Learning Life's Lessons

I have truly felt and experienced lately that I have trials in order to learn. I never truly knew how hard it would be to be a parent. The hardest part is seeing your children go through things that you can't change or control and wishing that you could or wishing that you could have done something different in the past to change things. The only way to truly become a better person and parent is to have these experiences and feel and learn. I love my children and the only thing that I can really hope for is to keep learning so that I can be the best mom for them. I know that I'm going to have a lot more hard times to come and so are my children and the only thing we can really do about it is to accept it and endure to the end because there are far more good times to look forward to.

Growing up

Cloe has been wanting to be fancy. She got a Fancy Nancy book for christmas and so now she likes to be fancy like Nancy. So she's wearing a beaded headband in this pic. She is so sweet and sensitive. Tonight after we put her to bed I heard her start to cry in her room so I went to check on her and she was saying how she just didn't want to be alone and we worked on some coping skills but it was so precious how she told me how she felt and my heart melted a little bit and it felt good to help her. She loves people and playing with her friends. She loves learning knew things and talking and joining in on the conversation.

Dakota is so fun! I just love her. She has lately been doing anything to try and get my attention. Sometimes I get so busy and I don't pay very good attention so she screams at me to get my attention so she can get something or show me something silly. She has been wanting to wear dresses or skirts everyday, you should see some of the outfits, this is one of them. She has a good imagination and asks lot's of quesitons and is very curious. She also is very independant and takes care of a lot of her problems on her own.
Paige is now nine months old and she is such a big girl. She is now 23 lbs. She is getting into everything now crawling around and getting into the big girls games and toys they don't like that but they do like to play with her when she isn't disturbing them or their things. She is a happy happy girl and has such a fun personality, already trying to get us to laugh and she is sure keeping me busy running after her and she's trying to get into everything.

We had a snowman party today! It was so fun to have friends over and we had cocoa and cookies and colored snowman. Some of the kids played outside for a bit but for the most part it was too cold. We also had dinner at a friends with the missionaries it was also nice to visit and get out of the house. My mom and sister Andy came and visited last weekend. It was really nice to have them and do some final christmas gifts with them. It's always nice to spend time with family.

Five Years of Marriage

Five things we learned about marriage in five years:

by Brent

1.) Lindsay gave me an hour and a half hair cut

2.) She always has my back

3.) I can beat her in Tennis... always ...undefeated

4.) She's Awesome and a great Mom

5.) marriage is good times and hard times but if you do it together you'll make it throw it no matter how hard it is.

by Lindsay

1.) Brent will never give up... he especially doesn't give up on me.

2.) We have learned how to communicate and most importantly how not to communicate.

3.) Whenever I get upset about something it's usually not because Brent is trying to make me upset. He really wants to please me.

4.) Kids change everything....for good!

5.) I would just be copying and pasting Brent's number five. No matter what we go through we just keep doing it together and getting better at it.

Happy Holidays

We had a great christmas! Spent the whole day christmas eve cooking. I learned last year that I needed to have a timed cooking schedule which worked great this year and I had some help watching the kids from Cathy while the boys went hunting, well brent was sleeping. He's been working the night shift and he also had to work christmas eve night so he was getting his rest. Dinner was ready on time and Brent's Parents and Brice had dinner and opened some gifts, we did our PJs and read the Night before Christmas and we were going to sing songs and read more books but Brent was off to work and the kids were just too excited for santa to be good so I felt it was best that they went to sleep instead.

Dakota with no jammie pants because with impatience she spilt water all over them. And Paige went to bed a little earlier.

Christmas morning arrived bright and early I was feeling pretty tired when the girls came into my room and asked if santa had come I told them we would have to wait and see until dad had come home from work so I started reading some stories I had put out the night before to wait for dad to come home before we opened presents. Then as I was reading I looked over at the clock and it was 3 o'clock in the morning so I finished the story and sent them straight back to bed. (I need my beauty sleep you know.:) So then again Dakota rose at about 8:00 and Cloe didn't wake up untill Daddy got home. He got a fire started (or tried to anyway the wind kept blowing it out.) and we lit the tree and the girls came out to see the tree. I was laughing very hard becuase when they came out to see the tree they were just staring in disbelief somehow they were expecting something different, more less I'm not sure but it was really cute and then they really did get into their stockings.

Paiges favortie gift: The Orange
Most of the rest of the day was spent playing with their new things and or keeping them away from each other. And watching shows and relaxing.



Then we went over to Trevor and Trish's for Dinner. It was a lot of fun and the food was delisious. I loved the Crab Pastries. We had lot's of other foods and traditions from Sweden. I like their tradition of celebrating other countries festivities, it was really neat and of course great company.Paige and Bryant were so cute playing together. Very Happy Babies!It's always a surprise what the Holidays will hold and you know they are never going to be perfect I'm just glad for all of the great parts this year. Especially my new Vaccum. :) It's soooooo Awesome!