So many little things...

                                                                               Aspen has been reaching so many milestones! She has been moving all over! She has been sliding around since the beginning of March, but now she can make it to almost wherever she wants! She doesn't quit crawl but now she is getting on her knees, she used to butt crawl and once I saw her try crawling on her head, and even doing a head crawl, but soon she will be more mobile and I will need to supervise her more.                                                                                                                      Reese always wants to get married in the temple. It's so cute how she asks, and it's pretty often that she does. When she asks I have to have Aspen stand up and hold her hands, because apparently that's how you get married. I love her little ideas! Every day I go to the mailbox hoping to receive an ok from the 1st Presidency to be sealed. Nothing yet, but it's kind of exciting going to see every day. Hopefully soon I will get the letter, because waiting is fun and all, but I still want to get it done while the girls fit in their dresses. I had my very talented friend make their white dresses out of my wedding dress in the same style. They are so adorable! I already get emotional thinking about seeing my little family in the temple all in white. I get teary eyed thinking about it, I will be such an overemotional lady that day it will be totally ridiculous, but I will love and appreciate every wondrous second of it!                                                                                                                                              I have been running since the middle of March. I still can't go very far, but I have lost 5 lbs!!! I have been using a program called Couch-to-5K and I have actually started dieting! I have always had it pretty easy. I've been pretty skinny my whole life without having to diet, but I have been pretty active up until I had a c-section when I had Reese. It has seriously taken a ton of self discipline and control to eat more healthy and not always eat what I want whenever I want. I have also cut out a lot of dairy, breads, and carbs, but I do give myself a break so I am not hating life. I also watch my portions and I honestly think this has made the biggest difference. I have noticed that there are always excuses like "we never eat this, so I can totally shove it all in my face and not feel guilty!" wrong! "we are just here at a family get together so of course I need to try everything, and of course go back for the good stuff." wrong! Also I have found that I am completely addicted to sugar! Ha ha, if it's there I honestly feel like saying no to sugary goods is like a heroin addict having heroin sitting in front of them...it's nearly impossible! Hopefully I stay on the health kick. I haven't ran for almost a week, so the next run should be interesting....it's been cold and windy, so it's not really my style to run when it's cold. I have been trying to get ready for a 5k that is this Saturday, but with crappy weather I'm not as prepared as I would have liked to be. Oh well it will still be awesome to do! It's been pretty hard on me to not have my body back since I've had babies, so it's my goal this year to get in shape. I never thought it would have such an effect on me but it has. Back in the day I was so distraught over my infertility problems that I didn't care about the after baby effect it could have. I am totally thankful for my two angels and would still go through it all again. Speaking of kids, can I just say how much Reese loves to push my buttons! She is also too smart for her own good! She has been escaping grandma's house through doors she has found that don't have the child proofing on them. Yesterday Grandma locked her door so she couldn't sneak out through the door that leads to the patio. A little while later Reese came begging me for keys so I gave her some. She actually figured out how to unlock it!                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  I love my kids so much and cannot imagine life without them! I hope that as they grow, they know how truly important they are to me and how much I love them. I tell them everyday "Reese, Aspen, and daddy are Mommy's whole world!" I have a lot of hopes for them and ultimately want them to be happy. I hope they will make the best choices they can, because that's where our happiness comes from. I have been thinking a lot about advice for my kids choosing their spouse. 

Here is a list I have been pondering.... 

 *Worthy member of the church 

 *Honors priesthood, obeys commandments 

 *Seeks and only wants a temple marriage 

 *Respects you and others 

 *Takes care of you when you are sick or not having a great day 

 *College education with a degree :) 

 *Practical 

 *Good with money, just because someone makes a lot of money doesn't mean they use it wisely. *Contemplates big decisions carefully

 *Make sure to agree on if you want a stay at home mommy. This was not in our plans and we have to sacrifice and adjust to make it happen. A loss of a second income is a lot, but so worth it! Your kids are only kids once. Also you can't trust others to raise them the way you want. 

 *Honest, trustworthy 

 *Treats you as an equal

 *Never degrades anyone, builds people up

 *Not critical 

 *Patient

 *Someone you laugh with and have fun with. No one is perfect, we all have our ups and downs, but at the end of the day if you would still only want to be with that person inspite of the bad, then stick with them! Work through everything-even the hard things-there is no way to agree on everything so let stupid things go. Being stubborn isn't worth losing your best friend over.

