One month closer to SPRING!!!

I'm so tired of winter! I know we need the snow, but I feel so cooped up at times. So, I've been trying new hairstyles on Rebecca, and I've decided Sesame Street was sent from heaven. WOW. She sits so still while I experiment and play with her hair. The only problem is that I have to do her hair at least 4 times a day. She rips it all out and the worst part is that she puts these tiny rubber bands around her wrists after ripping them out of her hair. She does this as she is falling asleep, and a few days ago she woke up during her nap screaming and I went in there to find 2 of her fingers bright red with a rubber band wrapped tightly around them. OUCH! It's a dilemma though...do I not do her hair, or keep doing it? I kind of have to though, because it all grows straight forward, so if I leave it, it's all in her eyes. Hopefully she'll just grow out of this stage of ripping out the hairdos, and SOON! Because it's so cute when it's all done! I love my little girlie!! Ok, In this picture, if you can't tell ;) the front two pieces are in the shape of hearts. Since it is February! I tried to get a front view, but once again, no cooperation for picture time. Sigh.I hope these next few pictures will bring smiles to the ones we love. We are thinking of you and miss you!
REBECCA AT 18 MONTHS...

This just made me laugh...I guess she got tired of trying to get her clothes off during nap time (this was after she ripped her hair apart of course) so she gave up and went to sleep.

Rebecca is all ready to go to Nursery for the first time! She's so grown up, not our little baby anymore. She loves Nursery, and the leaders say that she talks the most out of all the kids in there. She does have lots to say, and we are glad other people can understand her too.

Here are some sweet pictures from a few weeks ago. Rebecca was rocking all her babies. And telling them every letter she knows. It was cracking me up.

She still loves this shirt, and walks around with her hands in the pockets, saying "pockets, pockets."

Holidays

Christmas was wonderful! We got to spend time with both of our fabulous families, and I think that was the best part of the month of December for us. Here we are at the Wistisen family party, which was so fun. The entire family was there, and we had good food and played games and told the Christmas story and the kids had a pinata. Grandma gave us ornaments and a new Christmas book. We look forward to this fun party each year.Here is Rebecca eating her first Abelskiever (puffy round pancakes with apples inside). She devoured it and Grandma declared her a "true Danish baby!"
Here is Rebecca's new pink rocking chair that is just her size. She loves to drag it out to the living room if we are in there, or out into the hallway last week to wait for Daddy when he was in the bathroom cutting his hair. She loves having a chair just her size and I walk by her room sometimes and she is in her chair reading books and babbling. So cute!

My wonderful parents came up for a visit a few days before Christmas and we had such a good time together. They came at a perfect time, it was snowing a lot and Seth was gone plowing all the time, night and day, and I would have been so lonely! They helped me with so many things and my mom and I got some good scrapbooking time in! My dad set up my Christmas tree for me on the 23rd, and I am so glad he did. It really doesn't feel quite like Christmas until you have the tree up. I'll never not put it up again! Rebecca actually did pretty good with it...I was worried I'd spend the whole month keeping her away from it. Thanks for the fun visit, mom and dad!

Seth built this bookshelf for all of Rebecca's books. It is a cute little shelf, I thought that was a sweet Christmas gift from him. Rebecca loves to read sooooo much!

I find her like this a lot.

We went to the mall to see Santa Claus for her first time. I prepared her by showing her Santa in books for a few days. She could say Santa, and when we went, she was so cute, and said "Santa" over and over. She was happy to see him, I knew she would be. She is such a friendly baby, not afraid of anyone. I am so glad she is that way!

We sure did have a white Christmas! Lots of snow in December. The first time it snowed, Rebecca was in awe. It was adorable, she pointed out the window and said,"What's that, mama?" I'll never forget that sweet little voice saying that to me. She loves to stand at the window and watch the snow fall.

I got all crafty in December, and made these (and many other) cute hair clips for my nieces for Christmas. They were fun to do! I can't wait until Rebecca's hair is a bit longer and thicker and I can make some for her.

And I got together with a friend and made these cute Nativity blocks for Rebecca. What a fun project this was! I really want a Cricuit!!!! Someday.....

Rebecca and all her loot on Christmas day!!! She sure was spoiled!! Thank you to all of her sweet grandparents and her fabulous Aunt Jenni!

Pretty baby in all the wrapping paper.

Doing Karaoke with her cousin Emilee. Emilee is quite the little rock star!

Seth and Rebecca on a typical Sunday. Daddy's little girl, they are such good friends.

I put Rebecca's hair in curlers and..WOW, it worked! POOF!!

