3,2,1 BLAST OFF

I am sitting here FINALLY doing some laundry and I just have to start out by saying that I am SO grateful for our washer and dryer...drier...however you spell it. Until about like April-ish of this year we were doing laundry at friends houses, parents houses or the laundromat.

Can I tell you what a drag that is? It's just so inconvenient to have to only do laundry once a week and spend the entire day/night at someone elses house just waiting for the machines to do their jobs.

So, like I said, in about April I had had enough of that. We had a drier...dryer...whatever...for a while just wishing for it's second half. So, I went on ksl classifieds (one of my favorite places to buy things) and found a washer for $100! SWEET! So, we splurge and buy it.

One minor detail...the seller failed to mention that the machine sounds like a ROCKET when on the spin cycle. No joke. I have guilt doing laundry at night because it is so loud I think our neighbors can hear it. Seriously.

The best part is, I don't even care. I L O V E the washer and the fact that I can wash things WHENEVER I WANT that it really doesn't even bother me. I just love it.

thankful.

Now that it is "officially" Christmas season, I have been trying to figure out what presents to get for Cory this year and what I want too....both of us can not think of a single thing that we are in need of.

That is what I am most grateful for - the fact that our family is not in need of anything. The best part, is that this extends out to my brothers and sisters as well. My mom and I were talking the other day and we were discussing how great it is that everyone in our family is exactly where they want to be. Life is good. Very Very good.

Here's a little of the good news...

Ryan has been accepted to law school in Iowa - with a full ride scholarship for the first year! That is $33,000 in tuition they are no longer responsible to pay!

Tyler is coming home from basic training on the 19th - just in time to spend Christmas with Katy!

Katy gets Tyler home for Christmas!

Amber found a GREAT new apartment with a roommate she loves. I know how much anxiety she had about finding a place and I am so happy for her.

Jared and Jake are going strong with everything in life. They are 2 of the most impressive little boys I have ever known. Their ability to stand up for what they believe and who they are is such an example to me.

I couldn't ask for better siblings to set examples for my little Luke

I am so thankful for all that we have in our lives. It is totally overwhelming to think of all that we have been blessed with in life - Cory having a secure job, Luke being healthy and strong, a great place to live, loving family all around us (or just a phone call away).

Happy Thanksgiving everyone and Merry Christmas too!

one month old!

Luke turned a whole MONTH old yesterday! In some ways I can't believe it's been a month already and in other ways it feels like he has been here for so much longer than that! He is such a sweet, cute little boy - i don't know what i'd do without him now!

Here are two birthday pictures...

I love his cute bum...

And his cute little feet...

He does this all the time - apparently he thinks a lot in his sleep. ha!

Dear Luke,
Happy one month birthday sweet boy! I can not believe how fast the time is flying - I wish it would slow down a little! You are such a great baby and have taught me and your dad so much. I am so grateful that you are healthy and growing stronger every day. You are starting to hold your head up now. The past week or so you have been working on that a lot! You are a great sleeper - going for about 3 hours at a time. You still sleep better when there is a lot of noise...we go walk around Target and the mall during nap time - it works like a charm!
We love you more than we could ever express. We are so excited to watch you grow and learn more about you!
Love, Mom and Dad

Tag #2

The 5th picture in the 5th folder on my computer....

I love that it's such a cute one! We are using this picture as a decoration in his room...he's so sweet.

Again, I tag Amber, Meagan, Megan, Nikki & Katy.

I'm IT

Lucky #7

7 Things I Can Do:

1. change diapers!
2. decorate...usually
3. paint. not like the artistic paint, but the decorative kind like furniture and walls
4. play the piano
5. ummmm.....this is hard! oh, i can cook. when i want to.
6. i can type really fast
7. speak with all sorts of different accents. it's really kinda lame haha

7 Things I Can NOT Do:

1. watch the discovery/history/animal channels for more than 15 minutes without having to get up and leave the room. so boring
2. sleep through the night...thank you lucas
3. live without cory
4. eat an entire hotdog
5. listen to people complain about things they have control over. i mean, if you aren't happy about something - do something about it!
6. go a day without diet coke
7. go a day without flossing my teeth.

7 Things that Attracted Me To Cory:

1. his dark hair/blue eyes combination
2. his funny personality
3. the fact that he seemed up for a week-long fling
4. he was slightly unavailable...sorry nikki :) ha
5. his cute sense of "style"
6. his incredibly easy going personality
7. his ability to calm me down whenever i have anxiety attacks

7 Celebrity Admirations:

1. Gwen Stefani...she's so hot. even if she did name her child Zuma
2. Reese Witherspoon...so cute!
3. Jennifer Garner...i swear if she knew me we would be best friends. And ALIAS...oh yeah
4. Meg Ryan...not so much now because she's kind of become a weirdy, but back in the You've Got Mail days...definitely
5. Mariska Hargitay...she's the girl on Law & Order SVU and I seriously love her. seriously.
6. Will Smith...his movies are always so great!
7. James Marsden...I already told Cory that if I meet James and he is as nice as Cory, I might leave him. ha!

7 Favorite Foods:

1. Ham & Grandma Potatoes...oh man. my all time favorite meal
2. pot roast & potatoes
3. cafe rio. i could eat it almost every day
4. tony's frozen pepperoni pizza
5. chocolate cookies with white chocolate chips
6. french fries
7. diet coke

I tag Katy, Meagan, Megan & Nikki.

Post Script: Dear My Friend Kaitlyn - this blog was very difficult! I had to think for a long time!!

Talents

I must say, we have a very talented son....he peed, pooped and threw up all at the same time today! And I must add....this all occurred immediately after I removed his diaper. Awesome. True talent.

Life As We Knew It

The life that used to revolve around work and socializing almost every night has turned into this world revolving around a little human that can barely even hold up his own head. It's amazing how fast it changes and how welcome those changes are.

And it's true what they say...It will never be the same.

Here are a few things I've learned over the last 3 weeks:

1. Sleep is a great and wonderful thing.

2. Showering is definitely optional. No need to do something so frivolous on a daily basis.

3. Yawns are the cutest thing a baby can do.

4. Even baby farts are adoreable. The fact that they just slip out as if nothing just happened....fantastic.

5. Baby swings are one of the greatest inventions.

6. A mom can never get enough of watching their baby get all the attention in the world.

Luke's umbilical cord fell off on Monday so we decided to give him his first "real" bath tonight...He handled it incredibly well! The lotion-ing after the bath is what pushed him over the edge. And of course, we took the typical embarassing pictures. yay!

He sleeps with his hand touching his face. Every time he sleeps. It is so funny. And usually he has at least one arm reaching above his head. We have an ultrasound picture of him in the same position...I hope he keeps it up his whole life and I can use it against him when he is 17 and has his first girlfriend. I can't wait for embarassing story-telling time.

This is his favorite sleeping position. Please notice that his foot is above my arm. We started with hisl egs between me and my arm - he grunted and moved and moved until his foot was above my arm. In that weird kinked position. Happens every time. What a funny little boy.

I still have guilt that Cory has to go to work every day while I get to hang out. Pajama days are my favorite thing. I pretend they are Luke's too. :)