THE GUTH LIFE

Kennedy Turns 3!!

2008-10-05T15:23:00.001-07:00

I know we're a little out of order with our postings, but we couldn't forget to commemorate Kennedy's 3rd Birthday!

Two days before Kennedy's birthday, we took the girls to see a local production of Disney's Beauty and the Beast. The girls' friend, Addison joined us (with mom, dad and sister - Jenny, Philip, and Lexi). The girls were mezmorized during the entire production!

Kennedy turned 3 on September 14th. She got to go to Church where they sang "Happy Birthday" to her in Primary. We then had a "Barbie Diamond Castle" Birthday Party with all of our (local) family. Kennedy LOVES Barbie and the new Barbie movie, "Barbie & the Diamond Castle" was released the week of her birthday. In all, Kennedy received many wonderful gifts, most of which were Barbie & the Diamond Castle items, including:

The Movie
Two Dress-ups
A mini "laptop" computer
A Barbie Diamond Castle doll
A Barbie night gown
Barbie Veterinarian set
Barbie Diamond Castle Pinata, and
Barbie Diamond Castle cake

Yes, our little Kennedy has quite the love for all things Barbie and Princess!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET KENNEDY BUG!!

I'm 3 and these are MY presents!

Give Me Some Candy!!

Baylee Regan Guth

2008-09-23T22:14:00.001-07:00

As many of you may have already heard, Baylee Regan joined our family early this evening. Baylee made her grand entrance at 6:27 pm, Tuesday, September 23, 2008. So far she has been the sweetest little baby girl - she hardly cries and she's been sleeping good. (We're hoping this is a preview of what's to come!!).

This pregnancy was, by far, Miranda's best of the three. The labor...well, that's a different story. Miranda's platelet levels in her blood were very low. Platelets cause blood to clot; when the platelet count is low, the doctors worry about too much bleeding. Becuase epidurals have a blood thinning characteristic, the anesthesiologist refused to give Miranda an epidural.

Miranda has never had any intention of delivering a baby "au naturale", but she was a real trooper and got through the delivery process without even yelling at me once!! I am very blessed to have her as my eternal companion!! I also now have a MUCH greater appreciation of what women go through to perpetuate the human family! Miranda did say that she would have made a "crappy pioneer woman". Either way, she did great.

London and Kennedy have been great with their new baby sister - they love her so much!

Here are some photos of our little Baylee.

Baylee Regan Guth

Born September 23, 2008; 6:27 pm

Weight: 7 pounds, 2 oz.

Length: 20 inches

We're Having a Baby!!

2008-09-23T12:15:00.000-07:00

Well, I got the call today while at work - She's Having a Baby!! We're at the hospital, sitting and waiting and waiting. When we're done waiting, we'll wait some more. Doc's predicting a 5:00 pm birth. We'll see! Stay tuned...

Bummin' at the Beach

2008-09-15T21:18:00.000-07:00

Over the Labor Day weekend we went to Southern California to see California Besaws (Carl, Amy, Annaka, Adam, & Ashlyn). This was the first time all of Miranda's family was together in California since November 2001. A lot's changed since then - Miranda and I got married, Kent and Jamie got married, and 6 new grandchildren joined the family - Tyler, London, Morgan, Kennedy and Marcus.

One area that we as a family love is Newport Beach - so we decided a trip to SoCal isn't complete without a trip to the beach. (I did manage to avoid the Disneyland trap this time around.)

We got a boogey-board and I gave London and Kennedy rides and then tried to hit some waves myself. For the most part London enjoyed herself - she didn't like getting the salty water in her mouth, but she is adventurous and was willing to try tackling a few waves of her own.

Kennedy's experience can be summed up in a few words, and I quote, "I don't like that swimming pool very much!" She mainly stayed on the beach playing in the sand (although she's not a fan of getting sand between the toes or fingers!)

Lesson of the Day

2008-09-04T12:43:00.000-07:00

"You can't take pictures of Mommy while she's showering!"

