Happy Birthday Mommy Dearest!

5 reason why I love that you are my Mom.....

1. I always know that I can come to you with any problem or question. You always have an answer and a hug.

2. You are so funny. I love that every time I am with you we end up laughing hysterically about something.

3. You are so thoughtful and surprise me all the time with cute little treats!

4. I know that you would do anything for me.

5. You are such a good Grandma. I am glad that Sophie has you. You have taught me so much on how to be a good Mom and Wife.

I love you so much. You are a one of a kind mom! I hope you have a wonderful Day!

The Past Few Days

This is how Sophie fell asleep last night. She was restless so we let her play for a while.

20 minutes later she feel asleep. Funny girl.

She likes to climb in her toy basket and sit, then she gets mad if she is sitting on a toy and it gets "stuck". She also climbs into her drawer and throws everything out of it. I wash so many dishes!!

I made two cakes this week for non-family. one was a gift and the other I got paid for. Woo-hoo!!

The Oktoberfest cake was the hardest, most stressful, and biggest cake I have ever made.

It took 3 1/2 hours to pipe the whole thing.

I was pretty happy with how it turned out.

I also made pumpkin chocolate chip bread that was so delicious and got the stomach flu.

Fun I know. I feel like this is the start of all of the holiday craziness!

Sophie Rae at 14 months

You are very busy!! You go and go all day long. Taking a couple of small naps through out the day. You love snacks. Your favourite things to snack on include cheese, crackers, cookies and bread. You love to play with toys, you entertain yourself pretty well. Your favorite toys are stuffed animals, your baby and daddy's golf balls. You love to ride your Mickey bike and have discovered the secret compartment under the seat, you love to hide things in there. If we ever need a pluggy that is the first place we look. You have become very interested in everything around you. You love to open cupboards and pull everything out. You are a very talented climber and we have had to move furniture around to prevent you from climbing onto the TV cabinet. You are so smart and always know exactly what I am saying. You think the word no is funny, which makes me laugh and therefore completely defeats the purpose of the word. You jabber all day whether to me or your toys. You do say a few words, some new ones you have learned are TaDa, Ball, Buzz, and Boob (thanks to your daddy). you were interested one day when daddy got out of the shower and ever since then no matter who is holding you, you look for their boob. If we say the word you laugh your cute little fake laugh. You have such a tender heart and love your mommy. I cut my finger the other day and had a band aid on. You saw it and when I told you I had an owie you cried a little fake cry and kissed it better for me. You love to brush your teeth. Toy Story 2 has become your new favorite show. You love to run around on the grass. You love all kinds of animals, you have even learned a few sounds. it is the cutest thing. You love music and dancing. You are my little princess and my sunshine, I love being your mommy. You make everyday so much fun.

I will never forget..

September 11, 2001 is a day that will forever be engraved in my memory. The day started out like every other day as I got ready to go to school. As I was about to leave my Dad turned on the TV to check the forecast, something he never did.I heard him yell "turn on the TV you wont believe this, a plane has just crashed right into the World Trade Center". I ran to the TV and turned it on. I couldn't believe what I was seeing, was it an accident? I sat on the couch trying to sort through all of the thoughts that were going through my mind. That's when I saw the other plane. The news coverage was live. Could this really be happening? In the seconds it took me to realize what I was seeing, the plane smashed into the other building. The shock of what we had just seen on live television filled the room. No one said a word. I felt completely numb. I had never seen anything like this in my whole life. It felt like it was straight out of a movie. I started crying when I realized that it wasn't an accident. We began discussing what we had just seen. My Dad told me the buildings were built strong and it was just a matter of time before the fires were put out. I still felt horrible because lives had already been lost. Minutes went by, we were all watching and waiting for it to get better, for the fires to be put out. I never could have imagined what happened next. I gasped as the first tower fell. Tears started pouring out of my eyes. People were now running and screaming as the big cloud of dust rolled through the city. I felt so helpless and sick. As they showed the other tower a few people jumped out of some windows. So many emotions were running through my body that I don't remember ever seeing the second tower collapse. The rest of the day was a bit of a blur I was glued to the TV most of the day. I did have to go to school. As I got there my friend called me and told me they were on lock down because there had been a bomb threat. I went home and turned the TV back on. By then things were becoming a little more clear. President Bush held a press conference and told the world that this was indeed a terrorist attack. He told us that this was "an act of a faceless coward". he also said "We have stood down enemies before and we will stand them down again." "Justice will be served".His words made me feel so proud and angry. I was proud that we were a country that stood up for what was right, and I was angry that someone could be so heartless and have so much hate for innocent lives. Everyone came together, we were a nation again. Where race, and political parties didn't mean anything. We were One Nation under God. So many people were helping. I wanted to do my part too. I couldn't think of anything I could do that would make that much of a difference. That's when Melissa and I were inspired to write a song. Land of Liberty came straight from Heavenly Father. I am 100% convinced of that. Not only did it help Melissa and I feel peace about the situation but it also brought peace to those we associate with, and some that we had never met. It started out as something we were only going to sing the Sunday after in our wards. We got so many requests for a copy that we decided to record a CD. The next few months were a whirlwind. We sang our song in so many different wards, at the Capital in front of the House and the Senate, at the Olympics, and multiple small gatherings. We sold copies for $5.00. In the end we ended up raising more than 15 hundred dollars that we donated to charity helping the victims families.

