Simple Things in Life

'Tis The Season

2011-12-18T22:23:00.003-07:00

I am a little annoyed with myself that I only did about 4 or 5 posts this whole year...I have lots of catching up to do! I don't know what my problem is, I guess the blogging bug just wasn't with me. I'm hoping to be lots better for 2012.

Anyways, wishing a very Merry Christmas to you all and a very Happy New Year!

Catching Up

2011-04-29T14:34:00.031-06:00

I'm slacking. In a lot of things actually, but my blog seems to be the most neglected.

Sooo here's a quick catch up of what's been going on the past two months:

{Get ready for picture overload}

The beginning of March Chloe & I took a trip to Hogle Zoo with our Idaho pals Natalie & little Brayden.

It was a bit chilly, but lots of fun. Not too crowded & the animals were all out.

Matt celebrated his 26th birthday on March 18th & my sweet Grandma offered to watch Chloe while we

went out to dinner, which we were very thankful for. We splurged and went to Magleby's Grotto in Springville.

It was delicious :) Happy 26th Matty!

We had lovely green cupcakes for St. Patrick's Day.

I put this tutu on Chloe one night & ever since then it's been worn daily :)

The end of March we took a mini vacation to St. George/Mesquite/Vegas. We went to get a little escape

from the cold but it decided to follow us. It was freezing but worth it because we had a good time. We went

shopping in St. George & spent a day in Vegas @ the Mandalay Bay Shark Reef. We also purchased a new

camera, which I love.

We spent one of our rare warm Spring days outside at my parents house in Mt. Pleasant

And the very next day, the Sunday morning of General Conference, we woke up to this:

We spent the day indoors enjoying a wonderful Conference & finding activities to keep us busy

A couple weeks ago I gave Chloe her first haircut. She is now mullet free :)

Easter was nice this year but really cold & rainy {Surprised? I wasn't.}

In two weeks Matt will be dropping Chloe & I off at the airport bright & early and we're hopping a plane to

Boise to visit Natalie & Brayden. Sooo excited! Can't wait. Wish me luck on toting a 17 month old through

security all by myself. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that all goes well, especially the hour long flight ;)

P.S. I'm aware that my blog is cutting words off & as I'm sure you'll agree, it's very irritating.

I've tried to fix it but no luck. SO if any one knows what the deal is, I'd love to know :) Thanks.

I love the days...

2011-04-28T16:36:00.002-06:00

Spent at home with this wild girl :)

It Begins

2011-03-11T12:08:00.007-07:00

The toddler years. I can safely say that we have entered them now that Chloe is 15 months old and walking EVERYWHERE and getting into EVERYTHING. She has a bedroom full of toys that are usually left untouched and seems to be drawn to everything that can either be broken, hurt her in some way or is just plain gross. {ex: the toilet & inside all the garbage cans} And of course, whenever I put a stop to any of these activities there are screams and tears.

On this particular day I found her playing with the camera & she even managed to snap a picture of herself.

And when it's taken away before it can be destroyed.

I have to admit though, there are some perks to her being able to get herself around. I no longer have to worry about stairs. She can go up and down them like a champ!

And it's really fun to watch her reaction to new things and play around outside.

She loves being outside and whenever we have to come back inside the house there are some small meltdowns.

Besides walking and getting into everything, Chloe is saying a few words: Mama, Dada, hi & bye are some of her favorites. She says hi to everyone we pass in the grocery store.

Even though sometimes things get difficult & I want to pull my hair out, I am mostly laughing and enjoying it all. When I'm at work I hate that I'm missing out on all she does and I can't wait to get home. Life definitely stays interesting with my little sidekick :)

February Fun

2011-02-25T14:59:00.005-07:00

I thought I had better put a post about our Valentine's day before February is over!

Our day started just like any other Monday, with Matt & I heading off to work and Chloe going to daycare. But this time I dropped her off with some Valentines to pass out to all the other kids. I think she had a good day and she came home with a bag full of goodies. {Which I very much enjoyed :) }

A few Valentine's treats for some family members.

That night the three of us stayed in and enjoyed a yummy dinner of heart-shaped pizza and chocolate covered strawberries for dessert.

My lovely flowers from Matty :)

The next day, Chloe & I went on our "February Outting" with our good friends Natalie and little Brayden. They were visiting from Idaho and we always have lots of fun when we get together. We went to the Dinosaur Museum at Thanksgiving Point which was really fun. Afterwards we got some lunch.

Chloe & Brayden were really cute together & I could hear Chloe giggling at Brayden while they were in the backseat on the drive up. It was so nice to spend some time with them & also nice to cross a new place off of our list :)

January Outting

2011-02-01T11:35:00.008-07:00

Last Saturday we wanted to get out of the house, so I suggested we go to the aquarium. I figured Chloe would

really like it. { and she did :) } She was fascinated with all the fish in the tanks and had to point out everything we saw.

