Sneak Peek

 

Just a sneak peek of our family pictures taken recently. I'll post the rest as soon as possible!

(By the way, this cute little gal has slept through the night for THREE NIGHTS IN A ROW! Something like that makes ya love her even more, huh?)

November 30

- I am thankful for a loving Father in Heaven who knows me and still loves me
- I am thankful for my Savior, Jesus Christ and His atonement for me
- I am grateful for the knowledge that life contines after death and that I know I'll one day see my loved ones again who have passed on.

November 29

- we potty-trained 2 kids this year -- BJ finally got it back in January and Amelia potty-trained herself this last weekend!
- fresh fruit
- fireplaces

November 28

- music in almost all forms (no rap...that's where I draw the line!)
- Christmas decorations
- our home that looks SO beautiful at Christmas time

November 27

- the ability to have fun while Black Friday shopping (if it wasn't fun for me, I just wouldn't do it, no matter how poor I was!)
- day after Thanksgiving movies
- my amazingly wonderful husband (have I mentioned how great he is?)

November 26

- Thanksgiving feasts
- time with family making memories
- improvisation

November 25

- lazy, sit-around-and-relax days
- Ensign, General Conference edition
- a living prophet, Thomas S. Monson

November 24

- outings full of sisters, cousins, and mom
- a happy heart
- mouse traps

November 23

- kids who love their incredibly imperfect mom
- modern appliances (if I didn't have a washer and dryer, I wouldn't do ANYTHING except laundry ALL DAY LONG!)
- 7 people in our family (who, by the way, are great at getting clothes dirty!)

November 22

- Dutch Apple pie
- Crock Pot dinners
- home teachers

November 21

- family pictures
- mother/daughter dancing in the kitchen!
- excitement of the holidays

November 20

- successful potty training
- successful wax museum
- successfully cleaning my kitchen

November 19

- kids who love to read
- Thanksgiving in just ONE MORE WEEK!
- games that get people moving

November 18

- my mom...I know I wrote about how much I love her on her birthday, November 14th, but she is always saving the day in some way or another
- kids' finished homework
- french bread

November 17

- wireless internet
- freebies
- the magic of a no-chocolate diet

November 16

- opportunities to serve
- swaddling blankets
- wonderful neighbors

November 15

- beautiful music
- Sunday movie night
- SugarDoodle.net for primary music ideas

November 14

- my mom -- I can't say enough how much I love her!
- sisters
- worthy priesthood holders

November 13

- early Black Friday ads (blackfriday.become.com)
- living in Salem...we love it!
- great neighbors that feel like family

November 12

- violin students who have the desire to progress
- my Grandpa Ottley and the very good man that he is
- that my Grandma Ottley is back to her wonderful self

November 11

- members of the military past and present who keep our lives and country safe
- this no-chocolate diet isn't as hard as I thought it would be!
- coupon-shopping

November 10

- Family Home Evening
- repentance
- Christmas jammies

November 9

- that every day is a new day to try to be a better person
- written history of people I love
- people who inspire

November 8

- 5 newspapers on my driveway every Sunday morning
- musical talents
- primary kids who are excited to sing primary songs!

November 7

- modern technology, namely the internet
- pink -- what other color would look so adorable on a cute baby girl?
- family get-togethers (it seems like I did that already, but because I'm SUPER thankful for them, I'm sticking with it!)

Trick or Treat

It was a trick keeping up with all the kids as they ran from house to house filling their candy buckets, but it was definitely a treat to spend the evening together.

 

 

Aren't my parents adorable?

 

 

Here are the Rich triplets. Alice is 5 months, Drew is 8 months, and Ruthie is 2 months.

Ruthie's blessing day!

We felt incredibly blessed to have Laren's sister, Terra, and the entire Rich side of our family with us over Ruth's special weekend!

 

 

 

 

She cried through the entire blessing, but we forgave her completely when she flashed her winning smile afterwards. Isn't she a doll?

November 6

- kid-sized shopping carts at Smith's
- sweet, forgiving people who smile even when their heels get run over by said shopping carts
- sunshine and warmth

November 5

- SavvyShopperDeals.com
- neighborhood preschool
- Olay Quench body lotion

November 4

- breastfeeding
- space heaters
- a working vehicle

November 3

- my baby went to sleep on her own WITHOUT crying!
- community activities
- violin duets

November 2

- the baby swing
- text messaging
- green enchiladas

November 1

It's November and I'm trying something new. Each November my friend Sue blogs 3 things each day that she's thankful for. I think it's a great idea so I'm going to do the same. Of course, I'm a few days late, so let me catch myself up.

- testimony meetings
- a great husband who can also cook
- family get-togethers

Happy October!

Happy October, everyone! I both love and hate this time of year, but for today, I'll focus on all the lovely things about Fall.


I love the crispness in the air and the excitement for the upcoming holidays. I love to pull long-sleeved shirts, sweaters, and pants out to wear. I love wearing socks and snuggling up in a blanket with my sweetie or my kiddos. I love eating soup and drinking hot chocolate. I love covering my kids up at night so they stay nice and warm, instead of UNcovering them because they're sweating. I love HOT showers. I love making homemade bread.

