Goodbye, Edna; Hello, Minivan

R.I.P

Edna Chrysler

1991-2008

Okay, so Edna isn't really dead. Just dead to me. For those of you who don't know, this beautiful '91 Chrysler New Yorker has been my car since I got my learner's permit. I would never have imagined as a Sophomore in high school, driving my friends to lunch, that I'd one day be hauling around two kids in car seats in that same car. Edna has exceeded my grandest expectations, enduring thousands of miles as I drove back and forth between Brigham and Provo, and giving me the ability to work after I graduated from college, when Bryon and I definitely couldn't have afforded two cars. Having this reliable old dame (and no car payment) all these years has been a great blessing, and I'm sad to see her go.
Ah, I'll never forget her plush velvet seats, faux wood paneling, and all her little quirks I came to know and love so well. We just sold her yesterday (to maintain her dignity, I won't mention the price), and I had to restrain myself from calling out "Take good care of her!" as the new owner drove away. (Okay, not really, but I kind of thought it.)
But, there is a silver lining in seeing Edna go. As much as I loved her, I really hated trying to load kids into the back seat (especially since only one of the doors worked), and I'm extremely happy to now have a nice, new minivan, complete with automatic sliding doors.

Here I am with our new (for us, anyway) Chrysler Town & Country minivan (brand loyalty coincidental). It's been very nice so far, with lots of extra space, and separate captains chairs in the back, so Jacob can't throw his toys, shoes, juice box, etc. on Leila's head. I'm still adjusting to my new identity as a 'minivan mom,' but when you compare that to driving around a car targeted at the AARP crowd, you can't really consider this a step down.
So, yay for new cars! And best wishes to Edna. You will be missed.

New Look

Who doesn't love a good Before and After photo? Well, here ya go. I've been growing my hair out since Jacob was born (not on purpose. More as a result of laziness), but the length was getting kind of annoying. So, I decided to go for a new look. This is the shortest my hair has ever been, but I'm all about easy maintenance, and this style requires practically zero work. Anyway, here I am last night, bidding farewell to the long locks...

BEFORE

I decided to donate my hair to Locks of Love. This is actually the third time I've chopped off my hair and donated it. The stylist joked that I didn't even flinch when she cut it off, and I explained that when you have long hair, there comes a point when you move past attachment on to annoyance. When this happens, you're glad to see it go.

And now, the moment you've all been waiting for...

AFTER

It feels amazingly light, and I find it very weird to have my neck exposed (the last time my hair didn't cover the back of my neck was third grade!), but I definitely like the look, and I'm so excited to not have to do my hair. Seriously, she just put some gel in this and brushed it around a bit. No heat required! Awesome. By the way, she's an excellent stylist, if you're in the market. Her name's Memorie, and she's at Landis Salon here in Salt Lake. Unless of course you live in Brigham, in which case no one compares to April Miller.
Anyway, it's nice to have a change once in awhile, so I'm happy with it. Feel free to post comments telling me how cute it is!

Christmas 2008

Well, the photo documentation of this month's activities wasn't too reliable (I've included a few at the end). So, what follows is a checklist of the traditional Christmas-time events, and the ones we actually accomplished:

Decorated Christmas cookies? Check.
Made gingerbread houses? Check.
Kept Jacob from eating gingerbread house? Uh...mostly.
Played in the snow/built a snowman? Check.
Drank hot chocolate after snow excursion? Check.
...with marshmallows? Check.
Saw the lights at Temple Square? Check.
Went to Zoo Lights at Hogle Zoo? Check.
Played Mary and Joseph in Nativity reenactment? Check (Leila made a darling Baby Jesus).
Drove in a blizzard? Check.

