Friday, December 19, 2008
A call for action!
Thanks!
Friday, November 28, 2008
Another Giveaway!
We had a great Thanksgiving!!! I will post some pictures as soon as Kyle gets them off the camera and on too the computer. I spent the day today fighting crowds and loving the deals!
Even though I didn't have a lot of $$$$$ to spend this year, I can't seem to avoid the hustle and bustle of Black Friday, it starts the Christmas Holiday off for me. What a day:)!
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Sweet Baby Kaiya
Kaiya was born with a heart defect and has been in the hospital being treated since birth. On November 12th Kaiya returned to live with her Heavenly Father.
Angela posted this message on her blog....."Last night, our sweet baby Kaiya went home to be with her Heavenly Father. She is now in the loving arms of her Heavenly Father. She no longer has to endure the pain. She got to spend her last day in the arms of her mother. We will miss her more than words can explain. We have faith that we will meet again one day and cradle her in our arms."
For those of you that know Angela and Kevin, Kaiya's funeral will be held this Friday (Nov. 21st) at 9:30 a.m. at Green Acres Cemetery located at 401 N. Hayden Rd. in Scottsdale.
A fund has been started to help pay for the Funeral services and other Medical bills. A link to the paypal account is on my friend, Jennifer's blog, if you would like to donate . There are also a few auctions going on to raise money (the funeral services alone will be around $10, 000.00).
Jennifer has thought of another way to help out the Hodges (I stole this from her blog too!)
"SO! I was just thinking that another great way to help the Hodges out with the horrid bills they will be paying is to buy a bag from Angie! She sells way cute hand bags, totes and diaper bags!
Here's a link to her online boutique: Afton and Elaine's!
Her shipping prices are very reasonable! Just remember that she's going to be in Arizona for a while and so your order will take a little longer to be shipped!
Just another way to help...and get a cute bag too! Who can resist that!? :) "
Anyway....I love the Hodges. I am so sad that they are going through such a hard thing. I think about Angela all day and pray for her to have some peace and comfort. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers!
Monday, November 10, 2008
Photo Shoot
(We need to work on what is going on in the
background when taking pictures)
I found Kyle giving Carson a BUZZ cut!
I about died. But at least Carson is proud of his buzz cut
and it is starting to grow on me.
Kyle built a light box for taking pictures of my inventory for my web site.
We decided to see if Claire would fit in it and take some pictures.
We will edit out the box edges before we print them up.
Claire has just started sitting up this week.
She is growing way to fast.....slow down baby girl!
Saturday, November 1, 2008
And the winners are.....!!!!!!
I had Halle draw 2 numbers out of a bowl to pick the winners (I know, so technical)
The winner of the first giveaway for the Paci Clip is comment #39 who said "It really doesn't sound as horrifyingly hard as I imagined. And there's no "dunking or swishing" needed these days? Yay!", congratulations Brianne!!
The winner of the second giveaway for the set of 6 Thirsties Fab Wipes is comment # 12 who said "I like the orange! I would use these instead of the homemade cloth wipes I made! Thanks for the chance to win. =) It's great to find contests cloth diaper related."
Congratulations Andrea!! I hope you enjoy these super soft cloth wipes! And it is good to find someone who understands my love of all things 'CLOTH' :)!
Thanks again!!!
Monday, October 27, 2008
Bloggy Giveaway #1
In the past, I have always enter the giveaways hoping to win something :), this time in celebration of the opening of my new store, I am giving away 2 items (yea! my first giveaway).
This giveaway is for a Customized Paci Clip. You pick the ribbon and the saying from the many choices on the website!
And so how do you win?? Here are the rules!
1) Visit Diaper Style and take a peak around!
2) Leave me a comment telling me something that you did not know about cloth diapering, or what your favorite item is from the website.
*I will randomly pick a number out of a hat on Friday Oct. 31st (after trick-or-treating)
and will notify the winner:)
The LUCKY winner will then get to choose a ribbon and name/saying for the paci clip. It will be shipped to your door in about 2 weeks!
Good Luck
And remember: These aren't your mama's cloth diapers!
Bloggy Giveaway #2
Thirsties Fab Wipes measure 8x8 inches and are 2 ply. A textured cotton velour on one side to assist with bigger wipe-ups and delicate microfleece on the other side for drying or for lighter messes. These wipes will fold and fit perfectly in a recycled wipes container or warmer, or look great stacked on a shelf or changing table displaying all the beautiful colors!
How to win...Here are the rules!
1) - visit Diaper Style
2) There are many other uses for fab wipes besides just for babies. Just tell me how YOU might use the FAB WIPES and what your color choice would be.
Good Luck
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Feeling Generous?
Go here to join all the fun!
There are MANY great auctions going on with all the proceeds benefiting the Nielson family.
And don't forget them in your prayers!
Thursday, August 21, 2008
First Day of FIRST grade!
Mckenna is now in 1st grade! Here is her first grade photo shoot taken by Kyle (yes, I got mad at him for having her lay on the sidewalk in her new school clothes!) I can't believe that she is already a BIG first grader. I was surprised at how different first grade is than kindergarten. They expect so much more out of them, when really they are just a summer time older. When we went to curriculem night Mckenna's teacher was talking about how they would know their multiplication to 12 by the end of the school year.....WHAT???? Starting in September she will also have about a half hour worth of homework every night. She is only 6 for crying out loud! I am blown away by how much she has to learn to learn this year. She is already getting extra crabby and emotional. She has pretty much kicked Halle out her room at night because she claims to need her sleep because 1st grade is much harder than kindergarten.
Here she is with one of her friends from her class last year. They are happy to be in the same class again this year. Mckenna was pointing to their teacher from last year, we will miss Mrs. Standage, she is an amazing teacher!
On a side note: Halle is a little night owl and usually is up later than me, so no one really wants to share a room with her. Whatever room she ends up in, you can guarantee that she will keep them up until at least 9 or 9:30. Sometimes we keep her out of the bedroom until the other kids fall asleep, but she doesn't seem to mind too much because she gets to stay up late with her dad and eat cereal. Halle usually doesn't fall asleep until between 10pm-11pm.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
NieNie Dialogues
Claire's Blessing day
Claire was blessed on August the 3rd. Kyle's mom has made each of my girls a Blessing dress, this year she made it and sent from Palmyra, where they are on their mission. As usual, the dress was perfect! Thanks Marie!! We are lucky to have almost all of our family here in town with the exception of my Brother Matthew and his family (they are in Texas) and Kyle's parent on their mission.
It was a wonderful day. Kyle gave Claire a beautiful blessing. Claire did great during the blessing. She just laid there and looked up at the men with her big blue eyes! She is a keeper that's for sure!
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Prepare yourselves....
From Kyle!
I love it so much! (I do have to send it back and get the names re-done because she placed the stars wrong), it is the coolest gift ever!!! I still wear it and get a ton of complements on it! I have a great husband!
I am a baby too!
Claires first bath!
Poor Halle is having a hard time not being the baby anymore. My mom looked over at the kitchen and saw that Halle had stripped off her clothes and was trying to arrange herself so she could lay down and have a bath in the sink too. She didn't quit fit. She was so sad. (don't mind the dishes soaking in the sink-gross)
Daddy time!
Missionaries!
They have been gone for a few months already and will be back by Thanksgiving! Claire will be about 6 months old when she meets them for the first time!
Carson has started calling everyone 'Grandma Marie', he even calls me 'mommy Marie' sometimes. My mom laughs about it, but I think it is getting a little old to her now being called by the "other" grandma's name. He misses her so much.
Irrigation anyone?
This is actually our second boat. The dog popped the other one and so Kyle HAD to get another.
Usually Kyle is in the boat with them, but I couldn't find the camera before he got out.
The water gets so deep out there. I have to keep the door locked and take the key out when we get the water because I am afraid of Halle drowning. As gross as it is, the kids (this includes Kyle) love to be out there in the boat.
Are you a Toys R' Us kid?
Carson buddy, I feel the same way!
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Baby Daze!
The kids are loving to help with and hold Claire, she is spoiled already.
Mckenna is the best big sister, and has been with each baby. I couldn't ask for a better big sister than she is to each of her siblings. She takes great care of each of them, they are lucky to have her!!!
Carson called her "Claire Bear" the other day and that seems to be her nick name now. He always talks about how cute she is and likes to lay on the couch and cuddle with her. He is so gentle and natural with her.
Halle is pretty much obsessed with her and wants to hold "it" all the time. She is very possessive of her and will hang on to her in a death grip if she thinks someone is coming to take Claire away from her. I am glad that she is just in love with her and not mad at her like I had worried about.
I am very lucky that they have all been smitten by her cuteness and just want too love on her. I love watching each of them with her, she is a blessed little baby.
