Christmas!

Another Christmas come and gone. It was pretty festive day, and I'm glad it's over for another year! We enjoyed watching the kids, they had such a great morning. Emma got a dollhouse, Aiden a train set, Hannah a Little People farm set and baby doll, and Makenna her first baby doll. We get the kids new PJ's every Christmas Eve, and they've come to look forward to that tradition as well. Everything looked all pretty before the kids woke up...then it looked like a tornado had hit our living room.

Hannah loved her baby so much, she didn't care about any other gifts!

Makenna was equally excited about her baby doll.

Blessing Day

We blessed Makenna finally! She looked beautiful in her long white dress, and didn't scream during the blessing, so that was good.

5 Things You May Not Know About Hannah...

1. Hannah LOVES her grandpa and grandma. She'll pick them over Kris or I any day. The first thing she says in the morning is "Papa?" I love that she's attached, because then she'll follow someone else all day instead of me! :)

2. Hannah loves cake, cookies, and especially chocolate raisins. She must be my daughter, because I'm a pastry freak as well. She can say "tookie and take". We have a lot of photos of Hannah enjoying her treats. But she'll eat about everything. She won't have plain milk anymore without chocolate, even if it's just a few drops. Thanks, Grandpa.

3. Hannah loves shoes, purses and barbie dolls. She'll take any opportunity she can to put on your shoes. Her favorite is her sisters princess shoes, or dads "boops" (boots). She loves to have on all the pretty things, but hates for me to help her do it.

4. Hannah's favorite toys are containers with lids she can screw on and off and put things in and out of. She'll carry around an empty pop bottle for hours opening and closing it.

5. Hannah is pretty sassy. If she isn't happy with you, you'll get a pretty dirty look. She's the best at making you feel stupid by the way she looks at you. She can hold her own quite well with the older kids and keeps up. There's no way she's gonna be left behind, or watch out!

My sweet Grandma returned to her Heavenly Father early this morning. She was diagnosed with Pancreatic Cancer the week before Makenna was born; October 3. I'm so grateful we took the trip to visit her after the baby was here and took this photo. She was such an amazing woman, and left behind her such a legacy of love, compassion, and faith. I'll never forget the quirky things she did and said to make us laugh, or her testimony of the gospel. I love her and will miss her terribly, but know with all my heart she is at peace and serving our Heavenly Father. I am so grateful for the gospel and the knowledge we have that I know I will see her again someday if I live my life according to the covenants I've made. I am also grateful for the many memories I have of her, and try my best to pass those memories on to my children. This morning after my dad told me she had passed away, I told my kids. Emma said the blessing on the breakfast...as is her routine. I'll never forget when she blessed that "great-grandma would be safe now". Even now, it brings on tears and emotions. I'm happy to know that I'm teaching her something good! I love you Grandma!

Letters to Santa

Aiden, Emma and I sat down and wrote our their letters to Santa Clause. They couldn't wait any longer. We have our tree up and made our first count-down calendar as well. It has pockets on it that hold a mini ornament that the kids put on a mini tree everyday, along with a new activity to do everyday until Christmas. The letters to Santa was the first activity. I'm just as excited as the kids are for Christmas to come. This is the first year Kris and I have gotten all of our Christmas shopping done ahead of time, so all we have to do is relax. I think that watching your kids on Christmas morning is so much more fun than wondering what you have under the tree for yourself. They are so much fun, I love being a mommy!

Blue Eyed Beauties

I'm so happy a little of my DNA came through on two of our girls...my blue eyes. Everything else is Liechty, all the way. I love sharing that trait with my little girls. Aiden and Emma both have brown eyes, and are the only ones in my entire family, grandkids and adults, that have them.

Grumpy Man

Aiden was really upset the other night at dinner. I still don't know what he was mad about, but he was determined not to smile or cheer up, and eventually fell asleep at the table.

