Liam and Lyla Meet Rosie

My mom stayed with the kids while we were in the hospital having Rosie and they had so much fun! She spoiled them with Subway for lunch one day and choosing a toy from the store. I'm not sure we were even missed. ;) We were so glad to have her so close by this time!

We also left them each a gift to open while we were gone. They had treats and new 'big brother'/'big sister' sweatshirts inside for when they met their new baby sister!

One of the most special moments after Rosie was born was bringing her home to meet her big brother and sister! Liam was at school at first but Lyla was on a bike ride with my mom out front when we pulled up and she came running! I had to work hard to keep it together seeing this moment and the joy it brought to her world letting her hold her baby sister for the first time ...

Lyla has adored her from the moment they met! She is so good with her (maybe a little too smothering at times? haha) and incredibly helpful. I know these two girls will be the best of friends and I'm glad they have each other to go through life with. 

She kept giggling and commenting on all the noises and facial expressions Rosie made as she slept. haha 

When Liam got home from school he too came swiftly through the door looking for his baby sister. While he has been more reserved and hesitant to hold her, you can tell how much he loves her from the way he talks about her in his prayers. 

This will forever be my favorite and one that I'll always cherish. All three of my babies... <3

Can't wait to watch them grow up together!

A decade

 Nic and I celebrated 10 years of marriage in May! For so many reasons, it feels like a lifetime ago but none of the memories or feelings from that day have left me. A whole decade later and he is still the best decision I ever made. 

We left the kids overnight with my mom and snuck away to dinner at P.F. Chang's followed by a walk around downtown Boise, grabbed a brownie and ice cream from Stella's, and lounged in our hotel bed watching reruns of the Office, Friends, and Schitt's Creek. While we may not have been on that trip to Hawaii like we talked about in our early years of marriage due to Covid and a baby on the way, it was truly the best way to spend our day!  

When I opened my fortune cookie after dinner and found this inside, I couldn't help but to tuck it in my pocket and keep it as a special reminder that the best is yet to come for us. <3 

While our actual anniversary was wonderful, the next day was a little rough. We took our time checking out of the hotel in the morning and planned to go to breakfast. We tried to get into 8 different restaurants all over town between 9:30 - 11:00, all of which had over an hour wait until finally giving in and settling on skipping breakfast entirely for an early lunch. The nearest place was Smoky Mountain so we pulled up and were their second customers of the day. They immediately greeted us with frazzled faces, got us a table next to the front door, and told us they only had 2 staff members on site so the service would be slow. It took a long while to get our food while we proceeded to awkwardly watch them turn away customer after customer instead of putting a sign on their door that they couldn't offer any more service due to short staffing issues. Instead of having time to take a long leisure walk around the Village ponds like we had planned, we were left with only enough time to race from lunch in the rain to my second vaccine appointment. It was a day, that's for sure! So grateful we had the wonderful day together before and to my mom for watching our kids. 

Happy 10 years to my favorite person! I love you!!

9 years

9 years married to this handsome guy and as you can see, our anniversary celebration looked a little bit different this year. It was my year to plan it and back in January I began dreaming up a night away in McCall just the two of us. It would have been the first time since Liam was about 18 months old. We'd get room service, sleep in, and relax in the hot pools. When the corona virus hit, I was in denial and kept postponing canceling until literally the day we needed to in order to get a full refund. After I made that phone call it was the first time I really let myself cry and feel disappointed for some of the things I felt like this virus has taken from me. Then I had a moment of clarity where it made me realize how grateful I am it didn't interrupt our wedding day like it has for so many. That was a beautiful day!

My favorite thing to do with him on our anniversary dates is spend time reflecting on every moment leading up to and since the day we became husband and wife. Boy how I wish I could go back in time and tell those two young and in love souls, just wait until you see what you have in store for you! Slow down and take it all in. These are some of the moments you won't ever forget! So many of those moments along the way stand as a witness of why we are so great together. Marriage is not always easy but we fight for each other and communicate through the hards things until we reach the other side even better. I adore him.

