Christmas 2010

Another Christmas has come and gone....I love this time of year, and cannot wait to celebrate it again next year! A little recap of our Christmas eve/day....

Nathan and I spent the day with the girls, just doing whatever came to mind. When we got up I made a french toast breakfast, then we put on a Christmas movie. After the girls woke up from naps I put some snow man sugar cookies in the oven. We all sat up to the table and ate cookies, and wrote letters to Santa. Nathan found another box full of Christmas lights in our basement, so the logical thing to do would be to put them up all over the house right?! We put some up in the kitchen, the girls room, and our bedroom! That is a tradition I think we will do every year from now on! It really got us in the Christmas spirit.  Next we hung the stockings by the chimney with care (and with a few opinions about where they should and should not be hung:). We then made mac and cheese....It's what the girls wanted ok? Lay off with the criticism...:-). We put dinner  in some very festive Christmas bowls to make it all the more fun, and finished dinner off with some egg nog. Next Nathan read the Bible story, and had the girls dress up to play out different parts of the story. Then the girls opened some new PJ's and we loaded up in the car to go see some Christmas lights! BY the time we got home my parents had arrived along with Catherine and her boyfriend Matt. We watched "Charlie Brown Christmas" and sang some songs with the girls and put them in bed. Then we proceeded to play games, put together Christmas presents, eat, fill stockings, eat, watch another Christmas movie, and eat;). It was a really nice evening. The next morning Becca & Ray were so excited to see what Santa brought them!! The girls are at such fun ages right now, they really get into Christmas!

Hope all of your enjoyed this special holiday season! See you next year Christmas!!! We miss you already!

Acting out the Bible story

Santa came around 1:30 in the morning, and was totally exhausted by bed time:)

Girls getting into stockings...notice how dark it is still? I did...

Matt Catherine, and Lola the cutest dog in the world, however you still can't see her because it was still incredibly dark out.

The months events....

I say that like we had a lot going on...not really. Don't get me wrong we have done some fun Christmas activities, but mostly I have been staying warm and cozy at home not wanting to go out! Nathan has on occasion this month made me leave my warm comfortable nest to go out and be social :). The highlights....

- Went to my parents house to decorate sugar cookies and ended the evening by a fire singing Christmas carols, and talking about Christmas past...really nice evening loved it.

- Made Christmas crafts on several nights with Nathan and the kids, and enjoyed feeling like a kid again in elementary school! I always loved this time of year in Elementary school because of the fun artwork and crafts we would make....

- Had my friends from High school over to celebrate Liz getting engaged!! We had a sleep over at my house and talked all night by a fire and glowing Christmas tree:). Everyone ended up falling asleep on the floor.

- Went to see the elves at Gardner Village with Nathan and the girls. If you have never been before I suggest you go! So darn fun! And can I just say magical??? I took pics of that event, but you will have to forgive their blurriness.....not a word?

- Went to the Critchfield  family Christmas party. OK they had the best Santa ever! He stayed for dinner too. Becca did not leave his side all night, she even sat next to him at dinner, it was so stinking CUTE! She asked him all night for a tinker bell baby doll??? What is a tinker bell baby doll?? Got mad at myself several times that night for not bringing a camera!@#$ Sorry about that, can you tell I am still mad?

- Went up to Park City the other night with my mom to do some last minute shopping. It was snowing like crazy and made it all the more fun. Seriously! Yes I like snow...I have mentioned this a time or 2 I think?  Then we went to Target and stayed until they kicked us out at midnight. Fun night I tell you, really enjoyed it!

-Tomorrow night we will be hosting all of Nathans good friends from high school, with a yummy tenderloin dinner....Your jealous I know:) Since that has yet to happen I can't tell you about it, but this is the 3rd year we have done this at our place, and it is always memorable and full of good laughs (thanks to Nathan:).

- Most every night this month, I have been snug as a bug in our family room watching a good old Christmas movie....I love movies I just do alright! :)

A few pictures...

