Be Ambitious

Nothing gets me in the Christmas spirit better than seeing Nate get into it himself. Since we put out the Christmas decorations Nate has been enthralled with the Santa hat. I don't know where we aquired it and we've had it as long as we have been married. Nate is really into hats so he just loved this when I put it out. He pulls it down regularly and plays with it.
I think this is the cutest Santa wannabe I've ever seen!
Merry Christmas everyone! Have a great holiday season with your families!

Lately, Nate's attachment to Robert has grown increasingly strong. So much so that Robert can get no peace or quiet when he gets home. When Robert walks in the door every night Nate runs to him screaming, "Dad, Dad, Dad!" and from then until bedtime Nate is connected to Robert's hip. The two of them have a great time playing hide-and-seek, reading, and wrestling. Robert is a good sport about it because I know there are days that he is just beat and wants to rest and have his dinner and call it a day but he gets down on the floor and plays with his son.
I have to say that I enjoy the break that this gives me. I'm not going to lie and say that there aren't days that I'm counting down until Robert comes home to help me out. It was on such a day that I was really tired when Robert came home. It had been a tough day of time-outs and tantrums and I was craving quiet. As I put on my apron to make dinner I noticed that the boys weren't doing their normal running around and screaming games so I went to see what they were up to. I always know there is trouble when I can't hear anything going on. :) Robert must have sensed that I was having a tough day because when I looked in Nate's room I found them quietly reading.
It was an adorable and endearing sight so I grabbed my camera and took some pictures before they realized I was watching. Robert is great at reading with Nate. Nate has his favorites and so does Robert. When Nate happens to pick a book that Robert doesn't love he'll change the story while he's reading it and make it more interesting for all of us. It's always exciting to hear the new renditions of the story because they're never the same twice. So here is a little moment captured in our home that I think will rank up there with my favorites for a long time because it's a huge blessing to see a father love his son, and a son love his father.

December 2 is my birthday and I am always shocked at how quickly the time passes. I'm not saying that I feel old because I know I am still very young, but I can't figure out where each year has gone. I still feel like I'm 17. You couldn't pay me to go back to my life when I was 17 but I don't feel like I'm mature enough or experienced enough to be as old as I am.

I always had the same cake growing up as far as I can remember. It's a recipe I grew up on so of course I love it. It's one of the things that I have that will always remind me of my Grandma Johnson. My mom got the recipe from her and I've taken it from my mom and hope to continue the tradition in my family.

To make the Chocolate Mayonnaise cake I grew up on you start by buttering and flouring two 9" round baking pans or one 9" by 13" square pan. Sift together:1/2 t baking powder, 2 cups flour, 1 cup sugar, and 1/4 cup cocoa. In a seperate bowl for wet ingredients dissolve 1/2 t of baking soda in 1/2 cup of hot water. Once that is dissolved add 1/2 cold water to that and 1 t vanilla. Add to the flour mixture and incorporate. To that mixture add 1 cup mayonnaise. Mix thoroughly. Divide batter into pans and bake at 350 degrees until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Frost with your favorite frosting. It's terrific with vanilla or chocolate frosting.

Nate loves the candles at our birthday celebrations and he especially liked licking them clean after I blew them out. He could have licked a million clean. It cracked me up.

Nate started out pretty clean with his slice of cake but it got pretty messy in no time. I think that seeing him scarf down the cake is one of my favorite memories of my birthday.

I think Nate's smile is adorable normally but there's something about a smile smothered in chocolate cake... I never thought that I would be where I am at 25 years old and it's so much better than I ever imagined. I hoped to be a wife and mother but I have so much more than that. I can't imagine sharing my birthdays with two cooler guys. The things that I've been blessed with hit me with so much intensity that I can't help but wonder what I did right to have a terrific marriage and a little boy that I could hold, and hug, and kiss all day long and never grow tired of it. If this is what it means to grow older then sign me up and bring it on!

This Thanksgiving was our first year as only our little family. I have to say I was really excited. It's fun to think about all the traditions that we are going to put together to make the holiday our own little Kunz/Ross combination. We had a couple of friends over to share the day with us and we just had a quiet little get-together. Our friends, David and Monica Crews (Hunter's Mom and Dad), were in charge of the turkey, green bean casserole and a chocolate banana cream pie. We did the cranberry sauce (homemade and oh, so good), stuffing, jell-o, and mashed potatoes and gravy using the yummy fatty turkey drippings. We thought we had a pretty good spread and where very proud of our work together.
Look at that beautiful showcase of yumminess!
Nate got to try it all. I don't think there was anything he didn't like.
Nate can never do a single bite at a time, he has to do fistfuls at a time. I don't know how he gets that whole hand in there, but he does.
After dinner we had the kids down for a bit and decided to rip out the pie and games. I made a key lime pie and pumpkin pie along with Monica's yummy pie. Three pies for four adults and two little kids is WAY too many. We had a good time sampling them all. Anyway, after the pie we pulled out a favorite game of the Ross'. Settlers of Catan. We haven't played since we moved in September so we were stoked when the Crews' said they knew how to play and where up for a game. We had a great Thanksgiving. We really do have so much to be grateful for. The friends, the food, and the fun but on a deeper note, the blessings of freedom in our country, the blessings of our Lord and Savior, His life, ministry, and atonement, and the Plan of Happiness He has given us. I hope that I will remember to be grateful for all of my blessings every day of the year.

This is totally just for my sake, but I just wanted to share that finals are over!!! Yay! I have to say that this week was even harder than finals at BYU. Maybe it's because I wasn't buried in work as well. Anyway, I have been a single mom this week and am so excited to have my husband back. I've really missed him. It makes me very appreciative of all the help he gives me regularly that I overlook. I am thankful for all the hard work he does for our family.

