goodbye 2009

its been nice.


{january}

{february}

{march}

{april}

{may}

{june}

{july}

{august}

{september}

{october}

{november}

{december}

i miss the past, the future scares me, and right now is kind of perfect.


here's to 2010

our merry little christmas

our babies on christmas eve.

christmas morning excitement

cutest.

jude was so excited for christmas this year. he didn't really know what he wanted and it changed from day to day. however, christmas morning brought no disappointment and he kept asking us "how did santa know?".

jude and his jabba the hut set.... did you know we have been looking for this for over a year? santa is so resourceful.

the kids went through their stockings first and it may have not been the best idea, at least for greta. she got this sucker open and would not let us take it away, even to open presents. but have no worries because the sucker did not deter her from enjoying her gifts of plenty.

greta is an excellent multi-tasker.

jude lining up all of his transformers "chubby guys" along the piano

it was a wonderful christmas this year and all of us got spoiled. the favorite gifts this year for trevan were a watch, clothing, and a biking hat. i loved myself some new clothing, my favorite perfume, and a new watch. jude's favorites included his leapster 2, jabba the hut, and many other action figures. greta loves her dollhouse and loads of accessories, princess phone, and any food/candy that was within reaching distance. i hope we can spoil our kids every year but our new tradition of 3 gifts from santa (remember jesus got 3 gifts?) will insure that santa will always be able to come through, even in the lean years.


AFTER our own little christmas morning we headed to yaya's for brunch. we were too busy exchanging gifts, eating yummies, and snuggling on the couch to take decent pictures.

go jazz and a sick bubby.

rog picked jude's present out this year. army guys.... where the hell i am going to put this? at least jude LUVS it.

landy and greta playing PS3
(and for the record greta looked totally amazing in her christmas sweatsuit but she is kind of disgusting when she eats so this is what we have to deal with)


AND AFTER yaya's we came home for a long winters nap and then drove down to nannie's for christmas dinner. yet again, no real pictures were taken to document the day. it was (as always) muy beuno and (as always) really crazy with kids. the problem lies in the 6 kids under 4, and the majority of them being under the age 2. i think paige was rethinking her pregnancy or at least rethinking ever coming home to add her own baby into the mix. the kids love each other but sometimes it gets out of hand. between the adults yelling so grandma billie can hear us and the kids yelling just to be heard.... its a lot. that being said, it was wonderful. my mom's house is always home to me and i sort of always feel bad that i still don't live at home so i can keep her christmas's the same but i guess we all have to grow up and start our own families.

these 3? amazing. they are bound to be best friends. in a short 7 months they all became cousins and they will shortly be wreaking havoc of their own. oh, and nannie's tub is everyones favorite spot.


hope your christmas was merry and bright....

(p.s. christmas eve with scary santa and his bride will be posted later... my camera was dead)

a jaunt to temple sqaure

this years temple square visit was short and sweet. it may or may not have had to do with the longest dining experience ever at big apple pizzeria. (which by the way... was not even close to being worth the wait.) rog, cam, and landon joined us and it was a snowy wonderful evening.

no bren, mo, or yaya.
sniff sniff.

chances are you will not meet a 4 year old that likes to ride in a stroller more than jude does.

i look old.... i guess i am aging.

jude is very into the story of baby jesus this year and all he wanted to see at temple square was the nativity. its kind of adorable.

no one loves greta. bless her heart.

we came, we saw, and we froze.

happy christmas eve!

happy christmas to all

(we saved the best for last...)

a gingerbread house @ yaya's

sunday night dinner was followed up by decorating the gingerbread house we bought at costco a few weeks back. its good to be a gregory......

morgan is the best.aunt.ever. she loves my kids and they love her in return. however, grets does not like momo without her signature curly locks. it does take some getting use to.

miss prets helped in her own way.... she was disqualified from participating in decorating the gingerbread house after she tried to dismantle and eat it.
(p.s. she and jude looked beautiful in their christmas sunday duds... too bad i didn't get a picture)

after about 20 minutes of decorating most of our crew left us for home alone 2 (i can't blame them).

so terni and i finished it together, we are sort of best friends.

the finished product.
genius.

yaya was responsible for this little fella. she says its a belt buckle.... sure i believe you.

oh and the best part of the whole night? tubbies in the sink.

i love being a gregory.

williams family party 09

this party is never, ever a disappointment. here are the reasons why:

a. the live nativity
b. the queens story teller
c. my dad's family

below are my 2 grandmothers. they share 6 grandchildren and 13+ great-grandchildren. billie and johnnie belle have been in laws for 36 years and have a lot in common, they both raised their combined 12 children in windy cheyenne, they outlived their spouses, they are very passionate... jb loves the gospel and billie loves playing golf (so much so she lives in phoenix away from all of her children, just so she can golf year round), and they are both incredibly strong women. i am lucky to have these women still in my life, they are me.
grandma billie (she and trevan are bff's.)

grandma johnnie belle

miss prets is working very hard on walking

trevan brought up a good point about these two. does tiffani sit on marks lap even at their own home? no one knows.... but after 2 years of marriage they are still lovebirds.

