Oh what an update!

Well, this update will be long cuz it's been a while. These past 2 weeks have been really hard for us because of some unexpected circumstances and Cory decided to go fishing with Dustin and his family. . . and we ended up tagging along to get out of the house. It was nice to be outside in nature after this winter that we have had (and are still having). We took Araleigh out and when we got there Cory was out in the river wadding . . . in sandals and his shorts. (CrAzY). Araleigh was VERY concerned. When he came back in he took her over and helped her fish and reel the pole in. It actually ended up getting really cold. The whole time I freaked over the potty thing . . . but she was a champ. She told us when she had to go and we tried a few tactics to get her to go -- and ended up with Cory just scooping her up and her peeing everywhere. But at least she went! We spent the rest of the time hanging out and visiting by the fire and eating roasted marshmallows. It was nice to be outdoors enjoying ourselves after the week we had had.

This week was really a crazy-fun week. Cory's sisters and their kids came up for the week. Araleigh has never been into so much mischief as she was this week! Her and Keaton (Jen's youngest- who is like 4-5 months older) just spent the whole week holding hands and leading each other into EVERYTHING naughty! On Thursday it was vaseline that they covered each other in-- they came up with their face layered in thick vaseline and their hair sticking out. On Friday: it STARTED with cleaners out of grandma's cupboard ... Araleigh was "cleaning" the floor and Keaton was "cleaning" Araleighs face. I walked in and Araleighs face was DRENCHED in cleaner. I am seriously SHOCKED that they didn't get it in her eyes. They thought it was hilarious though-- thats how I found them . . . they were giggling so loud. Good thing I checked on them! The next time we couldn't hear them I went downstairs to find them . . . they had shut the bedroom door and tried to lock it (hint of trouble?). I found them in Janalie's suitcase. Keaton was COVERING himself in her deoderant and Araleigh was using her expensive hair products as lotion. The carpet was all wet from it. Well, I marched them upstairs and Jan went to clean that up . . . well not even a half hour later, I don't think, Cory went down and found them in Trentons room with his cologne. He found Keaton spraying it in his eyes right when he walked in. Jan spent like 30 minutes trying to flush his eye out. Then after that---- after being on the move again Cory caught them in Grandma's room starting in on the makeup. CAN YOU SAY MISCHIEF??????? It was SO hard to get mad at them because they were having SO much fun. It was pretty cute watching them scheme up their trouble. . . while holding hands and hugging! Lacey's little boy, Preston was here too--- poor little guy didn't hardly leave her arms . . . he was SO sick.

On Thursday, Janalie and Lacey wanted to learn how to make some bread . . . so I came up and we started. I hope they learned a little bit--- I am no expert but I tried to show them that it really is easy . . . just time consuming. It actually worked out great because we got the bread going and raising and then off we went to Grandma Millie's to eat lunch. It was a BIG lunch too! By the time we got back ALL 5 loaves of bread were ready to bake. It worked out quite well! We made Honey Whole Wheat and Amish White. There was a TON of wheat . . . and that was a hit! I am SO glad it turned out. I had never tried that recipe before so was a tad worried. But it turned out well! It was fun! We spent the rest of the week . . . LITERALLY sitting in the same spot. All three of us pregnant women didn't move too far from our home positions on the chairs/couches! It was really great getting to visit so much!

On Friday we all got up and went to a morning session on the Temple . . . which was really great. We haven't been for a long time . . and with all the trials we are going through at this time it was nice to finally feel some peace. I don't know why we don't go more often-- there is no excuse when its minutes from our house. Lacey couldn't come cuz she didn't have a recommend and Preston was still SO sick. We wish she could have come. After the temple, Jamie treated us to Craigo's and we went to the Cocoa Bean for some cupcakes. When we got back we pretty sat in the front room for the rest of the day--- like I said. All week the Preggo women were pretty stationary. haha We ended the night with a big meal from Darla of Ham, Potatoes and salad . . . at like 8. lol Our week and food schedule has been thrown off and weird but its been fun!

