oh snap!

I don't know where she got this from. I don't snap my fingers in the car. But Taylor tries and tries. Until dad starts patting his legs. She's such a copy cat, love that girl

Potty Time (Warning, I do discuss POOP)

I've never done this before. With all my experiences as a nanny and a daycare teacher, I've never had to potty train a kid before.

My mom makes it sound too easy. She bought me panties and I just started using a potty! I'm hoping and praying Taylor will be that easy too. But it probably won't be.

So far so good though. We bought her a Potty for christmas. It's not anything special. It's actually blue and green. It doesn't make noises. You can't flush it. But it does have a toilet paper holder on it, and a place for baby wipes. I liked that part.

Taylor thought it was AWESOME to sit on her potty. I'd strip her down, bare bottom, and let her sit, and run around our room naked, and sit some more. She's also been sitting on a big potty for about a month now, maybe once or twice a day. Nothing major.

She doesn't mind sitting on a potty at all, big or small. But she had yet to actually USE one. But then yesterday... Taylor was sitting on her potty. I saw a little grunting, and next thing I knew, Taylor had POOPED in her POTTY! She did it! I was so proud. Me and Chris both got SO excited for Taylor! Okay, so the turd was tiny... I mean, about as big as a nickel. But it was poop, and it was in the toilet, not her diaper!!!

We celebrated and cheered and hollared. We told everyone... Mamie and Papa, Michael, Avery, Chelsea, Kyle! It was a big deal! She got CANDY! We were all so proud. So, we decided it was time for her to pick out some panties!

Taylor of course picked... ELMO!

This is not a big suprise for ANYONE who knows taylor at all. She is OBSESSED with elmo. Seriously, walking through any store, my daughter can find elmo. The other day at kroger, Taylor said ELMO while me and chris were shopping. We had to look for a couple minutes before we finally saw the teeny tiny elmo on some package that she had spotted.

Back to the potty... Taylor's doing well. I'm not pushing it at all... cause I'm sure when we move, she'll regress. I'm just trying to introduce it, slowly work it into our routine.

This morning, Taylor came into the bathroom as I got ready and said "Potty" so I said okay and started to take her diaper off. She jerked away and said "No, BIG GIRL"

I guess she's right. Taylor's turning into a big girl that can do things herself. She took off her diaper and sat on her potty talking to me while I got ready. I can't believe she's the same little person who couldn't even crawl a year ago. Man time flies.

On a side note: I tried to get her to say "Big Girl" again, and she just whines and says, " I can't". So dramatic! Anyways, I'm so excited to get her out of diapers... but not quite just yet either. I'm waiting to start ACTUALLY trying when we move. Til then, We'll just keep it at a little potty here, a little potty there. It'll be nice to not be spending $60 everytime we buy diapers too.

Maddie Love

I don't have a favorite, Honestly. There aren't alot of posts on here about Maddie though. It's been bugging me, but I can't think of what to write about her. There's still so much about her I don't know. And Taylor is constantly learning and growing right now. Maddie isn't a blob anymore, but she isn't exactly thrilling to write about either! But here goes.

What I've Learned About Maddie:

• She LOVES to be talked to - she lights up when anyone gives her attention. She smiles, coos, goos, laughs... it's so hard to explain exactly how MUCH she loves to be talked to. You'll have to see for yourself one day.
• She seems to be more sensitive than Taylor is - That's the only word I can think of to explain it. Taylor is a very sweet girl, but she's off in her own world. Maddie pays more attention to the reaction of those around her. If she starts to get upset, but you coo and goo at her, alot of the time, she'll smile right back.
• Maddie is more laid back than Taylor - Taylor is a pretty chill girl, when she's not with a babysitter :) But maddie is more relaxed. She's not stubborn like Taylor or me. She's got more of her dad's personality there.
• Maddie looks more like me. Me and chris have decided it. It's over. She's my little twin. She also looks alot like Jeremy's girls, and my big dad too. Yup.
• Maddie enjoys her sleep, but not in her bed. She'll sleep just about anywhere except her bed. The couch, her bouncy seat, her car seat, heck, even the floor is better than the pack-n-play she's in now. She's only slept all night in her bed once in the past month. She just doesn't like it.
• Maddie adores her big sister. She loves to watch Taylor. Everything taylor says and does is fascinating to Maddie.
• Maddie loves water. She loves to lay in the bath. She's never cried while taking a bath. It's a great way to calm her down if she ever does get upset.
• Maddie enjoys being swaddled. Both my girls really liked it. Maybe it had something to do with their cramped quarters before birth!
• Maddie can almost sit up. She's been sitting fine in her bumbo for a while now, but she can even sit up with a boppy now! She's a strong little girl.
• Maddie is 3 months old today! I can't believe it's already been 3 months since I had her. She's an amazing little girl and I'm so lucky she's mine.

Not-Papa

Taylor is getting to be so smart. She really can say just about anything now, and does! Chris's mom taught her to say "Dinner" tonight, and she repeated it the entire time we ate!

One thing taylor does do is get words mixed up sometimes. For example, she say down when she wants you to pick her up. Sometimes she calls me daddy, or chris mommy.

Tonight, she called chris's mom "Papa." Taylor's grandma promptly corrected her and said, "I'm not papa." Taylor heard it as, "I'm Not-Papa!" She kept calling grandma "Not-Papa!"

I guess that's fine. I mean, It's not like she isn't right. Grandma is "Not-Papa." I love the way that little brain of her's works.

Little Miracles

1. Me and Chris had a date! Saturday night we were able to leave the girls with Jamie and Katie and do a little christmas shopping. It was so nice. This was only the 2nd time me and Chris have been alone since Maddie was born (3 months!) It was very badly needed and did so much to keep me from going off the deep end:) Even though both my girls were difficult (sorry to all those who dealt with them) Jamie and Katie still love them... and that's a miracle in and of itself.

2. Taylor stayed in nursery ALL day yesterday. It was only her 3rd time in there, and last week shouldn't count, because I sat in there with her the whole time. This is such a big accomplishment for a little girl so attached to mommy and daddy. Sis. Minton, our primary leader, is an amazing lady, a miracle worker. I don't know how she won my little girls trust so fast, when it has taken others MONTHS. I think snack time might have had something to do with it:)

3. Online shopping is great. Its wonderful. Being able to get x-mas shopping done without having to shower is a little miracle for me :)

4. Friday night Taylor got to see Santa. I have been afraid since Halloween that Taylor wouldn't like Santa, That she would run the other direction, terrified of the old man in the big red suit! Instead, she ran to him, Screaming Santa the whole way. And when she realized she had to WAIT... it set her off. She kicked, and screamed. But I didn't mind the fit so much. Atleast she was into him. We practiced what she would say. "ELMO" Of course. And she sat on his lap! No tears, no running in the other direction. She did have a sour face though... and wouldn't say what she wanted. But she sat there. Long enough for a few pictures to be taken. I love it that Taylor loves Santa. Having her get excited makes the season that much more magical. I can't wait til she gets to open gifts next week. I hope she enjoys it!

