Electrical..check Heating...check check!

We are moving quite along thanks to Kenny and Jessica! Their expertise is amazing. I wish I knew of a good way to thank them!

NEXT: Sheetrock!

Framing...check!

4 fights, 2 days, a nailgun and a broken water pipe...not bad for amateurs! Thanks Dad for fixing our water pipe (I don't have that much water storage) Thanks Kenny for your nail gun (and all other tools) and help! Thanks Richard for your referee skills and help on the rough DAY 2

After it's all said and done we will still be married. (hopefully) Co just doesn't realize that I am a framer by nature and he really should listen to me.. :)

A journey...a chore...a hammer?

Another boy means we need to build a room. Cody and I are notorious for our handy skills. I think we have a hammer somewhere...
Braeden was anxious to vacuum the spider webs out of the window sill. This was his biggest concern of having a new room he also had an outragous request of some walls and a rug...
Talan is still convinced we are having a girl named Krista, yet was more than willing to help his dad carry the Christmas tree to the shed. He is such a powerhouse!
Our basement is a wealth of treasures...OK we put everything down there we don't care to use, see, or be bothered with...

Lexee is so proud...kind of

We decided to do a gender check at the hospital. Lexee came with us, in the event the baby turned out to be a boy, she would be the one to tell people. We felt that the more involved she was the better for both her emotional status and the well-being of our new arrival. So we got situated in the ultra sound room and the tech came in and started checking. The tech then started saying how much she wished she had only brothers and how she wished she could have been the only "princess" in her family. And then it happened. Lexee was reading the TV above when the tech wrote, "It's a brother!" She seemed OK at first...then she started telling people. Pretty soon I started hearing with a tad bit of attitude, "I know, I know I will be the only princess!" or "Yep all brothers!" or "ANOTHER boy!" I have to admit all I could think about was, "Boys get girls preganant...and now my chances are even greater!"

Talan's 3rd

Talan has been looking forward to his birthday for months. We kept telling him that it was after Santa comes and after Daddy's birthday. He woke up this morning and was thrilled it was finally here. They sang Happy Birthday to him in Nursery. He sang Happy Birthday to himself at his birthday party. We celebrated with his grandparents, aunts & uncles, and cousins with cake and ice cream. It was perfect! I have had so much fun with Talan. We joke he is an old soul in a little body. He is witty, flexible, athletic & energetic. He is anything but self-entertained, luckily he is a fun guy to be around. Looking over the past short time he has been on this earth, we feel so blessed he chose our family. He is curious, a tad bit mischievious and funny. You should never wake him. You should never think that he will get hurt if he tries that. You should never let him cry alone because he will go down like a ton of bricks. When he comes to he forgets why he was crying and carries on with his original plan. He loves to eat, lead music, dance and play games. He loves to play set-hike with Brae and "house" with Lex. His scooter has worn out and he has decided to take up skateboarding. He can flip on the tramp and has been known to let go of the swing in mid-air. We love you Talan! Happy Birthday!!!

Nana's Banana Bread

Nana's banana bread has become very popular recently. She made some fresh today & sent a loaf to our family. What should have been neatly sliced and enjoyed with a little butter, was ripped into by Talan. He took the foil off and licked the entire loaf and then there was none! Bite after bite Talan polished off the entire loaf.

Laughs & Cheese Fries

It's hard to believe we didn't grow up together. Melissa and I were able to reconnect a few years ago. Cousins by relation and truly friends. We found out after many hours how similar we are. It's amazing to know exactly how someone has felt and it's great to know that someone knows how I have felt. After our husbands laughed about regular yucky boy stuff, we talked about just about everything & we realized that not only were we similar but our cute husbands could have been brothers. We are sad to see them go back to Phily and look forward to their quick return for good!

A lesson learned

A good friend of mine reminded me that blogging is about a history for our children and the importance of helping them see the ups and the downs of life. I realized that I don't want to portray perfection either in my blog. I even dreaded blogging Christmas because it didn't turn out the way I anticipated. I have always felt an incredible pressure to make sure the holiday season was filled with memories, enjoyment & perfection. This year there was emphasis on expectations. I worried about everyone else's expectations, I was enveloped in watching the clock because someone was expecting us somewhere, I focused so much on what I had to do to, I became bitter. Cooking & cleaning for the next guests, party or activity took precedence over enjoyment. I know it's just part of growing up. I hope that by reading this post next year I can prioritize and remember what I did wrong this year.

Christmas Day

Yep that's a porta potty! We are that much closer to being prepared...

Christmas Eve

Gingerbread House makin'

Despite nighttime sickness, I am still trying to make sure we don't forget any basic traditions. So we bought a pre-made house and stuck it together. You don't see Talan, he was way too busy eating the gum balls.

