Snippets of the Stevens

Disneyland 2011

2011-10-19T09:12:00.001-06:00

Fun times at Disneyland.

2011-09-26T11:56:00.001-06:00

First day of school

2011-09-08T17:13:00.001-06:00

A Challenge for Everyone

2010-02-27T10:40:00.001-07:00

I wanted to share a cool experience that I have had the last couple of days.

At one of my Jobs I had a trainer who I really liked and he shared some advice with all of us before his last day.

He told us that 5 years ago he started a new job in a call center and it was really hard. The average age there was 20 and he was 45. He was made fun of for being slow and not catching on to things very fast. So, on the first day after training he told himself, "Today is going to be the best day I ever had." After he said that no mater what happened it would be a great day or at least a much better day then if he had not said that. He went on to tell us several other experiences with this same phrase such as, "this is going to be the best date we have ever had" or "this is going to be the best weekend with my kids I have ever had."

Well I thought that this was pretty cool and so I wrote it down and tried it the next day. It worked, I had a great day. So I tried it the next day and it worked again. It is such a simple thing but it really works.

So my challenge to everyone is to try this. Whether you say it out loud or in your mind I challenge you that when you wake up or before you go into you say to yourself, "Today is going to be the best day I ever had." I promise you that it will work if you seriously say it when you start your day and periodically through out the day.

Good luck with the challenge and let me when it works for you.

Love, Mike

PS "Today is going to be the best day ever."

Our Monster Mashin' Mayhem!

2009-10-22T13:59:00.000-06:00

Just in case you were curious about what we "really" do when it's late at night, under a full moon! :o)

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Blessings

2009-07-29T13:58:00.000-06:00

Makenna quite often says the blessing on the food at dinner time. Well the other night as she was praying she said a few things that made me stop and think about how many blessings I really have. During her prayer not only did she give thanks for our food but also for our cups, silverware, and plates. It really struck me to the core of how many small little things we are blessed with. For instance, socks. I don't know about you but there are just some shoes that you have to where socks with. Then there are pillows, I know it is possible to sleep with out them, but how much better do you sleep with a nice soft pillow under your head. Also there is carpet. I know that I have a hard time walking on a hard floor all of the time. Nice soft carpet feels wonderful on you feet and is such a blessing.

I am so grateful for the small things in my life that I am blessed with. These small things help me enjoy the big things in my life. My three biggest blessings are Melissa, Makenna, and Maisy. I love my girls so much. I know that I joke some times about all of the drama in my life because of all of the girls in my house, but honestly I don't think I would have it any other way.

Sorry for rambling on. Just wanted to put down some thoughts why they were still swimming around my head.

Surprise!!! She's FREE...I mean THREE!!

2009-03-09T19:04:00.000-06:00

So it's happened. Our little girl turned three!! It's so crazy to think that it's been three years since the first joy of my life (our lives) came into this world and that three years ago was the start to a better, happier life for Mike and I...one we never dreamed or imagined possible. I know we knew that having kids would be a joy and a blessing, but to have a Makenna...has just made it that and more! She makes life Fantabulous!! =0)

March 5, 2006

1st Birthday!

2nd Birthday!

Look who's 3!

Makenna is such a beautiful, smart, spunky and wonderful little girl and we love her soooo much. It's been funny to hear her the last few months as she has been practicing sharing her new age. We've gotten many answers, 2 and 1/2, 3 and 1/2, 3 months, 3 and FREE! =0) We're starting to notice that we only wish she were FREE still, she's now turned an age that we get charged for at many places. Luckily we got to celebrate the last bit of "FREEdom" and got some pretty good discounts while we were at it for her THREE/FREE birthday.

WE WENT TO DISNEYLAND!!!!!

With all of the "what will you celebrate" hoopla being advertised and my crazy randomness we decided to surprise Kenna and take her to Disneyland on her birthday and all I can say is we can't wait to return the end of April!!!

Ever since we decided to take Kenna we've been getting her all psyched up by telling her that for her birthday her present is SOOOOO BIG that we had to take her to it because it wouldn't fit inside of our house. If only I could see what her little mind was imagining she couldn't stop talking about it and when she did, her voice would squeal and her eyes would light up...she's so fun to excite!

Mike and I stayed up ALL NIGHT LONG the night before we FLEW so we were extremely tired, but when we woke Kenna up and FINALLY told her where we were going I think she was in total shock because she was speechless...that or she was really tired, LOL. We had been talking a lot about Disney before because we have a trip planned the end of April and she has been super excited about that so she was definitely thrown off with this curve ball. By the time we were on our way to the airport, she was so excited she gave herself a tummy ache! =0)
On the plane!

With Mike's car rental perks (FREE car, FREE gas) we were going to just drive, but then we found an awesome deal through Jet Blue $39 a person to Vegas (one way) and decided that was way worth the money to save us from a 7+/- hour drive with two little ones...and it was!! Unfortunately with our No sleep from the night before the drive to Cali seemed to last forever, but we arrived and crashed at our awesome hotel for the night.
Playin' in the hotel room

Disney lets you in for FREE if you visit on your birthday so obviously we went on K-Bug's birthday, March 5th. It was a Thursday so the park hours we crummy (10 a.m.-8 p.m.--Friday was like 8/9 to midnight!) we had reserved a place to eat at Minnie and Friends character dining so she could meet a lot of the characters but we kind of got stuck in "traffic" just to PARK!! We new we weren't going to make it and I admit, I might have been more of the three year old at that time, but luckily we noticed the Disney Hotel during our traffic jam, took a detour to the hotel and crossed our fingers that Goofy's Kitchen had some tables open. AWESOME, that's all I can say about that---it was the best experience!!!!!! And to top it off, the sweet lady at the register was teasing us about Kenna's age "what time was she born?" I told her 8am and then joked with her (cuz I knew where she was going with this) and said "I mean p.m." (wink, wink)--She let Kenna in for FREE!!! =0) But the BEST part was we got there at a later time, still had more time than we would have had with Minnie and Friends (even if we got to M&F when it opened) AND since we were there later there weren't as many people and most were leaving so GOOFY, CHIP, DALE, and BALOO just hung out with us A TON!!!! Oh, my gosh I was in heaven (I'm such a kid!!!) =0).

