The Linford Family

Harper Roni Linford

2010-10-29T10:22:00.000-07:00

So life with four kids has been a little crazy! Needless to say blogging has taken a backseat so I am so late posting anything and even worse with pictures. Sorry to disappoint but no pictures today, maybe sometime. I confess that any spare minute I have is reserved for sleep so I am a lame blogger. But I thought at least I should inform the blogging world that I did have my baby because everyone knows it is not official until it is on facebook and the blog! :) Harper was born Sept. 16 and weighed 6lbs. 8 oz. She is doing great and is a wonderful baby! She looks exactly like Emma and Isac so if you are just dying to see what she looks like just pretend that one of my old pictures is her. Seriously, my kids are all from the same mold except Elli, she is the odd one out! So anyway...keep this short and sweet...she is here, we love her and I am SO GLAD to not be pregnant anymore!!!!

Oh and it is Haper Roni (Ronnie). Both my dad and Dan's dad are named Ron so we named her after them. She is not a San Fransico treat!

Vote for my Grandpa Ron!

2010-07-11T19:14:00.000-07:00

This summer has been busy! As most of you have probably heard my father is running for Governor so the whole family is out on the campaign trail. Usually I forget to take my camera or I bring it and never get it out (I seriously am the WORST at taking pictures) but luckily this one parade I remembered! So here are just some cute pictures of my little campaigners!

My Grandma and Grandpa were able to ride with us on the float.

Isac has really gotten into this campaign business. When we go door to door he tells every person "Vote for my Grandpa Ron!" It is the cutest thing ever! I don't know how anyone could resist. All these grandkids are going to win the election for my Dad!

Just a picuture of the float

You can't really read it but the back of Isac's shirt says 'Vote For My Grandpa Ron'. My mom had them made for all the grandkids. They look pretty darn cute!

The girl's shirt were dirty (they are getting a lot of wear this summer) so they had to sport these patriotic dress. Still pretty darn cute if you ask me!

This campaign has been such a blessing in our family. It is so fun for all of us to be involved and travel the state. Each one of my siblings is working hard to help out. My parents have been on the road full time since January. I miss not having them around but it has been great being able to share this experience with them. It is so humbling to travel around the state and find people that are so willing to give their time, money, and energy to my Dad's campaign. Hopefully it will all pay off in the end but regardless this has been an experience that I will never forget!!

Micheli for Governor!!

It's All Fun and Games...

2010-04-16T07:29:00.000-07:00

We had an interesting experience last week. So just to warn all you moms (and Dads) out there you better listen closely! :)

When Dad gets home from work the game is to all wrestle. Dan plays with the kids while I finish getting dinner ready. On this particular day, Dan was swinging the kids around, letting each kids have a turn. Little Elli was the last to go and when Dan was swinging her she let out a scream. Dan set her down and she grabbed her arm. She was obviously hurt, but Elli is a very dramatic child so I really didn't think much of it. I thought she would wake up in the morning and everything would be fine. Unfortunately that did not happen. The next day Elli was really in pain and would not use her arm at all. She just sat on the couch holding her arm and would cry anytime I touched it. I decided that this was obviously more serious than I initially thought so I called the doctor. After taking one look at her little elbow the doctor said it was dislocated. The doctor had to pop it back in. Needless to say this did not impress my little girl! I have never heard her cry like that! And then they had to do x-rays just to make sure everything was in place. Because I am expecting again, I couldn't go with Elli to get the x-rays. So the screaming continued!

We left the doctors office with the cutest little sling ever! She had to wear it for 5 days but is doing great now. Her arm doesn't seem to bother her at all. I just thought this sling was so darn cute so I had to take some pictures.

But just a little warning...you really can dislocated your child's elbow by lifting them by their arms. I had heard that it happens but never really believed it! Indeed it does.

This thing was so tiny! I didn't even know they made slings this small.

She wouldn't really let me get a great picture because we were headed to the park, but you get the idea!

At least it wasn't her thumb sucking side! :)

She actually left it on really well, which was very surprising. I thought she would rip it off but I think she knew it was making her arm feel better.

Half Marathon!

2009-08-15T16:14:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I went down to Provo and ran in a half marathon. It was my first one and I absolutely LOVED it!! I think I will have to make it an annual tradition. The weather was perfect, the route was BEAUTIFUL and the run was amazing. I also finished way faster than my goal time, so I was really excited about that.

It was so fun to do it with my sisters, niece, and cousin. The picture is Ashley (my niece), Angela (sister), Me (coolest person ever), Haley (sister) and Amber (cousin).

I really have grown to love running. I am not the best or fastest, but it has really become a great stress reliever for me. I can work out the frustrations of the day with a nice long run. It also has been really good for me to have something to work for. It really gives me a sense of satisfaction to accomplish a goal.

Reminisce

2009-06-19T14:50:00.000-07:00

The past few days I have been feeling very nostalgic. With the twins birthday coming up, I can't help but think about where I was a year ago. Those memories are a mixture of gratitude, relief, stress, and happiness. So like my Dad always says....let's reminisce

June 5, 2008: I checked into the hospital with preterm labor. I was 27 weeks which was WAY too early to be having babies. So I staying in my bed hooked to machines on countless drugs, absolutely miserable! It was three weeks of constant labor. I would start contracting and then the nurses would pump me full of drugs only to start over in a few hours. It was not the most pleasant experience. The positive thing was that the doctors were able to delay the birth long enough to give me the steroid shots that speed the development of the lungs. This was a HUGE blessing and both of my girls were off the respirator the day after they were born.