The penguins were probably my favorite. Chloe liked them too but seemed to be more interested in the fake ones

painted on the wall. She liked them so much she cried when Matt picked her up to move on :)

It was nice to get out and go somewhere new. On the way home I decided that each month we should try to

experience a new place. It will give us a little something to look forward to every month :)

Holidays

2011-01-10T20:53:00.011-07:00

So as I settled down in front of my computer tonight to post some pics of our Christmas & New Year's, it occurred to me that I never did post anything about our Halloween or Thanksgiving. Whoops. Oh well, guess I'll have to add "keeping the blog up to date" as one of my resolutions. :)

This has been the first chance I've had to post about Christmas & New Year's, I've been fighting a mean cold for the past two weeks (and fighting still). We had a great Christmas, Chloe was lots of fun this year. Christmas Eve was spent with the Peterson's at Chris and Kat's house in Spanish Fork.

We woke up on Christmas morning in our own house and opened presents before heading off to Mt. Pleasant. I thought Matt & I were going to die laughing at Chloe riding her little pink four wheeler. It goes about 2 miles an hour and she knew exactly what to do right as Matt sat her down on it. She pushed the button and Matt had to jump out of the way as she zoomed off into the kitchen.

To celebrate the New Year we headed down to Mesquite with my Mom & Scott. We had a really good time just hanging out,eating lots of food and playing some Yahtzee (it's addicting!) We spent a day in St. George and were also able to see two movies: Tangled (loved) and Harry Potter 7 (loved even more). Chloe sat through almost all of Tangled, she really liked it. But Grandma was nice enough to stay at home with her while Matt, Scott and I went off to Harry Potter. I'm very thankful to my Mom for driving us down and helping us have a fun time.

Christmas Baby

2010-12-22T12:35:00.005-07:00

Last year:

This year:

We hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year!

A Beautiful Year

2010-12-02T23:01:00.006-07:00

Happy 1st Birthday, Pretty Girl.

I love you :)

Not So Fun.

2010-11-21T21:25:00.003-07:00

So, in my last post I said that we would be spending the weekend in Mesquite. Yeah, that didn't happen. The next morning I woke up sick with Chloe's stomach flu. I was going to just suck it up and insisted that we go anyways. But while we were packing I knew there was no way we could go since Chloe didn't seem to be getting any better. Which was probably a good thing, since I got worse as the day went on and ended up spending the afternoon in my bed unable to move. I was just glad that Matt hadn't caught it so that he could take care of us. But then the next day, unfortunately he got hit with it too. Needless to say, it's been quite the weekend.

Oh well, good news now is, it's Sunday night and we all seem to be feeling a lot better. We even managed to make it to some church today.

Here's some pics of my birthday night, pre-flu of course :)

And my birthday cake. The best kind.

Anyways, I sure am glad that life is back to semi-normal :)

Today is The Day.

2010-11-17T22:41:00.002-07:00

Really? Already?

Yes. It's true. I turned 25 today. Happy birthday to me! :)

I am exhausted. No, not from having a big birthday bash. Not even close.

My 25th birthday started off at 3:00 am with a poor sick 11 month old throwing up. Poor Chloe. It broke my heart. Matt was such a good Daddy/Husband and stayed up with us even though he had to be to work at 7:00 am. I'll spare you all the details, just know that it was a very long night with very little sleep for any of us. I had to work at 11 this morning and I was praying that Chloe would start feeling better by then so that I could take her to daycare. But nope, poor little thing was miserable and I didn't dare take her in case she infected all the other kids.

So thankfully, thankfully my Mom very kindly drove up to watch Chloe for the day.

Work was absolute, non-stop chaos. Again, I'll spare the details. It was just not a good day to be operating on no sleep!

But when I got home at 6 the day seemed to redeem itself. A sweet gift from the hubbs (a case of diet coke included!) and (yay!) Sweet Tooth Fairy cupcakes from my Mom. And as if my Mom hadn't done enough already, she insisted on watching Chloe again while Matt and I went to the Pizza Factory. Words cannot describe how thankful I am for all she does for me, not just on my birthday, but all the time. All in all, it was a good day! Despite no sleep, sick baby and hectic work, it was a very nice birthday :) And Chloe seems to be feeling better so that makes me very glad.

Lots of thanks to those of you who wished me a happy birthday and helped make my day special!

