First Christmas Moments

Messiah singing

best gift ever

presents

cousins

Happy Christmas

Christmas Card Moments

Maybe if I had sent out Christmas cards this year, this is what you would have seen...

Much Love and Merry Christmas

from our little family, to yours!

Gingerbread Moments

This year, we had 3 opportunities to make gingerbread houses.

We tend to get multiple opportunities every year, which is pretty fun. We like to be creative and try new things.

A tree on the roof...why not?

And with all the years we have been doing this, we have never broken a house...until this year.

 Let's just say the timing was unfortunate as I turned to walk out the door and Tyler lifted his arm to wave goodbye. Honestly, it was almost just as much fun to break the house as it was to build it. I couldn't stop laughing about it.

Master Moments

Tyler successfully completed his MBA this month, and we couldn't be more excited. I am so proud of him for all the work and time he put into this program, all while still working full time. He does so much for us! To celebrate, he wanted to get a steak at one of our favorite places to eat: Maddox.
Congratulations, sweetheart!

Full Moments

Well, we survived our first holiday family-visiting marathon with a baby. I'll be honest, it was a little more exhausting than I expected it to be, but we still had a great day. We started off with the Human Race 5K, then Tyler filled our apartment with the amazing smell of sweet potatoes and brown sugar baking in the oven before we left to go eat and see our families.

Baby just wanted to eat his hands for Thanksgiving...

I think we've decided that Thanksgiving is pretty much our favorite holiday. It's possible that we are somewhat swayed by the food aspect of the day, because we definitely love food around here...But there is more to it than that. There is something about the simpleness of Thanksgiving that makes it so great. The focus of the day is getting full with delicious food and thinking about how your life is full of blessings, all while spending time with people that you love and care about. We decided we are just less stressed on Thanksgiving, and maybe that's because it is easier to enjoy the moments, the food, and the company, without worrying about gifts or anything like that.

This year, I am especially thankful for my own little family. I know every parent says this, but we can't believe how much our little guy is already changing and growing.
He is definitely a blessing in our lives!

Blurry Moments

He's a wiggle-worm.

Quiet Halloween Moments

It is snowing right now, so I thought that maybe I should blog about Halloween and other fall festivities before winter decides to stay for good! Halloween celebrating was pretty quiet and low-key for us this year, but we still had a lot of fun. Somehow I don't think it will stay so quiet in the years to come...

We painted this pumpkin at a family party. You are cool if you know who it is...

The corn maze has become a bit of a tradition. This year we discovered if you go after Halloween it is much less crowded!

All bundled up for the maze!

Tigger

Love that tail :)

Hiking & Biking Moments

We've really been enjoying the beautiful colors of this season, both up in the mountains and around our neighborhood.

Besides going on a few drives to see the leaves and help the baby sleep, we have also done a little hiking and biking. I had been missing the mountains and hiking a lot this summer, so it was fun to get out on a trail again. One of Tyler's sisters joined us and we had a great time hiking with her.

Baby's first hike!

The ruins of an old power plant up Little Cottonwood Canyon.

Tyler also recently tuned up his mountain bike, and after he told me about the beautiful trail he did in Corner Canyon, I decided I was ready to give mountain biking another try. I am really out of shape and had to take it pretty slow, but Tyler and another one of his sisters were super patient with me. They made it really fun even though I'm sure they wanted to go much faster. I'm so glad they helped me to stick with it because it felt so good to be active, and the trail was so beautiful.

Happy Fall!

Cousin Moments

I was very close with my cousins when I was growing up. My Mom and her 5 sisters all had babies within a 2 year period, so I had many cousins that were close to my age on that side of the family. We loved playing together at Granny's house when we were little, and hanging out as friends when we got older. I also have fond memories with my cousin on my Dad's side as well. It was so fun to grow up with them, and I still enjoy their company and friendship.

Me with the girl cousins close to my age, and their brothers. (I'm in the middle...and sorry about the underwear)

I'm excited that our kid will have a cousin his age on both sides of the family, and two fun older ones to look up to. He will get to meet his Boston cousins from my side in January!

His cousins on Tyler's side are also both boys, and they have already had some adventures together- including a fun trip to the zoo last week.

I think I loved this awesome polar bear exhibit as much as my nephew.

Hooray for cousins!