June 22, 2008: Finally the labor was too intense and the doctors didn't feel that they could stop the delivery any longer. So we geared up to have the twins. It was scary and exciting all at the same time. At 10:37 pm they wheeled me into the operating room (just in case). With a full staff of NICU nurses ready to sweep the babies off and my OB-GYN and my loving husband we started. Little Emma was born at 10:42 with barely half a push. They rushes her into the next room because she was in respiratory distress. With Emma delivered I got to start on round number 2. Elli was a little more difficult because when Emma was born, Elli's cord followed her out. This created some problems and Elli was not cooperating. The nurses prepped the C-Section table and prepared to move me over. My wonderful doctor was determined to get little Elli and with a little grit and lots of pain, Elli was born. It was only 6 minutes, but it was sure a long 6 minutes! So at 10:48 both twins were here. They weighed 3 lbs. 3 oz and 3 lbs. 5 oz.

I didn't get to see the twins until later that night because they were still in respiratory distress. About midnight they wheeled me in to see my little angels. They were so tiny and looked so weak hooked to all those machines. I can not explain the emotions that filled me as I looked at their little bodies. Mostly I was just so grateful that they were here and they were alive. I knew that everything would be okay.

The next two months were filled with ups and downs. Elli did great in the NICU and didn't have hardly any problems but Emma was another story. She had countless blood transfusions, tests, and bloody stools. She was a really sick little girl and they couldn't really figure out what was wrong. Finally after two weeks of tests they decided that she has two bowl obstructures and that she would need surgery. They transported her to Primary Children's where she under went surgery. She stayed there for a little over a month before being transfered back to McKay in Ogden.

Obviously this is the extremely condensed version of the twin's birth (you wouldn't know that by the length of this post) But in short it was a long, emotional road. There is not a day that goes by that I do not thank my Heavenly Father for giving me such beautiful girls. They are both healthy and strong. It really is a miracle. Everytime I look at them I think about how grateful I am for the blessing they are in my life. This time a year ago was one of the most challenging experiences of my life, but I wouldn't trade if for the world. The things that are the hardest and we sacrifice the most for are the things that matter most.

Happy Birthday Emma and Elli!

Elli

Emma

House HOORA!

2009-06-04T17:52:00.001-07:00

We are finally in our house! It has been so fun/stressful getting everything set up but we are so excited. It is so wonderful to have our own home. But unfortunately I have yet to find the camera cord so there are still no pictures...I will continue the search.

With moving into our new house I have decided that we don't need television or Internet, so we currently have neither. Dan was not too happy about this decision but thus far it has been okay. At least for the summer. He is not real excited about missing the end of the NBA playoffs or not watching his nightly dose of O'Reilly but I think we will all survive. I actually have really enjoyed the quite and have read two books already and listen to lots of Rush and Hannity. But the one thing I do miss is blogging. So lucky for all of you, I won't get to write my senseless blog entries nearly as often. I still use my mom's computer from time to time so I am not TOTALLY out of the loop!

But everyone is doing great. The twins are turning one on the 22nd...CRAZY! I can't believe it has been a year already. Isac loves his new house and all the toys resurrected from storage. He really likes our yard and spends most the day outside. I am just trying to get everything organized in our house and enjoying the summer!

Missing, Victory, 105 and Big Fatty!

2009-04-22T19:01:00.000-07:00

Well first of all....my camera cord is missing! This is a major concern. I suppose it is a miracle that it has lasted this long considering my entire family is living in two rooms and the rest of our stuff is in a storage unit until we get into our house. I am very grateful for my parents letting us stay with them, but this house is a black hole where things get sucked into the abyss. So I have Easter pictures that I was going to share...not happening. So I will just write a long epistle that about half of you will read, but I have things to say!

We had a wonderful Easter. We went to my sisters and went to baby animal day in Logan. Isac loved holding the animals and riding the ponies (as if he never gets to see animals living on a ranch!) I was feeling pretty ambitious and made the twins Easter dresses. The final score....Heidi 2, sewing machine 0! Oh sweet victory! There were moments of doubt when the sewing machine gave the combo punch with the gathering stitch and button hole but I emerged victorious! Once the dresses were finished I found the cutest hats to go with them at the Children's Place, 2 for a dollar! Gotta love that! They are silly little hats that only look cute on a baby! But it was fun and we had a wonderful weekend.

Closing....someday we will actually get to close on our house. We were suppose to last month, but you all know how those things go. I swear by the time this is all over I will have signed away my soul and my first 3 grandchildren. It is insane how many papers must be signed to purchase a house! But we are good to go again and hope to move sometime in May.

105 degrees...no not the weather...my child! Last night Elli has a fever of 105. I must admit that it really scared me because I have never had to deal with anything quite that high. I had been loading her up with Tylenol all day and it was controlling the fever but about 2:00 AM the stubborn fever would not break. I went and got my mom because I wasn't sure what to do. She suggested that we put cold washcloths on her body and head. My mom would rotate the cloths with fresh ones and faster than we could wet them down they were hot from her little body. We did that for about an hour and finally her temp started to come down. I literally stayed up with her all night with my hand on her stomach because I was so scared that the fever would come back. So I brought her into the doctor today and she apparently still has an ear infection. We just spend the last two week treating an ear infection so hopefully this time it works! Poor little girl!

