Thanks

Day 24: I am thankful for Thanksgiving! It's fun to spend time with family and eat a lot of food (especially my grandma's made-from-scratch-stuffing and Natalie's yams that taste like dessert.) We spent most of the day with Mitch's fam. They were very kind guinea pigs for the pumpkin and chocolate pie I made. We had a fun time over there as usual. Layla loved Thanksgiving because she got to see both of her grandmas in the same day. She loves hanging out with her fan club!

(Unfortunately, I'm a bad mom and didn't take pics of Layla's first Thanksgiving., but here's a few pics my grandma took.)

A few of the members of Layla's Fan Club:

And her most devoted fans:

My uncle and grandpa were in town this year so we spent some time with them. My grandpa took us all out to breakfast one morning. We also went bowling. I'm a horrible bowler. But it was fun. Layla just liked hanging out with her fan club the whole weekend. Layla also liked Kent's dog, Logan, until Logan barked really loud right in her face. Then she was scared of him. But before the barking incident she had fun riding him around like a horse and petting him. Isn't he pretty?

Day 25: journals. Don't you love reading old journal entries? I usually end up laughing at myself.

Day 26: Mitch's parenting abilities. He is such a great dad. He helps out so much; he's always willing to change a diaper, feed Layla, or play with her. I love to see the two of them together. I love to see Layla freak out with excitement when Mitch gets home from work.

Day 27: Motherhood. Being a mom has brought me so much joy. I feel so blessed to be Layla's mom. She makes me want to be a better person.

Day 28: the temple. It's so peaceful there and it reminds me of what's really important in life.

Day 29: my glasses. It is quite annoying when Layla grabs them off my face, but I'm glad I can see.

Day 30: the Christmas season. It's nice to focus on our Savior and have everyone be so happy and giving.

Happy Holidays

Click here to see our Christmas card.

Love,

The Botts

More Gratitude

Day 17: my piano. Thanks, Grandpa Kermit, for buying it for me! I do wish I had stuck with piano lessons a little longer, but I can play well enough. It makes me so so happy to see Layla pounding on the keys. (I also love the new "scrunchy face" that she makes when she's extra happy.)

Day 18: my testimony and the effort it takes to keep it strong.

Day 19: our video camera. I'm glad we bought one before Bug was born. It will be so fun to watch all of our videos in 20 years from now. We take quite a few videos, but I don't post them all because I don't want to embarrass ourselves too much. We're kind of dorks.

Day 20: health. My health. My family's health. Usana vitamins, which I attribute to Mitch no longer getting sick in the winter. Also thankful for hand sanitizer. And people who stay home from church and work when they're sick. And people who wash their hands with water AND soap for longer than 30 seconds. And 800 milligrams of Ibuprofen, which Mitch thinks I'm crazy for taking, but I think it's great. I like it when people are healthy. I can't wait until my immune system is back to normal. It's been sub par since giving birth and breastfeeding. But don't worry, it will be back, I'm sure.

Day 21: my light lamp. On days like, "The Blizzard of 2010," it's great to have a fake source of sunlight.

Day 22: books. I love to read. I wish I had more time. I never finished War and Peace. It's too big and heavy to carry around. Seriously. Someday I'll read it though.

Day 23: Baby Tylenol. Bug is cutting her second tooth. I feel so bad for her, but she is such a little trooper, partly thanks to our friend, Baby Tylenol.

St. George

A few more things I'm thankful for:

Day 11: free, last minute trips to St. George to visit my Grandpa!

My parents decided to take a quick trip to St. George to visit my grandpa. We decided to tag along. I'm glad we did, we had fun and the drive isn't bad when you're in good company.Thanks for the invite, mom and dad! And thanks to my grandpa for his generosity!

Layla was good despite her aching tooth. She really liked being outdoors in the nice weather (which we were all overdressed for). Layla kept squealing her loud, excited squeals while we were outside. It was hilarious. I was really worried that Layla would keep waking up all night, but she slept for 11 straight hours! She must love St. George too.

We managed to do and see a lot while we were there. Mitch helped Grandpa with a few things around his new house. We saw grandpa's other houses and they are nice too (he just bought two investment properties). We ate some yummy food. We went to Snow Canyon, Kayenta, and some cool art shops. But the highlight was when I insisted that we stop and look at some pots that were for sale on the side of the road. You know, the huge pots that people put on their front porch or in their driveway? I said, "If they're like 30 or 40 bucks, I think I'll buy one." Guess how much the one I wanted was ... are you ready for this? ... seven HUNDRED and 50 bucks!!! Wow, I was WAY off! Ha, ha.

Anyways, Mitch and I are going to go back next summer to hike the Narrows and Angels Landing (I have to conquer my fear of heights somehow, right?). It was a short trip, but we saw enough to convince Mitch and I that we really want to live there. Too bad there is no aerospace engineering industry in St. George!!! Here's some pics from our trip:

Day 12: Mitch's good job.

When I say that we want to live in St. George, I really mean it. We even looked up jobs and houses. But alas, no job in St. George compares to the job Mitch has now. And he loves what he does, which I think is very important. So, while I would LOVE to move down south, I wouldn't want to give up Mitch's great job (but I would trade it for another great job with another reputable company and the same pay, or better pay, in sunny St. George). But in all seriousness, I am so grateful that Mitch has a good job that he enjoys and that can support our family.

Day 13: the internet.

Isn't it cool that you can look up anything you want to know, order concert tickets, keep a journal, communicate with friends, etc. all on your computer? Sure, there are some bad things out there, but overall, I think the internet is awesome.

