Comfortable?

I went in to check on Kalianna during nap time yesterday, and this is what I found:

She fell asleep between the window and her bed...standing up! How do you sleep standing up? It was too funny not to take a picture.

First Haircut

Kalianna got her very first haircut this week. Her hair was starting to get very messy and her bangs were always hanging in her eyes, so it was time. We went to Cookie Cutters because that is basically the greatest idea ever for little kids! I didn't dare try and cut her hair myself. I can't even cut paper in a straight line, let alone hair on the head of a moving two-year-old. They were so amazing--and Kalianna loved it! I actually couldn't get her to leave. When we first walked in and she saw a giant slide, she was sold. She played on the slide while I got her all signed up. Then she was ecstatic to sit in the cool blue car and watch Winnie the Pooh. She was more excited about the car than the movie though. This girl loves cars!

I told the lady I wanted her hair cleaned up and her bangs trimmed. Kalianna's hair had gotten quite long straight down the back, but the sides were much shorter. She asked if I wanted to even her hair out with the sides, and I said yes. She added a couple little layers to show off the natural curl in her hair too. Then she asked if I wanted her to put some mousse in Kalianna's hair to additionally enhance the curl. I said, "Yes, please!" As soon as she started putting it in and scrunching her curls, Kalianna said, "Pretty!" I just love the confidence of little girls! But her hair is so short now! I loved how long it was getting, but now it will grow out more evenly. I seriously got in the car and started crying (pregnancy hormones) cause I missed her long hair. No more pony tails for a little while =( I really do love how her hair looks though, it's super cute! And it looks much cleaner! When she was all done, Kalianna was very excited to get to pick out a balloon. She chose purple--her favorite color. Then she went down the slide several more times with her balloon in tow. All in all it was a great experience for everyone involved (minus the tiny meltdown). I'm sorry I didn't get any before and after pictures to show the two inches that were taken off the back.

Utah Statesman Article

For anyone who went to Utah State, you are familiar with the Utah Statesman. It's the fabulous school paper up at USU. I recently had the opportunity of being interviewed by one of their reporters about my book. Well the article not only came out today, but it was on the front page! Check out the article here: http://www.usustatesman.com/fortunes-collide-with-a-usu-writer-s-destiny-1.2512742

Pretty sweet! If you haven't read my book yet, it's okay, I will forgive you. But I do still have some copies left over from my visit to the elementary school last week.

Mommy, Wow!

Guess who's a big girl now? Kalianna got her big girl bed on Saturday! Isn't this the coolest bed you've ever seen?! We decided to get Kalianna a toddler bed, since she will soon be sharing her room with a little sister, and a twin would make their room far too crowded. Plus we didn't mind spending the money, knowing it will be used again. And Kalianna is ecstatic! I had to keep her occupied while Daddy was setting it up. She kept wanting to lay on it before it was done being put together. But then she ended up helping by handing Daddy screws. The second we gave the okay, she was laying in her bed, head on her pillow, a grin on her face from ear to ear. She loves being a big girl!

Because it was close to bed time, we only set up the bed Saturday night. When we first turned off the light and left her room, she got a little bit nervous. I went back in her room and sat on the floor by her bed and we sang some songs. She actually got out of bed and snuggled with me on the floor for a minute. Then I asked her to climb back in bed and after I left the second time, she went right to sleep. She fell out of bed once during the night. When I went in, she was sitting on the floor looking very confused! But once she was back in bed, she went right back to sleep.

We put the canopy together after church yesterday, so she could have it for nap time. Nap time was a little trickier, as we knew it would be. She got out of bed three times to play with toys. But as soon as we would go in her room, she would climb back in bed. We told her if she got out again, she'd have to sleep in her crib. She fell asleep after that and took a good nap.

Last night it took some convincing to get her to go to bed (which is pretty typical). But once in bed, she slept through the whole night without any problems or fall-outs. I am so proud of her!

The only thing that is kinda funny, is Kalianna HATES covers! She will lay on a pillow just fine, but don't you dare ever cover her with a blanket! She has always been that way too. So her bed is always made, and she sleeps on top of the covers. Did any of your kids ever go through this too? I'm wondering when, or if, she will ever sleep under the covers. As long as she is warm and comfortable, that's all that really matters, right?

April 15th

It's official! If I haven't had the baby by April 15th, I have a C-section scheduled for that day at 7:30 am. I love having a final day I can count on! It's nice to know that I will have another daughter by April 15th. It's coming!! Can you believe it?!

Smarty Pants

I can not believe how smart my little girl is sometimes! I forget she is not even two yet, when she is doing and saying so many things. I often think she is older than she really is. I just had to write all of this down, so I don't forget where she was at 23 months.

