and it is still as dark as can be.
Seriously I love this girl so much.

Samoas S'mores

A quick post because the picture doesn't need any explanation.
I love lots of things, but lately I've been extra fond of Samoa cookies. I love Girl Scout Cookie season and I limited myself to only 3 boxes this year. Bad idea.
My wonderful husband came up with this idea and he once again reminded me why he is my favorite person.
Now I'm wishing I bought more.

New Year, New Recipes! -Baked Southwest Egg Rolls

OK, YUM!!!! I got ambitious on Sunday and decided to try another recipe. That makes two new recipes last week. I'm REALLY liking this New Year's goal!  Anyway it was DELICIOUS!

Just look at the picture......

I thought the first new recipe was delicious but this was fabulous! I highly recommend it! Lance loved it so much he kept sneaking bites as I cooked it.

Here's the link to the recipe: http://www.mrshappyhomemaker.com/2012/09/southwestern-egg-rolls/

The only thing I did different with it was add a bit more jalapeno's and bit more spinach. Also, I didn't have any frozen corn on hand so I just used canned corn and it was still perfect!

I made some Spanish rice to go along with it. By making, I really mean I opened up a box of Rice-A-Roni. :)  I really need to get some of the ladies in the Spanish branch to teach me how to make it homemade.

Next time I'm going to get even more ambitious and make the cilantro ranch dressing to dip them in. I used plain old ranch and it was still excellent. Lance went straight for the Chalula (did i mention he likes spicy foods).

Once again, I HIGHLY recommend it! 

Crock-Pot Brown Sugar and Garlic Chicken

For my "family" New Year's goal I decided I am going to try at least one new recipe each week. Hopefully these will be healthy but the main purpose is to get me out of my habit of cooking the same things over, and over again.

I love cooking and by doing this it will help me expand my cooking abilities and make it easier to decide what we are having for dinner because I will have much more options other than BBQ Chicken.

I had a few people ask me if I will post the recipes I try and let them know if they are good or not so that they can expand their recipes as well.

So to start things off, tonight's dinner was Crock-Pot Brown Sugar and Garlic chicken served over rice.

It was delicious! To get the recipe you can go here: http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2012/07/slow-cooker-garlic-and-brown-sugar.html

I used white distilled vinegar and I added about a teaspoon of red pepper flakes in with the sauce while it cooked as well as sprinkled it on top after. We love spicy foods so I would hold off on adding it until after if you don't like it too hot.

This will definitely go into my rotation of dinners. It was super easy and tasty. Plus who doesn't love a good crock-pot put it in and forget-it meal?

Bettering Myself in 2013!

I love the new year. I love the feeling of starting fresh. I get excited knowing I have another full year ahead of me to spend time with my family and friends, better myself, and hopefully make a difference in the world somewhere (no matter how miniscule).

I have never been the one to make goals. The last time I made new year goal's was in elementary school when the whole class took time to write down and decorate a colorful display of our goals for that year. 

I wasn't a fan of new year goal's because I figured I'd be really good at them for the first couple months weeks and then slowly give up on them. So what was the point?

However so much has changed this past year that has made me want to set goals to better myself, my family, and others around me.

Last January we were asked to serve in a Spanish Branch here in Cleveland. It has honestly been one of the most difficult things I have ever had to do in my life. I am in the Relief Society presidency and have had to get out of my comfort zone. Not only is it hard to get out of my comfort zone, but I hardly speak a lick of Spanish. I love serving the branch, I love the members, I love the culture, I love knowing that the gospel is the same in every language even if I don't understand. :)  I have realized my love of serving and helping others.

We were blessed with our beautiful daughter in August. Haylee magnified the importance of family ten-fold. I LOVE being a mom and everything that comes with it. The lack of sleep, dirty diapers, spit-up in the mouth (another story for later), mounds of laundry, I wouldn't change a thing. This is cliche but I feel like I have found my calling in life. I want to better myself in every way so that I can make sure that I am able to raise and teach her to the best of my ability.

I know there are many other events but these two have had the biggest impact on me and the way I live my life.

Because of all the changes I decided I would make goals for this year. As I was thinking about what they would be, I realized I didn't want them all just for me. I wanted to have them help me make a difference.  One goal for me, One for my family, and One to help others.

-Goal for me: To be healthier. Both physically and mentally. This includes eating healthier and exercising on a regular basis. I don't just want to be physically healthy but mentally as well. There are many things to do to help me become more mentally healthy but one that I need to work on this year is to Be more positive.

-Goal for my family: Try a new recipe (healthy) at least once a week.  I love cooking, but I get into a habit of making the exact same recipes over and over. I want to give my family a variety of different and healthy meals. Not only will this benefit them but help me expand my cooking abilities.

-Goal for someone else: Index 10,000 names. Out here in our Cleveland our Stake is making a big push to get everyone to index names for the family history sites. If you don't know what indexing is, its a process of taking old handwritten documents such as census, death certificates, etc and converting it into an electronic file that is searchable. This allows people (LDS or Non-LDS) to search for their family members and hopefully learn more about the, and do genealogy work. I have LOVED doing it so far. For more information on how to do it or to sign up and get started visit: http://indexing.familysearch.org/ 

If I remember correctly from elementary school I have completed the first couple steps in making successful goals: 1) Create reachable goals, 2) Write them down, 3) Tell them to someone. 

Hopefully I will reach them, maybe I should come up with some sort of reward for completing them?? 

I am excited for this new year, I'm excited to see what adventures and new changes it  may bring.

A quick post because I'm feeling grateful

Today I'm feeling extremely grateful.

I'm grateful for family. I'm blessed with an amazing husband and a beautiful daughter who I get to spend eternity with.

I'm grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ.

I am grateful that I get to stay at home with my little girl and watch her grow.

I'm grateful for Lance and his job. He works so hard for us.

I'm grateful for our friends. We are blessed with AMAZING friends out here in Cleveland that seriously are some of the best we have ever had. They are our second family and make being so far away bearable.

I love this time of year. It makes me remember all the blessings I have in my life and reminds me to appreciate them more.

Getting to know Haylee

To say we are absolutely head over heels in love with this little girl is a complete understatement. It's hard to believe that Miss Haylee will be 3 months on Friday. Time is going by way to fast. We love being her parents and she brings so much joy into our lives. She is seriously the best baby we could have ever dreamed of. She has us laughing and absolutely giddy at her constantly.

We really couldn't be happier.

Here is a few things about Haylee:
~She loves standing up
~She smiles at everything and anything
~She is seriously the happiest baby ever!
~She giggles all the time
~She is chunky and tall (85th percentile in weight and 95th percentile in height)
~She loves eating
~She loves cuddling
~She is perfectly content with sitting on dads lap watching football for hours
~She constantly "talks" to you
~She has the most edible chunky cheeks on earth
~She has an obsession with eating her own and our hands
~She has the cutest lip curl when she gets sad
~She hates to have her arms swaddled
~She loves sucking on noses/cheeks
~She has so many expressions
~She is extremely easy to soothe
~She is a HUGE Utah state fan
~Her morning grins when she wakes up are the best way to start any day 
~Her eyes are still as blue as ever


Here are some Month-to-month pictures for her first and second month. We are a little late posting these. We will have a new one by next weekend!

Oh and one more pic that we are extremely proud of....
START 'EM YOUNG!

Photoshoot!

Our friend Jessica is Amazing! She came over the other night and we transformed my living room into a photo studio. We had so much fun!!! Our friends Lindsey and Orlando came over as well and Jess took some of their adorable boy Luc. It was an amazing night! Here are my favorites...