Forever fall and Forever small please

I love Utah falls and this one went on and on and on with perfect warm weather all the way into December. We had leaves of all colors on the trees for months. Fall is magic and I never want it to end or these little girls to get any bigger.

Rose ad Eve started at Miss Leslie's preschool again in September and love every second of it. They are starting to read and bring home books which is really exciting. Rosie is more into it than Evie but I'm trying to let her just go at her own pace and remember that she is still just a tiny girl.

Rosie and Evie were on their first soccer team and it was fun watching them charge around the field, dink around with the other kids, and once in a while really go after the ball. We had an awesome time at the fair.

On September 18th, Alex had her beautiful baby Jane and let me be there for the birth to take pictures. It was awesome and I think in a way was very healing for me. I had some sad feelings about not being able to have a vbac or attempt a natural birth with Gwena and this really resolved those feelings for me. The most amazing moments of the entire day was when my beautiful niece was finally in my sisters arms and those first few hours of getting acquainted. And those moments were the same for me with my own daughters. Being at Jane's birth gave me a new appreciation for motherhood and reaffirmed the obvious truth that it really does not matter how these babies enter the world, its every moment after that counts. So fun to have such a precious new babe around.

 We took a girls trip up to Fish Lake for a weekend and Ben stayed home to cram out more of his huge backyard project. Went to another fun dancing party with friends. I bought a sewing machine and started quilting which I've loved. Had an amazing season going to Cornbelly's and it did not disappoint. We made it there 7 times. Rosie and Evie were Anna and Elsa for Halloween and I ended up making Ben be Kristof and Gwenie Olaf and I was Sven. Perfect frozen family and perfect fall.

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My Gwena is ONE

Gwena turned 1 on November 7th and I can still hardly believe it. This year has gone by faster than any year before and as much as we are loving the fun, active stage she is in right now, I am sad her babyhood flew by so quickly. Gwena was blessed with the sweetest disposition and we are so blessed to have her in our family. She has the nicest, most content personality and just toddles here to there and keeps herself busy. She is a bit of wanderer and will jump at any chance to slip out into the garage or outside if doors are temporarily open so we need to be careful with her. She took her first steps at 10 months but really started moving at 11 months. She is a big talker and loves to babble and screech and growl and her first real word was "daddy" and wants to be with him every second he is home.  More recently she has been saying mommy a lot and will follow me around when she's tired going "ma ma ma mama mama mom mommmmmy."


Gwena is a major foodie and will eat pretty much anything and sure does enjoy her meals. She watches Rosie and Evie and wants to be just like them: eat what they are eating, go where they are going, and be a part of all of their games. If they are playing in their bedroom with the door shut she will toddle down the hall and slap the door and squawk to be let in. She loves Clover and is fascinated by her. Gwena isn't a big fan of long car rides and is not the best sleeper. She takes two good naps which usually total between 3-4 hours and goes to bed about 7:30. She is perfecfly capable of sleeping 12 hours but is usually up several times in the night for her binkie or even demanding food. We are working on it.

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For her birthday we went to the Aquarium and then had a fancy fall fest dinner just with family. 

 She is such a wonderful addition to our family and we feel so lucky to have her. She brings us so much joy and we watch her every move with delight. We can't get enough of  this fabulous little lady.