Bailee turns 7!

My big girl turned 7 on February 13!! I can't believe it's already been 7 years since she was born! She's such a big girl now. Where did the time go? She used to be my little baby, but now she's a big, independent girl. I can't believe how life just keeps on going. She keeps growing and growing, and becoming more and more mature. And she's only 7! It's so fun to see her learn and grow, and I can't believe how smart she is! She loves to read books, write, color, and do crafts. I love watching her do a project. She tilts her head back and forth from side to side as she's concentrating on something. It's so cute!

Her current favorite meal is baked ziti, and her favorite color is purple. She also LOVES to go swimming!!

Here's a little re-cap of her THREE birthday celebrations:
We celebrated with my side of the family on Superbowl Sunday, February 7. We also celebrated her cousin Jovi's first birthday that nigh. My SIL, Brianna, makes the cutest cakes! She made Ryker his "Cars" cake back in October, and this cute purple cake for Jovi & Bailee. The girls both wore polka-dots that night, and it wasn't even planned!


We had a birthday party for Bailee on her actual b-day, Feb. 13. She was able to choose 10 friends to invite. I always worry about hurt feelings from other relatives or friends in her classes and neighborhood, but I can only take so many at once! ;) I hope no one is offended.

We played pin the candle on the cake, duck-duck-goose, had a pinata, and a couple of other fun games.

Each of the kids got to decorate their own cupcake:

And here she is opening presents:

And last but not least, the cake! I borrowed some of my SIL's cake stuff and made this little heart cake. I thought it turned out pretty cute! (for a beginner)

And then, we celebrated with Kevin's side of the family on Sunday, Feb. 14th. Also grandpa Chapman's b-day. We also celebrated her cousin, Hadlee's 1st birthday.

Happy Birthday Bailee!! I love you SO much!

Honest Scrap

Oh boy, I've been awarded the Honest Scrap by my good friend Holly. I have to come up with 10 honest things about myself that most people don't know. I did something similar to this, back in 2008. Click here if you care to read it. Okay, a lot of you may already know these things about me, but I'll do the best I can. Then I'm awarding it to 4 more people.


1. Like my friend Angie, I love our neighbors and ward, but I sometimes don't tell people I live in Kearns, because of it's "bad reputation". I feel like I have so many friends in this neighborhood, and I would miss so many people if we moved. We've been here 10 years, and this was our first house. We moved in 6 months after we were married, and have grown so much right here in good ol' Kearns. There. I said it!

2. I have a hard time sitting down and just playing with my kids. I have so much to do every day, that I feel like I need to be getting something done, all the time. But what's more important than spending time with the kids, and developing a relationship with them? I do sit and play with them, but I have to MAKE myself do it. I read a friends comment on another blog saying you should spend 20 minutes every day with each child individually. I will be working on that from now on. (Thanks, Melissa!)


3. I have discovered that I am a "dropper". I just set stuff down in places where it doesn't belong, and that's why my house always looks cluttered. (Well, that, plus the fact that my 3 children, and my husband are droppers). I'm horrible at putting things away, but I am working on it this year!


4. I cleaned off and dusted my dresser the other day, and it had been probably at least 4 months since it had last been dusted!! I can't believe I'm saying this out loud.


5. I love to mow the lawn. Yes, it's a man's job, but it's great exercise, and it gives Kevin more free time when he comes home from work. It's just one less "honey do" thing for him to do. Believe me, he has enough on his "honey do" list to last a lifetime! I need to learn how to do some of those things on the list, so I can stop nagging him. But sometimes you just need the sheer brawn to get this stuff done, ya know?


6. I used to be an avid snowboarder. When I was a teenager, I'd just go up night boarding at Brighton all the time after work, all by myself. I also went to Solitude, Snowbird and Jackson Hole ski resort, by myself. I had a passion for it, and wanted to go. I tried to find people to go with me, but when no one could, I just went. But I haven't gone since before my first child was born, so over 7 years ago. I REALLY miss it, and tell myself every year that I'll go. I strapped back in a couple of years ago on a tiny hill by my house, started going down the hill, then got scared and fell. I hope it will be like riding a bike, and come back to me quickly when I go again.


7. Like my friend Holly, I know Sundays are the designated "day of rest", but sometimes I feel like I work just as much on Sundays as I do the rest of the week. Now that we have 9:00 church though, it's a lot better. I have to get the kids bathed the night before, and I've even been able to catch a Sunday nap the past few weeks. I love 9:00 church!


8. I have a constant fear that people don't like me. I'm not saying this to get attention or anything. But I feel like I'm constantly worrying about whether or not I'm offending someone. I think gossip makes it worse. When I hear someone talking negatively about someone, I think to myself, "Gee, I wonder what they say about me when I'm not around."


9. I think Valentines day is kind of dumb. It's not that I don't like expressing love to my friends and loved ones, it's just a lot of pressure, and too much candy. I just bought like $30 worth of candy for all the various parties. The whole time I was putting it on the belt at the store, I was thinking to myself, "why am I doing this!? Oh yeah, because it's expected." It's almost like an assignment. Like, you have to tell these people you love them today. And what if you forget someone?? Ahhh! Just treat everyone kindly every day, and tell them you love them every day. And what about the high expectations? Kevin will have to get me flowers that day, just because it's Valentines day. I'd much rather get flowers on a random, unexpected day. It would mean SO much more knowing he did it just because he wanted to, not because he HAD to. Ya know??

(On a side note, I also think Halloween is kind of stupid.)

10. I love to watch Yo Gabba Gabba with the kids.

I am challenging the following people to post their Honest Scrap:

Dawna (my SIL)

Brianne (my sister, who never blogs!)

Brianna (another SIL)

Season (my other sister)

Prayers for Bronson

I don't know how many of you have heard about this story, but I've been following the blog for days now, and was so happy to hear the latest news on this little guy who almost drowned. This story has made me cry so much, from reading every single detail of the day of the accident, through all the hospital details. This mom posts numerous times a day with updates. She has made me want to hold my children a little closer, and I just wanted to share.

http://stakerzxposed.blogspot.com

Once there was a snowman

Well, I don't know about you, but January was just kind of a *blah* month for us around here. Obviously, I haven't had an awful lot to blog about. Life has just been rolling along normally. The kids were home most of the month, but just went back on track last week. I tried to take them somewhere "fun" at least once a week when they were off track. Sometimes it's hard to keep coming up with "indoor" ideas when it's been so cold outside. I REALLY can't wait till spring!
So, since I don't have much to post, I thought I'd post a few of these pictures of Bailee building a snowman. This was actually a month ago, on Jan. 1st. She just went outside and built this little guy all by herself! I didn't know she had it in her. :)
She got the snowman kit at a Christmas party, which came with a hat, a scarf, the plastic carrot, and some coal for eyes and the mouth (which I took from her since they made her hands black). The snowman is almost as tall as she is! And I didn't help her one bit. My little girl is growing up! Look how independent she is. ;)

And she even built a friend for him!