Thankful!

I'm sitting here watching it snow outside. It really is pretty, and is definitely getting me into the Christmas spirit. I am in no way a fan of the cold and snow, but today I'm being thankful. I am not always as thankful as I need to be about many things in my life, but I am mostly always thankful for Cam and my two amazingly cute kids. :) I sure do love them and have many, many other things to be grateful for!

Cam is my best friend. I expect quite a lot out of him and I don't give him nearly as much credit as he deserves. I don't have to ask him to help out with the kids or the house-he just does it. He is a very hard worker, which is often to his detriment with me. However, at the end of the day I am so thankful for a husband who knows how to work hard and really just wants to make me happy. I love you babe!

Hudson is so sweet, but not in a sissy way. He reminds me so much of Cam, and I am so glad he inherited his Dad's pure heart and goodness. I couldn't have asked for a better child to be my first! I know he will be a good example and help his siblings. He loves Kennady-even when she wants nothing to do with him! They have started to play together more, and it's so cute! Hudson gives the best hugs and will give me hugs and kisses several times throughout the day. I love you buddy!

Kennady is the Princess of our home. (Yes, I am the Queen! Haha!) She was the best baby, so it's been a bit of an adjustment getting used to her little attitude, but it's so cute! She is more stubborn like me, but I love to see her determination. There isn't a day that goes by that I am not amazed at how pretty she is. She is so funny and makes me laugh all the time. Her big cheesy smile is my favorite, and I was not very happy with her the day we took these pictures because she would not smile-but it's beautiful! I love you Kenna!

Now for a quick story: Both kids have been sick this week-Huson has a sinus infection and Kennady got the stomach flu. Again. Anyways, when I took Hudson to the Dr., he was so excited and hopped right up to get checked out. Kennady started freaking out the moment we walked into the room, and then Hudson got upset that he didn't get a shot! At least they had me smiling through all of this, and I am very thankful that they are both feeling better! Now go and think of something you are grateful for! :)

More October Happenings

October was a crazy, busy month! Other than our awesome trip, there were a lot of other fun things. Some of the highlights were:

My birthday was on the first, and my grandpa was here that weekend. We had a nice lunch at Maddox together.

Shirley, Poppa, Birthday girl

We went on Hudson's first field trip! They got to ride in a wagon and another ride and loved playing in the playhouses.

Hudson and Krew

Kennady got her first big "owie." She handled it like a champ though.

Cam also has an October birthday, and it was the big 30 for him this year! Our vacation was our gifts to each other, but I still made sure Cam felt loved and appreciated on his special day.

Cam and the kids on his birthday

"30 things to help you feel loved on your 30th birthday!"

Each envelope had a letter from someone special, gift, little love note from me, or picture from special moments together.

Cam's family had a fun Halloween party

And we went tric-or-treating! Our ward didn't have a trunk-or-treat, so we actually had to go door to door. :) Luckily the weather was very nice and we were able to get out and have some fun. My favorite thing was hearing them both say "thank you" after picking a treat.

Woody

Major cheeser lady bug

Happy Halloween!

New York!

We decided we couldn't be so close to NY and not go see the sights, so Monday morning we left early and took the 4 hour bus ride. Not bad! We checked into our hotel room and then went right out to get started on my list of things that we wanted to accomplish. We were leaving Tuesday night at 7, so we had a lot to do in little time!

Our first stop was the Empire State Building

One of the views from the top. The weather was beautiful!

Can you see the Statue of Liberty behind me?

Next we took the subway uptown to Central Park. We used the subway a lot.

We rented bikes and rode around. I am so glad we did this! We felt like kids!

After peddling around we headed to Serendipity for some frozen hot chocolate. Yummy!!!

One of our favorite things we did was ride the Staten Island Ferry. (And it's free!) It was later on in the evening than I had wanted to go to get pictures, but it was actually very pretty seeing the city at night.

Lady Liberty

Last on the list for day 1 was Time Square at night, which was very close to our hotel. I was very proud and happy with all that we did that first day. Cam was such a trooper and let me do whatever whenever, including shopping at H&M at midnight. :)

Day 2, and our last day, started where else but Carlo's Bakery over in Jersey. I was super excited about going here as I love the show Cake Boss. Expecting a huge line, we woke up early and rushed there. To our surprise and delight, we were the only ones there! We ordered our cannolis, lobster tail, and red velvet cupcake and sat out front on a bench to eat our breakfast.

Very tired, but happy!

Best cupcake I've ever eaten!

Hudson Street!

When we got back to New York, we headed down to walk around the financial district. We saw Wall Street (and those occupying it), the Stock Exchange, and where they are rebuilding Ground Zero.

They were all out of passes to see the new 911 memorial, but it was still neat to walk around the area. This flag and sign is up on one of the new buildings being built. It says "We Will Never Forget"

Push Cam!

Trinity Church

Our walk over the Brooklyn Bridge. We ate at Grimaldi's Pizza in Brooklyn, and it was amazing!

We took a ferry back over to NY from Brooklyn, then ended up walking a for a very, very long time to get back to our hotel. We ended up seeing whatever we hadn't so far, but we were so tired by this point. Cam literally saved my life as I stepped off the curb in front of a cab and he grabbed my arm and pulled me back. Thanks honey! We had time for just a few more things before heading to the airport.....

We hurried down to see Rockefeller Plaza and got my mom some cupcakes at Magnolia Bakery

And then went to the FDNY store. We had to buy my dad a shirt and got Hudson a firetruck. Our only picture together. :)

We rode the subway one last time on our way to the airport and then we were off. I don't think I could have walked one more step! It was such a fun trip and a wonderful way to celebrate both of our birthdays this month. We loved the city, but were so happy and excited to be home that we had to wake up our kids when we got back at midnight!

A very special weekend

Cam and I were very blessed to be able to take part in a special weekend for my cousin. David and Ashley adopted sweet Emily and after getting things finalized, they were able to take her to the temple and have her sealed to them. It was so neat to witness this! Then on Sunday, David (Emily's dad) gave her a beautiful blessing. It was a very special weekend!

Boston, MA Temple

An Eternal Family!

It was so fun to get to explore Boston a little. It was beautiful!

Me with cousins Ashley, Stacey, and Laura

We were so happy to finally meet Emily!

Thank you David and Ashley for being such great hosts and for the wonderful weekend!

Kennady- 18 Months

I guess you can say that I don't have a baby anymore. Kennady is so much fun! She and Hudson have been playing so well together lately and she says his name now: "Udsie!" Kennady weighs 23.7 pounds, which is a little small for her age, and her height is average. She's so small to me since Hudson has always been a big kid! Kennady is a wonderful eater, loves to be outside, and is quite the little dancer when music comes on. I'm so thankful for her and the joy she brings to my life every day.

My mom made Kennady this little apron. Is it not the cutest thing ever?!

Cheese!

We love you Kennady! Thanks for being our little princess!

Preschool!

Hudson started preschool on September 6th and is loving it! He was/is by far most excited about his new cars "pack pack". He started being a little anxious this week, but does great once he gets in. He's never been afraid or sad to leave me before, so I really hope it's just a phase. My little guy is getting so big and I am so excited for him to learn new things!

He was being such a goof when I was trying to take his picture!

I was really sick on his first day, so Cam stayed home from work. It was nice that he got to share in the moment, too!

I thought he would be scared on the first day, but he and Krew just walked right in!

Hudson: "Bye mom!"

Me: "Bye Hudson! Have fun! I love you!"

Fighting tears. :)