It is sad to think she will be my last one, I am trying to just enjoy the newborn stage as much as I can because even though it is hard and exhausting, I won't have this again. I will miss the little baby squeaks, smells, cuddling etc. I am always sad when they stop curling up their legs and sticking out their bum when you hold them and so many other things. So, for now I will just enjoy each moment and cherish each moment!
I tried to upload some pictures, but I keep geting an error. Until I can get that figured out, you can go to this site and see some pictures! http://www.reefworkshop.com/claire/claire.html
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
I am loved!!
Thank you Kyle for taking such good care of me all day! I loved only having to enjoy the good parts of my kids all day and not have to clean up after them or do anything other than rest, read the Ensign and have a fabulous day!!! At the end of the dayI did tell him how nice it would be to have a maid. Everyday would feel like Mothers day then!
I hope you all had a great day too!
Tomorrow is the BIG day! We will be a family of 6. Please tell me I will be able to handle 4 kids. That I won't go crazy and be committed!
How do you all plan to spend your long summer days with your kids? What will you do to keep them busy and happy? What can I do with a newborn? HELP!!!
Monday, May 12, 2008
Only a few more days!!!
BUT we will soon meet our sweet little baby! I am so excited to see her and cuddle with her, and love on her! Only a few more days and our family will be complete. The kids are all so excited for her to come home. Halle is probably not going to be happy. She already knows something is up and has claimed total ownership of every baby thing that we have brought out so far. She tells me "I a baby too". She wants to wear the baby clothes, sleep in her bassinet, sit in the swing, etc. She is already very possessive with me, and doesn't really want me to cuddle with the other kids. I am trying to prepare myself to handle what I am sure is going to come regarding Halle being jealous of the baby. Any one have some good idea's for me?
I will post an update this weekend with pictures of course!
Wish me luck!!!
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
A few names...
Well, here goes.... A list of some of the names that we like so far.
-Claire
-Carly
-Emery
-Avery
-Cate
We would like to narrow it down to about 2 for when we go to the hospital and pick the name once we meet her! There are still a few more written down on a list but I can't find the list right now. So until I find it these are the names that i can remember.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
The results are in!!!
So the final count will be Girls-3 , boy(s)-1.
Carson is more excited about another sister than Mckenna. She was actually a little mad because she had prayed for a brother. Finally after she got over her frustration, she decided that she would be like her Grandma Dugger and 'be happy either way'!
Now comes the hard part....We have a 3 bedroom house and don't plan on moving any time soon.
I mean, it will be no problem for the next 3-5 years to have them sharing rooms, but at some point it won't be ok. As it is, Carson and Mckenna sleep in the same room/bed every night, even though Carson has his own room with 2 beds in it.....go figure! So I really should not be worried at this point, right?
I am happy to finally know, now I can start buying all the cute "girly" cloth diapers that I have my eye on!!!!! We also need a name. Anyone have any good idea's? I am stumped. I do have a list of about 10 girl names that I like but none that I LOVE and just have to have KWIM?
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Somehow HE knows!
The invisible MOM!
It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way
one of the kids walks into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be
taken to the store. Inside, I'm thinking, 'Can't you see I'm on the phone?'
Obviously not; no one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping
the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see
me at all. I'm invisible. The Invisible Mom.
Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: 'Can you fix this?' 'Can
you tie this?' 'Can you open this?' Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm
not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, 'What time is it?' I'm a
satellite guide to answer, 'What number is the Disney Channel?' I'm a car to
order, 'Right around 5:30, please.'
I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes
that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude - but now
they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again.
'She's going, she's going, she's gone!'
One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a
friend from England . Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and
she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there,
looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to
compare and feel sorry for myself as I looked down at my out-of-style dress;
it was the only thing I could find that was clean. My unwashed hair was
pulled up in a hair clip and I was afraid I could actually smell peanut
butter in it. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a
beautifully wrapped package, and said, 'I brought you this.' It was a book
on the great cathedrals of Europe. I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it
to me until I read her inscription:
'To Charlotte, with admiration for the greatness of what you are building
when no one sees.'
In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover
what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could
pattern my work: No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no
record of their names. These builders gave their whole lives for a work they
would never see finished. They made great sacrifices and expected no credit.
The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God
saw everything. A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to
visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a
tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, 'Why
are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be
covered by the roof? No one will ever see it.' And the workman replied,
'Because God will see.'
I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost
as if I heard God whispering to me, 'I see you, Charlotte. I see the
sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act of
kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is
too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great
cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become.' At times, my
invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is
erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness.
It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride. I keep the right
perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As one of the people who
show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something
that their name will never be on.
