Cookie Exchange

I talked about my cookie exchange, but I never said how it turned out. It was a total success! I love it when activities go that way :) Here's some photo proof to prove it

[caption id="attachment_992" align="aligncenter" width="300"] I'm so happy with how it turned out! It was so pretty![/caption]

[caption id="attachment_993" align="aligncenter" width="300"] all the empty plates were filled with cookies... I just wanted to get a picture of the pretty tables before everyone got there[/caption]

                                                          my backdrop

 

[caption id="attachment_995" align="aligncenter" width="300"] So easy... vases, Christmas balls, and fat ribbon. I love it![/caption]

Cambria Cuteness

[caption id="attachment_985" align="aligncenter" width="300"] found mommy's shoes! She had fun playing in my closet today[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_986" align="aligncenter" width="300"] First time being outside in the snow![/caption]



[caption id="attachment_988" align="aligncenter" width="225"] "ok guys... Don't love it"[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_989" align="aligncenter" width="300"] This is usually what we find when we get her up from a nap/in the morning. She's SO CUTE!
"I'm big enough to stand up in my crib, and I am starting to get enough hair to have bed head :) "[/caption]

Just in case you didn't have enough Cambria cuteness...

10 Months!

Holy cow, how did Cambria get so big? It feels like it's been a while since I have been pregnant, but it for sure doesn't feel like I should have an almost-one-year-old.

[caption id="attachment_978" align="aligncenter" width="225"] Thanks Nana K for the cute outfit![/caption]

[caption id="attachment_979" align="aligncenter" width="225"] This is so typical Cambria, fully enjoying life.[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_980" align="aligncenter" width="225"] "Look, I'm so big!"[/caption]



This month:
- she has become a master crawler!
- she can also maneuver around furniture while standing
-she still just wants mommy
- she's getting really good at assisted walking. She can cruse if you hold her fingers.
- just yesterday she was standing holding on to the couch and was distracted and let go of the couch and stood for a few seconds (HUGE! She's getting so big!)
- she's discovering that it's fun to play in other rooms besides the one that mommy is in.
- LOVES the bathroom, likes pulling herself up on the toilet (gross). I haven't quite figured out how to do my business without having her invade my space... I should just close the door but the house isn't always perfectly baby proof so I don't feel comfortable letting her get into whatever she wants while I'm in the bathroom... ... rant. Sorry.
- she's pretty good at trying new foods. She even will eat green beans and broccoli! GO CAMBRIA! Still no spoon feeding though. I guess she'll have to learn to use a spoon.

Sew much to do

Remember when I said I needed to whip out a carseat cover before I could work on a gift for Robert and Ruth? Ya, I whipped it out. I did a new idea in hopes it would save me time, ya it didn't. But it looks ok, so that's all that matters :)

[caption id="attachment_973" align="aligncenter" width="300"] side one[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_974" align="aligncenter" width="300"] side 2. I think I like this side better, maybe because I didn't stare at it for hours on end :)[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_975" align="aligncenter" width="300"] yay! It's reversible![/caption]

Oh, and I never posted pictures of J&S's carseat cover. Here it is.

[caption id="attachment_971" align="aligncenter" width="300"] side one. I had to do puppies because Sadie loves puppies so much[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_972" align="aligncenter" width="300"] cars and trucks... because she's having a boy, and boys like those things :)[/caption]

Gift giving philosophies

I have discovered that there are different philosophies to people's gift giving. Mine, for example, is to see how many gifts I can get with the budget we have set for the specific person. I also try to be creative and get something that they will really appreciate (that's half the fun of gift giving, is planning what to give).

Jonathan on the other hand will generally give one really nice gift with the budget.

Neither one is better than the other... they are just different. I get am a gift giver by nature, it's one way I express my love for people. Some people aren't, and that's not how they express their love. I also love to watch people open gifts... it doesn't matter who they are from (but it's especially fun to see them open the gifts I am giving them) I just love seeing their anticipation and joy with the gifts. I think that's why I always give a lot of gifts (as many different wrapped things as possible).

