A Few Weeks in the Life, Christmas, and a Wedding {12/10-12/27}

What a wonderful Christmas season for the Turney Family. Here are the highlights:

On Friday the 14th, Hannah had her preschool friends over for a Christmas party. As always Brandee was fantastic, pulling together quite a fun project for the kids to accomplish. Stace read some wonderful stories and the kids mainly just enjoyed each others company. I got my hair cut by the lovely and talented Jill Geeb in preparation for the wedding. This was the day of the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting which totally unhinged me. We were supposed to do our traditional Turney Family Christmas Eve (since we open gifts before we leave for the holidays) but we were all kind of off and it didn't really happen. 

Saturday the 15th we opened all our gifts to each other and from the Turney's. It was really a lot of fun and we got some great things (like our TV that we got in September lol, along with lots of new Blu Rays to watch on it). The girls had a blast and it made me happy to see them get so excited over opening gifts. We drove to Utah and were very anxious to get to Grandma and Grandpa. We met up with them in Salt Lake and ate dinner/walked around to see the lights on Temple Square. 

Sunday the 16th Adam and I, along with my mom and Meg (and many cousins) got to see the Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas concert featuring Alfie Boe and Tom Brokaw. It was incredible. My favorite part was the Candy Bomber story, and Alfie Boe singing "Bring Him Home." 

Tuesday the 18th was the wedding. It was a magnificent day. I've never seen my brother so happy and I've never seen a more beautiful bride. It was such a wonderful day as a big sister. I'm so proud of both of them and I love them both very much. Adam unfortunately had to leave us this day, after the wedding luncheon so he flew home before the reception but it was lovely. 

Wednesday-Thursday Hannah got sick. She had a stomach bug and there is nothing worse than watching your children be in pain. She was a wonderful sport about it, and seemed to be much better on Thursday when we all took her to City Creek. She was fine for the most part but threw up at the food court after we'd shopped and played for a couple hours. She was so sad to leave though. 

Saturday the 22st was Lesley's annual family Christmas party, a highlight of the year. We picked Adam up from the airport and took him back to City Creek (Hannah was dying to go back). We had a lot of fun there going to the dinosaur play area, anthropology, and the Disney Store. After that we drove our kids up to see the Bountiful Temple so they could see where we were married. It really is a beautiful temple. The party was ridiculously awesome. My family is pretty much the best one out there and we all seem to enjoy each other a lot. Hannah and Paige both did well seeing Santa and Hannah even preformed Child of God at the talent show. It was pretty cute. Hannah's favorite part was being with her "cousins" and playing toys. Paige was super sweet but wanted Grandma Margie mostly. 

Sunday the 23nd was the Ensign family party. We all had a great time at the Bean's new home. I also love my Ensign family an insane amount and I think more than ever, this trip to Utah has given me an appreciation for my stable and loving background. I have four amazing grandparents, loving aunts and uncles, and wonderful cousins. Sean and Linds got back from their honeymoon and we enjoyed spending more time with them.

Monday was of course Christmas Eve. My favorite day of the year. Usually we spend the afternoon picking a movie to go to but because we had the kids, we went to some friends of my parents who have a sweet home theater set up in their basement and watched Home Alone 2. They were super awesome, letting us come over, making us popcorn and cookies, and they even set up a Christmas game for us. That evening we had our traditional crab and steak dinner (sans the chicken, which was alright). It was amazing. Dad told his famous Santa encounter story, the girls helped telling the nativity story with Grandma Margie's nativity from Bethlehem, and then it was off to bed for the girls while we watched "It's a Wonderful Life." It really is. 

Christmas was amazing. Hannah has been dying for a doll house, which Grandma and Grandpa got for her and Paige to share. We went to the Grandparent's Marsden and hung out with our awesome family again for the third time that week. Then we came home, met up with the new Mr. and Mrs. Marsden and just hung around all afternoon, the nine of us. Probably one of the best Christmases I've ever had. 

