Build A Bear

Sarah was bringing her kids up to do Build-A-Bear so they gave Miriam a gift certificate for her birthday so we could join in the fun. The kids were so excited. Miriam said "this is the best day of my entire life", too bad she cried twice during the outing (once for a treat, once because I made her look around before deciding on her bunny's outfit). I didn't realize until seeing these pictures that Miriam is dressed like an 80's chick with her jean jacket, flouncy skirt and pearls. She has outgrown her winter clothes, it's still too cold to get the summer things out so she is stuck wearing whatever I can put together. The pearls I had nothing to do with, well, I did do the clasp, but it was her idea.

Final selection: Miriam a white rabbit, not my favorite but at least it wasn't the pink sparkle bear, Madison the endangered leopard, Marcus a brown bear.Miriam giving her rabbit good thoughts and a kiss, or something like that.

Marcus giving his bear muscle power (notice the Hulk shirt).

Madison trying on a wig. Cute redhead!

I should have gotten a picture of the finished products but right after we finished our bears the store became chaos. We had arrived and were leaving just in time for some huge Saturday rush, I wanted to get out of there and forgot to take a picture. Miriam made a "Cinderella Bunny" and that is also her name. Cinderella Bunny and Sleeping Beauty Bear are now best of friends and they sleep in her bed every night. Madison's endangered species had a very fashion forward outfit, and Marcus made a Superman Bear to match the Spider man Cat named "Sammy" at home. It was a fun day! Thanks Sarah, Madison and Marcus!

Bunch of Thank Yous!

Miriam is still getting birthday gifts a week later lucky girl! I feel so loved when people do things for Miriam. I also tend to get more excited over her getting gifts than when I get gifts...what is up with that?


Thank You Pa pa! This dress isn't actually for her birthday, it was from Christmas this is just the first picture I have taken of her in it. I couldn't get her to smile because when she is in this dress she is in full character - royalty. She flounces and struts around with her eyes squinted in to what she must think a queen looks like (oh what those nursery leaders at church must think). This particular picture is the best one I could get.


Miriam received this Woodkin paper doll from Cristin and the Mississippi crew. It's very creative, you can make clothes for your doll by using scraps of fabric. Miriam loves it, and I had a good time experimenting myself. Perfect gift idea for little princesses.
Here is Miriam showing her Daddy how it works. Darin is such a sport, he puts up with lots of princess, dancing, girlie girl stuff. Miriam did show interest in remote control cars and nerf guns over Christmas so, Darin declared that next year she would get a few toys he could play with too.


Aunt Nonnie sent Miriam a pair of her old unused dancing shoes. Miriam is sleeping with them as I type this. She loves to wear them, but we explained they are to be hung on the wall and she seems just as excited about that. Thank for the beads too Nonnie! They are beautiful! Miriam said "Oh those are for little girl bracelets...little girls like....named Miriam".

Thank you Jill! She sent those cute "good mail" labels. I did take a picture but then I realized my address was in full view, and I don't know how to blur. Darin could help me, but he has so much to do. Thank you Jill, I love them and the first label just got sent to Brazil a few days ago.

Thank you Sarah Madison and Marcus. They gave Miriam a gift certificate to Build a Bear that we used last weekend....more on that next post!

Our Children's Place

I have wanted to post about Miriam's room re-decorating for quite some time, but was holding out for the windows to be completed. Unfortunately, I can't decide what to do in her windows so that is another project on hold for the moment. So, here is the progress so far.




This is just one corner of the room, but the whole room is just like this with the crown molding, spring green color, and alphabet cards (Thank you Mom and Dad for the help!). All the doors and trim have been painted white, the blinds are currently a cream color (not good, not good at all). I am having some businesses come out to measure the windows for new blinds just to see what my options are. The only decision I have made so far is that shutters are out at $400 a window. Any ideas would be welcome. The lamp was an $8 second hand find. It's the best treasure I have found, I don't get out to second hand shops too often.

