Merry Christmas and other December Happenings...

First set of random December pictures: I caught Eden trying to read one of Scott's books for his International Law on-line course, Andrew loves to help feed Jake, and Scott is 31!

Second set are just some pictures of the Christmas preparations going on at our house: English Toffee, Jacob's first Christmas ornament, our tree that Scott and the kids picked out, Peter Peeps, an advent calendar idea I copied from an old issue of The Friend, and we decorated the tree in the open space by our house.

Eden and Andrew at our shortened-because-of-the-impending-blizzard Ward Christmas party. Everyone was invited to dress up like a nativity character, Eden was an angel and Andrew was a camel (he had a hump on his back too).

Andrew is 4 now!

All week, Andrew wanted people to say "Happy Birthday Andrew!" So he was telling anyone who would listen that his birthday was coming. On the big day, he got to open one present in the morning, a zipper tie (he really was excited since he is an odd sort of boy who actually cares quite a bit about clothes). Then that afternoon we opened his other present- a big wheel, which Scott put together and Andrew got to try out for a few minutes. Then we headed to WATIKI, an indoor waterpark, we also stayed at one of the attached hotels, which was at least as exciting as the waterpark for our kids.
So we played all evening, then we had cake. Then in the morning we played as long as we could with the passes we got with the room- good for the evening from 4-10pm and then the next day from 8-10:30 am. We all had a fun time, but since one of us was with Eden and Andrew, and the other one of us was holding Jacob, we didn't get any pictures at the waterpark. Since I forgot the matches (I'm not sure we could have used them anyway in the hotel room), we cut a nice big chunk of cake for Andrew after lunch the next day and let him do the candle-blowing-out a day late. Oh, and those are transformers on his cake, his new most favorite thing.
Happy Birthday to a wonderful tough and sweet boy! We love you, Andrew!

Count Your Blessings

I started this post a couple days ago, and now its the last day of November, so I am going to finish it tonight!

I got a little behind on my gratitude list, partly because...

....Scott came home Saturday before Thanksgiving! And we are all so happy and thankful that he survived the training and his back with us again.

I am thankful I wasn't at Walmart this morning. I did go to Target when they opened at 6am, and while I stood in the super-long checkout lines, I talked to some ladies that had been at Walmart earlier- complete chaos, borderline anarchy. I don't think I'll ever be brave (crazy) enough to do Walmart on Black Friday.

The only reason I even made it to Target this morning is because Scott set up the baby crib yesterday, and Jacob slept in his room for the first time! He slept all the way till 5am!!! That may not sound so exciting to some, but for me it is wonderful. I slept from 10:30 till 5 without interuption, plus he went back to sleep until after 7am! So I even came home to a quiet house (Eden and Andrew were watching cartoons, but all was calm).

I'm grateful we could get together with some friends from Scott's flight for Thanksgiving dinner. I was a little sad not to be with family, but it was an enjoyable afternoon for everyone and there was plenty of yummy food, I love T-day leftovers!

Last year, we had SO many spiders coming in from the cold during the fall, lots of big hairy ones too (wolf spiders, I think?) Anyway, I think we're past that time of year now, so I'm grateful that we haven't had nearly so many, and none of the big brown ones like last year.

I'm so thankful for the peace that the knowledge of the gospel brings to my life, even in times such as these. We may not have world peace, but we can each have peace with us. It helps me to know our family is forever, so the time that Scott has to be away, while sometimes sad and/or difficult, is such a tiny fraction of the eternity that we are together.

I'm truly thankful for this challenge, I really think it helped me to be a happier person, especially while Scott was away for a few weeks. It reminded me of the promises proclaimed in the hymn, "Count Your Blessings" (Hymns of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, no. 241):

When upon life’s billows you are tempest-tossed,

When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,

Count your many blessings; name them one by one,

And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.

Are you ever burdened with a load of care?

Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?

Count your many blessings; ev’ry doubt will fly,

And you will be singing as the days go by.

When you look at others with their lands and gold,

Think that Christ has promised you his wealth untold.

Count your many blessings; money cannot buy

Your reward in heaven nor your home on high.

So amid the conflict, whether great or small,

Do not be discouraged; God is over all.

Count your many blessings; angels will attend,

Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.

Chorus:

Count your blessings;Name them one by one.

Count your blessings;See what God hath done.

Count your blessings;Name them one by one.

Count your many blessings;See what God hath done.

More to be thankful for

Today I am thankful for:

the awesome parking spot I got at the gym this morning- right in front of the doors! I don't think we could've parked any closer!

