Smiley Sammy

Sean can always seem to make Sammy laugh & smile, & finally he's starting to do it for me :)

Merry Christmas!!

Hope your holidays are filled with love and joy :)

Out to lunch

Let the festivities begin! Ok, maybe they began 2 days ago when Kelli, Aaron & Adam all got into town. My fam is all together this weekend ( minus the missionary parent :( ) & we are having a blast!!! I can't think of one thing I'd rather do than spend time with the people I love the most! Today all us sisters went to lunch together at the Euro Cafe in Gilbert! Yum! Love those feta fries!!!!!!!
Here is Wendi & Ben- isn't that picture precious?
& Michelle & Sam- 2 beauties :)

Sitting across from us... Wendi, Kelli & Jo

us-meaning Chelle, me & Tam

sisters... sisters... :) I wish we would have got one w/us all... but here is one half-

I dont' know where I'd be in life without my sisters. I'm constantly calling them... learning from them... being served by them... God sure has been good to me in the sibling department!!!!

Cousins :)

Two weeks after I had Sammy, my sister Tammie had her baby... Ben :) Today we finally got to see each other for the first time since then, and Ben & Sammy got to meet each other. Here is Tammie holding Sam, & me holding Ben

Now with our own kids

Sam & Ben raising the roof

Do these babies look like cousins?

End of the day!

My big boy

Here is Sammy trying to keep that little head up. Today we went to the dr. for his 2 month checkup. Sam was 5lbs 12 oz when he was born. Today he was 11lbs 13 oz!!! I couldn't believe it! He's in the 75%! His height was 23 1/2 inches, in the 90%- but his head was in the 50%. Tonight Sean was laying in bed & had Sam laying on his stomach, off of his. Sam pushed himself from his stomach to his back!! Our little boy is really growing up :) A little sad too, to think about how fast it is all happening.

Finally

Well- we finally got our Christmas tree decorated. Yay! I introduced Sammy to my two good friends Kenny & Dolly. When I was growing up we always listened to Dolly Parton & Kenny Rogers Christmas album... so I always make Sean listen to it when we decorate the tree. Sean always feels a need to somehow include the dogs in the festivities- it's a little blurry, but you get the picture.
Here is Sammy with some ornaments-

Me & Sean trimming the tree- ok, just hanging stuff on it.

Sammy & Dad getting the Christmas balls ready

Sean's sister found the Baby's First Christmas ball from 1981, when Sean had his first Christmas. So Sean & Sammy put it on the tree together - our baby's first Christmas :)

Cheese...

The whole thing just wore Sammy out!

Joy to the World!!!!

Have you heard?

Ok- if you havent noticed my awesome new addition to my side bar- there is a great websight that tracks who has visited your blog! love it! check it out! the Blog Frog.

girls :)

"I could never love anyone as much as I love my sisters :) " ? anyone, anyone?
This statement is mosly true... I mean come on! Have you seen my baby?! Yesterday Wendi text me & asked me to go to lunch with her. It was a soup day. Actually, the past 2 days have been soup days. So we sat & talked about our lives & spent a little while talking about how amazing our mom is to have raised us all to be as amazing as we are :) Not to toot our own horns... but look at this array of women!!!
I never knew how amazing our mom was until I interact with more people as an adult & realize how good we've had it. Someone to teach us organiztional skills... baking skills... how to have fun skills... nunchuck skills... ok, maybe not nunchucks- but you get the picture! What an amazing woman!! Case in point- after I had a soup day with Wendi.. I got another soup day with JoDee today. Not only was there soup- but Jo has taken it upon herself to fill her kitchen with the traditional mom Christmas cookies since mom can't be here. So I ate like 10 cookies too. & wasn't judged when I asked for one for the road, & left with two- at least I think I wasn't judged...
who other than our amazing mom could have created these 7 talented beauties? & I hope each of you ladies know how amazing I really think you are.. I don't think you have a clue how much I love each of you. the end :)

Daddy's socks

Today I worked. Once again, my day was scattered with calls home to make sure dad was ok with Sam & was assured everything was fine!! He even gave him a bath all by himself!!! So when I came home, this is what I found...

It's been rainy the past 2 days & really cold - so Sean decided to break out his wool- I lived in Nebraska- missionary socks & sport them on our son... all the way up his thighs. I just laughed when I walked in. I needed to get a few things done & he didn't want to be put down-so
too much :)

What a week!!!

to say the least!!! This week has been so crazy nuts! On Wednesday evening we finally got a Christmast tree. Things are tight right now, but Sean refuses to have anything but a real tree & I just cannot have Sammy's first Christmas without a tree!! It just wouldn't be right. but- since we've been so busy, this is all that has been done-
We have a tree- but thats about it! It still has yet to be decorated. This weekend was Sean's sister Tiffany's wedding. Sean & I (ok, mostly Sean) did alot to help out, so we''ve been a little preoccupied. Thursday was very busy- getting everything together & ready. Thursday evening was a bridal shower for Tif- here is us at the shower...

All day prior to that I was making cupcakes. Tiffany had a cake made for the wedding & then the guests ate cupcakes- so with the aid of my wonderful sister Wendi's special touches & recipes, I spent most of the day working on these lovely bits of goodness....

