Well...I have a little bit of catch up to do, but am glad to be back to the world of blogging! I've missed having a place to write about our life - I always think I will remember details and things that happen but I just don't unless I write it down. Life has been a little (okay, a lot) crazy the past few months, but I'm feeling (mostly) better and stronger everyday and it just feels good to do something that I enjoy again.
Rewind 7 months...
Happy Birthday to ME!
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| My birthday was a little different this year but Cole sure stepped it up and took charge of breakfast in bed. I found cute little notes like this around the kitchen. He got up early, enlisted Ashton and Jenna's help and pulled it off...what a sweetie! |
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| I was spoiled! I had family and so many friends call, stop over, bring presents, send balloons, make me a cake...it really was a great day and I felt very loved! |
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| Thanks for the 32 balloons Em! |
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| My friends threw me a little party - they are so great |
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| Everyone needs to be pampered on their birthday! |
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| My sweet friend Nicole threw me a birthday party with friends from the neighborhood, with plenty of Diet Coke! |
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Just love my neighborhood and the great friends I've made!
I slept over at Nicole's that night because her husband and boys were at a camp out. We had "night cereal" at 3am, took this picture at 5am...we just really don't sleep much when we're together! |
Back to school
Cole started 2nd grade, Ashton started kindergarten and Jenna "officially" started preschool! I can't believe my kids are that old! It's so great to see them growing, learning, reading, losing teeth and making friends but it also makes me so sad! I look at baby pictures and wonder where the time has gone.
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| My big 2nd grader! |
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| Cole and Miss Evans...I think by the end of the year they might be the same height! |
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| My kindergartner! |
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| Ashton and his buddies Jantzen and Elijiah...they are all a little nervous here! |
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| My cute little preschooler! |
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| Love that I get to be her preschool teacher! |
Soccer
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| They look pretty official :) |
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| Quite the little princess watching her brothers! |
Fun at the Circus
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| Ashton wore this hat and nose, pretty much the whole night! |
Happy Halloween!
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| Peck cousins |
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| Me, Nicole, Nat and Becca at the ward party |
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It was one cold Halloween night!
More Fall Fun! |
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| Cornbelly's with our friends, Jaxson and Carter |
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| We invited some friends over for a Halloween dinner, I had lots of fun being creative... |
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| Spooky punch |
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| eyeball salad |
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| mummy dogs, dinner in a pumpkin and graveyard dessert |
Welcome Home Elder Holbrook!
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| Matt got home from his mission to Argentina on November 4th. Everyone (especially the kids) was super excited to see him! Vaughn, his mom, his sister Annette, brother-in-law Andrew and niece Kayla spent 10 days in Argentina with Matt before he came home. |
Trip to Michigan!
After saying hello to Matt at the airport, I hopped on a plane and flew to Michigan to visit my good friends Tina and Courtney...love these girls!
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| Went to see our house...we loved living there...lots and lots of good memories :) |
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| We ate... |
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| and ate... |
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| got pedicures... |
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| and ate some more!!! |
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| Courtney making her awesome nachos! |
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| They sure didn't last long...pretty impressive that we were able to polish off the ENTIRE pan! |
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Maybe wishing we wouldn't have eaten them all :)
I was able to go to the church at the Dearborn ward and visit with lots of old friends. I also met up with Kyle and Maddie! I was there nanny for basically the 5 years that I lived in Michigan. We spent SO much time together - I can't even believe how grown up they are!
What a great trip!
Happy Birthday Cole! |
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| 8 years old...WOW! |
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| We had a big party at Jack and Jill Bowling lanes with all of Cole's buddies...the kids got to bowl and play laser tag...so fun! |
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| Now that is one excited boy!! Cole got an Ipod touch and in his own words "this Ipod is my LIFE!" |
"Time Out For Women"
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Becca, Nicole, Nat and I stayed up in SLC and went to "Time Out For Women." It was SO amazing...glad to have gone with such amazing friends! There were several motivating speakers over 2 days and I learned a lot.
A few things that I took away from this weekend...
*We need to qualify for, receive and act upon personal revelation...our ability to do this is the single most important skill we can learn in this life
*It is not possible to feel desperate when we are filled with the Holy Ghost
*Motherhood is like being pecked to death by a duck (I really liked this one!!!)
*Reach out and lift others up - we need each other
*Life isn't always going to turn out like we think - learn to embrace change
*Enjoy the "moments" with our kids...don't be in such a rush to move onto the next thing
*No matter what trials you are going through, remember that those trials are personalized for you
*Be kind, every one you meet is facing something difficult
*Sometimes what we think would be the worst thing turns out to be the best
*Your best is good enough
*Learn to see the good in every day |
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| We had a little case of the munchies that night! |
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| There wasn't much sleeping going on...that's for sure! |
Happy Thanksgiving
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| I went to my moms with Mandi's family and Dave and Wendy for Thanksgiving dinner...it was kind of a quiet dinner, but delicious!! |
Me and my sisters really look nothing alike!