The one word List

I got this from Rita's blog... Only one word per answer... Enjoy

Where is your mobile phone? purse
Where is your significant other? work
Your hair colour? gross
Your mother? tired
Your father? working
Your favourite thing? suprises
Your dream last night? bad
Your dream goal? perfection
The room you're in? messy
Your hobby? creating
Your fear? loneliness
Where do you want to be in 6 years? 30
Where were you last night? party
What you're not? tall
One of your wish-list items? time
Where you grew up? hendersonville
The last thing you did? blogged
What are you wearing? clothes
Your TV? off
Your pets? none
Your computer? life
Your mood? crabbie
Missing someone? kinda
Your car? reliable
Something you're not wearing? keys
Favourite shop? walmart
Your summer? hormonal
Love someone? yes
Your favourite colour? green
When is the last time you laughed? morning
When is the last time you cried? morning

X-mas Joy and Stress

Okay, I started out great. Tons of Holiday spirit. Couldn't wait for the season to get going. Loved the lights and decorations. Was so excited to start shopping. I was excited.

My excitement is thinning out. Quickly. The joy has turned to stress, and lots of it. Which is odd. I don't have a tree to set up. I don't have a house to decorate. I don't have but a few more gifts to buy. And I'm earning some money this year with my etsy store.

I think my stress is because of the dark. Honestly. I realized last night that I feel like I'm in the dark ALL DAY LONG. I've been trying not to go out much, because both my girls have coughs and runny noses. Both have the starts of ear infections. I have a horrible sore throat and cramps like no other! So we haven't been doing anything. This is taking it's toll on my sanity.

The lights are never on (trying to save on the electric bill,) the blinds are always closed cause it's too bright during naps... It's driving me nuts. I feel like I'm stuck in a little box.

I feel bad cause chris and my girls and family are having to deal with my crabbiness right now. I'm just way off. Definately not myself.

Hopefully things will get better soon though. We're going to the ward christmas party tonight because santa will be coming. I'm taking my camera and we're doing x-mas pictures with him. I hope taylor does well. She's only seen him from a ways away at the mall so far. She has waved though. And I always make a HUGE deal out of it everytime we see a statute or picture of him. Now when she sees him she goes "OHHHH SAAANNNTAAAAA" I love it.

Maybe this will cheer me up. And hey, it's friday! That in and of itself should pep me up a bit. Two whole days coming up with chris and my girls. What could be better right?

Doctor Appointments and Football!

Today, my girls had their 2 month and 18 month check up (just in time for their 3 month and 19 month birthdays next week.) Okay, So I'm a little late. Oh well.

They are getting SO big. Taylor is over 1/2 as tall as me. Yup. That's right. I'm 58 inches tall. Taylor is 31 1/4 inches tall. That's over half! LOL. She's getting bigger too, moving up that growth curve. She's in the 28th percentile now! Weight wise, she's thinning out a bit. Guess it's from the height growth. She's 23 lbs, 9.5 oz. That's the 33% for her age. She used to be right in the middle. She did very well. Had 3 shots. I realized she's got molars now when I had to hold her down as she got the shots. I have never seen the inside of her mouth that well. I think she has 10 teeth now! She might have an ear infection or two though, so the doc gave me a perscription for some antibiotics to use just in case I feel she needs them. Like, if she gets a fever in the next week or so. I thought that was nice. Then I won't have to take her back in.

Madison did very well too. She's 11 lbs, 11 oz (chris is going to laugh at that! I HATE 11/11. Just HATE it! I'm a numbers freak. Those are bad numbers!) I think it's funny she's almost exactly 1/2 of taylors weight. Again, I'm a numbers freak! That's about average for weight. She's 21 3/4 inches tall. My little shortie. I wonder if she'll do like taylor's starting to do and move up the curve. Right now she's in the 8th percentile. Maddie had her eyes swabbed twice today to check for infection. Sadly, they've been BADLY gouping up, and I can't keep them clean. I try, but they get very irritated and she hates to have them wiped. But the doc said they won't do anything about it til she's 6-9 months. Yeah, that's what they told me about taylor... then 9 months turned into 12, to 15, to 18! And I still don't have the referral for the opthamologist! (just cause the doc forgot it this time, but still!) They gave me an antibiotic ointment to put on her eyes, and told me they'd call if there was anything else we needed to do for them! They are also putting her on a vitamin perscription. Even though I'm taking vitamins, they're still worried about her getting enough vitamin D, but they worry about that with all breastfed babies. So we get to give her vitamins now.

I was SO excited to have this appointment over. And both girls did great. Yes, they fussed, but not too bad. I even went shopping afterwards, and to the post office. My mom was with me of course... so that was nice.

My Dr. appt is this wednesday. I am going to get the miracle MIRENA! Man, I can't wait. I've heard such wonderful things about it. I am a bit curious though... has anyone else gotten this while they were still breastfeeding? Let me know if you have, I've got some ????'s that I don't want to post on here. I'm afraid of grossing people out! I am excited though. A little worried that it's going to hurt. But not too bad. The doc said I could drive myself there and back, so how bad could it be right? Chris was thinking about taking the day off... but I told him nah! I'd rather have him home for a few days at x-mas! I'm a big girl. I think I can handle it! It will be such a relief to not worry about it! I have these fun little pills to take the night before. I'll have to remember them tomorrow night.

I was reading about the effectiveness of it... It's more effective than a Male vasectomy, tubal ligation, paragard IUD, the shot, the pill, the patch, EVERYTHING! I like those odds :) I need those odds.

Oh also! Chris went to the Titans Game yesterday! One of the other guys who was suppose to go couldn't, so Michael went too. They had fun. I'm glad they got to see such a good game. Michael went to the ONE AND ONLY loss this season, the Jets game. So I'm glad they played well yesterday to make up for it. I can't believe they've had such a good season. I'm really enjoying watching them play now. And listening to the Pre and Post Game shows. I like hearing people talk about how good we are :)

For all those other Titans fans out there:

DAH, DAH, DA, DA, DA, DAH

GO, TITANS, GO!

I'm the Bomb, Obama?

