You'd think I would've taken a million pictures of my baby girl's Christmas morning. You'd be wrong :). Only snapped a couple, but we had a great day. Hope yours was merry and bright too.
My shirt says... 'Mom's Favorite Gift' 
Five days old...'holding' the gift she gave me last year
LOVE LOVE LOVE this picture of my girl. 
When we lit the candle and sang to her she burst into tears.
Poor kid, will always have her birthday banner hung by the 'chimney with care' in front of the stockings. I was sure to use no Christmas wrap though!
Uh, anyone claim these two little elves?? Huh? Addison's Mimi & Grandma showed up at the party as twins. Cute guys. 
We almost have a walker. Addi LOVES her new little walker toy, she instantly took to it, and is beside herself with giddiness after she walks with it. I am happy, proud, fearful and a little sad! Here's a small clip, enjoy.
I find all 'firsts' to be so exciting! I think Lyndon and I enjoy them much more than Addison, actually. Here are a couple pics of our trip to the Pumpkin Patch. More to come after carving, and of course of her cute costume :).
p.s. a word to those new to pumpkin patches, like myself! The very same size pumpkin I paid $14 dollars for at the patch, can be purchased at Trader Joe's for $3.49. Play at the patch, but buy at the grocery store! Ah, next year....
Nine months (and five days to be exact). Forty weeks ago today. That's 280 days, 6,720 hours, 403,200 minutes and 24,192,000 seconds... that Addi's been mine. Sigh. It's true love.
Why does it seem so much longer?? Maybe it's that you can't imagine your life or family without them once they've arrived, or maybe as a Mother you actually feel like you have a child as soon as you've peed on the test/heard their heartbeat/seen them on the ultrasound screen... so that was a year and a half ago.
Whatever it may be, this little princess is nine months old! Her personality is coming out more every day, and unbelievably it's even cuter than her sweet face! Love this girl. Adore might be a better word.
9 month stats: 18.5 lbs (50%), 27" (50%), cruising but not walking!
So I'm sitting here browsing friends' blogs while Addi naps (yah, prob not the best use of my time since I'm still in my robe, don't judge me) and I run across a couple posts from girlfriends I grew up with in Orem that have me laughing out loud! HARD! Thank you girls!!!! And sorry, I just pirated this stuff off your blogs :)
First, one of my all time besties (on and off from second grade through freshman year in college), Emily, posted this hilarious blurb about the glory years in high school, she's a very creative writer...here are a couple excerpts:
I was also involved in Young Republicans (please don't judge me by this). My friends and I had agreed to be part of the club because one of the most popular boys had asked us (enough motivation for any teenage girl). Once we were asked to make phone calls--which we ended up calling people we knew, who we didn't usually call, but really wanted to, rather than the official list we were supposed to call. Another time we were asked to get people's permission to put signs on their yard. We had a big stack, and weren't too excited to be spending our Saturday like this, especially since we weren't even in the same group as the popular president, but wanting to please him, we got rid of our stack quickly putting them in any empty field, or available public land. When we got to school Monday, the president frustratingly told us how some people hadn't gotten permission to place their signs, and had put them on private property, which he had to go back and collect. Oops.
My best friend Lisa and I lived about 8 bocks from the school and would meet everyday on the corner to make the jaunt. This "quick" walk was miserable in the cold and we used to get so bugged by the friends who would drive by, honk, and wave. How about a ride?
I remember Lisa and I upgrading our friend's coolness quota, by quite a bit, when she was the first of us to get really kissed.
Dances were always looked on with excitement and dread (Would I get asked? Would I not get asked?). Once, Lisa told me an hour before a boy in our neighborhood was going to ask me to a dance in my History class. I had a complete panic attack. I did not want to go to the dance with this boy, so I begged Lisa to go and tell him that I had already been asked by my non-existent boyfriend. He didn't ask me, and I spent a lot of time feeling guilty about putting an end to his excited preparation. I didn't even go to the dance. This is something I would do differently if I had a chance to live my life again.
Another time Lisa and I decided to throw caution to the wind and ask boys in the top tier of popularity (who we never even talked to) if they would go with us to a girl's choice dance. We knew they were available, because we used to call boys we didn't dare talk to in real life, and anonymously ask them if they had been asked to the dance yet--with no intention of really asking them, just wanting the opportunity to talk to them (I'm embarrassed for my youth even typing that). I don't know if caller-id was available--let's hope not, but I can't be sure because my family was always 10 years late in getting new technology. Anyways Lisa and I bought some Happy Meals, put our names in the hamburger, and left the meal in their front yard. We were terrified to go to school the next day. Terrified!!! But amazingly the boys said yes, and we had an amusing date, at one point of which I was so nervous I forgot to turn off the car before I got out.
And a few days ago I saw this gem on Ashley's blog (she does this cute thing called Flash Back Friday): yep, you're looking at a Jr. High get together in about 1988/89 at Ashley's house. Holy BANGS-were we serious??? Me...awkward one in the black shirt, Ashley is behind me in red. 