A New Tradition

We decided to spend a little of our Christmas budget to take our kids to Tepanaki. It was fun to see the kids react to the chef who prepared our meal right before our eyes.

Talan didn't enjoy the shrimp hitting him right in the middle of his cheek. In fact he was very put off that the chef would throw food at him.

The kids ate with chop sticks and actually finished the majority of their meal. Braeden wanted to go back the very next day.

The Forgotten Carols

Every year we have a tradition to see the Forgotten Carols. Mom buys the tickets and we have a grown up night at a wonderful production.

Michael McLean is one of the most talented performers I have ever seen. This production makes us laugh and cry at the same time every single year.

I was scolded by a family member (Steph) for taking this picture. OK it was one of a few. However, the rules say no FLASH photography. (I turned my flash off)

She didn't mind me taking a picture of her, though.

Thanks Mom for providing this wonderful opportunity to truly remind us of the real reason for Christmas. I always leave the production with something newly learned every year.

Who needs a nanny?

We had Logan, Aaliyah & Urban over for a sleepover on Friday. Urban awoke at 7:00 am and by the time I got into him, Lexee had made a bottle and was in the playpen (Thanks to Nessa) feeding him. She said, "Sorry Mommy, I know I am not supposed to be in here, but he was too heavy for me to lift out and he was STARVING, I hope Nessa won't be mad!" She assured me she only used 2 scoops of formula...but we'll never really know...
All of my fears of having a 4th have been subsided, Lex will be there!

The Festival of Trees

Every year we celebrate the Festival of Trees. Traditionally, Angi, Vinessa, Marci, Lexee & Aaliyah and myself go. However, this year Lexee was going to perform at the Festival with L.A. Dance Company so we made it a family event. We were missing Grandpa, Jake & Adam of the Baldwin's but Lexee had a huge crowd to cheer her on.

She has worked really hard this season and did a great job! She is very thankful for Nana and the opportunity she has given Lexee & her cousins to be a part of such a great Dance Company.

And so the traditions begin

Every year we trek downtown to see Temple Square. This year we went with Grandma Baldwin, Jake, Ness, Carter & Ethan. We planned to go a little earlier than usual, and we weren't the only ones.

It was a beautiful night and there were tons of people. Apparantly we weren't the only ones with the great idea. We didn't really have to bundle up, it was quite warm for the time of year. Talan particularly enjoyed the "elephanties". There was one elephant on an ethnic display. I wouldn't have even noticed, but he had to see it up close.

While walking through the crowds we noticed some things people were saying. One man said to another woman, "Oh put your big girl panties on and get over it!" Another woman said to her child, "You don't want to know what'll happen if you poke me in the eye again!" We made it our goal to listen to others as we fought the crowds. It was so funny! Not everyone fares well in crowds.

My cheap digital camera does not do justice to the beauty of the temple. And to top it off the batteries died. But you get the idea!

Drumroll please...

Here's is how we got to this masterpiece...

We drew out a plan for our Christmas lights this year. WE (Cody) needed to remember which end went where to attach to the extention cord...cords :)
Talan drove us crazy wanting to get on the roof with dad. We THOUGHT he would be terrified on the first or second rung on the ladder. We were wrong...

Reading the directions for the hooks is always a good thing...Co decided to stay away from rewiring the extention cords this year...

Happy Holidays!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Thankful for...

Pants & underware most of the time. Last night Talan disappeared in his room. We were thinking of how quiet it had become...He came down wearing Braeden's baseball shoes & helmet & that's about it...less than commando, saying "Catch this..." He was really talking about the ball... he was throwing...

Yep...I'm thankful for...

I would be so ungrateful if I didn't express my gratitude for our news. We found out we are pregnant about 3 weeks ago, but this weekend I started to spot. I have never had any complications with the exception of miscarriage the first time I was pregnant over 9 years ago. That time I had no sign of miscarriage at all until the ultrasound. So to say the least I was very nervous when I presented with a sign of miscarriage. I am so thankful for technology and the ease of requesting an ultrasound to check for a heartbeat. I am thankful for my very cute husband who was right by my side. We are excited to announce that we are expecting our 4th & final child. Lexee prays each day that it's a girl and Braeden has the basement blueprinted for his new room, if it's a boy. Either way we hope & pray for the health of this baby.

Thankful for...

The Old Spaghetti Factory

The Old Spaghetti Factory has been around for 35 years. It has been a family favorite for the last 31 years. I have always said this was my favorite restaurant.

Cody proposed to me here, I celebrated receiving my endowments here, Liza gave me a baby shower here, Cody threw a surprise anniversary party & my surprise 30th birthday party here...

It's a great restaurant! Today, marking their anniversary they served spaghetti for just $3.25!

We loved every bite!