This is Miriam's new duvet cover, it's hard to tell but those are different colored and textured ribbons. Since the new baby and Miriam will eventually share this room, I have a vision in my head of his bedding being all white with green, yellow but then blue ribbons in place of the pink, sewn on. I would like them to match so there is some flow to the room, the alphabet cards and duvet cover are a bit busy for my taste so I want to keep it clean and simple. Does anyone know where I can find plain white crib bedding?
Miriam's cousin Danielle (12) made the pillow for her for as a Christmas gift. It matches perfectly, thank you again Danielle! Then of course there is Sleeping Beauty Bear whom Miriam sleeps with every night (thanks again Mom and Dad).
I just had to post a picture of Miriam's crib quilt my mom made her. I love this quilt and wanted a picture of it in the room. The paint, alphabet cards, everything was chosen using this quilt as my guide. Ironically, by the time the room was finished, Miriam is now in a big girl bed and we are having a baby boy. I am now trying to match bedding to the room which isn't easy on a budget. I am learning a ton though, and it is fun, when it's not frustrating.

Organic Goodness

Although I would love to, I don't normally buy organic foods. Mainly, because I never stay within our grocery budget to begin with and I feel if I go organic I will go WAY over. Its not a skimpy budgeted amount either, I have no idea where the money goes. Anyway....I have been having lots of digestion problems with this pregnancy, I am also a bit anemic (and don't like red meat) so I have been looking for good foods to help out. My friend Fiona (healing foods guru) led me to Nancy's Organic Yogurt and I am hooked. This is why its so good for me.

• Fully cultured with casei, rhamnosus, acidophilus, bifidum, thermophilus, and bulgaricus - making Nancy's the most healthful yogurt on the shelf
• Billions of healthy bacteria in every teaspoon, aiding in greater calcium absorption and better digestion

Darin loves it just as much as I do when we add Natures Path Flaxseed Plus. It is SO good. It has pumpkin seeds and flax oil (omega 3's and 6's) but most importantly iron for the anemia. Not only do I not like red meat, but as I mentioned above I can't digest it at the moment. I also don't like the vitamins with iron in them, it makes me queasy thinking about taking one. We bought it at Costco so the price was reasonable for granola.

I just ran onto Emerald Valley Organic Salsa on accident. I love chips and salsa anytime, but especially when I am pregnant. We bought the huge bag of chips and tub of this salsa from Costco and I love it! It's not as good as my Uncle Bruce's fresh salsa, nothing is better than that, but since Uncle Bruce doesn't keep me in a fresh supply this is a great alternative.


Just thought I would share. Happy Eating!

The Last Hoorah

Miriam's actual birthday was a casual event. We tried to keep things simple since she already had a wild bash. We met up with my friend Fiona and her "spunky nerd" (her words) darling daughter Ivy and dashing Simon. We love meeting up at the Market Street Grill, even though it's getting hard with the kids. With any more additions to our families we may have to start meeting up at McDonalds. Or leave the kids with Daddies...yea that sounds better. We let the little girls play at the Trolley Square Pottery Barn, and then made wishes and watched the fishies at the fish pond. Miriam and I took a 2 hour birthday nap when we got home which as heavenly. We woke up with just enough time to make the groundhog cupcakes which turned out really cute. They could pass for any rodent really, so if anyone ever needs to celebrate a Beaver Day these are the treats for you. They were from Family Fun magazine.

Darin came home with the traditional flowers for me. He totally surprised me on Miriam's first birthday and has given them ever since. I love it, and hope this is a tradition that will go along with all our children's birthdays (hint hint;).

My whole reason for not throwing a friend party was that I didn't want to babysit a bunch of 3 year olds (my home isn't large enough to invite kids and mothers). So, what do I do? I go and tell another friend I will watch her two kids that night. I thought about saying I couldn't do it, but then decided it would be fun for her to have a friend over. It worked out because Miriam asked that afternoon if anyone was going to come see her for her birthday. This family has been so good to us, invites to dinner, inviting Miriam over to play, bringing fresh bread, it felt good to return a little bit of the favor. I still need to have them over for dinner. I have such a hard time with dinner parties. I need to get over my unmatched plates, unfinished home improvements and, fear of a disastrous meal (undercooked chicken, or hair in the food HORROR) and be gracious.
We ended the day with a few birthday wish phone calls, and a check on family blogs to see all the fun birthday wishes. Thank you to everyone who called, blogged, and commented.


Miriam received a fun birthday gift from Aunt Lisa today. A knitted tea set that is so cute. We have played tea party at least 3 times today, and I am sure will play it lots more again tomorrow. Thank you Lisa it's a fun unique gift we will cherish!

