I am a Terrible Blogger!

I have been super busy with so many projects and with feeling yucky, that I have missed out on posting.  I'm feeling better, I'm still super busy with projects, but maybe I can rejoin the blogging world again.

So, here's my overdue Halloween pictures.

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4th and Final!

Not a picture of me

Sorry, I posted this earlier on my private blog, but forgot to put it on the public blog.  Totally pregnancy head!

Yep!  We're preggo with number 4!  I'm 10 weeks and were super happy.

Was a little bit of a surprise, but definitely wanted.  We'd talked about another one, but were going to wait until after an Alaskan cruise with Gavin's family in June.  Well, good-bye cruise and hello shock!  It took me two months to believe that I was truly pregnant (as if the positive pregnancy test wasn't enough).

But I am so happy.  We're also happy to say that THIS IS IT from us.  I know my limits and I'm feel so privileged to have 4 children.  There was a point when I thought that two was all we would be able to have.  I always wanted a big family, and Gavin liked the idea of 4 kids.  We didn't think that it was possible for our family, so we feel truly blessed to be at this point.

I must say that I love this pregnancy for the mere fact that, for the first time in any pregnancy, I don't care what the sex of the baby is.  All I hear from people is, "So, are you hoping for a girl?" or "Maybe you'll get your girl."  Honestly,  I would be thrilled with a girl, but I feel that same about a boy.  I know that no matter who comes to our family that they are meant to be here and that our family will be complete.  Somehow, it doesn't seem to matter.  That being said...I am going to find out ASAP.  I don't want to be surprised.  I want to be prepared...especially if it's a girl.  E wants a girl, Gavin believes it's a girl, Gavin's mom swears it's a boy, all my family is rooting for a girl...and I'm just tired and nauseous. 

Luckily, I have names picked out.  Last time I had only a girl name picked and when I found out it was a boy...I went crazy trying to find a name.  Unfortunately for you, I'm not saying until we find out what the baby is.  Family knows and that's it for now.

So, like I said...I've been tired and nauseous.  It seems to be winding down a little.  But, whoever called it Morning Sickness, needs to get their head examined.  I feel fabulous in the morning.  Afternoon...Comme ci, comme ça.  Evening and night, total NIGHTMARE!  For those of you who know me, I am a complete night-owl.  Feeling sick at my favorite time of day sucks!  It's so not fair.  Why can't it be in the morning and then I can get over it and maybe even nap through it.  But no!  And the only thing that makes me feel not nauseous, is eating.  And that's REALLY healthy to eat late at night.  Also, I LOVE to drink water.  I hardly ever drink anything else, but if I drink too much as once I feel horrible.  All in all, I haven't thrown-up at all, so it hasn't been horrific.  It's hasn't been pleasant either.  About two more weeks, and it should be wrapping up.  I am so looking forward to the second trimester.

So there you have it.  Hooray for me!  May 28th here we come!

Star Wars Birthday Party!

E turned seven this year!  We celebrated his birthday a little bit late due to General Conference and fall break, but I promised him a party...and he GOT a party!  It was a lot of work, but it turned out awesome.

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Karate

This year we decided to get E involved in some sort of extra curricular activity, but I wasn't sure what to get him involved in.  Then one day, he came home from school with a community form that included soccer, cheerleading, or karate.  When Gavin told me that karate was only $6 a week, I couldn't resist.  We paid for the uniform on top of it, but it was so worth that smile!

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Preschool!

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California Weekend! (Part 3)

I have never in my life seen a phenomenon quite like this before.

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California Weekend! (Part 2)

We were just lucky enough to be in California when my cousin and his wife we able to be sealed to their second child.  It worked out really nice.  I had never been to a baby sealing, which is wierd because my sister and her husband and my brother and sister-in-law have both been sealed to adopted children.  This is the downside of living far away.

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California Weekend! (Part 1)

For Labor Day, we decided to take a trip back to California. Disneyland was so great last time, but we wanted more time at the beach and with family.  Being that it's only a 5 1/2 hour drive makes it so easy.

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I Spy Quilt Swap

My cousin, Connie, has a wonderful crafting blog.  She's doing an I Spy Swap that I, myself will be participating in.  I saw her completed quilt up close and it is beautiful how all the different fabrics come together to make something unique and fun.  It's great for kids and Christmas is coming around the corner.  Here's a bit of her post...

First a little note about I-Spy fabrics and what you can do with them. I-Spy fabrics are generally novelty prints which are then fussy-cut. You can use the squares of fabric for so many things! Look at Care's great ideas here and here. I used the squares from the swap to duplicate this beautiful quilt from Susan at Crafterhours. I am more than thrilled with the result. We have played I-Spy with our quilt and have used it to curl up on the couch with. I am so happy with the result. Here it is!

