smile big!

if these pictures dont make u smile... i dont know if u are human or not.

these were a few more pictures of yesterday after i cut the boys hair. i just love the look of a fresh haircut!

tucker wanted to make that face... for whatever reason : )

and then do some fly hand gestures, in which cole was mocking right behind him. whatever floats ur boats dudes

aaaaaaaaaaaand these are the faces i got when i said smile big : ) coles face is priceless. you all know what he looks like now when hes pooping.

"uh see!! uh see!!" he wanted to see the picture after i took it : ) he's getting so big!!

random thoughts

i just have a few thoughts/pictures i want to remember... so indulge me, k? : )

this was today, the boys just HAD to play outside, even though it was quite chilly! im glad i let them. it gets some of their energy out so they aren't bouncing off our walls... literally. i love seeing their tiny little bodies running around, jumping, pedaling, smiling...im sure going to miss these little bodies when they get big!

his ears totally glow in the sunlight : )

i cut their hair today, without any real battles! thank goodness for halloween candy.

every night before i go to bed, i go in the boys room to check on them and make sure they are tucked in. i just can't sleep without doing that. anyway, one night i went in last week, and this is how i found cole. the nightlight has become a new necessity in their room lately. tucker throws a huge fit if i take it out. so, cole just indulges himself and starts doing what he wants. which that night, just so happened to be gathering most of their books and getting them in bed with him. he sure does love reading! : )

so, ive always wanted to know how to sew. but, when it comes to trying something new, im pretty bashful. im a perfectionist- if i cant do something good from the beginning, i will avoid it like the plague. so, last christmas, my mother in law gave me a sewing machine! i was pretty excited, but felt a little overwhelmed. i have no idea what im doing. short story long, i went to go to a sewing tutorial ryans cousin (terriann) did, and i didnt have the power cord for my machine! i couldnt find it for a couple of weeks. i kind of just pushed it out of my mind. his cousin was having a private lesson for me the other day, and i just had to find the power cord! i finally decided it was time to say a prayer. i had tucker and cole come by me and i explained i wanted to say a prayer to ask Heavenly Father to help me find the cord. tucker wanted to say it. he asked Heavenly Father to help me find it. I looked some more, still no luck. i decided it was time to move on and do some laundry. as i was organizing mackenzies clothes, packing away ones that dont fit anymore (sad day), i found a target bag. ive looked in their several times over the past couple months, but i couldnt remember what was in it. so i indulged my curiousity, and there she blow! my power cord was in the bag with my baby monitor? rannndommm! i was sooo happy and excited and i showed the boys! and i helped them understand that God hears our prayers, and he heard that prayer tucker said, and he helped me find it! then we said another quick prayer of thanks. it was such a neat experience to have a prayer be answered so quickly over something simple. it made me so happy that the boys could experience that. if you can't tell, tucker is joyously holding the power cord : )

i think this is the first picture since the hospital of all 3 kiddos together. dont mind my nappy hair. i dont know how to do it anymore : )

just a little moment i wanted to capture. ryan helping the boys get their shoes on to go out to dinner. doesn't ryan look hot? i got him that sweater last summer on sale at target... i envisioned him looking studly, but when he came out wearing it that night, i was like, WOooooaAH NELLY! ow ow! ; )

me and miss mackenzie. : ) i feel so silly having my picture taken, even more so taking my OWN picture. but sometimes i just have to do it to prove that i was actually there with my babies since im usually the one behind the camera.

the other day tucker got mad at me for some reason, probably for putting him in time out for something, or i wouldnt let him watch a movie. something like that. anyway, he got mad and said he "hated this place" and that he was leaving. i told him ok, go pack ur bag, ur leaving now, and i stood with the back door open waiting for him. he shockingly said ok, and went to his room. he came back with a mcdonalds halloween basket with an outfit in it. i was trying so hard to not laugh. while biting my lip, i asked him if i could take ONE LAST picture before he left. and this is what he gave me : ) all smiles. i love this kid.