*On a side note, if anyone is getting error messages on their links it could be that an extra slash mark was added to the link addresses. I had this problem occur when I upgraded to the new version. Just take out the dash at the end and it works fine again.

Our Little Groundhog Turns 3 (warning: long personal post)

I was in labor with Miriam on Super Bowl Sunday. My mom had told me not to go to the hospital until the pain dropped me to my hands and knees. That advice, along with not wanting to disturb my Dr. during the game made for a very short labor. Of course lots of craziness occurred, my water burst all over, there was a rush to get the anesthesiologist, Miriam was facing the wrong direction and was manually turned by my amazing 60-something year old doctor. However, in my mind I remember the lights being dim, with soft lulling music being played right after she was born. I tried to stay awake to watch Darin and the nurses give Miriam her first bath and remember thinking there was a soft light shining down on them as I drifted in and out. I realize this was probably not the case, but my mind has turned it into some sort of movie. It was a very spiritual moment for me.
I was expecting an Elisa clone because my family's genes are pretty distinctive, but everyone who saw her said "She looks like her daddy". Of course, since it was by then Groundhog's Day Darin made jokes about her peeking out and going back in for 6 more weeks.
Miriam didn't easily smile at anyone but Darin or I her entire first year. It's hard to believe now, but she really didn't. Our little attention monger didn't like to be looked at or noticed by strangers as an infant. It took her a long time to warm up to family and friends. You really had to earn her love. She had this wide eyed stare she would give people who tried to "coo" at her. It was a cross between "Are you insane?" and "back off". Sometimes even I felt stupid when she would stare at me like that.
When she was 9 months old her doctor called her "dramatic", and then a little while later one of her Grandpas used the same word to describe her. It was then that I started watching other babies and realized it was very true. To this day she can be a drama queen. Even at the park, she doesn't like to swing or slide for excitement sake, she likes a storyline to go along with why she is sliding. She likes to be the wicked queen or evil step mother just as much as she likes to be a princess, she sneers and glares like a pro (she had her whole first year of life to practice). She is very expressive. I wish I had a movie of her playing "Dead Princess" where she stumbles around before collapsing to the floor, or "Annabell babydoll" where she sits stiff with her mouth slightly open and open and shuts her eyes when you rock her back and forth.
Miriam's all time favorite toys are her books. She now likes dolls and such, but as an infant she didn't play with dolls, blocks, balls, or really anything except her books. She loves language and has always been a good communicator. Before she could speak she knew quite a bit of sign language, and after she learned how to speak she took off fast & furious in the verbal world. Her first roll play games were library and storytime. She use to set her books up all over her room the way I have seen other kids set up cars or animals. Just today she said I was "mezmorizingly beautiful" a phrase she heard from a book and remembered. All I can say is it's a good thing we currently don't have a tv or I don't know what would be coming out of her mouth.
Miriam is very sensitive to emotions. She notices subtleties in expressions, and tones of voice. She notices complete strangers and will ask why they look sad, frusterated, or angry. While driving in the car she has said things like "this song sounds angry at me" or "this song is dancing with me!" She has never been very physical. There are VERY few occasions where she has hit or pushed anyone so to deal with her own frustrations she clenches her fists and teeth, hunches her shoulders, shakes and says "ARGH". This reaction actually seems to scare other little kids more than if she would just give them a shove. Along with this sensitivity to others she is sensitive herself. She cries easily, gets scared easily, and at least once a day says "I miss so and so and it's making me so sad inside".
Miriam LOVES treats and sweets. Her whole first year I was so good about having her eat beans and broccoli and kept sugar to a very small minimum. It didn't do any good, the girl loves sweets. Chocolate pudding is one of her all time favorites. She detests sour candy and goes for the gooey, the creamy, and the pure sugar stuff.

We love our little girl and the person she is becoming. I can't believe how lucky we are to have her in our home. I know that we couldn't ask for a more loving little girl to be a big sister to the new baby coming (after initial jealously of course). Happy 3rd Birthday to our Miriam Love!

