Out with the old... in with the new..

I finally got my hair done!! It is fun to have some color in it and to not feel so blah- though I must confess I have only styled my hair once since getting it done. The first pic is my hair before, and all the others are after. Curled under and straight. Again, Asthon took the pictures- I am pretty proud of him and his talents! Hopefully you don't think I am a self-absorbed person, but I am definatley enjoying the change.

Why I love being Teras mom…

She gives the best Eskimo kisses
She signs I am a child of God, Once there was a snowman and Popcorn so sweetly
She has her own language that only mommy and daddy can understand
She loves to pretend to be a mermaid in the bath
She is a girly girl
She laughs so easily and loves to make funny faces- the nose crinkle is my favorite
She has just the right amount of sass and will quickly stick out her tongue at Ashton if he is being naughty towards her (its cute now- but won't be soon- I know)
She's extra sensitive- if she hurts someone or their feelings she says sorry immediately(and means it) and gives hugs
She is afraid of so many things- and always says "that scare me" about pirates, octopuses and anything that resembles a cave
She is a great hugger and snuggler
Anytime I check her diaper, she says "I not stinky mom- and often times follows it by "you a stinky bum mom." She thinks it is hilarious! She is learning too much from her brother!

Why I love being Ashton's mom…

* Picture courtesy of Niki Mcdowell-- thanks:)
He will ask me "Guess what? I love you so much mom." Or "I need to tell you secret. You're the best mom."
He always wants his mom to tuck him in
Out of nowhere he will decide to be super helpful and get things for me and help me clean.
He is creative and smart
He keeps me on my toes
He always points out funny things in life and says "that is silly huh mom?"
He is the worlds best negotiator- we think somehow negotiating will be his profession- he has it down to an art.
He is a great warrior and loves to play with his action figures
His zest and energy for life! If we could bottle that- we would be millionaires!!

Attn: All Cadbury egg lovers!

I went to the store a few days ago and saw them setting out their Easter candy and I got giddy inside- because I knew that meant Cadbury eggs! I have since bought three boxes and have already eaten about seven eggs- yes the full sized ones, not the mini ones! Love them- and the Milky Way bunnies with all the caramel in the bellies- so good! Easter candy is the best! Hope you are enjoying as well.

Happy Valentines Day!

"Life without love is no life at all."

My Favorite Things

I don't know what has inspired me to blog for about four hours today- but something did- so hopefully you enjoy the multitude of pictures I have posted- not that anyone needs to know this much about our lives- but now you do- too late!!

My Favorite things....

1) Matty- crazy to believe that we have been married five years. He is a wonderful, supportive husband. I feel blessed to be married to someone who keeps my happiness always in mind. He takes good care of me and the family. Can you see why I marreid him?? Hott!!

2) Kiddos- My life is never dull with these kids- they bring so much joy into my life- I am grateful to be their mother. I find I especially love being a mother when the kids are happy or napping! 3) Clean Floors and spotless mirrors, organized closets and plastic clothes hangers- I love seeing the nice lines in the carpet after vacuuming, or feeling no crumbs on a freshly mopped floor, or looking into a bathroom mirror and seeing no splatters- it makes me giddy inside! I love the white plastic clothes hangers- can't stand the metal ones- and I like all my clothes being hung up coordinating in color.(can you say OCD?)
4)Relaxing in many forms- watching movies (Notebook, Hitch),Listening to music- (Britney spears, Avril, Carrie Underwood, Wicked, Phantom) Watching shows (24, Lost, Friends, Felicity) or reading a book (Harry potter, Twilight series, Stargirl, The Giver)

5) Scrapbooking and photos

6) Exercising- I love dripping in sweat from a great workout- I can't handle the yoga or Pilates just because I want that sweat dripping off me- Maybe that sounds more intense than I wanted it to- regardless, I like a good work out. I love teaching aerobics and getting paid to work out- it is great! Don't you love the 80s step pic?

7) Good food- especially when I don't have to cook it- lately Johnny Carinos always sounds divine! Cheesecake- yummm and Oreos- I could eat them by the row!

8) Friends and Family- I feel blessed for all the friends who have touched our lives in each area we have lived and each stage of our lives- right now we feel particularly blessed to have so many amazing friends so close. We love our ward! I just hope no one moves- ever- is that possible? I realized when doing this that we don't have any pics of the whole gang- so I guess we need to plan another girls night out (darn) to get a pic of all the gals- love you all! I am stealing one pic from Melissa- thanks!


9) Christmas- my favorite holiday- it’s the most wonderful time of the year- did I steal that from somewhere?? It seems familiar!

10) Not being pregnant. I love not being pregnant- and seeing all my friends prego right now makes me very nervous about ever getting pregnant again- don't get me wrong I like the kids- Pregnancy is just no fun- so I am reveling in these days that I am not pregnant- but congratulations to all of you who are!

Bad Hair...

I asked a few girls in the ward to post some of their worst hair styles- and am posting mine in return. However, I discovered, in searching for the dreaded pics of my many bad hair dos- that I am guilty of throwing most pictures away in which I look hideous. So these pictures are not as bad as they could be- but you will get the general idea. Basically- I dyed my hair, by myseff a lot- and also went to the beauty school to get my hair done to save money, so I had quite a few "interesting" experienes. These are a few, and not the worst, just the ones I have evidence of...


My blackish purple hair... Matt dyed it for me... My orange hair, that was supposed to be blonde.

Black hair- for this my nick name was Ursela- a college mistake. And- yea, what was I thinking?

Random Reminiscing…

One of my favorite pastimes is looking through old scrapbooks and rememebing Matt and I in our dating days, or the children as new borns. Just wanted to share some of my favorites… especially for those who did not know our family when we were younger.


Me and my sister Tera-

This picture was taken when I lived in Lake Elsinore as a four-year old- the same age Ashton is- I also partcipated in Joy School- what are the odds?Matt when we started "going out" (secretly) I was fourteen- and yes, my hair is a little orange-our group of LDS friends- oh, the memories of stake dances with this bunch- what good times! We are all still in touch-Randy (still one of Matts best friends) Jeff (Matts brother), Ashely (one of my best friends), Matt and I and Will (hiding underneath) Highschool graduation- Lindsey, me, Liz and Kayla. Kayla has been my friend since Kindergarten. And if you think she looks like a model- its because she is!
The college days- going to club retrix, or whatever it was called at that time- I do miss dancing!Matt and I were engaged three months after he returned from his mission-We were married one month later- it as a quick engagement. Thank goodness, because I think we almost called it off three times. It wasn't the best engagmenet, but it made our first year of marraige, which some claim is the hardest, ( I disagree) a peice of cake!
My highschool girlfriends at our receptionFourteen months after we were married- little Ashton entered our lives- with a lot of personality and a lot of hair!Ashton- three months old- people called him "Spike"I graduated from BYU Idaho with my teaching credential when I was five months pregant wtih Tera- I was so happy to be done!Then- our little Tera was born.... such a good babyShe grew and grew- until she looked like this- we called her "sumo- baby" (lovingly of course)

Soon Matt graduated and we moved to Corona, CA where Matt was offered a job at Centex. Matt worked with Scott and Michelle and I became great friends and also great neighbors- I feel blessed for that period of our lives and living so close to such great people.A year later we bought our first home in Lake Elsinore- and we love it! We love our ward and the people we have met here. Matt also got laid off and found a new job- he is attending training meetings right now, which is why I don't feel guilty at all spending all this time on my blog!

And now you know our life story! Don't you feel all the better for it??