Christmas

 Merry Christmas! We had a great Christmas and hope you all did too!

We started our Christmas Eve off by lighting our annual Santa candle.

Then it was time for signing the board and making the sandwich. It was our family, Christy and Lylia, and Nona and Pops for this year. The girls put together the sandwich this year with a little help from Nate. 

She was all smiles with her cute reindeer headband and jiggle bells until...

We forced her to take a picture with the sandwich but there is usually a crying kid in the sandwich picture so why should this year be any different. :)

"Ding, Ding, Dong; 6 feet long; It's our Christmas song; Join our throng Baylor- ong; Come and sing along; Hey!"

Then Pops read the Nativity story while the girls set it up which led to Baylor taking the different pieces and having them slide down the roof of the barn...

Then present time- I loved watching Baylor get so excited about helping Pops hand out presents; I loved seeing Paige's excitement for the unicorn presents from Lylia; I loved watching Baylor hug and roll all over her stuffed animal pig from Aunt Christy; I loved seeing what Paige got for Nona and Pops that she bought herself at the school store and how thoughtful and sweet she is.

This year Nona had an elf shop and had a bin full of toys, candy, other fun things for the kids to look through and they each got to pick three things. It was fun to see what everyone picked out and of course the first thing Baylor picked out was a bag of chocolate kisses and then found all the other candy in the pile. I let her keep the kisses but found other things that she would enjoy that wasn't candy.

 We got home and Nate and I opened up our presents from Paige that she bought at the school store and again I am amazed at how thoughtful and caring she is. I am so lucky to have Paige as my daughter.

Then the girls got to open their pjs. 

Christmas morning! Paige said she woke up at 4 am in excitement but went back to sleep and then at 7 went upstairs to look at everything and then she woke me up at 8. I loved seeing her excitement for everything even if it meant that sometimes she was trying to make Baylor open up her presents faster by "helping" her. I love Christmas with kids and the magic of it all!

 Baylor was so much fun this year with presents. She loved unwrapping presents this year and when it was her turn she would just grab a present even if it was from someone else's pile. She just wanted to open them all. She was sweet that every present she opened she would sit and look at or play with besides when she opened up some socks which she was threw to the side. :)

Christmas explosion!

 Nate and I's presents

 The girls with their presents- they are so loved and we are so grateful for everything that we got and everything that our girls got.

I forgot to put Baylor's bag of kisses in the picture so I got this picture. She loved that bag of kisses and I love her more than anything.

Nona and Pops came over to see what we got and then we went with them to Nolte State Park to go walk around Deep Lake. They go every year and Nate and I had never done it so we decided to join them this year. We hung an ornament that Nona brought and Paige found an angel ornament and Nate found a candy cane. It was pretty chilly and Baylor wasn't the greatest but I'm glad we did it and it was nice to be outside for a little bit.

 Then we went home so Baylor could take a nap and Paige enjoyed all her Christmas presents. Then we went over to Nona and Pop's house for Christmas dinner. Then right before bed we skyped with my parents to open the presents they sent us and to talk to them and the girls got to show them what they got. Thank goodness for technology so we could all see my parents today. It was an awesome Christmas and we are so grateful for the love that we feel this time of year from each other and our love for our Savior.

Little Things

 Here's a blog post about the little, daily things in our life that I haven't posted about and have pictures about on my phone. I love posting about the little things because they happen on a daily basis and sometimes get missed or not brought up but they can often be what makes life sweet.

In November Paige had a friend over and one of the things we did was go to the park. It was pretty chilly but it is always fun to see the smile on your kid's faces as they climb to new heights, swing with glee, and go a on a zip line that always brings a smile to both of their faces and mine too. I wish they had zip lines on playgrounds when I was a kid because I think they are awesome.

Another thing in November is there was a Face to Face event with Elder Gong and some of the general presidency talking about the new youth programs that are starting next year. Nate and I watched it with Paige since she is turning 8 and will be involved with it. She took notes and they are pretty simple and pretty sweet. It shows that she was somewhat paying attention even though I am sure it was long and not that exciting for her. Though she is super excited about the little things that you get for reaching your goals. I like that on the notes on the left she even included that she got a paper cut and I thought it was touching that the one main thing she wrote down was on the note on the right.

More daily moments- Baylor in her beanie looking way too cute, her second time in the hot tub and this time she actually liked it, two cute girls hiding under my sink while I get ready for the day, and Baylor posing with her favorite thing in the world- her blankie.

One nice Saturday in November we went and walked around at Clark Lake. It was a beautiful day and the fall colors were still out even though it was the tail end for all the beautiful fall leaves. It was nice to be out in nature and just talk and enjoy the beauty of the earth.