Obama has Already brainwashed our kids!!!

Been too long...

I've been so bad at blogging lately, but I have good reason! My etsy shop is doing SO good. I've been a crocheting fool! I'm so excited. I'm hoping to be able to make enough before christmas to buy chris a new IPOD... I've already made half of it in the past 3 days! This is better than a part time job. - Me and chris have been talking about me going back to work once Maddie is no longer nursing... but now I won't have too! I'm earning more right now than I would at a part time job. Y'all have no idea how grateful and excited I am. Seriously... I do a little dance everytime a hat sells!

Anyways... that's not what I wanted to write about. I've heard through the grape vine that y'all love videos! So I'm gonna try and upload some, if my computer will cooperate!

Okay, I'm a bit heartless. My dad told me so when he watched this video of my girls crying... but what was I gonna do? We were in the car waiting for chris to come out of Target. He'd been in there christmas shopping. Taylor for some reason thouht he was at work! I love hearing the way she says it!

My favorite fattening Salad

I love this recipe... Here it is for all of you!

BLT SALAD
1 head of romaine lettuce
2 or 3 tomatoes
1 pkg bacon

BLT SALAD DRESSING
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
3 tbsp mayo
1/3 cup buttermilk

Cook your bacon. Cut up the tomatoes. Throw all the salad together.
Mix together the dressing ingredients and pour over sald.
Devour the salad! (that's right, it's so good, you can't just eat it!)

ENJOY!

Sleeping Beauty

Taylor could NOT stay awake during lunch today. I thought it was so cute.

Birthdays, Hats, and Mail

On Sunday my girls celebrated their birthdays!!! Taylor was 18 months and Maddison was 2 months! They're both getting to be so big.

Last night taylor was playing with an old cell phone and chris didn't recognize it. He kinda freaked a bit thinking she had someone's phone. He said "Taylor! Where'd you get that?" and she just looked up and real sweetly said "Booboo!" Booboo is the nickname for my little brother Avery! He had given her the phone to play with a few days before. :) It's crazy to me how much she understands now.

Before we put the girls to bed last night, they were playing together. Taylor would cover maddie up with a blanket and maddie would start cooing and gooing and laughing. Maddie loves when her sister plays with her, and Taylor gets a kick out of being a Big Sister! It's so funny.

I had my first etsy sale yesterday! GO ME! I was so excited. I used the $ I made to go buy some new yarn to make some more of my teddy bear beanies! I needed to take pictures to put them in my shop online, and so I'm using Maddie as my model. Who could resist buying this cute little hat when they see my gorgeous baby wearing it?

She knows when I've got the camera out already, and she hams it up!

Taylor has her daddy's hair! And along with that comes THE WORST BED HEAD EVER!

And lastly... I am no longer a woman! Nope. According the Salvation Army... I'm a MAN! So I guess y'all can call me MR. Keaven Neely from now on. Poor Chris. I should probably let him know huh?

What I learned from TOFW

A few things I learned at Time Out For Women:

• Just like you have core muscles in your body that help the other muscles work easier, a family has a core too, the mother. Many people say if mama aint happy, no one's happy. And that may be true! But the opposite isn't... Just because mama's happy, doesn't mean everyone else is. The mother doesn't necessarily set the tone in the home, but we've heard that our whole lives. So we feel guilty about what we can't control (the moods of others, what happens to others, etc.) We can't control how a certain child will view or respond to a certain event. But we feel like there should be more control. When other people's kids misbehave, we judge the other people. We try to find out WHY their kid misbehaved (ie. They don't give him enough freedom, so he rebels. They don't give him enough rules, so he can get away with anything.) We judge like this so we can try to see what the other people did wrong and try to not do it. But instead of judging, we should ask, "How can I help?"
• Alot of times we're lead to believe that if you keep all the commandments, do exactly as we're taught, marry in the temple, have a cute family, read your scriptures, and say your prayers, that bad things won't happen to you. Don't believe bad things WON"T happen to you. When they do, don't say God has deserted you. The Gospel is not insurance against pain. It is a resource in the event of pain! (broderick)
• We can control ourselves and our reactions. 1. refuse to engage in petty arguments... this is the way it is and that's how it's going to stay (when it comes to rules and such.) 2. don't let the "straws" pile up... this way there is no last "Straw"
• Love does NOT mean not having to say your sorry. It means the offenses hurt even worse and you have to say sorry more often!
• "I give the kdis the gift on an imperfect mom so they won't enter marriage with unrealistic expectations."
• One of the speakers read Mathew 25:35, but added a new "motherly" twist to it. "For I was an hungered, (and you woke up at 2 a.m. to feed me): I was thirsty (and you refilled my sippy cup 20 times): I was a stranger (and you let me into your home and gave me cookies and milk for an afternoon snack): Naked (and you did the laundry): I was sick (and you took me to the doctor and helped me get well): I was in prison (and you sacrificed your body and mind and spirit, to give me a body of flesh and bone and free me, like my Father in Heaven.)
• This isn't what you do while you wait to be exalted. This is what exalts us!
• What did he die for when he died for me?
• Psalm 30:5 ... weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.
• God expects us to find a way to be happy and have joy IN SPITE of all that makes us sorrowful and sad and brings us down.
• Don't you think God is sad when his children reject him? Don't you think the Savior was disappointed when his children didn't listen or the apostles didn't understand? (Mark 14:34) If the Savior felt sorrow sometimes, why do I think I'm not supposed to ever feel it?

There are alot more notes and things I learned, but some are very personal... just for me. It was very uplifting which I needed and got me thinking about alot of things which I needed too. I'm very GRATEFUL I was able to go. Maybe I'll be able to go next time they come to Nashville.

It has been too long, so I'm forcing myself to blog. I'm trying to type this out with one hand while I sit here nursing Maddie.

Here's a recap of what's been going on...not much.
Its getting cold, very few trees have leaves left but the ones that do are gorgeous. It's getting colder and colder and it's been raining. I keep thinking about how much I hate this kind of weather. But I'm really beginning to love this time of year... more than I ever have. I think having kids does that to you. I can't help but get excited every time I go shopping. I can't wait to buy Taylor and Maddie their Christmas presents... and Chris too! To see them get excited! It'll be so much fun. And I've gotten to the point where I honestly can't think of anything I want. I would rather spend money on my babies or my handsome. I guess I could use some clothes and such, But there really isn't a whole lot that I Want. I guess I'm growing up! Ha!