Attended at least 3 family Christmas parties? Check.
Participated in a White Elephant gift exchange? Check.
Played phone tag with multiple family members in an attempt to coordinate party scheduling? Check, check, check, check.
Attended a Christmas concert? Check.
Sang Christmas songs in a choir? Check.
Bought at least one Christmas present on Christmas Eve? Check.
Decorated Christmas tree? Um...no.
Put lights on the house? Nope.
Put up any Christmas decorations at all? Well, define "put up."
At least managed to bring the Christmas decorations box in from the garage? Check!
Made chocolates as a family? Check.
Exchanged way too many sweets with neighbors? Check.
Sat on Santa's lap? No, we were clinging to one more year of Jacob's ignorance on the whole "What do you want for Christmas?" thing.
Sent out Christmas cards? No, but not for lack of trying! We were thwarted several times on taking family pictures, so anticipate a New Year's card from us this year.

Hosted a traditional English Christmas dinner for friends? Check.
...with Brussels sprouts and Yorkshire puddings? Check.
Stayed up late Christmas Eve? Check.
Woke up early Christmas morning? Check.
Talked to both missionary brothers on Christmas day? Check.
Had a wonderful, joyful, uplifting Holiday season? Check.

Christmas Eve at my parents' house

As a family at zoo lights. Leila is in the wrap under my coat.

Zoo Lights


Jacob playing with one of his favorite Christmas presents: Thomas and Friends

Leila looking adorable Christmas Eve in her new jammies.

Checking out my new laptop Christmas morning. Yep, using it right now.

Jacob being excited about his new Cookie Monster.

Opening presents Christmas morning. (That candy bar is Bryon's, not Jacob's.)

Leila in her Christmas dess.

Baby Shower for Jessica

On December 12th I hosted a Teddy Bear themed baby shower for my friend, Jessica Low Young. Her little boy is due today! It was a lot of fun to be with friends from high school. Half of the people there were pregnant, so we basically talked about babies the entire time (I was the expert, since I have double the number of kids of anyone else there). We played a few "baby shower" games, ate food, watched Jessica open her gifts, and decorated letters for the nursery. It was a lot of fun, and we all wish Jessica the best with her new baby!

Our group of friends from high school. April and Tati are pregnant, too. This picture was taken for Carin Reeder Larson, who couldn't be there because they're living in Virginia. We missed you, Carin!

The letters for Kyson's nursery. Hopefully Jessica and Jonathan don't decide to go with a different name!

Tati, Aptil and Jessica getting crafty. Notice that I am behind the camera, and not anywhere near the scissors and glue.

Jessica opening presents. April is holding Leila.

The teddy bear diaper cake I made for Jessica.

A more edible teddy bear cake.

Catch Up Post

Well, no great excuses for neglecting the blog these last few weeks. Here's a sampling of what's been keeping us busy, most recent stuff first:

Leila's Blessing

This Sunday we blessed Leila. Most of our family was able to be there, and it was a wonderful day. I was happiest about the fact that she didn't cry at all during the blessing, even though she was wide awake. Yay!

Isn't she darling?

Sterling Singers Concert

The choir I'm part of opened the Christmas Concert series on Temple Square on Saturday, November 29. It was awesome to sing in the historic Tabernacle. My parents and Bryon were able to attend and hear the beautiful Christmas music we've been working on for months. For anyone interested, we have another concert (same music) on Sunday, December 21. You can get the details here: http://www.sterlingsingers.com/.
Outside the Tabernacle in between our two concerts

DarlieceGiving

This year we celebrated Darliecegiving for the first time. It was in honor of my little sis, Darliece, who has spent the last semester at dental school at the University of Nevada--Las Vegas. Since we weren't going to be together on Thanksgiving, I picked her up at the airport Wednesday night, and surprised her with "Darliecegiving," a very incongruous feast of all of her favorite foods. The menu consisted of: Cafe Rio salads (homemade, thank you very much), burritos, egg rolls, boneless barbecue ribs, homemade macaroni and cheese, lemonade, chocolate cheesecake, and pumpkin pie.

I have to include these photos of Darliece as payback for her being difficult while we were taking pictures. My little sister, Dawna (visiting from BYU-I) joined us for the feast.

