The Park at 38 weeks

I've been working on getting the rest of my 2008 pictures into photo albums and I just couldn't resist sharing these pictures. I always wanted a pregnancy photo shoot so when Bran and I had some spare time on Halloween we went to the park and had some fun. I laughed so hard when I came to this section of the year. Wow, I just remember having such a hard time even walking around at this stage of my pregnancy. It's amazing how quickly I've forgotten all the pain and uncomfortableness. I hope you laugh as hard as I do at some of these pictures.

St George is Awesome

For our third anniversary, Brandon, Peter, and I got out of town and enjoyed beautiful St. George this past week. It was soooo beautiful! We went midweek to avoid the spring break crowds and it was so nice and quiet in all the shops and our hotel.

I had a lot of favorite things about this trip. We were able to go shopping at all the Factory stores and this time we got lots of things for Peter. It was so awesome to go into the clothing stores and pick out things for him. We got him the cutest overalls at Osh Kosh and a bunch of sleepers for him at The Children's Place (gotta love $1.99 sales).

We also took Peter swimming in the hotels indoor/outdoor pool. It was so fun to see him enjoying himself. Brandon bought Peter a little turtle floatie and he totally loved it. I'm so excited for our apartment pool to open in May. I know by that time Peter will enjoy swimming even more.

This trip was also very awesome because of our new car. It was amazing the difference a bigger car can make. I was able to take as many things as I wanted to which included lots of clothes for Peter and his play pen. Thankfully he slept in it perfectly throughout the entire trip.

One of the days we were there we took a long walk to the St. George temple. For those of you familiar with the area we parked just off St. George Blvd and Main Street and walked down to the temple. Needless to say, it took us a little over an hour to get there and back, but we loved every second. The 80 degree weather made the walk so enjoyable!

Brandon also made the trip very memorable by giving me a beautiful pearl earring/necklace set. Oh, it is sooo beautiful! He was so sneaky about this gift - I had no idea he had bought it even though the box was sitting in plain site in our office for weeks (gotta love Valentine Day sales). Thank you so much honey!

Coming home was sad, but necessary. I think living down in Dixie would almost be the best thing ever. Today we had a special combined sacrament meeting for church and we got news that we are now in the Pleasant Grove 5th ward instead of the Thorneberry Branch. It will mean that Brandon won't be teaching Sunday School (so sad), but we are excited to see all the changes that will be happening. Our upstairs neighbor got called to be the 1st counselor so I don't think we'll be able to "hide" very well. Ah well, it will all work out I'm sure.

Happy B-Day Grandma

Today Grandma Thomas is 75 years old! Yeah! While the rest of the family is enjoying a delicious Italian Meal and a special talent show I'm at home feeling sorry for myself because Peter is still so sick that we didn't dare take him out. He did start coughing up mucus yesterday, so I hope that means he is almost on the mend.

Regardless, I hope Grandma has a fantastic b-day celebration with all the family. I will be there in mind and spirit. Good luck Bran and Mom with your "Tea for Two" duet.

First cold

Peter has his first cold. It is so heart breaking to hear him try to breath when he is all stuffed up. Thankfully he is just congested at this point - no earaches or fever. I've never wanted to be sick for someone else until now. Poor little boy.

Earlier this week we went to the Dr. for Peter's 4 month checkup. He is gaining weight perfectly. He now weighs 17 pounds 13 ounces. Wow, no wonder he isn't fitting into any of his 3-6 month clothes. This last week I went to Walmart and bought 2 packages of 12 month onesies just so he would have something to wear that was a little big on him. It's such a little adventure to have such a big baby.

While we were at the Dr. I also showed him Peter's birthmark on the back of his head. Thankfully he told me that it might get darker during the next 2 years or so, but by the time Peter is 3 it should be completely gone. I was glad about that.

One of Peter's favorite toys is my hand. He loves to look at my fingers and try to reach out and grab them. I can entertain him for at least 20 minutes this way. It's so funny to watch him. Peter also is to the stage of entertaining himself with his own screams. Sometimes I just sit and laugh because he is so funny.

Happy Family

Yesterday I took some fun pictures of me and Peter, Peter and his cousin Tyler, and Alicia and her darling baby Morgan. I love my family!

My wonderful day

Ah, finally a moment to sit down and share all the wonderful things about my b-day. Baby is sleeping, dishes are done, and hubby is in the bathroom. Everything is right with the world.

Peter was the first one to wish me happy birthday and to give me a glorious present. He slept in an extra hour and a half which gave me 90 precious moments to straighten the house, start laundry, work on dishes, and even post a blog. It was absolutely glorious.

