HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Ben and I were lame-0 this year and decided not to dress up. LAST year we went as Mr. and Mrs. Incredible, and trust me, we were INCREDIBLE :)
This year we were happy to just let Norah dress up. My sister in law Linda had a fun cow costume that she let us borrow. Norah was such a cute lil cow, if there is such a thing ;)
We went to a fun Halloween party at a friends house and Norah won the costume contest. And then last night we went out to our wards Halloween Party and passed out candy "trunk or treat" style.
I missed seeing my moms spooky house, she is always big on Halloween, but we had fun with our lil family here.

We Do Hard Things...

I recall a talk awhile back from someone in the General Relief Society Presidency. In her talk she used the phrase, "I can do hard things". At the time I wasn't married, and I didn't have any children. I remember thinking, just what kind of hard things are you referring to? I am beginning to understand a little better and feel strength in this phrase now...because I too can do hard things!
This has been a rough week for one reason or another. I won't complain TOO much publicly, but when I look back on what it is exactly that I stress over, I realize it's not THAT bad. I guess it's when I try to do too much that I get a little bit overwhelmed. Again, when I was single, I recall thinking many times, if only I were married, life would be so much easier. And then I got married, and life got a little more complicated. Then I looked forward to the next landmark, when I would have children and life would be pure BLISS. I will go back to the phrase here..."I can do hard things" :)

For the most part I feel like I should never complain about marriage or motherhood, because I wanted it so badly and I know many don't make it down this road. However even I reach breaking point every now and then. It's all worth it so far though, and I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.

No matter how frustrating the days can be, I know this little girl thinks that I am pretty awesome, at least for now anyway :)

Happy Birthday Ben!

We celebrated 31 years of Ben yesterday! It was such a nice day out that we decided to take a trip to some local orchards. Norah wasn't really enjoying herself, needed a nap, so we didn't spend a lot of time there, but it was fun to get outdoors.

Later in the afternoon one of our friends watched Norah while Ben and I went out for a Birthday dinner. It was nice to just be with one another without focusing on Norah, and it was fun to remember what it was like to just be a couple again. However, after about an hour into our date we both admitted that we were ready to be with our baby again. Funny how it's only been 3 months but it already feels like she has been with us forever and how strange it is to be without her.

We had Ben's favorite, cheesecake for dessert once we picked up Norah and came back home. I think he had a great day and we are sure grateful to have him in our lives. Even before we had Norah I knew he was going to be an amazing daddy because of the way he loved and played with our nieces and nephews; he was fast friends with them when we had just barely started dating. Ben is a busy guy with school and work, but he always makes time for his girls(that's me and Norah :)

Love you Ben, here's to another fabulous year!

Crib Stories

It was past 9 am this morning and Norah was still sleeping, so I thought I should wake her up...

...this is how I found her!

What to do my friends?! I swaddle Norah up tight and then put her to sleep on her back. But last night when I checked on her she was snoozing away, on her TUMMY, still wrapped from the waist down. I suppose she is just fine, but it scares me a little since she is still swaddled and isn't very good at rolling from her tummy to her back. I have this fear that she won't be able to breath. I turned her over and swaddled her back up again but then when she woke up for her nighttime feeding she was back on her tummy again. She is pretty good at kicking out of her blankets though if you give her enough time. I guess this is just the beginning of my worries though, this girl is on the move! She also pushes up against the crib bumper and pulls it down with her body. The whole idea of sleeping unsupervised lately is making me panic. I know, crazy first time mom. :0

The best thing about having a child are the toys and the books!
We were given a gift card for the Olive Garden when Norah was born so we finally ventured out with our baby to use it. She did pretty great, only fussed a little initially and then slept through the whole meal.
We had to walk through the mall on our way out to get to our car and we passed a new bookstore. I have been looking for some board books for Norah. They had SO many to choose from, and many of the other classic books that Ben and I remember from our childhood. We spent way too much but are so exited to be starting a little library for Norah. She can't read yet of course...or even hold a book in her hand, but we are enjoying them for her in the meantime. We got home and read them all to each other while Norah was taking her nap. Ok, so maybe we got the books for us ;)

Spontaneous Day Trip

Yesterday was such an overcast, rainy day and I loved it! After General Conference we still had a good chunk of an afternoon so we decided to explore our surroundings. We are trying to get out and see the sights as much as possible because we don't plan on living here forever. This trip took us to the very top of Mount Spokane. It was such a beautiful drive, even in the rain, we loved it. When we finally got to the top, of course it was pretty foggy, so we couldn't see a whole lot, but the rain was a beautiful sight in itself.


I love the pretty colors Autumn brings.

You can see the clouds down in the valley.

Supposedly you can look through these telescopes and see different surrounding destination points; there were about 8 of them. We just saw some foggy mountains :)

Our little day trip was an hour there and an hour back. Norah needed a break at the top too, so we took some time to give her a few driving lessons :0

I love this little family of mine.

Here We Go...

We are having a week of firsts at our house. Norah rolled over again, and this time we were there to witness it! It was so fun to see her arching her back like crazy to try and get her body to turn. It seemed she was in midroll for at least two or three minutes. During her attempt she began to giggle! This was also a first; we figure she must have been giggling at the sight of her crazy mom and dad cheering her on. She rolled over again this morning and is now attempting to roll from her back onto her tummy as well. Ambitious, I know ;)
It seems as if she just decided this week to grow up on us. She began "talking" on Monday and everyday has progressively gotten more chatty. She is also developing quite the personality, its fun to see.
Also a new experience for me this week, being sick and trying to care for a baby at the same time. I thought it was a bummer when I moved away from home and didn't have my mom to take care of me when sick. Now I know that there are worse things, like waking up for night time feedings when you have a horrible cold. Luckily, it seems the worst of it is over now. However crummy I may feel though, I sure am thankful for the opportunity to be Norah's mom :)

I am anxiously waiting for THESE babies to come in the mail!
These and Norah's new jogging stroller are going to make for some FUN days ahead :)


I am finally getting to the point where I can run without feeling like I am going to fall apart or die of exhaustion! Maybe someday I can call myself an athlete again :O

More of our GREAT weekend

My sisters family and Ben's parents stayed in town for Labor Day so we took them to see the downtown attractions.






Norah and Grandma O

Grandpa O

Grandma and Grandpa B with McCord and Norah

Isaac and Norah

Kelly my sister has a 5 month old, McCord, he and Norah are going to be good buddies :)


Kara and Norah

Norah's bath time, she LOVES the bath.

Grandpa B babysitting. My sister and her fam went to Silverwood for the day so we got to hang out with McCord and watch the BYU game, Go Cougars!


Becca was able to come and visit from Boise State, so glad to see her again!

Luckily our apartment complex has a large community room. We spent a lot of time down there eating, chatting, and playing the Wii.






And one more of chubby cheeks...LOVE her :)

Best Day

Words can't describe the feelings inside; Norah's blessing day ranks up there with one of the best days of my life. I love her so much..and her daddy too :)


We were lucky to have family in town. Ben's parents, my parents and two younger sisters, and even my sister Kelly's family were able to drop in for the weekend.

All the sisters; I was missing my brothers...


Norah wore the same dress I was blessed in, even the booties. Thanks mom for keeping them in such great shape, I was so glad to have them!



Thanks for sharing in Norah's special day!