January 30

There is not a single ounce of me that feels remotely attractive these last couple of months.

But at least my toes look cute. Al kicked me out of the house yesterday so I could get my traditional pre-baby pedicure. It was total heaven. The girl massaged my feet and legs for a good 30 minutes. I was hoping it was send me into labor but I felt great and pampered afterward!

January 29

Stinking adorable story from today. We had to get some groceries at the store. Carter brought some of his birthday money to buy his own gum. When we got to the checkout and he was picking out his gum the girls asked if they could have a piece of what he bought. He thought about it for a minute and decided he would purchase a pack for each of the girls. SO CUTE. He ended up spending $5 on 5 packs of gum (3 for him, 1 for each of the girls). We didn't even bring it up with him, he did it all on his own. Such a great big brother and generous heart!

January 28

Today Carter's friend Caleb came over for a play date. They holed up in Carter's room for about 3 hours playing Harry Potter Legos. They built the Whomping Willow and Harry's vault at Gringott's to add to Carter's rapidly expanding HP collection. I love seeing their creativity come out and love that they have the same interests.

January 27

I can't believe I allowed my picture to be taken 10 days before my due date! However, I wanted to remember our fun date tonight going to see Wicked. Allen bought me the tickets months ago for my birthday and we've been so excited waiting! We love this show and it definitely did not disappoint tonight. We went with our friends the Larsens and had a great time. I was a bit uncomfortable through the show because my OB had stripped my membranes at my appt. earlier in the day. I popped about 4 Tylenol which made my discomfort tolerable! So glad Allen was willing to see this show again - I love it and it was fun to have one last hurrah before we have the baby!

January 26

Tomorrow night is the ward Pinewood Derby. Carter is SO excited to participate this year. He and Allen worked for hours on his car, which they decorated like and named "Darth Vader." Tonight they had to go to the church to check in and weigh his car! We can't believe we have started down the Scouting path already!

January 25

Carter's reading group has been working hard for the past couple months to put a play together based on the book "The BFG" by Roald Dahl. Today was finally the big performance day for the parents to come and watch. Carter was the giant Bonecrusher in the play and did a great job. He had quite a few of his own lines but the funniest was watching him from the side saying almost everyone else's lines right along with them. We hadn't realized that he had basically memorized the entire play! He especially loved putting together his costume where he got to tear up and paint some old clothes!

January 24

I couldn't resist these huge Disney Princess pages at Target the other day. Addie begs to color or paint one daily. Her favorite princess is still Ariel and she spent a ton of time painting this picture today!

January 23

Poor Allen very rarely gets a Sunday nap anymore. He is usually so busy after church with YM obligations that by the time he gets home the kids can't wait to play with him. Today he attempted to get the kids to "rest" with him. It lasted all of about 5 minutes before they were begging him to wrestle and play. I'm grateful he's such a dedicated leader to the YM and good dad to our kids!

January 22

Almost nothing in life makes me happier than having a fresh new stack of books to read. I picked this pile up from the library today and can't wait to start making a dent in it. I know I will have plenty of down time next month after I have the baby and am spending a ton of time nursing so I thought I should have some new books to keep me company!

January 21

One of my goals for Project 365 this year is to get more individual shots of the kids. I just want to remember every detail of them right now. Time seems to be slipping through my fingers! I took this shot of Addie this morning fresh from her bath. How I adore this girl! I've loved this age with all of my kids and she is no exception. Everything is just so fun and new and she still likes me SO much. I love her sweet cuddles and the funny things she says. Tomorrow she is getting her first haircut and I feel like she will lose some of her baby sweetness!

January 20

Oh, the aftermath of book club. We had such a fun time tonight discussing Agatha Christie's book "And then there were none." Allen was out of town so the ladies stayed until well after midnight and we had a fabulous time. I went to bed with my kitchen an absolute disaster but it was totally worth it!

January 19

I seriously can't believe I have a child old enough to participate in the Scouting program. Carter has been waiting for this day for SO long. Tonight was his first night of scouts and they worked on their Pinewood Derby cars. He came home so happy and can't wait to start passing things off in his Wolf book. Now, if I could only get him to give me a non-possessed smile these days!

January 18

Makenna's hearts desire is to have glasses. Of course, she doesn't need them but she is always talking about how badly she wants them. I found these cheap reading glasses on the clearance rack at Michael's one day. They were $1 so I bought them and we took the glass out and left her with the frames. She wears them ALL the time. She does look adorable and I love this funny little stage she is going through!

January 17

Carter lost another tooth while at school today. He had been working on it for a few days and it finally fell out during recess. The nurse gave him the cute little tooth box to store his tooth in and he was excited for his latest loss. Makenna is just dying to lose a tooth so she gets upset every time Carter loses another one. None of hers are even loose yet!