The 26th was Les Miserables. I've been dying for 22 years to see this made into a movie. I've seen it on stage 4 times, and I got about 60% into the giant book before I saw the movie. It was an incredible movie experience, although Adam wanted to take me home because I was so emotional. By so emotional I mean body wracking sobs, using up half a toilet paper roll on my tears, and full on blubbering  He was probably pretty embarrassed, but it was an amazing experience. We also went to see the newly weds open gifts and spend time with the Howells. It was a lot of fun. 

Today is the 27th and we drove home to Las Vegas. I'm always super emotional when we drive home. I always have felt like I'm the outsider of my family and it doesn't help living out of state. It's especially hard to leave because my girls get so sad. Hannah was frantic because she hadn't yet made a snow angel so she got a last minute one in as we left. 

Like I said (and as you can see) it was a great holiday season and I'm grateful we had the opportunity to have it :) 

A Week in the Life {12/2-12/9}

As the days of the year grow fewer and our weeks get busier these posts may be scanter.

Last week was a weird week for me. You know how when you are really supposed to be preparing for something spiritually and Satan is really trying to get you down? That was me last week. I spent the first half of the week in lala land being really down trodden, as I was preparing to teach my lesson in Relief Society (it happened to me last time too, I hope it doesn't happen every month).

Monday I found out Duchess Kate is pregnant and has HG (the same type of acute morning sickness that I get when I'm pregnant). I am excited for the couple and feel for her with the sickness.

Tuesday Hannah had preschool and I was preparing a lot for my lesson. I also went to a new book club for a book called Unwind by Neal Shuesterman. I read all day and night to complete the book and it was fantastic. The book club was interesting. There are a lot of people who home school in our new ward, and it turned into a public school vs home school debate. You know I got in on that one. Later on I was approached by two ladies who wanted to make sure I wasn't turned off by the "fairly ferocious debate" as one put it. It was interesting to be sure but it's always refreshing to meet passionate, intelligent people so I'm going to try for round 2 in January.

Speaking of books, I've been reading like a mad woman to finish reading the 50 books I set a goal to do. I am at 48 books. My plan is to finish D&C and Les Miserables which will bring me to 50 books. Wish me luck (for Les Mis. I'm almost finished with D&C).

Paige is such an adorable baby. If I didn't already have a kid I might say she is the cutest baby of all time. She is certainly tied for first place with Hannah though. Many people saw on Facebook that she took a spill out of the shopping cart on Friday. Hannah was in the front in the seat and Paige was in the back basket. It never occurred to me that she would be tall enough to get over the top of the basket. I'd say the terror I felt was right up there to when Hannah got into the pool gate and locked herself in alone with the pool at Rhodes Ranch. I bawled all the way home (long after Paige stopped crying).

Hannah is becoming more and more responsible. I asked her to be my babysitter while I did the laundry and she did an excellent job taking care of her sister. She liked it so much she's been asking me for more opportunities to babysit. She's been feeling apprehensive about nursery. She told me that instead of going to primary, maybe she could just pass out snacks and teach the kids about Jesus. In other words, she has called herself to Nursery Leader. She's going to do fantastic. Hannah called snow "Christmas Sand" which was hilarious to me. I guess that's what you get when you grow up in the desert. We got a Christmas card from my family and Hannah said "That is all of our parents!" Meaning her Grandma and Grandpa, uncle and aunts. Too cute. Also, in a rare moment I yelled at Adam in front of our kids. I NEVER do that. In fact, I have a strict policy against it. I think it had something to do with what I mentioned earlier, having a hard time keeping the spirit with me this week. Hannah said "Mommy, stop yelling at Daddy, I'm in charge now!" Obviously she felt I'd lost it and she wanted to set things straight. She also asked me if my mommy ever yelled at my daddy when I was a little girl. I think she was pretty traumatized. I told her that we still loved each other and mommy just lost her temper. She seemed okay with that.

Adam's big news is that the banner he designed is now hanging up at the school. Actually there were three banners. It looks really great! We drove past them to check them out and the girls clapped and cheered for Daddy. I am so proud of his hard work! He is great!