Well, Maddie has started talking! Yup... my 2 month old is talking. She can coo and goo with the best of them and it melts my heart when she does it. She laid down with her daddy and talked to him for about 30 minutes... I mean a real conversation. He would say something to her and she would coo back. I don't remember Taylor interacting this much this early, but maybe it's just because I'm busier now, time seems to be going by faster. I love it though.

And Maddie is REALLY into Taylor. She'll follow her with her eyes around the room. And whenever I talk to Maddie, Taylor comes and gets in front of me and starts talking to her. Taylor adores Maddie and LOVES being the big sis. She loves to hold Maddie and actually does pretty good considering their ages and size. She even gets mad at me when I try to take Maddie away too soon. So my girls are getting along great.

Taylor is learning and growing everyday. I can't believe how much she knows now. I can't keep up. She says about 2 or 3 new words everyday. And she speaking in sentences now. It's just nuts. She can say all of my brothers and sisters names now. Sorry to all of Chris's family... we're working on y'all too, but she sees mine everyday so I guess they're easier to remember. Michael is her latest one, and she'll walk around the house saying "Michael, Michael?" Then Avery is "boo boo". She can say cayce, Chelsea and kyle too. She's getting good at the whole word thing. She's also learned what the color yellow is. That's the only one she knows every time so far. Blue Green and Red we're still working on :) And she can almost count. Most of the time every number is two... but every once in a while she throws in a 3,6,7,8 or 10! And she loves Letters! She tries to say her alphabet, but most letters come out sounding like "A." I love it. She's such a little person. Everyday more and more of her personality come out. And her attitude. I'm getting kinda nervous on those terrible twos getting here. The way she says "NNNNNOOOOO" drives me a bit nuts already. Oh well. She listens pretty well most of the time and will clean up her messes on her own now! For the most part. That's nice.

Anyways - As far as what's new with me... I'm just trying to not go crazy. I have to make sure and get out of the house a little bit each week, with or without the girls. It's hard to not get a bit stir crazy when you're with two babies all day every day. I'm WAY excited for Time Out For Women this weekend. It's an inspirational conference for women for those who don't know. My mom is helping with running it and stuff this time, and so she is taking me along with her to it. I can't wait to get inspired and uplifted. I need it. I feel a bit like I'm dragging. I think is just the pick me up I need.

And I think I'm going to be seeing one of my favorite bands "KINGS OF LEON" next week. They're coming to municipal auditorium and a friend is giving me tickets. WOOHOO. It'll be mine and Chris's first date since Maddie was born. Actually, not just our first date, but first time ALONE! And we need it. I feel kinda like we see each other in passing most days. Usually when he gets home from work he takes over playing with Taylor while I keep up with Maddie, so this is definitely needed.

Well, I figured I've rambled enough on here now. I'll be going. Here's some more of my grateful list!

1. Gorgeous red, orange, and yellow leaves that are left on the trees. There's a gorgeous view from the front of this house. Just perfect.

2. Chris being such a good dad. Some dads don't help out nearly as much as he does. I'm grateful he enjoys our kids as much as I do. It makes me fall in love with him all over again to see how sweet he is to our girls. And they both adore him.

3. A car that works and is mine all mine. I can come and go whenever I want. Me and the girls could just leave for the day and that would be fine. I love having that option. Now I just need to take advantage of it one day!

4. Good friends who like to watch the Hills and reminisce about the good old days :) It was such a fun break! And I LOVE Skipbo

5. The internet and my own computer to use it on.

6. The greatest 2 sets of grandparents for my girls! It's so much fun to watch how Taylor is enjoying her grandparents now. She saw a man at the store today with white hair and kept calling him papa... she knew he was a grandparent too :)

7. Chris's job. It is a great job for him and our family. I'm so grateful that he has it, and to Mark and Lu. Y'all are great.

Baby Luv Gifts

So, the craft fair did not do so well. So I've decided to try the internet for my crafts. I opened an Etsy store (see my items on the side here.) and I've started a blog.

Babyluvgifts.blogspot.com

There is a monthly giveaway so sign up for the mailing list and you could win :)

I'll post again later with pics and such. So be on the look out!

Christmas at the BEECH!

Tomorrow I will be RE attempting to do the whole craft show thing... I'm excited, but not getting my hopes too high. The last one was a BUST! So we'll see how tomorrow goes.

For anyone interested in coming... Here's website with Details!

http://beechchristmas.weebly.com/index.html

Also, I french braided Taylor's hair for the first time today. How cute is this???

I only did it half way back, then braided the left overs... I loved it. I had a woman tell me that it'll straighten her hair if I keep braiding it like that though!?! I've never heard of that before. Oh well... I liked it, and it kept it out of her face... and it didn't just fall out (like her pony tails do.) It even made it through nap time!!! Like I said, I love it.

And I haven't posted my "Grateful" List lately, so here's some more

I'm grateful...
That I have my own computer
That I have my own car
For my new Camera
For the quiet (cause everyone but me is sleeping... wait... chris is still up... MAN! He's quiet!)
For my little girl crying everytime I leave her at home (It breaks my heart, but makes me feel good at the same time... She loves me!)
That I seem to have a magic touch with our kids... sometimes chris has, sometimes I have it.
For A warm cozy bed to jump in as it's getting colder at nights.
That i have my girls in the room with me. Yes, It sucks sometimes, cause we all lose sleep... but at the same time, it's nice that they're so close!
That my husband is so cute! Everytime I look at him, I feel so lucky that he's mine.
That I'm actually getting tired, so I'm going to bed now.

Be on the look out this weekend for pictures of my "CRAFT BOOTH!"

It's Been

a good 24 hours!



I'll start with my favorite part... Chris's x-box has the RING OF DEATH! We were expecting to spend a pretty penny on getting it fixed. So, for the past few months, Chris's dead x-box has been sitting there, waiting til we have the extra money to resurrect it! Thanks to mwah, some extra money came in and so I decided it was time to get that x-box alive again (just in time for christmas... so games will be an option for gifts.) So I called to schedule the repair and such. I was informed that our Waranty ran out last November, but x-box has extended the warranty to 3 years for the RING OF DEATH! So the repair will be (da da da duh!) FREE! Here's where my little story really starts to get good - for me! Since I had this extra wad of dough that wasn't going to be used for anything else (other than maybe saving it or making a bigger payment on a credit card) I decided I needed a new camera! I used to have this totally cute little Kodak Easyshare camera that chris got me for our first christmas. I loved it, but unfortunately, It broke right after taylor was born. I do have a Digital SLR... but let me tell you what... that thing is HUGE and HEAVY. Not ideal for whipping out a camera to take pictures of the kids. This problem was why there were no Halloween pictures. It was just too big to carry around... And other people feel uncomfortable using it, so there are NO pictures of me and my girls really. (thus is the life of a photographer.)



