Kia Ora KB

Finally, the 13Th rolled around and we were on our way to Utah. My friends were nice enough to meet us at the airport with my parents' Lincoln for us to drive. They dropped off the car so we could head straight to Kaysville. Thursday night we just hung out and the girls got to play with Nana and Papa before all of the chaos and partying started. It the perfect start to the perfect weekend.

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Sadie playing peek-a-boo with the people behind us on the plane.

Friday afternoon we wrote a message in cups over the freeway for Kyle to see when he got home later that night. It says, "Kia Ora KB." Kia Ora is a phrase used in New Zealand a lot like Aloha is used in Hawaii and KB was for Kyle Bruce.


Later that afternoon we bought about 30 balloons and decorated a banner for the yard.

Hello Bruce! Mission Accomplished. It is a good thing we had so much to do Friday because it was torturous waiting for Kyle's flight to come in that night. I don't know how many times Andrea and I checked his flight to mae sure it was coming in on time.

Utah on the Brain

I cannot seem to think about anything but Utah right now and seeing our families. Matt's little brother comes home Friday from his mission in New Zealand and we are all so anxious to see him. We are flying to Utah tomorrow night and have lots of fun stuff planned while we're there. I am so excited to go home and see everyone and this trip is extra special because Matt will be going with us the entire time. As well as waiting around for THURSDAY (Sienna knows when we're going to see Nana), we have been swimming, shopping, playing with friends, etc.
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Sienna just woke up and came to sit by me as I finished this post. She saw this picture and said, "That was for Brooklyn's house. That is Brooklyn's present." Sienna went to Brooklyn's birthday party this past weekend and loved choosing out gifts for her.

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Other than that, we've just been hanging out.

Baking With Friends

Joci came over this morning to bake and decorate cakes with Sienna. I think they had a good time together. We need to do things like this more often.

Getting ready to get messy.

Joci ate most of her candy while Sienna covered her cake.

Concentrating on where to put their next goodies.

We couldn't leave Sadie out of the fun so she got her very own cake too. She just ate the candy and she was the only one that ate her cake too. Sadie makes a funny face every time she sees the camera or I ask her to say, "cheese".

Finally, a real smile. Tricia thinks Sadie looks just like my dad. I am finally starting to see where my girls look like me and I look like my dad, so it all makes sense.

Sienna trying to figure out what to do with her bumble bee and lady bug.

Pulling another face when I try to take a picture of her.

...and another.

Sienna and Joci climbed in the toy box and Sadie wanted in too.

She got stuck for a second but was able to climb in all by herself.

Yeah Sadie!!

We can't leave cute Kaley out. She was pretty good while we were all making messes.

Don't Take Them From Me

Friday afternoon I received the horrible news that a young boy in from my homeward growing up had died in an accident. He was run over in his own driveway. The news shook me up a little on Friday and I could not stop thinking about his family and those involved in the accident, but for the most part I went along with my day as usual. I did not know this child personally as he was only 4 or 5 years old but I have known his parents most of my life and used to babysit his older siblings. As the day continued, my heart and mind continued to fill with thoughts of the situation and those affected by it. It also kept me reflecting on my girls and how much they mean to me. Ultimately, the focus on my mind was the Gospel and how grateful I am of the knowledge that I have of The Plan of Salvation and that families are eternal. Friday came and went and then Saturday came and went and I had a great day with my family.

Saturday night is when everything hit me all at once. Matt and I had a wonderful day with the girls and each other. We came home, put the girls down for bed, hung out for a little while and then went to bed ourselves. Laying in bed I was overcome with emotions and could not sleep. My mind kept returning to my girls and what I would do if I lost them. I had to get out of bed and check on them. Even in their sleep, they amaze me. Sienna was sleeping upside down and Sadie was was pinned at the foot of her crib with her blanket and bear near. They both looked so peaceful and beautiful. I blew them each a kiss and returned to my room where I crawled into bed and started to sob. My heart was broken for my friends that had lost their son, brother, nephew, and friend. My biggest fear is losing my girls and I pray every night for another day with them. They are everything to me and make me so happy. I love their witty personalities and tender hearts. We have so much fun together and I feel truly blessed to be their mom. I pray for those that have lost children of their own and hope they can find peace and comfort through the Savior.