Turkey Day

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving! My brother Nate and his family were able to come visit from Idaho. It was almost a stress free day...the cooking was a little hard considering Makenna's bad mood made it hard to cook. But other than that, we really enjoyed the day.

Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Tomorrow is the big food day...I love it! I did all of my baking today. Four pies, cake, dips and salads. Tomorrow all I have are the big bird and the side dishes. Yup, I'm making dinner myself this year, so wish me luck! I have to say I am thankful that I have food to prepare. I have so much to be grateful for, I couldn't ask for anything more in this life. I'm thankful for my family, my babies and sweetheart husband, and especially for my Heavenly Father and for his awareness of me and my little family. I thankful to know that if I do my part, He will bless us continually. I'm thankful for all the the support I receive from family and friends, of which I would not survive the difficulties that come my way. I'm thankful for all my blessings, and pray that I can be worthy of them all. I really do wish everyone a happy holiday, and hope you remember the blessings you have in your life!

Sick

Well, it's been another one of those weeks where all the kids were sick at once. We get it a least twice a year, I guess this year was no exception. We have been a little worried about Makenna. She had ear infections, thrush and conjested lungs. Thankfully, it's clearing up with some medicine, TLC and time. And the test for RSV was negative, so I'm very thankful. I know that we can't lock ourselves from the world forever, but I'm a lot more aware of germs than I ever have been before, even since Emma was born. I'm now one of the moms who wipes down everything with a clorox wipe before touching (I carry portable ones in my diaper bag now). I'll probably be that way until my kids are grown a little older. I've been hand sanitizing so much my hands are sore. I am, however, looking forward to the day we can start going on family outtings and trips again. My once a week trip to the grocery store is getting a little boring, but at least I can get out of the house for an hour...with four kids.

Well, there are two tags I have to complete, so here's the first one. I'll have to do the other later...I have to think about what to write for it.
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Man Tag

1. What is your husbands name? Kris
2. How long have you been married? 7 years in January
3. How long did you date? 9 or 10 months, I can't remember really
4. How old is he? 28
5. Who eats the sweets? Well...it depends on the sweet. I eat all the pastries, Kris is more of a candy kind of guy.
6. Who said "I Love You" first? Kris
7. Who is taller? Kris
8. Who sings the best? I do, I think
9. Who is smarter? Umm, Kris is. But don't ask him "What is everything that a mom does entail?", he'll have no clue.
10. Who does the laundry? Me
11. Who pays the bills? Kris brings in the money, I make sure they're paid.
12. Who sleeps on the right side? Kris
13. Who mows the lawn? Kris
14. Who cooks? Me...always
15. Who drives? Kris does
16. Who is the first to admit they are wrong? Neither, we just kind of let it go. We're both too stubborn to admit when we're wrong.
17. Who kissed who first? I think it was mutual
18. Who asked who out first? I think we just kind of started doing things together, not really asking each other out on formal dates or anything.
19. Who wears the pants? I like to think Kris, but he'd probably state otherwise.

Halloween Fun!

Emma was a Fairy Princess, and Aiden was a Pirate. We had a really hard time getting this ladybug to smile for the camera, and Makenna just lays there still. They all looked cute anyway! Another Halloween, come and past...thank goodness! It's quite a production getting everyone ready, and making sure they all stay right by you while trick or treating. But in the end, it was worth it. The kids and I had a wonderful time. Emma has asked me to dress up every year. This year I was me, with a tiara because I don't have a costume to fit a postpartum body. Now all I have to do is keep the candy hidden as much as possible!

It's a Girl!!

