It's all gonna be fine in '09

This is my new slogan for the new year :) I think it has a nice ring to it...sounds so content and casual don't you think? Okay, I'm a dork and I'm aware...

I'm not going to lie, this past year has been rough. It has been the hardest year that Jed and I have had in our marriage. We've been hit hard in a couple aspects of life and we're ready to move on to a fresh start in 2009. Just to clarify, none of the issues were marital :) I'm not going to dwell on anything or worry about things we can't change...just move forward. Things are looking up for the new year so I'm staying optimistic!

On the positive, we had the most beautiful baby girl we could have ever imagined enter our life this year.

Addison, you have truly saved me and your daddy! I know babies come when they're supposed to and I really believe that Addie came this January because we needed her in our lives. She's what kept us going through the hard times. Her sweet smile, heart-warming laugh and soothing cuddles brightened our life tremendously! Thank you Addie for being daddy and mommy's little sweetie and being the joy of our lives!! We love you!

Best Christmas Ever!

Well Jed and I have had 6 great Christmas days together now and I have to say this one takes the cake! Addie made our day SO MUCH FUN! She was so darling in the morning playing with her new toys....sure she had no idea why they were there, but she didn't care! New toys!! Why ask questions? Here are some pictures that sum up our week of Christmas fun....

Addie and great grandma Lynette on Christmas Eve

Grandma Lynette and Grandpa Darrell gave her this little rocking chair- she LOVED it! She sat in it and immediately started rocking.

Fun new big girl toy! She loves this...and like Maddux, she too has already used hers as a walker on the hard floors ;)

Who doesn't love cookie monster? You can see she does!
Funny face girl....the tongue helps coordination when playing I suppose.

Most important meal of the day right? I made Creme Brule french toast, sausage for Jed...along with hot chocolate- Mmmmm perfection!

New jammies from grandma and grandpa Rees- she's giving them a love :)My nephews Deacon and Beckam with grandma and grandpa- all of their first Christmas's! Btw, I have pictures of Addie with all her grandparents on the sidebar from Christmas, so I didn't put them in the post.

Papa Steve showing Addie the pretty dress he got her for Christmas....SO cute I could die! We ended up having a little slumber party there on Christmas since the snow was so crazy. We didn't really mind and I don't think Papa and Grammy did either ;)

I hope that you all had as wonderful of a Christmas as we did! We missed those of you who we didn't see.

Dear Snow,

So I know that the song says that I'm dreaming of a white Christmas....but STOP already! I'm so done with you and Christmas isn't even here yet. I've had enough..... my house supposedly has beautiful mountain views.....well you know what I see right now? THIS-

Do you see mountains? NO, because it is a freaking white out blizzard. I've been trapped here for 2 days now and I'm going stir crazy....oh what will I do in January?! Last year I had a newborn I didn't want to take anywhere so I was good. We'll see how well I do this year haha..

Jed's poor car...it got the boot so he could put the truck in the garage since he's driving that to work now...

So snow, if you don't mind...we're glad that you've given us snow but we've had enough of you. Now I ask that you go away so we can travel around the next 2 days in peace. (I'm so demanding)

Sincerely,
Jenny

Christmas is almost here....

6 days till Christmas....I can't wait to see our little one on Christmas morning! From the looks of things outside, I think it will definitely be a white Christmas too. We wish you all a Merry Christmas :)

Breakfast with Santa...or Satan?....

Okay, so after 3 Santas this week I think it is safe to say that Addie hate hate hates him. Yes, that's right our little social butterfly who waves at strangers in the grocery store and will usually be friends with anyone...HATES SANTA! I can't say that I blame her...take a look at this guy...So from a distance it may appear she's fine, but if you can see the look on her face it is pure terror. Poor kid. This was after she already met a different Santa at our ward party a few nights before. I wasn't going to even push the issue, but this guy wouldn't let up! We never even got in his line...he just came up and thought she'd want to be his friend...uh, nope! He suggested turning her towards me to take the picture, which we did. Sorry Santa, but my kid is far too smart and she knew he was still there!