Homemaking and a Quick Trip!

Well, I think I got my groove back. For a long time (before I was preggo) I baked ALOT. I was always making bread and cookies and whatever I felt like. Well, after I got pregnant I lost all motivation and lost ALL appetite. Well, I got it back. Starting with last Tuesday when we made the Cinnamon Rolls. I was home last Thursday and felt an itch to have some fresh bread. So I spent the morning cleaning up my house and through out the day did 5 loads of laundry. In between I made 2 loaves of bread and a dozen rolls. Also had to incorporate the time to make dinner which was a Creamy Chicken Enchilada recipe that I have never tried before. After spending all the time to do them . . . . I decided that they were just as good as my normal recipe that I make all the time. So next time I will not be doing that recipe--- it took way to much effort and mixing of seperate things for my taste. Then on Friday . . . I think it was we had Brock over for some dinner and I made Fruit Pizza . . . yummo!

Yesterday, I also took a quick trip to Helena, Montana and returned today. My mom has a cousin (actually TWO a brother and a sister) who passed away on the SAME day. Well, one of the funerals was today and the next tomorrow. We have plans on Wed. so we decided to just go to the one today. It was actually quite relaxing. The drive was boring . . . . and the towns are TINY. My mom, Sharee and I went and got to Helena at about 6:30. We checked into the hotel and headed for dinner. There was this restaurant next door to our hotel and were referred there. When I got in there I realized that pretty much EVERYTHING on the menu was at least $18 --- WHAT? But oh well--- I ended up with a fabulous Chicken Cordon Bleu meal and though it was REALLY expensive for my taste-- it was really good. We even got cheesecake and fudgecake to go-- it was good. It was a fun, more relaxing trip. I didn't have to worry about Araleigh and I didn't think about the stresses in my life for a day. A MUCH needed mini vacation. The funeral today-- now that was interesting! I have been to a few other churchs before for weddings and such . . . but it was trully interesting to me at this one. They are Methodists (I THINK.) And it was interesting to listen to their sermons on how Mike (the cousin who past) accepted Jesus as he was dying . . therefore he is saved and will live eternally with his family. . as long as they accept Jesus too. It was interesting to hear their religious words. Different, but I realized how much I am grateful for our church. I trully know the truth and am so happy to be aware of the knowledge I have. It was funny because there were many people who "came unto Jesus" during the service and then they all went outside and lit up. ahaha. It was kinda funny. Almost all of them went out for their smoke break before taking off to the cemetary. It was different but I actually enjoy seeing how other people believe. It was a different experience and I realized we trully do live in a type of bubble. . . but I love it! It was funny because I was talking to my sister about how I have been DYING to make homemade donuts . . . which I have never made before and on our way home we stopped at Yesterday's Cafe in Dell, Idaho--- Population: 35 .... Yes that is right. But we have heard SO much about this stupid little cafe. . . but when I walked in . . . I looked over and Behold, HOMEMADE DONUTS. I about DIED. We bought ALL OF THEM. They are so good! Now I don't have to figure out how to make them myself!! I also realized on this trip that my pregnancy has TRULY become BY THE BOOK! I have NEVER had to pee so much IN MY LIFE. I felt stupid because I normally will complain about stopping during trips ---- but I WAS THE ONE who mostly had to stop ALOT! I think this baby is sitting RIGHT next to my bladder because if I have a couple sips of pop or something-- within 20 minutes I am having braxton hicks and ready to pee my pants. I am also ALWAYS wanting to eat. WTCrap? I am seriously on a road to gaining like SIXTY pounds. I was going to post a picture-- but feel so huge that I am going to wait. When I got home tonight it was interesting because Cory looked like he'd been through the ringer --- and I noticed small little things at the house. Example- I went right into the bathroom (of course to pee!) and noticed something smeared ALL OVER the bathroom sink. So of course I go out and ask what the crap? APPARENTLY-- Araleigh got out of bed this morning ... which Cory SLEPT right through and got into the cupboards by the toilet and found some of mommy's foundation. By the time Cory realized he shouldn't be sleeping----- she was COVERED in foundation. All over her face, hands, and my sink. Men are SO unobservant. Its funny because when I hear her door open in the mornings--- I wake right up automatically. She has never tried this with me-- so I am wondering if she is just a sneaky thing and realized that Dad doesn't care OR NOTICE what she is doing. I think Cory is ready to get back to work . . . especially after the 2 days of being stay at home daddy. haha. It's good for them though!

I had to post this page I did-- Araleigh's hair is getting SO LONG. I am past the point of considering cutting it because its crazy long. It goes half way down her back . . . I CAN'T even get my hair this long--- without waiting 3 years. Its funny because she has this tiny little head (still in the 5% for her head) and ALL this hair. I am really going to have to start getting creative to make it cute -- learn some hair skills for long hair cuz I am a short hair girl--- so I better start learning to braid better!

Happy Wednesday

Well, yesterday was a good day. My family ended up staying the night in Sugar City with my parents because Cory decided to go fishing with my dad at 5 the next morning. So they went fishing (after a VERY long night of a screaming child. . . she woke up at 1 hysterical and we could NOT calm her down to fall back asleep till like THREE.) She ended up falling asleep watching Dora at 3-4 in the AM with my mom in the recliner. Well, after our LONG night . . . Araleigh and I ended up sleeping in until like 9:30. This time change thing has REALLY thrown us off schedule. I want to sleep in all day and Araleigh wants to stay up all night. It is terrible. Anyways, so yesterday the men left for fishing and mom and I started up some cinnamon rolls. I have been craving these for a while and talked mom into doing them with me! Anyways, so we spent the day making orange rolls and cinnamon rolls. Araleigh got to play with her cousins Tierra and Kiesan for a while as well, which she loves. She is such a social butterfly. It was good to let her play with others and me be out of the house because we have had that terrible cold that has hit everyone around here. So we were couped up for a few days. Luckily, I THINK it is starting to pass. I had it MUCH worse than Araleigh . . . thankfully. But am thinking that its getting better. I HATE having a cold.

I also got the rest of my blankets and burps finished. I now have ALL of them done. . . well at least all the ones that I HAVE. I know my mom has one more left to crochet but these are the ones I have gotten done the last week. I am not sure how many more I am going to do . . . because with Araleigh I did a ton and still have never used any of them. So I am thinking I will just have these ones and see if I need more later. Now I am just going to concentrate this week on going through old clothes of Araleigh's and making room for the new clothes I am starting to collect for Canden.

I had to post this picture because she just looks so peaceful. She FINALLY fell asleep after that LONG night of hysteria and crying. A much needed nap . . .

I also forgot to add that my husband-- the genius he is . . . went home the night we spent the night in Sugar to get his warm clothes. Well, he left Sugar around 8pm and I talked to him around 9. Well, at 11:30 I started FREAKING out because he wouldn't answer his phone and I hadn't talked to him in almost THREE hours. I was so scared and MAD! Well, my dad was just about to set out to find him when we FINALLY received a phone call. Apparently Cory had left our house--- forgot MY stuff for the next day TURNED around at Ucon and went home to get it . . . then on his way BACK to Sugar - - - drifted into the median slightly . . . this just had to happen RIGHT when a cop drove by on the other side. Cory said the cop WHIPPED around like there was a 911 call or something and chased him down. Well, the next little while consisted of Cory doing a drunk driver test. AHAHA. Apparently they are cracking down hard on this---- funny thing is APPARENTLY Cory has been pulled over like FIVE times for this. (and NO I did not know this minor detail before this night.) Ummmmmmmmm . . . either my husband is truly a secret drunk . . . . or he is a severely retarded driver. My intuition tells me its the second! haha For those of you who know Cory---- this will not surprise them! He is true blonde through and through! Love ya babe!