But last night I went out SHOPPING. And I bought me a nice, little, but still with enough options to keep me busy camera! I love it. I've already almost worn the batteries down.


Another exciting thing - I had my After baby check-up today. I'm guessing everything looks good. My weight isn't where I would like it, but I'm sure it won't be until well after christmas! (on a side note, I quit walking, but not on purpose... I just changed routine and that kinda fell off my routine. I need to pick it back up though.) I talked to my great Dr. about Birth Control! She gave me the same pill I got pregnant with Maddie on! But that's only temporary. In 5 weeks I can get MIRENA! (sorry to any guys reading this... you may skip ahead if you'd like!) I have to wait til the 12 week anniversary of my c-section.

But I'm so excited. It'll be great to NOT be able to get pregnant. To NOT worry about. To have a break! And in about 4 years... I'll have it taken out and Poof... Have another baby. Is it weird to be this excited about birth control? I guess it's just what two babies in less than a year and a half will do to you!

Speaking of my two girls... here's some random pictures of them!

Okay, so they're mostly of Maddie... But I just loved her smiles in those pictures. And one last little thing... I really don't think they look all that much alike anymore. Everyone keeps telling me they look JUST ALIKE. I don't see it. Any other mom's have this happen? Is it just cause I see them both all day long every day that I don't see it? Oh well... Anyways.

Til next time!

Politics

I hate talking about politics. I really do. It's an emotional topic for most people. They believe what they believe and no one can have an opinion otherwise. So, I haven't talked about politics on here for fear of offending someone. And I think it's that way with most of America... they're afraid of stepping on someone else's toes by saying what they know to be true. But by not speaking up, our voices are not being heard! I know that probably no one will go through and read all of this... but I'm putting it up here anyways.

I am absolutely terrified of the world my girls will have to live in one day. I'm scared to death of what America "land of the free" will end up being... And I'm not talking about in 50 years, or even 20. I mean in the next 4 to 8. What will happen to the Freedom my grandfather fought for 32 years and in 3 wars for? It scares me to death!

My mom sent this to me in an email. Instead of forwarding it to everyone... I'm putting it up on here... Enjoy!

