Pause

I know this is the exact same post as like 2 posts ago...but seriously....I wish I could freeze time and make Emmie stay this age for a long time. Maybe not forever, because that would be crazy, but I am thoroughly enjoying her at this age. I wish I would have enjoyed my other two as much but for some reason I was too uptight. Or maybe I just forgot how they were at this age. She's just so round, and innocent, and sweet. She has the funniest run (hopefully she'll outgrow that one or she might have to endure a bit of teasing later in life, but for now it's adorable.) She loves to give everyone a hug good night. She is usually so content and happy. And it's even cute how she typically looks homeless. I know this age will fly by. I just wish I could slow it down.

Cascade

Last weekend we were invited by Tanner and Danielle (whom we went to Arizona with a couple of years ago) to go to Tanner's parents cabin in Cascade. Not only was the cabin gorgeous...but the weekend was amazing. We were completely secluded. There were no other homes for miles. There were no plans or agendas, just a laid back weekend. There was a ton of snow, and therefore lots of sledding and snowshoeing (a first for our family). My stomach still gets a little knot in it when I think of John and Ains in show shoes halfway across a frozen lake. We played games, talked, ate good food, played outside, and slept. It was amazing. I'm secretly hoping they invite us back often.

(BTW, I can't figure out what is wrong with my picture settings lately, but notice the different looks on Owen and Ainley's faces as they sled down a hill. Priceless. Especially since we have about 20 of Ainley's face looking completely weird going down that hill.)

Family Gathering

A couple of weeks ago we headed down to Salt Lake for a family gathering. The circumstances were sad, John's Grandpa passed away (who we all loved, and I'm still convinced I was his favorite granddaughter in law), but it's always fun to see family. It was nice to see members of John's extended family that we haven't seen forever too. The funeral was very nice. It was a happy funeral. I loved the stories that were told. This is a picture of John's mom and her family.

I have some adorable pictures that I wanted to post but they are in the wrong format. So as soon as John reformats them I'll post them. Just a little heads-up...Steph and Mel, they are of you!

All in a day's work

Actually. Technically in about an hours work.

And now the good news!

Amidst all of our repairs/house falling apart, there have been some good things happening.

First of all.......

We got invited to go on a cruise! And we are super excited. John's parents called a few weeks ago and invited us to go with them on a New England cruise. This was even more exciting for us since we had wanted to go on a cruise this year to celebrate our 10 year anniversary, but the funds for that had been taken away (or rather spent on some sort of repair). And now we get to go on this cruise for free! Which is the best price ever. We start in Boston and go up to Maine and into Canada. I think we end in Quebec City. It sounds amazing. I can't wait! Although, mostly I'm excited to have a week full of meals where I only have to feed myself. That is my favorite part of vacations. Next........

We were presented with a way to afford a car payment (hopefully). This has been weighing on my mind for quite some time. We are slowly out growing our car, and John's car is slowly nearing it's end. We've known the need for a new car was coming and just couldn't come up with a way to take on a car payment. Blessings come when they're least expected. Now we just have to get all our ducks in a row and can really start car shopping. Ahhh, relief.

And finally (just for the heck of it)......

I think Emmie is at one of my favorite stages. She's just so darn cute and fun. Her jibberish has got to be one of the cutest things, and I get to hear her every day. I think I love it most because she's at the point where she thinks she's talking and her sounds are so funny. Her favorite sound is "ow" and it's thrown in her speech often. She always responds when you ask her a question. Usually the answer is "now" (because it ends in ow). She says no a lot but doesn't know what it means. She also says dad, hi, ni ni (night night), and num num (which ironically enough means food).

She follows directions pretty well, for a 1 year old. I love when we tell her to go get something and she rushes off in excitement. She also has her own special way of organizing. She is always sure to put all the plastic bowls on the kitchen chairs (because that's where they go). She hides our shoes in special places. John and Owen were both missing a single shoe for weeks. She's definitely helpful.

And what's greatest about her is she's as spunky and happy as ever!

Update...........

We are still in the middle of repairs.

I'd post pictures but everything looks about the same as before.

There is now a new batch of sickies. This time its me, Ains, and poor Emmie gets to have all illness this year. We all have some weird flu/cold. I'm not sure what it is. But it knocked me out for 4 full days. I'm on day 5 and still wiped out...just not confined to bed today. Ains is still in the middle of it. Hopefully she'll recover more quickly than I have.

We are now waiting on paint, new floors, and texture on our walls.

Our closet is done. So we have that back.

And now instead of washer repairmen, we're dealing with garage door repairmen.

I'm going to keep a tally of how many things break this year. Because if we keep up this pace we'll set some sort of record for sure!

And that's all I have to say about that.

I'm going to take a nap.