Prehistoric Adventures & Dance PARTY

Miriam and I left Darin to fend for himself this week and took off to my parents house. We are having a family birthday party for Miriam this weekend (which Darin will drive down for) but my mom picked M and I up early. It is SO nice to be here. Miriam adores her cousins, and is entertained every minute. That is so wonderfully strange for me, I feel so free. I have been watching Marcus (4) in the mornings while my sister works which is fairly easy. He and Miriam had nothing in common (he is all superhero, Miriam is all princess ballerina) but they will play well together if no one else is here. Miriam ADORES Madison (8) and tells her over and over how much she loves her. Everytime Madison has left this weekend Miriam has hugged her and said "I will miss you so much!". Madison is good to play with her, until she just can't take the adoration anymore, and then she looks at me apologetically and I step back into my activities director roll. Josh (5) and Ali (3 3/4) are fun to have over too, they all seem to mesh together without too much struggle. Miriam thinks Josh is HILARIOUS, and Ali love princesses just as much as she does. The only downside to our visit is that Miriam has just gotten her second cold of the entire winter, and it's a doosie. So not only will we be exposing all the cousin to mucus germs, sleeping with Miriam has been rough. I think I got about 3 hours of sleep last night.

Today I took Marcus and Miriam to the CEU Prehistoic Museum. It was so wonderful! After living so long in the "big city" and putting up with 30 toddlers at storytime, at least that many at any given park, and sharing all museums with the masses, I was amazed that we had the musem TO OUR SELVES! Well, at first there was a father and son there but they left really quickly. Funny side story, the museum cashier thought we were a family (the three of us and the father and son) and took my $ thinking we were doing the family deal ($10 rather than $4 for adults and $2 per child). She dropped $10 in the donation box, gave me $10 back. I started to say something but the guy just shook his head and handed me a $5 with a wink. I couldn't make up my mind whether that was okay or not so we just walked in. We spent 45 min looking at dinasaur bones and fossils (they have an amazing collection) and then another 45 min in their kids playzone. We uncovered bones, put together a huge puzzle, read stories, and played with hand puppets. I can't believe I left our camera at home! I love the choices I have living in a big city, but this small city living has its charms.

Update 1/27/07: M's 3rd Birthday Party


We had Miriam's birthday party at Julia's dance studio (aka Miriam heaven). Julia did some dance & parachute games with the kids. She is amazing with little ones. I can't believe she puts up with whole classes full of 3, 4 & 5 year olds almost daily. The cousins and friend Hadley loved it. After the dancing Darin tied some balloon animals (he can also juggle, but good luck getting him to wear a clown outfit), and then the traditional cake, presents etc went down. To end the shin dig, we had party favors with punch balloons. We let the kids go hog wild in the studio while the adults sat adoring baby Claire and talking. It is so amazing to have a room where kids can go nuts-O and be removed from the rest of us. Thank you family (and Amanda) for coming, and especially thank you Julia!!!!

Miriam, Madison and Marcus decorated the cupcakes. I am going to make the darling groundhog ones for her actual birthday (for just Darin Miriam and I), but since this party was a week before groundhogs day it just seemed a little silly. I focused the camera on the cupcakes rather than on Miriam in the candle blowing pictures (ARGH) I made the same mistake last year.

We just had candy dripping cupcakes (yuck) and fruit for the eats. We went out for Chinese later that evening (thank you mom!).

Last picture of the day, Miriam in the costume Grandma and Grandpa bought her (with matching shoes and crown). She pranced around the studio while the other kids were whacking each other with punch balls. She couldn't take her eyes off the mirrors and kept saying "I look beauuuutiful!". My mom told us later that on the way home Marcus said "That was a wonderful party Miriam" and a few minutes later Miriam said "That was a nice party." So my two goals for the party were achieved. #1 I didn't have to babysit anyone else's kids and #2 the kids had a wild and crazy time without destroying anyones home (the studio is made for rough play).

Toxic Bubbles

While perusing the dollar store for quirky nonsense to send my brother in Brazil (along with some necessities), I came upon these toxic plastic bubbles. I remember Kristi posting awhile back about how much fun her girls had with them so I picked up a pack. I was quite excited about the fun Mark would have until Darin reminded me that you can't send flammable material through the mail. DRATS! So we had a fun Family Home Evening with them. We don't recommend the glow in the dark ones. They are much more fragile than the regular ones, and don't really glow in the dark.




I picked up Angelina's Baby Sister to give to Miriam when the baby is born. We have the baby Polly doll and stroller (perhaps carriage or pram is a better word? It is a British book after all) to give along with it. I am guessing that Miriam will have a bit of a struggle when the baby comes. She is very excited, and will be a wonderful helper, but she is use to having all my attention everyday (except for an hour of quiet play time...which I am struggling to enforce). Does anyone have any other good book ideas for big sisters? Actually, I am open to all suggestions and ideas to help Miriam with the transition. Help!

