Sold!!!

Well, for those that haven't heard...we bought a house! We are really blessed, busy, exhausted, in debt, but most of all excited. We are making some repairs and improvements which is taking a large amount of our time (hence the reason this post is so long in coming). We feel very lucky and exceptionally blessed to have found a house that is everything we were looking for. And, we are looking forward to making this house our home. There is much to be grateful for this season, and this is a big one for us.

Like I mentioned, we are making some changes before we move in. So I am adding the before pictures right now, and will add the after pictures as soon as there are after pictures.

Enjoy! (I know we will).

He came into the world, even Jesus...

I can't express how much I love this season. Beyond the festivities and present giving, it is the one time of year I feel we are all a little more kind, loving and considerate of everyone, even those we don't know. And, although it should be like this always, this is the one time of year we are all a little more Christ-like.

We attended the Bentonville Christmas parade the other day. It was so much fun! Cody rode on one of the floats, playing a shepherd in the Nativity scene (I know, don't you love his get-up; he wore a wig and everything). It was pointed out that in year's past there has only been the one float representing Jesus Christ and the Nativity. And, although this year was filled with a fair share of Santa's workshops and little elves, I am pleased to say this year I counted four Christ centered floats. It was a fun event, and I am glad that all aspects of the season were represented.

Let me just say how grateful I am for the savior, for his birth and his life and the sacrifice he made for all of us. I know he lives! And, I know he came to this earth to give us all the chance to return to him someday. I am so grateful for a holiday that stands as such a poingnant reminder of his birth and life.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Countdown...

We started this year's Christmas season off by making gingerbread houses. And, before you "ooh" and "aw" too much, I should mention that when I say "we" I mean mostly Cody. I tell you this because I don't want to falsely steal credit for Cody's genius gingerbread design. He really is talented in gingerbread construction.

I have made several gingerbread houses in my time, and not one (until this day) survived the evening. Mine usually end up resembling the "Money Pit" house, with the roof caved in on the remainder of the house, basically a big pile of sugary rubble.

Now, on my behalf, I did assist with this year's creation of which I take pride. After Cody constructed the base of the structure, I applied the initial frosting base to apply the gingerbread (really, they were graham crackers, but nevertheless). I feel it was a success from the sheer fact that I touched it and it is still standing 4 days later.

This activity has assured me of two things; one, that whether my gingerbread house stands or falls, I love this season. I love the chance we have to celebrate the Savior's birthday, for he is the true reason for this all. And, two, this proves once again that Cody is my perfect match, he is strong where I am weak and together we stand stronger than apart.

Big #5

Cody and I celebrated our 5th Anniversary this past week. It is amazing to me to think that we have been together for 5 years and the time has gone by so quickly.

To celebrate we had a night away (special thanks to the Shepherds for making that possible). Cody had planned a romantic getaway evening, and it was so nice. We went to Twilight (see what a great hubby I have, he let me choose the movie-- I won't mention that he read the books and wanted to see it also...oops, hehe). We saw it opening night but during the afternoon which helped us avoid the Twilighter crowds. Then we went for a romantic Italian dinner, where we shared a meal (again, my sweet husband appeasing me- I wanted to share a meal- which I am sure for some springs to mind a picture of Lady and the Tramp sharing a romantic spaghetti dinner, but that's okay-- I still loved it!)

And then we spent the night in a beautiful hotel downtown. Now, I may be bragging on Cody too much, but he really is the romantic. He checked out a dozen different hotels to pick the best one, I mean he went there in person to see the place. He really is something, isn't he?!

To top everything off, Cody bought me a new wedding band lined with diamonds. Now I don't agree with the whole "diamonds is a girl's best friend" thing (which some may, and that is okay). Don't get me wrong, I loved the new ring, a little more sparkle is always nice, but I'll take one amazing husband over diamonds any day.

Graduation...

We attended my Grandfather's funeral this past weekend, which we lovingly refer to as his "graduation" from this life. He was such a strong willed and independent man, despite his many trials. There is no way we could understand what he had to bear. For those who did not know him, he suffered from Norrie's disease, which causes blindness, deafness, and other circulatory problems. So he lived much of his life in his own world, literally, but he endured it well.

