The Frog Princess

I just saw the new Disney movie "The Princess and the Frog" tonight with my sis-in-law (thanks Kalei!) and I loved, loved, LOVED it! It was so cute and sweet and I wish they would make more movies like it. It reminded me of the princess/fairy tale Disney classics I watched when I was a kid.

Forts

Jaxon found a new place for a fort -- in the dryer!!

"Exterior Illumination"

"You taught me everything I know about exterior illumination."

-Clark Griswald, Christmas Vacation

This post is for my Mom who really did teach me everything I know about "exterior illumination"! (If you have ever seen my parents' house, you will know what I am talking about!) My Mom puts up over 20,000 lights on their house every year (and yes, that is more than Chevy Chase in Christmas Vacation!) Their house has even been in the newspaper. (And by the way Mom, the house looks great this year, as usual.)

Since I didn't put up any Christmas lights last year, I figured I better get on it early this year. I put them all by myself and I even put lights on our mailbox!

(I did have some extra support from Jaxon. He was BIG help (catch the sarcasm?!)) (And no, I really don't let my 15-month old climb ladders yet!)

I haven't hit the 20,000 mark yet but Shane did ask me if we were living in the Griswald's house this year so I figured I had done my Mom proud!All in all, I am very proud of myself. I even had a neighbor girl tell me that our house looked like a "gingerbread house"!

Thanksgiving 2009

We had a great Thanksgiving weekend up in Jackson (even though it was absolutely FREEZING so we had to dress warmer than ususal! (I have become such a wimp since I've been living in Utah! Whatever happened to my Wyoming blood?!!)).

We played games, ate GREAT food, and just relaxed. And Jax loved it up at Grandma and Grandpa's house because there are so many fun things to get in to!!

And most importantly we got to spend quality time with the fam including my parents, 5 (large!) dogs, and my sister Lacey and her husband Todd who announced that they are going to have a baby in June!

Congrats you guys! We are so excited to have another little cousin for Jax!!

And thanks Mom and Dad for putting up with us all weekend and for, once again, taking care of us! We love you tons!

MAJOR Home Improvements

A couple of weekends ago, my family came to visit and my Dad helped us (once again) with a MAJOR home improvement project -- putting in hardwood floors! (or laminate floors that look like wood.)

Anyway, if any of you have been to my house you know how bad our floors were. The carpet in the living room was threadbare and stained and the linoleum in the kitchen had to be stripped each time I mopped to get the dirt out. So, we were SO excited to get new flooring! And the best part was -- it was all free!! My Dad was remodeling a house and got to keep the old flooring. And he put it in for free too! It looks fantastic and we cannot thank my Dad enough for all his hard work. Our house would have fallen apart by now if it wasn't for him.

(Plus Jaxon loves to help with the tools and driving Papa's truck!)

Jaxon absolutely LOVES the new floors because his trucks drive so much better on laminate than carpet. I think he thinks we did it just for him! (isn't everything though?!)

He also loves when we pull him around on a blanket or pillow. Slippery floors are so much more fun!

He even likes the new arrangement of furniture because he has figured out how to drive his trucks behind the couch. It is like a tunnel for him!

Even Kaysley digs the new floor!

(And I love my new rug, pillows, and clock if you couldn't tell!)

It was a fun weekend too because Lacey and Todd also came to stay for a night. Lacey was playing in a volleyball tournament up at USU. We got to watch some of her games and Jaxon even learned how to clap his hands and cheer. Granted, he clapped even when the opposing team scored but at least he got the general idea.

We also got to celebrate my Dad's birthday together. We went out to dinner, opened presents, and had Cold Stone cakes (my favorite!) I hope you had a great birthday Dad! We love you tons and so appreciate all your hard work!

Congratulations!

I'm totally behind on doing this since it happened almost a month ago, but we just wanted to say congratulations to Shane's brother Craig and his fiancee Kari on their engagement. We are so excited for you and are looking forward to having Kari as part of the family!!

Standing, Talking, and Cheering!

Even with as much as I love my little Jaxon, this past year has definitely been difficult. Jaxon is an extremely "spirited" child and has a major case of separation anxiety which means he can never be more than 5 feet from me. He never slept through the night until he was 9 months old and before that he woke up every 2 to 3 hours. However, I think the past 2 months have made up for this in some way because I cannot believe how cute and fun he has been! He is growing into such a little person and is learning and developing so quickly.

In the last few weeks he has started standing on his own. He crouches down and then slowly stands up with a huge smile on his face! He is SO proud of himself! And just last week he learned how to clap and cheer so now every time he stands up (or takes a couple of steps) we all have to clap and cheer. He could be walking right now but is still really cautious about that.

And all of sudden he has started really talking. He calls all of his toys "trucks", he says "go" for dog, and "cracker" is all of his food (which he pronounces "crack"). And some days he just starts jabbering away. My favorite is when he first wakes up and I can hear him just chattering to his crib.

He is really fun to play with now too. He loves to play with his trucks and cars (but he definitely likes it better when Daddy plays with him because he makes better truck noises!)

And he loves to play "tickle monster" and has the sweetest laugh when you get him going.