Click here to see Connie's blog!
If you want to join the swap, better hurry fast while the spots are open.

Merger!

I have had a lot of success with my Pleasant Sunday blog, however, I have had a difficult time keeping up with A Pleasant Sunday because I also have Cookie Nut Creations, this blog, and then throw that in with family responsibilities, church callings, and daily life.  So, I have decided to merge A  Pleasant Sunday and Cookie Nut Creations.  Simplify.

I am really excited to do this because my sister, Camie, will be team blogging with me.  Several of the ideas I shared on this blog were hers.  She's very talented and has a real knack for creating on a budget.  I am sad to do this because I will miss having a blog dedicated to just teaching our children the gospel, but this will just be a lot easier and a lot more fun.  Come check it out!

Committed!

If you saw the title of this post and thought that I was finally committed to an institution, you are wrong.  I'm sure that Gavin considers that everyday, but this post is about a different commitment.

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First Grade!

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Ultimate Frisbee, Ultimate Kiddie Pool, and SPUF!

We got together at my parent's neighborhood park to let the kids play and later cool off in my parent's kiddie pool.  It started of pretty normal; going on the swings, slides, and the teeter-totter.

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Ready To Go Home!

Gavin and I have lived in Illinois, Ohio, Iowa, and Arizona, but I'm ready to go home.

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Happy Birthday to Two!

On Saturday and Sunday we celebrated birthdays.  Gavin and our little niece share the same birthday.  Funnily enough, Gavin also shares it with my sister.

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Softball with a side of HALO!

Let's start off with the Softball, since that's what happened first. Well, actually, I guess that I need to start with the Halo.

Yes!  I play Halo.  I even have an XBOX live gold membership as well as Gavin.  Gavin and I get on with my brothers a couple times a week to play Halo 3 and the occasional Rockband.  We decided that today was the only day that we could get together and play Halo...ALL DAY LONG!  That was the plan, but when in Utah, plans change.

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Rocking Out!

While we were there, we got to play a little bit of Rockband...

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I Absolutely LOVE This!

I was waiting for this trailer to come out for, what seemed, forever. It's been out for a while now, but I wanted to post it anyway.

For those of you who haven't seen the movies or read the books...you are missing out.

Fireworks!

The boys never got a chance to see fireworks at the cabin, so we took them over to Gavin's parents.  Their neighborhood had a small display they decided to put on.  Everyone brings their fireworks and it was pretty cool.

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Go the Distance!

I have a soft spot for causes, especially since I had to do a fundraiser for my cousin. I think it is important as members of the church and as people to give to others in need what we can.

I don't know this boy or anyone involved, but I know how hard it is to see someone you love struggling and being unable to afford life altering treatment. I don't live in Utah and won't be able to attend this event and I know that some of you have the same issue, but there is a donate button on their blog...do what you can.

The CABIN!!!

We just spent 2 weeks in Utah.  First off was the cabin.  There's always something to do...if you like to play games, ride 4 wheelers, go fishing, go shooting, play more games, work, and play even more games!  It's always nice to get up into the mountains and get a little bit of an escape.  There's always a lot of family.  There were 36 people, but believe it or not...that's only the tip of the iceberg...our family is much bigger than that.  Not everyone comes, but it's a little nice because we all fit in the cabin that way!

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Graduation!

This post is SOOOO late!

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Pleasant Sunday and Cookie Nut

Just wanted to let you all know that I am having a giveaway on my Pleasant Sunday blog.  There a three chances to win.  Take a look and send in a submission!




Also, I have revamped my Cookie Nut blog a little bit.  I'll be adding more as time goes by, and you can take a look here.

Medical Update

We'll start with E.  When his surgury was over, the doctor came out and told me that his tonsils were actually the same size but the one was just so impacted that you couldn't tell.  One of his tonsils was pretty scarred from previous infections, but luckily, his adenoids were perfect so they are still there.  His recovery has gone really well.  He never wanted to rest.  We always needed to remind him, "E, lay down.  You're supposed to be resting!"  He's just done really well.

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Send Your Prayers!

I'll make this as short as I can.  I need to get some sleep.

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Favorite Commercials!

I got this great post idea from my cousin. Thanks Lexie!

Surgery!

Most of you know that E has been our little "sicky" child.

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Two More Weeks!

Two more weeks, people!

I've decided that I am going to go private in two more weeks.  I have been surprised how few emails I have received and hope to receive more.  Some of you, I have known for a long time and may have an old email address.  I just want to be sure that I invite everyone and that I have their current email.


