Just Pictures..

Dad, help please!Really! I need help!
K, if you won't help me, I'm leaving!
Such a pretty girl!

Halloween

For Halloween, we dressed Chloe up as a little Illiniette! I saw the outfit in Target last year when I was in Illinois for my baby shower, and had to have it. (So I told my mom and she bought it for me :-) ) I was so excited to have Chloe show off her Illini Pride...But no one here in SoCal knew what she was! They knew she was a cheerleader...but not for the Illini. Oh well, I definitely told everyone so they weren't wondering for long. Unfortunately we didn't get a great pic of her in all her Illini glory, but here are a few. I made her a bow of the same ribbons that are on her socks, but by the time we got to the trunk'r'treat she had pulled it out and ripped the ribbon off the clippy so I couldn't really put it back in. I fixed it by the time we went Trick'R'Treating by the pier, though.Chloe and her friend, Mary. She's so cute as a little ladybug!!

She just wanted to get down and walk all around getting candy!! No time for pictures with mom! Cody and I "dressed" up as Jim and Pam from The Office. Our shirts say Dunder Mifflin on the front and on the back on his is a pic of Jim, and on mine is a picture of Pam. We figured it worked since...we've worked together before, we're married, and I was pregnant. I promise Chloe was having a fun time there!

The next day we went Trick'R'Treating on Main Street which is right by the HB Pier. All the stores and restaurants were giving out candy. One guy even gave out ice cream!
Not a great pic of me...but you can see Chloe's bow!
It was preeeeeeeeeeetty packed.

This firefighter was so nice-he leaned down and looked at Chloe and said, "You are so beautiful." So I told him we had to have a pic with him. He's not trying to give the candy to Cody...just trying to get Chloe to look at the camera. Oh well.

Remind me again why we're leaving this for negative temperatures???

Getting Completely Caught Up Before 2010

This is my goal for the rest of the week! I WILL be caught on on the blog before New Years! I have to be! I want to start fresh. So.........


On Halloween Day, we went to the park and Chloe had a great time following the ducks around! She wasn't scared of them at all....Even though this picture might show otherwise. I had some cheerios and would throw them around her, so all the ducks were surrounding her. LOVE this one!





Sometimes ducks seem safer if there's a grandma there :)

So pretty! I love fall!!

Baby Walk - 2nd edition

Preslie Jane Walk was born Dec. 21 2009 at 3:34 pm. She weighed 7lbs. 13oz. and was 19in long. She made 2 little crying sounds when she came, and that was it! It concerned everyone for a bit until they realized she just didn't feel like crying! Stacey did awesome!!! Both Stacey and Preslie are doing great, and Chloe was excited to meet her little sister.

Stacey will post more later....

My Last Post as a Mom of 1

And it's not going to be good cause I don't have much time.

It's already 11 pm and I'm going in to be induced tomorrow morning at 7. Well, I have to call at 6 and make sure there's room...But I'm assumming there will be and then I'll be going in at 7. I really hope I get an ocean view room. How awesome would that be? I think it would be ultra relaxing. Cross your fingers.

I have so much flying through my mind...But I don't know what I want to say. I really think all will go well and work out exactly how it should, and hopefully by early tomorrow afternoon we have a new baby with us! I am so sad to leave Chloe and give her up as my only baby...But I'm hoping that when the new baby comes I realize that I'm not giving up anything-I'm just getting more.

Today in Sacrament meeting, someone sang one of my absolute (and probably everyone in my family's) Christmas songs- Guard Him, Joseph. As I was listening to the words I was just crying and crying (I would've started ugly crying...but I didn't have any tissues and how embarrassing is that in public??) because I was thinking of how we're about to do this same thing...No, we're not becoming guardians of the Savior of the World, but we are becoming guardians over one of Heavenly Father's little girls. His very own little baby daughter. And that's a huge responsiblity!

Guard him, Joseph, as he slumbers, there behind the stable doors
Let no errant sound distress him, tread thou softly on the floor
Linger watchful round the manger; hush thy voice and still the beasts
For thou hast within thy keeping Christ, the infant Prince of Peace

Guard him, Joseph, through the darkness; watching o'er him till the dawn
Bid the shepherds enter meekly, stand in wonder, gaze in awe
Trim thy lamp and shield thy candle; see they burn all through the night
For thou hast within thy keeping Christ, the everlasting Light

Guard him, Joseph, from all danger; keep thy vigil nigh his bed
Let no harm nor grief befall him; stand thou in a father's stead
When his mother's arms be weary, hold him gently as thine own
For thou hast within thy keeping God's own well-beloved Son.

The last verse is my favorite....When it was sang today, and he said-When his mother's arms be weary, hold him gently as thine own...I just lost it. I was picturing Cody taking Chloe from me, as he often does, to help me whenever I am overwhelmed or need a break, or just because he wants to play or hold or love her. And I know he'll do that with the new baby, too. All this time I haven't been worried about Cody needing more love for the new baby; I knew he'd have all the love in the world for her. It's just me I'm worried about! I talked to Amy tonight and she said her friend was worried about that, too, with her second baby, but that he "brought the love with him."

I know that'll be true for us. I DO love this little girl inside of me! I really, honestly do. I don't want anyone to think that I don't. Anyone else with 2 kids ever felt like this? I know I'll love her just as much as Chloe, it's just hard to believe since I love Chloe SO much! I just don't feel like my heart can expand to love anything else as much. Luckily Heavenly Father is still working miracles, and I'm sure it'll happen and be more than possible.

So, Chloe, I love you. I have loved everything about you these past 14 months you've been my only little baby. You mean the absolute world to me and I don't know what I would do without you in my life. You make it interesting, challenging, fun, amazing, and worth living. You will probably never know exactly how much I love you. I would do absolutely anything for you and I hope you know how much I live for those little moments that you make the hard times so worth it. I love you.

And New Baby Girl, I love you, too. I'm excited to meet you and see what you look like. I can't wait to feel my heart expand as it makes room for all the new love you'll be bringing with you. I can't wait to hold you and cuddle you and kiss you and love you. I am so excited to see you grow and become best friends with your big sister. I love you.

7 am....Bring it on.

Maybe Christmas Doesn't Come From a Store...

I just read this talk given by Elder Holland that he gave back in 1976. It was published in the Dec. Ensign in 1977 and it's so so good! I hope you all read it.

This was my favorite part--
"Then on both sides of the veil a heavenly host broke into song. “Glory to God in the highest,” they sang, “and on earth, peace among men of good will.” (Luke 2:14, Phillips Translation.) But except for heavenly witnesses, these three were alone: Joseph, Mary, the baby to be named Jesus.

At this focal point of all human history, a point illuminated by a new star in the heavens revealed for just such a purpose, probably no other mortal watched—none but a poor young carpenter, a beautiful virgin mother, and silent stabled animals who had not the power to utter the sacredness they had seen.

Shepherds would soon arrive and later, wise men from the East. Later yet the memory of that night would bring Santa Claus and Frosty and Rudolph—and all would be welcome. But first and forever there was just a little family, without toys or trees or tinsel. With a baby—that’s how Christmas began."

I love that (the bolded). I feel like this Christmas, that's how it will be for our family. Just a little family, without toys and trees and tinsel, with a baby..And that's how our Christmas will be. (Ok, so we will have a tree and tinsel, but only because we're living with Cody's family. And I do have toys for Cody, but I'm not getting any "toys" for under the tree-we have to buy a new car so that's my present this year!)

After watching the Christmas Devotional last night I've been thinking a lot more about what we could do this Christmas to put Christ back into focus. I'm usually very focused on getting gifts to give, making treats to share, and decorating and watching Christmas movies...But because this year is a little more meager for us, I want it to be more special. At first I thought maybe Cody and I could go to a soup kitchen or something on Christmas day to serve those less fortunate than us...But because I'll have a brand new baby, I dont' think that'll be possible. I've heard so many older people (like general authorities) talk about when they were first married and poor and they did something simple for Christmas with their family and it is one of their favorite memories. I want something like that this year! I want to do so something really special that I'll remember for always. So I'm still thinking of something special we can do to share the love of Christ and the love of Christmas with each other and those around us. I'll let you know if I think of anything....

And if you have any ideas, definitely swing them by me! :)

Pumpking Carving Contest

I know it's almost Christmas...But I couldn't just skip our Halloween Pumpkin Carving Contest!!! When Seth, Katie, Dan and Amy came for Chloe's birthday, we had a pumpkin competition! It was so fun. We had 4 pumpkins and everyone was on teams. Seth and Katie, Amy and Dan, me and Cody, and Dirk and Tami. The rules were everyone planned out their pumpkin with their team member, carved it, and displayed it. Then everyone voted anonymously and you weren't allowed to vote for your own. There were 4 bags of candy (from the dollar store...yum :-) ) and the team with the most votes got to pick which bag they wanted first, down to the last team.

I think everyone had a great time carving pumpkins! I had a blast. It was so fun!

Cody did pretty much everything on our pumpkin...I came up with the design and what we wanted to carve and he did the rest. He did give me the knife to carve once...But I got scared when it went through MUCH faster and further than I had thought and I gave it back.

Dan is taking out pumpkin guts while Amy designs their pumpkin

The Finished Results!!! Can you guess who belongs to each pumpkin?? (Ninja-Cody and Stacey, "Y"- Seth and Katie (Katie scraped off the oval around the Y and dyed it blue with food coloring! It was awesome!!, Chloe-Dirk and Tami (She even had a bow on her head and two little teeth!! SOooooooo cute!), and Vomit-Dan and Amy (Not only was the vomit coming out of it's mouth, but also it's nose!! It was soooooo funny!!!)

The winning pumpkin! Everyone's pumpkin had votes-which was so awesome! Everyone loved all of them!

Before everyone left we had to take a family picture (Chloe was sleeping) and of course that included Junior!!! I had so much fun having everone here. Thank you, thank you, thank you for coming and surprising me for Chloe's birthday! It was awesome!!