Andy & Shar

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-29T21:55:00.004-07:00

We had a great Christmas again this year! The girls have really been into the whole Santa thing this time and it's been fun to watch the magic of the season through their young eyes. When asked what they wanted Santa to bring them this year Brooklyn would say "a konkin baby" (a talking baby), and Kenna would say "a black baby". Not sure where the black baby thing came from, but I think it's super cute! Of course Santa came through big time (as usual) and they were both thrilled to see their new babies on Christmas morning. Brooklyn started feeling sick on Christmas Eve, so she was a lot more mellow than usual throughout all of the festivities. But Kenna was having the time of her life! Watching her on Christmas morning with her new babies and baby accessories made every hard moment as a mother so worth it. Man, I love those girls. Tess wasn't quite as spoiled, because let's be honest... she has no idea what's going on. She did get spoiled by cousins and grandmas though, so she was a happy camper!

Along with all the commercial hype of Christmas, we tried again this year to focus on what matters most and did our best to share that feeling with our kids. They were excited that it was Jesus's birthday and that we were celebrating because of Him. During this holiday season, more than ever, I am so grateful for the gospel and for the blessings it brings into my life. I'm so grateful for my little family. Andy and those three cute girls make life worth living.

So, Merry Christmas y'all! Until next year... Oh, and on that sad note... I've been trying to explain to my girls for the past couple days that Santa won't be back to visit again for a very long time, a whole year... and they don't seem to be grasping the concept. Actually, it really seems to be upsetting them. So... uh, oh well. I guess we'll just have to make every day Christmas at our house! :)

Halloween 2011

2011-11-06T22:52:00.004-07:00

Just thought I'd share a few cute pictures from our fun Halloween adventures! We hit up the mall, Lee's, downtown shops, Kimber's neighborhood, and ended it all at Grandma Davis' house!! It really was a great day and the girls LOVED every minute of it! Who wouldn't though. Duh, you get to eat all the candy you can handle for one whole day. What's not to love? Actually, I think Kenna had a few candies too many because Andy said she barfed a little on his shirt as we were headed in from our last round of trick-or-treating. Ha ha! Gotta love it.

My Big Girls

2011-11-02T16:37:00.005-06:00

You know that day that comes all too quickly when all of a sudden you realize that your babies aren't babies anymore? Well that day has sadly come and gone for me. It seems like just in the past few months alone my girls have grown up SO much. I guess it's not ALL bad though. Growing up (especially with twins, I think) is a bitter/sweet thing. I definitely miss my tiny sweet babies, but I love that they are becoming more and more independent every day. It makes life a lot easier on me. :)

It all started with potty training (which they rocked at by the way). I only remember one or two days of frustration and then they had it down. I was actually going to wait until they were closer to three years old, but they were showing major signs of readiness... such as finding a quiet corner, squatting, AND even pulling their own pants down when they had to go. So I figured if they are already doing most of the work, we might as well just learn to let it loose in a toilet instead of a diaper, right? And can I just say how much I am LOVING the fact that I have decreased my diaper changing moments by two thirds?! Yay for us! I'm so proud of my smart little girlies. :)

Shortly after switching from diapers to undies, we realized that it was time to say goodbye to the binkies as well. I knew that the transition would go much smoother if my girls knew where their binkies were going. So I came up with a brilliant plan! We wrapped them up all nice and took them to my friend's brand new baby girl. It was so sweet to see my girls give up something they love so much to somebody who needed it more than they did. That's how we explained it to them anyway, and they were so brave. Now when we put them in bed every night they remind us, "I don't need my binkie anymore, cuz I'm a big girl. Baby London has my binkie now and she is so happy." So cute!

Other than these two big transitions, they have also started picking out what they want to wear (mostly Brooklyn), looking forward to going to nursery, talking a LOT more, having full on conversations on the phone, singing along to almost any song they've heard more than once, and helping me with Tess. Their new favorite thing to do is to copy everything I'm doing with Tess, with their babies. It is so cute! I love that they enjoy being little mommies. My favorite is when I catch them trying to get their babies to sleep. They rock/bounce them, sing soft songs, and say "shh shh". It melts my heart.

Yes, some days are stressful as I try my best to raise these beautiful little girls, but the good moments definitely outweigh the bad ones and I thank my Heavenly Father every night for blessing me with this sweet little family of mine. Oh! And by the way... my "baby" Tess is CRAWLING!!! Ahh! Make time stop please!! She is one that I would keep a baby FOREVER if I could. Tess is the sweetest, most perfect little munchkin and I can't believe that she is getting so big already too. Oh well. I guess that's just life, right? :)

I miss old people...

2011-09-02T15:39:00.003-06:00

Andy and I were finally able to make it to the temple the other night (thanks mom for watching our girls) and it was much needed. A peaceful couple of hours where I can relax, clear my head, ponder, reflect, and gain perspective. I always leave the temple with a new outlook on life and a new determination to be better. This time, though, along with all those things, I left the temple with an aching hole in my heart.

I miss my grandparents.

Today marks the one year anniversary of my Grandma Larsen's passing. I guess I hadn't realized it, but for the past year I haven't had any real conversation with anyone older than about 50. Seeing those cute little temple workers really brought back the pains I felt when I lost my grandma. I miss her and my grandpa so so much.

I miss their wisdom.
I miss their love.
I miss their guidance.
I miss hearing about and learning from their life experiences.
I miss their support.
I miss their praise and encouragement.

Basically, I feel as though they've left two tiny holes in my heart that can never and will never be filled in this life.

Maybe I should find a nursing home to visit every week to try to fill the void. I truly never thought life would be much different, let alone hard without any grandparents. But it is. I hope they both know how much I love and miss them. And how much I appreciate all that I've gained just by knowing them.

Love you to the sky and back, Grams & Gramps. 123.

Another fun summer!

2011-08-29T16:49:00.012-06:00

Here is a short recap of our summer activities this year...

We did a whole LOT of this.

A little bit of this.

And of course some of this.

A few days of this.

A semi-successful attempt at this.
(A family nature walk/hike with 2 two-year-old drama queens!)

And plenty of this.

And this!!!

And this.

And at the end of almost every day, we all pretty much felt like this.

What a FUN summer!!! We couldn't have asked for anything better!

Funny things they say...

2011-08-29T16:32:00.005-06:00

Yesterday afternoon I was asking Mckenna if she was having a good day.

She said, "Ya!"

I asked, "What have we been doing today?"

And this is how she explained her day... "Brookie hit me. Brookie time out. Brookie hit my back. Brookie time out. Brookie hit my belly. Brookie time out. Go to Nursery. Sing songs, play with toys, play with friends, have a snack. Grandma's house. Brookie hit me. Brookie time out. Brookie hit me again. Brookie time out."

No lie. These were her exact words! I was holding in the burst of laughter as tears were spilling out of my eyeballs! Apparently Brooklyn is not learning her lesson about hitting. But props to us for sticking to our "time out" routine, right?! Our little Kenna is going to be one tough cookie by the time we break Brooklyn of her hitting habit. Brookie better watch her back though, because as soon as Kenna discovers that she is bigger and stronger... things could get ugly!

And here's a cheesy one for all you Tess lovers out there...

Special Day for Tess

2011-08-14T22:46:00.003-06:00

I feel bad that I'm so late in posting about this, but better late than never... right?! On June 5, 2011 our sweet baby Tess was given a beautiful blessing by her father. She looked like a little princess in her long, white dress that was made special for her by a very dear friend and second grandma of mine, Lois Hugie. I definitely missed having my dad and my grandpa in the circle this time, but was grateful to feel of their love from the other side. The men in the circle included Andy, Andy's dad, Brock, Ben, TJ, and Derek. Afterward we celebrated at the King's house with some yummy food. It was a great day and was so nice to spend time together with both our families.

I love my little Tess with all my heart. Every day I tell somebody else how lucky I am to have such an angel of a baby. This one came straight from heaven, that's for sure. She brings so much joy and love into our home and I couldn't feel more blessed to have her. It's kind of weird, but I feel strongly that she's been apart of our family from the very beginning, like before this life. I'm excited to watch her grow, learn, and develop.

Thanks for being my perfect little angel baby, Tess! I love you so so much! -Mom

King Family Pictures 2011

2011-08-14T14:26:00.007-06:00

We bribed with suckers, ice cream, fruit snacks, and Disneyland presents from Grandma... and well, they aren't really smiling in any of them, but at least they're not screaming like last year!! I'd say... SUCCESS! :)

Pure cuteness!

2011-06-21T14:45:00.007-06:00

I just wanted to share a few cute moments that we caught on camera recently...

My sweet baby Tess on the plane ride home from Vegas.

My girls love to hold hands and watch Dora in the car. So cute!

This was a few weeks ago when the sun finally decided to come out to play! Check out my stylin' chicas in their new shades!!

Brooklyn driving the tractor at Gma's house! Andy said they drove around in this thing for almost an hour one night while I was in PVP rehearsals. I love Brookie's cheesy smile!!

This is Kenna eating one of her favorite treats at Aunt Kimber's house! Yummy ice cream!

We went to Lagoon yesterday with my family. It was so much fun! The girls' favorite ride was the carousel for sure!! This is Brooklyn getting ready for the ride. Cheese ball, again! :)

Our Twins turned TWO!!!

2011-06-21T13:44:00.006-06:00

I just want to start this post out by giving a SHOUT OUT to Andy and myself for successfully making it through our first two years as parents... and parents of twins at that! Yep, we're awesome! I'm not going to say it's been easy. Actually, to be completely honest with you it has been the most challenging two years of my life by far, but also the most joyous and rewarding. Being a parent is an interesting thing. No one told me how much patience and love it requires. Everyday I pray for more of both of those things. Yes, these two adorable little munchkins push me to the limit almost everyday... but would I trade what I've got for the alternative? Heck no! I've never known love like this in my lifetime and I feel so blessed to be a mother.

Well, we had a fun little get together with both families on their birthday (May 20th) at my mom's house. It was so much fun! The girls were spoiled rotten by everyone who attended. I think they opened more presents than they did at Christmas time! It was fun watching their eyes light up with each new toy or outfit. My favorite thing that they do right now is that they say "thank you" to anyone who gives them a present or helps them with something. They are starting to be so polite. Now every time we put on an outfit or a pair of shoes that one of their grandmas gave them, they say "thank you grandma"! I love it.

Andy and I splurged just a little bit on this party. I really wanted to make it fun and special for them. We bought cute red tricycles (that they still have to grow into, darn it) and had Uncle Diesel put them together for us. They're going to be so much fun for them as soon as their little legs are strong enough to push the pedals! :) We also had one of our good friends, Lucie Lee (www.deleeciouscakes.com) make a Dora cake for them. They LOVED their cake! And it was mighty tasty too!!

All in all, it was a fun day and a great celebration of our little girls who seem to be growing up too quickly. Wow, two years goes by fast. Before I know it, I'm going to be sending them off to kindergarten. :(

Brooklyn & Kenna,
I love you two girls with all my heart! Two years ago you changed my life for the better and I will never be the same. Thank you for loving me and for teaching me how to be a mother. You both bring so much joy and happiness to my life and I am so grateful for you. Happy Birthday girls!!
Love, MOM

... And here's to hoping that the "terrible two's" are more like the "awesome, happy, terrific two's"!! Right? :)

Easter 2011

2011-05-23T15:15:00.006-06:00

Easter was great this year, as always! It's one of my favorite holidays. I love that it is on Sunday. I love what and who it is about. And I love that it is at the start of the spring season. I love springtime! My heart leaps for joy when the weather starts warming up and the birds start singing! When it's warm outside I finally feel like I can get up off my butt and go be active with my little family, instead of being stuck inside all the time. I just love it! Here are a few pictures of our Easter festivities. I took a million pictures, but tried to narrow it down to the best ones. :) Enjoy!

Daddy & his girls with their Easter baskets Sunday morning.

Mommy and Baby Tess in her cute hand-me-down Easter dress.

The DAVIS family East Egg Hunt...

My girls love the tramp! :)

Kenzie looking for the Golden Egg under the porch. Sorry Kenz!

Andy giving lame, I mean clever hints about the whereabouts of the GOLDEN EGG! :)

Mom with Chelsea's cute twins, Miles & Jaxon

The big money winners: Tan Man & Ty Ty

The KING family Easter Egg Hunt...

Have you ever...

2011-04-05T16:09:00.008-06:00

... locked yourself in the bathroom so you could feed your infant, because your toddlers crawl all over you every time you try?

... had 3 cribs set up in your house at one time?

...put certain favorite toys/books in secret hiding places just so your kids won't fight over them?

...watched 10 or more episodes of "Dora the Explorer" in one day?

...fed yourself, two toddlers, and a baby all at the same time?

...hid in your pantry to eat an oreo, because you didn't want your kids to see and ask for cookies before dinnertime? :)

...wished your kids liked chicken nuggets and fries? Fast food could be so convenient sometimes!!

...walked into your toddler's room in the morning to find that she had stripped off all her clothes (including her diaper) and had gone potty on her sheets?

...made your toddlers wear onesies every single day, because they don't know how to get out of them... thus their diapers stay put!?!

...sang kid songs like "Head, Shoulders...", "Pat-a-cake", "Eensy Weensy Spider", etc. all the way home from grandma's house, because you love listening to your little girls sing along?

...looked in your rear view mirror to find your toddlers holding hands and smiling at each other?

...thought, "Wow! Having one baby at a time is a breeze! Why do all those other mothers complain so much?"

...wondered if you gave your mother as much stress as your kids give you?

...put your kids in their swimsuits and let them have a hay day in your shower (using up all your shaving cream) just so you could have 30 minutes to get something done?

...SEEN TWO CUTER FACES THAN THESE TWO??? I think not! :)

My 4 favorite people...

2011-03-25T13:44:00.001-06:00

A Baby Story...

2011-03-11T13:47:00.007-07:00

It all started on the morning of March 1st. I was 40 weeks and 4 days along and SOOO done being pregnant! I went in for yet another doctor's appointment, hoping and praying that I would be dilated at least to a 3cm. My doctor said that if I could get to a 3 on my own, then he would send me over to the hospital to get me started!! Well, as luck would have it... I was a 3cm exactly! Thank heavens! He called the hospital to tell them he was sending me over, but they were short handed. Luckily, one of my bestest friends in the whole wide world, Megan, is a nurse and works on the Labor and Delivery floor. They gave her a call and she agreed to come in to work just for me! What a friend!! I wanted her to be my nurse anyway, so things were working out perfectly.

After we got the good news, we still had a few hours to kill so Andy and I ran home to grab our hospital bags, pack a bag for our girls, and of course I wanted to make the bed, do the dishes, and pick up the house so that we could come home to cleanliness with our new baby. We then ran over to my mom's to give our girls a kiss, and then we were off to the hospital! We got there around noon, got checked in, and settled in our room.

