Tis the Season....

It is no secret that Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year! I love the music, lights, the anticipation and being with family. You can feel a difference in the air! Clint knew how much I loved Christmas time and decided to make it even more special by proposing on Christmas Eve 2005. It was a huge surprise!!! The night before he had jokingly put on bow and tag on me that said "To: Clint" Little did I know what he had up his sleeve. Wow have things changed since then! We went up in the mountain with some friends to cut down our Christmas tree. Trail & Brinley loved it! It is so fun to see them having fun! Trail kept falling over with all the weight of his snow suit, but it was so adorable I couldn't help but get a few pictures! I'm so excited for this Christmas, they kids are so excited. Brinley will come up to me and say, "Mom I want to tell you a secret. Santa's going to bring me a bag with a puppy!!!" Everything is brighter through your children's eyes! Trail doesn't know what to expect but I'm sure it won't take long for him to figure it out! Wahoo, it's Christmas time!!!!!

Our handsome little boy and precious little princess!

So I think every Mom has a hard time letting their little kids grow up. Trail has started his transformation to a little boy and not my baby anymore. It has taken me a while to give him a little boy hair cut, but he was getting pretty shaggy so this morning I cut it. He did really good. A sucker and Dad's lap was all he needed to sit still. He is such a fun little boy! He loves balls!!!!! He even takes one to bed and gets upset if you don't get it out for him! He is definitely a Momma's Boy which I love. (Most of the time that is) He is such a blessing! His smile can brightened the darkest days!

Brinley is such a big girl! She reminds me of that everyday. She has been potty trained for a year! Wow, isnt' that the best?? She is getting so tall! It is hard to keep her in pants. She is so skinny though that if they aren't highwaters, they drown her little waist! She is such a big helper! She is so mothering! When someone gets hurt she always tries to help. She even kisses my owies, even though they have been better for quite a while. She loves to dress up and rough Dad up when she gets the chance! We love her very much! I am so thankful for the ability to have 2 beautiful children in our family. Each one is such a treasure!

Happy Halloween and other random pictures!

My Mom sent me the cutest ideas for Halloween! I came to Pleasant Grove for a doctor's appointment and took the opportunity to get a Halloween party going with my friends that live in the area. So I decided to make these cute cupcakes! It was so fun to make them and feel creative (even though I got the idea from a book- Thanks Mom!) Of course we all think our kids are so cute and love to share pictures when we can. Trail wore his first tie to church on Sunday. He looked so grown-up and cute, so I had to get a picture! Brinley's hair was super curly too, so even though Sunday's are pretty hectic we got a few pictures in! Hope you enjoy them! And by the way the chair the kids are sitting on was an awesome find at the DI ($40), can't beat that for a practically brand new chair!

The New ME!!!

So I needed a change. My hair has been bugging me! You know when whatever you do - you still don't like your hair? Needless to say I haven't been feeling cute lately. So today with a little protest on Clint's side I decided to cut my hair. I definitely needed a boost! My friend Jaime cuts hair and so she kindly did mine today. I LOVE IT!!!! I feel cute and sassy! It is so nice to look into the mirror and see something different! It was just the boost I needed! Thanks Jaime!!! Sometimes we just need to take time to do things for ourselves!

A Bountiful Harvest

So being from Idaho I LOVE potatoes!!!! Clint is a MEAT and potatoes guy! I could be happy with just POTATOES!!!! We decided to plant some potatoes in our garden! I am so amazed how they grew! I like to think it is some of my Idaho blood wearing off on the Utah soil! We got some HUGE ones!! We found one that even looked like Mickey Mouse. After that Brinley would say, this is Goofy, this is Donald. Kids say the darndest things! We are so thankful for everything we were able to receive from our garden this year. It was much more work than I ever thought it could be. But looking at a freezer full of vegetables and a cupboard full of them also, it was worth it.

Here fishy, fishy!!!!

A perk of Clint's job is that we are able to use the equipment they have, such as boats, camp trailers, etc. The other day he brought home one of the fishing boats. We are super lucky that we live 10 minutes from Steinaker Reservior. Being the way I am I was dragging my feet because I had a HUGE list of things I "needed" to get done. I've been trying to work on this, feeling like I have to do everything!!!! So I took a leap and let go of a little anxiety and went. It is just like Clint to help me with things like that. Sad to say the chores were still there when I got home, but the lesson I learned is that they still got done. We all had so much fun and the best part was that it didn't cost anything, just a little time. The kids LOVED fishing!!! Clint let me drive the boat which I really enjoy!! Well Brinley wasn't quite sure when the fish was on the hook. But she kept calling out "Here fishy, fishy!" "Where are you?" She is so cute! Trail loved holding the fishing pole! I can tell he and his Dad are going to be great fishing buddies!!!! At first Trail was just sitting on my lap, then he got brave and by the end was all over. He decided it was a fun game to throw things overboard. Oops, was that jar of salmon eggs supposed to go in the water!!! Clint almost had to jump in the lake to save the fishing pole! But it's all good! We are missing a pair of pliers, Oops, they must have gone in the water too!!! He is like his sister, we were missing a lot of silverware and then one day we caught her throwing it in the garbage can! Oh kids!!! It's good for a laugh right? I'm thankful for those little moments we get to ENJOY life! It is amazing to watch life through a child's eyes! It sure changes your attitude doesn't it? Thanks Clint for allowing me to realize that it is ok to let go and relax sometimes!

The Heber Creeper

Chugga Chugga Choo Choo..... Brinley was so excited to ride the train. I didn't think Trail would even know what was going on but he loved riding the train too. We were able to seat in an open car and he loved to stand up on the side (with me close by of course) and watch out the car. Brinley of course loved being with all of the other kids. Our friend's little boy, Kyson, LOVES trains so they had his birthday party on the Heber Creeper. We were lucky enough to get to tag along. It was so fun to see his reaction! We went on the Solider Hollow Express (1 1/2 hour ride up by Deer Creek Reservior). It was a really pretty ride with all of the fall colors. It was definitely a worthwhile experience!!!! The conductor even looked like Sir Topum Hat (you can see him in the picture with Brinley riding on the side of the train)