March

This is a long post but I am trying so furiously to catch up! Enjoy March!

These videos are examples of how hilariously fun it is to watch TV with Abi. She's way more fun to watch than the actual show that is on the television. She can't sit still to watch TV. She has to be running, jumping, crawling, falling, screaming, singing, riding her rocking horse, throwing toys, etc, to mimic whatever she's seeing. Unfortunately for you cyber people, it's way more entertaining in person, but hopefully you enjoy these silly videos.

When being the fun mom fails...

This is evidence that I tried to be a cool mom and let Abi help do dishes. It failed and ended abruptly when she dropped something heavy in the sink that shattered a plate that was sitting at the bottom. That's when I drained the sink using a long utensil, quit doing dishes and waited for James to come home to take care of the situation. Shattered corelle is not my favorite thing and my frustration and failing to be cool took me over the top. Watching TV it is!

Bath time!

Baths are frequent post-dinner activities. :)


One of Abi's favorite parts of her gym time is the jumping mat. She cries when they put it away.

NYC is exhausting!

This is a great picture I took while we waited for our food to arrive at a restaurant in NYC. Abi was obviously dead tired but she was so good despite her exhaustion. It didn't even take her a full minute to fall asleep in the car after we left. If any of you visit NYC in the future, beware, it is a BIG city with lots of walking and you WILL be tired. :)

Another baby sale!

Abi has realized that she doesn't have to sit in the seat of the cart. She prefers to walk with us, but that only happens if she will STAY with us. Here's a great picture of a time when she was actually happy to be in the cart.

James and Abi reading

One of James's favorite books from childhood was Better Move On, Frog! He found it at the library and was so excited to share it with Abi. She loves it too and they have read it over and over together!

When you can't decide...

I walked all over a craft store recently looking for very specific things and Abi very patiently followed along. It got easier when she found these guys to haul around. Obviously she couldn't decide on a particular color so she carried six caterpillars the whole time. We left five of them with the cashier and bought one which was not satisfactory to Abi so she screamed all the way out of the store. Sometimes it's so hard to be a nice mom.

I love this man!

This picture is a favorite for so many reasons! I love that James is enjoying his evening with his daughter reading a favorite book. I also love that James is wearing an apron. He is so good to come home from work and help me around the house. I love him!


This video makes me laugh so hard! It starts kind of boring but the last couple seconds will get you! Watch out!

Your laundry was in my way

This picture is just one of those irritating moments that I knew I would laugh about one day... Abi has a favorite spot in our living room and apparently the pile of clean clothes was in it, so she kicked them out and gathered her books to read instead. Nevermind that the clothes are clean and waiting to be folded. :) Thank goodness they weren't already folded or I wouldn't have been so willing to smile and take a picture. Haha!

A little rebellion

This is another slightly irritating moment that made me smile. I tried to pull Abi's sleeves up so they wouldn't get dirty and it turns out she didn't want them up because she pulled immediately back down with a little attitude - the one she pulled so hard her arm came out the neck and she left it that way while she ate. Whatever. It accomplished my goal of keeping her sleeve clean so fine. Big nerd!

Love those lips!

Daddy's shoes!

These two pictures are just of cute Abi getting bigger. She has recently started trying on our shoes. These flip flops she wore all over the house for about 15 minutes or so which amazes me because they are not easy to walk in when they're more than twice your size.

Turtle!

Love visiting friends!

James went to Utah for business and stopped in on some friends and family. Lucky for him, he also saw Cosmo! It doesn't get much better than this!

Surprising Jenny

James didn't tell my sister he was in town. Instead, he had me call her and subtly find out what she was up to and where she was and it worked so perfectly that she was out walking around campus so he was able to drive right up to her - kind of creepily since she wasn't expecting it - but they had a great time! He took her out to dinner and brought her milk and cookies!

Provo City Temple

This is the first temple in the world to be the second temple in one city for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It's beautiful and has such a great back story. It was an important city building much like a church but it was what's called a tabernacle. That means that it was basically one big chapel room used to house large congregations for important area-wide meetings. (Churches also have a chapel along with many small classrooms.) The Provo tabernacle was very old, I honestly don't know how old, but its history went back to the pioneer days of the 1800's and the beginning of Provo. It has been a cherished part of Provo, Utah for generations. Well, several years ago, there was an electrical fire that burned the whole inside and roof. The walls survived and amazingly were stable enough that engineers gave the church the ok to rebuild the building into a temple! What started as a heart-breaking loss for the community became an important life lesson to us all - God can mold us into something beautiful and celestial if we are willing to let the carnal and worldly parts of us go. Trials in this life hurt and are often accompanied by tears but God uses them to guide us to something better that we didn't even know existed. That is the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ and the sacrifice He gave for us.

