Fancy Pants

Yes Sir! We always laugh when he is around!

For those of you who aren't aware, I have an amazing Grandma named Diane. (Her real first name is Clarissa but she hates that name!) My grandma is one of the coolest women I have ever known. She is strong, independant, smart, motivated, caring, humble, funny, and loving. She is always making me laugh, sometimes she does it on purpose!

Oh the stories I could tell about my grandma. But I fear that if I put many of them on the internet where anyone could read them, my grandma might take me out of her will. And seeing as how some day I am the one who she would like to give her eulogy I am on her good side and would like it to stay that way. But Grandma, fair warning, someday people will hear about the duck, the broken microwave, and the sign above the toilet. Oh believe me, the world will know!

Grandma Diane has always been a woman who loves to be involved. She is active in her local LDS Relief Society. She is part of a book club at a local library. And so it should surprise no one that she also likes the Red Hat Society.

The Red Hat Society is for women 50 and older who wear red and purple hats and do...I don't know...lady stuff? Okay that makes it sounds like they sit around and talk about child birth and menstrual cycles. It is more like they eat and laugh. Sometimes the go on vacations. It is really a reason for women to just get together and celebrate being women. And you have to wear red hats.

Recently the ladies in my family got together for my Aunt Kathy's 50th...err...I mean, 49th part 2 Birthday. (Sorry Aunt Kath!) At the party besides getting told by some weird hairy short little waiter that he would strip for us, we were also informed by my Grandma that she wanted us to form a little Red Hat Society of our own. One where we would all try to get together monthly and all wear hats. Anyone over 50 can wear red and dark purple hats. Anyone under 50 can wear pink or lavander hats. And my Grandma's rule is no baseball hat or beanies. They must be, what she calls, fancy hats.

Now, I am not a southern belle. Nor was I ever cast as a rich lady from that Horse Racing scene in "My Fair Lady." I do not own a plethera of fancy hats, let alone one. So that means that I had to make one. And if I am going to be making a fancy hat, you had better believe it will so fancy, it will blow your fancy pants off!

Yesterday my mom and I made the trek to Logan, Ut. For those of you who haven't been to Logan, congratulations. I am not a fan of that "small town" feel. And although Logan is pretty big, I feel like I have stepped back into time and at any moment expect the town to the covered with horses and women in long dresses who are both humble and silent. (Two things that I am not!) But we went anyway so that we could join my sister Becca and my soon to be Sister-in-Law Holly so that we could make our fancy hats.

But before we got started on that, we decided that we should take Gabe for his first real sledding snow adventure. And I would quickly like to thanks Grandma Linda for Gabe's snow boots and Grandma Linda's neighbors who sent Gabe a snow suit and coat. Without those things Gabe would not have been equipped to partake.

Gabe had a hard time manuvering in his suit because it was still a little too big. But with some help from his Uncle Byron and Aunt Holly (Soon-to-be!) we were able to get over to the snow.

I do not have a snow suit and I was not dressed for snow but Aunt Becca was ready to go so she offered to take Gabe on the sled. He wasn't sure at first but after a minute he seemed to like it a little more. I think he was just having such a hard time moving in that suit that he was just never sure.

And even though I wasn't properly dressed, I went into the snow so that I could be a part of the fun. And even though Gabe's face doesn't really look like it, he was having fun.

After we finished sledding we got to work on our hats. And with a little help from Gabe, we got everything done. And boy! Do we have some FANCY HATS! I will let you be the judge of just how fancy they really are. We had a great weekend in Logan and then dinner with my parents tonight. Ryan had his Guard weekend so we didn't get to see much of him. But it was nice to have dinner with him tonight. It was the perfect end to a great weekend! Much love to you all!

To Shut Everyone Up

I am not going to try and catch up. Period. It is too long and complicated to review everything. Suffice it to say that December was filled with lots of changes and trials. And January was full of new beginnings and hope.

Sera is still in Hawaii (YUCK!) and we hardly get to talk to her (DOUBLE YUCK!) but when we do talk to her, she seems pretty happy. I miss her more than words can even say. I know Ryan shares my feelings. It gets especially hard when Gabe points to her picture and looks at us as if saying, “I would like to see her now please.” I miss my daughter on a daily basis and hope that she will be with us again soon.

Gabe is a toddler and likes to remind me of that daily. He is saying so much now that I am constantly surprised. He knows: Mama, Dada, Puppy, Milk, Juice, Shoes, Please, More, No, Yes, Bird, Hi, Bye, Up, Cheese, Yogurt, Grandma, Grandpa, Becca, Bath, Night Night, and Ew. Ew is my new favorite. The other day he was eating waffles with syrup for breakfast. When I got him out of his chair he ran over and grabbed the dog with his sticky hands. He then held up his hands and loudly proclaimed “EW!” Ryan and I laughed so hard I thought I might cry.

Gabe is running now. Not walking, but running. He goes and goes until he drops. He has really started to play with his toys like you would expect them to be played with. He is especially fond of his trucks which he will take into the kitchen and roll around on the linoleum while making trucks noises.

Ryan and I consider ourselves very lucky to be where we are at in our lives. We have 2 healthy kids. We are both have full-time jobs. We have a home. We have amazing family! And we have some great friends.

I know I have not been blogging lately. And I apologize to all my family and friends. I know that many of you read this daily and I have heard about my lack of blogging. Just know that I went through some things that really made me think. And I needed the time away to collect myself and focus on what is important. I am not going to get too serious on you. After all, this is me we are talking about. But I promise to try harder for now until I have another emotional breakdown and the doctor has to increase the dose on my “happy pills” again.

For now, I leave you with my “What I Have Learned” 2010 list.

What I Have Learned From 2010

1. Giving someone, who has proven them self to be evil on countless occasions, the benefit of the doubt is a waste of time.
2. People who matter will always come back into your life when you need them most.
3. Kids are the most incredible blessing.
4. Having a husband who loves you enough to tell you that you are not okay is also a blessing and a life-saver.
5. Your family can be your best friends.
6. Skin cancer the size of a seed can leave one hell of a scar.
7. You can survive anything as long as you have hope.
8. Blue frosting can stain your skin.
9. It is possible to fit 6 adults and 8 kids in a bounce house.
10. Honey helps with sore throats, coughs, and catching flies.
11. Some day she will know who we are and that we are good people.
12. Be grateful for what you have.
13. Save more money because that rainy day is sometimes a tsunami.
14. Friends you had in high school can still be some of the coolest people you know.
15. Dogs will eat anything, including 14-month-old peanut oil. (And P.S. It gives them wicked-bad gas!)
16. Crockpots are one of the most AMAZING appliances ever!
17. Learn everything you can from your Grandparents and Parents because, as it turns out, they really know their shit.
18. God loves everyone despite what church they attend.
19. Utah is crazy but not as crazy as Arizona.
20. Be kind to everyone and be open to communication-sometimes people who you once thought of as the opposition can turn out to be allies.
21. Ryan Scott Baker = My Rock, My Heart, and My Very Best Friend
22. Seraphim Dawn Baker = My Hope, My Dream, and My Precious
23.Gabriel Scott Baker = My Sunshine, My Smile, and My Motivation


Love to you all!