I made double chocolate, white chocolate & mint chocolate. & I'm telling you, it was much more work than I thought it would be.. but turned out just fine :) The mint chocolate ones were the biggest hit! So Friday morning we woke up & packed up to go. Tiffany said that her happiest times in life are camping in the forest & being on the beach & since the beach is much too far away, she opted to have her wedding in the forest. One of Sean's favorite areas is near Senecca lake between Globe & the Salt River Canyon. We found a very nice facility not too far from there called Timber Camp-about an hour & a half away from the valley. So we packed up our trailer with all the wedding goodies & started up. Sean & I got there first & started unloading. I wish I had more memory on my camera so I could have taken more pics of the area, but it was very clean & nice for a campsite. Sean had the idea to use tarps to turn the ramada into a "tent" for the wedding. So from the time we go there on, we worked on doing just that! Here is Caio & Sean beginning to put the white tarps up.

Amidst all this- it was actually Sammy's first campout. I'm not sure I would suggest having a two month old baby on a campout in December while tryint to make a wedding happen... not the easiest thing in the world. But we made it happen. Here is Sean feeding Sam in the trailer

Friday wasn't very cold at all... Saturday, a tad bit more- Saturday night to Sunday- it was snowing & sleeting all night. Needless to say... I kept socks on Sam's hands & feet, a hat on, & tons of blankets the whole time. He was just a bundled up kid!! Friday & Saturday he came out with us & I used his snugglie a little... Sunday it was to cold to even think about taking him out. He did so well though... I know it just did wonders for the schedule I was trying to create for him, but I was trying to keep him asleep most the time so we could get more done.. oh well!!

Tiffany bought an archway to be married underneath & then alot of pretty garland, lights & toule. Here is Tiffany & their mom creating the archway.

Not only the brains.. but the brawn behind the whole thing... Uncle Jeff, Sean & Caio

Sean really amazes me. He decided to turn this ramada into a wedding tent & I thought- sure, we'll do the best with what we got. Well, he made it look just about as amazing as any wedding tent would. They strung lights from the center of the ramada throughout the whole place, & covered the ceiling with toule. It was alot of work!! Sean got the piece of board, painted it white, put an eyelet (?) through the top & they attached everything to it, & then raised it up to the ceiling. Genius. He seriously never ceases to amaze me.

So Saturday we spent getting the tables & tent ready & Tiffany too. We drove over to Senecca & took pictures. One of Sean's brothers has a pretty nice camera & then everyone else just took pics w/ their camera & thats what she wanted. No official photographer- so here are a few of my favs that I took.

I think she looks absolutely gorgeous in this next pic!

All of the siblings- Ben, Sean, Tiffany, Justin & Thomas

Add the two parents-

cute :) I told them we needed some fun pics too.

Then we headed back for the ceremony. Here are two of some of my favorite of Sean's relatives- Aunt Elaine & Uncle Jeff. Nicest people ever :)

I was working the music at the ceremony poriton, so I don't have any pics of the actual ceremony. Here is Sean & Tif afterwards-

and Tif with the two people who put the most manual labor into the evening-

Aunt Tif with Sammy. I put a little sweater vest outfit that Aunt Nancie got him- he wasn't quite big enough for it, but it was the nicest outfit I had & wanted him to look nice.

We had a homemade spaghetti dinner afterwards (so good!! Sean's mom makes the best sauce & meatballs!!!) & then they cut the cake & we all danced. I took more pics with her camera, so there will be a few more pics to come . Her camera had a "candle" setting that mutes the pics & made it look more like it actually did in the area than mine did. But here's me & Sean

This is the only picture I took of the area- but like I said, the ones with Tif's camera made it look more like it actually did- so to do Sean's handiwork justice, I'll post them later. I just have to say it looked so great!! He did an amazing job!!

I overheard Sean telling Caio that he wanted to make this night special for Tiffany cause he felt badly that he wasn't the nicest to her when they were younger. I thought that was cute. Tiffany was very happy that night & I think it all went over better than anyone imagined. Sean said it turned out exactly how he imagined, so I guess I just didn't realize how great he would actually do. Everyone said Sean has missed his calling in life as a wedding coordinator :) I say, he's still young.... j/k! Tiffany actually toasted to Sean & I for all the work put into it, which was very nice.

The ceremony was very beautiful. Caio said some very sweet things to Tiffany, promising her he would always protect her. I, of course, cried- but I know her mom was too, so I didn't look too stupid. She was just beaming all night & they were both extremely happy.

I do have to say that if we had not had the trailer, I would have not been there. Last night the wind was blowing sooo hard!! It was nuts! & you could hear the sleet & snow all night long. Not very much stuck to the ground though. For the wedding, they got ahold of 3 space heaters & they worked amazingly!

The facility was so nice. I'm planning a family campout for my fam there this spring- seriously! Bathrooms, very clean! Right next to a huge ramada with gigantic grills & a food prep table. each individual camping area had its own picnic table & fire pit with a grill over it. & by the ramada there was a 6 foot fire pit.

It's very nice to be home again with our own beds & a crib to put Sammy in. He's thouroughly confused about the time of day now cause I made him sleep so much. & tomorrow, we can finally decorate our Christmas tree :)