Christmas

Well as everyone elses blogs....this is going to be a long post. What a wonderful Christmas season we had. I have to admit I have been dreaming of a White Christmas since I was a little girl and was so excited that I had my first this year. When I wished for it I did not think we would be shoveling snow for an hour to dig cars out, but the magic of it on Christmas morning was just the same. Quite different from the 80 degree weather I grew up with in Florida. Well I will just get to the pics and tell our story of Christmas this year as we go! I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas!

On Christmas Eve Chris and Ben headed to pick Jenny and Brad up from the airport. They thought it would be a lot of fun to get dressed up for this event.We spent Christmas Eve at our house eating lots of food and catching up. And of course a little Rock Band had to be played.

As you can see Chase loves being on the drums....Singing with Uncle Ben is pretty fun too!Ry and Chase in there Christmas PJ'sChristmas morning we woke up and Chase did his usual routine. Walked over to his chair and wanted to eat breakfast. Once he was done we pointed out all the gifts that Santa had left for him. The biggest hit was his little guitar and of course all the little matchbox cars.We had a nice Christmas breakfast of biscuits and gravy and then got ready to head to Carolyns for the afternoon. Little did we know we would all be outside digging out cars, but hey it is a Christmas memory I will never forget. (Check out Amy's blog for more pics of fun in the snow of Christmas day) It was a great day with the Cameron family and the first Christmas that we all spent together since Chris and I have been married.

Chase and Mommy taking a break from shoveling and making snow angels....ok really we just pushed him in the snow and he landed perfectly. I on the other hand was really making snow angels....Such a kid at heart!One we got to Orem.....Our usual picChase loves hanging out with Uncle BenAlso during the week we took Chase to see Santa. He just sat there and stared and played with Santas beard. I guess it is a lot better than Dads. :)
I cannot believe how fast this year has gone by. It has been a great year and we are so grateful for all that we have been blessed with. It seems that this year has brought trials for many with the economic situations that are looming about it, but I am just so grateful for my little family and the support we receive from each other everyday. We look forward to this new year and watching Chase continue to grow and amaze us everyday. He is such a little blessing in our lives and brings lots of smiles and hugs. We are also very excited about the new addition that will be coming to our family and cannot wait for this new little one to get here already. Hey what can I say 9 months goes by very slow, until we get to the end of the year and you loo back at how fast it really went. We wish you all a Happy New Year and hope that this year is full of happiness and joy for all!

Rain or Snow....To Niel we Go!

Friday night we hit the Niel Diamond concert and all I can say is.....WOW! I have to admit I am not the biggest Niel fan, but was surprised at all the songs that I actually knew and could even sing along too, so maybe I secretly have always loved his music. We went with Chris brothers, Ted and Ben and Carolyn and Roxane. It was lots of fun and I really have to say I don't know what was more entertaining.....Niel Diamond, The Backup Singers, or all of the oxygen tanks in tow. He put on quite a show and probably has more energy than me at his ripe age of 67! It was a great concert and we had LOTS of fun! Would I do it again.....Heck Yeah!

Thanksgiving Point Lights

Last night our little family headed over to the Thanksgiving Point lights. Chase has loved the lights this Christmas season so we thought what could be better than to take him to a place totally full of lights. Needless to say it was a winner! Because we were going less than 5 miles per hour and so Chase could see a little more, once we got in we let him sit in Daddy's lap to help drive. Nothing could have made his day better.....driving and lights all combined in one! I think we heard him say, "Wow!" and "Li, Li" (which means lights) atleast 30 times. He was like a little broken record, but nothing could have made me happier than to see him so excited!

Waiting to see the lights...can you see the excitement on our faces!Chase is excited as well if you can't tell!Chase helping Chris drive....our new family tradition for when we take the kiddos to see the lights! ( Chris idea of course)And as I am sure everyone has heard Char had her cute little baby! I went to go and meet her today and she is just perfect, and precious, and pretty! So here is a pic of "Sweet Little Marlie"!
And if anyone ask....I did guess both her weight and height! :)
Can you believe all that hair?

Let it Snow!