Here's Addie attempting to eat the poisonous plant that I kept trying to get her to avoid :)

Saturday was the Breakfast with Santa event at Jed's work, the Davis Conference Center. It was quite the event! The place was beautiful, the food was second only to Little America's and the kids all had a ball. What a fun tradition to start (sans the Santa part).

Yum yum! Addie loved sharing french toast with me :)

This wasn't at breakfast, it was at a family party later last night, but I thought it was cute. Okay, well my hair is scary from the snow, but other than that...... 3 generations of talkers! :)

Okay, so this is just a random picture from the other night. We went to dinner with our friends and this just cracks me up! Addie is holding onto Harrison's hand and his face is saying "Ahh!! A girl is touching me! Help mom!!"

Friday night lights :)

Can you say Christmas card?? :)

Friday night Jed and I took Addie to the Christmas Village in Ogden. We figured since she loves our light up polar bear that she would love it. Haha, she kinda didn't really care too much about any of it though. She looked around but didn't make much noise or point like she usually does....maybe the combination of being sleepy, completely confined to being bundled up and cold. It was still fun and she sure is a cute little stay puff marshmellow!

I know, could she be more bundled up? Poor kiddo

My two favorite friends :) Aren't they so cute?!

Addie decided to fall asleep on the way home, which was planned....then decided to wake up and be wired for an hour and a half after, which was not planned. She was quite cute in her new Christmas jammies though so I let it slide.

Seriously. So. Sick

So for the past week Addie has been soooo sick with a horrible flu...which consequently she gave to not only Jed and I but also her grandma, 2 aunts, 2 grandpas, and 3 uncles!!! There are others who I think have been affected by our little "Typhoid Mary" as Jed's been referring to her. I am truly sorry to all of you who have been puking or suffering with the other end or any other awful symptoms.

It seems all the adults were only sick a day or two, but poor little Addie is still recovering from it! (hence the no posting of cuteness and me loving Thanksgiving- which I really do!) She's been okay with her tummy since about Sunday, but still is having a runny nose and sounds croupy.

So, how do you tell when your 11-month old infant is sick? I'll tell you....

* she isn't into EVERYTHING ALL THE TIME

* mommy must be within a one foot radius at all times or there are tears

* she actually takes long naps and sleeps half the day (even though it has to be ON mom somehow)

* she doesn't "talk" non-stop

* she doesn't want bottles or food, and for once doesn't stick everything she sees into her mouth

* you go through about a thousand diapers in a week's time

I can tell she's starting to feel better because she's into everything again and bolts for the stairs all the time! We sure love our little sweetheart and it really is so sad to see her sick and not herself. Dang you flu season!! Btw- Yes I got my kid a flu shot! 2 to be precise- I guess that's how they do it for babies.....the result? 2 flu bugs in 2 months.........hmmmm. I'm not advocating not getting one, just saying apparently there are a LOT of nasty bugs this season!

This is random I know, but I don't post without pictures generally :) Here's Addie with her own little tree....she "helped" us put up Christmas stuff on Monday night! We're so excited for her to have her first Christmas! Jed and I shopped for all her toys tonight- SO fun!!

Buddies and Baby-proofing

Addie has been having lots of fun this week. Saturday we went to Grady's bday party. I forgot my camera, so once I steal pics from grandma I'll post some. Sunday we went to Grandma and Grandpa Rees's house. She loves playing with all the toys....

Cousin Beckam stopped by while we were there- he's so cute! Sorry, I know neither baby is really looking in this picture. He watched Addie crawling around all crazy and wild...he was probably taking mental notes :)

We went and played with Reagan and Jaylee on Monday. These two crawled around after each other....they're fun to watch.

Tuesday we took a little road trip up to Rock Springs to visit aunt Ashley and see her school and apartment and such. It was fun to see her and meet her new "friend" too. Addie loves all her aunties! :)

Yesterday we finally had a "boring" day at home. Addie decided that being home must be far too boring, because she figured out that she can totally open kitchen cabinets- hooray right?! Luckily I have already baby-proofed the ones with cleaners and such in them! Looks like I either get to do more, or deal with pans and cereal boxes within her reach.

Then, my little determined girl decided to try climbing up the stairs! Yes, that's right.... she had climbed up ONE step before....but this time did the whole entire flight of stairs! I was proud/terrified. What a big girl!! Look at how proud she was to reach the top where daddy was :)

SO Big!

