Traditions

Thanksgiving was hard this year. I'm usually not very bothered about being away from my family on Turkey Day because I know Christmas is right around the corner and I'll get to be with them then. Also, spending time with JD helps ease the pain of being separated from my loved ones in Texas. But, this year JD worked all day and Lindsey was in Utah with me so I think some of her longing for home rubbed off on me. On the night before Thanksgiving, Lindsey, JD, and I watched For Love of the Game (one of my Dad's favorites) on Netflix. The movie is a tear-jerker for sure, but Lindsey and I didn't really lose it until the credits started rolling and we remembered how much we missed Dad. We just lay on the floor and cried. (Confession: I had to Google the proper present/past tense of lay/lie. It's confusing and I'm pretty sure I misuse those words a lot. Embarrassing!)  Needless to say, I'm so grateful we have modern technology to keep connected!

Despite missing my family of origin, I find a lot of joy in the multi-step process of creating my own little family.  One way JD and I are doing that is by integrating his family traditions with mine. Right now, I'm reading a book about being intentional with how you spend your time with your family. I've been thinking a lot about how I can apply some of the author's ideas in my life. One thing I want my children to know is how much JD and I cherish our families. I want them to love both families equally and know how much we honor and respect them. Whenever we decorate our Christmas tree, I am intentionally going to take the opportunity to talk about our families.

Peace for the mothers.

On Saturday night, my family attended the holiday party hosted by my work at Utah's Hogle Zoo. We saw the Zoo Lights display and had the chance to visit with Santa and Mrs. Clause! Tenley wasn't too nervous sitting on his lap and only got the slightest hint of a worried look when we stepped back to get the picture. While we were waiting in line, we had the opportunity to write a note to Santa asking him for something special on our Christmas wish list. . . 

Gay, innocent, and heartless.

I mentioned before that I recently read J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan. The characters must have been on my mind a lot because they seemed like the only suitable thing we could be for Halloween. With less coaxing than I first anticipated I would need, I easily convinced JD to don green tights as part of his Peter costume (he loves Halloween. . .) And then, obviously, Tenley was Tinkerbell and I was Wendy. 

Here's a few darling pictures paired with some of my favorite quotes from the book. 

(Sorry the photos are terribly grainy and low quality. I can't seem to figure out why!)

"When the first baby laughed for the first time, its laugh broke into a thousand pieces, and they all went skipping about, and that was the beginning of fairies." -Peter

 "A cradle is such a nice homely thing to have about a house." -Wendy

"There is nothing more pleasant of an evening for you and me when the day's toil is over than to rest by the fire with the little ones near by." -Peter to Wendy

10 Things Right Now | Tenley

1. Tenley has recently started walking with her hands right out in front of her like a zombie. It's so silly, but appropriate for Halloween, I guess?

2. Speaking of "appropriate for Halloween," she finally has two teeth growing in. . . but they're her upper lateral incisors. . . so basically she's going to look like a baby vampire soon!

3. She got a few push toys for her birthday, but she prefers picking them up and carrying them over pushing them in front of her. I'm impressed all the time with how strong she is.

4. Her hair is long enough for ponies and piggies and I'm a little bit obsessed with doing her hair.

5. She's drinking whole milk now instead of formula and I'm flabbergasted by how fast that gallon of milk disappears (I suspect more than one whole-milk-drinking-culprit in my house. . . *insert accusatory eyes*)

6. Sometimes she swings her arms in front of her when she walks around the house, as if to say, "ho, hum, what should I do?"

7. She sat with the people in the row behind us at church on Sunday (for about half the meeting) because she kept reaching over and wanting to play with them. Luckily, JD knew them because the daughter was in one of his tennis classes this past summer. 

8. Tenley is crazy about phones. She seems to always figure out a way to sneak our phones from us and start pushing buttons. She does not like it when we try to take them back. JD and I feel a little guilty about her obsession because, the truth of the matter is, she must have learned it from somewhere!

9. She has done really well at all the football games we've been taking her to this season. She seems content to people watch and hang out with her 'rents.

10. Lately, she has been so cuddly when she's sleepy. It's the cutest thing ever and I can never get enough of her sweet baby smell. 

10 Things Right Now | Summer

1. I've been reading the original Peter Pan for several weeks, but keep forgetting about it. Every time I spend a few minutes in the pages of Neverland, I'm filled with childlike wonder and awe. It really is magic. I'm going to finish the book this week. 

2. I haven't scrapbooked in months. This is very unlike me and I miss the creative outlet terribly. Each week, I have good intentions of getting some pages done. . . but then scrapping seems to repeatedly fall to the bottom of my "to-do list."

3. A lot of things seem to keep falling to the bottom of that list (not to mention just dropping off completely. . .) Mostly, I've just been playing and snuggling with my little one because I know someday I'll miss these days terribly. I sometimes use "cuddling time" as an excuse not to get anything else done ;) 

4. I wear the charm bracelet JD got me for my birthday/our anniversary almost daily. I love it.

5. Whenever I'm in Provo for BYU games or sister visits, I long to be back. I miss being a student. But when I think about the situation logically, I realize I'm older than most people on campus and it's okay for that chapter of my life to be over. It's simultaneously heartbreaking and thrilling. 

6. I really enjoy watching college football. 

7. JD recently convinced me to invest in the Adobe Creative Suite 6. I am both intimidated and excited by the thought of learning how to use all this new design software.

8. I recently re-discovered how much I enjoy Hershey's cookies-and-cream chocolate bars.

9. It's hard to believe my little brother returns home from his two-year church service mission this week. Argentina was lucky to have him, but we're so excited to get him back!

10. I started feeling really yucky on Friday night. When I woke up on Saturday, I could hardly move I felt so terrible. JD had been looking forward to camping all week and I didn't want to rain on his parade so we decided to go anyway. I was a little nervous, but it ended up being a very good decision. I just took it easy while JD did all the work of preparing food and managing camping gear. . . and somehow the fresh air and smell of the wild cured me. On Sunday, I was totally back to normal!

 (This picture is so funny to me! Gotta love that wild bed-head camping hair.)

Birthday for the babe.

Our little lady turned one on Friday and we had a few friends and family members over to celebrate. I made taco soup and JD prepared an incredible video montage of her first year that we watched with our guests. Tenley was showered with gifts and love; we are so grateful for all the people around us who love her so dearly!

I sewed her a party dress with some darling red and blue prints. Those ruffles! The Peter Pan collar! A matching bow! I die. I didn't want to deal with a zipper and/or buttons in the back. . . so it was a bit of a tight squeeze over her head. . . but, man, I definitely love me a good handmade outfit :)

Rather than pick a "theme" for the party, I opted for colors. It was easier for me to plan and make decisions that way. 

Fall in Utah.

Last Friday evening, my family drove up a canyon near our home. . . and oh. my. gosh. the sights were breathtakingly beautiful. The fall in Utah is so pretty! I'll go ahead and add "autumn" to the list of things I'll miss when we leave. 

Being up there reminded me of all the beauty that surrounds me and how much I have to be grateful for. The last week or so has been a bit rough for me. I've been discouraged by the government shutdown in the US, overwhelmed by the unknowns of the future, crestfallen by my husband's rejection letters from P.A. schools, disheartened by all the negative, horrible things happening on the news, and feeling mostly just low-spirited in general. I sometimes get this way. I'm one who feels things deeply and, on occasion, the sadness of the world just sits heavy on my heart. That's why I need nights in the canyon :) To be reminded of the earth's beauty. To remember the joy that can be found in the little things. To feel God close to me. 

(It also helps to have a dashingly attractive man and sweet-spirited babe around to ease my troubled heart!)