Pretty Girl

I took this with the new camera Ben got me for my birthday (Thanks again, hon! I love it!). Our little girl is stunning... even with spaghettiOs all over her face!

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Happy Anniversary!

Wow! I can't believe it has already been three years since we tied the knot! In some ways, it feels like we have only been married for a few weeks and in others, it seems like we have been together forever (in a good way, of course ^_^).

For our anniversary, we decided to go to CPK (California Pizza Kitchen, in layman's terms) for dinner. After a round of fried artichoke hearts for an appetizer, I enjoyed the wild mushroom pizza and Ben savored the Pear and Gorgonzola pizza (sounds weird, but is actually quite delicious).

Unfortunately, since we have our little one who is on a pretty strict bedtime, we couldn't do more than dinner ... or at least, that's what I thought...

One our way home from dinner, Ben kept making "wrong turns." At first, I thought he was just being stubborn as I was attempting to direct him on where to go (I honestly thought we was a little lost, asking perplexed, "Where do you think you are going?") and was just driving aimlessly. It soon became clear, however, that he had a clear destination in mind.

After driving for a bit (we had a little trouble finding the super secret location), we pulled up in front of what looked like an old house in Salt Lake. I had just had my eyes checked and was still adjusting to wearing one contact lens for my poor farsighted eye, so even as we pulled into the parking lot I couldn't read the sign of our final stop.

Where were we? You ask? The Anniversary Inn! Ben had arranged for us to spend a romantic evening baby-free! He had sneakily planned to have the Liv-ster spend the night at my mothers. I was so surprised! I had been completely clueless as to what was going on.

For anyone who doesn't know about the Anniversary Inn, all of their rooms are themed. They have jungle rooms, outer space rooms, garden rooms, even a "Presidential Suite" decorated in red, white, and blue. Our room was on the tippy-top floor and was called... drum-roll, please... The Mysteries of Egypt. Sounds cool, huh? Well, it was!
 

It was made to look like the inside of a pyramid, if pyramids had jetted tubs, beautiful sitting rooms, and surround sound, that is. One of my favorite elements of the room was the tub. It was large and rested underneath a huge snake sculpture... which also doubled as the shower head! The faucet for the tub was disguised as a beautiful, trickling waterfall that meandered down stones into the tub itself. It was just really... incredible, for lack of a better word.

I also loved the little sitting alcove in our room. It was in the top of the "tower" of the building and had windows all around and sharply pointed ceiling (such a cozy place to eat the delicious hot breakfast we were served in the morning).

To top things off, Ben made a romantic gift basket that had sparkling apple cider, chocolates, rose petals, and... another drum-roll, please... a gorgeous ring! I felt so spoiled. I must say, I think my husband is the best! It's not just because he pampers me, but because he compliments me as a person so well. He is truly the peanut butter to my jelly, the mac to my cheese. I am a lucky woman to have such a wonderful partner and friend. I love him with all my heart! Here's to many, many more wonderful years together, hon! Happy anniversary!

 P.S. I almost forgot to mention another thing that made this anniversary perfect: this year I wasn't sick and throwing up like I was on both our first and second anniversaries! Huzzah!

P.P.S. If you want to see a couple more pictures of our awesome room at the Anniversary Inn, click here!

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Christmas Eve at the Fire Station

This year on Christmas eve, my dad had to work. He is a firefighter for the great city of Salt Lake and this year his shift fell on Christmas eve. He wasn't too concerned about missing out since my brother, sister, and I are older now. When the day came, however, most of the other firefighters had family visiting them and he started to feel a little lonesome.

My step-mom, Kristin, called us and asked if we would want to make a surprise visit to the station and we jumped at the chance. I made a batch of Chocolate Crinkle cookies for the firefighters and we hopped in the car.

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Happy Thanksgiving!

I have to say, I love Thanksgiving. Getting together with family to enjoy a delicious (and usually huge) meal would make anyone feel thankful. Since our family is so large, we were, lucky enough to have three, yes three, Thanksgiving dinners to attend.

On Wednesday, we went to my dad and step-mom's house for dinner, pumpkin pie and, of course, some episodes of X-files. Livi ate 3 rolls, green beans, ham, a pickle, some red onions, and a most of a whole slice of pumpkin pie. That's my girl! Embracing the Thanksgiving spirit of eating 'til your stomach hurts.