Biggest Loser.... I my friends am a big (formerly) fat loser!! My family did our own version of the Biggest Loser and I am the winner! We started after New Years and finished the end of March. I am very happy that I won for both the monetary increase as well as bragging rights! Just kidding, I can't brag too much because everyone did amazing! There are a few things that I have learned through this ordeal.

1. I HATE dieting! This is probably the opposite lesson I was suppose to learn but I think dieting is a waste of time. I would rather eat what I want and enjoy life a little then deny myself those
pleasures!

2. High school weight does not equal high school body. Even though I weigh almost exactly what I weighed in high school I am far from looking like I did back then. Not that my body was perfect then but I am convinced that having a baby is like blowing up a balloon... even when you let the air out it just isn't the same.

3. Weight can become an obsession. I really think that focusing so much on a number is not healthy. I hate worrying about what a silly scale says and letting that dictate my mood for the day.

So I am trying really hard to not obsess about my weight. I will just keep working out and give myself some slack. It really is not worth the stress. Working out and being healthy is important, numbers are not.

Well that is about the end of my blogging nonsense. For all those that are still with me, you have endured to the end. I will continue my quest for the camera cord and perhaps post some Easter pictures, I know you are all losing countless hours of sleep over not seeing my children in their Easter outfits. Okay seriously now I am done.

Nick and Jana's Wedding

2009-04-04T14:42:00.000-07:00

I am a little late getting this posted but Dan's brother got married last month! We were so happy to be part of everything. The sealing was AMAZING! Nick's mission president was able to seal them in the Logan Temple so it was really neat. I am so excited to have Jana as my new sister-in-law. She is a super nice girl! I'm not sure why I didn't take any pictures of the bride and groom. Probably because I forgot my camera at the wedding and just snapped a few at the reception. I am really not good with taking pictures!

The kids looked so cute all dressed up!

Isac loved the food!

These flowers just crack me up! I made them just for the wedding because the colors were red and silver. Only a cute little baby can get away with wearing an enormous silver flower on their head and people think it is cute!

We are really happy for Nick and Jana! They are so cute. But I must admit that I am glad we are done traveling. We went down to Logan for the wedding and then to Casper and Riverton for the receptions. It is nice to stay home for a weekend. But I'm sure I will come up with somewhere new to go!

Part Cute, Part Circus!

2009-03-26T17:52:00.000-07:00

We went back to my friend Dezi to try some family pictures. It was pretty chaotic trying to get three very young kids to cooperate but I think we did okay considering! Isac was not too happy that I wouldn't let him wear the cowboys stuff again so he wouldn't smile. This is the very last picture we took and he finally gave a smile after several threats and bribes!

I think this one is kind of cute, I don't know why.

So we tried to do some family pictures with our family of five. It was a beautiful day but naturally just as we started the wind picked up. We had to hurry and snap a few and run inside because I was worried about my little girls in the wind.Of course I think I look horrid in all of these pictures, but I just tell myself that no one is looking at me anyway with such cute kids in the picture! :)

I think this is probably my favorite. We still haven't gotten the CD with all of the pictures so I guess there might be one that I like better but these will work. At least everyone is looking at the camera!

Finally!

2009-03-19T14:16:00.000-07:00

So I am a really bad mother and I have not gotten real pictures of my kids since the twins were born. I could just never get enough energy to haul all three kids to a photographer. So lucky for me I have a great friend that is just getting started in a little photography business. She agreed to do some pictures for me! I am so excited with how they turned out. She did a WONDERFUL job! The twins were a little hard to work with but Dezi was awesome! I couldn't wait to get the CD so I just took these off her blog. I just took a few but if you want to see more just click on the Dez Design Photography link on my sidebar. She does great work!

Isac was such a little poser! I was actually really nervous about taking his pictures because he will NEVER look at the camera for me. But once he got all the cowboy gear on he was ready to show off! He kept telling me..."Mom, I'm a handsome cowboy huh?" It was so cute!

I love these so much! He is such a cute cowboy!

He thought it was so funny that she wanted to take a picture of his bum.

Howdy Partner!

Dezi did such a great job with the girls. Everyone knows that getting a baby smile for a picture is tough but to get two to smile at the same time was nearly impossible. Emma wouldn't look at the camera and Elli was all business. But considering I think we got a few cute shots.

This is such classic Elli! She was sucking her thumb in all the pictures but that is okay because that is just her!

Emma

Emma kept crawling away (she just started this week, wonderful I know). Notice Elli in the back ground.

Elli

This is the only picture that Elli is actually smiling. Dan always says that she is stingy with the smiles but when she does it sure is cute!

My sweet little Elli bug

So now I am feeling a little better about my duties as a mother now that I actually have some pictures of the kids. We are going on Saturday to get family pictures, the first with our family of FIVE! (I am a major slacker I know). So let me know which ones are your favorites and which ones I should order! I will post more as I get them.

Splish Splash

2009-03-06T15:22:00.001-08:00

I finally got brave enough to trust Isac to take a bath with the twins. He has been begging me to let the babies play in the water with him. So here is all three kids in the tub!

The girls love to splash in the water!

Emma

Elli

Isac even shared all this toys with the girls. It was fun to see them all together. It is nice that the girls are getting big enough to enter act. I'm sure this is the first of many sibling baths to come!

While You Were Out

2009-02-21T12:03:00.000-08:00

This weekend my Mom was out of town. She has been wanting to redo her family room for a while now so my sister and I decided that we would do it secretly while she was gone. We painted the entire room, rearranged things, and bought/made new stuff. We had so much fun picking out new things and trying to find items that would be just right.

So here are just some boring before pictures

Now the fun after pictures! We just rearranged the senior pictures of all the kids and moved this picture Frank gave my parents before he left on his mission. It is such a beautiful picture and we wanted it to be more of a focal point.

We found these cute signs and thought they would go perfect in our room.

This is my favorite part. We found some branches just outside and painted them brown. Then we made these super cute letters just with scrapbook paper and Mod Podge. You can't see very good but the vases on the shelves have little branches that we painted. It is kind of weird to use branches as decorations but I think it turned out really well. The vases were also part of our creative craftiness. We just bought plain glass vases and made them cute with ribbon.

Just a close up picture of the MICHELI sign. I love it so much I think I will do something similar in my new house.

We bought just cheap plain blue pillows and then sewed buttons on them. It took a while but I think they turned out pretty good.

A close up of handy work!

We also used a branch for the curtain rod.

I had so much fun doing this for my Mom! She better not leave too often or I might just redo her whole house!

My Valentine

2009-02-13T22:03:00.000-08:00

In the spirit of Valentine's Day I decided to do this little thing about my wonderful husband!
It's pretty fun, you all should try it. It is fun to stop and think about the wonderful man I married.

1. Where did you meet your husband?
We met at the institute. We actually met the spring before through some mutual friends but that doesn't really count (it was a very brief meeting) On the second day of class we were both at the Institute and I remembered him because I never forget a name and I asked him if he wanted to go get some lunch. He said yes of course but he couldn't remember my name. So he spend the rest of the day trying to figure out my name so he could ask me out that night. We went hot tubbing and then watched a movie at my apartment with a bunch of people.

2. How long did you date before you were married?
We dated for a few months, broke up, and then got back together...very dramatic. We dated from August to Nov. and then got back together in April. We were engaged right away (most people didn't even know we were dating again let alone engaged!) and then married in August. So all together about a year. Even when we were broke up I talked to him all the time.

3. How long have you been married?
3 years, 5 months, 3 weeks and 3 days (thank you blog tracker thingy)

4. What does he do that surprises you?
He is always surprising me with little things that he knows. He is the king of random information, especially about movies.

5. What is his best feature?
I love his eyes, they are very mysterious. That is what actually attracted me to him originally, he is very mysterious and interesting, unlike anyone I have ever known.

6. What is his best quality?
Dan is the hardest worker I have ever met. He will never give up no matter what. I have come to love this quality so much as he works so hard to provide for our family. He is such a strength to me.

7. Does he have a nickname for you?
This is actually kind of embarrassing, but he calls me Pretty Girl. I know it sounds cheesy but I love it.

8. What is his favorite food?
Everything! Dan eats more than any person in the world. He is very much a meat guy though, he always tells me not to waste my time with side dishes.

9. What is his favorite sport?
Baseball. He loves the Red Socks even before they were good, now everyone likes them.

10. When and where was your first kiss?
On our first date! Dan and I were very much a whirlwind in the beginning! We were in my living room at my apartment on Harney. It just kind of happened.

11. What is your favorite thing to do as a couple?
I like to do anything with Dan. We always have fun no matter what. These days I just love to talk to him because we don't get much alone time with three little kids. It is funny how you can live with someone and still miss talking to them!

12. Do you have any children?
Yes three beautiful children. Isac is 2 1/2 and the twins, Emma and Elli, are 8 months.

13. Does he have any hidden talents?
Dan is very good at reading people. He is also very good at interior design.

14. How old is he?
29, I always tease him about being so old since he is 6 years my elder. He is about to hit the big 30!

15. Who said I love you first?
He did after like a week! I told you it was a whirlwind. We were at a fireside and he just leaned over and told me.

16. What is his favorite music?
The Beatles for sure! I think Dan was born in the wrong decade he loves old stuff.

17. What do you admire most about him?
His determination. Dan has overcome quite a bit and he is determined to always make the most of his situation. Most people don't know that Dan is dyslexic. You would never know unless he told you because is always reading and is incredibly smart. He taught himself to read regardless of his challenges and makes sure he reads as many books as possible just to prove he can. He finished college when so many people told him he couldn't. That is just an example of how he never lets obstacles slow him down. I really admire him a lot.

18. What is his favorite color?
Probably blue

19. Will he read this?
Not very likely, I don't think he even knows how to log on to our blog. Maybe I will show him!

A Place to Call My Own!

2009-02-09T19:28:00.001-08:00

Most of you probably already know but we just bought a house! I am so incredibly excited. Dan and I have moved five times in three years and have had a difficult time figuring out what we want to do with life. I am so excited to finally have some stability and a HOME! This is our first house. I know it sounds so cheesy but I just feel like it is such a huge milestone to buy our first home. We haven't closed yet and won't be moving in for a while but unless something totally unexpected happens the house is ours! I don't have my own pictures yet so I just got the one's off the realty page.

Its just a cute little house! 4 bedrooms and 2 baths, 1950 sq. feet. The vinyl fence goes all the way around...wonderful for my little kids!

I am so excited to actually have some space in my kitchen! Apartment kitchens are not the most spacious! This picture was taken before the appliances were put it, but it comes with all stainless steel, hooray!

It is a really old house that has been completely remodeled. They left a lot of the neat little features like these built-in things here. I love the character of the old house, but I still have the benefits of having everything new!

I cannot say enough how totally excited I am! I really thought this day would never come!