100 Things you never asked to know about me

#1 My name Elisa, (long E sound and then Lisa together) comes from my Dad's mission to Denmark, but the only Elisas I know are Mexican and Italian.

#2 I have a nightly nose cleaning ritual because I HATE when my nose whistles as I breath.

#3 The baby boy I am carrying has a 50% chance of being color blind.

#4 I am a VERY light sleeper (see #2).

#5 I served a mission to Boston Massachusetts

#6 My mission president was Dale Murphy, I had no idea who he was until my call (Major League baseball player).
#7 I graduated from Dixie College, The College of Eastern Utah, and the University of Utah, I should have a masters from all that time but my highest degree is a Bachelors.#8 I have three unrelated degrees, Travel and Tourism/Marketing from Dixie, just plain Associate of Arts from CEU and Bachelors degree in Exercise and Sport Science from the U.

#9 I seem confident on the outside, but am very hesitant and insecure on the inside.

#10 I have been para sailing, river rafting, and ridden few a zip lines. I think I missed my bungee chord window, I am not as adventurous these days.

#11 I have had a passport for 10 years (I think it expires this year) and have never been outside the country (except for Mexico).

#12 I have the habit of spreading myself too thin and as a result, don't feel I give my best to anything.

#13 I was on the tennis and swim teams in high school.

#14 I don't like to play games where people chase me, try to grab or take things from me, or depend on me too much. (notice I played sports where people were separated from me by some kind of barrier.)

#15 I was a "Makeup counter girl" for Elizabeth Arden during college.

#16 I over explain myself (as shown by this list...I can't make a statement and let it go).

#17 I prefer games of chance over games of strategy or skill ie. spoons as opposed to chess.

#18 I giggle and laugh in stressful situations (drives Darin nuts).

#19 I have been the pedestrian in an auto/pedestrian accident.

#20 The first time I met my husband I went home and told my mom "The cutest boy from New Hampshire just moved here". He vaguely remembers I was the girl wearing a red shirt.

#21 I was a Homecoming queen.

#22 I am BAD at math.

#23 I am GREAT at reading comprehension, unless it involves math.

#24 My two favorite classes in college were genetics and anatomy.

#25 I have ridden in a wolf helicopter, driven a tank and an army hummer.

#26 I twist my hair around my finger and brush it across my upper lip. I have tried to stop many times.

#27 I have a face I make when I look in the mirror (squinty eyed pursed lips), I know people don't believe me but I can not help it. Ask Darin, I have to really concentrate to stop it from happening. I have received so much harassment over it from sisters, roommates, companions and now Darin I would stop if I could.

#28 I LOVE hot chocolate.

#29 I have shot an M-16.

#30 I don't want any pets ever.

#31 I will allow a pet if my child needed it for emotional reasons.

#32 I am emotional.

#33 I am not good at confrontations (see above) and use avoidance rather than deal with unpleasantnesses. Bad habit.

#34 I love learning about healthy living.

#35 I love Dr. Andrew Weil, if I were to become a Dr. I would study osteopathic medicine under him (provided I could ever get accepted).
#36 I also love junk food and pop.

#37 I avoid Walmart and fast food if possible.

#38 I try to eat and buy from locally owned restaurants and stores.

#39 I worked nights and/or early mornings at a gas station.

#40 My main duty in that job was to stock beer.

#41 I am terrified of being accused of something I didn't do.

#42 I love J.Crew and Ann Taylor clothing but I have a Jo-Lo/BabyPhat body.

#43 I think I have a great clavicle.

#44 I haven't come to terms with my short muscular legs and thick calves.

#45 I have an overactive imagination.

#46 On a date while watching a scary movie, I became convinced that said date was going to kill me...that kind of overactive imagination.

#47 I love trying new foods, and learning about different cultures and religions.

#48 I was in student government all 3 years of high school and 2 years of Dixie college.

#49 I only listen to world news on the Classical 89 radio station because they broadcast the BBC and the British accent makes it seem less intense.

#50 I have never really been into classical music but I am currently in love with Classical 89.

#51 I have driven up an off ramp.

#52 I love pearls.