I'm trying to make this as easy for everyone, myself included.  If you can email me, call me, text me, leave a comment, anything, so that I can have your email address and send you an invite.

My Absolute Favorite

For several weeks, I wanted to read the original story.  Well, today, I read it.  I tried to go in impartial because I know how Disney changes the original stories, sometimes a lot.

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Swagger Wagon!

We are VERY PROUD to own a minivan!

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I'm Going To Do It!

Okay, after I read a disturbing post by one of my good friends, I decided to go private.  I've wanted to avoid this, but I just want to make sure that our family is protected.

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California/Disney Trip (Day 4)

Our last day, and I have to say that it was probably my favorite day.  Disneyland was awesome, but there was something special today that I can't put my finger on.

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California/Disney Trip (Day 3)

Down to our last day at Disneyland. It was a little bittersweet. We had such a good time through the whole trip and it was sad that it'd be a whole year before we got to go again. This day was Friday, the sun was out, there were a little more crowds, but it still wasn't too busy.

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California/Disney Trip (Day 2)

California Adventure is awesome!

After a busy and long day at Disneyland, California Adventure was a great mellow day. Again, the weather reports claimed 'showers' but the weather was great and there were no crowds again.

We went straight over to Soarin' Over California because that line is always long. The boys loved it and was one of the favorites at California Adventure. The soaring, the images, and smells...and I have to say that I really enjoy it as well. It just gives you a great appreciation for earth's beauty.

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California/Disney Trip (Day 1)

WE HAD A BLAST!!!

Gavin and I have decided that this is going to be a yearly vacation. We had so much fun and the kids loved every minute of it. Everything worked out perfectly. It was the perfect time of year, it was the perfect weather, and the perfect place to visit.

Tuesday was our first day. We spent all day at Disneyland. The crowds were perfect because there wasn't any. We were practically walking on rides. The longest we had to wait for a ride was maybe 13 minutes. It was great because for Tuesday and Wednesday, the weather report said that it would be showers. I think that this scared away a lot of the crowds. It was overcast the whole day but only felt a few drops in the evening. We needed our sweaters because of the wind chill, but it was really nice.

Here we are, going into the park!

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Spaghetti Dinner

Lexie's spaghetti dinner went really well. It was great to know that we had a lot of support from a lot of community members. Everyone was very supportive and very generous. Lexie was able to talk with a lot of people and a lot of people were interested in how they could help.

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Guess What!!!

We have been married for over 8 years now. We've lived in Chicago, Cincinnati, Cedar Rapids, and Phoenix (surrounding areas), and we've ranged from 10 hrs - 26 hrs away from family. So, every single vacation was to see our families. Not that we are complaining, but for years now, we've wanted to have a REAL family vacation...just for fun. And now we're finally doing it!!!

Can you guess where we are going?

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Time to Rejoin the Bloggers

Well, I know it's been a while...a long while, but like I said in the last post, I was REALLY busy. I've been so frazzled because I have only one week left before we put on an event for my cousin. Anyway, let me do a quick update of the few things I took pictures of.

During Spring Break, the boys and I went up to Utah...yep...me and 3 boys for 10 hours.

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Can you spell BUSY?!

Oh, so BUSY!!!

Say It On The Wall

I want to thank Say It On The Wall who has donated some products up for auction. Iron on vinyl! This is only for the vinyl, shirts not included.

"Girl Power!" & "Dinosaur Rawr!" These will be auctioned off separately. I will update the bids everyday. Email me at cookienut@ymail.com, and be sure to include you name, the amount of your bid, and which item you are bidding on. This auction will close on March 22nd at 11:59 pm.

Current Bid:
Girl Power $5
Dino Rawr $5

My Top 20 Favorite Actresses!

