Conversation

Is it not so fun to have someone to talk to all the time and have a great conversation with? Since I left high school I have found that my best and most fun conversations are with my Mother and sisters. We talk usually once a day or most often we all talk to Bonnie once a day and she distributes the news to everyone else. Blake will come home and ask, "how are the Tollestrups today? Whats new?"
As we were driving to school today the conversation was started in the back with Bella Reese, "Mom look, the new park with the new school!!! I want to go to school like T-Dawg."
Tristan:"You can go to school B, just like me."
Bella: "No T-Dawg, I too scared."
Tristan: "Its not scary B. You learn your letters, ABC's, and get books and play with friends!"
I often forget how fast these two are growing up. It has been so fun to listen to their "conversations" throughout the day and house.

Happy Birthday Blakesters!

It is the Eve of October 8th and an exiting time in the Nelson household as the man of the house turns the big 34 in the morning! Happy Birthday Babe! I remember celebrating your birthday for the first time at the Macaroni Grill and the fun birthday presents I was aloud then to get you. We have had some fun times and it has changed a lot, but definitely for the better. As now on the Eve of your bday instead of penne rustica, its popcorn & cheese with coke and a hand rag. This guy has so many amazing qualities that I just have to name a few, maybe a few 34 of them and some fun stories and memories...
(They are not in any particular order)
1. I love love love Blake's laugh!! He has a contagious laugh, when he starts I start. The best is going to the movies and he starts laughing during the parts where no one else will laugh, therefore making everyone else laugh because of his laugh. I hope that just made sense.
2. He is the best Dad in the world! When he comes home from a long day of work he always gets down and plays with Tdawg and Bells. He is always fun and they LOVE to hear the garage door open because that means, "Dads home!"
3. Coke. I cannot count how many times Blake has started his "goal" to get off coke but lets just say it is a lot!! It usually starts Monday morning and ends in a large headache Tuesday night.:)
4. He takes care of all the bills, need I say more?
5. Blake is always up beat and positive!
6. Loves sports! Everything from Basketball, football down to ping pong.
7. To go with num. 6 he is always playing sports with Tristan and Bella. Tristan's favorite sport right now is Football. It is fun to watch them "tackle" and "run the bases".
8. He has a story to go with everything. We will be driving down the street and he will say, "that reminds me of when I was hauling hay" or "Back in college". (I get a little tense when I hear the back-in-college ones :))
9. He puts up with my 9 months of expecting moments.:)
10. He is very humble and modest, one of my favorite things about him.
11. Hard working! He works so hard with everything and anything he does.
12. He will be patient and help me hang all my pictures/decor on the wall. He is great at measuring and hamering (always on an angle).
13. Blake is soo good with math. He can add/subtract/times/divide and figure out the percentage so fast!
14. Plays Rook like a pro., even though I don't always agree with his method of strategy.
15. Never says anything bad about others. (unless he sees some of his family or old friends walking down the street with a keg and a wife beater on. Please do not get offended, it is just a joke we have had going on since date1).
16. Boomshackalacka ( I don't even know if this is right or makes sense, but he says it all the time and now Tristan says it just like him and it will always make me laugh)
17. His love for the Office, Modern Family, Seinfield, Sportscenter, Glenn Beck, Hannity etc.
18. I remember our first Scrabble game we played together. We didn't make it past any 4 letter words.
19. I don't know if he has ever read a novel in his life.
20. For our anniversary last year he took me to see New Moon, (might I add because of all his popcorn lunches that this was the only movie he hadn't seen) and made fun of it the whole time, but I just laughed at all of his comments.
21. He is the best to travel with, he knows his way around so well, even in foreign countries:). Our trips are always so fun because he is such an easy going person who is always wanting to please others. I love that about him!
22. He is great with money. Very frugal whereas I am learning. :)
23. "Patience is the key word". That is the Tollestrup family motto. Well Blake has a lot of it especially when it comes to #22 and myself.
24. He has a testimony of the gospel.
25. I love how he dresses for work & church. Always so dapper.
26. Great at public speaking
27. He has a big heart and very compassionate.
28. He is great at golf and we love going to go to the driving range or the put put as a family. This summer he taught Tristan how to hit it off the tee. Bella, well, he is working on that, she insists on having her own golf clubs like T's, but must be pink and when she doesn't hit it, she just ends up throwing the golf ball.
29. When I look at my children I see so much of Blake. Bella is the spitting image of her dad and Tristan, well, when he is doing something mischievous, Blake is written all over his face.:)
30. He is a totally different person playing sports, especially basketball. :)
31. He works hard so I can stay home with the little ones.
32. We sit up at night and laugh and tell stories about our kids. I will always love this. It is surprising that they even made it to bed tonight as they were up and down "needing" a drink or another story etc. Looking at each other we just sat back and laughed.
33. He has always showed so much respect and love for me. Always opening my doors, giving me a hug and kiss when he comes home from work, and has Tristan and Bella always thank me for dinner and take their plates to the counter and since I've known him, he has never said an unkind word or called me any name ever. He has always given me confidence in anything I do.
34. Blake is the most selfless person I know. For Christmas, Father's Day, his birthday or whatever day I will always ask him what he wants and he will always say "nothing, I don't need anything." He is always putting others before himself!
I could write a billion more things about Blake, but I probably have embarrassed him enough with my cheesy list. But I realise how blessed I am to have him as my husband and father of our babies. Happy Birthday Babe, luv ya!

