She's Watching.

A few weeks ago, we brought our camera outside because JD wanted to snap a few pictures of me with my pregnant belly. As he was doing this, Tenley became fascinated with the camera and wanted to try taking a few photos of her own. JD taught her how to hold the big device in her little hands and showed her what button to push. She was thoroughly entertained by the activity, directing us where to sit and when to say "Cheese!" These pictures are the result. They are blurry, off-centered, and unedited. But they're so endearing to me because they're what Tenley sees when she's watching us. I love that. 

Birthday buddies.

Tenley and JD are birthday buddies. Ten turned two on Saturday (how?!) and today is JD's big day (he's 29). I remember being a little bummed when she was born that JD would always have to share his birthday week with her. . . but I got over that quickly because, I mean, how long can you stay bummed when you've got a sweet new baby? I digress. I tend to do that. Oh gosh. . . 

Now, I kind of like the idea of having their birthdays so close together because it allows me to really celebrate two of my biggest blessings. This birthday week provides a very obvious opportunity for me to reflect on and express gratitude for my family.

These two. They're a playful duo- always finding ways to add spontaneity, giggles, and light to my life. I'm grateful they let me in on the fun.

Fall in Utah.

Last Friday evening, my family drove up a canyon near our home. . . and oh. my. gosh. the sights were breathtakingly beautiful. The fall in Utah is so pretty! I'll go ahead and add "autumn" to the list of things I'll miss when we leave. 

Being up there reminded me of all the beauty that surrounds me and how much I have to be grateful for. The last week or so has been a bit rough for me. I've been discouraged by the government shutdown in the US, overwhelmed by the unknowns of the future, crestfallen by my husband's rejection letters from P.A. schools, disheartened by all the negative, horrible things happening on the news, and feeling mostly just low-spirited in general. I sometimes get this way. I'm one who feels things deeply and, on occasion, the sadness of the world just sits heavy on my heart. That's why I need nights in the canyon :) To be reminded of the earth's beauty. To remember the joy that can be found in the little things. To feel God close to me. 

(It also helps to have a dashingly attractive man and sweet-spirited babe around to ease my troubled heart!)

Nourishing.

I've been thinking lately about values and how I can better orient the youth I work with to what their values are. I've read through some online lesson outlines and group protocols centered on teaching children and adults about values. This compilation includes several interventions for clarifying personal beliefs and values- I went through them and completed some of the exercises in regards to my own life. One of the activities directs participants to list three of the "most nourishing people in their lives." Nourishing. . . that word has stuck out to me so much in my mind over the past week. I looked up the meaning. Who sustains me? Who strengthens me, builds me up, and promotes me? Who gives me life, health, and growth?

Easily, the first person I thought of was my husband. He compliments me often, pushes me to develop my talents, and is my biggest supporter. He wants to see me succeed (especially in my business) and does a lot of behind the scenes work to help me (painting base coats of canvases, preparing packages, dropping orders off at the post office, caring for Tenley while I work, etc., etc.) I feel so, so blessed to have him  as my life partner. In so many ways, he nourishes me.

Ashley's Wedding.

It's been a while since I blogged last. Our little family traveled to Texas (we were gone 10 days) and I've been so busy I have yet to unpack. . . even though we've been home five days. Eek! I love traveling, but sometimes I need a vacation from my vacation, if you know what I mean. We had a wonderful, sunny, family-filled time and I can't wait to share cute pictures of our Tenley bug at the beach. BUT, first things first. . . my dear friend Ashley's wedding.

I Want to Remember.

One night last week JD and I traveled up the canyon near our home to cook hamburgers for dinner. The babe fell asleep on the way and slept the whole time we were gone. . . so it was practically  like we were on a date alone together! The mountain air was refreshing, the food was tasty, and the company was pleasant. While JD was preparing our burgers, I wandered over to a nearby stream. In my few moments of reflection, I kept thinking, "I want to remember."   