Well this weekend the snow has come....I mean I really, I think it has come to stay. Last night we got quite the storm and it has snowed most this morning. Aren't we so lucky? Well once it stopped Chase and I decided to venture out to shovel the back porch, because it never seems to melt on its own. It felt really good to get out, and lets be honest the little bit of exercise it gave me did not hurt as well. The best part of being out there was watching Chase....He loved it! I never grew up around the snow so when I see it coming down my winter plans have always been to stay indoors until it melts. :) Last year was the first year that gave me hope that there were fun activities to do when Chris took me skiing, I still need a lot more practice at that, but hey it gave me hope. So yes Chase, I will do my best to take you out and let you play in this white snow that you love so much! I guess it would be mean to keep both of us prisoners in the house!

I know he did not smile in any of the pics, but I think he was more annoyed that I kept calling his name to take pics, rather than let him just do what he wanted....PLAY, PLAY, PLAY!My little Helper!

Forgotten Carols

Thursday night we headed to Micheal McLeans, "Forgotten Carols", along with Melissa, Carolyn and Roxane. It seems like a big tradition among a lot of people, but one we have not yet done. This year we decided to go because Chris old mission companion, Jordan Bluth was one of the main singers. All I can say is WOW...what an amazing voice he had. At the end of the show Micheal McLean talked about having his own Christmas Carol that he would like to share and Jordan sang it....again his voice.....AMAZING! The song was about Christ and his ultimate sacrifice for us. It really reminded me what Christmas is all about and why we celebrate this holiday all together. It is so easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of gifts and Santa, and lights, which I have to admit I love, but I think it is so easy for each of to loose sight of what this holiday is really about. You know the show can be a little cheesy, but all and all we enjoyed it and the reminder it gave us of what these holidays are really about. Chase also enjoyed it and was such a good boy for being up WAY past his bedtime. Chase has always loved music, like most kids this age, and just stared down at the stage. If people started laughing Chase would join in like he knew what was going on and always clap at the end of the song, he even helped Michael direct the choir.

Just a pic of Tom Proctor, Jordan Bluth, and Chris.....Old Mission Companions.

18 Months Old

Chase turned 18 months old yesterday and I can hardly believe how the time has flown! He is such a big boy now and is growing so fast! The doctor only had good things to say and said he was right on track... He actually said he was one of the most mild tempered 18 months old that he has had in there, which means Chase must have been on his best behavior! He did a great job with his shots although, the nurse scratched up his leg quite a bit. His leg is pretty swollen now, but Chase is happy as happy as can be so it must not feel as bad as it looks. Weight- 24 lbs -37 %tile

Height- 34 inches- 91 %tile

Chewing on his fruit snacks after his shots!

Since this is my little Chase post I just have to brag about all the cute things that he is doing lately. He is really starting to use more words and get his little vocabulary going. Once again alot of those are just things that a mom would understand, but I love hearing his little voice and nothing can make me smile more every morning than hearing his little voice call my name from his crib. He is such a sweet little guys and has always been a cuddler from the the day he was born. I love how he will come up and just grab my legs and give little hugs, and how he will just douse me with kisses. He has just been quite the little blessing in our lives and has made our lives more full, and lots more fun!
I have not taken lots of pics latley.....I guess you can say I have been kinda lazy! But here are just a few pics of the sweetest little guy that consumes my life!

Chris got Chase these froggy slippers when he was in Vegas! Chase loves them!Chase found this model motorcycle in our game room and loves to just ride it around the house! It cracks me up because it is WAY to small for him to ride, I guess like DAD like SON!
Chase loves to play rockband with Chris! We just think it is so funny when he gets down there and starts jamming with Daddy! He also loves watching football with us and anytime he sees it on the TV will go and grab his football and scream "BUT-BALL" which is usually followed with him throwing his hands in the air and then screaming "TUT-DOW"

Today was the BIG day!

Today was the day that I think most parents secretly hope for that sit with there kids 3 hours during church meetings! Yep....if you haven't guessed it is a little thing that I like to call NURSERY! Tomorrow Chase turns 18 months old so he was able to go to nursery for the first time today. I have to admit I had tons of emotions while taking him. I was excited, and nervous, and sad at the thought that my little boy was growing up! Well Chris and I headed to nursery....we have 73 kids that attend nursery in our ward so we went to 3 before we found the one that Chase would be going too. As soon as we got to the door a big grin came over his little face and he immediately wanted down. I was so excited that he was so excited to go in and that he did not have anxiety or was nervous. I always knew that he was a social little guy, but he never looked back! I watched for about 10 minutes before walking away and was just so happy that he was there and loving it! I have to admit I went back 3 times to check in on him and loved the excitement that I saw on his face every time. When I went to pick him I called his name 3 times before he was distracted from bubble time, and came. Once he saw me he started pointing to everything showing me what they had done. It was so cute, because I picked him and told him to say Bye to everyone. This cute little boy came up and said, "Bye, Bye Chase...."
So cute....he made friends!