We had our ward Christmas party on Saturday. I went down in the morning to help set up and at about 3:00pm (the party was at 5:00) they called to ask Adam to be Santa. I was a little annoyed at first (all alone at a giant Christmas party with my kids) but he did a fantastic job. Obviously they were pretty desperate. Who ever heard of a skinny Santa? When I set the girls on his lap Paige freaked out and Hannah was super shy, then suddenly Adam started talking and they both turned to give him the most incredulous look (they didn't know before hand). All the kids who knew Adam from school also thought it was pretty awesome. It will probably be a highlight of our season. We also did a gingerbread house as a family. Chippy was up to some funny antics this week, asside from a day on strike for whinny kids, he decorated our house with snowflakes, sat among all of Hannah's toy story friends, got out all Hannah's books and hung upside down (a highlight).

Our lessons both went well. Adam and I both taught on Forgiveness. I felt like my lesson had a lot of great insight and input from ladies in the ward and I was grateful for their participation, in a sort of tough lesson.

Here are some pictures of our week :) Enjoy

A Week in the Life {11/26-12/2}

Some of you may have seen on Facebook that I have had troubles with posting photos on the blog. If I sign in to Adam's account, I don't have a problem. This is my temporary solution while I edit and publish my blogs into journals and slowly delete pictures and posts I don't need/want floating around in the blogosphere anymore.

Monday:

Karen and Jeff Conley and the girls stayed overnight on Sunday. We woke up and spent some time with them. Hannah LOVED the twins and cried and cried when they left. Chippy had decorated our tree in toilet paper (naughty elf!) Hannah thought it was awesome. Paige is fixated with the advent on our wall and keeps pulling out/rearranging events so Sean and Lindsey may have to get married on the 13th now. The first day back after a long holiday is always kind of a bummer so we missed Adam a lot. I did some Cyber Monday shopping and went to bed super early. It was awesome.

Tuesday: 

Chippy ended up hiding in a stocking! He also brought back some of his favorite food from the North Pole (marshmallows). I started to read A Christmas Carol (the annotated version). Hannah went back to preschool and I worked on our 2008 blogs. I'm trying to go back and read/edit them (mainly grammar, not content) to make a book. Adam was exhausted going back to school but had scouts. That night in lieu of book club, we threw a surprise shower for one of our book clubies Brittany Smith who is having a baby named William (Will Smith...love it). It was an awesome night. 

Wednesday:

Chippy was found riding on Bullseye! What a funny guy. I was very tired from the night before. I was also pretty grumpy. Adam hates it when I'm grumpy. The girls and I went to the park for a while. It's such wonderful weather we have to take advantage of it when we have the chance. They were working on some electric stuff and Hannah went around trying to tell everyone to be safe. Paige went around trying to find food. I love the kids they play with. They are awesome. 

Thursday:

Chippy was hanging upside down from my Christmas garland. Hannah had preschool and told everyone all about it. After preschool we went to the library. 

Friday:

Chippy had made Santa hats out of construction paper and cotton balls and stuck them on the girls pictures. Grocery shopping was desperately needed, so I packed the girls up and we headed to Sam’s Club, Walmart, and Glaziers as well as Rapsodielle for some Christmas shopping. For some reason I was especially worn out and tired, and after hitting up four stores Hannah advised "It would be a really good idea for you to take a nap. You've been very grumpy today and I think you are just tired." We spent the afternoon snuggling on the couch watching Christmas movies. It was a mood booster for sure. 
Adam spent the night working on report card comments, grading papers, lesson plans. In fact, he did it all week/weekend. It was intense and my poor guy just couldn't catch a break. 

Saturday: 

Chippy was hiding in a glass vase.We had had a birthday party to go to early Saturday. It was awesome! It was for three of our little friends. I also had a baby shower for a good friend to attend. Adam was working Saturday morning, and I am super grateful for awesome friends who are so willing to take our kids so I can do things! My friend Lidia’s husband Steve (who Hannah adores) watched Hannah so I could go to the baby shower. Adam got home and we had fun as a family, going to Forbuss to play on the playground and ride bikes, dinner time, then Elf as a family. We didn't get it finished, but the girls loved it. Also, per Adam and Melissa Turney tradition, we all got to open an ornament that represented our year. Adam got a tool box, because he is always helping fix things for others (usually computer related so the tool box is more symbolic, although he did use his tools a lot this year) I got a runner for my half marathon, Hannah got a little girl holding books, and Paige got a Precious Moments doll holding a lion and lamb because a) she loves animals so much and b) she is our family peacekeeper. 