January 16

I've been working on a few Valentine projects this week. I know it's a bit early but it IS my 2nd favorite holiday and I do need to get stuff done before I have the baby. So this was my week. I love all the free Subway Art downloads that are available all over the internet. I printed and framed this Valentine one and love it. I also made the felt ruffle balls over a couple of nights of cutting and pinning. Definitely labor intensive but looking so cute in my fab white bowl!

January 15

Today is Carter's 8th birthday. I can scarcely believe it has been 8 years since he came into our lives and made us parents! He is a really great kid and I love watching his personality evolve and develop. After opening presents this morning we went to breakfast at IHOP (his request). We also took the kids ice skating and then let him pick a movie this afternoon. For dinner he requested broc/chicken casserole, fruit salad and chocolate eclair cake. We're so grateful to have Carter part of our family and love him so much!

January 14

Friday is chore day at our house. We do chores first thing after breakfast and I have all the kids work together. They are in charge of cleaning 2 bathrooms, emptying all the trash cans in the house, dusting their bedrooms, vacuuming their bedrooms and usually 1-2 other small tasks. I like seeing them work together and I feel like they are learning how to be really good little workers. It only takes about an hour of our time but I feel like they learn such valuable lessons!

January 13

Review time is never a fun time of year for Allen. He never has any time at work to put together his bi-annual reviews for his direct reports so he spends hours several nights during the week putting his reviews together. Tonight he was so tired so he had his iPod cranking, a caffeinated beverage and a bag of old Halloween candy to snack on while he was working. I'm grateful he is such a hard worker for our family!

January 12

Addie is by far our pickiest eater. It is hard to get her to eat any kind of fresh fruit or vegetable and gets very frustrating. She has been loving apples lately so I let her have one whenever she wants. The funny thing about her is that she'll love something for a few days and then refuse to touch it for months on end. Silly girl!

January 11

1-11-11! So much fun. It took me forever to get this shot of the kids together. I got 2 out of 3 looking at me and not being crazy, which was the best ratio of about 20 pictures I took to get this one. I hope to recreate this shot for all the 1 dates this year!

January 10

Mine and Addie's weekly ritual is to hit Target together after we drop the big kids off at school. Most weeks we go first thing on Monday morning. We have nothing else going on and get to spend as much time browsing the aisles and getting what we need. Of course every trip to Target is accompanied by a stop at the snack bar for popcorn (for her) and a large diet Coke (for me). I sure love that I get to spend so much time with my little gal.

January 9

The girls helped me make our weekly batch of cookies today. This picture was not posed but I did catch them watching the mixer at the same time. As you can tell, Addie is wearing what has become her very favorite dress again. I can hardly get her to wear anything else, unless it is pajamas, which she is also currently obsessed with!

January 8

I spent the day washing and folding baby gear. I cannot believe she is going to be here in just a few weeks. It was fun getting out all the tiny baby things and remembering the other girls in them. I do have a few new things for her as well though. I just can't wait for her to be here!!

January 7

Today the weather was just gorgeous and the kids spent forever playing in the back yard. Carter built this sand castle and said it is a replica of Santa's workshop at the North Pole. He is very protective of it and won't even let the girls get near it.

January 6

Every time we go to Target Addie begs to go to the princess aisle. I make sure to only go with her when I know we have time to spend a few minutes letting her play. She spent a good 20 minutes in there today trying out all the new toys. I have never seen a child more obsessed with the Disney princesses than she is!

January 5

Makenna got Just Dance 2 for the Wii for Christmas this year. It is such a fun game and all of us can play together. This afternoon we spent at least a good hour playing together. It especially cracks me up to see Addie busting a move and following along pretty well. She has the potential to be a great little dancer and she loves it!

January 4

Aaahhh.. Bowl Game Season! Al has been off work for a few extra days and has enjoyed catching some of the college bowl games this year. He roped the kids into watching with him. I think the girls were mostly there for the snacks but Carter has really learned to love watching football with his dad.

January 3

This is my calendar for the year, made by Makenna. I LOVE it. Her teachers did such a good job having the kids color a new picture for each season and then putting it together for each of the parents. I love that we'll be able to see her artwork all year long!

January 2

Today we spent much of the day getting Christmas taken down and deep cleaning the house. The kids and Al were total champs and did so much to help. Allen insisted this be out POTD today because I finally bought a nice prelit tree to replace the tiny, cheap tree we bought when we were first married. He was surprisingly nostalgic about letting go of this tree. In the end I decided to keep it for a project I saw towards the end of the season for next year. I guess we both go our way!

January 1

Whoa! I can't believe we are starting a new year! Time seems to be speeding up the older we get! This picture cracks me up because we could not get the crowns to stay on the kids' heads. They were sitting as still as possible so I could finally get this picture (after many attempts).

