Lizzie's 1st Nightgown

Okay so I have been super excited about nightgowns for Lizzie since I think they are adorable!!! So here she is in her 1st one! She LOVES it! My girl is getting so big!

Homemade Tamales with Sasha

Let me just start off this post by saying I have a GREAT friend named Sasha that loves me so much! At Christmas time Sasha and her family brought me over Homemade Tamales when I wasn't feeling so good. They were so yummy! The other day we got talking, and I asked if she would teach me how to make tamales since I just LOVE them. She agreed and we made a date! I learned everything I will ever have to know about tamales, and the best part... eating them! So tamales take a LONG time to make, but they are so worth it. We ended up with 6 huge gallon sized zip lock baggies of pork, and 2 bags of green chile's and cheese. Thank goodness Sasha's sister was there to help or we would have been rolling tamales all day, plus she always remind me when I was rolling the tamales backwards.

Maybe I will be adventurous at Christmas time and try making tamales by myself... I know your mouth is watering, and you all ready want some!

Thanks again Sasha for the great day, and teaching me how to be a FANTASTIC homemaker!

I bet you are guessing what these pictures are of? RIGHT? Well Lizzie and Sammy the other naked kid in the picture decided they were going to go and play in the bathroom (the toilet) Sasha and I thought the kids were in the living room playing since their voices sounded so close...

WE WERE SO WRONG!

Sasha had a feeling that the kids were getting into the trouble and they were all right. The floor was covered in toilet water and they were both soaked. So here is a picture of them getting ready to get a quick bath in the sink. (Lizzie loves to eat her bath time lotion, so here she is eating liquid soap) The kids couldn't have been happier... They were so proud of their mess!

Later that day as we were finishing up Sasha made the kids lunch. Here is Sammy feeding Lizzie grapes. Aren't they the cutest? They are such great little buddies!

Rainy days are here again!!!

Don't you just LOVE rainy days? Well I do especially being pregnant, and not having to deal with the heat.I wish I could find this red bench and just go sit in the rain, and ponder about all the beautiful things our Heavenly Father has blessed me with. Doesn't the picture just make you want to go out and sit in the rain?

I love listening to the thunder and laying in bed. I just want to go snuggle up in bed and read a good book, and enjoy the tapping melody of the rain hitting my roof.

ENJOY THE RAIN!!!

Our Trip to Lemoore,CA

Last weekend we decided that is was FINALLY time to visit The Evans Family in Lemoore, CA. So I called up my great friend Amy, and told her we were coming to visit. We had a great visit with them and the girls had a great time playing with one another. I didn't get any pictures of the girls, but I did get some of our hot date in Fresno!!! Jason's parents were kind enough to watch the girls for us and we were able to have some ALONE time! We drove to Fresno and ate at an Italian Restaurant that looked and made us feel like we were in Vegas. The bathrooms had mirrored walls and dimmed lighting the only thing you needed was a bed and you were set! Then we drove over to visit the Fresno Temple, and for dessert we headed to the Cheesecake Factory, and oh was it good!!! Thanks Jason,Amy, Michelle, and Chloe for the great weekend!

David and I enjoying the ride to Fresno

The Italian Restaurant

David, Jason, Amy, and Me at the Fresno Temple

Our model shot!

P.s. Well we can't blog without talking about Busy Lizzie right? Well as you know we have been working on getting her to sleep in her BIG Girl Bed, and she has been doing great. Well with the trip I didn't know how she would do. She got to sleep in a toddler bed so I thought what the heck... this will totally work out! RIGHT????

WRONG!!!