7 years later I still feel horror and shock when I think about this day. I still feel pride when I see our flag flying, and reverence when I think of those that lost their lives, and respect for those that put their lives in danger to save another. I feel so blessed to live in America. It makes me sad that some people have forgotten what we as Americans stand for. That to some, God is only important and needed in hard times, and that it takes a major tragedy for people to come together. My hope is that people wont forget this tragic day. That it will be a day that we remember those who lost their lives and the Hero's that saved so many.

Do I look like Nastia Liukin?

Last week at Church, one of the girls in our ward came up to Corey and told him that she thinks I look exactly like Nastia Liukin. She thinks that we could be twins. I thought that was pretty funny. I wanted to document this for posterity's sake. What do you think?

Now that I'm a Mommy

Now that I'm a Mommy.....

~I can carry a baby, 6 bags of groceries, a purse, a diaper bag, and talk on the phone.

~I know what it feels like to look at my sleeping baby and feel the purest form of love and joy.

~I want to drive a minivan!

~I cry every time my baby learns something new because I feel so proud.

~I have developed super speed when ever I hear "The Cry" that lets me know she is hurt.

~I watch Disney Chanel all day and sometimes realize I am more interested than she is.

~I often have peanut butter and cookie crumbs on my clothes, my hair in a ponytail, and no makeup on and have never felt prettier.

~Poison Control is on speed dial.

~I now have a tiny glimpse of how Heavenly Father feels about his children.

I love being a mommy.

I tag.. Melissa, Nicole and Kelly

Summer Afternoon.... The Two Most Beautiful Words In The English Language

This Picture sums up our summer this year. I am so sad that is over already.

It went way too fast. I know that it has to end to fully appreciate how wonderful it is.

I am already looking forward to next summer.

My favorite things about summer are:

The sound of Crickets, Taking walks at night after a really hot day, Movies in the Park,

Snow Cones, Boating, The Fourth of July, Fire Works, Summer Clothes, Swimming,

and a Sun Tan. I have had the most wonderful Summer.....

Labor Day

Labor Day was so COLD this year.

we went to Ihop for breakfast and had hot chocolate.

It was raining so hard when we got there.After breakfast we went home and watched a movie.

I was so freezing, all I wanted to do was stay under a blanket all day.

Later in the afternoon we decided to go to the outlets in Park City.

We bought Sophie a new fall/winter wardrobe.

Corey was such a good sport about going with me.

Juice Box

Sophie loves to drink Juice Boxes.

She learned how to drink out of a straw a couple of weeks ago.

we are loving it! I actually took these pictures because of her dress.

It is so cute. I bought it at the Farmers Market down town.

it is a really fun place to go if you haven't been you should go.

New Words

Sophie has learned two new words

"Ball" and "Cheese". I love hearing her little voice.

She discovered Corey's golf balls, she carries them around with her everywhere.

It is so funny.