When your baby brother isn't a baby anymore

My youngest brother turned 12 on Thursday. We are 11 years apart and I have always seen him as a baby. It has been hard for me to realize that he isn't a little baby anymore. He is a big kid. A young man. Some times I still treat him like a little baby but I have realized especially with the big 1-2 that he isn't a little baby but he is turning into a great young man.

He was the funnest, cutest baby you could ever meet. I was old enough that I remember taking care of him and loving it. He was like my practice baby. He probably gets sick of me being his second mother but I love him to pieces.
This is him all grown up.

Being 12 is so cool. It is a big moment in your life. You are finally out of primary. You are officially not a little kid anymore but you are not close to being an adult. You can do almost everything on your own and you defiantly don't need your mom to help you out. Josh is such a special young man. He is different from most because he would rather spend time with his family than his friends. He is funny and loves to play games. I am so glad that I get to be Joshua's older sister and see him grow up.
Happy Birthday Joshua! I love you and I am glad to be your sister!!

Life

For the past while life has just been so crazy! We found out that our house is sold and we have to move by April 15th. Landon got a promotion at work and is now working full time. I have decided to go to school in the spring so that I can finish school earlier than expected. We have so many things going on that I don't even know where to begin. And on top of that I had some kind of flu last week that just knocked me out!
I love this quote

Source: lds.org via Kendra on Pinterest

This is how Landon was this last week. So kind and willing to serve me. Our house may not have looked like heaven but it felt like it to me. I didn't cook, clean, or do much of anything but Landon was still there to get me what I needed.

Family is so important and it is so important to remember to serve the people in your family. We are here for each other whether we like it or not. Luckily I have chosen my husband and I love my choice so serving him isn't that hard.

I challenge you today to find a way to serve those around you that you call family. Do something that will make your home a heaven.

Marriage

Marriage can be a funny thing. We have been married for 2 and a half years and we are no good at it. I mean we still fight and get mad at each other all the time. But the thing about all that is that we still love each other through it all. Dr. Gottman, a foremost researcher of marriage, said that it isn't a matter of how much or how little a couple fights but it is how they make up that really makes the difference of whether or not they stay together. According to that theory I am feeling pretty good about us. We still fight but we also are really good at making up.
This quote from President Gordon B. Hinckley really helps put in perspective what marriage really means -
"I have long felt that happiness in marriage is not so much a matter of romance as it is an anxious concern for the comfort and well-being of one’s companion. That involves a willingness to overlook weaknesses and mistakes.”
We all come with mistakes and weaknesses in our lives. Marriage doesn't fix them. The thing that we need to be willing to do is love the person that you have chosen to be with. It is like this old saying says, Choose your love and love your choice. Once you are married it is your duty and your promise to always love and take care of that person. You made the choice to be with them forever because you love them. Remember that love and look at them through those eyes.

Home Alone

Landon doesn't get home until 9 at night from work so I am home along for a while... in the dark... in the woods. I am usually just fine by myself. I do lock every door to everywhere and make sure all the blinds are closed and that I know where the gun is and that it is ready to go... just in case. But seriously, most days are great. I kinda like my alone time to do whatever I want. To watch shows Landon won't watch with me and eat in bed. (Don't tell Landon he hates when I eat in bed)
But last night was a different story. It was getting to be 8 o'clock so I went to the kitchen to start dinner. I was browning the meat when I hear 2 big THUDS coming from the back porch. If you don't know my closest neighbor is about a quarter mile away, and we live basically in the middle of the forest. No body can see our house from the road and for all intensive purposes we are all by ourselves. So I hear these THUDS. I get freaked. So I grab the gun and go to to back door. I turn on the porch light and I see... nothing. Everything is fine. No footprints in the snow. No animals, nothing. So I walk to every window looking outside to make sure that there is nothing there. Nope... I am all alone, or so I thought. I go back to making dinner. Once dinner is finished I get back in bed and start to watch my show (The Biggest Loser). Now I am at the totally opposite side of the house and I hear a couple more THUDS. Again with the gun and looking out the window. Nothing. So I know Landon won't be home for a while so I call my Mom. She sends my dad over to check everything out. Once he pulls into the drive way he sees it....

(just pretend there is snow on the ground and that I took this picture last night)

A big daddy moose. Right by my porch. I couldn't see him when I looked out the window because he was black but when my dad pulled up his headlights caught the culprit.
I was freaking out for nothing. But I was glad that my dad came to rescue me.

Christmas 2012

 

I just love Christmas. Friends and Family. Good food. And the love... there is just so much love to go around. Here are the pictures from our Christmas vacation time.