the queens storyteller (i.e. lee)
A.M.A.Z.I.N.G.

this year he brought us a story about the elves and santa's magic boots. he has a very captive audience, as always. after the performance jude kept telling lee "that was a great story!". lee's costumes alone will keep the little ones entertained through out the story.

my aunties.... holley and terri

jude has been looking forward to the nativity scene for weeks. because brooke, my mom, and i are in charge of the production we have first dibs on roles. jude decided early on he would be joseph and his bestie minie would be his bride mary. he was SO excited and told people for days that he was going to be in joseph in the baby jesus concert. hilarious... baby jesus concert, i am still laughing about it.

joseph and his pregnant (2 year old) bride mary.

greta was an angel but her costume was thrown together last minute because her giant head would not fit in the lamb costume. i know, i know, somehow she managed to make even this outfit look gorge.

cutest thing ever.

until next year.....

this is mine.

i get to be this wife, this mom, and i get have this life.
(i also get to have this for a sister)

jude at his best.

and i would do it all exactly the same if given the chance.

sunday mornings

i love sunday mornings..... i have groaned and complained all year about 1 o'clock church but really i am sad that we wont have our sunday mornings come january. its fantastic, trev and i take turns sleeping in on saturday and sunday, we have almost always have a big (albeit late) breakfast and there is plenty of time spent lounging around on the couch.

today was especially perfect because snow started falling and trevan started a us a crackling fire. greta sat in her chair eating breakfast for hours on end as she does everyday (that girl loves herself some food) and i could hear jude's mumbled star wars talk as he played with his "guys". the kids seem perfectly content to just be at home with us, their parents, as they should. it was special and i thought it needed documentation.

and off to church we go.

suzanne barnes

this week i learned of the death of one of greta's therapists, suzanne. when greta was 10 weeks old i contacted the early intervention program and suzanne barnes was the first person i spoke to, she was the first person i met, and the first person to give me hope. for 6 months suzanne was at our house bi-monthly playing with greta, teaching me things, and most of all giving me hope. last december we found out that she would no longer be servicing our family because of her returning cancer from years before and it broke my heart. i wanted her to be with us until greta didn't need her help anymore, i wanted her to see what she told me greta would do.... but cancer is not really fair that way. it kind of plays by its own rules and always seems to take the best people.

suzanne was the sweetest woman i think i have ever met and you could tell she loved her job. she adored my greta and knew exactly what we needed to do with her, she put greta on the road of growth, development, and success. she set us up with the best vision, physical, and speech therapists we could ask for. these women's love and hard work are the reason why greta is where is today. i wish she was still here, i wish she could see little greta now. i know greta would make her proud.

thank you suzanne, my little family will not forget you.

rest in peace.

cozy

the kids are snuggled in bed slumbering soundly in their footsie pajamas.

it's 18 degrees outside and our furnace is roaring.

snow is gently falling like glitter from the sky.

christmas is up and i am feeling happy.

it all feels very cozy and very perfect.

p.s. thats our new piano.... thanks to a copy machine that needed a home. it pays to be the only piano playing child in my family.

lay off me, i'm starving.

i think i was supposed to be a bear, or maybe a squirrel because the winter is coming and i am feeling the need to fill my belly to get me through the winter. i am starving, i cannot get enough food.... ever. i am hungry, more like ravenous all the time. it's really not okay. i don't know what to do. every winter i get all cozied up to food but its nothing in comparison to this. it's all that i can do to not start gnawing on my fist as we speak. trevan has been looking at me in awe the past few days as i pound food hourly. i am usually one of the smaller eaters in these parts(you should meet my very skinny, disgustingly huge eater, sister brooke... its not fair). really, what is going on? i am not pregnant so we can rule that one out. maybe i am just going through a growth spurt or something?(that seems like a rational explanation) whatever the reason is, i have got to get it under control or i am going to wind up morbidly obese by spring. i mean is this how it starts? do you just start eating a lot and then you wake up and you don't recognize yourself? frankly, i am bit worried.

so help me.... i am calling jenny craig or at least controlling myself starting fresh tomorrow.

but i am so hungry!

thankful.

i love that there is a holiday that is dedicated to gratitude. really, how cool is that? i am grateful, i am thankful, and i am humbled.

this years top 10:

(in no particular order)

motherhood

the internet

sisterhood

true love

growing up

health

my savior, jesus christ

seasons

laughter

family

happy thanksgiving.

self image

i just came home from work and found my photo booth application running, this is what i found.

it kind of breaks my heart. of course he wants to know what it looks like. i hope he sees how devilishly handsome he is as well.

i love him.

p.s. 2 measly comments? jude is offended, i am offended. it seems i am not the hip blogger i once was. rude.

