Christmas Celebrations!!

Christmas with a two year old was a new and exciting adventure for us! While Aiden didn't totally grasp the whole Santa Clause brings the presents thing, David and I realized the importance of making lasting memories and traditions with our own little family.

After making our usual visits on Christmas Eve, we came home and let Aiden open one gift. New Christmas jammies!

Then we made "home-made" popcorn! Aiden loves "corn" and was very excited to get to help!

The best part about making pop corn is eating it....so we snuggled in bed and watched The Polar Express!

I have to admit that I was a little dissapointed with Christmas morning! I was MUCH more excited about Santa showing up than Aiden was! We had to coax him into opening presents by telling him that one of them just might be a tractor!

After all the present excitement....we headed out again for more christmas visits, and ended the day with dinner and games at my moms house. My mom always goes out of her way to make meals at her house extra special. The table is always fancy and the food is always yummy!

From our family to yours.....We hope you had a very Merry Christmas!

Happy Anniversary!

Tomorrow is our 8th anniversary!! I really can't believe that it has been 8 years!!! I still feel 19, and so it is hard for me to wrap my head around it!


Life has changed in the last 8 years, and we have come through so much together.

During our 8 years, we have:
-Been so unbelivably poor that we ate mac and cheese every meal....the cheap kind even...not Kraft!
-We have lived in a little single wide trailer in a scary part of town.
-We have lived with the in-laws, which, no matter how much you love them, is HARD!
-We have built a house
-We have been through fertility treatments, and if you have ever been around a woman on fertility treatments, you know why that can stress a marriage!
-We have a beautiful blue eyed baby boy who added just the right touch to our family.

We have been through the good and the bad, we have had fun times, and not so fun times....but here we are! I still love him like I did the day I married him!

Bitter Sweet!

This weekend, we made our final football trip to Boise for this season! While we are sad that we don't have the excuse to get away and visit "the other Belnaps," we are glad we get to stay home for more than one weekend a month!

I did get some funny looks, but this is me....going against all things fashionable to stay warm at the game!! TRUE FAN!!

It was COLD...but I still enjoyed a great game!

Letters to Santa

Last night I got to sit in on Family Home Evening with the Hathaway's. The activity for the evening was writing letters to Santa Clause! Since my little Aiden is a little young to actually write his own letter, Codee assited him!

Aidens letter read:

"Dear Santa, I've been a very good boy this year and these would be some things I would like if I'm on the nice list- Tractors, Hot wheels, kisses from mom, and an electric airplane.

Thanks, Aiden

At the end of the night, when we were getting ready to go home, Aiden was giving his normal round of kisses. I heard Codee say " Bud....we are men, and men don't kiss each other! We give high fives and knuckles!"

Thanks Codee for teaching Aiden the facts and for helping him get his letter ready for Santa!

Its beginning to look alot like Christmas!

I finally got my Christmas decorations finished yesterday.....I say finally, because it takes me a few days to make everything look the way I want it to, and the many boxes piled up in my living room were driving me NUTS!! But, it all paid off and our house is beautiful for the Christmas holiday!

Happy Thanksgiving!

This year for turkey day we celebrated with Davids family. We rotate the "major" holidays every other year....this year it was Thanksgiving with the Belnaps!

Thanksgiving comes with lots of traditions.....we always eat yummy food, then we always make ginger-bread houses! Aiden actually got involved and somewhat decorated a house this year!

After ginger-bread house building, we usually do a little clay pigeon shooting in my backyard....sorry...I missed the photo-op of this particular tradition!

After the gun shooting we all shuffled back to Ty and Sandras for left-overs and then the sisters decided to go see New Moon. I had already seen it, but Ashleigh was dying to go....and we kind of conned Emily into coming! Sappy teenage love movie or not.......We had so much fun!

I am thinking a new tradition here!!! All the while, back at home my little man was sick! Thanks to my WONDERFUL husband for manning the sick fort!!

Ready to Share!

I have always loved to take pictures! I used to take alot of pictures when cameras were all film.....when everything went digital, I got a little intimidated by it all!

Well, I have jumped back into the hobby, and I have decided to share! I am not by any means professional, and it will be a while before I feel like I could do this as more than just a hobby....but here it is....A peak for all of you to see what I have been up to!

www.melissabelnapphotography.blogspot.com

FOR SALE!

