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Just ordered my Christmas cards from this very site...yesterday...but I could always use a few more :)

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when will i learn...

that as much as i enjoy it, quiet is not a good thing...unless you know that your two-year-old is sleeping. On this particular day I thought Aldyn was downstairs with Mike in his office...until it hit me that it was way too quiet, even for that. I called for her in a panic, and she came out of my bathroom sporting a sweet makeup job...

Being the responsible, consistent mom that I am, I sat her on the step (our time-out spot), laughed and took pictures. No mixed messages there, right? Good.

Yours Truly,
Mom of the Year

Thanksgiving Thought

Let's see if I remember how to do this...

I love this blog...and I loved this recent post. Go here to see a really neat idea. A very cool way to think beyond ourselves on Thanksgiving. I think I'll see if our family is game to do some variation of this.

She's No Dummy

When mom and dad are busy, she makes a beeline for the good stuff.

let's do this...

the easy way.

What have we been doin?

partyin' with eli.

practicin' our cuteness.

celebratin' Mollie and Adam.

havin' picnics.

eatin' blizzards.

strollin' thru the zoo.

swimmin' with cousins.

hangin' with dad.

perfectin' our cuteness.

thankin' Jesus.

roadtrippin' to wallace.

meetin' the easter bunny.

gettin' our hunt on.

lovin' our sister.

It Might Be An Ordinary Life, But It's Our Life

Okay, so I may have sort of borrowed the title from Jon & Kate...but please know, I'm no longer a fan...but that's another blog post all on its own!

Time to do a little catching up on the ol' blog...I've thought about it lots of times, and have many things I want to share...but my lack of creativity and time keeps me from posting regular updates. I read so many clever blogs and am inspired by the content...but I usually feel rather ordinary after reading them and my insecurity gets the best of me. Not long ago I read this post by a friend of a friend and could so relate. But, it's time, and creative or not...I'm going to update you on our life and what we've been up to the past couple of months. Starting with Aldyn's 2nd birthday...

We had a wonderful day...I believe God answered some pathetic little prayers of mine (also another topic for a post all its own).... It was 70* and beautiful so that morning I decided to throw together an imromptu get-together at the park for some of her little friends. Emerson slept most of the morning, so Aldyn and I had some special time together. We painted her nails, made some cupcakes, and I just got to enjoy her! My parents were in town so we got to have lunch with them and they helped with Emme while Aldyn and I were at the park...it was one of those days where things just seemed to work out without planning...I enjoyed it so much!

That weekend we had a family party, and everyone was able to come! It was a little crazy, and I let my neurotic self get a little too wrapped up in the details...but the party itself was great. Just having all our family in one place at one time was so neat. Aldyn adores each one of her cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents, so for her, having them all here, and getting a few presents...all in the same day...what more could a two-year-old ask for?

Aldyn is such a blessing...a little blessing who is challenging us more and more each day :) I've never heard anyone say that parenting a toddler is easy...and if I did, I would know they were lying. It's tough! One more reason to pray...and trust...and pray...and trust! I do know that He won't lead us astray. And whoever said "It takes a village to raise a child" was absolutely right...I realize that more all the time. I'm so thankful for our "village" of family and friends who love us and our kids...and seem to always be there just when we need them.

A few pictures from the occasion:
(and once again it seems that I'm impaired when it comes to moving pics on blogger, so I'm not even going to mess with it...enjoy them in random order!)

Aldyn's party fell during March Madness :)

"Sorry 'Bout Dat"

Aldyn is cracking us up these days...she's a little parrot, mimicking everything we say. Her latest phrase is "sorry 'bout dat" and she uses it frequently...even when we spill or drop something :) It's not rare that Aldyn will say something and then Mike and I will look at each other and say, "Do we say that?" Apparently we do!
She'll often tell me that Emerson is "crynin", or that she (Aldyn) is "trynin" to do something.
If she's feeling ignored, she grabs my face with her little hands and says, "Mommy, yisten!"
When telling us goodbye, lately she's been say "be careful", not sure that she knows what it means, but it's pretty sweet.
She loves Emme (most of the time) and probably kisses her head 50 times a day.
And speaking of Emme, she's one month old already! I can't believe it, and yet I know I'll be saything this at every milestone.
She's such a sweet baby, and very easy going. She's giving us some smiles, and that is so much fun. We have a Dr. appt. Monday, and I'm anxious to see what she weighs. She's definitely growing! My Dad says she looks like she's packing a few walnuts in those cheeks :)
I've been t.e.r.r.i.b.l.e. about taking pictures, but here are a few:

Sisters
Smiles on one month birthday

she loves her daddy...can ya blame her?

guess who got a hold of the powda?

precious girl

Welcome To Our World

She's here, she's perfect, and we can't imagine life without her!

Emerson Elle

February 1, 2010

9 lbs. 15 oz. 23"

2:43 pm

The first picture of our family of 4

Aldyn meeting her little sister for the first time...
such a precious moment for us!



Two incredibly thankful parents...

