Introducing Presley Arabella Bird

Well, finally I am back to blogging! It's been
hard for me to justify sitting down at my computer for 2 hours since I feel like I've had so much to do! Plus, I try to sleep whenever possible. :) But I'd like to thank my husband for filling in on the blog! Hopefully it didn't take you too long to realize that it wasn't me blogging, I know that some people were so confused because they thought that it didn't really sound like me! :) I had to laugh at a few of his posts because it just shows that boys and girls have different point of views, as if we all didn't know that a long time ago. Well, we are doing really well! I have to say that second child is so much easier, at least for me, than number one! For some reason having Paityn was so overwhelming to me. Maybe just because I had no clue what I was doing, but this baby has been smooth sailing! I somehow still have energy although I am completely sleep deprived more and more each day!! We are just loving having a sweet little baby in our home and watching her big sister take such good care of her!! Thanks for all your phone calls and for stopping by to see us!! We have the greatest friends!! My fabulous friend Meghan took these pictures for me....isn't she a pro or what? Thanks Meghan!

Presley Arabella Bird

This was just minutes after Presley was delivered on Sunday morning. She already looks a lot different today (December 16) than she did a week ago when she was born.

Just Like Her Dad

Now, notice 2 things....You can definitely tell that this is Daddy's girl. One, she's pooping the first minute she's born, and Two her feet look like a possible size 12!!! But kidding aside, this was kind of a scary moment for me when they took the baby back and tried to get her to breathe. Presley had a bunch of fluid that was causing her to not get enough oxygen. The nurse had to stick a tube down her throat twice to help clear the airway.

Glad everything worked out. Peace out.

Daddy daughter days ahead!!!

Hello all, Jen delivered our second baby on Sunday morning (8:58am). Everything went well and the babe, Presley Arabella Bird, is doing great. Jen is also doing great considering she just got her stomach muscles cut through.

We are becoming a "full" family now. I'm not sure how my mom and dad had six kids. No wonder we've nicknamed my mom, "Big Bad Bev". Anyway, take care and come see the new little addition to the Bird family.

Shout out to my bro

On Sunday, we went up to my parent's house because my little (yet big) brother Kramer got ordained an Elder! He'll soon be turning in his mission papers in a week now. He's seriously the sweetest, most thoughtful, most handsome boy in the whole world and we are so excited for him! I'm just so proud of him for always being such a good kid! We are going to miss him so much, but are so excited for him! Just make sure you're not around me when that song "In the Hollow of Thy Hands" ever comes on the radio....it makes me cry my eyes out! Anyway, just a little shout out to my favorite brother! We love you Kra!

Gobble Gobble

This year for Thanksgiving we went to St George with Devin's family. I was determined to take some pictures, but then I left the camera at the condo. So thanks to Devin's sister Kristie, I now have my camera. Whew! I've got a lot to document here pretty soon with the new baby coming and all. :)

We had so much fun getting to hang out with everyone over Thanksgiving!! The food was yummy as always, love the homeade rolls and pies especially, and Paityn had so much fun hanging out with her cousins!! Our family has a lot to be grateful for and we truly feel blessed! I've been thinking a lot lately about what it really means to be "GRATEFUL" instead of just saying I'm thankful for this, or that. I've decided that being truly grateful for our blessings brings so much peace and contentment and just happiness into our lives. I have felt that way lately! I'm grateful for so many things this time of year, especially my little family that will grow by one more in 4 more days, being a mother, my parents, brother & sisters, Devin's family, good friends, and so many other things!! Now that I've bore my testimony...haha...I hope you all had a wonderfuly Thanksgiving as well!

BYU -vs- Utah, The So-Called Holy War

Take your pick!! What's it going to be! The much anticipated game of the year is now days away and the excitement around our place has begun. Growing up going to Utah games with my dad and then marrying the world's biggest BYU fan has made this time of year exciting!! Devin has been getting everyone's bet on the score and I picked 27-24 for Utah so we'll see what happens. I have to say that one of our first fights ever was over this very subject. Devin told me that the only reason I was a Utah fan was because my dad was and I got mad at him and said that I am a Utah fan because I choose to be. :) So funny!! It should be a fun game to watch. If the truth be known, I wouldn't mind seeing BYU win since I watch all of their games and know all the players names and I don't know that much about Utah's team!! Don't tell my dad I said that. :) Let the games begin!