My doc came in at 1:00pm and broke my water and Meg started me on Pitocin. Wow... the contractions sure came on strong after that! Yikes! I thought I would try to endure a few before asking for an epidural, but that was a huge mistake. I should have taken Erin's advice and got it right away. Oh well. When I finally couldn't take it anymore, I called Meg in and told her I was ready. The anesthesiologist came in soon after that and then began quite possibly the most painful 30 minutes of my life! Every time the anesthesiologist tried to put the little tube thingy in, it hit a blood vessel and he had to start all over again. This happened at least 3 or 4 times (I lost track)! All the while I was having the worst contractions EVER! I seriously wanted to die. I couldn't help but cry my eyes out like a baby. I hate it when I look like a little wussy girl, but I honestly couldn't hold back the tears. It hurt so bad! Anyway, a half hour later... everything was in place and working great. Whoosh.

The rest of the day was spent waiting. Meg checked me every hour and slowly, but surely I made my way to a 10cm. The waiting part was really hard for me for some reason. Everyone always told me that once you have the epidural in place, it's smooth sailing. Not the case for me. I hated the tingly, hot feeling in my legs and I couldn't stop shivering and shaking. Maybe I'm just weird, but I couldn't relax to save my life. I was so grateful to hear at about 11:15pm that I was finally ready to push!

I was really nervous for this part of it all, because I was planning on having to push for an hour or two and I didn't feel like I had the energy for that. Well, leave it to Andy to know how to pump me up! He got out his Iphone and started playing Jock Jams music! It seriously worked though. I got this new wave of energy and was ready to get 'er done!! Meg was laughing at us as she got the baby bed and all the delivery stuff ready. My mom showed up at about 11:30pm, just as we were starting to push. Apparently I rock at pushing, because little Tess was delivered just 16 minutes later at 11:46pm. Meg said that I only pushed 7 times and out she came! That was the best 16 minutes of the whole experience for me, because I finally felt like I was doing something active to get the baby here. We did have a little scare with her cord wrapped tightly around her neck, but my doctor acted quickly and she was just fine.

What a cool experience for sure! I'm so glad I did a VBAC. There really is nothing like witnessing the miracle of childbirth. Of course, the tears came streaming again the minute I saw her cute little face. I just sat there in awe as they cleaned her off. I had to remind Andy to get a few pictures, because he was watching in awe with me. I have never loved that man as much as I did in that moment. It's amazing how much love can grow just by going through experiences like this together. He took a couple pictures as they weighed and measured her... 7lbs 13oz and 21in long. A beautiful, healthy baby girl. We couldn't be happier!

It was also really neat to have my mom in the delivery room with us. That woman is my idol. She always knows just how to calm me and encourage me. I hope someday Tess can live up to her very special middle name and become the kind of awesome woman her grandma is. Thanks for sharing this precious experience with us, Mom. I love you!

Well, of course after the delivery I had to get all put back together. As soon as the stitching was done and the crazy involuntary shaking stopped (for crying out loud), my cute sister Ty came in and held Tess. Kenzie was on a cruise (lucky duck) and didn't get to see her for almost a week. :(

By the time we got all moved and settled into our new room upstairs, it was about 2:00am. Thankfully, we remembered to snap a quick photo of the proud parents and also a cute one of my favorite nurse...

...then everyone left us and it was quiet. Andy was fast asleep as soon as his head found a pillow and I let the nurse take Tess to the nursery for her bath. She brought her back about 30 minutes later all clean and with a cute little bow in her hair. I love the smell of babies right after a bath. I held my little one against my chest for hours breathing in her sweet smell, too happy to sleep. Every once in a while she would start fussing, but as soon as she laid her head on my chest she calmed right down. I think she liked hearing my heart beat. I hummed a few primary songs and rocked her back a forth, loving every single minute of our first moments together. I've never felt more blessed than I did in the quiet, dark hospital room with my new baby in my arms and my sweet husband asleep next to us. That is a feeling I will never forget. What an experience!

And now for the good part!! Here are a few pictures of some of our visitors. I'm sad that I didn't get pictures of everyone that came to visit. I just never remembered to pull out our camera. Oh well.

And here is our little Tess right before we loaded her up to take her home...

She's here!!!

2011-03-02T09:13:00.007-07:00

TESS ANDREA KING
-Born March 1, 2011
-11:46 pm
-7 pounds 13 ounces
-21 inches

More pictures and the whole story coming soon...

Due Date

2011-02-25T12:56:00.006-07:00

So, today is the day! The highly anticipate DUE DATE! The day I've been counting down to for months and months! But wait... apparently "due date" means jack squat to this little one!! Apparently she is comfy and cozy and happy to stay put inside my ever-growing womb for who knows how long. I wish that me and little Tess could have a little chat.

I would say, "Tess, you're going to love it out here with us! Come on out. I promise I will try my best to save you from your sisters as they insist on "holding" you, "loving" you, and "feeding" you like they do with every other baby that comes around. And I know your cousin Kace (and the little kitty at grandma's house) will appreciate a break from the abuse! So, ok, time to come out! I love having you so close to me, but I think I'll love it even more when I can hold you in my arms instead of in my belly. Your timely arrival will be much appreciated by many (including your daddy who is probably getting sick and tired of my pregnant mother emotional bouts). Love, Mom"

Well, since baby Tess is taking her dear sweet time and I would rather go do something fun instead of just sitting around, waiting for her... we are headed south tonight to see Derek in HAIRSPRAY!! I'm so excited! I secretly hoped I wouldn't have the baby yet just so that I wouldn't miss out on seeing Diesel's show. I love everything about Hairspray and it makes it even more fun to have an awesome brother in the show to watch! It's going to be a fun weekend. Andy says we should bring our hospital bags with us just in case, but truthfully I feel like this baby is never going to come. I'm not having any sort or regular and/or painful contractions and my cervix hasn't changed for 3 weeks. I might be pregnant for the rest of my life! So... no hospital bag for me! If by some miracle I do go into labor while down there, it will be a great story to tell later and being unprepared might make it even more fun!! Yep, I like to live on the edge. So, for now... no baby, fun weekend plans, next appointment on Tuesday. I'll keep ya posted!

And now for some cute pictures of my adorable girls...

They love wearing daddy's and mommy's shoes!

Just brushin' our teeth by the fireplace.

Here Brooklyn, I'll get yours for ya!

Cute Brookie!

Kenna... most likely "talking" to grandpa on the phone. She says, "Hello. Grandpa? Ya. Ya. Bu-bye!"

I just realized that all of these pictures were taken on different days and my girls aren't dressed in any of them! So we like to hang out in our onesies... is that a crime?! :)

AND... these pictures just crack me up!!

Seriously mom, more pictures? This is so lame.

Ok fine, I'll give you one quick "cheese"! (Mckenna only, of course)

Get that camera out of my face! I'm so done with all the photo shoots around here. (Brooklyn, of course)

Aww... giving sister a "love"!

Why doesn't Kenna ever love me back?!?!

Ramblings of a pregnant woman...

2011-02-11T13:58:00.003-07:00

I recently realized that I haven't written hardly anything about this pregnancy. Now that it's almost coming to an end, I think maybe one day I'll want to remember some of the details... so here I go.

After the twins were born, we were told to hold off getting pregnant again for at least a full year. "Ha ha," we thought! It took us a good 2 1/2 years of trying before we finally had a successful pregnancy (the twins) and so naturally we assumed it would probably take about that long again. Well, we were very wrong (and thankfully so)! We let go of our birth control methods when the girls were about 8 months old and hoped that we would be able to have another one sometime before the twins' 4th birthday. Obviously it didn't take as long this time and much to our surprise, I was pregnant again 4 months later! We were as happy as can be to find out about this little one. We got a positive pregnancy test sometime around the end of June and we told our families about the good news during the 4th of July weekend. My mom cried. Duh, she always does. :) She quickly bumped her grandkids count up to 12 and proudly told anyone who asked! Whitney kindly expressed her concerns about the number of grandchildren in our family getting out of hand (Erin and Chelsea were both pregnant too). I told her to just wait until "Sev" (Kenzie) is married and starts having kids... 12 will be nothing compared to what we have then! Everyone was excited for us and we were thrilled as can be!

I was in Crazy For You that summer and loving every minute of it! I was playing my dream roll as "Tess" and it quickly became one of my favorite PVP shows so far! I got a serious high off of every single dance number, every night. I'll never forget how much I loved playing that part. Slowly my costumes got a little more snug and the baby bump started to show. By the end of the PVP run, I was about 16 weeks along and quite obviously showing. It's probably a good thing the show ended when it did!

The week after PVP closed, my mom took me down to Fetal Fotos for my birthday to find out what we were having. I knew both Erin and Chelsea were expecting boys, so of course having a boy sounded fun to me. I wanted this little one to have cousins to bond with. But on the other hand, having a girl sounded much easier. I knew how to do girls, I had two already, and plus if this was another girl she would be completely spoiled in the cute clothes department (double what any child would ever need). As soon as the ultrasound picture settled on her little bottom, I knew I was expecting another little princess. How exciting!! Three girls! I sent the rest of the family (including Andy) on a treasure hunt with words to a poem that told them the news. Andy was beaming! As much as he talks about eventually wanting a son to play ball with, this daddy has quite a little thing for his little girls. There's something special about a father/daughter relationship and I knew he couldn't wait for another one.

Well, time passed and here we are. I am 38 weeks pregnant today. Her room is all put together and ready for her with clothes in the drawers and tiny diapers in the basket, my hospital bag is packed, our moms are on alert and ready for the phone call, and I'm getting anxious. We've chosen to try a VBAC instead of another C-section, so my doctor is hoping I'll go into labor on my own in the next week or two. The risks of a VBAC go up if you get induced, so we're going to try to avoid that at all costs. Sometimes I think it would just be easier to schedule another C-section and not worry about when it's going to happen or worry about laboring for forever, but we want a big family and multiple C-sections can sometimes mess that up. So... here I wait and wonder, "When will you be coming out to meet us, little one?"

Oh, and by the way, we've chosen a name... Tess Andrea King. Tess, partly because of my character in the show last summer and partly because we just love the name. Andrea, because my mom is amazing and I honestly can't think of anyone better to name my little girl after.

Tess,
Even though I'm anxious for you to get here and for this pregnancy to be over, I've really loved bonding with you these past nine months like only a mother can bond with her child. Yes, you move constantly and keep me up at night, you've been known to cause me to loose my lunch a time or two, you give Brooklyn stress because mommy's lap isn't as big as it used to be, not to mention my little fainting incident in the middle of my Relief Society lesson that I'm pretty sure you caused... but honestly, you are worth every second of discomfort, pain, and/or embarrassment. I love you so much already! I can't wait to see you and hold you in my arms. Your daddy and your big sisters can't wait either! We talk about you daily and your sisters never forget to give you kisses every night. They know where "Baby Tess" is, where you'll be sleeping, and they're so excited to help mommy out with a new baby. Welcome to our family, Tess! I hope to see you soon... REAL SOON! :)
Love, MOM

Miss Brooklyn Rae... (long journal post)

2011-01-24T13:33:00.008-07:00

How do I describe Brooklyn in one word?? Drama! Yes, she is our little miss drama queen. This girl is full of attitude and personality. She is independent, opinionated, and hecka cute!! She's learning new words every day, which is great because now it's easier for me to understand what she wants before she gets too frustrated. I love how she tries to tell me what she wants, because she will keep saying the same word (usually with an action to go with it) until I guess it right. When I finally repeat what she's saying, she nods her head dramatically, smiles, and says "Uh huh, uh huh". She says "oouuuie" all the time... like when daddy's tickling her and she wants him to stop, when she wants us to come get her out of bed, when her socks aren't on just right, etc. She loves going bare foot. Socks and shoes don't stay on her little feet for more than a minute or two, especially in the car. I've learned to wait until we get where we're going to put them on, or else I have to put them on twice. :) She LOVES Dora! I'm amazed at how her and Mckenna can watch the same episode of Dora in our car like a billion times and never get sick of it. They're starting to sing along to the cute, little songs and I even hear Brooklyn trying to say some of the Spanish words. She says ariba, hola, abuela, and dias.

Brooklyn is great at coloring! Seriously though, I'm amazed at her skills. She holds the crayon the proper way and colors right on the picture instead of scribbling all over it. She says "eyes" and colors the eyes, "shoes" and colors right on the shoes, etc. It's pretty impressive! She always holds the crayon in her left hand, even when I give it to her right hand. Huh, maybe she's our lefty?? She is absolutely obsessed with my phone (and a pretend phone/old phone will not do... she knows the difference). She wants to hold the phone and talk to everyone that calls. The only problem is that she usually shuts it and hangs up on the person before she gets a chance to say "hi". She calls the phone a "hi".

Cute things she's doing now... Well her walk is pretty darn cute! You can tell she has attitude just by the way she walks around like she owns the place. :) She sort of swings her arms and waddles quickly. I love it! When she's feeling sentimental, she'll randomly grab my face and stare at me for a while before giving me the sweetest little girl kiss ever. She is definitely a MAMA'S GIRL... big time! Next to me though, her favorite people are Grandma (both of them) and Aunt Erin! She also loves it when Kenzie holds her and tickles her. And of course, like every other niece or nephew, she loves "Ga Ga" aka Ty Ty!

This girl is a talker! She says "treat", "drink", "Rora" aka Dora, everyone's names (her version of "Elliot" is by far my favorite), she calls Ty "Ga Ga" and I'm really not sure why, "duck", "mouse", "Sponge Bob", "tubby", and a billion other words. Her vocabulary seriously grows every single day! She also talks a lot of jibberish, which is cute too!

Random story... I was having an especially rough day a little while ago. The girls were driving me nuts, I was so exhausted and worn out, they weren't minding or listening to anything I was trying to tell them, and they were acting like wild monkies!!! So... I heaved them both into their car seats, locked them in, turned on Dora, and we all went for a little drive. I was upset and crying thinking 'how am I going to get through these next 4 weeks of this pregnancy' when I heard soft mumbling in the back seat. I flipped my rear view mirror down so I could see them and to my surprise, they were taking turns praying. They both had their arms folded and their eyes closed tight. Brooklyn started mumbling some sort of jibberish, then she would look over at Kenna as if to say, "It's your turn", then Kenna would quietly mumble something and look back to Brooklyn. They took turns "praying" for about 5 minutes straight. By the time our drive was over, I found I was still crying, but for very different reasons than before.

I'm so blessed. I truly do love being a mom. Yes, I have my bad days. Days when I think things like... "What the heck did I do with all my free time before I was a mom, because I'm sure I had LOTS of it!" Sometimes I would like to pee when I need to pee, and eat when I'm hungry, grocery shop when we have no food, or just talk to my sister on the phone without being interrupted or screamed at... but those things don't really matter in the big scheme of things (I've learned my lesson about that last one: only call Chelsea during nap time or after bedtime :). I'm figuring out how to do this "mom" thing a little more every day and I wouldn't trade it for the world.