Kalianna talks almost constantly! I love it! And I would make a list of the words she knows, but she knows way too many to keep track of. She has got the most amazing memory. Back in December when we went to tithing settlement, the bishop reached in a drawer behind his desk and pulled out a piece of candy for Kalianna. A couple months later, when we were in his office for Matt to be set apart, she walked straight over to that same drawer and pulled out a piece of candy. Matt and I just looked at each other and laughed. She had earned it! She remembers where things are, things I've said, people she meets, places we go, it's just incredible to me to watch how her brain works!

She is also an incredible observer! She has learned so many things just by watching other people or listening to things that are said around her. And she picks up on things so fast! Kalianna already knows several colors! (which is really quite incredible for a not-even two-year-old). She knows blue, purple, pink, and is starting to point out red now. She loves to point out these colors anytime she sees them, and is so proud that she knows what they are. She also can sit down and with no help at all can put all eight shapes in the correct slots of her shape ball. She knows the names for stars and hearts, and points these shapes out any chance she gets as well. She loved Valentines Day! Pointing out all the hearts around us! She knows the numbers one and two. The other morning for breakfast, I was eating doughnut holes. I was down to my last two when she pointed to them and asked, "What's that?" I said, "Doughnuts, do you want one?" Her response was, "No two!"

She learns so quickly! I am constantly amazed at how fast she picks up on new things, and then she remembers them weeks later! She is also understanding a lot of opposites and will point out when things are light or dark, big or small, up or down, etc. She will tell me when she has gone poop or potty, so I can change her diaper, and she will tell me "booger" when she needs her nose wiped. She still loves animals and knows tons of animal sounds! (even more now than when I made the video) She knows all her body parts and can point to where everything is (even eyebrows and moles). She also knows all her clothes and names them while she is getting dressed. "Diaper, pants, shirt, socks, shoes, jacket, or dress, tights, coat."

We read a lot, but most of the things she knows, she has picked up on herself. We read scriptures every night and she loves to point out the pictures of Jesus. But she also always says, "Jesus. Dress." We try and explain that he is wearing a robe, but she knows what a dress looks like. She loves pointing out pictures of the temple too. I love it! And she knows all of her family members by name. Grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. I've never sat her down and tried to specifically teach her colors and shapes and things, she has just learned them from our reading and playing together. I love how smart she is, but I know I'm in trouble with this one. She can not be out-smarted! She is way too clever already, and she's not even two yet!

My absolute favorite thing about Kalianna right now (okay, one of them) is whenever she completes something or gets something right, she holds her hands up and says, "Ta da!" Not sure where she learned it, but it's hysterical! And she loves to give hugs and kisses now. So sweet!

Mission Rewards

Last night was truly amazing! Matt was able to baptize one sweet sister while he was on his mission in Latvija. Her name is Olga Frolova, and she was baptized just a week before he came home. Talk about the best going-away present! Well, 6 years later, Olga is now getting ready to serve a mission herself to Moscow, Russia. She flew in last night to the Salt Lake airport to report to the MTC and we were able to go and see her. As we were standing there, waiting for her flight to land, Matt said, "It is going to be so hard not to hug her!" Thankfully I was there and able to take on the hugging duties for him. =)

Olga is such a sweetheart! And it didn't take long at all to see what an amazing missionary she is going to be! We visited for a minute before finding out she had planned on just taking the shuttle to the MTC. We said, "No way!" So Matt called the MTC and got permission to drive her down himself, with me along as her companion. It was a dream come true for Matt! We thought we would only get to spend a few minutes with her, but suddenly a few minutes turned into an hour car drive. We took Olga past the Salt Lake temple so she could see it and picked up some dinner for her on the way. Wendy's. Can't get much more American than that. It was awesome to hear how Olga has been doing, as well as how the branches and people out there are doing. Olga was amazed as we pointed out several more temples from the freeway as we drove past. Back home, her nearest temple is in Finland and here we were, pointing out five temples within an hour drive! It was emotional as we said good bye to Olga and wished her well.

(Kalianna decided she wanted to drive us home. I was so proud of her! We spent a ton of time in the car yesterday, and because of the unexpected trip to Provo, she didn't get to bed until 11:00 pm! But she was such a trooper all night!)

On the drive home, Matt was practically glowing! He received the best reward in the world for his missionary service in Latvija. Watching his one baptism serve a mission of her own, and simply knowing the lives that she is about to affect. It's amazing to watch the gospel move forward! We were truly blessed to get to spend so much time with Olga! Good luck Sister Frolova!