And, NO, I was not the recipient of that lesson! In all fairness, Miranda should be telling this story, but you'll just have to be satisfied hearing this second-hand.

The other morning while Miranda was showering, she heard noise coming from an electronic device. Wiping the shampoo out of her eyes, she saw London standing on the other side of the clear glass shower door - with the digital camera Santa brought her - snapping photos of Mommy!

After calling off the paparazzi and finishing her shower in peace, Miranda made sure there were no latent pictures on the camera that should be deleted. As a result, there are no pictures to go along with this post. Sorry, I tried!

Gone Fishin'

2008-08-20T22:15:00.000-07:00

Well...not exactly. Saturday night we took the girls up American Fork Canyon to roast hot dogs and make s'mores, along with some friends - Scott and Lisa Richards (Ashlyn, Hailey & Whitney). While we were running errands earlier in the day, I came across this Barbie fishing pole. I'm not sure if London was more intrigued by the idea of fishing or the fact that the fishing rod was pink. (I've really got to help my girls find a new favorite color!)

Right next to the picnic sites in the canyon is a mountain stream. We've watched other people catch fish there before, so I figured why not test our luck. We bought the pole, floaters, hooks, and bait. London and Kennedy could not believe we were using REAL, LIVE WORMS! Good luck getting either of them to touch one!

After I baited the hook and handed the pole over to London (because she had been practicing casting all afternoon), she promptly cast the line clear across the stream, the hook stuck in the trees. It was a great cast, but that mountain stream sure was cold!

With another hook baited, we tried again, and again, and again, and again. Not a thing. London got bored and bailed. So Kennedy gave it a whirl. She caugth one right off the bat - a nice 18 inch long stick! So much for fishing! At least I have soccer!

And if you are wondering, I'm really not trying to turn my girls into Tom Boys, just trying to expand their cultural horizons!

London, Miranda, Kennedy, Ashlyn & Hailey cooking dinner.

London always has fun roughin' it in the mountains!

Kennedy and Ashlyn roasting hot dogs.

Where are all the fish, Dad??

Kennedy fishing - notice the others got bored and took off!

Cute girls - having fun in the mountains!

Soccer Time!

2008-08-19T21:57:00.000-07:00

One of the many joys I find in parenthood is seeing the excitement and eagerness of our children to try new things - especially when that new thing means you get pink soccer shoes! (They're black with pink accents.) London is going to play soccer this fall for the first time. She's seen various teams practicing in the field behind our house so she has some idea of what it is that she'll be doing. But I don't think she was quite prepared for all the fun she would have shopping with Daddy for the proper gear.

Perhaps I splurged a bit, but hey, I have a kid that's interested in sports and I'm going to nurture every bit of that for two reasons: its not dance; and Title IX (see NCAA scholarship rules)! Besides, Miranda officially declared soccer as "Daddy Duty"!

Seriously, London and I have had a lot of fun and quite a bit of bonding time kicking her new soccer ball around the back yard and working on some of the very basic fundamentals - NO YOU CAN'T PICK UP THE BALL WITH YOUR HANDS!

London is catching on very quickly. Official practices should start next week with games every Saturday begining September 6. Stay tuned for updates as the season progresses.

As for London's level of excitement...well, you can be the judge!

First Day of School

2008-08-08T22:23:00.001-07:00

Its hard to believe that summer is already coming to a close. Seems like the last thing I remember was siting by the pool in Newport Beach in early April. Now I'm being told that we're already a full week into August and I only have a handful of memories of the interim. (There are quite a few great memories, but this summer as been a blur!)

What's even harder to comprehend is that my Babies are off to school! This is London's second year of pre-school, but our little Kennedy took the leap on Thursday and plunged into school-life as well. Where does the time go??

Miranda dropped the girls off at their respective classes and I arrived a few minutes later. As I peaked into the different class rooms, neither London nor Kennedy could care less that Miranda and I were loitering outside of their classes. They settled right in and started making friends. (I guess its a good thing that the girls enjoy school and like to learn - check back with me in 10 years!)

