Christmas 2011

This year we spent Christmas in Utah with the Giddings. I was so excited for a white Christmas but there was NO snow- it was sure cold enough for snow but we didn't get any :( It was the first time we've seen Paul's dad in over a year (since Thanksgiving last year), because he has been in Afghanistan, so needless to say it was a sweet reunion, and the girls were beyond thrilled to spend EVERY waking moment with Anna!

We were able to spend about a week with everyone and celebrate this special time of year together. We were happy to be there and among so much family! Thank you Giddings for all the wonderful memories!

Since the WHOLE family was in town, we took advantage and had family photos done...

Our Girls

The silly twins.

Josh and Paul with their sister, Krista!

I just adore Krista- and poor thing, can you imagine what she had to put up with growing up with those 2 boys!?!

Don't let this picture fool you. Both girls were so naughty- I was about to pull my hair out.

Brooklynn was on a time out right before we took this photo.

The whole gang.

The family is growing rapidly.

The last family photo we were all able to do, Josh and Cassie hadn't had any kids yet, and now they have 3!

Gramps and Gran with all 8 of their grandkids

(Krista's kids: Tayler, Kye, and Trey. Josh's kids: Violet, Zach, and Ben. Paul's girls: Brooklynn and Maylee. Can you tell who's are who's?)

Paul with ALL of his brothers and sisters

(Krista, Josh, Paul, Adam, Lauren, and Anna)

The 3 oldest

I can't say it enough- Brooklynn is OBSESSED with her Aunt Anna!

Silly Maylee eating Grans yummy Pinterest breakfast!

The 3 munchkins

Bathing in the tub.

They had a ball!

Decorating cookies for Santa!

Even Paul got serious about the cookie decorating

What a mess!

Daddy's final masterpiece!

Opening Christmas Eve PJ's

Paul and Adam got Forever Lazy's.

To say Paul was thrilled would be an understatement.

All cleaned up and ready for bed.

The matching gang on Christmas Eve.

Christmas morning!

New matching backpacks!

And matching Aprons

Daddy opening a few of his gifts...

Maylee enjoying a Svenhard- my favorite Christmas morning tradition.

The girls ready for church Christmas afternoon

(except their jackets are switched).

The gang with mama and papa Christmas Evening.

Gran and Maylee.

Maylee was happy with anyone but me.

All the kids (minus Josh and Cassie's family- they drove into town the next morning and we were happy to see them).

Another Chirstmas come and gone.

I am looking forward to Christmas 2012 when my brother, Cody, will be home from his mission, our new baby girl will be here, and my entire Ridley family will be together for the first time in 5 years for Christmas. Many things to celebrate and blessings to be grateful for :)

Brooklynn's Preschool Christmas Program

When did my little baby Brooklynn get so old!?! Paul and I COULD not believe we have already reached the point in our lives, and in our children's lives, where we are going to activities like her school Christmas program. She was SO excited about it. Grandma and Grandpa and Uncle Ryan and Aunt Brooke came to support her too and we were so happy to share in this moment with them.

The moment she came out, my throat got choked up and it was all I could do to keep the tears from flowing, but my eyes were watering and my heart was bursting with joy!

They sang about half a dozen christmas songs and did little dances. It was SO cute. B was of course shy in front of all those people, but she knew the words and the moves! Her bff, Sophia, couldn't make it that night so she was bummed about that but she was so obedient with what her teachers were asking all the kids to do. She went straight to her spot and stayed still! What a good example :)

 Watching her teacher and singing her song!

 Maylee loving on her Uncle Ryan

 Our little Christmas Angel :)

 I LOVE this picture!

The girls saw Santa from afar and that was as close as either of them desired to be.

A quick family shot.

Paul and I left immediately following this to go to his work Christmas Party in San Clemente,

so the girls got to spend the evening with Ryan and Brooke- thank you!

They loved it! In 'N Out for dinner and fun at the house.

It was a PERFECT night!

So proud of our Brooklynn!

Pregnancy Update

Well I am at 26 weeks- almost into my third trimester and time is ticking slowly :( With Brooklynn being born in January and Maylee in December it is odd to be pregnant during the holidays but no anticipation of baby girl coming anytime soon. April feels FOREVER away (although I am hoping to have this baby by the end of March).

I just had a Dr. appointment yesterday and all is well. Getting ready to take my glucose test this week, so I guess things are moving along. Paul and I have decided on a first name, but not a middle name. I have a WHOLE list of names I like, but Paul shuts them all down :( Every time I ask him to come up with a middle name he has nothing, but his automatic reaction to all my suggestions is "No." Can't believe we actually agreed on a first name- probably because he came up with that one. I guess we have a few more months to keep brainstorming.

Nesting hasn't really begun. I did clean out a dresser for all baby girls clothes and blankets and got Paul to go through our storage unit to move all the baby stuff to the front for easy access, but I'm not ready to actually pull things out and put them away. I still have a LOAD of diapers from that baby contest I won with Maylee, so I am excited to use them :) We have, however, been shopping for a bigger car- wait for it, a MINIVAN! Wow, eating my words for sure. I'm sold on the Toyota Sienna. I thought we would go with the Toyota Sequoia but after test driving both of them, I had to go with the van. Crazy, I know. Since we have some time until we REALLY need it, we are taking our time finding EXACTLY what we want, and we have a great friend who has been so gracious in helping us. We are grateful.

Health wise I am feeling better. I just barely came off my Zophran pills- at 24 weeks. I tried several times previously, but every time I tried, I would get sick again. The last time I tried was on our way home from our Utah Christmas, and I got sick in the Walmart bathroom. Lovely. But since then I have come off of them :) I am anemic so my Dr. put me on Iron pills. Hopefully they'll give me a little more energy, which has depleted immensely. I've gained 19 lbs already which feels like A TON! I wasn't happy with the scale yesterday. I gained a total of 29 lbs with Brooklynn and 24 lbs with Maylee, so I feel like I am on track to gain the most with this one. What the heck!?! Better be more cautious- wait who am I kidding? I just eat what I want, when I want- typical even when I am not pregnant. But after baby #3, I'm sure I'll need to get on some better habits. Thank goodness for nursing!

Baby girl is super active these days, probably because she still has some room to grow. The girls love to feel her kick and ask to see what she looks like (from babycenter.com) ALL the time. I can't wait to see how cute they will be when she is actually out and they can hold her. Brooklynn tells me all the time she is going to be my little helper and get me diapers when I need them and help keep baby sister happy :) Paul also has been expressing his excitement often too, which just makes my heart want to burst. He is surprisingly anxious for all the things that come with a new baby. Probably because our girls are feeling really old. They are both becoming very independent and we don't have to pack the entire house everytime we go somewhere. Paul and I will see other new babies and just smile with excitement and anticipation for our own. I may need to be reminded of this when I am super tired in the first few weeks/months.

So I am almost to 27 weeks. Hoping to deliver by March 31st, which would make me 38 weeks. So here is to the next 11 weeks! PLEASE go by fast, my waddle is not very cute! haha.

 25.5 Weeks Along

Date night to see Wicked in LA.

It was our anniversary celebration- yes our 6 year anniversary was back in November but Paul was out of town on business and we never got to celebrate!

A big Thank you to Mom and Dad for the gift (the tickets) and watching our girls so we could have a great night out.

Dinner at Cheesecake Factory was delicious :)