4-7-29-6-16

4

years old

{mary is growing so fast. talking with her is like talking to my best girlfriend. she is so interesting to listen to and fun to be around. mary is such an incredible big sister and an absolute blessing in every way.}

7
months old{nicole is now sitting up and reaching for everything within her grasp.
she lights up the room with her beautiful blues and sweet smiles.}


29
years old{only one more year and our ages will be in the same decade.
this picture says it all. so glad he was born.}


6
years of wedded bliss{this year we took a little anniversary trip to LA. it was the perfect weekend. we stayed in a little beach house and spent our time relaxing on the warm sand, seeing movies, reading books, eating good food, riding bikes, and enjoying our time alone together. it felt like our honeymoon all over again. simply wonderful. only thing we forgot was to bring a camera!}


16
weeks along{for april fool's this year i thought it would be so funny to trick my husband into thinking i was pregnant. nicole's arrival was a little earlier than we had planned. and another unexpected pregnancy would really blow his socks off. early that morning i sent him an email of a positive pregnancy test i got off the internet. he rushed home in complete shock. it was a great joke. i later reassured him that our birth control wouldn't fail us again.
but, as it turns out, the joke was really on me! because one week later i realized something was different when nursing. did you know being pregnant changes the the taste of breast milk? that sweet little nicole was letting me know that something was coming our way. so after a real pregnancy test we learned that i was expecting another winter baby (which i swore i'd avoid at all costs-poor little holiday babies).
we are truly happy to welcome this new spirit into our home.}

Awake

I'm not wanting to go to bed yet. I've been at the computer for four hours now, just doing this and that...pictures, emails, reading, internet searches, Mary's birthday party planning, thinking... simply enjoying the creativity of it all. The house is so quiet. No darling children crowded around my ankles. No thoughts of what I still have to do around the house. No phone calls. No interruptions. Just silence. But, it's a trade off. It also means less sleep. So, it doesn't happen too often. Sleep, I've discovered, is just as important to being a decent mom. I'm sitting here thinking about my sweet little family...they're almost all in our room right now. From the study I can hear their sleeping sounds and reflect on my favorite parts of the day, like Noah's excited frog finding face. What joy! I think I'll dream on that a little.

{So cute, even with his outdoor induced runny nose}

{Snips and snails and puppy dog tails
and all that's GOOD in the world}

Feel Good Song

I found this video on Aaron's cousin's wife's blog. It really brings a smile to your face.

OK Go - This Too Shall Pass from OK Go on Vimeo.

Easter

{my little easter bunnies}

{my girls}

{yes, these are halloween buckets}
{i couldn't find last year's baskets and i already filled the new ones with their easter gifts}

It was a marvelous Easter with egg hunts, coordinating clothes, yummy dinners, easter baskets, and family gatherings. But what made it so wonderful was listening to general conference and feeling resolved to be a better mother, wife, and disciple of Christ. I'm so grateful for our Savior's life, atonement, resurrection and this special time of year when we can contemplate it all.

Bobs, Bangs and Leprachauns

For most of my life I have had long hair. I am one of those emotionally attached hair people. You know the kind--the ones that cry for a few days after a drastic hair chopping? Well, ever since I've become a mom, my willingness to try new things has improved. Perhaps it's that little extra excitement added to the mundane chores of cooking, cleaning, and laundry? Because now I'm cooking that spaghetti with fun cute bangs across my forehead! It also helps that I have an amazing hair dresser whom I trust and consistently go to. And after seeing my hair dresser, Jaime's, bangs I decided copy catting was the only choice.
So here they are...bangs!

And to help with Mary's finally-getting-long-fine hair I decided a bob would push it towards the long thick hair I know will one day grace that cute noggin. While I think the cut is super darling, I really miss her long wispy waves and morning bed head.
I think I'm becoming emotionally attached to her hair now.

And by the way, Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!

Werewolf Baby

Mary: Does Nicole look like a werewolf Mommy? (her eyes perplexed, studying Nicole's head)
Me: No, why do you think that?
Mary: Because her ears kind of look like werewolf ears.
Me: Interesting.

Maybe it's the pockets of hair that fluff over Nicole's ears?
Maybe it's that she inherited my Basque ear shape?
Oh, that Mary.
She makes me laugh...just like her Daddy.

Four Months

Our Nicole Christine turns four months today. I really can't believe how quickly time has passed, yet at the same time I feel like she's been a part of our family forever.
She is growing and changing each day, and thanks to Aaron, she is now mostly sleeping through the night. It's heavenly.

I love Nicole's many smiles, coos, and snuggles.
She is so very special~what a blessing.