A Birthday for Becky!

Today is Matt's mom's birthday! I don't have nearly enough time to justly pay tribute to her but I really am so lucky to be her daughter-in-law! Becky loves the sunshine, being active, laughing (a lot!), music, the beauty of nature, her husband, her children, her children-in-law (and the soon to be ones, Devin), and of course, perhaps her greatest love, her grand children! She is an amazing grandma and she still looks like she could be their mother! I truly appreciate the effort she makes to make me feel like one of her one. She has a wonderful testimony of the gospel and is a great example of living what you believe. She is the best person to sit by at a BYU football game and the first person I call to tell a funny story. So, to a wonderful mom, grandma, friend and so much more, Happy Birthday Becky! We love you and are so grateful for you!

P.S. Sorry Buff! This is a new year kind of goal so you just missed it! But if you still want a shout out I would love to tell the world how wonderful you are too! :)

"Go to Carson's House"

Crew says this at least once a day. He really loves playing with his cousin Carson and is it pretty easy to see why. We went down for a quick visit a couple weeks ago and here are some pics from our visit.

It doesn't get much better than eating crackers and looking out over the ocean with your buddy.

The front angle

I think this picture is so funny. They are like two old men just chilling and watching the waves splash up against the rocks.

The birds discovered their crackers. Watch out!

Exploring pirate caves

Cheese

Maren and Parker boy at Sea World

Crew and a seal having a little heart to heart

My Sisters

Today is a very special day because I have two sisters with a birthday today!
We will start with Maren: Maren has and will always be the fun one! Growing up she was the agitator, Christian was the peon, and I was the peace maker. It is funny how little things have changed other than Christian is a lot longer now and thus a little harder to contain! But when Maren is around we are always laughing and off doing something fun and exciting!

Maren makes things happen. Whether it is in her callings or in her relationships with others, she is totally dependable and really fun too! She is creative , resourceful, and way too capable! There isn't anything Maren can't do. To top it all off, she does it perfect too! What I wouldn't give to have an once of her talent!


Some other great things about Maren...

- She is a great cook
- She loves being a mom and is great at it
- She is really good at solving any problem; math, family, speech, anything :)
- Maren is a friend to everyone. She is so good at relating to people and making them feel comfortable.
- She is very, very patient

I have always looked up to and loved my sister Maren. I love having her only two hours aways now! I love you Mav and happy birthday!

And the other sister with a birthday is Katherine! Katherine may actually really be Matt's sister by blood, but she is truly my sister by heart. When I married Matt I was so excited to have a younger sister. Katherine is amazing. We loved having three years together at BYU and she was definitely one of the hardest things to leave when we left Provo. Here are a few of my favorite things about Kath...

- Katherine has a great laugh! She loves to laugh and that makes her so fun to be around!

- She loves her family. Katherine would do anything for her family and she has done so much for us!

- Kath is so stinking smart but she is still socially adept. You don't feel inferior to her brain when you are conversing with her :)!

- She has a beautiful voice and a great piano player

- Katherine is very selfless. She is always thinking of others

- She makes really good oatmeal chocolate chip cookies!

-Katherine can turn something not very fun into a life long memory. One example, when we hit a deer driving home for Thanksgiving a few years ago, Kath and her friend Alyssa were with us. It was not a fun situation but when we were stuck at this dumpy, old hotel in Orderville, Utah, we still found things to laugh about. That was there bath tub!

- Katherine is always positive

- She finds happiness in the simple things of life

- Katherine is the favorite aunt with all the kids because she really cares about and loves each of them.

I miss having her around us more! I couldn't ask for a better younger sister! We love you Kath and hope you have a fantastic birthday!

It's a Party!!!

Matt and I made Crew's cake after he went to bed so when he woke up that next morning he walked into the dining room and totally lit up! "Choo Choo Cake!" "M's!" Crew, like his mother, is a major M&M fan and kept trying to pick them off the cake. I told him he had to wait until he blew out his candles at the party.

