Merry Christmas

Count your many Blessings!

Erik and I are doing this thing each week where we pick a topic to study, this week I picked blessings. I have had so many blessings this month that I had to pick this topic. If any of you remember the talk given at conference by President Henry B. Eyring when he said this after he was prompted to write things down,"I wrote down a few lines every day for years. I never missed a day no matter how tired I was or how early I would have to start the next day. Before I would write, I would ponder this question: “Have I seen the hand of God reaching out to touch us or our children or our family today?” As I kept at it, something began to happen. As I would cast my mind over the day, I would see evidence of what God had done for one of us that I had not recognized in the busy moments of the day. As that happened, and it happened often, I realized that trying to remember had allowed God to show me what He had done." So my new goal is to do this, and I have so much to be thankful for. We have been given so much, we have new couches that I am baby-sitting for, and a friend gave us a way nice camera that we were so in need of. So it is nice to feel like we got a christmas! And we are blessed with great grandparents and parents that are helping us pay for the way home so that I can be home for christmas! Woowhooee

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my sweet son

Tonight was a great night, for family home evening we when to this place that had all these lights and these trains, it was so fun, Ethan loved the trains, We came home and watched a Nativity movie that I hadn't seen before it was really a great movie of it. But the best part of the night is when Ethan put his arm around me and said "Best in the world, mommy" and gave me a kiss! My son really knows how to win my heart! I dont know where he learned to say that but it was what I needed to hear. So I told ethan to smile and I snapped this picture, It truly was so sweet!

Poor Sad Ella, our dog

So we found out what happened to our sweet Ella, she got hit by a car and her boyfriend Jack (he was a Jack Russell that came over all the time, so we named him jack) he wouldn't leave her side, So Jacks owners found them and took Ella to the vet because he was suffering really bad from a broken pelves, the vet said they could fix him for 5,000 dollars but his bowls would never work properly. So they put him to sleep, it has been sad because Jack comes over looking for Ella. It was nice to find out what happened, I am glad I wasn't the one that found her I would have freaked out.

More Girlfriend Party!!!

These were the invitations we received sent out.

The appetizers were creamy Mushroom Phyllo Triangles, Veggie Pizza, Shrimp Dip and Frothy Pink Grapefruit Strawberry Drink. Sooo good.

Then it was onto dinner. Alisha made the lime tower centerpiece and had extra berries left over that I used along with some ribbon and a tag to tie the napkins with. We served Christmas Salad, Barbequed London Broil, Vermont Cheddar Mashed Yukon Gold Potatoes, Crunchy Green Beans, Orange Rolls, and the most delicious and beautiful Island Fruit Cups you have ever seen (Alisha has an amazing gift for food presentation).




After dinner we did our dessert exchange. Everyone brought a fun holiday dessert on a new serving tray to give away! Here is a picture of them, I took individuals but most of them were blurry. Alisha made the Black Forest Cake, I made the tall cupcakes, Tanya made the Chocolate Raspberry Mousse Torte, Tina made the cutest snowman cupcakes, Kelly made her famous Peppermint Fudge Truffle Cake on a pedestal that I REALLY wanted, Lori made her own recipe of Ooey Gooey bars in this super cute candy cane tray, Heidi brought her favorite wassail recipe in this cute teapot, and Celeste made her famous cathedral cookies. Everyone was so excited to take their treats home to their families.




For the dessert that we actually got to eat Alisha made Double Chocolate Souffles with Warm Fudge Sauce. And OH. MY. GOODNESS. Heaven in a bowl. Seriously a must try!


The last part of our evening was our little craft. We made these cute ornaments inspired by Becky Higgins. Each ornament has four pics of each child on it to remember this year by. Each person made them so differently and they all turned out so cute.

I had a great time and am so thankful for such good friends to share fun times with. I can't wait for next year!

Music's got to go!

I don't know if others of you that have music on your blog, and get as bugged as I do when my music comes on every time I open it. I like the music but I think I rather have it on only when I want it. I talk to my sister and mom on skype and I am always having to turn it down or off, so I think it has become more of a hassle then a nice melody in the background. So farewell music!

One month old

I cant believe I have been a mom of 2 for a month now, wow it has flown bye. Sadie has been like Ethan pretty calm and just so sweet, but she is finding her lungs it seems she doesn't have a fancy for her car-seat. Ethan loved being in it, but with Ethan I was working and so he was in it a lot more then Sadie, who I do tend to hold all day. She is growing fast. I think she may be the size Ethan was when he was born, which was 8'3 so it has been so nice to have a little girl, who is very girlie hence the bow in every picture! She is my little princess and I am loving every minute of it! She went to her first girlfriends party last night and she had a blast sleeping and getting rockabyed by Emily!