The yummiest wheat bread

Okay, so I've been making this bread now for about 6 months and I'm finally going to share it with you all! My neighbor brought me a loaf and although I'd never made bread before, I had to get the recipe. I went over to her house and made it once with her and then have made it on my own ever since. I wrote the recipe in "dummy" language just so it made perfect sense. And because I really need specific instructions! :) I just got a wheat grinder for my birthday and that makes it that much better. So any of you who live close by, come grind some wheat pioneer style at my house anytime! Paityn and Devin devour this bread and it's really good for you! So here goes, it really might not make sense, especially when it comes time to making it into a loaf, but feel free to ask questions and I promise you won't be disappointed!

Whole Wheat Bread: Jennifer Franks

In your mixer mix:
5 C HOT water
¼ C oil
¾ C honey

Then add:
2 C wheat flour
Mix until it looks soapy

Then add:
1 T bread enhancer/gluten
1 T salt
2-3 C wheat flour (or until it looks like a pancake batter consistency)

Then add:
2 T yeast

At this point, keep adding wheat flour 1 C at a time until it cleans the bowl.

NOTE**You end up adding A TOTAL OF 10-11 CUPS OF WHEAT FLOUR** (no more than 11 cups) So I like to keep a little piece of paper close by and mark how much I’ve added. Like in the beginning you add 2 Cups, so then make 2 marks, then when you get it to a pancake batter consistency mark how many cups you’ve added. And so in the end it ends up being 10-11 cups of wheat flour. (If this doesn’t make sense, please let me know)

Let it knead in the machine for 5 minutes. Then cover it and let it raise for 15 minutes.

Divide it into 4 equal loaves. Then beat out each loaf on an OILED countertop in a rectangle until all the bubbles are out. And roll it into a loaf and put into your pan. (I grease my pans with Crisco)

Then let them rise for 15-25 minutes. (I actually let it raise for 30 minutes)
Bake at 350° for 30 minutes.

Let me know if any of you try this out!

So much to blog about

Yikes!! Too much stuff has gone on that I've been planning on blogging about so here goes me trying to update myself...First Halloween! Paityn and I met up with Meghan and Kanyon and went trick-or-treating around the neighborhood. Paityn had so much fun and got so much candy! Then we hurried home because Devin's friend's were all coming over for a little Halloween get together. I was anticipating all of their costumes and was not disappointed! They are all hillarious! I was so busy running around that I hardley took any pictures so I'll have to get Seth and Abbie to e-mail me them. (or just look on their blog if you really care to see them and you'll laugh your head off) It was so much fun as always and you should have seen my husband! My oh my, you'd have thought I'd married a drag queen. It was so funny, yet a little creepy. haha! Overall, it was such a fun day and I feel like we really got the most out of Halloween this year! It seems like we've been celebrating all month! Here are a few pics.

Last, but certainly not least, my crazy, goofy husband....meet Devina! (seriously, for your sake, don't click on it and make it any bigger) :)

Family Party

Monday night, on her official birthday, we celebrated with the fam. I ordered these cupcakes from a bakery in American Fork called Dippidee and they were yummy! It's always fun having the whole family together! Thanks to everyone who came over and celebrated with us! Paityn had such a fun birthday this year!!

Happy Birthday Dear Paityn, Happy Birthday To You!

Yesterday was Paityn's official birthday and she is now 3 YEARS OLD!! We can't believe how grown-up she's become and how much funner she is everyday! We celebrated her birthday with her friends on Saturday the 27th and here are a few pictures.

All the kids came dressed up in their halloween costumes and there seriously couldn't have been cuter kids!! I swear, our friends have the cutest kids ever! When they got there, they ate donut holes, fruit, and juice and colored a pumpkin. Then Beverly, Devin's mom, read them 2 Halloween books and the kids were way into that. We then went outside and Devin took the kids on a little hay-ride around the neighborhood. Abby painted little ghosts, pumpkins, on their faces too. Thanks Abb! We sang 'Happy Birthday', ate cupcakes, and had such a fun day!! Thanks to everyone who came, we're so lucky to have such great friends!

