My brother

Apparently I have a 9 year old son named Banner. Yep. He and Tanner are besties and he even carved a pumpkin with us on Sunday. So if you ask Tanner, he probably has a brother.

For other news, I will post pictures and let you in on the latest happenings around these here parts

Tanner went out trick or treating as Darth Vader. He was supremely cool looking and even scared a few people with his super cool light saber.



This is our new front door mat that Matt picked out.

My new welcome sign I got last weekend. It's red and awesome



Our finished pumpkins.


Tanner's pumpkin

Banner's pumpking...yes, he carved this ALL by himself


Matt's awesome pumpkin



I made these cool rice krispie pumpkins for Tanner's class party. They were soft and chewy and oh so yummy!


Pumkin seeds. Little story: this is our first year carving pumpkins. Matt and I have carved them as kids but since we've been married (11 years) this is our first. It was most exciting!

Matt tends to be MUCH more patient with Tanner than I am. I think it's a trait I inherited from my Mom because I just want to do it for him and my Mom was the same way with me when I couldn't figure out how to do stuff. I'm better but it's a learning process.



Me, with my hand in my pumpkin guts. Sometimes my hair is curly. Sometimes it's blue too.


How I felt about sticking my hand in a mushy, cold, stringy, wet pumpkin.


My ever so cute, adorable #1 boy Tanner


My wickedly awesome, cute husband

So we had a ward Halloween party on Saturday night but we were invited out on a date with our charming Trek Daughter, A.J., and her husband so we went to the party for an hour and then went on our fun date. This is our best bowling pose...actually this pose probably explained my dismal score of 69.


This is A.J. and Brett's best bowling pose. He won with over 120 points.


Matt and I as Thing 1 and Thing 2



No, I'm not secretly "Vanna Whiting" my stomach to "secretly" announce I'm pregnant.





Sadly, we didn't get ANY pictures of the 3 of us! Too bad.

Tanner was a wizard (or warlock) for his Halloween performance.



Isn't he such a cute, adorable, sweet wizard that you ever did see? It's not like I'm biased or anything.


this picture is kinda backwards. I went and had a Mary Kay make over and this was after. Isn't Tanner's face priceless? Like worth a thousand or more words for sure.


Here's the make over. It's a little more dramatic than I normally do, but not so much that I look like a whore.

This one is mostly for Megan. When she was here last she suggested I put a bow on this wreath so I did. It's okay. I'm not totally in love with it but it works for now.

What else has been going on in our neck of the woods? 21 days and Tanner will be 8! Like wasn't he just born last year? Didn't we just spend half of his first 2 years of life in the hospital having surgeries? That wasn't THAT long ago was it??? Man oh man it's flown right by. I am beyond excited for this phase and for the joy that he has brought into not only our lives but the lives of our family and friends. The love I feel for him as his mother is beyond anything I can begin to explain.

I won't lie and say that it's been overly easy lately being a Mother. He has tried/tested us to every limit we can think of. As I was explaining my frustrations about feeling negatively about being a Mother (which is huge because being a Mother is a role I deeply cherish and value) to someone, she said something oh so wise. She said that before children are baptized, she felt the adversary can still influence them and they can do things that they normally don't do because Satan knows that they are about to be baptized and of course he doesn't want that. I hope that makes sense. It was an Ah hah moment for me. We have made more of an effort to be loving and patient with him and explain that choices, good or bad, have a consequence. It has calmed the frustration about 7 notches.

I think about the day he will be baptized almost non-stop. I wonder if Matt and I have taught him all that we could have by now. I wonder if he will understand the importance of what he is about to do. I wonder if he will feel the Holy Ghost and know what it is. I wonder if he's ready. I wonder if Matt and I have been the best parents we could be and if we've failed in any way. In the end, I believe it will all be okay. No parent is perfect and I'm certainly not expecting that I am or have been. I just hope that I have been the best that I have had the potential to be.

Life is good and we are happy and healthy and that's what matters most.

