baby gift

jake and robyn, dear friends of ours, are having a baby in march. they were here for the holiday and had a shower for robyn. i've knit a couple of baby caps before, but this is the first time i added the flower.

cute! {well, at least i think so!}




so easy to make, nothing too detailed. (i do want to try more difficult, flower-like patterns in the future...)

next project...two more baby hats for christmas presents and i would like to make an adult size beanie too!

THANKS! day

a few things i'm thankful for...

• john

• pets


• home


• family


• friends


• laughter


• tears


• memories


• music


• food


• movement


• love


• salvation


• grace


• hugs


• pictures


• heritage


• Bible


• flip flops


• comfy pants


• imagination


• children


• trees


• creativity


• sunsets


• rainbows


• prayer

thursday night before dinner everyone stated something they are thankful for. surrounded by family and so much love, i was overwhelmed with gratefulness for all of them in my life. without each of them, i wouldn't be the person i am today. parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, sisters, brothers, neices, nephews and my husband. i am blessed to have a heritage of christian loved ones, those here and the many that have gone before me. God is good, all the time, all the time, God is good!

we had a great time celebrating! played games, watched football, cooked and ate delicious food.

grandma avant, aunt cheryl, mom, aunt debbie and myself (from left)

papa, uncle david, john and dad (from left)

dad and pepper taking a snooze in the sun

john serenading dad and pepper

the turkey

dad carving the turkey

all of us standing around watching...hungry!

joe enjoying massive amounts of pie

i am so thankful we had so many to celebrate with this year! in all the years we have lived in utah, this was the first that any of my side of the family was out for thanksgiving. it was so great to be able to be get to spend extra time with them after the wedding!

because alot of my family was here for thanksgiving rather than christmas and all of john's family will be here for christmas, this is the first year john and i decided to split holidays. it feels strange not sticking to our usual routine and honestly, i feel guilty not spending equal time with both families on both holidays, but i know things change as you get older. new traditions, new memories! this year, it will work out great!!

DOGS, WEDDINGS AND THANKS

two nights ago john and i got an email from the new owners of sage. first thought...john was worried that they were going to say that something was wrong or that she wasn't adjusting well. thankfully, wrong. they just wanted to send us a couple of pictures and tell us how good she was doing. that she loves their kids and that they are truly thankful that they have her. good, right?! right. but i started crying anyway. i miss her. i miss her cute little hobble, her sweet face, her protective sense and listening to her breath at night. her pictures were so cute and she looks really happy and i know it was the right choice for us to give her to this family, but it is hard to know that at this moment in time, we aren't the right family.

another canine story...almost every morning on my way to work i am a couple hundred feet behind a school bus that pulls off the side of the road to pick up some kids. every time it pulls over a dog comes charging down the hill, tail wagging, barking and nipping at the back tire of the bus. then is turns back around and i assume goes and gets the children. i love it, it makes me smile!

---------

jana and joe got married this weekend!!!!! everything went beautifully and everyone had a great time! lots of family, food, laughs, tears, singing and dancing! we got quite a few pictures and tons of video, of which john is compiling together on a dvd. i'll post pictures soon.

---------

happy thanksgiving too! Psalm 100 describes how and why we should be thankful. it is one of my favorites and i cannot be more grateful to my God and Savior for the life he has given me. Salvation and a relationship with Him, an incredible husband i could not live without, a family that is so closely knit together (on both sides), a cat that keeps me entertained, a home to live in, a christian community that keeps me accountable and friends that are irreplacable. THANK YOU LORD!

"Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!
Serve the Lord with gladness!
Come into his presence with singing!
Know that the Lord, his is God!
It is he who made us, and we are his;
We are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise!
Give thanks to him; bless his name!
For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever,
And his faithfulness to all generations."