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Happy Halloween!

Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. I love to get all dressed up and enjoy the Halloween atmosphere.

Livi was still too little to trick or treat this year, but no one is too young (or old, for that matter) to dress up in a festive costume! We got Alivia the cutest little duckling costume, complete with little ducky feet and a hat with a duck bill. Surprisingly, she loved wearing it! Even the hat! Normally, she will try anything to get a hat off her head.

We were invited to a Halloween party at Kirk and Cami's place, and since our sitter got sick (feel better, Kate!), Livi got to come along, too. I dressed up as a cowgirl and Ben went as "Johnny Ringo" from 'Tombstone.'

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Family Pictures

For the longest time, I have wanted to get some professional family pictures done. The problem was cost.

It seemed that most "photogs" charged upwards of a hundred dollars for a sitting... and then you had to pay for the prints.

Fortunately, I stumbled across an old friends Facebook message that she was offering a discount on photography sessions as a promotional deal. 
Even better, a CD of the pictures was included in the price! I called Sarah up and scheduled a session.

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Happy Birthday, Livi Bean!

Wow! Time sure flies. I can't believe our little Alivia is already one year old! It seems like yesterday I was carrying her, not in my arms, but in my belly. A belly which, by the way, my cousins daughter deemed "a really big belly for just one baby!"

This has been one of the best years of our lives. It has been such a wonderful experience to watch Livi figure out the world and learn and grow. She has such energy and personality, more than you would think a child of her age could possibly have.

Parenting has proved to be more challenging than we ever imagined, but it has also been far more wonderful than we ever could have hoped. Nothing is more endearing than seeing her excitement when "Dada" gets home from work. Nothing is more heartwarming than being the one who has the magical power to make boo-boos better and tears disappear, with just a hug and a kiss.

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Six Happy Years...

Wow! Today marks to the six year anniversary of when Ben and I started dating! Time sure flies when you are with the love of your life. So far, it has been a wonderful ride.

We have had lots of good times and a few hard ones. We have laughed 'til we cried and cried on each others shoulders. We have shared our darkest secrets and our deepest fears. We have overcome immense obstacles, always coming out them more in love than the day before.

Times change, but true love is forever! Love you honey!

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A Trip To "The Goon!"

On Friday, we got a call from Ben's sister, M'Kenzie, who said she had some free tickets to Lagoon for us if we wanted to go. Of course, we jumped at the chance to take Livi to Lagoon for the first time, so packed up the diaper bag, piled in the car, and headed to Farmington.  

We didn't get to ride many "grown-up" rides (Ben did get to go on Wicked, which he loved), but we did get to ride the carousel and the train with Livi. Livi also had her first taste of Dippin' Dots! We had a wonderful time! 

Thanks Derek and 'Kenzie!

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Oakley: The Fuzziest Patridge

Well, consider us a little crazy. On top of having a little baby at home and Jenny and Milli staying with us for the time being, we went out an got a puppy. Yes, a puppy. A cute little poodle puppy we have named Oakley.

My mom has a poodle named Prince and his mama had a litter of puppies. We went to "look," but of course we bonded with one of the little guys and had to take him home.

He is such a sweet, smart puppy. He is great with kids and loves to snuggle. He learned sit, down, up (stand up), and stay within a few days of being with us. 

He is a great little addition to our family!

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Our Story So Far...

Ben and Brittney met their junior year of high school, and after nearly a year of yearning on her part, Brittney somehow finally convinced Ben to be her beau.

After dating through senior year and the summer that followed, both shared a very tearful goodbye as Ben left to serve a mission in Fukuoka, Japan.

Just a little over two years later, Ben returned (much to Brittney's jubilation)! After nearly two whole months of dating, Ben proposed and Brittney said "YES!"

They married on a beautiful February day and enjoyed a blissful first year together. Just before their first anniversary, Brittney discovered she was expecting and soon the happy couple would become a cozy family of three.

After many months of morning sickness and waddling, Brittney and Ben were more than ready to welcome their little one. On October 3rd, a week and a day after her due date, Alivia finally made her big debut and wowed all with her incredible cuteness!

Alivia just turned one year old, and the Patridge family is happily anticipating the next chapters in their lives together.

To be continued...

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