Nathan on Memorial Day

I just loved these pictures of Nathan! We had gone out to the Vogt farm on Memorial Day for a BBQ and Nathan found grandma's little watering can and spent the next 1/2 hour watering lots of her plants (along with lots of weeds, too - LOL) I've been wanting to make some 10x20 storyboards of each of the kids for a long time (to possibly jazz up the stairway) and decided to just do it! so... I'm thinking this might be the one for Nathan... not 100% sure. Because the photo below is a close second (not really - LOL) I think I'm beginning to not like this expression of his - heeee! but have decided to embrace it (because I know it won't be long before it goes by the wayside and I'll only have the photos to remind me of how he used to love "posing" for the camera when he was 2!) So like I said, I'm embracing it all -- the squinty clamped eyes, the chin upturned for a good nose shot and his vampire teeth exposed - with all of that, what's not to love??

Let's Par-tay!!

Double the cake, Double the Fun - Aubrie and Lexi are turning One! so I know their birthday was a bit ago - but we finally got to celebrate it and had a little family party. John's mom and dad and his aunt, uncle and cousin joined us :) The girls were a hit and Lexi demonstrated her walking skills for everyone (I've got it on video - I just need to upload the movie - so stay tuned). They didn't really go crazy over their cake... and after Aubrie used her hands for about 30 sec. she cried for a fork! I don't think they really even got to the cake part under all of that icing! But it was fun! We decided to have a Hawaiian/ Beach theme and I think the girls looked tooo adorable in their birthday outfits! I made the little T-shirts for them to wear (I think those are my favorite part - LOL)... so, I guess it's official.. we have entered into toddlerhood!

Aubrie walking with some help from grandma

after the cake, the girls headed out to the trampoline to jump (tooooo cute!)

and here's one of the girls playing with one of the new toys they got. Of course the "real fun" gifts were the carseats and booster chairs that they needed - LOL

To My Beautiful Wife on Mothers Day

Shandalyce is such a fantastic wife and mother. We are all so blessed to have her in our lives. This year for Mothers Day, I decided to interview the older boys about Shandy (an idea I stole from Sarah on Facebook). Hope you enjoy it.

1. What is something Mom always says to you?

August: Do the dishes

Seth: I'm a great boy and I don't know what I'd do with out you

Ben: She says she really wants to get a good picture of me

Me: Baby!!! (what she exclaims when I do something questionable)

2. What makes Mom happy?

A: When I do the dishes

S: If we help out and clean and don't fight

B: When we don't fight

M: Peace in the house and photography

3. What makes Mom sad?

A: When I don't do the dishes (I'm seeing a pattern here)

S: If we fight or make messes and if we're mean and all that stuff

B: When we fight

M: I think really when the boys continually fight

4. How does Mom make you laugh?

A: When she tickles me to do the dishes

S: I don't remember anytime that she has made me laugh
B: By tickling me
M: When she humors some of more idiotic moods or schemes and then we both laugh at how stupid I am

5. What was Mom like as a child?

A: Athletic
S: I don't know. Nice, helpful, and she could do a lot of stuff
B: A really nice girl and really cute and all that stuff. Always got B's. Had bad dreams.
M: She was a perfect angel. Seriously, the Carlson household was abnormal. No fighting. Good manners. Weird.

6. How old is Mom?

A: Thirty something
S: 33 or 34
B: 33
M: 29...uh, yeah, that's it...

7. How tall is Mom?

A: 5'3" about as tall as I am

S: Around 5 foot something
B: About 6' tall
M: 5'5 1/2"

8. What is Mom's favorite thing to do?

A: Spend time with everyone - family and friends
S: She like scrap booking and playing with her children
B: Take pictures
M: Spending time with family and friends, photography

9. What does Mom do when you're not around?

A: Does stuff on the computer
S: Helps out with the babies, computer digital design and editing
B: Cleans
M: All of the above. She is the glue that holds our whole family together. She does more in one day at home than I could do the whole week, if I was left home with the kids

10. If Mom becomes famous, what will it be for?

A: Photography stuff
S: Her editing and designing stuff
B: Cause she cleans and did pictures
M: I'm sure it will be with one of her many businesses. She is so creative and talented. Everything she touches turns to gold

11. What is Mom really good at?

A: Photography and Photoshop
S: Designing editing, being a mom, taking care of us
B: Taking pictures
M: Everything!