We were so lucky this year to have two dates! Yes, it involved wearing masks and the weather wasn't in our favor most of the day but we may not have ever chosen to bring blankets, string lights, and pick up take out dinner to eat in the back of our car by the river either. It was simple, just like the dates we used to have when we were first married. And truthfully, there wasn't anyone else in the world I would have been there with than him. I love you, Nic Williamson! Cheers to 9 years! XO

8 years

You guys, summer is so wonderfully crazy, fun, and busy! I have so much catching up to do!
Let's start with one of my favorite days of the year ...

Nic and I celebrated 8 years of marriage in May!!

I made him this video (linked here) and it brings me to tears every time I watch it. So many unforgettable moments and a beautiful life we've made together! We watched it laying in bed that morning and I think he loves it just as much as I do.

In the morning we visited the Boise Temple grounds where we were married. It was our first time taking our kids there and it was like being in this crazy time warp seeing how much our lives have grown and changed since that beautiful day!

Liam's first time ever taking our picture! haha

And the second ... there are our heads! haha

I love that our love created these two beautiful humans!

In the afternoon Liam had a play date and Lyla took a nap while my sweet step mom stayed with her so we could have a date together! We haven't been in Boise on any of our anniversaries so far so Nic planned the most special walk down memory lane starting with the Idaho Botanical Gardens where he proposed 9 years ago. He reenacted the moment in the very same gazebo and got down on one knee and gave me a set of silicone rings to wear when I exercise/do yard work/hike/etc. It was so cute and thoughtful! In the moment I remember saying, "what are you doing?!" haha because I was so thrown off by it and it was the best surprise!

The gardens were covered in the most beautiful pink peonies and we were so entertained by the ginormous coy fish and lizards running around on the rocks.

After the gardens we stopped by The Bishop's House ... a beautiful old Victorian house where we had our wedding reception! There was a big sign in the front yard telling people to stay off the property and that there was some event soon so we quickly popped out of the car long enough to snap a picture and drive away.

I can not imagine my life without this handsome guy in it. We've been through so much together ... school, buying and selling houses, babies, new jobs, a big move and through all of it, there is no one else I'd rather have by my side. I'm so grateful for our marriage and excited to see what the next 50 years will bring! Love you so much Nic Williamson, Happy Anniversary!! XO

Valentine's Day 2019

I've always loved Valentine's Day! I remember when I was a little girl, my mom used to surprise us with some type of chocolate and a new movie. All the good movies that went to the theatre in November right before Christmas time would be released on DVD right before Valentine's Day and it was so fun having something new to watch together. A couple of my favorite years being Princess Diaries and The Notebook! haha I think I've seen both at least hundred times. 

Now I can say, it is even more fun to surprise a husband and two kids on Valetnine's Day! Liam's class celebrated the day before and he could not hide his grin when he carried in his gift for Mrs. Amber. It was adorable to watch! When she told him she'd open it at the end of class, he carefully tucked it in his backpack and waited to give it to her. When I picked him, she had just barely opened it and was absolutely gushing over the book he gave her called Love Monster. I could have hugged her right then and there because it made his whole day and helped him to experience the joy in giving!

In the weeks leading up to it, I took these adorable pictures for special books we made together for their grandparents and Liam's little best friend in Pocatello, Hadley.

The faces they gave me as their goofy dad rolled around on the kitchen floor were priceless! ;)

Cutie pie!!!

We don't love to go out on Valentine's Day, we'd rather spend it at home away from the craze and with our kids but my mom did give us a special night to celebrate it a couple days before the actual holiday. Our second time having dessert at the Melting Pot and my mouth still waters just thinking about it!!!

Nic had to work on Valentine's Day so he did miss the morning with the kids but we got to have lunch with him at his office which is our favorite! I had them close their eyes and handed them their Valentine's Day mailboxes full of goodies that kept them busy and sugar filled all morning long. haha We did do a fun scavenger hunt for one of their surprises in the evening that Nic got to be home for!

Lyla loves carrying things around right now and dressing up so she got this little heart shaped purse with her first pair of plastic dress up heals. ;) She traipses around the house in the those things all day long and always wants me to stuff her purse with snacks. haha

Their Papa and Grandma Dee sent them the sweetest package in the mail that had these gigantic chocolate hearts filled with caramel and personalized with their names on them. They were a hit!