Psalm 100

leaves and more leaves!

we didn't get out of bed until 9:00 this morning. (believe it or not, that's sleeping in!) it was wonderful to wake up without the beeping, moaning and regular morning routine.

first thing on the agenda today...attack the leaves! and that we did. john blew most of them together last week, but the rest of the leaves have now fallen.



this is actually a new experience for me. i never had to rake leaves when i was little (not enough trees in our yard) and i just can't remember ever being in a pile of leaves before. and let me tell you...we had quite the pile!





it actually took a lot less time than i expected. we ended up with over a dozen bags!



then we covered the air conditioning unit. next on the agenda...exercise, color hair, do a little shopping, rest and movie night with some friends!

(food update...john and i have been doing REALLY GOOD with our eating and exercising this week. this is what a typical lunch looks like, with a few additions or substitutions like a sandwich, cottage cheese or oranges. and you can't forget the water, lots and lots of water!!!)

okay...it's time, and i'm serious!

no more sweets, no more soda (only water, steve will be so proud!), smaller portions and healthier food choices. no joke.

it's sad what it takes to make you realize that you have let things go to far. frustrating that we weren't more dedicated to make a change before now. thankful, so thankful that the Lord has not let anything serious happen due to our laziness.

the plan...since we are coming up on the winter months, we bought an upright indoor cycle for cardio (once the weather is nice again, we'll be hitting the outdoors on the real thing!), we'll be lifting weights and changing our diet. help keep us accountable!!! we have failed every time we start something new, so through God's strength, renewed motivation and your accountability hopefully our goals will be reached! it's about time...

last week recap

wow! last week was BU-SY! {new goal...take more pictures of the everyday things}

monday

-went shopping at lunch for jana's shower decorations.

-it was joe's (jana's fiance) birthday. we had a birthday dinner at my parents house - steak and potatoes, caramel apple cinnamon cake - and as always, a game of the birthday persons choosing. shanghai rummy, a terribly high scoring game that night, but fun as always! i love getting together with my family!

tuesday

-got my hair trimmed (i really am trying to grow it out, it's WAY too short right now, but i just can't stand when it gets mulletish.)

wednesday

-crazy hat night at awana. john was asked to help with a skit, in which he dressed up in a long jacket and safety goggles. when he was finished he took off the costume and sat down beside one of the little girls (6 years old, i think), she looked at him curiously and whispered "i knew it was you. i saw your shirt under the jacket." :) oh man, kids make me laugh!

-i left awana a little early and went grocery shopping, went home and cleaned the house.

thursday

-baked two cakes, in prep for friday's dessert session, during Bible study.

friday

-ran to the store right after work and met yvonne at the house. she showed me how to make cupcake bites (100% successful and delicious...thanks yvonne!). she left and not too long after jana came over to help me finish baking and just chat. it was so good to finally catch up with her, talk about the wedding, and just hang out! love you sis!! (i can't wait until all the wedding craziness slows down and we can hang out more often.)

saturday

-my brain woke me up early, reminding me of all the things i needed to accomplish that day. 7:30 to be exact. i cleaned, decorated, made a quick trip to the store and picked up chairs from the church.

-john was outside most of the morning blowing leaves into a giant pile. they are still sitting in that pile in our backyard (we don't have any bags yet) and the yard is now covered completely with the rest of the leaves that have fallen since. and today it is raining, so it is a giant, wet pile of leaves.

-the shower started at 7. there had to have been over 30 people in my living room and dining room that night - sitting on each others laps, on the floor and standing where they could! it was lots of fun, jana got TONS of gifts and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves inspite of the lack of space.

-after everybody left, john and i watched percy jackson and the lightning theif. well, i should clarify...john watched it, i slept through half and watched the rest on sunday afternoon :)

sunday

-let's just say, after church, lunch and a quick trip to sam's club, john and i hit the sack for a couple hours to catch up on some much needed rest!

it was a great week. busy, with so much packed in. so many answered prayers and blessings, and a renewed gratefulness that i am able to spend my days with my husband, family and friends. thank you Lord for giving me the strength to make it through the week, constantly guiding my steps and reminding me of your grace, allowing me to find joy in the everyday busy motions and to find rest when i need it most.