really caught on camera

First things first, yesterday was lovely. After church we came home, put on our comfy warm clothes and just hung out. Lit the fireplace, played with Will, made some illumarias, snacked, munched, and received numerous gifts from neighbors and friends. It was great, and I'm loving our house all decorated for Christmas, it feels cozy and warm and full of light.

Now, for the title of my post. Last week I thought we caught a few good smiles of Eli on camera. Well, I was wrong.... yesterday he was super smiley and we got some great big ones from him. Look how he wrinkles his nose, I love it. I can't wait for him to start laughing, I feel like it is just around the corner.

Isn't this sweet. Will is still super excited about his little bro. He loves to lay by him, give him hugs when he's crying, and help mom do all sorts of baby things.

These boys are the best part of my day every day. I love them both and love watching each of them grow and learn in different ways.

o holy night

First of all, thank you everyone for your wonderful, inspiring, uplifting, encouraging comments. I think everyone has days like the one I was feeling, and luckily, those days aren't forever. We are doing great. Eli is such a sweet baby, I have been so blessed with very sweet children.

Not only do I have wonderful children, I have an amazing husband. I was just watching Scott the other day. He is such a support and help to me. He is a wonderful husband, and is so involved and active in helping me parent. He plays with Will for hours, literally. Just the other night, I was trying to get something done and Will wanted to go outside. It was dark, and cold, and Scott piped up, "Okay Will! Here, let's put on your coat, hat, gloves, boots and go outside." Here I was thinking of excuses not to have to take him out in the cold and Scott just sucked it up and did it. And they had a blast, they took flashlights and were walking up and down our sidewalk. It was the cutest thing. Scott could have easily thought of excuses just like I did, or stayed and watched his football game, but he didn't. What a man. I'm lucky.

This weekend was beautiful. Here are the highlights:

-it snowed!!

-we got our fireplace to work and I love it

-we had a fun christmas party with friends, where I saw some of the best white elephant gifts EVER....

-we finished up a little Christmas shopping, and wrapped presents

-we listened to Christmas music non-stop and wore our sweats.... a lot.

-we went to Church, took the Sacrament and listened to beautiful Christmas music. (Scott even performed a duet which was beautiful)

-we went to the Nativity activity at Kirtland which was AMAZING. Here are some pictures:

I loved this tree.

It was really pretty, everything on it looked natural. My favorites parts were

the chili peppers, the dried oranges, and

dried apple slices strung with popcorn and cranberries,

I am doing this next year! It was so pretty.

A family picture.

I realize this is kind of a weird family picture... or at least I'm weird in it.

The nativities were amazing. There were probably thousands of nativity displays, a room where kids could play with the nativities, and a really beautiful exhibit of Christ's birth and life. I love Kirtland, there is always a wonderful uplifting Spirit there.

When we were driving home, I said I was hungry, and Will said he wanted a snack. We said "where should we go? Should we just go home?" Will piped up "I know where we should go! We should go to Five Guys!" So.... Five Guys it was.....

Who knew it took so much concentration to break open peanuts?

This is how Eli enjoyed the evening. He didn't move from this position for like 3 hours. Since no one who ever reads my blog has heard me talk about his chubby cheeks, I'll point them out to you once again. Look at the those cheeks, and those lips! He's so dang cute, I can't get enough.
Life is good my friends. 5 days until Christmas. Snow on the ground, short days at work for Scott. I love it.

Today has been a good day. I've been feeling slightly overwhelmed lately. As most of you know, I love to read blogs, and read some almost everyday. Okay, I read a lot every day. Sometimes I get caught in the mental mind trap of degrading thoughts like "why don't I do that with my kids?" Or "Why am I not creative like that?" Or "My house does not look like that.... ever" Or even "I wish we did stuff like that...."