Day 14: the scriptures.

I'm still reading the Old Testament. It's forever long. Mitch finished several weeks ago, even though I started months before him. I like reading the scriptures but for some reason the Old Testament is so difficult for me because I get so bored. However, reading it has increased my love for the scriptures. Simply put, I have a better day when I read the scriptures.

Day 15: talents.

I'm learning to sew. I took a few classes in high school, but I've forgotten most of that by now. I'm working on Layla's Christmas dress right now. If you see her around Christmas time, she'll probably be wearing it; I'm going to make her wear it a lot because it's a lot of work to make it! Ha,ha. But I'm thankful for my talents, old and new.

Day 16: my treadmill

I bought it for $300 when I was in high school, if I remember right. It's kind of a piece of crap, but it works well enough. It folds up when you're not using it. I like that. I can run on it when it's too cold/hot outside. I can watch tv while I run. I'm glad I bought it.

Don't You Ever Grow Up

Have you heard the new Taylor Swift song, "Never Grow Up?" It makes me cry. The lyrics describe how I feel better than I could ever say it.

Mitch and I always joke that Layla is "growing up so fast." But she really is. **tear** I wish Layla would stay little forever. I wish I could freeze time and enjoy her this way forever.

But alas, she keeps on growing. And that's okay because I love each stage and I love to watch her learn new things. I just wish it didn't happen so fast! She just cut her first tooth on her 7 month old birthday (the bottom left tooth, to be exact). She's a lot happier now that the tooth is through. She was never super grumpy, but we could definitely tell that she was teething for about one week before the tooth actually showed up. She had a slight fever, was grouchy, didn't take long naps, and woke up during the night. But if we kept her distracted and gave her things to chew on then it wasn't too bad.

Here's some nakey pics of her at 7 months.

Before bath time

During bath time

After bath time

All clean!!!

Here's a few more things I'm grateful for:

Day 8: the Gospel. It gives me an eternal perspective that I wouldn't have otherwise. I know why I'm here on this crazy earth! I have hope and faith and that comforts me.

Day 9: TiVo. I can fast forward through commercials and record shows that I'm not home to watch. That's awesome.

Day 10: left overs. Some nights I just don't want to cook.

And someday when I get around to printing this blog off into a book, here's the lyrics to that song:

Never Grow Up

Your little hands wrapped around my finger
And it's so quiet in the world tonight
Your little eyelids flutter cause you're dreaming
So I tuck you in and turn on your favorite nightlight

To you, everything's funny
You got nothing to regret
I'd give all I have honey
If you could stay like that

(Chorus:)
Oh darling don't you ever grow up, don't you ever grow up
Just stay this little
Oh darling don't you ever grow up, don't you ever grow up
It could stay this simple
I won't let nobody hurt you
Wont let no one break your heart
No one will desert you
Just try to never grow up
Never grow up

You're in the car on the way to the movies
And you're mortified your mama's dropping you off
At 14, there's just so much you can't do
And you can't wait to move out
Someday and call your own shots

But don't make her drop you off around the block
Remember she's getting older too
And don't lose the way that you dance around in your PJs getting ready for school

(Chorus:)
Oh darling don't you ever grow up, don't you ever grow up
Just stay this little
Oh darling don't you ever grow up, don't you ever grow up

It could stay this simple
No one's ever burned you
Nothing's ever left you scarred
Even though you want to, just try to never grow up

Take pictures in your mind of your childhood room
Memorize what is sounded like what your dad gets home
Remember the footsteps, remember the words said
And all your little brother's favorite songs
I just realized everything I had is someday gonna be gone

So here I am in my new apartment
In a big city, they just dropped me off
It's so much colder than I thought it would be
So I tuck myself in and turn my nightlight on

Wish I'd never grown up
I wish I'd never grown up
Oh I don't wanna grow up
Wish I'd never grown up
Could still be little
Oh I don't wanna grow up
It could still be simple

(Chorus:)
Oh darling don't you ever grow up, don't you ever grow up
Just stay this little
Oh darling don't you ever grow up, don't you ever grow up
It could stay this simple
Won't let nobody hurt you
Won't let no one break your heart
And even though you want to, please try to never grow up
Don't you ever grow up
Just never grow up

(Taylor Swift Never Grow Up lyrics found on http://www.directlyrics.com/taylor-swift-never-grow-up-lyrics.html)

Cheese!

For some reason, Layla started smiling like this today:

Is that cheesy or what?! I love that she squints her eyes when she smiles this way. It makes us crack up every time she does it. She had applesauce for the first time today. I don't know if it was the applesauce or what, but she was so so so hyper ALL day long today. It was hilarious ... and exhausting. She is a bundle of energy! At least she's happy, right?

So today I am thankful for cameras. Pictures can bring back so many memories!

Days 5 and 6

Natalie recently graduated with a degree in History. This morning we went to brunch at Little America to celebrate her accomplishments. It got me thinking of something else that I am thankful for: education. (Did you think I was going to say brunch at Little America? Maybe that will be Day 7.) I am glad I was able to finish my degree. I learned a lot. Not just about English, but also about people and life in general. I am thankful that Mitch was motivated enough to earn two degrees and secure himself a stable job. I hope that Layla will decide to earn a higher education when she's older. It's hard and stressful while you're going to school, but it's totally worth it. And it can be fun too! So Congrats to Natalie for earning a degree and now going to to pursue a Master's!

I am also thankful for new socks. Don't you just love the way new socks feel? I have some new ones on today and I love them. I usually hate socks, but when my feet are cold I think they're great.