Glenn Beck with Sen. Hatch: 'Constitution is hanging by a thread'
GLENN: From Radio City in Midtown Manhattan, third most listened to show in all of America. Hello, you sick twisted freak. Welcome to the program. My name is Glenn Beck. Senator Orrin Hatch is with us today with a view from Washington on what this day actually means for America if things go as, you know, MSNBC is predicting. Hello, Senator, how are you, sir?
SENATOR HATCH: Well, nice to be with you, Glenn. I appreciate your program and I appreciate all that you are trying to do here in spreading the word.
GLENN: Thank you, sir. Tell me, what does this mean if there is a filibuster-proof Senate and Barack Obama is the President of the United States?
SENATOR HATCH: One of the most important things about our constitutional way of life is we have checks and balances. The Senate has always been a check on really outrageous legislation, and the filibuster rule which is Rule 22 in the Senate, that allows the minority to protect itself and to protect the country from really, really outrageous legislation like the card check bill. Now, the Democrats call the card check bill the employee free choice act. It's anything but that. What that bill says, that if union organizers -- and these are not little people.
GLENN: Right.
SENATOR HATCH: If they come to the homes of your employees and they get 50% of employees plus one to sign a union card, you are unionized without an election.
GLENN: Hang on just a second, it really -- they can come to your employee's home.
SENATOR HATCH: They can get you in bars, they can get you anywhere. They will generally go to homes. And these people are going to sign cards. Everywhere they have had the card check legislation enacted, the businesses have become 85% unionized. You know, even George McGovern is against that. To think that the Democrats will do away with a secret ballot election. And by the way, Glenn, that's not the worst part of the bill. Either side can demand mediation. Within 90 days if you can't get a collective bargaining agreement put together -- and the unions will never allow you to do that. Why? Because at the end of those 90 days, you have to succumb to government mandated, government-run arbitration, where the government sets the wages, terms and conditions of employment for your business. I mean, my gosh, it's --
GLENN: Senator, I don't know what has happened to our country. I mean, we are swinging so far to the left. I mean, I played a piece of audio from Secretary of Agriculture Benson from the 1960s where he said people will -- he said Kruschev told him that Americans are so naive, we'll spoon socialism down their throat, you know, and over the years; before you know it, you'll raise the red flag. And here we are. We're at a point to where our country and our Constitution is slipping through our fingers.
SENATOR HATCH: Well, I hate to tell you that bill is not the worst -- it's the worst thing as far as I'm concerned, but there are a lot of bad things. If we don't have that firewall of at least 41 solid Republican senators, then I think it's over for our country in a lot of ways because we're going to go straight to socialism and, of course, if you look -- look, I like Barack Obama as a human being. He seems to be a decent, reasonable, nice, intelligent, good looking man who's very charismatic. But if you look at what he's been saying over the last year or so it's all platitudes and generalities on so-called change. I mean, really when it comes -- we're in a time in our lives where national security and foreign policy are extremely, extremely important and nobody doubts that John McCain is head and shoulders above Barack Obama there. And then you --
GLENN: Senator --
SENATOR HATCH: Go ahead. I'm sorry.
GLENN: No, I hate to interrupt. I want to go back before you move on. You are not a guy who is known as being a bomb thrower.
SENATOR HATCH: No, I'm concerned.
GLENN: Yeah, you are a guy who has always been, you're an old school senator. You are the kind of guy that, you know, you get together afterwards and you say good things about each other and you fight hard, but when it's over, it's over. You just said on this program that in a lot of ways the country is over if we don't have a filibuster capability in the Senate. What do you mean by that?
SENATOR HATCH: Let me give you an illustration. I had one Democrat, I said, are you with me on card check? And the Democrat said, "Oh, yeah, it's a terrible, terrible bill." But then he said, "I'm voting for cloture." I said, come on. I said, that's the whole vote. I said, if we can't stop that with extended debate, then it isn't going to be stopped. And once that comes through, the card check bill, I think it's going to be very difficult to get America back because it would take 60 votes. We would never have 60 votes as a Republican party. It would take 60 votes to have the unions have to conform to the campaign laws like everybody else has to. We've never been able to do that.
In fact, Glenn, here's something. As you know, I've been trying to raise money for Republican senators all over the country to try and prevent the loss of this firewall and I've had a few Republicans say, I'm mad at Republicans, too, because they should have done more, they should have done this. I said, wait a minute. I've been in the Senate for 32 years. There has not been one day where the fiscally conservative point of view has been in the majority, not one day in the Senate. Now, why is that? Because we always have four, five or six liberal Republicans who go with the almost all liberal Democrat. The closest was McCain when we had the last congress where we had 55 Republicans and 45 Democrats. But even then by the time you took the liberals who would go with the Democrats, it was at best 50/50. So we really have never had the majority necessary to be able to cause the unions or even liberal Democrats to have to conform with the laws that everybody else has to conform with.
GLENN: Senator, do you believe -- I mean, when I heard Barack Obama talk about the Constitution and I thought, we are at the point or we are very near the point where our Constitution is hanging by a thread.
SENATOR HATCH: You got that right. And I tell you what is really fearful to me besides -- there are so many issues but I've mentioned card check. What's fearful to me is the makeup of the United States Supreme Court. Obama has said that he's going to appoint people who are more concerned about the poor and those who don't have a lot of wealth. Well, that's not what the Supreme Court should be doing. It should be concerned about the poor, the wealthy, everybody. It should be concerned about obeying the law and enforcing the laws of the Constitution.
GLENN: Justice is supposed to be blind.
SENATOR HATCH: You got that right. Now he's made it very clear that it isn't going to be blind, that they're going to sway the court in favor of what he considers to be the poor. The problem is the poor are constantly changing and millionaires are constantly changing. The greatest thing about this country is that you can be poor, raised poor and wind up a multimillionaire because of the opportunities that this country offers you.
Now, if you change the Supreme Court to where it isn't obeying the law, that means the Supreme Court becomes the superlegislature. None of those justices are elected to those positions. They are appointed for life. And the Democrats want to make it a superlegislature that will pass legislation from the bench that they could never get through the elected representatives of the people in congress. And that's what they are up to, and I'm telling you it's a scary, scary thing.
GLENN: Let me play a piece of audio. This is another thing that frightens me. I want to play this. This is Charlie Rangel. Listen to the way he's speaking about Barack Obama. Play this audio.
RANGEL: On Tuesday we'll be able to say, who's been able to bring to us one of the greatest Presidents we will ever see, Barack Obama. Who are we going to elect? Barack Obama. Who's the next President? Barack Obama. Who is our hero? Barack Obama. Who is going to lead us out of poverty? Barack Obama. Who is going to save the United States of America? Barack Obama. Who is going to save the entire world? Barack Obama. And who do we love? Barack Obama. God bless.
GLENN: Stop. Senator, it is beyond, it is -- this is so far beyond anything we've ever seen before. This is so easily turning -- and I'm not saying that Barack Obama would do this, but I believe there are forces in this country that would like to do it. This is the benevolent dictator that could come to our country. At the drop of a hat somebody in this country does something stupid and we could be in fascism. Benevolent fascism the next day.
SENATOR HATCH: Well, I don't think it will take us to fascism. I think it will take us to socialism and beyond. Let's look at it. The national journal says that he's the most liberal senator in the Senate. I can confirm that. Biden is the third most liberal. Hey, the fourth is Bernie Sanders, the avowed socialist. They are good people, I like them all, but don't think they are not from the far left. They are. And let me tell you something. I've got to give Barack Obama credit and the people who have run his campaign. They have run an excellent campaign and, of course, it's astronomical how much money they have raised. Three quarters of a billion dollars for Barack Obama in this race. And I might add he is continually condemning Wall Street. Are you kidding? Wall Street's his biggest supporter. Wall Street has plundered the Democrats senatorial committee like you can't believe. Those people have to be nuts. They are sowing the seeds of their own destruction. And not everybody in Wall Street, but I'm talking about the vast majority of money has come right from Wall Street and yet Obama acts like he is against Wall Street. Give me a break.
GLENN: But you know what, Senator, this country, from the top to the bottom, we're now short-term thinkers. You know, Wall Street looks at it and says, "Oh, well, he will bail us out, he will help us here, he will help us do this." And it's short-term thinker. Nobody is thinking about the next generation. You know, the words of Ronald Reagan where he said, "No generation in the history of Earth has ever tasted freedom, lost it, and then tasted it again." We are so close to losing our Constitution. We are so close to losing what we have, and people aren't thinking. The next generation our children will look to us and say, "You sold my freedom for what?"
SENATOR HATCH: Well, let me tell you something. I believe the Constitution is hanging by a thread. I've been fighting the save it for all 32 years I've been in the Senate and I think anybody who looks at it knows I've been in almost every fight that's been saving the Constitution. When I look at it, you have John McCain. Yes, he has some -- he irritates people from time to time, but everybody knows he's a hero. Everybody knows he's to you. Everybody knows he wants to get spending under control. He is the only one who wants to get spending under control. He's taken on his own side. He's taken on the Democrats. Everybody knows that he's head and shoulders above Obama on national security and foreign policy. Obama thinks we've got to be loved by the Europeans. I'd rather be respected by the Europeans and that's what you are going to get with McCain. They may love Obama, because he wants to make us like the Europeans, like France. And I've got to tell you, who in Europe , in liberal socialist areas of Europe wouldn't love Obama with what he's standing for.
But it's more than that. If you want more and more taxes, if you want the federal government to control more and more of your lives, he's going to spend $1 trillion. He's already talking about a trillion more dollars in spending. He doesn't understand the energy needs of our society. He isn't for using coal until we get energy self-sufficient. Heck, coal provides for -- and clean burn coal provides for 50% of our electricity in this country. We can't ignore that, but he does. And he doesn't understand energy, one of the biggest issues in our country. I could go through the whole thing, and you are talking to a senator who's put the tax credits in for wind, solar, geothermal, you know, and the hybrid cars and plug-in hybrid cars. I'm telling you, I'm right at the forefront of that. But that's all well and good and we ought to do everything in our power to go that way, but he doesn't seem to understand that until we get there, this country's running on oil and on coal .
GLENN: How do we stop -- I mean, Al Gore is going to, within a week we will be hearing the celebrations from Al Gore and the greenies.
SENATOR HATCH: Oh, yeah.
GLENN: And the carbon cap and trade system, which is --
SENATOR HATCH: Going to bankrupt America. It will bankrupt America, I'll tell you.
GLENN: Bankrupt us.
SENATOR HATCH: I tell you, it sounds good but it makes us uncompetitive to the rest of the world. Now, I think we should be bigger, I think we should do everything we can against greenhouse gases but I think we've got to approach it in an intelligent, you know, logical way. We don't just make the United States uncompetitive with the rest of the world. You know, I've got to tell you my biggest worries are national security foreign policy worries, the Supreme Court, taxation, and, of course, the move towards having the federal government control all of the aspects of our lives. These are all things that I think the Obama people are for. And they are sincerely for it. They actually believe that they are on the right track. The thing that's made this country great is that we pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps. We have competition. We have free trade. He's against free trade, and a lot of that is dictated by the unions.
Now, why? towards, you know, towards what by any measure is a measure of socialism. The unions have admitted that they have put a billion dollars into local, state and federal elections over the last two years. And I think it's more than that. Now, of that billion dollars, about $950 million of it is not reported anywhere in the campaign rules because we've never had the 60 votes to make them conform to the rules like everybody else has to. And they use that $950 million to get out the vote for Democrats. Republicans have nothing to compare with that. We have to win on logic and good programs and we're finding that more and more of our young people are looking for free handouts and the easy way of life and because all they get are platitudes and generalities from the Democrats who are moving us
GLENN: Senator, before we let you go, and I know you are busy and I appreciate your time. I have heard from several people that -- and I'm not talking about hope. There's always hope and there's always -- because I believe in the American people and I know you do, too.
SENATOR HATCH: I do. I do.
GLENN: So listen carefully to the question because I'm not talking about the general hope of, I believe in the people of America. But people keep telling me, oh, we've faced bad times before, we have faced -- and what I keep saying to them is, not like this. There is the perfect storm. We are so weak and vulnerable on so many big issues that this thing could slip through our fingers. This is a critical time in our country. It's not something that we're like, "Oh, well, four years, it will be bad and then we'll be back." True or false?
SENATOR HATCH: Well, you are right about that. And let me just say I would recommend to everybody, even though it's election day, this isn't going to be over on election day because there are some races that may still have to continue. That everybody ought to go to NRSC. That's National Republican Senatorial Committee. NRSC.org and donate whatever they can. Everybody listening today, from 10 bucks to 1,000 bucks, whatever you can give. Because this is a battle for control of the Senate and we're going to lose races in the Republican Senate. What we cannot lose is that firewall that protects this country from irresponsible legislation and irresponsible work within the bureaucracy that is bound to come if Obama's elected President.
Now, I'm not so sure he is. He personally believe that John McCain is the Truman and Barack of this election. I really believe when people go to the polls they are going to say, I've got to go with a guy I know, I can't go with somebody who I don't know.
GLENN: I have to tell you, Senator, I hold out hope as well for that. Senator, I've got to run but thank you very much, sir, and we'll talk again.
SENATOR HATCH: Keep up the good work. I'm very proud of you, Glenn.
GLENN: Thank you, sir.

