Our year in review

I hate writing "The Christmas Letter" every year.  I do!  So, this year I thought I'd try just summarizing our year for friends and family on the blog.  I feel like our family blog is so much more informal than "The Christmas Letter" is.

You all know what I mean.

Anyways, here we go!

Winter:

End of December, 2011:  The Kirby family started the year off in Aurora, Colorado.  We moved around Christmas time and, on Christmas Eve, our apartment had a small flood.  Awesome.  We hadn't even had enough time to settle in and unpack, and were dealing with a flood.  It started in our bathroom and moved down the hallway, saturating the carpet in both Hayden and our bedrooms.  We were forced to shove all of our belongings into our TINY kitchen, dining room, and living room.  Our handyman was great to come and deal with the mess (when he was in the middle of plans with friends!).  He cleaned everything up, fixed the toilet, and then ripped up our carpets to put large, industrial fans underneath.  The fans actually worked to prevent the carpet from molding, which was great.  BUT...we had to have them running for 3 days straight.  That meant we slept in our crowded-with-stuff living room on our couches.  It really put a damper on our holiday!  There were no decorations, no Christmas trees, and there was no holiday baking.  Luckily we were invited out to dinner Christmas Eve and Christmas by our friends and family (thank you for saving us, Kevin and Judy Beckstead and David and Heather Crawford!).

Hayden playing with Christmas lights for the first time!  He was 11 months here.

Close up!

Right before leaving for Christmas Eve dinner at the Beckstead's.

At the start of the year, Hayden didn't have any teeth!  He didn't get his teeth until he turned 14 months!!

For Hayden's birthday (January 31st), I was thinking about making donuts and having a donut and hot chocolate birthday party.  Sounds fun, right?  I decided it would be a good idea to test out the recipe I had found on pinterest before using it.  Turns out it was a good idea, because they didn't actually work quite right....

Aren't these gorgeous?  Sour cream Old Fashioned donuts with a homemade glaze.  Looks yummy, right?  The next picture is really going to disappoint.

NAILED IT!  Yeah, that mess right there?  Those are my beautiful donuts with homemade  glaze.  Needless to say, we did not have a donut and hot chocolate birthday party for Hayden.

I just realized this is going to be the longest posting of mine, EVER.  We are still in January people.  Hang in there!!

January 31st, 2012:

Hayden's birthday morning!  The first thing I had him do was try peanut butter for the first time.  It was a big event.

He could barely see over the t.v. stand, let alone reach what was on top of it.  Yeah, that has changed!

So after my failed attempt at pinterest donuts, I decided to make cupcakes from a pinterest recipe.  The night before his party.  Without practicing the recipe to make sure it would work.  Great idea, right?

Wrong.

All the recipe said that I had to do was mix a box of cake mix with a can of pop.  That's it.  Nothing else.

Didn't work.  At all.

Here is the perfect picture of the pinterest example:

Soda Can Cupcakes from Cookies and Cups Blog  (link)

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaand here's mine:

Hmmmm...

 We ended up buying Hayden a piece of chocolate cake from the Safeway bakery.

As you can see, Hayden certainly enjoyed the cake!

Aaaaaaaaaaaaand the sugar crash :)

February:  Did I mention we joined a play group?  Hayden got to meet lots of friends while I got to meet lots of mommy friends!  Every Tuesday we would do something fun.  On this occasion, we went to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.  Paul had the day off so he got to come with us, too!  Hayden had fun getting to be with mom AND dad all day.

Apparently Paul lost his razor that day!  But look how Hayden's face would just disappear when he smiled!  CUTE.

Here's Hayden and I looking at some animals.  He was actually a little afraid of the displays.  The reptile room with the snakes scared him the most--they had live snakes and the room was dark.  I think he was nervous about the whole thing, but Paul and I thought it was pretty cool!

Spring!  

This picture was taken late March.  Hayden would help me spring clean by moving chairs so that I could sweep and mop.  It became his new favorite activity.  And, if you look closely at his mouth, you can see his new teeth!  It took 14 months, but once it started happening, he all of a sudden had 6 teeth!

