Christmas so far. . .

Fun craft we did with our friends the Cook's using Nutter Butters

Dave and I going to his work Christmas party

Justin was so excited to come home from preschool as Rudolph!

Isabelle striking a pose in her Christmas dress.

Justin's Christmas outfit which is also his first tie. He was very excited!

Dave and I as Mary and Joseph for the ward Christmas program

The kids and Dave all ready for the Christmas party

Isabelle's 15 Month Appointment

Isabelle's 15 month appointment went great! She weighed 22 lbs 10 oz. (50%) and was 31 1/2 inches long (75%). Her head is a little on the large side (75%) but I don't think you can tell when you look at her! She has just as much personality as Justin and I think will be just as talkative as he is. I love to watch them play together. They laugh so much together (and sometimes fight!) and she learns so much from Justin. She is also learning her animal sounds and whenever she seess a duck starts saying quack quack! A big day for me was when I put her hair in a ponytail for the first time a couple of weeks ago, just after Thanksgiving. I realized I am going to need some practice doing little girls hair and if any one has tips on how to get her to hold still please leave a comment! Here is a list of words that she can say and it seems to grow daily!

Daddy
Mommy
Uh-oh
puppy (almost every animal is a puppy to her)
Hi
Bye
Diego
Dora
owie (she seems to hit her head constantly)
Grapa (Grandpa)
Gramma (Grandma)
movie
good girl (she says this to herself when she sits down in the bath tub and on chairs because she knows she's not supposed to stand up)
Wee!
night-night
bird
ball
Pop Tart (one of her favorites!)
nana (banana)
and who knows what she will learn today!

You can't tell in this picture but she still only has two teeth!

Daddy's little girl!

Isabelle with Grandma Poulsen

It was a Happy Thanksgiving!

We had a great time for Thanksgiving. We ate at my brother Mark's house along with my parents and my other brother Greg and his family. The food was delicious of course and it's always fun to see all the cousins play together. It was nice to have Dave home for a long weekend too. His sister Rhonda and her family were in town so we got together one night to roast marshmallows and the next day they went on a hike (I opted to go shopping!). Unfortunately, I don't have any great pictures with delicious food in it or beautiful scenery from the hike because I am tired of having a camera that doesn't zoom so we rarely use it! Here are just a couple quick pictures I snapped of the kids.

Justin made this hat at Preschool. He wasn't really in the mood to take a picture so no smile this time!


Isabelle is always in the mood to take a picture and has even learned to say cheese while doing it! Too bad she's not always dressed. . . She just turned 15 months and we can't believe how time has flown!

Inspirational

Check out this beautiful and inspiring story about the Nielson's.


http://www.azcentral.com/community/mesa/articles/2008/11/20/20081120mr-stephanie1120.html

Halloween

We had a great Halloween this year! Justin really got into it for the first time and was excited to go trick or treating. Justin was a lion because he loves lions and has a very ferocious "roar." Isabelle was a beautiful purple fairy simply because I fell in love with the costume. Unfortunately, we couldn't get very good pictures because the kids didn't want to hold still and we couldn't get any of them next to each other because everytime Justin would go to stand by Isabelle she would run away from him! He had been bugging her all day and I think she had had enough by that point!

Pumpkin Carving

I was excited for us to carve pumpkins this year because I thought that Justin would really enjoy getting messy. Boy was I wrong! He didn't even want to reach inside at all but he did enjoy watching Dave and coloring his own pumpkin. Isabelle was not really interested at all but content to run around us and eat Dave's necklace from his Uncle Rico costume.

The pictures ended up backwards, so here is the finished product first!

Eating the necklace

Coloring the pumpkin

I really think Dave enjoys carving the pumpkins and letting his creative side come out.