DALE became one of our favorites, we had a lot of conversations with him (his was on paper). We talked about Maisy (her name) and then he told Makenna that it would be a crime if she didn't have ice cream on her birthday so he took her by the hand and got her some ice cream and then got a strawberry to put on top....he was soooo cute with us!! Alice came and sang "Happy Birthday" with our waitress and sat with us while Kenna blew out her candle, she was so cute and then Goofy, Chip and Baloo were totally googly eyes for Maisy. They would just sit and stare at her and then shhhsh us when she fell asleep and we were being too noisy---so cute. Seriously, it was the BEST start of the day!!

Playing "Copycat"

Kenna would bounce and then they would copy her, she thought it was hilarious!

We made it to Disneyland and Kenna got in FREE she was even given a "special" ticket along with some awesome badges to wear. Even Maisy got a "first time" badge. So fun. Our main goal for this visit was to meet her HERO, CINDERELLA. And we did, along with some other fun friends...ARIEL, JASMINE, MICKEY and MINNIE. The line was about an hour to meet the 3 princesses and you never know which ones you're going to meet, so we were SOOOOO happy (and relieved) that CINDERELLA was there!!! Makenna was totally herself with the first princess, ARIEL, very cute! We mentioned to her (ARIEL) that she was a little distraught on which princess dress to wear (so many to choose from, but it was between the Ariel and Cinderella one) but that CINDERELLA has been her favorite for a very long time (obsessed might be a good word/explanation too =0)). So ARIEL took Makenna by the hand and told her that she had a surprise for her and to cover her eyes (how sweet was that?!) and then she carefully walked Kenna over to CINDERELLA and told her to uncover her eyes---when she opened them, MAKENNA was in total AWE!!! The princess she dreams about, talks about, refers everything to, BECOMES DAILY was right in front of her---all of the sudden Makenna became so shy and timid, it was DARLING, she SOOOO LOVED visiting with CINDERELLA she didn't know what to do with herself!! It seriously made her birthday PERFECT, a wish/dream come true!!!

Maisy even visited the princesses in her Snow White costume, and boy did we get a lot of inquiries about the outfit and compliments on how cute she was---even the Disney workers raved about her and the costume they'd "never seen in all 20 years of working here". That was fun!

You can only meet characters until 5:30 so we just did rides for the rest of the evening. We tried to talk Kenna into taking a break and getting something to eat, but she just wanted to keep going on rides...she is sooo my daughter! LOL What was great too is I was able to go on all the rides we went to. They allow you to take your infants if they're in a sling, it was great!

It's A Small World Ride

Dumbo Ride

By the time the park finally closed and we put Kenna in the stroller, as soon as Mike started to buckle her in, she was OUT!!...LOL What a party animal!

We've joked around about what we've now done...giving our 3-yr-old Disney for a Day on her birthday, can't imagine what she'll expect now for the rest of her birthdays (or our other kids for that matter, LOL). But we loved having a reason to go, and for me, you just can't pass up FREE! There's definitely not enough time to fit everything into one day, so we are way excited and looking forward to going back next month (end of April), can't wait!!

Right now...

2008-12-22T23:25:00.000-07:00

...I'm listening to the moniter...and I just heard my little girl say her prayers, I didn't tell her to, infact I forgot to say them with her, she's just doing it on her own...she should be sleeping, instead she's having a conversation with her Father in Heaven.

...I've got a darling, beautiful, healthy baby laying on my lap sleeping peacefully, my leg has fallen asleep, but I don't want to wake up this precious little girl.

...I have a husband working hard to take care of our family, I miss him, the girls miss him, he misses us and is tired all of the time, but does it because he loves us...he sacrifices so much.

...I feel very blessed.

Maisy's Two Months Old!!

2008-12-20T22:35:00.000-07:00

I guess with all of the holidays it shouldn't be too surprising that Maisy's two months already, but at the same time it's crazy...pregnancy seems to last so long and then they arrive and you can't seem to slow them down! She has grown and changed a bunch.

So here's her stats...

Weight 12 lbs. 8oz.,

Height 24 1/4 inches

She's already a drama queen like her big sis...one minute she's smiling huge and talking to you and the next minute she's screaming her lungs out ( it must be exhausting being so cute)! I Love the talking though, it's worth the screams (for now) =0). I seem to remember with Kenna that it wasn't until she was 8 or 9 weeks old (around her blessing day) that she started cooing, but Maisy's been doing it since she was about 4 or 5 weeks old and smiling happened much faster with her too (just a couple weeks old). We always thought Kenna was more like her Daddy, looks like Maisy's more like her Mommy. What a cutie, she's so much fun!! Happy 2 mo. b-day Maisy...how about some presents to celebrate?! Very well, the 25th it is! =0)

The video is a couple minutes, it's a cute conversation with Maze. Sorry it's so long, but as long as she was talking I didn't want to stop the camera. I've seriously tried to catch her talking to me for a few weeks and everytime I'd finally get it ready she'd be done and be fussy or crying. She talked so much in this one though that it was worth it!

It's almost Christmas and I'm posting Halloween ("Just a little behind?!")

2008-12-15T00:43:00.000-07:00

So just trying to catch up on some things, obviously I'm still trying to get a handle on everything now that I have two kids and this busy time of year isn't helping (I know, I know, really when is it not a busy time of year?...)

Maisy was born 11 days before Halloween, so there wasn't too much time for life to slow down...I probably could have and should have, but you know me, can't miss out on any fun! =0)

I took Maisy to her first Witches' Tea Party. She was only 5 days old (gotta start 'em young!) =0). She had her very own witch costume, something that is very important to my mother (grandma) who is Queen of all witches--- gotta have her girls dressed right for the holiday you know =0)! Tea parties happen a lot at Mom's, especially Witches' Tea Parties (atleast 3 in Oct.), can't get enough of the delicious food, beautiful table setting/decortions, time spent with friends, and of course the dressing up!