So many wonderful things about this season. I hope it lasts long enough for me to enjoy so I can eventually be excited to see the snow fly!

Six Weeks Already

Here are a few pictures of RuthieLu at six weeks old.
We sure love this little lady!

It Makes Me Laugh

Click HERE to see what makes me laugh every time!

(Lack of sleep may or may not be a factor in my giddiness!)

Precious Baby

Ruthie-Lu

 

She's here!

Ruth LuRee Hawkins was born on August 9, 2009 at 11:56 am. She weighed 6 lb. 15 oz. and measured 18 1/2 inches long. She's beautiful and we're loving her lots! Mom's tired, though, so it will be a few more days before pictures are uploaded. Patience, patience.

An Honorable Man

Today is my Grandpa Ottley's 87th birthday. He is one of the most noble and honorable men I've ever known. Happy birthday, Gramps!

3 Weeks and Counting...

For me, pregnancy is the pits. I'm grumpy, I hurt, and this time, I'm MELTING from the heat! But all that is going to be ancient history (well, maybe not the melting part) in just 3 weeks!!!

August 9th is the day my doctor said he could induce labor and that's the day I'm shooting for!

Can't wait to meet this little gal!

Can't wait to feel human again!

My Sweetie and Me

 

In just a few weeks, Laren and I will celebrate our 12th anniversary! 12 YEARS!

And a week or so later, we get to meet our new baby girl and welcome her to our family.

FIVE kids -- a family of SEVEN!

WOW!

Lots can change in 12 years' time!

Cousin Camp!

Now that my sisters and their families live closer, we are having a blast getting together each Thursday during the summer for Cousin Camp! The kids ALL love each other so much and, for the most part, get along great.

Here is a picture of the Rich Dozen on the front steps of my parents' house (the traditional Rich kids photo shoot location).Here we are having a picnic in the park.We LOVE cousins!

Strange and Sad

This is what Michael Jackson looked like when I first became a fan...
...and that's the way I'll always remember him. No matter how strange he was, nobody can deny that he made some AMAZING music!

What a Deal!

Yep, it's true! If you take an UGLY necktie in to the Orem Krispy Kreme's (before Father's Day), they will give you a DOZEN FREE DONUTS!!! Woohoo! Now that's something to make a pregnant woman happy!

America's Past-time

I am willing to bet that someday Christian will be thrilled when I am NOT able to attend his baseball games. I'm loud and obnoxious. But, to my credit, I do cheer for good hits, throws, and catches by kids on both teams. I'm a cheerleader...it's what I do! So, until the time when I am banned from games by my boy, I am enjoying every minute of watching this all-star!!!

Brennon Jess

This sweet boy is our family's biggest cheerleader. He is often heard saying things like "Good job, Mia!" or "Wow, that's cool, Christian!" or, my favorite, "Mom, you're beautiful!"He loves to make people feel happy and special.BJ's almost always willing to help. He's the one in our family who will come and ask "Now what can I do, Mom?" What a great little guy he is!We love having this wonderful boy in our family. He is so precious to us! And, of course, we think he's a handsome one!We love you, BJ! Happy 4th Birthday!!!

SURPRISE!

On Saturday, May 30th, we had a surprise party for BJ's 4th birthday. He and I went to the park to take some pictures while the rest of the family set up a carnival in our backyard, complete with snow cones, fish pond, popcorn, balloons, streamers, and a bounce house! He was completely surprised and had a blast playing games with his cousins and friends.

Here he is with the other two "triplets". John will turn 4 in July and Jane will turn 4 in September. It was quite an experience for them to figure out the potato sack race and 3-legged race. There were a few tears, but overall they enjoyed it.Amelia had fun at the party, too. She enjoyed just sitting on Mimi and Papa's laps and watching the crazy older kids. I snapped this picture after a hot dog lunch. You can tell by the ketchup on her cute face! I don't even like ketchup, but would definitely eat this face clean! More pictures to come, but for now I'll leave you with one of myself and my wonderful sisters. I can't tell you how awesome it has been the last 5 months having them living close. It is truly like heaven on earth! I love them so much!

Feel Good!

THIS is one of the many things that have made me happy today! Enjoy!

An Adorable Picture...

is my inspiration to begin blogging again!

(Well, that and the fact that I stole this picture from my sister's blog and didn't have to upload it myself!)

I just had to share this pic of my little Amelia singing/posing for a picture on Easter.
Now I know I'm a very biased mom, but, seriously, that girl is ADORABLE, right?

Still Here

...and still so sick. That's why you haven't heard much from us.

Pregnancy for me is the pits at both the beginning and the end. I look forward to the middle part, hopefully coming up here soon!

Forgive my absence. Please know that I wish I wanted to blog, but I just don't.

Be back as soon as the "yuck" subsides.

We're baaaaack!

We're home. We're tired. And most of us are sick.

Give us a couple days to get back to normal.

In the meantime, chew on this...

We'll be adding yet another sweet to our candy dish around August of this year!

We're happy.