And it's Going to be. . .

a girl! As Dave put it, Isabelle will have the sister I never had. Now if we could just give Justin the brother Dave never had. . . The baby looks great and it was actually the most entertaining ultrasound i've had. She of course had her stomach down so it was hard to tell the gender. My doctor says he is 95% sure it's a girl and will check again next time. Dr. Beck kept poking at her trying to get her to move and by the end of the ultrasound she was literally doing front flips which was pretty funny to watch. Everything looks healthy and we are just excited to hear that!

It was time. . .

My mom will be so happy, Justin finally got a haircut! I love his hair long and get so many compliments on it but it was so long the poor kid couldn't see anymore. I started yesterday by just cutting the front but apparently Dave thought it looked like a mullett so today he cut the back. I have to admit that Justin does look really cute and he keeps calling himself handsome, but I can't wait for it to grow back! Before

Poor Justin had to look up to try to see out from under his hair!

After
Doesn't he look handsome! Dave think he looks like he's 5 now.
At least you can see those beautiful baby browns now!

On a side note, Justin has a fever of 103.5 today! He's acting normal so hopefully it won't turn into anything more and will go away quickly!

Twenty-nine is fine, right?

Yesterday I turned the big 2-9. It was a great day and Dave and I had a great date Saturday night to celebrate but I am still having mixed feelings about this one! I am just one year away from turning 30 which if I think about that too long it starts to freak me out! We ate at the Macaroni Grill Saturday, and I couldn't help looking around at all the young employees and remembering when I worked in restaurants during college. I thought to myself, "I'm not that much older than them now, right?" but if I asked them they probably would think i'm old! On the other hand I think, "I'm only 29 so why do I feel like i'm 39!" I can't believe how much having kids and all these "adult" responsibilities has aged me. How do you stay feeling young when it's so hard to find any time to yourself? Sometimes I think, "In a couple of years when my kids are older and more independent it will be okay, but then I remember I'M PREGNANT and the whole cycle of raising a child is about to start over! But if I really step back and put things in perspective I feel like I have so much at such a young age. I have a wonderful husband who supports and encourages me in everything that I do, two beautiful children with one on the way that bring me more joy and laughter then I could ever imagine, a beautiful house in a great neighborhood, and I come from a wonderful family and now I have amazing in-laws too. The list could go on and on and on and with each birthday i'm sure that I will have more to add to that list so I think from now on i'm just going to remember "Age is just a number" especially next year when I will be turning 30!

By the way, here's something that always brings a smile to my face when I think about it, no matter how old I am, Dave will always be 4 years older! Just one of the benefits of marrying an older man! I love you Dave!

I would love to put a picture up of my birthday yesterday but we didn't take any! Instead, here is a picture from October 2004, when I wasn't even thinking about age!

The Pumpkin Patch

On Saturday we went to Mother Nature's Farm and had a great time! We went there last year too and the kids really have a blast. Justin, Robyn, and Isabelle all had a great time picking out a pumpkin and then decorating it. There is also a tractor ride that takes you around the farm and you can see all the animals. At one point in the day we couldn't find Justin and when we finally did he was running back and forth from one animal's cage to the next. He really loves animals and could have spent the whole day with them. Isabelle also really liked the animals and it was really cute to watch her because she is starting to do animal sounds! Justin was so proud of his pumpkin! Honestly, the one he picked out was one of the worst in the patch and was starting to rot, but whatever makes him happy!
Robyn went with a Patriotic theme.
Isabelle definitely mastered the "maaaa" sound by the time we left!

Isabelle's New Best Friends

Now that the weather is so nice all Isabelle wants to do is go outside. I can't say that I blame her! She is very excited to hang out with the dogs and even puts food in their bowl for them!

She can be very quiet so one time when I went to look for her this is where I found her!

She also loves to read books and decided to read one to the dogs. I couldn't take the picture fast enough, but right before this Molly was on the other side and it really looked like she was reading the book to both dogs!

My New Favorite Food Storage Item!

I have really been into getting my 3 month food storage supply ready lately so to help me I went to a canning class at Shar's so I could learn to can meats. She always gives out samples of the food and on top of the apple pie she put the yummiest stuff called Spiff-E Whip. I know it sounds like it's from the 1950's but it is so cool! It's basically whip cream that comes in powder form and you just add water. What makes it even better is it is low calorie and zero fat! I used it as a fruit dip the other night and it was so good! I was checking out the website of the people that make it and they actually have an outlet store in Utah that you can place orders through and get all sorts of stuff. I think next time I am up there I will have to stock up!

Need a fun day trip?

Last Saturday Dave dragged us to a reptile show in Tucson. Okay, he probably only dragged me because the kids really wanted to go. The kids had a great time looking at all the reptiles etc. and I was just happy to leave there without any new pets! By the time we left it was lunch time and almost nap time so I wanted to eat and then go home hoping that the kids would fall asleep in the car. Dave had other ideas though. He wanted to go to a musuem that he remembered going to when he was little. So without really knowing the name of it or where it was, we set out to go there. Luckily, we ran into a nice Highway Patrolman that gave us great directions. I was totally not prepared for what this place really was. It is called the Arizona Sonoran Desert Musuem. It is pretty much like a zoo but only with Arizonan and Sonoran Desert animals. Justin kept looking for the elephants and I didn't know how to tell him there weren't any there. Luckily there were lots of other things to see! I liked it much better than the Phoenix Zoo because you could get much closer to the animals, they had hidden caves for the kids (and adults) to go through, they had different crafts for the kids to do and lots of other things. We spent hours there and still didn't see everything! The highlight for me was seeing a red Cardinal. I know i'm lame, but I used to teach AZ history and had to learn all of the state symbols so I was excited to finally see the state bird! There was so much to see and do there and I wish I had pictures to post to show you all the cool things but unfortunately we didn't bring the camera so you will just have to take my word for it!

An Update About Me

So remember a while ago how I posted how I had lost a bunch of weight? Well, if you've seen me lately you probably thought,"She doesn't look like she lost weight!" Don't worry, i'm not offended. There is actually good reason, I'm pregnant! I am 13 weeks along right now and just got back from the doctor. Everything looks great and I am due on March 31st. I can't wait until next month when we find out what we're having! Anyone want to place bets?

Isabelle's One Year Check Up

Last Monday I took Isabelle to the doctor. He said she looks perfect and is right on track developmentally. I had to laugh when he asked if she was pulling herself up on things because she had passed that step long ago! I told him she had been walking for weeks and he laughed. Just today I noticed that she is practically running now! I always love seeing what percentage she falls into for height, weight, and head circumference. I was pleasantly surprised to find out she's not as chubby as I thought. She is 21 lbs which is only 50%. An interesting fact though, Justin only weighs 5 lbs. more than her and is a year and a half older! She was 29 1/2 inches which puts her in the 60th percentile for height and her head, following the Bradshaw tradition was the biggest at 70%. We're glad that she is so healthy and strong! Also, she finally has a tooth! Her front, bottom right tooth finally poked through a couple of days ago.

I wanted to post pictures that my friend Rachael has been taking for me since Isabelle was born. Rachael is so talented and I am so lucky to have a friend that is willing to take the time to work with my children to get the best shot of them. Here are some of my favorites:

This was taken at 1 month. Can you believe the attitude already?!

I love these pictures of her taken at 6 months!

These four were taken last week when she turned one. It was so hard to make her hold still long enough to get a picture! I think they turned out really cute though! Thanks Rachael!

Justin's First Day of Preschool!