Just in case you wanted to read what goes on in my head... I analyze things like this... a lot.

Scrambling

Usually I have gifts purchased several weeks before Christmas. This year, however, is not the case. I think I finished this week, and now I need to package everything and ship it off. I have one more gift to make before I can ship everything... but before I do that, I have a carseat cover that I have to pop out... the baby popped out beginning of November, and he's carseat cover-less... So, I can't justify making a Christmas gift till that is done.

I am having a lot of fun though, wrapping all the presents! I think I have successfully purchased and wrapped all of Jonathan's presents without him finding out what they are! (Fingers crossed) In past years (I think every Christmas that we have existed as a couple, he has found out at least one of his gifts... Bummer. One year, he saw the gift through the bag as I was bringing it in to the house, and a few other years he has shaken the gift and guessed... Not this year. I am prepared :) No that's not a challenge Jonathan)

A Balanced Meal

Today for dinner Cambria ate yogurt (melts, strawberry flavored... fruit... right?) broccoli, graham cracker and I thought about giving her rice, but forgot. And finished it off with a few swigs of watered down formula... and then nursed.
Basically, she got grains, fruit, veggies, dairy and then everything she may have missed.

Now if only I could follow my own advice and eat meals that balanced.

Busy Busy Busy

Wondering why I'm not updating the blog? Because it's pretty low on the priority list. I feel like a crafting machine... I feel like all I have been doing is crafting, oh, and shopping. It's fun, don't get me wrong, but I think I'll be happy when this week is over. Just a tad overwhelmed...

Why am I crafting so much you ask? Because I am getting ready for a Christmas Cookie Exchange, (a relief society activity). Here's one of the things I have done for it (oh, and I get to keep it and use it for my front door :) )

I think I'm going to add a silver bow on the top to finish it off. I'm quite happy with it.

 

I haven't missed it

It's been about a week since I really got on facebook, and I must say that all-in-all, I haven't missed it. I got on today and I didn't really get much enjoyment out of surfing facebook. I would love to just get on once a week and phase out my facebook usage.

At this point, that's how I'm feeling about my facebook addiction...

Thankful day 28

Day 28: I'm truly so grateful for the Gospel! We went to Jonathan's professor's house today and there were so many little things that the gospel helps with. For example, at the dinner table, we had an awkward pause at the beginning of the meal because we felt a need to give thanks, but the family doesn't pray... so we kind of started with a toast. There were a lot of other things too, I'm just so grateful for how the gospel is such a great part of my life.

I'm addicted

I came to the harsh realization this week that I'm addicted to Facebook. It's bad, and I need to change my habits. I seriously considered canceling my account, but it's such a great way to stay connected with people I care about. Especially people in my family (because my siblings and mom rarely, if ever, read my blog) it's how I keep them updated about Cambria, and how I learn what's going on in their lives (aside from calling, of course).

I need to figure out a way to not spend so much time on it. I thought about deleting all of my friends except for my close friends and family. But then I run the risk of having to deny friendships of a lot of people, and it's always just a bit awkward.

Apparently you can manage who can post in your news feed. But that's a long and tedious process.

These are my options of how to decrease my time on Facebook. I can't limit myself to once a day, I have tried that and it doesn't work. I can't say that I can't check it before a certain time, because that doesn't last. Jonathan suggested only allowing myself to get on every other day. That may work.

I have been just avoiding it all together this week and I must say I haven't missed it. Except I'm starting to feel a few withdrawals today... Probably because my new sister in law text me and told me she sent me the link to her wedding pictures... Oh man! I want to see those so bad! I'm going to hold out for the rest of the week! I will do it!

Does anyone have any other brilliant suggestions on how to decrease facebook time? What works for you? I'm really needing some help here.

