Where Do I Start?

The last month has pretty much been a whirlwind and has flown by.  We've had some really crazy things going on and some have been life changing.

Each of these things will have their own posts but just so you have a quick glimpse of 2011 for the West family, this is some of what we've gone through so far:

* Chad had a horrible chemical burn on his hands in January and it was one of the scariest experiences I've been through.

* Chad's grandpa went in to the hospital for about a week and a half and had to have surgery. 

* Brynn's first trip to the snow (we drove to California to see it!)

* Chad discovered that he has a brother and four other sisters.  He's in San Diego right now for training for work and is there through Friday.  Friday night, he's staying at his parents' house and then Saturday he's going to meet his "new" family. 

* I had my wisdom teeth pulled on Friday.

* Brynn is growing up way too fast!!

Way too many things to blog about and not enough time to do it tonight!!  Stay tuned!!

Toddler Cheerleading!

Last week we decided to sign Brynn up for toddler cheerleading.  She was super excited about it because we told her that she would get pom-poms during the class.  :)

Last Saturday was supposed to be her first day of class.  We showed up, along with several other families, but the "coach" never did.  We hung out for about a half hour while the kids ran up and down the hallway after each other.

Today the class had a new coach and it was a lot of fun to watch.  They learned some stretches, did sombersaults, worked on a couple of cheers and played with the pom-poms.  We were proud of her for trying most of the things that they were working on, she did great.  :) 

Here's a picture of Brynn hanging out in the hallway last week.

Marriage and kids already?!

Tonight Brynn told me she married a guy named Jakey Gaykey and they have a kid named Lakey.  She met Jakey at WalMart.  I told her that was fine if she MET him there while she was shopping, as long as he's a doctor. 

Where does she come up with this stuff?!

Tangled

This morning we took Brynn to see Tangled.  It was so cute!!  I really think it's one of my favorite kid movies.  We watched previews for new movies coming out this spring and summer, we're pretty excited to hear that Cars 2 is coming out, along with Smurfs!! 

Brynn watched most of the movie but wasn't feeling that great, so she crawled into my lap to cuddle for about half of it.  Of course I didn't mind.  :)

We were also excited to find out that on the weekends, movies before 11:55am are only $5 per person.  I think we'll be doing that more often.

Awesome Husband

I'm sure a lot of people think they have awesome husbands, but I really do have one. 

Yesterday, I came home to a super clean house!  Floors swept and mopped, ceiling fan cleaned, garage organized and some things cleaned up outside. 

Thanks Babe, I love you!!!!

Another Goal

I'm trying to bring my lunch to work more often than I used to.  I know it will save a lot of money and I just need to take the time to do it more often.

My First Goal Of 2011

Making it to work on time at least three days a week.  I am horrible about getting to work on time.

Happy 2011!!

Overall, 2010 was a pretty good year for the West family.  Brynn turned 3 in July and has really grown up a lot this year.  We flew to Ohio in September to visit my family and had an awesome trip.  We went to Cedar Point, visited an Amish farm and restaurant owned by one of my distant relatives and went to the Columbus Zoo.  We also got to spend some time with friends that we haven't seen for a few years.  Brynn was Minnie Mouse for Halloween this year and it fit her perfectly.  Thanksgiving was great, Chad's family came to visit from California.  December was an amazing month for us.  We went to California for Christmas and Santa brought Brynn the kitchen that she's been asking for since her birthday.  It's EXACTLY like the one that we saw at Costco.  Santa and his elves worked magic!! 

In August, I became a Scentsy representative and it's been a lot of fun!!  For more information on them, you can check out my website: https://amandawest.scentsy.us/

We still love Queen Creek and the house that we're in.  It's perfect for us.  This weekend, we're working on organizing Brynn's room and we're going to get her a "big-girl" twin bed soon.  We're also working on taking the Christmas tree down and rearranging the furniture in the living room this weekend. 

2011 is going to be a crazy year!!  My new years resolution is to try something new every month.  I have a lot to accomplish throughout the year.  I promise to keep blogging!! 

At the end of January, we're taking a trip to California and the main purpose of the trip is so that I can go to a Scentsy Spring Sprint event.  I'm pretty excited about it because last month, my sister-in-law Ana signed up to be a consultant, so we're heading there together!!

In July, I am turning 30 and we're planning a trip to Vegas to celebrate.  Chad's turning 35 a month later, so we'll celebrate his birthday too!!

