Merry Christmas

We wish you a Merry Christmas,

We wish you a Merry Christmas,

We wish you a Merry Christmas,

and a Happy New Year!!

Well, I hope that a little post on the blog will suffice for a Draperland Christmas letter this year... even without a recent family picture. There are some years when you can just get around to it but this is my guilt-free, enjoy-the-moment year. That is due to either carpooling loads of teenagers or snuggling with my little girlie. Either way, time is going to fast...

Here is a quick update on the fam:

TOP TEN DRAPER MEMORIES of 2010:

10. Ryan's continued fettish for Superman and drawing the "S" symbol on every possible piece of paper in the house. Notice I said paper, which is a step up from just just drawing on anything last year.

9. Zach's 12th birthday was a major highlight as he graduated into Young men's from Primary and surprised both of his parents by reciting from memorization the 13th article of faith from the pulpit. Yes, I think a single tear formed as I thought,"He does hear what we teach!....." Sniff. Sniff.

8. Tanner decided one day that he likes to organize shelves and drawers. Yes, we were a little concerned that he was our son, too, for a while BUT decided to claim him no matter what due to the surprise one day when he organized the entire DVD book case according to genre and alphabetical order. It was a beautiful sight. I didn't even discover it for a few days until I needed to find a workout dvd and there they were all in order.

7. We learned a lot about Kaden's ability to never give up after he suffered a terrible football accident one week into the season and had a broken hand. Even after surgery he did not quit the team until one day he realized that although he wanted to try and tackle with a cast on, it wasn't worth hitting the long pins in his knuckles and damaging his hand permanently. Still he went to almost every practice and game to be with the team, running drills and giving water, all the time with only one hand.

BUT

He would tell you the best moment of this year was getting his cast off so that he could play his guitar. We missed hearing him play all the time and he couldn't wait to get back to it.

6. Tom is about to enter year 9 in the car dealership business and still loves it as much as year 1. Each year has had its challenges and different learning curves, but he continues to amaze me at his talent and I am convinced that he is the "smartest auto guy" on the planet. It is part of his fiber to be positive and although things get stressful, I never see him go out the door dreading work. He is genuinely happy to help people find the right car for the right price.

*******side note: Being the wife of a car dealer has been very educational. When he first got started, we used to play the "intersection game" where we would sit at a stop light and he would see if he could guess the make and model of each car that would drive through. I couldn't believe how good he was and now after hearing and being a silent observer after all these years I CAN PLAY, TOO! And sometimes win..... ( I even have dreams where I am selling cars to people and sounding just like Tom :)

5. We love our ward and have both had a number of changes in callings this year. Wherever we go, it is only a matter of time before word leaks out about my organ-playing spouse. He tends to eventually become the ward organist in every ward we live in most of the time coupled with other callings. He always does such a great job. Right now he is also the Cubmaster. Can you think of two callings that are more polar opposites?! One for the musician in him, the other for the little boy in him...

I have been recently switched from Bear den leader to RS 2nd counselor. Missing the boys but now loving the ladies.

4. Vinyl machine up and running again. Enough said. Probably the real reason Christmas has totally snuck up on me.

3. March brought the color pink into our home!! Sophie is almost 9 months old and crawling around. She has a thing for Zach and when he walks in the room, she starts to laugh. It is like she just GETS him even though she can't understand what he is saying to her. So cute but we had better watch out.

This is my first Christmas with a daughter. Wow!

2. Road trip 2010 took us to "Baby-palooza" as we traveled down to Phoenix to meet the first Baird cousin (Lisa & Renton's baby Ava) and then up to Payson to see Maycee (Eric & Shaili's baby). Over to Rexburg to meet Grant (Megan & Joseph's baby) and eventually Idaho Falls to meet Annie (Kaylee & Scott's baby). I have been looking forward to the baby boom happening in my family for a long time-- who knew it would happen all at once?!