Thankful Days 21-27

Day 21: I'm grateful for my calling in church. I get to plan parties every month! It doesn't get much better than this! I really like the people I work with, and it's a good experience to be the leader. I'm told I have the ability to be a good leader, so I need the practice so I can learn now.

Day 22: I'm grateful for reminders to repent. I'm SO GRATEFUL that we are able to repent. The atonement is awesome. I'm so grateful that we get little nudges we receive to help us improve.

Day 23: I'm so grateful for girls. I love spending time with my hubby, but sometimes just spending a day with a friend who is a girl is good for the sole. Especially when that girl is Sadie. She's just so fun to be around, and I look up to her a lot.

Day 24: I'm grateful for good food. Today was a busy day, but we were able to make some yummy food with some friends and it made the fact that I hardly saw Jonathan ok. I had a lot to look forward to, and we had some fun conversations over dinner. I'm grateful for the friendships I have created here. I don't quite feel like I have a bosom friend yet. I must say, that I'm feeling the need for one, but I do feel like I'm getting there with a few people.

Day 25: going off of day 22. Today was such a great day! It was a new beginning for me and I'm so grateful that we can have new beginnings. I'm grateful that although we have messed up in the past, it doesn't have to affect our future.

Day 26: I'm grateful for opportunities to serve. I'm grateful for examples of people to follow. I was able to serve someone today who really needed it, and she was so gracious about it and made it seem like a big deal. It totally wasn't. I need to be more like her, and I'm grateful for her example.

Day 27: Wow! People are so giving! I have received a lot today. I'm grateful for people's generosity.

9 Months - Better Out Than In

Cambria is now 9 months old! Can you believe it? She has been out longer than she has been in. She is such a joy! I have found in the last few days and weeks she has really been able to make me legitimately laugh. Not like a "Aw, you're cute" laugh, but a "ha ha! You are funny!" laugh!

Here are some pictures for your enjoyment

[caption id="attachment_946" align="aligncenter" width="225"] I love that face![/caption]

[caption id="attachment_945" align="aligncenter" width="225"] I just love this picture[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_944" align="aligncenter" width="225"] I love how focused she is when she plays and discovers.[/caption]

Loves:
- still loves mommy. We're getting into the fun separation anxiety - "I just want mommy"
- books. She will scoot over to the shelf where the books are pull them out and turn the pages.
- pointing at things. She even uses her pointer finger. I don't know how she learned this but it's so cute!
- moving around - she's a quite proficient scooter, and she now can follow me out of one room and down the hall. It's kind of nice to have her be able to follow me.
- pulling herself up. She's fearless (and doesn't quite have a cautious side...) she'd almost rather be standing than in any other position.
- eating puffs! HUGE ACCOMPLISHMENT THIS MONTH!! She eats something besides mommy's milk!

Doesn't love:
- sometimes she refuses to take a bottle or pacifier. That's a bit frustrating. Hopefully it's a faze... I love that she has always taken them before.
- diaper changes.

Have I mentioned I love this girl! She's amazing, and brings me joy daily.

 

Crafty Missy

I think I have failed to document the last few crafts I have done. Here comes the documentation. :)

[caption id="attachment_935" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Look at these chairs! Aren't they ugly? Ya... those ain't goin' to be in my house like that fo' long.[/caption]

also, notice how dull the room looks.

[caption id="attachment_936" align="aligncenter" width="300"] dem are gross[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_937" align="aligncenter" width="300"] aaaahhhh! That's so much better![/caption]

Wow! There's an added brightness if I do say so myself.

[caption id="attachment_938" align="aligncenter" width="300"] AW! Aren't they cute?[/caption]

Here's something I literally did during nap time. I always hear of projects that can be done during nap time... Ya, that never happens. This, however, did!

