Sisters - Forever!

Natalie has been learning a lot about being a sister. The past couple weeks she has learned that sometimes it's fun, exciting, and adventurous, but other times it's just plain hard. Here are some funny moments brought to you by my very own Miss Natalie:

Cleaning Up

Natalie remembers very well the day she came to the hospital and met her baby sister:

Mom: Natalie, it's time to go pick up your toys please

Natie: But mom - I don't wanna pick up my toys right now

Mom: I'm sorry, but you need to

Natie: why, Mom?

Mom: Because you're a big girl, and big girls pick up their toys

Natie: Ohhhhh. But Mom, we need to hurry and go to the hospital so they can put me back in your belly button because I don't wanna be a big girl right now. I wanna be a baby like Maejae.

Mom: Hahaha. Ummmm, it doesn't work that way sweetie.

Natie: Oh. Well, I'm only 3 years old. Can you help me pick up my toys

Mom: Sure . . . (still laughing)

The Toys

Last weekend we decided to take a trip to San Diego to celebrate Nathan's completion of his 2nd year of medical school and board exams (post to come). The drive is about 5 hours, so we equipped the girls with books, toys, and their teddy bears. One of the toys was a steering wheel that makes sounds, lights up, and has a horn. It is apparently (according to Natalie) "the favorite, best, toy." During the drive, Natalie was playing with her little laptop, and Maejae started to fuss. I reached behind me and gave her the steering wheel. Which resulted in the following:

Natalie: No Mommy, I want the steering car toy

Mom: Sorry Natalie, but Maejae had it first

Natalie: No, I did

Mom: No - you were playing with your computer. Let Maejae have a turn, and then you can have a turn

Natalie: But I want it right now

Mom: Sorry, but you need to share with your sister

Natalie: But Mom, I don't want a sister. I want to take her back to the hospital. Then I can have my car toy.

* At this point, Nathan was busting up laughing. I tried to hold it in, and quickly said,

"I'm sorry honey, it doesn't work that way. Maejae is our sister forever."

To which Natalie replied: Ugh, MOM! Fine. (Taking the toy from Mae) It's my turn Maejae.

Maejae: Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh

Mom: Natalie, give that back to her. She gets 2 more minutes, and then you can have a turn.

Natalie: Mom . . . Ugh! Just . . . Ugh (giving the toy back to Maejae)!

Mommy and Daddy: Hahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!

Learning, and Remembering

When we got home from San Diego, we had an appointment. While we were in the waiting room, I let Maejae crawl around and play with the kid toys they had set out. Natalie decided to join her. But, Natalie and Maejae started playing the head-butting game (they like to hit their heads together, which makes them both laugh pretty hard). A lady was laughing at the girls and decided to talk to Natalie:

Lady: You're silly

Natalie: Yeah, I am

Lady: How old are you

Natalie: 3

Lady: Is that your sister?

Natalie: Yeah - her name is Maejae. She's 1 years old. She's my sister FOREVER! We just . . . we just love her.

I was so proud that she remembered our conversation in the car, and still loves her sissy, even though she now has to share her toys! Let the learning continue . . .

Five years later . . .

Five years ago
June 4th, 2005



And - Five Awesome Years Later
June 4th, 2010:

- We have moved 6 times, finally ending up here in Glendale, AZ
- We went through 5 cats (trying to find the perfect one) before deciding on Copperbottom
- We have completed our undergraduate degrees with Nathan continuing on to Podiatry School
- We have brought 2 beautiful girls into our family, Natalie and Maejae
- We have taken various vacation trips to various states here in the US
- We have purchased our first house, and have made it a beautiful home
- etc., etc., etc., etc., etc., etc., etc.,

And finally . . .

We left the kids for the weekend and went to Squaw Peak Resort to celebrate 5 years together.
* We missed our usual beach trip, but being that Nathan had school, this was the next best thing!

We had an awesome weekend!

"Marriage: When two imperfect beings, who are perfect for each other, strive for perfection together."

*Nathan came up with this quote (and presented it to me in a card with flowers and a sweet note of reassurance) after I told him I felt as though I was so far from perfect that I'd never get there.

We love our Daddy

Happy Father's Day
We Love you!



Top ten things we love about our Daddy:

10) He gives us the biggest hugs and kisses when he gets home from school
9) He plays horsey with us every night after dinner
8) He tickles us until we can't stop laughing
7) He teaches us how to play new games
6) He lets us play on his computer
5) He makes the best breakfast every Sunday
4) He carries us when our "ankles hurt" too bad *
3) He tucks us in our beds every night
2) He takes us camping, golfing, swimming, and to the park
1) He LOVES us!

* Natalie says her ankles hurt when she gets tired at night and doesn't want to walk up the stairs to go to her bed. This is, of course, when mommy and daddy let her stay up past her bedtime. She gets really silly and her favorite thing to do is say, "my ankles hurt" so daddy will carry her to bed. It's pretty cute, and oh so much like her mommy (I used to say my leg was breaking)!

The Girls head to Utah

This last quarter was full of challenging classes for Nathan, and finals week looked to be quite busy. So, the girls and I decided to take a road trip to Utah to visit my sister and mom. Here are some highlights of our trip . . .

