Update

We have successfully packed up and moved to STG. After MUCH help from Nate's family (babysitting and cleaning) and a few girls in the ward (babysitting), we finally got the car miraculously loaded. Miracle of 2009 we're calling it. We left only about 4 hours off schedule on monday the 21, made the 8 hour car ride with a baby, a puppy to deliver, and junk piled to the ceiling. I've said it before and I'll probably say it a lot more, Bolt is my best friend. Rachael watched it nearly 5 times on the way down (I'm such a good mother, teaching my child such good habits). It doesn't really feel like we LIVE here, just that we're here for Christmas and we'll be going back next week. Not such is the case. We're down south, for the winter at least. Nate had a job interview at an accounting firm on the 22 and he got the job!! That must be why you're told to get a college education, because he had only been graduated for about three days. When the whole country is scrambling for a job, and Nate finds one on his first try, that is pretty sweet. They have to work out the details (pay, hours, etc...) on the 5th, but for now its just nice to know that we've got something lined up.
Christmas was fantastic. Christmas Eve always consists of a rousing game of white elephant (this years prizes, a cozy blanket, a mini slinkee, and a round brush. There have been worse years....), beautiful serenades by those who are musically inclined, and a word or two of the true reason for the season. My sister Lindsey and I stayed up until 3 a.m. finishing a scrapbook for my parents (pictures from this summer up at their property in southern Alberta, mom teared up, so we were victorious!), then Rachael woke up at about 9, loved opening presents (she got an adorable little chair which is just her size, a mini tent with a tunnel, lots of books, among lots of other things...). Nate was SO sneaky and got me a KitchenAid, a beautiful pink coat, a new CTR ring, a necklace and earrings, and some amazing stocking stuffers. I was too spoiled. I got him a fancy shmancy waffle maker (because we don't have enough kitchen appliances, we thought we'd find some more), a guiness book of world records, and some other stuff. So exciting!! I love Christmas, and I promise to get more pictures up soon! We also got to talk to Nate's little brother, Jordan, who is on his mission in Leon, Mexico which was really fun. I hope you all had a great Christmas and have a fantastic New Year!!

Finished!!

I just wanted to share the news!! Nate just came back from his final final which means, WE'RE DONE!! As many feelings as I have swirling around inside of me, I am so happy. I was literally doing a happy dance when Nate got home. We've waited for this day for so long and I can't believe its here!!
Nate's response to my happy dance: "I'm not done with grad school." You better believe when THAT day comes, we'll be happy dancing it up together!

Thanksgiving 2009

I did it! I made a collage! So fun and so easy!

These are pictures from our fun Thanksgiving with Nate's family. There was more food than you could ever possibly imagine. As a tradition, the day after Thanksgiving the Russell family has what they call a "Christmas Picnic" which is basically just finger foods, and a lot of them. Delicious! I probably gained at least 34 pounds. Rachael had a ton of fun eating and playing with cousins. This was the last time for a few months we got to see some of Nate's family. We also went to see Nate's grandma Gutke, Jeanette. Rachael was so sweet with her and had a tea party with great grandma and cousin Abigail. So cute!! This Thanksgiving was a blast!

Nate

My wonderful husband is graduating from BYU-I on the 18th. Can you believe it? I can't. Nate has done so amazing in school. When we got married he had a 4.0, and I think I ruined it (or school got harder) cuz that fall semester he got an A- and he was so upset he was seriously considering re-taking it. I remember it was his Business Law class with Bro. Lee. I love that he was so distraught over it. He didn't retake it, and he has gotten a few more A-'s, but he is graduating with a 3.9 GPA. I am so proud of him I can't even describe it. The picture above is from last Thursday morning (7 am to be exact) Nate was invited to an awards breakfast. (The picture is kinda lame, I forgot my camera) It was a lot more intimate than I thought it would be, only four other students were there, as well as most of the accounting department. Nate was given the Fall 2009 Accounting Department Award. Each semester the teachers in the accounting department are given a list of graduating seniors, and they each select their top five students, not solely based on GPA (although that helps), but as well as participation in the department. Over the years Nate has not only been an amazing student, but has also been a tutor, went on an internship expedition, and interned in New York City. I'd say that's participation. I was truly so proud of Nate and was go glad I got to go to the breakfast. I am grateful for such an amazing man who works harder than anyone I have ever met. Someone who knows the importance of me needing to be home with the children. Someone who knows that education is the way to make that possible. Someone who I have no doubt will always provide for me, no matter what.
Grad school is coming up in August, so until then we're going to move in with my parents until the end of April until we figure out where that school is going to be. Life is just trucking along, Rachael is getting bigger, and we're loving every second of it. As this one door closes, I'm excited (and scared) to see where it will lead. I'm just so lucky and blessed to have such an amazing companion and best friend. I love you, Naterbug!