[caption id="attachment_939" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Before... see the pooling of fabric by my feet? Ya, I'd prefer that go away...[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_940" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Ta-Da! So much better![/caption]

Thankful Days 17-20

Day 17: I'm so thankful that we were safe during a tornado warning today. I'm so grateful that it happened while we were at church. I felt so much more safe and not to mention informed while we were there.

Day 18: I'm so thankful for friends who were willing to let me stay in their warm house while our power was out today. I'm also thankful for a gas stove that allowed us to still cook even though we didn't have power. I'm also thankful for another friend who had a generator and kept our frozen food cold and out of the danger zone temperatures (PS. Happy 9 month birthday to the Miss)

Day 19: I'm thankful that I was able to make so much food today. I spent a lot of money buying food today (I'm also thankful that we have the means to serve people and to buy the food we need/want), and then I spent the rest of the day cooking it. I had a good time, and I'm thankful that I have been able to serve

Day 20: I'm thankful for well child check up's at the doctor's office. I like going and having time to ask the dr questions about my baby's development. I also like hearing that she's on track.

catch-up thankfulness

Day 14: I'm thankful that Cambria slept for 4 hours! during her nap today so that I could rake the leaves and clean out our front gardens.

Day 15: I'm thankful that I have a husband who will help me with craft projects! Two of the six chairs are now covered and they are SO CUTE!!! (pictures to come...)

Day 16: I'm thankful for doughnuts. I'm thankful that I'm having our traditional doughnut night tonight, and that Jonathan is pro-traditions. I'm thankful that I grew up in a house where traditions were done regularly to help me realize just how crucial they are in a family life.

Thankful Day 13

Today I'm thankful for hobbies. I have so many hobbies that I don't know what to focus on. Well, I have so many things I'm interested in that I don't know what to with.

I'm glad that I can have things that I enjoy working on/doing, and that give me a mental break from mommyhood.

My baby may very well be amazing

Cambria blew my mind a lot today.
Remember that video about Cambria pulling herself up? Ya, she does it all the time. Mind Blown.
What really blew my mind today was two things:
1. when SHE WAS EATING FOOD(!!!!) she may or may not have signed "more" and "all done" it may have been a fluke, but she did it, and I caught it.
2. After she was nursing today, I put her in a sitting position and said to her "all done" and she said back to me "ahhh dnnnn". This was not the first time this happened and that is why it blew me away. Again, it may have been a fluke, but it may not have been... Just saying.

Thankful day 12

Today I'm thankful for our house! It snowed today and I didn't have to scrape the snow/ice off my windshield! Wahoo!! I'm so grateful that we have a place to call our own, that fits our needs very nicely. I'm so grateful for all of the modern conveniences we enjoy. I love our washer and dryer, I love our dishwasher, I love our heater, I love our forced air, I love that I don't have to worry about the upstairs/downstairs/wall sharing neighbors when Cambria screams!

Thankful Day 11

Seeing as today is Veterans day, I think it's obvious what I'm thankful for today. I'm so thankful for the armed forces, and their families. They give up a lot, and go through a lot. I'm so grateful for them.

8 months

Cambria was 8 months old on October 18!! How crazy is that! She's almost 9 months old! How did that happen!!!!

Here are her 8 month old pictures

Things she loves:
- buttons
- the color purple - I think... she is definitely drawn to it
- babbling - espeically saying "dadadadadadada"
- scooting around
- nursing
- smiling
- being around people (like mother like daughter)
- mommy - she's quite clingy right now
-mirrors

Things she doesn't love:
- getting her diaper changed
- eating anything but mom's milk
- getting out of sight of mommy when she's tired
- being held by daddy when she's tired

Developmental Milestones
- sitting really well
- scooting backwards
- scooting forwards
- increased letter sounds in her babbling

 

Utah

So I have been home for almost two weeks and I haven't blogged about Utah. I haven't written in my journal about it either... I need to be better... so I'm going to write about it now.