Oh, and for those keeping track, that's two in a row for Regan. Watch out Miranda, I'm catching up!! :)

Even though both girls have friends in their classes, they were excited to go to school together.

London and her friend Addison (left)

Kennedy and her friend Ainsley (left)

Getting Ready for Baby

2008-08-04T20:18:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned to Miranda that we should update our blog. Afterall, a lot has happened since the last posting: London turned 4, Miranda and I enjoyed a week away in Las Vegas, we had a Guth Family Reunion in Indiana, and plenty more summer adventures to share. I have also be traveling a lot for work and my new role in the Young Men's organization - so my comment was met with an invitation (or should I say a challenge) to create a posting of my own.

So here it is - My Very First Blog Posting! You are a part of history in the making!

As we prepare for the new baby (the jury's still out on the name - don't get me started on that!) there's a lot to do. Miranda has done a phenominal job of "nesting" and organizating all of the baby stuff. I have to admit, so far my role has been relatively easy! My one (major) task has been the renovations of the nursery (yes our house is barely a year old and we are already renovating!!)

Since this will be Girl #3 and I REFUSE to have another pink room in the house, we had to get a little creative. Here are some pictures of the nursery before, during and after the work.

More Pink around our House!

2008-06-25T20:51:00.000-07:00

Just a quick post for those of you who haven't heard, ITS ANOTHER GIRL! Regan and I were both surprised because my pregnancy has been quite a bit easier and very different this time around, but I guess we just specialize in girls. I think Regan was in shock for a little bit and has already informed me that he will not be painting another room in our house pink, but we are both very excited and just grateful everything is going well. I've always said I could be a mom of all girls, but I don't think I fully thought through having to do four girls hair every morning.

Girls Dance Recital!

2008-06-22T22:36:00.000-07:00

I know I have been horrible at updating, so most of you have probably given up on us, but in case anyone is still checking our blog, I am finally updating.

May 31st the girls had their first dance recital. Our girls are definately ALL GIRL, and therefore have loved dancing from the moment they could walk. They were very excited for their first dance recital and of course the pretty pink costumes. Since it was their first recital I didn't know how they would do once they got on stage in front of all the people, but once they got out there and the initial shock wore off they did a great job. Here are some pictures.

The girls were also very excited to have both their grandparents attend. Noni and Papa Guth came all the way from Indiana to be here for the recital and celebrate London's birthday. Our girls are so lucky to have such great grandparents to love and support them in all that they do.

A Conversation with London!

2008-03-31T21:14:00.000-07:00

London is constantly amazing us with the things she comes up with to say. Most of the time I feel very scared that she is only 31/2 and worry for the day she is 13. So, last week London was helping me clean up the playroom and out of nowhere she says to me, "Mommy, when you get really old and die, I won't be sad." (At this point I was thinking, wow I'm glad I mean so much to you) then she says, "I will be strong and brave and I will not cry because I will have my Prince Phillip." Apparently, she has been watching a few too many Princess movies.

Excuses!

2008-03-13T20:54:00.000-07:00

I know I have been horrible about updating my blog, but I do have an excuse. I'm pregnant! I am due October 2nd. We are excited, but three kids definitely seems a little overwhelming. I am almost out of my first trimester and luckily I have been having a few more good days. I am hoping this is a good sign that I might have a little more normal pregnancy this time instead of just throwing up for nine months. Plus, keep your fingers crossed for Regan that being less sick means it is a boy. Anyway, we will keep everyone updated and I will try and get back into blogging now that I'm starting to feel a little better.

Santa

2008-01-21T22:13:00.000-08:00

I'm trying to catch up my blog, mostly for me, so if you are sick of Christmas pictures just ignore my next few posts. Here are some pictures of my kids with Santa. First, at our ward party and then of Kennedy at my parents Christmas party that they took the kids to. Then, the Saturday before Christmas our new neighbors/friends the Allan's had us over to their house for cider and to meet Santa and Mrs. Claus, which was by far the easiest way to get Santa pictures, so thanks guys.