1) Natalie threw up right as we were about to get on the freeway. After cleaning her up, we hit the road for Utah.

2) Maejae threw up 2 hours in to the trip, and continued to throw up 4 additional times (each time required a stop on the side of the road, a new onesie, and a wipe-down of the car seat).

3) We stopped for lunch at Burger King with my friend, Jillian (who had caravaned with us). Natalie threw up 4 times while at the restaurant, and Maejae threw up once.

4) We made it to Utah in 12 hours. Which isn't bad considering the fact that we had a lot of unexpected stops, and 5 kids between the 2 moms!

5) Grandma and Natalie made some delicious Elmo cupcakes at Aunt Shelly's house.

6) The babies played so great together, and Grandma had fun playing with her 3 grandchildren.

7) We had a wonderful picnic at the park on Sunday after church. Natalie even got Uncle Russ to go down the slide, and spent a lot of time playing with a new "friend" she met while we were there.

8) We took a trip to the ER after I noticed some signs of dehydration in Maejae. She had thrown up the entire time we were in Utah, and I'm still not sure what she had. The doctor said she had to take some anti-nausea medicine, drink 8 ounce of liquid, and keep it down before we could leave. If that wasn't possible, and Maejae continued to throw up, we were going to have to do an IV. Luckily, she was able to keep her liquids down, and we were released at 1am.

9) Natalie finally got used to the big dog, and decided to play some fetch with Uncle Russ and Sumo. But, she did get a little bite on her side when the dog mistook her fist for a ball! Luckily, she was only scared a little, and continued to play with the dog.

10) My sister, mom, and I got to spend a lot of time chatting, playing with babies, shopping, eating, and hanging out! I miss my mom and sister quite a bit when the days get long, and the going gets tough. But, it sure is fun to get together when we can! Our next get together is in August for my brother's wedding! I can't wait!!!

* And a special thanks to Jillian for helping with all the throwing up, the sick kids, the long car-ride, etc. It sure is great to have such wonderful friends!

A whole lot of Catching Up!

I am not good at blogging. I can't seem to find the time to sit at the computer long enough to write and design the perfect blog - and most people know I am a perfectionist. I don't know how some women can do it - housework, household repairs and other matters, children to tend to and play with, errands to run, church callings, and personal time! I can't seem to fit it all in. But, I have decided to give it another try. We'll see how it goes this time. If it goes well, I'll continue. If I slack again - I might just give up on blogging. But, for now - here's a whole lot of catching up - in a condensed form . . .

Thanksgiving

This year for Thanksgiving, I was able to experience the fullness of the atonement of Jesus Christ, and truly feel of His love and power to redeem our souls. After trails and tribulations, and after experiencing what I hope no other family has to experience (but unfortunately, know many do), and after 10 years of being separated . . . we were united in Love! This picture so perfectly captures what my family stands for - Unconditional Love! My mother, who so humbly and perfectly held the burden of carrying her children through hell and back, can now put her arms around all 4 of us at the same time! It was this day that I had lived my life for, and this day that I will forever cherish and hold dear to my heart. The courage and faith of some family members, the hard work and courage of others, the forgiveness and healing through Jesus Christ, and the determination from all of us truly testifies that Families are Forever!


Christmas

We spent Christmas here in AZ and enjoyed having our little family traditions. Nathan stayed up late getting all the Santa treats set out, and made sure we woke up to a wonderful Christmas morning full of stories, presents, breakfast, and playing! At the end of the day, Nathan said, "Jenn, do you realize we haven't left the downstairs all day!" We stayed in the living room playing with new toys, games, watching a Christmas movie, and hanging out. It was perfect!


New Year's Day

We had some of our best friends from Idaho come down for New Year's. We decided to take them on a hike here in AZ. As you can see, Maejae quickly fell asleep and enjoyed her ride on mommy's back. Nathan and Natalie had fun walking over rocks, climbing bigger rocks, and staying away from the cacti! Natalie hiked the entire hike, and was quite proud of herself! So was Daddy . . . he loves his little girl!


Easter

For Easter, we again took a trip to the Mesa Temple for the Easter Pageant. Both girls stayed awake for the entire thing, and Maejae sang along to every single song! Then we participated in the Midwestern University Easter Egg festivities. I think Natalie enjoyed jumping and playing with friends. She also liked eating candy and playing with her stickers. Maejae was quite loud - again, and let everyone know that she is growing up! Don't you love their shirts? A friend got them for the girls and I think they're adorable :)


Natalie Turns 3 Years Old

This year, Natalie had a Sesame Street Birthday party. We had a small party this year, but I did make the cake again. This time, we did Big Bird! Natalie LOVED it so much, and ate quite a bit.

Natalie got spoiled. Her friends must really love her, cause they brought her all kinds of toys!

For Natalie's Birthday Surprise, we took her to Disney On Ice - 100 Years! It was so much fun watching Natalie get excited when she saw characters she knew. I think her favorite parts were the princess dance, and the part where the whale swallows Pinnocchio. I'm not sure why she thought that was so cool, but for days she would say, "Mom - remember my skating show where the whale ate that boy! And remember when the whale sneezed and the boy flew out? That was so funny!" She sure is a character herself, and we love her for that. She has been a great blessing in our lives. I can hardly believe she is 3 years old . . .