#53 I love being surrounded by moutains. They display the changing seasons so well. While in Mass I always felt semi lost without my majestic landmarks.

#54 I love seafood

#55 I don't really like to eat mammals. A little hamburger or roast once in awhile but thats it for me.

#56 Exceptions to above rule, Craig's ribs, and Gyros.

#57 I love to find good bargains.

#58 I don't like to HAVE to look for bargains.

#59 I love maps, globes, and atlases.

#60 I was in New York during the Blackout of 2002.

#61 I am obsessive about my daughter, I am hoping having a second baby will bring more balance into my life.

#62 My greatest fear is that Darin or one of my children will die.

#63 I have eaten pigs blood (I was told it was "chocolate sauce.")

#64 Darin and I made (designed, created in wax, and then cast in gold) each others wedding rings. Darin's idea, not mine I never would have thought of it, let alone thought I could do it.

#65 Darin is my best male friend, my mom is my best female friend.

#66 My sisters and I go in and out of friendship phases becoming closer or more distant, but at the end of the day I would do anything for them.

#67 I love to read, but when I am reading a good book I put everything on hold until I finish it, so I can't always be reading a good book or nothing else would get done.

#68 I am a yellow personality - motivated by fun and pleasure

#69 I listen to books on CD while I clean, it's the only way I can get through it.

#70 I collect charms when I travel.

#71 I have been to the following concerts: The Cure, Creedence Clearwater, Peter Brienholt/Ryan Shupe, and Everclear (it was free).

#72 I love pictures, I take a ton, and look at them over and over and over, never get tired of it.

#73 I like demolition derbies.

#74 I have kissed an almost stranger on a cruise (before I was married) just for a Love Boat experience. I was disappointed.

#75 I won $25 the first time I put $0.25 in a slot machine.

#76 I was engaged once before Darin, and I get physically ill when I think of the mistake I almost made.

#77 This list has taken me 3 days so far.

#78 I went to DEX Nationals in college.

#79 I was the Dixie College Marketing Student of the Year.

#80 I like to make jewelry, but don't do it often.

#81 Darin and I sleep on a full size mattress that is at least as old as we are.

#82 While in labor with my first child, my water broke all over my husbands shoes.

#83 I love black boots with a modest heel, and slightly tapered toe.

#84 I love penny loafers, black & shiny

#85 I want to visit Iceland, Denmark, Greece, and the Philippines.

#89 I go somewhere with my daughter every single day (storytime, Joy School, playgroup, the mall, etc) I can't stay home, I would go insane.

#90 I was proposed to while on my mission, by a 50 year old man who offered me "security".

#91 I love Sonic ice and buy it by the bag.

#92 I want to move away from Utah at some point, but I get sad when I think of my whole family being here without me.

#93 I am a small town girl.

#94 I love sledding, snowmobiling, and I love to ski when someone else is paying for the ticket.

#95 My faith is such a part of me, my history and my heritage I just can't imagine where or who I would be without it.

#96 I voice my opinion too much and too often. I don't think enough before I speak.

#97 I don't often get offended at others opinions because I assume that like me, they are just expressing current thoughts and views. It might change, and it doesn't affect me.

#98 I don't mind when people misspell things, make grammar mistakes, or mispronounce anything. It's the least I can do since I do all three on a regular basis. In fact, I rarely even notice.

#99 I LOVE weddings. I still read wedding magazines, and think of wedding ideas. When my dad was bishop (I believe I was like 7-13 yrs old) I went to all the ward receptions with him that I could, my mom preferred to stay home.

#100 I have the ability to make myself happy which I feel is my greatest blessing. I loved high school, I loved college, I loved my mission, I loved being a dirt poor newlywed, and I love being a young mother. None of these times in my life were perfect, or even what I had imagined or dreamed of, but I can find happiness in the little things.

I'm working on it....

I am still working on my 100 list. I am stuck at #94 and am drawing a blank. I think I need another day.

In other news....Miriam's birthday is on Groundhog's Day and I found cute groundhog cupcakes to make for her birthday. Miriam isn't in love with these and wants to decorate her own princess/ballerina cupcakes. So we will have some of each.

Here are her birthday cupcakes from last year. I am diggin' the cupcake thing, and love this stand I bought (at Michaels). They always turn out cute and are so easy to make thanks to Martha Stewart Kids and Family Fun.

