Clara's Nursery

When I found out I was having a girl I had a time getting into all the girl stuff simply because I had lived in boy world for so long. Every time I would look for bedding I was always drawn to the boy stuff and had a hard time deciding on girl bedding. After tons of searching I fell in love with this traditional rose bud bedding. I wish I wasn't a stresser but I am and the thought of bumpers scares me. They're the cutest part of the crib bedding but I can't bring myself to use them.

Deciding on a name for sister was not easy but I wanted to incorporate her name into the nursery somehow. Mark loved the name Kate, Luke was voting for Eliza and I was hoping for Clara or Charlotte and call her Lottie. I was in love with all the names, except for Brody's choice of course. Every time we would discuss names Brods would say, "I like Brody name, we can have two!"

A few weeks before my due date I got very sick with an ear infection, sinus infection and yeast infection. While I was laying there wanting to die I decided that I was the one suffering so it was my choice what to name her. I still wasn't totally decided on Clara or Charlotte but I knew it would be a "C" name so I went ahead and ordered a large "C" for her nursery! I was semi committed so hopefully I liked a "C" name when she arrived!

The boys have been drawing pictures for sister for weeks now and taping them up all over her nursery. After I started finalizing her nursery I knew it would crush the boys if I removed their art work so I decided to let them help. They each painted a picture of sister to hang in her nursery. I absolutely love how they turned out. The boys were so excited that they were able to help decorate her nursery and they can hardly wait for her to come!

Valentine's Day...A Little Early

Since I will most likely be in the hospital with sister over Valentine's Day we decided to celebrate a day early. We did our traditional breakfast and presents. This year I found a new recipe and it was delish...angel food cake french toast. Since my boys are donut freaks I of course grabbed a few of those and they were their fav. Sometimes I wonder why I even put forth the effort to cook! This year the boys discovered strawberry pink milk...thanks to a little photoshoot...and became big fans. 

Luke had a dinosaur pillow pet and the boys always fought over it so I decided to end the fighting with their own pillow pets. Luke got Thunder from the Denver Broncos and Brod got Swoop from the University of Utah. The look on Luke's face when he opened his was priceless. I feel like more than half the time when I give a gift the boys it's forgotten an hour later. A smart woman would save their money and stop collecting more junk, but I'm a sucker for the look on their face when they open the perfect gift!

When breakfast was over Luke gave me a Valentine's Day card. The picture of me laying on the hospital bed with sister in my tummy melted my heart. Luke is so stressed about sister's birth and everything going okay. I cannot wait for her to be here and safe so he doesn't have to stress anymore!

Valentine Cookies

I feel like you can't let Valentine's Day go by without making sugar cookies, however, being nine months pregnant you don't feel much motivation for baking. Luckily, Dick's Bakery saved us this year! It was so fun enjoying this activity with the kids without stressing about time or mess. I'm always amazed how much frosting, candies, and sprinkles the boys are able to fit on one cookie. 

Brody always works fast so he can eat his hard work. Luke is the opposite and is very methodical in his decorating. Brody decorates one cookie and eats while Luke decorates the rest. When the boys are done they always want Mark and I to enjoy their labors. By the time we're done test tasting I'm always sick but it's worth it!

Christmas Day

It has probably been one of the warmest and driest winters I can remember but Christmas morning we woke up to the biggest surprise...snow had finally come and lots of it! The boys could hardly wait to tear open their presents and head outside. It always amazes me how quickly the presents are unwrapped and all of that planning and preparing is over. They both got exactly what they wanted and then some. Once again Brods wanted to play with every toy he opened up and didn't care about the other presents. Luke can hardly contain himself and wants to rip into every present he sees.

This year it was probably a good thing that they were so quick because Uncle Tom decided that 8am was a good time to call home from his mission.  It was so fun to see his cute face and see how happy he is. The boys became close to Tom while we lived there and they definitely miss him. 

As soon as we were done talking to Tom the boys and Mark headed outside to play in the snow. I honestly think Luke was more excited about the snow than his presents. Brody of course decided that it was just too cold outside and wanted to come inside with me and build his race track. The house was an absolute disaster but it was so nice cuddling up by the fire and playing toys with Brods. The snow was magic and definitely made it a Christmas to remember!

Santa Pictures

After the disaster with Santa pictures last year I was determined to have a better experience this year. Luckily Luke didn't puke on Santa again but Brody was not one bit happy about getting his picture taken. Once again I dressed up as Santa and Grammy even came along to help but it didn't matter. He still screamed at us and tried running away. Not sure why he so against these pictures but he is definitely not a fan. By the end of the shoot he came around and put a smile on his face but it wasn't easy.

Even when it came time for the cousin pictures Brods was still protesting. This time Uncle Mitch...one of his absolute favorite people was dressed up as Santa and he was still difficult. I know most moms would have given up but these pictures are some of my favorites each year and when I look at them it makes all the stress worth it! 

Christmas Eve

 

I cannot believe that Christmas Eve is here and all of our celebrating is over. I always stress hope that the boys had a fun December and we did everything they wanted to do. They are both at such fun ages and I don't want them to get grow up.

We had Christmas Eve dinner at my parents' house like we do every year. This year everyone was there and it was a lot of fun. Luke gets so excited over the poppers at everyone's place settings. If you don't pop yours immediately Luke will run over and ask if you want him to do it. By the end of dinner Luke has claimed almost every penny prize that popped out of the poppers. When I see how excited he gets over these funny little toys I wonder why we even spent money on big Christmas gifts.

Of course uncles played a few rounds of Super Smash Bros in between dinner and presents. Luke always joins in and does a pretty good job keeping up but this time Brods wanted in on the action. I loved how content he was with his fake controller...he didn't even push any buttons but he felt like he was one of the guys. 

The boys pajamas this year are so so cute and I couldn't wait for them to put them on. I think it's safe to say though that Luke was a little more excited about his Lego set from Grammy and Papa. The look on his face when he opened it was pure joy. Now if only I had that same look on my face when I have to put the dang thing together. 

Silly Jolly

I know I've said it before but every year I kinda dread Jolly. It's not easy remembering to move him every night, be creative and keep the magic alive for Luke who is constantly questioning everything. However, the joy that I see on their faces every morning when they find him makes it all worth it. They get so excited to run and find him every morning and see what he has been up to! 

I love my Lukers but if there is one thing he struggles with it's thinking before he acts. His little body is always moving faster than his brain and it gets him into trouble. Sometimes at the end of the day we talk about some of the mistakes he has made and what he could do better next time...trying to learn from our mistakes. Each night he would get very nervous and ask if Jolly was going to report that stuff to Santa. He would hurry over and whisper things into Jolly's ear. Sadly, I never could hear what he was saying but he told me he was apologizing to Jolly and begging him to not tell Santa. Luke is a hard kid for sure but he is also so much fun!

Probably one of the cutest things that Mark and I get to witness each Christmas is the magic when the boys say good bye to Jolly each year. When they are finally allowed to give him a kiss and a hug it's pure magic. The joy and excitement on their faces is so special and makes me wish they will never grow up! The holidays are a lot of work but so amazing and worth it because of these cute boys!