Be Still My Heart

THIS...

is what my 28 year old husband and his 29 year old brother David are doing as we speak. This is following the weekend long expedition at the Arizona ComiCon. For those of you who don't speak nerd - that stands for Comic Convention. My love grows stronger still...

Calveeno

Since Paige has had the spotlight for a while I decided to showcase our little man so he doesn't feel left out... 'cause he reads this blog faithfully and all, haha.

Here's right before his first haircut we gave him the other night. He HATED it. But now he's even more handsome... so watch out all you ladies out there.

Just showing some pureed food love.

Just can't get enough.


Made some good buddy time with cousin Gus over the Christmas Holiday. I'm pretty sure they're going to be quite the pair...

And this is where he spends a hefty amount of time. This kid is a CRUISER in this thing. Now I know that doctors say to stay away from these walkers so when my mom asked if he would want one for Christmas I kind of shuddered at the thought. But lo and behold - it is the BEST THING EVER! He seriously loves it and now they make them extra safe with brake pads and everything... FANCY!

A Peeculiar Day

Potty Training - Day 3

We added the undies and a skirt today because ready or not, we had things to do and places to go. She went once before we left in the morning no problem, then we were off to music class and Grandma's house and she did great! No issues whatsoever.

We headed home for some movie time (still not allowed on the couch-sorry Paigey) while Calvin took his nap - wanted to see if a distraction of a movie caused issues but nope, still clear. Then we walked to the doctors for Cal's flu shot and walked on over to see her cousins, "The Boys" (thank you Power Ranch for making everything in walking distance!). I was worried that all the walking would wiggle it out of her or catch her by surprise but again, she was fine. About 15 minutes into the visit I just hear a faint "Mommy?" and I turn around as she says "Me need to go potty" and poor girl had just completely soaked herself. COMPLETELY. I felt so bad for her but couldn't help a little chuckle cause it was kind of cute in a wet your pants sort of way. So we just cleaned up and went on - trading out our Cinderella roos for some robot ones (thanks Tate). When I asked her why she didn't use the potty she just held up the little rubber bug and said "me want to keep playing!" I guess we'll work on that concept.

But other than the one accident (which I am SO GRATEFUL was not in public) she did pretty well for first day in clothes post potty training. I'm sure there will be many more "moments" to come but I'm pretty proud of the little bug. Way to go Paige - we ALL survived (so far)! And that my friends concludes the potty training diaries.

L-M-N-O...pee

Potty Training - Day 2:

It went perfectly! She had no accidents whatsoever. Just went on in and did her thing and then moved on all throughout the day - HOORAY FOR PAIGE! Now we'll see how today goes with adding clothes and a few outings...

*DISCLAIMER- Before you go thinking that my life is perfect (in the potty training area) you should know that I tried doing this a year ago and it was A TOTAL DISASTER.

Princess and the Pee

Well, today was the official start of our official potty training and it went surprisingly well. Decided to strip her down stark style (thank you for the tips/inspiration fellow bloggers) and just go for it. Now, I write this in detail not because I expect you to want to read everything about my life... but for any of you who are thinking about doing this terrible task anytime soon and are completely clueless such as I.

Paige got up and first thing we did, off with the diaper. Gave her a big pep talk on how she is a big girl now and no more diapers, etc. Asked her if she needed to go but the answer was no. Went about our daily business - breakfast, dressed(only shirt today - she was bugged and confused but we pushed through) and cleaning/laundry cause that's what we do on Tuesdays. I just kept asking her every now and then if she needed to go and she just said "no... not yet". It had been a while so I decided it was time to sit on the pot even if she didn't think she needed to just so she could get the idea that it was an all day thing. She was a little apprehensive so I decided to show off my skills (yes, I am admitting to the blogging world that I did this, love me anyways please) to give her a little encouragement and sure enough she hopped on right after me and tinkle town was marked! Since it was the first of the day I made sure to teach her the whole process in detail (lifting the lid, how to climb on, going, wiping, flushing, hand washing) so that when she needs to go she doesn't have to depend on me for anything and she can do it all by herself. Nothing worse than having to wipe a kids butt who you don't even know at church. So we had her Peep treat (cause peep and poop get different treats) and she was happy as could be.

I decided to load her up with some water/juice to get things going so she could get some more practice and just kept watching her. Now our house has some tile but mostly carpet. So the rules went: no getting on the couch or beds and if she wanted to sit down to play she had to stick to the designated towels I had strategically placed around the house. It may sound stingy but be my guest if you want to clean up peed on carpet all day - NO THANK YOU!

So about an hour later I'm in my room and she comes running in saying she needed to pee. She hopped on and went perfectly! Huzzah! But I did notice she had a tiny stream mark on the top of her leg so I asked if she had gone and she replied "just a tiny tiny bit but then ran to the potty". Good, I have my proof that her being naked is serving a purpose - she felt the peep going down her leg, stopped it (impressive I thought), and ran to the bathroom to finish up. Got her the peep treat and life was good.