12. What is Mom not very good at?

A: Beating me in a race. I beat her to the car today
S: She's not the best at video games. She's pretty much good at everything else
B: Feeding the babies because they always spill
M: Being brave when the lights are out or when scary movies are on

13. What does Mom do for a job?

A: Photo stuff
S: Designs stuff and edits photos

B: Take pictures
M: Is the greatest SAHM and an extremely talented entrepreneur

14. What is Mom's favorite food?

A: I'm going to have to go with clam chowder
S: I'm not sure
B: That's easy: cake
M: Hmm...it's not really food but she loves ice

15. What makes you proud of Mom?

A: She's nice to me. Not all parents are like that
S: She's a great mom and loves me
B: She cleans a lot
M: How talented, kind, generous, and loving she is. Oh, also, how hot she is! Serious. She is like fine wine or cheese that just gets better with age. You look at some chicks our age and their best years are behind them. Not Shandy. She gets more fine every day.

16. If Mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?

A: Sponge Bob
S: A mom in a cartoon
B: Supergirl. That's one, right?
M: Jessica Rabbit

17. What do you and Mom do together?

A: Play and do pretty much anything
S: Talk together. We like being together
B: Play with Toys
M: Share in being exhausted at the end of the day. Oh and...uh, never mind. This is a PG rated blog

18. How are you and Mom the same?

A: Both good with computers
S: Hazel eyes, good cooks, know how to do a lot of stuff
B: Both have the same nose
M: We both have pretty much the same temperament and compliment each other nicely

19. How are you and Mom different?

A: She does dishes, I don't...unless I'm forced to
S: She's better at designing a lot of stuff
B: We don't have the same eyes. Hers are hazel, mine are blue
M: Our taste in food. I like to try new dishes from new countries. She likes straight-up plain American food with ketchup on everything. Even steak.

20. How do you know Mom loves you?

A: She gives me hugs and says she does and I know she does
S: She says so and buys me stuff. She plays with me and helps me feel better if I'm sick or hurt
B: She cuddles with us and tucks us in
M: Everything she does tells me she loves me from the glances she gives me to the words she says to the things she does for me. She's my everything

21. How do you know Mom loves Dad?

A: Cause she makes out with you. Also she says she does and you guys don't get into fights
S: She does a lot of stuff for you. She lets you relax a lot and says she loves you a lot
B: Cause she married you
M: I agree with them all

22. What does Mom like most about Dad?

A: Your looks and love for her
S: Not sure
B: Kissing you
M: My sexy legs

23. Where is Mom's favorite place to go?

A: Anywhere with her friends and family

S: Going to her mom's house
B: Easy: the Pizza Store
M: I really think it's Nebraska right now. Not because of the state but because her family is there. She loves Idaho more but She misses her family

And there you have it. This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to how amazing and fabulous my beautiful wife is. Happy Mothers Day, babesy! I love you!

Johnny

a Sincere Thank You!

Life has been fun and busy for me lately. As you all know by now - I'm a mompatraneur through and through - LOL! For the last 6 years, I have been a business owner (always with scrapbooking, desigining or use of digital art, etc) and I am more than excited to add Photographer to that list! Yes, I am officially in business and I'm really excited to share Shandy Vogt Photography with you!
I also just wanted to thank you all (my blog readers) because it's really due to you that I decided to pursue this! I mean, I've always had a love for photography and loved learning how to take better pictures (just of my family) but last year when I was gently nudged into taking some photos of friends - it flipped a switch! I truly didn't think that I would like doing it and so agreed to - just for the fact that I could then prove to myself that I didn't enjoy it and just keep doing what I was doing. All of your kinds words, encouragement and support gave me the confidence to start on this journey. Over the Winter, I used that time to really dive into learning the ins and outs of photography. I read books, online tutorials and followed along with photography classes. Couple that with a totally sweet new camera and lens in my bag, and I feel I have grown leaps and bounds in my skills! (side note: THANKS to all of you who let me practice on you last year -- I really learned a lot from each of our sessions in what worked and what didn't.)
Anyway, I was just feeling gratitude for each of you and am amazed at the support I'm continually receiving. Heavenly Father has truly blessed me in life with great friends and family!