The 1st night she fell asleep within 10 mins and I thought man she is loving not being in a crib. David and I didn't go to bed till around 2 AM since we were visiting and playing Rock Band. When I walked into the room that we were staying in I noticed Lizzie's legs were hanging off the bed, and if she moved again she would fall out of bed. So the SMART mom I am I got out of bed and lightly lifted her legs back into bed. Lizzie FREAKED OUT and was WIDE AWAKE!!!! You have to remember it is 2 am and I still haven't gotten any sleep. David and I switch taking turns with her, and trying to get her back asleep. After 2 hours and no luck I went out on the couch to get some sleep, and David can sleep though anything.. so she played all night long. Finally around 7 am I went into the room to find it a DISASTER!!! Lizzie had emptied out our suitcase and all the toys from the girls shelving unit. The floor was covered; you could barely open the door wide enough to get in. Lizzie was so proud of her accomplishment, but all weekend I was looking for different things Lizzie had hid throughout the room that I needed from our suitcase. David went and played basketball and he for sure thought Lizzie would have crashed by the time he got back. Yeah right! We went swimming and enjoyed the day. She did really well but I think the swimming finally got to her, and when she hit the car seat she was OUT!

Update on the Big GIRL Bed

So she slept thought the night in her bed... I was so grateful!!! But what do I do for nap time? Do I confuse her and lay her in her crib or do I try the big girl bed? Well I decided to go for it, and put her in her bed. She cried for 9 minutes and then she was out. I checked on her after an hour, and there she is laying in her bed snuggling her baby. It was so precious! I wish I could have gotten a picture. Then last night we went out to dinner at Olive Garden with some friends and got home way past her bedtime. We said prayers and laid her in her bed, and she DIDN'T EVEN MAKE A PEEP!!!! She slept all though the night and was up today at 7:05 AM. We are so proud of our big girl!!! We knew she could do it!

SHE DID IT!!!! LIZZIE IS A BIG GIRL!!!

So last night we tried Lizzie in her big girl bed again, but this time we did our normal bedtime routine. We laid her down in bed and shut the door. She cried and screamed for 12 minutes and then she was out. I gave her an hour before I checked on her,listening carefully to the monitor, and she was out!!! I didn't sleep well last night cause I was worried she would fall out of bed or she would wake up and not know where she was. At 7:15 this morning I hear her knocking on the wall. SHE DID IT!!!! She slept all night and loves her new bed!!!

We are so proud of you Lizzie!!!!

How The Parker's show their love to one another...

We had some extra paint left so David and I decided to express our love to one another!

David's tender message, "Katrina I want you now and forever!

*Maybe I should just move the bed back and leave it.. what do you think?

I NEED Advice!!!!

So tonight we tried out Lizzie's NEW BIG GIRL BED!!!! She didn't like being in there all by herself and she just screamed at the door. So David and I took turns laying in there with her. We tried ignoring her but that didn't work she just wanted to play the whole time. Her clothes are everywhere, she must have gotten in and out of bed a million times, drank 3 bottles full of water (she NEVER even drinks more than an ounce while in her crib), she uses her bed as a trampoline, and tried to do David's hair. So after an hour and half of playtime she went back into her crib, and within minutes she is asleep! This is so frustrating!!!

So Mom's in the blogging world I need your help!!! Any advice with how to get kids to transfer to BIG KID BEDS?

*Who thought transfering beds would be such a BIG DEAL to her. She wanted her crib since day 1, and now doesn't want to give it up!

Memorial Day at Lawerence Welk

Both of our parents own timeshares at Lawerence Welk in Escondido. We were lucky enough to spend time with Oma and Papa down there over Memorial Weekend. Marla and Shauna and their families came down also so of course we had a great time. Our friend Heidi and her little girl Charlotte came too! We enjoyed Sloppy Joe's by the pool and even splashed around a bit. Lizzie loved the 1 foot pool and enjoyed making friends with all the other kids there. She got to use her LOUD voice for all to hear! Plus she became great friends with Jacob and Jeff! She would follow them where ever they would go.

Don't you love how everyone is smiling except Lizzie? She is just TOO BUSY!

Parker riding around on David's back

Ashlyn using her floaties... They were the hit the of day. She could swim all over the place and she was so excited about it! GO ASHLYN!

Mommy and Lizzie swimming around in the pool!

I LOVE to see the Temple.. and I went inside today!!!

