Finally Springtime

The weather finally warmed up and lots has been happening around here. This post is random pictures from March to April.

We got out of the house and walked the kids to school. Sam loved the swings that morning, bedhead and all.

This handsome fellow has been such an amazing kid lately. He wants to help and works hard at home and at school. I'm kind of really enjoying this almost a teenager stage we are in with him.

This is what it looks like every time I try shopping with this kid. He hates the seat belts  and hates sitting. Most of the time he turns around to watch where we are going. It's a constant battle but I think he's pretty cute anyway.
 

This is Shelby with her friend who played Annie. Remember back when we were so excited for Shelby to get the part of Miss Hannigan? Well after 6 months of rehearsals and endless hours of practicing, we finally saw her play. And my Miss Shelby was a STAR! Her friend that played Annie was amazing as well and I just burst with pride for these 4th-6th graders who put on such an awesome show.
 

Shelby was seriously the best! She sang beautifully and acted like she was going to steal the show. We were all blown away by her performance. See the thing is, Shelby never sang any of her songs around the house. She was constantly singing other songs from the show. And I only went over lines with her a couple times. She really learned it all on her own and so we were quite surprised by the end result. I've always known she was a drama queen but now I think she's actually an actress.
 

We had everyone over for our annual Easter Egg hunt in the backyard. It was Sam's first time actually participating but he still didn't really get it or care about it. Stryder was the one who hunted for most of his stuff.

The Dum-Dums from Aunt Rachel however, were a hit!
 

Both Shelby and Soren were voted on by their teachers as being the most reliable in their classes. I think that's pretty cool and I was proud to know that my kids are doing what they're told and can be counted on and trust to get it done.
 

We went to Vegas for a week for our Spring Break. It was nice to get to spend so much time there and help with my mom's recovery from her DBS surgery. This is a random picture of Sam at Barnes and Noble. He's just so dang cute in those overalls.
 

I loved that while we were in Vegas it stormed. I love Vegas rainstorms and the beautiful sky and smells, it's my favorite.
 

This was my mom's spot on the couch the whole week we were there. Sam finally stole it after grandma went to bed. He was so great with them this week and followed my dad around the whole time begging him to pick him up and of course, grandma fed him candy which he loved too. It was hard seeing my mom dealing with some stuff post-surgery but she is making improvements and we are all hopeful that her quality of life will continue to improve. But through it all, my parents remain the most amazing people and I'm so grateful for their example of determination and love.

Lucky Number Seven

We got a very unexpected, happy surprise this winter. Ben and I were just not sure if we should try for another or if our family was complete. It took us so long to get pregnant with Sam and we just didn't want to have another huge gap but felt like maybe Sam needed a buddy. We prayed and prayed and neither of us felt inspired one way or another. I had had a bit of a blood clot scare back in the early summer of last year and was taking coumadin, which is nasty stuff to get pregnant on so we were preventing the best we could. Around November my pills were running out and I was taking fewer and fewer than I was supposed to. On November 28th I took a pregnancy test and it was negative. I wasn't too sad, more relieved that I didn't have to worry about my meds. But I continued to feel a little off and felt like I should take another test. So on December 9th, I took another test that was positive. All I could do was cry. I was kind of in shock and doubt about the whole thing and immediately worried about if the meds had affected the baby. We have been more than reassured in that area and just know that everything is perfect. I had a scary moment around 11 weeks with some bleeding but an ultrasound found no problems. I've had blood pressure issues that are being watched as well and I'm giving myself shots of blood thinner twice a day in my stomach. Needless to say, I'm a bit high risk and Ben and I both agree wholeheartedly, that this is our final baby. This little one will complete us and we couldn't be happier about that. I'm being closely watched by several doctors and have had many ultrasounds. The last one was on my birthday and it confirmed that we are having a...

Little Girl! We are so excited for another sister amongest all these brothers. Shelby was actually a little disappointed that it was a girl because she has discovered and grown to love her role as the only princess in the house and doesn't want to ever share a room. I think she's getting used to the idea and may actually be excited now ;). She's been my quietest baby and doesn't move very much. We are all so anxious to see what she's going to look like and get to know her and her sweet personality. Back when I was pregnant with Sam and I was really thinking and hoping he was a girl, only to find out he was a boy, Ben said something we both have not forgotten. He said something along the lines of what if there is still a girl coming but if she came before Sam we might have decided then that we were for sure done. I know for a fact that this little girl was meant to join our family as it's sweet caboose. And I know that Sam was sent to us as a much needed miracle and that our family would not be complete without either of these amazing spirits. The Lord knows what He's doing even if I don't always understand it. We are blessed beyond measure and I can't wait to hold this baby girl and be a whole and complete family of 7 in late July.

Randoms from January to March

We've had lots of random fun stuff happen over the last three months. Here's everything I can remember in one blog post.  

Shelby and Lydia did a combined science fair project on which bubblegum makes the biggest bubbles. They has a really fun time chewing 8 different kinds of gum and testing out blowing bubbles. Lydia was the expert bubble blower and Shelby typed up the research. They made a great team!

Here they are at the school for the presentation day.

In February, we got to attend and participate in the baby blessings of our newest niece and nephew who were born about 20 days apart. Jana and Mike's sweet Eliza.

And Steve and Jessica's darling Isaac. We love all these sweet babies that keep joining our family.
 

February brought us more snow! This winter was ridiculous. It first snowed in November and I don't think it ever melted until late February. This is a picture of our stairs, Stryder sure hated his new job of snow shoveling this year.
 