Liam got these glasses as a Valentine from one of his preschool friends, such a smarty pants. :)

Finally daddy came home to spend the evening with us and he came baring our favorite tradition of Papa Murphy's heart shaped pizza for dinner! Lyla was greeted with the sweetest kiss on the cheek and I was handed that beautiful bouquet of roses, such lucky girls!

Lyla girl helped me make brownies for dessert and didn't complain one bit when I asked her to help me lick the spoon. ;)

Hence the signing for "MORE!" haha

Nic surprised me with a bluetooth speaker which has been so much fun! I love that I can blast it in the kitchen from 4-5 while I prep dinner or take it outside with us without worrying about my phone! We broke it in with a few slow dances to Dan & Shay's Speechless.

Guys can be so hard to find a gift for on Valentine's Day but I had the idea in the back of my mind that we are in this new big city now with so many things we've never tried before and so I took advantage of that with my gift and gave him 5 date cards straight from the bachelor. ;) Our first one was that very next Saturday. Edie sweetly came over at the crack of dawn to spend the morning with these two ...

And Nic and I tried an aerial yoga class! It was SO MUCH FUN!! We both loved it! I couldn't believe what a great sport Nic was about it for being the only guy in the class and how limber he was! haha It was so much more difficult of a work out than I even expected but we both giggled at each other and really had fun trying something new. Our favorite part was laying in those ropes like a hammock at the end with the lights dimmed, candles all around, and the teacher sharing words of affirmation! NAMASTE!

I basically gave him a date card a month through June with a clue he has to decipher on one side and what to wear on the other. Our next date is tomorrow night and we are taking a waltzing dance class! I can't wait!!

I feel so lucky to live a life filled with love in so many ways! 

six years

Yesterday was Nic and I's 6 year anniversary! Definitely the fastest and BEST 6 years of my life!! The celebration started Friday night when he came home from work with this beautiful bouquet of roses with a card that followed later that said: "Yellow because you make me the happiest man alive, Pink because I will never stop being thankful you married me, White because you are the best person I have ever known, Red because I will never stop loving you."

Colds have been going around our house over the last week and half. It started with Nic, then Liam caught it a few days later, and just when I thought I'd escaped it, I found myself coming down with it by Friday too. I was so bummed knowing that this was a special weekend and not feeling well for it was not on the fun meter but that didn't stop us. Saturday mid-day Nic surprised me with a date and we left Liam in the good caring hands of my mother-in-law. His plan was to recreate most of our first date so we started with lunch at Wingers. It felt so serendipitous when the hostess at the restaurant sat us at the EXACT same booth where we shared our first date 8 years ago! We haven't sat there since so it felt so special! Can I tell you just how incredible it is to slowly eat your meal and share a flashback conversation with your spouse without any sticker fingers covering your outfit or leaving your food to grow cold while you cut up and feed your toddlers to them?! It was so nice to just be the two of us for a little while (well, with a growing third wheel in tow who enjoyed that lunch just as much as I did! haha). 

The only pictures we took for our anniversary, still the same old goofballs we've always been ...

We were SO full after eating so we planned to walk around while mini golfing but in true Pocatello fashion, the wind was being outrageous and I couldn't keep my dress from flying up (haha!) so we ditched that plan and went furniture shopping instead! While we have a crib and a rocking chair handed down from Liam for baby girl's nursery, we have been on the hunt for a dresser for her room. I found one I loved at a vintage antique store in downtown last weekend while my mom was here but wanted to show it to Nic first. We wandered through a few more antique/furniture stores (basically all 5 we have in this town) to make sure it was the one before finally going back and buying it before the store closed for the day. Our anniversary gift to each other. It has these adorable scalloped edges and little gold key holes on the front, perfect for a girl's room. I love it so much!

From the beginning, I envisioned this sweet little dresser to be pink so our next stop on our date was to Home Depot. We looked through all the paint samples before deciding on the cutest light blush/coral pink color called "pink elephant". haha We still had about an hour and a half left of our date (it was about 5:00 by this time) but there was no way we were going to be able to have a full meal again after our lunch so we decided since it was a special occasion to just skip straight to dessert. We sat across from each other in a cute little diner setting and had oreo shakes, once again just enjoying each other company talking about both the past and our future together. There is no one in this world who I would rather share both with than you, Nic Williamson. 