And just look at his chubby baby face!

Summer!  In June we got to do some camping with the Becksteads.  Hayden became infatuated with STICKS.  That and he followed his daddy around constantly.  Our camping location of choice was Pike National Forest--it's absolutely gorgeous!

Miss Mary and I--it was really cold that morning!  I wish I had been as bundled up as she was!  (That's our orange tent in the background.  It was a wedding present we got ourselves.)

Living in Colorado was a lot of fun.  There was so much to do so many places to go SHOPPING!  Ha ha.  In the summer, Hayden and I started walking with a friend from church who has a little boy named Kaden and is just a few months older.  After every walk we would stop at the park to let the boys play--we're so missing Kaden and his mom now!

Two buds!  Aren't they cute?!?

Also in Colorado we joined a date night group.  This group pretty much saved our date nights!  Three Fridays out of the month, Hayden would be watched by another member of the date night group.  On the fourth Friday, we would watch all of the kids at our place.  So pretty much, we gave up one Friday a month so that we could have three Friday nights sans Hayden.  At first, Paul was not excited to join the group, but to this day he misses it!  The plan is to start our own date night group here in Rexburg.

Hayden reading a book and Isabelle watching a show during date night.  

I got to meet new friends through our date night group and hope we all keep in touch!  They were too fun.  Plus, every woman in our group announced that they were expecting!  One had her baby in September, the next is due around Christmas time, then there's me on February 17th, and then the last is due in March.

How funny is that?!?

This is our peanut at 20 weeks, 2 days.  This was the appointment we found out we are having a boy!

Hopefully by now if you're reading this you know that I'm pregnant with our second baby.  He is due February 17 so that makes me...32 weeks?  Something like that.  Hayden was due February 12 and we had him January 31, so we're *hoping* this little guy comes early as well.  Cross your fingers everybody!!

Oh.  We're naming him Taylor, but still no middle  name.  Suggestions?

I promise, the year is almost over!  We're getting close :)

Fall!  

Fall is gorgeous in Colorado.  Well, mainly I forgot what a regular Fall was supposed to look like!  We had been in Rexburg so long that you just get used to miserable snow and ice.  Ha.  Fall is about a week long in Rexburg.  In Colorado, it's an actual season!  

For Halloween I made Hayden's costume.  He was the cutest little rain cloud I've ever seen :)

Winter:

The very last day of November we moved back to Idaho.  It was sad but exciting all at the same time.  I have been missing my friends, my ward, and how everything there was so close.  I had a Walgreens across the street.  Here, it's a 15 minute drive.  But this is where we're supposed to be right now.  Paul is going back to school to finish his degree and we both know that he needs it!  We're glad to be back in our home and that Dr. Evans will be delivering our second baby (he delivered the Hayden as well).  We have friends and family here and it's nice to see them again.  

Oh, our move?  Paul drove the moving truck with his Tacoma hitched onto the back while I drove the Highlander.  That's right, I'm a big girl now!  Previously, I had only driven about two hours straight before getting a migraine and having to stop.  This time, I drove the whole way from Aurora to Rexburg.  It helped that the weather was PERFECT (excusing a little rain when we got into Pocatello, and wind crossing through Wyoming).  The drive was 13 hours long, and, being pregnant and travelling with a 1 year old, we thought it would be a good idea to stop at a hotel for the night.  This is where Hayden had his FIRST swimming experience!

Hayden didn't really like the water.  I think it was too cold for him.  

It was actually kinda fun!  So anyways, we're back in our house and loving it.  When we had been in Colorado, I bought a Christmas tree for Hayden's room and I finally got to set it up!  Here's a video of him looking at it.

That brings us to today.  Currently Paul is putting in a fireplace, book shelves, canned lights, and a surround sound system into our living room.  It's still a work in progress, but it's looking so good!  The new wall has been built, painted, and tiled. 