Here's an Addie update of the past couple of weeks.... I can't believe that she learns so many things so fast. It's crazy how fast she's growing up! She is 10 months today! We'll be having her 1st Birthday soon....weird.

Addie has been so sick all week with a cold- yuck. Poor baby, she just had one like 6 weeks ago. I guess lots of junk is going around, so sanitize those shopping carts mommies! She did get a flu shot, but I guess that doesn't mean she can't still get one.....

Addie's top 2 teeth have broken through, this picture shows them best. Don't worry btw, she didn't actually vote in my place ;)

Such a helper.... she has officially learned to pull herself up to stand! It started with the dishwasher and bathtub, and now on EVERYTHING! It is amazing...literally the past 5 days she just figured it out and now she's so fast at it!

We sure love this little pumpkin of ours :)

Our Next President...

Whether you voted for him or not, whether you like it or not, this man is going to be the 44th President of the United States. You may not agree with his policies, you may not agree with his party, but you have to agree that our country needs change. You also have to agree with the fact that history was made tonight.

His speech was full of hope and unity for our country- something that we all need right now. His words "All things are possible" help my hope and faith that the future of this country has great possiblities.

So here's to putting all policital views aside and uniting as a country to support our next President! Here's to you Barak Obama- I don't envy your new job and I truly hope that you are successful!

Hooray for the Hilton!

So after much searching and a LOT of frustration, Jed has found a great new job! He's tired of working for a bunch of freakin psychos who don't appreciate or utilize his skills.

Starting tomorrow he will be an Event Manager for the Hilton and Davis Conference Center in Layton. He'll be in charge of government, educational, military and sports events. He's excited to be doing something different that he'll enjoy. I'm excited because one of the perks is discounts on hotels- oh yeah!

Trick or Treat!

I hope you all had a fun Halloween....we sure did! A busy one too! Well, it started the day before....it isn't enough for my child to have a costume, she also had to have a Halloween outfit. I put her in it Thursday and she was pretty cute.

Thursday we went to visit Addie's cousins Grady and Taylor-here she is playing with Taylor. She loved the cool toys Taylor had so mommy now has Christmas and her Birthday all figured out :)
Yes, here is my poor child being swarmed by women at her Grammy Dawn's office. These are only half of them- she was surrounded. I felt like paparazi trying to photograph her amidst her entourage hahaha...We made many rounds to show her off....here she is with her grandma and grandpa (you can tell at this point she was getting sick of it) I let her out of it while we were there to crawl around freely. Poor baby was so hot in there.
Happy Halloween from the cutest bunny you'll ever see! Too bad her "paws" wouldn't stay on her feet- way too big. Jed kept referencing "The Christmas Story" about the bunny costume. Sad...

Although Addie is too little to eat candy and treats, I more than made up for it for her- yuck, my poor tummy. The past 2 days I've eaten sugar cookies, candy, pumpkin bread, and a lot of twinkies and cupcakes (Dawn works for wonder bread....their trick or treaters lucked out!!)

Halloween....a week early

Saturday night we had a little Halloween get- together at our house with a few family and friends....we had lots of fun dressing up, and mostly seeing the little ones dressed up! They were all SO CUTE! Seriously, BABIES + COSTUMES = FUN!!

Here are Beckam (the monkey), Addie (the bunny) and newborn Deacon (a puppy). Aren't they cute little cousins! It's hard to tell from this pic, but Beckam only weighs about a pound less than Addie and they're 6 months apart! Such a cute little chunker!! Deacon is too sweet at just a month old :)

These Punks showed up, but brought darling kids, so we let them in ;) I loved Jaylee as Sleeping Beauty...almost made me jealous!

Possibly an overdone costume this year, but yes I was indeed Sarah Palin. That's my husband, "Joe the plumber" and our cute little bunny :) Her ears didn't stay up too well and I would have worked mine out better with bangs, but I'm not THAT devoted.

Blake and Kacey came in awesome Star Wars costumes (shocking I know). Doc was so cute as a little Yoda!

Here is my little bunny playing with her ladybug friend....cute little friends :) And yes, my child does look much bigger than she really is in her costume...it's pretty puffy.