Chris is...

So, I answered what I thought chris would answer and here's what I came up with


Take the Quiz and Share Your Results!

I'll have him take it later today and see if I was right.

Okay, So it's later... and I had chris take the quiz on his lunch break... and I was right... Chris is an emmett :) Go me!

I'm Grateful For...

Days I can sleep in and let Taylor just play in our room, til she gets a pen and colors on my pillows. But atleast I got some sleep.

Petit fours for breakfast (just this once.)

Taylor asking for a nap. It's too wonderful.

Taylor saying please, thank you, your welcome, sorry, I love you, and everybody (that one is just funny.)

Chris's sense of humor, it cheers me up atleast a few times a day.

Our Mini Fridge... It saves trips up and down the stairs all night long!

Closets with doors... toss all the junk in, and shut the door!

DVR, cause I missed the Hills last night.

The laptop, so we can lay in bed and watch Heroes episodes on the internet.

Prayer - cause I can't fix everything for everyone, but Heavenly Father can.

Attack of the Lady Bugs

Is anyone else having this problem?

They're everywhere!!! And I'm such a wuss, I can't even touch them... I'm sucking them up with the vaccum. I know. I'm so inhumane! But they are honestly grossing me out so bad.

I have seriously sucked up thirty in more just in my room! They're all over EVERYTHING. How do we get rid of them? HELP.

So, a new thing to be grateful for... Lady bug free rooms. And baby einstein... You've kept taylor occupied while I suck up killer lady bugs.

And I'm also grateful for days when the internet works perfectly. But then again... days like today when it's barely working... you force me to have patience... so I'm grateful for those days too... I guess.

Halloween = Pumpkins + Baby Blessing

I have been so busy lately, I haven't even checked my email in something like 4 days, so I haven't blogged at all. But it was a big weekend for us and so there's lots to blog about.

Last Monday night we went to a Family Home Evening thing for our church. It was mainly just the kids that are in our little playgroup. It was too much fun. A few of the women had "glued" graham crackers together (with frosting) to make houses for us to decorate. It was so much fun to make our "Haunted Houses." They were too cute. Pictures were taken, but not by me... so I'm waiting to get the pictures from my lady friends. As soon as I get them, they will be posted.

I'm way getting into a holiday mood right now... not any particular holiday, just very festive. I HAD to have a pumpkin for halloween. It was going to happen. So Wednesday night last week, me and chris had to go to Walmart for a few things so we got a small little pumpkin while we were there. I figured carving a pumpkin was a little advanced for Taylor, there wouldn't be much she could do besides feel the goop inside, so I decided we'd let her paint the pumpkin. Here's her handy work!

She was concentrating So Hard! And it was cracking me up how she held the brush!

Maddie and Daddy watching...
She was pretty proud of her pumpkin!

It was going to be a nutsy weekend, but luckily my wonderful sister-in-law let us spend the night a couple nights, so I saved a tank of gas!!! Thanks Krystin. It was so much fun hanging out with her and watching Taylor and Isaac play together. And Isaac was OBSESSED with Maddie. It was funny. Isaac and Taylor got to go trick-or-treating together. Like a bad mom, I didn't take any pictures. Krystin got a couple and after trick-or-treating, Grandma and Grandpa came over and got a few. I'll post those as soon as I get them also.

Last week, I saw a bunch of my mom's seminary stuff on the counter and asked her about it... It said something about the wall of gratitude. She said she was having the kids in seminary bring in pictures of the people they were grateful for. Then they had to talk about them and tell why they were grateful for that person in their life. It got me thinking about being grateful... and especially with Thanksgiving being this month, I wanted to try and add a version of this to my life... or my blog. So, Every few days or so, i'm going to try and list things I'm thankful/grateful for. Maybe it'll help me during my crazy days to realize how truly blessed I am. Maybe I'll be blessed even more for giving thanks... who knows. I just thought it'd be nice. So I'll start that right now!!!