Sunday:

Chippy replaced all our stockings with socks! Silly Chippy. Church was good today. I’ve stated before that we are in a very difficult stage right now. It seems like both my girls have a hard time being reverent. We were fasting and didn’t have any energy and I prayed we’d be able to get through without tears. The girls were pretty awesome and we were able to sit through all three meetings for the first time in about 6 months. Wow. I listened to the Christmas devotional and it was wonderful.

Paigey Pie

I've written so much about Hannah on this blog and Facebook. She is my first born, she is active, she is hilarious. This post isn't about Hannah. It's about my other princess. The one who is quickly coming into her own, and lighting up our lives.

Paige is 15 months next week. She is practically the sweetest thing I've ever been privileged to know. Paige is so loving towards all of us. When Adam gets home from work, she is the one to make the biggest deal with her wide smile, squeals of joy, and exclamations of "DADA DADA!" She runs to him and gives him the most sincere hug, as if she never expected him to return. She then excitedly draws him over to whatever she was doing at the time of arrival and invites him to join her. She reacts the same way when one of us gets her from a nap. So excited to be with everyone. She also is very excited to see Hannah when picking her up from preschool or after sleeping through the night without her. They always love to be together.

The sisters are wonderful together. It is a rare moment indeed that one will be mad at the other. They play together so well. I think it is in part to Paigey's sweet and patient nature. Paige is extremely patient with almost everything (except food). She will lay in her crib for who knows how long, not making a peep until one of us goes to get her. She'll let Hannah trade toys with her for the most part and doesn't get upset if she doesn't get what she originally wanted. In other words, she is happy to put others wants and needs before hers.

When she does get excited or upset, she will stomp her feet. It is pretty funny to watch a Paigey melt down. Usually things that make her upset include being hungry, or not being cuddled. She loves to be around all of us and does not enjoy being left out. It is hard on her sometimes, being too little to do things. She loves to eat. Someone observed, "I always see Paigey eating, weather its fruit or garbage." She is infamous for trying to eat garbage. Just yesterday she found an old grilled cheese at the park and I had to rescue her from it.

Paige is very smart too. Like Hannah, her vocabulary is taking off. She says: Mom, Dad, Nana (Hannah), Gama (Grandma), Gompa (Grandpa) CheeChee (Chippy), Me, baby, dog, kitty, wow, uh oh, pees (please) too too (thank you), no, yeah, bath, shoes, pretty, book, bonk, hand, eyes, noes, ears, toes, belly button, bum, tummy, outside, car, bike, hi, bye-bye...I'll have to add to the list when I think of more things she says. She understands just about everything and for the most part, she is happy to obey.

Paige loves to snuggle. If you are in need of a good cuddle, just put on a movie, read a book, or climb in bed with Paigey. As long as you snuggle her close and speak sweetly to her (and Hannah isn't running around like crazy) she is content to sit and talk with you.

Paige loves to dance! Her favorite show to watch is Yo Gabba Gabba. When she hears music, she starts to swing her hips or bounce her knees. She is the best dancer! She also loves to sing. Last summer we were really into We Are Young by Fun. When it got to the chorus, Paige would start babbling loudly along with us.

Paige is very excitable. She loves to find our elf Chippy each morning in his new spot. She loves to see animals. She loves to skype with her family in Utah. In general, she is the happiest person I know. Because of this, she brings joy to all around her. She is known for her bright, big smile and gives it freely. In general. She's pretty shy of people for the first hour, then will be your best friend. When her aunt Allie came to stay with us she was that way, but has missed her. In fact, the day after Allie left Paige went to find her in Hannah's room. Discovering she wasn't their, she waved and said "Bye-Bye Aheee." She prefers her parents to strangers for sure, but will warm up pretty quickly if she has to. She has stranger danger fears, way more than Hannah did.

I couldn't imagine life without her. Two years ago, I was pregnant with her, which means she has been a part of my life, my heart, for two years. I can't believe it's been that long. I love her with all my heart and I'm so glad she is mine. I love seeing her grow and change and develop this wonderful personality. I love you Paigey Pie!