Easy Meals

I don't know how many of you know about Kraft Food and Family Magazine. But it's free and has tons of meal ideas! I have acquired about 15 of their magazines and have loved everything I've tried! There's great ideas for kids snacks & how to get the kids involved. The best thing is everything in their magazine is pretty easy. Just go to www.kraftfoods.com and sign up for the magazine, you get one for every season & usually a holiday one. They even e-mail you recipes that aren't in the magazine.

First camping trip of the season!!

    Ethan struggling to stay warm while we hiked the rocks.

He's wearing Jeff's sweatshirt. Very cute!

           You can't tell but they're on top of the arch in the San Raphel 

Lexi is so fashionable in Ethan's sunglasses. She loved to get dirty!

Me and Lexi hiking. Quite the challenge cause she wanted to do it herself. But so much fun! Every time I put her on my four wheeler she fell right to sleep. The four wheeler was quite the life saver! Needless to say she took more naps than she would in a normal day.

That's the arch behind us that Jeff & Ethan were standing on. It was a very cold, windy trip. But we all had fun!

Cute pics

Ethan's sporting the oven mitts. Very classy!

Lexi's cute pose! Very rare & so adorable! With a little bit of chocolate on her face she was quite the model!

Random Thoughts

   I had my first doctor's appointment last week. We got to see the heartbeat, so that's a relief! The doctor said everything looks good & I'm due Nov. 9th (the day after me & Jeff's anniversary). But hopefully it'll come sooner.

  I really enjoyed Elder Bednar's talk on making our prayers more meaningful. Sometimes I'm too tired to put any thought into my prayers, sometimes I say them to just say I said them. I need to try harder to make the best use out of my time.

  Of course I enjoyed Elder Ballard's talk that was directly toward young mother's. I think every young mom gets frustrated & feels like giving up at some point. It's good to hear that Heavenly Father & His leaders are aware of our struggles. And just to have someone acknowledge that gives me hope & the will to keep pushing. 

  I would love to hear what you young mom's do with your kids to keep out of the monotonous daily tasks.

Happy Birthday Jeff!

   I have to brag about my adorable husband. He turned 26 today and I hope he has a wonderful birthday!

   I love Jeff because 1: he willingly helps with the kids after he comes home from work  2: Is always so happy and cheerful & helps me look at the positive things in life  3: Can give me a blessing on a whim. I love that he holds the Priesthood & can bless my family's life with it 4: He's always looking for ways he can serve me. He's so selfless & caring & loves to serve me  5: Cooks breakfast for us every Saturday 6: he's so patient & kind, he's such a good father. Both of our kids just adore him! 7: He teaches me about the gospel, he can always answer my questions, he helps me learn and grow as a person. 8: He has a desire to do better & is such a good example 9: I love that he does what he has to do to provide for our family so that I can stay at home with our kids 10: He's supportive of the things I want to accomplish.

   There's a few reasons why he's so great, but there's many more! There's just not enough time to say everything. Happy Birthday Jeff! I hope you have a good day! 

OUR THIRD!

   A few weeks ago me and Jeff found out we're going to be parents~again. We were both a little shocked. It was quite the surprise. But we're super excited. Ethan has been telling random people that her mommy has a baby in her tummy. So I might as well let the world know, since my son can't keep a secret. Lexi and the baby will be about 18 months apart, which scares me a little that they'll be so close. But at least I have one child potty trained so I don't have 3 kids in diapers. Now if only I could potty train Lexi before the baby comes~not likely, but wishful thinking! I find it amazing that the Lord has a different plan than I have for myself. It humbles me to recognize the hand of the Lord in my life. I'm grateful for the opportunity to accept one of Heavenly Father's choice children into my family.

Potty Training

   We started potty training Ethan last week. He's doing well with only an accident or two every couple of days. I think this is the most frustrating part of being a mom. I'm so proud of him every time he goes, I cheer him a long & he thinks it's great. He is also so proud of me when he finds out I go potty in the toilet too. He cheers for me & tells me what a great job I did. Even though I get frustrated, it's so rewarding to see it click in his mind. Lexi gets very jealous when I give Ethan attention on the potty-I think she's sick of my time being consumed in the bathroom. All in all it's going well, and I look forward to this part being done and over with!