Christmas on Millstream

Oh, what fun we've had!! It all started Christmas Eve with the jammies--all homemade by yours truly, except for mine. The kids' jammies had a sock monkey theme going this year, while Bill's were of course Utah Ute red. And keeping with the theme, Bill gave me some cute red jammies. Sophie's are ginormous, but cute all the same.


Love a good jammie pic by the tree, don't you?


Santa came right in the front door thinking, of course, that we were already in bed. Boy was he surprised when he found that we were still up! So, he talked to each of the kids for a minute then he was on his way, promising to come back when we were all asleep!


We put a little TV in Jake's room so in case they woke up too early the next morning (that is, before 7:30am) they could watch some Christmas movies to pass the time!


This is what Sophie came down to the next morning--a dollhouse that is taller than she is! Jake and Abby also got their wish from Santa--Ihomes for their Nanos!

Christmas day night we moved the diningroom table and all slept by the 14 foot Christmas tree in our entry. Needless to say, Bill and I didn't sleep very well with 2100 lights shining in our face all night, but it was so fun. The kids have been sleeping there every night since!

We hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and wish you all the best for the new year!

Feeling a Little Stressed?

So, you all know that I don't normally post pics of myself...don't really like to, but I felt a pic sometimes can say a thousand words (plus, I went out to lunch today and had my hair and make up done, so I was feeling somewhat ok about a pic).

I love Christmas. It's my very most favorite time of the year--even more so since I've had kids. Every year I have grand dreams of getting my shopping, sewing, decorating, etc.....done early so I can enjoy December without stress. And every year my dream of a perfect Christmas begins to unravel at about December 1st. I started out well this year, but then began procrastinating projects that needed to be done, presents that needed to be wrapped and so on. So, while I'm loving Christmas, I'm a little frazzled--exactly what I try to avoid each year!

I've decided there just isn't a perfect Christmas and the less I try to make a perfect Christmas happen the more I, and in turn my family, can enjoy it! I want to focus more on the things I'm thankful for--for the birth of our Savior, for my family and for the wonderful life I have. So, this post is to myself for next year..."Self, don't try to make a perfect Christmas--it doesn't exist! You have a wonderful life & family! Enjoy them! And enjoy the spirit of the season!"

Merry Christmas everyone!

PS Feel free to tell yourself the same thing next year!

What?? Sophie's Three??

So, I'm a little behind. Yes, it's true, Sophie's birthday was November 29th, and yes it's December 14th, but hey, I've been trying to get ready for Christmas after all.

Sophie had a great birthday with not one, but two celebrations. My brother and his family were in town for Thanksgiving so we first celebrated at my mom's the night before her birthday. Sunday was her actual birthday, so we had a little celebration at home, with just the five of us. That means I made not one, but two cakes! (for those of you who know me well, know that baking is NOT my thing, so for me to make 2 cakes in as many days is quite something!)

First try blowing out her candles...

...and a second try...

...and finally got it on the third try! Almost singed her eyebrows, but hey, she got em all!

Sophie is such a joy to have in our family. I love this little girl so much! She has such a sweet disposition and funny little quirks. I can't imagine our family without her. Happy Birthday sweet Sophie and thanks for choosing to come to our family! We love you!

p.s. Notice the ancient highchair Sophie is sitting in. That was not only mine, but my three older siblings' as well!!

It's Finally Done!

So, you remember this pic from my last post. Well, I didn't think the blue on the wall was quite right...which equaled MORE painting. Sigh. Since I'm having Thanksgiving at my house again this year, I thought I should bite the bullet and get the painting done.


Before...


..and after.

I took it around into the kitchen this time. What do you think????

Maybe I Should Give it Another Go...

This statement seems to be my motto lately--I just can't seem to get things "just right". Take this cabinet, for example...


...it started out green and country. I thought I'd spruce it up a bit...


...better, but something isn't quite right. Oh, I'll paint the wall behind it. That will fix everything...


...still better. But, something still isn't quite right. Is it the wall color? Is it the two-toned paint?


Ahhhhh...that's much better. Although, the blue paint still isn't quite right. :)

To be continued.......

More Sunday Pics

So, I've been wanting to get some cute single pics of the kids to hang in my newly redecorated bedroom above the bed. (I know what you're thinking--where are the pics of the bedroom??

Trust me--they're coming!) Anyway, my kids looked so cute this morning and there was some great light in the backyard--not that I really know what constitutes "great light"--but I really got some cute shots! Check out my sidebar.

The one of the three kids below just melts my heart! I love them to death!!

Halloween on Millstream

Halloween at our house this year consisted of everyone going their separate ways due to the U of U football game that night. Since we have season tickets we tried to talk Jake and Abby into going to the football game with us instead of trick-or-treating. We bribed them with a large bag of candy from Costco. It was a no brainer for Jake--candy AND a football game--but Abby wasn't so sure. At the last minute she decided to go trick-or-treating with her best friend, Lily. Sophie went to my mom's house and did a little trick-or-treating herself and then handed out candy to all the kids.


Our pretty witch.

I never thought I'd put lipstick on my boy--or that he'd wear his sister's clothes!

Our pretty little "girl"!

Our sweet little Halloween Fairy!

Abby and her friend Lily were also invited to a Zombie party. Scary, huh?

So, everyone had fun and got to do what they wanted to do. Hope everyone had a fun Halloween!

She Is Outta There!

Remember this ol' girl? The white-washed log bed that I've slept in for the last 13 years? Well, sadly to say (not really) she's now in the basement awaiting Bill's approval for sale on ksl.com. Not to mention those beaut's for nightstands have gone the way of ksl.com.

More to come on the bedroom transformation!

Has It Been Ten Years Already?

Yes, that's right my friends--Jake and Abby are ten years old today. I just can't believe my little babies are that old. As I've been thinking about this day ten years ago, I've had many different emotions--the strongest one being that I'm glad it isn't ten years ago. Bill and I were so scared, didn't know what to expect, and more that anything overwhelmed. But, when I saw and held those sweet little bundles, I surprised myself and knew it would all be ok.

They are such sweet natured and well-behaved kids, that they have made these ten years relatively easy for me. Not to mention they have brought such joy, love and happiness to my life that I never thought possible.

Abby is such a nuturer--she is basically Jake and Sophie's little mother. She is so sweet and kind to others. She is also very creative and talented. I love how she is always "redecorating" her room with her stuffed animals and different decorations she's made.

Jake is a tender-heart. He is always concerned for other people's feelings and is always willing to help. He is always the first to say, "I'm really sorry, Mom" when he's done something to upset me. He has a the funniest sense of humor that always makes us and others laugh.

So, Happy Birthday Abby and Jake!! We are so thankful you are a part of our family!

Is That Blue on My Walls?

This post is definately for Jamie who has been so kind and patient with me to get my booty moving and paint the walls blue already!

When Bill and I built the house seven years ago I wanted all warm colors--reds, golds, neutrals and dark carpet. Well, my friends, those days are over as you can see in the before and after pics below.





I am loving blue these days!!! If you would've told me that seven years ago I would've told you that you were crazy! I HATED blue! But, things change and I LOVE my walls--so much so I'm doing the kitchen with this same color! What do you think? I would love to hear your opinions of the change!

Don't Ya Just Love Fall????

I love fall. We went for a drive yesterday up East Canyon and the colors were gorgeous! We got out of the car a few times to enjoy the crisp breeze, the kids threw some rocks and everyone had a great time. We ran into a friend of Bill's who he worked with at Siemens and he hadn't seen Jake and Abby since they were one! Needless to say he and his family were surprised at how big they are and they were also surprised at our new little addition, Sophie (I love showing them off)!

I made some pumpkin chocolate chip cookies this weekend--nothing says fall like those, went to a U of U football game, and watched my Broncos beat the Raiders (nothing better than beating the Raiders!) I love the smells, colors and activities of fall--it makes me want the weather to get cooler and Halloween and Thanksgiving to come! Can't wait for the storm and cooler weather this week!

Wonder What We've Been Doing?

Although we've been keeping very busy, it seems I have nothing to blog about lately. So, here are a few pics to show you what's been going on...