He was stubbornly persistent in his devotion to his family, beliefs, and faith. I know he lived this life valiantly, and that is something we can all strive for. So I know that although he has passed on, really he has just graduated from this stage to be happily reunited with his sweetheart in heaven. I know I will see him again someday, and he too will be able to see me. I have many fond memories of him, which I will cherish. I loved him very much, and although he will be missed, I am very happy for him, because I know he has graduated to a much better place.

I Passed...

So, there will not be any pictures with this post, which I think, after you read it, you will be glad for the courtesy. I have decided, just like in school, where you pass from grade to grade based on your performance the same is true in motherhood. As your children get older, you learn new things and then there is a test. If you perform well enough on this test, you are passed to the next level.

Some of you heard this story before, but I will add it in for those who haven't. A few months ago, Rya and I were enrolled in a Mommy-n-Me swim class. Things were going swimmingly (excuse the pun) until the third to last class. Now going into this class, I would have never expected it to be different than any of the other classes, but I was in for a surprise. With about ten minutes left in the class, we had reached the part where we dunk our child under water. This part always makes me nervous so I was very concentrated on Rya. I dunked her and when she came out rather than sputtering for air, she was smiling. (Too be honest looking back, I think she knew something I didn't, but I digress.) I was so excited that for that moment I was totally focused on Rya. It was when I finally looked up that I noticed something different about the pool. It was as though someone had dumped dirt and leaves in the pool, or something....and then it clicked. Maybe it was the other mothers staring at me or maybe realization was just hitting me. Rya had blown out of her pants. At that moment, I felt like I was back in elementary school, having just done something wrong, and wondering if there were anyway to pretend it didn't happen to avoid telling the teacher. Being a grown-up can be so hard sometimes. There was no avoiding this, I sheepishly approached our instructor and explained what happened. They then had to evacuate the pool and cancel classes for the next 24 hours. I was mortified-- like I had just been sat in the corner in front of the whole class. Everyone was very understanding about it, but I couldn't bring myself to return for the remainder of the classes. Now, really, would you?

So this was the beginning of my lesson. Since then we have had several instances of bedwetting, and diapers overflowing. Nothing nerely as embarrasing, but if nothing else a nuisance to clean up. I guess you could say, we have been studying hard. Well, it all culmenated to my test, which happened yesterday. I was giving Rya a bath. After soaping her up, I let her play for a while. I was standing right there at the mirror putting on my makeup. I guess it serves me right for taking my eyes off of her for a moment. About a minute later, I looked over at her and had to look again. There was something, no, a lot of somethings floating in the water. You got it, we had another pool incident, but this time I would have to clean it up. I had a new empathy for the guys that cleaned the pool.

Now, I know for most of the mothers, you will just smile and nod, all having gone through this situation. But I feel this was my test. And when I saw what was going on, there was no gag reflex, just a little laugh and then immediate action. I got it all cleaned up and taken care of without much thought of how truly gross it was. It was a proud moment upon reflection. I passed a new level in motherhood, one where your children's bodily functions is just another day on the job. Now, I am sure this is not the end of this lesson altogether, but at this moment, I feel I have moved a step closer to being the kind of mom I want to be. On this particular test, I feel I passed.

Halloween Celebrations...

We took advantage of the Halloween holiday to celebrate in every way possible. We carved pumpkins as Rya watched Charlie Brown's "The Great Pumpkin" for family night. Cody carved a witch in the moon, and I carved a cat. My cat was inspired by all the cats that run around the neighborhood, I figured what's one more. I am not sure what the inspiration was for Cody's choice.I thought they turned out really good, but alas they melted only a few short days later. At least they survived through Halloween.


