Put In My Place

Life seems to have a way of putting me in my place. When I get too comfortable as a mom the kids throw something new at me. When I complain about the weather and living in Utah (poor me right) it floods in Laie leaving tons of people "living" in some bad conditions and having lost a lot. I've put together a small list of things I'm grateful for while living here in Utah in the snow:

1. We live really close to Nana, Pop-Pop, and Grandma Letty. Their help has gotten me through many a cold day.

2. I don't really feel obligated to shower after an outdoor run because it's so cold I don't sweat. (I usually do anyway).

3. We have an excuse to cuddle and drink hot chocolate-yum.

4. Taj loves Snow Plows, so it's something to look forward to, kind of like police cars or the garbage man.

5. Taj likes to play in the snow so it's a pretty good time burner to get him in all the snow gear (usually very pleasant through the ordeal). It can really break up a long day stuck indoors.

6. My kids have seen and played in snow at a young age, verses my first real experience in college.

So it's a pretty short list, but I really feel so blessed. I'm especially grateful that I get to experience all of this with my sweet husband. He can make me smile through anything.

It's Official

Winter is upon us...officially. I've been lying to myself for months, taking the kids to the park all bundled up, wearing slippers, not grabbing jackets or hats. But no longer. There's no denying the winter-ness going on outside my temperature controlled home. When I took the picture of the flowers I thought, "This is how I feel inside."(a joke...kind of).

In the winter spirit we have been decorating and doing all the holiday stuff. We got our tree- Love the smell, pulled out all the decorations, saw the lights at Temple Square, and have "the best Christmas CD Ever" mix playing non-stop (thank you Cami). Taj and Eden are so much fun to have around this time of year. They ooh and awe over all the lights and decorations. Taj has a game where when he sees Christmas decorations he shouts "Merry Christmas!" and if there aren't any he says, "Bah Humbug!" He also loves to pretend to be Frosty the Snowman and a chipmunk (from Alvin and the Chipmunks) and sings his heart out. We even got a prayer from a chipmunk the other night.

Before I forget...

On Thanksgiving Taj and Eden couldn't stand the wait. They were total vultures around the kitchen. Taj was so curious about the dining room set up and was even finding it hard to resist putting his hands in every ones glasses so I finally told him we should just go downstairs and play. He grabs his chair as tight as he can and says, " But, I just, I just can't help myself."

So true. Welcome to life.

When it was finally time to eat Eden snuggled closer than ever during the prayer. She finally got a taste of the mashed potatoes and looked up with a huge grin, then licked her lips. So worth the wait, huh.

After dinner the kids wanted lollipops instead of pie (of coarse they ended up with both). Eden was in heaven, until her lollipop got stuck in her hair. Her Daddy lovingly and gently calmed her down and removed it for her.

Taj has been cracking us up with some some original thoughts such as:

"I'm a National Hero".

We get really dried out here so one night after bath Taj tells us, "Don't put the cream on my nose cuz I want it to be red like Rudolph."

When I was reading Aladdin to Taj the other night we got to the part where Aladdin and Jazmin fall in love "in the moonlight". Taj looks up at me and says, "I fell in love with you Mom." He now says that to the whole family because he knows he gets hugs and kisses. He also says he fell in love when he falls onto his seat at the dinner table. We'll take what we can get.

Micah was out of town last weekend so I was doing the night time routine without him. Taj gave the prayer and said, "Please help Eden sleep good in her crib and Mommy sleep good in her bed, with no one on the other side."

The innocenct humor and joy is everywhere. I love being a mom.