Tomorrow afternoon we are off to Mesquite for the rest of the week. But right now, I am headed to bed for some much needed sleep :)

Good Things Utah

2010-11-14T21:30:00.002-07:00

If you live in Utah and happen to be watching Good Things Utah (channel 4) at 10 AM on Thursday December 2nd, you will be able to see this cute almost-one-year-old's photo. It will be featured for her 1st birthday.

If you miss it, no worries. I'll have it on DVR. ;)

17 Days

2010-11-02T14:23:00.000-06:00

Beyond excited.

New Addition

2010-10-27T11:33:00.003-06:00

We have a very exciting announcement to make about something new added to our family:

It's a tooth! ;)

Yes, Chloe finally has a tooth breaking through. Matt noticed it last night. I think the reason I never noticed it was because I kept focusing on her bottom teeth, which are usually the first to pop up. But nope, Chloe has decided to be a rebel, it's her top left tooth that's coming in, which is why you can't see it in the picture.

I'm kinda hoping her right one comes in just as quick, then she'll be my little rabbit :)

There's something spooky going on around here.

2010-10-18T16:31:00.003-06:00

I'm not sure if it's because it's Halloween time or what but things got pretty spooky today. Or at least, really weird and hard to explain. Matt came home from work today and walked in holding my church bag, with a really weird look on his face. Turns out as he was coming home, he stopped to get the mail. The mail box is about 20 or 30 feet from our house, next to the big dumpster that the entire complex shares. As he was getting the mail, he looks and sees my church bag on the ground behind the dumpster, like someone had thrown it.

We have no idea how it got there. I usually just keep it in the car, which is the last place I saw it. Our guesses our someone either got into our car somehow, stole it thinking it was a purse and when they saw it didn't have any money inside they threw it behind the dumpster. That or while we accidentally left it sitting outside by our car for some reason and someone picked it up and tried to throw it away. I'm not sure why someone would think it was garbage since it was a decent looking bag with decent things inside, including Matt's scriptures which had his name on them.

Here's my bag. No real damage, thankfully. Just very wet and the ribbon came unglued around it which is an easy fix.

My primary book didn't get too wet, just at the bottom.

And Matt's poor scriptures, which unfortunately suffered the most damage. You can't really tell in the picture, but the pages are really wet and the outside cover is all bent.

The whole thing is just very strange. I'm really hoping nobody got into our car. It leaves me with an uneasy feeling. And we always keep it locked, unless we forgot this one time. But on the bright side, we found my bag before the garbage truck got it and nothing inside it was missing. I'll probably never know what really happened. It's just spooky!

And we are here.

2010-10-08T16:47:00.002-06:00

All moved in. Yes. Just have to go through all of our semi-organized crap in the basement and organize it completely. But I'm thinking that since we have only been living here a week and half, and are officially unpacked, decor and all, we have a nice excuse for a break and the basement can wait a couple weeks.

I'm also using moving as an excuse for not posting anything for a while. Well, that and a teething baby who always wants to be held. But someday I will get to posting our temple pictures on here {which turned out great} I did get a few on my blog page though. And if you are friends with me on Facebook, they are all on there if you would like to check them out.

It's nap time right now, so I thought I would take advantage and do a quick post just to announce that, yes, we are moved in and, yes, we absolutely love our new home. And it's Fall. I love Fall. We live right at the mouth of the canyon, and every time I drive by I get the urge to drive up to see the leaves. That's always a must. And my family's annual Fall trip to Gardner Village is coming up which I also love. I need to make sure to take my camera. I know it's around here somewhere.... :)

New Home

2010-09-13T21:11:00.003-06:00

That's right, we're outta here! This week we will start our journey of 3 whole miles to our new home :)

We found a town home that is lots newer and with lots more space. Which is definitely what we need. I have to admit though, I will miss our old place. It was our first home and also where we brought Chloe home from the hospital. It has been a good place for us and I will also miss our ward, but it is time to move on. Like I said, more space.

I'm grateful for the fact that our new house is close because I'm already overwhelmed with packing and I'm so glad that we can take lots of trips back and forth and not have to move everything in one trip. Sigh. As I look around at all the things to be packed I can't help but think, when did we get all this stuff? I will be so glad when we are all moved in and settled!

Experimenting.

2010-09-07T23:10:00.003-06:00

With photo shop.

So I'm thinking...

2010-09-01T18:42:00.002-06:00

I need these!

And Chloe needs these!

I think they are so cute. And every pair you buy, they give a pair of shoes to children in need. Now if that's not a good enough reason to buy them, what is? :)

I can't decide which color though. I do also really like these:

Check it out. They have quite the selection!

www.toms.com

{Thanks Nat :) }

All about Chloe

2010-08-30T20:10:00.006-06:00

I thought I would post a Chloe update since she is growing SO FAST. I can't keep up with her. And I especially can't keep up with her now because..........