I was looking at my wrinkles the other day and was reminded of a girl I use to work with in cosmetics at ZCMI. She had porcelain skin with very faint freckles and red hair. She worked Clinque but they didn't have a foundation fair enough for her skin so she had to cross brands (gasp!) and wear Lancome. She worked all day and only went outside to swim, hike or exercise at night. The first day I met her she said "hummmm, you've got sun damage at 19, you'll be hating life by 30". I don't know if I am mad at her for being right about the sun damage, or if I feel sad about her life of darkness. I love the feeling of sun on my skin. Does anyone have a great moisturizer recommendation??

Grandmothers

Yesterday was the day both of my Grandmothers were born. They both passed away a few years ago, but their memory is fresh in my mind thanks to the Christmas gift of photos my parents gave us. I look at these pictures and can't believe the impact these two women have had on my life. Their teachings, idiosyncrasies, habits, interests, beliefs, and views were passed to my parents and then to me. Their genes are in me, the bad with the good.

These women are two of my heroes. They made mistakes, had ideas I didn't agree with, but I strongly believe that they made the most out of the cards life dealt them. In the end isn't that the most we can do? Take what life gives us and do our very best?

Both of my Grandmas were considered beauties (Grandma Alice on the left, Grandma Edna on the right), which I wholeheartedly agree with. I wish I could find more of my features in each one, but I think I am mostly a mix of my Grandpas (which is not a bad thing either...I'm just sayin). They both took care of themselves and dressed well. My Grandma Alice was very proper and modest, and wore quality clothing. She wore a lot of Pendelton and I always think of her when I see that brand. My Grandma Edna was raised on a farm, but she made the decision that as a woman she would not work outdoors in the sun. As far as I know she never did. She took special care of her skin, nails and hair. She didn't go outdoors without a hat and a long sleeve shirt. Grandma Edna had lots of shoes, clothing, make-up, and self care products. It may have been excessive, but she always looked elegant and put together.

Both of my Grandmothers were intelligent, but in very different ways. I believe they both excelled in school but had different interests. Grandma Alice loved history, poetry, literature and writing. She introduced me to so many books I love, Pride and Prejudice, Willa Cather books, Jane Eyre. My grandfather was interested in geology and became a rock hound so they both took classes in that subject together. My grandma was always the best student in the class, although the subject may have not been her first choice. I didn't realize how much education meant to her until after her death. Every time me or one of my siblings (or cousins if the paper had been sent to her) received any kind of award, but especially academic awards she cut it out and saved it. It made me weep thinking of her saving those scraps of paper all those years when I couldn't have cared less. It made me wish I would have tried harder to get high honors just for her rather than be satisfied with honors. She also kept journals which have been so fun to read. My Grandpa was pretty sick with arthritis by the time I have memories of him. In most of my memories he is cranky (I didn't realize he was on high doses of morphine for the pain, or I would have cut him more slack). Through these journals I have a clearer picture of how clever, and silly he could be. I also feel the love she had for us grandkids. That is priceless to me. Grandma Alice could recognize bird calls, always found ladybugs for us, LOVED her garden and usually had homemade pickles in the summertime. She loved humming birds.

I am sure Grandma Edna did well in school too, but she seemed more street smart to me. She had a plaque in her home that said something like "Act like a lady, think like a man, and work like a dog" and I really think that was her personal credo. She worked full time as a secretary, had four children, made most of her own and her children's clothing, kept house, and had meals on the table. You have to be very efficient, motivated, and organized to accomplish that. In her later years she because an amazing quilter and has won many awards. My whole life, I have no memories of her ever giving me advice. I remember her listening to me smiling, laughing at my nonsense, but never giving her opinion. This is one of my favorite memories about her...her saying nothing at all. I always had the feeling that she liked me and would love me no matter how I turned out. As a parent, we are required to give advice and fret over how children turn out, but I as a grandparent I hope I can be what Grandma Edna was. Just a person who loves them while they battle life out for themselves. Grandma was great at card games and Chinese checkers, twiddled her thumbs, took aerobics or swam for as long as I can remember and also loved humming birds.

It's a BOY!