I have a much easier time picking out men over woman because I'm harsher on women. I actually was afraid that I wasn't going to be able to come up with any...seriously. But I decided that that wasn't fair to my sex and that I needed to delve deep. I may like their abilities, but that doesn't mean that I like all their movies or all their roles. These are listed alphabetically by first name. It would be too hard to figure out who I like over another. Some of my favorites that didn't make the cut were Sally Fields, Meg Ryan(don't like her recent stuff), Glen Close, Natalie Portman, and Helen Mirren...to name a couple. My favorite actors are in the post before this one.
Amy Adams - I didn't like Enchanted when it came out. I thought it was just too "over the top", but every time I've watched it since...I like it more and more each time. She's been in some okay and some not okay movies, but she's very talented. I could see her playing in a good drama or even an action movie and still being awesome.
Bryce Dallas Howard - She first showed up in The Village and I thought she did awesome. She also did Lady in the Water and did well. I wasn't crazy about her in Spiderman 3, but I didn't really like the role she was given. She was great in Terminator Salvation. I was a little surprised that she was taking the role of Victoria for Eclipse, but I think that she is talented and can step into it very well. Side note...I am not a die hard Twilight fan...just to be clear.
Drew Barrymore - Wasn't sure about her for a long time. She won me over softly. I think that what first peaked my interest was seeing her in Ever After. Not the best acting she's ever done, but I thought she did good. I was pretty sure she was talented when I saw 50 First Dates, but was positive with Music and Lyrics. She's consistent and fun to watch.
Emma Thompson - Again slowly. In fact, I don't think that I can say that it is any particular movie that did it for me. She has just played in a lot of movies and executes her roles beautifully. She just has a way and is flawless as she does it.
Gwyneth Paltrow - I've always liked some of her movies, but never felt like I had to see her, but she blew me away with Iron Man. It was a good role for her and she did it well. She's not the greatest of actresses, but I was impressed and am excited to see what else she brings.
Hattie Morahan - Who is this? She played on the new BBC version of Sense and Sensibility as Eleanor Dashwood and she was amazing. This is the only thing that I have seen her in and nearly the only thing she has ever done, but wow. I was really impressed with her performance.
Joan Allen - She's someone that I kept seeing and liking without even knowing it. I think I finally realized how good she was when I started seeing her in the Bourne movies. She's very believable and likable.
Joan Cusack - She's just awesome. Always brings it. Consistent and talented. Not my favorite, by any means, but she is a top performer. It's just a natural talent for her.
Julie Andrews - Thoroughly Modern Millie, Mary Poppins, The Sound of Music. Hello? She's just got skills both in music and in acting. She's just so sweet and you can't help but love her.
Kate Beckinsale - I have to say that I can't stand a lot of the movies that she has been in, but I've always liked her. I love some of her older stuff as well. She was a great Emma and Much Ado About Nothing and I loved her in Serendipity.
Kate Winslet - If you have never seen Hamlet you are missing a great performance from her. She struck me in that movie. No matter what anyone else thinks, she was great in titanic...I didn't like her hair color or some of the lines they gave her, but she was good. I think that when I saw The Holiday is when I was smitten with her as an actress. She's simple and sweet and very real...although I think that this picture of her doesn't look very real.
Kirsten Dunst - I couldn't stand her for the LONGEST time. In fact, I'm still a little surprised that she's on this list. But when I saw Wimbledon, I was shocked at how much I enjoyed her. She was perfect for the role. She's been given some annoying roles, but she's always played them as best as she could. I would like to she her in more of an action film. Spiderman doesn't count...I mean REAL action!
Mary Steenburgen - She played in Parenthood and Back to the Future III, but she kind of dropped of the map for a while. When I saw her in Elf and The Proposal, I realized that I missed her and liked watching her. I can't wait to see her in Did You Hear About The Morgans.
Meryl Streep - Can't stand a lot of her movies, but she is an amazing actress. I remember that the first thing I saw her in was River Wild. This must sound stupid to you, but I love that movie. Gavin makes fun of me, but I could tell she was good. She's been in some yuck movies, but she's definitely got talent.
Michelle Monaghan - I liked her in Mission Impossible III, but I was impressed at her performance in Eagle Eye. Not the best of actresses, but I really enjoy watching her.
Michelle Pfeiffer - She's a very consistent actress. I loved her in One Fine Day...so cute. She's also done some great work with Up Close and Personal and I Am Sam, but what brought her to my attention was Stardust...such a great movie and she was good in it. She looked really hot for her age, too.
Reese Witherspoon - Sweet Home Alabama was cute, but I loved her in Just Like Heaven and especially in Walk the Line. She's very likable and easy to watch. I would love to see her in more roles like Walk the Line, deeper roles.
Sandra Bullock - She's always been good, but recently she's shown how good. She's someone who has gotten better with age. She still looks amazing and is always funny and charming in her movies. I can't wait to see the Blind Side.
Toni Colette - One day I had an "ah ha" moment. I realized that I was always impressed by certain characters in a movie and that they were all her. She played the mom on The Sixth Sense, Harriet Smith in Emma, and The mom in About a Boy. I've seen her in some other roles and she always does well...even if I hate the movie.
Uma Thurman - This has only been a recent development, within the last couple of years. She's a great actress not only because she's a good actress, but because she's gutsy. She can play, and has played, just about any role you can think of. She's extremely versatile. I never really like her until I saw Paycheck and Kill Bill 1 & 2 (edited but still gruesome).