Like Father like Son

2009-01-30T18:02:00.000-08:00

Lately I have been trying to get all my pictures organized and work on some digital scrap booking. As I was looking through some pictures I noticed a common thread between my son and his father. They both have some pretty interesting hair. It must be some kind of Linford gene that causes the hair to be as unruly as physically possible. That is all fine and well for a man and little boy but keep in mind that I have twin girls! I had better start praying and investing in some quality hair products!

This is Isac about a year ago right after he woke up from a nap. Seriously who has hair like this? I swear it is all natural, I did not style this for the picture!

And yet another hair do compliments of nap time.

And the source!

Susan did it!

2009-01-24T20:32:00.000-08:00

Tonight Isac was getting in trouble for doing something (I don't even remember) and as I was telling him that we don't do such and such he looks at me with his big brown eyes and says,

"But Mommy, Susan did it".

I couldn't help it, I busted out laughing! He was so serious. I am continually amazed at the hilariousness that comes out of the mouth of two year old! Now I just need to find that mischievous Susan and explain how we behave!

New Do

2009-01-21T14:04:00.000-08:00

I got a haircut! Chopped it all off! I don't know if anyone else has experiences this lovely side effect of having babies but after my twins were born all my hair started to fall out. Just hand fulls of hair. It was very traumatic. The things we go through to have children! Anyway...with my recent lack of hair I needed to do something different and different I got!

It is pretty bold, but I think I am coming around to liking it!

What do you think?

Pretty crazy, but I have always been pretty daring with my hair.

Normally I don't like to post pictures of myself but I just had to get everyones opinion. As if you would tell me if you didn't like it! :)

Cutie Cute Cute

2009-01-13T15:41:00.000-08:00

Sunday the girls looked so cute for church that I thought I should take some pictures. I know I am bias but they are darn cute! I love having twins and getting them all dressed up. My favorite is to find coordinating outfits like the ones they are wearing here (also take note of the cute hair bow! yeah I made that!). Little girls are awesome!

Emma had a few more smiles than Elli. Elli just wanted to go to bed and Mom was making her take these silly pictures!

Emma

Elli

So just a little funny story to go with this picture. Elli is totally a thumb sucker. Her favorite thing to do is to cuddle up on my chest and suck her thumb. So I always call her my little cuddle bug. One day Isac kept calling Elli a spider and I couldn't figure out why. Later she was cuddling on my chest and Isac said "Look Mom Elli is a silly spider!" It is so funny how the mind of a two year old works!

A Little Bowage

2009-01-07T15:18:00.001-08:00

Ever since my twins were born I have been obsessed with all the adorable hair bows there are for little girls. Over the holidays my sister Haley taught us all how to make them. She learned from one of her crafty friends in Omaha. We had so much fun! However, we went a little crazy and ended up making close to 100 bows. We even stayed up until two in the morning because we just keep getting such great ideas. It was so fun to sit around and talk while we shared ribbon and gave each other ideas. It was a great time! Thanks Haley!

This is the table after we started cleaning up. We took over the whole dining room and had ribbon, buttons, and hot glue guns everywhere!

These are just a few of the bows. I just love them! It is so much fun to have so many choices.

Some more of the littler ones

and more!

Like I said I am pretty much obsessed with hair bows. It is so fun to have little girls and get them all dolled up. I couldn't believe how easy and fun the bows are to make. It was a great sisterly bonding activity!

Merry Christmas

2008-12-26T17:59:00.001-08:00

We had an absolutely wonderful Christmas! Isac was so much fun this year. It was really the first time he understood Santa Clause. He was so excited and just made the whole experience so fun! It was truly a Christmas that I will never forget!

This is the whole family in our new Christmas pajamas. Every year my Mom gives everyone PJ's to open on Christmas Eve. It is one of my favorite Christmas traditions.

Mary and Joseph. Isac really got into acting out the Nativity. He insisted that Mary had to ride the donkey.

And the three Wise Men...don't ask. I have no idea what they were doing, but it was fun!

Isac got a new train set from Santa. He had lots of fun.

A tractor is all Isac wanted for Christmas. He was so excited when he opened it!

Every little boy needs some blocks. For Isac wood blocks double as hay. He plays with pieces of wood more than any toy I could ever buy him and you definitely can't argue with the price! We got pieces of extra wood from Tony and Taffy's basement and wrapped them up. Isac loved it! Thanks Taffy!

This is what the blocks are used for...hay, fences, gates etc. Isac has been playing with these since he opened it! The possibilities are truly endless.

The girls got these cute little dolls. Elli got a blond one.

and Emma got the one with brown hair. They were just so cute, I couldn't resist! They were just perfect for my dark and light babies.

The girls of course got lots of new pink clothes and huge pink bows. They were pretty oblivious to the whole Christmas thing but I sure had fun buying them cute stuff!

Santa Clause has Come to Town!

2008-12-18T13:01:00.000-08:00

Santa Clause made an early visit this year. He came to my sister's house and they were nice enough to invite us down so Isac could sit on his lap. This was seriously the best Santa I have ever seen, real beard, real suit the entire get-up! It was awesome. Isac absolutely loved it! When Angela opened the door Isac yelled, "It's Christmas!!!!"

Isac was not even a little bit shy, he ran right up there and sat on his lap. Then Santa gave him a candy cane so they were best buddies. Isac told him that he wanted a big tractor just like Grandpa. When Isac was done he ran over and said, "go Mom, it's your turn, get some candy!" I think my son has some sugar issues.