(These pictures are from a few weeks ago and the girls are showing their blue mouths from eating blueberries.)

Special Day

Saturday is a special day for more than just getting ready for Sunday. They are special days because we get to spend time together as a family. This morning started off with the girls waking up around 7:30 and Matt was so sweet and got up with them. A little over an hour later I woke up and called Sienna's name. Sienna gets so excited and wants to be the one to wake everyone up. As soon as she hears Sadie stirring in the other room after a nap, she runs in screaming, "Sadie's awake. Sadie baby is awake." Okay, back to the original story. I called Sienna and sure enough, she ran in shouting "Mommy's awake!" Matt and Sadie followed her in and they all climbed into bed with me. The girls were laughing and jumping all over each other. We started singing songs and the girls would dance around. It is the best way to wake up. Everyone was happy and laughing. Then we got a few things done around the house, grabbed a quick lunch and went to Southlake Town Square. After walking around and shopping we decided to stop by Cheesecake Factory for a treat. It has been a gorgeous day and it felt really nice to be outside. Now the girls are taking a nap and Matt is going to mow the lawn.

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Sienna and mommy at The Cheesecake Factory.

Sadie and Daddy. We all shared avocado rolls (which are the best at TCF) and a piece of cheesecake. We ordered their new Red Velvet Cheesecake that was two layers of cheesecake with two layers of red velvet covered in cream cheese icing and white chocolate shavings. YUMMY!

Sienna's favorite part is the the tower of whipped cream on the side. She practically pushed me off of the bench trying to get more.

Walking back to the car. I love my family.

The girls made it about 30 seconds in the van before falling asleep. Both of them fell asleep hanging onto their books too. What a perfect day it has been. My Saturdays are sacred to me and I don't like giving up my time with my people for anything.

Sadie Brings a New Meaning to the Nickname Monkey

So it begins. Sadie has no fear and climbs onto anything she can. Today she took this to a whole new level. One of these days I am sure I'll walk into the girls room and find her on the top bunk with Sienna.

Sadie holds onto the coffee table and pulls herself up.

I thought this was impressive and the extent of her climbing ability but I was so wrong.

This morning I was on the phone with my sister and walked into the playroom to find Sadie straddled over her toy.

Then as I watched, she stood up on top of it.

She stood straight up too but I decided I should probably stop sacrificing my daughter's life for a funny picture. She climbed down by herself without falling though. Darn, I should have taken the picture.

Having Fun

Tuesday the girls and I went swimming with a bunch of friends to a near by neighborhood pool. It was overcast which made for a perfect day in the water. The pool was cool but the air was still warm and the sun had come out by the time we left. The rest of the week we have been taking it easy and hanging out. We met Matt for lunch yesterday but mostly we have just been chilling at the house together.

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Sienna gets so excited any time we mention swimming?

My little runner.

Getting excited to go swimming. At first Sienna was sad that we weren't going to 'her' pool at Sandy's house and got confused when I asked her to get in the car.

Sienna going down the slide with our friend Emma. It is such a fun slide and the water at the end is shallow enough to stand so I took both girls down with me at the same time. They loved it and giggled the entire way down. We'll have to go to this pool more often.

The girls with their other friend named Owen. Sienna was so excited that she got to play with both Owens at the pool. Sienna and Owen Wall are only a couple weeks apart and get to play in nursery together at church. Sienna always comes home talking about him.

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The girls are always chasing each other around the house laughing and teasing one another. It is so much fun to watch.

Where's Sadie?

Sadie-pie is always pulling silly faces. She makes this same face every time she turns on the fan in their room.

Holding hands.