Christmas Card 2011

I finally got our Christmas card and letter done!  And BEFORE Christmas (that's a victory in my book).  Since there's no chance of getting them mailed to all of you by Sunday I decided to just share our Christmas spirit digitally.  

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Card...

Christmas Letter...

9 months!

I can't believe Scarlett is already 9 months old!  I could have grown another baby already - crazy!  (no... this is NOT an announcement)

She is such a happy little lady.  She plays really well on her own, claps whenever she's happy and has started babbling a ton.

She got her 5th tooth last week (bottom middle left) (you can't really see it in this picture because of her tongue - but you can see her crazy vamp fangs!)

She also started crawling on Dec 10.  She had a Skype date with her BF Parker that morning, and I think he gave her the confidence to turn her "I'm wounded" army crawl (arms only) to a real crawl!  It's a funny crab like crawl in the sense that she uses her left knee and her right foot.  The knee is for stabilization and the foot is for propulsion - so it's difficult for her to go straight.  But she's getting faster and faster (and getting into all sorts of mischief).  The other day she was in her room while Jake and I got dressed.  Jake went in to get her and she wasn't there!  He yelled "hey Scarlett!" and heard rustling from the corner.  She was all the way behind her rocking chair playing with a garbage can.  So this week Jake and I will be dedicating some hours to baby proofing (ie: putting everything up out of reach!)

(the band-aid is from the second half of her flu shot - it is a funny coincidence that she holds that leg out like it's wounded, but has nothing to do with the shot)

With her strong leg muscles from all the crawling, she's started pulling herself to standing.  In the morning she now stands up in her crib and cries til I come get her.

She really is a little chatter box.  The other day we were watching Pixar shorts.  One of them was from Monsters, Inc.  The title of the short (Mike's New Car) was on the screen for a few seconds while music played.  Scarlett looked up at the screen and yelled "Mike!"  Now I'm 99.73% confident that is was a really strange coincidence and she probably really only yelled "My".  But there is 0.27% of me that thinks that maybe, just maybe, all that WordWorld is really sinking in her brilliant little head!

Last night she squished her finger and started crying.  I picked her up and instead of just bawling she was actually telling me what happened.  She kept looking over where she got hurt and holding her hand out while she said some choice words.  I don't know what those words were, but she definitely knew what she was saying.  It was so funny!  More and more she is "talking" instead of just making random noises.  And today she is talking REALLY LOUDLY!  We went to the eye doctor with Jake and I had to take her out in the hall cause she was talking so loud!  hee hee!

She had her 9 month doctor checkup last week.  She is really healthy (by this age I had several ear infections and asthma attacks).  She can now eat anything she wants except uncooked/unprocessed milk or honey.  The doctor also said she's really flexible!   Here are her stats:

• 18 lbs 9 oz - 50%
• 27 in long - 35%
• 17.5 in head circumference - 60%

She loves eating off our plates.  She still hates baby food, but we've found a whole list of things she enjoys eating... yogurt, bananas, apples, carrots, ice cream, pizza, and even BBQ:

I also think she is a little bit Type-A like her mama:

We also got her ears pierced so people would know she was a girl.  One on the left ear and two piercings on the right:

Just kidding!!!

These are little stickers that Jami put on her to be funny.  No, she will have to wait until she's 8 to get her ears pierced (and only one hole).

Christmas Eve Program

Last year we used this program to tell the story of the Savior's birth and I really liked it.  But then I lost the paper and had to track down my neighbor who gave it to me to get a new copy (thanks Stasha!).  Anyways... I wanted to put it on my blog so I won't lose it in the future.

Does your family have a fun/interesting way to tell the Savior's birth?

The Birth of Our King

Hymn #202 - "Oh, Come, All Ye Faithful"

Luke 2:1-5

1: And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Cæsar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.  2: (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)  3: And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.  4: And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judæa, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:)  5: To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child.

Hymn #208 - "O Little Town of Bethlehem"

Luke 2:6-7

6: And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.  7: And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

Hymn #206 - "Away in a Manger"

Luke 2:8-14

8: And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.  9: And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.  10: And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.  11: For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.  12: And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.  13: And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,  14: Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

Hymn #212 - "Far, Far Away on Judea's Plains"


Luke 2:15-20

15: And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us.  16: And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.  17: And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child.  18: And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds.  19: But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.  20: And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.

Hymn #204 - "Silent Night"


Matt 2:1-6

1: Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judæa in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,  2: Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.  3: When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.  4: And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.  5: And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judæa: for thus it is written by the prophet,  6: And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.

Hymn #205 - "Once in Royal David's City"

Matt 2:7-12

7: Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared.  8: And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also.  9: When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was.  10: When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.  11: And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.  12: And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.

Hymn #210 - "With Wondering Awe"

Matt 2:13-15

13: And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.  14: When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt:  15: And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.

Hymn #201 - "Joy to the World"

Isaiah 9:6

6: For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Vampires are so hot right now!

