We went to a fun little party at Gary's preschool last night. They had the kids sing a couple songs, Gary was the most bouncy one of the bunch. He thoroughly expressed his joy through movement! You'd never known that earlier that day when the teacher announced they'd be working on their songs he said, "No, thanks!" But, hey, at least he's polite! Afterwards we decorated gingerbread cookies. The 
kids took their time and made very handsome little men!
First of all, I want to thank everyone that drove down and those nearby that came to Liv's dance recital. I felt very loved having such a great support group there for her! She did a great job! She started off a little rocky since she got stepped on by a tap shoe right before the show was to start. She was pretty sad, but went on stage and did her best on the tap routine until she got kicked by another tap shoe (on accident of course). She was hurt and wanted to run to me, but she braved through it and finished the routine! I was very proud of her succeeded at her first "the show must go on" experience! She did especially well at the ballet routine (below), she loved that dance and it was easy to see! I'm very happy that we found something that she enjoys and can shine at!
My sweet honey had another birthday! He actually got to celebrate for two days! While we were in Salt Lake we went to see the new Disney princess movie, Tangled. The kids were super excited about 
the movie when they saw previews, so Todd, being the softy he his, told the kids all he wanted for his birthday was tickets to see Tangled. So we gave him the tickets and invited a bunch of his friends to go with us. I appreciate Todd's friends,they are awesome! Afterwards we went to the nearest ice cream shop for ice cream cake. Unfortunately we weren't the only ones with such an idea, so it was a bit of a wait to purchase the cake. But luckily a restaurant across the way had the BYU/UTAH game on it's big screen TV, so Todd and his guests were able to watch the end of the game. What a close one! (The Y didn't win, but Todd had fun anyways, he's a good sport). We went home to Toquerville that night, so he didn't have to travel on his actual special day. That night we had dinner with a handful of his family! I think he had a good birthday, I sure hope so... he deserves it!
I haven't been taking as many pictures lately, but I do still enjoy it. Although this little one, even though she's usually my friend, was not happy with me at all. I think it was the big camera I kept pointing at her. But once we got her grandma there we got some smiles, well... at least no more tears, from her! Click here to see more.
I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We had a great time celebrating in Salt Lake with the Montgomerys. I failed at writing what I was grateful for everyday this month, but that didn't mean 
I didn't think about it everyday. So here's the bottom line... I am grateful for all of my family members, but especially that my Grandma Norma is recovering well from her heart surgery! I still
want her around for several more years! I am grateful for my dear husbandand my sweet children. I am grateful I am pregnant againand I am excited to see what type of personality she develops! I am grateful for all the blessings I have and the great people that are in my life. I know it's more broad then if I had written it daily, but there is so much I am grateful for... just know that I am! I love that my Grandma Norma hosts family parties for the main holidays, it is so fun to have these traditions. I remember sitting at the kids table with my cousins and developing friendships there, and now I get to watch my kids do the same thing with they're cousins. I love Thanksgiving, and now I'm looking forward to Christmas (as are my kids with immense anticipation!)
The kids were super excited to see snow when we arrived at my dad's place in Salt Lake City. Me, not so excited. But I love to see my kiddos having fun so while we were up there I bundled them all up and took them out for some quality time with the snow. Liv dove right in and made a snow angel (she's come a long way from the toddler that wouldn't even put a finger near the stuff)! Gary boy 
started building a tower which turned out to be the mountain with Toquerville Rock on it. They had fun throwing snow. Liv threw it in the air while I was Gary's main target... trouble maker. In the end, all this only lasted five, maybe ten minutes tops, and then they were too cold and ready to go back inside. I guess they're spoiled with the warmer side of Southern Utah living!
So, I'm really not good at doing this on a daily basis, but oh well, cause I still think about it every day and come up with something new each day... it just takes longer to get on blogger and write them down! Anyways, for day 
#10 I am grateful for ultrasounds! Today we were able to see our little GIRL! She is already a big tease. When we first started the ultrasound she had her ankles crossed and her hand between her legs, so we were thinking we may not even get a peek! But with a whole lot of poking she moved her hand, but still we'd get her to open her legs for a second then she'd snap them shut. But it because obvious that there weren't any extra appendages and that she did have girly parts! Yay! Both kiddos are happy to be getting a little sister!
