Cabin Cahoonian Reunion

Our family reunion this year was spent up at my moms family cabin. It was built by my amazing Uncle, Kent, and since then my Aunt Romana has purchased it. We haven't been up there since we were really little and so it was fun to reminisce and do some fun traditions of the old days and made new ones with cousins.

My mom made it so special, here are a few of the highlights:

- We went on a Bear Hunt through the woods to the storybook words and my dad had a big stuffed animal bear he chased the kids with. My mom had a little pile of bear hunt treasure once they ran back into the cabin. It was so cute and fun!

- There was a Forest Feast where my little sister Andrea talked about birds she knows.

- Dinners were incredible. My mom and dad always cook amazing! And then each of us couples made a meal. James and I did balsamic salmon and zupa tuscano, Spence&MK an Indian dinner, and Lara&Jayson a Potatoe bar. Mmm.

- We watched our favorite Mickey Mouse Short from when we were little kids: the Moose Hunt

- Each of us that wanted to presented something fun to the group throughout the week. James and I did wood burning and watercolor.

- Jokes and giggles were had at "The Laughing Place". A little area with big white boulders to sit on in which my grandmother coined to laugh at.

- Bug Hunting in little jars

- Bow and arrow shooting

- Swinging times

- Flower Wreath making. This was one I couldn't miss because it is one of the few memories I remember from my little kid days at the cabin. My sweet older cousin, Natalie, made me a little daisy flower wreath to wear on my head. So James helped me gather leaves and flowers and I quickly made one for baby Jane and I.

- James and Bop did a service project of removing several big rocks from under the swinging area. It was quite the task and a Jane bib was even used in the excavation.

- Each time we gather for a reunion we have a ladies picnic. This year MK was in charge. She did a colonial styled meal with a quiz on early colonization of America. It was delicious and fun.

- We went on a beautiful hike in the mountains to Yellow Lake which was stunning. I wanted to jump in and swim!

- Animals are a plenty up here. We saw many a chipmunk, lots of dear, one big moose, some saw flying squirrels and lots of birds.

- Molly had brought fancy coloring books and we had fun coloring off and on throughout the week.

It was so fun to see Jane play wih her cousins. She was so friendly and eager to play, all week she would walk around saying, "hhhiiiiii!" There is a sweet spirit to this little lady we've been blessed with and she sure loves people!

The sad thing was James and Jane got really sick. James could barely breath for a few days from allergies that had gotten into his lungs and Jane ran a fever and got a big cold. It was a bummer and this mama got little sleep or rest trying to make sure they were comfortable and taken care of. But overall they were troopers and kept going.

It would be really fun and special to return someday to this beautiful family cabin. Cabins really are magical places and this one is full of memories. I hope someday for my little family to have a special place like this that we can get excited to go to and create even more memories.

Blessings

This young lady is a girl that has good taste buds :). My parents are a whiz at homemade ice-cream and they pulled off another great one and Miss Jane licked her cup clean. Today was the blessing of our sweet little niece, Penelope May. It was a very special day and my sister and parents made every detail sweet and beautiful. The dessert on this scorching Utah day was strawberry rhubarb ice cream....and it was devine! My mom didn't even follow a recipe, she just made it up, and it turned out so delicious! As we enjoyed the cool treat I thought about what a blessing it is to live in this era of AC and ice cream. I really don't know how the pioneers did it and feel thankful to have these two modern cold convenances today. My admiration for the past and my gratitude for the things I have grows and grows as I get older.

There are so many blessings that I think we take for granted everyday. We live in an era of selfishness and of pampered ways in my opinion. We aren't truly grateful for how much we are blessed with and how much freedom and choice we are given. As I watched a special moment of Jane being read to by her daddy it made my heart melt with gratitude. Life will get hard sometimes and things will not always go as planned or desired, but every day, EVERY day, there is so much to be thankful for (go listen to Josh Grobans "thankful" song). 

My ancestor, Mary Fielding Smith was a woman of great courage and gratitude. Last weekend we had the blessing and opportunity to see the small one room home she built with her children after making the long pioneer treck across America. She was offered land and space in Salt Lake City near the hubbub of people but she chose to live 2 hours out of the big city in this little home she built with her children instead. 

As I looked through the windows at the tiny interior I thought about what her life might have been like as a single mother of a family in the heated state of Utah in the 1800's. She is a firm example of gratitude and pushing forward even in the toughest of times. How thankful I am to come through her line and to be able to strive to live up to her faith and courage. Yesterday marked the anniversary of her husbands martyrdom in Carthage Illinois. I am so grateful for the Smith family and the amazing amount of zeal, humility and firm testimonies of truth they stood for. I pray that I will always have the courage and ability to be grateful for what I have, strength to push through trials and courage to stand for righteousness. Because this life and beautiful world are great blessings!

Lettuce Turnip the Beet

Tonight was our Relief Society picnic and it was a culmination of a lot of thought and work. I'm shocked I didn't go into labor ;), kidding! But kinda not :). It was a beautiful evening and I was so grateful for my Mister James and all his help. That is what makes a strong marriage great, helping each other serve and thinking of each other before ones self. I love him so very much! And this night could not have happend without his help.

The food all turned out delicious and beautiful. We put together some colorful vegetable platters (inspired by the many my mother put together growing up) that were delectable. And then we ordered a fabulous 4 foot sandwich that got eaten up fast! And then I made smoothies for the ladies for dessert. It was a yummy and healthy evening.

Our bodies are so special and truly are temples. The things we view, listen to, the things we eat, how we exercise and take care of our bodies, what we put on it, the things we focus on, all effect our bodies. We each are so blessed to have a body and need to be grateful for it and treat it with respect. We also need to compliment and lift each other up, especially as women. Make sure the women around you know the importance and beauty of their bodies. The world tells you so much of what your body should or should not be, what you should watch and listen to and that you're just not enough. But you are!! You are more than enough, you are a child of God with a physical body that does so much. I am so grateful for the gospel and the truths that it teaches for us to live by. They truly are truths of happiness!!

The Smoothies were;

Strawberry/Banana/Apple

Peanut Butter/Banana/Chocolate

Happy Daddio Day

Mister James, 

Happy Fathers Day! Best daddio ever award goes to you. A good Father is priceless and a girl needs a good daddy! You have and forever will be the perfect dad for Jane. She loves you so much and you make her laugh like none other. You were her first word, "dada." You are her rough house buddy. You are her still time calmer. You help her learn. All of our children, born and unborn are blessed to have you as their daddy.

Thank you for all that you do as the Father of our home. You work long hours at a job, study for school, help us build things, cook yummy dishes for us, give back/foot rubs, make us laugh, teach us tons, and love us even more. The Lord has said that, 

"By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families.

You do that for our little family! Thank you! We loveee love you!

Love, 

Care & Jane

Jane Day

Today I dedicated the day to being Janes buddy. I'm pretty much her buddy everyday but sometimes life and to-dos can distract me from really giving her one on one attention. And today I wanted her to have that. I have a big Church Activity I'm in charge of tomorrow and so I wanted to make sure I gave Jane lots of my time today and it was pretty fun (minus the heat) and packed. She is such a good girl and loves people, slides and the outdoors and we did lots of all her favorite things.

We started the day with homemade Popsicles and then played hard all day long. We went to the park for a play date with some friends. Jane was really good the whole time and it was a blast observing her with the other children. She really does just love people!!!! We read lots of books, played in the backyard, went on slides, the swing, and watched the chickens and finished off the day painting. I have a tray of watercolors I used in college that I love bringing out and letting jane get messy with. She loves to color and create. I'm so grateful that I took a day to just be with my little lady. Cause life can get busy, housework is endless and stress is a killer. Our little kiddos need our attention and yearn to just be our buddies. I love my Jane girl so much and am always impressed at how much she knows already. She's going to be a great big sister to all her future siblings. Yeah for little kiddos, they are SO fun!

Jesus.

We went to the Idaho Falls Temple Visitor Center this evening for our Family Night and it was really special. We walked in and Jane immediately went up to the glass that separates you in the entry from the center and says, "Jesus!" Her hands pressed against the glass and her face beaming! It was a special moment I will never forget. She loved staring up at him and touching his toes. Then we went and saw the life of Christ in photos exhibit and her favorite one was the nativity scene, she'd point and say "baby." I'm so thankful that my children will know of Christ. Ultimately it will be their duty to gain a testimony and understanding of him on their own, but it is also my duty to teach them who he is and why he is so important to me (and the world!). I know that Jesus was more than just a good man or a prophet, he was and is the Son of God. He came to earth to teach us the way to lasting happiness and to provide us a way to return to our Father in Heaven. He is the purest example of goodness and strength. As we sat looking at the Christus statue it brought me great comfort looking into his eyes and seeing his outstretched arms. He has so much love for us. For there is no greater love than to lay your life down for a friend. And he did it for all mankind. He knows each of us and desires us to be happy! How grateful I am for Jesus Christ and his teachings!