The girls wanted a turn to sit on Santa's lap too.

So as previously mentioned...Isac LOVES treats! That kid would eat candy all day if I would let him. So on this particular night he had way too many Christmas treats and was so hyper! He went in his bedroom and came out looking like this, no pants, his cowboy boots and his Santa hat. He kept running around in circles saying, "I Santa Cowboy". Apparently when the wild west meets the North Pole, pants are optional.

This child is insane! He literally was climbing the walls (and everything else).

To the Hospital We Go

2008-12-13T14:50:00.000-08:00

This week Emma got really sick. She was throwing up and had a fever so I finally called her doctor. Once he saw her, he immediately admitted her for dehydration. She got a virus and because of all the intestinal problems she has had the illness became very serious. Luckily they were able to hook her up to an IV and get some fluids in her and she seems to be doing much better. I think this will kind of be the story with our little Emma. Things just affect her a lot more than a normal baby. One thing is for sure, Emma keeps things interesting!

Poor little Emma was so sick!

They tried to give her Pedilyte and she wanted no part of that!

They had to put the IV into her hand to give her the fluids she needed. She was not impressed to say the least! She cried for almost 4 hours continually after they did the IV. It was awful! It took forever to get a vein because she is just so tiny and wouldn't hold still. It also didn't help that she had already been poked three times for blood tests! Emma just cried and looked at me terrified while I had to hold her down. That is definitely not an experience I wish to have again!

We are home now and Emma is doing much better. We are so grateful to have such wonderful doctors and nurses that took such good care of our little girl. McKay-Dee hospital has become our home away from home these last few months. I keep telling Dan we need to add up the countless hours we have spent there. I think we have this illness with Emma all figured out and she is going to be just fine!

Am I Crazy?

2008-12-08T19:28:00.000-08:00

Around three o'clock this morning my son made an interesting observation. I was trying to get him to go back to sleep by singing him his favorite song, "the Isac and Diego song". As I was making up some tune about Isac and Diego rescuing animals Isac says, "Mom, your crazy!” I chuckled a little and told him to go to sleep, but this has really got me thinking...am I crazy? As I thought about it I came up with 10 reasons that I am well...a little nuts.

10. I make up songs on a daily basis.
As just discussed in my intro, I have a knack for lyrical nonsense. Well maybe not a knack but just a need to fill the demand. Every night Isac insists that I sing him songs, but not just any ol' tune. Bedtime quickly turns into the toddler version of Total Request Live. Isac throws out ideas and quicker than Wayne Brady on Who's Line I burst into song. The Isac and Diego song is always a chart topper along with the tiger song, dino song, giraffe song, elephant song etc. (just substitute any animal here). The other night he really threw me for a loop with a request for the chinchilla song...now trying finding words that rhyme with chinchilla!

9. I know every cartoon theme song.
While we are on the topic of music, I would like to point out that I know way too many children's songs. I am an adult woman and I could sing any tune from the Disney Channel, Noggin, Nick etc. I may not know the latest hits or the newest artists but I can rock to Wonder Pets, and Handy Manny. My guess is that most 23 year old women do not think “the phone, the phone is ringing” every time their cell phone rings.

8. I cannot finish a sentence
I often have to laugh at the choppy, inconsistency of my speech. When talking to another adult it sounds a little something like this…

“Yeah I could meet you next Thursday…don’t do that….where?...I said no…how about 3?...don’t make me tell you again.”

These are the ramblings of a crazy person.

7. My life is Groundhog Day
Now I really must be crazy because I swear that everyday of my life is like that movie Groundhog Day when the guy lives the same day over and over again. I could predict what I am doing every minute of the day before it ever happens. We have the same routine from morning to evening with slight variation here and there. We get up, eat breakfast, watch a show while I am getting the girls ready, take naps, etc. etc.

6. I spend the majority of the day topless
Now this may be a little too risqué for some of you readers but I am just being honest. Okay well maybe not topless, but nursing twins I might as well be! All you moms that have nursed a baby know what I am talking about. I feel that 80% of my day revolves around eating times. That is enough to drive anyone crazy!

5. Personal hygiene is optional
I can not even begin to tell you how many days I simply do not make it to the shower. I have tried to schedule my shower at various times in the day. I have even tried to get up really early before the kids wake up, but that never works mostly because Emma never sleeps. Each day I find myself faced with the decision to shower or rest for a minute, needless to say a little down time is way more valuable than cleanliness.

4. Greatest goals
Before I was married I had great ambitions to be a member of the United States Congress. I wanted to move to Washington and take on the world. Now that my priorities are slightly different my greatest goal in life is to get all three of my children to nap at the same time. This may seem like an easy conquest but let me assure you that it takes real talent. The days are few and far between when my house is actually filled with the sound of children sleeping. The feeling of triumph is so great that Nancy Pelosi and Hilary Clinton ain’t got nothing on me!

3. I can translate nonsense
Another indicator that I am insane is that I understand perfectly well the senseless phrases that my son uses. When he says “color my leg” I know exactly what we wants. I know what cereal is the tractor one and what shark snacks are. These requests would baffle a normal person and leave them wondering what the heck this child is asking for, but this mom is all over it!

2. Unusual phrases
I am continually amazed at the phrases that come out of my mouth, things that only a truly crazy person would say. For example I have actually said out loud things like…

“Please don’t eat your hot dog with your foot.”
“Don’t drive your tractor on your sister’s face”
“Cows don’t eat at the dinner table”

Would a rational person say things like this?