The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever
be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to
sacrifice to that degree. When I really think about it, I don't want my son
to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, 'My Mom
gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand
bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table.'
That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him
to want to come home. Then, if there is anything to say to his friend, it
could be, 'You're gonna love it here!' As mothers, we are building great
cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right. And one day, it is
very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built,
but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of
invisible women.
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Time for more Snow Video's!!
Matthew hitting the jump too!
Kyle had to beg and bribe Mckenna to go on this trail. The bribe included a piggy back ride half way up the hill and 2 candies from the country store!
Way Back Wednesday!
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
A few crashing video's from the snow!
Ok. So I know I said that I would post video's tomorrow, but I just couldn't wait!
Hinckley Challenge!
Here is the e-mail about challenge that I received.
As you know, our beloved prophet, Gordon B. Hinckley passed away at the age of 97.
I was thinking of how I could honor his legacy and I came up with an idea.My friend and I have created a challenge for those willing to accept it:
Read the Book of Mormon in 97 days.
We are trying to get everyone to start on the same day. Here are the details:
- Goto www.hinckleychallenge.com and create an account (free, of course).
- On Feb 4, 2008 (the Monday following the funeral) have an FHE lesson on the Book of Mormon and begin your reading.
- Each day you read, record what page number you are on by going to www.hinckleychallenge.com .
We would like this challenge to be heard all around the world! Please forward this message to everyone you know. We would love to see over 1 million pages of the Book of Mormon read by the time this challenge has ended.
Do you want to show your support? Do you want to follow the prophet? Do you want to get rid of all of your excuses for not reading and become a warrior? Then join me in this challenge!!!
We are going to spread this throughout the news media (TV an d radio) and we've already contacted Fox news, KSL, CBS, and ABC. But we cannot get the word out to everyone without your help! Please forward this on to EVERYONE in your address book. Time is of the essence!! This will be the one forwarded message that everyone will be happy to get :).
-Jake Andersen
P.S. You can always see an updated list of those who have accepted the challenge by clicking here (www.hinckleychallenge.com/warriors.php)
Snow or Bust!!!
Kyle and the kids spent most of the day outside sledding, snowboarding and making snowballs. Poor Halle had to stay inside with me most of the time. Here they are all bundled up to go play. No, we didn't send Halle out to play in the snow in her bare feet, she was coming back in the WARM Cabin with me!
Carson was determined to snowboard like his Uncle Seth and Matthew. He was actually pretty good and could snowboard about 10 or so feet on his own!
I think he liked snowboarding the best!
Here is Halle all bundled up going out to sled with Daddy!
Aunt Meghan (Known as Ketchup and Mustard in her snow clothes!) with Halle and Levi.
Amy was such a trooper. This is probably one of the only times she was on her own because one of my kids were sledding with her almost the whole time. Thank you, and sorry! I guess that is what you get for being such a great Aunt. Next time I won't be pregnant and I can sled too!
Kyle and my mom
I will post some more pictures tomorrow. I have a ton more I want to share! I even have some great video of sledding and snowboarding wipe-outs that must be shared!
We really had a great time! I am so grateful to be so close to my family and be able to have so much fun together. Even the BRIDEZILLA (aka; Meghan) wasn't so bad :)!
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Don't know yet...
Unfortunately we don't know what we are having. When I went for my ultrasound we found out the I have a low-lying placenta (can't I ever have a "normal" pregnancy?), the baby was breech and VERY wiggly. It was very hard to a good view of the baby at because my placenta, which appears 'white' on the screen was covering most of the baby. Dr. Holmes was doing all he could to get a good view. At first he said 'I think its a girl", then a minute later he said "boy" then he said he really did not know. If there happened to be a view where he could tell, the baby was too wiggly or the umbilical cord was in the way. So for now we don't know. I am going crazy!! I don't like not knowing. I like to be "surprised" at the ultrasound, not when the baby is born.
It is the same with Christmas and birthdays, if I know that someone has a present or surprise for me it drives me crazy, I would rather know right away.
Kyle is opposite of me, he doesn't want any hints about what he might be getting at Christmas. He also hates the previews when we are at the movies. He is really embarrassing to sit by at the theater because he will close his eye's and plug his ears and sometimes even make noises to block out the sound during previews. He doesn't do this for all the movies (like the new Enchanted) just for movies like Spiderman, Lord of The Rings, basically any and all 'action' type of movie. So if you are ever at the movies with us or by us and want a good laugh, just watch Kyle and you can be embarrassed for me!