Running Out

The packing has begun! Well.. the organizing in preparation for the move anyways. We took a huge load to the D.I. today and freed up a bunch of space (why didn't I do this 6 months ago?) If you ever stop by, please excuse the clutter, there is not much I can do with it at this point.
With the move coming ever closer, I've been noticing lots of essentials that are slowly disappearing. I don't want to buy more of these things because then I'll have to either haul them, store them, toss them, or give them away. Rrrr....

1. Laundry detergent
2. Dishwasher detergent
3. Q-tips
4. Trash bags
5. My shampoo (Nate still has a ton)
6. Hairspray
7. Margarine
8. My amazing Costco baby wipes
9. Dish cloths that don't smell bad after 10 seconds (I plan on tossing all of them and buying new ones wherever we go next)

Here are some things we have in abundance

1. Cereal, hot, cold, whatever
2. Ramen noodles
3. Rice
4. Cream of Chicken/Mushroom soup
5. Goldfish

Sorry no pictures of Thanksgiving yet, they'll be here as soon as I find my camera (I really need to stop losing that...). Suffice it to say we had a BLAST with Nate's family, as kind of one last hurrah with the family who is relatively close. Seven out of the nine were there, only missing Matt and Heidi's family in North Carolina and Jordan serving in Leon, Mexico. We're going to miss everyone so much!
P.S. The Christmas tree is up! We picked out a beaut' from Lone Pine a few days ago, perfect sized, not too big, but not tiny either.

Freak out.

So I'm kinda freaking out. We're moving from Rexburg in less than a month. I can't wrap my mind around that. I've been so anxious but now that its here I am so sad! Short post, that is just what has been on my mind a LOT!

Sad life...

So I've been waiting over two weeks for this gate to get here. (Speaking of... Site-to-Store with Wal Mart sounds like a good deal, but it takes way longer than usual) Poor little Rachael is getting very frustrated with not being able to get into the kitchen, but this is going to make my life so much easier. Here is her initial reaction. I am such a mean mom.

Twizenty Thrizee

Yep, it is that time of year again. My birthday! This was such a good one too! Lots of love and well wishes from my friends and family, and a chance to catch up, even just for a second, with some of my oldest, truest friends. It has been nice because Nate is now only working on Saturdays so he came home at around 1:30 (with my favorite flower, daisies, in hand) today and didn't leave my sight for the rest of the night (in fact, he is sitting right over there on the couch). He was so sweet and thoughtful with my gifts. He gave me the A&E version of Pride and Prejudice (yeeeeeeeees!! Anyone want to come watch it with me??), an amazing scented candle, a book called The Sunflower by Richard Paul Evans (reccomended to him by someone at Deseret Book. Anyone ever heard of it? I look forward to reading it!), $20 to Wingers and the expensive movie theatre (a treat we rarely partake of), and some delicious Lindor truffles (a treat only partaken of on birthdays and Christmas). Thank you, babe! I love everything! Rachael gave me an amazing present. She decided around 11:30 last night that she wanted to spend some quality time with me. So we did. All night long. On the couch. I don't know what the problem was, but I think it might have been a sore tummy... Poor kid. She went to sleep wonderfully at about 8 this morning (as did I) and we slept until about 12. This evening we went to the local Thai restaurant with our friends (who we hope will be coming with us on our potential Thailand trip this coming April/May), Chris and Tani Bree Stevenson, then we headed over for a rousing game of black light mini golf. I, of course, lost, because I was not put on this earth to play sports of any kind. Tani has a big important test to take in the morning so they peaced out after that, but Nate and I still had about 50 minutes till a movie started so we headed to the arcade, paid $3 and won about 200 tickets playing "Deal or No Deal" which was SO fun! (We now have a tab of tickets at that arcade, so we need to go back and win something!!) After that we headed over to the theatre and watched "Love Happens." I shed a tear or two, and we came home to Nate's sweet parents dozing on the couch (thanks for watching Rachael!!). And now, with 12 minutes left of this day, I'm off to make hot chocolate and cozy up next to my husband! Adios, birthday, for one more year!

