One of My Favorite Things From My Birthday

My father-in-law makes his own birthday cards...or sometimes he'll just cross out "Merry Christmas" and write "Happy Birthday."

He also likes to kill 3 birds with one stone. This is what I got in the mail mid-February for Tate's, Taylor's & my birthday (along with a nice check.) Can you guess who's who?

So typical...so funny...so beats my Goodwill 90's man shirt I got last year. Love ya Shorts!

Double-Digits

Taylor is 10 today...that's a decade and almost a dozen! She's grown up right before our eyes. We celebrated her day all day today. I checked her out of school to go to lunch with Willy & I...on the way there, the car battery died. Awesome. After our birthday trip to Checker Auto Parts, we went to Chili's. It was so fun to be with Taylor. She's my little buddy. I think she had a good time regardless of the hiccups, but what she was really looking forward to was her slumber party that night. Taylor has been a "party planner" since she was 3 years old. For me, that was the most fun part was planning everything with her.

10 girls...spa night...mud masks...cucumber slices...pedicures...movie & popcorn...Panda Express...homemade strawberry cake...presents....faces in whipping cream...making waffles the next morning on MY birthday...it was all good. I'd honestly do it all again for that girl.
(That is really just a figure of speech...don't plan on doing it again for at least another decade.)


P.S. I think Carter had an alright time.

Baby Tate Turns 5

My baby who is not a baby turned 5 today. Where did those 5 years go? Man I love that kid. We all do. He loves himself too and definitely does not lack in the self-esteem arena. He told my friend just the other day....

"People like me. Even people who don't know me like me."

It's true though. He's one likeable kid.

We had a party at the park with 15+ little people there. Tate was having the time of his life.

You know you've maybe invited too many people to a party when Tate later asked Willy,

"Dad, were you at my party?"

One last funny....

I had this conversation with Tate a few weeks ago...

TATE: "Mom, can you get my PG-13 Toys out of the closet?"

ME: "Huh?"

TATE: "You know...my transformers."

Tate keeps the smiles coming. Happy Birthday Baby. (He said I could call him "Baby" even when he's married.)

Three For One

We're going to go ahead and do Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas all in one post because I'm so efficient....or a slacker....one of the two.

Here we have a Secret Service Agent, a Baby, and folks, he's back again for another year in a row...Mike Wazowski.

A little Thanksgiving fun in a pumpkin patch....

"Skipping Hippo" at his preschool Thanksgiving Feast. (Of course it would be my kid who would come up with "Skipping Hippo.")

Here's Carter at his Thanksgiving Pie Taste Testing Party at school. (Our chocolate creme pie with graham cracker crust won by the way...hoo hoo ha ha ha!)

Finally, a little bit of Christmas...we have a family tradition of making gingerbread houses every year.

Here's Taylor playing "Jingle Bells" on our $78.00 piano that I LOVE. (You heard me right...$78.00!)

Taylor set up a nice little registration table for Santa with a tissue paper table cloth, letters, cookies & a centerpiece.

Below are a few pictures of Christmas morning. I have no idea why I have no pictures of Carter. Perhaps he wasn't there? I will have to put a fake one in because once again I am a slacker.

And the best Christmas present of all....a visit from Great Grandma Reel from Dallas, Texas! The kids adore her.

Our yearly four-generation picture...

And that's all folks. Hopefully in 2010 I can become a better blogger. :)

Too Bad for Joseph!

Here's a conversation Tate's pwhetty pwheschool teacher shared with me.

Teacher: ....and then Mary and Joseph had to travel all the way to Bethlehem! It was a really long journey. Mary rode on the donkey and Joseph walked....

Tate: Too bad for Joseph!

Yeah...too bad he wasn't 9 months pregnant riding a donkey.

Merry Christmas 2009

2009 Nikolaus Family Top Ten

10. Over-scheduling: baseball, soccer, gymnastics, Scouts, piano, preschool, church activities, softball, races and occasional sleep.

9. Taylor’s Thoroughness: Don’t forget if you visit her room to sign-in on her color-coded white board attached to her door. You can also read her word of the week and her insightful “Taylor Tip of the Month.” (i.e. October’s Tip: Never super-glue your hand to the phone.)

8. Carter’s Loyalty to His Clothing: He wears the same black suit EVERY SUNDAY, the same gray Underarmour shirt twice a week, and the same Show Low Cougars baseball hat at every outing...and yes he does have other clothes.

7. Casanova Tate: He had a thing for his “pwhetty” swim teacher and his “pwhetty pwheschool” teacher. He also says that when he marries his friend Madelynn, he’ll get them a limo, and she’ll make him Eggos for breakfast.

6. Park City Vacation: visited family & friends, temple square, saw the Mormon Tab perform, hiked Timpanogas cave, did the Alpine slide, and took some amazing pictures for life-long memories...then I accidentally erased all of them. Uh-oh.

5. Cultural Arts Appreciation: We went to Wicked as a family. (Note to Self: Should have brought Kleenex for our high-elevation nose bleeds. )

4. Endurance: Our 2000 Isuzu Rodeo WILL...NOT... DIE! Will somebody pleeeeeease make it die?!?

3. Perspective: Being 30-something is completely underrated. The muffin-top and spare-tire have seriously never looked so good.

2. Milestone: Carter was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. We are so proud of our handsome, sweet boy.

1. Knowledge: With the loss of our sweet baby Crew in August, we can testify to all that the Lord is with us in all of our hardships, and that because of Him, we will have the opportunity to be reunited as a family for all eternity.

Each year we become more grateful in our hearts for our dear friends and family. Thank you for touching our lives in 2009. Merry Christmas!

Willy, Leslie, Taylor (9), Carter (8) and Tate (4) Nikolaus

Brief Moments

There has not been a day that has gone by since August 6th that my heart hasn't ached for our Baby Crew. Yes, with each passing day the memory stings a little less, but the hole is still there and will always be. He was my child, and I miss him every single day. I am forever changed in many aspects...the good and the bad.

I would be having little Crew this month and pictured him with us at Christmas. I've been dreading this month for the fear of the unknown.

Perspective is a powerful thing. The day before Thanksgiving I was walking out of Carter's school party and an overwhelming feeling of gratitude filled me. As I was walking to my car, tears filled my eyes as I felt so blessed....blessed to have had the opportunity to carry Crew for that 19 weeks. I felt him move inside of me. I saw a glimpse of his personality on several ultra sounds. I held him. I talked to him. I kissed his forehead. I told him that I loved him and that I'd see him again. It was a gift to be able to say good-bye and to know that he was my child. It was the purest gratitude, and I'm thankful to have felt it for that brief moment.

I wish I could always have that feeling. I wish I was a big fatso with back labor and swollen ankles. I wish I could hold him again right now. I wish I could watch him grow. I wish a lot of things.

But I know that this pain is necessary, and as much as I hurt, I know Heavenly Father knows what He is doing. This pain has helped me understand the Savior more. He endured my pain along with everyone else's. He is an example in every way. When He was in the Garden, He called out to His Father for help. I believe another reason for this was to show us where to go when we are broken and in need of help only God can give.

Perspective is key. I will try to hold onto those brief moments of clarity and recognize the source. As I look at attributes of the Savior...courage, humility, charity...I know that through His example, He can guide us to peace.