So Scarlett is really wrapped up in all the Vampire/Twilight stuff that's popular right now.  No, she hasn't seen the movies or read the books, but I can tell she's really into it by this:

She's growing up so fast!  These fangs came on Nov 30.  She was fussy and kept waking up all night, but now I know it was just her teeth hurting her - poor girl.  Last night when I was nursing she bit me - OUCH!!!  She's even acting like a vampire!

She has no desire to crawl.  She has her own method of maneuvering around the room, it involves: launching forward, army crawling, rolling over, sitting up, scooting, etc.  Very elegant, but not very efficient.  Since she's semi-mobile now, we've had to start baby proofing.  Mostly putting everything on high shelves and vacuuming way more than before (she has eagle-eyes for any speck of trash on the floor).

She loves chatting.  She loves singing with her Sing-a-ma-jig.  She will talk to her toys.  We've heard her say hi, pretty, red, yellow, and blue.  Or at least really close to those words.

She loves books!  Her favorite thing is to sit on my lap and turn the pages for me.  She knows the pages flip right to left and when the book is done to turn it over and start again!

We put her hair in a ponytail for the first time.  She looks just like Pebbles!

She loves eating puffs, drinking cold water from her sippy cup (mostly letting it dribble down her face - I think it feels good on her gums), and sucking on other baby melt-a-way snacks.  Yesterday I gave her some of my banana and she went "yumumumum" while eating it, so I guess I'll add that to her list of foods.

She is seriously enamored with Chumlee.  He steals her attention away from everyone else in the room.  She recently discovered that he loves to eat any of her snacks she drops on the floor.  One day he even ate her crackers out of her hand!!!  I think he was happy that all the times he let her smack/pull/grab him finally paid off (I must say, he is so patient... he just lays there while she plays with him until he's annoyed then he just walks away.  What a good dog!)

I would also like to say how thankful I am for WordWorld.  It's her favorite show and the only show she really sits and watches.  She giggles and laughs everytime it comes on - then she'll sit and watch it for 30-60 min!  I know it's bad to let your baby watch TV... blahblahblah... I think of all shows it's not that bad (it teaches her to read for cryin' out loud!) and it's really nice to have a break - it protects my sanity!  So I don't think it's all that bad.

One other random factoid.  We recently cancelled our Netflix.  We weren't really watching movies that much and the new price hike just ticked Jake off.  Instead we use that monthly money to buy storage space on Mozy.com.  (that's were Jake is doing his internship right now).  They are an online data backup company.  After setting it up (which was easy) it monitors your drives and automatically copies any new stuff over to their servers.  I can't tell you how much piece of mind it gives me knowing all our family pictures/videos are safe from fire/flood/computer issues/theft/etc. (one of my biggest fears is losing them)!  Way more valuable use of our funds! So I would recommend you look into it if you have the same fears.

Back the F(drive) up!

Favorite Things Winners 2011!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The results are in!!!

Jake and I wanted to pick things that represent this year.  So these are a few of our favorite things for 2011...

Hobby Lobby Gift Card

I recently discovered Hobby Lobby!  Or as I call it, the "Hob Lob" - and yes, it's worth it saving those 2 syllables - even if I have to explain it every time :-)  I love to go wandering through there just to get my creative juices flowing.  I went there often when putting our Halloween costumes together.  And lately I've been working on a project (will post on blog soon).

If you have a smart phone, copy this link: http://www.hobbylobby.com/weekly/coupon.cfm.  If you pull it up on your phone while checking out they'll give you 40% off any one full priced item!  Awesome!  And saves paper!

And the winner is... LL R. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Dairy Queen Gift Card

During the last two weeks of my pregnancy I ate a Midnight Truffle Dairy Queen Blizzard almost every night.  (rewarding myself for being so huge and uncomfortable).  Jake and I often frequent the DQ, especially after a difficult week.  We just had the new Candy Cane Blizzard last night - yum!  We have been limiting our DQ lately (ever since we looked up the calories in a blizzard online).  But we still love them!

And the winner is... Billy R. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Crackle Nail Polish

You may remember my recent Nail Stamp post.  This year I've really been enjoying crazy nail art.  And when I don't have time to sit and put stamps on, I use my new Crackle Nail Polish.  You first paint your nails a fun color, then put one thick coat of crackle over the color.  As it dries it shrinks and "crackles".  Then put a layer of clear on and you're done!  :-)

And the winner is... Jenn S. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Pink Ice Perfume

I tried this perfume when I was at Rue21 (the have the best socks!) and I love it!  It has a sweet/floral/fruity/grapefruity smell - yummy!

And the winner is... Carolyn G. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you won - just send Jake or me and email/text and we'll get you your wonderful prize!

And that's all for this year!  There were several other things we thought of but they were either too expensive, impossible to give away, or too precious to part with.  Some examples include:

• ksl.com
• Dirt bike
• Halo Heaven (more info in future post)
• Mozy Backup Data Storage
• Hair Bleach & Highlighting stuff
• Amazon Mom
• WordWorld
• Google Calendar

Thanks again to all our blog readers!  Keep on reading and commenting.  I'm already thinking of fun ideas for next year's giveaway.  (like making your odds based on number of comments on our blog, etc)

Thanks again!