Anyway....It is so crazy just how fast they really grow up! I guess that is why you just have to take it all in while you can.

I just love this boy and he is growing up way to fast!

So Thankful....

Well here is is...the time that we all reflect what we are thankful for! Wait...shouldn't we just do that all year round. :) Well in the spirit of Thanksgiving I thought it was only fitting to really sit down and remember all the wonderful things I have been blessed with in my life....so here you go!

First and foremost, I am thankful for Chris. I could not have been more blessed with the perfect husband and best friend. He makes me laugh and smile...and yes sometimes he can even make me frown. I love that within minutes he can sometimes bring out every emotion in me, but leave me with a smile in the end. (What can I say...I am an emotional girl) He truly is my rock and foundation, I know that sounds cheesy and sometimes even when I hear people say it the word "Cheesy" comes to mind, but it is true. He is my better half, and lets be real...I am his. :) I know that know matter what the world may throw our way we will get through it because we have each other. Not only is he a great husband, he is a great Dad. I love the way that Chase gets so excited to see him. When he hears the garage door he runs knowing that Chris will be the face that he sees....and every morning when he wakes up he runs to my bedroom screaming Daddy hoping that Chris is still in bed. That his is fun little weekend luxury that he gets to jump in the bed with dad and play. SO THANKFUL.....Great Husband, Great Dad, Best Friend!

So Grateful! Now to the other love of my life....My Sweet Baby Chase! Never did I think I could instantly fall in love with something, but it happened. From the day I knew he would be a part of our lives I fell in love. I fell in love with the thought of being a mom, and knowing that this little guy would be a part of our lives, and wow has he changed things. He has made our lives full, added more fun, and brought lots of smiles. Tonight Chris and I just sat and let him fall asleep on the couch with us, and both could not stop staring at this perfect little guy that we have been blessed to have. We really could not have been blessed with a better a baby boy!

Now to just our families in general. I am SO, SO, LUCKY to have such a great family. Parents who care and support you 100%. Sisters who are really....best friends. And brothers who keep you on your toes because you never know what stunts they are going to pull next. I love it! I love it that even outside my home now I have a great support system just a phone call away. What a great first 18 years I had....Square Meat and Rice, Stone Mountain, Candy Bar Night, Blanket Rides, Boston Celtics, Baseball Games.....The list could go on and on. So thanks family for making things so great! I am also very fortunate I have a great family that I married into. I am so grateful for great in laws who raised such good kids and that I was lucky enough to snag one. I have a great Mother in Law who really treats me like one of her own and am so happy for her friendship.

Friends....I can honestly say that I have some of the best friends in the world. Girls that I would really do anything for, and that I know would do the same with me. We have hit some of the best concerts together, traveled, seen some get married and have kids....as cliche as it sounds, "we have been through the best times and the worst time..." It is great to know that no matter what when your family is not around that your friends are, and that is what my friends have been to me.....FAMILY!

I could go on and on, but I know that people have probably already stopped reading...so now I will just list few things that I am so grateful for.

• Happy to have our Home
• Grateful for the church and that I have the choice to worship as I wish
• Thankful that I live in a great country, and YES I am proud to be an American
• I am grateful for our those who serve in the military
• Thankful for my little dog Boobers
• So happy for great restaurants....Lets be real I love food!
• Happy to have great neighbors
• This month I am grateful that gas prices have dropped a little.

Well I really could go on, but I am grateful for so many things. Chris and I have been so blessed and it is always great to remember those little things....not only at this time, but everyday. What a great time of year! I love fall, I love the smells, and the family time...and I really love the food! Again, I am just SO GRATEFUL and I hope that you all have a great Thanksgiving holiday filled with food, friends, and family!

Family Pics...

The family pics have arrived and it seems we had some that turned out. And to think we walked away unhappy thinking that none would turn out. Here are just a few....

Thanks Shannon you made it work even with our little wiggle worm!

