It was great 2013!

I keep trying to decide what to say about this year. It was a lot. We fit in so much. Then life fit in even more. We had Will Sterling Haws-the most perfect addition we could have this year, and then we had a hospital stay for RSV and following treatment. We had a family reunion this summer and the party continued all summer since my sister was here from Switzerland and we all wanted to spend time with her. We went to Yellowstone with our good friends the Burke's and we wish we could go back forever! Sterling worked two jobs, went to school full-time, sent out med school applications, flew out all over the place for interviews, was accepted, graduated, continued to work full-time while in school and doing research for his capstone project. No wonder he looks so tired in all the pictures, haha! I blinked and Ruth grew up! She talks like crazy, helps out a ton, has a mind of her own and thinks she's the boss of the family haha. She sings songs, loves her bear, gives Will the best hugs and kisses and we just love her. Will has been so easy-going and happy and just recently he's learned how to squawk when Ruthie is doing something he doesn't quite like. He is walking around everything he can, it won't be long before he's walking on his own, and I just laugh that he went straight to that from army crawling! I have worked a few days a month throughout the year, babysat, and been the mom around these parts. It has been extremely busy, I don't think I realized how truly busy we've been until this last week--Sterling had the week off from work and had no school work to do. It was a bit of heaven on earth. We are excited for some more of that in the next six months. After that we will be bound for Miami, Florida and we are getting more excited (and more nervous) every day. Sterling could not be happier to be starting the MD/MPH program at the University of Miami and I'm about ready for some sunshine and warm weather. So here's to 2014!

I SO wanted the video to be on here, but apparently I am challenged today. I did get it to upload to youtube, which is what usually works, but the quality is much worse. So I'd rather just make you click on the link. Thanks!

http://vimeo.com/83066048(this will probably give you the best version)

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas!

 Last night I drove to Logan to finish a quilt for Ruthie. It got really late so I slept over with the kids. I didn't realize it was supposed to be a winter snow storm all the next day. We woke up to about 8-10 inches of snow. It was pretty awesome. So instead of going home I stayed at mom's house and she helped me even more with some sewing, fed me breakfast and chocolates all morning long. It was a wonderful day of Christmas.

The above picture's coloring keeps loading really weird. Ya know how we put Ruthie in that snowsuit last time? Well, we rectified that situation and got her some snow pants so Will could have the suit. He wasn't a fan. When he fell over he was stuck that way. HAHA!

We did make it home, someone told us Sardine was passable so I decided to head out while I could. It was passable. Mostly. The middle was VERY windy, snowy, and slushy. But we made it home alive.  So then I took the kids outside while I shoveled. Ruth insisted on bringing her bear. I filled up her bucket with snow and she carried it around the entire time we were outside. 

Will decided he didn't like the snow, so I put him on my back in a carrier and finished shoveling that way. Then I decided we had PERFECT Utah snow and weather (the snow was super wet and melty) so we needed to make something. I didn't want to put snow pants on since I already had Will situated on my back, so my pants got REALLY wet! 

 Ruthie was SUCH a huge fan of the snowman. In fact, she's been checking on it out the front window regularly ever since we came in. At first she thought I just had a snowball and I kept calling it a snowman so she would make a snowball and insist she had a 'snowman' and would say "OH NO!" every time she dropped it. She desperately wanted to bring the snowman inside with her, I think she thought of it as a new-found friend!

These pictures are from earlier, at Grandma's house. Ruth LOVES this kitty, and I think it's cute that their hair matches. I'm just glad the kitty's live outside so Ruth can enjoy them but I don't have an allergic reaction to them! 

 My brother Wyatt helped shovel when he came over to load the horses in to the trailer to take them to some arena. I have no idea really, but I think they had a good time!

 My dad was awesome and uncovered my van from the snow and then moved it onto the driveway when they were finished shoveling.

Here are some more pictures. Of Will. He's pretty much the handsomest baby alive.

Look at those BIG brown eyes! Gah! I just love them.