Provo Temple

This is the other Provo temple that has been there for many years. It is beautiful! I had the privilege of serving in this temple each Saturday morning for a year and loved it!

Family is the best

James was able to get together with his siblings who lived in the area for a breakfast. How fun is that? I'm sad I missed it!

When you get bored of eating the same old way

Here is the creativity of a stubborn child. She knows how to use a spoon but wouldn't it be more fun to eat using the handle to scoop the food? Obviously!

Crowns are becoming a thing

Abi is starting to understand and love crowns. I'm sure Tangled has something to do with this...

Chilling with Juli

Here's a cute picture of Juli and Abi waiting patiently. Love them!

Oh to be that little again

This picture makes me want to be small again and squeeze myself into tight spaces. :) I loved laying on the stairs and in trees and in armchairs.

Smash!

Abi thinks it's hilarious to squeeze herself behind me while I'm on the couch. So I smash her. Ha!

Fancy food

This picture is from James's phone. Not sure the story here except that he often goes on business trips and eats amazing food and then comes home and wonders why there's nothing but leftover mac and cheese in the fridge. Haha! Someday, when he's a bigwig in some company, I'm going to train him to take not just his employees out, but their spouses as well. By golly. Treat employees well by showing them that their families are important to your company! Yeah. Soapbox done. Side note, not sure I'd actually order this. Haha!

Mom responsibilities

So this picture... Oh boy. I let Abi bring a toy with her to the store so that hopefully she'll be more behaved and patient and I can get through shopping without any frustration but as it turns out, I really just added to my job of ensuring Abi's safety and babysitting a dinosaur to make sure he gets home as well. Yeah, she just left him swinging on this shelf. Great.

Snuggly T-rex

She does love the dinosaurs though! :)

Can I keep him?

Abi has decided that giant fluffy animals are the best thing ever and loved meeting the Easter Bunny! She loved it so much, she wouldn't let go. Then she wouldn't stop running back to him and getting in other kids' pictures. Then she wouldn't stop screaming and throwing tantrums as I dragged her away to the car. Haha! At least she likes him. She could be deathly afraid of him I suppose.

Gilbert, Arizona Temple

James got to visit Arizona for a weekend so he could surprise a good friend of ours who was returning from his mission. His family had moved to Arizona while he was in England serving his mission and his family is not of our faith so he was returning to a new congregation who knew nothing about him. Well, we couldn't have that! James and a bunch of families from our New Mexico congregation flew/drove in to surprise him on his first weekend back. He loved it! He walked into church and saw a bunch of familiar faces he wasn't expecting!

The welcoming committee

Here is the crew who came to see him. I know there were probably two or three times as many people who wanted to be there but couldn't - like me. I imagine that this is much like what heaven will be like - a giant reunion with so many loved and cherished family and friends! THAT is something to look forward to!

Reading in bed

Abi is loving her new toddler bed. She has really enjoyed having the freedom to load it full of books and stuffed animals and blankets each night before she falls asleep. I can't wait for her to be old enough to read to herself before bedtime. That's when life gets really good!

Indianapolis Temple

James also managed a trip to Indianapolis I think for business this time. Indiana is where James served his church mission and he has so many fond memories of the people and area. He loves returning to visit. Since his return, the church has built a temple in Indianapolis, so James got to see at least four different temples this month! I'm jealous of that lucky duck!

Old time's sake

This is a restaurant that James says was a big hit while on his mission. Apparently there is a giant burger called the Big Ugly Burger and if you eat it, you get your picture on the wall. Of course, I'm sure every missionary has tried - I think James succeeded when he was there if I remember right... He didn't try this time. Just ate there for memory's sake. :)

Selfie!

Abi is really loving taking selfies. :) Technology generation! What a different life she will have growing up now! So exciting!

Thanks for sticking with me as I try to catch up! I have to get caught up before these babies arrive! :)