Aaahhhhh! I have a SUNBEAM?!?

Yes, I know that she turned three... I knew it was coming, but this morning, when it actually all went down, it was surreal. Poor Merrill! Saying goodbye to all three of us now, and making his way down to nursery, all by himself...
Hopefully Ashley will do better next Sunday than she did today. She did okay, but the first was hard for her. I couldn't stay with her, I had Sharing Time. Luckily, she loves Julie...

I don't post my layouts to brag... although I do think they are cute sometimes ;)... I really post them so I have to stick to my goal, and prove it, one page/layout a day... just in case some of you think I am a bragger... just kidding...
I am going on 34 weeks!!! This obviously isn't my first time. I just keep getting advice dispensed like it is... I am so happy that so many people love me and are so caring about my pregnant-booty's welfare...

So did I call it or what... Primary stayed settled for one week. There were some developments today, well they actually began a long time ago, that need to be remedied soon. Just the life of a Primary Pres....

SnOw???

So today, we were supposed to have some "major" snow storm... I hope someone else really enjoyed it... It was really falling early this morning, but by the afternoon, it was GONE. No snow, no ominous clouds, just blue skies and the ugly snow left over from the plows. We really enjoy a good storm. I shouldn't complain, we did get some accumulation, not what we would have liked...

I was also supposed to have a scrapbooking day with Merrill's family, he has a cousin in town, but because of the early snow, and the warning of more... nobody dared to attempt "the drive" up "the driveway". I was really looking forward to it. Merrill told me that I deserved the break and to take as long as I wanted. Instead, I kept myself busy all day, organizing Primary stuff that has been organized to death already. But I had fun doing it!

The girls have been quite the handfuls lately. Yesterday, while "crafting" together, and my back was turned ever so slightly, for just that right split-second; they, while water coloring, decided to flick their paintbrushes at each other. I have been talking about re-painting my craft room a "peppy-er green", but not a "speckly-er green". I sent them up to their room to sit on their beds until I could calm down a little, and clean it too. After a while, they came down stairs.

Lynn: "Mom, we wanted to apologize to you..."

Ashley: "Yeah! And we wanted to say sorry too..."

Yeah, I guess I forgave them... :)

My kids are turning into Pirates...

I really think that my kids are morphing into pirates...

We got the third "Pirates" for the fam for Christmas, we already have the other two and love them, well, I can't speak for Mer, he hasn't seen all of them... Anyway... Lynn has been constantly singing one of the songs from this third one, I mean constantly.

Then, yesterday, Ashley comes up to me, picks up my empty glass (yeah, the caffeine-free Pepsi was yummy!) and tries to take a drink. She puts it down shocked, and says, "Why is the koolaid always gone!" Her own version of Captain Jack Sparrow's, "Why is the rum always gone..."

My "word" for the year is...

4 pages, 2 layouts... all for Peyton's book. Teaching my kids about where they came from is very important to me, those are great people and great stories that they need to know. These pages are about my parents and Merrill's parents. I love to have the baby pics with them, they are so much more interesting than their boring adult pics... just kidding.

Jaclyn posted her word for the year, which got me thinking, and helped to keep me awake last night, well, along with the discomfort of my growing belly... I finally came up with it...

EMBRACE

I will embrace my family, friends, and experiences that happen with them. I will not continue to dwell on what comes next, I will enjoy what is happening now, I will embrace it.

I started to think of how I want to be better this year. I started to think of the naggy wife I was as the year began... I kept nagging Merrill as to when we would "try" for this one, and I have continued to nag him about the "next one". Mom tells me to leave him alone, I am pregnant after all. But I feel like I need to "seal the deal", so this won't be it. I could happily go on to have a dozen or more children, it's Merrill's poor gray hairs that can't, or his wallet for that matter. But I now realize how many things I truly wasn't enjoying or in the moment for, looking ahead to the next event to happen. I wish that I would have enjoyed the girls at their individual stages more, not dwelling on when I could bear their next sibling.

So I will embrace every moment that Peyton has as an infant, not trying to rush it along so I can look forward to the "next one". I will embrace what I have now, two healthy, yet emotional little girls, and the awesome relationship (although there is some slight nagging...) that I have with Merrill.

This all stems from another great lesson I learned from Christie, who also brought me a yummy treat today :)... Thanks buddy!

PEyton Pitcher... the "E" is just for you, Mer...