Nona put together a picture scavenger hunt that the grand kids got to go on the day after Thanksgiving at Clark Lake. Baylor and I didn't go since we both had colds and Baylor was taking a nap but Nate and Paige went along and I wish I could have gone too since it looks like they had fun and it is always great to be with family.

I went Black Friday shopping at Fred Meyer to take advantage of their half off socks since I was in need of some. They were laying on my dresser for a couple of days since I didn't get around to putting them away. Paige will often fall asleep in our big bed at night and when we went to bed my socks were all put away with this cute note. I wonder who my secret admirer is? :)

Baylor is trouble with a capital T but is so much fun. The top left picture is her is time out though it doesn't work that great so now we usually have to put her or threaten to put her in her room to actually work. And notice that her pjs are on backwards so that she can't take them off to remove her diaper. Bottom left- I went to the bathroom before cleaning up dinner and I guess she was still hungry. Top right needs no explanation except that she loves making messes. Bottom right she was trying to close the blinds....

Paige got the 12th Man award at school. She is such an awesome student and really does so well in school and loves it.

Baylor has recently found a love for search and find books. We have a couple and Paige was doing her daily reading for school and Baylor was being quiet downstairs with her. We looked over the edge and she was finding the things on her own and doing her own "reading".

We love Christmas in our household and we got to help Nona decorate her tree and decorated our own too. I love Christmas and it is so sweet watching my two girls love it. They were great helpers with the decorating and Baylor loves all the pretty Christmas lights.

We got invited to an amazing cookie party at our neighbors house. Both girls got a present, decorated cards and paper ornaments, and decorated cookies. It was a lot of fun to be at and the girls especially Paige loved all the crafty things.

Some fun school events that we did the last couple of months- there was STEAM night (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math) that Paige and I had fun going from classroom to classroom doing all the fun things that were planned; Addison came with us to the holiday night where we got a picture with Santa and the two girls shopped for some presents to give; and last for the bulletin board for November I did an attitude of gratitude tree and all the students wrote what they were grateful for on a leaf and so I got a pictures of Paige's leaf.

Our ward Christmas party we got some more cute Santa pictures and Baylor wanted nothing to do with him.

Last Monday we went with Dale and Margaret to see the Clam Lights. Ivars has a restaurant right on the pier and they do this fantastic light display to go walk around. It was gorgeous on the water though pretty chilly!

Then on our way home we stopped at Carpinitos and saw the real reindeer there. It was pretty awesome and I loved Paige's expression when she got her first glimpse of them. She was pretty excited to see actual, live reindeer that were in training to be on Santa's sleigh! She did say that it would have been even more awesome if one of them would have been Rudolph. :)

 Then yesterday we took our annual Sunday before Christmas pictures all dressed up in our Christmas Sunday best. I love Baylor's cheesy smile and Paige's reindeer antlers. Paige did so good singing with the primary and this was the first time that she walked up to the front all by herself!

 We are so excited for all our Christmas celebrations the next few days! We are so grateful that our Savior, Jesus Christ, was born in Bethlehem all those years ago and for His life and His example.

Thanksgiving 2019- Attitude of Gratitude

 Throughout the month of November we put things on leaves that we were grateful for and made it into a gratitude tree. I especially loved seeing what Paige would write down and how excited she was to do it. She would also think of things that Baylor likes and do some leaves for her little sister. Here are the things we came up with: the beach, special occasions, Baylor's big toothy smile, tender mercies, pinterest, oranges, temples, animals, traditions, church, sweatpants, blankies, doctors, cousins, Paige- the best big sister ever, balls, the world, vaccines/medicine, running water, nap time, general conference, outside, the sun, house, baby doll, food, pina colada, thrift store finds, moms, shoes, veterans, freedom, mama and daddy, warmth, our prophet- President Nelson, outdoor adventures, sunsets, our pet fishes, stuffed animals, seasons, grandparents, education, peanut butter cookies, horchata, Goodwill Outlet, fruit, school, birthdays, music, Addison, sports, a body, swings, a clean house, pants, TV, Daniel Tiger show, clothes, chocolate, nature, love, my teachers and friends at school, IVF, super yummy food, family, good health, Christ's Atonement, a comfy bed, City of Covington (work), colors- because if we didn't have colors the Earth would be plain, Survivor, gospel, and cars. That is quite the list and we are so grateful for all the big and little things in our lives!

