Baby Shower

I am posting this in my blog because I know that there are a few blog stalkers out there. We are having a baby shower for my sister Sara, who is having twins, on Dec 29th in the evening. If any of you are interested in coming, email me your address and I will get you an invite. My email is aelledge13@yahoo.com. I know that she would love to see you, even if it has been awhile, so don't be shy!!!

Favorite Christmas Toys

Two years ago I saw this little peoples Nativity at Walmart (it has more parts, but I couldn't find them).

It has since become the favorite Christmas decoration for the girls, especially Abby. She spends all day playing with these guys. She loves that she knows their names and she will read them stories and carry them around the house. I have found the Baby Jesus stuffed in her pocket many times already this year. So last week when Alex was at Target, he saw this playmobile set he bought it and gave it to the girls.

They were beyond excited. It is so funny to hear them play with them, especially when there is drama. Mary and Joseph have broken up many times already this week (I have no idea where Olivia gets this idea, but it is popular when she plays Barbies also). I love that my kids know that we celebrate Christmas because of the Baby Jesus and that they know all the people involved in that amazing story. I hope that these continue to be a favorite at our house.

An unrelated, but funny picture. I asked Abby what she was doing and she told me "family means nobody gets left behind" I guess we have been watching too much Lilo and Stitch!!! This picture cracks me up-no pun intended Ariel!!!

Run-Don't Walk!!!

Seriously, I was so excited when I saw this. Our budget lately doesn't include many fast food stops, especially the more pricey ones like Panda Express. Now I can make this at home any day!!! We tried this last night for dinner and it was awesome!! Even Olivia said that it was so spicy, but she couldn't stop eating because it was so good. Go out and get some today-we got ours at Costco.

Sisters!!

Just tonight after we put the girls to bed, I kept hearing them in their room giggling. Olivia would say something and Abby would laugh so hard. It was cute, but I really wanted them to fall asleep already. I turned to Alex and said, " I really wish they would just be quiet and fall asleep". To this he replied-" I wonder how many times your Mom said that about you and your sister". Well played dear husband!!!

I remember so many times being threatened with sleeping outside with the goats if I didn't stop talking and go to sleep. So, sorry Mom for never listing and sorry Sara for constantly keeping you up talking and laughing. Don't think that I have stopped either. Alex knows that when I say I'm going to bed-it really means that 30 minutes later I will stop talking about my day and finally fall asleep. I think that it is at times like that that he really wonders what he got himself into 9 years ago when he asked me to marry him!!

Halloween

So, I have been a little behind lately. I think I have had the flu or something for the last 2 weeks. Every time I start to feel better, I try and do to much and it shuts me back down. So that is my excuse for being 3 weeks late posting Halloween pictures.

Olivia informed me about 2 months ago that she wanted to be Taylor Swift for Halloween. She was very concerned that her hair didn't look the same and that she was too short to look like TS. It took a lot of convincing that she didn't have to look JUST like her, just close enough. She turned out very happy with the costume, so that is all that mattered!! Abby wore the little bo peep costume that I made for Olivia a few years ago. Olivia was little bo peep and Abby was a little sheep. Abby was very upset that Owen didn't fit the little sheep costume, until we found her little sheep doll that Grandma gave her a few years ago. That made everything better. So, I debated for a long time about Owens costume. I really hoped that the sheep costume would fit him, but when we got out the Halloween stuff, it was way too small. I didn't want to spend a lot of money on a costume that he would wear for 30 minutes. Then I found on one of my craft blogs this cute little peter pan costume and I have almost all of the felt already so I got busy. I think it turned out so cute, and though he looks less than impressed, he kept it on all night and didn't take off the hat once. Has anyone else noticed how similar peter pan and robin hood dress. Olivia pointed that one out to me and kept calling Owen Robin Hoood. Luckily, my Mom could come with me to the ward Halloween party because Alex was out hunting again-he always seems to miss the Halloween parties.

Owen really wanted a muffin!! How cute is that face!!

We went trick or treating on Halloween night with some friends in the neighborhood, but I didn't take a single picture that night-what a horrible mom!!! They had so much fun and got a lot of candy that we are still rationing!! Olivia is already planning her costume for next year.

Busy

Man-we have been busy lately!! My class is almost over and it has been a lot harder than I thought it would be. Owen is starting to crawl all over. I forgot how easily they find every. little. thing. on the floor and put it in their mouth. I have had to adjust to another little crawler in our house. He is the cutest thing ever and we love how much he laughs and giggles. The girls just adore him. I have also tried to get some crafting in. I have lots of projects started for Christmas gifts already so I can't post pictures until after Christmas-but they are turning out cute so far. I did find this craft on Not So Idle Hands blog and had everything on hand to make it so I got started. The girls even helped to paint the tops green and had so much fun. I think that they turned out pretty cute.