Ice-Cakes 2015

Reeds Dairy had its annual Pancake Breakfast this morning!!!!! They serve huge pancakes with a big scoop of delicious vanilla ice-cream on top. Oh I love this tradition and am so glad we got to go again this year!! We went last year and it was so windy your syrup would fly!

This year we remembered to bring a banana to add to the sweet breakfast. The pancakes were so yummy and man their ice-cream is so creamy! James even got is fresh whole milk that is super thick. This is such a great little dairy and this little annual tradition is one I hope to keep as long as we live here in ID!

I love little baby animals and the Dairy has a lot right now. We discovered their bunny cages and saw tons of baby cows, jane loved the goats and sheep, and the pigs were chillin in the shade. We  had a blast taking Jane around to each animal and hearing each of her noises for them. How grateful I am for cows. Cause they basically produce my favorite foods: cheese and ice-cream!!!!

We also loaded up our new baby diaper back pack!!! My amazing sister Lara gave us this at our boy baby shower and we are already in love with it. It was great at the dairy and then our birth class rigt after. Do you use a backpack as your diaper bag? Cause it's awesome!!

Sunshine & Summertime

Today I watched our cute neighbor Kaye Beth. Her little family is moving tomorrow and her mommy need a little break from a 1 1/2 year old "helping." It was really fun to watch Jane share toys and play with her little friend. Little girls in swimsuits in the sun, doesn't get much more adorable than that. They shook their booties to some Michael Buble, splashed in puddles and sucked on Popsicles. It's amazing to watch children grow up and learn so much.

This sunshine sure takes the energy right out of me right now, but I do love spending time with my little buddy outdoors. She loves it! Summer is such a time of exploring, discovery and pretending. I have so many fond memories of summer as a child. One I'll never forget was building a "hot tub" under our front porch. My older brother, Spencer, and I thought it would be so clever and fun to dig a big giant hole and put a tarp in it for the tub. It worked out well cause the dirt pile became a slide with the tarp over it as well. Then to fill it with hot tub water we'd full our huge cooler and any pitchers we could find with bathtub water and dump it through the wood slats of the front porch down into our tub. It was awesome!! We spent hours sliding and splashing and getting quite messy in our "hot tub." I wonder if any remnants are still under there ;). I'm grateful for a mom who encouraged creativitiy and imagination cause man it made for an awesome childhood. I can't wait to watch our children create and play together!!!!!!

Count all the DID's

I usually don't post a lot of just me photos, but Mister James took this the other day of me napping on the couch. I have some weird sleeping habits: my lips always pucker, my arms are either above my head or stuck out funny and I have to have a good head tilt. He caught all three! Do you ever just feel capooped at the end of a day? Of course you have! We all have days that are exhausting.

Sometimes I feel like I get nothing done in a day as I see dishes piled, to do's I didn't get to, being exhausted and wondering when I'll get caught up. But then I'll pause at the end of my long days and think, "Well actually you did get lots done today." I have high expectations of myself and what I can do and oftentimes that means I look at all I didn't do or get done. Today as I lay my head down on my pillow I had to reflect on the day as those thoughts crept in:

- you're pregnant, that's a full time "to do"

- you DID play and feed and take care of baby Jane all day (24/7 job)

- you DID made the bed

- you DID take clothes to the DI (thrift shop)

- you DID have an outing at the library with baby Jane

- you DID make 3 meals

- you DID plan and have a church meeting to prepare for a large activity coming up

- you DID go through all baby Williams clothes

- you DID mow the whole front lawn

- you DID play with Jane in the sprinkler and helped her up and down on the slide and read her lots of books

- you DID get Jane ready for naps and bedtime

- you DID help get a shelf prepped for Mister James' tools

So, yes, that looooooong to do list that haunts me as I think about having a baby in a month gets me a little anxious. But I'm doing ok, I'm getting good to-do's done and working hard each day. When you get down or have those same awful "didn't do" feelings really think about all you accomplish in a day cause usually it's quite a lot! There's much to be done in life but taking it one day at a time and enjoying the ride is so important. I learn so much about slowing down the pace and lowering my super high expectations to more reasonable ones every day. Remember to always be grateful for all the "DID's" you did do!

