Foh-to's

Ok, so here's the dilemma:

Hailey is poopy. I know she is, I can smell it. But I also know because she is happy and content and perfectly fine playing by herself right now and I can even walk out of the room for a second and she doesn't even notice! How do I know that means she's poopy? Because that's how it is every morning.

So the dilemma....I know I'm an awful mom, but if I change her, I just know she's going to hate me and get clingy again. Do I revel in this peace and quiet for just a little bit longer while I let her sit in her filth? Or do I sacrifice my "Me" time and her happiness and just change the darn diaper??

I know what the obvious answer is, but it still doesn't mean I want to do it...

Anyway! Foh-to's! Aka Photographs, which, by the way, one of the greatest stories I've ever heard about naivety, or something, was back in the day when photographs were still new and obscure. This young man was traveling to Utah. He was stopped at the border of somewhere and was asked if he had any pornography. The young man immediately replied, "How could I? I don't even own a pornograph!" Don't we wish our boys could be as unexposed to pornography as this sweet boy was?

And now to the photos!

Birthday!

Camera settings were wacky, so picture is blurry.

My dad's been gone on the road a lot, so with Jenn's new iPad mini(!) we Facetimed and even took a picture together!

I love birthday cakes, but I especially love Hailey's face in this!

I saw this on Pinterest...

Homemade lunchable. I loved it!

Diner.

Do you ever stop and think about the diner sometimes? Like how so much of our life was spent putting this thing together and then now it's gone? I'm not saying this in a bitter way, I'm just saying that the other day as I drove past the diner, I got into thinking about it again.

Like do you ever think about how when, in the future, it may open again as a different restaurant, and we'll walk in there as customers and say to the people behind the counter: "Did you know that my dad built this counter?" And they'll say: "Really?" And you'll just say, "Yeah, he did."

And then you'll say, "My husband laid that floor. My brother painted that wall. My sister hung those pictures. My mom kept this place cleaned to perfection. Do you have any idea how much work was really put into making this place come alive? I'll bet you have no idea. But I hope you appreciate it. Someday, I hope that wherever you are, you'll stop to think about why you are there and how you got there and who it was that made their sacrifices so that you can enjoy whatever it is that you're enjoying there. Because sometimes you just never know what really happened behind the scenes to make this thing possible."

So anyway. That's all my train of thought really was. Nellie's. Like I said, I'm not bitter or too sad. I just don't think it's a place you can ever think of again without some sort of nostalgia, but also without some sort of pride. This place that love built - we'll never be the same because of it. And I love the Lord for giving us this gift for such a short while.

Hooray for Memories.

Greatest Birthday Ever!

This year was probably one of the best birthdays by far! It's not really that I did anything special, which I did actually, but I think it was because I actually had something to find a reprieve from instead of just doing same-old every year. I love my daughter, but a day away from mommy-hood and focusing on just me was probably the greatest thing I could have ever asked for. I also have a {wonderful} husband who so dutifully watched her while I went about and pampered and shopped myself to oblivion.

That being said, I loved my birthday this year! It started out by sleeping in (great as always!). I did do a little cleaning, because I can't enjoy my birthday in a messy house. After that, Hailey and I took Scott to class and hung out at my parents while he learned about aviation history. When Scott got out, he took Hailey and off I went for the next three hours. I got a pedicure with my sister, Jenn. Then I went to the mall and got my eyebrows {threaded}! Coolest thing ever! I love it, but I just wish it was just a little bit cheaper because I would totally do it more often. I shopped around a little bit, then headed off to my favorite store ever - {Hobby Lobby} - where I got to stare at yarn and even buy some with my birthday giftcard!

Anyway, I had a lot of fun just spending time by myself. It was a very nice reprieve from my normal responsibilities.

Then we left Hailey with Grandma Benson and Scott and I headed out to dinner and a movie. We haven't been to a movie in sooooo long! And by the way, Tuesday nights are cheap nights @Cinnemark theatre in Orem University Mall. We saw "Les Mis" !! Dare I write a review on that? :) It was so good!

And now I am {24} and starting a new year of life. I remember thinking when I was a teenager that being 20-anything was so old, and now here I am, almost halfway through. I love it. I love being a wife and mom. I love everything about my life and am truly grateful for every opportunity of growth and wonder.

Sisters, Part 2

It's hard to write this post without first saying this: I love ALL my sisters very equally and very dearly. That being said, each sister has a unique relationship with myself and with each other. There is always going to be something one sister can do that the other can't fill. We are all special in our own way, and together as a whole, we are the best of friends. So again, I love all my sisters very much, but today I would like to take a moment and highlight on one of them in particular.

Candice and I have always had a special friendship. But then again, Candice has always had a special friendship with each of our siblings. She was always known as the peacemaker. As a kid, she had a crooked smile and such a kind heart. Even now as an adult, she is always there with a shoulder ready for you.

Somewhere in our past when we were young, we started calling each other "Oy". We have no clue where this came from, but for some reason it stuck. We even made up our own special handshake. Only our family calls us "Oy", and we have each other as "Oy" in our phones. If you are given permission to call the other "Oy", then you are very special to us indeed. Jk, it's not that serious, but it is a very tender nickname we hold for each other.

We've always loved singing together. Always. More often than not, she would just come up to me and say, "Let's sing!" and so we would go over to the piano and pick out songs that have a duet or a pretty harmony. I would always play and sing the melody, and she would always harmonize over top or underneath. I loved that time together.

Now as adults, we've been lucky enough to work for the same company. That means we get to talk all the time. She even stops by my house after work on her days when she is down this way, and it's our special time together to bond and hang out. Often she'll stay for dinner, because she's just as close with my husband as she is with me. And we always talk and talk.

My favorite thing about Candice is that we can call each other up to hang out when really all we mean is "Let's just meet at my house and we'll just read, or crochet, or make lunch or dinner." We don't have to be doing anything, really, to just enjoy hanging out together.

The other night, she came by after work and planned to leave so she could go work out. My husband came home from work and convinced her to stay for dinner. After we ate, I started on the dishes and she just automatically came in and started helping. Right away, we started singing. We went through all our old songs and then some, just singing and harmonizing while we did the dishes. I loved it! I will always cherish that memory.

Oy, if you read this, I love you! Thank you for being one of my best friends. I have loved growing closer to you over the past little while. And Oy, if you are reading this, know that you are a good girl. Good things can and will happen to you. All you need to do is put your trust and faith 100% in God and He will pour out blessings so much that you literally won't have room enough! Keep on trucking - you're almost there!

Oh, and Oy..."Oy-oy! Oyoyoy! Huh!"

Roommates Forever

There are some people that come into your life that you just know you were meant to be best friends with. I think some of these people in my life are my roommates from college. We got together last Saturday for dinner and fun. We even watched some old movies from college. Boy were we a hyper bunch back then! I wish everyone could have been there that night. I love these girls so much and am so glad we live close by that we can see each other!!

Stacy Trinh, Nancy Benson, Shadie Bigelow

Crazy Crazy!

2012: Picture a Month

Janurary:

32 weeks pregnant and we went to go visit Tom in San Diego the day before he deployed to Afghanistan.

February:

We welcomed our beautiful daughter Hailey into the world.

March:

We brought Hailey home from the NICU and I began my journey of taking care of a new born at home.

April:

We bought Hailey's first dress and took her to Church for the first time on Easter.

May:

We finally ventured out into the world again and took Hailey to the air show at Hill AFB. I also returned back to work.

June:

(This month gets two pictures)

Scott's best friend got married and we blessed Hailey in the dress her Grandma Benson crocheted. Scotty also got his pilots license!

July:

We said both Hello and Goodbye to a diner that will forever change our lives.

August:

I really started crocheting more and fell in love with it all over again. Hailey also turned 6 months!

September:

Hailey really started moving around getting stronger.

October:

We celebrated my favorite holiday and dress Hailey up as a flamingo!

November:

We took Hailey to Disneyland for the first time!

December:

Celebrated our very first, wonderful Christmas together.

2012 has been so good to us. I appreciated the challenges and am ready to look forward to a new year. I am excited to see what 2013 has to offer!

By the Christmas Tree

So since I failed to take a nice Christmas picture of Hailey by the tree with her presents in her cute Christmas outfit, these will just have to do! I love her happy little smile!

10 Months Old

Where is the time going?? I thought I just barely had a tiny little 5lb baby in my arms, and now she is 10 months old and getting herself all around the house!

Hailey turned 10 months old a few days after her first Christmas. She is getting so big! She loves to jabber and sing. She can pull herself up with anything, and she likes to get up high on her knees by herself. I won't be surprised when she starts standing on her own soon. Her hair is so incredibly long and I really need to look into getting it cut. She has started wearing shirts over her onesies, which totally makes her look like a big girl. She hates wearing shoes/socks and will always pull them off. She loves anything cloth and will immediately stick it in her mouth to suck/chew. She also loves to get into Daddy's video game cupboard and pull out every case. And she loves to stick EVERYTHING in her mouth. No new teeth yet, but hopefully those are coming soon.

She got sick so we took her in again. She had still not gained anything from the last month. 13lbs 2oz and I was getting a little frustrated. So I started a rigorous feeding routine that included lots of fatty egg yolk, fatty avocados, cereal, and cheese. And guess what! I worked! We took her in just 2 weeks later for her cough, and after eating an egg every day, she had gained a whole pound and a half!!! Scott's mom says she finally feels like a baby! I am so so happy, and so glad that I didn't have to resort to butter to make her gain. There are much healthier fats out there, and I am glade they worked for Hailey. I'm starting to feed Hailey a lot more table food and only buy the jars just to have on hand when I'm either lazy/busy or didn't give her enough protein throughout the day. She loves the eggs, she loves avocado, bananas, and really anything she can eat with her hands.

Most especially, she loves her dolly that she got for Christmas. She will smile so big and start laughing when she sees her and she will hug very tightly any part of the doll that is in her arms. Every little girl ought to have their very own doll!

And soon she will be a year old and we will have a fun birthday party! Hooray!

Christmas!

I loved Christmas this year. It was probably a combination of having Hailey, the snow, and an early start listening to Christmas music that put me in the right mood for Christmas time. I am so happy that we finally had a white Christmas. I don't care what anyone else says about the cold and the snow, but I love it. I would take single-digit weather and snow any day, so long as I have my warm house and a husband to turn into!

I also loved this season because I really got to focus extra on really why we celebrate Christmas, and how it's not really what the Savior did at the beginning of His life that we love, but rather what He did at the end of it that we celebrate His birth so sacredly.

Hailey got sick right before Christmas with a cough, and somehow she managed to pass it along to me. I took half a dose of Nyquil on Christmas Eve, enough to get some rest, but I thought not enough to keep me out for hours on end. I was totally wrong! Scott had to drag me out of bed to open presents. I got worst-mom-of-the-year award because I did not take a single picture of Hailey with any of her presents on her very first Christmas! I did take some video, though, so that'll have to suffice.

After presents and breakfast (sausage egg "mcmuffins" - totally starting a new tradition!), I was out again. It took about 12 hours for the medicine to be completely out of my system, but it was good because that meant we got a nice relaxing morning at home.

We went to see Grandpa Septon who got a few days off to spend home with us, and we Skyped with our Marine MP, Tom. He comes home soon! After that, we spent the rest of the evening with Scott's family. It was a very nice Christmas together.

Hailey got so spoiled this year! Clothes, toys, hair bows, furry boots, TWO winter coats, I think this girl got it all. Her very favorite gift, though, is her baby doll. I knew I wanted to get her a doll for Christmas, and I'm so glad I did. She only smiled for one present (and not just the wrapping paper), and that was her baby. She loves her baby so much!

Presents under the tree.

Hailey fell asleep on the way up to visit her Grandparents.

Getting to see Grandpa Septon and chatting with Tom on Skype!

Displaying our David Tennant Dr Who shirts loud and proud!

I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and that you got to spend it with the ones you love!