Aunt "Three"

My Great Aunt Marie Van Sickle passed away last week, unfortunately.  She was one of the sweetest tender souls I have ever come across.  This loss was not easy but it was most difficult because I got to witness how it badly it effected my mom.  Seeing our loved ones deal with a significant loss is never an easy task.  It broke my heart to see my mom so broken.  She may have been broken from the loss but she spoke such wonderful, kind words in honor of my Aunt Marie at her funeral service.  One thing that I'll always remember is that my mom used to refer to Aunt Marie as Aunt Three while growing up because she couldn't pronounce her name properly.    

 

With us living in Salt Lake and Las Vegas all of my life I only came in contact with my Aunt Marie a few times.  I will never forget how sweet she was to me.  She was full of compliments and kind words always.  She was beautiful on the inside and out.  She also was very loyal to her husband, Van & that's something I admire her for.  They were soul mates and they spent many of their years together traveling across the country and square dancing in competitions. 

 

My Aunt Marie did not have kids of her own so she spoiled my mom & her siblings quite a bit.  They were her only nieces and nephews.  She also left behind her sister, Hazel.  My Great Aunt Hazel has dementia but she doesn't suffer from it.  She's one of the most happy, cheerful elderly people I have ever come in contact with.  She's the sweetest thing.  She approaches everyone as if they're her best friend and when it's time to go she lets you know she loves you without hesitation.  She only remembers a few people, of course, those she's been around her entire life like my Aunt Marie and my Grandad, Elbert, who has also passed.  My Aunt Hazel will be moving to Salt Lake and I'm so envious of my siblings.  I would love to able to have dinner with her occasionally at her care center.  She kept us laughing the entire time we were there with her hilarious jokes.  She even mentioned that she wanted to go skinny dipping at my aunt's hotel pool!  

 

It was so nice to see so many of my family members from my mom's side that I haven't seen in years.  I was also so thrilled to be able to spend time with my siblings and some of my little monkeys.  It's never easy living so far from my loved ones, it's extremely hard at times.  I loved being able to spend time with my siblings, even if we didn't do much.  You don't need to do fun, exciting things when you're around my family, just them, being them, is fun & exciting enough.  I miss them already & look forward to August when I can see them all again!

 

My amazing parents & Anelia before going into the viewing.

 

Throughout the viewing Aunt Hazel would get up & go speak with her sister.

It definitely pulled your heart strings. 

Aunt Hazel was the first to place a rose on Aunt Marie's casket.

 

She's such a charecter.  She was singing

"Let it Go" in the parking lot, with the hand motions and all.

Litte poser

My best friends since day one, my siblings. Love them!

Tina, myself, John & Lota

Miss Thang heading out of our hotel,

she was ready to get back to Vegas.

 

#BecauseOfHim

Because of Him, I had the honor and privilege to share another beautiful Easter with my little family.  Each Holiday is always such a fun time, especially with Anelia.  Her face was priceless the morning she found her basket.  She came down the stairs and gasped, "Wow, amazing!"  After watching Frozen one too many times, amazing is one of her new favorite words.  I'm blessed with the absolute best #BecauseOfHim & for that, I am forever thankful.

 

Anelia's basket(s) to the left & Sage's stuff to the right.

The little card tell him that he didn't get much because I cleaned the house lol!

Our big girl was able to do her own egg hunt this year.  This was probably the highlight of my day, although, it was rough seeing her not make it to certain eggs as fast as the other kids.  She didn't mind though, she enjoyed it & that's all that matters.

is it thanksgiving?

Typing in that caption really made me crave some good Thanksgiving dinner.  Mmm, doesn't some turkey, mashed potatoes with gravy and cranberry sauce on a warm roll sound amazing?  Okay but really...

I don't know if it's something in the air or what but I've been feeling especially grateful for all that I have.  I try not to forget the blessings I am surrounded by, every. single. day.  We do have bumps in our road like good ol' tax season, when Uncle Sam likes to take our hard earned money.  Or how my little Lucy, the car that I've had since I was 15 has broken down.  Those things bring challenge and grief but are things that I try to overlook.  Just little bumps in the road, something that we eventually overcome. 

I know I mention how blessed we are quite often but I do feel incredibly blessed.  Although I've never personally bought a lottery ticket for myself, I've always said I would never win because I've already hit the jackpot. 

I have an incredible husband who works long, grueling hours to support our little family.  He rarely complains and serves us with a smile.  He's truly my best friend and the nights that he isn't with us are gloomy.  He is one person who can make me happy just by being there.  Our relationship has never been easy and we've hit our mountains but we've climbed them together.  That's the beauty of struggle, once you reach the top of the mountain you get to enjoy the beautiful view.