Usually we do Boo at the Zoo, but due to the massive lines we decided to try the Trick-or-Treat on Halloween Street earlier that same day. I was surprised when they charged Mike and I as well, but then we got to trick or treat and participate in everything too (except the bouncy gym, maybe I should've complained =0)). There was a good amount of things to do and with the pounds of candy we got, it was definitely worth it! Kenna's so funny, as we were heading over to the expo, she started "posing" for me, she just LOVES being Cinderella!!
We picked pumpkins on the 13th of October (tried to have it put me into labor, yah, didn't happen!) and then carved them on the 27th, celebrating my dads birthday and Maisy's week old birthday. Both sets of grandparents came too, it's crazy to think my kids make them Great Grandparents, although to me, they've always been GREAT =0).

So for Halloween Makenna was set on the entire family being Disney Royalty. She was Cinderella, of course, and chose Sleeping Beauty for me (if only I could sleep a lot and be beautiful 24/7! LOL) Prince Charming for Mike (great choice!=0)) and Maisy as Snow White. Luckily Mike and I were able to slide on wearing the exact attire, she still called us by our royalty names, she's such a hoot! My princesses were darling, Maisy was the Snow White after she ate the poisened apple, cuz she pretty much just slept the whole time (definitely not a complaint!) and Kenna danced with anyone she could get ahold of! What a day, it started off at the airport where Mike and Kenna welcomed Mike's step-brother Andrew home from his mission. We then trick-or-treated at Med-One Medical, Grandma Hartwell's, got together with a small group of families from our ward for trick-or-treating, did our neighborhood a little and then Grandma and Grandpa Jacobson's....good thing we had a lot of candy to keep us going!!

We just LOVE Halloween!! Kenna still talks about it, wanting to know when we'll get to celebrate again and what we'll all be... can't wait until next year!!!

Maisy's Birth Story (Finally! =0))

2008-11-10T16:58:00.000-07:00

I can't believe how quickly time has flown...it's already been 3 weeks since Maisy was born and we're so happy to finally have her here! Thank you for everyone who has been so interested and eager to hear the news...sorry it's taken me so long to post --I actually started this post 3 weeks ago, seems like I have no time now...go figure! =0)

So in case you don't want to read my novel of a story, here's the main info...

Maisy Nola Stevens was born on Mon., Oct. 20th at 1:15 p.m.

She weighed 9 lbs. 4 oz. and was 23 inches in length
Other than her being a little "late" everything was awesome this time around!

And now, the story...

Maisy's due date was the 16th, but I started to figure/give up on the thought of her arriving on time. My doctor., Dr. Barton had given me some hope when he first started measuring me..."Your about a 2 and 50% effaced" about 3 weeks before my due date (a MAJOR accomplishment considering on the day Makenna was due I was 0 and 0!). But the joke was on me because by my next appt. my Dr. told me I was more like a 1- ha, ha (all I could do was laugh, just my luck!)! That measurement stayed pretty much up to Maisy's due date ---a 1+. I tried the "Labor Pizza" a few days before her due date, but this time it did nothing for me (that was helpful!). By that point I gave up and decided she's coming when she's ready. My Dr. didn't think an induction was needed until a week after her due date and so that was what we had to look forward to when her due date came, a long EXTRA week.

Anyway, she was due on Thurs. and on Sun. morning I had some contractions that gave me some hope...a hour later they were over. Went to church, and that evening while at my parents house we were all a little bit tired of waiting and wondering when she was going to arrive. My mom had the last three weeks off of work for this baby who never came and she was supposed to start back to work the next morning. It's so hard when the pressure is on you (and in you)! Cathy, one of my mom's best friends and a long-time family friend called to see how things were going. She is a delivery nurse at the new IMC (the hospital I'd be delivering at) and I was really hoping that she'd be mine when it came to delivery time. She offered to "check" me at her home to see if I'd progressed any, but of course, no change, still a 1-2. Her husband tried to cheer me up saying the last girl she checked went into labor the next day, who would have thought I would too!! She has a magic touch or something, ha, ha!

At 3:00 in the morning, just like the morning before, contractions started. These ones however felt even stronger and getting up did not stop them. I was excited because the contractions were more hopeful than the other ones because they felt EXACTLY like the ones before Makenna was born. I just hoped I wasn't going to be feeling these contractions for the next 3 1/2 days like I did with Kenna! Definitely back labor, which meant Maisy was posterior as well (thank goodness I could recognize it this time!). So with each contraction came pain and major concentration on breathing and just getting through each one. =0)

I didn't want to call my parents too soon, I seriously thought with my luck they'd be on their way over and then my contractions would stop. That, and I did NOT want to go to the hospital too early and get sent home like I had with Kenna (twice!). Since the contractions weren't easing up and stayed a steady 5 to 6 minutes apart I had my parents over by around 5:30. I regret telling my dad about a video we watched in our birthing class for Makenna where the father-to-be sings the song "She'll be coming round the mountain" to his wife during her contractions ---seriously--- because what does he do then?...That's right, he sings the stupid song as I have a contraction and since I can hardly breathe let alone TALK telling him to SHUT-UP about killed me! I think it was a little stressful watching me go through contractions because every time I had one he would start talking (or sing) a mile a minute like a nervous reaction. He then joked around about me staying longer and that I didn't need to go yet. Thank goodness Mom was there...we are NOT having this baby at home! He recorded Kenna's reaction when he told her the news, isn't her new hairstyle sweet?! Thanks for helping out Dad! =0)

