New Years Eve

Doug and I had a fun New Years Eve. We ended up going over to the Houghton's house and spent some time with them munching, watching TV, talking and laughing. As it got closer to midnight the Tyler's came over to ring in the New Year with us all. It was a lot of fun. Doug and I brought some sparklers for everyone and we did them in the street after the clock hit 12:00. After the sparklers we all had a burst of energy and ended up playing Zumba on the Wii and just sat around and talked until about 1:30am. It was the perfect way to bring in the New Year!! Thanks for celebrating with us =)

The midnight crowd

Brock, Doug, and I

Megan and Jared

Aubrey and Brock

SPRARKLERS!

 2012 BABY!!!

 Jared and Megan <3

First Attempt

Tonight was my first attempt at making bread with our new Bosch mixer(Thank you mom Bell). 

The best thing that came out of making bread tonight was that our house smells SO good.

The bread...well... I have some work to do. It looks great in the pictures, but the inside wasn't completely done. It was a bit doughy. So the next few times we make bread will be trial and error with the time it cooks. 

My Little Helper

Today Doug and I headed up to Brad and Tamara's so the boys could watch the BYU bowl game together. Tamara and I ran errands and I used her wheat grinder so I could make my own wheat bread. 

BYU won which means Tamara and I had happy husbands!

Benjamin helped me grind the wheat, he was so cute and wanted to do it all by himself

Christmas

Okay, I'll admit I felt kinda like a little kid waking up Christmas morning. I woke up 15 min before my alarm went off, but had to wait to wake up Doug until my alarm went off. Once I woke Doug up we opened up presents and then got ready and headed off to Brad and Tamara's house again. When we arrived they were still opening up presents. It was fun to see everything the kids got for Christmas. 

Brad and Tamara had us for Christmas this year and they were so kind and got us a Silpat(for baking), Tamara made Matix a hooded towel, and then we got an ipod Nano and some head phones (Brad got them at work). 

Thank you SO much!!!

We had breakfast with them, went to church and then hung out with their family for a while before going to visit Grandpa Bell. Grandpa was at Aunt Pam's house and so we got to see more family for a bit on Christmas. It was great to see them all on Christmas day. 

Once Doug and I headed home from Brad and Tamara's house we got to talk and skype with our parents, grandparents, and siblings. Skyping was the best because my sister's girls were able to show me everything they got for Christmas. I made Christmas dinner which wasn't anything fancy...just a new recipe from pinterest. 

Here is the goods we got  from each other, parents, siblings, and grandparents.

I love Christmas time because of all the songs on the radio, the decorations, the lights, the family time, but most of all because I get to really reflect on the birth of Jesus Christ. I'm so grateful for his birth and all he has done for me!!

Christmas Eve

Doug and I had a great Christmas Eve together and with Brad and Tamara's family. 

We started off the day by going to the movies. In my family growing up we would go to the movies on Christmas day, and since Christmas is on Sunday, we decided to go on Christmas Eve. We saw Sherlock Holmes 2(with a gift card...score!!!).

Then we washed my car and vacuumed it out and put in the car seat base...great Christmas Eve activity, I know. 

After those fun activities we headed up to Brad and Tamara's house for dinner. Tamara made a super delicious dinner and I tried to recreate Mom Bell's traditional Christmas Eve dessert (which I think I did a pretty good job at). 

After dinner Brad gave a spiritual message about some essentials to work on in their family. It was a great lesson for the end of the year and Christmas Eve. They gave us the movie 17 Miracles as part of the lesson.

Once the kids were in bed(around 7:30..they were excited about Santa coming), Tamara and I watched a Lifetime Christmas movie while Doug and Brad played video games. 

Overall we had a great Christmas Eve together.

Last Day

Today is my last day of work. If I'm lucky enough it could be my last day of work ever. I have a lot of mixed feelings sitting here as I think about leaving Doug's Auto today for the last time. 

Part of me is so excited to be able to have the next few weeks off before Matix comes. I'm looking forward to catching up on sleep and cleaning. I have a list of everything I want clean before he comes. I'll now be able to make Doug a good lunch for work and school and not just throw something together last minute like we usually do. I can't wait to be home with Matix all day and be able to watch him grow and develop....this is what I'm really looking forward to.