It's a shame that this picture doesn't do it justice!  The tile is a glass tile and it really is just gorgeous with the paint colors and wood tiles. Oh yeah, the hearth down there is made of ceramic wood tiles! It really looks amazing. Paul will be putting a mantle in that big space between the fireplace and t.v. eventually.  I can't wait for it!  He'll also be building some custom book shelves to go on either side of the fireplace that will be painted white.  They will house all the sound equipment (which is currently on the floor). 

Paul wanted to be sure to include this picture:

 You can clearly see the canned lights (there are actually 6 of them in the living room) that he installed. I love them! Before, that side of the room had no light--just a single floor lamp.  It was NOT working for us!The main reason Paul wanted me to include this picture was so that you could see the in-wall speakers he installed to created a 7.1 surround sound system. Whatever that means! It's important to him.  Anyways, there are 4 speakers in the sealing.  Can you see them?  

Aaaaaaand the most exciting news of all.......Hayden got an early birthday present from my family.  He did NOT like it at first!  I've had it out so that he can choose to play with it if he wants, and yesterday was the day!  

Hayden happily plopped on his car and started scooting around!  Too bad that a few minutes later, Hayden would take a spill on the bike that would result in a little bruise going across his cheek :(

Paul, Hayden, and Allison Kirby (4 months  pregnant with  baby Taylor!)

Well that was our year in review!  We hope all of our friends and family are happy and healthy and enjoying the special Christmas spirit of December.  Merry Christmas!!

How does one nest and declutter to move at the same time?!?

Alright everyone, this is the week!  Moving day is finally upon us and I just can't believe that it has come so fast.  It doesn't feel right.  It feels like we still have so much to do in preparation for moving that I'm not actually ready to do the moving part.  I think the reason why I'm having so many moving issues is 1) I'm pregnant and therefore trying to feather my nest for the new little birdie to come, and 2) I'm also trying to de-clutter and purge my belongings so that we can fit everything into the moving truck.  Let me explain:

It feels like for every piece of furniture or electronic we sell on Craigslist, we buy something else!  Example:  We sold some old sound equipment of Paul's.  Then we bought a crib.  Then we gave some friends our 2 bookshelves...and bought a dresser.  Sold our TV stand, and bought a crib mattress.  I got rid of about 4 bags of my own clothes that were outdated or didn't fit only to stock up on socks, shoes, and onezies for Hayden and baby.

It feels like for every inch of progress I make, I lose about 3/4 of an inch.  

I CAN'T WIN!  

Fighting the natural urge to gather and nest is really hard!  I find myself cleaning the silliest of things, like the drawer organizer for the silverware.  I don't want to go shopping for things that I think we need because, honestly, we need all the room in the moving truck that we can get.  So I clean the mundane little items that really don't need to be cleaned. 

I have issues.  Simply put.

Also, um, where did we get all this stuff we have and why can't I get rid of it?!?  Books, DVDs, perfume and lotion samples, magazines, CRAFT SUPPLIES.  I think I need to be on "Hoarders" sometimes just taking a look at the bins of crafts we have in storage.  I think I have way too much...but I can't just get rid of it!  I need my own personal Martha Stewart to come de-clutter and reorganize my life.  Wouldn't that be nice?

The best thing I've found so far to help me in this process is Youtube.  I actually found channels of women that teach you their tips and tricks for organizing you home, your family, your finances, etc.  I went through a huge purge the other day and got rid of some Mary Kay stuff I was holding onto, as well as clothes Hayden never wore.  It felt so good.

[As I type this, Hayden is taking everything out of the non-perishables cupboard and putting everything back in.  Is this ambivalence not an exact metaphor for what I'm going through right now?!?  Ahhhh, I love that boy.]

Alejandra from Youtube's Get Organized with Alejandra's Home Organizing Tips is my new favorite gal to watch.  She has some great tips and LOVES to organize with colors.  Ha ha, I love it.  Anyway, if you're bored (or an organization nerd like I am) here's her channel. 

Last note:  We are moving back to Idaho THIS WEEK.  We pack everything up tomorrow and then leave Thursday morning...early.  We're staying at a hotel that we have already booked and then we are HOPING to be in Rexburg around dinner time.  If you are shipping anything out to us, please use our Idaho address at this point.  If you don't have it, message me on Facebook (or email me...or text me....lol).  At this point I have forwarded our mail, so if you forget and send something to Colorado, it should be re-routed to us.  That's the theory, anyways!

September, October, and November

I can't believe it's been over a month since I last posted something on our blog!  We've been busy, and I have lots of pictures and videos to share.

September:
 
I recently found some videos of Hayden from...I want to say September.  I took them the first time that I watched Lucy.  They are too funny not to share, so here they are!

 

I love this video because at this point in Hayden's life, Quack-Quack was a HUGE thing!  I love that I was able to record him talking about his beloved friend.  (Oh, and there's also the signature Hayden hair grab.  Yeah...he's mostly grown out of that now, but every once in a while, he'll do it.  URGH.)

 

This day was hilarious.  I let Hayden play on the patio because it was soooo warm.  He hadn't played with his old baby toys in a long time, so it was like he was seeing them for the first time.  At one point, I was on my computer in the dining room (right behind him).  Then next, I found him inside of his exersaucer which he hadn't used since about 9 months!  I don't know how he got himself in it, but he barely fit!  His little legs were all scrunched up, poor boy. 

October:  Halloween

For Halloween, Hayden was a rain cloud!  I made his costume, and, I wish I could take credit for coming up with the idea.  I didn't.  Guess where I got it.  Go ahead.  Yeah, that's right--Pinterest!  I can't tell you how many times that website has saved my bacon.  Anyways, here's a picture (and link to) the original:

In this version, the creator used fabric paint and contact paper to create her rain drops, and two clouds attached with ribbon for a sort of "sandwich board" look.

And here's Hayden:

For Hayden's costume, I bought a pair of pants and a plain white tee at walmart (each costing $3.88).  For the rain drops, I cut out peices of felt that I had from previous projects and just sewed them on.  I made the cloud out of some old white bed sheets that had a rip in a seam.  I love this costume because it cost me under $8, and everything can be re-used.  I sewed the raindrops and cloud on with HUGE stitches so that, after Halloween, I could cut everything off and use the clothes for Hayden.  I think I'll keep the cloud, too!  It's so stinking adorable and I stuffed it like a little pillow!  I'm thinking it could look adorable somewhere in baby #2's room.

 With Hayden's costume, I did a few things differently from the original idea.  For one, I didn't make a front and back cloud for the "sandwich board" look.  I was running out of time as we had a Halloween party to go to.  So I just made one and sewed it onto the actual shirt.  It saved me time and looked great, but I couldn't fit Hayden into his car seat with it on!  Slight oversight.  Driving to and from the party, we had to take his shirt off so that he would fit snugg-ly into the car.  Oh, and like I said...instead of using fabric paint for the raindrops (I didn't have any anyway), i cut out raindrops from leftover felt scraps.  Worked really well!  The pants even went through the wash and dryer and help up perfectly. 

Getting this boy to stand still for a picture was nearly impossible this morning.  All he wanted to do was run to me and jump in my lap!  Anyways, this little sock monkey basket is Hayden's Easter basket.  He was going to be a sock monkey for Halloween, so I thought it would be perfect as a candy basket.  When I ran of out time to make that costume, I thought it would still act as a great candy basket--and he loves it!

I love Hayden's cheesy grin in this picture.  It's changed so much as he's gotten older!

Look at this cheeseball!  He loves rocking in his rocking chair (that we still use at night when he has a bad dream), and if you look closely, you'll see an old friend.  QUACK-QUACK!

November:

These pictures were taken Sunday after church.  Hayden was playing in our room and noticed Paul's beloved gnome.  ...don't ask...I still don't get it.  Anyway, Hayden was able to pull the gnome off of our dresser.  He carried it around in his arms saying, "Baby!  Baby!  My Baby!".  It was so adorable, serious.  Hayden would pat the "baby's" head and just love on him.  He brought the gnome into our bed and crawled all over with it.  

Paul wasn't too happy with the situation...fearing a broken gnome, he hid it when Hayden went down for a nap.  :(  Hayden still asked for it after nap and then after snack. 

Lastly, I took this video of Hayden yesterday.  The story behind it:  Paul was making a fire one day in our fire place and Hayden really wanted to help.  He's in the "I'm such a great helper...but really I just complicate the process" stage!  Ha ha.  So Paul, being the good sport he is, let him crumple newspaper and stuff it under the wood.  He then lit everything and Hayden was HOOKED.  Every day, Hayden wants to make a fire.  I usually have him wait till daddy gets home (because it's just a cute father-son activity), but today I couldn't resist.  Thus, the video.  (And yes, afterward we put logs on and lit the fire!).  It's so great that Hayden wants to help, but teaching him how to make a fire probably wasn't the best thing...

(Oh, and he's in his pajamas because he ran to the fireplace wanting to make a fire right after I got him up from bed!)

My 20 MONTH old versus my 20 WEEK (en utero) old

That's right!  I've got a 20 week (en utero) old, and a 20 month old!  This sure is an interesting way to experience having children.  

Hayden is just barely 20 months and thriving.  He has no idea that he'll have a little sibling soon.  He does notice my growing belly, however.  He'll come over to me and lay his head on it, then pet it ever-so-carefully.  It's quite sweet.  Although...there are still times when he'll JUMP on it.  Those times....not so sweet.  Actually, they hurt.  

Getting tickled!

Mr. Hayden is developing so quickly lately!  He's picking up a new word every day (sometimes)!  New words so far include:

• YES!
• Snat (Snack)
• duh-DAAH-duh (Banana)
• Thk-ooooo (Thank You)
• Gulk (Milk)
• Gook or BOOOOk (Book)
• Suh (Some)

I know, most of these you wouldn't understand, but when he uses the words in context, I understand his little language perfectly!  It's really amazing to witness his progress.  

This is Hayden's "silly face".  Daddy taught it to him and now he will just randomly look over at us with this face!  It's so funny.

 I can't be sure, but I'm going to say that taking care of Lucy (2yrs) has really helped his language.  Since she started playing at our house, it's like Hayden has just blossomed!  He loves having a playmate but always is glad to have mommy back to himself when she gets picked up at the end of the day.

Hayden reading a book during our turn to babysit for date night.  He's been laying down on his belly lately (just like mom) to read books.  I LOVE it. 

Not sure what's happening here...?

I love this little boy's smile!  I laugh every time I see it. 

Ok, now on to the liiiiitle one.  My 20 week old (en utero) is progressing right along, too!  This little babe is due February 17th (take note of the change!), 2013.  If this one is two weeks early like Hayden was, that would make the magic day around February 3rd (just three days after Hayden's birthday!).  So Today I am 20 weeks and 3 days and the baby is measuring at exactly that.  12 oz and around 7 inches long already!  Baby is starting to kick and wiggle, and it's so great to finally be able to feel that.  I can't believe how fast this pregnancy has gone by so far! 

Alright, time for the big announcement that you have ALLL been waiting for.  Roxanne Raatz is going to be VERY excited because we're having another BOY!  Hers are 23 months apart and mine will be around 24 months apart.  When Roxanne announced they were ready to try for another baby, and then that they were pregnant, I didn't know what to think!  I thought to myself---I couldn't do that!  How are they going to have two babies so close?

Blue for baby brother!!

 

I don't know how, but apparently you're supposed to be able to see from this picture that the baby is a boy.  At first the Ultrasonographer wasn't sure...but after taking this picture she made up her mind:  LITTLE BROTHER!

...Whelp....just watch, lol.  

Baby#2's Profile.  So sweet!  He had just opened his mouth like he was yawning!

Hayden "helped" mom and dad pick out the outfit that we'll bring baby brother home in.  After we found out Hayden was born, the first thing we did was buy him a hospital outfit.  I thought that Hayden helping us do this would create a nice family tradition that everyone could be a part of.  (PS:  got this outfit at Babies "R" Us.  It's a Carter set of a onezie, sweater, and bottoms.  Originally marked $20...I got it for just over $12!)  PPS:   I got a coupon in the mail today from Babie's "R" Us.  If I went in and registered, I would get a registry bag full of coupons and goodies, as well as a $10 gift card!  You better believe Paul and I high-tailed it to the store!  Now, I have a registry complete, and $10 in my pocket.  I'll link my registry here and add a tab at the top of my page for easy access.

This baby was another surprise for us.  I'm beginning to think we'll never get to plan a baby!  While I'm starting to get excited about having another newborn around, I can't help but think about how this child's timing is just not ideal.  We're moving in two months (I'll be driving in a moving truck for 12 hours at 7 months pregnant), Paul is going back to school in April, and he'll be leaving a job for another in Idaho that will pay about half as much.  Poor students, here we come! 

At the same time, whoever said Timing is everything anyway?  

Front view of baby's face.  I think he looks a lot like Hayden already!

Sure, it will be hard and full of sacrifices, but we'll be going through this huge adventure together.  I know there's a reason in everything, and this baby was put into our family specifically to bring us blessings.  Everything will somehow work out.  We'll look back at this time in our family history and say, Hey, remember when...?.  

So bring on the camp-outs, boy scouts, hungry teenagers, rough-housing, fort building, Legos, cars, and dirt.  

We have TOTALLY got this.

Shelly's Quiz

Shelly from The Cunningham Family in bush Alaska challenged her readers to take part in a quiz she made.  (Click HERE to read her original post.)  So, sit back and enjoy as I try to answer truthfully!

What is your biggest fear?

Right now, not being able to handle TWO little ones and 4 months later becoming the sole breadwinner while I put Paul through school.  This second baby has some great timing (as did the first) and is throwing us for a little loop!  When I think about where we are in life, moving back to a college town to be students again, having two kids and a mortgage, and me taking over the income responsibility for a few years, it scares me!  It makes me think of the song, Sounds Like Life to Me by Darryl Worley.  I'm sure Paul feels the same way!  HOW DO PEOPLE DO THIS?!?

And your smallest?

I have to agree with Shelly on this one...my "smallest" greatest fear is spiders.  The other day I found a spider crawling on our front door.  SO CREEPY.  I was way too much of a weenie to kill it with a tissue, so I devised a plan using what I had near me:  an aerosol can of sunscreen and matches.  Let's just say I fried that sucker. 

...The next day, I found a big, hairy, red, dead spider, and it was RIGHT NEXT TO MY FOOT! 

Kharma???

Any pet peeves?

Um.....yes.  Too many to count!  Please refer to my "It Bugs Me..." tab at the top of my blog.  It's a working list!  My biggest pet peeve is probably when someone pronounces a word wrong, and just keeps doing it.  Examples:

• "Suposably" instead of supposedly (Youtube wasn't allowing me to embed this video, but go watch it!  It's of Joey on Friends.  CLICK HERE.  SOOO funny.) 
• "Expecially" instead of especially
• "Expresso" instead of espresso

 I don't know why but...it just drives me nuts.  Am I insane?

If you had four more children (two boys and two girls) what would you name them?

Oh my goodness, FOUR MORE?!?  I can't even imagine having two total right now!  Alright, let's see...I think I'd want 1 girl and 3 boys.  Names:

• Olivia Taylor
• Emerson James
• ....?
• ....?

(I thought about it for 20 minutes and still have NO idea!)

What is something you regret?

Not planting a garden in our yard the summer before we moved to Colorado.  Living in an apartment, I realize how precious land is now!  I miss it.

What moment do you remember most of elementary school?

I think it was like on the last day of 6th grade...a few of my friends and I crossed over to the little kids' playground and got to play on their toys!  We had always wanted to do it...not sure why.  It was cool at the time.

This is the BEST picture I could find of my elementary (Marrion Elementary) on google.