Brooklyn,
You are a fireball! You keep me on my toes and I love it. Your sweet, beautiful, innocent eyes make me grateful to be a mom every day! You have a way of melting my heart. Thanks for being mine.
Love, MOM

(November 2010)

My Little Kenna... (long journal post)

2011-01-19T14:44:00.008-07:00

Ok, so my girls are at such a fun age right now! I want to write about them individually so that I won't forget how cute they are right now. Well, just last week we took a HUGE step in the right direction by limiting their binkie and blankie time. They were starting to get really attached to them and it got to the point where I was bringing them everywhere we went. So, thanks to some good advice from my mom and experienced sisters... I did it! We now leave both binkies and blankies (or the "deets" as they call them) in the crib, no exceptions!! They get them when they sleep and that's all. Wow, I had no idea how much easier it was going to make my life. They've both grown up so much! They play better with each other, they don't wine and cry as much, they are so much happier, they don't have to be in my arms at all times, and I no longer have to keep track of 2 blankets and 2 binkies everywhere we go!! I love it! We really should have done this a while ago, but I'm a wuss. It was only 2 days of torture for them, then they were fine with it. Now, when I go to get them in the morning or from a nap, they throw them in their crib and reach up to me with a smile. Love it!

Anyway, Kenna is my little angel. Seriously, she has such a sweet little spirit with a tender heart. She is always looking out for her sister and is always the first one to give in, give kisses, or say sorry ("raurry"). I took her to the dentist last week (without Brooklyn) and every time the nurse offered her a sticker or a little toy, she asked for one for "Brookie". It was so cute! The cute nurse let her take an extra Dora ("Rora") sticker and an extra bouncy ball home with her so that she could give one to Brookie. I think she was kind of confused as to why Brooklyn wasn't with us. They are hardly ever apart. Actually, I've only split them up 2 or 3 times total. It was fun though. I think I'll try to do that more often. I like having one on one bonding time and they probably appreciate the break from each other.

Kenna might be our little athlete. She is pretty good at throwing a ball. We're working on catching. I thought she was a lefty for a while, but now she switches between left and right... so we'll have to wait and see. She is starting to get both feet off the ground when she jumps! Her somersaults are awesome! Her dance style consists of a combination of jumps, spins, somersaults, an occasional shoulder shrug, and my favorite... the "squat walk". Andy was so proud of her at the pool a while back. She wanted to put the ball in the basketball hoop, so he lifted her way up and she held tight to the ball until she was high enough to throw it down! Slam dunk! Daddy's little girl. She truly does LOVE her daddy! Sometimes she prefers him over me. I don't mind though. I think it's so cute. She loves wrestling with him. Andy says "Night Night" and pretends to sleep, then Kenna runs over and tickles him or jumps on his belly and laughs her head off. So cute! Her favorite people are Grandma (both of them), Grandpa King, Ty Ty, Tanner, Baby Kace, and of course Daddy.

Cute things she's doing now... she carries an old cell phone around and says "Hello Grandpa" or "Hello Daddy" all day long. If she hits Brooklyn and makes her cry, she immediately pets her and says "raurry" and then tries to give her kisses. She gives great high fives and "bones". When I tell her that Daddy is coming home, she pats her leg and says "Daddy, Daddy"! She also does this with waffles in the morning. When we're waiting for the Eggo Waffles to pop out of the toaster, she pounds the table and says "waffles, waffles". She marches all the way to the tubby after breakfast, singing "tubby, tubby". She likes to hold my hand all the way up the stairs (even though she can do it on her own). She loves babies!! Her favorite book right now is actually a Parenting Magazine, because it has a lot of pictures of babies in it! She gives all the babies in the magazine kisses, especially the ones who look sad. One of my favorite things she does now is she randomly will start pointing around the room saying everyone's name. When I ask her where Kenna is, she points at her cheek and says "Brookie". Both her and her sister call both of them Brookie. I think they know that Kenna is Kenna, but they just haven't figured out how to say it yet. It's pretty funny! She also shakes her head and says "No no no no no" when I ask if she's ready for bed or if I try to take her food away and she's not done. She sometimes closes her eyes tight and pretends she's asleep when Andy or I try to get her out of the car. Of course we know she's not asleep, because she is smiling and giggling to herself as she does it. Silly girl!

Honestly, I had no idea how much a mother could love a child. Mckenna makes me shed tears of happiness almost every day with her sweet personality and her funny antics. She is truly such a joy to have as a daughter.

Kenna,
I love you more than you'll ever know. Your sweet, caring personality teaches me how to truly love others. Your random goofiness makes my day! Thanks for being mine.
Love, MOM

(September 2010)

PS... I will be writing about Brooklyn soon!

Bedtime Conversations

2011-01-06T13:42:00.002-07:00

ME: I'm starting to get nervous about delivering this baby in 7 weeks.

ANDY: Why?

ME: Well, my last delivery was easy. I just laid there while they cut me open and pulled the babies out. This time I'm going to have to work for it.

ANDY: You'll be fine. What is there to worry about?

ME: Have you ever had to push a human out of your crotch?

ANDY: (silence)

ME: Just saying, it kinda scares me.

ANDY: You're right. That is scary.

Our Sun Valley Christmas 2010

2011-01-05T22:50:00.000-07:00

We had a great Christmas this year! I love that my girls are getting old enough to sort of know what's going on. They know Santa and what he says, although they like to keep their distance from the scary bearded man. They got to see Santa a number of times this holiday season... the mall, the Christmas show, Andy's work party, the Hill family party, etc. They call him "Ho Ho", not Santa. It's pretty cute! They loved waving at him from a few steps away and they even got brave enough to give him a high five! Now when they see a picture of Santa, they smack it with their hand and say "five". Ha ha! I love it!

Anyway, we were lucky enough to spend our Christmas this year in Sun Valley with my family. Sun Valley is by far my most favorite place to be during the holidays! Before we headed there though, we got to spend some good times with Andy's family. We had a fun family party with everyone and then we had a little "Christmas morning" with Andy's parents and our girls. They got to open all their presents from Gma and Gpa King and they loved every minute of it! I think they were a little overwhelmed/confused about why they were being so spoiled. It was fun to watch! Kenna learned how to say "open" and she got good at finding presents, bringing them to me or Andy, and asking us to help her "open" it. Their favorite toy from Gma and Gpa King were the baby dolls that came with bottles and blankies. My girls are such cute little mommies! They are going to be awesome big sisters!

I guess all the spoiling tuckered them right out, because this is what they both looked like on the way home from Grandma's house. :)

On Christmas Eve we packed up and headed to Sun Valley. We got there just in time to unload and catch the last half of the annual Christmas Eve Ice Show on the ice rink behind the Lodge! It was pretty darn cold out, so we had to really bundle the girls up. They had so many layers on that they could hardly move, but heck they were cute little snow bunnies! Here they are bundled up and ready for the cold...

We didn't have a great view of the ice show since we got there late, but I did catch a glimpse of some awesome skating by Evan Lysacek! He also passed right by me and the girls as he headed to his dressing room after his routine. So cool! He is great! As the crowd started to file out, we shimmied through and got a front row seat to hear the carolers sing a few songs. Nothing puts me in the Christmas mood more than listening to and/or singing with the Sun Valley Carolers! They were awesome! Uncle Diesel was such a handsome caroler and it was fun watching him!

Of course later that night we did our usual C-mas Eve traditions... fondue for dinner (which we just started up again this year since we don't feel bad eating dad's favorite meal in front of him anymore), new jammies for everyone, the nativity scene, the crazy Christmas story game, and a call from "JR & Chelsea" telling us that Santa had just visited their house and that he was on his way to Sun Valley!!! Not quite as cool as dad's hospital pager going off, but we're doing our best to keep that tradition alive and it was worth it! The kids went nuts!!! I thought Carter and Tanner might go into excitement overload shock or something. They seriously were having seizures and they immediately ran straight up to their beds! They came down a minute later, because they said they forgot to leave out the milk and cookies for Santa... oh and they made sure that we put out the fire in the fireplace. :) After that was taken care of, we all winded down for a very short Christmas Eve sleep. Here are some pictures of the Eve celebration...

Christmas morning was great! The kids loved all their new toys and honestly, I just loved being together as a family. We took turns opening presents like we usually do, but now TJ is the "gift-passer-outer" in place of dad. We went around and each of us shared a Christmas memory of dad and shed a few tears together. Some of the memories included... dad in his mesh garment top passing out presents (he always tried his best to keep C-mas morning organized), the year we got the hot tub on C-mas Eve when dad and mom randomly stripped into their swim suits after our family wrestling match, and Carter and Tanner remembered Papa Wee giving them fast rides on his wheelchair. My most favorite memory though was hearing mom tell us about her memory of having Kenzie just before Christmas and listening to Christmas music in the hospital while cuddling with dad and her new little baby. So sweet. I miss dad like crazy during this time of year, but I'm glad I was able to feel him close that Christmas morning.

Well, the rest of our Sun Valley vacation consisted of a few snowball fights, lots of hot chocolate, some family games, snowboarding for Andy (yes, I was jealous), great food, awesome dancing, and of course following around and listening to the Sun Valley Carolers!! I was so proud of Diesel! It's fun to watch a little brother learn and perform the songs that I know and love so much. He made me cry multiple times. They sang a few new ones this year that were amazing! Great job Carolers!! Thanks for filling us all with the true Christmas spirit.

ALERT... CHELSEA & JR (read this part)!!! As for my feelings about going to Sun Valley without the Haynie family... IT IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN AGAIN!!! You guys were GREATLY missed, especially by Andy and me. You two are our Sun Valley homies and it just wasn't the same without you there. We spent most of the time reminiscing about past Christmases up there with you guys. I just have to share a few of the memories that were brought up while we were there...
1. Cranberry Siera Mist and ham sandwiches after singing.
2. Shirley Temples at the bar.
3. Endless amounts of card playing (with Laffy Taffy's... the neutralizer)!
4. Chuck Norris and his roundhouse kick to the face.
5. Me and Chel heading up to the mountain and getting a call from JR saying that Andy was on his way to the hospital in an ambulance with a busted shoulder. Grr!
6. Me and Chel racing against JR and Doob down the mountain. We went the long way and they bombed straight down the powdery bowls like crazy men. Ya, I think they won.
7. JR secretly telling Andy to let Chelsea win the card game so that she wouldn't be ornery after when they had to go back to their own room together! HAHA! :)
8. Stupid JR and Andy and their stupid "magic" trick. Yes I am still mad about it!

Oh, there are SO many more that come to mind, but I'll wait til we can reminisce together! So Haynie's... put it on your 2011 calendar... CHRISTMAS IN SUN VALLEY like old times again!! You in? And JR, none of this "oral surgery residency" crap that you use as an excuse. (Hehe, JK!) We love you both like crazy and your adorable little boys! Can't wait to see you all in a few months so we can officially meet the two new little ones!

And of course, a few more photos to finish off this insanely long post of my random Christmas thoughts (if you are seriously still reading at this point, you either need to get a life or you're one of my bestest friends)! :) Love you all! Hope you had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year like we did!!!

And honestly, I'm not really sure who's who in some of these pictures where they are all bundled up. Oops! I'm a horrible mother, I know. Oh well. :)

We love ELLIOT!

2010-11-29T12:29:00.003-07:00

Brooklyn and Mckenna got to hang out with their cousin Elliot this morning while grandma went to her hair appointment. They had a blast together! It's been so much fun having Elliot here. My girls think he's hilarious and can't stop laughing at his goofiness! He is really cute with them. He still calls them "Shar's babies" and wants to hold them on his lap (even though they're almost as big as he is now). It's so cute! He's a good boy and I think he's going to be an awesome big brother. Chelsea's babies should be coming soon. My mom and Elliot are headed back to IN on Thursday and then we'll all just have to wait and see what happens. I can't wait to see pictures of the little guys. I'm sure it will take me right back to 18 months ago when I had my tiny twins. Wow, time sure flies! Anyway, here is a picture of all three munchkins in the tubby today. AND a post-tubby picture of Elliot and Kenna. Bestest buds!

Today at church...

2010-11-14T22:15:00.002-07:00

Warning... this is just a journal entry. Not too interesting, sorry.

I thought it might be fun to document the wonderful experience we had at church today. Maybe we'll look back and laugh one day. Actually, I'm already laughing right now. I decided that instead of getting fired up and frustrated with every little crazy thing my girls do, I should just laugh and enjoy the moment. I'm really working on lightening up. After all, my motto is "You're gonna miss this..." and I'm sure one day I will. So here's our church story this week.

First off, the nap situation was bad today. Brooklyn only slept for an hour and Kenna wouldn't sleep at all. Also, we didn't have any juice for their sippy cups, we were out of fruit snacks, we didn't have time to eat a good lunch before we left, and I didn't have time this week to get new toys/books for church like I wanted to. So, things were bad before we even got started.

We were late (of course) and as we split up to head to our different classes, Brooklyn was already wining because she wanted to come with mom. Andy chose to take her this week because she got a nap. Ha ha! Serves him right. Kenna did ok with me until about 10 minutes into Relief Society, then I had to whip out the treats. The granola bar got crumbled up and thrown on the floor, the string cheese was chewed up and spit out, and the sippy cup of milk (instead of the usual apple juice) did not satisfy. She also stole a few toys from a younger baby and got poked in the eye by another toddler. We made it through without having to leave though... YAY! That was a victory.

During the break we headed out into the hall to get her wiggles out and found Andy and Brooklyn reading a story on the foyer couch. Apparently they lasted about 5 minutes in his class and had been out there ever since. Shoot. I guess Kenna was the better choice this week.

Now off to our Sunday School class. We headed in, sat down, and after about 3 tantrums each and having to chase them both down a few different times, we packed up our bag and decided to call it quits. We ended up in the empty gym where we ate fishies, ran around, jumped, spun in circles, walked on our tip toes, and tickled daddy. Oh, and Kenna kept trying to tackle Brooklyn which she did not appreciate. The hour was almost over when Kenna started the whole gagging routine that drives me crazy. They stick their fingers in their mouth so far that they gag themselves and then they laugh like it's so funny. Well Kenna wouldn't stop and did it until she barfed all over herself. Awesome! I cleaned up the mess with wipies, but the barf smell never goes away. We all smelt like baby barf as we made our way into the chapel, to our usual second row bench, close to the front exit.

Sacrament meeting. The Primary Program. Nice! I thought maybe our girls would be entertained by all the kids speaking and singing and we could maybe, just maybe actually stay in the chapel and enjoy it. Wrong! From the very beginning Brooklyn was talking noisily, Kenna was crawling back and forth under the bench in front of us (bugging the people sitting there, I'm sure), and they both kept throwing any treat or toy I offered them over their shoulder. Surprisingly, we lasted a whole 30 minutes! Andy left first with a screaming Brooklyn in arms, and I followed soon after when Kenna ran after them and banged on the door trying to get out. I left so quickly that I accidentally left their favorite book under the bench. Oops! I guess we'll be looking for it in the lost and found next week. Anyway, we usually spend the rest of the time listening from the foyer as we chase the girls around, but this time we'd had enough. We headed straight to the car, loaded up the girls, turned on Dora, and looked back to see Kenna sleeping soundly before we even got home.

I'm proud to say that even though this seems like a nightmare, I spent the entire 3 hours of church with a big smile on my face. Kids will be kids, right? And I sure love mine, no matter how crazy they get sometimes. They definitely are a handful, but they are the dang cutest handful I've ever met and I feel so blessed to be their mother. Andy has been telling me lately that I'm too uptight and stressed out. Well I've been working on it and look at me now! I am enjoying every moment and learning to laugh at the insignificant daily mishaps. Life is good and I can't complain. I'm so grateful to be a mother and if that means that I have to endure a few horrible church experiences, then so be it! It is worth it. Besides, these moments don't last forever. The girls turn 18 months this coming Saturday actually. So you know what that means? Next week... NURSERY!!!