Sunday was the day of our actual anniversary and I was up all night long with the worst stuffy nose and sore throat so Sunday was a pretty rough day. We all spent most of it in our jammies watching Disney movies together and taking naps in the afternoon. We went for a short walk through this beautiful cemetery that Nic and I used to live across from. Each time we go back, our lives and our love has grown just a little bit more!

Happy Anniversary to the perfect man for me! I love you even more today than I did 6 beautiful years ago!! There is no one I'd rather adventure with, experience parenthood with, or grow old with than you. I love you!!!

We are having a ...

little GIRL join our family!!!

And this is how we feel about it ...

Yesterday we had our 20 week ultrasound and right away the ultrasound tech asked us if we wanted to find out the gender of our baby. She didn't waste a second which I loved because then the entire rest of the ultrasound we got to say, "There's HER hand or HER legs." Nic was holding my hand through the entire moment and looking back, it was absolutely surreal the emotions we both felt in that moment. We said all along that because this pregnancy has been so different than my pregnancy with Liam that we were convinced it was a girl but I can tell you that we were both still in shock in that moment when she actually said, "You're having a GIRL"! 

I absolutely love every minute of being a boy mom but tears of joy rolled down my face because there is something so special about the opportunity of having a daughter and the bond I hope we share. We feel so blessed to be able to experience both! As we tried to see her little profile several times she had her hand right up by her face and it was so sweet but then she finally moved it down a bit and my heart melted even more, look at that sweet girl ...

When I got home from the appointment I wrapped Liam up in my arms and pointed to my tummy and said, "Guess what Liam, you are going to have little SISTER and he confidently said "Yes" back as if he already knew. 

Last night Nic took pictures on his phone of her ultrasound pictures so that he could have them with him while he was away at work during the day and my heart absolutely melted. I fall more in love with him every day, especially seeing him as a dad, and even more now to see his little girl wrapped around his finger.

We all are SO excited to meet little sister in September and love her so much already!!! Look out Nic, let the bow and dress shopping begin! ;)

Family Pictures

My sweet friend Mickenzie took our family pictures back in October and I could not love them more! They perfectly reflect the stage of life we are in right now where Liam is our whole world and we wouldn't have it any other way! Here are a few of our favorites ...

There are days where I see a picture of Liam and it takes my breath away because I simply can not believe how big he is getting! Our little boy. He loves to splash in puddles and hunt for rocks so when it came time for pictures of him by himself, they were the center of his attention ...

My whole world in one picture ...

And this guy ... my adoration for him runs so deep. He will always be my best decision and my deepest love!

four years

Cue the sappiest love songs you've ever heard, or in my case, our two wedding songs {I Believe in You and Me and More Than Anyone}  ...

Two weeks ago, Nic and I celebrated our fourth anniversary! With every year that goes by, I'm even more certain marrying him was the best decision I've ever made. Over the years, I've had several people ask me how I knew he was the one for me and I've realized it is because of these two reasons ... the first is the hardest to explain and that is, I JUST knew. It was a feeling that was deep within my soul, a love for someone that is beyond anything you could ever know until you have experienced it for yourself. The second, I asked myself if I could ever live without him, that if one of us were to walk away, if I would be able to move on. It didn't take either of us long to answer that question. We've spent almost every single day together since the day we met apart from the summer we worked in different cities and Nic traveled to see me on the weekends. The even more magical thing about marriage is, that love only grows stronger every single day.

This year, there weren't two hearts, but three. Adding Liam to our family has been like having a special little piece of heaven with us every day. I remember telling Nic the other day that this point in my life RIGHT NOW is exactly the stage I looked forward to the most in my life. So with that said, I'm living and enjoying every moment to the fullest with my two boys! There is nothing more fulfilling for me than being a wife and a mother. I thank God every day he gave me these two. They are the bees knees. My bees knees! 

Happy Anniversary handsome! Love you!! XO

one year |  two years | three years