A little later I was putting Calvin down for his nap so I told her to stay on her towel and play. Mid nursing I hear the bathroom door open, toilet lid slam up and just think "oh boy, please please please". I walk out a minute later after putting him in bed and she rounds the corner "POO POO!!" Sure enough, she had done it all by herself! I used a wipe just to make sure her bum was totally clear but she had done a pretty good job herself. And glory be... she finally got her poop treat she's been wanting for weeks now.

Next instance... I'm putting away laundry and I just hear "Mommy where are you?!?!" Run into the bathroom and there's poor Paigey standing in the middle of the most gigantic puddle of pee I've ever seen. So I asked her what happened and she just told me she didn't make it in time. But progress knowing that she was headed for the toilet. We cleaned it up together (which I've read is important so they know it's not all fun and games) and continued.

To make a long story short (too late), we had two more perfectly successful peeps and then off to bed with a diaper on. Sorry, I'm not woman enough to tackle the nightime battle yet. So if you're still reading, there you have it. Potty training day 1. We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Christmas Ketchup

Not much to say other than the holiday was WONDERFUL!! We had a jolly good time so here we go...

On Christmas Eve we bundled up (yes bundled up even though it was only 50 something degrees- gotta use our winter clothes SOMEHOW) to go to the Mesa Temple to look at the lights and attend a little outdoor concert that my brother Jordan did - which was awesome as always.

Snuggle buddies

Us too

Then headed home to open up our traditional Eve present - Christmas Jammies!

Group jammie picture - not too bad for a timer shot eh?

CHRISTMAS MORNING!!!

Piage was more than happy to help little Cal out.

And Cal is STILL trying to get a hold of the topple pengiun he got from Santa - so amusing to watch that.

And Paige couldn't be more thrilled to finally have her very own kitchen and tea party set - and she better be cause that dang thing took 4HOURS to put together...

Complete with chef outfit thanks to Grandma Forbis - I'm thinking of whipping mine out for a matching picture - haha!

Anyways there are plenty of more pics but they are all on our NEW CAMERA - HIP HIP HOORAY!!! But I'm still figuring it out how to upload so the rest is yet to come!

Ho Ho Ho

This is how pictures with Santa went:

Paige was freaking out with excitement the entire way there and then cried in fear as soon as we saw him - only talked to him to get the free cookie.

And Calvin couldn't give a woot about the whole thing.

So I guess I should be happy my little girl won't sit on a strange man's lap. Merry Christmas!

thebomb.com

That's what these are... bombdiggity.com.

We had our first family pictures taken a week or so ago and it was so fun. But the coolest part was our photographers... Stacie and Geoff! I've known Stacie forever and she is so awesome - she and her cute new hubby are AMAZING at photos and are such a blast to work with. Seriously, if you're looking for someone in AZ check them out - they are great with kids, have tons of great/cute/creative pics ideas and could not be easier to get along with! And did I mention that they are adorable??? Cause they are...

Anyways, here's a few cute ones but I'm saving the best for our CHRISTMAS CARD!! So PUH-LEEZE email me your address (amyforbis at hotmail dot com) and I would LOVE to send you one! And don't feel all silly about inviting yourself cause I'm pretty sure if you read this blog you deserve a little card...

Turkey Lurkey

We met up Patrick's family in St. George for Thanksgiving and had a BLAST! We got to do lots of fun little things but mostly just loved watching Paige freak out with happiness playing with all the Forbis clan. I can't tell you how lovely it was having so many willing people to entertain the little ones - I loved the break, that's for sure!

Since we were away from home we got to go out for Thanksgiving and can I just say that it was AWESOME!! No slaving in the kitchen for hours before and afterhand over the stove and sink. Just sit on down and have a perfect Thanksgiving meal with all the trimmings brought to you to enjoy - complete with pie. WONDERFUL!!! Now I know what it feels like to be a man.

We also took a day to go up to Zion's National Park and man was it BEAUTIFUL!! We had a good ol' time treking around with the kiddos. Living in AZ I've forgotten that there is actually seasons - what is this strange color the leaves are changing??? Oh yeah, it's called autumn.

Just look at that crazy little tongue.

We went with some friends of the Forbis's and they had two little girls and Paige was the happiest I've EVER seen her to have little girl friends to play with - it was so fun to watch her. They were so sweet with her even though she was much younger but it gave her some good potty incentives! Ya, this little tyke next to Paigey is definitely over a year older. Oh my poor giant kids.


A friendly little skipping rocks showdown.

Aren't those mountains cool?

Uncle time.

Sliding down rocks with Uncle Kevin.

Seriously, so pretty.

Just for you

I'm getting far too good at this whole blog-slacking thing. So here are some catch-up pics... yet again.