The shirt says it all. As of a week ago this little girl is all over the place and has been giving Mommy a few small heart attacks when she gets too close to the stairs.

Chloe has also started saying a few words:

MamMam {Mama}

Dada

Num num {Yum}

Uh oh

She is also at that extremely fun age where she wants to be wherever you are.... all the time. Which is perfectly fine, but it's not so fine when she wants you to hold her the whole time and you need your hands to get stuff done! This is where her sippy cup or a nice Gerber Baby Biter Biscuit comes in handy. Keeps her busy just long enough!

No matter how cranky she is, taking a bath always makes her happy.

She is going to be 9 months on Thursday. Nine months! Before I know it she'll be one year old. That's just sooo weird to me. I feel like we just brought her home from the hospital yesterday. But I am excited for her first birthday party and have already started brain storming about what I want to do. Nothing too extravagant. I want to keep it simple but make it special.

We were finally able to bless Chloe on August 22nd. Matt wanted to be able to bless her, so we waited until he could. Definitely worth the wait! He did such a good job and I'm so glad Chloe got to have her Daddy bless her.

That's what's been going on with this little girl. She is getting so big and is just so busy all the time, always wanting to be apart of whatever is going on at the moment! She is so much fun. I love every morning when I go into her room and she is sitting up in her crib and gives me a big grin. It's the best. I don't know what I ever did without my little sidekick!

:.Anniversary Date!.:

2010-08-19T20:34:00.006-06:00

This year for our anniversary, I was bummed when I woke up that morning. I had the day off of work but unfortunately Matt had to work all day plus go to school that night. So I wasn't too excited to spend the day without him. BUT to my surprise Matt made plans to leave school early AND he got his Mom to come up and babysit Chloe while we went out. We haven't done that in months!

We started off with some dinner. {so good!}

With extremely full tummies, we headed off to see a movie.

Oh how he loves that flash :)

Since we didn't get to the theater until 8:30, most of the movies had started a while ago and we didn't have many choices.

We ended up seeing......

in 3D!!

I loved, loved, loved this movie. So cute & funny.

Definitely recommend it!

This picture....haha. Makes me laugh.

We ended up having a fun night and a great anniversary :)

Two years ago today....

2010-08-16T11:47:00.006-06:00

We became us!

So many things have happened in our life the past two years, but it seems like were just married yesterday. I am so blessed to have a husband who works so hard for me every day and wants me to be happy. Happy Anniversary Matty, I love you!

I thought we could end this post on a lovely shot of us when we first started dating. What a gem this is :)

Forever!

2010-08-15T20:02:00.004-06:00

This was the beautiful sight we saw last Saturday on August 7th as we were driving up to the Manti temple to have our little family sealed! It was so amazing and we had such a good day. Afterwards we had a little family dinner at my parents house. We only have one picture of us at the temple because as you can see from Chloe, it was a long day and we were ready to get home to eat! But this weekend we went back with our friend Megan who took all of our wedding pictures and is an awesome photographer. She took some pictures around the temple for us and I think they will turn out great.

The day couldn't have been more perfect. We are so happy and I feel so blessed. :)

Water Baby

2010-07-25T16:41:00.006-06:00

Chloe has loved the water. She has never once cried when we have put her in, even when it has been a little chilly. She has been perfectly content lounging around Seven Peaks this Summer and she loved my Mom & Dad's pool in Mesquite. Here are some pics of my little fish.

And of course, a family pool pic :)

Don't mind the fact that I look like I belong in Twilight. This was the very beginning of Summer and I'm so pale I could put Edward to shame. I've improved a bit since then :)

Independence Day

2010-07-05T10:00:00.008-06:00

We had a pretty laid back 4th of July. {technically the 3rd of July, since the 4th was on a Sunday} We spent Saturday morning at the Mt. Pleasant parade & then had a BBQ at Matt's parents. Then we just spent the rest of the day at my parents house hanging out with the few family members that came. My brother Shane & his family and my brother Chris & his wife Kat. Matt rode around on my Dad's rhino {not literally a rhino. It's a side by side ATV. Why it's called a rhino? I don't know :) }

Chloe posing with her cousins Ashlyn, Hannah & Owen

We enjoyed some fireworks :)

And the Kiefer fam at the parade. It was a good day :)

Have you tried these?

2010-07-05T00:22:00.003-06:00

Amazing!

Long time, no post.