Some friends and us went to the nearby (in Missouri) Right Choices Corn Maze. It was built on a farm, so they had a barn with a few animals and lots of activities for the kids, including slides, a hay jump, and a corn box. The kids had a blast. We started the afternoon with a short lived picnic. I say short lived because there were so many bees following us, it made us too nervous to sit down and eat. So we had our food on the go (walking around the farm). Then we headed straight for the fun! We played until we were all worn out. We lasted a couple hours and all the kids were conked out for the ride home. We finished off our adventure with a trip to the ice cream shoppe. What a fun afternoon!



And, what you all have been waiting for...Rya's first Halloween trick-or-treating. She went as a flapper, and her costume turned out well (if I don't say so myself). Many thanks to Susan Blaylock for shortening it, or it would have looked more like a evening gown with a nice long train. We made the feather headband (I felt very crafty) and polished it off with a boa. She played the part well!

Of course, plans don't always go the way you want, but it was a good time for all of us. Rya wouldn't sleep for her afternoon nap, so had it not been for her outfit she might have been mistaken for a zombie. She was in a daze for the first bit of trick-or-treating, not her normal social self, that is until Cody decided to give her a hit of sugar. After she finished her blue lollipop (I wish it had of been a different color because her mouth and dress, arms and hands, etc. were blue for the rest of the night) she was, although prehaps artificially, back to her happy self.

We took her to Cody's office. Every year they have employees bring their families trick-or-treating. So there were two gigantic floors, with rows each decorated with a different theme where the children could load their bags with goodies. Kids were walking out with so much candy my teeth were hurting. Rya loved wandering around seeing all the strange people dressed in costumes, with the exception of the few more fierce costumes that gave her a good scare (unfortunately, Scooby-Doo was on that list also). And, as long as she had a peice of candy in either hand, she wasn't terribly concerned with adding to her candy booty (she ended up with maybe a hand full of candy by the end, which is more than enough).

Cody and I ate up all the compliments on how cute she was in her little costume; that was all the sweetness we needed. But, biased as I am, I have to agree that she did look adorable. After a couple hours wandering around looking at all the people, decorations, and collecting a little candy, we headed for home. It only took Rya a couple minutes after we put her in her carseat to come down off her sugar high and before we could even get home she had crashed. She was worn from all the excitment and slept well that night, dreaming of sugar plums and such, I am sure. I would definitely say this was one of my most favorite Halloweens yet!

Fall Festival...

I guess this is our first actual posting. It is funny that since we have started this blog everything we do becomes a photo session because we need to have stuff to blog. It probably drives Cody and Rya crazy, but they deal. It has changed my whole perspective on everyday events.

This past weekend we went to our Ward Fall Festival. It was held on a member's property, which was beautiful. They had a big fire, which all the "big kids" ran to play with (Cody included-- shocking, I know) and, they had games and face-painting that all the "little kids" ran for.

As most of you know, Rya is the socialite in our family. She was right in her element, running from place to place smiling at everyone. All the while I chased her around with the camera. We did everything from eating homemade chili and dogs to the bean bag toss, and a hayride. Rya got her face painted with a flower- so adorable!

To finish the night we sat around the fire while Rya gobbled down a marshmellow the size of her fist (no kidding this was like a marshmellow on steroids-- never seen one that big before). This was her first marshmellow experience, and you could tell because all the while she was eating it, she kept trying to shake the stickiness off her hands. Obviously, that didn't work so her efforts turned to rubbing dirt on her hands to rid them of the stickiness.

We left that evening with an exhausted but elated Rya smeared with marshmello, dirt and paint. What more could you ask for?

We all had a great time!

We Have Arrived...

Well I have succumbed to the peer pressure. We have officially joined the blog world. I was, and am still, a little hesitant to have a blog for the main reason that I may not have anything worth blogging. With the exception of this little cutie to your left, Rya, life is pleasantly boring right now. As for Rya, she keeps life on it's feet. There is always something new and wonderful that she has discovered. She grows and learns too quickly to always comprehend. So if it is merely to keep my friends and family abreast of the simple happenings in our lives and the exciting ever-changing happenings in Rya's, I have decided blogging our stories will be a good thing. For our friends and family too far away to see or hear of our goings-on...here you go... Christensens² Blog is now available for your viewing pleasure.