Also - feel free to check out my site and I'd love to hear your thoughts! I designed and customized it all myself (after reading LOADS of tutorials -LOL but it was fun and I love how it turned out!).

The girls are ONE!

nothing like a momentous occasion like the girls' birthday to bring me out of my blogging dry spell! I can't really believe it! Exactly one year ago right now at 12:20pm Aubrie entered the world and 4 minutes later, Lexi joined her! My labor was really quick. I was admitted to the hospital by 9:30am and less than 3 hours later they were here.
I remember John and I discussing how hard our life was about to become - sleepless nights, crying babies, 4 other children to take care of... how would we manage it all?? I guess this was a time where we truly were expecting the worst and were prepared for it - BRING IT ON! Well, it wasn't like all the horror stories I'd been told about twins - we had no sleepless nights, we had no crying babies - we have been so blessed with such great girls! Like I've said before - it just seems so natural for babies to come in pairs - and I sort of wish we had another set of multiples as they are unlike any other joy you can experience. Yes, there's been times (namely when they were both sick the past 2 months) where it was hard - but I still loved every minute of it!
Lexi is walking (well, about 10+ steps at a time) and it makes me sad that they are growing up. The absolute best part of my day is when I go into their room to get them up (whether it be first thing in the morning or after their naps) and to be greeted by TWO smiling faces who's eyes light up when you walk into the room - it's awesome!
I put a little collage together of them month by month and it's amazing how much they've grown and changed (and how much hair they grew :)
HAPPY BIRTHDAY my sweet little twincesses - my precious gift from Heaven!

Closing Up...

well... I guess I've made it official -- I'm going to be closing my Digital Scrapping Site --
I sort of have mixed emotions...
I mean I haven't even put anything new in the store since before the girls were born! But I guess, me holding onto it has made me feel like I still had a title or something (dumb, I know... but when people would ask if I was just a SAHM -- I could also say that I had my own business (well, I guess I still do - with Photoflattery and photography... hmm.. ok, so now I'm not feeling as bad - LOL) but anyway - it was time to renew my domain name and I guess that gave the added push I needed to make the decision and go with it --
hey, if any of you are digi scrappers - I've got a freebie template pack up on my designer blog (link is over to the right with my other links...)
I really loved being a designer and would literally dream of my next design 24 hours a day! I was obsessed (so in that regards, I'm kind of glad to be closing the door - HEEE!) but it also taught me loads of photoshop skills and gave me confidence to pursue the next dream!

March Update...

Well, it has been a VERY rough couple of weeks. The Rotavirus hit us and I have been dealing with throw up and diarhea for 13 straight days! no exageration! Aubrie, Lexi and Nathan were sick for almost 2 full weeks! - but I am soooo happy to report that I *think* it has ran its course and it has decided to leave the Vogt house! HOORAY! The rest of us got it as well - but were only down for 1-2 days. let me tell you how (NOT) fun having a family of 8 all sick at the same time is! it was rough - I can't even put into words how awful it was - LOL so enough about that (but on a final note: we went through 2.5 JUMBO packages of diapers for the girls and can I just say that I am so glad that Nathan got potty trained last month! oh, and we also did take Lex in to the ER at one point to get rehydrated... and both girls and Nathan lost weight (which they didn't really have to begin with to loose... oh well...) I'm just thankful, they are acting like themselves. It is such a blessing to see them get down and play with each other (no joke - for the past 2 weeks, if Lexi was awake - she would just lay on my chest.. she maybe got down once or twice during those 13 days -- it was sad :( Sooo... since it was so wonderful to see them smiling and cralwing around I hurry and busted out the camera to get commemorate - LOL
(that middle pic of Aubrie is my favorite -- it makes me giggle everytime I see it! HEEE!)

