We wish you a Merry Christmas!

^^My boys' love for snow is just about as strong as my love for it. It just makes me so happy when it snows♥^^


^^Making gingerbread cookies with my boys was so fun! And so messy! They loved it!! I'm so lucky that I get to do these kinds of things with them.^^


^^Our house looked so perfectly Christmassy on Christmas Day! The fresh snow made me so happy!^^


^^Sledding on Christmas Day! It was so perfect. Crew loved it. I never want to live anywhere else than Liberty Lake.^^


^^T'was the night before Christmas. Getting all the presents under the tree while it softly snowed outside is so much fun. Christmas really is the best time of the year♥^^


^^I realized as I was making this pie the day before Christmas Eve that I've never made a pumpkin pie in my entire life 😬 And I can't even take credit for this one because my mom puréed the pumpkin when she was here in October and she also made me pie crust and left it all in the freezer for me. Lucky me! It turned out perfectly 👌🏻^^


^^Crew, basically running these days. He is so fast!^^


^^My house decorated at Christmas is probably my favorite ever! I never want to take it down!!^^


^^This one makes me laugh! Logan was not sure what to think of Santa. He would not smile but he wasn't really scared to sit on his lap!^^


^^Oh Crew, I love you so much ♥^^


^^It was our first time putting up Christmas lights on our house and Steve did such a great job! His dad helped him. I loved it so much! Next year, I want to wrap light around the sky pencil holly trees on each side of our steps ♥^^

A Savior is Born

Merry Christmas! As time goes on, my life seems to go by faster and faster. But at the same time, things seem to become clearer and clearer for me. At this time of year as I reflect on the birth of my Savior, I can't help but have my heart swell up with love for Him.

The past couple years I've had a few experiences in my life where I feel like my relationship with my Savior has been strengthened. Now more than ever before I know that He lives! He is real and He is really there, listening and answering my prayers. My mind has always known this, but my heart has just now finally caught up.

As I've gotten older, it's become more clear to me that life isn't about how many times you go to the temple, or if you read your scriptures for an hour or more a day. Those are great things but if you do them and your heart isn't changed, then really it was just a waste of time. No, it's not about checking off all the conference talks once you've read them, or visiting teaching. It's about a change of heart, where your will is aligned with God's will. You have faith in Him and His timing. It's a choice to have faith in Him and to do the things that will bring you closer to Him.

These things are so easy to say but doing them and actually feeling it in your heart is a different story. It's something that has finally clicked for me but even with that, it does not mean that I don't have to keep putting effort into feeling it. I love my Savior and I will never be able to put into words what He means to me. I hope that one day my children will be able to gain a testimony of their Savior too ♥

Merry Merry Christmas ♥

Thanksgiving in Utah 2017

Halloween 2017!

A storm trooper, a ninja turtle and a baby dinosaur!! The cutest I've ever seen! I have definitely gotten out of the habit of the family costumes :/ But oh well. It gets harder as the family gets older and as your kids start having opinions haha. Cole knew he wanted to be a storm trooper and Logan knew he wanted to be a ninja turtle so I didn't fight. Their costumes looked pretty dang cute on them so I didn't mind. And it just made sense for Crew to be a dinosaur since that was the theme of his birthday party the week before.

Steve and I were "party animals" LOL. No body really got it but oh well. We just needed something simple to dress up as to go to our friends annual Halloween party. It was fun and we went trick or treating through our neighborhood from their house. It was all fun and games until we lost Cole for about 10 minutes and I was so worried! I know I've said it before, but Cole has a great sense of direction and knew where he was going the whole time! He had just run ahead with one of his friends and lost the rest of us. When his friend realized that they were lost he started crying and Cole told him to just say a prayer but Cole says that they were never able to say a prayer because his friend was crying too much haha. I was just proud of him for thinking to say a prayer in his time of need. He is such a sweet a boy and I love him so much ♥

Happy Halloween!!!! It's always been one of my favorite holidays!

A very special 31st birthday!

 ^^I love that Crew and I will always be birthday buddies♥^^

My parents came to visit us for my birthday and for Crew's first birthday too! It was so much fun!! I had my mom to myself for the whole week leading up to my birthday and my dad came on the weekend before and the weekend of my birthday and we just had a blast! We were trying to remember the last time that we had celebrated my birthday together and we figured out that it was when I turned 19!! CRAZY! I guess that's just how it is when you become an adult ;)

In the morning, my mom made us a delicious birthday breakfast: German pancakes which I haven't had in so long! Even my boys loved it. And everyone went around the table and said what they loved about me. Steve and my parents are so thoughtful and I remember thinking how nice it was so know that I was loved by these people that I love so much!

After Crew's little birthday celebration here at home, we went to The Old Spaghetti Factory for dinner (my favorite!) with Steve's parents. We came home and had homemade pumpkin pie that my mom made! She even steamed the pumpkin herself and made the pumpkin puree and it was seriously amazing! And she made me brownies!! I wasn't kidding when I said she spoiled me rotten. Having my parents live in the states now has been such a dream come true.

My parents were also able to be here for the boys' primary program. It was Logan's first time and he did such a good job! I was so proud of him. He went right up to the pulpit and clearly said his line that he memorized. And it wasn't a short line either! It was longer than Cole's! Sometimes I am just so amazed with my kids because I know they didn't get their bravery from me. I'm pretty sure I was the kid in sunbeams who refused to go up to the pulpit haha. Cole did a great job too. We are so proud of him because he sang all the songs so well and he is setting such a great example for Logan to follow.

On my parents' last day here, we went to Liberty Lake County Park for a little nature walk. We didn't get too far because I don't have a hiking backpack to put Crew in and he wasn't loving being in the sling. But the weather was just perfect and could not be beat. Spokane in the fall is heavenly.

My mom says that she plans to make it a tradition to come stay with my the week of my birthday every year! Wouldn't that be amazing!! I seriously feel so lucky. I have wonderful family all around me; I could not be more blessed ♥