It was really fun! It's always fun to go see my family. All of my family was in town, and that was so fun! I talked with my older brother, Matt, a lot and I feel like I got to know him on a different level. It's funny how that can happen even with people you have known your entire life. Speaking of that, I realized that I really don't know too much about my grandpa Lawlor's life... I would love to know more, and I was planning asking him about it, but we never had a moment together that wasn't at a big family gathering or working frantically to prepare for the wedding. I don't know when I would be able to do this, but I really want to.

I'm trying to think of witty or clever things to say, because we all know that it's not too fun to read boring narrative blog posts. ... but I don't have too much to say.

I got a pedicure again! Oh man! I love those things!!! I took my SIL Ali out for part of her wedding gift, it was so fun to spend some Missy-Ali alone time together. I was able to get to know her better, which is always good. Not witty, Melissa... I'm going to stop and just put up some pictures. We all like pictures :)

[caption id="attachment_900" align="aligncenter" width="300"] One of the first activities we did... now I can't even remember what it's called. But it was a festive little villiage with little shops that they decorated for Halloween. Very cute![/caption]



[caption id="attachment_902" align="aligncenter" width="225"] Driving the Alpine loop[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_903" align="aligncenter" width="225"] First time my big little bro got to hold Cambria. That's his excited face :)[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_904" align="aligncenter" width="300"] gotta love me some niece and nephew love![/caption]

[caption id="attachment_905" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Uncle Jeff[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_906" align="aligncenter" width="300"] G-G Lawlor[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_907" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Cambria with her betrothed :) one of my BFF's little boy.[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_908" align="aligncenter" width="225"] My big little bro. He cleans up nice :) Now this is love, little brother loves older brother... he would never dress in a tux otherwise[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_909" align="aligncenter" width="300"] me and the hubby :)[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_910" align="aligncenter" width="300"] all the sisters, just missing the bride.[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_911" align="aligncenter" width="225"] I was a little distracted, and this is the only picture I got of Jeff and Ali! I didn't even follow them around and be OCD about her dress like I usually am...[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_899" align="aligncenter" width="225"] I love my sister[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_912" align="aligncenter" width="384"] Gotta love some Brown Boy's time! Not the best picture of Cambria, but everyone's looking :)[/caption]

Thankful day 9 and 10

Day 9 - I am thankful that Cambria is finally starting to put food in her mouth and swallow it. Eating is a struggle, more on that later. I'm so grateful that she is getting the hang of it though

Day 10 - I'm thankful that Jonathan is so supportive and is so willing to take care of Cambria while I sub in primary. I like the weekend, because he gives me a mommy break, and I feel more like a real person after the weekend :)

Beautiful Fall

Remember how I said I loved fall? Ya, here's why

(no this photo is not enhanced in any way) I didn't know fall leaves could be so vibrant. The Mid-west is by far the best place I have been in the fall (although, I do hear the east is gorgeous too) Fall lasts so long here too! The leaves have been changing colors for over a month! I love it!!!

Thankful Day 8

Today I'm thankful for friends. I chatted with one today and it was lovely! I also hung out with a few and that was lovely too :)

Thankful day 7

Today I'm thankful for heat. Our furnace went out yesterday and it was so cold! I'm also thankful that I was able to fix it!!! It's much better in here.

 

Halloween

so we did dress up for Halloween... sometimes it takes a while for me to post pictures... Here's the photo evidence that we did do something festive

[caption id="attachment_876" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Jonathan laughed right out loud when he saw this picture! He said it captures their relationship perfectly... I think I just caught Cambria mid blink[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_877" align="aligncenter" width="640"] can you guess who we dressed up as?[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_878" align="aligncenter" width="640"] our cute Tink[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_879" align="aligncenter" width="640"] I knew these random wings we got for a baby shower would come in handy :)[/caption]



[caption id="attachment_882" align="aligncenter" width="640"] I think this one captures their relationship perfectly :)[/caption]