During all of the sickness, life still went on for the rest of us thought... Seth had to give a HUGE oral/power point presentation (that he'd been working on for about 7 weeks) on George Rogers Clark... here he is the morning he was to present in front of the judges. He did really well and was happy with his performance - he had the whole report memorized and gave it in a 1st person narrative - which everyone loved :) Doesn't he look adorable!?

It was also the Blue and Gold Banquet... For the Father/Son Cake - John and Seth decided on doing a hamburger cake... we all think it turned out fun! I did not help whatsoever in the building of this -- they were so proud of themselves!

He also got the prize of "Most Edible" for his cake...

It was also Ben's 7th Birthday this week! He took in cupcakes to his class at school and he got Sonic for dinner that night. We had his friend party yesterday (Saturday). We took them all to Carl's Jr and they had Kids Meals and played in the playland (thought this would be MUCH easier to let them run around and be wild at the restraunt vs. entertaining them at our house! -- turned out to be a wise decision - LOL
then afterwards, we came home and had cake/ice cream and openedgifts. oh, they also played some video games on the Wii. Here's the pic of the cake we had made for him - He thought it turned out pretty cool!
He got the Hulk Abomination Blaster from grandma and grandpa... as you can see, it's quite the gun! It splits off and you can have 2 seperate guns as well -- so all of the boys (and John!) have been having a blast playing with it!

So now that brings us up to Spring Break (and Track Break for Seth and Ben...) I also need to get caught up on all of your blogs - I seriously haven't had the time the past few weeks and have missed reading about everyone! Have a great Spring Break :)

I Won!

One of my favorite (daily) sites to visit is Twinstuff.com -- I was recommended the site by several gals that followed my designing blog (back in the day...) and joined up when I was still expecting the girls. It has been an invaluable place of knowledge, support and friendship throughout this first year. Anywho... they had a contest to design their new logo and guess what?! It was just announced today that I won! YIPPEE!!! I'm so excited that they chose my design! I couldn't help but take a screen shot of the forums once they switched out the logos....

They had a cash prize and then also gifted me a years membership (it's a free site but has some additaional perks for paying members) so I was pretty excited. The new look has been well received by everyone so that makes me feel even better! Anyway, just thought I'd share my news :)

oh, and if you were curious as to what the original logo was.... here's a screen shot of that (they haven't switched out every page yet so this was still up for a visual)...

Doesn't the new one make everything look so much fresher and hip?? LOL (yes, I'm partial...)

Design Star

so do you like this color scheme?? If so, then you are in luck - big time!

Scrap Matters is having a "Design Star" contest (comparible to American Idol -- and the winner of the contest will then be a full time designer for Scrap Matters). Yours Truly has been asked to be one of the judges so have been going through all of the submissions and there are 132 of them! Where's the good news for you? Well, each of the 132 contestants have created a mini kit using this color combo and they are available for FREE to whoever would like them. You just have to be a registered user at Scrap Matters. The owner of the store is an awesome lady and the Design Team Coordinator (Brittney) was one of my Creative Team members (when I was actively designing for the scrapping business).

Anyway, I'm just taking a quick break from judging (and there is some awesome talent there!) and thought I'd pass along all of the free kits available right now -- and watch out for the next round (there'll be more free kits!) So go clear out some free space on your hard drive and get to downloading! :)

Moppet Togs

Alright, so some of you may already be familiar with this consignment shop but thought I'd give you all a heads up about their big semi-annual sale (once in spring and once in fall)... anyway, the girls have HOARDS of clothes and shoes (and I was thinking of either trading them in at Other Mothers or trying Craiglist) to get some more ca$h and saw that this company is currently taking consignors for it's sale that is mid-March (March 19-21) but you have to register to be a consignor by next week. You get 70-80% of the sale price of your items (which you set) and MT gets the other portion... I've never sold with them but think I'll try it out and thought I'd pass it along to any others out there that might want to take advantage of it too :) **if you do decide to be a consignor - I'd love it if you put me as a referral - so I can keep more of my sales percentage :) **

Here's the link to their site that gives all the info about consigning and the sale dates...
even if you don't have anything to sell - it sounds like it's a place to get some nice kids clothes/toys without paying retail!

anyone have any experience with this company?? I'd love to hear about it if you do...