*Oh, I also stopped answering my phone at around 5 to hit the town, so sorry if you called after that and I couldn't answer! I'll call you tomorrow!*

Little Scamp...

It was getting a little quiet 'round these parts the other day so I went to find the culprit. This is what I found. I had left a bad of apples Nate's parents had given us on the floor, and since Rachael has discovered how to get into the kitchen (a baby gate is now on the way) she also discovered those. She was just chomping away at one behind the ottoman. So cute! There are definately worse things she could have gotten into, and it is good to know she loves apples!

This was what the apple looked like at the end of the evening.

Halloween

This was a stressful Halloween for me. A few weeks ago my teacher from Beauty School called me and asked if I could help out this weekend while a few of the teachers were out of town. Definately! It was so fun, but I am so glad that I don't have to work and be a mom (Not only because I was so tired after, but it was kinda stressful figuring out the babysitting situation). Rachael was not in the mood for Trick-or-Treating so we went out to visit some of Nate's old neighbors who hadn't met Rachael yet, then we went to Nate's parents' house.

That is cocoa on our faces:)

Too pooped to party

Crazy crimped cave hair

After we got home we called our friends Chris and Tani Bree and they came over and made Root Beer with us, and watched a way too scary movie.

I told Nate to make a witch face, and this is what he came up with. Lame. Tani Bree's was way better.

All Hallows Eve eve

*These pictures aren't in chronological order, first we went to the ward party and then we carved pumpkins*

We had our friends Chris and Tani Bree come over to carve pumpkins before Halloween officially got here. Rachael looking to see what the heck is going on inside this pumpkin! Nate did an amazing job with his pumpkin eating another smaller pumpkin.


This is the pumpkin I carved for Rachael. Not as good, but she likes it :)

Why don't kids ever want to have anything to do with the guts? She liked stirring the guts though.

This was the ward party. We showed up kinda late (thanks to Oprah giving me half off my payless order). Rach was such a good girl to keep her costume on, but not such a good poser. I have a goal to not have my kids wear store bought costumes every year (unless they want to be a Transformer or something...) so this is year two. I didn't make them though. My mom's boss loaned them to me and my mom made Rachael's little one. So cute!! I already have big plans for next year.

Cave mom and Cave kid

Cave Family

For Lindsey

I was going to wait to put this on a collage, but my sister wants it up, so here you go! I'm such a good sister. It is pretty cute though :)

Puke

So, last night was an interesting night... I put Rachael down at about 9:30 and she was SO tired! She was crying for a bit and wouldn't calm down. Finally after a nice little rock on the swing outside and a dose of children's tylenol she calmed down and fell asleep on my chest. I could just feel something was wrong because she was not acting like herself. Long story short, I brought her to bed with me and after about four hours of restlessness I picked her up and the poor little kid started to throw up. All over me and the bed. Gross. But I didn't react the way I always thought I would. I don't even know why I'm blogging about this, sorry if you're grossed out. I think I'm just marveling at being a mom again. Even when Rachael was an infant she only spit up a total of no more than 10 times in her entire life, so I thought actual vomit would send me over the edge. Don't get me wrong, it was still gross, but my only focus was making my baby feel better. Since I was all alone in the room we're staying in I just had to let her keep going. I could tell she immediately felt better. I called my sister's phone 3 times before she answered and I asked her to get my mom. Basically it took all three of us to bathe Rachael and get the sheets and dirty jammies under control. My mom got the mess into the washer and I took a shower at 5 a.m. Thanks for letting me express these weird emotions I'm having about vomit...

The really weird thing is she didn't have a fever and she had been her normal happy self all day yesterday and is happy today so I know its not the flu... oh, being a mom.

Family Pictures

On Saturday we went up to St. Anthony to get our family pictures done. A sweet girl in our ward did them for us, Amber Bagley. She is (obviously) AMAZING! I wanted to go to St. A because that is where Nate and I got our engagements done. It is a really ghetto town, literally, but that makes for cute and interesting backdrops. Such as the huge pile of bricks we plopped Rachael onto. This is just a few, and when I get back to Rexburg I'm really going to see if I can do the whole collage thing. I love these!

Blurb

Dear Blog,
It was one year ago today that I created you, and you have been a fantastic buddy. Keeping all of my peeps up to date with the goings on in the Russell family, it can't be easy work because we move a LOT! You have followed us to our adventures NYC, North Carolina, all over Utah, and of course, Idaho. I just wanted to say thank you for always being willing to upload pictures or simply let me vent. I look forward to the next year with you and all of the new adventures we will have. I need to experience a blurb with you (I think thats what its called, your future destiny of becoming a book). You're a good buddy.