Halloween 2008

Well this weekend was packed with lots of fun Halloween activities. On Friday we got Chase dressed and headed to Chris' work to show him off....He was a hit! His costume was very cute! Way to go Chis on picking out the costume this year. For the evening activities Melissa, Carolyn, and Amy all stopped by to hang out for a little bit. We made a bowl of taco soup and sat back and enjoyed the night. We took Chase out Trick or Treating and I think he loved the kids all running around then neighborhood more than he cared about the fact that candy was being dropped in his bag. He was the cutest little Elvis in Utah....well he was actually the only one I saw, but as alwaysI am biast in many ways.

Our Little Elvis

Mommy and Chase

Daddy and Chase doing a little Trick or Treating Grami Cami and Chase....Elvis has left the building. :) After Chase was fast asleep Grami Cami hung out for a little while so we could go up to Kelly and Rachel's party. It was lots of fun and I only wish we could have stayed longer. Thanks for a great time guys!
Rach and Me

Justin, Chris, and Kelly Saturday morning we headed off to Gardner Village to take in the nice weather and to get a last glimpse of the witches. It was perfect weather and lots of fun to see Chases face trying to figure out all these crazy ladies just standing around.

I love how he has his hand on her leg...

And last, but not least on Saturday we headed over to Cody and Meredith's for one last Halloween party. It was lots of fun....as usual I ate, ate, and then ate some more. Chris and I dressed up as Hugh and Holly. Everyone had such cute costumes and we had a great time!

Family Pics.....Disaster?

Well last night we went and took family pictures. Wow! I never knew it would be so tough with a 1 year old...or maybe just my little one has no attention span. I honestly thought I had all my basis covered. I put him down for an earlier nap and even fed him lunch a little early so he would go down well for that nap and then we could run some afternoon errands. I headed down to Orem and everything was going perfectly.....The night before I had said to Chris that we needed to trim Chases hair because he had some crazy long stragglers. It really was not that big of a deal, but I thought we would just trim it up a little on the sides and keep the top long. Well it did not get done the night before so right after work Chris decided to work on it. All I can say it Chase pretty much got a buzz....oops! It would have been fine other than the fact that we were taking family pics that day and he is being Elvis for Halloween. Oh well... what could we do.

We headed to the place the photographer wanted us to meet and I don't think anyone was super happy with the location, but we took a few pics there and then headed to another spot. Chase was a handful to say the least. Being in a new place everything looked so enticing to him and getting him to sit at all was a trial to say the least. Thinking back on the whole thing I probably should have given him another snack and juice before we went, but oh well. The photographer said, it is so easy to take pics until they start walking and then they think they have to be on the go. Needless to say, Chris and I walked away with little confidence that a good pic was even taken. I guess we will see the results when they come back, but in the future with a 1 year old I will have to be very creative....and give them a snack! I did think about it on the way to the other location, but it did not take too long to get there and all he wanted was the food when we got there and was unhappy when I took it away. I really think his grumpiness had a lot to do with my forgetfullness. :)

Well stay tuned....You may or may not see family pics posted on here in a week or so.

Pumpkin Patch

On Thursday Chris and I decided it was time for us to go and get our pumpkins. A fun, yet cheap activity. Julie had mentioned a fun place in Herriman so we headed up and got our pumpkin search on. It was pretty funny watching Chris look for a pumpkin because it had to be "perfect".....Had to have a stem and be perfectly round. Chase on the other hand picked up everyone he saw, would yell ball and then throw it. We ended up with four pumpkins for our little family and it was only $4....what a deal! It was a cute little place and had a cute little corn maze and tractors. Chase was in sterring wheel heaven with all the steering wheels and gadgets that he was able to play with on the tractors. In fact to get him interested in the pumpkins we had to go way out in the field and far away from the tractors. It was a perfect place to go and a fun family activity! Thanks for the tip Julie!

Chase in heaven...Just him his tractor and his steering wheel!

Chris and Chase

Can I have this one?

On Friday we headed to my nephews baptism. It was actually a 3 for 1 deal. Both nephews were baptized and little Sadie Jane was blessed. She is such a cutie and had a grin on from head to toe of course until the blessing came....and then she let us know she was upset for being laid down. It was so cute to see them all dressed and white and to share in there big day.

Cute little Sadie

Drew and JesseI just love this pic of Shelby and Sadie....such a great big sister!