Eden- she loves to read (even to Andrew, she should have be getting ready for school), and she loves to help feed Jake. What a great big sis!

Andrew- he has a natural gift of gratitude. He says thank you for even little things spontaneously (even months after the fact, he'll remember gifts and be genuinely thankful for it all over again). Plus, he has some mad Ninja Turtle/Kung Fu Panda skills!

Jake- what's not to love? He may not be sleeping through the night yet, but he naps like a pro! He's been eating solids for a few weeks now, but I just never got a picture until today.

my sister, Robin- she always remember to call me when Scott is gone and doesn't mind when I do almost all the talking. Thank you! Love ya!

BONUS:
Some more pics of what we've been up to lately, since I haven't been posting as many photos this month:

Name them one by one...

I'm thankful for the chance we had to live in Hawaii. We've been gone for a year and a half now, and we really are enjoying South Dakota, but here's what brought this to my mind: On Friday, my watch broke. I know it doesn't look like much, and it only cost $5 at the BX, but it was my special watch that I used when I went surfing. Initially I thought it had just come unlatched while Jake was playing with it. But, later when I found it was broken, I sat on the couch looking at it, remembering those fun surfing days and all the great friends we made there. After feeling a little pitiful for myself(I didn't realize that the watch meant anything to me until that moment), I remembered that we were just so lucky to have that opportunity. It sounds kind of pathetic, but I think I might put this watch in my scrapbook...

I'm thankful for good books- this was the book for this month. I really liked it- enough that I went ahead and ordered my own copy after reading the one I had borrowed from Amanda. And the company was great too!

I'm thankful for brownies from the box. I have yet to find a recipe that can compare, they are just so good! These are my favorite.

I'm thankful that the kids and I have survived our last Sunday at church without Scott (at least for a while). Yay!

I'm thankful for good music. I've been listening to this CD lately.

I'm thankful for people who know how to do coding stuff for blogs. I wouldn't have been able to play around with making my blog "cuter" (its a work in progress) without their talent and willingness to share.

Thankful Thursday again!

It's hard to believe a week has gone by since the huge blizzard and as I look around and still see piles of snow (it is finally melting), I remember that we actually had really nice weather for Halloween. It was nice for the kids not to be bundled-up to the point that you can't tell what they're supposed to be. I'm also thankful to kind friends who took my kids out trick-or-treating so I could stay inside with Jake. Thanks Rocknak's and McCarty's!

I'm thankful for Flu Mist. Today I took the kid to get flu shots today. I explained that I had to do it too, and that it would help us stay healthy and help Jacob stay health too (since he's too young to get the flu vaccine), we were still dreading it anyway. But, when we got there, I found out that we could all get the mist instead. We celebrated our good fortune with TCBY afterward.

I'm also thankful for friends I've made in our moving around. I've been so blessed to know some truly awesome ladies who are such great examples of kindness, charity, and enduring well the hard times. I know our Father in heaven sends His tender mercies through the actions of friends. Tuesday morning was just hard for no particular reason, but reading a quick note (via internet) from a friend lifted my spirit and helped turn the day around.

More thankful thinking

I can't/don't update our blog everyday, but here are some more things I'm thankful for:

1. The durability of the human baby- today (another day of no school) I decided to use one of the coupons the kids got from their swim lessons for free admission to open swim at the pool. All went well until I was trying to get the four of us rinsed off and into dry clothes before heading out into thte cold. Andrew's towel ended up partly under Jacob who was resting on the bench. I had even placed things on either side of him to stop him from rolling. But, Andrew would not wait for me to help him (my hands were full at the moment), and he slid Jake right off the bench onto the hard tile floor. Luckily he slid bum/feet first, so he didn't land on the top of his head, and it was only 15 in. or so and Jacob is fine. (I know of another baby who survived a similar incident from an even higher point once upon a time.)

2. Blogs, e-mail, cell phones, and other communications technology. It's so much easier to stay in touch when Scott travels, and even when he's really out of contact, I'm still able to make some kind of contact with other adults every day. And its great to keep up with friends and family as we move around.

3. Snow plows and the people who drive them. If it weren't for them, we'd still be stuck at home and going crazy. But, even though there's still plenty of snow piled up all over, we are able to get around town fine.

4. The great system of checks and balances that our government has. We can vote for who and what we believe in, but no one has absolute power and control. I may not always agree with the outcome of an election, but I really believe in the design of our founding fathers, and I believe that it works.