Playing in the Snow!

2008-01-03T16:57:00.001-08:00

Okay, Amy gave me the motivation to actually post something new even though it will have to be short. I have so many things to post it is going to take me a while to catch up, but here is a start. The girls have loved the snow, they look out the window every morning and give me the weather update of weather it is snowing or not and weather they see snow or grass in the yard. Grandma Terry came over one day to babysit while I was at one of many doctors appointments and helped the girls build a snowman. When I got home I had to take pictures of my cute girls all bundled up and very proud of their snowman.

Car Accident Round 2

2007-12-17T22:26:00.000-08:00

So, apparently unknown to me, I must have been driving around the last few months with a bumper sticker on my car saying "Please hit me". Unfortunately, going bowling was not the only event of the day after Thanksgiving. That night I went to run some errands and to do some Christmas shopping and a guy ran a red light hitting me head on. I was stopped at the light at 9000 South waiting to get onto I-15. I received a turn arrow and started to go when I saw him coming. I slammed on my brakes and tried to swerve out of his way, but he wasn't paying attention and didn't even see me. He slammed into me head on going about 50 mph. The worst part was that I was trapped in the car until the other driver was able to get my door open and help me out. The rest is somewhat of a blur until they loaded me into the ambulance. Luckily, six staples in my head, a hairline fracture to my nose, knee problems, a bad case of whiplash and a lot of bruising is all I ended up with. I am so grateful the girls weren't with me and that it wasn't worse. It has been a long road to feeling better and I think I have been to more doctors the past couple of weeks then in my entire life, but I am so grateful I am okay. Here are some pictures since a lot of you have been asking, we feel very blessed I made it out of it okay. As you can probably see from the pictures, my cute pilot was completely totaled. I am now a proud owner of a Honda Odyssey Mini Van (Picture to come).

Bowling

2007-12-17T21:58:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving. My brother Carl and his family came from California and so all my family was able to be together at my parents for Thanksgiving dinner. It is always crazy when we are all together, but also so much fun. The day after Thanksgiving we took the girls bowling with some of my family. It was the girls first time bowling, and they thought it was pretty great. Here are some pictures from the girls first bowling experience and spending time with their cousins.

Disney World!

2007-12-11T20:06:00.000-08:00

I know it has been forever, so I will try over the next few days to update the blog with what has been going on with us lately and why I have been slacking. The second week of November we went to Disney World with Regan's family to celebrate his mom's 55th birthday. The girls were in heaven with all the princesses and Regan and I had a great time watching there reactions to everything. Thank you Mike and Barb for such an incredible trip, I know the girls will never forget it. I took so many pictures and I couldn't narrow them down, so I just put them all in a slide show. Hope you enjoy!

Triathlon!

2007-11-09T22:22:00.000-08:00

So, somehow Regan and I let Kent and Jamie talk us into doing a relay for the Orem Telos T3 Turkey Triathlon last Saturday. I have to say we were both a little apprehensive and wished we had a little more time to train, but overall it was a great experience. Next year we may even both attempt to do the whole thing on our own. For the boys team, my brother Kent did the run, our friend Phillip did the bike and Regan did the swim. For the girls team, I did the run, my sister-in-law Jamie did the bike and her sister Tracy did the swim. The boys came in third for the relay teams and completed the whole thing in less then an hour, way to go boys! The girls came in 13th for the relay teams, still not bad, unfortunately, I think only training for three weeks my run time was what held us up, but there is always next year. Thanks to Kent and Jamie for the motivation, it really was a great experience.

BEFORE:

DURING:

AFTER:

Halloween!