We also got to double with Candice and Randall and attend a BYU home Basketball game. I was a giddy happy mess. I love college basketball, like a lot and when Randall invited us to go with them I was ecstatic! We had great seats and BYU even beat St. Mary's who they had previously lost to this season. Oh it was fantastic! Blue and White Forever Baby!
 

Sam figured out how to walk like a champ and even likes to climb. He's my first baby to not have any fear and just start climbing up stuff, like the bunk bed ladder. Oh my crazy baby.
 

The first week of March brought beautiful weather and my parents up for a visit. We were able to attend the new Provo City Center Temple open house with them. It is a beautiful temple with an even more beautiful story. This was our second open house since we moved up to Utah and I hope my kids will never forget and be so grateful for these amazing opportunities. I know I sure am.
 

After the open house, we just spent to rest of the day with grandma and grandpa and soaked up every sweet second with them. Like this precious moment I captured. I love my mom and love seeing her with her grand babies.

Samuel's First Birthday

First birthdays are a big deal. Not just because it's the first birthday the kid has ever had but it's a celebration of having survived a whole year with a newborn/baby. We had to make a pretty big deal of Sam's first birthday because it was a pretty big deal that he was even a part of our family. So we invited everyone over and had a Teddy Bear themed party (because of course) celebrating our Samuel Teddy. 

This was before he got his cake. So nice and clean.

While he's enjoying his yummy Aunt Candice made large cupcake. Oh those blue eyes are the best.

He even rubbed some into his hair.

Before and a mild after. It got much worse after this but I was trying to control the mess and enjoy his smiles instead of taking pictures.

Then he sat with Grandma Brown to open his few presents. 
 

It was a Teddy Bear theme and we lucked out and found these great decorations on Amazon. We did it at brunch time and served sausage fondue, fruit, muffins, and doughnuts. We had a bear candy table for goodie bags with gummy bears, cinnabears, bit-o-honey, and teddy grahams. The kids all loved it. And by adding cashews to chocolate cupcakes we made bear claws. Ben and I just loved the way they turned out. All in all , it was a great day celebrating Samuel's first birthday.

This is the picture we displayed on the candy table. When we did his one year picture, we grabbed every stuffed bear we could find and tried to sit him down in between them. Well that didn't work out like I had planned but some of the pictures we did get are now priceless to me. I sure do love my little bear. Happy Birthday Sam!

Samuel Teddy Bear ~ 12 months

Oh I can't believe it's been a year! This sweet boy was an answer to many, many prayers and a real miracle in our lives. We have been blessed beyond measure. At 12 months Sam was experimenting with standing on his own. Still not walking yet but working on it. He really loves his brothers and sister and cries when they leave for school or bedtime. He's so spoiled by them.

This picture was taken the day before he turned one. He still isn't sleeping through the night and I pull him into bed with me every night but I can't stand listening to him cry and just want to snuggle his little body as much as I can.

And our final teddy bear picture. That bear sure did shrink over the course of a year. My baby couldn't possibly be that big. Oh sweet Samuel Teddy, I hope you always know just how wanted and loved the are. You make us smile and laugh every day and I thank my Heavenly Father every day for you and the chance I get to be your mother. I love you darling boy and Happy First Birthday!

And for comparison... his one week old teddy bear picture. My little tiny newborn.

Sam's First Christmas 2015

This year for Christmas, we headed south to Henderson. We hadn't celebrated in Henderson since the Christmas of 2012, so it was long over due. 

While in town, we took Trevor and our kids to see the new Star Wars movie. So so good and Sam did ok sitting through most of it.

One nice thing about having a January baby is that they are so big by their first Christmas. Sam was so cute and fun. He was a bit of a pest with the tree and ornaments but his excitement over the lights and new toys was adorable.

This is our Christmas morning pajamas picture. We were so grateful for the wonderful gifts we all received and loved seeing everyone at breakfast that morning. Missing ebelskivers and sausage fondue is one of the worst parts of being away at Christmas. 

This sweet boy is my favorite and I had to add more of these sweet pictures in front of the tree.

And to finish it off...my crazy family. Every year for as long as I can remember, we gather around and take a family picture after we've opened presents Christmas night. We first do a nice one and then a goofy one. I love the looks on my parents faces in this one. I love this family so much and even though it's really hard to live out of state, I know I can always count on them and know that they love me and my family.

December Craziness

December was a crazy month for us. And this post doesn't even include Christmas. I felt like we were just constantly going from one thing to the next.

Shelby and Soren participated in their school's Christmas choir. They had practices after school and put on a really cute little concert for us. I feel so blessed to have such talented kids.

Stryder also had his Christmas choir concert. They sang so beautifully and really helped get us in the holiday spirit. Originally, choir was only going to be a semester for him, but he got permission to do another semester in the next choir up. He's even tried out for the next step next year. I love this kids drive to become better.
 

It snowed in December and never melted until February (I'm not kidding)! We just kept getting more and more snow. By January, we were all sick of it. But it didn't go away for another month.

Along with concerts and everything else, Shelby had to do a state project. She had to create a poster and float all about the state she chose. She represented my family by picking Virginia! I'm so lucky this girl is so capable of doing so much great work all by herself.

Another picture of the snow and ice built up on our door window. This was the morning we were trying to pack the car and head to Vegas for Christmas. I was pretty worried it would cause a lot of problems but after it dumped a few inches, it cleared up and we were able to drive safely south. More about that in the next post.