Things I don't want to forget...

 So after adding another little beauty to my world I have realized how fast time slips away. It wasn't too bad after I got used to Reese, but now I have less memory and less time. I keep a journal for the girls, just little things here and there, but sometimes I get busy and forget to take the time to write down the things I don't want to forget.  So I have thought of some of the things from this year that I don't want to forget.

Yellowstone, Bear exhibit June 2012

1.  When we were on our way to Yellowstone in June, we stopped at Arctic Circle to eat.  Jake was eating, and well when he eats he usually is wearing some of it on his face.  Reese was sitting next to him and all of a sudden she said, "Mess. Dad. Mess" and then handed him a napkin.

2011 Dodge Journey we said goodbye to :(

2.  Jake coming home the day before my birthday saying, "We are going to start doing something, and I don't think you are going to like it...."  this was when he decided to start paying tithing, which lead him to sacrifice some of the things he really wished he didn't have to...the nice car, eating out, and pretty much being flat out broke.  But this is the beginning to the end of our journey to the temple to be sealed forever.  <3 best.birthday.="best.birthday." ever="ever" gift.="gift." p="p">

Reese in the Nibley baby contest.

3.  Reese copying everything I say, and now she loves to say, "Thank you, so much, so much," to everybody for everything.

4.  Seeing Aspen for the first time, and not being able to wait to hold her. I couldn't wait for the nurses to bring her to me, even for the night feedings. I was so excited! I couldn't sleep, so they gave me some sleeping pills to help.

5.  Reese always wanting to hold Aspen all the time. Reese loves her so much! She will only show Aspen certain things and not us. Like when I wanted to see her do a "front flip" (somersault) she would only show Aspen. Reese claps her hands at me when she wants to hold her and then she says, "hole her."

6.  When we sold our car before we wouldn't have been able to make a payment.  Reese getting potty trained at 25 months old! Having Jake at the hospital when Aspen was born (Tithing blessings.)

7.  When we bought our Elantra and Jake had to work on it, Reese was always out there with him. One day she was not really paying attention to anything Jake was doing, just swinging on the handrail by the stairs in the garage, he just finished doing something kinda important, and she looked at him and gave him the thumbs up and said, "Good job, Dad."

Going to lunch with grandpa and getting her this huge cotton candy that she devoured!

8.  Reese wanting to put makeup on with me in the mornings.  I love it. I won't lie. I think it is adorable that she wants to play dress up.  While putting on make up one morning, she looked at me and said, "Mommy pretty." Melted my heart!

9.  Reese doing hair the way she sees me do other people's hair.  But sometimes it hurts. LOL

10.  Reese kissing Aspen while in my tummy.

Reese eating batter from her birthday cake

11. Reese watering my flowers outside. Reese helping me mix the cookie or brownie batter.

12. Going for long walks in the summer with Reese and Jake.

13. Reese grabbing my face when she has something important to say and telling me, "Listen." Or when she tells us "Having fun" and nods her head like it's fact.

14. Jake always kissing me goodnight and before he leaves for work.

Reese's first day at nursery 2/12/2012

1st day after nursery-couldn't make it to lunch

15. Reese learning how to say a prayer, and in her prayer praying for "Assen, mommydad, grampas, Asher, Jesse, Tyler Bakin, Pocket, chooch, Jesus, wook. AMEN!" (Translation: Aspen, Mommy and Dad, Grampas, Asher, Jesse, Tyler Baker, Prophet, church, Jesus, work. AMEN!) She will sometimes include grandma, but for some reason it's just grampas.

16. Reese dancing to the Wiggles, her favorites are "Hey Pirate Dancing's Fun," "Emu," "Rockabye your Bear."

17. I love seeing the excitement on Reese's face when she discovers something.  Everything is still so new and amazing to her!

18. Reese knowing how to count to 10 and sometimes 13 before she was two! She could also sing her ABC's!

Years ago, I would have said you were crazy if you would have told me I would be this lucky to have such an amazing life, but I guess there is always something that makes you appreciate what you have.  I am sure blessed. I don't know what I did to deserve this, but I hope I can be truly deserving of all that has been given to me.