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Turkey coma!!
Black Friday |
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| What a night! Sales started on Thanksgiving night at 10pm so off we went! We hit about 6 stores throughout the night and laughed A LOT! |
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| At Ihop somewhere in the 2'o clock hour |
Denise and mom
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| Lines, lines and more lines...even the FREEZING cold didn't stop people from being out! |
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| Mandi and Brooklyn in a huge crowd...$2 dvds at Walmart...got elbowed in the head here! :) |
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A little bit of caffeine around 5am :)
Cole's Baptism
So proud of my little guy!
Handsome boy in his new suit
Cole was baptized by his uncle Matt. We were so happy that Matt had just gotten home from his mission in time to baptize Cole! Cole really wanted Matt to make sure when he baptized him that his head would hit the bottom of the font. Matt sure gave it a good effort because when Cole came up out of the water, Matt was wet up to his neck!
Uncle Bob confimed Cole - it was wonderful!
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| Cole and dad |
There were 4 kids from Cole's 2nd grade class baptized the same day. His cute teacher Miss Evans came - Cole was super excited that she was there!
All of our family and friends came over for brunch after the baptism
Love this boy!
Christmas Lights
I LOVE our neighborhood!!! I refuse to ever move away! The Young Men and their leaders from our ward came over to put up our Christmas lights. The kids were SO excited!
After the lights were hung, they had a huge snowball fight...the leaders on the roof against the kids on the ground!
Payback!!
Yeah!
My Birthday Girl! |
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| The kids were with Vaughn so Jenna got to have breakfast in bed at grandmas house |
That is one lame cake...if I remember right, it was a very busy day!!! ;)
Got a snuggie form her birthday - glad we could break it in for cake and ice cream :)
All ready for her princess party!
Cute little girls
On a treasure hunt
Can't believe my baby is 4!
Christmas 2010
Peck Family Christmas Dinner
We sure fill up my moms house! This is always a fun night with food, games, the nativity by the grand kids, Christmas bells, presents and lots of laughing!
Jenna sure makes the cutest "Mary"
I love the look on Jenna's face when "baby Jesus" is brought to her...so sweet
What a cute bunch!
New "minute-to-win it" games added this year
Even the adults got into it!
Cousin gift exchange
Every Christmas Eve, the kids get to open 1 present which is always their Christmas pajamas. Growing up, I always looked forward to opening new pj's from Grandma and Grandpa Peck every Christmas Eve too.
These kids were SO wound up and having lots of fun!
All lined up and ready to go!
Jenna wrapped this for me...it was a tiny stuffed animal...I would have never guessed!!
I LOVE the Christmas mess...I could keep it like this for days and days!!
Exciting news: Wendy and Dave got engaged on Christmas! They came over to tell me and we talked while Wendy waved her hand around and I was completely oblivious for at least 10 minutes! So happy for them!
Jenna admiring Wendy's ring...she is such a girl-girl...I love it!
Holiday Party
I hosted our high school friends Holiday party this year - it's always so fun to get together!
Cyd - Jenn - me - Emily - Shalana - Sara
I rented a photo booth this year...it was a hit! I think the man who ran the booth took pictures for 3 hours straight!
The kids loved it...especially Jenna :)
We had our annual white elephant exchange...there were some pretty good ones this year!
Look at all of these cute kids...wow, we did good!!
The kids played McDonalds/Daycare in the preschool room until midnight!
Happy New Year
I invited my family over for New Year and we had lots of fun eating...
playing games...
watching time square and New Kids on the Block perform!
I LOVE this picture!!! Jenna wanted to stay awake SO bad!
She didn't make it...
Neither did he!
Kids banging pots and pans and those 2 didn't even budge!
Ashton made it until midnight!
I handed the kids pots and pans and sent them out into the cul-de-sac...sorry neighbors! My next door neighbor was setting off fireworks so this apparently was the "firework dance!" Think they all had lots of fun!
Cheers!
This was the latest Ashton had ever been up in his life so we had to document it! Devin slept over so I think it was at least 1am before they actually went to sleep!
There you have it...the rest of 2010! I have to admit, I was a little happy to get this year behind me. Thanks to my family and Vaughn's, great friends and neighbors who have been such a support and help to me. I have had dinners brought in, Christmas lights put on my house, my lawn mowed for me every week, diet cokes left at my doorstep, snow shoveled, cards and letters, and hours of phone calls and visits -some really, really late at night! I have been so blessed with wonderful people in my life.