Well, the other day, after doing some low key blog reading, I was feeling particularly down. My house was a mess (yes, I know, I should have been cleaning instead of blogging), dishes from the day before and all meals this day were piled up on my counter, there were two very large baskets of laundry to be folded, and Christmas cards to be addressed and sent out. I put the babe down for a nap, stuck in a movie for my other babe and set to work on the dishes. While I was grumpily, self-pitying myself doing dishes I had an amazing thought. Not so much of a thought as more of a comforting voice that made me instantly feel 100% better. I was thinking about the blogs and the things I wasn't doing and got this overwhelming impression that the most important thing I could be doing right now was exactly what I was doing. Being a mother. Spending happy moments with my babies, and loving them unconditionally. I also had a very overwhelming impression that LOVE is what is important. Do my kids know I love them? Do I tell them enough? Do I show them enough? They could care less what our house looks like, their just happy they got to stay in their PJ's all day and a have a "picnic" on the couch for breakfast AND lunch. They don't care about my latest crafting obsession... or lack of, they are just happy when I let them cut up paper and hang up their bits and pieces to look like "snowflakes." They especially don't care about MY personal imperfections, they just want my unconditional love and attention....

So that is what they are getting, and it's enough for all of us. I need to be more mindful of the really important things in our lives instead of getting wrapped up in my own selfish desires. And most of all, I need to keep our lives simple, so we have time together and time to do those important things, like making paper chains counting down until Christmas! Only 7 days left!!!

rub a dub dub

Eli is learning to love his baths! He likes laying in the tub just relaxing. He usually looks like a little frog most of the time because he holds his legs up really close to his body. Of course, when I was snapping pictures, he was completely stretched out..... but now you can see how much he is growing and how big he is getting.

He's flexing his muscles for you!
Nice and clean and toasty warm!! Isn't he yummy?!

sugar cookies

Two posts in one day! Can you tell I have a spare moment? Well I do, so you're lucky. :)

On Sunday afternoon we made sugar cookies to decorate. It was great fun, and Will really had a good time. We had giant Christmas trees and Gingerbread men that looked more like snowmen.

Here's Will's handy work, alongside his steaming cup of hot chocolate. Look appetizing? I think he had hot chocolate, topped with halloween marshmallows, with a few sugar cookie chunks thrown in. He thought it was great. I didn't think it was great when he spilled the whole thing....
My snowman. I thought he turned out pretty good!
We had some really cool blue sprinkles and Will wanted some on his cookie. By this point I think he had already had about 3 giant cookies, but wanted to decorate some more. So I handed over the frosting and he went to work. A few minutes later, I look over and he has like a TINY speck of frosting on his cooking and a huge mound of blue sprinkles and he's licking the sprinkles up off the table. He had blue lips for two days.

caught on camera

The smiles are coming all the time now and we are starting to capture a few of them on camera! It is never as big or as cute when it's on the camera, we always miss the really big ones. Eli has an adorable smile, wrinkly nose and wide open mouth, I love it.

Whenever we yank out the camera for a picture of our smiley boy, Will wants in on the action. Which is pretty ironic, if you know Will at all, he normal avoids any and all contact with the outer world... especially the camera! Okay, he's not that bad, but seriously, he usually does NOT want his picture taken.

Could his cheeks get any fatter? We'll see?! They completely cover up his neck and anytime he turns his head, they make his whole face get squished because their so big. The rest of him is not so petite either. We figure he's weighing in between 13-15 lbs. And he's only 8 weeks! Most of his clothes that fit are 3-6 months.

trimming the tree

We bought our first ever REAL Christmas tree! It was a lot of fun, and I love it, it is so pretty, and smells so fresh. It was pouring rain when we went to pick it out at the tree lot. The folks at the tree lot were very helpful and nice. They put our tree through some cool machine that cinched it all up and then they put it on top of our car for us.

What's putting up the tree without watching A Christmas Story? Will really liked the movie and I'm sure it has become an instant Christmas favorite for him. Mostly the BBgun part.... lovely. Here Scott is trying to get the tree just right in the stand, it was slightly a griswold moment, but it worked out in the end! :)
Here's what Christmas is looking like at our house this year....


MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

I'm H-O-M-E, HOME!!!!!!!!!!!

What a wonderful feeling.

Since we've been home we've:

-stayed in jammies all day two days in a row

-had sugar cereal and m&m's for breakfast (I really need to get to the grocery store!)

-been up A LOT at night trying to get back to our normal routine BEFORE the 2 hour time change... not cool.