Olivia was stuffed under Nathans shirt at the Village 

Gingerbread homes:)

Wednesday night my parents came to spend the night just for fun. That night we watched "The Holiday" I just love that movie! I Love the magical tent that is in Olivia and Sophie's bedroom off that movie....I really want to recreate it for my girls before the month is over. Anyway the next day, we hung out and watched "White Christmas" and "The Nutcracker" and made gingerbread homes. The girls loved every minute of the day, and were very sad my parents had to go home that night:(. We finally finished our deluxe guest bedroom, I will take pictures and post about it soon..... 

I just want to kiss those yummy cheeks!! She likes the lights out for nap time I guess:)

After we watched the Nutcracker the girls dressed up as "Clara" and a "sugar bum fairy" yes I said bum.

A little of this and that....

I do not have any pictures from Thanksgiving, but I do have a few random pics from the week...
By the way I think I am in absolute heaven right now with all the snow we received from yesterday!!! It makes me smile every time I look out my windows. If only it could last everyday till the end of the year.....(sigh).

We converted one of our gas fireplaces into a wood burning one...And I LOVE it!

Getting bundled to go play outside with big sister! And little Ollie just waking up from a nap looking oh so sweet!

Going out to get our Christmas tree!!:)

Making snowflakes on our snowy Sunday evening.

Life with the trio

My mom (bless her heart) has been here this week to help me adjust to this new adventure in life.....3 little people to take care of. So far it has been incredible and has brought so much joy... it has also been incredibly challenging, and has resulted in me breaking out into tears for no apparent reason at all....sleep deprivation?? Maybe:)?. I know I will adjust and soon, that is the beauty of life. The thing is our little ones get big so fast this phase in life really is a short one. Soon my little Ollie bug will be crawling, walking, talking....and it happens in the blink of an eye doesn't it? I look at Rachel and think to myself, what happened? You were my little bug, and before that it was Becca who was just a tiny infant in my arms. I am so lucky to have a man like Nathan by my side....MAN I JUST LOVE HIM AND OUR GIRLS SO MUCH!!!! He is such an incredible father, husband and friend. I loved watching him fall in love with our Ollie bug the minute he laid eyes on her! He is just smitten with our girls! Can I just tell you how sexy that is??? Well it is! Now I have a few pics from this last week..

Having her first bath

Olivia James Lord

She is here! Our little Olivia bug made it! She is absolutely the most precious, fragile, sweet, heavenly little bundle of joy.

Her smell is just amazing, I just want to breathe her in! She came a little early, however I had a feeling she would. I had just returned home from a doctors visit, and was getting girls down for naps when my water broke. My mom was at the house already because she was watching the girls while I was at my apt. I called Nathan with the good news, and told him to hurry home! Leslie my other wonderful mother came right away to watch the girls so we could head off to the hospital. So I am of course not contracting at all (a dejavu of Rachel's birth). So they put me on a low dose of petocin, which freaked me out because I was induced with Rachel. I did not do the epidural with Rachel's birth....there are no words to describe the pain I had with her delivery. So I was kinda freaking out inside because I still was unsure about the epidural. As soon as I started to feel the contractions I had a little reminder of just how stupid I would be to do this again without pain killer:)! So they brought the guy in to give me what I can only describe as the most WONDERFUL, wonderful, WONDERFUL gift modern medicine has given us! My body relaxed and felt warm and tingly inside, and I was pain free! My mom and sister were there along with Leslie, and Nathan of course. It was coming on 10 p.m. and I was still at a 3! So we sent everyone home assuring them it would be hours before Olivia's arrival. Being completely numb I was unsure how I was going to be able to tell when I needed to push. Around 10:50 I called the nurse in to say I was having a weird sensation and thought I should be checked. She checked and told me I was at a 4 :(. Then not 2 minutes later before the nurse was about to leave the room she checked me again because I told her I felt that sensation MUCH much stronger again......um ya I suddenly went from a 4 to a 10 in 2 minutes no joke. So they were all scrambling to get things ready and set up. Meanwhile I in utter bliss (feeling no pain) turned to Nathan in pure excitement saying "Our little girl is coming, she is coming! Can you believe it!" And it was the most enjoyable delivery I have had! I had no complications at all. I was smiling just waiting for her to show her little face. I knew she would come quick, it felt like she was going to just fall out of me....she came in about 2 1/2 pushes. We have felt so watched over and blessed with how well everything went with this delivery. It was absolute perfection, I can't even describe how great it was.... Our little bug weighed in at 6 lbs 7 oz, and is as healthy as can be. She is so content and calm. We love her little cry, we just melt when we hear it. So far she is doing what newborns do best...SLEEP!
So there you have it all the little details.  A few pictures now to follow....

 In case you are wondering why the name James for a middle??? It is Nathans middle name, and I think it is so cute for a girl! Becca and Ray have my name and middle name, so this one (yes being our last) gets to take on Nathans name ;)

Introducing...

We interrupt this regularly scheduled blog to give you an exclusive, never before seen post from Mr. Lauren Lord. We'd like to introduce you to the newest addition to our family, ______  ______ Lord (we haven't chosen a name yet.) She was born on 11/11 at 11:11 PM. She comes in at 6 lbs 7 oz and 20 inches long. Mom and baby are doing magnificently, and sisters are as excited as can be. As soon as she is able, Lauren will give you a whole rundown on the labor and delivery, as well as answering the question you're all asking: epidural or natural?

Here are some quick pics, with more coming soon...

Thank you for your prayers and faith on our behalf - we are evidence that they worked!

Hot Cocoa

Today Nathan surprised us by coming home early on this snowy, wonderful day, and with him he brought not just any cocoa mix.... he brought the Dagoboa cocoa mix home mmmmmmm :). Have you ever tried this wonderful, delectable chocolate drink?? Well first off you need to love dark chocolate, and if you do, then you must try it! I am a big fan of not too sweet cocoa drinks, I like to put a big huge dollop of lightly sweetened whip cream on top...Oh heavens delicious! I know some people think I am crazy to like dark chocolate, but I personally think I am not crazy, a little weird perhaps :).  Anyway the girls were pretty darn excited! I have a few pictures from the day's events.  I also need to do a little update on those cute girls, and what is new in their little world. So here we go....

Rachel

- Has been potty trained for the last few months now, and I am thrilled! I was not planning on training her for a while, but she wanted to give it a go and she has done excellent. I was worried she would be difficult, I was not looking forward to dealing with her and her more than stubborn attitude;) I am told (frequently) I was just as stubborn if not more so when I was her age.

- Loves to sing, and can I just tell you...It is so CUTE! That little voice of her's just melts you to pieces!

- Likes to refer to herself in the third person, and she changes her identity frequently. One day she will be Inspector Gadget, the next day she is Ichabod Crane (Sleep Hollow). Today she was Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer. Notice she is always the boy character? That's because big sister Becca won't have it any other way, she must always play the girl. Anyway, Rachel will not answer to her name if she is in character mode, funny girl!

- Likes to tease and bully her big sister. Becca frequently comes to me in tears, explaining that Rachel has punched her, or taken something from her etc.. We are working on that:)

- Loves her big sister, and is currently sharing a room with her. We moved them into the same room a few months ago to free up a room for the baby. So far they have been good, we have had some difficult nights, but that is to be expected I guess.


Becca

- Loves to make crafts, she will ask me, oh I don't know, like 20 times a day if we can make crafts, and she enjoys it thoroughly. She also loves to pretend play, and does so most of the day.

- Is filled with drama and emotion. This girl is ALL girl! She has a very tender little heart, and with that comes a lot of tears, and smiles. She is kind of all over the map with her feelings throughout the day. Sometimes Nathan and I wonder how we will survive the emotions of soon to be 4 girls in this household :).

- Loves, loves, loves primary! This girl lives to go to primary and church every week. Not kidding one bit! She will be in a panic Sunday morning making sure we are on time for church. She cannot miss a single minute of it, or she is devastated. She has a primary program this week, and is so excited, I can't even tell you.

-The other day Becca informed me that I needed to start giving her a bigger lunch. Apparently what I was giving her before was not up to her standards :) She does not like peanut butter and jam anymore (so she says:) It needs to be turkey with cheese, lettuce, mustard and mayo.