Holiday Fun!

 Our Christmas was great!! Christmas Eve we spent a part of the afternoon on a sleigh ride caroling around town and then later we went to my parents house and had a really yummy Christmas Eve dinner. After eating way too much, we gathered everyone around while my dad read the Christmas Story from the scriptures. I look forward to him reading this story every year.

Dad reading the Christmas Story

 After the story, we did our gift exchange! Granny and Grandpa Mel gave Garrett a Nerf Gun and a book that he loves! He has me read it to him at least 3 times a day! :)

He's very excited about his Nerf gun! And his Dad got one too! They've been having fun shooting them together!

"Is that you, Wolf"-the book Garrett got from my parents

 My camera ran out of battery power so I didn't get any pictures of the rest of the gifts but, I got some picture frames from Nick, John got a Nerf gun from Ashley, I got Robert a game, John got Katherine some lipstick, Robert gave Alex a coin saver jar, Katherine gave Rachael a necklace, Alex gave Nick a pack of Pepsi and Rachael gave Ashley a gift certificate to Cocoa Bean-her favorite! :) 

All the kids went in on a gift for my parents. We got my dad a meat brander and some wrenches and got my mom (and dad) a new dinner table! Surprise! :) 

Later, John, Garrett and I went back to John's parents house to play games and we ended up staying the night! It was fun! :)

The Loot-Santa sure was good to us this year!

Garrett got a new basketball

John got some binoculars and some straps from Garrett and Santa

He also got some sweat bands to go along with his basketball gear

Of course, he also got some John Deere farm equipment!

And some clothes!

Whenever anyone would ask Garrett what he wanted for Christmas, his response was always the same; "A backhoe and loader and a truck!" When he finally opened this present he was SO excited!! He played with it ALL morning...and then some! :)

I gave John some hunting pants

I got a temple bag, some boots and a gift certificate to Real Deals! So excited! :)

We all had a wonderful Christmas! We had a great time spending it with our families and are very blessed to have them be involved in our daily lives. We love you all so much! Merry Christmas!
Bring on the New Year!!! :)

Spaulding Family Christmas Party 2013

 Sunday night, we had the annual Spaulding Christmas party! It was a lot of fun! We had a yummy baked potato dinner with too much dessert afterward! After dinner, we all gathered downstairs for some entertainment which included a guitar and violin solo, kazoos, the Nativity, and a short Christmas video. We always have a fun time at these parties!

Jordyn playing her violin

Kendyl playing her guitar solo

Grandpa, Grandma, Hayden and Garrett

Oh, the men's kazoo choir! These kazoos are always a big hit! ;)

Emmett, Collin, Garrett, Brylie and Avery with their kazoos!

The women's kazoo choir! We serenaded the men with our rendition of "Joy to the World"

After the kazoos, the grandkids dressed up for us and did the Nativity Story. They were all so cute and funny to watch! 

"Joseph and Angel" (Garrett and Brylie)

Our 3 Wisemen: Ethan, Jake and Jason

Our Shepherds: Jordyn, Addison, and Kendyl

The Angels: Brylie, Hayden, Blayre, Brooklyn, Bella, and Pyper

"Mary, Joseph and Baby Jesus"-Garrett and Avery

They all sang "Picture A Christmas" and did a very good job! :) We finished up the night with a short Christmas video to help us all remember the true meaning of Christmas. We all had such a fun time together! Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas!

24 Weeks Pregnant

Saturday marked my 6 month! Yay! Only 3 more months to go! :) Other than being tired and occasional aches and pains, I'm feeling good. I had a doctors appointment last week with my new doctor. I really like him! He's so nice. He just did a routine checkup and sent me on my way. My next appointment isn't until January. So until then...hopefully things keep going as good as they have been! :) 

24 weeks pregnant~December

Turkey Day!

 This year we spent Thanksgiving with John's family. We started out our morning with the 1st Annual Spaulding 5K Turkey Trot in our subdivision. Some walked, some ran/jogged, and some rode bikes. It was really fun and I have to give myself props for #1: actually doing a 5K while pregnant, and #2: had the energy to actually jog for about 1/4+ mile! I know-big whoop! But, I was pretty proud of myself! :) Although, I did pay for it later with aches and pains in my lower back for the remainder of the day!

Turkey Trot Runners! It was a brisk morning!

After the 5K, John and Garrett played a little football

Everyone started showing up around 3:00 for dinner. The food was really yummy! We had about 40 or so family members come. It was a big crowd! After dinner, the guys all went out for about and hour to shoot clay pigeons.

Grandpa Bruce showing Garrett how to shoot clay pigeons!

Richard, Jason, Don, and John

 I was in charge of a few games for the kids to play. We played "Pin The Feathers On Tom" and I had some of the kids make turkeys out of toilet paper rolls. I think they had a lot of fun! :)

Garrett's turn! He wasn't a big fan of the blindfold-he kept sneaking a peek! The little cheater! :)

There were games for the adults too!

The girls! Tausha, Tawnya, Tyana, Jenni, Tyree, Linda, Grandma Harry, Me and Tiffany

 

About 10:30 p.m. I went into Idaho Falls to do some Black Friday shopping with some of my family. Oh, it was a late night but I had fun! And, yes, I complained about my back the whole 5 hours we shopped! :) I got home around 4 a..m. and totally crashed onto my pillow!! It was so hard to wake up the next morning and function! It was worth it-we had some good giggles and we found some pretty good deals! :)  

Happy Thanksgiving! 

20 Weeks

Last week was my half way mark! 20 weeks! :) Some days I feel like it'll be a lifetime before March rolls around and other days it seems to go by fast! When I was pregnant with Garrett I was so good about documenting everything that went on during those 9 long months. I haven't really done that with #2, so I thought I'd better snap a few pictures. :)

5 Months Along-November

I am feeling pretty good! I am exercising a lot more with this one than I ever did with Garrett. I started to feel her kick around the last couple of weeks! I had forgotten what that felt like! Exciting! She doesn't move around a whole lot but I'm sure as the weeks pass, she'll get more and more moblie.

We have tossed around a few ideas for names, but haven't settled on anything yet. Either I really like a name and John doesn't, or it's the other way around. I guess we still have 4 1/2 months left to figure a name out! :) 

I have also switched doctors. I was going up to Rexburg to Dr. Codd and switched over to Dr. Christensen in Idaho Falls. Why? For two  reasons:  Dr. Christensen is charging less for a C-section that Dr. Codd is, and I get my choice of hospital with Dr. Christensen where Dr. Codd only delivers in Rexburg. My first appointment with Dr. Christensen is on Decembber 5th so we'll see how things go. 

I hope these last 20 weeks go by just as fast as the first 20 weeks did! :) 

Shocked And Surprised

Yesterday, I had my very anticipated doctors appointment-the one where we found out if it's a boy or a girl. Garrett and John came with me. I thought it would be fun for Garrett to see his little brother or sister on the screen and then see his reaction when the ultrasound tech would tell us the news!

She (the ultrasound lady) got everything set up and roamed around to check the heartbeat, which is normal, then she found the magic spot! Well....Garrett is getting a little sister! :) Yep! We are having a girl. And, I have to admit that while laying on the table, I wasn't sure how I felt about that news. I had geared myself up for another boy and I wanted Garrett to have a brother SO, SO badly! I honestly can't tell you what else was being conversed in the room or even if the ultrasound tech asked me any questions--I was still trying to process the words "it's a girl". I was told that while in my hazy daze, Garrett had said something really funny. He was looking at the screen and just blurts out, "I sure hope it's not a coyote in there!" What?! :) He is so random! I didn't even hear him say that. We got a couple of 3D shots of her (HER! I still can't believe it's a girl!) and some profile, and  hand and feet pictures.

Afterward, I sat in my car and made the first phone call to my mom and the tears started flowing! But, they were not tears of joy. I feel horrible admitting that, which made me cry even harder! I should be feeling ecstatic about this! Just all of these emotions and thoughts flooded my mind. I wanted Garrett to have a brother so badly because ALL of his cousins around his age are girls! I wanted him to have someone he could play ball with, and wrestle around with and do boy things with, and it would have been easier for us financially if it was a boy-we already have the boy clothes and stuff!
Anyway, I had to go to Walmart to pick up a few things and while I was there, I found myself browsing the boy section! I stopped in front of these cute little basketball and baseball binkies and just started crying right there in the aisle. I didn't know what to do-I felt lost! So, I bought some girl binkies to help cheer me up-it helped a little, but just a little.
With emotions in check, I called Ashley to tell her the news and started crying again!! For heaven's sake! Why can't I be excited about this?! Everyone keeps telling me that these feelings are normal and it's ok to feel them but still...the rest of the day I was texting friends and family to tell them we were having a girl and I started to get a little more excited! It'll be fun to see what she will look like! I wonder if she'll have red hair like Garrett or be dark like John and I. I wonder if she'll be full of the gallons of energy like Garrett :) or be mellow and calm. I'm hoping for the latter :) 
A day and a half later...WOW!! I'm having a GIRL!! :) I'm excited and I'm SO grateful that she is growing and developing normally. We have the pictures of the ultrasound on the fridge and I just smile. It will be so fun to have one of each! Garrett will be the best, protective big brother ever! He will just love her! And so will John and I! :)
We can always hope #3 is a boy, right? ;) 

Halloween Carnival

A few weeks before Halloween, Ashley invited Garrett and I to Hallie's school Halloween Carnival! It was a lot of fun! There were a ton of games for Hallie, Cooper, and Garrett to do!

The Witch Hat Toss

Monster Truck Races

The Not-So-Spooky Spook Alley

Candy Corn Bowling

Face Painting-Garrett wanted a basketball painted on his cheek

And the Football Toss

It was a really fun night! :)

Trick-or-Treat!

This year for Halloween, Garrett was a football player and I went as a uncomfortable pregnant lady!! ;) He had a lot of fun going to the ward trunk or treat and going around to see family. We didn't stay long at the trunk or treat due to weather, but we still had a great time!

Garrett and his cousins Brylie (monkey) and Avery (bee)

Earlier that morning, Garrett helped me make Halloween cookies

He helped as in ate most of the frosting! :)

After the trunk or treat, Garrett and I headed to my parents house to check out more costumes and of course, get more candy! Their costumes were awesome! :)

Robert and Katherine as Wayne and Garth from "Wayne's World" 

Hilarious!

Alex and Rachael as Cowboy and Indian! So cute! :)

And we can't forget the kids! Hallie (bee), Cooper (cupcake), Reese (leopard) and Garrett (football player)

Oh my gosh! Ashley and Nick's girls looked SO adorable!!! That leopard outfit is so stinking cute I can't even handle it!!!! I always love to see how everyone will be dressed up! I think that's the funnest part about Halloween! 

Happy Halloween!!