We arrived at the hospital at 6:30 which gave us just enough time to check in, get changed and get checked by a nurse who, well, I'm just glad to say that at 7:00 my angel nurse Cathy arrived (how perfectly planned was that?!!). The first nurse checked me in the most painful way I had ever been checked and said I hadn't changed (my mouth dropped in complete shock, what's wrong with me?!!!). Thank goodness when Cathy came just a few minutes later and checked me I was a 4 (that sounds better!)!! I got the epidural pretty quickly after that and then it was time to wait... My Dr. had been on call all weekend so he had this day off, which made sense now when I tried to schedule my reg. appt. for Monday and the book was completely clear, ha, ha try and have a day off with me, I don't think so! =0) They called him to see if he would like to deliver (I asked if they'd call and check)---hey we got him a good deal on his rental car he better deliver our baby! LOL. He came a little while later. When he arrived he came in a turned Maisy's head---which was so much better than pushing forever with no progress (Kenna). When he told me to push a little while he turned her, I started pushing and looked at my mom with this expression like "are you kidding me, this is it?" it was so easy this time!

A young intern doing rotations asked if he could be present for the delivery and I told him that would be fine, little did I know that my Dr. was going to let him DELIVER!! Dr. Barton was right there, but he gave this guy a great "learning experience" and talked him through the whole delivery. I asked for the mirror this time...SO COOL!! It is incredible what your body can do and endure!! So I went through about 4 to 5 total contractions and little (big) Maisy was out, again, so much easier this time! I was shocked when they weighed and measured her, I knew she was going to be bigger that Kenna's 8 lbs and 21 in., but Maisy was 9 lbs. 4 oz and 23 in.!!!! That was one crammed little kid! She had such a soft sweet cry and she stayed awake and alert for a really long time. It's amazing the emotions you go through as you anticipate it all and then when you are finally holding this child in your arms for the first time it's hard to put into words ....INCREDIBLE!!! She's such a beautiful girl!! We love her sooo much already!

Kenna was the first one I called. My brother Michael was taking her to the Scarecrow Festival and so he answered first saying "Did you do it, is she here yet?" I said yes and can I talk to Kenna and then in the background I could here her she answered and... (Kenna) "Did you do it Mommy? Did you do it? Did you have baby sister? (Me) "Yes Makenna, Mommy did it, baby sister is here" (Kenna)"Ohhhhh, I love her more and more!!" I couldn't wait to see Kenna and for my girls to finally meet! I was taken to my room with Maisy where they bathed her (I requested it to be done in my room...very cool!). And then it was time for recovery, bonding with our new bundle and visitors!

When Kenna came she was so excited, unfortunately she was fighting a cold so she wasn't feeling her best when she met her. I wanted to give her a moment with just Mike and I to let her know how special she still was to us (I was really concerned about her and this huge adjustment) we had put Maisy in her little hospital bed, but as soon as Kenna came in she was on the prowl for her new sister..."Where is she Mommy? Where's baby sister?" No need to ease in the introduction I guess. =0) It was total love at first sight, she wanted to hold her, and even though she wasn't feeling good I let her hold her for a minute. She was so cute, Kenna just kept looking at her and wanted to give her tons of kisses, I wish I knew what was going on in her little mind as she met and stared at her new sister. Just watching though I could tell that she already loved her new baby sister, she's going to be a great big sister!

We had other visitors come and go. My mom had been there with us from the beginning, I asked her to help take photos and video =0). Mike's mom works at the IMC and so she was able to drop by right after Maisy was born and a couple times during our stay. Mike's Dad and step-mom, Laura stopped by and my brother Mike and Dad came by that day as well.

Such a wonderful day, we are SOOOO happy to finally have our Maisy here with us and couldn't be happier that both her and I are doing so well! We've had so many friends and family waiting to hear the news and asking for updates, thank you for keeping us in your thoughts and sorry it's taken me so long, hopefully I can get us all caught up!
The next day... Kenna was feeling better, the hospital put this darling black and orange bow in Maisy's hair and my mom helped me get both girls dressed up so I couldn't resist taking LOTS of pictures--you know me and pictures... We also had Mike's sister Megan, her husband Mark and their cute little munchkin Reese come visit and then later my sister was able to come and visit too.

It was so nice staying at the hospital, relaxing (somewhat) and spending time with my new daughter. It's so weird to think that my life will never be the same now. I now have TWO girls! TWO daughters, TWO children which means double everything...double the "needs", double the diapers (definitely need to get Kenna potty trained again!), double the DRAMA, double the laundry, but double the FUN (double-mint gum ha, ha), double the love, double the cuteness, and double my JOY/HAPPINESS!

Mike's Birthday weekend!

2008-10-14T13:50:00.000-06:00

So I wanted to do a blog about Mike on his birthday, but obviously that didn't happen so just a couple weeks shy, here goes....

His birthday was on Oct. 3 and since there was a Utah football game the night before we went to celebrate! We almost thought it was going to be a very SAD game, but boy did they turn things around to make it a VERY exciting night. I've never seen a bunch of men look so much like giddy girls the way they all hugged and jumped up and down when UTAH got a touchdown, and then when utah got an extra 2 points to tie and then WON with their awesome 3 point field goal. (Sorry not very good with the correct "terms"). It was hilarious, but they had good reasons to be so excited. Let's just say the STEVENS men are HUGE FANS!!! Check out the video!

He wanted a Utah Fan for his birthday and boy did he get one!....

Kenna sings the Utah song alot now (I need to get a better recording of it) and when ever she sees anything UTAH, she yells "UTAH" or "Go Utes". So Happy Birthday Sweetie!

On his actual birthday my mom baby-sat (thanks mom!) for us and we went to the Olive Garden (thanks Mike's mom) it was great cuz I was craving that place=0). On Saturday after the Priesthood session of Conference Mike went with his dad, cousins and uncle to a place called Ruth's Chris...he said he ate the best steak he's EVER had, very expensive but very worth it! We then got to celebrate with Mike's family on Sunday after Conference, they made a yummy ham dinner (another food I was craving! Okay, so I crave a lot of foods!=0)) and we played Mike and Dave trivia (we celebrated Mike's Dad's birthday too). Lots of fun! Thanks to everyone for making his day so special!