I have so much to be thankful for...or rather much to be happy about. I have been slightly consumed with my frustrations over some personal things but I realized I needed to stop thinking about it and see what's right in front of me. Things like:

-tanner getting baptized in 28 days and knowing that we will get to feel people who have passes on there with us on that special day

-going to Calgary for my Moms birthday

-crafting

-our primary presentation tomorrow

-dates with Matt

-Halloween

-being with people who care about you

-serving

-scrabble slap

-blue hair (just for our costume)

-bowling with a.j and Brett

-Christmas shopping/looking

-pumpkin carving

-reading Anne of green gables

-jogging

I do have a lot to be grateful for.

Leggings

I ran across THIS article on Leggings and thought about it for quite some time after I read it. I have leggings and wear them frequently to work and have worn them to church once or twice under a skirt/dress that's NOT a mini skirt/dress but just a little too short but modest in every other way. I would, as the writer put it, feel comfortable if the prophet walked in my house and I was dressed that way. I would rather wear a dress or skirt that I don't have to wear leggings under to church but sometimes to switch it up and give my wardrobe some variety, I wear the leggings under a Sunday/church dress. I mostly wear them under skirts to work so that when I walk home and the wind blows my skirt up (which it has several times without leggings)I'm not caught with my skirt up around my waist. What are your thoughts? Do you like leggings? Do you wear them? Do you wear them to church?

It's about time!

I've had a really busy week and a half. We had a great Thanksgiving. We hosted my family on Saturday and Matt's family on Monday. We did a bacon wrapped turkey with my family and then for Matt's family we stuffed a turkey with provolone cheese and prosciutto. It was yummy to say in the least.

We got to talk to my sister, Melany, in P.E.I. They found a place that looks out at the ocean. It sounds so dreamy.

I've been working on some projects for the last few days. The apron was one that I did with Jamie in the Spring and I was hoping to find a sewing machine of my own to finish it, but I am borrowing Susannes for the next week so I am able to work on some stuff. It's a reversible one. The Candy jar is something I decided to get the stuff for today while we were in town. I am also working on Tanner's birthday gift.

Anyways, I have more to post but I'll leave you with this for now!

Truly Inspiring

I came across this amazing blog while pinning stuff on Pinterest. I think for my 35th I would like to do something like this. Obviously I would need to save up some money to do things like this. How awesome would that be?!

Tannerisms

On Friday he was being stubborn and I was trying to be firm with him.

T: do you think I'm a bad boy?

M: No, I don't think you are a bad boy at all

T: Well, what do you think I am? Gullible?

M: *not good at containing my laughter*, Tanner, do you even know what that word means?

T: yeah....what does it mean Mom?



While eating tonight this was bits of our conversation:

T: Did I know Nephi when I was a baby?

M: I don't think so.

T: Well I knew him in heaven before I came here

later

T: when we were in heaven we had Family Home Evening and we were all there. You and Me and Grandma and Auntie Carolyn. And Heavenly Father told every person who would do the scripture and the lesson and then we would have a treat.



I love when he talks about before he was born. It's like a tiny glimpse into Heaven. We are so blessed to have him in our lives!

I love...

Surprises. My family is seriously the BEST at them and I love them. My sister came down as a surprise this weekend and we all went to the Temple together. It was the best!

Walking in the morning. Some mornings, I feel sluggish and lack the desire to get out of bed but when I put on my running shoes and start walking, something instantly changes and I am happy and feel so much better

Fall. There is something so magical about fall and the leaves turning and the smells and...well, I could go on and on.

Work. Both my jobs are great and I enjoy both for different reasons.

Cleaning my bathrooms.

Talking about possibilities of what to do with our yard.

That Matt makes Tanner's lunches. I think I've made them once since the start of school. I'm usually busy trying to get ready for work in the morning so Matt does it. I have such a great husband.

Tanner's love of his stuffies.

Not having any hills to walk up/down in town.

When people think I'm funny. Someone who I think is really funny told me that I was NOT funny and it gave me a slight complex. I am not a seriously funny person...if someone laughs at me or something I say they think is funny, I laugh with them. I am not a straight faced funny person.

My exercise ball. It is the best $8 I have spent in a long time.

Shoes. I think I love shoes as equally as earrings. That could be really bad, although I am not a huge shoe/earring spender. I just look at them and wish for them. I don't have a problem...not yet : )

Oatmeal. Let me tell you that this is kinda huge. I use to detest oatmeal. I avoided it at all costs. Now, I love it and for a bedtime snack, it's so yummy.

Applesauce and Pork chops...who knew?



So that's about all for now. Have a great Wednesday!

Life is too short

Lately I have been thinking about this a lot. A friend told me recently (and I'm just para-phrasing) that I was not a typical person that cares about if I have a ton of friends or not and that I seem happy no matter what.

As I thought about this, I thought about how I have some really truly amazing friends who I love dearly with my whole heart. Then I have friends that I just really click with and that I really enjoy hanging around with. I don't like to be exclusive when it comes to who I choose to hang out with. Then I realized, no matter what kind of friends I have, my happiness in having friends is not co-dependant on the number of friends I have.

I have a small group of friends that I trust with my life but for the most part, I enjoy hanging out with lots of different people. I think it's so silly that there are people that don't get along with other people and as a result of that dislike, don't go to certain things because the person they dislike are there. Some women are just really catty. I'm not saying that it's not normal to dislike people (there are people that I just don't get along with very well...not everyone's personalities match) but I would never miss an opportunity to meet new people somewhere just because x was there. I mean if a person chooses not to go a certain place because so and so is there, they are the ones missing out. Life is too short to worry about stuff like that.

I hope that this attitude shows in my real life too because in all honesty, life is too short to worry about if other's will like you or not. Undoubtedly, inevitably, there will always be people that don't like you for whatever reasons but what's most important is what I think of myself and weather or not I feel I am being true and honest to what my personal values are. I value simplicity and worrying about weather or not people like me does not fit into that for me. If I worry, it gets emotionally complicated and draining. I have other things to worry about that are more important.

Who I want to be friends with is my own choice and I am a very social person so I like to hang out with lots of people. Age, race, religion has no boundaries in who I choose to be friends with. We are all God's children and we are all loved equally by Him and that's what matters to me.

And that's all I have to say about that : )

Random Musings

I've noticed that I eat certain things the same way each time. Example: When I eat cheese string, I always tie the piece in a knot and eat it. When I eat a banana, I take the peel totally off and then eat it by breaking a piece off. I'm sure we all have these tendencies, but I've been noticing mine a bit more lately.

My sister is safely is P.E.I. She wasn't effected by the storms which was a relief to all of us.

We have Tanner's baptism invites ready. We just have to put a picture of him on it and then they are ready to print. We went to a little fireside on Sunday. All the children turning 8 or who have turned 8 were invited and they talked about what was going to happen and the blessing it is to be baptized. Tanner is really excited and he can't wait. He is so much smarter than we realize and we are so proud of him.

I have been walking/jogging in the mornings or when Matt's home at night on the weekends. I am trying to take my health a lot more seriously. Since I have cut back on the amount of sugar I eat, I notice very quickly what my body does when I do have more sugar than it needs.

We have been reading our scriptures in the morning with Tanner. Tanner gets into bed with us and we read 5-10 verses. It has been a great blessing and we are loving the routine of this. We all get to start the morning together as a family in the comfy-est place in our home....our bed.

Tanner decided to play basketball this year. It is 8 weeks and it won't run into when he turns 8 and starts cubs (eeekkk!!!). I think I'm a little more excited he gets to go to cubs. Actually, I know I am. The cub leader has a very positive magnetic energy and I think Tanner will LOVE it as much as I love him going.

Other than that, things are just tickety boo. Nothing too drastic to write about.

You know you're tired when...

...when you act like a complete weirdo at work all day and your boss just laughed at you ALL day!

...when you laugh (out loud) at the fact that your son decided to sleep in the guest room and not his own room. Why is that so funny???? Normally I would be a teeny tiny bit annoyed

...when you can't stop laughing at the thought of the events that happened at 7am this morning which in actuality were not funny...there was some contention in the home but you laugh about it now anyway

...when you think up words that you're not sure are real or not and laugh at the thought that maybe they could be real

...when you re-read the 4 sentences you just wrote and realized you made a mistake in every one of them...which normally, under normal circumstances you wouldn't because they are easily constructed sentences

...when you remember a commercial you saw 4 days ago and laugh at the absurdity that it was (yes, Susanne, you know the one)




I think I need to go to bed