Madison Emmarie was blessed today. We were surrounded by the people we love and are grateful for (a few were missing... Candace, Carrie, Jamie, Kyle), But for the most part, our whole family was there. The blessing was perfect, as it should be. And I was the happiest I have ever been in my life. The words that were said were some of the sweetest words I've ever heard. I am so grateful for a husband who holds the priesthood, and honors that priesthood. He is a wonderful husband and an even better father. We have two gorgeous little angels, who, even though they can get rowdy during church (since it's right in the middle of nap time!!!!!) are perfect in every way, in our eyes, and in their Father's in Heaven. I am grateful for the quiet moments, when they are sleeping, and cuddling. It makes the crying and the screaming and the attitude and gas (poor maddie) worth every minute. I am grateful for a wonderful mom and dad who put up with me, let me use their house, listen to me freak as I'm trying to get things done, and never hold it against me. I am grateful to have married into such a wonderful family who accept me as one of their own. I am blessed way more than I deserve and I'm grateful to my Heavenly Father for it all.

Some of those who were there!!! (Chris's family had to eat and run afterwards, so I wasn't able to get pictures with them... It was a little nutsy)

NOTE:When i said it was nutsy, I didn't mean it was nutsy that they had to eat and run... I just mean the day was crazy for everyone... they had to leave because of some other things that were going on, and our house was nuts for a little while and I didn't get a real chance to drag everyone outside for a pic. So I'm sorry if that came out wrong... it wasn't intentional :)

Those are a few things I'm grateful for right now... there will be lots more to come the rest of this month. :P


I also learned that this month is NaBloPoMo - National Blog Post Month (thank you lee). So get to posting all you slackers. I wanna see cute puns, funny jokes, and lots of pictures. THIS MEANS YOU!


Happy Posting!

A few pics of the girls

I've been playing around with the computer the past few days, trying to get some pics of maddie for her birth announcements (they will be mailed soon!) So I've gotten tons of cute pictures of my girls. Here's a few Taylor was trying to love on maddie... it kinda made maddie mad!

Taylor's trying to pick maddie up... that's her new thing. She's always trying to pick madison up.

Taylor's telling maddie some super important story!

Maddie's practicing for the Mo-Tab!

Maddie eating taylor's face!

Though the paci is blue... we had to get it.

Taylor loves to put her forehead on on your forehead when she's talking to you... maddie doesn't love it so much!

My sweet girls!

Too Smart

I can't believe the things Taylor comes out with sometimes. I just had to go to the bathroom, and I've been taking her with me for a while now, trying to get her ready to potty train. She usually just plays in there though. She went and got into my drawer in the bathroom. She got out my moisturizer, pretended to pump it out onto her hand and rubbed her hands together like she's seen me do a million times. Then she got out my toothpaste (which is a white bottle like my deodorant and shaped kinda like it too) and raised her shirt up and rubbed it on her belly. I'm sure she was doing what she thinks I do with it! I just had to laugh. She is REALLY watching me, and doing what I do. I love it.

Lately she's been starting to say sentences. They're usually just 2 or 3 words. But yesterday we were reading one of her books of nursery rhymes and there was a moon on the page. She said "whoa, it's the moon!" When I told chris he laughed and said that's what he says to her everytime they see that picture. We've also been teaching her to say "I love you" lately. Well, today, I had tackled her and was holding her real tight and she wanted to get loose so I said, "Say I love you" and she said "I love you mama!" I was so excited, I had to call chris right then and tell him! I'm the happiest mom in the world today!

There is a downside to all this talking she's been doing. Her favorite word ever is "NO!" and she says it with such an attitude. I didn't know a girl so young could be so SASSY and DRAMATIC. Yesterday, I was holding taylor like a baby and she said Down. I asked her to say please and she said No, and smacked me! Not hard, but enough to make me pretty mad. I sat her right down in her bed for a "time out" and she sat there like nothing was wrong and asked me for some juice. I told her she was in time out and she wasn't getting juice. She didn't get it. So i put a chair facing the corner and sat her down in it. That got the point across very well! So we now have a time out chair. She hates it and to get up, she has to say sorry and give me a hug. I don't know how much it's really working yet, cause every other word out of her mouth is still "No" But we'll see.

I'm still super happy about the "I love you mama" I got earlier today. I love this little person she's becoming... No's and all!

I'm ESME!

I saw this AWESOME quiz on a friend's blog and had to take it... So to all my wonderful twilight friends... Which Twilight Female Are You?


Take the Quiz and Share Your Results!

My girls

So, this is the 2nd post for today, but I couldn't help myself. I was playing around with my camera earlier and took these pics of the girls. I had to post them, they're too cute!

trunk or treat

We went to our wards trunk or treat Saturday night. Taylor had fun and it was fun to see friends from church that we haven't seen in over a month! Taylor did okay getting her candy (she filled her Elmo Bucket!) Chris took her to all the cars while I handed out candy. Chris said Taylor would act all shy, so he would hold her hand and bag out, then when people gave her candy, She's say "Bye" and go to the next car! It was Way cold though, so we left right after the trunk or treat. Here are our girls costumes.

Taylor is a poodle (i made it and couldn't find any black poufs, so i used navy blue ones... in the dark you can't tell the difference.) Maddie is a skeleton. Chris picked it out and I think it's so funny. Maddie also has a very cute beenie that says BOO!, but I couldn't find it when we took the pictures. I'll find it and she'll wear it when we go trick or treating this weekend.

Sick and Tired

No, I'm not going to be complaining about anything. I really am Sick and Tired. I've had a bad sore throat and horrible headaches lately. My two girls are sick also. Not bad, just enough to be miserable. And I'm tired. It's hard sleeping like we are. The babies keep both me and chris up at night, so no one has been sleeping. The lack of sleep has been making me feel worse too. It's a bad cycle.

But I thought I'd go on and post some pictures. we have finally started giving Maddie a Paci. She's still having a few issues taking it because we waited so long, but it's growing on her.

Here are a couple of pics of Taylor over at grandma's and grandpa's when we were house sitting. She would help chris water the tomatoes, and here, she had gotten a couple of the good ones and took huge bites out.

Here are some pictures of Maddie's first bath... in no particular order

And lastly, here's chris and taylor reading a book before bed one night. I love listening to him read to her... he's got all these voices and characters that come out when he reads :) It's pretty funny. They also go through and point out all sorts of things in the books... for example, tonight, chris taught taylor how to say star and what it is! I thought that was pretty cool.

Well, those are my random pics I've been meaning to post. I also posted some of Michael's and Leeann's Engagement photos we took earlier this week... so check out my photography blog to view those. I'll write more later, but for now, I need all the sleep I can get... so I'm off to bed!