Mike's 29 now...next year he'll be the big 3-0!!! I can't believe we're getting to be that old, or should I say HE'S getting to be that old (Remember, I'm staying at 28! =0)). It was nice for him to have a weekend focused just on HIM especially since he's got two (almost three) "needy" girls to deal with at home all the time, he sure puts up with a lot from us!! Thanks for being such a wonderful husband and father, Mike, we love you and Happy Birthday!

Prego Pics

2008-10-12T23:52:00.000-06:00

So I wanted to get some pics of my preg look before it's gone...and hopefully soon!!! I had to have Kenna with me cuz she's the real cutie, this was our second photo shoot at Murray Park actually, Mike didn't do too bad huh?! So here's some of my favs, sorry there's alot! (just imagine how many we took)...

It's crazy and exciting to think we'll have this "little-one" that's in my very large and uncomfortable belly right now in our arms this week hopefully.......HOPEFULLY! =0)

She seems to understand there's a baby in my tummy, guess we'll see what happens when she's actually visible and not just a belly! =0)

Do you see the heart I made, I saw it on a srapbook page, thought is was cute....

Finding our babies...

Just LOVE my Kennas, can't wait to meet my other girl!

Oh, how they grow...1 year ago!

2008-10-06T22:23:00.001-06:00

So I was going to do a Memory Monday blog about our trip to Boston, but after I started viewing the MILLIONS of pictures I took it overwhelmed me and I gave up. I did find this pic however and was shocked to see how much my little Kenna has changed in just 1 year! She wore the exact same pajamas last night...and I can't believe how much difference one year can make, oh my gosh she looks so grown up!! A year isn't that long, but with your little ones it's HUGE, they just grow up right before your eyes and I wish I could slow it all down, where did my baby girl go?

Cookies for Breakfast

2008-10-01T16:27:00.001-06:00

So the other morning Kenna woke up and I was on the computer downstairs. I heard her walking around and told her to come down, but her feet never made it to the stairs, I heard them enter the kitchen and then RUN. So as fast as I could (ha,ha), I made it up the stairs and this is what I found, as she quickly stuffed the last piece into her mouth....

(Caught "chocolate"- handed, "what cookie, mommy?")

Me- Kenna!? What are you doing?

Kenna- (Mouth full) I'm eating cookie

Me- We don't eat cookies for BREAKFAST!!!

Kenna- mmmhhhh, and now I can have my cereal =0)

So there you have it, when it comes to breakfast you must eat a cookie first before you begin having your "other" meal.

I thought I was looking at the "Joker" for a minute with that chocolate all over her mouth, my funny girl!!

I can say it now, jam IS easy to make! (Especially with two special ingredients....)

2008-09-30T09:26:00.001-06:00

So I'm one of those people who learns alot better by DOING than just by watching, reading, hearing, etc., and so many people have told me how easy it is to make jam, but since I'd never done it I was a little afraid of trying it without totally messing it up!

I finally talked myself into it and got all of the information/supplies I needed from my Grandma who makes AWESOME jam and prepared myself to do it on my own while Mike and Kenna went to the Utah game Saturday. Good thing the MAIN ingredient(s) decided to help. My GRANDMA called me and said she couldn't let me do the jam alone, so we did it together and I'm so glad we did, thanks Grandma (and Grandpa!) =0).

So my two special ingredients--- my Grandma helping and talking me through it (builds confidence!) and my Grandpa who smashed the fruit (it would have taken us MUCH longer without him! ). Can't wait to make something else with them, good times! And now I can say it, Jam is easy to make! (And even EASIER to EAT, yum, yum!)

I've Been Tagged---Me and my scary issues!! =0)

2008-09-17T16:08:00.000-06:00

So, I've been tagged by Kate. http://jkcbamason.blogspot.com/

Here are the rules:

1. Link to the Person who tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Write six random things about yourself.
4. Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.
5. Let your tagger know when your entry is up.

WARNING!! So I got really deep on stuff about me. So if you're not sure you like me (then why are you here, ha, ha!), you might not want to know this much, or I'll just understand if the next time I see you, you run the other direction! Those of you who do like me, are my friends already (so most won't be too surprising), or have to like me cuz you're related (sorry about that). Thanks for loving me no matter who I am and what "issues"/weaknesses I have (I'm wondering how much I like myself after this wide awakening! =0))......you are my true friends! =0)

1. I'm a recycling maniac! I will check all plastic containers and clean them if our city takes the number in the recycling triangle found at the
bottom---and anything else goes to the Davies garbage, cuz their city is awesome and takes more than just 1 & 2! Anything that is paper or cardboard and without any grease spots gets torn into 2 ft by 2 ft (or close....city regulations) or smaller and put in the recycling box! All my canned foods are rinsed and dried and then put in the recycling box. Even my little Kenna knows where the recycling is and will place things in there, such a good helper. I have a really hard time throwing something away if it can be donated or recycled....why throw something and add to a massive pile of waste that continues to fill our beautiful world if it can be REUSED?!! I've donated my hair four times now to locks of love, how about that for recycling, ha,ha! I get so bad sometimes that if I noticed someone place a plastic bottle, cardboard, etc. that could easily be placed in an eco-friendly container I will pull it out and put it in its proper place....SCARY isn't it? I have issues, that's for sure....thanks to the combination of my parents and genetics, ha, ha! I'm trying to talk Mike into adding recycling bins at his work...one person/company at a time, hee, hee!

2. I'm a very undecisive person! What's sad is the hardest things are with simple decisions, like what to get at Wendy's or something...and if someone, like my hubby orders something that sounded good to me, I have to pick something else, weird! Most projects or things I do or start working on, I can't "decide" if I like them or if they're good enough so I have to get "outside" approval or help or it just doesn't get done at all. I don't know if I like this blog, I don't know if I like this post, etc....what do you think? SO UNDECISIVE!!!!
I guess I'm considered a PLEASER at times, I'd rather make sure whatever I do or what's done, "pleases" or is "pleasing" to everyone else. Sometimes it's comes back to bite me though... STORYTIME with pics on that to come LATER!!