So here she is!!! You can see the luscious cheeks, love 'em... and you can make out some hair. She's so sweet. We can hardly wait! The doctor said she's down there in position and ready, but I am not dilating, yet... but he does want to start checking me at my next appointment in two weeks, because she is "down there"... You can even spot my cervix, if you want to be my friend like that ;). Merrill said that I technically shouldn't upload this video to Blogger because it is inappropriate... Peyton is naked, and it does show my uterus and cervix... (he's sooo funny...) Lynn prayed that she would come out soon... again.

I also got a layout done. It will be bottom on my totem pole because Peyton is way cuter...
I got a question in one of my comments... (does that even make any sense?)
Someone asked me where I find the time to scrap with kids. It all come to priorities. I do not allow myself to scrap, or do anything fun to me, for that matter, until I am ready for the day, i.e. make-up and hair well, and dressed... my house has to be taken-care-of, all of those things that need to be done, need to be done. I spend time with the girls, we read and play. I do not sit and scrap all day, and when I do, there are many breaks. The other thing that I am able to do, because of their ages, is to have them come and "craft" with me. That's what they like to call it. They have their own supplies and I give them some of my left-overs, stickers I didn't use, and won't use, paper, pics., etc. It's something we all enjoy together.
I think the real motivation for me to scrap though is, I set a goal. One page/layout a day. Even on days when other things happen, like Christmas Eve, I make-up for it. I try to plan ahead, like on New Year's Eve, which backfired horribly, popcorn kernels can do that... but really, it is something that I've set out to do, and I am sticking to it. Most of the time, I have to admit, I am scrapping when it is evening, Merrill is home and spending time with the girls, and I get some time to myself, kind of. They are usually in the craft room reading, coloring together, and most of the time just being silly. I love having all of us in there together. I even made the suggestion to Merrill that we get a small couch so he has someplace comfy when these times happen. There have been many a pillow fight that comes into "my" room...
As I was thinking about how to answer this question, I kept thinking about comments that some, who don't know me that well, made. Comments that pointed in the direction that scrapping is all that I must do all day, instead of play with my kids. It isn't. Only on rare occasions do I even get a whole day to scrap. But I kept thinking about Dallin H. Oaks talk from conference, "Good, Better, Best..." what a guideline! Being a wife and mother are number one priorities in my life. I have other responsibilities too. I have a church calling, I am a daughter, sister, and friend. When others need my help, I look at what is "best". There are times in my life when I have to say "no" and not do some things. I have learned that, that is okay too. But I plan on having layouts completed ahead of time, so that hospital stay doesn't interfere with my goal :). I just hope that Peyton is used to the schedule when she arrives...

One down...

Don't even start on the time... what a long day. This is my first solitary time to even get something accomplished. One of Peyton's layouts done... how many more to go?

The doctor appointment went so good today! She is soo cute! We couldn't get any good pics of her face, though. Dr. Bierer said we were in the wrong room :( that and she was too busy sucking on her hands to give us a good full shot. Kind of a bummer since it took us over an hour to even get back there... She does have quite the chubby cheeks and HAIR... lots of it, it appears. She is still right around that 4 1/2 pound mark. Has a head that measures a little more than 34 weeks... we're almost there!

Maybe tomorrow I'll try to add video...

We'll see just how alert I am, Ashley is still up, since 8:15 am to be exact. She has a little bit of a cough, sounds more like her asthma, though. I guess I'll check the bloggin' scene, and then enjoy some "Snow White" with her. Nothing like snuggle time with my most favorite three-year-old!

Can't wait to talk to Brooke either! They are finally home! I hope she doesn't rub in Disney World too much...

Goals, Goals, Goals...

So, here we are... another year. I intend to make the most of it. I have already set new goals for myself, which I think I am doing very well with... if I do say so myself! I sat down Sunday, and put some more down to paper, so I wouldn't forget (that darn placenta...)

- Keep with the blogging! 1 post/day (at least...)

- 1 scrapbook page/layout per day (at least).

- TRY to cut down on junk food (and pop!).

(This one was Merrill's idea, after he filled my stocking with my favorite treats... I asked him if he remembered who he was married to... it is a good idea though...)

- Finish Peyton's cross-stitches... before she is 1!

- Be back into my favorite GAP jeans by... gulp... April!

- Study out of "Preach My Gospel" daily.

- Read B.O.M as a family, again...

- Organize all loose pics to CD's.

- Enter H.O.F.

- Submit a layout (or more, maybe) to be published.

- Be more consistent in reading to the girls.

And I thought that this one was funny, but Merrill didn't appreciate the humor in it... maybe you have to have a uterus to get it...

- Lose 25-35 pounds before the end of the year, the bulk of it by the end of February...

So there you have it... Not a one too lofty...

I have another Doctor's appointment tomorrow!!! So exciting!