-put away Halloween decor and started to get out Christmas stuff

-unpacked

-done lots of laundry

-AND loved being home and being together.... there truly is NO PLACE LIKE HOME with your family.

lots to share

I haven't posted in awhile, so now you are lucky and you get to read THREE new posts! Enjoy! Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

the polar express

My family decided to start the Holidays off right. We rode on the Polar Express! It was awesome. When it is not operating as the Polar Express, it operates as the Heber Creeper. Our family of 44, yes 44 (just siblings and grandkids!) reserved an entire train car for our polar adventure. Before we rode the train, we had dinner and a PJ exchange. Each member of our family gave to another member of the family. The kids loved opening and wearing their PJ's, and I think the adults enjoyed it just as much. I love getting PJ's, that is one of my favorite parts of Christmas!

It was a RULE, or at least a very strong suggestion that you wear your PJ's on the Polar Express, so here are a few of us showing off our cute PJ's. Thanks Jenn!

Mom, GayLynn, McKenzie, Me

And a few more of us...

Taylor (holding the E man), Krista, Mom, GayLynn, McKenzie, Me, and Lisa

Oh, and Will wanted in on the photo too...

All aboard! On the train, happy to be there.... or at least Scott and I were. I have no idea why Will was crying. I'm not sure what his deal is most of the time these days....
To make sure he wasn't crying we had to be sneaky with the pictures....
The entire train car. Can you believe this is what my family looks like? Two parents + 8 children + 8 spouses + 2 married grand-daughters + 2 grand-daughters hubbies + 22 other grandkids + 1 great grandson.
Santa even made an appearance on the train! It was awesome. Will was not afraid at all, in fact he was the happiest when Santa arrived. He even talked to him and told him what he wants for Christmas. It was pretty cute.
On the train they sang songs, had people dressed up as Elves serving us hot chocolate and cookies, a girl dressed up as a reindeer that was making jokes, and that read us the Polar Express. It was such a fun night. We will always remember this fun time as a family. If you are in Utah or even close, you should totally go ride on the Polar Express, the kids LOVED it, and my brothers and sisters had a ton of fun too!

babies...

Being the youngest of 8 kids, I not only have a lot of siblings, I also have A LOT of nieces and nephews. When I was just five years old, my oldest sister had a baby girl. I've grown up with my niece(s) almost my whole life. We played together, I babysat them all the time, and I always knew that when we grew up, we would probably be having babies together.... or at least have children close in age.

Well, that day has come folks. Just two weeks after Eli joined our family, my beautiful little niece McKenzie had a baby! Carver Miles. I always think McKenzie is so young, but she is not any younger than any of my sisters or friends who got married and had babies. It is just a little weird to have a sister who is a GRANDMA, and to call myself a GREAT AUNT.... or my parents GREAT GRANDPARENTS. Weird? yes, fun? yes, amazing for our family to be THREE generational? yes. Watching her be a mom, awesome.

I'm so happy for you McKenzie, and I am excited our boys will be great friends!!

Here's a sampling of what Eli looks next to my great nephew. Now, you have to understand that Eli is a big kid, and Carver is a small kid... but just look at the difference. I was worried Eli was going to steam roller Carver and break him. Maybe Eli looks so much bigger because of the hair? Or the cheeks? I don't know? Just two weeks apart.....

Me and McKenzie, Carver all small and snuggly, and Eli so big I can barely hang on to him....

I guess you have to keep in mind that my niece is super small, barely 5 foot, and tiny bones. Her hubby is also super skinny, but a little taller... so Carver has great genes and I'm sure he'll catch up to Eli in no time. In the mean time, we are restricting Eli's "eat on demand" feeding schedule. JUST KIDDING!

PS - When one of my other nephews heard about Carver's arrival, he said "hey! That's like Will's name, Will MortenCarverson!" Yes, Matt, it is William Carver Mortensen.... two boys with a great name!

before and after

One of the funnest things about Eli is his hair. I was in love with it the moment he was born. It is like poodle hair, super soft, super curly, and long. Everyone that holds him can't keep their fingers out of it. On Thanksgiving I gave him a bath (which makes his hair go crazy curly) and we were on our way, by Thanksgiving evening his hair was seriously a big poof ball from everybody rubbing their fingers through it.... I don't blame them, it is irresistable!

So here's a before bath picture (not on Thanksgiving) so you can see the hair is a bit less curly, a little more straight and fro-y (is that a word?)

