Clara's Outfits

I knew that it would be fun dressing a baby girl but I just had no idea how fun. The boys were fun to dress but there's only so much you can buy for a boy. For the boys they always have two pairs of shoes...running shoes and church shoes. I couldn't believe the options there were for a little girl. And oh my the accessories. Once I discovered the bows and bracelets we were in trouble. I would giggle in the morning listening to Mark getting Clara dressed for church. It wasn't uncommon for him to say, "Are you kidding me Clara, three bracelets?! Now that's a little excessive!" It definitely took me a while to figure out just how to dress a little girl but I have enjoyed every minute of it and can't wait to buy more. 

Pictures with Santa

Every year we do pictures with Santa. They are my absolute favorite pictures. We are there for less than fifteen minutes and the pictures they produce are amazing. However, every year I have dressed up as Santa and this year I decided I was done. Clara is a daddy's girl and we had no idea how she would react to Santa so I decided daddy needed to be Santa. 

The pictures were great and the photographer got some great shots. I was surprised when she only shot one pose and said we were done. It was a crazy day there so I was grateful for what we got and told the kids to change their pajamas for Grammy's pictures next. Mark got out of his Santa suit and we did the cousin pictures. The photographer came over to me and felt so bad because she just realized she only did one pose with my kids and said we could do one more. 

Oh boy was it tough talking my kids into getting changed yet again. By this time they were already back in their original clothes and not too excited about a fourth wardrobe change. I talked them into and they were onboard. Surprisingly the most stubborn person was our Santa. He was not having it and told me just try out the Santa that was already there. Mark was willing to risk Clara screaming in the pictures and it looked like I didn't have a choice. 

Making the kids get changed to do a few more shots was the best decision that entire day. These last shots are by far my favorite and Clara didn't seem to mind Santa one bit. She was in awe of him and Mark wondered why he was dragged along in the first place. 

Clara's Firsts

This past year has been a whirlwind and I wish I could freeze time. Watching my little baby girl grow has a pure joy and heartache at the same time. It has been so fun celebrating each little milestone. Even if it was her first tooth, bath, eating solid foods the family cheered for her each time. We are so in love with this little girl and all that she does. She is very loved and she knows it!

Steps at Nine Months

Crawling at 8 Months

First Rain Storm at Six Months

Getting Mobile at 7 Months

First Easter at 2 Months

Family Pictures

This year I had an amazing idea to do the pictures for our family Christmas card in a Christmas tree lot. It would have been so fun but as it got closer I realized that we haven't had a family picture done since Clara was born and we should probably get that updated. Aunt Andra really needed to get hers' done too so we decided to do them together and get it over with. 

We were lucky that the weather still felt like fall and there was no snow in sight. The kids did amazing job helping each other smile and laugh. If one child was ornery that was okay because we would start snapping the other family. The husbands were able to grumble together while we ignored them. Family pictures are one of my absolute favorite things and I am so grateful every time we do them. 

At the last minute I decided to run grab this Christmas tree at Target. I thought it would still be a fun way to incorporate Christmas into our card with the little pop of red. 

I am so grateful for these pictures and will cherish them forever! Love this little family of mine!

Jolly's Back

The boys were so excited when they woke up to see that Jolly had returned and brought his North Pole breakfast and gifts. I am so nervous this year because Luke is already questioning whether Santa and Jolly are real. I need to be on my toes and not mess up this year. 

We read Santa's letter and then read the book to review the rules. Jolly had brought them their own Jolly doll that they could love and hold. Brods was so excited about the elf doll and wouldn't let it out of his hands. Clara had a donut for the first time and she couldn't get enough of it. The boys are so excited to see all the fun things Jolly has planned for them. 

Time for the Tree

Every year of our marriage we have had issues with our Christmas tree. We've never had a new tree and so each year I'm left dealing with lights. This year I decided I was tired of that and wanted a new tree. Mark said to do whatever I wanted so I went and bought a new tree. That night when I told Mark I had bought a tree he started going back on his "do whatever" and thought maybe we shouldn't waste our money on that. 

The boys were already excited to decorate the tree and didn't like all the uncertainty. Thanks to a Utah football game Luke had learned the word "bullshit." We explained to him what the word meant and why he should never say it. While Mark and I were discussing what to do about the tree Luke interjected and said, "Mom, if you want to tell dad this is bullshit that's okay!" Mark and I both laughed and decided it was time to move on and just decorate the tree.

Clara was a huge help decorating the tree. She was all over the boxes and pulling every ornament out. Generally we don't have any broken ornaments but sadly this year that wasn't the case thanks to our little helper. 

I laughed watching the boys because Brody would throw the ornaments on as fast as he could and Luke kept wanting to put them on in certain areas. Brody was thoroughly enjoying himself and Luke was getting very frustrated. I always love how the boys sit back and admire their work when they are done. It's tradition that they sleep under the tree when it's fully decorated and they were so excited to snuggle up under it. I can't wait for this Christmas season with these three!

Best Day of Luke's Life

We attended every home football game and cheered on our Utah Utes, however, the last game of the season we got a special treat. Aunt Maddie does social media for the team and she was able to get us down on the field to watch the team warm up. It was going to be a cold and snowy day so we bundled up because there was no way we were going to miss this. Luke had been talking about this day for weeks and weeks. He could hardly wait. 

As we watched the players warm up the boys watched closely. Holladay came over and handed Luke his Utah wristband. You should have seen the smile on Luke's face...he couldn't believe what just happened. After that a security guard gave Brods a little Utah towel. Who knew that a little towel could bring him so much joy. Then, Britton Covey walked over and told Luke and Brody that their aunt had told him all about them and he really wanted to meet them. I honestly thought Luke would pass out. He couldn't believe that he was meeting the Britton Covey. He was so cute and talked with the boys for a bit. 

We weren't going to stay for the game since it was practically a blizzard and poor Clara wouldn't last well in those conditions. Maddie told us we could go inside and watch with the players' families if we wanted. I couldn't believe she was making all the happen for us. Once we got inside we ate lunch and watched them honor the seniors. 

The Utes best player, Booker, was hurt and he came in to watch the game with his family. Luke couldn't believe it. He stood above Booker and didn't take his eyes off of him. Luke had brought his Utah football in the hopes of getting a player to sign it for him. He finally got up the courage to go ask Booker. I was so grateful that Booker was nice and signed it for him. 

The day was honestly perfect and I don't think we'll ever top this day for Luke. Aunt Maddie was so nice and has no idea how happy she make her nephew!