Love, Erin

Top Ten

Nate's older brother has a friend who once said, "Parenthood is a life of inconvenience." (Or something to that affect...) Well I have made up a list of Top Ten Reasons why Parenthood is NOT an inconvenience, even though this list basically focuses on motherhood.



10. You have several board books memorized, very handy if you ever need a poem about the alphabet or forget your animal sounds

9. People understand (or they SHOULD) if you look like garbage on occasion (although I personally try to avoid that, but hey, it happens)

8. Naps, although I hear those go down significantly when you have a second child.

7. If you have a toddler you always have snacks on hand, be it pretzels, crasins, marshmallows, whatever... very handy.

6. You get to practice your singing nightly while keeping up with your favorite primary songs, with no judgment attached (unless your husband is listening at the door, haha, but even thats OK cuz he loves your voice too!)
5. People love to do stuff for you, especially if you are pregnant.

4. You lose weight (well... some do. Most do if they nurse.)

3. It must be said. You don't have to endure "that time of the month" for at LEAST nine months. I personally went about 21 because of nursing and they were amazing!

2. Baby wipes. I'm pretty sure I'll still keep bags lying around even after I'm done having kids...

And finally...

1. No matter how many purses, necklaces, earrings, scarves, etc... you may have, a kid is THE cutest accessory you could ever hope to have. And you get compliments on it all the time.



So all in all, I think being a mom is a pretty sweet gig.

Moo

New favorite animal: Cow. We just pull up to Nate's parents house and she points towards the pasture and goes "moo" (even though it really sounds like "boo"). So cute!!

P.S. We just got our family pictures taken today, and I have a good feeling about them! It will be a little while before she gets them edited so they will probably be ready when I get home from St. George.

Quirks

I'm just loving this 14 month old's little personality! She does something new every day and everything she does is ADORABLE!

She does this ALL of the time. I had a friend babysit her while Nate and I went to the temple and she told me she was constantly doing it. "I don't know"

Here are her kisses. Amazing.

Just lounging in her chair with a niiiiiiice warm sippy cup of milk. Perfect night.

She has also learned to pout, really well. If I take something away or won't give her something, she will pull out "the lip." Its adorable and it gets me every time.

LOVE THIS!! Her left pinkie is always up when she is taking a drink. Just like her daddy :) We're so proper in this family.

She also loves hiding behind and under things.

Sitting in things. Like this pot whose original destiny was the D.I. Now, its just under the couch waiting for another session of play.

Climbing on this. This one is NOT my favorite. Looks like the ottoman needs to be replaced by a gate to keep the kitchen off limits.

(P.S. Happy 2.5 year anniversary, Nate! Love you!)

Little Mommy

My heart has been warming and my eyes have been teary watching Rachael start to play with her dolls. It is SO cute! Dolls were a very big part of my childhood and I hope Rachael loves them just as much as I did (and do). I think it is a good way to get little girls excited about one day becoming a mommy to a REAL baby which is so much better than dolls!

Poke It

So my friend Sam and I were talking the other day about when kids typically start using utensils. She said she has a friend whose kid was eating with utensils by the time she was 15 months. Well Rachael has been an extremely picky eater as of late, especially when it comes to veggies. (I've attributed it to teething, which I'm sure is partly to blame.) But I figured lets try letting her "feed herself!" As you can see, we were victorious! It takes a little more time, but she ate like 10 of these little carrot pieces. Amazing! I should probably invest in some toddler forks and spoons (I'm pretty sure they're out there...) so she doesn't poke her eye out, cuz she probably would.

(The video is a little shakey cuz I was watching the kid... Sorry)

Playtime is the new bedtime

I am (mostly) loving Rachael's ability to walk. She just looks so cute! My new favorite time of day is now right after bathtime and before bedtime. Rachael is LOVING this $1 ball from Wal-Mart and will literally play with it for at least an hour. She loves to run right at us with it, then turn away and go a different direction, squeeling all the while. I've been trying to capture this adorableness, and I kinda did, but truly, it is so much cuter in person. I just love this kid! And I love that she loves to play with her daddy so much! And even though her bedtime is later than I would usually like, it really helps that she isn't fussy. I can't believe how big she is getting!

Sorry about the terrible quality.