Who is your longest friendship with? (excluding relatives)

Brittnee Thompson.  Our parents were friends, and then we just sort of grew up together.  Her grandma watched me occasionally (which I loved), and she spent the night at my house I don't know how many times.  One of the fun things I remember about our friendship early on were our matching outfits!  Our parents would get us matching dresses/sailor outfits, etc, and take us for pictures at the mall--I still have mine, but they are at home in Washington (otherwise, they would be on this blog!)

What is the weirdest spiritual/paranormal thing you ever witnessed? (ie miracles)

Probably watching Paul bless Hayden as a newborn during sacrament meeting at church.  I was a little nervous and on edge (being a new, tired mom), but Paul seemed to be just fine.  I asked him if he knew what he was going to say during the blessing, to which he replied, No.  This was about 15 minutes before the blessing.  I didn't think he would have written out what he was going to say, but I thought he would have been thinking about it and have some sort of idea.  He told me (I'm paraphrasing here and using my own words) that he didn't want his own ideas and wants for this baby to get in the way of listening to what the spirit would tell him during the blessing.  I was kind of taken aback by his answer, and then overcome by his trust in the Lord.  Hayden's baby blessing was so remarkable and specific to him--I came away grateful for a husband with such faith.

The church building in Rexburg, Idaho where Hayden was blessed.  (Again, this is not my picture...just the best one I could find on google!) 

March 20th, 2011(1.5 months old):  Hayden on his daddy's lap after being blessed.  I stayed up till midnight the night before finishing his "sleep sack" tie onezie for his special day.  My advice:  Don't do that, lol. 

If you were in therapy, what would you be discussing?

Probably the way that I and we (Paul and I as a team) discipline Hayden.  HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU'RE DOING IT RIGHT?!?  What if I'm too harsh and scar him for life?  What if I'm being too lax and Hayden never has respect for authority?  So much to think about there.  

If you could learn more about any one thing what would it be?

Too many things!  I love to learn.  At the moment, I would say I'd want to learn more about being a better homemaker!  How do you stay organized, teach your children what's really important, give your husband the attention he needs, etc.  It's hard, people!  Awesome...but hard.

Top 3 favorite desserts?

1. Paul's Chocolate Chip Cookies
2. Cheesecake (my own is usually better than anything you can buy)
3. Jaciva's Seventh Heaven Cake ( so good...my mom always used to buy me this cake for my birthday)
4. HONORABLE MENTION:  I can't talk about desserts and not mention Paul's grandma's Chocolate Cake!  I just can't.  It's amazing.  Super moist, rich, and homemade chocolate frosting.  I will never ever want for another chocolate cake recipe.  It's that good.  (Message me and I'll share it with you.  If enough people want it, I'll put it up on the blog.)

Favorite nail polish?

• OPI Mrs. Oleary's BBQ
• Mary Kay's Lavish Sable
• Rimmel Clear (I NEVER put color on my fingernails.  I either use a few coats of clear topcoat, or do a french tip.)

Rimmel Lasting Finish Pro--I love this polish because the brush is kind of fat and coats my nail in one or two strokes.  Aaaaaand, because it's clear, I don't have to be too precise with it.  I love the consistency, too.

Mary Kay's Lavish Sable.  This color is SOOO rich.  I'll be sad when I run out--it was a limited edition color that came out last winter.

Mrs. OLeary's BBQ by OPI

Knowing what you do about my life in rural Alaska, what would you find most challenging about living here?

I think I'm with you Shelly!  I would have a hard time not having breaks from the kids.  We have Date Night without Hayden 3 times a month where Hayden gets to go to someone's house and play with children his age.  I would SOOOO miss that time with my husband. 

I think the isolation would also be really difficult.  And probably not really having a car.  That would just be strange!

Everyone says they wish they had twins… Why would YOU want them?

I've always been amazed by twins.  They have such a special bond---I've always wanted to witness that as a mother.  Twins run in my family, so you never know!  After having one child though, I don't know how you survived!  

Favorite ALL TIME (could read a hundred times) books?

I LOVE the classics--anything by:

Jane Austen

Oscar Wilde

The Bronte Sisters (this is Emily).

 There are more....maaaany more.

Thanks for the quiz, Shelly :)