I have thought a lot about the story of Martha and Mary lately and how important it is to really focus on the important to do's. We can do dishes all day long but were we fed truth or goodness by doing them? It is important to clean, accomplish goals, work hard and be busy in good causes, but it is also important to delegate duties and take time to just be still and take in life. I am grateful that I can learn, by being in a family, the great DID's of life. Each day is filled with purpose and true meaning when it is lived for those you love. Make sure you count your DID's at the end of the day, cause I bet there were many! :)

Yogurt Face

Just had to post twice today....cause look at that face!! She enjoyed trying out eating yogurt on her own. The spoon lasted a minute or two and then the hands dunked in. It's so fun watching little ones grow and they sure do it fast. I think Jane is going to be an awesome big sister!!! She has so many awesome qualities and such a sweet spirit already. I'm excited for her and William to be the best of buddies! Cause I think they will be. And I'm also excited to see her help out and learn from her little brother. She has been really sweet with her baby doll lately, and everything really. She'll rock her food, potato pill bugs from outside, stuffed animals, her sippy and blankies. I love seeing those nurturing instincts in her. Life is amazing, and it is never ending! Sometimes I sit back and go "woah. My parents have parents, they have parents, they have parents and on and on, and now I'm a parent, and my children will be parents and on and on!" That is so awesome!!!! Long lines of love, that's what we're creating, one yogurt face at a time.

Jelly Sandals and the Heat

Jane just got some new Jelly Sandals for $3, I was pretty excited!!!! So...getting that cute suit on and playing in the water was a must on this hot summer day! The sandals are a hit! I love them on her and they bring back so many memories of me as a kid. I would only wear sandals! Even in the winter, even when we went hiking on a glacier...yep I was a sandal girl. My favorites were some pink salt water buckle sandals. I wore them till they died.

I really need to get better outdoor water toys....aka a swimming pool!! But a good ol' tarp and sprinkler do the trick for now. She had fun splashing in the puddles and pretending she was a dog slurping the water up. Silly girl! I love this sweet, curious, adventuresome, animal lover, funny, and adorable little gal of mine!

Don't ya love that crazy hair! I'm not a huge fan of this heat being pregnant but it sure is fun to get to play outdoors with Jane. Just wishing the house was ACed! It makes for good stories to tell the kiddos: you can do hard things! Pioneers and millions of years of people's had babies without AC so I can to ;). Hurray to makin babies and memories!

Dada, you're awesome!

These two make me SO happy!!!! I love watching little moments of my mister James and baby Jane together, they are the sweetest to observe. There is such a cute and tender love between the two of them. Jane oftentimes will wake up and say "dada", every closed door she'll go up and say "dada"(because he often works behind one), no one can make her laugh like her dada, or get her more riled up I might add ;) like her dada. I think a good father is one of the most important things in the wolrd. A child needs to feel approval and love from a father figure as they grow. 

By definition Father means:

1. A man in relation to his natural child or children. Synonym: dad

There is a lot of meaning in the word father and a lot of importance to its role. I'm so thankful that Mister James teaches, humor, hard work, fun learning, cooking, doctrinal principles and important facts to Jane. He is a wonderful father and our children are lucky he's theirs. As we approach Fathers Day I hope I can make sure my Mister knows how much we love and appreciate him. Because we are so blessed to have him at the head of our home.

Showered with Love

Last night my sweet mom, sisters and sister in law threw me a baby boy shower. And it was sooooooo cute. Themed with Whales and the ocean we celebrated little William coming into the world. I am waiting to get some photos from my sister....so stay tuned for those to see how adorable it was! The afternoon began with little Jane holding her little cousin Penelope and giving her hugs and ended with a very tired slap happy 1 year old running around! It was quite sweet and funny!

It was really special to be with women I love and to celebrate motherhood together. There is something so important about a community of support and love, especially for mommies. I have been blessed to meet some cream of the crop ladies here in Idaho that I feel so loved by. I have a little secret project that I am going to begin working on to help this supportive, team building community amongst women! I'm pretty excited for it. Crossing my fingers I have the energy and talent to pull it off!

A favorite thing of mine is cards. I love them! I love the way a good card feels, smells, looks and the charm they emit. My sisters and mom got some letter pressed delights that made my heart so happy! They are lovely to my soul :). They are the kind you want to frame and hang on your wall. What a blessed and lovely evening it was.