I'm not sure I want to make Darliecegiving an annual tradition (it was a lot of work), but it was awesome getting to spend time with Darliece after too many months apart.

The Zoo in November

So, it turns out a nice day in November is the absolute best time to visit Hogle Zoo. I took Jacob and Leila to the zoo around the middle of November with my sister-in-law Trenda, and her kids Cade and Ambree, and my other sis-in-law, Bethany. We practically had the place to ourselves, which was awesome because it meant that when Jacob took off running (as he often did), I didn't have to freak out and chase him down, because I could keep him in sight until he got tired and came back. Plus, the animals were more active, and we could spend as long as we wanted looking at them.

Jacob "riding" the tigers. This was the most posed picture I was able to get. He kept jumping between the two tigers, because he couldn't decide which one he wanted to sit on most.

And the real deal. (We've been to the zoo probably five times this year, and this was the first time I actually saw the tiger, so I thought it warranted a picture.)

Jacob "measuring up" to the gorilla. I'm kind of grateful he's not the size of an ape. He already does enough damage to my house as it is!Jacob and Ambree in Cade's clutches. Trying to get three toddlers to stay still with their arms out to their sides is, predictably, impossible. So, this was the best we could do.

Mommy and Jacob getting in touch with our roots. Since I couldn't see Jacob's face, I didn't realize I was the only one of us doing the monkey face (and yes, I was totally making the "ooh! ooh!" noises, too).

And a Few for the Road

For anyone who's stuck around to the end of this post, congratulations! Add a comment with the details of your accomplishment (how much sleep were you required to forgo? How much havoc did your own toddler wreak in your absence?) and I will send you your very own, one-of-a-kind, gold-plated plaque commemorating your achievement. Okay, not really. Instead, how about a few bonus pictures, just for you?

Jacob figured out how to reach the cereal box and poured himself some more. Nice.

One of Leila's first smiles

Jacob and Daddy wearing matching outfits on Sunday

A get-together with old friends: Jared Crocker, Scott and Melinda Fredrickson, us, Richard and Karyn Esplin. I love this picture, because there are seven kids in it and not one of them is looking at the camera.

Some of Bryon's old roommates from BYU: Matt Tanner, Mark Tanner, Bryon, Scott Fredrickson

Well, thanks for sticking with it! We're looking forward to some good times with family and friends this month, as well, so hopefully I'll do a better job this month of posting regularly.

Bryon's Birthday

This year I turned 30 on November 15, and we celebrated as a family. Danielle brought in 30 balloons to wake me up, and each one had a nice note from a family member. (Thank you all who participated!) Jacob helped bring them to me for popping, and it was a very fun and heart-warming gift.

My sister Bethany was kind enough to come watch the kids so that Danielle and I could go the Temple. We got lunch and pastries on the way back home.

That night, my parents and siblings went with Danielle and me to an Indian restaurant in Sandy. The food was really tasty, and I think everyone enjoyed it even if they were trying something new. We went back to the house and had cake and ice cream and opened presents. Danielle had made a delicious chocolate layered cake at my request.

So it was a fine birthday, and I suspect that being 30 won't be much different than being 29.

Halloween 2008

Happy Halloween!

We had a very happy Halloween! Jacob was a horse, and Bryon and I accompanied him trick-or-treating as a cowgirl and cowboy (the hats came in handy when it rained on us). Leila was a squid, which doesn't really go along with the whole Western theme, but that's the costume we could find for her! Jacob got way more candy than any two-year-old should have (aw, darn. We'll just have to help him out with that one!), but he thought it was great.

We went to a Halloween party Saturday night with my high school friends, but unfortunately forgot the camera, so there's no photographic evidence. April and Jason Miller hosted it, though,

and it was a ton of fun.

Jacob the horse. He kind of looks like a chipmunk here. Hmm...

The cutest squid I've ever seen.

The aftermath of Halloween. Yep, that's chocolate. Ah, what good parents we are.