Oh to be sick . .

So the last few days have been long and dreary. This flu/cold season has hit LATE and has hit HARD! My whole extended family has had this flu/cold for the past month and for some reason I thought I had easily slipped by the bug. WRONG! Although, I am very much GRATEFUL that the flu part hasn't hit me quite yet --- I'm hoping it doesn't. But 2 days ago I woke up with a sore throat, runny/stuffy nose, and a cough that kills! Since I think it went from a cold to pneumonia. Well, not really but it feels that way. It hurts to breath and cough and talk. I had to watch kids the first few days of it . . . which made me SO tired. They ended up with the flu- hardcore the next day so I am wondering if the flu will come back and bite us as well.

Lately I have just been crocheting like a mad woman! I am on my last blanket and am half way done! I think that all I really have to buy now as far as this baby is clothes, binkies, and diapers. I can't believe how fast time is flying. I have to say that I know SIX people who have had their babies in the last week (4 of them had them on the same day). CRAZY. Scary thing is---- I am in the next batch to have their babies. Crazy how people get pregnant in clumps . . . or so it seems. I am really hoping that things can go fast and smooth the rest of this pregnancy! Today is the first time I actually SAW the baby shift positions. I have been able to see it kicking and feel it obviously . . . but as I was writing this the baby moved from the right to the left. I always thought it was funny to watch that when I was pregnant with Araleigh. It feels and looks so alien-like. Watching a little human move around in your belly. Crazy how life works.
Yesterday, we spent the day with Brock - - and actually got some things accomplished! We FINALLY fixed our sink-- which has been leaking FOREVER. We went and bought a new faucet for it and got some new trashcans! It was a great, productive day! Although I always HATE spending money on things not so fun! But I do love the new faucet . . . so much nicer than the old stupid one! Then we ended up having a BBQ with more friends. It was good. We made homemade fries, chicken, steak . . indoor smores and cheesecake. We also had our Girl Scout Cookies delivered yesterday--- so we were filled with yummy goodness. (Did I mention I LOVE GIRL SCOUT COOKIES?) Anyways, yesterday was stressful but ended up being a pretty fun night. We always enjoy spending time with our friends/family (cuz they are family!) We seem to do it at least once a week-- and its been fun to have them close again! We've been playing a lot of cards lately . . which Cory and I have always enjoyed together! I love that we are close to family who loves playing cards as much as we do! Now for a new week -- I hope this next week will bring less stress and less kleenex!

Araleigh - highlight overload!

Here are some current highlights of our little gem!

- She now knows her name, if you ask her she will say "Ayaee Arnold" . . . its been a highlight for us to ask her. She will also tell you that she is "TWO". Ahh the small things that bring us joy!

-She can now attempt to do a toe touch (with the help of mom or grandma to lift her) it's pretty dang funny. She yells 1-2-3 while doing the clap, high v and jump. It's pretty cute.

-She talks pretty clear now. We can officially make out 95% of her words . . . and those we don't she shows us real quick till we get it!

- She used to be an Angel sleeper . . . until the last week. Now she cries and fights us to stay up past 10. YES TEN! We are really trying to kick this before it's a habit!

- She cheers ALOT. She LOVES to show off her moves and frequently yells at me to "stand on leg" (this is where she stands on my leg and does a liberty while yelling "Go Boo 1-2-fwee- fow . . fight white!" Yeah, she doesnt have the cheer quite right its more like 2 cheers in one . . but its the cutest thing ever!

- She HATES shoes. We struggle everyday with her and putting on shoes. She will sit there and scream "It bite you" . . . . and won't let us put them on. I am not sure if its the shoes or socks that bug her. But its frustrating!

