What we've been doing this month...

This is just a sneak peak, a clue you could say, of what we have been up to lately. If you can't tell by the picture what we are doing, I'm sorry, you'll have to wait and see. If you can, good for you! I'll give details soon... very soon!

New Year's at the Lake

Each New Year's Eve we switch being with the Diederich's and the Henrie's. This year was the Diederich's turn. Whenever we ring in the new year with the Diederich's we do it at the Lake. Of course, Steve loves this and I have to admit it is good to leave my holiday chaos and clutter at home and relax for a few days. We usually spend New Year's Eve eating delicious food and playing some fun games. This year was no different. The game of choice was Rock Band. Even Reagan got in on the action!

We let Reagan stay up until midnight with all of the cousins.

(How do you make a 2 year old go to bed in the next room when she can hear everyone else outside her door playing and having fun?)

She did so great! She was obviously tired by the end of the night, but she wasn't nearly as onery as I expected. Here she is playing and dancing with the cousins...

Although Crew slept through most of the festivities on New Year's Eve, he seemed to know when the big moment was about to hit and woke up with a fury. So at ten to twelve I was in trying to calm him down and get him back to sleep. That seemed impossible knowing the ruckus that was about to explode so I gave in and let him come out and enjoy the fun for a bit. Here is his cute tired face ringing in the New Year

Every day the cousins would wake up, eat breakfast, put on their snow clothes, and head outside to ride the snowmobiles and sled.

Every day I would try to get Reagan to join her cousins and every day she refused. "It's too cold" she would tell me. On the second day I convinced her to put on her clothes and at least go outside on the 4 wheeler. She had a good time but it was cold and she didn't last long.

On the third day Aunt Heidi convinced Reagan to give it one more try. So we got her all bundled up and sent her outside with Aunt Heidi (I had to stay inside with the little guy). I realized that Reagan had been out for quite awhile and figured she must be having a good time. The next thing I knew Heidi was coming in to grab her camera. She said Summer, her cousin, had convinced her to ride on the sled behind the snowmobile with her and now Reagan wouldn't get off. And that was the case for two days straight.

Reagan wanted to be outside every minute riding on the sled behind the snowmobile. She is always so afraid to try new things, then she ends up loving them. My timid child. Unfortunately the other cousins were a bit frustrated because when Reagan was on the sled they had to go pretty slow. We had a very sad girl when her turn was done.

Over all it was a great week at the Lake. It is fun to watch the kids grow up and be able to participate in more and more things. It makes everything a little more fun! Thanks Diederich's for making it such a great week!

Crew's First Hair Cut

While we were in Bear Lake over New Year's Crew got his first hair cut! It has been so shaggy for so long, but I've just never had it done and I'm so glad I finally did! Crew's aunt Heidi did the honors and I had her chop it! It is very short now and so cute.

This is right after we took the apron off... isn't he handsome???

Christmas Pretties

Every year my mom has gotten Reagan her Christmas dress for the holidays. This year was no different. She even got an outfit for Crew. We got out to the stores a little late this year so I was worried we weren't going to find anything, but I was way wrong! There were still a ton of choices, and everything was on sale! I think we are going to hold off again next year we had such luck this year! Here are the kids in their cute outfits...

Crew is so handsome! I could take pictures all day. He always coopoerates and loves the camera! Isn't he a stud?!?

Christmas Day

Christmas day was so much fun! Steve and I woke up before the kids and got ready, well in our pajama's still, but ready. Steve got the hot cho ready and turned on the Christmas music while I put on make up and did my hair. We got the kids up and went down stairs to see the tree and presents laid out. Reagan is starting to understand the whole concept of Santa Clause and presents so it was great to watch her open her presents and deliver all the others to their intended recipients. She did this with total excitement and no matter what was in the package, she gave the appropriate surprised response. It was great! We opened our gifts at home, packed up the car with the gifts for Grammy, Papa, and Sky and headed to Grammy & Papa Henrie's to spend the rest of the day.

We were spoiled with a wonderful breakfast and too many gifts. It was such a great morning and everyone enjoyed being together. We have the tradition at our house to open one gift at a time so everyone can see what you got and you can thank the person who gave it to you. I love this tradition. The only down side is that it takes a bit of time to get all of the gifts open. Reagan didn't go down for her nap until 2:00 which is very late for her. But considering all of the excitement and the late nap, she was so great. As you can see, she got princess dresses and jewelry along with a princess tent. (The princesses haven't warn off yet.) Crew enjoyed the wrapping paper and I think he would have been pleased as punch if that was all he received. But we did get him a basketball hoop with balls. He loves it! It has been fun to get some boy toys around the house and not just princess things!

It was another great Christmas at the Diederich house. Thank you to all of our family for helping make it so much fun!

Christmas Eve 2008

We had such a great Christmas this year!

It was so much fun with the kids and spending time with all of our family. Each year we kind of have the same schedule and I must say it has worked out fabulously for us. We spend Christmas Eve with the Diederich family, then Christmas day is with the Henrie's. We love that there is no pressure to leave the family we are with to get to the other family and this way everyone knows where we are going to be and when and can plan on that. It has been the best situation for everyone involved.

On that note, let me tell you a little bit about our Christmas Eve!

It was so much fun! We started out joining everyone for a movie, something we plan on every year. This year we saw The Tale Of Desperoux which was a cute show. We usually don't take our kids since they are a little small for movies, but this year we decided to try it out on Reagan and she was a star! She loved it! I don't know if she was too into the movie, but the sitting in the dark with all of her cousins eating popcorn was pretty cool. She did so great that I am excited to try another one!