Bike rides have been a family favorite lately. Everyone wants to soak up the last of the summer's warmth!! I, however, have not been in attendance on these bike rides as I sold my bike on ksl.com!! :)

Still going to church and Bill is still taking the weekly pics. It's a good thing he does this as I could go for weeks without taking a single pic. Gotta do better!

Sophie is, however, not as busy as her brother and sister and sometimes finds herself a little bit bored. She misses them during the day, but we have some fun times together too while they're away.

Between school, homework, Abby's dance (ballet and jazz this year), piano lessons, cub scouts (Jake just got his Bear and Religious Knot last night, but of course I didn't get a pic), Jake's flag football, putting up tomatoes (mostly Bill--I'm the luckiest girl ever), trying to exercise everyday, and of course home projects (I have a painting project starting soon--will blog about it later) we keep busy!! So, that's our life in a nutshell.

Here's to the Beginning of Something Wonderful

It's official!! Sophie is potty trained! Oh boy, I just couldn't be happier. And the little cutie pie made the process relatively easy! We started last Tuesday, and by Friday she really had the hang of things. No more diapers for naps, no more diapers at nighttime, and no more diapers for this family! I'm usually kind of sad when my kids pass certain milestones...not so with this one. Way to go, Sophie!

And They're Off!

The first day of school has always been a little bitter sweet for me, usually a little more sweet ;). Anyway, I have not been looking forward to this first day of fourth grade (fourth grade? what?). I truly hated them going off to school today--they've been my good pals this summer and such good friends to Sophie.

These little ones are growing up far too fast for my liking! It's so hard to let them go out into the world where people can hurt them or be mean to them. But, I'm so proud of the people that they have already become. They are so loving and accepting of others and to eachother--they are great examples to me. So, here's to Jake and Abby--hope you have a wonderful year!

Here Birdie, Birdie...

I just love birdies these days!! Can't get enough of them, so when I was out shopping for fabric for a project and came upon this yummy birdie fabric I HAD to do something with it for my bedroom! So, I found a pattern for a pieced pillow--now let's all keep in mind that I have never "pieced" anything, but this fabric collection was so fun I wanted to use all of it!! I don't know why I've never tried this before because it was such a fun project--I don't know about a whole quilt, but the pillows were fun.

I have been looking for pillows to go on my bed with my all white bedding and new dark wood bed (of which won't be here until the end of October--boo!). Since I am going to paint the walls a light blue I wanted to bring in browns, blues and greens. So you can imagine my excitement when I found this perfect fabric!!

I found this other pillow at Ross for the bargain price of $7.99, that I thought would go nicely with my birdies!

What's my next project? I guess I will have to paint!

Shameless Advertisement...

As most of you know, I've become somewhat addicted to selling things on ksl.com. I have a few projects I'm working on around the house that I need some extra funding for, so I thought why not!! Then I thought, why not open the floodgates to friends and loved ones as well--I'm only thinking of you, of course. So, tell your friends, tell your neighbors, tell anyone you think might be interested in any of these useful things!

$100: This crib was one of the two I used when Jake and Abby were babies, so it has only slept one baby. Included in the price is the Serta mattress.

Don't like the light wood??? Spray paint it--it would be cute white, pink, light blue, yellow, light green--the possibilities are endless!! It's a cheap and easy way to get the color you want.

It is very easy to assemble with a phillips screwdriver, having no loose hardware to keep track of once it is disassembled. No tools are needed to lower the mattress as your baby grows. Both side rails go down and it can convert into a youth bed by simply removing one of the side rails.

$285: My wool entry rug measures 8'x5' and was purchased at Hamilton Park. I LOVE this rug, but again I'm changing up the color scheme in my house and this has a little too much red. Colors include: red, beige, dark green, light green, and a touch of light blue.

$150: What could this be you ask?? This is a brand new in the box AT&T Palm Treo 750! Bill got it through work and has never used it. I won't bore you with all its capabilities, but will let you in on all the details if you're interested.