Diaper "Love" Moments

It was 4 in the morning, and with bleary eyes I picked up my baby and made my way to the changing table. I unzipped or unsnapped (who can remember which at such an hour...) his pajamas and got ready to change his diaper. But there is a message written on the front of the diaper that makes me stop for a moment. It says something along the lines of

"You are awesome for doing this."

It made me smile, even though this was the second or third time (who can remember which at such an hour...) during the night I had woken up to a face that looked something like this:

I thought about my family and friends who wrote messages on diapers for us at one of my showers. Some are just funny, while others are encouraging, like this one that told me I was awesome.

I finished changing his diaper and in that moment, I did feel awesome...especially since my baby's face now looked something more like this:

Special thanks to everyone for all the fun diapers. We enjoyed using up that package and reading all the notes. It certainly made changing time a little more exciting.
My favorite diaper? The one that said it was Tyler's turn, haha. :)

Having Fun Moments

A few years ago, I ran into one of my friends who had recently given birth to twins. When I asked how things were going, she said, "We are having a lot of fun!" Although I'm sure she was probably pretty tired, her answer was positive, upbeat, and sincere.

I have thought about her answer lately, and wondered if I could say the same thing. I mean, let's be honest, it can be pretty easy to get caught up in the hard aspects of taking care of a newborn. It's a pretty demanding job! I'll admit there are times for me when the sleep deprivation leads to grumpiness, and I forget to enjoy these moments... I forget to have fun with it all. So here's to the fun we've had so far, and to finding and making more fun moments in the future!

It makes things more fun to laugh at some of the crazy and challenging things that happen, like getting peed on in the middle of the night or burning dinner..again. As Marjorie Hinckley said: “The only way to get through life is to laugh your way through it. You either have to laugh or cry. I prefer to laugh. Crying gives me a headache.”

Sad sweet potato fries

It's fun to go out and do things as a family.

Our first official family outing at a yummy Hawaiin shaved ice stand.

Bear Lake on Labor Day

Tyler is saying "You will like this place!"

It's fun to go out and do things as a couple. (Thanks to very supportive family members who offer to babysit and make that possible!)

We loved this date night to see James Taylor and the Tab Choir!

It's fun to go do things with friends.

Baby's first walk with one of my good friends and her kids.

It's fun to wear red together. :)

Go Utes!

It's fun to see the little changes that happen every day.

We are on the lookout for his cute smile!

Life Changing Moments

We knew that having a baby would bring some changes to our lives. We both watched our younger sisters become parents, and have had other experiences with babies, so we at least had an idea of what to expect.  But it has been an interesting learning adventure to actually experience those changes with our own child.

Some of the changes have been a bit of an adjustment for us... like the change in our sleeping habits, for instance. We are all learning how to function with varying amounts of sleep.

 I am personally working on the whole "sleep when he sleeps" thing...

 

Leaving the house also takes a bit more effort than before, but we are learning that a little fresh air is worth it and good for everyone. Plus he tends to do well in his car seat, so long as the car is moving. 

Another big change for me has been my change in jobs. I went from being a part-time (and then some) teacher to an all-the-time mom. Time has been moving at a completely different pace than before, dictated by feedings and naps instead of a set work schedule. Sometimes it feels slow, and yet he already seems to be growing so fast. I am learning to define my new role and purpose, and to enjoy all the moments I get to look at this cute face.

Really, these adjustments in our day-to-day lives are minor and insignificant and in some cases, temporary. As he grows, they will be replaced by new changes, and that is the nature of life. We grow and learn and create a new sense of normal as we adapt to each change. Right now, I am creating my "new mom normal." I may not be accomplishing as many tangible things during the day or sleeping as much as I would like, but my work is full of wonder and joy and love as I watch this little one grow and develop.

Somewhere along this journey of making these changes on the surface of my life, I realized that they are indicative of a much deeper and more meaningful change.  My dad once told me about what it was like when I was born and he became a parent for the first time. He said that it was hard for him and my mom to know beforehand exactly how their lives would change, but then once I was here they suddenly couldn't imagine life without me. I'm sure they felt that way each time one of my siblings came and their family changed again.

I don't think we could have anticipated how deeply this boy would change our hearts. I can't imagine going back to life without this little man. He has only been here a short while, but I feel like I will never be the same. And I wouldn't have it any other way. I am incredibly grateful that he is here- forever changing our lives.