Its sad to say that we don't really have a good family picture of all of us since Lydia was born. I know, pathetic. But we finally did it thanks to our good friends the Armour's. Thanks guys for getting us in gear. I think they turned out well. Lukas looks fake but its still cute. Lydia just woke up from a nap and wasn't smiley yet. haha. Oh well, we are all looking at the camera and that is remarkable for us! ;) Excited for Thanksgiving this week!
I know its been a while and I have a TON of pictures to post...but for now you get Halloween stuff. After going to Disney World in September (yes pics will come soon) Lukas has been obsessed with Mickey mouse. When I asked him what he wanted to be for Halloween he quickly responded with "MICKEY!!!". So here's my cute Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse (of course Lyd had to be Minnie ;) ). I was in charge of the ward Halloween Trunk or Treat. Matt got a little carried away with the trunk decorations. He won first prize. The skeleton was set up in the back of our van with the candy bowl in between his legs. When people put their hand in to take some candy the skeleton would move and scare the kids (compliments of Matt hiding behind the curtain). I can admit that it was pretty good...even though I don't do ghorry (sp?).
At the beginning of July we had the privilege of going to Rochester, NY to visit Matt’s grandpa Doug and grandma Betty. It was our first time (including Matt) visiting them at their home and boy was it FUN! We went to the Strong National Museum of Play, which was incredible. Seriously, every town should have one of these. It was full of hands on things for kids to play with. They had a whole section of Sesame Street things, a full kid sized grocery store where they got hands on experience from shopping to checking out, a fairy tale section, and a butterfly house. I don’t know who had more fun, Luke or the adults? It was great.
We then had a fun filled day at Niagara Falls where we went to the aquarium (not very fun because there was only like 3 things to see), the park, and even got to experience the falls up close and personal (thanks grandpa and grandma for watching Lydia so we could go!). On the way home we stopped by a wharf and had some great seafood. Yummy.
The third day we were able to go see the church history sites in Palmyra. It was incredible to walk through the sacred grove, see the replica of the tiny log cabin where the angelMoroni visited the boy Joseph, and the large Smith home that was 80% original! It poured on us (and boy do I mean poured..and thundered and lightening) halfway through but it was still fun. Matt, Lydia and I tried to go to the Hill Cumoruh Pageant that night (thanks once again grandma and grandpa for watching Luke so we could go). By tried I mean that we got through about 70% of the show before it POURED on us. Of course we left the umbrellas in the car and so poor Lydia got a bit of rain before I stuffed her in my jacket. Unfortunately, they cancelled the show because of it. (For those of you who aren’t familiar with the Hill Cumorah pageant it is done outside on a huge stage that is on the hill Cumoruh where Joseph Smith got the gold plates. It is an amazing top notch performance of segments of Lehi’s time through until Christ comes again to the Americas and then the restoration of the gospel.) It was one of the most amazing plays I’ve ever seen. Wish we could have seen the end. Good thing we know how it really ended though. I love the gospel!
On the way home we took a slight detour to Harmony, PA to see the Hale’s and Smith’s home (well foundation since the original homes are no longer there). This is the place where Joseph Smith translated most of the Book of Mormon. Joseph and Emma’s first born son was buried in the cemetery adjacent to the property. Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery were baptized in the SusquehannahRiver (which we walked down to and is beautiful). They also had a large statue representing the Aaronic and Melchizedek priesthoods being restored there. So lots of church history there as well which made the detour well worth it. Oh and we got to stop by Scranton, PA on the way home (the town where The Office is suppose to be located). J Matt was giddy.
We had a blast visiting you grandpa Doug and Betty. Thank you so much for your hospitality. We love you guys!
So these pics are a little backwards....
Matt doing a quick photo shoot of Lydia. Harmony, PA
The monument in memory of the Aaronic and Mechizedek priesthoods being restored. Harmony, PA
This is the Smith family home that is 80% original. Matt and I couldn't believe how modern it looked. Apparently Alvin Smith was an accomplished carpenter and decided to build this modern home for his family. He was able to complete the foundation, framing, roof, exterior walls, and part of the interior himself before he took ill and died suddenly (the church believes it was due to a ruptured appendix - according to the elderly missionary there). Unfortunately the Smith's didn't know how to build a home like Alvin so had to find someone in town to help them finish it. The man who helped them finish it ended up stealing the home from the Smith's by paying the last $100 on their mortgage and took the deed out from under them. He then rented it out to them for a couple years before his oldest daughter got married which he intended to give it to her as a wedding gift. The Smith's were then required to move back into the small log cabin down the street with Hyrum and his wife. 11 people in a tiny, tiny cabin because of a greedy man who stole their house. So sad.