My Posts

It has been a long time since I have posted anything on my blog. Sorry everyone. I have however written many posts and saved them until I could get my pictures on them. Having an older computer where it takes a lot longer to upload images and to write any post with half of the keys mysteriously missing :) makes blogging not always my favorite thing. When I see family and friends blogs, however, it makes me want to keep mine up as well. We had a very fun/fast summer and a very exiting start to fall with new baby-on-the-way, school, dance, birthdays etc. There is much to post so please stay tuned. :)

Canadian Cousins

The "Cool Girls 2!"

Growing up we always had a lot of fun at Grandma's with our cousins. This summer we had that wonderful privilege as we spent time up in Canada with Grandma and Grandpa. With my brother living just around the block and my sister coming to camp out for a week, we got to know all of our Canadian cousins. There is Emma, Tody, Brady and Ave, also Briggs or "mom, that guy who takes his shorts and shirt off and is naked :) (sorry Becs), Ester, your Livie, Oaks, Aunt Becs, Emma's mom, Emma's Dad, Uncle Al, Aunt Ang, Grandma and Grandpa with the bad knee. We went swimming, played at the park, diving board, road bikes, sleepovers, Magrath Days, hiking, throwing rocks, more swimming, playing doll house, Rock-Paper-Scissors, fireworks, mashed potatoes and milk gravy and did I mention swimming?! These cousins along with our Provo cousins (you'll always be Provo as there is no way of going down there without thinking of them!) have a special place in my heart! Maybe it was all the babysitting I did as I was only 13 when Avery was born. They are really great cousins to my little ones and put up with a lot of tagging along and fit throwing!

One very funny story as I can not forget is one day after swimming with Cody, Emma and Brady we all went up to 'The Store' to pick a treat. Well, Bella picks her usual Cheetos and we went to Grandma's basement to relax. Bella was laying on Brady's lap and unlce Al came down to say hi to the kids and he turned to Bella to say Hi and give her a hug. Well, Bella is quite shy some moments and as Al tried to talk to her she closed her eyes as if she were alseep and couldn't see him, however she continued to put her cheesie little fingers in her Cheetos bag to help herself to some more 'treats'. Classic Bella.

They talk about their cousins all the time! Bella is always on her phone to Emma and Ave and we do her hair like Emma's, dress like Emma, and even dance like Emma. As I write she is even talking to Emma on her phone, "Hi Emma, ya my ning ning." When I asked Tristan who his best friend was he answered, "Cody". The other day I asked Tristan where he wanted to serve his mission he told me, "Canada, so I can visit Grandpa and Grandma, Cody and Brady."

We have great cousins! We love and miss you so much!

Bella the Ballerina!

With her big brother starting his new school there is no way little sister was going to be out shined! Miss B started her dance class with her friend Macey. They learn tap and ballet and let me tell you how darling these little sweeties are! Dressed in her tights, tutu and tap shoes she was so ready to dance! This little class brings out her personality in a fun way! She loves being a ballerina like Emma and Ave!

First Day of School!

"First day of School! First day of school!" I felt very much like Marlin, the clown fish, on Finding Nemo last week as my little Nemo started his first day of preschool. He was so excited, I on the other hand was full of emotions (mostly due to the expecting baby on the way) nerviousness mostly, with the thought of letting my sweet little baby going all by himself. The night before Blake gave Tristan and Bella each a Father's Blessing and what a special experiance that was. My children actually sat still and reverent and when Tristan was done, Bella jumped off the couch and said, "My turn!"

The next morning we started off with a bowl of oatmeal and some sugar and with Tristan's new school shirt and Bella's new dance outfit we were all ready to go. Tristan was so excited for school and was so polite saying, "Thanks for breakfast mom!" and "I love you so much mom!" followed by a big hug and wet kiss! He sang all the way to school, "First day of school, first day of schoo!" When we reached the school he didn't even hold Mom's hand, he just ran as fast as he could to his class. He is my little stud and I am so excited for what is to come this year.

A Fathers Intuition!

Since I've been a parent I understand a little about a father's intuition. Judging by the way my father reacted to me coming home late on the weekend nights, I'm pretty sure he had some idea about the grain elevators we were climbing, the bridges we jumped and how many hanging eggs hung down the streets of Raymond, Magrath and Cardston. (If he didn't know then, he knows now). Well, I'm sure Blake will have the same intuition about his little girls. Yes thats right, little girls. He has been saying for weeks that we are having anonther little girl and he was right! We left the doctors office an excited little family, well... all but one. I asked Tristan if he was excited about having a little sister and he said "No! I want a brother. I want to read to him and share my room, not Bella's."
Names are another fun topic. Blake and I so far cannot agree on a name, however I don't believe we will have a say as Bella Reese already told us that the baby's name is Emma Ave. For those of you who know her she usually gets her way!:)