Count your many blessings...

I can try to count them. But I am realizing more and more every day,

that the blessings in my life are numberless.

For some reason, it is so easy to forget that though. Why is that?

Why does it sometimes take tragic things to make me realize all that I have?

We have had a pretty heavy week this week. Charles started off his week at work with the news that a coworker that he worked closely with was killed in a hit and run accident on his bike over the weekend. Something so sudden really puts life into perspective. It makes you realize how important it is to live every day to the fullest, and to love and serve others like there is no tomorrow. What it really makes me want to do is just to pull my family in close, and never ever let go.

Late last night we got another call that has weighed heavy on my heart all day. When we moved here, we had a couple of families that really opened their arms to us and helped us and loved us instantly. One of those families happens to live just up the road, and has continued to be great friends to us. They have two little girls, who Abigail adores, and a baby boy. Kajsa has been a great friend to me from the first time I met her, often taking Abigail when I had doctor's appointments, or when I had a new baby. She has showed up here multiple times to take Abigail off of my hands when Ellie was sick, or she knew I needed a break. She has brought gifts and meals. They are a wonderful family. Yesterday they found out that their oldest, 5 year old Jaylie, has a tumor on her brain. They have been in the hospital since then. She will have surgery tomorrow and hopefully the doctors will be able to remove the entire tumor. My heart breaks for this sweet family and this trial they are facing. Please pray for them. Fast for them. Wish on a star, cross your fingers, whatever it is you do.

I haven't been able to stop hugging and kissing on my girls all day long.

I can count my blessings... Or I can just go love on them.

Days like this...

seem to present themselves in clusters. That makes me less than excited for this week where most days are started or ended with longer hours without daddy at home.

It is almost 4.

The house is a mess.

Abigail is a mess.

Ellie won't sleep.

Dinner...? Please, I have no idea. And... we really just had lunch.

I'm still in my workout clothes.

Don't get any crazy ideas though, I never actually made it to the gym.

Abigail has watched more on netflix than I will admit to even myself today as I have been holding, feeding and soothing Ellie for most of the day.

The distinction between clean and dirty laundry is so blurred that I am just going to have to start all over again. All because I never actually folded and put things away after finishing washing everything.

All of this after last night, I lost more than half of the photos of a wedding I spent most of the day Saturday photographing.

Heaven Help this house tomorrow. Let's hope things go a little more smoothly.

Take it all in stride, right??

Now someone please bring me my bon bons.

I'm so glad when Daddy comes home :)

This post requires a little bit of background from two directions.

Every now and then, we will be so anxious for Daddy to get home from work, that Abigail will request that we go look for him. We grab our stools, and head out to the sidewalk where we sit and wait (and look for bugs, or whatever else we feel like doing).

Something else you need to know, is that Abigail has the most vivid imagination of any child I have ever seen (but lets be honest... I know her better than any other child I've ever known, so I don't know how much that says...). Anyway, she spends very little time in the day as "Abigail." For example- last night she went to bed a Bengal Tiger, so of course, I wasn't surprised when my baby tiger came crawling into my room this morning looking for her Mommy Bengal Tiger. I managed to get out a roar that appeased her, and got me a few more minutes with my pillow. Throughout the rest of the day today, I had a dance party on the beach with my two baby crabs, and had butterflies for dinner with a sea turtle. You heard me right. It was quite a day. You can be sure that at any point on any given day, she could be a Mommy or a Princess. Those are the recurring rolls in her repertoire.

Another funny story about her imagination- Yesterday we went over to a friends house for dinner. These friends have girls each within a month of our girls and we have become good friends with them. Abigail LOVES Jaidyn, their daughter. I have never seen to kids become such great friends so quickly. Anyway, last night, I was trying to rush Abigail out the door to go to their house. I told her we needed to hurry so Jaidyn wouldn't get sad waiting for us. This immediately sent Abigail into a conversation with Jaidyn that lasted until we got to their house. With her hand to her mouth, shouting, Abigail said, "Jaidyn, I'm coming!" Then she transferred her hand to her ear so she could hear better, "What you say Jaidyn?? Oh, You're my best friend, too!" I was laughing out loud most of the drive over as I witnessed this conversation for the remainder of the trip, mingled with the "Mommy, where we going? We going to Jaidyn's house Mommy?" which she asked over, and over again.

Now, where do these two backgrounds meet up??

Here is Abigail, the Mommy, with her baby. They are waiting outside for daddy to get home from work. There was a joyous reunion when he came home.

She is one of a kind.

Krum

Here is the bulk of the pictures I took this weekend. One of my favorite places in the world is tucked away in the dusty roads of Krum, Texas. Some of my best memories are of times we spent as a family out at the farm, roasting hotdogs or marshmellows over a fire, fishing, riding four wheelers, riding horses, sitting on my dad's lap driving the big trucks scared I was going to run over a cow, LOTS of good memories of this place. I love taking my own kids to do things that I loved so much as a child, and still love today. So Saturday, Dad made tin foil dinners for everyone, Brad got the fishing supplies, and we all headed out the farm for an evening of fun. A big thanks to the boys for DVR'ing the BYU game so they could come with us. I, for one, know what a sacrifice they made. I don't think they regretted it though. Lots of fun, fishing, four-wheelin', watermelon, and s'mores. What's there to complain about?

Brace yourself for the pictures... there are a lot :)

Nana and Papa's

We always try to make it out to visit Nana and Papa any chance that we can. We can normally catch Nana, but Papa isn't one to sit around twiddling his thumbs. We missed him last time we stopped by. This visit, we caught him just as he came home from the farm, before he headed out to dinner and a night of baseball. Abigail loves to go out on the "tractor" and check on the cows with him. This time of year is the BEST, it is when all the new babies are being born. She even got to drive this time.

She loves Nana's play room, full of toys, and wonderful bunkbeds. She loves it even better when there are cousins to play along with. I like that too, that means I can actually sit and visit with Nana instead of play with the toys.

We love being closer to them, and are excited to see them again in a month for their SIXTIETH, that right 60th, wedding anniversary.

Glad Courtney was there too, she held Ellie while me and Nana watched the kids take off with Papa. Nana takes her roll very seriously. She told me she had to come out so she could start hollerin' if Papa drove too fast :)

Mimi and Pops

Last week ended up being a lot of fun, for a not very fun reason.

Let me explain... Courtney and Mom came down on Monday to spend a few days with us during their spring break. I wasn't feeling very good, and by Tuesday, my Mom talked me into going to get checked out. Turned out that I had strep throat. Well, because they are awesome, Courtney and Mom offered to take Abigail home with them and let me get some rest for a few days. Of course that meant that we would HAVE to go pick her up (twist my arm... a visit home? DARN).

We went up Thursday night after Charles got off work, entertained by the BYU basketball game- thank you March Madness iPhone app :)

Friday morning, I still wasn't getting any better with the meds, so I went to the doctor again, this time for a good old fashioned shot in the tooshie. That turned things around quickly and I was up and at 'em Saturday feeling lots better.

We had a lot of fun hanging out with family, so there will be a few posts worth of pictures of the weekend.

We Love our Ellie Girl

This girl gets lots of lovin' around here. Abigail is getting more and more excited about her new roll as a big sister as Ellie is getting older.

As you can see here, she is anxiously awaiting a playmate.

She'll be playing with those toys soon enough Abigail, soon enough :)

More than a Moment

I feel like this post needs a little bit of background information.

In the days following our move to Texas, I lost my grandmother. A few short weeks later, Charles lost his grandfather. Because of the move, and my pregnancy, we weren't able to attend either funeral. It is a strange thing to lose someone you love, and not be able to go and celebrate their life. It almost doesn't seem real. We have talked a lot about them since they've passed, but there is something about being at the memorial service that brings closure. We missed that with both grandparents. Now, months later, I feel like we have it. I can only speak for myself though.

Ellie's middle name is from my grandmother, Ila Mae. When we blessed her, in January, and Charles said her full name, Ellie Mae Himmer... I felt that closure. I felt Grandma there, and I saw in a very real sense, the legacy she left behind. Encircled with worthy Priesthood holders, Ellie was given a special blessing. I couldn't help but realize what a vital role my grandmother had in that event. From the way she raised my dad, to the way he raised us. It was just a moment, just a blessing. For me, it was a much needed chance to reflect on the life of a wonderful woman that I was lucky enough to have in my life for so long.

I had another similar experience two nights ago.

For Valentine's day, Abigail got her Daddy a little airplane that he had been eyeing on our last trip to Hobby Lobby (he's a trooper). When he opened it up, he put it together and he and Abigail hit the back yard to test it out. I watched him with her. I watched him wind up the propeller, and show Abigail just how it would work. He took her hand and helped her throw it on its Maiden Voyage. For a second, I felt like I was watching two different people, many years ago. I could see Frank Seal, kneeling with his grandson, teaching him about planes, something that would remain an interest for the rest of Charles' life. I took a moment to reflect on so many attributes of Charles that he undeniably inherited, or learned, from his grandfather. I am so thankful for the influence he had on Charles. I know he played a valuable roll in making him the man he is today, the man that I love. Again, it was just a moment in our busy lives, but I again was reminded in a very real way of the impact of one life on another, and on generations to follow.

What legacy are you building?

Two peas in a pod

Life is really hard.

Especially when you have perfect curls, dimples, and personality coming out of your ears.

I'm just glad that Abigail has found someone who can understand the burden she has to bear.

Happy Valentine's Day

My Valentine's day was fill with methodically dipping strawberries in chocolate. My intention was to surprise Charles with a few tasty treats for after the girls got to bed. One thing led to another, and soon enough, we had about 30 chocolate covered strawberries covering our counters.

Who knew dipping strawberries would be so therapeutic? I dipped and drizzled to my heart's content while Ellie slept and Abi "slept."

Abigail eventually came down, mid-dipping. It was hilarious to watch her stand on a chair next to me with a non-stop bounce of excitement. I can't tell you how many times I said, don't touch them, Abi.

She was the first to indulge. Instead of a surprise for after the girls went to bed, we had a surprise of driving around and delivering strawberries to a few families.

A day in the life...

First off, you have to know... Charles' new job is plush. They have massage therapists come to the office frequently for free massages. They have a leisure room, 2 fully stocked kitchens, catered lunch multiple times a week, a ping pong table... you get the idea, he has it rough.

Well, today Charles texted me from his palace (work) and asked how my day was going. I think he was expected a one or two work response. Instead, he got this email.

Captain's log: 2/10/11

Prior to 6 am... Don't even go there.

6:45 AM- Finally give in, Ellie wins, time to feed.

6:50-7:00 AM- falls asleep while feeding, put her back down, wakes up, and is up for the day.

8:00 AM - take her diaper off to change it, and she wets everywhere

8:05- Ellie takes a bath

8:15- She is ready to have a nap. Falls asleep rocking with Mom

8:30- Put her down in her bed.

8:45- Abigail gets up. Goes poop and pee on her own, decides to empty her potty into the toilet... empties said contents onto our white carpet. Takes it one step further by trying to clean it up by herself too. By the time I got up to her room to see why she was still up there, I found the carpet soaked, poop on the floor, and Abigail sitting down with a wipe, trying to clean her feet.

8: 50- Ellie is screaming again

8:55- Abigail hits the bath tub, understandably. Bath time is uneventful. She plays while I juggle back and forth between trying to get Ellie back to sleep and trying to get Abigail cleaned up.

9:30 Ellie still crying with intermittent pauses of hope. Abigail is "HONGY." Feed Abigail some breakfast and let her watch Peter Rabbit.

9:45 Still crying and parked in front of netflix (that refers to Ellie and Abi... not me, surprisingly)

10:00 All is quiet on the Himmer front. Ellie is sleeping. Dishes are done. I am playing with Abigail and her blasted bird puppet.

10:08- Realization.... OH CRAP, I had a visiting teaching appointment at 10.

10:10- scrambling to get stuff together to run to the appt.

10:15- realize it is hopeless. call and cancel. But I can still make it to the 11:30 appointment, right??

10:30- quickest makeup application on the planet.

10:45- Get Ellie up, dressed, and fed. ready to walk out the door just on time.

11:10- Que the spit up of a lifetime.

11:15- new clothes for mom and ellie.

11:20- out the door.

What a morning... things have settled down though. I can breath now.

So... who has the harder job here?? Did you have catered lunch and a massage today?? Don't pull a muscle playing ping pong.

End of Email...

I can't help but think of the times that someone has said, "Oh, you just stay at home with your kids? What do you do all day?"

Next time, I think I'll ask... What do you do at "work?" 9-5 can be so demanding, right??

I had to write this just for the sheer comedy of my morning. Things got better after noon... although there was another incident during Abi's "nap" involving feces. We won't go there.

Highlight of my day... we just got back from a date night. The first in far too long. I forgot how much I like Charles. It was nice to spend some time with him.

A little bribe goes a LONG way...

Lately naps have lost their luster for Abigail.

They will never, EVER lose it for me.

Quiet time worked for a while, but lately, nap time has been more of a dress up time than anything. It usually comes to an end with multiple trips to the potty, or, the last couple of days, with Abigail screaming for help because she is trapped in one of the many shirts she has layered on herself. Today I went up to find her all but bound by the third shirt she was trying to squeeze into.

That's when it happened... I got desperate. I put her back down in her bed, tucked her in sweetly, gave her a kiss... and then gave her a big, fat bribe.

It is true. I promised her a big sucker after her nap if she stayed in bed and took a nap. At first I was a little ashamed of my desperation. But by the end of her three hour nap, I was asking myself, Why didn't I think of this sooner???

During her nap, I had the chance to relax and read some blogs (great to do while feeding a baby). I read the latest from my dear friend, and talented photographer, Emily. She did a post about how she had been focusing on finding the perfect light for her photos. Obviously, that is ideal, but it made me realize, how often I focus on other things to try to get a good photo, and let the lighting take a back seat.

After Abigail woke up, I decided to take advantage of the afternoon lighting, and take some pictures. I knew once I busted out the sucker, I was sure to get some natural smiles that are normally hard to get once she sees the camera.

Here is her initial reaction when I showed her the sucker.

Prepare yourself for sucker-mania.

Oh the beauty of actually having natural light to take pictures in.

Thank you, Texas, for your sunshine.