(This is Doug's coolest car...2005 Ford Gt)

The other part of me is going to miss the guys at work. I've spent so much time around them over the past 2.5 years. They are like family. Doug, my boss, and his wife Anne have treated me like a daughter from the minute I started working for him. He made sure my car was safe for my first winter here, always made sure I had a place to go for holidays, and teased me like my own dad would. Jake and Kirk, Doug's sons, have been like the two brothers I never had. When I told them I was getting married they told me if Doug(my Doug) ever did anything to hurt me they would come after him. Jake and Kirk have really made up for all the teasing from brothers I never had growing up. They all have been so good to me. I told them they wont ever really get rid of me, I'll still be coming back for oil changes, and when it gets warm I'll take Matix on a walk up to the shop for fun. They were my family away from home when I first got up here to Utah and they always will be like family to me. 

A little Homesick

Usually right now I would be in the warm California sun with family. This year we aren't able to travel home because I'm way to close to having this baby. Don't get me wrong I'm super excited that the time is getting closer and closer to meeting our son, however; it's going to be a hard Christmas for me not being around my family. Doug and I have both expressed to each other about how it doesn't feel like Christmas too much right now. I mean sure we have a Christmas tree and presents under the tree, but Christmas to us usually is being with our family in California. So it hasn't really hit us that Christmas Eve is tomorrow. 

I'm so grateful Doug and I have Brad and Tamara up here. They are so loving and thoughtful and have invited us up to their house for Christmas eve and Christmas morning. Doug and I are looking forward to spending time with their family this weekend and participating in all their Christmas traditions. I'm really looking forward to skyping with my family in California and Val and her family on Christmas day. It is times like these that I'm so very grateful for technology!

Grandpa and Temple Square

Tonight Doug and I went to visit Grandpa Bell. It is always so nice seeing him and spending time with him. His memory is really bad and so we have the same conversations with him with in a 10 min period. He always asks Doug what he is majoring in and each time he asks Doug sometimes tells him different majors just to keep things interesting. I love asking Grandpa questions about his past and what he used to do. Sometime I going to need to go see him with a voice recorder so I can record his stories and type them out. The hardest part about seeing Grandpa is saying goodbye. He always gives a big hug and walks us to the door and then stands in the hallway and watches us walk away. Doug and I hate saying goodbye and leaving him all alone. We sure do love him though and cherish all the time we do get to spend with him. 

After leaving Grandpa's we went and saw the Christmas lights at Temple Square with our cousin Jana. We couldn't find parking so we had to park 3 or 4 blocks away from the temple. Now that doesn't seem like much, but in the cold...it was kinda far. I love Temple Square lights. They always blow me away with all the lights on the trees and all over. 

BYU vs Baylor

Doug and I went to our first BYU basketball game of the season today.  BYU played #6 Baylor. It was a great game, really close, but in the end it was the refs fault that BYU lost the game. Dumb calls and somethings they should have called a foul on but didn't. Seriously being a ref has to be the most hated job! Doug's voice is definitely gone from yelling so much. I think Matix was scared because he didn't move too much during the game, but he was active before and after. Final score was 83-86. 

Happy Birthday Jacob and Jared!

Tonight Doug and I went out to Red Robin with our group of friends for Jacob and Jared's birthday.

Jilian and Jacob-Birthday boy

Megan and Jared-Birthday Boy

Very cute Aubrey =)

Doug and I

Jacob with the birthday baloons

Megan, me, and Aubrey

 The whole group that was at dinner

It's True

You know how they say you learn something new about you spouse everyday? It's true.

Just learned Doug was in a bowling team when he was in elementary school! 

Not sure how I JUST found this out. I asked him why he never told me and his response was, "well I don't use it as a pick up line." 

 Love my bowling husband!

School is SO over...for now

Boy am I glad to be done with school. Not only that, but because of the cute little munchkin I'm carrying I get a break from school for a while. Thank you Matix for coming when you are, you knew exactly when your mom would need a much needed break from school. 

Nesting Means Cleaning

So I've had this burst of energy and a desire to clean for the past 2 weeks...nesting? I think so. How long will it last though?

I have this urge to have a super clean kitchen and bathrooms all the time that smell clean. Plus recently I've been loving the smell of soap...any kind really, hand soap, dishwasher soap, doug's body wash soap, and our laundry detergent. I don't know what it is with the smell that I love. If I could get an air freshener that smells like soap, I would be in heaven. 

I just want the whole house to be clean all the time. What is really weird, is I love being the one who gets to clean it all. Plus Doug loves it because I don't ask him to help.

So please share any cleaning secrets you guys have...I would love to put them into action. 

DoTerra Christmas Party

Tonight was DoTerra's Christmas party and this year they had it up at Thanksgiving Point. First they had carriage rides to see all the lights they put up. Doug and I were more concerned about keeping warm and the crazy horses pulling us than we were about the lights though. The horses kept running into each other and almost ran into the cars in front of us. I was preparing myself to jump if the horses took off running.  

After the dinner part of the night, they introduced the main entertainment...David Osmond. He is the nephew of Donny and Marie and the son of Alan. Boy does he have a beautiful voice though. He even did a few duets with his wife, which was amazing also. David talked about how his dad was diagnosed with MS and so was he. He was in a wheel chair for a while and couldn't perform and now he is back on his feet and singing and performing. He sang a bunch of Christmas songs and had slide shows to go with them of pictures of Christ. It was beautiful and really brought the spirit in the room.

It is always fun meeting everyone Doug works with in the call center. We sat at a table with a bunch of girls Doug sits around and I loved them all. I can see why Doug comes home and just wants to watch sports though,  the is around girly conversations all day, but I know he secretly loves it. Doug got a another jacket this year from DoTerra and a gift card to Target (which is less than he got last year, yet he has been there longer...tell me how that works...). 

10 Degrees

That is how cold it was this morning when I was on my way to work. Now at 2pm it is only like 28 degrees. It is days like these that I wish we lived in California right now. This cold weather also reminds me why I never I want to settle down here in Utah with our family. 

Travel System

We (meaning I) finally decided on a travel system. It is such a huge relief knowing if Matix came early we could actually take him home with us. 

Here is the soon to be daddy putting the stroller together so his son can ride in style and be safe.

 (Yes that is Glee on tv)

Showing off everything together. 

Almost ready for Matix to come

This last weekend I finished most of Matix's room. I did a bunch of laundry and have it all put away.

The bassinet will go in our room and the Jesus picture (same picture I had in my room growing up) will go on a shelf that I still need to get.

But here is what we have so far....not much, but I love it!

Time to start decorating

Since we are staying here for Christmas I decided I wanted it to really feel like Christmas in our home. On black Friday I got a Christmas tree for half off at Target. I was SOOO excited that tonight I made Doug help me put it together. I love it and can't wait to put more presents underneath it. Now we just need a few more ornaments and a star for the top.

Black Friday

Let me just start off by saying once you shop black Friday, you will get addicted and want to do it every year.

The first year I shopped black Friday was with Jessica probably 4 years ago or so. It was a great experience. The next few years I spent my middle of the night shopping with the lovely Vances.

This year I went out shopping with Jessica. We hit up Target at 11pm to wait in line, we were in and out of there with in 20 min or so. Then off to Old Navy. We got into Old Navy after waiting in line for 20 min an hour after it opened. The line at Old Navy was moving really slow. One of the workers told us it would be an hour and half wait. So Jessica and I bailed out. Not worth it to us. From there we called it a night and went home.

I slept in until 9 and then hit up Costco, the mall (which wasn't too bad), and Babies R' Us. Once Doug got home from work Doug and I hit up Kohls, Big Five, and Sports Authority. Finally I was done with all shopping at 6pm.

Overall my black Friday shopping was successful. I got everything I wanted, a few presents for Doug, and some stuff for others they asked me to pick up.

The loot(minus Doug's presents and my new sleeping bag)

Did you really think I could shop on black Friday with out getting any baby clothes??

Thanksgiving

Our Thanksgiving was a day full of fun with the Sweeney Family.

Tamara's family (made up of 7 girls, 5 of which are married with children) was sweet enough to invite us to their family activities on Thanksgiving. 

Starting at 8am we joined in their Turkey Trot. Some members of the family ran 3 miles, 2 miles, or walked 1 mile. Doug and I walked 1 mile with Brad and the kids. 

After we burned some calories we stuffed ourselves with a yummy huge breakfast. Tamara made her DELICIOUS cinnamon rolls and her sister Alison made awesome eggs with salsa and sausage in them. 

By this point Matt and Mari had come up to join in on the fun. The whole Sweeney family went to the park out back and played tag football. Mari and I decided to just stay inside keep warm and watch from the windows. 

After tag football everyone started getting ready for the Thanksgiving feast. It was the traditional food and it was great. 

Once everyone recovered from their food babies we joined in on the traditional Sweeney family scavenger hunt. This was so much fun but a little stressful. So this is what they do....Tamara's dad goes around a certain radius and takes pictures of random things, either really close up or just normal. Then each team is told where the boundaries are has about 40 min to find all the pictures and take their own pictures of it. I was on a team with Brad, Doug, Tamara's sister Nicole, and one of the nephews. For a family of all girls, they are dang competitive. Something I am not used to. Let me just say if the Bells ever did something like this, it would be too much for me to handle, as the Bell family is WAY competitive. 

From there we went back to Alison's house had dessert and looked at black Friday ads. It was a fun day with the Sweeney's and we are grateful to them for having us join in on their family day. !!

About a week ago I had a nervous breakdown.

I was at a Relief Society activity and a sister in my ward said she had her baby at 34 weeks. Then being 32 weeks I thought, OMG, there is NO way I am prepared to have this little guy come in 2 weeks.

So a list was made of everything we still need to get before he comes. On Saturday, Doug and I headed to Target and Babies R' Us to get some more of the essentials. We got some sheets, receiving blankets and I did a BUNCH of laundry.

I'm feeling a little more prepared but not completely. I still can't decide on a stroller. I know it is driving Doug nuts that I just can't pick one but I'm not in love with any patterns I've seen. Where are the plain neutral color strollers with no weird patterns???

Kicking and Punching

Last night in the quietness of Doug and I trying to fall asleep I cuddled up pretty close to him. After about 5 min of silence Doug asked, "Is Matix kicking?" I said "yes, why?" He responded with, "Oh I can just feel him kicking my back."

Matix now has a mean punch and kick sometimes. I'm glad Doug now has a sense of what I feel all day long at school and work. Even though sometimes those kicks might hurt or be very uncomfortable, this is what I am going to miss the most about being pregnant. I love feeling him move inside of me. There is no other feeling quite like it.

A Very Cold Night

Doug and I braved the cold and went to the BYU vs Idaho game(however we did leave at the end of the 3rd quarter due to it being a boring game and cold).

I'm very grateful there is only one more home game left because I'm not sure I can sit in the cold at football games very much longer.

Good thing Matix is able to keep himself warm inside of me if not I would be a little worried.

The game overall was great for BYU but a boring game overall. I would rather watch a close game than one where BYU just kills another team. It's kinda like the BYU Utah game only reversed.

It has been a fun football season, but I'm ready for it to be over....bring on Basketball!

Single Digits

9 weeks to left in this pregnancy!!

It is crazy how close it is getting to the end. Doug and I are so excited to be parents.

Tonight was our 3rd out of 4 classes of Lamaze. I'm still so pumped to try this birth all natural. Doug wants to get a hat that says coach on it and a whistle. I hope he knows he wont be blowing any whistles during any contractions.

In our Lamaze class there are these two women that are constantly annoying. We like to call them Nervous McGee and Dr. Hiccup.

I'll start off with Nervous McGee...she got her name because he asks the most ridiculous questions and doesn't let the nurse teach. You can tell all of her questions come from her being SO nervous about child birth. Plus the look on her face during the entire class is a look of pure fear. Tonight she asked the nurse a million and one questions about how long her insurance company will allow her to stay in the hospital. The sweet nurse answered each one with , "you'll have to talk to your insurance company, I can't answer that for you." They spent 5 min of class time going back and forth with the nurse giving the same answer. Everyone we were sitting by kept saying, "what doesn't she get about Go ask your insurance company?" PLUS every week we sit on the ground and practice breathing and relaxation techniques. Nervous McGee wears SKIRTS every week. So every week everyone across the room from her gets a view they don't want to see.

Now on to Dr. Hiccup. First Doug and I called her Hiccup McGee because she has these LOUD LOUD hiccups every class. I mean they are so loud to the point where it disrupts the class and I can't hear the nurse. Then we gave her the name of Doctor because when anyone asks a question to the nurse, she pipes in and gives her own answer before the nurse has a chance to ask. We like to think she thinks she is a real doctor or something.

So not only do we get to learn a lot from Lamaze class but we are entertained/annoyed with these two lovely ladies.

Generations Linked in Love

This semester I'm taking a family history class. I thought I would take it because it would be an easy class and maybe I could learn something from it. For this class we had to pick out a family that lived in the 1800s and do research about them(they have to be our ancestors of course). Can I just tell you I never thought I could become so connected to someone I have never met. I chose Daniel John Clark and his family. He is my dad's great grandpa. My dad was actually named after him (Daniel went by Dan...hence you get Danny). Daniel had 13 brothers and 5 sisters. Can you believe that? From what I have read about him he was a hard hard worker. Daniel once walked all the way to Montpelier, Idaho from Freedom, Wyoming just to get some

sugar for the winter for his family. He also was very bright. Even though he only went to a formal school for a little over a year. Daniel was what we would call a scriptorian. If he was ever called on to speak in church, he could do so with ease and no preparation.

Here is a picture my grandpa sent me....

This is my dad(on his blessing day), My grandpa holding him(Zane Clark), Daniel Clark in the middle, and My grandpa's dad Arthur on the end.

Isn't this a great photo of all these Clark men. I think I know who my dad is going to look like when he is older ;) This picture encourages me to get a picture of Matix with his dad, Papa Bell, and Grandpa Bell on his blessing day. Plus get a picture of Matix and his name sake-my dad and my grandpa .

This class has also really encouraged me to preserve all of my memories I have with my grandparents and parents. I have this urge to make a book of my ancestors -4 generations back. I would put a picture of them with a one page bio on them.

My mom's side of family history work is not done yet, so that will be my project while I'm a new stay at home mom =)

Victoria and Juan

So tonight Doug and I borrowed mechanic shirts from Matt and Mari for our Ward Halloween party. The names on the shirts were Victoria and Juan. Doug and I got to the party a little late so we just ate our food at a pretty empty table with some people in the ward we didn't know. The first thing they asked us was if Victoria and Juan were our real names. We both laughed inside. My question is...do I really look that Mexican to be a Victoria? I'm so white washed no one ever thinks I'm Mexican. And there is NO way I would ever mistake Doug for a Juan. He is as white as they come. This made our night. We were laughing about it the whole way home.

She's goin' on a Mission?!

My best girl friend is going on a mission! It hadn't quite hit me until today when she got her call.

She is going to the Russia Novosibrisk (don't ask me to pronounce it).

Rachel was there when I first started dating Doug, then she moved to Utah and told Doug if he broke my heart she would break his face. She has always had my back! When I moved up to Utah we were roommates and there was never once that I ever got sick of her and I never will.

She is the sweetest girl with the biggest heart.

I'm so happy for her and know this is the best thing for her in her life right now. She is going to be an excellent missionary and have such a great influence on so many people.

I'm so excited that Rachel doesn't leave until March so she will get to meet our little Matix!

The Bell family loves you Sister Barlow! Expect lots of letters, pictures, and packages =)

The Three Musketeers...

back together again!

Doug, Brock Barlow, and Reed Whittington grew up together in Camarillo. So when they get back together, I promise, it's like they revert back to their 12 year self. They are all hilarious to be around. What is even better is that the wives(and soon to be wife-Brock proposed to Madison last night!!!) get along so well. I wish we all lived closer so we could hang out more often.

Reed and Lisa came up from St. George tonight and we all met up at Cornbellys and Thanksgiving Point. Boy was it fun.

Brock and Madison

Yes that would be Doug trying to put his butt in the hole

Me and Doug

Lisa and Reed

Brock, Madison, Lisa, and Reed

Madison, Lisa, and Me

The boys

I'm not quite sure what made them make these faces

Reed and Lisa walking through the corn maze

We made it out of the maze after getting quite lost

Yes this is Doug and Reed going into a tiny maze you have to crawl through

Yes this would be Doug drifting around a corner

Doug catching up to Madison

My legs got so tired from peddling

Lisa

Brock, Madison, Reed, Lisa, Me, and Doug