Then my SIL Allison met me at my favorite restaurant (Chuck-A-Rama) for lunch. We had such a blast eating as much food as we wanted and chatting away. It was such a lot of fun. When I had to run to the restroom to change Peter's diapers all the old ladies cooed over Peter. As a mother it was a proud moment.

Then when I got home the kitchen and living room were full of streamers and signs that said Happy Birthday. Apparently Brandon had come home for lunch and decorated. I was so surprised and happy.

After a delicious dinner of cheesy potato soup Brandon took me to the nearest Cold Stone Ice cream Shop to get my free birthday treat. Yummy! I loved every delicious bite of my chocolate cup with gummy bears (yep, I love gummy bears and could eat them all day if I had enough). After our ice cream we drove up and around the Mt. Timp. temple. It was so nice to reflect on all the blessings the Lord has given to me. It is especially awesome to be a Mom. At times I feel sad that I'm SO old and only have one kiddo, but then I remember what a blessing it is to have just one. Peter is so much fun and he is teaching me every day to be a better person.

It seems like my birthday celebration has continued to stretch throughout the rest of the week. On Thursday Peter and I went for a walk and while I was trying to navigate the stroller through a door a nice young kid held the door open for me. That really made my day. Then on Friday we went down to my parents and watched a movie with them, my sis, and younger bro. to celebrate. We all ate tons of popcorn and twizzlers and had a marvelous time. I highly recommend the movie Finding Neverland. Spending time with my family was greato!

This year having a birthday wasn't discouraging, depressing, or a downer and I'm so glad. I have so much to be grateful for - especially all you wonderful friends that sent me birthday greetings. You are SO AWESOME and you made my day so special too.

Luvs to you all.
-Laurie Ann

The big 29 for me

Happy Birthday to myself!!! Yes, today I turn 29 years old. It's amazing how quickly birthdays come around now that I'm a really old lady :-)

In tribute of the first 29 years of my life I want to share with you my dreams for the next 29 years by telling you 29 of the things I hope to see/do.

-My parents in a better financial situation
-Brandon get his MBA degree
-Move into a house
-Travel to Japan
-Travel to Europe
-Visit my sisters and brothers if they move out of state
-See Kent and Alex serve missions
-Have Amy, Kent, and Alex all get married in the temple
-Have lots of nieces and nephews from Amy, Lisa, Kent, Alex
-Serve a mission with Brandon
-Have my kiddos call me a good mother
-Stay out of debt
-Have a HUGE garden behind our house
-Learn how to bottle fruits/veggies
-Attend the temple monthly
-Brandon to be happy in his chosen career
-Stay "up-to-date" with modern technology
-Write a personal life history
-Have at least two girls and another boy
-Enjoy every second of watching my kids grow
-Take a family vacation each year
-Go to Temple Square at Christmas time each year
-Go to Disneyland many, many times
-Learn how to be a good swimmer
-Be a better housekeeper
-Get to the point where I enjoy mopping floors
-Get my braces off
-Never miss a chance for sharing love
-See Utah Lake cleaned up

Yeah for the next 29 years of life. Now to get busy working on these things......

1..2..3..Action

A couple of times each day Peter and I play on our tummies so that Peters head will get strong. Last night I put Peter on my bed for tummy time and he was being super cute. I couldn't resist making this short clip of him "talking".

Later that night he took one of his toys, and for the first time stuck it into his mouth to taste it. It was so funny!

For Valentine's Day

I've decided that the most important thing about V-Day is making sure that you celebrate it in the way that works best for you. For example, Brandon hates shopping when there are tons of crowds. So. he picked up my chocolates, a pot of blooming tulips, and a heart shaped muffin tin the Thursday before the holiday. It made me laugh so hard when he got home from worked, plopped them all on the counter, and told me "here you go, you get them early and without a bag because I hate crowds". It was pretty funny.

Instead of going out to eat on V-Day we ate here at home. We drove to one of Brandon's favorite quick restaurant and got take out. The best part of the meal was eating it together while Peter slept through the entire meal. Thanks honey. I had a wonderful holiday, Thomas style!

Fun things

For some reason I 'all-of-a-sudden' realized how lucky I am. Two of my favorite things right now are my telephones. I love them because I can give them each their own name. The phone in the kitchen is currently Morning Glow, the phone in the office is Cornwallis, and the base is Henry. I love it!

My other favorite thing is a CD that I was lucky enough to find at the Dollar Store a few weeks ago. It has 3 CD's full of the cutest bible songs ever. My favorite song so far is "I'm going A-Z with Noah". I sing it all day long to myself and Peter.

Today I just feel so lucky for the small things that make me happy.