And NO this does not mean that I've found my camera!! Luckily we have another one, but it wasn't working too well before. Good thing it did for these pics! BTW, if you put a camera and a Full Throttle drink in a snowmobile compartment together...the results aren't very good!! Just ask Jed- that's why this camera only works sometimes!

Random....

So I seriously can't find my camera anywhere and it is driving me CRAZY!! Anyone have any ideas what I could have done with it?? Haha. Last time I used it was when I blogged last Tuesday night. Hmmmm......I usually take AT LEAST one photo of Addie everyday and it is making me crazy not being able to grab it when she's being funny. Ugh...

In happier news- I am having a Halloween party on Saturday night here :) Nothing huge, just basically some food and cute kids in costumes! If anybody is looking for something to do or an excuse to show off your kid's cute costume or your own come on over! I'll email you details if you're interested.

26....gettin' up there!

Sunday was my Birthday and I turned 26. Jed's precise words to me were "Welcome to the other side"....sad. Meaning- I'm now closer to 30 than 20. Seriously.... didn't I just get out of high school? Where does the time go? Anyway.... here's a recap-

If it hadn't given me a reason to put Addie in her darling winter coat I may have been really upset about the snow on Saturday. Okay, I was still annoyed, but it helped. The last time it snowed on my birthday I was 12! Randomly though, Sunday it barely snowed and didn't stick up here, but other places got 6-12 inches! Go figure...I'm sure the skiers were mad.

So appropriate since it snowed! I got some really nice North Face snow boots for my bday, as you can see Addie liked them too. Haha, she actually thought it was cool when I put them on her because they went past her knees so she could stand all by herself in them. Silly girl.

So they say the way to a man's heart is through his stomach...I think it is the other way around! Jed made me delicious food all day long and they were definitely the highlights of my day! He made french toast out of french bread for breakfast- so yummy! Then made me some awesome homemade soup for dinner and ended the night with off the hook Creme Brule! Seriously, I could not ask for a better husband!

Thanks friend for making my birthday a great one! Having Addie being part of it made it the best birthday ever! Her cuddles and giggles made my day :)

Oh, so here are Addie's stats from her doctor appointment today...they made her get her thumb pricked in addition to 2 shots today. NOT FUN. She was sobbing with tears streaming down her face- so sad! The shots are over in 2 seconds. This guy squeezed every drop of blood out of her thumb for 5 minutes- poor girl :(

Height- 27 inches 45% Weight- 18.5 lbs 50%

9 Months Old!

Here's our crawling, getting-into-everything, growing, playful, sweet baby girl at 9 months-
She found a little friend to play with at Grammy Lynette's house. So cute :)

Okay, so I KNOW I was pregnant waaay longer than this! I remember my mom telling me that 9 months goes by so much slower when you're waiting for a baby to get here than the first 9 months that they're here. SO TRUE! We've truly loved having Addison in our lives and can't imagine our world without her now. I'll take her to the doctor this week for her well visit and shots, so I'll post her "stats" once we do.

3 Reasons I LOVE October!

Okay, other than my birthday and Halloween, which are definetely favorites- these 3 things I look forward to all year long!

Beautiful leaves all around me! I literally took this through my windshield driving up the divide the other day. I love the gorgeous colors and cool weather that comes with them.

Fall Session of General Conference- seriously doesn't get much better than this- sitting in my sweats, watching Addie play with her toys, smelling blueberry muffins, looking out my windows to beautiful views and hearing the choir singing "I Know that My Redeemer Lives" in nothing less than 5.1 digital surround sound. Jed says that the Lord intended us to hear conference this way.

Conference, especially fall conference usually lends itself to baking some sort of delicious treat as well. Last night after conference, I made Navajo Tacos and scones with honey butter.....Mmmmmm. Van and Lori came over with their kids for dinner and while the guys went to Priesthood, we made these bad boys......

That's right my friends, it's that time of year again. For those of you who gladly pay $5 an apple at Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory for the "Apple Pie" Caramel Apples, go right ahead- they're worth it. Lori and I made our own though! I showed Lori the "right" way to make caramel apples. She's going to move and have to make them without me next year, so good thing she's got it down now.