Today was Justin's first day of preschool! I was excited (and a little hesitant!) but for some reason Justin wasn't! It was the weirdest thing. For so long he has been asking to go to "cool" like Robyn and when it was finally time he was all shy and timid. If you know Justin you know that he is usually very excited and happy about everything but not today. He didn't even want to get his picture taken and that's why there is such a lame picture of me holding him because that's all he would let us do. When we got to the house he was still acting weird, but went in without any fuss, so that was good. He was fine when he came out and his teacher said that he didn't cry or anything but that he wasn't very happy until she got the animals out. Another wierd thing, he told the teacher that his name was Peter! I have no idea how he even knows this name, maybe she misunderstood him, I don't know! Hopefully the next time will be better or else Justin might become a preschool drop out! Justin acting shy and not excited!
Justin outside the school, still not excited!
Justin with his teacher, Miss Carrie, still acting shy and not excited!

Happy Birthday Isabelle!

Today is Isabelle's birthday (and my Mom's- Happy Birthday Mom!). We had her birthday party yesterday with all the cousins and she had a blast! I can't believe she is already one! This weekend has brought back so many memories from last year, which was one of the hardest ever for me so I was glad to be able to fill it with good memories this year! She is such a fun, happy girl. She is walking all over the place now and has been for a couple weeks. She is definitely a "Daddy's girl" and it is so cute to see her reaction when Dave comes home. She gets so excited and gets mad if he doesn't come pick her up right away. She loves to play with her brother and sister and loves the animals too! She brings so much joy and laughter to the family! We love you Isabelle! I couldn't pass up this birthday outfit when I saw it. She looked so cute! Notice the big bruise on her forehead, she had a pretty bad fall a couple days ago!
She couldn't decide between the carrot in her hand and the cake for a while. Eventually she used the carrot as a spoon so she could enjoy them both!
She made a big mess!
She loved the ribbon on Grandma's present and has loved playing with all of her presents! Thanks everyone!

Daddy's little girl!

Day Trip to Payson

On Saturday we went up to Payson with Dave's sister Becky and her family. It was nice just to get away from the day and escape the heat for a little bit. We just ate lunch at a nice park in Payson and then let the kids play. Dave, being inspired from watching the Olympics tried to do some of his old gymnastics moves. It was actually quite impressive but unfortunately we didn't get anything on video. He was doing standing back flips and a bunch of other things that I don't know the names of, but the most impressive was when he ran and jumped over a fence, did a front flip and landed on his feet. Unfortunately, for Dave he is still in pain 3 days later! Our final activity was feeding the ducks, or rather the geese. It was really scary to watch the kids feed the geese because the geese were not shy at all! They were eating out of hands and almost attacking us to get the bread. Luckily, no one got bit and the kids had a great time!

Isabelle just chillin'

Dave helping the kids do flips

Feeding the attack geese

you are plum #DDA0DD

Your dominant hues are red and blue. You're confident and like showing people new ideas. You play well with others and can be very influential if you want to be. Your saturation level is low - You stay out of stressful situations and advise others to do the same. You may not be the go-to person when something really needs done, but you know never to blow things out of proportion. Your outlook on life is bright. You see good things in situations where others may not be able to, and it frustrates you to see them get down on everything.

the spacefem.com html color quiz

Well purple is my favorite color so I guess plum works. As for everything else, I'll have to ask Dave if he thinks this sounds like me!

11 Months!

Isabelle turned 11 months old today. I can't believe how fast time has gone! She is so fun right now, always laughing and excited to see you. She says mama, hi, boo, and puppy. I love it when I go in to get her out of her crib and before she can even see me she is saying "Hi." She is trying so hard to walk and that is pretty much all she wants to do. She often puts a death grip on my fingers and tries to scoot herself off my lap so that I will walk her around. She can take a few steps by herself but doesn't do it very often. She loves to play with Justin (when he is being nice to her at least) and has fun trying to crawl faster than he does. We love you Isabelle!
This is Dave's creative way of walking her around so that he doesn't have to lean over. He used her blanket at first but it wasn't quite long enough so now he uses Justin's snake to hold her up and she just walks and walks and walks. If you would like to purchase one of these "baby walkers" you can buy them at Ikea!