Halloween

2010-11-04T11:55:00.003-06:00

Halloween was tons of fun this year! I love having little kids to trick-or-treat with! We went to a few carnivals last week, hit up the mall on Saturday, walked by all the shops down town, and even went out in the rain to trick-or-treat that night! Anything for candy, right? It was fun to watch our girls this year. They were little kitties and got really good at saying "meow"! We forgot to bring bags/buckets to put the candy in so we came up with a great technique. We got two pieces of candy at each stop (one for each girl) and either Brooklyn and Kenna or Andy and I would eat them before we got to the next stop! It was great! Genius, because now we don't have a stash of treats that hangs around til Christmas... (just a massive gut that hangs over our pants)! :) Here are some cute pictures of all the festivities!

Mckenna with Aunt Ty, Tanner as IRON MAN, Hayden as SUPERMAN, Carter as SHREK, and Brooklyn with Aunt Kenz

Kenna and Caden loving the pile of treats in front of them!

Yummy suckers! Probably their favorite candy of the night!

Super Mom!

2010-11-04T10:52:00.004-06:00

Umm, I am awesome! Today I just wanted to make a list of all my accomplishments this week so far (and it's only Thursday). I think it makes me feel better and of more worth when I reflect on all I've done. :)

-Took care of a sick husband
-Kept the girls safe from the sickness
-Vacuumed and dusted
-Mother cleaned (as my mom would say) all 3 bathrooms
-Swept and mopped all wood and tiled floors
-Did about 7 loads of laundry
-Loaded and unloaded the dishwasher a few times
-Taught Brooklyn and Kenna to say Elliot & Chelsea :)
-Trips to Sam's Club and Lee's
-Got my hair cut and colored (finally)
-Made yummy cookies
-Read the BOM every day (a goal I'm working on)
-Actually opened the door to the future baby's room and thought about starting to organize it and get it ready for her... a step in the right direction!
-Updated my blog with my two girls sitting right next to me watching "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse"... HUGE ACCOMPLISHMENT

I just realized that this whole list has helped me tons, but nothing I've done has been for someone else. I'm a chump! New goal: more service for others I'm just proud of myself for getting quite a few things crossed off my list of to do's. Yay for me! SUPER MOM!

Random events worth blogging about...

2010-10-24T21:02:00.009-06:00

Well, I have so many cute pictures and great memories from the past few months that I just couldn't skip over. So I'll start with the most recent and move backwards. We're headed clear back into August folks! Better late than never, right? Right!

PLAYGROUND JUNKIES
Every day at about 3:00pm, after lunch and naps, my girls beg me to put their shoes on them and take them outside. Since it's been such a beautiful fall, I never oppose. So we all strap on our shoes and head out our back door to the playground. They know right how to get there without my help. I just follow behind them, watching their cute little waddle as we make our way to the slides. It's fun to watch their excitement as they climb the stairs and bravely fly down the big slide. I can't believe how grown up they're getting. These are some pictures from a recent trip to the playground.

"HELPING" MOM WITH LAUNDRY
For some reason kids this age seem to love climbing into small spaces. I remember Chelsea's Elliot doing the same thing. Toy boxes, tupperware, laundry baskets, drawers, whatever! If it's a tight fit, they want to get inside. As I try to fold laundry, they entertain themselves by climbing in and out of the laundry basket. It can get kind of brutal though, because most of the time they want to be the ONLY one in the basket. We're working on sharing and taking turns! :)

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SVHS HOMECOMING PARADE... GO BOBCATS!!!
Yep, we finally did it. We've been wanting to dust off and put on all our Letterman's jackets for a long time now. We're all SV Alumni (including mom), so why not show our school pride, right?! After an emotional funeral day for our sweet Grandma Larsen, we were all needing something to cheer us up. We decided to find these old babies and head to the SV Homecoming Parade. We're hoping to start a tradition. TJ was pretty bummed, because we couldn't find his jacket. We think it's probably in storage somewhere. Don't worry Teej, we'll definitely be doing it again. (Notice mom's awesome SV Exec. sweater from 1978!)

DAY AT THE BEACH
Our annual beach day with the Haynie's was GREAT this year! It's always so much fun to get the boat out and bask in the sun for a day. Most of the kids took a tube ride, my little girls actually enjoyed riding in the boat, and I just LOVED being with the people I love most. I captured some pretty good pictures of the fun times and had to post them. Enjoy!

BROOKLYN & KENNA SITTIN' IN THE TUB...
K-i-s-s-i-n-g! I seriously love it when my girls get in these kissing moods! They were in the tub and I simply said, "Kenna, give sister a kiss." And this is what happened... sister make out session. :) It's so cute when they pucker up really big. Then they always laugh at each other after each one! So cute! I love these sweet girls!

Another GIRL!

2010-09-15T14:06:00.002-06:00

We're excited to announce that our baby on the way is another GIRL! Andy can't wait to add to his number of girlfriends! He's now up to 4. I love watching him with our girls. They've truly got their daddy wrapped around their little fingers! So why not add to the fun? I'm actually quite relieved that we won't have to buy a whole wardrobe of clothes for the little one. This girl is going to have an awesome selection of cute outfits to wear, thanks to her two big sisters! Now the only thing we'll have to do is paint our extra room (the office) which is very blue right now. I'm actually excited to put together another girly baby room. Fun fun! I'm sure we'll be keeping y'all posted!

(Kenna & Brook at Ben's Wedding - June 2010)

The neatest lady I've ever known

2010-09-14T12:42:00.006-06:00

My sweet Grandma Larsen passed away a few weeks ago after a stroke. It took us all by surprise. I guess I just thought that Grandma was always going to be around. She's been a huge part of my life since the day I was born. I thought she would live to be 100, but our Heavenly Father needed her more than we did and knew that it was her time to move on and to be rejoined with her loving husband again. I'm happy for her. I know how much she missed Grandpa for those 9 months that they were apart. I'm also a little jealous of her, because I know that she's with my dad too. I'm sure he gave her a big bear hug when she arrived, the kind of hug that I really miss. It's always sad to see loved ones go, but I'm so thankful for my knowledge of the plan. Without it, death would be too hard to bare. My grandma was an amazing lady and she will never be forgotten. Now more than ever I have a deep desire to live my life to make her proud.

I love you, Grams! Stay close. I've got my ears on. Give grandpa and dad a big hug and a kiss from me. Thanks for everything you've taught me, whether you meant to or not. Your loving motherly example is one that I hope to pattern my life after. I really do love you "a bushel and a peck". Honor bright and 123.

-Sharli Rae

My girls loved trying to get her feet as she wiggled them around like crazy. Grandma always knew how to get Brooklyn laughing.

(Brooklyn & Grandma Great - May 2010)

Grams loved my girls and they knew it. They would climb up on her lap any chance they got. Especially Mckenna. Kenna had a special thing for Grandma Great. Maybe it's because they share a middle name... Mckenna June & Betty June. I already know Kenna misses her. When we go into Grandma's cabin at PVP and I see Kenna wandering around looking for something, I know she's looking for Grandma Great.

I love this picture. If Grandma Great was anywhere near, this is exactly where Kenna could be found. She loved to snuggle up on her lap and listen to her hum lullabies in her ear. Grandma was so good at calming fussy babies.

(Mckenna & Grandma Great - January 2010)

Yep, #3 is on its way!

2010-08-31T21:49:00.004-06:00

We are so excited to announce (officially) that we are expecting a new little one on February 26, 2011. We couldn't be more thrilled! I had an ultrasound today and everything looks great. The little guy/girl was moving around like crazy. It was fun to see the baby wiggling and to see and hear its strong little heart beat! So fun! We can't wait to add on to our family and all our craziness. Bring on more diapers and sleepless nights. Can I seriously handle three kids under the age of two? I guess I'll figure it out, right? Just like I figured out how to have twins. I LOVE babies though and I'm so excited to have a tiny one again. They grow up so fast. Our girls are so much fun right now! I crack up every day over the funny things they do. Lately they've been giving each other hugs and kisses and it's SO CUTE! I have some of their little "make out sessions" on video, now someone just needs to teach me how to get it on here so y'all can see the adorableness. Man, I love those two girls!

Just for journaling purposes...

BROOKLYN & MCKENNA AT 15 MONTHS OLD
-The vocabulary of Brooklyn and Mckenna consists of "ma?" meaning "more food please?", "ma ma", "daddy", "grandma", and "uh oh".
-They also know what a bear, monkey, and a doggy says.
-They wave "bye bye" and blow kisses every time we leave or someone else leaves.
-One of my favorite things they both do is smile and wave at strangers. It is so cute and people just love it!
-They give "high fives" and they do the cutest version of "bones" ever. I hold out my fist and they pound it with their hand and make a "sschhh" sound.
-They give kisses and loves.
-They play pretend mommy with their baby dolls (which still makes me cry sometimes).
-When I tell them to dance Mckenna head bangs and Brooklyn sways side to side. They both know how to turn in circles and Brooklyn tries to jump (athletic baby). Mckenna goes up on her toes and then squats (my little ballerina).
-They LOVE being outside!
-They love their cousins and watching the shows at PVP. Brooklyn claps whenever she hears the audience laughing or clapping.
-They are good sleepers, good eaters, and for the most part well tempered babies. They have just recently discovered how to throw tantrums. Wow! Two tantrum throwing two-year-olds is going to be an interesting time for me. :) My patience are growing every day, which is good.
-Mckenna plays independently and likes trying to figure toys out on her own.
-Brooklyn grabs my hand and pulls when she wants me to follow her, and of course, throws a fit when I don't come.

Both girls are active, growing, and keeping us very busy! We couldn't feel more blessed to be the parents of such fun little ones. We have so much to be grateful for. We'll let ya know when we find out what baby #3 is! Any guesses?

We are ALIVE!

2010-08-08T23:12:00.005-06:00

Ok... here is my very good excuse. My computer died. Yes, my stupid PC laptop died an untimely death and that is the reason for the blog drought. The end. No need to go into details about how I only had that computer for 2 years, or that we don't have the money right now to buy me a new one, or that we might loose ALL the pictures that I had stored on that computer. GRR! No, no need to go into details.

Anyway, we are alive and well and having a fun, busy summer! There are so many things I need to blog about. Things like the twins 1st b-day, dad's funeral, fun family times, holidays, birthdays, etc. But I'm not going to stress about that now. It's late and I promised Chelsea some new pictures on here, so that is exactly what I'm going to do. Here are a few cute pictures of the girls this summer!

This was Andy's favorite birthday present... a sick baby with a small fever who cuddled him all night and eventually fell asleep on his chest. Happy B-day Dad, Love Brooklyn!

I LOVE this picture, because it totally shows how angry Kenna gets at Brooklyn for always being the one to flip the little flaps on her favorite book when we read together. Kenna is usually pretty calm about Brooklyn stealing her toys and being a bully, but this picture shows her true feelings! :)

4th of July weekend in Bear Lake. We think the girls might be golfers. We're planning on starting them really early and hoping for professional status. We'll see. They sure loved chasing the balls and putting them in the holes!

Cute Brooklyn on the putting green.

Cute Mckenna in her jammies.

New Mommy Knowledge

2010-05-18T23:23:00.004-06:00

I have learned more in the last 12 months of my life than all of my 24 years put together! Being a first time mom is rough sometimes, but I am learning every day and I know that things will be easier with the next one. For instance, here are a few of the many lessons I've learned this past year...

1) Don't take your 6 week old twins who are still very tiny and underweight to the zoo (no matter how badly you think you need to get out of the house). You will just end up being completely worried about them and stressed out the entire time. Not very enjoyable!

2) Newborn pictures are priceless. Take your tiny babies to a professional (no matter the cost). It will be worth every penny. And don't forget to get naked pictures of their cute little bodies. I will always regret my newborn pictures decisions. :(

3) As mentioned in an earlier post, don't take your touchy 4 month old twins to an Aggie Football game (or a very cold outdoor show for that matter). They won't enjoy it and neither will you.

4) DO NOT check your nice double stroller at the gate when flying on Frontier Airlines to visit your sister in Indiana. If you choose to do this, the next time you see your sweet stroller (that you love) it will look as if a morbidly obese man repeatedly body slammed it until it was no longer of any use. Thank you Frontier Airlines! (OH AND... if this by chance does happen to you, make sure you call and file a claim within 4 hours of landing or else NOTHING will be done about your poor useless stroller!!!) Can you tell I'm still a little bitter about this one?

5) When traveling with a baby, or BABIES in my case, always have enough formula for bottles, extra clothes in case of a blow out or two, treats that have a lid that will stay on, more entertaining toys, and an extra, EXTRA person to help with carrying babies, bags, etc.

6) Don't expect to have access to warm water in places like airports, stadiums, museums, zoos, or even doctor's offices.

7) Be consistent with giving antibiotics! Even though they hate it and fight it, give it! It might just solve the problem and save you some heart ache in the end.

8) Buy clothes that are a little bit big so that they can wear them more than once or twice before they grow out of them.

9) If your babies are not sleeping through the night, try solving the problem before they are close to their first birthday. You do not have to go 12 months without sleep! (It only took one rough night to fix our sleeping problem and they've been sleeping great ever since! Yay!)

10) Last, but not least... kiss, hug, and snuggle those babies every chance you get! They grow so fast and I can't help but think that before I know it they'll be "too cool" for my hugs and kisses. It makes me cry just thinking about it. Time goes by so quickly. Don't take one moment for granted. Enjoy each new stage and each new lesson learned along the way!

We're on our way...

2010-05-07T09:05:00.002-06:00

... TO GETTING SOME SLEEP!!! Yay! Thank you so much for your comments. If you didn't get a chance to leave a comment and you have something to add, PLEASE do! We took all the suggestions, plus things I've been reading about lately, and came up with a strategy that we think is going to work great for us. Of course last night was a little rough and we didn't get hardly any sleep, BUT I know now that we are headed in the right direction! I think I just needed a little confidence boost from y'all. Thanks so much for your positive comments and encouragement. Us mommies need to stick together, right?! I truly appreciate it and I'll be letting you know how things continue to go.

Surprisingly, even after all those tears last night Brooklyn just woke up and is happier than she's ever been in the morning! She still loves me... Hurray!! :)

Desperate for HELP!!!

2010-05-06T10:53:00.004-06:00

Ok... so I'm going to admit it. I am a horrible mother. I don't know what I'm doing. I constantly find myself wondering, "What would a GOOD mother do in this situation?" or "How would a GOOD mother solve this problem?" But most of the time I don't know the answer. Motherhood is great. Don't get me wrong. It's definitely been the most rewarding and the most challenging thing I've ever experienced though. I feel like all I do is test theory after theory (none of which have worked so far).

Theory #1 - Feed them oatmeal right before bedtime and maybe they'll sleep through the night.

