Hello March!

February went by in a flash. Nicalee is just a crawling fiend. She is so fast and so quiet. I'm tempted to put a bell around her neck so that I know exactly where she is. The snow is melted, and although the grass is a dead yellow/brown color, the sun has been shining and it has been just beautiful lately. I decided the kids needed to take a few pics today, especially since they were all dressed up for church and looking so great.



Madalyn in her sparkly dress

Carver looking sharp in his suit

Gorgeous nicalee with a cheesy mom

Jumping around showing her stuff. I couldn't resist.

Happy Valentines Day

Top 10 reasons why Clint is the Greatest Husband in the World:
10) He can do the best "China man", "granny", "southern hick", "displaced Norwegian", and "disabled" accents/impersonations
9) He is great at helping me with dishes, baths, bedtime reading, playing with kids, cleaning the house and yard work
8) He likes to do a lot of my favorite things with me like: going to plays, going to musicals, going to the symphony, even the ballet (only once in a while), going on road trips, dreaming of places we would love to travel to, reading together, getting a massage, staying up late watching TV and movies, sleeping in late, singing loud with the radio
7) He has a great sense of humor
6) He is very thoughtful and sincere
5) He gets to know people effortlessly and maintains relationships
4) He is always honest and upfront
3) He is very generous-- almost to a fault
2) He is an amazing father!! His children think they are the luckiest people on the planet!! He is very creative and loves to play games, gets to know their friends, reads and tells stories, lets them sleep in our bed, teaches them all sorts of things (sometimes I shake my head, but most of the time I approve :), tells them frequently that he loves them and always puts them at the top of his priority list!
1) He loves me and treats me like his best friend, confidant, and eternal companion. Oh, and did I mention that he went to a little dance with me and committed to take Salsa dancing lessons with me. He's awesome.

LOVE YOU

Nicalee on the Move

Nicalee is now almost 9 months old-- wow! She is so proud of her abilities to crawl, sit up and move around. We've had to pay more attention to things that get left on the floor and what she is doing. She is really quiet unless she wants you to watch her, then she babbles like crazy and starts pounding the floor. It is really cute!

New Family Pic

I just love getting pictures done. I love seeing the changes that take place over such a short period of time. I love to see the different face expressions and small personality traits coming through. Sometimes I do silly things as a mom-- I get mad when I shouldn't and I get overwhelmed with daily duties and forget to just play and enjoy. I worry about things that don't really matter in the big scheme of things, but then I see a beautiful picture and try to remember all of the reasons I love being a mom and refocus my thoughts to try and be better at just living and loving my life. I know that all of the tasks of a household will be there everyday, but little moments of playing with my kids, hearing their conversations, watching them learn and grow may not be... I am so thankful for my family. Clint and I sometimes have differing viewpoints on parenting, but most of the time what I've realized is that I like to be right and in charge... and I'm starting to see (I'm a little stubborn) that my way isn't always right or the best way. Maybe in my next 30 years I'll fix that problem. I'm crossing my fingers (I'm sure the rest of the family is too).