1. There really is not a #1 memory for this year but I can say that the top priority for us has just been trying harder to keep the Lord with us everyday. We would not be able to get through anything without the ability to drop down on our knees and talk to Him in prayer. He is always there. All you have to do is ask. You are never too far away from him.

Wishing you a remarkable and happy holiday. We count our friends and family as some of our greatest treasures...

Halloweening Fun

Halloween 2010 rocked! I love watching the true personalities come out of my sons on this holiday...

Zach's Elvis costume proved that even 12 year olds know how to swivel those hips.

Kade decided to wear the dreds while in church clothes. The name of the costume kept changing all night but I think it started out as a Jamaican Missionary (Shout out to Brad). Tanner was a ninja and can I just say thank goodness that I have one son who enjoys wearing costumes from past years???

It is nice having one of those in the mix.

The others in the picture are our awesome neighbor friends.

Ryan landed on the Batman costume after literally

worrying the whole month of October which superhero costume wear. He has a minor, I mean MAJOR love for all superheros and has gone through each one wishing he had their powers.

My least favorite phase contained the words,"Hulk SMASH!" followed by something getting smashed.

After he got home from the trunk or treat, I taught him how to count his candy and pick out his faves (remember that when you were a kid? We used to sort and count the candy over and over again. I would seriously keep track of the number everyday until it was eventually gone).

Then, there was our little clown. I have always wanted a clown on Halloween and for some reason couldn't ever convince the boys to do it. But this was my chance and while she was still young enough to not pull off the wig. Although I kept seeing different color hair in her mouth all night.

She looks like she is shell shocked. I can almost hear her thoughts. "Seriously, Mom? Out of all five kids, how did I get to be the one that wore the clown costume?"

And yes, Tom and I did dress up but I don't have the pictures to prove it. We went to a Murder Mystery Dinner that was a blast. Our characters matched us perfectly. Tom was a Spanish professional golfer named Cougar Forest that flirts with all the ladies( he was hilarious) and they assigned me the character of Principal Amethyst. She was a mean, crazy principal whose students never make it back to class alive. I think my friend nailed me when she handed out the parts.

As we were leaving to go out the door, Tanner said, "Mom, you really could be a mean Principal." That's nice, hon. Big kiss.

Happy Halloween Everyone!

And Thank You. Thank you very Much...

Just a Little Slideshow for Fun

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Marsha and I had fun taking some pictures of her on Grammy's bed on a nice Sunday afternoon. I can't believe she is already 5 months old. It is going too fast------

This one is for all the Aunties that are far away. Here is your "Sophie fix" for today :)

My sons have just found their favorite song...and a new motivation for Scouts.

Draperland loves baby blessings.

There is nothing better than a big family party. Mr. T and I have decided that it is our favorite thing in the whole world.

There is magic when everyone gets together to celebrate something special like the birth of a baby, etc. We like to get a little crazy. But you mix that with good food and....WHAM-O! You've got heaven. Or at least I hope that is what heaven will be like. Especially the good food part.

We were so grateful for all the family that traveled many miles to be here to share Sophie's special day with us. We never expect very many to have to come because we know how busy their lives are, but just appreciate any that show up. Thanks to Tom's sister, Kelly, we have some fab photos of the elements that go into a perfect blessing day:

A cute baby with a giant bow on her head...

A thankful mother...

snazzy white clothes...

27 family members eating delicious-ness in the dining room...

and one proud Grandpa hiding while soaking up the moment.

Heaven.

Slideshow of Baby Sophia 5 days old

Click on the link below for a slideshow of photos by Wendy Vonsosen Photography.

Sophia Nicole

She Has Arrived

The stork has made a drop off at Draperland and it has changed our lives forever...
And her name is....

Sophia Nicole

8 lbs. 6 oz.

21.5 inches

Born 3/25

10:16 pm

The details are a little crazy! My water broke at a doctor's appointment--convenient huh? It was during spring break and my mom, Amy, and Brad were in town patiently (ok, not so patiently as we tried EVERYTHING to get this baby here! Chocolate, sit-ups, running stairs, bumpy car rides, etc.) awaiting the stork to make an important drop off. I had three nights of false labor. Yes I said,THREE, people. By the time I got to the doctor's office I was all but begging for him to put me out of my misery. And then she just decided it was time as I was sitting in the examining room...

