"Half" Birthdays

Mollie's treat: Rice Krispie Treats with sprinkles

Carli's treat: Donuts

     Since Mollie and Carli have July birthdays, they never get to bring in a treat to their school class. So to give them that time to "celebrate" with their class, I bring in treats for their "half" birthday. It makes January a busier month, but they love it! I've been doing this for Carli since Kindergarten and since she goes to middle school next year (Boo!) this will be the last time I can do this for her. In addition to treats, the girls wanted to bring in Griffin. I asked their teachers and they both said it was fine but we had to be sneaky because animals are not allowed on campus. So when I signed in at the office with the treats, Chad went around with the dog to their outside doors. Both the birthday treats and the dog were a hit!! It is always fun to be around the girls and their friends. It makes more work for me, but I think this is something I will miss! Happy "Half" Birthday girls!!

"Puffy"- January 2013

     Now that my due date is getting closer, I'm going to the doctor more frequently. For my first appointment in January I got some bad news (although deep down I was expecting it)...I have gained more weight, A LOT more weight. 11 lbs to be exact! In one month...yikes!! The reason I was expecting it is because I gained 11 lbs this month with all 3 girls too. That gives me a grand total so far of 66 lbs!! I've decided to embrace it. As Marjorie Hinckley said, "The only way to get through life is to laugh your way through it. You either have to laugh or cry. I prefer to laugh. Crying gives me a headache."  Each time I step on that lovely scale at the doctors office I just smile :) When I saw the doctor, he looked at my weight and asked (with a smile on HIS face), "Holidays catch up with your weight, huh?" I told him it is just a heavy month for me and he said it was just water weight and not to worry... I just looked a little "puffy". So remember...when you see me and think I've gained a little weight...that's not it. Doctor says I'm just a little "puffy"!!

Hunting, hunting, and MORE hunting

Chad's big bull...it will be on our wall soon (although I told him it needed to be in his office NOT my livingroom !) 

Chad's first kill of the season

Chucker hunting in Winnemucca, NV

9 dead little bunnies :(

But the girls had so much fun!!

     Chad had quite a hunting year! He was lucky enough to go elk hunting twice and got something both times!! His first tag was for a cow (female) and he just went out one early morning before work and shot her! His second tag was an either sex tag. He wasn't counting on getting a bull, just another cow for the meat. His friends all go camping for about a week and do nothing but hunt. Its a good time for them and they always fill every tag! Chad got his bull on that hunting trip...he was excited to shoot a bull this time!
     He had the opportunity to go bird hunting too! A couple of his friends go quail hunting in AZ every year and they always invite Chad to go. Apparently its a LOT of walking/hiking, but he always has a ton of fun! This year however the birds weren't very good in AZ, so they decided to hunt Chucker. "What the heck is Chucker?", you ask? I asked the very same question! It almost sounds like going snipe hunting :) Its some kind of bird and it actually tasted pretty good! Instead of AZ, they traveled to Winnemucca, NV (not sure if I spelled that right) which was colder than here!! Once again, it was a TON of walking, but he had fun!
     Chad also took a day during our Christmas break to take the girls rabbit hunting! I had some last minute Christmas gifts to finish up (crocheting scarf for Carli!) and needed them gone to get that done, so Chad volunteered to take them for the day! He is such a great dad :) He and a friend took the kids out to the desert and had a BLAST!! (no pun intended!) The girls had so much fun shooting their pink gun and being together with their dad! I'm glad they had a good time but wasn't really excited about eating them (Chad insisted on cooking them up!) I also told him he couldn't tag me on Facebook with these pictures because my HS friends would never let me hear the end of it! (My HS mascot was the "Jackrabbits")
     I'm glad that Chad was able to have such a great year hunting. He usually isn't able to go as much as he wants to because of the company and soccer, so he has earned it! I hope he enjoyed it because the baby is coming soon, which means his time will be limited :)

Lucky #14...???

     Wow, what a year! January 2nd was our 14th wedding anniversary. I can honestly say that our 13th year was our best one yet! With my anniversary gift last year, Chad called this last year our "lucky #13" year...and it was!! We had ups along with the downs, and we've learned that marriage takes a LOT of work, but all the time and energy will pay off. We have enjoyed all the adventures and memories we created last year (and all the awesome date nights!) Marriage is definitely not easy, but it is definitely worth it! We are looking forward to our 14th year...hopefully it will be another lucky year. Is there such thing as "lucky #14"? There will be for us!

Happy New Year!!

     New Years was another first for us...we celebrated at home with just our immediate family (and the new puppy, of course!) Traveling to AZ would be a little difficult this year with Griffin and me being 33 weeks pregnant, so we decided to stay home and celebrate with friends. Problem is: most of our friends were out of town or sick! It ended up being just us :) It was a great day! Chad had some finishing work to get done on a project in Delta so we loaded up in the car and went with him. Us girls helped him do some dusting and vacuuming and played with the dog in the snow. We had lunch together and enjoyed each others company before heading back to town. After doing a little bit of shopping, we came home and ordered Chinese food for dinner. The girls wanted to have a Harry Potter marathon (Chad was SUPER excited! hehe) so we just ate and watched movies all night long!! Grandma Whiting had sent us a package full of New Years items that we used to ring in 2013 :) Even Griffin joined in on the action! It was a nice way to start our new year as a family! 2012 was quite a year for our family, lots of adventures and experiences that will never be forgotten. We are excited for what's in store for us in 2013!!

Just like me...times 3!

Mindy- 7 yrs (1985)

Mollie- 6 yrs (2012)

 
     Once again, we had a toothless Christmas! Mollie lost her two front teeth before Christmas so she HAD to sing "All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth". It's a tradition.  I've told the story before (see the Jan 2012 post "Just like me" to see Regan singing toothless) but when I was 7 I lost my two front teeth right before Christmas. Just like now, we always get together at Grandma/Grandpa's house for a Christmas party with the family. Each grandchild does some sort of musical performance for everybody, and since I had lost my teeth, I had to sing "All I Want for Christmas". Now that my girls are growing up, THEY get to sing!! This makes all 3 of them losing their two front teeth right before Christmas!! It's meant to be :)
     We didn't make it down to AZ this year because of the new puppy and my big baby belly, so Mollie had to sing it in Utah for our "other" family, the Brownlows. She did great!! She also sang it at home for Grandma/Grandpa via Skype. I'm not counting on it, but it sure would be awesome if this new baby lost HIS two front teeth in time for Christmas too! If not, that's okay...I feel pretty lucky to have 3, just like me!!

Baby "Bump"- December 2012

     This has been a fun pregnancy...much harder than the 3 girls, but fun! I know what you're thinking: How can you enjoy morning sickness, soreness, heartburn, weight gain and all the other side effects of being pregnant? Well, I don't. But I DO enjoy knowing that after all these years I have a little miracle inside me. It's been so neat to have caring friends that are as excited as Chad and I are! I am truly blessed to have the friends I do. They are always calling my belly a baby "bump", but does this look like a "bump" to you?! Not even close! I laugh because I try to explain how big I'm getting and nobody will listen. Unlike most women, I don't just gain a measly 20-30 lbs. So far I've already gained 55 lbs!! And I still have 2 more months! My next doctor appointment is Jan. 2nd and I KNOW I will gain quite a bit more. Unfortunately, this is a big month for me with every baby. Even with all the weight, we are so excited and can't wait to meet this little guy!! More "bump" pictures to come!