Our ABC's of Gratitude

 Shea and I had a lot of fun and enjoyed our time

together remembering how thankful we are for 

our life together and all the things we have in it. 

AFFECTION from those we love, like tearful hugs and warm cuddles and sweet whispers and boo-boo kisses and sleepy snuggles and hand holding and more.
BLOGGING is my new journaling and I am obsessed if you can't tell.
CAMERAS to capture our priceless moments. And COMPUTERS they make our lives easier and funner.
DIAPERS for my babies and both babies love their DADDY'S famous back pats.
ETERNAL Families
FREEDOM in this amazing country and all the opportunities and blessings we gain from that. And we can't forget FOOTBALL, Shea loved playing it and reminisces every time he sees kids playing in a field.
GOSPEL teachings and the standards we learn to uphold from it.
HEALTH, HOME, and our HEAVENLY FATHER
ICE CREAM especially when it is for breakfast. My little brother Joseph and I are famous for our secret chocolate ice cream mornings.
JESUS CHRIST and his sacrifice for us.
KIDS that bless my life, especially the two KIDLINGS that we get to raise and love everyday!
LOVE for each other and our marriage!
Missionaries (Our missionary - RYAN)
NATURE, my favorite part of nature is trees. Whether it is the icy branches, or blossoming buds, or falling leaves; I just love them.
OCEAN, especially the one back home that I have so many memories of and can't wait to see again. I miss those crashing ocean waves and sand between my toes and scattered shelled beach. PRAYER, the peace and comfort and guidance that I gain from prayer is remarkable and I can't express how grateful I am for the role it has played in my life. 
QUESTIONS that my children will ask one day, I know that they will be endless and awkward and sometimes annoying, but I can't wait for all of them!
READING and the power of words in our lives music, poetry, scriptures, books they all make reading worth it.
SKYPE and how close it brings me to my family.
TESTIMONIES and TEMPLES and my TIME here on earth.
UMBRELLAS and rain, I love rain it just makes me happy watching it and driving in it and running in and out of it.
VACATION, Shea and I haven't gone on a vacation since our honeymoon. This next summer we are doing a "just our family" vacation somewhere.
WISHES on falling stars in the midnight sky.
XMAS cards sent to all we love. Keep your fingers crossed that we get a chance to do cards this year!
YARDS, one day we will have a big green one that our kids will love running around and playing in.
ZIPPERS on Bella's pajamas, which are so much easier and faster than buttons.

Think to Thank

For a little insight into the holiday, "In the United States, the modern Thanksgiving holiday tradition traces its origins to a 1621 celebration at Plymouth in present-day Massachusetts. While initially, the Plymouth colony did not have enough food to feed half of the 102 colonists, the Wampanoag Native Americans helped the Pilgrims by providing seeds and teaching them to fish. And eventually became an annual harvest festival, known as the thanksgiving festival."

 Thanksgiving is a time of gratitude and giving. We began our day at 9:00am waking to the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Broadcast, a Martin Family tradition. We saw lots of fun dances, songs, floats, balloons and more; we got to recap it with Joseph and my Mom over the phone. Before we left for dinner we tried taking some pictures together with us Martins and my Stanger babes.

 

 We celebrated at the Stanger Family's house and some of us Martin's joined in too (Amberlee and Daniel).  We had a delicious dinner with everyone.

 It wore some of us out...

After we were home Bella was sleeping and Amberlee and I had some fun doing a photo shoot with her in this adorable outfit.

 She didn't enjoy it as much as we did. So we ended real quick.

Connor got a little jealous of our Bella Shoot so he tried to take over and got very sad when we put away the camera. So I couldn't resist snapping this picture.

In honor of thanksgiving we read this talk by President Monson about gratitude. Here are some aspects I enjoyed.

Excerpts from the 1998 October General Conference “Think to Thank” by Thomas S. Monson:

The Apostle Paul, in his epistle to the Corinthians, proclaimed, “Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.” And to the Thessalonians, “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God.”

Do we pause and ponder Ammon’s words? “Now my brethren, we see that God is mindful of every people, whatsoever land they may be in; yea, he numbereth his people,  … over all the earth. Now this is my joy, and my great thanksgiving; yea, and I will give thanks unto my God forever.”

Robert W. Woodruff, a prominent business leader of a former time, toured the United States giving a lecture which he entitled “A Capsule Course in Human Relations.” In his message, he said that the two most important words in the English language are these: “Thank you.”

Gracias, danke, merci—whatever language is spoken, “thank you” frequently expressed will cheer your spirit, broaden your friendships, and lift your lives to a higher pathway as you journey toward perfection. There is a simplicity—even a sincerity—when “thank you” is spoken.

The prophet Alma urged, “Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good; yea, when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God; and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day.”

I would like to mention three instances where I believe a sincere “thank you” could lift a heavy heart, inspire a good deed, and bring heaven’s blessings closer to the challenges of our day.

First, may I ask that we express thanks to our parents for life, for caring, for sacrificing, for laboring to provide a knowledge of our Heavenly Father’s plan for happiness.

Next, have we thought on occasion of a certain teacher at school or at church who seemed to quicken our desire to learn, who instilled in us a commitment to live with honor?

Third, I mention an expression of “thank you” to one’s peers. The teenage years can be difficult for the teens themselves as well as for their parents. These are trying times in the life of a boy or a girl. Each boy wants to make the football team; each girl wants to be the beauty queen. “Many are called, but few are chosen”  could have an application here.

The Master invites one and all:

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

“Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.”

One Month with BellaGirl

We love every moment we have with this little girl, she is very different than her brother and that makes everything all the more special. Connor loves to give her kisses and hugs and hold her when he gets the chance. We feel like the luckiest family in the world to have such a happy girl that we just adore.

Bella Update:

Bella has decided to follow in her brother’s footsteps with blue/gray eyes.  Her hair is still a blondey color and it seems to be growing a little too. She hasn’t really made her mind up about the pacifier yet, she takes it, but I pretty much have to force it. When its in and she is sucking she is usually good for awhile, honestly I am really the only one that can get her to take it; which makes me feel pretty special. Bella gets the hiccups at least once a day, and she is so patient with them. Just waiting them out and letting them pass. Bella is an amazing eater, she nurses for such a long time I can’t believe she is still awake and she eats so fast sometimes that she chokes or spits it back up.

Her umbilical cord fell off at two weeks. Bella has sensitive skin; we have to keep diaper creams on her all the time to prevent rashes. Our girl is so strong, her legs amaze me, and she puts up a fight with them when she has to get changed. She is still wearing newborn clothes and diapers. The swing hasn’t been as much of a charmer for Bella as it was for Connor, she will go in it for awhile when she is sleeping but if she is awake then she is not usually a fan, she would rather the comfort of someone’s arms. Her daily apparel is a long sleeve onesie (with the pull over mittens, I hate long nails that leave scratches) and pants or a one-piece, cute pj’s mostly and a bow! I love bows.  Bella doesn’t like to be cold so we keep her bundled in blankets, no shivers for her.

At 4 weeks we went to the doctor and she weighed in at 8 lbs 10 oz (35^th percentile).

   
Milestones:

• She lifts her head while on her tummy, and moves her head from side to side during that time
• She responds to sounds
• She stares at faces, and follows movement with her eyes
• She has rolled over from belly to back
• She brings her hands to face and sucks on her fingers
• She responds to loud noises, with the startled reflex (flailing her arms and legs)

Bella LIKES:

• She likes tummy time for long periods of time, just staring off and observing everything
• She likes the motion of walking around and movement
• She likes the car
• She loves Daddy’s swaddling talents
• She likes it when you blow on her face and kiss her nose
• She likes to stretch after sleeping
• She loves her Mommy's belly rubs to make her tummy feel better
• And of course she likes to sleep and eat

Bella DISLIKES:

• She hates baths, diaper changes, changing clothes, anything that makes her shiver ends in her scream. And she has a good pair of lungs so the world knows when she is unhappy.
• She hates waiting, so when she wants to eat, you know. 
• She is not fond of the cold so anything cold she HATES; cold wipes, cold hands, cold air. This girl hates it all!
• Sadly her and the camera don't mix, the bright flash gets her annoyed and she makes the funniest faces and closes her eyes with rapid blinks. Poor girl is in for some trouble since she was born to a photo-obsessed mother.

Mommy and Daddy’s Favorite Bella-isms:

• We love when she smacks her lips together and sticks her tongue out
• We love all her expressions, especially her “stink face” as I call it, I think it is her “I don’t like that” face
• We love it when we get a sleepy smile or a half-smile when she stares up at us
• We love her beautiful wide eyes
• We love her grunts, burps, coos, cries and any little noise she makes

Thank you!

It is the season for THANKS. And we sure have a lot to be thankful for!
The last few weeks have been quite a roller coaster and I must say without so many loving people in our lives it wouldn't have been possible to have so many highs! So THANK YOU EVERYONE!

To my brother who heart attacked our door upon our arrival home from the hospital.

To Shea's Mom and family who babysat Connor before, during, and after the hospital adventure.

To Connor who has been an amazing BIG BROTHER right from the start.

To Bella, who graced us with her sweet little presence weeks early.

To Shea for being an amazing husband and being perfect in every way. He has taken care of me and our Bella, and made Connor feel special with a BIG perfect present that he has adored ever since.

To our Bishopric who made our at home baby blessing possible!

To my friend Carol who threw an amazing baby shower for me and Bella.

To my family (The Martin's) who fed us, bathed our little ones, washed our clothes, entertained our Connor, adored our Bella, and overall just filled our little home with excitement and love!

THANK YOU! THANK YOU ALL!

A Name and a Blessing

Bella's Daddy blessed her on Saturday, November 11, 2011 with the name Bella Marie Stanger. We shared this event with our families and enjoyed it in our home so that everyone could be present. It was a reverent experience that filled our home with so much love and peace. We are so grateful for the opportunity we have to be members of the church and to know and share the ordinances of the church with our children. 

“Every member of the church of Christ having children is to bring them unto the elders before the church, who are to lay their hands upon them in the name of Jesus Christ, and bless them in his name” (D&C 20:70). In conformity with this revelation, only worthy men who hold the Melchizedek Priesthood may participate in naming and blessing children. The ordinance of naming and blessing children requires authorization from the presiding authority.

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If your wondering about the story behind her dress it is simple and sweet. Her adorable blessing dress is the same one my sister and I were blessed in, so it has lots of special memories attached to it and more to come.