The other day Payton found some rope then proceeded to tell me, "Nephi got all tied up by his brothers, but then he got out." Apparently she is actually listening and learning when we try to teach her stories from the Book of Mormon.
I love when she will randomly come up to me and say, "I love you mommy. I love you so much. I love you to the moon and back a bazillion times." While giving me the sweetest hugs and kisses.
I love when she puts smiles on my face, and love watching her put smiles on others faces.
I secretly love when Connor is crying and when I walk in he reaches for me.
I love that I know Connor and I know that he loves me through his sweet smiles that he gives me all day long.
I love that he is me and Payton's little shadow until he hears his dad's voice.
I love that Nic will get down on all fours and play with the kids.
I love that my heart races when I look at Nic.
I love the eternal family Nic and I have created together.
Saturday Nic and I used our day passes to Powder Mountain that we got for Christmas from my parents. What a beautiful day it was. The sun was shining the whole day and the snow was surprisingly awesome! We were nervous to go since we hadn't been for two years. But we strapped on our boards, stood up and picked it right up as if we had been doing it regularly. I loved spending the whole day just the two of us.
Saturday Nic's cousin Emily was so sweet and invited us to her little boy Lucas' second birthday party at the Kangaroo Zoo. What a fun place it was for the little kids. Payton took a minute to warm up to it and brave the big slides but she did it and had a blast!!! I can't wait to go back again!
Saturday night we got together with the Montgomery's to celebrate Grandma and Grandpa's Birthdays. We met up at Fat Cats for a couple of games of bowling and had such a fun time! We finished up the night with the Montgomery's by eating dinner at the Pizza Factory.
Then it was off to my parents to watch the Jazz game against the Lakers. What a great game that was! The kid's didn't last though.
Then yesterday we went to dinner together as a family to celebrate Gaven's Birthday. We try to make this day a fun day remembering all of the happy times we had together. This would have been Gaven's 26th birthday the 10th anniversary of him getting his drivers license. We were talking last night with all this talk of the 10th anniversary of the Olympics and how much Gaven enjoyed them. After his birthday dinner him and my parents came home quick to watch the opening ceremony. What a fun time that was to go to the different events.
Maddie was cute and decorated Gaven's corner with balloons, a banner, and even complete with Toy Story napkins. (Gaven was Woody for Halloween the previous year)
Nic was extra sweet to me yesterday and kept checking on me every couple of hours. When he came home from work he surprised me with some beautiful flowers!!
Happy Birthday Gaven! We love and miss you so much!!!
Over the weekend I was able to have a girls weekend with my mom and some family friends at Time Out For Women. What a great uplifting couple of days it was! I learned so much and am so happy to have another look on things I can do to help better my life.
One of the most touching close to home talks was given by Chris Williams. His story of forgiveness is incredible and one that truly touched my heart.
A few of my favorite things said over the weekend:
"Be taught patience by remembering we are all children of God."
"Have a vision of life, picture our family all together with the Savior with no one missing."
"When things aren't going well pray with gratitude, we will be blessed"
"Spare your successes, everyone grows from challenges."
"Look at yourself and appreciate the good that is already there"
"As we search for the good, his blessings will find us"
"Own your strengths and weaknesses"
"It's not I'm right He's wrong, it's 'He's' right, I'm wrong"
"Don't wait for tomorrow, find joy today"
"We want to feel mercy rather than misery"
"The honest cry of a breaking heart is better than a hallelujah sometimes"
"We compare our whole selves to someones one good idea"
"Find joy in the journey- it's hard to find joy when looking at your piles of chores, because we are looking too much into the future. We miss the joy that's right in front of us."
"Summum bonum- the highest good"
3 Myths-
1. I am supposed to be happy all the time- Feelings are an amazing gift Heavenly Father gave us, Christ had a full range of motion that was used for good. "Christ like"
2. Taking care of myself is selfish. - Think of something that brought you joy as a child and bring it back into your life today, it's crucial information about why we are here.
3. If I acknowledge my strengths it is prideful. - When ever we talk about our strengths we are so quick to back it up with several weaknesses
"Look at yourself and appreciate the good that is already there"
"Seek the good"
"Good does not always reside in your comfort zone"
"Think of this game we are in called life. Who might be watching me today trying to understand this game."
A few talks given over the weekend were dead on to what I needed to here. So often I find myself comparing myself to others and all that they do, they are a better mom, their house is always clean, they have the perfect body, cute clothes, they are so patient, they cook the top of the line meals every night and flat out they are better than me. It was very rejuvenating to me to find out that so many women do this exact same thing. A quote that I absolutely love that I found on pinterest the other day is:
It's so true, the minute I start comparing myself to others all of my joy is gone and I feel as if I have failed. We are our greatest critics, and can easily believe that we don't have enough, or do enough, or do it well enough. I have had several conversations with friends and family members about how my kids are always so cute and happy and that we are always doing something fun and exciting but that's not what my days are always filled up with. I am a mother. Anyone else who is a mother knows what I am talking about. I use my blog as a journal, yes maybe I should document all of the tantrums that were thrown, the piles of laundry to do, the scrubbing of toilets and the mopping that I have to do at least 3 times a day. But I spare all of that because everyone does this. Motherhood is not glamorous. I cherish it, and believe is is a gift. Does this mean I am a perfect mom, and never lose my patience? I wish! Does it mean motherhood is easy? No, it's quite possibly one of the hardest things I have done. Motherhood is rewarding though, it's fun, and a great blessing. Of all the amazing happenings in my life, none are more amazing than my kids. If ever I am having a hard day or running low on my patience, I try to remind myself just how precious they are. Not only to me, but in the sight of God, for they are ultimately His. Our children know pure and simple joy. We can be reminded to stop and find that joy in our busy "adult" lives, through them.
A few days ago I remember saying that it wont be any different when Connor starts to crawl because he got around so much just by rolling... Well I take those words back! It's completely different yes I was right he is quicker... but also more destructive! Everything in our house is slowly moving up to higher levels where this little tornado can't reach!! Anything that he gets his hands on he assumes it's a ball and will throw it or knock it on the floor! He is sure keeping me on my toes that's for sure. It's amazing how quick you forget the different stages, but also how quick they come back. The other morning I gave him a bottle then went in the room to brush my teeth I came back and had a minor panic attack when I came into the room to find he wasn't there anymore and that he had made his way into the kitchen. He is such a cute little crawler though and I love it!!!
Taking down the plant.
He loves taking baths with big sis
I got Connor out of the tub and put a diaper on him and while choosing out an outfit for him he decided he wanted to be back with Payton.
Time for a bum picture!!!
(It's a must)
Connor at 10 months and Payton at 13 months.
Another update with Connor yesterday I put away all the clothes he was wearing and brought out the 18-24 month clothes!