And now, you have the pleasure of viewing his hair AFTER a bath, before everybody touches it. Now, do you see WHY everybody touches it? It is awesome. Althought we aren't quite sure what we are supposed to do with it, cut it? put stuff in it? We will learn I guess....

Check it out! Is it not so fun? I admit, I can't keep my fingers out of it either...

Okay, and the cheeks and face, no wonder I'm in love with this child!

We love you Eli, and we love your hair that is SO completely opposite from Will's! :)

some days.....

..... you just want to cry. Isn't this the most irresistible face you have ever seen? When I really do feel like crying or screaming or hitting something, I look at this picture and remember all the wonderful beautiful things in my life. I can't wait to get home and have like a 20x20 made of this picture, I love it.

Here's a few more of the pictures I had taken of Eli:

The most interesting thing about our little guy.... when he was born, you could barely tell he is Black. I knew Black babies are born fairly "fair" but I wasn't sure how long they stayed that way. When these pictures were taken I thought he was getting darker..... you should see one from TODAY, I'm pretty sure he has changed three shades in the past few days. He's cute as ever and we are completely smitten with the little fellow. He turned 1 MONTH this week, my how time flies.

JUST FOR DADDY

Look at your boys Scott, we are so lucky. We miss you and can't wait to be a family again soon!

I know.... you've probably seen enough. But our blog is for posterity's sake..... so here's another.

I just love this little man. He is growing like a weed and still sweet as ever. Look at that chubb potential on those arms... yes I love them and have to kiss them everyday. 

Hope everyone is doing great. We are STILL in UT, waiting and waiting for our paperwork. We are missing Scott and wishing we were home, but happy to be with family still. Will is doing great, besides stealing candy, hiding behind the bedroom door and eating it all in one swoop..... we've got some adjusting to do.

a little update

It has been a few days since I updated the blog world about our lives. On Sunday, the day after halloween, my parents came home from their mission. They have been in Uruguay for the past three years, and it was great to see them! We got to see all our family, have lunch together and introduce everybody to Eli. 

Today, Eli got his pictures taken, they are so cute, I can't wait to see them! Here's one that I took myself, just because I can't resist, he is such a cutie. His hair is so fun, when he gets a bath or it gets wet, it just curls right up, I love it. And of course, those big cheeks just don't get enough kissin'!! 

Will is still doing a great job as a big brother. He is so tender and just loves to talk to, hold, and hug Eli. They are going to be great friends and I don't think I could have a better little boy who is so good with Eli. 

So we are doing good, enjoying family while we have the chance. Ready to get home, see Scott, and sleep in our own bed :) but surviving and counting our blessings. We are so lucky, we have a beautiful healthy little baby and get to spend time with family while we make this big adjustment, so things are good!

happy halloween

I know that Halloween was a few days ago, but we are a little behind on everything these days! It takes me twice as long to get everything done lately. Plus, we are still in UT trying to be patient while we wait for clearance to leave the state. Grrrrr. It is seriously taking forever and they are having all sorts of issues with it. Good thing we have the most precious baby ever or it would all get really frustrating.

Here's Will "trick-or-treating" me at the front door. Isn't his shark hat awesome? I love it. He also had sweats that matched so he would look more sharkish, but they never made it out of the suitcase. So, the hat just had to do. Maybe next year I'll be a little more on top of things?
And here we are setting out to go get some candy. Oh, and don't you love Will's brown paper bag candy collecting sack? I just love it. This will be a Halloween/Fall we will never forget. Today I realized that I have been here ALL of Fall, arriving in September and now it is NOVEMBER. Okay, that sounds really long, and it has been..... but we are happy to be with family.
Here's how Eli trick or treated, all snug in the baby bjorn. He looked so cute and was just a little ball, we could barely see him. On lady saw us and said "Oh my gosh, how old is your baby?" I told her he was almost 2 weeks and she said "Oh wow, you look GREAT!" I said "Thanks!" it was pretty funny. Then I felt bad selfishly taking the compliment and had to tell her he was adopted. I've gotten that a few times already, if people can't see the baby. 
Got his candy.... on to the next house!
We had a great Halloween and I was glad that Will got to spend it with cousins. Will really enjoyed trick or treating and is already talking about next year!