Theory #2 - They still ate a full bottle last night, so... Ah! Maybe I'll try to feed them more throughout the day. They must be hungry. Why else would they be waking up?

Theory #3 - That didn't work either. Maybe they're getting into a bad habit of having a bottle every time they wake up. Ok, so I'll just try to comfort them back to sleep.

Theory #4 - Well, she screamed for over an hour before I gave in and just gave her a bottle. I'm exhausted and the fastest way to get all four of us back to sleep is to just feed her/them a quick bottle and put her/them back down. (Lazy, accidently parenting... I know)

Theory #5 - Hey, maybe they are in pain because of their ears or maybe they're teething. We'll give them a little medicine before bedtime and see if that helps.

Theory #6 - Nope! Well, everyone has been telling us to just let them cry it out until they fall back asleep. Should we really try that???

This theory business has been going on for a full year now and I'm starting to feel DESPERATE! I can count on one hand (I think about 3, no lie) the number of full night's rests we've gotten since the girls were born. Every night I go to bed dreading the sound of cries in the middle of the night that I know are coming all too soon. Some nights it's just one baby, and some nights it's both. My babies are almost a year old for crying out loud! Since they were about 6 months old I've been saying to Andy, "They'll be sleeping through the night any day now and we'll finally get some sleep." Well here we are 6 months later saying the very same thing. Please help me if you think you have a solution or something that worked for you. Leave me a comment. I'm about to the point where I will try ANYTHING! I'm still kind of leery of the "just let them cry it out" idea. I just think that sounds so cruel. The Baby Whisperer says that it's not a good idea, that it breaks the trust bond between parent and child. I dunno? They need to learn how to fall back to sleep on their own, but I don't know how to do that. I understand that we've gotten ourselves into this situation by creating a bad habit with the bottle feeding every night, but at the time I just didn't know what else to do. They both take great naps during the day and they go down to bed fairly easily. The problem is keeping them asleep through the whole night (even 8 hours would be great).

ALL YOU EXPERIENCED, PROFESSIONAL MOTHERS OUT THERE... HELP ME!!!

Thanks,
a very tired and desperate fellow mother who needs some sleep :)

Tubes

2010-05-01T21:56:00.004-06:00

Warning... this is a very LONG journaling post to document Brooklyn and Mckenna's first experience with SURGERY!

Since Brooklyn and Mckenna have had ear infections almost nonstop since November (AHH!)... we decided it was time for tubes. The poor girls have been in pain and obviously out of sorts lately, so this was a much needed surgery. It was quite an experience though. We were told not to feed them after midnight the morning of the surgery, so of course they woke up at 4:00am and never went back to sleep. I felt like an abusive mother not feeding them when they were hungry. They cried until about 5:30am when we loaded them up in the car and attempted to calm them with a car ride. They settled a little, but they were still pretty mad. We got to the hospital at 6:30am, checked in, got little gowns and hospital socks, and were assigned to a nice big room. The girls were still very upset (especially Kenna)! I think they were wondering why they had been awake so long without being fed ANYTHING! Oh poor girls. I really felt bad. I couldn't do anything to calm them. Finally at 7:30am the doctor came in and told us we were all set to go. Brooklyn was supposed to go first, but by that time she had passed out on my lap from exhaustion. Kenna was still screaming, so they took her first. Yes, it was completely quiet for about 15 minutes while we waited for Brooklyn's turn. It was a much needed moment of silence for Andy and me. The doctor came back and said Kenna was all done and that she did great! He said that he had to clean a whole bunch of puss out of each of her ears. No wonder she's been so crabby! They took my sleeping Brooklyn and headed back for surgery #2. A few minutes later the nurse brought back a very sad little Mckenna girl. The poor thing was so delirious. She reached for me, then pushed me away over and over again. She cried and wined for about 30 minutes, then zonked out in my arms. Brooklyn was brought back to us and did the same thing... cried and wined for 30 minutes, then passed out in Andy's arms. All four of us were sound asleep! Ah, so nice! Sadly it didn't last long. The nurse came back in and kicked us out. :) I just wanted to sleep in that nice little lazy boy chair all day! And I definitely did not want to have to wake up the girls to get them dressed... but we did anyway. We got them dressed (while they cried of course) and headed home. I spent the rest of the day with my mom. Thank goodness for my mom! She let me take a little nap and helped me with my sad girls.

Since then they have been doing great! They are much happier in the daytime. They play more independently without having to have me right by their side at all times. They are less winey and sensitive. Brooklyn especially is doing much better. Kenna still seems to be irritated by her ears and freaks out any time I try to clean out the puss. They are both still leaking out of their ears and it worries me a little. I'll be calling the doctor next week to see if we need another antibiotic. All in all I'm glad we did it! If nothing else, at least I know that all that crap has a way to get out now instead of causing them all that pressure and pain. Now we just have to break their habit of waking up at 4 every morning!!! We thought the tubes would magically cure that little problem, but apparently it hasn't. Oh well... I'm sure we'll figure it out sooner or later. I sure hope so. These two tired parents need some SLEEP!!! :)

Active little girlies!

2010-05-01T15:59:00.004-06:00

Yeah for an update!! I thought I would just throw a few new pictures on here since it's been so long. The girls are so active right now. They crawl all over our house and pull up to stand on anything they can find. They are so cute when they follow each other around. I swear they have their own little twin way of communicating. It's so fun to watch! Their favorite place to hang out is under our kitchen table. They love crawling under there and eating all the little bits of food that mom hasn't swept up yet. I'm sure they will be walking before we know it. Scary! Watch out world... here they come!!

I love technology...

2010-03-29T10:35:00.002-06:00

Umm... actually I don't right now. I'm having a hard time getting my pictures from my camera to my computer. Not sure what the problem is, but it is the reason for a full month with no blog update. Sorry! I guess I'll just give a little written update and I'll get the cute pictures on as soon as I get someone else to figure it out for me! :)

The girls are so much fun right now. Their little personalities are showing more and more every day. I've decided that Brooklyn has attitude! She lets us know when she's mad, sad, unhappy, uncomfortable, etc. with no hesitation. She's definitely not my patient baby right now. She wants what she wants when she wants it! And most the time what she wants is MOM! She's a big time mama's girl. I don't mind, except that I start feeling bad when I realize that I hold her a lot more than I hold Mckenna. Although Mckenna doesn't ever seem to care, so I guess it's ok... right? Brooklyn crawls like a champ and is just now starting to pull herself up to stand in her crib and on our couch. Scary! I need to get serious about baby proofing our house a little more! Brooklyn also loves to sing along in the car (at least that's what I think she's doing), clap her hands, and pull her sister's hair. She's always on the go and is full of energy!

Kenna, on the other hand, is the most easy going baby. She is content to just chill and explore the toys that I put in front of her. She loves getting her hands on anything in sight and trying to figure them out. Most things go straight to the mouth. She also does this hilarious face/noise where she puckers up her HUGE lips really big and makes a farting noise! Ha ha... it's not always appropriate (during prayers, at church, etc) but it's dang funny! Kenna is good at imitating sounds. She'll repeat almost any sound you make at her. My favorite is when she's wrestling with daddy and he's doing a sort of growling noise... she does it too! It's so cute! She isn't crawling quite yet, but she's close. She usually gets where she wants to go by army crawling on her belly or rolling.

They both keep me very busy, and yes... occasionally I have to call my sister Whitney to come rescue them when I've about had it (thanks Whit), but I wouldn't change this experience for anything in the world! I love love love being a mom and thank my Heavenly Father every chance I get for these two sweet little spirits that He's trusted me with. I feel so blessed!

Stay tuned for a picture update soon... hopefully! :)

Princess Photo Shoot

2010-02-22T14:10:00.003-07:00

Wow! Shout out to Megan Heaps for taking some great pictures of our girls. It was so much fun getting them dressed up in their tutus (made by Aunt Chelsea... thanks!), trying to keep them happy, and taking a million pictures of them. We had a blast and I'm so glad I have an amazing, talented friend named Megan!

Meg, you did an awesome job and I love you so much. We'll cherish these forever. Thanks for the good times!! :)

Enjoy the princessness...

BROOKLYN RAE

MCKENNA JUNE

Just cuz...

2010-02-16T10:10:00.002-07:00

I don't have much to write about. I just wanted to post this cute picture!

Hey... we recently found a good way to tell them apart. I can't believe I didn't notice it before. Brooklyn has 2 cowlicks and Mckenna has 1. So, if you're really not sure who's who you can simply turn them around and check out the backs of their heads. Of course I don't need that trick because a mother just knows her kids! Right? They are getting harder and harder to tell apart though. I'd say that Aunt Whitney gets the prize for being the best at knowing who's who and my mother gets the prize for always getting it WRONG! Ha ha... love ya mom. Man, they're cute and so much fun!

Juanito Bandito is BACK!!!

2010-02-03T12:53:00.005-07:00

Hi y'all! I just wanted to let you all know about the awesome giveaway contest we are doing for the Bandito show on Feb. 13th and 15th! Hey why not do it, it's FREE tickets!!! We hope to see all of you there!

“The Hanging of El Bandito”
3 performances in Logan on Feb. 13th and 15th.

We can’t tell you how excited we are to bring back what is perhaps the most popular show in Pickleville history! Our talented cast and crew are busy preparing for a Valentine’s Weekend full of laughter and fun. We’ll also be featuring an optional Valentine’s Buffet before the performance catered by The Copper Mill. Click HERE for details including prices, dinner menu, and show information. Tickets are still available for all three performances. Call (435) 755-0968 to get yours!

BANDITO TICKET GIVEAWAY!!!
Want to win tickets to the show?

We’re giving away 5 pairs of tickets to “The Hanging of El Bandito” for those willing to give the show a “shout-out” on your Blog, Facebook, Twitter or Myspace page. Click HERE for the details!

Thank you so much for your patronage and support. We hope to see you again very soon!
Sincerely,

Pickleville Playhouse
Box office: (435) 755-0968
Email: info@picklevilleplayhouse.com

i want... SPRINGTIME!!!

2010-01-29T11:38:00.005-07:00

Springtime is my favorite time of year... by far! About now is when I really start wanting it badly. I get sick of the cold, being stuck inside, no sunshine, bad air, pasty white skin, and the list goes on and on. In my ideal world... spring would start in the middle of January and summer would start on the first of May! Oh well. Maybe we'll just have to move some place warmer. I would LOVE that! Until then... I'll just keep on cranking up the heat, turning on the fireplace, drinking hot chocolate, and snuggling with my three favorite people in the world!

At least I've got these three to keep me happy and loving my life (even when it's cold outside)!

This is what happens when...

2010-01-23T11:19:00.000-07:00

... Dad is in charge of dressing us and DOING OUR HAIR!

Nice Dad, nice. :)

You Know You're a Mom of Twins When...

2010-01-23T11:11:00.001-07:00

...You regularly find yourself in this type of a situation!!

When they're both hungry, it's hard for me to let one cry. I mean, how do you choose? Man... I LOVE these girls!!

SWIMMING

2010-01-06T12:21:00.000-07:00

We took the girls swimming for the 1st time last week and... well, one girl LOVED it and one girl HATED it! Who'd a thunk? I was sure that they were both going to have the time of their lives, because they both love the tub. I was wrong. My sweet, sensitive child got a little nervous with all the splashing and noise. That's right... Mckenna only lasted about 2 minutes in the water and then she screamed and screamed until Andy finally gave up and got out. Poor girl. We'll have to try again with her soon. Brooklyn, on the other hand, was having a blast! She splashed and laughed and enjoyed every minute of it. She was in the water for over an hour and probably would have stayed longer if we let her. It was a great night over all and I'm sure we'll be going back to the pool again soon! I just love watching these girls experience new things. It's fun to see their little personalities developing and to see how different they really are!

Mckenna... not too sure how she feels about this whole "swimming" thing!

Me, Brooklyn, and Kenzie

She kept pulling this face every time Andy held the camera up to take a picture! It was hilarious! What a ham!!

The gang... trying to pull the "Brooklyn face"!

Daddy and Kenna wrapped up safe and warm. :)

Ben is home!!

2010-01-06T11:50:00.000-07:00

The King family got a very special Christmas present this year! On Christmas Eve we got to go to the airport to pick up Andy's brother Ben from his mission in Paraguay! It was a joyous reunion!! How lucky are we? Two brothers home from missions within 2 months! We couldn't be happier to have them both home. We've really missed Ben and his fun personality. Andy couldn't wait to get up on the slopes with him. We went snowboarding/skiing the day after Christmas and we all came home pretty sore. :) It's been awesome having both our families back together again. We had everyone home for Christmas on both sides this year and it was amazing. I love our families!! I'm so lucky to have such great in-laws. Welcome home BEN! We love you and we're so glad to have you back!!

PS... We were on the news on Christmas Eve for getting a missionary home for Christmas! They put a mic on Tammy and everything. Poor Ben had a camera in his face right as he got off the plane. He did great though. It was fun to see our happy reunion on TV that night! :)

My Hero

2009-12-13T23:59:00.000-07:00

Grandpa Larsen
October 1, 1919 - December 12, 2009

There are not words to describe my love for this man. He is the most inspiring and uplifting person I've ever met. I always knew what he believed and what he stood for. He taught me more than I could ever hope to thank him for. I am so grateful that he has been such a big part of my life. I will never forget him or the lessons I've learned from watching him and hearing his life stories. I hope that I can follow his example of love and kindness. He has left an amazing legacy that I can't wait to share with my kids, grandkids, great grandkids, and so on.

Thanks Gramps, for all you've given me. You are truly an amazing man and an inspiration to all who've had the pleasure of knowing you. I'll keep looking for you on row "L" at Pickleville every summer... and even if I don't see you, I know I'll feel you! I love you to the sky and back!

1 2 3, Sharli

Family time...

2009-11-09T20:09:00.000-07:00

So, our house flooded. While we were staying at my mom's house (helping out with my dad since she was in the Philippines), a pipe broke under our sink in our upstairs bathroom and flooded the place. We had been at my mom's for a week and randomly Andy went to our house to grab some church shoes. Well, when he got to the house there was an ARS van parked in our driveway and they were trying to break in. Andy opened the garage for them and water gushed out of it like a river. To make this dumb long story shorter... we are homeless for now. They had to tear the whole place apart (floor, walls, ceiling, everything) and rebuild the entire downstairs and part of the upstairs.

SO... what does this lame story have to do with the title of this post? Well, we've been living at my mom's house for over a month now and even though it is a BEAUTIFUL home and there are great people here that we love, we never seem to get any "family time"... meaning me, Andy, and the girls. So on one particular night we decided to lock ourselves in our room (but not really because there isn't a lock on the door) :)... and enjoy each other's company! It was great. I love watching Andy with our girls. He is so cute with them and I know that he loves them so much! Every now and then I just need a peaceful, chilled out night with the 3 people that I love the most! It was just what the doctor ordered.

These are some pictures we took while we were playing with Brooklyn and Kenna that night! Oh wow, those two girls are so much fun! I love them both with all my heart... and I love their daddy even more (if that's possible). :)

PS... even though we complain on occasion about not having our own home right now, I am so grateful to my mom for letting us stay with her. I know there are times when she probably wishes that she didn't have so many room mates or so many people to clean up after, but she never complains or makes us feel unwelcome. She is amazing! I love you, mom! Thanks for all you do for us.

PS... BROOKLYN is in YELLOW & MCKENNA is in GREEN

Kissin' Cousins!

2009-11-01T20:50:00.000-07:00

Kristin and Brandon were able to come to Utah for a short visit this past week. They also brought the newest edition to our family, Nolan! He is so adorable and so tiny! I've already forgotten how little those new babies are. Even though my babies are only 5 months old, Nolan made me baby hungry! :) Anyway, it was great to spend some time with Kristin and Brandon and of course it was awesome meeting baby Nolan. These cute pictures are our best attempt at getting a good photo with all 5 cousins together. I thought they turned out cute! Enjoy!

Mckenna, Carter, Nolan, Caden, & Brooklyn

HE'S HOME!!!

2009-11-01T20:17:00.001-07:00

Yes, that's right folks... Elder Davis has safely returned home from 2 years of faithfully serving the Lord in the Philippines! And we couldn't be more happy to have him back. He came home on October 21st with my mom, TJ, and Whit. The rest of us cleaned mom's house thoroughly, made some cool signs, loaded up, headed to the airport, and met him there! It was hilarious trying to figure out how to successfully get everyone to the airport and then inside the airport once we got there. We had 4 able drivers, 15 people (young & old) total, and 6 different things to push inside once we got there (dad, grandma, grandpa, twin's stroller, Hayden's stroller, and all of dad's equipment). It seriously was so funny! We were quite a sight to see. We made it though and with plenty of time to spare. It was a joyous reunion. Derek looks great and is the same fun little brother that I remember from 2 years ago. He is amazing. I am so proud of him and so thankful for his example. Just having him around now makes me want to be better each day. It was awesome to have our ENTIRE family together for a week or so. We had some good times, great late night chats, and fun memories were made. I love my family with all my heart. I feel so blessed every time I think of any one of them. I wouldn't change being in a big family for anything. This is why I want to have 10 kids! Big families are the only way to go. We have so much fun together and there is so much love between us all. I am truly blessed. LOVE YOU GUYS!!!

All 6 grandkids under 1 roof = CRAZINESS!!

2009-10-26T14:33:00.000-06:00

Mckenna's 1st bite of rice cereal...

...and she LOVES it!! I had a feeling Kenna would be a fan!

Brooklyn's 1st bite of rice cereal...

...and out it comes! It took her a few tries, but she eventually got the hang of it.

Mckenna soakin' in the water.

Elliot being a goof ball... man, I love that kid!

Elliot with his adorably dorky goggles! :)

The three amigos!

Cutest Hayden boy ever!

The gang!!

Pure Elliot... jumping into the girls' crib/refusing to have his picture taken!!

We love you Chels & Elliot (JR too... I just don't have a picture of you)! Thanks for the visit and for the good memories! See ya in January!! :)

Wow! What a fun/crazy couple of weeks it's been for our family! My mom, TJ, and Whitney all left for the Philippines on the 12th to go pick up ELDER DAVIS! Erin, Chel, and I (plus all our kids) moved into mom's house to help take care of my dad. Holy cow! We sure know how to turn a perfectly clean house into a tornado scene. It was an insane 10 days! The last thing mom said as they were leaving was, "My house better be standing at attention when we walk in here with Derek next week!" She wanted vacuum lines in the carpet and a freshly lit candle on the kitchen counter. After the first few days at the "farm" (that's what we called it), we just decided to let the messiness go and wait to really clean until the day before they were coming home. It's seriously impossible to keep a house clean with six kids under the age of six running around making messes. We did our best though. Even with all the craziness, I had a great time! It was fun being with Erin and Chelsea and their adorable boys.

It was also very rewarding helping my dad. Sometimes I forget how hard it would be to be him. He is amazing. His quality of life is going down hill by the minute, but the man still has a great attitude. It was nice to be able to spend time and talk with him. He's such a smart man. I'm always learning from his grateful attitude and patience. It's a pleasure to be able to serve him and help him with the long list of things he can't do on his own anymore. Man, I love my dad!

Anyway, here is a list of some of the fun things we did while "grandma" was away...
1. A whole lot of "Lego Batman" on the Wii... Carter & Tanner's favorite!
2. Saved the twins from getting side swiped a time or two.
3. Tried to get Elliot to eat anything besides "chiten nuggets".
4. Tried to stop Hayden from eating EVERYTHING in sight! :)
5. Hid all the cookies and candy from the crazy boys who were already off the walls.
6. Fed rice cereal to the girls for the first time! They did great!!
7. I made cinnamon rolls with a lot of help (if you can call it that) from my three cute assistants (Cart, Tan, & Elliot)... surprisingly, the rolls turned out amazing!
8. Went to a few different parks in a desperate attempt to get out of the house and let the kids run WILD! We also took the kids swimming! Mckenna got to put her feet in the water for the first time (Brooklyn stayed home with Daddy and Papa Wee).
9. Went on walks, played on the swing set, wrestled (but only when "dad" came home... a.k.a. Andy). Andy was a husband to three and a father to six for those 10 days. He was a very good sport!
10. Yanked dad's trach out a few times (on accident) while we were trying to move him. We quickly learned how to move him without any problems and got better at it every day.
11. I became a professional suctioner! Dad even said that I was almost as good as mom... that's a huge compliment!
12. Learned how to successfully brush the man's teeth without squirting him in the eye with the dumb rinsing machine.
13. Realized that when dad stares at his armpits before we put his clean shirt on him, that means he wants deodorant! Duh!
14. Cleaned the kitchen counter off and did dishes at least 6 times a day.
15. Left all the kids and dad with Andy one night so that us girls could go to the USU volleyball game! SO fun!!... even though they lost. (PS...thanks Andy)
16. HAD A CRAZY GOOD TIME BEING TOGETHER WITH FAMILY!!!

LESSON LEARNED...

2009-09-27T22:11:00.000-06:00

VERY LONG STORY ALERT!!! Turn back now...

Never again will I try to take my two 4-month-olds to an Aggie football game!!! Oh my goodness! I never knew it could be so stressful! We had been pretty bored all week long and decided, "Hey! Let's get out of the house tonight. It's supposed to be pretty warm... let's go to the Aggie game!" The girls' first USU game! I was so excited. We loaded the girls up in their warm fleece outfits, packed blankets, bottles, binkies, formula, burp clothes, diapers, wipes, extra outfits (in case of an accident), and our sweet new Baby Bjorn (and one we borrowed from Kimber) and we were off! We were so prepared and thought we'd have a great time... think again. Of course we had to park quite a ways away (and pay $5 for it), which means we had to walk quite a ways too. After trying to figure out the borrowed baby carrier for about 10 minutes, we decided that Andy would carry Brooklyn in the Baby Bjorn and I would just carry Mckenna (a.k.a. Miss Chubs) in my arms. We got to the ticket line and waited in that for a good amount of time. They had "cash only" lines that were moving faster... but come on!!! Who carries cash these days?? We sure don't. So finally we got to the front of the line, paid $17 for my ticket (Andy still gets in free), and headed into the statium. Wow, it was packed! Thankfully our friends had saved a few seats for us. We sat just above the band and shoulder to shoulder with the people next to us. The girls did ok at first, but they quickly got hungry... so Andy filled up the bottles in the bathroom (cold water, yuck!), held the bottles in his armpits for a while to warm them up, and we tried to feed them. They didn't so much like the cold milk so they didn't eat very well. They started fussing after that and pretty much didn't stop until we got home that night. We left the game just after half time and thank goodness we did! Mckenna SCREAMED all the way back to the car and all the way home. Brooklyn joined in after a while too. I think it was a mixture of a lot of things for them. Loud noises, too many people around, cold bottles, breeze/sun in their faces, etc. Well, we've learned our lesson!!! No more Aggie games for now. Maybe when they get a little older. We'll see. All I know is that the night most definitely was NOT worth the $22 we spent! I would have much rather gone to a movie or something. The babies do much better at movies. Maybe we'll try that next time! For now all I can say is... LESSON LEARNED!

PS... the Aggies won by the way! But how would I have known who was winning with two babies to worry about?? I don't think I even watched a full play during the two quarters that we were there. Oh well! I'll be sure to let you know how our next "big adventure" goes! :)

This picture is the only one we got the entire night, despite all the stress. Surprisingly enough she's smiling. This was part of the 5 minutes that she was happy! Sorry Mckenna, we didn't get any pictures of you. You were too upset. :(

Happy Fall Y'all!

2009-09-27T22:00:00.000-06:00

We LOVE the fall season at our house! I love when it starts to cool down outside at night and I can start wearing my long jeans and jackets. I love the holidays during this season (Halloween, Thanksgiving)! I love the colorful leaves and the smell they leave in the air. I love being in a somewhat normal routine of life. Summertime is always crazy for us, so I always love when fall comes around and we have a regular schedule and a set bedtime!

The girls finally got to wear their cute pumpkin shirts the other day. I was waiting for the first day of fall and sure enough, it came as it always does! I hope everyone is enjoying this beautiful season as much as we are! HAPPY FALL Y'ALL!!!

4 Month Checkup

2009-09-27T21:48:00.000-06:00

We went in for the girls' 4 month checkup a few days ago. I was pleased to hear that they are definitely growing (Duh... just check out the previous post) and that they are both doing well. I've never noticed it, but apparently Brooklyn constantly tilts her head to the right. The doctor gave us a few stretching exercises to do with her so that we can lengthen her right neck muscle and even it out with the left side. The poor girl hates the stretches, but if we don't do them we'll be headed to physical therapy. So we're working on it! Other than that... the babes are healthy, chubby, getting stronger, and doing awesome! We couldn't be happier!!!

4 month STATS:
Brooklyn... 13 lbs 5 oz / 24 inches
Mckenna... 14 lbs 7 oz / 24.5 inches

Needing to BULK up a bit???

2009-09-27T21:22:00.000-06:00

Perhaps you'd like to triple your weight in say... 4 short months??

TRY THE MCKENNA STRATEGY!!!

Here's how it works... you have to scarf down 6 good sized meals a day, sleep a lot, lay around the rest of the day (when you're not sleeping), don't move much, and TA DA you'll put on the pounds like you've never put them on before! It works, I promise! Just ask the inventor of the strategy, Mckenna. All you need to do is check out her before and after pictures to see the proof. It worked for her and it can work for you! Good luck and enjoy your new fatness!!! :)

BEFORE (May 30, 2009)

AFTER (Sept. 18, 2009)

The Perfect Day

2009-09-13T22:04:00.000-06:00

Pre-blessing bonding!

Daddy putting on Brooklyn's blessing shoes.

Sorry Chel... this is Mckenna cheesing it! She was really excited for some reason!

Brooklyn in deep thought...

SISTERS... Brooklyn & Mckenna

Family photo

Papa Wee with Brooklyn (the blanket is the one dad brought back from Israel)

Grandma King with Mckenna & Grandpa King with Brooklyn

4 generations

We blessed our twin girls today and it couldn't have been more perfect. Brooklyn and Mckenna looked like little angels in their beautiful white gowns and their pretty white bows. I had a great time getting them all dressed up for their big day. Andy did a wonderful job blessing them. The pressure was on him today with two blessings to give right in a row. He threatened to just say "ditto" on the second one, but of course I wouldn't allow that! :) He did an awesome job. I have an amazing husband! I'm so grateful for the gospel and my testimony of it. I know that raising children will have its challenges, but with my Heavenly Father on my side I know that I have someone to turn to for guidance. I feel so so SO blessed to have these two little princesses in my life. I can't help but think of all the days that I cried and prayed that I would be able to have children and be a mother... and now I am and I couldn't be happier! This is my calling in life and I hope and pray that I will do it well.

To my girls:
You two couldn't have looked more beautiful today. It was a very special day for the both of you and somehow I think you knew it. The blessings that your father gave you were perfect. We love you two more than you can imagine. You both bring so much joy and happiness into our lives. Thanks for being ours! Love you to the sky and back. 123, Mom

PS... Aunt Chelsea, do you know who's who??? :)

Identical... but very different!

2009-09-02T11:30:00.000-06:00

There are quit a few differences that I have noticed between my supposedly "identical" twins. Not only do they LOOK completely different to me, their personalities are night and day too. I wanted to make a list of these differences now so that I can look back and see if they stay this way as they get older.

BROOKLYN
1. Brooklyn makes a very distinct "I am pooping" face! I love it. At least I know when it's happening. She purses her lips together, clenches her fists, and stares straight ahead until it is over.

2. She's a little more touchy than her sister. She wants her bum changed the second after it is messy, she gets mad when she kicks her way out of my impressive swaddling job, and she doesn't seem to fall asleep easily. It takes her a little longer to settle.

3. Although she is fussy on occasion, she will show you her huge smile almost as soon as you start talking to her. Sometimes I don't even have to say a word. I just look at her and she smiles back at me! It is the best!

4. Brooklyn is the smaller, more petite twin. She has always worn onsies that are a size smaller than Mckenna. She was a 1/2 pound lighter when they were born, but I think the weight gap is even bigger now. We'll have to see at our next check-up.

5. I think Brooklyn looks more like me. When she's awake and smiling I totally see myself in her cute, little face. I definitely know she's mine!

MCKENNA
1. Mckenna is a very content baby. She's usually happy to just sit and look at the colorful things around her. She is pretty easy to please.

2. I have to work just a little bit harder to get her to smile. She'll talk to me all day long though. She loves to hear the sound of her own voice. She gets really excited when we're having a "conversation" and it's her turn to "talk".

3. Mckenna has the cutest rolly, polly thighs ever! I love them! I have to clean in between about 3 rolls on each leg every time I change her bum. I love chubby babies... and Mckenna is definitely a chub! :) She's just solid. She is noticeably heavier than Brooklyn. It's adorable now, but it might not be so cute in the future (like when they are teenagers)!

4. When Mckenna is hungry we hear about it loud and clear. The woman wants her food the minute her stomach starts to growl. Not only does she let us know she's hungry, but as she's eating it sounds like the poor baby hasn't eaten in days. She is a very noisy eater! I love hearing the funny sounds she makes as she downs her bottle in no time flat. Perhaps this is why she is the heavier of the two. The woman likes to eat, ok? Lay off her, she's starving! :)

5. She likes her binkie! She'll take it almost anytime of the day, whereas Brooklyn usually only takes it when she's getting hungry. Mckenna is soothed by the binkie and that doesn't bother me. As long as we can get rid of it before she heads to preschool.

Other differences... Brooklyn has a birthmark on her left eyelid and Mckenna has one on her right eyelid. Brooklyn has a lot more hair than Mckenna! This is how most people tell them apart. It makes it pretty obvious.

Although they are different in many ways, they are also a lot alike. I love these two girls more than I could have ever imagined. It is fun to watch them as they grow and develop. I love seeing each new stage that they go through. They both smile and coo on demand now. I LOVE the little conversations that we have every day. I LOVE that they are starting to recognize Andy and me as their parents and that they respond to us with grins and cute little sounds. The next goal on our list is rolling over! :) I'll keep ya posted!

Just plain CUTE!