I was determined not to fall behind on this little project of mine, but I did nonetheless. Oh well! I'm going to do this backwards though, I guess... #6 - I am grateful for Fall Daylight Savings! I know it's hard to adjust every time this comes around, but taking my time getting out of bed because of the extra hour this morning felt wonderful!
I wanted to make sure I posted about Halloween, so I decided to express my gratitude for holidays. I love them, all of them! They give us a chance to break from the every day routine and have some fun! Halloween is one of my
favorites... it's fun to dress up and be someone or thing different, you get candy, and it's like the kick off of the winter holidays! I love Thanksgiving cause you can get together with all of you family and eat yummy food... it's like Christmas, but without the stress of getting the right present for everyone! And then there's Christmas, which is special for so many reasons! But I especially
enjoy Halloween in southern Utah because I don't have to pile on layers of clothing to keep my kids warm while trick-or-treating! All we've needed is a light jacket & this year we had gloves too. It's nice! I hope all of your holidays, especially Thanksgiving, are awesome!
What can I say, my family is my #1! I am so grateful that I have two wonderful children (and one on the way). Liv is an angel (most of the time), she loves school and learning. She's not very talkative in class but she absorbs everything. She loves to write her own stories and play with her dolls. She's got a close group of friends at school that the counselor calls the "Tea Party Girls" cause their quiet and keep to themselves. I'm so happy to see her being social! Gary boy is anything but shy! He is a ball full of energy... ALL of the time! So he's a bit more of a handful, especially for his teachers, but I'm happy for it because he has so much personality! He has this extreme imagination that it's hard to keep up with hat he's got going on in his mind. He's always making gun and car sounds, I'm impressed by what sounds he can make! He is his daddy & grandpa's shadow... I can't wait to see what he ends up doing when he "grows up"! This little baby that has yet to arrive, I am so grateful that we will be blessed with another angel! I'm excited to see what this child will be like and how he/she will fit into our family! And them, most importantly, I am very very grateful for my sweet husband! Todd and I have been married for over 7 years now! We have had our ups and downs and I feel like we are doing better now then ever! I can honestly say he is my better half! He keeps my head on straight and is incredibly patient with me! I think he deserves a medal for being my husband! I am grateful for his hard work at school and providing for our family all these years!
This last weekend I was able to take pictures of my good friends little family! Hunter, her little one, wasn't so sure about me since normally when he sees me it's cause I'm babysitting him while his momma is at work. So he didn't warm up to me until the end, but we were able to get some fun shots anyways! Click here for more of their pictures.
A couple weeks ago (on July 14th) we celebrated Liv's 6th birthday! It's hard to imagine it's been six years since my princess arrived, but she sure acts like a 6-year-old! For her birthday she chose a Mario theme since she LOVES the
Mario Party games and the new Super Mario Bros on the Wii! Since in Mario Party they play mini games that are a lot like carnival games we decided to do the same! We had Bean Bag Toss, Balloon Pop, Ring
Toss,Bottle Knock Down, and a couple other fun games! The kids earned stars for their accomplishments (just like in Mario Party)and kept track of them on a score card around their neck. The
cake I was especially proud of, and thoroughly enjoyed making since Todd was able to stay home and take care of the kids while I made it! (And a special thanks to Allison Smith for the inspiration!) Liv
was blessed with several gifts, but she especially loved her new purple horse! Thanks to all the kiddos that came (and parents for bringing them), the party was a success... Liv said it was her favorite one!
I know that this is super duper belated, but I feel funny that it's been so long since I posted something so I chose to post this nonetheless! The events keep happening and leaving me little time to sit and edit
then post... it's been an insanely busy month! But I love it, July is, BY FAR, my favorite month! So for Independence Day (since I'm trying not to just call it "The Fourth of July" cause if you think about it it really 
does sounds kinda silly) we had a little barbeque with the Christensens. I cooked uplots of yumminess in patriotic colors which also made them fun to eat! The kids especially loved the blue star shaped ice cubes!
The weather was wonderful (this was before the insane heat wave hit) so we were able to sit outside and play games mostly! When the sun had set we started fireworks. Lonnie and Todd were able to put on a great
show with our $25 bunch of fireworks. In-between choosing which fountain to do Lonnie would throw out some flowers then Todd would like another firework or two... it was fun! I am very grateful for our country, and for those who fight for our freedom!
