What made me smile this week...

Yup, I'm still drooling over my niece and nephew. 

Join me?

Daphne Emma Crandall (who sometimes like to dress up like the Princess and the Pea) is truly a precious daughter of God.  I am slightly concerned that she's going to be a rebel though.  I specifically told her that she couldn't be born while we were in Cabo and she disobeyed. I couldn't stay mad at her chubby cheeks for long though.  Such a softie.

Boston is growing like a strong healthy weed!  His inquisitive eyes are a wonder to behold.  Look out for him in the NFL.  This kid's got what it takes.

And looky here, it's our house! We seal the deal on this sucker this coming Thursday. We love it, and can't wait to make it the Crandall abode.  I'm a wuss when it comes to change though, and leaving our cozy apartment in the heart of downtown Ogden is going to be an adjustment.  Our new house is in Clearfield (about 25-30 mins from Salt Lake) and we are thrilled to have a guest room for visitors, hint hint. 

 

Pocket Full of Sunshine

ahhhhh...sunshine. I love you.  You too Cabo San Lucas.  Last year when the O'Neals aked us if we would be interested in going on cruise to Cabo we didn't have to think twice.   This place is incredible. 



 Outside our Hotel in Sand Diego was a nice chunk of Ocean.

 Words can't describe how much we loved these cruise ship gems.  We even spent one night sleeping in one so we could fully appreciate the ocean breeze.

We're on a boat, we're on a boat!!

 Check it out, my ability to remember random songs and facts is paying off

 Lovely ladies

 Macho men.

 Hungry couple.

 First day in Cabo and loving every UV ray!

This guy could spend all day exploring the rock formations on Lover's Beach

 He's convinced we must own a scooter now.  Can't say I'm complaining :)



Grateful for the chance to get away with my sweetheart and gather up a pocket full of sunshine. 

Now excuse me while I go fold 3 loads of laundry ;)

Reflections from Aunt Nat

I was being a bit of a Negative Natalie this week until this...

Being an Aunt is the bees knees and that's the truth.  His name is Boston and he's perfect. 

Wanna know what else is the bees knees?

-I'll have an equally perfect niece born in about a week or two.  Jealous?

-My man's facial hair

-Lemon water and pistachois.  But not together

-Call ahead seating at Olive Garden

-Weber State Basketball
-Jane Eyre

Rocking out at my own pity party wasn't doing me any good.  But counting my blessings, now that can move mountains.

Please always remember to safely remove your jump drive...

This week was a great week of learning.  Here's some nuggets of info that I learned firsthand...

1. NEVER EVER EVER forget to safely eject your USB drive.

2. "Hey baby, how about I take you out to Iggy's for dinner tonight?" Really means, "Hey baby, there's a game on tonight that I REALLY want to watch on the fancy big screen at Iggy's."

3.  Cuddling is best after the alarm goes off.

4. Working in a NICU(Newborn Intensive Care Unit) really means angering infants all day.  Granted it's to help heal them, but it still elicits anger nonetheless.

5. All snowmen should have mustaches.

6. I should become a house builder because apparently no one knows how to correctly arrange a functional floor plan.

7. House hunting may or may not bring out the worst in me

8. The most painful part of a Spinning class is the uncomfy seats and how they abuse my tush; also getting your pant leg stuck in the pedal is frowned upon.

9. Going to church makes me happy.

10.  The power going out at T-Mobile and not being able to ring out sells makes Michael unhappy.

11.  Wintery weekends are wonderful.

Possibilities

My mind has really gone blank in regards to this post, but I think that's appropriate. New year, blank slate, endless possibilities.  That's what has really made an impression on the Mr. and I these last few days; the fact that this year in particular seems to have many unpredicatable possibilites...and we like it that way :) 


Visual recap of our New Year's Eve party people!

2011 was glorious, and sometimes a little painful.  But blessings were abound at every corner.  A few notable highlights of the year that I wish not to forget include..

-Michael's continued hard work and success at managing his T-Mobile store in Salt Lake. 
-Crandall family vacation at Harbor Island in South Carolina. 
-Finding out we're going to be an Aunt and Uncle to a niece and a nephew.
-The search for a house began. And continues...sigh.
-I've truly grown to love the field of respiratory therapy.  I've been able to work with some amazing therapists and patients.
-Church callings that humble us every single day.  Michael as Elders Quorum President and myself as Primary 1st counselor.  I love those kids so much it hurts sometimes, even when they're little stinkers.
-The marriage of my brother, and consequently the road trip to Canada, eh.
-Growth.  We've grown closer to our Savior, each other, our educational goals, and our loved ones.  Okay, and maybe just a little bit of growth in our waistlines, but hey that's what New Year's resolutions are all about, right?

So thankful for the blessings of 2011, and the possibilites of 2012. 

"What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

His and Her Christmas

Fact: 
His birthday is on Christmas Eve.
Her name, Natalie, means Christmas.
We were meant for each other... and the holidays!  Here's a recap of our holly jolly season.


Natalie squared plus Jackson on the train at the Ogden lights.  Too bad this Natalie derailed the whole train when she tried to take a peek at Jackson's excited face.  My bad! I'll lay off a little on the cocoa and cookies next year, promise!



  Birthday boy and his mama.  The Christmas Tree birthday cake has become a staple for him.  I'm pretty sure choirs of angels sang the Hallelujah chorus when I took a bite, but maybe that's just me.

 My mama :) She's a special one, she is.

 This just makes me smile. Enough said.

 Yup.  I call these beautiful people family.

 So simple.  So genius.  The zoo +christmas lights= a wildly festive good time.  They really should allow the tigers more privacy though.  I think a lot of parents were forced to give their children the "birds and the bees" talk that night.  Ho Ho Ho!

I grew up honestly believing that Santa preferred Diet Coke and toffee on Christmas Eve because he got sick of so much milk and cookies. Once I pointed out that Diet Coke and toffee were my Mom's favorite treats, she just replied that Santa had great taste ;)

"God bless us, EVERY one!"

An Attitude of Gratitude

Thanksgiving 2011 found us with much to be greatful for.  It is quite overwhelming to count all of our blessings and see what our Savior has done for us. What a beautiful holiday that reminds us of how loved we are.




Here's my all-American boy watching some pigskin on the telly.  May it also be forever recorded that his team won that morning in the annual Turkey Bowl played with his friends.  Congratulations baby, who needs Tom Brady when I've got you ;)

I was the bringer of some of the pies for our feast.  Banana cream never faileth.

 Oh, and following our feast we stopped for 7/11 slurpies on our way home.  Delicious? Definately. Traditional? Not hardly.  Would we do it again? Absolutely!

We hope that this holiday season finds every one of you in good health and good spirits.  Cheers to a terrificTurkey Day!

-The Crandalls