Round 10: Jude vs. Pulse Dye Laser

i am not quite sure how it is possible that jude has had this procedure done 10 times. i cannot believe we have been fighting his birthmark this long, i was naive to think that it would go away (lighten) with only a few treatments. after all, i was warned that this treatment is only 30% affective at best. i remember telling myself that by the time he was 3 we would be done. well, he is 4 now and we are still battling his birthmark. i will tell you one thing, no matter how many times we wind up doing this, it never gets any easier as a parent.

the thing about jude's PWS is that i don't even notice it anymore and haven't for sometime now. i just see my darling judakins and so do most people who know him. it has lightened some and i guess is not super noticeable but the truth is, it is noticeable and jude is aware of it. at this point he thinks all people have been through what he goes through. he asked me tonight if when i was a baby i had a birthmark too. he doesn't know it is what makes him unique and that it is only him that has been through these procedures. he is the only 4 year old i know that has been under GA 11 times, the only 4 year old i know that gets the living hell burnt out of his face, the only 4 year old that gets strange stares and whispers while his face heals from those burns. he is unique... and right now he doesn't need to know just how unique he and his birthmark are but soon enough he will learn. this will be hard for jude, it will be hard his whole life. we are just doing everything we can as his parents to make him realize that his PWS is not who he is but a part of him and it makes him special and wonderful and perfect. we want to teach him that its not that big of a deal but it is a daunting task in this ever judgemental world.

jude did splendid this time around. if you don't already know jude has a pretty serious case of anxiety that we have been working on for a while and i was worried (i am a pretty anxious person myself) about how he would do this time around. he freaks out about going to the regular doctor who he loves, he freaks about me going to work, and he freaks about going to church. we talked about this procedure for a few days in advance and he seemed okay with it. he was really just concerned about getting frosty the snowman as soon as we were done. this morning as we woke him up to go he was not concerned like he usually is. he knew where we were going and he was okay. once at the hospital he was the most concerned about the mask that they put on him to put him to sleep. jude took the "funny" medicine (versed) easily and drifted off to dreamland with only a few cries. he woke up heavily sedated but not sobbing like he usually is. finally, the anesthesiologist figured out a regime that works! after about 20 minutes in recovery he was fine and ready to go home. jude was ready for his reward and we were eager to reward him.

surely, a boy as sweet and brave as jude should be rewarded with frosty the snowman stuffed animal accompanied by karen and hocus-pocus courtesy of build a bear. jude has been looking forward to this reward for weeks now.

jude loves these guys(anything attached to a holiday is a sure fire hit for our jude). we have already watched the movie 3 times today and he has loved playing along side the movie.

sidenote: look at great go! she is so close to walking and climbing up on everything. the couch is her newest feat.... her flexibility is a strength in this case.

our family spent the evening recovering at nannie's. it was nice to get away and just spend some alone time with my parents. trevan and i are blessed with the best parents in the world. jude has yet to have a surgery where one person from both sides of his grandparents were not there to support him. when we arrive at the hospital his first question is always "where's nannie and papa rog?". we are so lucky.

jude.... thank you for being so brave.

you are a super hero to all that know you.

until we meet again mr. pulse dye laser.....

the video game dilemma

so its christmas shopping time and i am up against an issue i thought i had figured out before i had kids. the issue being video games. i am kind of anti-video games, i say kind of because i do have a strong love for all things mario and the video game aladdin on sega genesis circa 1994. i also have been known to through a beat down on anyone on the original tony hawk on nintendo 64, i will admit i am good at video games. that being said trevan and i both decided early on we would not be a video game family. my brothers (the sweet souls that they are) are big gamers, not so much video gamers as they are computer gamers. growing up our house was the location for many a dungeon and dragon parties which turned into LAN parties as technology improved and i am pretty sure my brother brad still frequents them. its a fine hobby and all but not one i am in favor of. its a little nerdy for my taste and i think my brother brad knows i feel ("mark, i need more potions!") and would not be offended by me saying so. needless to say before now we were anti-gaming systems.

the problem is the fact that jude is kind of technologically (is that a word?) minded. not to pat my own back but i think he gets it from me. growing up i was always the one fixing things the TV, computer, or stereo system. my dad still calls me to figure things out for him. i just get those type of things, always have. anyway, jude is the same way. he likes electronics and has figured out in his 4 short years how to use the computer. he knows how to search the internet by clicking on familiar looking words, he knows how to turn the volume up and down, how to close windows, and open up the correct programs. its kind of amazing. his favorite thing is to play video games on the computer(nickjr.com, pbskids.com, and his newest obsession northpole.com). jude needs no help with most of the games and browses those websites like a seasoned internet explorer and its a problem. i am afraid that while he is on the internet he is going to stumble onto something he shouldn't see or he will ruin or delete something on our computer and most of all i am sick of him hogging up my blogging time.... really.

so for christmas i was thinking of getting him some sort of "learning" video game system. the problem is that they are like $70 and each games is like $25-30. for that money i may as well by a wii so i can enjoy it too (rock band, mario party? please.). but on the other hand i don't want open that can of worms yet. does he really need that stimulation? probably not but he really wants to be playing interactive games, things that help him learn. is he going to become obsessed and an introvert? i am scared. i don't know what to do. if i do get him a video game system what do i get? a leapster, a vmotion, a wii? i just don't know, i don't know i feel. we live in this generation where technology is everything and you cannot avoid it. am i doing him a disservice by not letting him join in? who knows he may be the next steve jobs..... or the creepy serial killer that as a child only played video games. i am baffled.

what are your experiences? what would you do? what would you buy? i need some advice.