Cute stuff!

My friend Jessica has a new blog with CUTE STUFF! Check it out by clicking here.

I think my very favorite thing is this maternity journal: (Where was this 5 years ago?)

She also offers customized notebooks for whatever - a simple notebook, a journal... they make cute gifts and they're cheap too!

(You'll have to check out her blog for her wedding reception guest books too.)

Jessica also does custom frames...

... AND photography.

Her blog is called Little Moments - Lasting Memories. Check it out!

http://www.littlemoments-lastingmemories.blogspot.com/

Future Missionary

Like I've said before on my blog - Noah LOVES the missionaries that live at my parents' house. On Saturday Noah was eating his lunch in the backyard and next thing we know, the missionaries were sitting on the ground with him - they had taken their lunch out back to eat with him. It was the cutest thing. I opened the door and told Elders Poole & Welling "you guys are so nice". They said "That's because we like Noah." These elders also made an appearance at Noah's birthday party last week and Noah was so proud. Just look at Noah's face in this picture (below) - he idolizes the missionaries, and cries when they have somewhere to go and have to stop playing with him.

Someday Noah is going to be a missionary, just like these elders and Uncle Brad. This is a picture of him yesterday before our ward's Primary Program. Although I was cracking up at Noah's SHOUTING instead of singing during "I love to see the Temple" and "Called to Serve" (he could be heard above everyone else) - I was so nervous as I watched him be a little irreverant up on the stage. This was his first Primary Program - so my first time to know what the parents in the audience feel like, nervously watching their kid's behavior and not being able to do anything about it! But I still loved seeing Noah share his little testimony through the songs he loves to sing! He will be a great missionary someday.

Noah's birthday week report

Besides his 1st birthday, this is the first time we did a party for Noah. He really wanted a race car cake like one we saw at Bashas... but the one on Crystal's blog was much cuter (and way cheaper to make too). So my mom made this cake (among many other things she did to help me with the party) and Noah LOVED it! It turned out perfect. We invited all of Noah's aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents and had a little get together at the park on the night before Noah's birthday. Noah knew this was HIS party and was in heaven all night.

Riggs, Cole, Jake, and Max

Grandma & Grandpa Hunt, Becky, Bettina, Laura, and the babies

Lance, Jax, SteveNoah opened his presents in about 4 minutes flat. I was stressing out because he opened them so fast that I didn't see who all the presents came from. Thank you to everyone! Noah loves everything and our house looks like Santa has been there!Cake & Ice cream - thanks again to my mom & Steve's mom who each made some really good homemade ice cream!

Noah could not get that last candle blown out. I think his cousin Cole helped him out! Steve, Bryan (Gibbons), Suzanne & Lance (the love birds)

Brian (Standage), my dad, Grandma Riggs, my mom

Kenny & Burkley
John & Pete

Noah & most of his cousins

Macy

Andy

John & Natalie's kids - they biked about 5 miles each way to & from the party... AND brought all the drinks for us. Thanks again guys!

Auburn & Jaxen

Noah with Grandma & Grandpa Hunt

Noah with Poppy & Grandma Vicki
Noah & EllieNoah and me (OK fine, I admit that we matched on purpose) We love making ugly faces!

(So does Suzanne & Ellie) The next day on Noah's actual birthday, he got to spend the day with his daddy. Steve made it a special day for him which I was so glad about since I had to be at work. Noah's hair didn't get combed though.After work I picked Noah up and took him out to dinner at Nielsen's Frozen Custard. Yummy! Then we went home and he opened up the presents I got him.

After opening his presents from me, we took most of his new toys out of the boxes and put batteries in everything that needed them. My house was a bomb to say the least! Noah is a line-er-up-er.

The morning after Noah's birthday, he had his 4-year old well-check up with the doctor. He is 90% in height & 50% in weight. His vision was perfect, he saw better with one eye than I did with 2 eyes, and I've had lasik surgery. I had the doctor check out a wart on his nose (that everyone thought was a booger) - and the doctor cut it off with medical scissors. That wasn't too fun, it took 3 people to hold him down. Then - he had to get 4 shots, two in each arm. He was balling, and telling me how bad it hurt. But later that night Noah told my dad that his wart got cut off and my dad asked "did it hurt?" Noah said "no". My dad asked "did you cry?" Again Noah said "nope!" LOL!

After the doctor I dropped Noah off at preschool with some birthday treats to give his classmates. I loved being able to drop him off at preschool and wish I could do it all the time. I have the best mom & sister in the world though and I have to tell Suzanne thanks for taking care of Noah for me all the time - more than she really has time for! Suz also helped get things ready for his party when I was at work that day. I seriously have the best family in the world. This week was kind of sad for me to not be home on the day of Noah's party and then again on his birthday - but I knew that no matter who he was with, they would make him feel special. Auburn normally would have had Noah on his birthday and I know she was planning on making it special for him so thanks to you too Auburn for helping me with Noah every week and making sure that he feels loved!

He IS so special, even though he is naughty a lot of the time! (Good thing he's cute.)
I can't say thank you enough to everyone that helped me out this week - and to everyone who came to Noah's party. He loved having everyone there and it was fun to finally give him a party that he will remember!

the zoo with Noah

Last weekend I took Noah to the zoo. We met up with Vanessa for the ZOO WALK (Autism Awareness) and then walked around the zoo again after that, spending time looking at the animals. Noah requested to see: monkeys, zebras, rhinos, giraffes, elephants, and tigers.
We spent about 45 minutes at the orangutans. Noah missed his family since the last time we were there.We could both seriously watch them all day long. At one point I asked Noah if he was ready to move on (even though I wasn't - I just didn't want him to be bored) - and he said "not yet". The orangutans do the funniest things and I was afraid to miss something when we left.

Right here, the mom "Bess" was playing peek-a-boo with the baby "Kasih" (she's holding a blue towell).

Noah was begging me to ride the carousel before we left - so I “forgot” for a few minutes that I am pretty much too poor to even let him to do that, let alone buy a $3.75 ice cream bar. We splurged for about 5 minutes though! The funny thing is that we bought the ice cream bar to eat while waiting for the next carousel ride to open up, but it ended sooner than we thought it would. So I “held” Noah’s ice cream bar for him and (OOPSIE) - tried to sneak a few bites while he was on the carousel. He saw me taking a bite when it came around to the side I was waiting on, and he shouted “Mom, I said only one bite!”
After leaving the zoo, we got on a bus for a ride back to our car (we had to park ½ mile away for the zoo walk). Noah ran to the very back seat of the bus and him and I were “the cool kids”.

I’m so glad that we had a good reason to go to the zoo last weekend! It was a lot of fun for me to spend some quality time with Noah and to see him be so excited to see all the animals.