Enough with the sappy stuff and on to celebrating! We're going to pull out the Wii because classes are over, put Nate down and watch Ocean's 13, which we've never seen, and eat Ben and Jerry's ice cream. It's a party at the Ross' tonight! We'll probably be in bed by 10. :)

Aren't we lame???

On Thanksgiving Day Hyde Park recieved it's first sprinkling of snow. As the food cooked and the house began to smell of the holidays we thought it might be fun to take Nate out into the snow for the first time in two years.
At first he was more interested in his football that he takes with him everywhere he can.
It was a miracle that Nate wore that beany. Granted, it was only for about two minutes and the only reason he wore it is because it's his dad's, but all the same I was grateful that he at least gave me the appearance of a good mother for a couple of minutes. You wouldn't believe how many times strangers on the streets here have stopped me to tell me to put a hat on him, put on his gloves and tie his shoes. I have to say that after I've tried for the whole day to do these things and he keeps pulling everything off himself I give up a little. Choose your battles, right?
Close up. Just don't get too close or you'll get a good bugar shot. :)
Posing with Dad. Aren't they so cute? The two guys I love the most.
Nate wasn't so thrilled to pose with me. He wanted to go chase his ball around a bit more.
This is the picture that cracks me up the most. Although I know you can't really see the snow in the pictures it was coming down pretty steady. In this shot it started to come down in bigger flakes and Nate finally realized that some strange, cold stuff was fallling from the sky. Look at that face....

Much to my surprise and delight, Robert left the computer home this morning so I thought I'd try to catch up on all my blogging in case I don't see it again for awhile. I love the age that Nate is at right now because everything is a new discovery. In fact, one of his favorite things to say is, "Discobery!" We don't know if he actually means what it sounds like or not, but it's still really cute. Anyway, we have a lot of grown up toys that Nate isn't allowed to play with and he knows it, yet that doesn't slow him down when he wants to check it out. He's really curious and I'm sure that is just his age. The other day he found Robert's IPod and tried to hide from us in the front hallway. Not a very good hiding place. I found him trying to get the earbuds in his ears and by the time I got it away from him he'd managed to turn it on and start some music. He's too smart! He knows how to work the computer and all the remotes in the house. Where did he learn all that because we didn't teach him? Trial and error, I guess. So here is our little one exploring and learning more about the world around him. It's so fun to watch him learn.

It's finals time for Robert and he's totally commandeered the computer so I haven't been able to blog like I've wanted to. I can't believe that Robert is already in the middle of his first set of finals. We're one-third of the way through! Time has gone quickly, yet curiously slow. I hope that makes sense. Anyway, I've been thinking about the short amount of time that we've been here in Chicago and yet how much we seem to have done.

We've got our apartment which I still love to clean and keep orderly, Nate has turned two, Robert has spent a great chunk of time considering his future and trying to improve upon it, I've started watching a friend's baby twice a week, we've made some pretty good friends that hopefully we'll continue to get to know and love even better, we are both working hard in the church, me with nursery and Robert in the Elder's Quorum Presidency, and we hope to continue keeping busy.

While I reflected on what we've accomplished since coming here I also reflected on the emotional roller coaster that it's been. I was so worried about fitting in and making friends and Robert was worried about his scholastic performance. Between those two major things we've been in the pit of despair and also on great emotional highs. When I thought about those past moments I realized something that I've been taught before, but I seem to need refreshment on regularly. We make ourselves happy. It's up to us what kind of day we're going to have when we wake up in the morning. Worrying about friends and fitting in and doing a good job in school are important, but if we make the decision to be happy and work hard those things will happen automatically. I really believe this because it's happened more than once in my life. I really believe that with hard work and service we can be at our happiest and I can honestly say that right now after all the big transitions and changes we've been going through in the last three months, that I am happy.

Since our move here to Chicago, I have been able to watch a little guy a couple of times a week. His name is Hunter Crews and he and Nate are friend forever. Nate plays the big brother well. On some days he's all about sharing. He'll pass the toys Hunter reaches for to him and try to give Hunter his pacifier when he drops it. Sometimes Hunter won't take it back and you'd think the world was ending. Nate cries and rolls around on the floor kicking. I still haven't been able to help Nate understand that Hunter doesn't always have to have his pacifier. Those days are the good days.
Other days Nate decides that Hunter is a bit more of menace than a novelty. Rather than sharing it's about survival of the fittest. Nate will race to any toy that Hunter even looks at and say, "mine!" Not my favorite word in the world, but after all the "Finding Nemo" in my house I shouldn't be surprised.
Anyway, Hunter is this cute little guy that is so mellow. It doesn't matter what kind of day Nate's having, he's pretty consistent. He reminds me a lot of Nate at his age. Just happy to be moving and looking around. Lately, it's been a bit tougher with Hunter teething but even with that he's still got a great disposition.
I think these two boys will have a lasting bond. I'm glad for that because Nate is learning how to play with more kids and how he doesn't have to be the center of attention all the time. I think Nate is so smart because on the days that we're going to tend Hunter he says to me the minute I open his door in the morning, "Hunter? Hunter?" I have to explain to him that Hunter isn't here yet, but he will be and then Nate issues a really big, "Yay!" I don't know how a two year old is able to keep track of the days, but he does.
I have to admit that Nate's been off his mark lately. Recently, he asks everyday because we had Hunter and his parents over for Thanksgiving and Nate had his pal longer than normal. It was paradise for him! I think the relationship between these two boys is so cute! When Nate sees Hunter and his family at church it's like magnetism and when Hunter sees Nate a big toothy grin innevitably follows.