Big Boy

Emmett is starting to think he is a lot bigger than he really is. He thinks he needs to sit up or stand up most of the time and yet he isn't able to do it on his own yet. 

When we were at the grandparent's we decided to put him in a high chair and he loved it! (Even though this picture looks like he doesn't). 

 He also likes to be propped up where he can look at everything, play with toys and suck on his two fingers.

 And then sometimes he lays down like he is a man after eating too much food and watching sports. 

Just today he finally rolled from his back to his stomach. He has been wanting to do this so bad for over a month and then I completely miss it. I only got the after effects of the monumental moment on video. I'm sure there will be a lot more opportunities.

Havin a Burfday!

January is all about birthdays. We have lots of family with birthdays in January but they all really lead up to the most important one......mine! This year was especially important because it's the last year in my 20's. Yikes!

But let's just say at least I'm not 60. (Sorry mom). Nate and I came up with a fun idea to let everyone know mom was turning 60.

First we made this awesome sign...

Then Nate drove up late one night to decorate their lawn with the sign and 40+ Pink Flamingos.  

I think it was a hit. Let's just say they live on the perfect corner to allow for a lot of honking!

 A few days later it was the most special day. You guessed it...my birthday. 

I got spoiled as usual..

I thought I had too many candles on my cake. 

 Nate gave me this awesome tandem bike complete with a little carrier for Emmett. I doubt we will hook up the carrier to the tandem bike. I don't think we have the skills for that yet. I can't wait to use it this summer!

Week 4 Challenge

It's motivating for me at least to post about our 52 challenges. I probably won't post them all but I feel pretty proud when we accomplish them. Sorry if they are boring.

Week 4: Learn Something New About Your Spouse.

Nate's response: I already know everything about you.

Me: No you don't. Just play along. 

I found this fun little QUESTIONNAIRE on Pinterest that we used to spark some conversation about things we didn't know about each other. 

Let's just say I knew more about Nate than he knew about me (but not by much). 

He thought my favorite color was purple and that using the "Swiffer" was my favorite household chore. Not even.

But I thought his dream job would be to become a Sports Broadcaster but in fact he chose a Doctor. 

We didn't know much about each other's first pets and what gets us most excited. It was fun finding out the real "truth."

And we also sparked some fun conversation about some of our childhood memories. 

Little E just played on the floor. He loves playing with toys and exploring everything around him. 

Um...Emmett...your shirt is a little low cut. 

 Then after the questionnaire and all the playing, the boys got tired and took a nap. 

FaceTime

Our favorite time of the day....talking to Nate during lunch. 

Nate trying to get Emmett to smile....

...Still trying...(it usually takes a few minutes for Emmett to understand what's going on)

 And trying to make Nate smile.  

Mostly Emmett just tries to grab at my phone and stick it in his mouth. 

I love love love my boys!!!

The Latest

This is a bit of an update on our our New Years Resolution challenge. First off, we just finished our WEEK 1 challenge which was to read a novel together. Can you believe it?! I really think Nate enjoyed it and he was getting excited about the book. A good read. We recommend The Alliance.

 Our WEEK 2 challenge was to play a new game we have never played before. For Christmas we just so happened to get a few games but they required more than 2 players and we didn't have the best of luck finding some more individuals to play with us. (Well actually we didn't try too hard...whoops). So instead we decided to put a puzzle together. Easy right? Well actually we only had one puzzle in our cupboard and it was a 1500 piece. No biggie.

Nate looks pretty excited. We feel really good about ourselves when we put together 1 piece in about 5 hours. Yikes! This may take all year. 

 So far Emmett hasn't helped us with any of our 52 challenges, but there will be some in store for him.

 This happened to be his outfit one day because he pretty much spit up on everything. It was Sunday and I think he spit up on every inch of the church building and all the way home (and all over Nate and I). Poor guy. At least he is a "happy" spitter-upper!

 Our WEEK 3 challenge is to make sincere and random compliments all week. I've tried to compliment people I rarely talk to. (It really gets you out of your comfort zone but I am enjoying it so far). It feels good to put on a smile on someones face.


A Little Bit of Fun

I couldn't resist. I had to post this cute video of Nate and Emmett. Last Saturday while we were out with some friends Nate got called into work and we had to all venture over there. So while we were waiting for the machine to warm up, the boys had some fun!

Don't know why Emmett's hair looks so greasy but I think he is pretty handsome. (And so is Nate!) I'm one pretty lucky gal!

Resolution

I'm the type of person that loves to make New Year's Resolutions (which are often the same each and every year) and I usually do not succeed. 

Last year I thought I came up with a really good idea. I decided to read 50 books in the year 2012. I decided to choose books I had never read before. And I kept track of everything on Goodreads. (One of my favorite websites ) Sadly I did not reach my goal. I came very close though. I ended up reading 42 books. My excuse was Emmett and I will take that excuse any day. Well worth it. 

I read some pretty lame books and some that were real tear jerkers and thinkers. Some of my favorites were:

Killing Lincoln: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever

Night

Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption

These is My Words

Walk Two Moons

Heaven is Here: An Incredible Story of Hope, Triumph, and Everyday Joy

Edenbrooke

Between Shades of Gray 
(and this is about the Holocaust not some nasty other stuff)

I always love a good book. My bad habit is to read right before bed and then I pay for it the next day because I can never put a good book down. It's the best feeling getting lost in a story.

I really thought hard about what my 2013 resolution should be. I decided the best way to succeed would be to get Nate on board with me. He actually agreed which I was very happy about. We decided together to try 52 new things in the year 2013. Every week we try something new together. Some things will be really simple and silly and some will bring us closer together and just enjoy life!  We sat down and thought of things we would really accomplish, printed them out, and put them in a jar. Every week we draw one out and are committed to doing whatever it says.

And guess what Nate decided to pick as our first adventure? That's right....to read a novel together! I couldn't believe it. We picked this book:

One of Nate's favorites when he was in High School. This will probably take us more than a week. In fact we aren't even a 1/4 of a way through it so far but I am enjoying reading together every night for a few minutes. Pure bliss for me. 

So stay tuned for our 51 adventures we have left to accomplish!

New Years Eve

We had some fun with the Esplin clan to celebrate the closing of one year and the beginning of another.

First we opened up sibling Christmas presents and Aunt Hannah made an awesome present for all of us but we have a future surprise for them so I will only show a sneak peek. Nate loved his so much he wore it for the rest of the night.

 This little guy was so happy all day! Which is pretty much the norm. He makes us smile so much.

 Then of course he got tired from all the giggling and smiling and fell asleep on Aunt Joy.

 And it wouldn't be New Years Eve without the traditional run outside barefoot in the freezing cold. Notice I am not in that picture. I prefer kissing at midnight but Nate enjoys getting frostbite instead.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!