December 31

We can't believe it is the end of another year! This year just flew by! Tonight we turned down plans with a couple groups of friends to stay home for our annual fondue tradition. We also made some fancy drinks that the kids thought were so fun. We watched a movie together and were in bed long before midnight! Welcome 2011!

December 30

So this is what happens when you give free reign to the kids with the art supplies. I'm sure I will be finding glitter all over the house for the next 6 months. Addie had a great time painting with the big kids and then they got out the glitter and let her use it-obviously without supervision. At that point there's nothing to do but laugh!

December 29

I had to take a picture of my back door before I cleaned it off for the season. This is just a sampling of the Christmas art the kids did this year. I love how much they love to do art!

December 28

Tonight we took the kids to the rec center to swim. They had a ball playing with Allen in the kid area of the pool. I gratefully stood on the sidelines and was a spectator for the evening. We try to swim at least once a month during the winter so the kids can keep up with their swimming skills and becaus ethey love to swim!

December 27

It's no secret that I have a bit of a Gymboree obsession. They had some great sales this month and I definitely took advantage! 50% off + 20% off coupon + 5% off with my credit card made for some good deals. I finally pulled out all my bags to organize my stash and this is what I ended up with for the girls. Some stuff is for the spring but a lot of it is for next fall/winter too. It sure is fun shopping for three girls!

December 26

Allen took this picture of the kids and I singing Christmas carols around the piano this morning. We have been doing a lot of singing this year and it is so cute to hear even Addie singing the words. I'm sad to see the holiday season end this year but I'm glad we made so many great memories together.

December 25

We had a wonderful Christmas day this year! It's not a glamorous picture but I love that we got a family picture before the present opening started. The kids were so thrilled with their gifts and it was such a magical morning together.

December 24

This morning we went out on the ranch and chopped down a Christmas tree. It didn't take long to find one that met our needs. Jake chopped the tree down and then carried it back to the house where we decorated it together. It was a bit scraggly but it smelled great and was perfect for our Christmas celebration.

December 23

As we were packing up to go to AZ for Christmas, Carter realized his boots were wet and decided to dry them out. Addie had to be in on the action too. It took him quite awhile with the hair blower but eventually they did get dry!

December 22

Last night we also made snowman cookies with oreos, white chocolate and candy. Super easy, yummy and fun for the kids. Good thing I saved some candy corn this year!

December 21

Today we made snowman pancakes for breakfast. The kids thought this was awesome! Of course, they loved that it was smothered in whipped cream and SO unhealthy. Oh well, once a year, right? Addie ate the candy and licked off the cream and that's pretty much all she ate!

December 20

Today Makenna insisted on wearing some of her new spring clothes. She talked Addie into joining her. I got a great deal on these outfits and just decided to go with it. She's as excited for the change in seasons as much as I am. Too bad we have months until real spring weather shows up!

December 19

I try to make a handmade ornament with the kids every year. This year we made these cute felt trees. I let them pick out all their own ribbon. I sewed the trees and they stuffed them. I helped the big kids embroider their names and the year on the back. They were pretty simple and made with materials we had on hand! Mission accomplished!

December 18

Today Carter and Allen spent the day with some friends at the New Mexico Bowl. BYU got the bowl bid so we of course had to buy tickets. After BYU won the game they were able to go onto the field and meet some of the players. A bunch of players signed Carter's hat and one gave him his BYU armband from his uniform. Carter loved it and especially loved spending time with Allen and his friends.

December 17

Makenna did a great job on her natural disaster report earlier this fall. She chose Earthquakes as her topic to study. She and Allen constructed a small scale model of how and earthquake happens that she brought home today. Love seeing my girl flourish in a formal school setting!

December 16

Today we had a huge snowstorm here in ABQ. It's very unusual for it to snow and stick here. We got about 8 inches and the kids had a ball playing in it. We don't even have snow clothes for anyone so they were wet and cold by the time it was over but were glad they had a chance to play in the snow for once!

December 15

Our daily activity was for the kids to make cards for their teachers. They had fun drawing pictures and telling their teachers what they like about being in their class. We slipped in a Target giftcard this year and called it good. Easy and probably just what they wanted!

December 14

Oh, these darling girls! They have become much better friends lately and always seem to be together when they can be. They have been making lots of music videos lately and were singing into their microphones today. They were singing their favorite song, Dynamite here. Totally cracks me up.

December 13

Makenna was exhausted tonight after a few late nights this weekend. She was melting down as she was trying to do her homework. We ended up just putting her to bed and Allen finished her HW for her. It was just a bit of cutting and gluing so we didn't feel like she was missing out on a great learning opportunity. It is just so funny to see Al sloppily cutting and gluing Kindergarten homework.

December 12

Today we put together our gingerbread house as a fun after church activity. I always buy the premade kid but we add a bunch of our leftover Halloween candy. It is so fun to see the kids plan out the house together and then put it together. We loved the way this one turned out!