Plant a tree

Yesterday Nate called me while he was at work and asked me if Rachael and I wanted to come watch him plant a tree. He was about 20 feet away from our apartment so we just walked right over. Rachael was intrigued but I don't know where my camera is (story of my life) so I just snapped a few with my phone. She loved eating the dirt and picking up rocks, but also loved playing with the hose. I love watching her explore new things and I wish I knew what thoughts were running through that cute little head of hers.

My little scholar

There have been countless times I have heard Rachael talking in her room. I go to see what is going on, and there she is pulling books off of her shelf. It is so adorable! She loves books more than anything. If she is being an extreme fuss bucket, all I have to do is ask her where a book is, and she'll go get one for me. She'll just plop right beside me and turn the pages, point, and say "Oooh!" Pretty cute... She also loves that her daddy reads to her every night before bedtime (minus the bedtime part). It is very important to me that she loves to read. It is just so much better for a kid than staring at a T.V. all day (although there are some days when Bolt is the only way to go). And I don't have any problem buying tons of books instead of toys that get tossed away after 10 minutes of play, if that. If you see any screaming deals on books, let me know!

This time I put her there to read, she didn't climb up there with the huge book by herself, although she probably could and would do that now!

Caught in the act!

This is my friend Lacey reading to her before bedtime.

Bag Balm

Well, as some of you may know, Rachael has been having some serious diaper rash issues lately. Bleeding, screaming, the whole nine yards. No fun for any involved. As you can imagine, I'm over it. Desitin doesn't work, Penaten doesn't work, nothing works. Except for this. I had heard about mothers using something called "Bag Balm" that you get at a farmer's store. Farmers put this on their cow's udders (hence the bag, weird.) to reduce cracking. IT IS A MIRACLE WORKER! Seriously. I didn't want to invest in one more thing that doesn't work, so I borrowed some from Nate's parents (they have cows). I got it yesterday morning, put a teensy bit on every diaper change, and this morning the rash is gone. Needless to say, I went to the farmer store and got some for myself. Its cheaper than diaper rash ointment/cream too, and you don't have to use as much. So all you mothers out there, invest in this! (Oh, and there was a lady behind me buying some. We started chatting about it and she told me she uses it for her cracked heels. This is a miracle product!)

Area Rug!

Finally, I have found an area rug. I have wanted a rug since we first got married. They are just such a great way to change a room, but they are SO pricey! One of my new favorite places to find home decor is K-Mart. It may not be the highest quality, but really, by the time I have my own house to completely decorate with "good" stuff my tastes and the styles will most likely have changed. And besides, they have an AMAZING clearance aisle. This rug retails at $99, and I only paid $40 for it. I really love it. Even though this apartment is smaller than would be ideal, I am loving putting my own touches to it. Nothing too fancy schmancy, just something. (And the rug looks good-ish with my lovely couches, even though there isn't any green in it. I'm still loving it.) It may not be a complete necessity, but it just makes me happy. Sometimes you just need a change, and if a 40 dollar area rug does it, then by golly, do it!

I TOLD you it was true!!

So I discovered something today. Something amazing. Something life changing. Something too good to be true, only it IS true!! My sister texted this truth to me this morning, and I couldn't believe it. I had to look it up. It opens in Spring 2010.

Harry Potter Theme Park!!!

Its ok, you can cry. I almost did. It is called the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. They will have everything I've ever dreamed of. Honeydukes, The Three Broomsticks (butterbeer anyone?), Olivanders so I can get my wand (finally!), and of course you get to go to the castle. HOGWARTS!!! Can you believe it? I am so excited to meet Harry.

For all of the information and pictures go to http://www.universalorlando.com/harrypotter/

Needless to say, I am VERY excited to go to this wonder of wonders. One day.

Jealousy and waiting

So I just need to vent for a sec. I've been feeling very jealous as of late. I've been visiting with and seeing blogs and keeping in contact with a lot of my friends from elementary school, middle school, and high school. A lot (or most) of them are married. This is not why I'm jealous (obviously, I'm married too). And quite a few of those married friends have or are currently in the process of buying a house/townhouse. I am SO jealous. I know this is the perfect time to buy with the low market prices and the $8000 tax credit, so even though I am jealous, I really am happy for them. And maybe its not the fact that they have a house, maybe its the fact that they are settling down. They know where they are going to be. Forever. I am grateful that Nate and I are moving to tons of different places and getting different experiences, but now that I have a baby I would like some stability. My mom keeps telling me in the end all of this will work out for the best, and I do know that it will. Its just hard as I'm going through it. I hate that every month we are basically throwing over $500 down the toilet (minus we have a place to live, but you know what I mean). I feel like all I do is wait. I'm waiting for Nate to be done with BYU-I. I'm waiting for him to be accepted to grad school so we know where we're going next. I'm waiting to be done with grad school. I'm waiting to move to New York/New Jersey. I'm waiting to be done with NY/NJ. I'm waiting to know when we can finally have something that is ours besides a couch set and a croc pot. Wait wait wait wait. I know I shouldn't dwell and I'm sounding so ungrateful, but its hard sometimes.