9 months and counting...

As I wrote the title for this post, I had visions of comment after comment asking if that was a "sneaky" way of us having some news to share -- so let me put all speculating rumors aside and declare that NO... I am not pregnant - LOL

It does make reference to my little girlies -- I finally got them in for their 9 month appointment yesterday (even though they'll be 10 months next week.. oh well..)

All is going well with the both of them. Here are the stats:

Aubrie: 17lb 15oz and 29.5 inches
Lexi: 17lb 2oz and 29.5 inches

so this is the closest they've been (in regards to weight) to each other... Aubrie is usually at least 1-1.5 pounds heavier but it looks like ol' Lex is catching up!

Still just the best little babies one could ever hope or wish for! They both got their top 2 teeth on the same day (so a total of 4 teeth busted though about a week and a half ago!) and they have found that they really REALLY like graham crackers :) They've been interacting more with each other and "playing" together... it's so fun to watch!

As I was looking through their photos (trying to get organized to make a 1 year montage of them) I realized that most of the photos I had of them were "posed" so I've really tried to make a conscious effort to catch some snapshots of everyday life (because although I love the cute posed photos, I want to remember these small moments that pass too quickly!) They both have learned to climb the stairs (have a cute pic of this - gotta go find it tho -- ) and they love to get into the dishwasher - yikes! Regardless, they are the absolute funnest babies ever! Enjoy some "everyday fun" experienced over here on any given day...

my "bad boy" husband

So something quite interesting was brought to my attention this past week... that I'm married to a "bad boy"! and with those words being in quotations -- you know it's serious! We're talking mullet wearing, guitar playing, and "combs in the back pocket" cool!

So let the story begin....

John grew up in a very small town in Alaska and since being on facebook he has been able to reconnect with most of the kids he grew up with. One of these friends wrote me an email directing me to her own blog post that she made a while back and thought I'd find it funny (and I did!). After reading it I asked if it would be ok to share bits of what she wrote along with the photos and she was more than happy to oblige :)

(preface: the original blog post was about how they didn't have any stores in Valdez to buy the "big" earrings that were all the rage in the 80's and so she made her own by cutting out pictures of earrings from catalogs and glueing them onto cardboard -- (quite creative, I must say! LOL)... below is taken from her blog...)

"...I had a whole jewelry box full of these cardboard babies, but I don’t remember wearing them. Except around my bedroom. Like some middle school fantasy dress-up diva.... I did have a pair that I thought were scandalous. And I thought it would be really "Suggestive" if I ever wore them (they said "Soft Shoulder" and were road sign ones), so I just dreamed about wearing them and having a boy ask me if my shoulders were really soft. Oooh, the excitement of that question was almost too much for my 7th grade mind. And the boys I dreamed about were Troy Fenner, Matt Kiser and John Vogt. They were the boys with the coolest mullets and the combs in their back pockets. Now that my daughter is in Middle School I watch her like a hawk. Mostly, to see if she's as weird as I was and also to see if she likes the "Bad Boys" like I did. I am so afraid, she does share my DNA, you know!! These photos were taken in 1988, when I was in 8th grade. They are of Matt Kiser, Lance Komkoff and John Vogt."

John is on the far right in both photos... and were from their 8th grade yearbook.

as I was telling this story to my friend, she matter of fact stated... "well, that's what attracted you to John in the first place - that he was a "bad boy" with his long hair and earring (and that he wasn't a member of the LDS church)."

YIKES! she was right! I guess I'll be much like this gal when the twins are in middle school to see if they too, are drawn to the bad boys -- let's hope not because I don't think their dad will stand for it! LOL

Happy Valentines Day

hope you all have a fun time celebrating with your loves :)

There's several of us sick over here so not sure how much celebrations will be occuring... :(

a Valentines Box?