Today was a special day! David and I went with the youth of our ward to do Baptisms for the Dead. Our ward summited all the names which was extra special, but the HIGHLIGHT of the trip was David and I started my parents work. My friend Bethany was baptized for my mom (since I'm SUPER pregnant) and David was baptized for my dad. There was such an amazing feeling there, I'm so glad that I have FINALLY started my personal family genealogy. I can't wait to go back and finish their work so we can be sealed as a family for time and all eternity. Even though I didn't know my parents very well I know that I'm completing a special task that my Heavenly Father has blessed with with. I'm so grateful we have a temple so close and we can visit it often!

Also our Stake President has asked us to start working on our family genealogy with New Family Search. If you haven't started you should! It is so simple to use and David and I were able to do some work for our ancestors too while we were at the temple. Once you start you won't want to stop! Thanks President Steadman for lighting the fire and getting us to work!!! I know our ancestors will be so pleased with us!

I'm going to be on the ELLEN show on June 5th!!

So Ashley, Stacy, and I went to see the Ellen Show yesterday! We had a great time, and got a lot of free stuff! Ashley was chosen to show off her AMAZING talent of "SUPER INHALER"(pinching her nose without using her hands) It is pretty amazing! Maybe Ashley will post a picture of her talent, and I will post it!

THE FREE STUFF WE GOT:

The New Kelly Pickler's CD

Kelly Pickler is HILARIOUS!!! She talked the whole time, and Ellen couldn't even get a word in. She sang her hit "Best Days Of Your Life" and danced with the audience. She talked about her new tour, and how she almost got arrested the other day since she didn't stop at a stop sign completely.

(Even if you don't like Ellen you should just watch the show to see Kelly!)

Kelly is also the new spokes person for Big Sexy Hair, and she gave us a year supply of their hairspray!

Kathy Freston was also on the show and she talked about her new book "The Quantum Wellness Cleanse" and how for 21 days you should give your body a rest from: Sugar,Caffeine, Alcohol, Gluten, and red meat. Another free giveaway!!!

But the highlight of the whole day was THE DANCE OFF!!!!

*During commercial breaks Ellen has audience members compete in a dance off. I was one of the last ones to be picked, and for sure did not think that I would win since I danced against 2 high school kids. I exited my row and shook my groove thing! (If you knew me when I lived in Utah for a year for college) I did my sexy Utah dance(for Ashley), and I think that was the reason I won besides the fact that I am super pregnant and shakin' it like no one's business! At the end of the show The contestants were called out, and I got the most cheers and WON!!! You are probably wondering what I won: Probably the coolest prize ever!!!! A FREE ELLEN SHIRT!

So you should watch Ellen on June 5th-check your local listings to see what time it will be playing! Look for Ashley, Stacy, me we are on the back row!

The fun projects I have been doing!!!

Okay let me start this post off by giving some worthy advice to anyone who is going to put up a border ALL BY THEMSELVES:

1. Give your child lots and lots of treats before you start the project
2. Put on Blue's Big Music Show!!! Get's her every time...
3. Use all 4 limbs to hold the border up while you work
4. Wipe up the border paste from the carpet before it dries
5. ARE YOU INSANE? NEVER...NEVER...NEVER... HANG WALL PAPER BY YOURSELF!!!

David and I have been working on getting Lizzie's BIG GIRL ROOM put together so she can move out of the crib and use her BIG GIRL BED! She is dying to sleep in it. Every night she climbs up on her bed and wants to sleep there, but with no door on the room she is stuck in her crib. We finally got her bed, sheets, comforter, and now her border! I read the instructions of the wallpaper glue, and thought this was going to be a piece of cake job. I start with the 2 sections by her closet and those were a piece of cake. Who would have thought that 133 inch piece would be much harder right? There I am with glue up to my elbows and all over the carpet While Lizzie is screaming at the doorway since she had a poopy diaper and trying to get in to help me (I mean rip the paper from the wall) I'm going insane with a screaming daughter, using all 4 limbs to hold the paper on the wall (do not try this pregnant!), and trying to get the stupid border not to twist or rip in the mean time. After an hour of fighting with the strip , and scrubbing my carpet to get the huge drops of glue out of the carpet.