Here is a picture of the little guy sitting up straight. He rarely does this because he would rather be on the go.

Super baby to the rescue!!

Just Because

Here are some super cute pics of the kids-I love them!!!

Semper Fi

My little Brother has always said the he wanted to be in the military like my Dad (my Dad was in the Army reserves while he finished Nursing school) so it was not much of a surprise when he joined the Marines last Summer. He finished OTC last Summer and then finished his degree at ASU in May. Because he was in a different track than most officers (ok, can you tell I couldn't really figure out what was going on) he was commissioned by himself a few weeks ago in a building downtown. It was really fun to go and watch this, it made me so proud to be an American and so proud of my Brother for his choice to serve our country. Sometimes I still think of him as the awkward teenage boy that he was in high school so it surprises me when I see him do this and realize how grown up and mature he is. We are going to miss him when he leaves for training school in March.

We had to wait in the hallway until they were ready for us, so Aaron was showing Olivia and Meghan the proper way to salute-I'm not sure they caught on-but they sure look cute!!

Here is Aaron taking the pledge to defend our constitution.

They had my Mom pin on one bar and Aaron's wife Chelsea pin on the other.

Aaron with my Mom and his wife.

The whole crew. The officer that was in charge said that it was the biggest crowd he had ever seen for a commissioning. We are so proud of our Marine!!!

Trip-Part 3

The next week we left Utah to head on up to Wyoming. This house used to belong to my Grandparents before they passed away. It carries so many memories for me because I used to come her every summer for family vacation. It has not changed at all, all of the furniture is the same so it is kind of like being in a time warp.

Daddy and Owen relaxing on the couch.

I love this picture-Alex was trying to wrestle with Owen and Owen just kept staring at him like-what are you doing??

My Sister and her kids came up for 5 days with us. This is Warren with smore all over his face.

This is why we love to come to Wyoming in the summer, it is still cool enough in the evenings to put on long sleeves and have a weenie roast. The kids loved cooking their own hot dogs and of course they loved the smores!!

Alex and Owen enjoying the fire.

Trip-Part 2

The next day we got up and finished the drive to Utah. We love going to Utah because my favorite Sister lives there with her family and Alex's parents also live there so we get to visit with both of them.

We went to a park by Grandma and Grandpas house for their ward breakfast on the 4th.

That night we went to my sisters house for a BBQ and fireworks. Abby loved the sparklers.

The best part was the homemade strawberry ice cream with strawberries from the Bodilys Garden. We had such a good time in Utah with friends and family-Thanks for letting us come and stay!!

Trip Part 1-Vegas

I was worried about driving all the way to Utah with Owen being so little so we decided to break it up and stay a night in Las Vegas. We got a great deal on a room and stayed at the Excalibur. The girls loved staying in a castle. During the day we walked around to all the shops inside the hotel and I took the girls swimming in the pool while Alex and Owen took naps.

Here is Owen practising to be a Viking.

That evening we took the kids down the strip-we didn't get far because it was hot and the girls were so tired. We did stop and watch the Bellagio Fountain-the girls loved it.

We also stopped at the M&M factory store. I think that we will do this every time. It was a nice and cheap break from the long drive.

Growing

My little boy in growing!! We went to the doctor yesterday and he is now a whopping 18 lbs and 28 in. long. This puts him in the 80th percentile for weight and head circ. and 105 percentile for height. I thought because he is so big that he would be slow to move, but he can get everywhere now. He can roll, spin and scoot as well as get up on his hands and knees and rock. I can't believe how fast the time has gone by. He is such a good baby and we all just adore him. Lately in the evenings-we turn off the tv and just sit around and laugh at him. He has the best giggle and belly laugh. He has such a sweet little spirit and the other day Olivia told me that Heavenly Father must have sent us Owen because He knew how much she would love him. I don't think that I could have put it better myself. We love Owen!!!

Giveaway

I saw this giveaway and totally want to win.

"Giveaway at Apron Girls sponsored by great cookware and beautiful desks!"

Wish me luck!!

Randomness

Here is just some random pictures of the things that we have been up to.


Alex usually takes the girls to bed after stories and prayers. He lets them pick how they want to go. They pick random things like carrying them upside-down, piggyback rides, horsey rides or whatever else they can think of. They picked horsey rides, but wanted Owen to go to. He was laying on the floor, so Alex just picked him up with his teeth and started going. Contrary to this picture-he loved it at first. Just when I got the camera out he started crying. It was so funny!!

We went to story time at our library and they had a guy from the Arizona balloon company who told stories with the balloons and if he picked you to help-you got to keep your balloon. Olivia was picked as the crazy octopus.

Of course Abby wanted a try!!

Whoa!! My family is crazy!! ( I seriously love this picture-what is with his hand??? Every time I put him in the swing he puts his hand up like this. He looks like he is trying to give himself a knukle sandwich.)