Girlfriend Party

Tonight I went to a girlfriend party and it was soooo fun! This is what I took to it, they turned out okay, but I think more fun for Ethan then for a girlfriend party. Everyone else's were so pretty! This is what I got, it is extremely cute candy cane serving plate with the best rice crispy's I have ever had, I stole one from the top. I will be adding some more pictures of the night when I get some, but it was soooo much fun! We got there played a game, had appatizers, dinner, did the dessert exchange, and then did our supper sweet craft! Emily is the same friend that I made the Halloween picture frame with, which was another party that I just loved! Okay, so here is what I made... these way cute ornaments, they were so fun to do. I will definitely have pictures of everything, the dinner, and everything was so nice very pretty. It really just made me feel so special, every mom needs to feel that way at least once during the holidays. After the craft we had a desert which just melted in my mouth, it was this moose chocolate thing..ummmm!
It worked out so well because Erik is in his last 2 days of finals so he has been at school studying like crazy the last few weeks, so it was really nice to get out and have a great girlfriend party!! You know that you have been to an amazing party when you come home and tell your husband all about it and then jump on your blog. Also you know that your having a good party when your there until almost midnight! Well I am up again until 2 so I better go to bed.

Mothers

Mother, who willingly made that personal journey into the valley of the shadow of death to give us birth, deserves our undying gratitude. One writer summed up our love for mother when he declared, 'God could not be everywhere, and so He gave us mothers.

"While on the cruel cross of Calvary, suffering intense pain and anguish, Jesus 'saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son! Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother!' (John 19:26-27.) What a divine example of gratitude and love!"

I LOVE YOU MOM!

LOST DOG!!

So we lost our dog!!! We dont know what happend to her if she got stolen, hit, or is just lost. It has been 6 days now so it has been sad around here. We were talking about selling her because we dont show her the love that we use to and I don't want her inside with the babe, but having her gone is sad because we didnt say good bye or anything!! :(

Party Party!

I am going to a Friends Party where we bring a dessert on a cute tray, with help from a very creative Rachel, I have come up with this! So I am going to test them out tomorrow because I thought it would be fun for Kylie the girl I babysit to have fun with, and give me a chance to test them out!! So stay tuned to see how it goes!

Sadie's Special Day

Sunday was Sadie's Blessing day. It was great, I love to hear the blessing of our kids, Erik always says some very special things! She looked like a princess, the neat thing was that she was wearing my blessing dress, so it made it very special!

These, Our Little Ones

E. T. Sullivan once wrote these interesting words: “When God wants a great work done in the world or a great wrong righted, he goes about it in a very unusual way. He doesn’t stir up his earthquakes or send forth his thunderbolts. Instead, he has a helpless baby born, perhaps in a simple home and of some obscure mother. And then God puts the idea into the mother’s heart, and she puts it into the baby’s mind. And then God waits. The greatest forces in the world are not the earthquakes and the thunderbolts. The greatest forces in the world are babies.”

And those babies, I should like to add, will become forces for good or ill, depending in large measure on how they are reared. The Lord, without equivocation, has declared, “I have commanded you to bring up your children in light and truth” (D&C 93:40). By President Gordon B. Hinckley

Let it snow, let it snow!!

Crazy! That means no driving for us, because the word here is people drive crazy because they don't know how to drive in the snow!! So good Erik cant go to school today... Thats sad, I am happy its snowing just because it means we all stay home!!!

T*H*A*N*K * Y*O*U !!!!

Since I have moved here in Aug there have been a few people that have really made me feel welcome. I have been invited to a Halloween Party and a few other get-together s by one friend and my other friend has been soooo nice in helping with things that I need like a baby shower and coming to the hospital to see Sadie, and now this look at all these cloths she knew that I didn't have anything and so here she comes with all this after she has gotten me two other gifts! Thank You Sarah, and thank you Emily you guys have made me feel like I have friends here!

Ethan's Birthday Party

Ethan and Kylie had fun making the deco for the party, so we have airplanes and choo-choo's flying around!! I had fun making a choo-choo train cake, it was tricky but I think I pulled it off! He loved all his presents, when they are cars and trains who wouldn't! I wanted to invite all Ethans friends from church but I didn't want Sadie around a lot of people so Ethan just had Kylie over, the girl I baby-sit. But it was a fun family party anyways!!

Ethan's big #2!!

Ethan is excited to have a birthday today!! He has been really excited for his choo choo train cake, we will see how it turns out!! I am not to good at the cake making!
Ethan loves Mickey Mouse so this is for him!! If any of you watch Mickey Mouse club house Ethan is always saying "OH TOODELS" all day long!!

Sweet Love

Well it was our anniversary yesterday, and it was great Erik brought a movie and my favorite food home (Sweet and Sour Chicken)! So we sent Ethan upstairs and we had a date! I want to take a minute and say for the last 3 years of our marriage I have been sooo happy we have grown a lot, and we have moved a lot... We started our marriage in a very cute apt, then moved to Verla's upstairs a 96 year old lady, then a week or two before Ethan came to bless us we moved over to Birch where I got a job that extended for the next two years, after a few months at birch we moved to Arbor Cove and I was the manager there then took on Georgetown complex as well as attending School. So this year it is totally different I now live under my In-Laws in a different state and I have two kids, but I am just a mom!!! I am loving every minute of it!!!

Our Family!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Getting ready for thanksgiving!!

Ethan had fun helping Grandma Arter with the rolls and pies!!

Pretty Thing!!

Its soooo fun to have a girl!!