Passing time in the hospital during the induction...

sweet socks and slipper combo, I know :)

We are in love with our girls...and feel so blessed!
They are gifts from the Lord, and we pray that they will grow to know, love and serve Him!

We'll have a funny story to tell Emme about her birthday when she gets older.

I'll give you the quick version.

The induction was going well...things were moving along, but

We thought we had a couple hours before her birth (at least)...

Mike hadn't had lunch, so I encouraged him to go get something.

He left...and things started happening fast.

Really fast.

I figured he'd be back soon, but decided I should send him a quick text.

Here's how it went:

Me: "9 cm :)" (2:23 pm)

Mike: "Holy crap!"

Me: "Dr. is on her way" (2:25 pm)

Mike: "Me too!"

approx. 2:30 pm - Mike gets back to the room

2:43 pm - Emerson is born!

Mike considered going back to the car after she was born because he figured the fries he'd left would still be hot :) I'm not sure if he tasted the gyro or not.

We're Ready...

to see your precious face in person, little one...I am longing to hold you in my arms

Prayers, Please!

If you think of the average high school senior, they have a lot going on.

College visits, scholarship apps, keeping up with their social lives, choosing a prom date and attire, and maybe a little homework here and there.

When you're in the midst of it it seems crazy busy and stressful...and when you get a little older and look back on it, you sometimes wish you could do it again...because you didn't realize how much fun it was the first time.

Most of us have it easy...and we take it for granted.

But sometimes, you get thrown for a loop...

My cousin Sydney is in the midst of her senior year...

happy, healthy, cheerleading, being an easy-going teen...

starts having some crazy things happen...so heads to the dr...

no biggie.

Dr. isn't sure what's up, so tries some different things.

They don't work.

Then things happen quickly...an MRI, a fast trip to Lincoln, several days in the hospital,

and ultimately, a diagnosis of MS.

Multiple Sclerosis. The aggressive type.

What???

She's a senior, she's got other things to worry about.

Like finding a prom dress, duh.

But she handles it, takes it all in stride.

Says, it's okay, I'll fight...like a girl that is!

It's no accident that she's a redhead by the way.

And she's holding true to her word...seeing progress already.

No, it's not fair. It's not easy. Not right.

But she doesn't talk that way...doesn't need our pity.

Instead she smiles, jokes, and takes it all in stride.

It all reminds me, that if life were easy...all the time

we would forget that we need Jesus.

And I have no doubt that her story is going to touch hearts...

and bring people closer to Him.

Those who may not know Him will get to see how he works.

Oh, and don't you worry, her killer prom dress is on the way.

She's going to be hot :)

Love ya, Syd.

You keep fighting...we'll keep praying.

Finally...

We missed getting to spend time in Wallace over Christmas because of the weather, then my parents thought they needed to go on vacation...but we finally got to go out for a visit before the baby arrives. Mom left her decorations up for us, so we even got a taste of Christmas. Mollie got to come with, and Adam came for a while too. We had some fun, relaxed, did a little shopping, a little wedding planning, a lot of eating, etc. My mom even made me a coconut cream pie - yum! I don't even care that my maternity clothes barely fit these days, when you get an offer like that, you simply don't pass it up! I'll say it again...there's no place like home!

Just a few pics from the weekend:

Papa Monte and Grammy Ruth with the big sister to be.

Love for Aunt Mo

These two still love each other even after a little wedding planning :)

Not sure who was more excited about her new remote control tractor...Aldyn or Dad?

Thanks for a fun weekend!!

Hadley Family Fun

I thought I'd post a few pictures of our New Year's weekend in Omaha together. Frank and Karen did this for us for Christmas...and we had a really fun time being away together. We started out the weekend at CocoKey...thanks to Scott & Stacy who gave us tickets for Christmas. I think it's safe to say that both the kids and adults had a great time swimming! I was little bummed that I couldn't go on the water slides this time...they are soooo fun! But nobody wants to see a gigantic prego zippin' down the slides...bad enough that I had to sport a swimsuit for the day...talk about a humbling experience :)
Aldyn wasted no time in getting in the water...and was happiest when Skylar was close by to play with her.

She wanted to try the slides, and I was sure that one time would fix her curiosity. But all she could say was more, more, more! She spent the entire afternoon going down over and over again.


But what she loved even more was just sitting at the top and making friends. She would talk to all the kids going by and was in no hurry to go down if she could socialize instead :)

On Saturday morning we went to 'Sesame Street Live'
She was totally captured by the show...This is definitely her favorite right now.
It was so cute to watch her wave and say "Hi Elmo! Hi Big Bird!"
She's still talking about it and the water slides :)

To be honest, I loved it too. It was a great production and I have fond memories of watching Sesame Street as a kid.

Little Eli even got into it a little bit...he was watching, talking and waving his arms in excitement!

Sesame Street AND a sucker...life is good!

The fam in our favorite mode of transportation, the hotel shuttle...so convenient and warm!

I think Carter and Gunnar were hiding from the camera.

Gunnar being...well, Gunnar :)

Thanks for the fun trip, Mama & Papa!