Alex cuts his own hair and the other day I came out of our room and this is what I saw. He recruited Olivia to help him with the back. Doesn't she look like "what, I do this everyday" She was in heaven and did a really good job.

Here is her in action.

And last-here is a great picture that I got with all 3 kids. Aren't they cute!!!

Great News

We just got news today that Alex is going to be recalled!! This means that he will have a job next year. He is not sure what school he will be at, or what he will be teaching, but it is nice to know that he has a job. This is such a weight lifted off our family. Now we are going to have an awesome summer without worry!!

Chain Mail

My brother-in-law Mike has just picked up an unusual hobby. He is making chain mail!! It is pretty cool and super heavy. Olivia was just dying to try it on. Don't you think she would make a cute little warrior!! This is obviously not finished yet, but it is going to be the tunic and hat. We jokingly called this his man crochet project. I have no idea what he is planning on doing with this, but it will be pretty cool when it is all done.

Owens Blessing

This last week we were able to bless Owen. Alex's Parents and brother drove down from Utah to be here. We had such a fun weekend with them and the blessing was awesome. After Church, we had everyone here at our house for lunch and to hang out. I feel so blessed to have such good family and I feel extra blessed that I married into an amazing family.

Here are my cute kids. Grandma Elledge made that little vest for Owen to wear. He was supposed to be blessed 3 weeks ago, so it was a little snug, but adorable.

Our cute little family!!

All the men in my life. Aren't they handsome!!

The Boy

Poor Owen is not going to know his own name. The girls refer to him as brother and Alex calls him "the boy". We vary rarely call him Owen. Maybe this will change in the future-who knows. He just keeps getting cuter everyday and learning new things. He has started to grab at everything-including hair which is very annoying. He has also started sleeping longer during the night-hallelujah. I almost feel normal again. Here are some more pictures of the boy.

New Baby + Hospital= No Fun

When Owen woke up on Friday morning, he felt hot to me so I took his temperature. It was only 100.8, I didn't think much of it and was going to give him some Tylenol. I called the nurse and the pediatricians office just to see if it was ok to give to a newborn and how much I should give him. She told me that I needed to get him to the ER right away. So, I called my friend Sommer and she was great and let the girls come over to hang out so that I didn't have to take them too. I didn't think this was a big deal and thought that they would look at him and send us home-not so much. They started freaking out as soon as I got there-we had a room within 5 min. and the dr started ordering all kinds of tests. Then the poking began. They could not find a good place to draw blood or start an IV so they just poked the crud out of my little guy. Four different nurses came and tried with no luck. The ER dr was getting really mad because they hadn't drawn any blood yet so he called the pediatrician on duty who came and got the blood from his jugular vein (even he had to try both sides). So now it about noon (we got there are 7:30) and my poor little guy has been stabbed in both hands, both arms, both ankles, both feet and both sides of his neck. He has also had a catheter to draw urine and a spinal tap. Then they gave him shots of antibiotics in both legs. He had bandaids all over his little body.

The pediatrician then tells us that we are going to be transferred and staying for the rest of the day on Friday and all day on Saturday. It was at this point that I had Alex call his family and tell them not to come (we were going to bless him on Sunday and everyone was coming). We then got to take an ambulance ride over to Thunderbird Hospital. When we got there-they pretty much ignored us for the next 24 hours. They would come take his vitals every 4 hours and other than that-they left us alone. I got alot of grown up tv watching in and actually took a good nap. After begging the pediatrician, they let us come home on Saturday night. They never could find anything wrong with him and he seems fine. It was a stressfull weekend, but we are home now and doing good. Thanks to everyone that helped us out with babysitting and giving blessings-we feel lucky to have such good friends and family nearby.

My Lazy Girl

When my Mother-in-law was here are few weeks ago, she bought the girls some kites at the store and helped them fly them in the front yard. Olivia had so much fun-but she got tired after a while. This is one of my favorite pictures.

Good thinking girl-why stand when you can lay down. That's the Wolfley side coming through. She makes me proud!!!

Easter

The girls had a great Easter this year. For me, it was a little stressful. My mother-in-law had just left so I had all 3 kids by myself for the first time and trying to do all the fun Easter activities almost made me crazy. Next year I will try and spread some of the activities throughout the week rather than all on the same day. We made sugar cookies and dyed eggs and tried to have a lesson on why we celebrate Easter all the same day. Here are some pictures of the girls (sorry that they are naked pictures. Between potty training and the dye-we went without). They loved to color on the eggs.

We had a little photo shoot on Sunday Morning before Church in their new Easter dresses. I forgot Owen because he was in sleeping.

On Sunday we went to my parents house for dinner and an egg hunt-it was fun now that there are more cousins and some older cousins to help. Everyone had a great time!!