Happy Halloween!

Trust me, you want to take the time to watch the slideshow cause my kid is CUTE! :)

Cute.

Smell My Feet...

We took Sonnet to a "trunk or treat" at her cousin's school tonight. She dressed in her costume and got lots of candy in her bucket. :) She wasn't quite sure about the whole trick or treating thing... I don't think she understood why we were encouraging her to talk to complete strangers dressed in scary costumes, let alone why they were giving her candy, and why we were letting her eat it. :) But she had fun seeing her cousins and playing on the slides. :)

In case you couldn't tell, she dressed up as an Alabama cheerleader. We bought the little outfit for her when we were back there in August. Even her little bloomers said Alabama on the bum. :) Cute!

She can sing the chorus to "Sweet Home Alabama" (but she only likes the original Skynard version) :) and she had lots of fun waving her pom poms in everyone's face. :)

Roll Tide!!! :) And Happy Halloween!

Bubbles and Buddies...

Sonnet loves bubbles! We discovered this little bubble blowing contraption at Gymboree and it is THE GREATEST! You don't get messy bubble juice all over your hand, you don't get a headache from blowing over and over again, and TONS of bubbles come out at once. It's easy enough for Sonnet to do it, so we can switch off being the bubble blower (which is nice because she never wants to stop!). And the bubbles last forever! You can catch them in your hands and they'll stay there. It's really weird stuff, but it's really fun! Here's Sonnet blowing bubbles today...





Granny Janny and Pop Pop are on their way to Alabama for the Bama/Tennessee football game (yes, we've gotten a little obsessed with Alabama since Hayden went there)! :) They stopped by this afternoon for lunch and a little jaunt to the park. :) Such fun!

The End.

Laundry and a Pony Ride

I painted my laundry room a while back. It's this crazy, greenish/blueish color and I really like it. It doesn't match anything else in my house, but who cares right?

I had leftover wallpaper from the stairs project, so I put some up in the laundry room. I stuck that little white cabinet in there to hold stuff like starch and bleach and hung my ironing board on the wall with some big hooks I had. I'm trying to convince myself that if the laundry room is a cheery, cute little space, then I may actually do laundry once in a while. :)

I made the "wash" sign with letters I printed from my computer and then I glued all the random buttons I had to a little white picture frame and stuck it in there. I really like it because some of the buttons were my great-grandma's. :)

I have plans to spray my ironing bucket black, but overall, I'm happy with my free little laundry room makeover. :)

Of course, Sonnet had to get in on the action. :) Don't mind the oreo on her face. She asked nicely. :)

And...

Sonnet put Blaze's collar on daddy and told him to give her a "pony ride." (We read a book about Sammy going on a pony ride at the petting zoo, so I'm guessing that's where the idea came from). She made him haul her all over the house! It was pretty funny! Nate is such a good dad!!!





The End.

I like this...

"The desire to create is one of the deepest yearnings of the human soul. No matter our talents, education, backgrounds, or abilities, we each have an inherent wish to create something that did not exist before.

Everyone can create. You don’t need money, position, or influence in order to create something of substance or beauty.

If you are a mother, you participate with God in His work of creation—not only by providing physical bodies for your children but also by teaching and nurturing them. If you are not a mother now, the creative talents you develop will prepare you for that day, in this life or the next.

You may think you don’t have talents, but that is a false assumption, for we all have talents and gifts, every one of us.

The bounds of creativity extend far beyond the limits of a canvas or a sheet of paper and do not require a brush, a pen, or the keys of a piano. Creation means bringing into existence something that did not exist before—colorful gardens, harmonious homes, family memories, flowing laughter.

What you create doesn’t have to be perfect. So what if the eggs are greasy or the toast is burned? Don’t let fear of failure discourage you. Don’t let the voice of critics paralyze you—whether that voice comes from the outside or the inside.

If you still feel incapable of creating, start small. Try to see how many smiles you can create, write a letter of appreciation, learn a new skill, identify a space and beautify it.