I want to remember nights like this one. I want to remember the evenings we spent together, intentionally trying to connect and build our relationship. I want to remember the exhilarating rush of still being so in love with my husband. 

Park baby.

Our girl is growing too fast! 

It's crazy how she can seem so big to us, but still be so little at the same time 

(she's in the 9th percentile for weight and 15th for height). 

Last week we took Tenley to the park for the first time. 

Waffle Love.

The Waffle Love truck has been making its way around Utah County and finally made it to our little neck of the woods. We (mostly I) couldn't resist splurging on some extra crispety-crunchy sugar-y goodness topped with the prettiest arrangement of juicy red fruit. Yum!

Her first two weeks.

I can hardly believe it's been two weeks (and two days) since Tenley's birth day. My Momma's been in town for the last ten days and flew out this afternoon. Gosh, now the real work begins! She was so good to us- cooking, cleaning, laundering, running errands, and making sure I got enough rest. We are going to miss our Gracy! (Grandma + Stacy= Gracy) Here's a recap of our baby's life so far:

We met our little angel and spent some time in the hospital recovering.

 We left the hospital and gave her a bath at home for the first time.

 We snuggled in the grass and celebrated Daddy's birthday.

 We took naps and had a sweet newborn photo shoot.

 We tried out the baby swing and cheered on the BYU cougars.

 We shared tender moments and played with Gracy.

 We wore cute outfits and celebrated Halloween.

We sure love this little girl!

Tenley Mabel

Tenley Mabel Knowlden

October 18, 2012 6:42pm

6 lbs, 19 inches long

Our sweet girl was born last Thursday. She's got a head full of her momma's blonde locks and a heart full of her daddy's gentle patience. She's been so good as we've tried to figure out this whole breastfeeding thing together. She hardly cries and would probably sleep for long stretches at night if I let her (we've had to eat every two hours together since she came home from the hospital. . . fun!) She's calm and content and still feels so close to heaven. There's been so many moments since we met where I've had to catch my breath because I'm so overwhelmed by the joy of knowing she's mine. She is perhaps the very best gift Heavenly Father has given me and I'm just so humbled and grateful He trusts me to be her momma.

Tenley Mae, we love you so!

Handmade with love.

A few friends and family members have requested an online tour of baby girls' room. So without further ado, here is our little orange, teal, and yellow wonderland! Almost every detail and project in her room was handmade or re-purposed with love, by her daddy or me.

California Trip

JD and I took a trip to California two weekends ago to celebrate our third wedding anniversary.  It was sort of spontaneous and was a nice getaway for us. My dear friend, Jocelyn, let us sleep at  her place (bah! we didn't get any pictures together. . .) and we  spent the weekend hanging out at the beach and being tourists. I'm so lucky to have him as a travel companion- he's the best!

Last night, we spent a little longer than we probably should've playing around on iMovie and trying to make this re-cap video of our vacation. So many clips in here just make me bust up laughing. Ha, we're pretty proud of this project ;) Enjoy!

Idaho Trip

Last week, JD and I took a little road trip to Idaho for my friend Angela's wedding in Teton. We also made a slight detour to visit our friends in Boise. It was a lot of driving in a few days, but we sure loved seeing our good friends and spending time together in a new state. 

Crossing the border.

 Yummy restaurant in downtown Boise.

 We miss this cute family!

Zoo Boise on Friday. 

 Shoshone Falls in Twin Falls, ID

 Double rainbow at the falls (!!)

 Peaceful time together in the Idaho Falls LDS temple.

San Antonio friends. Look at that pretty bride!

 Gorgeous Idaho sunset. Love this man.

Angela's wedding ceremony and reception was held at the cutest barn in a small Idaho town. She did such a good job decorating with vintage books, dried flowers, romantic pictures, and rustic accents. The whole place had a dreamy feel to it. So happy she found someone to make her so happy!

The Last Few Weeks

JD and I have done a lot of fun things in the last few weeks!

 Here's a re-cap of what we've been up to:

Dinner at Jared and Karen's with Bryce and Sheree. These guys were JD's good friends in high school and we got together because Bryce just accepted a job offer in Louisiana and they'll be moving soon. It was nice to visit and catch up with them.

Dinner at Chick-fil-A. We were trying so hard to not spend money on eating out in May, but I had been talking about Chick-fil-A for weeks. . . so we gave in. Worth it!

Tyler and Mikella's Wedding. JD's little brother got married over Memorial Day weekend. We were both in the wedding party and loved sharing in their celebration.

JD's mom's side of the family at the reception. It had rained most of the day, so it was pretty chilly. . . but the backyard was absolutely lovely!

It started raining hailing during their wedding dance. While everyone rushed to get the tables and chairs and stereo equipment under cover, these lovebirds shared their romantic moment in the rain. Rain on your wedding day is supposed to be good luck, right? :)

NBA on television. We've been watching a lot of basketball lately. JD has been cheering against the Spurs (only because he's bitter they swept the Jazz) and I've been teasing him by wearing my San Antonio apparel sometimes. I'm not as committed to the Spurs as I probably should be and wouldn't mind if OKC won (gasp!) because it would make JD happy. 

Park City with the newlyweds. Tyler and Mikella stayed in a condo up in Park City for their honeymoon. We went up later in the week for dinner and games. We played games until like two in the morning and spent the night up there.

Tiffanie's graduation. JD's little sister, Tiffanie, graduated from Layton High School. We are super proud of her and are so excited for what's in store in her life.

Camping with the Weeks and Leues. We planned to go camping with these guys, but ran into issues when we tried to find a camp spot. It didn't end up working out as we planned, but we had a bonfire anyway and spent the evening playing games and visiting.

Fishing with the Williams family. Camping didn't work out, but JD still really wanted to go fishing. We invited the family we live with and JD taught all their kids how to fish. I sat out in the sun and helped cook breakfast in the morning. We were up in the mountains for a few hours, but JD was the only one who ended up catching a fish. Still, it was pretty special to see JD's sweet interactions with those kiddos.

Dinner and dominoes with friends. Cory and Sean and Jeremy and Stefanie came over for dinner on Saturday night. We enjoyed delicious food and played dominoes. Love spending time with these guys!

We are blessed with such good friends and family and are trying to enjoy the sweet time we have together before our little one joins the family. We know we'll miss these days!

Double dancing.

On Wednesday, we went on a spontaneous double date with Jada and Kyle and country danced the night away. JD's all about twisting and spinning me in partner dances, but I'm more of a line dance girl. Either way, you better believe JD and I are putting our cowboy boots to good use! 

A Date!

Our lives have been pretty hectic the last two weeks because I've been training for my new job (my first official one as a recreation therapist!!)  We still share one car, so we've been playing tetris with our schedules (my part-time job at  New Haven + my new job in West Jordan + his classes at UVU + his job in Provo + his job shadowing appointments in Payson + our job at the storage units in Spanish Fork. . .) Needless to say, JD has gotten pretty good at working the bus system and we are so grateful for our kind neighbors who've helped us out when the timing of things hasn't quite worked out. I've pulled close to 120 hours the last two weeks between my two jobs and I'm pooped! But we did go out last week for Valentine's Day and the three year anniversary of our engagement!

Matinee movie to see The Vow. Dinner at Gloria's Little Italy in Provo and dessert at The Chocolate in Orem.  It was the perfect night out on the town and I was so grateful for the little break together during this hectic month!

Family pictures 2011.

Before last month, JD and I hadn't had our "family pictures" taken since our engagements. In December, we did a trade with his aunt: she took our pictures and I let her choose something to keep from my etsy shop. I'm pretty pleased with our little deal. And, man, am I still madly in love with this boy!