We have decided to sell our home here in Coltman! I know...we thought we would be lifers here, but as life changes, so do plans. We will be sad to leave our friends that we have grown to love here, but will be glad to experience new things!! To check out our home go to http://www.buyourcoltmanhome.blogspot.com/! Please send any interested buyers our way!!

Happy Birthday Aiden!

My baby boy is 2! I cannot believe how fast 2 years has flown by!! According to Aiden, he is "tway-twee"...twenty three.....

He is definately growing up fast....I am just not quite sure that I am OK with him being 23 yet!

I asked Aiden what he wanted for breakfast for his birthday and he said "Em-Ems" or M&M's....so I made him M&M Waffles with a birthday candle to practice on!

Aiden picked out his own cake this year.....we looked through the cake book at Walmart and when he saw this one he yelled "Mom! Wow Tractos!"

It is amazing how quickly kids learn in one year!! Aiden dug right into cake and ice-cream this time.....and into the presents!

Happy 2nd Birthday to my very special boy!! I love you buddy!

Memory Lane Road Trip

This last weekend, my Mom, my 2 brothers and I took a road trip to Lovell, Wyoming! We used to go to Lovell ALL THE TIME as kids...in fact that was usually our yearly vacation spot!

My parents lived in Lovell when they were first married and made friends with a family there that adopted us as there own! Grandma and Grandpa Jones made us feel like part of their family....and we have never grown out of that!

It had been about 15 years since all of us had been back to visit together, and when the opportunity arose for the 4 of us to go back we took it! It meant alot and brought back TONS of memories!! Our family has been through the ringer in the last 15 years, and for us to be able to come from where we have been; to be able to take a "family" vacation together is pretty amazing! I will never forget our trips as a kid to Lovell, but there was something about going back as adults and still feeling like you did when you were kids!

Some things NEVER change....David was always the "pester-er" and Paul was always the "pester-ee" and I just laughed!!! At one point in the trip my mom was shaking her head in amazement at how so few things had changed...and David said "Mom...were you under the impression that in 15 years we would have grown up or something?"

Time itself moves on....but people don't change I guess! David still locked Paul in the bathroom....and Paul still got upset about it!

David still does cannon balls in the swimming pool, and Paul still gets upset about it!

But at the end of the day, I don't think any of us would have traded the trip!

Our favorite thing to eat when we visited Lovell as kids was Grandma Jones' tacos!! She makes the best home-made taco shells and so when she asked what we wanted to do while we visited...I told her I wanted a lesson in taco shells!!

We had a GREAT trip, we talked about life and memories we had growing up, we sang songs that we used to sing on family vacations and we laughed ALOT! When it came time to go home...all of us hesitated! It was always hard for us to leave grandmas house as kids.....it was ALOT harder as adults!

I am so glad that I got to go! I am reminded all of the time that life isn't always fair, and sometimes you get dealt a bad hand....but the people that love you and the people that have impacted your life are what matters! I am so glad that we have ended up in a place that we can go and do things together....because for a while there....it was touch and go!

I have the best brothers in the world! They each have their own speical qualities that I adore about them....I have not laughed so hard in a long time......mostly at Pauls expense, but he hung in there!!! I am lucky to have them! Thanks guys for everything!!!

Happy Halloween!!

This year for Halloween day we were in Boise once again! We started off the festivites with a FANTASTIC football game.....Boise state killed San Jose 45 to 7! It was a little rainy and a little chilly, but a true fan cheers through any weather!!!

Aiden got to spend his first time trick-or-treating with some of his best buddies!!

Carson and Kylie were the best teachers on the "how to" of trick or treating!! They all looked so cute together, representing the blue and orange!

After an evening of trick or treating, the kids were pretty tired! When we said that it was bed time, Aiden ran up and climbed into Kylies bed! It was so cute! I am glad that they get along so well together!!!

Since we were in Boise for the Halloween evening, Sunday night, we had to go visit all of the grandparents here that missed seeing Aiden in his costume!

Aiden is lucky to have so many grandparents that love him!! .....and who wouldn't welcome treats from all of them!!

PAR-TAY!!

Last night we had the best time at Kamis! We had a little halloween smash in her garage...and yeah....we were a little crazy about it!!

We played a few silly games.....

Did a few silly dances.......

And hung out with some pretty silly people....

.

It was a really fun night!! I have not laughed that hard in YEARS!! I am very thankful that I have such AMAZING friends that can seriously make you feel 15 again!