We FINALLY had our ultrasound today and there was no doubt about it. We are having a boy. My poor son, I hope he doesn't have issues from me posting his boy parts on my blog, but this shot is just too funny. This was the first shot the technician got of our little guy. In fact this is what came up when she placed the ultrasound thingy on my belly. She started laughing, and then of course we were all laughing. Miriam laughed along with us, but was neither here nor there with the news. When asked what she would call him she responded "The ferocious beast" so I guess thats it.

Darin and I both thought it might be a boy. Me because this pregnancy was so different; heartburn, digestion problems, gas. I figured these unladylike problems had to be coming from a male. Darin was suspicious because in the beginning, before all food made me sick, I was eating Costco hotdogs, and meatballs like they were going out of style. I craved them all the time, and now I can't even pass the Costco food court without feeling nauseous. I am not a meat-eater by nature so this was very uncharacteristic behavior for me. I am embarrassed to admit how many times Miriam and I ate lunch at Costco.

This picture is for Darin's family. Darin believes he may have the "Gee nose". It sure looks prominent. I don't mind at all, I hope he looks just like his daddy.

We are very excited, but would have been if it had been a girl too. It just seems so much more real now, especially for Darin since he doesn't feel the movements all day. It's fun to know who is coming to our home:)

On another note
Happy Birthday Kristi! I have looked up to Kristi from the moment I understood what a cousin was. I wore Esprit clothes, had a swatch watch, listened to Duran Duran, watched Pretty in Pink, and Some Kind of Wonderful (in the 6th grade) all because I believed she was the coolest person on this planet. One summer, I believe I was 6 or 7, Kristi's family came to visit but she couldn't come. I think it was because of girls camp. I was heartbroken when I found out, but she had her mom give me a letter written just for me, with stickers and a picture in it. I was elated, it was a highlight of my whole summer. Isn't that such a cool thing for a 12 (maybe 13, 14??) year old to do for a little cousin? Thats just how Kristi is, and I continue to believe she is one of the coolest people on this planet. I admire you so much Kristi. Thanks for letting me tag along all those years.

New Year's Wrap up

We spent New Year's at my parents cabin with my parents and sisters (Sarah & Julia). Once again Miriam was the only kid there (except for a day when Julia's sister-in-law and kids came up to sled) so Miriam was spoiled with attention. She loves her Aunts and Grandparents and will go to them anytime (Uncles have to work harder for the love). She has been experiencing major holiday letdown and has been saying things like "my tummy misses my grandma", "I don't want to live here anymore", and "isn't anyone coming to our house today?". Last night she sat in her bed calling out for us until around 11:00 pm due to sleep schedule interruptions over the last 2 weeks. Tonight, as the same scenario was playing out she told Darin "It's going to be a long night...I don't feel like sleeping". Can you believe those words came out of an almost 3 year old?? Luckily, I have sympathy for her because I am feeling the same way. I want my mom and sisters around to entertain me and Miriam. This is so typical of me. I always feel this way after the holidays. Just as everyone else is raring to go with their New Years Resolutions, I am dragging my feet back to the daily grind.

We did have a nice time at the cabin. Sledding, watching movies, eating, playing games, eating, snowmobiling, eating, talking around the fire, reading (I finished Mrs. Mike and LOVED it-Thanks Lara!), and eating some more. We played this new game called the Ungame which is very interesting. It's a good game to create communication in families. It's probably used a lot in the social work field. Miriam isn't in love with sledding, or snowmobiling, but she was willing to go along with it. Julia is quite daring (although not as much as her husband) so she sleds faster than I do. When she was taking Miriam down a hill lined with trees, Miriam said "Why are we doing this? It looks dangerous." Poor Miriam everyone laughed and put her in the sled. I am not very daring either, but I am so glad I was exposed to things like sledding, and snow/water skiing early on. I remember my dad getting exasperated with me as I whimpered down a ski slope, but I was always so proud of myself afterwards. I think it gave me the courage to try things later on I wouldn't have otherwise. Hopefully that is what we are doing for Miriam rather than scarring her for life.


This is a picture for Grandma C. and Grandpa B. This is the dress they gave her for Christmas. She received so many oohs and ahhs over this outfit on New Years Eve. There is a little LDS branch(small church) in the town near my parents cabin. I love going to church there as it is almost always a simple sweet service.


Here is my mom spoiling Miriam. She watched Strawberry Shortcake and Barbie Mermaidia with Miriam while the rest of us watched Napoleon Dynamite downstairs. Thanks again for the memories Mom and Dad!