2009-08-02T23:14:00.000-06:00

I seriously can't take enough pictures of these girls! Every day there are great "picture moments" that I just can't resist. Every time they get to wear a new outfit, whenever they are sitting contently next to each other, even when they are both sleeping soundly... almost every second I'm with them is a good "picture moment". :) Here are some of my recent favorites! I know there are lots. Sorry... I just love their cute little faces!

Chelsea, I know you will appreciate this since your not around. They are growing so fast. I'll try to keep you updated often. Love you!

Happy Birthday Daddy!!!

2009-08-02T23:01:00.000-06:00

My husband is such a HOTTIE!

Brooklyn loves to smile at her daddy!

Andy and his "new girlfriends"... as he calls them! :)

Andy's 25th birthday was last Tuesday and I wanted to give him a quick shout out for being the bestest dad in the world! We had a little cake and ice cream after the show that night. He got some good birthday money from both moms (which he plans on using to buy a new golf bag) and he also got a cute new outfit from me! I love you honey! Happy birthday! Thanks for being such an awesome dad and husband. I couldn't ask for a better partner in life! YOU ROCK! (you old geezer... ha ha)

Sad, Sad Day :(

2009-08-02T22:40:00.000-06:00

A few weeks ago we visited the doctor's office for the twins' two month check up. Yes, that means the dreaded first SHOTS! I hate shots. I really, really hate getting shots, but now I can say that I hate watching my babies get shots even worse! It was so so sad. I was in charge of comforting Brooklyn and Andy was with Mckenna. Brooklyn went first and I was trying to be so brave. I didn't want to cry, because I had to be the tough one so that I could comfort her. Well, I did pretty good. I held her little hands and whispered in her ear to calm her. I held her tight and bounced her softly when she was done. Then it was Mckenna's turn and I was standing aside watching as I held and rocked a bawling Brooklyn and... that did me in. I was in tears instantly! Just seeing her obliviously laying on the table, happy as can be, and suddenly... OUCH!!! Are you kidding me? They don't even know what it is that is hurting them. Oh, it's so sad! I'm not excited for the next ones... that's for sure. Maybe it gets easier, but I'm still not excited. But for some good news... Mckenna weighed 10 lbs and Brooklyn was up to 9 lbs 4 oz. We're so proud! Everything else was good too. They are doing great! We seriously couldn't be happier. Gosh, I love those girls!

Photo Shoot

2009-06-17T17:04:00.000-06:00

We had a mini photo shoot on our bed with the girls today... nothing professional... just me, Andy, the girls, and my camera! It was fun! I love family bonding time. JR came in afterwards with his and Chelsea's sweet camera and took much better ones, but this is what I've got for now... so enjoy! Aren't they cute? We sure think so. (It's ok for a mom to brag, right?)

PS... They are 4 weeks old today! My how time flies. Mckenna now weighs 6 lbs 9 oz and Brooklyn weighs 6 lbs 4 oz! Yeah for my little fatties!! I love that they are starting to get chubby cheeks. I could kiss them all day! :)

Celebrating Weight Gains!

2009-06-09T13:33:00.000-06:00

We got to visit the doctor again today and found out that the girls are steadily putting on the pounds!! I am a happy mother. I don't want them to grow up too fast, but I'm glad we're out of the 4 lbs stage of life. That was a little scary for me. Right now Mckenna in at a whopping 5 lbs 15 oz and Brooklyn is 5 lbs 9 oz. Both are about one pound heavier than when they were born (3 weeks ago). Not bad! Brooklyn didn't pass the room air test, so we're keeping her on oxygen for now. Maybe next week? Both girls are doing great and we are just loving taking care of them and fussing over how cute they are! I still can't believe I'm their mother. :)

Sleepy Babies

2009-06-01T16:11:00.000-06:00

So this is how the twins spend most of their day... sleeping peacefully next to each other! It's pretty cute. Every 3 hours we feed them, change their diapers, wrap them up like a burrito, and then lay them back down in their little pack 'n play to sleep some more. The doctor says that they grow best when they are in a deep sleep, so we try to keep them pretty uninterrupted in between feedings. Wow, these girls are fun! Everyone told me that it would be SO much work having twins, but for now I'm loving it. They aren't too difficult to handle at the moment. I'm sure that will change though. I'm just enjoying every minute of this newborn stage. I still can't believe that these two precious little ones are actually mine! I feel so blessed.

Bonding with Papa

2009-06-01T15:59:00.000-06:00

This morning my mom took Mckenna down to see Papa Wee (my dad). Since Brooklyn is on oxygen and is hooked up to a monitor, she doesn't get to go down stairs quite as often. I decided that Brooklyn needed time with Papa too! I think she was starting to feel left out. :) So, I unhooked her from her monitor and carried her oxygen tank downstairs with me to go see Papa. We laid them both on his lap and I think he was in heaven. He just stared at them for about an hour or so. I kept asking him if he wanted me to take them, and he would just shake his head "no". I'm so glad that they both got some bonding time with their grandpa. He is an incredible man and I can't wait for them to grow up and get to know him better. We love you Papa Wee!

FIRST BATHS

2009-06-01T15:48:00.000-06:00

Ok... bathing a 4 pound baby is nerve racking! I was nervous the whole time. They are so teeny and can't hold their own bodies up, therefore I was freaking out a little. We did ok though. The girls didn't really love it, but they smell great now! :) I think they will like the tub more and more as they get a little older and bigger. Whit, Ty, and Kenz were my little helpers! They were awesome at drying them off, getting them all lotioned up, and getting them dressed in there matching pink outfits (something that they will be wearing a lot of, I'm afraid). First baths... what a day!

PS... the pictures aren't great, because the girls were a bit wiggly! Sorry.

Bye Bye NICU

2009-06-01T15:40:00.000-06:00

The girls got to come home with us last Saturday (May 30th)! We were so happy! We planned on them staying in the NICU for another week or so, but they've been doing so well with their eating and weight gains that the doctor said they were ok to go home. It was kind of scary for me to bring home such tiny babies, but I was happy to be able to be with them more and to have more bonding time. Plus we were excited to be able to show them off to everyone! No more driving to the hospital every 3 hours... now they're HOME! Here are some pictures of the day we left the NICU!

Together Again!!!

2009-05-27T16:54:00.000-06:00

This was the first time that the girls have been next to each other since they were in the womb! They've been hooked up to monitors on opposite sides of the room since they were born. Last night they finally got their IVs taken out as well as their feeding tubes, so they are almost cordless now! The only cords on them are the heart and oxygen monitors (and Brooklyn's low-flow oxygen in her nose that she seems to need every once in a while). It was so fun to get them together again for some cute pictures! They seemed to enjoy each other's company! :) Gosh, these girls are fun! Andy and I can't seem to get enough of them. We are so excited to finally be able to bring them home and not have to leave them at the hospital every night. Their doctor says that they might be able to come home with us some time next week. We can't wait! Enjoy the pictures and I'm sure there will be many more to come!

CHALLENGE: Can you tell which one is Brooklyn and which one is Mckenna?

Brooklyn and Mckenna

2009-05-22T12:06:00.000-06:00

Aunt Erin came in and took some great pictures of our girls. Thanks for putting these together, Erin! Enjoy the cuteness!! :)

They Are Here!

2009-05-21T10:24:00.001-06:00

They are finally here! Yesterday (5-20-09) at 34 weeks and 6 days Sharli had her twin girls, Brooklyn Rae and Mckenna June King. Brooklyn was born first. She weighed in at a wopping 4 lbs 9 ounces, and then came Mckenna at 5 lbs even. They are so beautiful and we are so happy that they are here. Because they are so small they are in the NICU. They will be there for at least 2 weeks or so. They are both doing great and we get to see them whenever we want. It is so fun to go and hold their little bodies! We are so blessed to have these little girls in our lives and still can't believe that we are parents. It is about 10:30 am on the 21st just 24 hours after they were born. So look forward to more pictures coming soon.

7 pounds of baby... & counting!

2009-04-26T21:02:00.001-06:00

So at my ultrasound the other day we found out that our babies are 3 1/2 pounds each! This is actually big for twins at this stage! I was happy. I'm just glad that they're growing and healthy. The poor suckers are running out of room in there though! I'd go crazy being squished up next to my sister like that for 9 months. :) Turns out that they are still both head down and will probably stay that way. At the ultrasound, they were spooning! It was cute. Anyway... things are good, we are blessed, and I am huge! Ok, goodbye!

Ps... this is one of the pictures that my good friend and pro photographer, Bodie, took of us the other day! I can't wait to see them all. It was so fun and Bodie is amazing!!! I'm glad we did it. I know I'm large and uncomfortable now, but one day I'll cherish these pictures. :)

31 Weeks!

2009-04-23T10:48:00.000-06:00

Ya gotta love little girl shoes!!! Aren't these adorable? My girls are going to be some stylish babies! So... I'm 31 weeks now and things are continuing to go smoothly. I feel like I'm as big as a whale, but it's all for a good cause. :) At my last doctor's appointment I measured 37cm which is almost full term for a single pregnancy. Wow! Yep, I'm big. Today we have another ultrasound! I love being able to see my little babies moving around inside of me. It's the best! I like knowing that they are alive and well. It's actually pretty funny to watch, because the whole time they are kicking and punching each other and moving around like crazy. I love it! The pictures we come home with are always fun too. Here are a few new facts since the last time I posted (for those who care, but mostly for my journaling purposes)...

1. I get up to pee three times a night! I've been told that this is just getting me used to having to wake up with the babies. :) It's probably true!
2. I think I found my first stretch mark on my belly the other day. I've been pretty stretch mark free so far (in the belly area anyway). I knew they'd be coming sooner or later though. Oh well!
3. I walk with a definite pregnant woman waddle. I try not to, but it just happens. I like going places with Andy so that I can hold onto his arm and give him some of the weight to carry. :)
4. I see limbs move across the top of my belly daily! It's the craziest thing. I will just look down at it randomly and an arm or leg pushes up and moves across the whole thing. It's fascinating! I love when Andy gets to see it too!
5. When standing straight up, I cannot see my feet. :( This is always sad.
6. Peeing in a cup is getting VERY difficult, but yet they make me do it every time. Blah!
7. Other difficult things... putting on socks or pants, bending over, eating without spilling on my belly, walking quickly, rolling over in bed, choreographing, holding babies, painting my toe nails, shaving my legs, and more that I can't think of at the moment.
8. Andy's shirts are getting snug. I'm running out of things to wear!
9. I feel little contractions every once in a while. Nothing too serious or painful, but contractions non the less.
10. I seriously can't wait to hold these precious little babies in my arms and finally be a mom. I can't believe how blessed I am.

My little Whit is growing up!

2009-03-15T11:45:00.000-06:00

A few weeks ago I got to go watch Whit cheer for her last bball game at Sky View. Wow, the memories came flooding back! It was fun watching her cheer and remembering all the good times I had in high school cheering at those games. I felt like I was bursting with school spirit all over again! I can't believe that it's been five years since I was the one kickin', jumpin', and screamin' on those sidelines. Time sure flies! Whitney has been so much fun to watch and I'm glad she's had such a good high school experience. She was a little teary-eyed after the game just like I was after my last game cheering in the Sky View gym. I told her to just be happy that she's had so many great experiences there and to hold on to the fun memories! One day she'll be old like me and look back at those times with a huge smile on her face! I love you, Whit! Enjoy the last few months you have there at good old Sky View High. It goes by way too quickly!

The Girls' Room

2009-03-15T11:28:00.000-06:00

Well, we've started getting the baby room ready and I thought I'd share a few pictures of the process so far! We still have work to do, but the room is painted and the cribs are put together... so the hard stuff is done! We are getting so excited for these little girls. The waiting is killing me! We just keep praying that everything will continue to go well. As for now, the girls are growing normally and doing great! Not only that, but I'm feeling pretty good too! We are so blessed. Enjoy the pictures of my cute husband doing all the work. (I helped too, but I was the photographer so there's no proof) :)

Twins update!

2009-02-18T17:26:00.000-07:00

LONG POST ALERT! I will not feel bad if you skip over it!! :)

Yes, I am getting huger and huger by the minute. Is huger a word? It's true though. I really can't believe how much this belly grows every day. My belly button is almost poking out already! It's crazy... but I wouldn't have it any other way. I'm fat and uncomfortable, but excited as heck! I am now about 22 weeks along. Only about 14 weeks to go (twins usually deliver at 36 weeks)! I'm starting to get anxious. We have their cribs set up and a closet full of girly clothes, blankets, socks, and even diapers. Yes, my mother is already stocking me up with the necessities. She's a little excited herself! It makes it more fun though. Andy said the other day as I was peaking into the baby room again, "Shar, you just need to shut that door until May or you will drive yourself crazy waiting." He's absolutely right too! I still have quite a ways to go before these little girlies get here. So, the door is shut til May. I still have things to do and get ready, but I'm waiting at least til Spring to finish preparing for our little ones. I'm gonna need something to keep me busy later on down the road, right? Anyway, life is good and I can't believe how blessed I am. Every day I'm in awe of all the blessings I have. Here is a short list of a few of my favorite blessings:

1. An incredible, adorable, amazing husband who works so hard for our family and treats me like a queen!!! I'm so lucky to have him! I could never say enough GREAT things about this man. I feel bad for every other girl out there who isn't married to Andy. :)
2. Two little angels growing inside of me. I can't help but think of all the years I prayed to be a mother and now it's finally happening. I just hope that I'm ready to give them all that they need to live a great life.
3. A good job that keeps me busy. Teaching is hard and very tiring at times, but I'm so thankful for the experience! I'll never forget my first little class of fifth graders and what they've taught me.
4. A wonderful family!!! In-laws included. We're so blessed to have two amazing families who support and love us. Both our families are chuck full of incredible examples for us to look up to and learn from.
5. The gospel. Even though I'm FAR from perfect, I have a testimony of the church and that is what pulls me through sometimes.

It's two... GIRLS!!!

2009-02-10T20:23:00.000-07:00

Shoot! I was going to post a picture with this, but I can't even stand to go into my office at this point in time. We're trying to clean out a room and make a space for our little girls who are on their way, therefore every extra piece of furniture is shoved into our little office space. That is why it has taken me to long to share the news with the blogging world (Chelsea). :) So, here I am at my mom's house, in her nice and clean office, announcing the surprise! Yep... two girls!!! We weren't sure if we were capable of producing little princesses (with all the many nephews that we have), but it turns out that we must be pretty lucky! I couldn't be happier. Pink, lace, hearts, princesses, butterflies, ballet slippers, pig tails... here we come! It will be different, but hecka fun to have a few little girls around these parts. We seriously can't wait. I will be posting some pictures in the near future of the cute, girly room we are currently putting together. So FUN! Chel, I wish you were here. I miss you like crazy. Come visit! And Dies, I miss you too. I can't wait for you to meet your little nieces. LOVE YOU!

