Early Birthday Present

Tessa's birthday is coming up next week. She received an early birthday present from Grandma Black, who said we could use it now if we wanted to. So after the snow melted away, we got dad to put together our brand new wagon.

Here it is pre-assembly. Abby called it the "boat."

It took a little longer than it probaby should have considering that Abby wanted to "help."

So here is the final product. We've used it a lot already both indoors and out. Thanks Grandma! We're excited for the rest of our upcoming Easter/Birthday festivities.

I Got Tagged...

So I got tagged by Amy.
Now I tag Kristin, Kelsey, and Laura.
Reply to this post when you notice you are tagged and tell me when you complete yours!)

10 YEARS AGO:
I was totally in high school, senior baby, and getting ready for the big day of graduation. And probably worrying about who I'd be going to the school dances with.

5 THINGS ON MY TO DO LIST:
Looking at this weeks ads for coupon-shopping
Calling my friend to see why she keeps missing play group
Finishing Abby and Tessa's Easter dresses
Read my book while Tessa's napping
Get Abby's pants back on her (yes, that's right)

5 SNACKS THAT I ENJOY:
Chips and salsa
Yogurt and granola
Crackers and cheese
Ice Cream
Whatever chocolate treat we have as leftovers

5 PLACES I'VE LIVED:
American Fork, Utah
Diamond Bar, California
Wichita Falls, Texas
Marquette, Michigan
Burley, Idaho

WHAT I WOULD DO IF I SUDDENLY BECAME A BILLIONAIRE:
Pay off all our student loans and let Tyler start his own practice.

5 JOBS I'VE HAD:
Deseret Industries Accounting Clerk
BYU Bands Student Secretary
El Chico's Server
EFY Regional Counselor
Chuck E. Cheese employee (and yes, I did dress up like Chuck E.!!)

5 THINGS YOU MAY NOT KNOW ABOUT ME:
I marched in the BYU marching band (with 2 of my brothers one year)
I eat Junior Mints with my popcorn, thanks to my husband-yummy.
I graduated in Information Systems.
I don't really like plain chocolate. I much prefer something to be with it.
I don't have a middle name.

Let it Snow. Let it Snow. Let it Snow

That's right. It snowed in Texas...in March. And it was quite a bit of snow considering it's March and Texas! As soon as we woke up yesterday morning, we looked outside and Abby said, "It's Christmastime!!" After explaining that it's just random early spring weather, we had to go out and play in the snow before we even ate breakfast.

Abby saw the neighbors making snow angels so she had to do it too. She did really well actually. She knew just what to do once I laid her in the snow. She made me do one too. This is Abby's angel and mine is in the top right corner.
We built a "Frosty" as Abby called it, but the snow didn't pack too well, so it was more like a mound of snow than anything else. Abby was a little shocked when I threw a snowball at her, but she thought it was funny when she got to throw one back at me. We had fun and spent a good part of an hour getting cold and enjoying the snow before it all melted away.

Tessa walking, I mean dancing

Well, I've been trying to get Tessa on the camera walking, but this particular day, she was only listening to the music of her walker instead and getting into the groove. She does take steps now while holding on to something. So for all our family and friends who don't get to see Tessa on a regular basis, this is for you. And here's a picture of her standing at our fridge playing with the letter magnets.

Also, from all of Abby's valentine exchanges, we had a lot of tatoos, so we girls decided to have fun with it...

Happy Valentine's Day

We enjoyed our Valentine's weekend. Abby loved playing with the items from our Valentine's package from Grandma and Grandpa Gibbons. This was her favorite thing to do until dad (the eye doctor) told her she should stop, but not until after I got a picture.

Abby also opened her own mail when I told her two things were addressed for her. She didn't even wait until I was off the phone, she found the two envelopes and pretty much shredded them to get to the cards inside.

We loved that we had a few warmer weather days this week. We took the opportunity to enjoy outside while we could. We spent one afternoon filling our driveway with chalk art including flowers and lots of hopscotch boards. Here's Tessa's contribution.

We also had a fun night with the couples from the ward. We enjoyed the karaoke and I even got a little treat for all you who may think Tyler is the quiet one. Sorry my camera doesn't get sound, but just imagine hearing the words to "Mambo Number Five!"

What about "Mama"?!?

So, this is the cutest thing, however if I really start to think about it, it makes me kind of sad too. Everyone knows that most babies' first words are "dada." This was no exception for Tessa. She's been saying "dada" for a couple months now. The big news is that for about a week now, she has started saying her first real word. You know how "dada" doesn't always refer to dad, it's just that first recognizable word. Anyway, Tessa has now begun saying her first recognizable, real word, and as you probably can tell by now, it's not "mama." That's right - it's "Abby." She spends all day every day saying "Aaaa dee", "Aaaa dee." It is like the cutest thing you've ever heard especially when after you hear it, Abby immediately says, "Mom, she's saying my name." Which I reply with "yep, because she loves you." So, like I said, super cute, but my first statement stands, What about mama?!? I love Tessa's adorable first word, but I'm feeling kind of left out now that her two words are Dada and Aaadee. :) But that's just the beginning of the underappreciation of motherhood now isn't it! :) Boy do I love being a mom!

Tessa's New Binky

So I walked into the playroom this morning and saw Tessa. She had found something on her own to pass as the new binky:

So what is that you ask?

A play mushroom from Abby's kitchen set. Tessa loves it! Here's a video that I thought was pretty cute of Tessa and her "new" binky: