baby monday

The Murrays will never celebrate New Year's Eve the same.

But we are cool wit dat.

Cause for us, it was baby Monday.

6 in the morning looked a little something like this.

and 8:52 in the a.m. looked a little like this.

No-name-YET Murray.

8 lbs 3 oz

21 1/4 inches long.

A head of dark hair.

and a body so soft you want to bury your face in her.

Heeeeaven this girl is.

And looking at MY family together...

makes me have to burst at the seams with joy.

Plus my mom is here and that just makes everything in the land even more perfect.

Excuse us while we ring in the new year by devouring this toots's perfect baby pinkness:)

Happy 2013!!!

next generation lion kinger

Today while playing Lo was just chatting with me 

and telling me all about Lion King.

Little does she know that about 20 years before it was her favorite movie,

it was mine.

So her quoting lines to me is more than my overinflated heart can handle.

This photo is while she was telling me, 

'Scar throws Simba's dad who is called Mufasa off the rocks and THEN the horses kill him. It's sad. I like that part.'

And my other favorite,

'The bird Zazu says, you two are gonna get married, and it's funny!'

My happiness meter is maxing out when it comes to this lady.

old fogey

I hit the big 2-7 yesterday.

All the days leading up to it I couldn't seem to get excited.

I felt this same way when I was pregnant with Lo and turned 24.

It must be pregnancy hormones or the fact that I am huge in the midsection 

so shopping for clothes is less fun than normal 

and what other gifts does a grown woman get if not clothing?

But you know what, it was a really great day.

We spent our afternoon with friends eating lunch and playing at the park.

Then when Cory got home from college I had a perfect family celebration.

Delicious dinner, tasty ice cream cake, a whole lotta reading 

and NOT a lick of cleaning.

Cory and Lo spoiled me rotten:)

All day Lo would get all excited and say,

'It's our birthday mom!'

So she had to help me with the candle blowing out and such. 

My favorite gift was the watch band Cory got me because my original was hammered.

Either that or the Belle pez dispenser from Lo...

And for posterity purposes,

this is what I looked like the day I turned old:)

p.s- when I am 27 and 10 weeks old, I am going to have a new baby.

HUH???

10 weeks until this little toots makes her grand entrance.

Nutso.

Anthropology schmanthropology

Perchance I am just bias to the fact that I nested the crap out of these lampshades and so therefore I am in love with the end result,

or...

I totally just stuck it to Anthropology and their $150 version.

The original that I have personally been lusting after for a year.

Beautiful, no?

The Tricia versions.

Biggie

And the little fella.

Obviously I know that I am no designer,

but I am over the moon with my handmade knockoffs.

Weeks past

A glimpse into our week.

24 week girl-child bump.

Lo is the bomb at deciphering between American and Canadian pennies,

'one has a lady and one has a man'.

Just some awesome morning word tracing.

Rainy Saturday afternoon viewing of Matilda.

Kings giving Lo a ride...and making an important call to his

'auntie amy'.

Stop being so cute eating fruit loops on the counter.

Halloween-ing it up.

The smile of a girl about to have a tea party.

The most beautiful rocking chair for the misses nursery.

And just for the record, 

being a consistent blogger is hard work.

We like big butts

I was making dinner tonight and my sidekick, 

you may know her as Lolo, 

was monitoring me.

She looks at the cutting board of carrots and asks,

'What is that one?'

(speaking of the carrot end that I had put aside.)

And I told her it was the carrot butt.

'Is Daddy gonna eat it?'

I ask why would daddy eat it?

'Cause he likes butts,' was her reply.

True dat.

*Cory claims she said this because he always eats the butts of her pickles.

But we all know it's really because I have the nicest back porch this side of the Mississippi and he lalaloves it.

Ashamed

All I could remember about this weekend was that Cory spent all Saturday afternoon/evening watching college football

and then all afternoon/evening Sunday watching NFL games.

And I was mad.

I was mad because my house was messy on Saturday and I wanted it cleaned. I had a lesson to prepare for Relief Society and I was resenting Cory for getting to lounge while I felt so busy.

On Sunday I tried to make bread. Let's just say that this was my 2nd time trying this 'fool proof' recipe and I really must be the biggest fool because I screwed it up both times. When Cory saw it, he laughed. My pregnant feelings got hurt and I stormed upstairs to pout.

So by the time Lo went to bed I told him I wanted to watch TV. 

Since I am so mature I said that I was going to watch something he didn't like so he would know how I felt all weekend. I settled on Keeping up with the Kardashians. He offered to watch a movie with me or a show we both liked and I was just so stubborn I refused to spend time with him. You know, a taste of his own medicine.

Now that I think about this weekend I feel like a real buttface.

Because what I didn't take into account was the fact that he had watched Lo on Thurs and Fri night while I went out. He went yard sale-ing with me on Saturday morning. He helped me put up some new shelves in the living room. Took Lo on like 5 bug hunts. Filled the car up with gas in the pooring rain so I could go to a dr.s appt. He rides his bike or takes the bus to school everyday so that Lo and I aren't stuck at home carless. He made lunch on Sunday after church. And watched Lo so that I could have a nap that afternoon.

So yeah. There is nothing like being a stubborn dootyhead to make you realize that you should probably say sorry to your husband and watch an illegally downloaded movie in bed with him instead of feeling bad for yourself. Cause really he is pretty great.

out on one of their bug-hunts.

sweaty and delicious

While Lo's uncle T was here for a visit,

I roped everyone into going berry picking with me.

Besides the fact that the blueberry ladies were total sticklers,

and it was disgustingly hot and sweaty in the raspberry tents,

I love having the fresh fruit.

And as a little surprise,
we ran into a bird's nest whilst filling up our carton.
Plus a huge toad went leaping across our row.
Nature at its finest.

Rain day

Perhaps my to do-do list was a page long.

Perhaps we were out of bread and milk,

staples at our digs.

And perhaps I haven't showered in one too many days.

But the rain came.

And we stayed inside all day.

Popcorn...check

Snuggling...check

Movie time...check

Little sister having a girls' day with us in utero...check

Not my worst rainy day that's fo sho.

critter hunting

Lo is a fearless critter hunter.

And her dad is a great helper because me, well,

I screech a lot when confronted with most critters.

Cory got home early from school and Lo was determined 

to go out and find some rollie pollies.

Instead they came in with this.

Yeah that is a jar with a salamander, 3 rollie pollies, and a worm.

 At one point there was a fatty spider involved 

but I politely excused him from my life.

We really like the mini salamander so they googled its habitat

 and made him a little home.

Lo has gone out to visit Sal approximately 4jillion times.

give or take a few.

It's her "pit" aka pet.

I think she needs a dog, poor thing.

My worst nightmare happened when transferring Sal to his new home.

He escaped.

And slithered under my sideboard.

It was like slow motion hell.

But with all hands on deck he was retrieved 

and that is why even though he is in a jar, 

he lives on the front porch.

I have better photos of things in my life, 

but my memory card hates my computer 

and refuses to download anything.

So thank you little ipod for capturing these moments in my life.

Dangerous

The eyes on this girl are trouble. 

They are big and blue and all her emotions show right through them.

If she is happy they light up like a firey firework.

You make her sad and you will feel guilt from those things 

like you have never felt before.

She already gets away with more than she should 

merely through looking up at people and asking for things.

In all honesty I am scared to see her manipulation skills once she realizes

her 'blueberry eyes' are indeed a merciless weapon.

Blueberry eyes photos courtesy of Hels.

Peeps best watch out.

This girl is dangerous.

sister talk

'But mom, I wanna talk to baby sista.'

(little giggles)

'What is she saying Lolo?'

'She is funny! She says lrrlrrpop!'

Holy cow I loved this moment.

lazy hazy days of summer

Going to the park can be stressful for me.

When it is just Lo and I she is insistent 

on my playing with her non-stop 

or else she would rather just sit down on the bench beside me.

BUT,

going to the park with cousins and gramma and aunts 

who rarely get to see the lady make it mucho more enjoyable.

Because I just got to sit there and laugh at the kids,

and make googly eyes at baby Drena,

and take photos of everyone's cuteness.

I didn't have to push her up and down on the teeter totter 

for 20  minutes in the 100 degree weather.

Aunt Traci took care of that.

I didn't have to entertain her while she had a snack break.

Tamar and Drena were glad to help out there.

See them running to the tree with a hole in it that was far away?

Again, I got to sit there and enjoy 

as opposed to frolicking and sweating.

That stream was straight up cold. 

And Lo wasn't quite coordinated enough to keep up 

with the big kids who were climbing in and out.

So she just chilled and threw rocks with Gramma and Henry.

While I sat in the shade and took photos.

The only time I had to play was when I wanted to.

And that meant spinning on some contraptions 

until I was so disoriented I nearly peed my pants:)

Call it lazy parenting, or taking advantage of your family.

But it won't change the fact that it was my best park day yet.

A very Sorensen weekend

Over the 24th of July we got to go up to Logan 

and spend time with our best friends the Sorensens.

The thing about good friends is that you can just pick up 

right where you left off without a hitch.

The zoo.

The splash pad (the girls had matching suits).

The new swing on their giant tree, 

which Lo fell off of right after this photo was snapped.

And our hang out classic, Pina coladas.

We got to stay at their beautiful new house 

and eat 

and chat 

and go fabric shopping.

It was straight up perfection.

So fun for the kids.

And so so so much fun for the big kids.

Until next year:)

Broken helicopters

While playing at the Discovery Museum 

Loreli and her cousin Emily spent a lot of time sitting in this helicopter.

After about 15 minutes they came to us and we were informed 

that it was broken and wouldn't fly them anywhere.

I just wonder where exactly they were planning on going.

That place was seriously kid heaven. 

All I had to do was sit there and chat with my sisters 

while the kiddos entertained themselves.

So it was kind of mom heaven too:)

I'm so excited

And I just can't hide it.

No literally, I can't hide it.

This belly be bumpin.
And no, I am not just getting chubby in the midsection.

We figured since we are doing such an outstanding job with Lo,

that we would give it another shot.

And so, little sister Murray is

due to arrive January 2013.

We are really really over the moon.

reunioning

Yuba yuba yuba.

Now that was a family reunion.

Beside the 15 minute storm that ripped our tent to smitherins and soaked our entire bag of clothes.

And beside the fact that I might have gotten car sick on the way home and threw up in my uncle's truck like a toddler even though I am 26;

It sure was a fun time:)

Highlights include but are not limited to:

The Murphy store full of goodies for the kids.

This girl was tatted up, nail painted, and she became a stamping fool.

chitty chitty chatting with cousins, aunts, and lots of cool people.

Loreli discovered that it was much easier to have Lucy chauffer her around on the tryke as opposed to riding it herself.

How Lucy didn't tell her to hit the road I will never know.

The weather was not ideal for laying out and getting a tan.

But the kids didn't mind the overcast.

They played sand, and swam. And my mom and Auntie Kim even went on out and floated.

They are freakishly good at floating.

And this happened.

These little babes are killing me in this photo.

I once bought Lo a swimcap. And I tried to have her wear it. 

This face say it all.

Fail.

And her right bum cheek is ALWAYS 

I repeat ALWAYS hanging out of her swimsuits.

The aftermath of no naps and lots of playing was this kid passed out in the not moving car watching Monsters Inc.

The life of child.

Murphy reunion is always something to look forward to, 

and boy are we glad that we made the trip.

We love our familia:)

100% no

It was a regular Sunday morning. 

We were sitting at the counter eating breakfast before church.

Cory's mom suggested we come to Lake Powell since they had some extra room.

He says to her, 100% no.

Then 10 minutes later, out of the blue, Cory comes upstairs and announces that he would indeed like to go.

Sounds fun right?

Wrong.

And only because it was 10:30 in the morning and they were leaving after church at 3.

3!

Shorter notice would have been welcomed.

Because 4.5 hours is way too long to get all ready for a trip.

Not.

And so we scrambled and sure enough we went on a last minute vaca.

lizards, cute swimsuit bum, flag girlin it, 

a frog found by Uncle T, boat driving, tube riding, 

melon eating and oh so much more.

Moral of the trip,

 if Lo could have her way she would have us leave her on a beach to play in the sand forever.

Best last minute decision of the summer:)