hmmm... now what could that contraption be that Seth is posing with... Would you beleive his Valentines Day "box"....
His class was having a contest and would be judged in 3 areas...(1) funniest (2) most "valentine-ish" <-- is that even a word?? oh well... and (3) Teacher's Favorite he came home with grand plans (and design) of a man bending over and you put the valentine in the back of his head and then he "threw it up" out of his mouth into a bowl... yeah, I had to shoot that one down... but I told him that dad might know how to construct it... he didn't. So then they decided on a Battering Ram (ok.. not even sure that's how it's spelled...) so they went to work on it.. the posts weren't made big enough so in the end it didn't "ram"... Seth was so sad. So on the morning of the party, he was going to leave empty handed... when I suggested that it sort of looked like a Mechanical Bull.. and why not tweak it to be such! He was thrilled... so we hurried and put the final touches on it and his Mechanical bull Valentines Box was ready! He ended up taking 2nd in 2 of the categories - he would have like first but said everyone thought his was pretty cool....

Also - out of all my boys - he is the only one who really enjoys reading... We've been going to the library lately and a few weeks ago he brought me his "pile" of books.. I tried to tell him that 10 was too many for us to keep track of and he should just narrow it down to 3-4. He insisted that he could read them all before our next trip.. so I conceded. Well, turns out he thought he only had them for a week (like at school) and so read ALL of them in a week!
crazy boy.. I wonder how many nights he stayed up reading these to prove me wrong - LOL

How it all started....

16 years ago today was the beginning of "John and Shandy"....
It was a Wednesday night and I had just gotten back from Young Women's (I was 17) and I was writing in my journal before bed. It was just a little after 9 and the phone rang. I answered it and the voice asked for Shandy. I answered "This is she..." and then the voice on the other end mysteriously changed to be one with a Mexican accent and he proceeded to say that his posse and him were going to be riding into town in his low rider and wanted to know if I would go along on a date. I then had to ask who it was - LOL.. he said it was "John... from McDonalds" (we had worked together at McD's but I had been in another relationship at the time and he got wind that we had broken up and so jumped at the chance to call me :)
I accepted his invitation and on Friday night he picked me up in his Maroon Ford Tempo. After we got into his car he started fiddling with his ear and I was like "what are you doing?" and he said "oh, putting in my earring... I didn't think it'd go over too well with your dad." (now my boys will never be allowed to wear an earring but.... my Johnny sure looked H.O.T. wearing a little gold hoop!!!) So that was the beginning of US... 2 days later he stuck a homemade valentines in my mailbox and has been such the romantic ever since!

Here were some old pics of us from some of the dances he took me to back in high school (I was a senior and he was a freshman at BSU)...

please excuse all of the dust! I didn't feel like redoing them... but enjoy a blast from the past :)

Resident Pervs and Long Hair

So Shandy and I went to an early Valentine's Day party on Friday night. They did a quiz on how well you know your spouse and we ended up tying with two other couples for first and after a gruelling match of paper, rock, scissors we won the grand prize. First of all, let me say, the paper, rock scissors game was quite impressive. I was up against a dude named Keith and he and I threw the same object like probably 1o times in a row before I changed my strategy and beat his rock with my paper. It was odd. Anyhoo, one of the items in our gift bag was red velvet covered handcuffs which was appropriate since we both answered that if our love life (meaning whoopee - their words, not mine) were a holiday it would be Halloween - full of tricks and treats. So, I guess it's official, we are now the resident pervs of the ward.

Moving on...

While in Nebraska over Christmas, Shandy and I went to see Twilight again. I was admiring how nice Edwards hair was and thinking I'd like to climb up into it and take a nap. I mean the dude has awesome hair and I say that in a totally non-gay way.

I then started to lament my own male pattern baldness and how I would never be able to have a thick head of hair again. Don't get me wrong, I like shaving my head. I think it works for me. With the military for the last 12 years, I've had to keep my hair short. At first I wore a high and tight and then as the bald spot got bigger, I just started hitting it with the bic. It wasn't always like that, though. From 88-91, I rocked the mullet. Business up front, party in the back. My mull was fierce. When Shandy and I first started dating, my hair hung down to my jaw line.

I then started to think about the boys. I have been giving them high and tights for years now.

In fact in the above pic, they were due for a haircut. I started to realize that I was cheating them out of the opportunity to have bushy, unruly hair. Just because I have to keep my hair short doesn't mean they have to. I had a talk with them the next day and told them that basically, I wouldn't cut their hair again unless they wanted me to. I told them they could grow it out and do whatever they would like with a few stipulations:

1. They still needed to look respectful. The hair can grow out but I don't want them to look like girls

2. They would have to take care of it and keep it clean and not look like a bunch of grease balls

So far they are all enjoying the new follicle freedom. August and Seth are letting their tops grow out but have both requested a little trim around the ears. Ben has yet to request anything. We'll see how it turns out.

we did it...

alright, John and I give in... after multiple requests, we have joined the ranks of fellow facebookers... It's quite confusing (for all of the 5 min. I've been on it...) so if any of you guys have any tips on navigating... please share! Also, I couldn't help but post this vidoe that I found on my friend (Amber's) blog...

Inspiration....

I don't how many of you guys are followers of Meslissa's blog 320 Sycamore but I HIGHY suggest running over there right now and reading todays post!
She has a guest "speaker" - Susan (who was my RS Pres. when I lived in Nampa) and she is such a positive, uplifting person and she has some wise words about how to have "Special Time" with your children.
John and I have done something similiar (but lacking a few of the key steps to the formula she has laid out) ever since the boys were super little and we've always just called it "Mommy/Daddy Time"... but I'm eager to implement this Special Time to its fullest potential!

Also while you're there - spend some time looking at her past posts... I have gotten soooo many ideas and heads up on deals from things she has posted :) she is also the master at decorating on a budget and finding things to "transform" at the dollar store! She really is one talented gal :)

Superbowl and a newborn :)

uhhhh.... can you tell which team we were rootin' for?! John has been a giant Steelers fan since he was 4. seriously... and we were excited that that they made it to the superbowl this year! Those last few minutes of the game made john's blood pressure raise quite a bit but we were thrilled with the ending!

We had some friends over and enjoyed good food, good friends and a good football game! There were 10 kids here (actually that number isn't hard to get to considering we have 6 of our own - LOL) but everyone enjoyed themselves....


Switching gears here.... I haven't done any photography since the weather turned (since I don't have any studio lights and am definitley more of a natural light gal) but a friend (who just had her little boy last week!) asked if I'd take some photos of him... here are just a couple of what we got today using the light coming in from the windows :)

Behind the Scenes

another milestone day... the girls have been with us exactly 9 months today :)
I don't know if you guys are like me - but at every "age marker" I think back and say "oh, exactly at this time I was being wheeled into the OR.... or at this exact time we were recovering in the room with our new babies" etc... that correspond with the appropriate times - and this day was no different :) It's been an aboslutle wonderful 9 months! They got off on their sleep schedules this morning (so they took opposite naps - ugh... oh well...) so when I was taking pics, Lexi was asleep (and then when she woke up, Aubrie was not a happy gal... so I didn't get any of them together today -- hmph. and yes, that makes me a little sad.....) But here is a super cute one of my 9 month old Aubs.... I also wanted to take just a moment and share a little "behind the scenes" of taking pictures of the girls. I get asked all the time how I get photos of both of them looking good (a lot of these comments come from moms of other twins who know how difficult this is!) For instance, this picture below -- (I think) it's really cute of both the girls and I personally love it! And this is what I show people - and they assume I've take 1-2 photos and picked the best one and voila...

that is so not the case - LOL.... so for some evidence I put together this little visual of what the majority of the photos look like when I download them... My favorite one is the bottom left where they're both going in opposite directions (and this is very common!) - especially now that they are both mobile - LOL. The truth of of it is -- whenever I decide to take the girls photos (not just the everyday snapshots - but the ones of them together just looking cute ;) - it usually takes a (minimum) of 20 mins and about 100 shots and I end up with about 8-10 that I like/keep. It would REALLY be helpful to have 2 additional people to help (and sometimes I bribe the older boys to help) so that each baby has someone to place her while I get the camera ready (vs. me trying to get both of them positioned, then get the camera ready - and by that time... one has inevitably moved! heheheh) oh, well, when I'm done I'm out of breath and worn out from all the work... but it's worth it to me to have some fun memories of the girls in these early months :)

and then 2 of the ones that I like :)

