Christmas Trees in River Heights

We love our new home, our new neighborhood, and our new community! A few weeks ago, River Heights had their annual tree lighting in the park right across the street. So we bundled ourselves up nicely, and walked across the street to join in with the singing and lighting of the tree. There's something magical about singing Christmas carols in the freezing cold and looking at the beautiful lights. Afterwards, we wandered over the the city building for some doughnuts, hot chocolate, and SANTA!!

Now, Savana saw Santa one Saturday at Walmart and screamed like crazy when I tried to put her on hit lap. She kept telling me later about how Santa was a bad guy...so I've spent the last few weeks convincing her that Santa is a nice guy. She still took a bit of convincing that night to sit on Santa's lap, but once on she couldn't stop cheesing for the camera!! And she also loves the candy that comes from sitting on his lap!

Gingerbread Houses

We invited the other Stroman's over for some gingerbread house making. The girls enjoyed sticking their hands in every bowl of candy, then pouring the bowls of candy on the ground and watching all the little candy pieces roll under the furniture. Savy loved eating the frosting, and I could barely put it on before she would stick her little finger out and swipe off the frosting. (The next day, while I was showering, she even proceeded to take off the candy pieces, lick the frosting off of them and off of the house, and then try to put the candy pieces back on.) Sam and Andy enjoyed making the same jokes while building the houses, and we all enjoyed the gingerbread masterpieces after they were completed. It was a great night...and a great way to celebrate Christmas.



And here is our princess Beyonce. (She even has a ring on it). And right now, she is sitting in our front yard, slowly tipping towards the sidewalk. ( I think she had a bit too much eggnog!)

Snow

Winter is here. Snow is on the ground. And every second Savy gets, she runs right into the snow...and then proceeds to eat the snow off her shoes while I'm trying to strap her into her carseat! (What is it with kids and eating snow? It's something instinctive they do...no one has to show them how it's done...they just do it!) We haven't yet had a chance to go out and play in the snow, but last night's dumping provided some great, fluffy, beautiful snow to play in...so we may have to venture outside later today.

My Christmas tree finally came, so now I can decorate it...and then I'll have to snap some pictures of our house for everyone to see our comfy, cozy home. (Or you can all just come and visit us!) The joys of owning an actual home come with some great things, and some not so great things. One of those things (I can't decide yet if it's a great thing, or a not so great thing cause I'm still enjoying doing it) is shoveling the walks. This morning while I was out shoveling my walks, my neighbor's son-in-law came to shovel her walks...and I realized it was my philosophy professor I had years ago! So I reintroduced myself (he said he remembered my name), and we proceeded to shovel walks side by side! It was quite interesting doing such a mundane thing with someone who has such a brilliant mind and such intriguing thoughts! Oh, and my storytelling professor from years ago is also in our ward! It's great being in a college town!!

Anywho...I'm loving the snow...for the moment...we'll see how I feel in another four months when there's still snow on the ground!!

We Are Finally HERE!!!!

Hooray!!! Dexter is thrilled to be in our new home...and so is the rest of the family!! (oh, how i love that smile). Condo is empty, clean, and sold. New home is cluttered, clean, and cold. (Logan has quite the chill in the air). I have spent the last 10 days cleaning, cleaning, cleaning, and cleaning some more. And there's still the whole downstairs I haven't gotten to. (Oh, well, that'll come in it's own due time.)

The saddest part about leaving Saratoga (besides leaving our family and friends), was leaving this beautiful piece of art behind. Thanks to all who came to help us move out and move in.

Savy loves her new home, and loves sharing a room with her brother. She's sad to see her dad leave for work ever morning (again!?!), but she loves having him home for lunch. She wants to play at the park and frequently sneaks outside when my back is turned. She's sleeping through the night again (hooray), but spends a lot of time in time-out. She's talks about going to school every day with the kids and the boys and driving in her pink car that's down in Saratoga Springs! Her imagination is expanding so quickly, and it's fun to be pulled into her world everyday. I love being home with her...I just need a frequent re-boost of patience.