Yikes. When that water breaks you feel such a mixed feeling of shock, excitement, and foreboding dread come over you at the same time as you try to keep your wits about and think of what to do next. Luckily the hospital was across the street and so Mom and Amy quickly got me admitted and we called Tom. The contractions didn't get going hard for at least an hour and so we hung out just thinking about the birthday party that lay ahead and Grammy Draper came to join us.

Words cannot express how much it meant to me to have both Grammy D, Grandma B, and my sister, Amy, there for this special occasion. I will never forget watching them cling together arm in arm, cheering in the final moments. I needed it so much and their love got me through some major contractions! It was wonderful to have them there to witness the birth of this little granddaughter they have waited so long for and there was sheer joy in the room when she finally arrived...

We spent a few days in the hospital and then it was time to bring this new pink thing home to a house full of brothers and uncles that couldn't wait for her to get there.
They were so shy at first around her and didn't know what to do. Tanner even came up and told me he was afraid to smile at her because she was a girl... we are crossing new territory.

The day that she came home, Tom turned to me late in the afternoon and said, "I feel such a peaceful feeling in our home. Don't you feel it?"

Yes. I did. And every time I hold her in my arms now I feel it.

As I stare at this little baby and think about the gift that my Heavenly Father has given us, all the world just feels right...

~Little Sweet Sophie~

I love this

Just Waiting For You...

Just needed to document the belly for a few friends and family members requesting a picture.

Thanks, Kym, for spoiling me with your talents with everything between painting my toenails (which I can't touch) fire engine red to taking the first maternity photo session I have ever had. You've made my heart happy.

One Month Left...

In case there are a few of you that don't know the BIG news...

Three Hints.
I hope this isn't too hard. No, they are not for my boys.

All systems seem to be GO that baby #5 is a GIRL!!!!!!

I am sure most of you have heard this little juicy tidbit of news way back in November when we found out and I posted it on Facebook to spread to the Glad tidings of Great Joy. Yesterday I ran into a friend at Target (Hi Tami, Love you!) and told her about the baby and she reminded me to write it on the blog. I forgot that there are some of us that THRIVE off of news from blogs (seriously, I do.) I love to see pictures and read any updates on your lives and it is like taking a peek into someone's life while being a fly on the wall. I get motivated to be better, more creative, more fun, happier, stronger, and love life by reading each of your blogs. THANK YOU. As for my news, so sorry to leave some of you hanging! That was so not fair...

Ok. Here is the scoop. Little girl on the way. Due date end of March-ish. I say that because my babies must not like it inside of me very much and they always come almost 3 1/2 weeks early. So, I can never actually believe in a due date. We'll see if it is different with a girl. She may be afraid to come out.

I would be if I had four older brothers...

Anyways, bare with me as I get more excited for this than anything in the whole world. I have been a mom now for almost 13 years. That is thirteen years without any trace of pink, except in my secret hope chest in my closet. Thirteen years without feeling legal to walk down the barbie isle in the store. Thirteen years hoping for a daughter to watch become a bride and mother someday. Ok, I won't gag you and go into the far (but all too near) distant future, but all I can say for the moment is this is just really fun.

Coming from a family with 6 girls, don't think I am not aware of the down sides, too. Now there will be TWO of us with ranging (did you notice that I did not put Raging?) emotions and I am sure there will be the drama moments. I guess I have gotten away with that excuse for too long anyways, that I am a girl and I say to my boys as I go into my room to crawl under a blanket and tear up that "that's just what girls do. Now shut my door for a few minutes." Hee hee, all the while knowing that I am just making up an excuse to have some alone time.

Well, just for now, I will just enjoy dreaming of sugar plum FAIRIES and sparkley finger nail polish as I lay there during that alone time. Only one perplexing non-stop thought right now:

What do we name her????