Ta-Daaaa

<--- this is such a Nathan stance lately. Whenever he does anything (whether it be good or bad) he is more than enthusiastic when he comes to show it off. For instance, the other week, he got into the pantry and dumped oatmeal ALL over the floor and then danced around in it so it was literally from wall to wall... he then came and got me to show me. When we walked into the pantry, he immediately put both hands outstretched towards (the mess) and proceeded to say "Ta-Daaa!". When I didn't share in his glee, and told him that this was a naughty thing to do, he walked around to the other side of the mess and again said "Ta-daaaa!"... this went on 3 different times until I recognized his messy achievement. He has done "Ta-daaa's" for writing on the counter, writing on the wall, pulling all of the paper cups out and stepping on them, turning on the TV when he's not supposed to, finding a lost item, completeing a new look to Mr. Potato Head, driving a remote control car... well, you get the idea... Even though most of the time, it's to showcase something naughty, it's seriously the cutest thing ever! and I hope it continues on for a bit more....

Also, he's growing up! Granted he's just 2 years and 4 months old but he went through a right of passage this week. Yep, that's right. He had his first playdate! My neighbor has a little girl just a little bit younger than Nathan and she called up on Monday to see if he could come over and play. After confirming that she really indeed want to voluntarily take him into her home to play, we got him bundled up and trekked the one house over. He wasn't quite sure what to think as I dropped him and left but upon his return, Jackie said that the 2 of them did fairly well together :) I snapped this picture as they dropped him off (although it was pretty cold and I think the 2 of them had had enough...) but it's cute nonetheless! He came in and (literally) fell onto the couch and slept for the next 3 hours!

Memories of January 25

Happy Birthday to my Grandpa! Today he would have been 107! Here's a picture from back in 1984 where my family is with he and my grandma (yes, I'm the one with the striped skirt :) He died when I was 13 and since my dad was in the military we didn't get to see them all that often (we'd come out here to Idaho - they lived in Burley) each summer for a visit....

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Also on this day in 1987, I was living in New Jersey and we had just gotten a lot of snow! Behind our house was a HUGE hill - that was affectionally known as the "40 footer" - but who knows how big it really was - LOL.. anyway, it was right before dinner and I wanted to go sledding down the hill a few times before eating... most of the other kids from the neighborhood had all gone in (excpet myself and one other kid). I grabbed one of those saucer sleds and started down. Now, at the bottom of the hilld there were 2 sheds and the object was to go in between the sheds for a free and clear ride. Sometimes you'd get off course and hit the shed (which I had done before)... well, on this particular ride down I could see that I was off course and heading straight for the shed on the left. I stuck out my feet for impact and C.R.U.N.C.H.! I knew immediately that I had done something to my foot. I was in sooooo much pain! I yelled for the other kid to go get my mom and (well, to make a long story short...) I broke the bridge of my foot and dislocated ALL of my toes! The swelling was too much (they had to reset my foot before putting it in a cast) but they couldn't do that until the swelling went down. So for almost 2 weeks I stayed home playing monopoly and other games with my mom :) After the 2 weeks, the swelling still wasn't were they'd like it to be but they were worried that my foot would heal in the wrong position so went ahead and reset it - and that HURT sooooo bad! they hung my foot up by a contraption that looked like a Chinese Finger Trap (but for toes!) and then proceeded to physically put my toes back in the correct sockets - OUCH!!! So anyway, that's me reminiscing about January 25....

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John had drill this weekend so the kids and I were solo at church - not so much fun... but several of the ladies at church jumped right in and helped me out - BIG TIME!! It was August

s first time to pass the Sacrament (he was pretty excited :) - so I didn't have his help and both girls were beginning to fuss and Nathan wasn't being very cooperative! But then a gal 2 rows behind me took Lex for the remainder of Sacrament (and even got her to take a nap!) and then during Sunday School :) And during RS I had several ladies help!! thank you soooo much! I am so thankful for the kindness of my friends to always help me out (and do it willingly and with a smile on their face - LOL).... after church the girls and I took a nap and when they woke up they were just too cute not to take some more pictures of them! (Plus, I had to show daddy what his little girls looked like today at church - since he couldn't be there ;)