Anelia is someone that I get emotional just thinking about.  That sounds terribly cliche but she is the apple of my eye and I love her sweet soul so very much.  The past two Saturday's she has been going with her Grandma Nua to watch her Uncle Derick's football games.  I find myself so bored while she's gone.  She brings so much entertainment, joy, and number of other things into our lives.  With her growing up so quickly and gaining her independence I cherish the times she shows me she needs me.  This moring she woke up while I was getting ready and wouldn't go back to sleep without holding my hand.  She had tears streaming down her little chubby cheeks and I began to cry with her.  Dramatic?  Yes, maybe but I didn't get a good night's rest, I'm pregnant and I'm human, cut me a little slack please?  Gracias.  Anyways, it's never easy leaving her & I look forward to heading home to see her every day.

I haven't personally met my little Tai but I occasionally feel her kick.  Thus far she's kept me on my toes, she's provided me with a very unpredictable pregnancy & surprises me each & everyday.  I can't wait to have her here, to hold her.  I long for a newborn, I know she's going to keep me busy but I'm up for the challenge.  Bring it on baby girl! 

Having a little family of my own has shown me how those who truly matter will remain in your life.  In high school, my family would always say "Friends come and go but Family is forever!"  That saying is so true.  I do have a few friends that I'm so glad to still have be apart of my little family's lives.  However, my family, including my in-laws who have become my own over the years, are who truly matter and have helped us in all of our times of need.  I can't say enough how thankful I am for them all & their love. 

I guess you could say I am feeling very thankful this beautiful Sunday morning.  God is good!

Tai Nua

On April 9th we found out that our Tai is a sweet little baby girl!  

 

 

She tricked us all, after experiencing a whole different kind of pregnancy this time around I was so certain that Tai was a boy but to our surprise, we will be welcoming another princess into our family come September!

 

Sage's family & my parents were all present during the announcement of Tai being a girl.  I'm so thankful that they were all there to share in the exciting moment.  All of my siblings and majority of my close friends are all in Salt Lake so to have the few of them there, meant so much. 

We all somewhat hopped for a boy, especially Sage.  Within the first seconds of our ultrasound the tech had gone in between Tai's legs & I knew that she, was not a little he.  Once she confirmed that Tai was a girl I cried tears of joy, excitement, & a little bit of sadness.  I know that sounds horrible but I felt so bad for Sage.  He wanted a son so badly, so badly in fact that I could have sworn when we got in the car to leave, I began to cry more & I looked over to see him holding back tears.  It's a good thing he doesn't read our blog because he'd kill if he saw that I wrote that.

That night we went home & the sad moods continued.  But the next morning we found ourselves excited to be welcoming another beautiful little princess into our family.  Anelia is such a joy, she's perfect in every way in our eyes & I can't wait to see what Tai is like.  I'm guessing she'll be quite different from her sister considering the trouble she's given me this far in my pregnancy, little stinker.

I look forward to watching my girls grow up together.  Having two older sisters myself, I cherish all of our memories that we have shared.  They're my best friends & have guided me through many of my trials.  I look forward to watching Anelia guide Tai & being a great example.  I can't wait to see what adventures the two of them will get into.  They'll be eachother's first best friend, what a pleasure it will be to witness.

Ultimately, Sage & I are thrilled that we will be having another healthy little blessing!  We wanted another baby, boy or girl & Tai is exactly what The Lord intended for us to have.  I am 17 weeks today & I am so grateful to our Father in Heaven for providing us with another girl.  I know that there are so many people out there that are unable to experience the incredible blessing of parenthood. So although we were a bit "thrown off" by the news of Tai being a girl, we ARE thrilled to be have her.

"Parenthood is a sacred privilege and depending on the faithfulness it can be an eternal blessing" - Boyd K Packer.

Here's to being a parent of not just one but two beautiful girls!  May they be easy on us when they're teens... *sigh*

xo, Ang

April 9, 2014

In 3 days we find out whether our little Tai is a boy or a girl.  I'm extremely nervous and excited.  Nervous due to the fact that we have been so set on this one being a boy. 

My pregnancy has been so different from my last.  From the way I've been feeling to the things I've been craving. Nothing is the same.
That's why we came to the conclusion that Tai is a boy.  However, we've been told numerous times that every pregnancy is different and just because I've felt 100% different from my last pregnancy, Tai could definitely be a girl. 

Honestly, I'd love to have a boy.  If Tai is a boy then I may seriously consider being done or taking a very long break.  I love the idea of having one girl and one boy; it's the best of both worlds. 
I also would love, love, love to have another girl.  Girls are so much fun and not to mention we have plenty of baby girl clothes to spare if Tai is a girl. 

Of course I'll be extrememly happy with either, I'm just more than ready to know what we're expecting. 

Sage on the otherhand is a much different story.  He wants a boy & he has made us all very aware of this.  He even gets just a little upset when I tell him to not get his hopes up.  He is so ready to have a son and I think that him wanting a boy so bad is mainly why I hope Tai is a boy.  He's an incredibly father to Anelia, I know that he'll enjoy having a son sooo much.  He grew up playing sports and he already has mentioned how he'd love to coach his son in sports.  Makes me just a little emotional just thinking about it... Sorry, it's the pregnancy hormones.

I hope these next 3 days fly by but who am I kidding.  Until next time... xo.