Miss Makenna Ruth finally arrived on schedule; October 10, 2008 at 8:05 am. She was 7 lbs 5 ounces and 19 inches long. She's by far the smallest baby we've had yet, all of the others were in the 8's. So I was a little nervous at first, but have adjusted. She's a sweet girl, only like most newborns, has her days and nights seriously messed up. I think I get an average of 3 hours of sleep at night. She has a little bit of acid reflux, but so did Hannah, so at least it's not a totally new trial for us. Brother and sisters are doing great with it, Hannah hasn't really had time to notice her yet, but when she does I can imagine disaster. Emma and Aiden love being Mommy's big helpers, and have been wonderful with Makenna. Aiden kept asking when I was going to go back to the doctor and "get the boy out". He was a little heartbroken to have another sister instead of a brother. Kris came up with Makenna, and I love it. Only I'm having a hard time keeping track of Hannah and Makenna and Emma...they all sound the same. I'm doing okay. I did get a little infection in the incision, but luckily nothing bad enough to put me back in the hospital again. I think that the most painful part of it all wasn't the surgery...it's always a relief to get the baby out...but getting the IV. They tried 8 times to get that thing in, and I hated it. Oh well, what we go through to have our babies. But we're very happy and blessed to have another beautiful, healthy baby girl and look forward to the many years ahead with her and our other little ones.

Camping

We took the kids camping a few times this summer, and they love it! We like being able to get dirty and not worry about it. We found a great spot that had a small creek running next to it, and we played in it every day. We also took an afternoon and drove up to Lym Lake. It was a bumpy ride, and I thought I was going into labor after that, but well worth the trip!

Girls Night Out

Kris and Aiden go to the BYU football games together, so that means Hannah, Emma and I get to have some girl time together. We went to Pizza Hut, then after that we watched a princess movie, painted toes and gave make-overs. Emma uses every color of eyeshadow, blush and lipstick when she does my face, and thinks it's absolutely beautiful!

Aiden's Birthday

Aiden had his 3rd Birthday on the 13th of September. We took the kids down to the children's museum, where they had so much fun they couldn't decide what to look at first. So it ended up being a lot of chasing, but that's okay. He had to have a Mickey Mouse birthday, so we did our best, although he picked out sports wrapping paper. He was easy to shop for...all he wanted was a rubber snake and some candy. No problem! In the end, he had a great day, and so did the rest of us.

Hannah

Hanna is our little drama queen. I think out of the three, she's the most opinionated and strong willed. She's been our challenge for sure! She's getting so good at talking already...has to keep up with big sister! She is a big book lover and absolutely loves her grandma and grandpa. Of course, being spoiled helps. She loves to follow her brother and sister around, and try to do everything they do. She's already into dress up, yet hates to be dressed and have her hair done. Whoever heard of a girly girl who hates mommy to make them pretty? Hannah loves chocolate (from her dad) and cake (from me). I love that she's strong, and hopefully I can keep that characteristic headed in the right direction.

Aiden

Aiden...there's so much to say about him. He makes me laugh, and makes me angry, what can I say! But underneath the tantrums, what a sweet little boy. He loves his chicken and dogs and is always concerned about thier well being. He's very sensative, yet stubborn at the same time. Whatever we do, it has to be his decision. You would think from Emma's outgoing personality that she would be the one to give you loves, but Aiden is the most friendly to everyone around him. He's willing to give anyone a hug and kiss, no matter who it is. Since he's decided he can talk, he's competing with Emma everyday to see who can chatter the most...only you have to speak Aidenese to understand! I love my little boy for just being him, and for putting up with an older sister who makes him her prince everyday!

Emma

Emma is our oldest little girl. She's such a big helper, and I know I can count on her to be the peacemaker in our family. She loves to dance, sing and try to be a second mommy to her little brother and sister. Emma had her first singing performance last weekend when she sang at the stake baptism. I was so proud of her, she was wonderful! I love that she's girly, but is ready to get dirty outside in an instant. She loves to play with her siblings and take care of her animals, and is such a sweetheart. She can make friends in an instant, and does so everywhere we go...even McDonalds!

Finally

Well, here I am finally getting to creating a blog for my family. It'll take me a long time to figure everything out, and I'll probably only update it once in a while, but that's okay. I'll get it eventually!