Halloween was kind of a drag. But cool thing: Paige wore the Rainbow Brite (flashback) costume that my grandma made for Chelsea that all of us girls wore for Halloween back when we were little. She was an AMAZING seamstress - pretty good job I think and even better that it's lasted this long! Just check out those boots!

I had bought this cute little skeleton onesie for Cal but of course when I went to put it on it was FAR too small since the kid grows too darn fast. So luckily my sister-in-law had a spare caterpillar for the night. Not like it even mattered though cause he slept the whole time anyways. Oh well.Calvin is now officially on rice cereal - here's the first time photo.

And the first face. "You call this food???"


Paige has been an eager little helper in the kitchen lately.

And a ham everywhere else... as always.
And I just HAD to let you in on the funniest after bath time mullet EVER! "Business in the front, party in the back Mom." She really needs a haircut.
And I was just looking at Paige's pics of when she was the same age as Calvin is now and I was kinda surprised at how they really don't look that much alike. Hmmph?!?!

Paige - 5 months

Calvin - 5 months

Not all that interesting or exciting, but that's what I got.

Bobby Dus!!!

That is what Paige calls Baby Gus... Bobby Dus. So cute. Anyways, I just got these pics from Chel and I couldn't help but post them - I am SO EXCITED to have a new little nephew and even more so to have my sis join the mothering world... as if we didn't have enough to talk about already!!! Here he is!!!

Oooo I just wanna SQUEEZE him!

OF COURSE they came equipped with a skeleton costume for Halloween

Proud Papa Shane, love it

Little Gus Gus in his AMAZING crib bedding that Chel made ALL FROM SCRATCH!! No joke, she made the bumper, bed skirt, sheets, blanket, and all the matching accessories. I'm not sure this is my sister... but I am STUNNED and quite frankly a little jealous. I mean seriously, look at that blanket!!! Good work Chelsifer.

JOY & heartache

My big sister Chelsea and her hubby Shane had their first little baby on Halloween - HOORAY!!! Baby boy Gus Armstrong... 7lbs. 20.5 inches. He is adorable and I can't wait to spoil the pants off of him. So exciting and SO STINKING HAPPY!!

and

I don't know if I have just become more aware or what, but ever since Justin passed away it seems like tragedies just keep coming left and right all around. It is just ripping my heart into pieces for all those going through such hard times. My love, thoughts, and prayers go out to them all - too many to list. Please please pray for all those burdened with hearthache. It works... I know.

Me, Quirky??? Nah...

I've finally decided to honor the whole tagging charade this little blogging world has created. So here you have it - some of my quirks.

• I HATE belly buttons. I think they got to be one of the grossest, dirtiest, smelliest, yuckiest parts of the body. I mean, hello??? It's a big hole in the middle of your middle. Patrick loves to stick his finger in his and then chase me with it. He once paid me 5 minutes of feet rub per second that I swooshed my finger in his belly button. The WORST 3 seconds of my life. GROSS.


• I can not, no way, no how, get a brain freeze. And trust me, I've tried. Pretty cool huh?


• You know when you see an actor and you know they're in something else but you can not for the life of you remember?? Well I am unusually good at figuring it out. I know it sounds kind of weird and fairly stupid, but I really feel like it's one of my great talents in life or something and I am totally awesome at it. "Who her?? Woman #2 on this old episode of Seinfeld?? Easy, Elle's friend on Legally Blonde who does her nails and likes the UPS guy. Duh." I know, you are all so envious.


• I feel like there are two types of people in this world: Twizler people, and Red Vine people. Let me make it clear that I AM A RED VINE WOMAN. And I love them... LOVE them. Now I don't know how you Twizler lovers even call that morphed wax licorice, but it is despicable. I almost feel like Twizler people should just live in a Twizler colony while all of us real licorice lovers live on in normalcy. Wow, that was harsh, sorry. But Twizlers... seriously??


• I can totally do the splits. Shocked? Ya, I'm surprisingly flexible for a 6 foot Amazon.


• I have an obsession with putting things together. Like every time something says "assembly required" my heart does this little leap of joy knowing that as soon as we get home I get to sit and work on it. And I squealed with delight when I got a 400 piece set of K'Nex for my birthday... as in this past 24th birthday. Squealed.

State Fair

NEED I SAY MORE????

Well yes, I guess I should, but isn't fair food the real reason you even truck your hiney all the way to downtown Phoenix and join yourself with the scum of the earth in the first place?? haha, just a joke my friends... kind of. Anyways, we had a surprise visit from part of the Forbis clan this past weekend and had lots of fun and decided to add the AZ State Fair to the list. Not as glamorous as I remember as a wee one, but we still had fun.

We even got Calvin in on the fried goodness action... heehee

Paige found her future calling - a 4H champion goat contender

The petting zoo was pretty great - yes folks, A GIRAFFE!

Aww... so special with the giant lit-up food palace in the backround.

And Paige had the BEST time with Gma Forbis playing dress-up, reading books, and everything else she could squeeze into a weekend - such cute little buddies!