For our Relief Society activity in November we talked about giving and the important of service. We were given a paper with a gratitude challenge to come up with 100 things we are grateful for and it had some prompts so here we go:

-10 living people I am grateful for: Nate, Paige, Baylor, my parents, Nate's parents, friends in the ward, teachers that have impacted my life (especially Coach Hill, Coach Portela, and Mrs. Anthony), my family- siblings, in-laws, nieces and nephews (I am lucky to have so many people to love and who love me), the greatest friends growing up that made school and my life growing up so much fun, Paige's teachers and friends. I know that isn't 10 specific people but I have so many people in my life that I am grateful for!
-10 people that have died- Grandma Peterson, Grandpa Peterson, Grandpa Walker, Nate's grandparents (I only met one but I am grateful for them all for raising and being a part of some pretty important people in my life), my pioneer ancestors who chose the gospel and taught it to their families and sacrificed so much, Joseph Smith Jr, Jesus Christ, those that have fought and died for our country and freedom, the founding fathers for their courage and sacrifices in creating this wonderful country, and the people in the scriptures that wrote down their testimonies and life stories to help me get through my own journey on this Earth.
-10 physical abilities- my legs and ability to exercise and keep up with my children, my body and it's ability to have a baby (I have struggled with this one with everything that I have to go through to get a baby inside of me but I am grateful that once there is a baby inside me that I have a body for the baby to grow and develop), my ability to create, my ability to clean, my ability to communicate- talking and listening, my ability to laugh and smile, my ability to taste/smell food and cook my own food, my ability to see the beautiful world around me- we live on such a beautiful world and that I get to see the people I love, my ability to feel whether good or bad, it makes me who I am and have more empathy for people, and the ability to feel the Spirit and feel the love of Heavenly Father through it.
-10 material possessions- a roof over my head, cars to take us places, money that helps us live in this world, my Kitchen Aid mixer, clothes, kitchen utensils/oven to cook all sorts of delicious food, a comfy bed with warm blankets, books to read especially the scriptures and Harry Potter, disposable diapers, medicine/vaccines/IVF
-10 things about nature- I love being outside and there are so many things but here are 10- the beach/beach combing, thick forests that I can hike through that help me escape the busy world and feed my soul, waterfalls, animals that roam around in the wild that I get glimpses of, lakes to play in and go kayaking/boating/paddle boarding on, the majestic oceans, national parks that highlight different areas of nature in different states, gardens, fresh cut grass, and sunsets/rainbows
-10 things about today that I am grateful for- the ability to go to and fro and get things done around town that I need to do, Nate and his job so that we have the ability to buy the things we need, our ability to be really good at saving money so that we can afford IVF and other things that we want to do, the school environment and having fun activities going on to participate in, Paige's teachers that have taught her so much and making school fun and enjoyable for her, nap time so that I can get things done that are harder to do when Baylor is awake, for Baylor and keeping me company throughout the day and making me smile every day, a clean house because clutter makes me crazy so I love that I have the ability to stay up on keeping the house clean, church callings that push me and make me a better person, and the Christmas season that is so joyful and makes me so happy.
-10 places on Earth I am grateful for- Firth, Idaho- my home town where I grew up and where my parents live now, Kent, WA- where we live now and the life we have created together, BYU-Idaho- the place where Nate and I met and where I got my college degree, Idaho Falls Temple- where Nate and I got married, the Puget Sound- a place where we love to go to get some beach time in but isn't as far away as the actual ocean, New York- where I was born and where many early church places are, Paige's school where her teachers and friends are and where she is getting an education, Covington, WA- where Nate works and where I do most of my grocery shopping, Soos Creek Trail- where we go on walks all the time since it so close to us, and all the state parks in Washington where we often go to on our outdoor adventures
-10 modern day inventions- running water, electricity, the internet, FaceTime, cellphones, cars, airplanes even  though it is expensive to fly but makes trips so much quicker, ovens and stove tops, google maps to help us find new places, and Hulu/TV
-10 foods- chocolate, delicious desserts, lasagna, bread, fruit, Mexican food, pizza, BBQ, lemonade and Sprite, and soups
-10 things about the gospel- the Atonement, the scriptures, temples, modern day prophets and apostles, repentance, prayer, revelation, priesthood blessings, agency, and Family Home Evening/Come Follow Me

We had a really awesome Thanksgiving. It was filled with lots of fun and cousin time and lots of yummy food. We did some quick family pictures before our feast.

Two family pictures and hopefully in at least one of them everyone has their eyes open. :)

 We had dinner at the church. There is plenty of space there for us all and we had the gym to do some fun activities in. 

  After dinner we had a nerf war- the kids had lots of fun and the adults would take turns going in and out. It was a great family activity that everyone enjoyed.

We enjoyed all of our delicious pies later in the evening at Anna and Scott's house. It was fun to visit with everyone and just be with family. Happy Thanksgiving!