$40: And last, but certainly not least, we have this compact, solid wood computer desk with a pull out keyboard drawer and a shelf below for a printer (something most of you know we've never had on that shelf!). After we purchased the new table and chairs in the dark wood, this had to go and be replaced with something darker. It's ideal for small spaces!

Well, there you go--it's my own classifieds section. Give me a call at home or on my cell (801-913-9398) if you're interested in anything! Think the prices are too high?? We'll talk!

PS I'm a little nervous to click "Publish Post", after all what will people think? Don't judge me too harshly! ;)

Oh What a Little Paint Will Do...

As most of you know, after I painted the stripes in the bathroom I swore I would never paint again. Well, apparently painting is a lot like being pregnant--you soon forget how horrible it was and decide you want to do it again! Not long after I finished the bathroom, I decided to take on another project...my dark green pie cabinet. Loved the cabinet, hated the color and country look. See for yourself in the following picture.



It was a great cabinet when I bought it 12 years ago, but it was time for an update. Enter some serious sanding to get rid of the green, some new paint, frosted glass and cute glass knobs (you know what those knobs got me!!), and look what you get!



Not bad, eh? I used the same colors I used in my bathroom (after all, I had the paint already), but something just wasn't quite right. Celeste, my dear sister-in-law, said, "Let's antique it!" She acted like she knew what she was doing, so we headed to Home Depot. Come to find out, she's never done it before! I was a little nervous, but after a few questions to our friend at the Home Depot he put my mind at ease and we did it! Well, I made Celeste put it on so I could blame her if it didn't turn out, but as you can see it turned out great!

Now that the cabinet is done, I think I need to paint the wall behind it...could this be another painting project??

Surprise Purchase

We went looking for these...

...and came home with this...



How does this happen you ask?? Well, I'm happy to say, for once, a purchase was Bill's fault! I've been looking for glass knobs for a project I've been working on (future post to come on that), so on the way to Costco the other day I asked Bill to stop at Restoration Hardware so I could run in and pick a couple of these knobs up. 5 minutes I said. Bill apparently can't be that close to a Pottery Barn, which is just across the parking lot, and not go in. He unloaded all the kids and went in while I went to buy the knobs.

When I went over to Pottery Barn to pick everyone up, Bill informed me he had found our dining room chairs. To make a long story short the chair didn't work with our dining room table, however our kitchen chairs looked great with it. We loved the new chairs so much we decided to keep them for the kitchen (still waiting for 3 more to come) and get the table that matches them! We got them for a KILLER deal!

I just want to go on the record and say that all I went down there for was a couple of knobs!

SOLD!!

So, if you're ever looking for a way to make extra money, just sell something on KSL.com. Want to change things up in your home decor, but don't have the cash? Sell something and replace it with the money you get! Case in point, the dressers below. Bill and I are FINALLY going to get new bedroom furniture. We've been sleeping in Bill's white-washed log bed since we've been married, which was cute when he bought it, but has outlasted its purposes. We've also been using some teakwood dressers as nightstands that he bought for $75.

I sold these beauties for $100!

My everloving niece Jamie helped me take just the right pics and say just the right things in my ad! She is the master at selling things on KSL. She sold the desk right from under her computer to fund another project she was working on in her house!

Here's to KSL.com and many, many sales to come!

Happy Birthday to Me!

So, Monday was my 29th...oh, I mean 39th birthday. I had a great day filled with lots of fun, phone calls and more fun. I think my kids were more excited for my birthday than I was!! We decided to go to the Gateway for dinner and then the fountains after.


Here are my cool kids on the way to Gateway.


Oh, I love my little family. Here they are at the California Pizza Kitchen.


Followed by a little Hagen Daz ice cream!

After walking around and going to the fountain (which btw scared Sophie to death!), we went home to open PRESENTS (definately my favorite part)!


Look at all the awesome cards my kids made for me! They definately didn't get their creativity from me!

Why are we in sweatshirts on one of the hottest days of the year you ask? Billy gave me a darling hoody sweatshirt from Disneyland that I'm sporting, so the kids thought it was only right that they put theirs on too!

Thanks to everyone who called, sent cards and have taken (or will be taking me) to lunch! I have such wonderful people in my life that I'm SO grateful for! Love you all!