Brandon and Bailey Got Hitched!

A few weeks ago we were able to go to Utah for Justin's brother's wedding. We had a great time visiting with family and celebrating with Brandon and Bailey. We're so happy for them and that they found eachother. Bailey is such a sweet girl and we're excited to have her as part of our family and get to know her better.

They were married in the Logan, Utah temple on a very cold January day. They took their sweet time to join us all outside for pictures

Chatting with my MIL trying to keep warm!

Brandon and Bailey with all the Nessen neices and nephew.

Brandon going for the garter.


The girls stayed with my parents at their hotel while Justin and I went to the temple. Here they are all ready for the reception.

Valentines

I decided to make some Valentine cards/treats for Grace to pass out to her friends and teachers at church this year. I found the cutest idea from my favorite blog, I am momma hear me roar (Cheri is seriously awesome and talented. Go check her out. She posts everyday. You won't be disappointed, especially if you have little boys). I knew that I could make them easily. I followed her directions exactly and they turned out GREAT! They didn't take much time to do either and all it cost me was a couple bags of Hershey's Kisses. I had everything else (baggies and cardstock).

They're so cute and personal, yet simple and inexpensive. Get the tutorial here.

Happy Love Day!

9 months

Claire turned 9 months old on January 21. She had her 9 month well baby check up that day. Her stats are :

23.4 lbs (97.88%)

28.25 inches (75.31%)

Head- 17.5 inches (65.33%)

She's growing like a weed. I really should go back through Grace's stats from her first year and do a comparison. I think Claire has her beat in weight and height, but has a much smaller head circumference.

We had a great appointment - no shots!

Claire is such a happy, easy-going baby. We just love her to pieces. She loves to babble and blow raspberries. She loves nap time and bedtime. Whenever I put her down she snuggles up with her blanket and has a big grin on her face. She's not crawling yet, but working on it. She's having a hard time lifting her tummy off the floor (can you blame her?!). She's trying really hard to pull herself up on all the furniture and toys. She loves to eat, especially table food. The only foods she doesn't seem to like are peas and green beans.

Claire recently went swimming for the first time. We were in Utah last weekend for Justin's brother's wedding. My parents drove down from Oregon to visit with us and they were generous enough to watch the kids while we were at the temple with Brandon and Bailey. They were staying at a hotel with an indoor pool so they took the girls swimming. Apparently, Claire had a blast and splish-splashed all around. She also cut her first tooth the day of the wedding, which explained the fussiness which isn't like her at all. I think she's working on another tooth now. She has swollen, white gums. Luckily for us, she hasn't been too cranky over it and is still sleeping well.

Claire has such a sweet demeanor about her. She's always happy with she wakes up and will give me a good squeeze when I pick her up as though she's trying to hug me. She loves to give kisses and we love to give her kisses. She totally leans in with her mouth wide open. Her favorite toys are Grace's little Disney Princess dolls. They have rubbery dresses that come off and Claire loves the feeling of them in her hands. Claire also loves to dance. She wiggles all around when she hears music, or if you just tell her to dance. It's so stinking cute!

I just can't get enough of this little girl. She has brought so much joy to our lives, and I can't imagine our family without her. I can't believe how quickly this year is flying by. They grow up way too fast and it literally hurts inside to know that they will only be my littles for such a short amount of time.

Snow Day

Last night we got a few inches of snow here in East Texas, so Grace and I ventured out to play this morning while Claire was napping. We didn't last long since we didn't have appropriate clothes to keep our feet, hands and legs warm and dry. We tried to build a snowman, but it was too fluffy and dry. It wouldn't stick together to make big enough snowballs for the body.

Snow in these parts isn't unheard of. We've experienced it every winter since we moved here. It usually doesn't last long, just 24 hours or so. Tomorrow the high is supposed to be above 50 degrees. It's a good thing we went out and played in it today, because I'm pretty sure it won't survive tomorrow's sunny high temp.