Such Good Friends

Today Meghan and I took the kids up the canyon to take a few pictures. Seriously is she a pro or what?? It was so much fun and I can't believe how big they look!! Where does all the time go! I can't wait to see them all. They're such sweet friends. I think Paityn thinks they're brother/sister! Gosh they're precious!! Thanks again Meghan!!

Witches Night Out

Last night the girls went to Witches Night Out at Gardner Village. We all dressed up in our Witches costumes and went out on the town. It was absolutely crazy there with tons and tons of people, but the atmosphere and decorations were so much fun! Check out my mom all decked out like a total witch, hair and everything!! It's always fun hanging out with just the girls and especially fun dressing up!

Kids Say The Darndest Things

I am always amazed at the downright funny things that Paityn says on a regular basis. The other night when we were saying prayers before going to bed, Paityn of course said the prayer and it was as darling as ever. We had just read a Winnie The Pooh book so of course in her prayer was: "Bless that Pooh can come to my house, and Tigger, and Roo...." {She always says what's on her mind at the time} and when she finished her prayer she said "Okay, See Ya Later, BYE!"

I just love that about her and kids in particular! Her prayers are always so personal, sweet, thoughtful, and honestly just like a conversation. Just how it really should be! You can honestly learn so much from kids!

I just signed her up for Ballet that will start tomorrow. Can you tell how excited she is..she's been posing all day! I think she's even more excited about her outfit! Typical girl! Can't wait to watch her dance!

I swear I'm having a girl

So I promise I am having a girl, although this bedding that I just bought kind of looks otherwise. I fell in love with it and because I've done the whole pink thing with Paityn's room, I was ready for a change. I guess that's what happens when you have two girls in a row. Plus I love the modern feel. Now I've just got to find a way to add a lot of girly touches to the room. Let me know if you have any suggestions! We'll see how it all turns out. I've got to convince Devin to paint the room so remind him if you see him. :)

Devin came home the other day with this furniture piece that he picked up while out with his brother Danny. I really love it, but now I've actually got to add a few more things to it like a mirror, lamps, etc. He's so thoughtful and really does have great taste. It swear, houses need so much dang furniture. Is it possible to fill up spaces and bare walls?

If only you could taste them

Because it's conference weekend and it's freezing cold outside, we've just enjoyed the beginning of a relaxing weekend inside all cuddled on the couch by the fireplace. It just seemed like the perfect morning for homeade cinnamon rolls. So I got up early and got to work. My friend Nancy, who is the worldest best baker, gave me her recipe and they turned out so yummy. At least I think so. :-) They take so long, they better be good! Anyway, although Devin doesn't like sweets that much, he really loved them and so did my sweet-ster Paityn!! We had to deliver them right away before I ate a whole tray. I wish I could send them to my friends and family far away. Too bad you just can't reach out to your screen and grab one!!

Of course lots of frosting!!

And then there was Tulsa

Just a few days after we got back from UCLA, we left for Tulsa, which I mentioned in a previous post. Here are a few pics of that trip.

Devin and I at Liberty Jail...which was so good to see.

Us on the showboat in Branson, MO...you can tell by Devin's face that by this time, we'd seen a few too many shows.
One of the shows we saw in Branson...they're all 5 brothers and their whole family performs. They're all LDS.
The fam at one of the cemetaries on our church tour...I can't remember what we were actually there to see. lol..I swear I listened. :-$

Devin, his dad and brother Greg outside the Church's visitor's center

The Restored Church's temple...doesn't it look like something out of a Dr. Seuss book?

Kristie, Kim, Beverly, and I

Getting ready for the game, which was also a sad, sad game. I think we might be bad luck.
And now we're officially home for awhile, which is so nice. It's nice to get back to normal life and normal eating. I swear I gained like 4 extra pounds ontop of pregnancy weight just from so much traveling. :) Now I'm back to exercising.