In October (tentative date), my friend Rayna is getting married and she asked me to be in her wedding.  Chad and I are also celebrating our five year anniversary that month, I can't believe how fast five years have flown by.  Then in November, Ana is getting married!!

Fingers crossed for a big raise at work, we're going to need it this year!!  :) 

I know, I know

It's been way too long since I've posted on the blog!!  I'll be back soon, I promise!!

Backyard Visitors

Since we've moved out to Queen Creek, we've seen all sorts of wildlife that we weren't exposed to when we were living in town.  There are lots of little ground squirrels, bunnies, hummingbirds, coyotes, roadrunners, a million other kinds of birds and the newest discovery tonight was a huge toad!!  Apparently toads are toxic to dogs, so Chad moved it out of the yard with a broom. 

Brynn said that the toad was dirty and yucky.  We asked her why and she said "Because he poops!" 

Here are a few of the pictures that Chad's taken since we've been out here. 

I Agree

I haven't been posting enough lately.  I don't know what the heck I've been doing, but apparently I've forgotten about the blog again.

Brynn is growing up so fast.  She's amazing, actually.  She's potty trained (and has been for the last two months) except for an accident here and there.  I don't think I've heard another two year old speak as clearly as she does.  She has a memory like you wouldn't believe.  She remembers EVERYTHING.  She's doing pretty well at the new sitter's house and is learning lots of new things.  She loves to paint.  She loves babies and everything that has to do with pink and purple.  She knows all of her colors.  She knows most of her ABC's but mumbles through "LMNO", sings "double-ooh, S, Y and Z".  She loves to pick out her outfits, mostly consisting of jeans, flip flops and whatever shirt she finds.  Her flip flops always match something she's wearing.  Her favorite song is Jingle Bells (still!).  She says Allie is her best friend.  She tells people that she's shy when she doesn't feel like talking to them.  She loves to drink milk but she won't ask Daddy for it because she knows that he doesn't drink it so she asks Mommy for it instead.  She's pretty good about saying please and thank you.  She wants her ears pierced because she's a big girl now. 

The next week is going to be crazy, so you won't see many posts.  We're heading to California for our niece Kalynn's first birthday.  Brynn's super excited to see her. 

We're all settled into the new house, we love it here.  We have great neighbors, who we knew before we moved in.  Over the weekend, we decided that we could no longer stand our black "pleather" couches that we bought just before Christmas, so we bought brand new great quality chocolate leather ones.  I haven't ever sat in a more comfortable couch than the ones that we bought.  They are AWESOME.  The other ones were cheap and the cushions wouldn't break in, they were still rock hard and were the most UNCOMFORTABLE couches I've ever sat on.  We also ordered a new dining room table, which should look super cool too.  (Our neighbors bought our old couches.)

I promise, I'll start posting again soon.  Here's an awesome picture that we took of Brynn yesterday when we were furniture shopping.  We decided against microfiber couches, you'll see why after you look at the picture...

Wings

Close Up

Emilee & Kelsey

Crack

One of Seventeen

This is one of seventeen outfits Brynn dressed herself in yesterday. 

Note: One pink flip flop, one purple flip flop, rainbow striped shirt and pants with pink and purple flowers on them.  She insisted that she matched because everything had pink and purple in it.  :)

Inspired By Heidi

Heidi posted an awesome story on her blog a couple days ago and it made me want to do some searching for poems.  It inspired me to want to put something together for Brynn that she can hang on the wall for years to come that will remind her of how much she is loved. 

I came across this one and it reminded me of Bri.  Next month, she's going to be graduating with a Masters Degree in School Counseling.  She's anxious for the changes to come and is ready to get out into the working world.  Our fingers are crossed that she finds the job that she's searching for so that she can check one of her stresses off of her list.

Bri, here's a poem that I found that reminds me of you:

When the road seems too long
When darkness sets in
When everything turns out wrong
And you can't find a friend
Remember ~ you are loved

When smiles are hard to come by
And you're feeling down
When you spread your wings to fly
And can't get off the ground
Remember ~ you are loved.

When time runs out ...before you're through
And it's over before you begin
When little things get to you
And you just can't win
Remember ~ you are loved.

When your loved ones are far away
And you are on your own
When you don't know what to say
When you're afraid of being alone
Remember ~ you are loved.

When your sadness comes to an end
And everything is going right
May you think of your family and friends
And keep their love in sight
A thank-you for being loved.

May you see the love around you
In everything you do
And when troubles seem to surround you
May all the love shine through
You are blessed ~ you are loved.

Abby Cadabby

When Did She Get So Big?

Drama Queen