Then, I put her in her Beautiful new Christmas dress and tried so hard to get just ONE good picture. No cooperation from Rebecca though. By the end, she was crying and I wanted to. I wanted to give her grandparents some cute pictures for Christmas. But no such luck. So take my word for it, she was adorable in that dress!!!

And last but not least...THANKSGIVING!!! I'm really catching up here! We went to my Grandma and Grandpa Nelson's house in Utah, and it was so much fun to be there and see a lot of my aunts and uncles and cousins who we don't see very often. My parents took us to this awesome aquarium while we were down there too. I loved it!

Rebecca was a bit hungry....not in the mood for a picture, can't imagine why!

And this was so funny, we were looking through the black Friday ads, and Rebecca was licking her fingers and turning the pages. She was cracking us all up, especially her great grandma!

Our Christmas Miracle

SHE WALKS!!!!!!!!!! Many of you know, we have been waiting for this day for soooooo long!! Ever since September when she started standing up all by herself, we thought, "any day now she'll be walking." BUT NO!! She would stand, but she would NOT walk. I guess she was just mastering balance before she decided to take off. Anyway, it all happened on Christmas Eve. She waited for her Daddy to get home from work so he could see her first steps too. She walked from one side of our living room to the other, right into my arms. About 12 feet and she never fell. We are two proud parents!! She is 17 1/2 months old. What a great Christmas present she gave us. The look on her face was priceless. We could tell she knew she was doing something great. And now it's been a week, and she NEVER falls. She is such a good little walker. And in other Rebecca news....I am a big fan of this website, starfall.com Anyone with little kids should know about it. It goes through the alphabet and teaches kids the sounds each letter makes, sings songs, etc. Really cute. I've been doing it with Rebecca for months, every day. She could look at this website all day. I can't believe how still and attentive she is. And she throws a fit when I say it's time to be done and do something else. She repeats the sounds the letters make and has many things memorized like what picture comes next. We are constantly amazed at how much she knows and remembers. Today she pointed to the letter B and said "B." Then again at the letter R, and O and X. It's so fun to watch my baby learn things, she is SO SMART!!
Today while I was making lunch, Rebecca unloaded all her diaper wipes one by one and put them on my rocking chair. Oh boy. So when I found that little mess, I picked her up, set her on my lap, and said, "Rebecca, what is this mess?" She looked at me so solemn and said, "wipes." I just had to hug her and laugh. I didn't expect her to answer me...I didn't know she knew that word!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

WOW, December was a busy month, and I can't believe it is already over and we have started a new year. Happy 2009 to everyone!!! Dec. was a fun month, I will put some Christmas pictures on here soon, so our parents can see...this was the first year since we've been married that we didn't spend Christmas day in Utah with my family. We missed you, Mom and Dad!!

New year's eve was fun, I took Rebecca outside to play in the snow. She was so cute in her little snowsuit and hat and gloves and boots. She was excited to go outside, we haven't really gone anywhere in a while-we've been sick and it's so cold. Anyway, we got out there and little Rebecca could just stand on top of the snow. Needless to say, it was not the best day to play in the snow. I'll have to try it again another day and not wait so long after it snows!

She loved the boots (which are a few sizes too big for her, she doesn't care!) and had to wear them all night. Funny baby! We decorated to surprise Daddy when he came home from work. We blew on our noisemakers and threw confetti. It was a fun night!

Then on New year's day, Seth's parents came up to spend the day with us. We had a great time! Seth's mom made these curtains for Rebecca's room. They are the perfect finishing touch, and I love them! She quilted around all the flowers and it is so cute. Seth and his dad put up the blinds on two of our windows, and everything looks so good. I just love to go in there and look at her room, it's so nice to have it completely finished!

I'm excited for this new year, to set new goals and try a little harder. Seth starts school on Jan. 7, and we are excited/nervous to see how life will be for the next while.

Thankful

I wanted to write down the top 10 things I am thankful for this year. I have been so blessed over the past year, and it's hard to narrow it down to what I am most thankful for. But, here we go:

1-The two people in the picture above. There is no one I'd rather spend time with than Seth and Rebecca. I'm so grateful for my fun-loving, hard working husband and our beautiful daughter. Seth makes it possible for me to be a stay at home mother/homemaker, which I feel is a full-time (and then some) job! I love it though, I feel like I am living a dream right now. I love taking care of my home and family.

2-Rebecca is my angel. It's hard to explain, but she makes me want to be a better person, more than anyone else in my life ever has. And when I'm in a difficult or new situation, she gives me confidence just because she is there with me. I don't know how I ever survived without her!