3. I'm a "collector"! You could probably even say Pack Rat, ugh, sounds awful. I have a hard time "giving" things away (I know sounds weird since I brought up my recycling issues). I feel like whatever I have that hasn't been used in years could still possibly be used for something else....soon. Some days I go crazy and just want to get rid of stuff, but I want to try and sell it first because instead of it being just a thing I picture it as the amount of $$$ that I spent on it and so I want to try and get something back from it before it just goes away...I'm thinking that's from my dad. The "collector" part comes from both my parents though. My mom loves to buy things that go to something she has a hobby for (tea parties, Halloween, antiques etc.) so for me I buy/collect Scrapbooking stuff, Children's books, DVD's and I'm always taking pictures (that's considered collecting, right?)...I use most, but not often enough. Mike's always telling me of all the money we would have if I didn't spend so much on those items. =0) My dad's very similar with me on my recycling thing, his big on re-using as much as possible or sending stuff to a place where it can be re-used. He "collects" items that could be used that someone else didn't want (he runs a couple of storage units so he's always finding "treasures" and then when we ask where did you get them his reply is always "Where do all good things come from?"...the answer, a storage unit). I haven't gone that far into keeping stuff that I found from somewhere else, I just

have a hard time getting rid of stuff we already have, but that just sits in a box waiting to be used...someday.. Sometimes dad will give us things he's found that he thinks we'd like, like our entertainment center ( in a drawer we found the BOM and a pot pipe next to it while cleaning it, yup that's the good stuff =0)), and I do every now and then find food that's expired, but still try to see if it's still good and eat it...ha,ha, that's totally my dad too! OH, DEAR. I have to use my parents for my crazy reasoning...to justify why I am the way I am and boy I've got problems!!(thanks, mom and dad =0)).

....I'm not liking this "tag" thing anymore, I'm getting too deep on these "random" things it's not just RANDOM, it's serious personality traits and it's depressing!

4. I don't like being "Alone", such a people-person! Many of you

would love to have time to yourself, take the kids to someone else and get some good shopping in, or whatever. But for me, I'd rather take the kids! I hate doing stuff by myself, I need to have someone to talk to or be with, I guess being with just myself is too scary! So usually I wait for Mike to be around and we all go together (he's such a trooper when it comes to shopping!) and then it's easier to make decisions if he's there (my undecisiveness) so I don't feel guilty on what I'm spending our money on cuz he was with me and agreed. =0) I really enjoy getting "out"! If there's some type of get together with friends or family or something happening in the community, I want to be there and be part of it! I'm just a little bit of a "Social Butterfly" or just need to feel "part" of everything, or something I guess.

5. I'm loud and enjoy being in the spotlight (most of the time). Ever since I was little my brother Ry would make fun of my laugh, I have a million different kinds of laughs, but many times it turns into this big loud burst...kind of like the laugh on Mary Poppins..."some only blast, HAAAAA!" Yup, you've probably heard it, no surprise. I don't mean to be loud, it's just me, maybe my vocal cords were created differently so everything just comes out a bit louder. My mom is a very quiet person and my dad is a very loud obnoxious person...so we know where my personality comes from again! My mom is constantly embarrassed by me and other members of the family when we're doing something that is creating a "scene" she blames it on the Jacobson gene. Probably because it's not in her comfort zone (or genetics=0))...she's opposite so the way my dad, my brother or myself, etc. acts is something she would NEVER do which makes it embarrassing---we can be pretty embarrassing company to be with sometimes though, Crazy Jacobsons! =0) I guess in our mindset, we don't "care" what people think about us, especially if we don't know them, (it's not like they're going to remember us) and if you're happy and enjoying yourself, why stop?! You're probably wondering what "experiences" I'm talking about...really we're not that bad...especially in public, we wait for the opportunities that are "kosher", like when I'm invited to do a dance competition at the Scrap Book Expo, I can't dance, but HECK YA I'll be part of that (by the way I've won some prizes for it, thank you very much! =0)) I've always enjoyed being the entertainer or the jokester, even if the laugh is on me because I'm a dork or just easy to tease, but I don't mind mostly, I enjoy seeing other people enjoying themselves or being entertained. I used to be in musical productions, and really enjoyed that spotlight, infact I'd like to get back into it someday!

6. Okay, last one. Wow I'm impressed/surprised if you've gotten

this far!! This will be more "random", you deserve it since the rest have been so LONG and deep (can you tell I'm a talker too?! =0)), but then again, maybe it's not so random and I apologize, it must be the mood I'm in or something, sharing my soul like this.... It's probably gross for some of you (actually now that I've read this over, it sounds really gross, what is wrong with me and why am I sharing this for all to read?!! LOL) but I've a couple of times made it a week before I've washed my hair. Why on earth am I sharing this info...I have no clue, but maybe cuz I washed Kenna's hair twice yesterday....Now don't go thinking I'm a walking, greasy stink bomb...I still shower, just not my hair. But I'll admit, I've gone all granolaee and haven't showered for a week before too... (like can count them on one hand in my entire life and mainly all were due to lack of "shower", ex. camping) so I don't know how anyone can do that on a regular basis and live with themselves!! So should I try to explain or atleast try to "justify" =0). So usually I don't sweat hardly at all and I have really DRY skin and thick hair so it's not a good thing for me to shower daily. My hair is so thick that if I don't dry it with a blowdryer it stays wet ALL day long!! So I'm coming out...I'm not an every day/every other day person I'm more so an every other, other day =0) and can I just add how awesome it is to have showers, cuz when I tak'em I'm in there as long as there is hot water and I like it extremely HOT. I'm sure this information was extremely important for you to know and me to share...I'll be looking for new friends now most likely, but thanks for the friendship while it lasted (LOL)!