Ugh...

I know that I got spoiled when Rachael was sent as my first child. She rarely cries, entertains herself, and eats mostly everything placed in front of her (more so when she was younger...). And another thing that I took for granted: she has never been sick, at least nothing I couldn't control with a little bit of baby motrin. The last little while has been a little tough for me. Rachael has had a constant diaper rash for the last three weeks. I called the pediatrician on friday and they prescribed a ointment (turns out to be for athlete's feet... weird) because they thought it might have been a yeast infection. I saw no improvement over the weekend so I took her in this morning. She has also contracted a rash on her stomach, chest, and back. It hasn't irritated her, but I don't like it. She is also cutting four molars. And after our check up today, we have discovered she has an ear infection. My life is one word. Joy. Really though, the diaper rash is giving her (and me) the most stress. The poor kid can't even sit down, and it doesn't help that she is still trying to walk and often crashes onto her bum. And changing her diaper is a chore!! It is so hard when I am by myself because she is squirming and thrashing, so Nate needs to hold her legs. It is so sad and I start to cry too because I HAVE to do it and get her bum so clean and put the desitin on. When I'm alone during the day I try to just pop her into the tub which she is not a fan of. It might even be worse. It is totally exhausting because she has been so needy. It is a strange emotion for me, I get so frustrated with her crying, but that is overpowered by pity and a desire for her to feel better. I can't do anything for her and I want to so badly. I hate giving her medicine but I know it helps her (don't worry, I don't pump her full of motrin, just when she can hardly move from the pain or at bed time). I hate even more that the doctor didn't tell me to do anything different. He prescribed an antibiotic for her ears (which I really hate...) but other than that I'm on my own. This whole having a sick kid is definately on my not-favorite list.

Job update

Well... we hit a glitch in the job obtaining... I went in to the apartment manager's to sign the paper, then I found out that the salon doesn't have a license. In Idaho every salon has to have a license, or else you get in big big trouble with very large fines. I didn't sign the paper and went to my school to talk to Mr. Evans about it. He said I can't work there without it having a license or else (if we get caught) they could fine me 1,200 bucks or take away MY license. So I took a copy of the laws back to La Jolla and she said she would call her boss and talk to him about it. Well... I basically figured that I wouldn't be getting the job because the chances of them going through all the hassle of getting a license wasn't very good. Needless to say, that is what happened. She called me when I was in St. George and here was our conversation.
Is this Erin?
Yes.
This is blankety-blank from La Jolla Apartments. I was just calling to let you know that the stylist position has been filled.
Ok, thanks anyway.
Thanks, good bye.

I don't know what I was expecting, but her tone was just really rude and I would have liked somewhat of an explaination, even just a "we decided to not license the salon." Oh well... I guess it wasn't supposed to work out. If anyone needs a haircut or some nails, just let me know! I'm saving my money for a good cause. (All within one week in December, Nate has graduation, birthday, and Christmas. I want to get a sweet present.)

Phew!!

Well since I'm going to St. George on Friday (YAY!) I figured I should do a few posts of Canada and Rachael since the longer I put it off the harder it will be for me. I'm wanting to learn how to do a collage of pictures so it doesn't take 15 years to upload. Let me know if you can help!

One Yearsers

These first three pictures are from her first photo shoot with JC Penny. These are the only 3 shots I liked so I only got a few. Sorry, they're just pictures of the pictures taken with my phone... Look at the cute shirt my grandma got her for her birthday! The moment I saw it I knew I was going to use it for this shoot. Thanks Gramsicle!

Goofy grin...

This one actually turned out really cute with her legs doing crazy things, but you could see her diaper a little too well...

This is the third photo shoot with had with Rachael. We were trying for like an hour and a half to get her to smile (which we usually can't get her to stop doing), but we did end up with some pretty sweet little pictures. This is only a few of my favorites. I love this kid more than I can say!