What I'm Thankful for...

2011 brings a lot to be thankful for. This year I mentioned to Nick that I wanted this Thanksgiving to be similar to last year’s Thanksgiving. I wanted it to be low key, easy and relaxing. I didn’t want to spend the entire day cooking over a stove, getting irritated with dishes piled up in the sink, missing out spending time with the girls and worrying about if my dishes turned out okay. He totally agreed with me and we agreed that we would buy our Thanksgiving just as we did last year. Now, last year was obviously a slightly different story due to having a newborn in the house...but I felt okay forgoing the duty of preparing a feast!

We had invited Nick's parents over for Thanksgiving and everyone was okay with the prepared meal. We purchased the family meal from Sprouts Market and I cannot stop raving about their meal! If ever in need of a top notch premade Thanksgiving dinner, give them a try~!! The turkey is a free range bird, fresh veggies, all the sides and delicious cranberry orange relish!

I was so thrilled to spend the day sleeping in, watching morning cartoons with the girls and Nick, cleaning up the house before the in-laws arrived and getting ready without rushing to blow-dry my hair or quickly put on some make up. I actually got to RELAX!

Here are just a few things that I'm thankful for this year. 


My supportive husband- he loves me and supports me
My two beautiful girls- they keep me laughing!
A home that is warm and filled with love
The ability to set goals and have the strength to accomplish them
Having the opportunity to carpool with the love of my life!
Having family that loves me and supports me
My trusty iPhone...Pinterest, FB, Words with Friends, Pandora!
Sunrise - a beautiful sight to start the morning
My health- I continue to improve it but thankful for it!
My entire life...it might be hectic and chaotic but it's mine!

She's getting so big!

Sofie loves to swing!

She wanted her turn at having fun on the swing!

She finally got the hang of the swing with help from her Ba-Pa!

My sweet little girl!

Cheers! Happy Thanksgiving!

Emilia enjoying her Thanksgiving feast!

Keeping the kids entertained with Playdough.

The Lamp Family - their new addition Caden is adorable!

Good time had by all!

Me and my sister~

Our two beautiful nieces! I can't believe how fast they're growing up.

The Deniz family.  I love the face Arianna is making.  She's such a clown~

This Thanksgiving was special and we loved being able to spend it with our families.  It was simple, delicious and memorable.



Happy Birthday to YOU! Happy Birthday to Emilia!

Our little girl turned 1 and it was such a memorable birthday celebration! It's amazing how quickly time flies.  We say this to ourselves about a lot of things but this time, it really hit hard. 

Emilia Feliciana Allen, born November 19, 2010 at 11:05 am 

it's a feeling that is unique only to mothers- tears of joy, relief, and unexplained emotions

We're the proud parents of baby girl #2~

And a year later...this beautiful precious 8 pound baby is now a curious and inquisitive 22 pound toddler!

 This year for her birthday Nick and I wanted to keep it simple and special.  It was us, grandparents, her Aunti Kalani, Uncle Ryan and her cousins Katie and Arianna.  The day was filled with yummy food, lots of laughs and the best part...the jump house!

I took a homemade approach for the decorations this year...loved the outcome!

Emilia and her Papa!

She really loved the jumper!

Sofia and her Uncle Ryan

cupcakes

She could not wait to open her gifts! Thanks everyone for the thoughtful gifts

Sofie was the official helper

Emilia and her Auntie Lani

All ready for the Polar Express

Emilia's 1st cupcake...and not a big fan.  It's okay, she loves her fruits and veggies!

The 1st year photo wall.

The party was a hit! Thanks to all of you that made the party and to those that were there in spirit.  It means alot to us to have support of our family and friends. 

It's amazing to think that Christmas is coming up and then it's Sofia's 4th birthday! My girls are growing up too fast! 

Spooktacular October!

Halloween has to be Nick’s favorite holiday of all. He loves watching scary movies, anything to do with zombies, vampire’s ghouls and horror...well, except Twilight. He is adamant that those are more along the lines of “Fempires”. Anyway, last year Sofia was excited to be Batgirl and this year, she was just as excited to be a Viking! Nick and I love the fact that she is never shy about being herself! She is growing into such a unique little girl! She still loves the color pink and pretty pretty princesses but also loves dragons, wizards and Vikings!


Nick and I wanted her costume to be the best, so we headed to the costume store and quickly realized that a toddler Viking was not on the hot must have list for Halloween. We tried to tempt her with another superhero girl costumes, a Knight costume, or any of the other her popular costumes but she wanted nothing to do with them! This kid was adamant about being a Viking! Nick and I decided we would have to make her costume and it had to be great! Nick and I started early this year to find just the right ensemble. We succeeded and both girls Halloween outfits were a total success!

The Viking princess costume!

Sofie and her Viking steed @ Gilbert Family Halloween Fair

Here is our house decorated for Halloween

Nick dressed up as a Luche Libre wrestler! I love him!

Emilia would not pose for a picture- she was an adorable Ladybug! She was so cute!

Me and the girls at the pumpkin patch.

I love my girls!

October-polooza!

After a wonderful trip in September...we couldn’t get enough of California we had to head back for another dose. One of my close cousins Emily is pregnant with her second and is expecting a baby boy! YAY! We're so happy for the Harris family! Their first boy, Fisher is a sweet and lovable amazing kid! Emily decided to fly down from Idaho just to have her baby shower. I was thrilled to attend and be a part of the festivities. I was thrilled to be given the opportunity to show off some of my baking skills and present the dessert bar! Okay, well I sort of insisted on doing the dessert bar. The shower was hosted by my other cousins Angela Brigford and Andrea Wiggins. These two gals are a force to be reckoned with. Their skills in the kitchen totally match their decorating style! Fabulous job girls!

Here are some of the pictures from the amazing shower.
 

Here is Sofie and her cousin Ellie rocking out to Rock Band

I was really pleased with the outcome!

Mother to be Emily (BEAUTIFUL), her mother, my Aunt Virgie and Emilia

My cousin Andrea was not only the co-host but also was the official photographer! Her pictures are amazing and she is a talented photographer! Check out her work at http://www.andreagenephotography.com/

Here are some of the AMAZING pictures she took~

 the food was AMAZING! All homemade!

 

It was amazing trip and we can't wait for the next one.  It's always nice to see our family in California but sometimes 6 hours just seems a bit too far!