2010-06-29T20:44:00.005-06:00

It seems like we have been soooo busy since Summer started. I have had zero time to post anything. Tonight I actually got a moment to sit down with my laptop. So let me fill you in:

Chloe turned six months this month. And she will be seven months on July 2nd and I can't believe it. Seven months! What?! Where did the time go. She's getting so big and just keeps getting more fun every day. She can sit up all by herself and I've started feeding her baby food. {I have a billion pictures of our many feedings but have not taken the time to load them on my computer. Hopefully I can accomplish this in the near future :) } And when it comes to baby food, Chloe is.....unique. I listened to my Dr. and started her out with the veggies before the fruits. First was carrots, which she loved and then peas, sweet potatoes, green beans and squash. She tried and loved it all. So after a while I moved onto fruits. I started with banana. {Shudder} She hated it! She would have nothing to do with more than the first bite. Matt & I couldn't help but laugh as she sunk clear down in her chair trying to get away from the spoon I was trying to put in her mouth. I tried mango's, peaches and even applesauce. She will have nothing to do with any of them. But boy does she love her carrots. See what I mean by unique?

My sister-in-law Halee found a really good deal on Seven Peaks season passes, so my entire family purchased some. {more pictures I need to post. Chloe looks adorable in her little bathing suit, if I do say so myself} We go whenever we have the chance and I don't regret buying the pass at all. I just may finally get that tan I dream of every summer, but have always been stuck indoors with a full time job & no energy :)

We have also taken 2 trips so far this summer down to my parents house in Mesquite. This last time we went for Father's Day and enjoyed the pool, a little Wii and lots and LOTS of yummy food.

Matt, my brother Scott, and I also made a trip to Zion's National Park. We hiked a little bit of the narrows {hiking is not my way of describing it though. I would say more like, "fighting a freezing cold river current that comes up to your shoulders at some spots and tripping over many large rocks and scraping your shins" } BUT I will say I'm glad I did it. It was really hot so the river did feel good. And it was really pretty. Again, more pictures to follow from this adventure.

We are still enjoying teaching primary. Matt still works every other Sunday, so that means every other Sunday I get to teach the class all by myself. So I haul my primary bag, diaper bag, car seat, and Chloe into church every other week. Which usually goes well. {Usually.} They are good kids, they really are. But do you remember the donkey on Shrek? And how he seems to never stop talking, ever? Okay now imagine a room full of donkeys. That's my class :) No, really they are great kids and I really do love teaching them. I'm really happy with my calling and love primary. It will be lots easier when I can take Chloe to nursery too. {Only about one more year. Yes :) }

Other than that life has been ordinary and I'm hoping to keep up on blogging and FINALLY put up my pics!

Swings & Unplanned Photo Shoots

2010-05-14T19:58:00.006-06:00

On a Saturday last month, it was really sunny and warm. So Matt & I decided to go for a drive. Our drive turned into a stop at a park where we put Chloe in one of the swings. As you can see by her face, she loved it.

After that, we were just walking around and each having a turn taking pictures of each other & Chloe.

Then I got the brilliant idea of using the self timer on the camera to get some pics of all of us.

Which was working out great until we let things get a little out of control...these just make me laugh every time I look at them. We decided to climb a tree for a nice photo opp. So I got myself & Chloe all set up in the tree and Matt put the camera on the ground. He had to hurry and hit the self timer, then try to climb the tree & make himself look photogenic in all of 10 seconds. I was laughing so much I look like a complete goon. And Matt's face is priceless.

This isn't even all the ones we took either.

But we finally did manage to get a semi decent one. Not my favorite picture in the world but with all the struggle that was made to get it, I'll take it.

I'm sure the families of the Orem City park were satisfied with the entertainment we gave them that day of watching our impromptu photo shoot. Either that or extremely irritated. Oh well. Either way we ended up getting some cute pictures and classic memories.

No Comments?

2010-04-29T19:34:00.002-06:00

A few people have been letting me know that when they try to comment on my blog, it won't let them. And with me still not being too blog savvy I had no idea what the problem was or how to fix it!

BUT I've played around with it a little bit and I think I may have figured it out. So for those of you who have tried to comment, please try again and we shall see if I fixed this technical difficulty :)

Spic & Span

2010-04-26T21:39:00.003-06:00

It takes some motivation for me to get started on cleaning, but once I get started sometimes I can't seem to stop. I love sitting back after I'm done and taking in the cleanliness. It's amazing how much better my mood is when I have a clean house. I always seem to hold my breath when Matt comes home after a day of cleaning. His clothes always seem to barely miss the hamper, and his dishes don't quite make it into the dishwasher at times :) I'm just waiting for the day Chloe starts walking and will probably follow close behind me, happily messing up everything I've cleaned. But I need to give Matt more credit. He always does my most hated chore {unloading that darn dishwasher}. I knew I married him for a reason ;)

But I love to vacuum. Always have. I don't know why. I just love the way the carpet looks afterwards. And when you go over a really good spot and you can hear it sucking up all the stuff....ahhh :)

Now that Easter is over.....