1. Sleep is a luxury
The number one reason that I know I am crazy is that I no longer have to abide by the laws of human nature. Maybe I am not crazy and have supernatural powers. Whatever the reason, I am amazed at how the human body can go without sleep. Just to give you a little glimpse of what a night is like at the Linford house this was our schedule last night…

9:00 pm start getting the kids to bed after the Christmas broadcast
11:15 pm successfully have all the children asleep
2:00 am Emma wakes up screaming, it takes 30 minutes to get her sleep
2:45 am Emma wakes up again screaming, 15 minutes later, asleep
2:58 am My head touches the pillow
2:58 and 24 seconds Isac wakes up crying for mommy, it take 45 minutes to get him to sleep
5:00am Dan’s alarm clock goes off and he gets up to go to work
6:00am Emma wakes up screaming
7:00 am Elli wakes up screaming
7:30 am Isac is up for the day

Now I am not sure what is the cause and what is the effect here. Am I crazy
because don’t sleep or do I not sleep because I am crazy? Probably a little of both. Either way, I think Isac nailed it right on the head…mom is crazy!

Day of Blessings

2008-12-03T15:21:00.000-08:00

This last Sunday we blessed the twins. It was the most wonderful day! It was so neat to have the blessing right after Thanksgiving when we were all thinking about blessings and gratitude. I was so grateful for all the family that made a special effort to support us and attend the blessing. I am also so grateful for a husband that was able to preform such wonderful blessings. But mostly I am grateful for the gospel and the opportunity to have such a wonderful gift for my children. The girls looked so beautiful and were just little angels.

Here the girls are with my Mom and Dad. My mom made their blessing dresses which turned out so cute!

Each of the girls were given the middle name of one of their Grandmothers. Emma Lea is named after Dan's mom and Elli Jean after my mother.

Little Angels!

Thanksgiving

2008-12-02T13:46:00.001-08:00

Thanksgiving is such as wonderful time! I absolutely love it! I thought I would just post a few pictures from our wonderful day. This is the beautiful table pre-food.

I was so excited that there was actually a picture of me so I just had to post it. These are hard to come by, not that I am complaining but I am always the one snapping photos like a Japanese tourist.

Isac and his cousin Jaxon were ready to eat! They sat here at the table for almost an hour eating olives and drinking lemonade. Isac kept saying "I so hungry I eat a hippo". I guess turkey was close enough.

Okay...this picture needs an explanation. For family home evening we talked about thanksgiving and things we are thankful for and then colored these pictures. Dan thought we need more diversity in our house so I would like to introduce Querry McChicken.

For those of you that might know Dan, he is not too social. So marrying into a family of over thirty people can be challenging. We have an agreement that he doesn't have to do the crowds if he will take the kids and let me talk. So our holidays consist of me talking to my family and him sitting in the bedroom reading his book. I even gave him his birthday present early, the book he is reading, so he would be ready for the holidays.

On a more serious note, we had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We have so much to be grateful this year. We have had so many blessing that I cannot even begin to name them all but just to list a few...

The twins are such a miracle. We are so blessed to have both of our beautiful babies here and healthy. It was so scary having them so early and enduring all the long days in the hospital. But they are so wonderful and we are so happy to finally have our family together. There were so many little things that happened in the months before and after their birth that really strengthened my testimony and reminded me that Heavenly Father is always with us.

Dan's job is another miracle. For those that may not know Dan was laid off a few weeks ago. All of a sudden we had no job, no income, and no health insurance. That was incredibly stressful considering we have three small children to care for. But once again Heavenly Father was there for us and guided us to another job. Not only did Dan find another job but it is better than we could have hoped, it really is everything that we wanted. Once again events just fell into place and we were taken care of.

Well the list could go on but those are major events that have happened in our life the last few months. We are so grateful for our children, our wonderful family, and mostly for our Father in Heaven.

2008-11-27T15:26:00.001-08:00

Halloween anyone?

2008-11-25T12:50:00.000-08:00

So because I am just getting started blogging I thought I would post my Halloween pictures even though it was a while ago. One holiday behind isn't too bad right?

Dan had these really neat stilts he uses for work. He got a great idea that he could dress up as a

robot and I would be the inventor. Silly I know, but it was fun. I was just shocked that Dan actually wanted to dress up.

Who says he's a stick in the mud? :)

Isac got to pick what everyone was for Halloween this year. He obviously wanted to be a cowboy, but then insisted that he couldn't be a REAL cowboy without a cow and a pig. So needless to say....Emma was a cow and Elli was a pig.

These are some of Isac's cousins that went trick-or-treating with us. Hannah is the witch, Sarah a princess, and Cody was Harry Potter.

Isac the cowboy. Really he dresses like this every single day but at least on Halloween we had an excuse! :)

Elli was not too impressed with the silly pig hat and kept pulling it off! Four months old and she already has an opinion about what she wears!

Halloween....so exciting

Home Sweet Home

2008-11-23T18:43:00.000-08:00

So due to the economic crisis, my husband and I are relocating to my hometown. I don't know how many of you out there have ever lived in the town you grew up in after you are married but it is an interesting experience. I have real mixed emotions about being back here. There are several advantages of living close to family and with people you know in a small town, but there are some not so pleasant aspects as well. First the positive...I love having my children close to their grandparents and cousins. There is nothing better than seeing my little boys face get so excited to go see Grandpa. It is so fun that my parents get to see my kids everyday and know all the funny things they do. On the other hand, my parents get to see the not so cute tantrums and defiant moments of a two year old. They know that Isac hates to go to bed and that Emma screams if she is not being held.