and then he decided he changed his mind and wanted to stay. : ) im happy he did.

sunday(late) fitness recap

my fitness routine this week:

• monday-2 miles walk, 2 miles run


• tuesday-20 min. elliptical, 6 miles bike, 25 minutes weights


• wednesday-rest


• thursday-1 mile walk, 4 miles run


• friday-the firm workout dvd, 2 minutes denise austin core workout dvd


• saturday-rest


• sunday-rest

i felt pretty good about this week's workouts. i would have liked to work out one more day, but i am satisfied with 4 because i worked HARD on those other days. i dont think i lost any weight since my last weigh in. i dont remember what the last number was, but i know i have 7 pounds to go till prepregnancy weight. i am breastfeeding mackenzie still (which i am so happy about) and i have to make sure i dont have a dramatic weight loss and lose my milk because she will NOT have anything to do with a bottle. with tucker i nursed for 2 months and lost my milk. i think it was because i was working out hard but then not eating enough to keep my milk supply up. with cole i nursed 4 months, trying harder to drink enough and eat enough while still losing weight. i still lost my milk supply though. my mom had a hard time producing milk, so i think it might be genetic. but i am hoping i can get at least 6 months for mackenzie. she is a good eater and so far she just does not like drinking from a bottle, so i gotta take it slow on the weigt loss. im fine with weighing more, as long as my workouts and diet are helping my body transform into a more toned physique. which brings me to my next topic...

i still feel pretty unhappy with how i look in my birthday suit AND in clothes, because im just not fitting in my (cute) old clothes the same... yet. im not going to let my frustration stop me. one of my things is i am not going to buy bigger clothes just because i can't fit into hardly anything nice yet. i just wear my older clothes that aren't so hot that are from when i was bigger in high school or a few of my maternity shirts that aren't super maternity-ish. it just makes me want to work that much harder to fit into my cuter clothes. i never have had a muffin top, but with mackenzie i got one! and its lingering... and im not diggin' it. but it pushes me! i think if we gain weight-from pregnancy or just life- and we buy the bigger clothes to fit us, it just makes us get complacent. i understand you want to look nice at any size, and i have been SEVERELY tempted to go shopping cause i feel frumpy, but then i wont try AS hard to get back into my prepregnancy shape/weight.

there were a couple days this week that i felt pretty depressed seeing how my body had changed. but then as i stared, i kept getting the thought that i needed to be grateful for a healthy body! i was humbled. so, if you are struggling with me on this weightloss journey, just remember to be thankful for a body that is able to move and function! even if it isn't exactly how you want it to look, remember that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. look yourself and tell yourself you are beautiful! seriously, ive done it a couple times, and im trying to do that more. as soon as you wake up and go to the bathroom, look at yourself and say, "i am a gorgeous daughter of God. i am beautiful!" i can only imagine how much better you will start to feel, and how proud Heavenly Father would be to hear you loving YOU, one of his perfect creations. : )

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one of my nephews came to play with the boys one morning. they wanted to be airplanes with FIRE on their wings? what the? i dont want to be on that flight! and then they wanted parachutes. it is seriously so fun to see the kids have fun with just simple things like streamers and bags!

pretty in pink : )

caught a smile!! sooo sweet

they constantly fight over holding her! i dont mind that kind of fighting : ) such sweet big brothers

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time out for women!

we went to time out for women in kansas city! i went with my friend carolee and mackenzie, and we met up with our other friend rachel who is moving there. it was so great to hear uplifting talks and music, as well as just having some girl talk and laughter! it was so invigorating to be surrounded by women with such strong faith in our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. a fun weekend with some great memories! and contrary to the picture, mackenzie was FABULOUS the entire time! she seriously did not cry except in the car and like, right when we took that picture. she was a trooper, and im so glad i took her with me! : ) but, if i go again, i probably wont take a baby. she was great, but i couldn't really take notes, so i already forget a lot of the insight i gained. oh well, i remembered a few things and they have already changed me for the better! thanks girls!!!