Sun Valley 2008

2009-01-17T12:17:00.001-07:00

Sun Valley was magical once again! We always love having our Christmases up there! My family even joined us for a few days this year, which made Christmas even more perfect. I spent a lot of time just relaxing and enjoying having almost no responsibilities. Andy got to go snowboarding quite a bit and he loved every minute of it. Doobie even came up for a short visit! Sun Valley just wouldn't be the same without a late night card playing fiasco with the Doobster! "Round house KICK to the face!" It was awesome. Whitney was an all star! New to the group, but a pro non-the-less. I even have proof that she made it up to the mountain a time or two during the trip. Way to go, Whit. Thanks everybody (family, carolers, etc.) for making our Christmas amazing! We love you all... and can't wait til next year!! :)

17 Weeks!

2009-01-17T11:57:00.000-07:00

It's definitely growing! Here I am at about 17 1/2 weeks. This is mostly for Chelsea and Derek's sake. Chelsea told me that I'd better get better at blogging if I'm going to be having babies. So, here ya go! I'm feeling great. I have my appetite back now. In fact... I feel like I could eat EVERYTHING! I'm almost always hungry, which is a nice change from never wanting to eat at all. I guess these babies just need their food! We had an appointment this week and thought we might be able to see the genders, but it turns out that it's still too early. We'll be finding out in a couple weeks though! We can't wait. I'll be sure to keep y'all posted!

TWIN RUMOR... true!

2008-12-22T16:01:00.000-07:00

Yes, I am officially pregnant with TWINS! I know I'm a little slow with posting this little announcement, but here it is. I'm about 14 weeks along now and starting to see a little belly poking out. We decided to take monthly pictures so that we could keep track of the continual growth (I'm gonna be HUGE)! It's fun though and such an amazing blessing to us. We couldn't be more happy or excited. I've been ready for this for a long time now... and honestly, it's going to be a long 5 more months of waiting for them to get here. Andy is going to be a GREAT daddy! He can't get enough of my belly already. Every morning he says, "Wow, your belly is bigger than yesterday"! He seriously says that every morning! It's pretty funny. I love him so much and can't wait for the adventures to come!

Due Date: June 25, 2009

WHO HAS TIME FOR BLOGGING???

2008-11-02T18:16:00.000-07:00

For the past few months, I have been wondering the same question... who has time for blogging? I don't even have any kids, and I can't find the time to sit down at a computer and update my blog. I barely have time to check my email every once in a while. I'm sure anyone who even looks at my blog is ready to barf... cuz I am. I'm so sorry. I'm the worst picture taker, the worst journal writer, and therefore the worst blogger ever. I'm aware. I'm going to try to do better. We'll see though. Life never really seems to slow down for me. But for now, things are going good for us! We're just about totally settled into our new town house (I know it's been like 2 months, but as you can tell... we're busy people). We're finishing up a few painting projects, but for the most part... we're loving it. It's nice to own something for yourself and not have to pay rent to somebody else. We feel so blessed. The only real problem is that we don't have the Internet yet. I never realized how much I depended on it until now. Having the Internet is so crucial in these days! :) Not having it has also been a huge contributer in the blogging drought. Anyway, hopefully we'll be setting up some sort of Internet soon and I can keep this baby more updated. Bare with me people. More to come soon...

4th of July

2008-07-14T15:00:00.000-06:00

We had a fun night of weak fireworks to celebrate the 4th at PVP! The little kids were loving the sparklers. They each took turns helping TJ light the little fireworks that we had. Andy helped keep the sparklers going for everyone! It was a great time!

In Heaven...

2008-07-14T14:51:00.000-06:00

If you are ever wondering what Andy's favorite summer activity is... just take a look at his face in these pictures! He has found a new hobby and is begging me daily to take him to Hawaii so that he can surf the big waves. He should have been born in California! He loves surfing behind the boat and couldn't wait to get out there... so he put on his wet suit in the middle of May and braved the cold waters of Bear Lake just to get his thrills! What a stud!

Newest addition to our family...

2008-07-14T14:42:00.001-06:00

This is Goldie, our new truck! Andy needs to have a work vehicle to keep all this tools and stuff in... and when his beloved Gus died an untimely death he immediately had his eye on this truck. Isn't she a beauty? I feel so bad that we never got a picture of Gus though before he kicked the bucket. Oh well, we will just have to remember Gus in our hearts. Sadly though, we had to get rid of Barb in order to get the truck. My mom bought her back from me and now I drive Willis, Andy's grey civic. It was hard for me to let go of my first and only car, but she's still in the family so I can visit her every now and then. No we are not that weird... even though we name our cars and treat them like our children. Ha ha! :)

Family Fun at the Lake!

2008-07-14T13:52:00.000-06:00

Sorry these pictures are in such a random order... but here they are anyway! This was one of the best days so far this summer! The whole family out on the boat. It doesn't get better than that! We had a blast. Everyone got a chance to show their skills on the surf board or wake board, the little boys got to help Andy drive and loved just going along for the ride, and I got to take all the pictures. I loved it! It was so great to have everyone together... minus Diesel of coarse. We haven't forgotten about you, D. And we miss you like crazy!!

Thanks for a good time you guys! I sure love you all!! :)

Obviously the water is still quite cold!!

My sister rocks! I still can't get up on a wakeboard and she gets up first try...

Zonked out at the end of the day!

Thumbs up dude!

Tanner... lovin' his life in the drivers seat!

This is Elliot watching JR surf. He was a little nervous for his daddy to say the least. Although... he didn't mind it when anyone else was risking their lives behind the boat. JR had to smile and wave at Elliot to calm him down. It was pretty funny!

Sisters + Tan Man eating as usual...

Nice hairdo girls!

The Haynie Family

Elliot wasn't quite sure if he liked the boat or not...

Dobbie overcoming his fear of the water...

Tanner loved helping Uncle Andy drive!!

JR surfin' it up!

Don't fall off the back...

Three peas in a pod...

"What's goin' on out here??"

Jazz Game

2008-07-14T13:35:00.000-06:00

This was a while ago, but I thought I would post some pictures of it anyway! Andy and I got to go to the last Jazz game of the year. We sat in the nose bleed section, but had a blast anyway. Too bad we lost though! I had a great time watching Korver warm up before the game! I have a slight crush on him if you can't tell from the pictures. We are even considering Korver for our first son's name. Ha ha! Go Jazz! :)

The end of a great Idol season...

2008-05-22T14:26:00.000-06:00

For some odd reason I feel like I need to pay tribute to my favorite reality show as it comes to an end once again this year. This time of year is always a sad time for me. I seem to shed a few tears as the season comes to a close. At times, I even feel like I'm mourning the loss of a loved one. American Idol has brought good times and great memories to me and the whole Davis clan for years now. Every Tuesday and Wednesday night during Idol season you will find us crowded around the big screen in my mom's living room, watching intently and cheering on our favorites. This year, like many other Utahans, our favorite was the amazingly talented 17-year-old, David Archuleta! I may be shedding more tears than usual this season, because I have fallen in love with David's beautiful voice. I'm sure going to miss it. Season 7 has been a great one for me! Even though Archuleta didn't pull it out in the end, I'm sure he'll still go on to do amazing things with his singing career! Besides David, there have also been many, many awesome memories from this season. Here are a few of the funniest... (you'll probably only understand this if you are a member of the Davis family)

1) "Take it, take it, take it!! I'm going for actressing. I'm going to be a dang good actor!"

2) "When Joseph went to Egypt land... let my pee-ple go-ooo" (5 octaves below what it should be!!)

3) "Climbing the Smoky Mountain tops..." (guy with a lisp, singing 5 octaves higher than it should be!!)

4) "... if she were a bathtub, I would caulk her" (creepy guy singing his song for Paula)

5) Remember the weirdo old guy who wrote a song for the youth of the world. Of course he didn't just stand there and sing though... he was singing, marching, and waving his hand all at the same time!! "No sex allowed. I don't want to be apart of your crowd. No sex allowed. If you don't like it, then get out of town." Ha ha! I love this guy!

6) And who could forget the Filipino with the white cowboy hat and the white feathery cape. He also wrote his own song for his audition... "I am your brother, your best friend forever, singing the songs, the music that you love... " over and over and over again!! Gotta love the Filipino!

Oh wow! It is going to be a long 7 months until Idol starts up again. Until then I will be counting down the days and reminising about all of the classic Idol moments I've experienced so far.

Go get 'em, Archuleta... I'm still cheering for you!!

I DID IT!!!

2008-05-05T11:11:00.001-06:00

Here are a few pictures from my big day... USU Graduation May 3, 2008!

My best bud, Amy!

Does this gown make me look fat??

A graduate in deep thought...

CUTE COUPLE!

Two best friends with our Andy's.

Mal is trying to cover up her cute baby bump!

Some of my friends from the ELED program!

Lindsey, Morgan (my car pool to Preston buddy), Jen, Mary (pregnant), and ME

Real World... Here I Come!

2008-04-28T10:29:00.000-06:00

Wow! I cannot believe that I made it through 4 years of college! I always worried about Student Teaching and having to take over my own class all by myself... and now here I am, DONE! I just finished my last block of Student Teaching last week and will be graduating this Saturday. I cannot even believe it! It is weird for me, because truthfully I never even planned on graduating from college at all. I thought I would be married with babies before I would be able to finish any sort of a degree, but the Lord has something different in mind for me and every day I'm trying to figure out just what exactly that is. I've been so blessed though. I've met people and kids that have changed my life forever. I've been able to teach a variety of students and have learned more than I ever imagined from them and their sweet spirits. Kids are great! I love teaching and being able to see them grow and succeed. I love being apart of their accomplishments as well as their disappointments. Maybe this is my calling in life! I always thought that being a mother was my calling, but that dream seems to be slipping away more and more each month. Don't get me wrong... I haven't given up hope. It is just hard not to get discouraged sometimes. I love being an elementary school teacher though and am excited for the adventures to come with this new career I'm jumping into! Like I said, real world... here I come!!

Here are a few pictures from my Student Teaching experience...

Cage... one of the cutest special needs kids ever! I will miss him.

Lunchtime in the Faculty Lounge!!
Goodbye notes from my 4th graders!
Mrs. Summers' 4th grade class.
Mrs. King in action! :)

Mrs. Noyes' 2nd grade class.

Spring Break in Vegas!

2008-04-28T10:10:00.000-06:00

Vegas was a blast as usual! We took my spring break as an opportunity to get away for a few days and enjoy the sun! This is us at the Rainforest Cafe after stuffing ourselves full of delicious food!! Mmm, good.
We hardly have a dollar to our name right now... but who could pass up the opportunity to see Phantom of the Opera in Las Vegas at the Venetian?? Not us! We spent the last of our vacation allowance on the cheapest seats available, but much to our surprise... they had seats open up last minute in the "Golden Circle". We found out later that this is right where the chandelier falls. Yep, it fell right on our heads!! So cool! We sat in the BEST seats in the house and paid for the cheapest seats. That is my kind of deal! Andy is still going on and on about how amazing the show was. It was his first experience with a "REAL" show! He loved it!! :)
He is so cute to me! This is our attempt at a romantic kissing picture on the Venetian bridge. It didn't work too well. We couldn't stop laughing. :)
This picture pretty much sums up the whole vacation. We spent most of our time being lazy by the pool. We had been totally sun deprived for about 5 months in Utah, can you blame us??

WE LOVE PHANTOM!!!

Two WoNdErFuL Years!!

2008-03-22T11:56:00.000-06:00

Well, we made it... two whole years! I suppose the honeymoon stage is over by now and for some odd reason I don't feel like a newlywed anymore. I think that as soon as you hit the two year mark, you are old news. :) And what do we have to show for it?? Well, a great deal of awesome memories and fun times, a few good trials, and most especially... a whole lot of LOVE! Our first two years have been better than I could have ever imagined. Yah, it's been a roller coaster ride, but for the most part it's been great! Andy is so easy to get along with. He is so easy-going and always thoughtful. He is such an amazing husband and I feel more and more lucky every day to have him. I'm so spoiled. Sometimes I just cry thinking about how blessed I am to have such a wonderful marriage.

The other day after church we were walking out to our car and I notice a cute, brand newly wed couple hand in hand walking out to their car. The husband, without hesitation, went straight to her side of the car and unlocked and opened it for her. How sweet! I looked down and noticed that we were not holding hands, first of all, and that Andy was already on his way to his side of the car. When we got in I said, "Have you noticed that you don't open the door for me anymore? I wonder when that stopped happening. You used to treat me like a queen." Guilt trip, I know! I'm such a brat. BUT... from that moment on, he has opened my door every single time and each time he does it he says, "Here you are my queen" as I'm getting in. Ha ha! I just love my husband. He needs a few reminders sometimes, but he truly does treat me like a queen and I couldn't be more grateful. Oh, how lucky am I?

Here are a few pictures of the cute surprises that Andy whipped up for me. He brought this huge, beautiful flower bouquet into my dance class with an adorable musical card to go with it. He said that he wanted to embarrass me in front of my dancer girls, but I think that he was the one who was embarrassed. He turned bright red as all the girls gave him the classic "Ahhh!" I loved it. He also surprised me with my favorite movie!! ENCHANTED! If you haven't seen it, you need to. It is so cute and I love the music. We took it home and got through about half of it before I fell asleep. What a wonderful anniversary! I love you ANDY!

Finally a State Champion!

2008-03-10T16:13:00.000-06:00

So, I spent the whole weekend watching intramural basketball games down in Ogden... six games to be exact. Andy's USU intramural team won the USU tournament and then got asked to go down and play in the state tournament. U of U, Weber, UVSC, and some other Utah schools were there and guess what... THEY WON IT ALL!! I was so proud. It was fun watching him play basketball again. He has always wanted to be a State Champ and now he is... although I don't think he wanted it to be with intramural basketball! :) Oh well, I think it's still pretty cool. Now he says that he doesn't have to live in 2003 anymore (his glory days)! Yep, now we're livin' in '08!! Except that Andy is so sore that he can't even hardly walk. Six games in two days is rough on an old man! :) And sorry, but I forgot to take my camera so I don't have any pictures of the champions. Shoot! I really need to start getting in the habit of taking more pictures. It would really make this blog a lot more fun and interesting! :)

Good Job Coach King!

2008-02-24T14:13:00.001-07:00

This is Andy's sad face, because his Freshmen team lost in the championship game of the Judge Tournament last week. Andy helped coach the Sky View Freshmen this year with his friend, Jake, and they did a great job. They ended with a 17-3 record and 2nd place in the tournament. Not bad! I think it's cute to watch him pretend like he's all grown-up and old enough to be coaching his own basketball team. What a dream come true. :)

Happy Valentine's Day!

2008-02-17T23:48:00.000-07:00

I love Valentine's Day! I got a whole lot of cute little Valentines from my second graders. Way too much candy! We're getting pretty fat over at our house. Andy gave me these beautiful roses. He tried to get them delivered to my school to surprise me, but we had a snow day. The flower store kept calling me after that to "come pick up your flowers". So, it wasn't a surprise but I still love them! Thanks honey!!

New Blogger...

2007-12-11T14:30:00.000-07:00

Well, I guess I'll join the fad and become a blogger. I've held off for long enough. I just always thought you had to have cute baby pictures to do this sort of thing, but I guess y'all will just have to enjoy looking at pictures of plain old Andy and me until we can get this baby thing figured out! :)