3-Where would I be without the gospel of Jesus Christ? I don't want to think about that! I love my Savior and will be forever grateful that I was raised in His true church, I never had to search for it. I feel that I have always had a testimony, it just grows all the time. The gospel gives me peace in my life, direction and purpose, and happiness that lasts.

4-The most recent house Seth built is still not sold, but an investor has taken over payments and found renters for us since June, and it is such a relief and amazing blessing that we ran into this investor and have the peace of having that bill taken care of each month. Let's hope he can sell it next year! It will be nice to move on from that.

5-We have been healthy this year, no major sicknesses or accidents. I am grateful for our strong bodies and minds, and for the opportunity to learn and grow in this life.

6-We had our first successful garden this summer, and it was so fun! I never knew how fulfilling it is to grow things, and to see the "fruits of our labors" in this way. I loved going out there to grab something to use in the dinner I was making. I am so grateful for good food!

7-With the economy getting worse all the time, I am so, so grateful that Seth has a good job. We know many people who have been affected by layoffs, or lack of business, and who are hurting financially. We've had our struggles with this too, but we have always been ok and had all the things we need. I'm learning to be happy with less and to make things last longer and I think that is a good thing.

8-I am grateful for good friends. I don't have any family close by, and it's nice to know I have people here who are like family, who would do anything for me.

9-It has been amazing to me this year, how my Heavenly Father knows exactly what I need and He sends people into my life to help me. When I'm sad, a friend calls and lifts me up. When I need something, people are inspired to share with me. It's been a lesson to me this year, to receive with a heart full of gratitude. It's easy to be on the giving end, and it has been humbling to receive so many nice things from so many unexpected places. That's how I know God is aware of my little family and our needs. I'm grateful for people who listen to the spirit and are willing to give. It has taught me to look for opportunities to serve and to pay attention to who might need me each day.

10-I'm grateful for my home, to live in a wonderful city, for this beautiful Earth, and for my life in general. My life is so good. I'm grateful for a loving and forgiving Heavenly Father, for each new day, the opportunity to start fresh and be a little better.

Your new Avon Lady!

That's right...I started selling Avon a week ago! And I am so excited to say that it is going really well so far! I've had a great response, and just wanted to let everyone know that I've started this new business and if you'd like a catalog to look through, I'd be happy to drop one by your house.
I've been thinking for months about starting some kind of business, but nothing felt completely right. I want to do something to help my little family out financially while Seth is in school the next few years. I don't claim to be a beauty expert, but I like Avon because it is affordable for people, and a lot of the stuff they sell are things people buy all the time in WalMart, like makeup, deodorant, jewelry, gifts, etc. FYI: They have lots of fun stuff for holiday gifts right now!!! And I can save people time and money and a trip to the store, since I deliver their orders to them. So it's a good deal for me and for my customers. I love it that I can bring Rebecca with me, also. It would break my heart to leave her and go work somewhere.
So wish me luck as I start this new little business! If you know anyone who likes Avon, I'd be really happy to get some referrals. And I'd be happy to be YOUR Avon lady too! Those of you who have bought from me, I really appreciate your business and support.

Fall Pictures

Well, we finally finished Rebecca's room!! I love it, and I'm so happy to have a place for all of her STUFF!! Whew! I feel like we have at least doubled the amount of stuff we own since having Rebecca. But now we have a place to put it all! And it looks so good.

This is my carousel from when I was 9 or 10. I was so excited the year I got it for Christmas, and then I got to spend the next few years collecting the horses/animals to put in it. It turns and plays the song from "Carousel" and the horses go up and down. It was fun for me to get it out of its box downstairs and clean off all the dust (that took a while!) and put it together for my little girl. When I gave it to her, she was so happy. It was really cute.
Rebecca's favorite hangout lately....AAARRGGHHH!!!! And why does she always go for the knives?!?!? These next few pics are from our weekend at the Bancroft Farmhouse a few weeks ago. I found Rebecca upstairs babbling away to all these dolls.

I took Rebecca for a ride on the RHINO!! So Fun!! Can you tell she LOVES IT?

And of course the swings. I had to pry her little fingers away when it was time to go in. She thought it was the end of the world!

My mom used to take pictures of us kids every fall. I will carry on this lovely tradition...fall is such a beautiful time of year! Rebecca loves to crunch around in the leaves. Here are my favorite shots I got of her.

We walk at the park and lately Rebecca has to push the stroller. Which is good...maybe it will help her finally learn how to walk. Maybe. Anyway she pushes it along, smiling and waving at everyone who passes us, and looking so proud of herself the rest of the time. She is so funny. And then she throws a little fit if I try to make her ride in the stroller, and she slides herself right out of it if I don't strap her in quick enough. My little baby is getting so independent! I just love her, she is the highlight of my every day.