2010-04-14T10:40:00.005-06:00

For the next two weeks I will not be eating any of these:

or these:

and (gasp!) this:

I can have this:

But really....who am I kidding?

Today is day 3 of this two week torture. I'm giving myself two weeks {maybe three, but eh...} so I can make my Mother's Day cupcakes {and devour them}. I don't know why I'm doing this, really. Mainly because I think it's just been getting out of control! Especially with the Dr. Pepper. So far I don't feel like I'm missing out too much but it's only day 3.

NOW on to my favorite subject:

Here's what's going on with this little girl:

She turned 4 months on April 2nd
She can't quite roll over yet. She gets about halfway, then gets stuck & needs to be rescued.
She loves to look at herself in the mirror. Just smiles the whole time.
She only wakes up once during the night. {sometimes twice, usually when Mommy has to work early the next day} But she has been sleeping in her own crib for two months. Yay!
She's happiest when she's in her swing {borrowed from little Brayden, thanks Nat!} in her Bumbo watching Mommy, swinging in the backyard {above photo} or watching t.v. with Daddy.
She smiles ALOT. And likes to tell stories.
Her Daddy is totally wrapped around her finger. And she knows it.
She likes to watch the fish swim in the big tank at Cabela's.
And she has recently discovered that she has hands and she stares in fascination at them with those big eyes.

How could you not love this?

Our Easter

2010-04-06T19:51:00.007-06:00

Matt had to work from 7 am to 3 pm this Easter so that was kinda lame. But Sunday morning Chloe & I headed down to Mt. Pleasant and hung out at my parents house which was fun. We had an Easter dinner of ham & cheesey potatoes and my Mom and I made my Easter cupcakes. I think they turned out okay...not as magnificent as Bakerella but I liked them :)

For some reason Chloe was super cranky all day and was so tired but she would only fall asleep for a few minutes & wake up again. So that wasn't very fun! But Matt joined us once he finished work and we managed to get some cute pictures of her with her Easter basket. {Which as we were purchasing at Wal-Mart, the lady ringing us up "kindly" told us Chloe was too little for an Easter basket. What would we have done without that helpful woman?:) }

You can tell by her eyes how tired she was! But still smiling :)

She loved her bunny. The candy was for Matt & I of course :)

We didn't have time this year to dye eggs, which was a little disappointing. But it was still a good day with good food, conference, cupcakes and lots & lots of yummy candy. I had a belly ache by the end of the night :)

Despite Chloe being not too happy all day, it was a great Easter.

FoUr MoNThs!

2010-04-02T17:06:00.006-06:00

Yup, that's right. Chloe is four months today. I went through her clothes and got rid of all her newborn stuff that doesn't fit anymore. I must have had more than I thought because her dresser is a little bare now. It made me sad to hold up the little tiny newborn things and know that she would never wear them again. It's so weird she's four months already! And unfortunately four months also means......

SHOTS!!!!!

Yesterday we went to the Dr. and got Chloe's four months shots (yikes!) I think it's worse for me than it is for her. I always feel so bad! She cried pretty hard when she got it (don't blame her) but she was tough for the rest of the day.

After a happy dose of infant Tylenol, we hung out on the floor.

And spent a little time in the bouncer.

I want to wish a happy birthday....

2010-03-18T13:01:00.003-06:00

TO HIM!!

Happy 25th Birthday Matty!

Chloe & I love you lots!

He's here!

2010-03-17T13:21:00.004-06:00

Introducing my brand new nephew:

**Owen Dane Peterson**

March 11th, 2010

{Named after my Grandpa Owen!}

He's so sweet!

Congrats to parents Shane & Mandy

and big sisters Ashlyn & Hannah

{{Now Chloe has a little buddy!}}

Baby Shower!

2010-03-16T21:10:00.008-06:00

I'm a little late posting this! We had my sister in law's baby shower almost two weeks ago and it was lots of fun. We had it in Mt. Pleasant at my parents house so Chloe & I went down a day early to help my Mom with all the preparations! We had lots & lots of good food including sandwiches, pasta salad, fruit and dip and little quiches. Dessert was cookies & cupcakes. The cupcakes were my favorite, they turned out so cute and were YUMMY.

Here's how they turned out. I love the binkies!

Making these cupcakes got me excited to make my Easter ones :)

As I was going through all the pictures on my camera after the shower, I realized I didn't get any pictures of Mandy opening her gifts (darn!) but she got lots of cute stuff, including a bumbo chair (these are lifesavers. I would never be able to get ready in the morning or do the dishes if I couldn't prop Chloe up on the counter in hers! She loves sitting in it and watch what I'm doing.)