-She LOVES to sing and dance. We will watch Mickey Mouse, Backyardigans, Dora, Diego, Kai Lan, and a few more and everytime she sings the opening songs (PERFECTLY). It's funny. The best part is when she tries to mimmick their dances . . . she does very well. I think she will have a good eye for detail.

- She is OBSESSED with gum. Everytime I look away she gets a chair and gets up into my purse and searches for gum. She is great with it though- never swallows it and gives it directly to me when she is done with it.

- She loves putting make-up on, lotion on, and getting into the water. I frequently find her standing on the toilet playing in the sink.

- She is completely potty trained ... except night time. She probably could be if I tried but I had a bad experience the first night I tried. So we will wait til I know she stays dry for a while! I also should note that once she does go potty---- we have to do a cheer and clap and sing EVERYTIME! She does NOT let me forget!

- She LOVES to be surrounded by her cousins. It is a complete mental break down WHENEVER we leave somewhere that they are playing. It's a very emotional thing for her to say goodbye to her friends.

- She LOVEs LOVES LOVES chapstick. ALL DAY she will run around getting in my purse or hers and stay . . . " Oh, I get my stick" followed by her hands, face, and hair being covered in waxy chapstick. She has literally destroyed 3 chapsticks this week alone. SHE LOVES THEM.

- She can do a somersault! She is actually doing really well with them!

- She loves cheese. Particularly Cottage Cheese. She will eat this by the carton if I let her. She also loves just sliced or shredded. I wonder why she has #2 problems?

-She sings almost all the songs on her kids cd mix that I made her perfectly. . and at the top of her little lungs. One of these days I will secretly get her on tape!

- She lOVES above any other thing- - - her blankie. In the pitch black- she knows that its not the right one (we have 2 identical ones and 1 she has attached too). She will freak out until she has it. She currently uses it as a pillow at night---- but she cannot be without it. I hope it never gets destroyed. It would be a bad deal!

- Her toenails are terrible. For some reason we have so many issues with her feet and this is the worst. They are SO brittle that they break easily. She gets bad hangnails (that take up like 1/3 of her toenail) and they grow funny. This has been a challenge for us---- a weird one that I never thought about before it happened.

-Her current FAVORITE snack (along with mommy) is apples and peanut butter. We eat this right up whenever we have the apples! She LOVES peanut butter. . .. and any kind of fruit. Tonight I had her eat a banana and peanut butter . . . ate it right up!

-She is very much aware when Cory and I fight. If one starts yelling (usually me) she yells at us to stop yelling at the other one. It's actually very humbling.

-She is very sensitive to mommy's needs. If I am hurt--- she will try and help (even by saying "I hep u mom". If I am sick . . she says "mommy sick" while rubbing by back to make me feel better. When I am sad she says " mommy cry" while shhhing me , patting me and hugging my head. I have now discovered that this little angel will someday be our caretakers. She is so sensitive to our needs and tries to help us to the best of a 2 year olds ability.

- She LOVES going to nursery. She frequently asks "I go church?" even if its like Tuesday. I have been going in to nursery during the break between YW and Sunday School to see if she has to go potty--- usually I will take her and she will get off and say "Now I go play with da kids". I take her back and she runs right in there. She loves to be around other kids. She will be our social butterfly!

- She knows who Jesus is. Every time she sees a picture she says "dat Jeeses"

- She is the best eater I know! (For a kid) . . . she will down many things. Today alone I made mac and cheese and she at two ADULT servings of it-- and still wanted more. She is that way with many things except for certain meats. She won't eat steak, roast, and pork very well because its too chewy.

- She wakes up every morning and comes and lays by us in the morning . . . . if one of us is missing we have to discuss where the other one is before she will settle.

These are quite a few hightlights that I wanted to note about Araleigh . . . she is truly an incredible little girl and always lights up a room. She has a crazy scream that will clear a room . . . but her personality draws all who are around her near. She trully is something heaven sent and we laugh and are amazed by her everyday.