Replica of Smith log cabin. This is the room that the Angel Moroni appeared to the boy Joseph Smith.
Sacred Grove
Yes, that is me getting soaked. Believe it or not it was really scary to go on that. They put up those bridges every Spring and take them down every fall. So kind of scary to think about how rickety they are. But Matt dared me...so I had too.
I went to JoAnn's on Tuesday just to grab one thing. So I didn't put the kids in a cart (besides this JoAnn's carts are really tiny so the kids don't fit in one anyways and I didn't want to deal with it). I turned around for one second and turned back to Luke...only, there wasn't any Luke. I thought he ran down a nearby aisle because seriously I looked away for ONE second. I hollored "Luuuke". No answer. I glanced down the aisle. No Luke. I then had a feeling to look outside. Now, we were pretty far into the store and so I thought "there is no way he is completely outside". So I just glanced at the doors to the store. No Luke. I then started getting frantic and ran down more aisles to try to find him. I had ANOTHER feeling to look outside. Good thing I looked at the doors. Luke was standing outside the store door pounding on it yelling "MAAAMMAAA". Oh my gosh! Can I just tell you what a HORRIBLE feeling it is to realize that my 2 year old ran out of the store and was outside for like a couple minutes!!! My stomach dropped. Worst feeling EVER. He could have gotten hit by a car. How did he know what doors to come back too to find me? Can I just say, TENDER MERCIES from the Lord! And, how dense can I be to not heed the Spirit when it said to "LOOK OUTSIDE!" AHHHH! Thank you so much Heavenly Father for looking out for my son! Next time I promise I will try to listen to the promptings of the Holy Spirit right away. Thank you for Thy tender mercies.
First I want to say THANK YOU to everyone who participated! You guys are wonderful to support me in my efforts to start my own little business. I love doing what I do and hearing that other people love my products as well. So thanks again! ;) I decided to involve my hubby in on this little giveaway I was doing so I put all the names into a bowl and had him pick one out. haha. I'm a nerd but it was fun. So without further ado, the winner of her own custom designed baby shoes is....
TXMOMMY
Congratulations! Please email me at LuckyButtonDesigns@gmail.com and tell me what colors/ size you would like for your baby shoes.
Thanks again guys! :) Oh, and check back often because I'm thinking of doing more giveaways!!!
Today is the last day to enter the giveaway. I decided I would extend the time to midnight PST. Also, anyone can enter this. If you don't have a little one yourself, these shoes make great gifts! Oh, and if you don't have a blog to post about them you can tell someone about Lucky Button Designs then just leave a comment here and that will count for an extra entry as well. We're trying to get our name out there so just encourage everyone you know to come join the giveaway! ;) I'll post the winner tomorrow morning. Thanks everyone for your support!
I've decided to hold a little giveaway for one pair of cute little baby shoes. And not just these ones. The winner can pick a preferred color and size (up to 12 months). I know I have only shown 2 kinds of girl shoes but we will have some for boys as well as a variety of colors for both. So all are invited to participate. Here's what you got to do to get a chance to win:
For one entry: 1) Post a comment telling me a) how much you think I should charge for these baby shoes; b) what colors you think would be popular (including sole color); and c) any other advice on what you would like to see on a future pair of baby shoes.
For a second entry 2) Post about my shoes on your personal blog and leave a comment here telling me that you have done so. My website is www.luckybuttondesigns.mybisi.com. My blog is www.luckybuttondesigns.blogspot.com.
And for a third entry 3) Grab the html code for my website (not blog) button (in the text box to the left) and add it to your blog. If you have questions about how to do that, then let me know. Then leave a comment here telling me that you have.
You get one entry to win for each thing that you do, so up to 3 entries. I'd love for your guys' advice and help in getting my name out there. You have until next Wednesday, August 12th, until 10pm EST. Thanks guys!
I've decided to hold a little giveaway for one pair of cute little baby shoes. And not just these ones. The winner can pick a preferred color and size (up to 12 months). I know I have only shown 2 kinds of girl shoes but we will have some for boys as well as a variety of colors for both. So all are invited to participate. Here's what you got to do to get a chance to win:
