Happy Birthday to us

Today is a very special day to me.  Not only is it my and Jared's birthday, but two years ago today we were sealed for time and all eternity to each other and 7 month old Nathan.  I am so blessed to be able to be with my beautiful children and sweet husband forever, and I am so thankful to Heavenly Father for the gift of His Son and the Atonement, making it possible for us to return with our families and live with Him.  I love being a member of His church.  Having the gospel in my life has made all the difference in the world.

the rest of our Billings trip

As you saw in the previous post, we went to Billings for the McKay/McKenna McWedding over Memorial Day weekend.  The wedding was on Friday and we were able to stay until Monday morning, so I got a few more pictures of our fun time there.  Nathan did something weird to the camera at the reception so the first few pictures are black and white, but it turned out kind of cute and artsy, I think.  Total accident!

Here is Nathan with his cousins Anna and Elizabeth.  They are two of Katy's (Jared's oldest sister) daughters.  They love playing downstairs at Grandma's house because she has a fun little room under the stairs filled with toys and dress-up items.  In this picture Anna is dressed as a peasant and Elizabeth as a princess.  Nathan is still in his Sunday clothes, although he had previously been running around with a fireman helmet on his head!

Here is Hannah with Jane, Katy's other daughter.  They are only about 6 weeks apart and this trip was the first time they had gotten to meet.  It was so fun to watch them attempt to interact.  Jane is on the left, she is the older of the two, and several inches taller!  It makes sense though that my baby would be smaller, considering the fact that I'm only 5'1" and Katy is several inches taller than me at least!  The funny thing is at birth Jane was 7 lb 14 oz while Hannah was 8 lb 4 oz! 

Here Jane is grabbing Hannah's face.  They are both in the face grabbing stage, which is so pleasant considering their razor sharp baby nails.  Hannah grabbed Jane's older sister Anna's face at one point during our visit.  I started apologizing and removing her "claws" but Anna said "That's okay, Jane does it all the time!"  What a sweet older sister!

Hannah crawling around on the Kirkpatricks' hard wood floor.

Jared with Hannah and his dad.

Jared and Jane.

Katy and Jane.  This was such a sweet moment.  We really missed Sean, Katy's husband, this trip.  He wasn't able to come because of work, and I know Katy and the girls especially felt his absence!

Kelly, Annie, and Matt.  They are all so resistant to having their picture taken, but I had to insist because one of Nathan's favorite activities is looking at "pictures of Grandma" in the photo album, and we hardly have any pictures of Jared's family!

We drove home on Monday, Memorial Day, and I got to watch a couple of little boys for a family in our ward who was between day cares for the week.  We had them 10 hours a day Tuesday-Friday and Nathan was in boy heaven!  They were ages two and almost four so just a little bit younger and older than Nathan.  He is still asking, "Where did the boys go?"

The Wedding

Last week we traveled to Billings to attend Jared's sister McKenna's wedding.  She was married on Friday, May 28 to McKay Heasley, an event affectionately referred to by his family as the "McMarriage."  Here is a picture of McKenna and McKay taken last November when they were just dating.  Aren't they sweet?

McKenna and McKay were glowing after their beautiful temple sealing, but unfortunately I didn't get any pictures!  It was freezing and I was busy doing my best to keep my kids warm long enough for the photographer to get the group pictures.  What a bummer!  I'm pretty sure McKay's brothers from California were not impressed with the cold.

The reception was beautiful, and I did manage to get a few pictures there.

Kelly, my mother-in-law and mother of the bride, with her friend Elin Young who was amazing!  She was behind the scenes refilling the refreshment table.  She made many of the refreshments as well as darling matching socks for all the "flower girls" to wear.  I'm sure she did many more things, what a great friend!

Here is my sister Heidi and her boyfriend Chris at the reception.

The kids started getting antsy after awhile, especially the babies, which is when Mickey Pellanin, a dear friend of my in-laws, stepped in.  We just called him "The Baby Whisperer."  Besides Jared and myself, he was the only one who Hannah would let hold her.

At some point, Nathan started getting cranky.

So, being excellent parents, we let him run wild with our camera.  Here is just a sample of the shots we ended up with.

Apparently this is what the world looks like when you are 3 feet tall.

It was a great night, Jared's younger brother Matt and I did a couple of musical numbers and it was so fun to see so many wonderful people there to celebrate with McKay and McKenna.  Best wishes in your new life together, you two!  We love you.