I think everyone enjoyed the day and I did manage to get some pictures of everything else. Enjoy!

My niece Hannah posing with her lollipop. I know there are no people in these chairs. I took this picture before the shower started. People really came, I promise :) I just wanted to get a picture of the room setup before so I wouldn't be the annoying woman with a camera in everyone's face the whole time.

Gift table....

My pretty girl!

Marlee & me (ha. like the movie :) )

Helping Mommy

2010-03-14T21:02:00.004-06:00

Here's some pics I got of Chloe "helping" me with some laundry folding.

We had fun!

She tried to eat it......

And then she was over it.

I get that way too when it comes to laundry folding!

Woo hoo! They're 30!

2010-03-03T20:28:00.013-07:00

On Sunday my twin brothers Shane & Scott turned 30! So

we all joined together at my brother Chris's house to

celebrate. We had BBQ pork and cheesy potatoes (yum!)

and nice birthday cheesecake. My nieces Ashlyn & Hannah were wild and crazy like always and so cute. Poor little

Hannah almost took a tumble off her chair while we were eating but I saved her with my super quick reflexes! (haha) We had lots of fun and it's insane to think that they are 30! And even more insane to think I will be there in just six years!

Scott showing that he's not a fan of being 30.

Make a wish!

Our little family. I look really tired.

I blame the little one in my arms :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BOYS!!

Oh my!

2010-03-02T09:54:00.007-07:00

This baby girl is 3 months old!!

I can't believe it!

Ready for Spring!

2010-03-01T13:23:00.006-07:00

I know that it's still pretty chilly outside but the sun is shining today and it's March! So it's making me think about SPRING. I love Spring and I'm so ready for it to be here. I can't wait to be outside in the sunshine and be able to take Chloe out without having to wrap her up like a little burrito. I already have my Spring wreath on my door and as I was putting away the Valentine decorations this morning I saw some of my Easter ones. So then that made me excited for Easter and I got online and went to www.bakerella.com. I got this from my friend Kailee's blog (thanks Kailee!) and I love it! I very much recommend it if you like baking. Anyways, I was looking at it this morning and found some cupcakes that are so cute.

I want to try these ones for Easter. They don't seem too complicated but we'll see!

And these just because they are so fun. These are a little bit more complicated but I think I could hopefully figure it out.

Matt's birthday is March 18th and I was thinking about making him BMX bike cupcakes haha. I've looked online and haven't found anything yet. I don't think anyone else in the world has had a desire for BMX cupcakes! So I may have to come up with my own creation. Who knows. I just wanna start baking more :) My Mom and I are giving my sister in law Mandy a baby shower on Saturday and we are making cupcakes with baby faces on them....complete with binkies! I can't wait to see how they turn out. I'll keep you updated on my little cupcake projects.

Wish me luck!***

Just thought I would mention....

2010-02-28T13:31:00.004-07:00

This June we will be getting sealed together as a family for time & eternity in the Manti Temple. We can't wait.

A Baptism

2010-02-27T21:10:00.002-07:00

Today was a great day! My niece Katelyn turned eight last week so you know what that means....Baptism! I'm very upset with myself though. I made sure to throw the camera into the diaper bag before we left the house this morning because I was determined to take some pictures so I could show them off in my blog. But once we got to the church in Herriman I was so busy with family and friends and showing off Chloe. Plus Matt & I somehow landed the impossible task of trying to remind our 4 & 5 year old nieces (Ashlyn & Paige) to be reverent in the chapel! And as all of this continued my camera stayed buried at the bottom of my diaper bag. Sigh. So sorry, no pics. It was a nice day anyways. My brother Matt did a great job baptizing Katelyn, and we all laughed when she came up out of the water after being dunked and let out a big giggle. Following the baptism we all gathered at Matt & Halee's house for a yummy lunch and 5 different kinds of desserts (I had to sample one of each) It was a full house with my family and my sister in law Halee's family. She has 7 brothers and sisters who all have at least three kids so you can imagine! We had lots of fun and are so proud of sweet little Katelyn! It was a fabulous day, pictures or not :)

Sick days

2010-02-24T20:42:00.003-07:00

Two colds and two stomach flu's in only three months? Yup that's how lucky I've been! I'm glad it hasn't been strep throat which has been in my life at least twice a year for years! And I always seem to get it at the most convenient times...vacations, holidays, birthdays, even the week before my wedding. Christmas Eve of 2008 was spent at the Dr's office! I'm praying I don't get it anytime soon....*knock on wood*! Chloe and I are just getting over this weeks stomach flu and it hasn't been fun. Thankfully, Chloe didn't get it as bad as I did! I left work early yesterday and when I got home I could barely move! I just felt awful. Luckily today was my day off so I spent pretty much the entire day in bed with Chloe and we are FINALLY starting to feel better. Matt has a radioactive immunity, I swear. He never catches anything and it makes me so mad! Why can't he be miserable with me just once haha. Actually, it's probably a good thing he doesn't get sick with me because Matt tends to be SUPER whiney about things like that. Love him to death but geez! :) Well I made it through another battle and will be going back to work tomorrow. I'm not putting my guard down though, I know better than that! I think I will go to the store and stock up on Tylenol Cold and some NyQuil to be prepared for the next war!

Not so great...

2010-02-18T21:56:00.003-07:00

Yup, I knew I was going to be bad at this blogging thing. My plate is so full, what with Chloe, going back to work, keeping my house decent, and not to mention American Idol....ugh. These are just some of the things I've been occupied with lately. But I will not give up. I will keep blogging for those few people that read this! So be patient guys, I'm doing my best :) So to make up, I am going to share with you a picture that I got in an email. The subject of the email was, "There's always someone that ruins a good photo."

I laughed for a good half hour.

The Amazing Matty

2010-01-24T19:26:00.006-07:00

I have to take some time and brag about my husband....

This guy goes to work full time all day, every day and then goes to school at night. He leaves at six in the morning and doesn't get home sometimes as late as eleven at night. He amazes me everyday with his motivation. And on top of all that, he's a good husband and is an even better Dad. He absolutely adores Chloe and is so patient with her. He is there whenever I need him and is always willing to help. And he always unloads the dishwasher because he knows that is my most HATED chore. He works so hard for us! Sometimes I think he is just too good to be true.

And now I have to brag about him being a 4.0 student and being on the Dean's List. I honestly do not know how he does it all! I had to make him pose for me in his scrubs, looking all handsome. He complained a little when I made him do it, but I know that he loved the attention! So here he is in all his glory.

We love him lots and we're glad he's ours!

Sleeping Beauty

2010-01-11T10:53:00.004-07:00

I think I could watch this kid sleep for hours. She's cutest when she's awake (and not crying) but I love just laying next to her and watching her sleep. Ahhh...what did I ever do without her? I'm pretty positive the day I go back to work that it will be my turn to cry like a baby.

Christmas 2009!

2010-01-10T18:43:00.030-07:00

We had such a fun Christmas. Even though Chloe was only a few weeks old, we had so much fun with her. Next year will be even better. My whole family got together at my brother Matt's house in Herriman for Christmas Eve dinner. It was complete chaos with all the little kids. That's what makes it so fun though. It's never a dull moment when all the nieces and nephew get together. It's going to be interesting to see how Chloe survives her group of cousins when she gets older.

Then Matt, Chloe and I went home so we could wake up in our own house on Christmas morning. Chloe and I were really excited but it took us a while to get Matt to join us.

Matt was sneaky this year and got me a new cell phone for Christmas. It was truly a suprise because when I asked him in November if I got a phone upgrade soon he told me that verizon stopped doing phone upgrades. And I believed him. Little punk.

After opening our presents we went to Mt. Pleasant to open even more presents at Matt's parents house and my parents. We got lots of good stuff and my Mom gave Chloe this bouncer that vibrates and she LOVES it. She can just sit in it for hours and doesn't cry at all. We've already gone through the batteries twice.

For some reason the picture is really small because it's from my phone and I don't know how to make it bigger. But she's so dang cute. We love that little stinker. We had such a great day and we're exicted for this first year with Chloe!

Okay, okay....

2010-01-09T20:35:00.002-07:00

Okay, so I'm finally giving in and doing this blog thing (you're so happy, aren't you Natalie?!) I'm not sure if others will find our life interesting enough to read about so even if nobody reads this except my Mom, that's just fine.

Matt & I began in September 2007. And before he probably knew what he was doing he married me on August 16th, 2008. That lucky, brave man.

Life got even better on December 2nd, 2009. After about six hours of labor Chloe Noelle entered our life.. All 7 pounds and 11 ounces of her. And it was all totally worth it.

Even after only a month it's hard to remember what life was like before.

So this is us so far. Matt goes to school at Stevens-Henager College for healthcare administration and works in Provo at Discovery Academy where he is a mentor for troubled teenage boys. And right now I am loving staying home with Chloe while I'm on maternity leave from Peerless and not really looking forward to when it's time to go back.

All in all, life is great and we have lots to be thankful for. I'm going to try to keep this thing up to date so we'll see how that goes! It should be pretty interesting.

So here we go. Welcome to our happily ever after.