After the movie we picked up Crew and met everyone back and mom & dad Diederich's house. (They were generous enough to let us use their home even though they are out of the country!) It really wouldn't have been the same if we were anywhere else. We had a fabulous dinner followed by Santa coming and giving all of the kids their pajamas and then exchanging the rest of the gifts. At this point we all walked across the street to Steve's sister, Heidi's house for a talent show. Some of the kids had prepared something and it was fun to watch them all. I'll tell you about Reagan's talent later. After the talent show it was back to mom & dad's for dessert then it was time to pack up and get home to bed so Santa could come and visit again!

Above are the following pictures (from left to right)...

• All the cousins (minus two who live out of state)
• A few of the girls closest to Reagan's age, she LOVES them!
• Cute Crew (LOVE his face!)
• Reagan playing the piano for the talent show
• Steve and Crew watching the talent show

So here is what you see in the pictures above (from left to right)...

• Reagan and Crew dancing
• Reagan & Crew in their new jammies from Santa
• Reagan giving Crew a big hug
• Reagan HATING Santa
• Crew LOVING Santa

I have to tell you about Reagan's talent at the talent show. As we were all sitting around the living room about to get started they decided they would go from the youngest to the oldest. That puts Reagan and Crew first. Well Crew just sits there when they call on him so they move on to Reagan. I thought she might sing a song or something (she loves Do a Deer from Sound of Music) I was way off. When they said her name she walked to the front of the room, pulled herself onto the piano bench and proceeded to quietly and gently pluck out some notes on the piano as she looked and the sheet music that was displayed on the piano as if she were reading every note. Everyone just kind of stared at her not knowing really what to do. She was obviously content to continue as she loves to have every ones attention and at that moment she surely did. So, seeing that this could take awhile I knew I should probably do something to nicely get her down so I just started clapping and saying "Yeah, Reagan!" Everyone followed my lead and started clapping for her. Reagan seemed to be waiting just for this moment because she easily slid off the bench, turned to face all of us, and gave the biggest and longest bow. She was so serious as she did all of this that we all just busted up laughing. It was my favorite talent of the night!

Merry Christmas!

Wishing you all a merry Christmas and a happy New Year!

Front

Back

*2008 Christmas Card

Happy Anniversary!

Today is Steve & I's 4th wedding anniversary! I'm sure to some of you that may seem like nothing, and to others it may seem like a lot. To me, time has flown and I can't believe it has already been 4 years and at the same time we have so much ahead of us and I am excited to see it unfold.

Last night I couldn't fall asleep because I was thinking about Steve and how we met and all that has happened in the time we have been together and how lucky I feel to have him as my husband. I used to sit and think about who I would end up with and I was so anxious for it to happen. The minute I stopped thinking about it I met Steve and it all fell into place.

Since we have been married we have had a lot of fun. We have taken a few trips and cruises with the two of us and with family, we have lived in 3 different homes, we have had two beautiful children, we have changed jobs, we have lost loved ones and welcomed others. It has been a roller coaster ride and I have been so happy to experience it all with Steve.

I thought I would share some pictures from our wedding day. I'm sorry the quality is poor, I had to scan them in and, as you can see, my scanner isn't that great. December 17th, 2004 was a beautifully clear day, frigid, but beautiful. I had prayed for a snowy day but I didn't get my wish. Isn't it funny how things never work out like you imagine. I'm sure every other bride that day was praying for a clear day, so I'm glad they all got what they wanted. I just figured if I was going to get married in December, which wasn't my ideal month, then I wanted to be snowed on and make it one for the books. But as you can see by the pictures, it wasn't in the cards. But that is my only complaint. The day was absolutely perfect. I couldn't have had a better day. We were married in the Manti Temple and we were surrounded by almost all of the people we love. We headed back to Salt Lake for our reception which my mom pulled off fabulously. It was beautiful. We ended the night with dancing and Steve gave the crowd a show flipping me around as my dress fell around my neck. It was a blast! I will stop rambling now so you can enjoy the pictures!

I thought I would also throw in some of my bridals because I loved my dress and if I can't share them on my anniversary when can I share them?

One Day...

One day I hope to move my family and live in Logan, Utah. Logan, you ask? Why Logan? Well, let me tell you. First of all, Logan will always have a special place in my heart because that is where I met and fell in love with Steve. That was a great time in my life! Everything seemed to come together and I can only name a few times in my life when I was as happy as I was then.

But more than that, Logan is a special place in itself. Every time we break through Sardine Canyon and see Cache Valley layed out before us I start to get butterflies... I LOVE this place! It is the perfect blend of small town country feel and city shopping. They have a little bit of everything. I can live in a house surrounded by property and drive 10 minutes and find pretty much anything I would need or want. It is where I dream of raising my kids. It is where I see Steve and I rocking on our porch when we are old watching the sun set or neighbors walk by.

Ok - A little too cheesy? Getting nauseous? I'll move on. For me Logan is THE place. I will continue to dream of living there and hopefully one day it will come true!

*Disclaimer - These pictures were taken on different days. Enjoy the different temperaments of Logan!

A little something

I thought I would share some pictures with you of the cutest little baby! My sweet cousin just had her a few weeks ago and she is a treasure. To create the collage I used the Magic Blog It Board from MCP Actions at www.mcpactions.com. Check her out, she has some great stuff!