Another aspect of living here that is both positive and negative is that everyone know who you are. This is nice when everywhere you go people are excited to see you. It seems that I cannot go anywhere without stopping and talking to someone. It is nice to know that people care about you and know your family. But once again, there is another hand. People know everything. It is amazing to me the detail people know about my life even though I have not talked to them in months. I suppose this is due to my parents giving people updates but it can be a little awkward.

Being called by my maiden name is something that only happens in my hometown. It drives my husband crazy when people refer to us as the Micheli's. I always tease him that maybe he should have taken my last name. He however does not think I am too funny.

Answering to Angela, Haley, Tami, or Christy is another a skill I must perfect in order to live in my hometown. For those of you who may not know these are the names of my sisters. People are constantly mixing us up because honestly we all look very similar. I think people just know that I am one of those Micheli girls and so they just throw out a name...they have a one in five chance.

Oh funny...my husband just walked in and I asked him to contribute to my blog. His thoughts are "living in your hometown feels like a colonoscopy everyday!" Of course he is just kidding!

Honestly, I really do like living here. Small towns are great and are a wonderful place to raise kids. There are just so many little quirks in small towns especially when I grew up here and am related to half the population. While it may not have been our original plan to live here, I really believe that everything in life happens for a reason and this is where we are suppose to be!

Questions about Twins

2008-11-22T21:49:00.000-08:00

I forgot a title!

2008-11-22T21:31:00.000-08:00

So I think I could really like this blog thing. I have been thinking all day about fun stuff I could write. I don't think my blog will be quite as cute as some out there, but it is a great way for me to vent some of my thoughts. Although I must warn you I am incredibly random!

So tonight I went to my cousins wedding reception. I brought all my kids and saw lots of people that I know, so of course everyone wanted to see the twins. As I answered the same questions over and over I began to think about all the weird things people say regarding twins. So here is my list of weird questions I have heard...

1. Are they identical?
This seems like a basic question and it doesn't really bother me but my girls really do not look alike. When I am asked this question I usually reply that one has brown eyes and one has blue. This is usually followed with a "so they are identical other than that?". I don't think people really understand what identical means, it means that the DNA for both babies are well...identical.

2. Are they both girls?
Now I know that all newborns get mistaken for the wrong sex, so this is not just because they are twins. I am continually amazed at how someone can ask is a baby dressed in a pink dress with a pink blanket in a flower car seat and a bow in her hair can be mistaken for a boy. I just get the pleasure of telling people the sex of my children twice as much.

3. Aren't they so much fun?
I am never quite sure how to answer this one. Fun is not exactly the word I would use to describe the twin experience. I am sure that one day having twins will be "fun" but that day has not really arrived. No don't get me wrong, I love my children but it's no amusement park. Having three kids is challenging, stressful, and down right insanity. Luckily the rewards make it worth it.

4. Did you take fertilization medication?
Now this is my all time favorite! Not only is this question really inappropriate and personal but a little nonsensical. The best is when they ask me this question while I am holding both babies and chasing my two year old. I just want to look at them and say are you serious? Does it look like I need help getting pregnant?

Well the list goes on and on. I cannot even begin to count the times that I have explained what a NICU is and that giving birth to a 3 pound baby is not recommended. I know people mean well, but I just find it amusing.

Weight Loss

2008-11-22T07:18:00.000-08:00

So I have been thinking about things to write on my blog and decided I would just post whatever it was I was thinking about recently. Having twins a few months ago I have been incredibly obsessed with lossing weight. Trying to stay thin while having babies is a vicious cycle in my mind. After my first son I worked so hard to get back to my pre-pregnancy weight only to get pregnany shortly after and start all over. As I am spending hours on my elipical thinking about how frustrated I am I think of all the women I know that seem to have a baby and look great immediatedly and I ask myself several questions.

1. Why can't I be one of those women that go home from the hospital in their regular jeans?

This is not self-pity, I ask this question because I really want to know. I want to know what they are doing that I am not. I try to work out when I am pregnant and eat healthy and keep the weight gain within the recommended amount, but despite these effort I still look enormous (granted I did have twins but still!).

2. What is the best way to lose weight?

I have always been to the opinion that if I want to lose weight I am going to have to sweat...alot! Running is always my solution but maybe there is a better option. What do you women do?

3. Why do I care so much?

I know we need to be healthy and take care of our bodies, but why is weight so darn important anyway? Does five pounds really make that much difference? Is being five pounds lighter worth sacrificing all the wonderful foods I enjoy?

4. How much is enough?

Now that I am approaching my pre-pregnancy weight I find my self thinking...what if I could lose ten more? And I'm sure when I lost that I would aim for another ten. So when does one stop? How skinny is skinny enough? What is reasonable? When can I reach a point that I am satisfied?

So maybe I am the only crazy one that obsesses over these type of questions, but this is a real stuggle for me. So I really want to know what you all think. This blogging thing is good therapy! :)

A second try

2008-11-19T13:23:00.000-08:00

Well...I tried blogging once before when I was on bed rest. Shortly after the twins were born and I just never had time to do anything. So now that the girls are a little older, I thought I would give this blogging thing a try. I must admit that I have no idea what I am doing and am trying to figure out how everyone else gets these cute blogs going. So needless to say it's a work in progress...