Nearly a century and a half ago, President Brigham Young spoke to the Saints of his day. “There is a great work for the Saints to do,” he said. “Progress, and improve upon and make beautiful everything around you. Cultivate the earth, and cultivate your minds. Build cities, adorn your habitations, make gardens, orchards, and vineyards, and render the earth so pleasant that when you look upon your labors you may do so with pleasure, and that angels may delight to come and visit your beautiful locations. In the mean time continually seek to adorn your minds with all the graces of the Spirit of Christ.”

The more you trust and rely upon the Spirit, the greater your capacity to create. That is your opportunity in this life and your destiny in the life to come.

Sisters, trust and rely on the Spirit. As you take the normal opportunities of your daily life and create something of beauty and helpfulness, you improve not only the world around you but also the world within you."

-Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf
"Happiness, Your Heritage"

"all in one day"

We went to St. George for the day to visit my grandma. She just recently moved there from California. My parents came down from Beaver to hang out with us too! We went shopping at Taipan and had fun just getting out of town. :)

Grandma's House

This is the first time in A LOT of years that my mother and father in law have been "empty nesters." They've got 9 kids and with the last one on a mission and a daughter who just recently moved out, they've finally got the whole house to themselves! I'm sure they'll get lonely in a little while, but with 25+ grand kids running in and out, they won't be alone for long! :)

Anyways, my mother in law really wanted to decorate her house for her, and not so much with kid-proofing in mind. She loves to paint and she loves color! Lately she has been loving turquoise and this rusty/orange color. So that's what she decided on for her front room and kitchen...

A while back, she painted a wall in her kitchen rust, but then she wanted a teal-type color too. She decided on doing stripes on two walls in a darker turquoise color and then the rest of the house-- her stairway, entryway, and kitchen-- in a lighter shade.

It sounds crazy, but it turned out GREAT! It's so her! It's so crisp and refreshing and breezy--- I just love it. And more importantly, she LOVES it!

The blue-ish color that she used is soooo beautiful! I need to write down the name for future reference... :)

I dragged Nate over there on Wednesday and we spent all day painting and hanging up stuff. She had some great little treasures hidden in her other rooms that we pulled out and used in the new space. We created a "shrine wall" where she can put pictures of all her grand kids, and hung up some of her special things--- like some needlepoint work she had done and her collection of butterflies.

I love that she was willing to be so bold and try something new. I love that she picked this retro-modern color palate and that it totally works! :) And I love that she has a special, calm, fun, happy place to enjoy all for herself...at least for a little while. :)


I took this mirror out from behind the bathroom door and sprayed it silver. I loved the ornate frame on it! We hung it opposite her bay window to reflect some of the natural light back into the room.

She had those hanging vases in her other bathroom and we moved them front and center. She bought some hydrangeas for them and I think they look great.


She took that picture on the wall when she was in Switzerland and had it blown up. She made a big pretty frame for it and since she's so proud of it and it reminds her of her fun trip, we put that up in a prominent place too.

These are some of the needle works she has done. They'd been sitting in a drawer for a long time and she finally got them out and framed them. The coloring in them happened to be just right for the front room.

We covered these wooden stars with orange fabric and she got these whimsical little white flowers to go in these copper vases she had bought on a trip to Israel.

She got out all her Fall decorations and it looks so cute! :)

And these are just some of Sonnet's cute cousins that she gets to play with when we go to Grandma's house (they live next door). :)

Baby Brooke

Brenden (Sonnet calls him Bern Bern) :)

And Jenna (She's so good with Sonnet. She plays with her and keeps an eye on her so I can relax a little when we go over there.)

I love that I get to experience the whole "big family" thing now that I'm a part of the crazy Spears clan. I still don't want 9 kids of my own, and I really liked growing up in a small family, but having married into a large one, I kinda get the best of both worlds. Plus, Sonnet has lots of built-in friends and we have a good support system now that we're back in Vegas.

Anyways, just had to share the loveliness.

Good night.