This is his crazy-face-smile which he does when he's flapping his arms in excitement. Like here.

Such a sweet boy.

He's been doing this a lot lately which adds further credence to my suspicions that he's teething.

He is just so perfect. Why oh why is he getting so big??

He was scrunching up his nose. He does that when he finds something amusing but not funny enough to smile at.

On the ride home from Grandma's house Ruthie played peek-a-boo with Will almost through the entire canyon and through Brigham City. And Will laughed out loud the ENTIRE time. It was so adorable. Sometimes Ruth can be the greatest playmate with him! Oh I love my kids.

I should be cleaning my house…

A little while ago I realized some pictures had not been posted. I decided to a do a 'missed photos' post. So here is all of them, in no particular order, mostly just for the sake of documentation but also because my kids are adorable. 

We got some snow a bit ago. Then more. And more. And even more. I was the lucky recipient of LOTS of service that weekend and only had to shovel once, thanks to all my neighbors who knew, or didn't know, that I was husbandless. The one time I did go out to shovel though, the kids came out to help too!

AHHAAAAAHAA!

Eating snow, of course.

 I really want to get some nice pictures of him in this outfit. I LOVE LOVE LOVE it. But maybe right after church isn't the best time to try.

But look at the little elbow pads! I love them! 

A couple weekends ago we built a fort. Ruth was enthralled and both kids played in it for three days straight! It was a pretty good one if I do say so myself. Now Ruth has discovered jumping from couch cushion to couch cushion and pulls them off at random to do just that.

No idea about the headband.

I was trying to take a picture of Will. Ruth is tricky.

 A little bit ago Sterling's sister Bridget asked if I could take some pictures of Ruth driving a car so she could use it on a final poster she was making for a class. Something about doing things at appropriate ages and getting a colonoscopy at the appropriate age (haha!) so I snapped some pictures. They all turned out really good actually, but I especially loved the smug little expression of the following photo.

This past weekend, the same weekend as Sterling's graduation, I babysat my sister's six kids while she partied in Las Vegas with several of my other family members. There were a LOT of concerts on one night, so I took some pictures for her.

My nephew Myles had a band concert.

And my niece Kiersten had a choir concert. 

I missed this picture in the graduation post, sitting and watching for daddy!

I guess that is all for the 'missed photos' post.

 Last night was the recital for all my piano students. It went pretty well. Except my one niece had hers absolutely perfect and messed up because she kept looking at her cousins. And instead of focusing on his perfect piece, my nephew was trying to goof off and messed up on his. He introduced himself as "Sam" and I guess he couldn't focus after that. Then another one of my niece's, Miriam, had hers perfect for the past month, got a little crazy fast and messed up on hers. So really…yeah. I promise I'm a better piano teacher than that. Maybe family recitals are not the best. I might have to think up something different for this coming spring. They did do a good job though and the ladies and gents at the nursing home immensely enjoyed them even if it wasn't perfect. We headed to a church afterward for pizza and chocolates--my moms homemade Christmas chocolates. It finally feels like Christmas! We also had the nativity. For ALL of this, I somehow left my camera at home. (It was a busy day ok, santa was trying to work overtime since Sterling works the next seven days until Christmas Eve.) Hopefully my sister Megan gets me the pictures she took of Ruthie the shepherd because she was pretty much adorable. As were several other tiny shepherds. Among other notable things, Mary almost got bucked off her donkey, Baby Jesus at one point was a toy mouse, the quote "you WILL enjoy this nativity and feel good about it" was requoted several times, and there was much hilarity throughout. Thanks to my family for their great support! Now to catch up on sleep and clean my house from the past weekend of graduation and parties and six kids. Yay.

WSU Graduates!