**So there you have it...me and my scary issues! (Thanks a lot Kate! =0)) By the way if I tag you, you seriously don't have to share like I have, check out Kates (the link above), she's got some great ones and they are more "random" and great. Kind of funny though cuz I'm a very spontaneous/random person and yet nothing I wrote was that! Hope you feel better about yourself after reading this, ha, ha!!!!!

Memory Monday...Shae and Kenna- still the best of buds!

2008-09-15T19:50:00.000-06:00

So the other day while we were eating breakfast Makenna brought up the whole we're girls and Shaden is Prince Charming quote, it was the cutest thing ever cuz there was no thought, question or pause in her answer, Shaden is not a boy or a girl, he is Prince Charming!

Makenna and Shaden have been friends since birth, they were so close to being born the same day...(just 3 days apart) and they live across the street from each other. I remember how little they were and wondered how much they would change or look the same as they got older and if they'd be good friends. Now they're getting closer to 3, how fast time flies they look the same in many ways, but they seem so "grown-up" now it's killing me and yup, they're definately good friends! We have been so happy that Kenna has had a friend so close by and they absolutely adore each other...they sing together, dance together, give each other big hugs when they see each other and at night when we tell bedtime stories, if we include a prince charming in Kenna's princess story his name is always Shaden!
Kinda crazy though, they're right across the street from us, but they're lucky to see each other maybe once a week, and sometimes that's at church! So we love our playdates with Shae!

Shaden just had a baby brother join the family and now we have a baby sister arriving soon so life at home can be pretty busy...hopefully little Stockton and little Mayzie will be the best of buds too!
Thanks for being such a great buddy Shaden, a.ka. Prince Charming!!

Jam Packed Birthday Fun!

2008-09-12T11:45:00.000-06:00

My birthday always hits around Labor Day weekend which I've found to be great because Swiss Days in Midway always runs during that time! I love the food, the entertainment and especially the SHOPPING!! There are always a TON of booths to look
at and NEVER enough $$$$!! Unfortunately (for me), we were only able to spend a few hours there this time around, a big family reunion with the Stevens Clan was scheduled on my B-day as well. But I think Mike thought it was fortunate because with just that little bit of time and only walking down three aisles of booths I had already spent my $$$ and then some! =0) Gotta love the Swiss!

The Stevens Reunion was really nice, Mike's parents did a tribute to Grandma Nola who I've heard so much about. She sounds like an amazing woman and I wish I could have known her before she passed away. She has created an amazing posterity and it was neat to pay tribute to her, to visit and catch up with everyone in the family, which is something she would have wanted. We watched a neat video that included pics of her and her kids and Grandpa Stevens. We had delicious food, watched the UTAH game and participated in some other fun activities. Makenna LOVED being able to ride Sunny, the horse, thanks Tait family! Luckily she wasn't the next kid in line, Sunny wasn't ready and fell, the poor guy riding him wasn't too sure about horses in the first place, so I'm thinking he won't be in a hurry to try riding again!

That evening instead of cake I was craving PIE so we got some yummy Marie Calendars and shared them with our good friends the Davies. It was one of those spontaneous things again that I think the Davies are getting used to with me, atleast it was coming over with pie instead of a 7 a.m. phone call--ha, ha, thanks guys! THE PIES were DELICIOUS, I had some of both, hey it's my birthday! =0) Kenna enjoyed it too! Thanks to all who made it so special!

On Sunday, my birthday request was that Kenna wear her Levi dress and one of her darling hats that I bought for her with my b-day money. She was truely giving considering the dress did not "SPIN" (twirl) at all and the hat covers her "Princess-Rella" hair! Oh my gosh, who have I created?!!!! So thanks Kenna I know it was a sacrifice, but you still looked like a princess to me!!

28 "feels" great! (Or so I will say...my rambling thoughts....)

2008-09-04T20:22:00.001-06:00

So it happened, I turned the age that comes right before 29, the age that lasts forever!! You know the one where whether you're 37, 52, 44, etc. you're always 29...so I'm not sure how to feel about that, in one year I will be the "perfect age" the age that isn't old, it's just right. So what does that mean for 28?

Then there's that question, you know the one people ask you when you've turned another year-- "how does it feel to be older" or "how does it feel to be____" ...is it supossed to feel different? The only time I "feel" older is (just an example) when I see Highschool girls shopping together and giggling at the mall, and first I think, "was I really like that at one point?," and then I look down at my daughter and realize that that was over TEN years ago for me and try to imagine what it will be like when my own children get to that stage (and cringe, ha,ha). Or those "moments" I'm doing something physically and it just doesn't seem to be as easy as it used to...and the grunt or groan escapes (it could also be that I'm extremely prego right now too =0)), definately not as "in shape" as I used to be, heck I thought I was FAT 10 years ago, but now I'm thinking I didn't look too bad (compared to now =0)).

But I don't really "Feel" old it's just the # of your age right, maybe that's why people who have an "older" age say they're 29, because they still "feel" 29 or something?... In many ways it is a great age to be, I'm still young, but more "experienced" (right word choice?), I've found my place more in the world, I've figured out most of the things that are most important to me and my life and have found for the most part, my life to be wonderful right now. I still have the "energy" to do most things (maybe not right at this moment--prego), I have soon to be two beautiful daughters who don't back talk or fight with me yet (okay sometimes a two-year-old tantrum, which is very comparable to teenagers.....so I hear) about "that was then...this is now" or "everyone else is doing it" (not looking forward to those arguments!)....okay, I'm totally rambling, but this age, wow, I can see why when you hit 29 you want to stay! And even though one year later you hit the big 3-0, it seems like such a huge difference....so there it is my 29 will be 28, I'm going no higher, 28 is GREAT and I'm staying!!!

50 years of bliss!

2008-09-03T15:50:00.000-06:00

Hooton Family (Posterity)

So my Grandparents (my mother's parents) have been married for 50 years now (officially in Nov.) and we celebrated this event Aug. 15th and 16th. My brother Ryan and his wife Jen even flew in for the occasion. At their request we dressed up in our America Samoa clothes they brought back for us from their last mission and took family pics and then we had delicious home-made Cafe' Rio along with delicious wedding/spice cake. We also did a session at the Jordan River temple the following day and ate at Chuck-A-Rama. My mother had put together a family video which took a lot more time and "experience" than she expected, but the stuff she'd put on it so far was really neat!

My grandparents made a book of their experiences of their three missions as a gift to their children and grandchildren and I'm looking forward to reading such and amazing keepsake!

I love all of my grandparents dearly. My grandma and grandpa Hooton have always held a special place in my heart because they have a "light" I look up to, follow and respect the most. They're always so loving and positive. They are constantly helping and serving others and have tried to lead and live a life that would help their
posterity have something strong and worthwhile to follow. I have always been so especially grateful for the love that they show to each other, it really is something to celebrate, being married for 50 years, but to still be so in love and HAPPILY married is an even greater thing. I only hope that I can continue to live my life as they have/would and have a relationship with my husband like they do 50 years from now and to someday see my posterity together in the temple and be proud of all that's become of my life. I sure hope I can do it! So here's to 50 years of bliss! Thank you Grandma and Grandpa for everything!
--LOVE YOU SO MUCH!!!

Computer's back no more excuses!!

2008-09-03T15:07:00.000-06:00

So I lost my computer for a month, that's right one whole month and it felt like forever. I guess the hardest was the first week or two (maybe similar to someone trying to get off drugs...withdrawels maybe?!!) but eventually being out of the cyber world made me find "other" things to do, looking back I should have done more with all that time. =0)
With the loss of our computer it also meant not being able to download any pictures either so that's what I've been trying to catch up on. I'm still missing some (hopefully they're found!!) so I'll do my best at posting some "catch up" stuff, bare with me in the meantime =0).

Memory Monday: First camping trip with Kenna, June 2006

2008-07-21T22:41:00.000-06:00

So, I'm stealing this idea from Kirsten Strack (thanks) cuz I totally love the idea, and since I often look back and wonder how did the time go so quickly I thought what a great idea to send my readers back down Memory lane too. Plus I'm having a hard time getting my husband to help me download our latest pics (isn't it crazy, I don't know how to download the pics myself...Note to self: learn soon!!)
BTW my hair in these pics are similar to my new haircut, except my hair is BARELY to my shoulders when straight, it's got more blonde highlights, BANGS and I hardly have ANY curl left...thanks to my girls! =0) Enjoy!

So two years ago I was still in the Young Womens and even though I had my little munchin just a few months before it wasn't going to stop me from going camping (well for atleast one night =0))!! We had a great time and all of the girls had fun helping me with Kenna too, she was a "Super Baby" for sure! I got a break in between since girls camp always hits on our anniversary and one night we spent in a bed and breakfast called The Garden Inn near Manti.

I know I'm out of my mind because I want to get some more camping in before this next one comes and that's what we're doing this weekend, tent and all---what am I thinking?!! We somehow missed our chance last year to do the whole "tent" campout thing so I'm excited to see how Kenna does compared to her "first" time...I might be wishing I had the Young Women with me again! =0) Atleast it's a ward campout...here's to hoping for a "good-night's sleep", or as good as I can possibly get come Friday! =0)

Do you ZenZuu?

2008-07-18T11:09:00.000-06:00

http://join.zenzuu.com/missystevens
Alright, so I've got to get this on my blog, since this is something I just found out about and think is pretty cool!! My father in-law was asking if I used facebook or myspace a lot and I was like, "Um YAH almost a little too much (facebook!!)!" I've totally loved finding friends and catching up with them, it's so funny but most of my friends I don't even talk to on the phone anymore we just find each other in the social networking world =0). So anyway when he told me that a new Social Network had just come out, but the only difference was it pays you, I was like "WHAT?!" and it's true!!! This new site called ZenZuu does the same things, you connect with friends, post pictures, videos, there's a profile page for you and a place to blog, etc., but it PAYS YOU to USE IT! So I figured, okay there's got to be a "catch" what do they want from me?? And the only thing they're asking for is for you to sign in and out 30 times a month---this site is paying me to do what I do already and it's FREE, FREE $$$$ baby!!
It's not as spectacular, with all the the "extras" that facebook has, but since they're brand spankin' new (officially launches in Aug.) I'm gonna forgive them, especially if they're willing to share 80% of the profit they make from their advertisers with their users (me, and you and whoever else wants to share the $$$ pie). The other thing is it's not like I'm gonna be making mega bucks or anything, cuz it is FREE MONEY, but still any $$$ that I can get, especially when it costs me nothing and changes nothing in my schedule is worth it!!! So check it out if you'd like....and the new phrase..."If it sounds too good to be true, it must be ZenZuu!" Ha, ha, what will the internet world come up with next?!

Let's get this (blog) party started!

2008-07-17T19:20:00.000-06:00

Okay, so I guess I've been dragging this issue for long enough. I've heard about the "blog" thing for years now and was like ehhh, sounds neat, but..... And now it's almost like EVERYONE has a blog (yup, even my dad, I want to say he was the first one to tell me about starting one even!), so I guess it's time to "join" the rest of you! It's not like anyone's pressured me or anything, just more like INTIMIDATED me!!!! Everyones blogs are so flippin' cute!!! And the things people post...so creative, thoughtful, funny, etc.!! I'm so clueless with this thing, it's taken me a couple weeks just to do my first post!!!

So all I can say is have low expectations from me and you might be impressed once in a while, ha, ha, ha! And since I'm new to all of this you'll have to forgive me MULTIPLE times I'm sure. BTW hope you don't mind if I steal a cute idea or two from you, cuz I need all the help I can get!

And so, it begins!!! Wish me luck! =0)