Immediately after he blew out the candles, Crew dug into the M's.
And how great did his cakes turn out! I am not a crafty person so I am really proud of this. I have been excited to post pictures of it so Maren and Lauren could be proud of me too!


Some of the party crowd. Jamie and Zoie Adcox and Spencer and Matthew Coats.


Crew and Daddy. For some reason Crew keeps doing this face when we tell him to say cheese.

Baby Kate with the Townsends and Ezra and Charlotte with the Carlstons.

Crew's favorite present... the drum! Of course! We decided to get him one and now we have a one man marching band 24/7!

The no pants look is great isn't it!

It was a really fun day for all especially our birthday boy. He loves being the center of attention just like his mom... and dad!

Crew is 2!

Today is January 10 and Crew is officially 2! In a way it seems like he is older than 2 but time has passed so quickly since we welcomed this sweet little boy into the world. We feel so lucky that Heavenly Father would choose us to be this special little boy's parents. Our energy levels are higher, our smiles are even bigger, and our hearts are truly fuller with Crew boy around! Happy birthday Crew!

Finally Fall

So I was really missing my Utah fall season earlier this year but now I know that California has fall too! Fall in California doesn't come until December and January but man is it beautiful. We just happened to find this secret spot while we were on a walk. I love fall!

It is so funny to me how kids just know what to do with leaves on the ground. And of course, instant fun follows...

I 'm not sure Utah falls can be beat. However, I do know that a major bonus to California fall is snow doesn't come after!!!

And a Happy New Year

After our fun week with the Allen's, we went to Mesa for a 2 days. Crew showed off his new bike for them.

We drove home on the 30th to get ready for the Rose Parade! My parents flew out to join in the festivities with us. We picked them up from the airport on the 31st and showed them around lovely South Pasadena for the afternoon. Crew loved having a new audience at the park to show off and dig in the dirt with!

That night we went to the Fair Oaks Pharmacy to stuff ourselves with their amazing sundays and malts! It was a New Year's Eve hit!

After the Pharmacy we went home and celebrated ringing in the New Year with the people of New York so we could get to bed early!

New Year's Day we were up at 5:30 and we drove a few miles down the rode to wait for the Rose Parade. It was amazing! People were everywhere and it should have been totally crazy but we parked and found our seats pretty easy! All the people made the whole event even more exciting as everyone bundled up and waited for the parade to begin.
Crew was not very excited to be up so early! While we were waiting for the parade to start he kept saying "home" but he sure perked up quick once things started going!
The Rose Parade crew!
You know you are at a happening spot when the Goodyear blimp is flying over your head! Great picture of the fall trees too!

The parade was truly amazing! Every float had so much detail and it was awesome to see it all up so close!

A Stealth Bomber flew over just after the parade began. Those things are crazy amazing!

We especially loved seeing people we knew in the parade! The Brady girls (they are all married now but that is their maiden name) were in the parade with their horses. Here is Kelsy. They looked great!

Crew loved the entire two hours! He kept saying more after something passed by. He loved the marching bands (especially the drums), all the horses and a couple floats in particular. This choo choo one got a serious shout out!

And you better believe that kid went crazy when he saw Big Bird and the rest of the Sesame Street float!

Matt's favorite was the Jack float. I must say he had some great moves up there!

Here is a picture right as the end of the parade was about to pass us. Look at all the people filling the street in the background!
We seriuosly scored in our parking and were out of there in less then 10 minutes! It was definitely a memorable morning!

That afternoon, after all our naps, we went to Griffith Park to ride the choo choo. Here is Crew and Papa waiting for our turn.

All aboard!

That night we had a little birthday party for Crew because my parents had some present they wanted to watch him open. I think we will need to have a few more practice parties so Crew can improve on his candle blowing out skills!

My parents gave him the movies Cars and Robin Hood (animal version), a book and Crew's favorite gift... a shopping cart! Crew giving Papa a thank you kiss.

I think my dad is trying to train him early! Crew loves his shopping cart but thankfully it is always full of trucks not shoes!!!


Wow! What a great New Years! Thanks Papa and Mama for coming up for the parade and for a fantastic New Years!