This weekend was incredibly busy. Full of everything good. Lots of finals and stress for Sterling. Lots of planning and excitement for me. A graduation! Sterling graduated with a bachelor of integrated studies in microbiology, chemistry, and neuroscience. Now…on to medical school! Luckily for us, we get a six month break before that starts and I could not be more thankful because after this crazy-hectic YEAR that we've had it will be nice for some down time as a family before more crazy-hectic years. Haha. Sterling, I think, was surprised that he actually made it to graduation. I'm a little annoyed that he still has to spend time with his mice for the next three weeks even though school is over. That's a small thing though, compared to all the craziness he has been doing.

He's on the last row of black gowns closest to the camera, five people in. 

He turned to look at me!

Shaking hands.

On camera at the Dee Events Center.

 My family spent the weekend in Las Vegas celebrating my dad's 60th, so I was really lucky to have my mother-in-law Cindy and her best friend Sandy come to the graduation ceremony and help me out with the kids--it was a little too long for them. For everyone, really.

Sandy and Ruthie

Will and Cindy. 

 Ruthie was SO PROUD of her daddy! She clapped and clapped and clapped and clapped. It was her favorite part. Afterwards in the hallway she went running up to him and gave him a BIG hug. Such a sweetheart.

 Such a happy graduate!

Cindy was so wonderful and so supportive. She always is and always has been for Sterling and we could never thank her enough. 

After the fun of graduation I was able to pull off a party for Sterling without him knowing. I made him go buy rolls at the grocery store so I could decorate, then came out to get into the van before he walked inside and could see them. I convinced him we DEFINITELY needed to go out to dinner to celebrate (which we did need to, obviously) and in the meantime, my awesome friend Chantelle let everyone into our house, finished the last-minute decorations and food, and had everyone waiting for when Sterling opened the door to a big "SURPRISE!" I wish I could have seen his face (but he had to walk in first) cause everyone said it was the best ever! He had NO idea. It was a bit tricky to track down addresses from people because a)I don't know everyone he studies and works with at WSU, b)we share a fb account and c)he rarely puts people's last names on his phone contacts. I had a lot of text conversations that went something like this "Are you Cameron so-and-so?" "no?" "Oh, I am so sorry, I don't know who you are then, and so therefore cannot invite you to the party." Okay, so I didn't really reply like that, but its pretty much how it went. Luckily we still were able to track down quite a bit, and even with the holidays and so many people going out of town, Sterling still felt the love and support of all the wonderful people we have met and worked with in Ogden. It was a great surprise and such a fun night!

We are both graduates from Weber State now with the same level of education. (Dang, I guess I can't hold that over him anymore!) We have both loved WSU and we're definitely ready for a little break and some time TOGETHER! On to Miami, FL in June!

Ramble Jamble of Pictures

Ruth doesn't like to smile. So I told her I needed pictures of her braids. Then she started modeling for me, it was awesome.

I went to delete this one. But then I couldn't. Look how baby soft her skin looks. I just love it.

That smile! Haha! Cheese!

 We made play dough the other morning. I would highly recommend the cherry and grape koolaid flavors--they are the most vibrant out of any I have yet tried. Ruth was over the top happy about her pink and purple play dough.

 Impromptu jam session.

 Look at his little dangly legs! I love it! 

The other afternoon Ruthie was REALLY ornery about life. All. Day. Long. She doesn't take naps anymore unless we happen to be driving around long enough in the afternoon. I guess she really needed some sleep though, because I looked down and she was conked out on that pillow. Measuring cups safely in hand. 

Sometimes leaving your kids to go to work is really hard. Especially when they look this cute when you are leaving them. She was SO excited to go play with Olivia she could hardly contain herself. (Why is she always wearing a skirt in the middle of the winter? I don't know. I try to put her in something sensible like blue jeans and she will have none of it. She also loves pink, even though I try to convince her that other colors are good too, I guess they just don't measure up.)

These are the gingerbread men we made after Thanksgiving dinner. I thought they turned out SO SO cute! (I sewed everything on with the red one, then realized I am a lousy-slow hand sewer, so I just hot glued the green one together and then stitched the outside. It was MUCH more my cup of tea.)