1 SECTION OF THE ROOM IS COMPLETE!

Then I collapsed to the floor trying not to die of heat stroke since it is so dang hot out here, and change a full poopy diaper at the same time. Let's just say I waited for reinforcements to finish the other 2 walls that are captured in this photo. 4 people later, 1 bottle of glue, and 15 minutes later the border is complete!!! Why didn't I wait for their help before? I guess I'm crazy and thought I could do it by myself.. but I should have learned this lesson earlier from

The Wonder Pets.. "You never do anything alone!!! It is all about teamwork!"

Thanks to my amazing husband,Papa, and Oma the border is complete!

My amazing husband bought me a sewing machine for Christmas, and it finally came out of its box today!!! I know what you are thinking... "Katrina it is May, and you are FINALLY opening your present?" I have never owed a sewing machine before, plus I can barely use one. So I have been waiting for OMA to come over and help me set it up! Last night after the border party we opened the box and she showed me how to use all the of different functions, and I was FINALLY able to finish a sewing project I had been working on for 3 months now!!! Thank OMA for all your time and love!!!

Here's to more sewing adventures!!!

San Diego with GREAT friends and Brian Regan

So David wanted to surprise me with tickets to see Brian Regan in San Diego, but it was the same night as the Father and Son outing (I know we have no boys, but David was going to take some Young Men from our ward since their Dad's couldn't make it) David didn't end up going to Father and Son's so we headed to San Diego and a night out with Nathan and Chelsea (we NEVER get pictures of them when we see them.. sorry!!!)

we had a great time and we laughed all night long. Brian's brother opened for him, and he is such a hoot! I wonder if their whole family is just funny. What a fun family gathering that would be to go to. I'm still laughing at all his jokes they keep running through my head all day long! David and I didn't get home till 1:30 am that is probably the latest we have been up in forever!!!

Thanks for a great night out on the town Nathan and Chelsea we need to do it again sometime!

The Parker Grandkids

The Texas Parker came out to play last week and we had a great time with them! This is the only picture that I have from the whole time they were here I really need to be better at capturing the moment. The only bummer was that David and I were sick the last couple of days they were here.

Aren't the cousins so cute? two more girls cousins will be here soon, and that will help even up the numbers of boys vs. girls in the family. Thanks again Parker's for the great visit!!! We can't wait to see you again Uncle Darren!!!

FOR ALL MY FOLLWERS!!!

This post goes out to all my blog followers who wanted to see how BIG my belly has gotten! I have less than 10 weeks to go... Hooray!!! The baby is doing great and growing quickly. She loves to hang out in my rib cage and wiggles around, which doesn't make Mommy happy since she can't breathe when she does that.

On a funny note.. David and I the other day were buying curtain panels online we found some we liked and picked out the color we thought would go best in the dinning room. So we are about to check out and David spots some curtains for $6.99 a panel (He thinks) and tells me to purchase those instead since we didn't need black out curtains for this window. I look at the price difference, it is cut in half, and said okay and hit the order button. Well they came in the mail yesterday and I was so excited to get them hung up, but I was just too tired. So this morning I noticed that the package was open on the dinning room table I looked at the color really fast and liked it, but it was too early to pay close attention to the curtains. Well a couple hours later I sat down at the table and started taking the curtains out of the package...

and to my SURPRISE.. they were not curtains they were VALANCES!!!!

I called David and asked if he had noticed anything wrong with the curtains and he said no, and then I proceeded to tell him we bought valances instead of curtains. I checked the website we bought them from and right there it said valances.. OPPS! My brain needs to come back from vacation :) Now I have to drive all around Riverside County looking in all JC Penny's to see if they carry the curtains I wanted since the website is out of them in the length that I need!