If you are reading this post and you have one of these: 
That you have gotten to stop using these:
And take this instead: 
Please leave me a comment and tell me what worked for you. As per the post title, I'm getting desperate. We're making NO progress. XO~
Happy Birthday Mom! To my Birthday Buddy. Wish I was there... we could share the spotlight and a chocolate cake with mint frosting! My Mom is AMAZING- she is kind and caring and creative and talented and funny and driven and hard working, amongst many other things. She has been my biggest cheerleader and she gave me opportunities to get where I am and be who I am today. LOVE YOU LADY!!!
Last year's b-day... 
LA GIRL...
Wonderful Grandma! 
This one LOVES Disneyland...
Does not like to get her hair wet
And loves Hawaii
I LOVE YOU MOM~
So, I got TAGGED by my cute friend Maria Pia.... FUN, I've never been tagged!!!
THE FIVE
10 years ago I:
1. Was 21 (Oh I mean, um 15... since I'm only 25 now!)
2. Was living in Provo, UT- with my friend Marissa Beyers
3. Was attending BYU- they had closed my major and were offering each class one last time, so I was taking all Fashion Merch classes trying to get everything in
4. Was waiting tables at Outback
5. Had short short hair
5 things on today's "to do" list:
1. Wrap and mail my Mom's birthday gifts
2. Go to Old Navy- as per a commercial I saw last night, today only all adult jeans are $12 bucks and kids jeans are $7... worth a peek
3. Frame a couple pics of Addi for Lyndon's office
4. Complete Primary agenda for September-assign talks, etc. (Primary Secretary)
5. Have some family fun!
5 snacks I enjoy: Anyone who knows me knows this will be hard for me to narrow to five, as I'm a complete treat addict
1. Baked Goods- can I lump them altogether? Cupcakes, Chocolate Croissants, Brownies, Cookies, Rice Krispy Treats
2. CHOCOLATE (good dark chocolate, Hershey Kisses, See's candy, Frango mints)
3. Frozen Yogurt/ Ice Cream
4. Doughnuts- total weakness :(
5. Pretzels at the mall
Honestly, I could keep going...Creme Brulee, Churros at Disneyland, Del Taco Quesadillas, Chips and Guac, (and there really are some healthier ones I enjoy in there-I just can't help that nothing even semi-healthy tops the list)
5 things I would do if I were a millionaire:
1. Buy or build my dream house- I can think of a few beach front properties in Corona Del Mar I wouldn't mind living in!
2. Travel the World
3. Set up all relatives so they were taken care of- homes, retirement, etc.
4. Start/invest in a business now and retire young
5. SHOP SHOP SHOP SHOP SHOP
5 places I have lived:
1. Orem, UT / Provo, UT (all the same right?)
2. Los Angeles, CA (when I was very young, 2-5 I think)
3. Honolulu, Hawaii (for six months in 2000)
4. Huntington Beach, CA (moved there after graduating in 2002)
5. Newport Beach, CA (in 2005, for a year with Lyndon)
Five jobs I have had:
1.Retail- JMR (total Utah throw back), Banana Republic, ZCMI, EDF (fragrance company)& Nordstrom
2.Server- Outback and Hardrock Cafe Honolulu
3.BYU Bookstore- sophomore year at BYU
4.Recruiter- post college, for accounting and finance... miserable. Do you know anyone that likes to cold call??
5.Events Manager (commercial real estate co)
(& the hardest job ever- MAMA...does a really rewarding job with no paycheck count?)
I tag...
Anyone who wants to play, and
1.Stacy Circuit
2.Jill
3.Debbie
4.Gaby
5.Lezlie Wagner(girl, you have GOT to update your blog more often :))
Rules:
Each player answers the question themselves.At the end of the post the player then tags 5 people and posts their names, then goes to their blog and leaves them a comment letting them know that they've been tagged and asking them to read your blog. Let the person that tagged you know when you've answered the questions on your blog.
but I picked up a copy of Twilight. Vampires.... REALLY?!?! Anyway, we'll see. This was totally a purchase of peer pressure, given all the hype from seemingly cool normal girls everywhere.
Before Addi was my girl... these were my girls. 
TODAY; this one turned 11. Happy Birthday Kort!!! I have so many happy memories that involve you, little girl! You'll always be my Kortney Ellen Smellen Balls :)
TODAY; this one started Kindergarten. Oh, Gracie Girl... you are an ORIGINAL, you'll be the cutest smartest kid in the class. In the words of your favorite song: Life flies by in seconds, you're not a baby Gracie, you're my friend. You'll be a lady soon but until then you gotta do what I say. 
FYI, You'll still always be my girls! I love you both more than you can possibly know. I remember holding each of you on the day you were born... you are still just as precious to me.
XO~ Auntie
We're back! Ever feel like you need a vacation after your vacation? Yep, me too. I flew alone with Addi for the first time... could have been better, could have been worse. You're probably thinking it's a short flight to Utah, but we had a one hour stop in Vegas where we didn't get off the plane so we were actually in our seat for almost four hours. Picture me with her in the Bjorn in the front, her diaper bag on as a backpack, rolling my carry on behind me with one hand and her giant car seat with the other (I won't ask you to picture me nursing in the airplane bathroom during turbulence, but it happened). And who knew they'd send you to the end of the line if you didn't remove your infants tiny shoes and put them through on the belt??
Anyway, I'll upload some trip pics in due time, but I just received these in the mail from a little photo shoot we had done in June and couldn't resist putting up a few of my fave girl, you know the one.... 
