Happy & Sad

Happy:

I'm pretty particular about what I put on my walls and where; that's why they've been bare for so long. I took these pictures a couple days ago to show you that we finally got some pictures/decor up in our house! It now looks like a home! We love it. :)

Hallway

Hallway by the laundry

Living Room

Dining/Stair Area

Sad:

Last night, 2 am, Brian leapt from his bed in horror when he heard a huge shattering sound. Running to see what was the matter, he found our lovely temple centerpiece (from the dining/stair area above) fallen to the ground. We don't know why the heavy-duty hook failed, but it bent, allowing the frame to slip. I'm very sad about this unique piece of art that I designed and created myself (with much difficulty and time) and was very pleased with. I loved the subtleness of the etched image on the glass with a golden shining background (some angles you could see it very well and others hardly at all; it was cool). Below is a picture that I had taken when it was in the works. I'm not sure if I plan to salvage the frame and what I'll do to replace this piece, but it may be a blank spot on the wall for a while until I muster up a new idea. :\

Avery is 3!

Avery is my little lady. I love how politely she can say "Please, may I ___?" She is quick to serve before being asked and when being asked and also loves to share (most of the time). She likes to pick up Aspen and give her toys (and take toys away too). She has a watchful eye and sometimes catches danger before I do with baby. It's funny when Avery spills something or eats something I may not have approved of and says "it's okay, mom."

Avery loves to put her backpack on and pretend she is going to school. She likes to stuff it with "food" (toys) and pretend she is having lunch or at the grocery store. She just loves to pretend and do puzzles, which she is getting better at independently. Also loves watching movies, of course. She got a bike (I scored on that one) and Beauty and the Beast for her birthday! It's fun to hear her laugh. She is successful with always going #2 in the potty, but only occasionally pees there. I'm glad we've gotten somewhere in that department and I'm still letting her go at her pace.

Avery is excellent with Nala, our pup. Nala is learning how to obey well and Avery is a good and authoritative master. Please see this video; it's awesome! ("lay/down, stay, now COME, SIT, good girl")

Winter Joys

This winter we have fun playing inside, going for walks outside in nice weather, I try to do a project or two, we go to (and have here) play dates and lunch dates, singing time with Mr. Greg at FSN once a month, and more:

Here we ventured out on a long hike near our home.

Lovely Ladies

Sewing project: Get rid of the bell-bottoms! (This is after one leg was done)

Play dates

Winter walks

Mint Chocolate Chip

I like ice cream (you could probably guess by the length of this blog)! Since the first time I picked my favorite ice cream, it has been so ever since: Mint chocolate chip. Furthermore, when I discovered Breyer's mint chocolate chip, no other brand has hit it the way Breyer's did. I then became an ice cream snob and can hardly waste my money and sugar intake on cheap ice cream; it's just not worth it.

There have been other ice cream flavors along the way that have certainly tickled my fancy, but there's something about a classic and your first love. Cookies-n-cream has come very close; I actually prefer the chocolate cookie over the chocolate chip. Plus, I've been surprised to note that cheaper brands can pull off cookies-n-cream rather well. It's an all around great flavor - another classic - but nothing cuts me to the bone like my mint...

About that, I was horrified recently to have a batch of Breyer's Mint Chocolate Chip that did not nail it the way it has before. What happened?? I'm lost without it!! I decided to try making my favorite ice cream flavor at home (feeling I was setting myself up for disappointment). And, yes, I was disappointed the first night - fresh out of the maker - it was super fluffy/airy and I couldn't stand it. But the next night, WOW! KABOOM! My love has returned to me! I guess it's the texture that I'm so finicky about. It's gotta be smooth, kind of icy, and dense. I am so pleased, I just hope I can replicate it! Here's a picture (and yes, it's pink thanks to Avery because that's the best part about making your own - maybe next time blue!)

Perfect Day for sledding

We got dumped on with snow last night (barely made it home from a church activity!). Today it was nice and sunny with all that powdery snow (I'm sure the ski lift was packed today!!). We have a great sledding spot by the roundabout and ventured there today for our first time.

That happens to be Brian with Nala (our pup)!

I'm surprised how long Aspen was content sitting in the snow... and eating it.

In the end, Avery felt safer scooching down the hill on her bum. My first run with her she got buried in snow!

I love it when these girls can entertain themselves together. Avery often climbs into Aspen's crib just after baby's nap to play with her. Today they were trying on hats in there and Avery was "king". Love em. Avery can also pick up baby properly (under the arms) and move her around the room (sometimes to Aspen's chagrin).

These days, we have to feed Aspen her baby food whenever we're not eating because she will not settle for baby food over what's on our plates. She's great at self feeding with her hands and is becoming more interested in using a utensil. Today she didn't want to eat her baby food until she could hold the jar and spoon it out herself. You should have seen her face light up when I allowed this. Though it was rather messy and obviously not a productive way to get food down, it made me smile too. :)

Community Affairs

I love my community. I didn't see myself as an activist, but on this particular issue, I have seen the value in letting my voice be heard...

The History on the "Trinity Site Project": The county & school board have worked together to clear some valuable land they owned in town for better development. This actually happened years ago. All devised plans for the land have never made it past the county council's vote. It's been years trying to get something started, many years. Time and opportunity wasted. Perhaps those past plans truly weren't good enough, but perhaps we didn't let our voices heard well enough to move forward and we let the minority in this town have the bigger say.

Regardless, there is a new plan now, an outstanding plan, and we're here to fight for it. Incredible amounts of thought and planning have gone into it. I am 100% convinced by the experts that this is nothing but the best usage for this land, producing the greatest income for our schools and county, and the greatest asset we could use in this small community. We are lucky that these developers and Kroger want to invest in our town...

The meeting to vote: So, at a 5+ hour county meeting last night where the vote took place by county council and school board, I and my friends made it our duty to be heard. We were recognized as the passionate crowd of moms there, representing the many moms who could not be there to concur. Us moms were not the only ones in favor. 90% of the people there were in favor, not to mention 95% of the experts (roughly). Honestly, I don't know how some of the county council members voted no. It was a no brainer. Alas, the vote was passed!!!! (And I got home past midnight).

Coming to our town: A new, state-of-the-art Smith's Marketplace (like Super Target) with accompanying buildings for other businesses. This picture is an example, but they have plans to make ours even more modern and luxurious (to accommodate all the hooty-tootys in our town ;-) I'm so excited!!!!!