Arnold Family

Catch up Time

2011-03-30T20:40:00.000-07:00

I know I haven't posted in a REALLY long time. I'll try to quickly catch you up on what's been going on with the girls. Hopefully from now on I'll do better at keeping this thing up to date, but no promises.

Gabby

2011-03-30T20:37:00.000-07:00

I took Gabby a few weeks ago for her kindergarten registration. They did a little assessment and she got a cute little t-shirt. I can't believe she's already old enough to go to kindergarten. She's ready though, I just know she's going to love it.

Annie

2011-03-30T20:33:00.001-07:00

Annie is potty trained! I've been wanting to do it since Lia was born, but I just could never get up the energy until about 2 months ago. I'm so glad I finally did it. It was so easy! She was definitely ready. I also signed her up for preschool next year. She is very excited. She sees Gabby getting to do all these fun things at preschool and asks all the time when she gets to go.

Lia

2011-03-30T20:29:00.000-07:00

Lia is 7 months old! We just got her ears pierced last week and she looks so cute! She's getting so big and starting to do so many cute things. She rolls all over the place, sits up, waves and gives kisses. She's also starting to jabber quite a bit (mainly she says da-da, but we don't have to talk about that). She also has two teeth coming in on the bottom so she's been a little grumpy lately, but for the most party she's a really easy going baby.

Gabby's Quote of the Day

2010-08-23T15:49:00.000-07:00

"Wake up Lia! You're not nocturnal!"

She's Here!

2010-08-17T16:03:00.001-07:00

She's finally here. Lia Mae Arnold was born Thurs. Aug. 12 at 5:36 p.m. She was 7 lbs. 5 oz. and 19 inches long. As you can see from the picture she has lots of dark hair, which has turned out to be a trend with my girls. I actually went into labor on my own this time, which was a first for me. Although it was exciting, it was also a little stressful. She was two weeks early, which meant she decided to be born right when Darren's parents were out of town. Luckily I was able to call on a friend to watch my girls for me and everything went smoothly (thanks again Chris!). So far everythings going well. Gabby and Annie just love their little sister. More pictures to come later!

Catch up time

2010-07-29T13:39:00.000-07:00

It's been a long time since a posted anything, and a lot has been going on so I'm going to try to play catch up. Only 4 weeks to go until my due date, and all I have to say is 4 weeks is too long! I didn't think that being pregnant through the heat of the summer would bother me because I'm the person thats usually freezing when its 80 degrees out, but it has been sooo hot. Darren thinks I'm crazy. You know the movie Father of the Bride 2? Where they have the air conditioner turned way down and everyone else is running around the house in winter coats? I wish that was my house.

Gabby Can Read

2010-07-29T13:31:00.001-07:00

Gabby learned to read in pre-school this year. She picked it up really fast and has been doing really well with it ever since. She loves to sit down and read books to Darren and I. Lately though she's been reading with expression and its so cute!

Fun Fourth!

2010-07-29T13:20:00.001-07:00

We went down to Salt Lake for the Fourth of July and watched fireworks and the park with Grandma and Grandpa and the cousins. The girls had a blast! At the park they also had a little carnival with lots of rides. Annie was a little hesitant at Knotts Berry Farm, but that was not the case here. She couldn't get enough of the rides. When it came time for the fireworks Annie wasn't a big fan. She laid down with her eyes closed and pretended to be asleep. I laid down next to her and every once in awhile I'd catch her peeking and she'd whisper "there's a pink one" "there's a green one."

California

2010-07-29T13:06:00.000-07:00

We were able to take a trip out to California to visit my dad and take a trip to Knotts Berry Farm. Annie was old enough this time that she was able to go on some of the rides, and Gabby was old enough that she could do some of the rides by herself and was also able to do some of the more grown up rides with an adult.

Annie's Birthday

2010-07-29T12:46:00.000-07:00

My little girl turned 2 years old! I can hardly believe it. We had a fun little party for her down at Grandma's house. She got this cute little pink scooter which she loved! The funny thing is when I bought the scooter I was actually thinking it would end up being more for Gabby then for Annie. I had been wanting to get a scooter for Gabby, but couldn't justify spending the money when it wasn't Christmas or her birthday. Then when Annie's birthday came along and I couldn't think if a single thing to get for her I thought I would just get the scooter and they could both use it. I didn't think Annie would be that interested in it, but she loved it, which was great!

Only Gabby...

2010-04-20T14:54:00.000-07:00

I have to start this story by telling you that lately Gabby has had a fascination with tape. Every art project that she does at home has to have tape on it somewhere. I have to ration her tape use, if I didn't we'd probably go through a roll a day. So the other day we were driving in the car and Gabby is talking to me all about Jesus dying on the cross. (I know, weird transition, just stay with me here) So she's telling me the whole story about Him having to carry the cross and how they put nails in His hands and feet. Then the conversation goes like this.

Gabby: That might have hurt.

Me: I'm sure that it did.

Long Pause

Gabby: They should have taped Him up there.

She said it so seriously, I had to try very hard not to laugh!

Girl Number 3

2010-04-08T12:16:00.000-07:00

I just had my ultrasound this morning and it looks like we're having another girl. I quickly got over the slight disappointment that it wasn't the boy I was hoping for and now I'm just ready for delivery. Too bad I still have 20 weeks to go (actually probably 19 since I tend to bother my doctor until she induces me a week early)! From the ultrasound it looks like I'm going to have a shy girl on my hands. She had her face completely hidden behind her hands, and her legs crossed. The ultrasound tech. was getting very frustrated because he couldn't get a good shot, then she finally decided to cooperate and uncrossed her legs just long enough for us to tell that yes, she actually is a girl. Do you think that's shyness, or just plain stubborness? Hmmm. If anyone has any super cute girl names that they're willing to share I'm all ears!

What we've been up to

2010-02-18T20:39:00.000-08:00

I haven't posted anything in awhile so I just thought I'd let everyone know what we've been up too. Not anything too exciting. As you can see from the above picture, Annie's decided it's fun to take her clothes off several times a day. Most often when she's supposed to be in her crib taking a nap. Gabby's latest activity has to been to change her clothes several times a day to different combinations of shorts and tank tops. Some battles just aren't worth fighting, I told her if we go anywhere she has to put on warm, matching clothes, other then that she can wear whatever she wants, I don't care. We went outside and played today after nap time, the sun was shining and it felt so nice outside. When we finally came in so that I could get started on dinner I got on the computer to see what the high was today. It felt so nice I figured it had to be somewhere in the forties. Nope, 36 degrees. How sad is that when 36 degrees feels so nice! I am so ready for spring!

Pure sugar anyone?

2010-02-18T20:32:00.001-08:00

This is a picture of Gabby eating a Fun Dip that she got at her preschool Valentines Day party. It's her first one. So what do you think? Am I a horrible mother for letting my 4 year old daughter eat a sugar stick dipped in bright green sugar from a pouch? Probably.

A Conversation with Annie

2010-01-01T18:08:00.000-08:00

This morning Darren was sitting on the couch and Annie came over and licked his pant leg.

Darren: Why did you just lick me?

Annie: Cuz...I like you.

Art Projects and Cold Weather

2009-12-11T11:14:00.000-08:00

Gabby has been very into art lately. She is constantly wanting to draw a picture or paint, or whatever else she can think of. It's also been absolutely frigid here, so we haven't been venturing outside unless absolutely necessary. The other night while Darren and I were watching t.v. I spent some time cutting out shapes with construction paper. I cut out all different shapes in all different colors and sizes. Then the next day I got them out for Gabby and also gave her a glue stick and a few sheets of paper. She loved it! She spent at least an hour, if not longer gluing the shapes on the paper to make different patterns and pictures. It is definitely something I'll be keeping up throughout the winter, and let me tell you winter is here!

Better Late Then Never

2009-12-11T11:05:00.000-08:00

I guess it's about time I posted my Halloween pictures. Since its been a month and a half. Since I don't really remember that much about Halloween at this point, I'm just going to post the pictures. Gabby was a cave woman and Annie was a butterfly.

A Plan Backfired

2009-10-12T19:37:00.000-07:00

So lately we've been having trouble with Gabby staying in her room after we put her to bed. She comes out at least three times every night for various things. Basically, she's a staller, and a very good one. So I came up with a plan that I was pretty sure would work. Tonight when she came out I said in a very pleasant voice, "Well, since you keep coming out you must not be tired, would you like to come down and do some chores?" To which Gabby responded "What chores?" and I said, "Oh I'm sure I can find something." I expected her to say no, that she wanted to go to bed. But no, she wanted to come down and do chores, so I set her to work cleaning out the fridge. I was still pretty sure that after a few minutes she'd be tired of it and ready to go to bed. Wrong again. She had a great time. She sang while she scrubbed and had a big smile on her face the whole time. Then when she was done she wanted to do something else. I told her no, it was time for bed because it was already 8:30 and she had preschool tomorrow. She then proceeded to throw a fit because she wanted to do more chores. But at least my fridge is clean, right!

2009-08-30T15:52:00.000-07:00

Gabby gave her first talk in primary today, and she did a great job? She helped me write her talk. The topic was the temple and I asked her questions about the temple and then wrote down her answers in complete sentences. Then we found a picture to go with each sentence so that way she could remember what she was supposed to say and I wouldn't have to be standing there whispering in her ear. She was a little nervous at first but once she got the hang of it she did great!

Camping Trip

2009-08-30T15:32:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend we went camping at City of Rocks with a bunch of families from our neighborhood. There were 8 families and 17 kids. Gabby had a blast climbing around on the rocks and playing with her friends. Annie did great! I was a little worried about how she would do, but I kept her up until 10:00 and by then she was so tired that she went right down with no problems. It was a fun trip!

First day of School!

2009-08-26T13:35:00.001-07:00

Today was Gabby's first day of preschool! I can't believe my little girl is already old enough to go to preschool! She had a great time, and is already excited to go back tomorrow. Her preschool is just around the corner from our house and a lot of kids from our neighborhood are in her class, which helped her to feel more comfortable. I think Annie enjoyed having some one on one time with mom for the 2 1/2 hours Gabby was gone this morning. She followed me around from room to room while I made beds and cleaned up breakfast, and then she plopped herself down on my lap for some cuddles. It was very cute.

Yummy Recipe!

2009-08-23T20:12:00.000-07:00

Does anybody else love the chicken salad's from Cafe Rio? They're tomatillo ranch dressing is so yummy! I found a recipe that taste's just like it and is sooo easy. Just thought I'd post the link to it in case anyone's interested. This blog also has a lot of other yummy recipes.

http://thesistersdish.blogspot.com/2008/08/cilantro-lime-tomatillo-ranch-dressing.html

The Indiana Jones you never knew existed

2009-07-13T18:39:00.000-07:00

Gabby likes to have whoever is putting her to bed tell her a story. Darren doesn't do Little Red Riding Hood or The Three Little Pigs, he does Indiana Jones, or Star Wars. Gabby loves them, she sits with her hands covering her mouth waiting to find out what's going to happen. So after one of these oh so exciting stories this is how the conversation went:

Gabby: Is Indiana Jones a princess?

Darren: No, Indiana Jones is a boy.

Gabby: Indiana Jones is a boy!? (very disappointed) I really want Indiana Jones to be a girl.

Darren: Okay, if you really want, Indiana Jones can be a girl.

Gabby: Can she wear a dress?

Darren: No, she's an archeologist, she needs to wear khaki pants.

Gabby: I really want her to wear shorts.

Darren: Fine

Gabby: And can she wear a yellow shirt with her name on it?

Darren: Whatever

Suddenly Indiana Jones isn't quite as cool....unless your a three year old girl.

Update

2009-06-28T20:54:00.000-07:00

Anabelle:

Annie is just as cute as ever and has started saying quite a few new words. Her newest word is "hi." She says hi to everyone, and continues to say it over and over, and louder and louder until she gets some kind of response.

Gabby:

Anyone who knows Gabby knows that she is a very cautious little girl and is afraid of everything. On Saturday we went to the park and Gabby wanted me to go down the slide with her. I told her that I was too big to go down the slide and that she was old enough to go down by herself. She, of course, refused. I decided it was time for her to learn to go down the slide by herself. I carried her up to the slide, set her down at the top, and pushed her, screaming, down the slide. Darren was standing at the bottom waiting for her and by the time she got to the bottom she was grinning. She loved it! After that she went up and down the slide by herself for the rest of the time we were at the park. I guess I should have done that a long time ago. Now if I could only get her to ride her bike.

Book Review

2009-06-09T19:20:00.000-07:00

Earlier today Gabby and I were reading stories while Annie played on the floor. Gabby decided that she wanted to read Birthday Monsters, which Annie was looking at at the time. I told Gabby she would have to wait until Annie was done with it, and then we could read it. I figured it would be about 30 seconds, a minute tops and then Annie would be off exploring something else. A half hour later Annie was still carrying that book around with her! It was driving Gabby crazy! I even tried giving her another book, thinking maybe she just wanted a book. Nope. She wanted that specific book. So there you go, a book review from a one year old. Birthday Monsters.

Yes!

2009-06-07T19:18:00.000-07:00

Just a short, cute video. Please ignore the crazy hair!

The Beach

2009-05-28T20:35:00.000-07:00

This was Anabelle's first trip to the beach and she loved it! She had a great time playing in the sand and dipping her toes in the water.

Gabby also had a great time. She would go play in the water and come back freezing cold, but happy. After she warmed herself up in a towel she was ready to go back to the water. This is her new swimming suit this year. Not only does it keep her more protected from the sun, I think it's super cute. She calls herself a surfer girl while she's wearing it.

Disneyland!

2009-05-28T19:25:00.000-07:00

We were so lucky to be able to go to Disneyland while we were out in California visiting my dad. Gabby was so excited, and we had so much fun. It was a very long day, but it was very fun. One of the first things we were able to see were some of the characters that were out greeting kids as they came into the park. Gabby was able to say hi to Goofy.

Anabelle was SO GOOD! She spent almost the whole day in her stroller and she handled it so well. What a cutie!

Gabby and I went on the Dumbo ride together, she had a great time pulling the lever and making the elephant go up and down.

We had to go on the tea cups. Gabby seemed to be having a great time as we made the tea cup spin faster and faster. Then all of a sudden she leaned over and started looking a little sick so we made sure to stop spinning. That didn't stop her from saying she wanted to go on the tea cups again later that day.

I think the highlight of Gabby's day was being able to meet the princesses. We had to wait in line for quite a while, but for Gabby it was totally worth it. It was really cute the way they had it set up. There were three princesses there and each had their own little area. The girls got to go in one at a time and talk to each princess individually. It was very cute. Gabby got to meet and talk to Belle, Ariel and Jasmine.

This is Gabby sitting on a chair in Mickey's house. Funny Story: As we were walking into Toontown (if you're not familiar with Disneyland that's where all the characters "live.") Minnie came out of her house accompanied by a Disneyland worker. Gabby was shouting "Minnie, Minnie!" but Minnie didn't hear her. Minnie and the worker walked down a little side street and disappeared behind a door. All the other kids were happy to stand back and watch Minne walk away, but not Gabby. She took off down the street at fast as she could trying to get to the door, all the time yelling "Minnie, Minnie!" It was so funny and so cute!

Just another example of how great Annie was. I made sure to have her blanket and her monkey that she always sleeps with. I just laid the stroller back and she went right to sleep, she took a great nap.

Over in California Adventure they had "Dot's Puddle Park." Gabby was starting to drag by this time of the day, but after a few minutes playing in the water she was re energized and ready to go. Anabelle enjoyed the water also.

Gabby and Bubba (my dad) driving the bumper cars.

California Here We Come!

2009-05-22T19:36:00.000-07:00

We left for California at 1:00 this morning. Our hope was that the kids would sleep and we could get the first half of our drive done before they woke up, for the most part it worked. They did wake up when we put them in the car, and it took about an hour and a half for them to go back to sleep, but they were very good during that time. Then they slept all the way to St. George. After that there was a lot of movie watching for Gabby, and toy playing for Annie. I was a little nervous about how Annie would handle the trip, but she was excellent! I packed a bag full of toys for her and when she wasn't sleeping she was happy to play with her toys one at a time. About 8 hours into our trip we stopped at a place called Calico. It's an old ghost town that is now a tourist trap, but it was a fun place for the kids, and Darren, to take a break.

She missed it!

2009-05-11T18:49:00.000-07:00

So on Mothers Day all the primary kids were going to sing in sacrament meeting. We were running a tiny bit late and got there just as sacrament was starting so we didn't get a program. A ways into the first talk Gabby said she had to go potty, so we went potty and just as we were coming back into the chapel the kids were singing the last note of their song. Gabby was so upset she stood in the middle of the aisle and said (pretty loudly) "I missed it! I missed it" It was so sad! I have to say I was disappointed too, I was looking forward to being able to see and hear her sing. This isn't the first time the primary kids have sung in sacrament meeting since Gabby became a Sunbeam, but the last time I was up there with them playing the piano so I didn't get to see. I would have loved to see Gabby up there singing on Mothers Day. I guess there's always next year right?

Party Time!!

2009-05-09T16:09:00.000-07:00

Annie's first birthday is on Monday so we had her party today. I can't believe my little girl is one. This year has gone by so fast!

We got Annie to show us how old she is, it took a lot of coaxing to get this shot!

Her big sister and cousins were more then happy to help open the presents.

And the best part.....THE CAKE! This was her first ever taste of cake, and she loved it!

Easter

2009-04-13T14:35:00.001-07:00

Darren and I hid Eater eggs all around the house Saturday night after the kids went to bed. I woke up Sunday morning to the sounds of Gabby rummaging through her Easter basket in the kitchen and trying to open up all the eggs she had already found. Most of the eggs were for Gabby with candy in them, but there were a few for Annie with animal crackers in them. Annie mostly just wanted to play with the empty eggs.

Baby Animal Days

2009-04-13T14:18:00.000-07:00

We went to baby animal days on Friday, and although it was fun, it could have been better. I decided to go on Friday because it was supposed to rain on Saturday (it didn't, but oh well). Darren decided that he wanted to come so he took a long lunch and came with us. There were a TON of people there. Gabby wanted to go on the pony ride, but the line was sooo long that by the time we were done doing that there would have been no time to do anything else before Darren had to go back to work. I convinced her that we should go get a balloon from the Macey's booth instead. We did get to pet a few animals, but there were just sooo many people that we didn't get to do much. Maybe we'll try again next year and go first thing in the morning.

Gabby kept saying she was hungry, which didn't actually mean she was hungry, since we ate lunch right before we went, it just mean she saw everyone else eating food and she wanted some too. So I debated, do I buy my child popcorn, which was $6 a bag, but slightly more healthy, or do I go for the cheap $1 sucker. The picture says it all.

Gabby holding a baby turtle

Gabby and Anabelle with the Easter Bunny, of course they wouldn't look at the camera

Questions, Questions, Questions

2009-04-01T13:02:00.000-07:00

Gabby has always been a pretty curious little girl, but lately it seems like the questions have quadrupled. She wants to know what every animal in the world eats, she wants to know what every word she sees says. She must ask me a million questions a day. Now don't get me wrong, I'm very glad that she's inquisitive and want's to know about things, and most of the time I'm more then happy to answer her bazillion questions, but there are days when I wish that girl had a mute button!

She loves that sippy cup!

2009-04-01T12:50:00.000-07:00

I decided that since Annie is going to be turning one in just a little over a month (I still can't believe it.) it was time to start getting her used to a sippy cup, so we can get rid of that bottle. So yesterday while Gabby was having a little snack in the afternoon I put Annie in her highchair with a graham cracker and a little bit of water in a sippy cup and let her try it out. She loved it! She actually cried when I tried to take it away. Today I gave it to her again with some formula while I fixed the rest of her lunch and she drank almost the whole 5 oz. all by herself. She needed a little bit of help tipping it up when it got down to the end, but other then that she did great! I think soon we'll be able to get rid of the bottle completely.

Finally!

2009-03-19T15:06:00.000-07:00

Annie can scoot! Today I was vacuuming and she was sitting and playing on the floor with her toys and I turned around to look at her and she was going after the vacuum cord. She's still being a little lazy and she'll only go as far as she absolutely has to before her fingertips just barely reach what she wants and then she stops, and you have to find just the right thing to bribe her with. But we're making progress! I tried to get a video, but of course she wouldn't do it anymore once I got the camera out.

Poor Gabby

2009-02-26T20:05:00.000-08:00

Last night after dinner Darren took the girls to go and run a few errands. They were gone for awhile and I was in Gabby's room putting away a few of her toys when they got back. I could hear Gabby crying before they even got in the house and I heard Darren say "Go show mom what happened." It turned out that Darren accidentally slammed Gabby's hand in the car door. He had put her in her car seat and just as he was closing the door she stuck her hand out. Her poor fingers were all bruised and swollen. So the above picture is Gabby sitting on our bed, watching Backyardigans while she eats a banana and puts ice on her fingers. Poor girl!

Yummy!

2009-02-26T19:56:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I have a confession. I struggle when it comes to baking anything from scratch, especially if that something requires yeast and rising. But the other day I decided to try to make some cinnamon rolls, I found a good recipe online and Gabby and I spent the morning baking. I didn't have high hopes, but let me tell you they turned out pretty yummy! Even Darren liked them and he's kind of hard to please when it comes to that kind of stuff. Yay!

9 Months!

2009-02-12T18:44:00.000-08:00

Annie had her nine month appointment today. She is 18 lbs. 4 oz. (the 40th percentile) and 28 inches long (the 67th percentile). She's starting to thin out, although you'd never know it to look at her, her cheeks are just as chubby as ever. She loves to just sit and play with her toys, and she loves books! I thinks she's going to be just like her sister in that regard. She has four teeth now, the two front bottom and the two front top. She's not crawling yet but we're working on it. I can't wait for her to crawl, I know it's going to be a lot more work, but it's so fun!

Cute Old Video

2009-01-09T13:07:00.000-08:00

I came across this old video of Gabby singing, and it is so cute I just had to put it up. I can't remember exactly how old she is. Somewhere between 12 and 14 months.

My little Sunbeam

2009-01-09T13:00:00.000-08:00

Gabby started Sunbeams this past Sunday. I can't believe my little girl is a Sunbeam! I'm one of the primary pianists so I get to be in there with her every other week. It wasn't my turn to play this past week, but I snuck in and sat in the back during her singing time and sharing time just so I could keep an eye on her. She did great! She and all the other new Sunbeams were so cute!

Christmas Morning

2009-01-07T12:32:00.000-08:00

We had a great Christmas this year. My dad and brother drove out from California on Christmas Eve and were able to make it to our house early enough on Christmas morning to see the girls open their presents. Gabby got exactly what she wanted from Santa, a princess backpack. Funny side story though, I had been asking her for weeks what she wanted Santa to bring her, and the only thing she ever said was a princess backpack, that was it. Then on Christmas eve, she says "I want Santa to bring me an ipod." I told her sorry, but I didn't think Santa was going to bring her an ipod. She says "Oh, okay then just a princess backpack." I'm so glad she's easy to please! Although she was excited about the backpack, her favorite present ended up being the magic wand that Spence got for her. Anabelle just had fun with the wrapping paper.

More big laughs

2008-12-24T20:49:00.000-08:00

Here's another cute video of Annie laughing. Gabby was shaking her birthday balloon and Annie thought it was hysterical. Sorry it's so dark.

A little bit of Christmas!

2008-12-24T20:41:00.001-08:00

Since we were planning on staying in Logan for Christmas, and Darren's parents weren't going to be able to see the girls on Christmas they decided to come up on Tuesday to give them their Christmas presents. Gabby got a few new dress up things (like the Fancy Nancy outfit she has on above), and few other fun toys. Annie also got some fun things. The girls had fun seeing their grandparents and opening a few early Christmas presents. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa!

3 Years Old!

2008-12-24T20:28:00.000-08:00

I can't believe my little girl is three years old already! She turned three on Monday, and unfortunately she was so sick! She and I both came down with the stomach flu on Saturday and she still had it Monday for her birthday. Since we did a birthday party for her in the summer, we didn't really have much planned for her birthday and since I had been sick I really didn't have much planned, but she woke up Monday morning and when she didn't have any presents to open she was so bummed! Darren and I felt so bad that I ended up running to the store to get a couple little presents and some balloons. I guess we won't be doing the summer party thing anymore!

Visiting Santa

2008-12-18T19:09:00.000-08:00

Darren and Gabby went on a Daddy-Daughter Date the other day to visit Santa Clause at the mall. Apparently the kids aren't allowed to sit on Santa's lap anymore (for obvious reasons), but she got to sit up next to him on his big chair. She informed him that she wanted a Princess backpack. That's the only thing she has asked for, hopefully Santa will deliver.

Bath Time Fun

2008-12-02T21:22:00.000-08:00

Anabelle has been having such a fun time in her baths lately. She splashes and gets me and everything else soaking wet. She had a bath with her big sister for the first time the other night and they had so much fun playing in the water. She just gets cuter and cuter everyday.

Thanksgiving

2008-12-02T20:51:00.000-08:00

We had a fun Thanksgiving down in Salt Lake this year. Gabby got to have fun with her cousin Cloie, and Anabelle got tons of attention. I got to do a little bit of Black Friday shopping which was not fun at all! I went to Walmart at 5 a.m. because there were a couple of sale items I wanted, when I got there the parking lot was totally full. I mean completely. I had to park across the street at the Sam's Club and I had trouble finding a spot there. I couldn't believe how many people were there. But overall it was a great holiday.

Dance Recital

2008-11-21T19:32:00.001-08:00

Gabby had her first dance recital tonight. She's been taking "Creative Movement" classes for the last three months from someone in our ward and tonight was her big show. Her Grandma and Grandpa and cousin Cloie came up from Salt Lake to see her dance. She looked so cute and did such a good job. I was a little worried that she would get up there in front of everyone and get stage fright, but she had no such problem. This is a little video of her dance. Autumn is in front of her for most of it, but it's still cute.

Pierced Ears

2008-11-19T19:28:00.000-08:00

Annie got her ears pierced today and she looks adorable! I had to go to the mall to return some shoes for Darren and I decided to just go ahead and do it. She cried for a second when they first did it, but she's been fine since, she doesn't even fuss when I clean them. Gabby was extremely worried for her little sister, she also cried, because Annie was crying. But then she got a sucker so life was good again.

6 Months!

2008-11-12T09:36:00.001-08:00

Annie had her six month appointment today. I can't believe she's six months already! Everything is great, she's 16 lbs. 5 oz. and 25.5 in. She had to get a few immunizations today and also a flu shot. Gabby also got a flu shot and she is being extremely dramatic about it. She was very good during the shot, she didn't even cry. But now she's limping around all over the house and telling me she's too tired to do anything, can you say Drama Queen?! Annie just gets more adorable every day. She's babbling a lot now. She says da-da pretty regularly now, much to Darren's delight, of course she doesn't know what she's saying (even though Darren insists that she does.) She's also starting to be very demanding for attention. If you walk by her and don't acknowledge her she yells at you, not cry, yell! What a cutie.

Fun in Price

2008-11-02T19:10:00.000-08:00

We went to Price yesterday for a big dinner with Darren's extended family. Gabby had fun playing with her cousins, and Annie of course had fun being held by everyone.

Here are the girls playing in the leaves out in front of Great Grandma and Grandpa Arnold's house.

Here they are singing on the stage at the church. (We had the dinner at the church because the family is too big to fit comfortably anywhere else.)

Halloween

2008-11-02T18:47:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures from Halloween. Annie was an adorable cow, and Gabby was the cutest scarecrow ever.

I took the girls to the mall on the afternoon of Halloween. The stores were doing trick-or-treating and I thought it would be fun for Gabby. We walked around to all the stores and she got a pretty good load of candy just from that. We went home and I let her have a couple of pieces of candy and then I told her no more till after dinner. I put all of her candy in a bowl and put in on the cupboard. She said "Mommy can you just get it down so I can look at it?" So I got it down so she could look at her candy, then she says, "Mommy can I just smell it?" I told her it was fine if she smelled it as long as she didn't eat it, and she took a big old whiff of it. So this is a picture of her smelling her candy. I guess that's second best to eating it.

This is Gabby with her loot after trick-or-treating around our neighborhood. She was exhausted by the time we were done.

Little Artist

2008-10-05T12:47:00.000-07:00

I know this is a little hard to see, but this is Gabby's snowman. I gave her a piece of paper and a pen the other day so that she could draw while I was making a grocery list. She said she was going to draw a snowman and this is what she drew. I know I'm a little biased but I think it's pretty good for two years old. It has eyes, a nose, a mouth, two arms and even a little hat!

Big Laughs

2008-09-18T20:06:00.002-07:00

Here's a video of Annie laughing, we've gotten little giggles out of her before but this is the first time we've heard any big laughs. All Darren was doing was clapping and for some reason she thought it was hilarious. She was tired though, you know how every thing's funnier when your tired. There's a lot of back ground noise in the video because Gabby was taking a bath.

4 Months!

2008-09-18T20:06:00.001-07:00

Look at those cheeks!

Annie had her four month doctor's appointment on Monday. She's up to 14 lbs. and 24 inches and she's healthy as can be. She had to get three immunizations and Gabby was in the room with me when they gave them too her. The nurse gave Gabby a sucker when they were done. Annie gets shots and Gabby gets a sucker, how fair is that. I've started feeding her cereal, at first she wasn't too sure about it but now I think she's decided she likes it. I think she's starting to need something besides formula because she sucks down 8 oz. at every feeding like its nothing. We've also discovered that she loves being naked. It doesn't matter how cranky she is, if I take off her clothes to give her a bath she's all smiles, but then as soon as I put her diaper back on she starts to cry.

Fun at the Fair

2008-09-09T19:44:00.000-07:00

Gabby and Cloie working hard on the farm

Gabby and Cloie screaming on the car ride

Gabby on the pony ride

Gabby went to the Utah State Fair with her grandparents and her cousin this past Saturday and she had a blast. She got to pretend she was working on a farm, planting seeds, picking vegetables and taking them to the market. She went on three rides, a helicopter ride, a car ride and a pony ride. All of which I'm sure she would not have done had Cloie not been with her. They have so much fun playing together! She ate ice-cream and licorice and came home exhausted. I wish I could have been there!

Party Time!

2008-08-31T20:00:00.001-07:00

This is Annie hanging out in the back of our Subaru.

She was such a good girl all day.

This is Gabby opening her presents, it took her forever!

she was very methodical, tearing off one piece of paper at a time.

Gabby blowing out her candles. She's actually just pretending to

blow them out because the wind kept blowing

out the match before I could light the candles.

Gabby playing on the beach with her cousins and her Grandpa

Since Gabby's birthday is December 22 we have, for the past two years, thrown her a birthday party in the summer instead of doing one right before Christmas. We do this because we don't want her birthday to get too mixed up with Christmas, and also because its easier on our bank account when we don't have to buy Christmas presents for everyone plus birthday presents for Gabby. This year we had her party at Bear Lake. It was so much fun!

Hot Air Balloon Festival

2008-08-23T21:38:00.000-07:00

My dad and brother were in town last weekend and my dad owns a condo down in Eden (its a little town up Ogden Canyon). They were having there annual hot air balloon festival so we went down to check it out. They had craft booths set up and fun things for the kids, Gabby had fun on the little train ride they had going. It was fun to get to spend some time with my family.

Funny Story!

2008-08-23T20:51:00.000-07:00

So tonight Darren and I and the kids went to Smith's just to grab a couple things and we let Gabby push one of those little kids carts. We were over by the pop and juice and we turned our back on her for one second and when we turned back she was loading her little cart up with beer and margarita mix! It was pretty funny.

Potty Trained!

2008-07-11T11:04:00.000-07:00

Gabby is finally potty trained! I wanted to try to get her potty trained before the new baby came along, but obviously that didn't happen. Then after the baby came I was too busy, but I finally decided it was time and she's been doing great!. The other day I had to go to Old Navy and Walmart, and I debated before we left, do I put a pull-up on her, or let her wear her big girl underwear? I decided to risk it. She went potty before we left and she did fine at Old Navy, then the second we pulled into the Walmart parking lot I hear "I need to go potty." So I rush the kids out of the car we run into Walmart, and of course the closest women's bathroom is closed for cleaning,but she's still holding it so we run to the back of the store to the other bathroom. I'm running with my cart, dodging in and out of people we finally make it to the bathroom (which by the way was totally disgusting). I was afraid she would refuse to sit on the toilet because she was used to her little potty, but she did with no problem! Yay! I'm back to just one kid in diapers!

New Baby

2008-06-16T14:23:00.000-07:00

Okay, I'm finally posting pictures of our new baby! Her name is Anabelle Marie Arnold (Annie for short) and she was born on May 11. She was 6 lbs. 6 oz. and 19.5 in. She has tons of dark hair and we think she looks very much like Gabby did when she was born, which means I'll have the two cutest girls in the whole world! Gabby loves her baby sister. She always wants to "pet" her, as she calls it, and loves to give her hugs and kisses.

Last Day

2008-06-13T15:55:00.000-07:00

We wanted to make sure that we did something fun with Gabby for her last day as an only child. She loves picnics at the park so on Saturday we packed a lunch with some of her favorite things and took her to Willow Park. After she had had her fill of the swings (thats pretty much the only thing she ever wants to do at the park.) We walked over to the Willow Park Zoo. Lucky for us they were having a fund raiser and promoting some of their new animals, and they had free balloons and ice cream, two of Gabby's favorite things. I think she had a pretty good day!.

Counting Down

2008-04-27T20:27:00.001-07:00

Exactly 20 days until my due date! My doctor has already said she'll induce me a week early, so it'll probably be Monday the 12th. That's 15 days! The question is can I stand it that long? I am so ready to have this baby. As for a name....you'll know when we know.