The spirit of Thanksgiving

A toasty warm home that more than fits my family, and has a fantastic view.

A husband that never needs a honey-do list. Who pretty much takes over the childcare duties whenever he's home.

A baby toddler boy with a near-constant smile and accompanying giggle.

A baby toddler girl who is sugar and spice and everything nice. Emphasis on the spice.

Pregnant belly kicks.

Prayer.

And, like, a billion other things.

 

I've been feeling pretty sorry for myself through some of this pregnancy with all the soreness and the sickness and the general discomfort of it all. I also keep finding myself thinking about people who were having kids a 150 years ago. Pregnant people who slept on cots or feather beds, if they were lucky, or the floor if they weren't. Pregnant ladies with several kids who had to cook food for those those kids over a fire, and probably grew or killed that food themselves. While they were pregnant! I sometimes feel really picked on when I have to cook something for a hungry kid or take them both to the grocery store even though lifting them is a pain. But then I think, Microwave! Oven! Grocery store! And then I really get on a roll and think things like, Furnace! Car! Easy access to medical care!

 

We've got it really good over here. Even if I was all of a sudden an 1862 pregnant mother instead of a 2012 pregnant mother, I would still have it really good. Because my kids are alive and happy and totally adorable. I have a happy marriage that never feels like work. There is a lot of love in my life. That's something even 150 years worth of technology can't buy. 

 



Halloween 2012

Two family parties and some trick-or-treating later and we are sugar loaded and happy and very done dressing up. There are many pictures of my Sheriff Woody and cat here, and some of my family all dressed up. I wish I had taken pictures at Tim's parents' party because there were some good costumes there, too, including Big Black, a witch, and even my niece dressed as a Barbie wearing the dress my Granny wore dancing as a teen. Tim and I went as crayons and our costumes were just too lame to post. Happy Halloween!

 

 

 

 

The end of October

Today it snowed for the first time this season. Well, it snowed on our house, anyway. There has been snow on the mountains for a few days now and Mason has been anxiously waiting for white stuff to fall a little lower in the valley. He was pretty convinced that if we just took a liiiiitttllle hike, we could play in it.

Normally snow before December makes me want to figuratively die, but today it was kind of nice. A little surprise. It felt peaceful. Maybe it will give me an excuse to just lay my large and growing body around the house a little more.

Not today though. Today we have been on the hunt for the things we need to finish the kids' Halloween costumes. I'm making Mason a Woody costume because the ones from the store with the shoes attached just won't cut it for that kid. He went bizerk at Smith and Edwards because the cowboy boots were all wrong and it took me forever to figure out that they were missing the spurs. The spurs! Who is this kid?!

I'll tell you who. Tim and I went to get our whooping cough vaccines last week and I joked that the doctor should give Tim a prostate exam. To which Mason replied, "What, a pain in the butt?" The doc was stunned and we all laughed so hard that Mason hasn't stopped saying it all week. I'm such a good mom.

Yesterday morning Brielle was climbing on the table (always) and Mason looked at me and said, "I'm really concerned about this." Tim totally called it when he said that Mason is the "fish in the jar." Dr. Seuss reference.

And now back to Halloween. We carved a jack-o-lantern last night. Mason thought it was one of the best things that has ever happened to him. Brielle just wanted to play with the knife.

Family Pictures 2012

The last time the English family had family pictures taken (if you don't count weddings) was when I was about 14. Which means Kelson was... seven? It was time. Too bad they waited until I was third trimester pregnant. Thanks a lot Englishs! Here are a few of my favorites.

He's back - just like he never left

My baby brother got back from his mission to the Philippines last week. We've really been looking forward to his return. When we went to pick him up from the airport my mom was kind of a mess from the nerves and excitement of seeing her youngest and most beloved child come home safely from the other side of the world. I was trying to take pictures of him on the escalator as soon as we spotted him, but she was jumping up and down like a loony (jk, love you mom!) and this is what I kept getting...

 

He said the food he missed most after eating rice every morning was breakfast fare, so we went out to IHOP. Welcome home Kels!