The Many Faces of Aftyn

(This is her "oh-ing" face. She says "ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh".)

Can you believe her top is actually the

first dress she ever wore to church at a week and a day old?

What the Hay - it's Picture Day!

So, a little fly buzzed in my ear that it was time again for Photos With Aftyn, our weekly

debacle that starts with smiles and sunshine and ends with tears and naps.

So, older sis, what do you think? Aren't her legwarmers colorful and fuzzy? And if you've got anything bad to say about her mommy-made legwarmers, here's what Aftyn's got to say:

"Whatch-you talkin' 'bout Willis?!"

Post Edit: If you were one of the early viewers of my original post and remembered somewhat different pictures, let's just say I chose to take them out. I'm not sure they were the best specimen of my work in photography. I'm not looking for perfection, but too many people thought they were "weird." Whatevah.

A Note to Grandma from Aftyn:

Dear Grandma,


I tried your carrots.

I loved them like I've never loved any food before, except milk.














I had to focus a lot - they were yummy, I had to enjoy every bite!

You can't tell it from my face, but I'm saying Thank You. They were delish!

Why Do:

Why do babies, as soon as they lay in the warm water that is in their bath, feel the need to empty their bladders? As in, go wee wee! I noticed a few baths ago that cute little Aftyn, as soon as she felt settled and all warm in her bath, just let it go. Which I wouldn't have even noticed except that I was looking in that general area to make sure that WASN'T happening. And then she did in her next bath also. Does this happen EVERY bath time and I'm JUST noticing? Ew.

Just had to show :

I just had to post this cute picture with my oldest niece, also the oldest grandchild, holding her 3 youngest cousins. From left to right are Aftyn, Phoebe, Lucy, and holding all 3 is Kierstin. Cool, huh?

So It Must Be Thankful Thursday!

Gratefully, I feel much better, happier and thankful today.

I probably didn't explain well, but with Reed in the bedroom, I didn't get to talk to him or touch him or hug him or anything for the last 2 days. This might not seem like that big of a deal, but Reed is always hugging me or kissing me or rubbing my shoulders, and I think it might happen more often than I realize because I miss being shown how much he loves me by how often he is touching me!

And so, today I am thankful. I am thankful Reed woke up after sleeping all night, which he hadn't been able to do the night before, to no fever and hardly any body aches.

I am grateful to all the people who offered help and condolences. Thank you!

I am grateful that Aftyn and I haven't gotten sick. I am grateful for soap, and the awesome cloths that are made by Norwex and to which I attribute my lack of sickness. I am grateful to the fabulous woman in our ward who came up with little sample packs for people to try their cloths, who loaned me a few. They have been lifesavers!

I'm grateful for my sister Alyson who takes cute pictures of Aftyn for me.

I'm grateful for life returning back to "normal".

Whiny Wednesday?

Whiny Wednesday. I'm pretty sure that's a post nobody wants to read.

Life's a bit tough right now. Not really, not tough as in : we're out of a job, someone in my family has a deadly illness, or we're losing our home.

No, just tough as in: Reed's sick with the swine flu, because of this and the fact that we have 2 young children in our home on a daily basis (counting Aftyn) he has to be quarantined to our bedroom and can't really come out without spreading the disease. And I can't go in and spend time with him because I've got Aftyn to care for all day long and when she's finally down for the night, so is Reed.

So I guess life seems tough because I don't have my normal backup support from Reed. I know there are people with much harder trials than this. But right now, this one is kind of hard to swallow. Sorry, this seems to have turned a bit whiny.

Okay, well I just had to get that out of my system. I guess I needed to have someone listen to me, and I'm feeling better now!

On to better, much happier news. I am so excited for Thanksgiving! I love the holiday season because I get to watch Christmas movies and listen to Christmas music. I love the time spent with family that makes it so memorable. I'm excited to share these holidays with Aftyn, even though I know she most likely won't remember them this year. I love the feeling of *love* I feel this time of year.