And this little guy is the happiest little guy! He is such an angel for me...when he's well fed and well rested...which is most of the day. (I gave him rice cereal for the first time, and this was the face he pulled. "What are you trying to shove in my mouth?" He's not sure what to think about it.) Dex is growing so fast and his sweet little personality is starting to show through. He loves his family, and we love trying to get him to laugh. His smile is the best thing to wake up to.

Needless to say...we are all adjusting quite well to our new home. We love Logan. We love our house. And we are anxious to have people come share in our experience up here in Logan!

Happy Halloween...

This is all you get. After sitting here for almost an hour trying multiple times to upload photos to my blog, this is all I have patience for. (does anyone else struggle with uploading photos). Needless to say...you all better be freaking excited this picture is here for you to see. Savy wore that same sad look anytime she was in her monkey costume, Dex could have cared less, and Ninja Amber kicked Rocker Sambo's boo-tay with her Samurai sword!! We had a great Halloween, and maybe some day I'll have the patience to sit down and share with everyone the creepy pictures from the rocking Halloween party my sister threw for our family the night before!!

Our New Home

Here she is. The future home of the Stromanians. Odd how it came into our lives. We found a park we absolutely adored one evening, so we decided to drive around the neighborhood to see if there were any houses for sale. And this one was. So next time we came to Logan to look for houses, we saw this one. Loved it, wanted it, but it was a bit outta our price range, so we dismissed it. Next time we came up, we saw it again, and loved it even more!! But at this time, someone else put in an offer. So we came home and tried to make the number add up so we could counteroffer. However, the owner had already accepted some money from the other buyers. So we sadly dismissed the house from our minds once more. And then a month later, the owner calls us to say the buyers had fallen through. So we traveled up to Logan the next day, looked closely at every little detail, and put in an offer. And now it's ours!! We are sooo excited. It has four bedrooms, two baths, original hardwood floors, newly remodeled kitchen and bathroom, one car garage, and it's across from the most fabulous park! We are absolutely thrilled!!

We Have a House!

After lots and lots and lots of trips up to Logan, we finally have a house!! It's not officially ours yet, but we have a verbal agreement...and we're keeping our fingers crossed that everything goes through okay!! Finding a house is sooo stressful. We wanted the perfect one, but after looking at a gazillion and one, we realized the perfect one wasn't out there, so we settled on one that's really close to perfect. It's weird how things worked out with this house...the Lord certainly works in mysterious ways...but we are soo glad to things are working out. Logan...here we come!!

oh, and to welcome us to Logan, we had a magnificent snow storm up there yesterday.

Fall...a wonderful time of year!!

Cornbelly's, Pumpkin Patches, Halloween Festivities, Rocktoberfest, and Fantastic Fall Weather...who wouldn't love fall?

Happy Birthday Sambo!!!

I tried to find my super embarrassing photos of you, but this is all I could come up with!! Happy 29th B-day! You and all your silliness are greatly loved, Mr. Stroman!!

Dexter's Big Day

It was a beautiful day. The weather cooperated. Family and friends gathered. All to celebrate our little boy. And the wonderful blessings he has entitled to him. What a wonderful day.

This is the extent of their relationship. Savy trying to get as close to Dex as she possibly can. And Dex screaming to get away from her. (Okay, so I fib a bit...Dex already adores her and searches the room to find her when he hears her voice.)

Four generations of the Whittaker family. Sam comes from some wonderful people, and we're blessed to have them in our lives.

Four generations of the Thomas family. I have been so blessed to have these wonderful people in my life. I hope they'll be around for a lot of Dexter's life.

Proud father with his son. Thanks, Sam, for being a conduit for the Lord's preisthood. You gave a very neat blessing to our son.

Two of my crazy sisters. I heart them and all their silliness.

Proud mother and darling son. I can't get enough of my big boy and his chubby cheeks!!

The silly Stroman family. Savy can't take a normal picture. She says "1, 2, cheeeeeeeeese" the whole time the picture is being taken. Dexter's still getting used to our family. I'm not so sure he's comfortable with what he's gotten himself into. Oh, well. We have eternity to show him how fun it is to just be silly.

Thanks to everyone who showed up to support our chubby little boy. We love seeing you all.

These two make up my life at this moment. I have all day to devote to them. I used to think I didn't want to be a stay at home mom. And I thought it was pretty selfish of me to think so. I enjoyed getting out every day and doing something worthwhile. Something that meant something to more than just two little people. I felt needed and I felt like I could make a huge difference as a teacher, and I felt really good at what I did. I loved it. Then I got to spend time with my little ones. And actually sit down and worry about nothing but them. I didn't have the constant worry in the back of my head about the other 26 kids in my life. (You teachers know how it is. You can't ever stop worrying about your students.) I had a really hard time the first few weeks. I craved adult conversation and I felt overwhelmed as a mom. I didn't feel appreciated. Then something clicked. As I read stories to my daughter while feeding my little man I realized this is what it's really all about. These two are what it's all about. If all I do all day is make my daughter giggle and my son smile, I've made a difference. In two of the most important peoples' lives. My children. So whether you're a stay at home mom, a working mom, a mother to be, you've been a mom, or you mother someone else's children, remember what it's all about. Them. And make a difference in their lives. Make them smile.

Summer Camping Trip

As summer came to an end, my family decided to say good-bye to summer and drive to Currant Creek for some camping. There is no better way to say farewell to the warm summer days and welcome to the cold winter nights than being in the outdoors, sleeping in tents, and sitting around a campfire.
We enjoyed roasting marshmallows over the campfire (and I enjoyed eating all of them), trying unsuccessfully to catch some fish, throwing rocks into the water, taking a ride in the canoe, tossing around frisbees, chasing cousins around, and most of all...getting dirty! I was surprised at how often one of the six walking grandkids fell over and skinned a knee!! The kids loved camping! (and us grown-ups did, too)

Jack (my parents pup) was the most exhausted. He chased anything he could into the water...rocks, sticks, more rocks. Savy discovered a new fascination while up there...ROCKS! She loved tossing them into the lake.

Eli was the busiest boy I've ever seen! He was all over the place! (Savy loves to feel grown up and help Eli out)

Two of my three heart throbs.

And here's my third heart throb. Although by his cross-eyed look, one might wonder how he could melt any one's heart!

Thanks, fam, for throwing together such a wonderful weekend. Maybe next year we'll last longer than two days!!

The Average Joes

After months of cheering, the kickball season has come to an end. Savy, Dex, and I had a great time cheering on Sammy and the rest of the crew. There were many great moments (and only a few embarrassing moments)! Now I find myself wondering what will I do with my Thursday nights? I guess I'll have to be satisfied with watching SYTYCD.

My Sweet Savy

This girl is absolutely amazing!! Daily, Sam and I look at ourselves and ask, "Is she for real? Do we really have such a sweet, smart, silly, beautiful girl?" We are quite biased, but she's convinced us there is noone better, cuter, smarter, or funnier than our little two year old. Here are a few of her (and our) favorites.

Reading Where the Wild Things Are. She has it memorized and can read almost the whole thing back to us.

Singing songs--I Am a Child of God, I Love to See the Temple, Families Can Be Together Forever, Itsy-Bitsy Spider, and the Turtle Song.

Waking up at 6:30 in the morning and asking for "Elmo." (It's educational, so it's okay if she watches it every freaking morning, right?)

Mothering her babies--she's become quite the expert mother. She breastfeeds, burps, walks, and sings her babies to sleep.

Dancing--anytime a good dancing song comes on she says "Pretty song. Mommy, dance. Dance like me."

and last (although I could go on forever)--her politeness. She was supposed to be sleeping the other day, but as I walked by her door, I coughed, and from her bedroom I heard..."bless you."

Seriously, how did she turn out the way she has? She's absolutely incredible and I love her to pieces!!

Fun, Fun, and more Fun!!

FUN can finally serenade my every move!! This is one of the best albums I've had the pleasure of listening to for quite a long time! Can't wait to rock out to it in the car!!

If you have not been introduced to FUN, check them out! (Listen to Be Calm. It's my upmost favorite) It's the lead singer of the Format and some other talented people from Anathello (forgive me for the attempt at spelling their name)!! And, if you don't know who the Format is....it's my numero uno band, so check them out as well!!

Happy Birthday to Me!!

Yesterday was my 26th birthday. And what a great birthday it was!! My husband was wonderful to me and gave me all a woman could ever ask for...he got up with the baby during the night so I could sleep for a five hour stretch at a time (haven't done that in months), he entertained Savy in the morning so I could stay in bed until 9:00, he let me spend the evening with my whole family eating good food and playing an intense game of pounce, and then he let me take a nice hot bath while reading a good book!! What more could a woman want? And to top it all off, we're going to take dancing lessons up in Logan. Watch out SYTYCD season 7, here we come!!! Thanks, Sambo, for making it a wonderful day!!

Oh, and my mom also made me a delicious banana chocolate chip cake...Mmmmm, Mmmmm, Good!!!

This next year is going to be full of changes, but I am excited to take them on!! Here's to 26 years of life!!

Logan...Here We Come!!!

Sam's brother offered him a job up in Logan. And after a week of serious thinking and praying, we decided to take it! We've spent almost 4 years away from the sweet little town of Logan, and now we're going to return to the beautiful Cache Valley with our two chitlens. I'm excited, yet a bit hesitant about returning to those cold winter months. I'm just trying to not think too hard about the things I'll be leaving behind, because then the tears will come. But I will be able to spend more time with my kids and who wouldn't love to spend time with these sweet things??






Dex is growing like a weed. He's gained two pounds and two inches since we've been home!! He's starting to get a little chunk to him, and to get a bit fussy, but that just means I get to hold him close to me more often. (He's currently snuggled up on my chest while his sister is snoozing in the next room)!

I've loved watching the relationship that's starting to grow between Savy and her little bro. She's such a sweetheart to him (even though she can be quite the stinker to me). Quite the special bond between siblings. It starts at such an early age, and grows and grows over the years. The close proximity I have to my sisters right now is what I'm going to miss the most!!!

Sleep...How I Miss You!!

Sleep = Patience

No sleep = No patience

And poor Savana has to suffer the consequences of my sleep (or lack thereof).

My sweet, little, Dexter.
There is nothing sweeter than a baby who's sleeping...and will take a binkie!! Dexter took right to nursing AND to a binkie. It sure makes life quite a bit easier with the binkie in tow!!



These are two of the cutest girls you'll ever meet. They're going to be the best of friends and the biggest drama queens around! Pyper has the best facial expressions around, and Savy is such a drama ham right now...I can't imagine what it's going to be like in ten years from now!! (We didn't plan the matching hair or shirts. It just so happens that we both like to shop incredible deals...and neither could pass up the 99 cent tank!!) It's nice having family members with kids the same age as ours. I only wish we lived closer to them. Maybe someday we'll join them up in Logan (cause I know there's no convincing them to move down here!!)

Dexter

I've been meaning to post pictures about my beautiful baby boy, but our internet has been crazy, and whenever it is actually working, Sammy's also working, so my access to the interweb has been limited. But here's some pictures of Dexter and his family. If you want to read about his journey into this world, check out my husband's witty retelling of how it all went down! And be patient with me on any updates on our lives. Life with two kids is quite a bit different than life with one!!!

Dexter's cousin, Ginger, beat him into the world by 8 days. It's surprising the difference a few days makes in the life of a newborn. Ginger's so much more alert and aware of the world around her, while all Dex can do is scream his manly scream (he missed out on the newborn cry. He simply squawks and squeals...no cute newborn cry for him).

Daddy's little boy

Savy has been so sweet with her baby brother. She always wants to know where the baby is. She was obssessed with his hat at the hospital and always insisted it be on his head. We'll see how long the sweetness lasts.

Nothing more precious than kisses from my little girl.

We're all dressed up and ready to go home.

He looks so teeney in his car seat! Okay, not only does he look teeney...but he is teeney! He dropped down to 5 lb 12 oz by the time we left the hospital. Just a teensey little thing!

Home at last! Dex was introduced to his binkie shortly after our arrival home, and has thoroughly enjoyed it since then.

And Savy giving her baby brother sweet little kisses. She loves to give him his binkie when he's said and stroke his head while saying..."You're okay, you're okay, you're okay."