2007-11-08T21:55:00.000-08:00

So, this year I was no longer aloud to pick the girls costumes, they knew months in advance who they wanted to be. Luckily, I approved of their choices and I have to say they were the cutest Sleeping Beauty and Snow White around. It also worked out nicely that they chose princesses so they can take their new dress-ups with them to Disney World and we won't have to buy more. The girls were excited to have Noni and Papa (Regan's mom and dad) here to celebrate Daddy's Birthday and Halloween with them. They were also happy cousin Braden could do some trick or treating with them. On a side note, Happy Birthday to Regan on the 30th, he always gets overshadowed by Halloween, especially now that we have kids. I told him sorry, but don't blame me blame his parents for poor planning (ha! ha!). Anyway, here are some of my favorite Halloween pics.

We also started a new tradition with my family this year of doing a cousin halloween party the weekend before Halloween. It was getting too hard to try and get together on actual Halloween, so we decided to start doing a fun party where the kids can show off their costumes and we can get pictures without all the other craziness of Halloween. This year we did it the Friday before Halloween, unfortunately Kent and Jamie's kids came down with crupe so they were unable to come and with Carl and Amy in California it ended up just being us and my sister's family at Grandma and Grandpa's house for the party. Nonetheless, the kids had a lot of fun and we were able to get some cute pictures of all the kids.

London liked Gradma's costume so she borrowed it to be the Sleeping Beauty Witch.

Pumpkin Patch

2007-11-05T20:26:00.000-08:00

The Monday before Halloween I was able to get together with my high school friends for dinner, it was a lot of fun to catch up with everyone and have a night out. While I was out, Daddy took the girls to a small Pumpkin Patch by our house and out for ice cream at Artic Circle. The girls had a lot of fun on their "date" with dad. They were also very proud of the BIG pumpkin they picked out. Don't worry Halloween pictures are coming shortly.

A Day at the Farm!

2007-10-14T22:10:00.000-07:00

On Thursday the girls and I went to lunch and to the Thanksgiving Point Farm with one of our new neighbors, Jocelyn and her little girls Ani and baby Maicy. The girls had a lot of fun together. The girls have already made quite a few friends in our new neighborhood and Ani is one of their favorites, her and London are only a few weeks apart in age.

Visit with Papa and Noni!

2007-10-14T21:28:00.000-07:00

We went and visited Regan's parents in Indiana at the end of September. The girls had a lot of fun with their Noni and Papa, we wish we could see more of them. It was also fun to see Uncle Ryan, Aunt Heather, Taylor and "Parker Boy", we can't wait to spend more time with them at Disney World. Unfortunately, I didn't get very many pictures because it was such a busy trip, but here are a few.

Since, we got in the car accident the week before we left, Regan's parents were nice enough to set up a massage appointment for Barb and I. While we did that Regan and Papa took the girls to a nearby shopping center to play on some toys. They had a lot of fun.

Another highlight of the trip for the girls was taking bathtubs in "Noni's big tub". I tried to pick a very G rated picture, plus I love London's face in this picture.

London has become quite the photographer and you have to watch out because if she gets a hold of the camera, she knows how to use it. Here is a great shot of Papa that London took.

Noni and Kennedy having snuggle time. Thanks to Papa and Noni for a great trip! The girls can't wait to see you at Halloween!

Regan's Ten Year Reunion

2007-10-14T21:22:00.001-07:00

A couple of weeks ago we went to Indiana to visit Regan's parents and were able to go to Regan's 10 year high school reunion in Ohio. Here are some pictures. Justin, this is for you, you made the blog! Let me tell you, it was fun to catch up with Regan's high school friends, but it was everything you would think a reunion would be. . . karoke and all.

Happy Birthday Kennedy!

2007-10-01T21:14:00.000-07:00

Our baby turned two on September 14th, it has been so fun to watch how much she has grown up the past few months, but also sad as a mom that she is not my baby anymore. Unfortunately, with getting in the car accident the day before her birthday it wasn't quite as exciting as we had planned, but we tried to still make it fun.

Regan and I gave her a Barbie ATV for her birthday. She is so excited to be able to keep up with London in her jeep. They follow each other around and it is so cute, but as you can see from the picture of Kennedy on the grass, she hasn't got the hang of steering yet.

We took the girls to T.G.I.F. Fridays for dinner. Kennedy was a little weirded out by the strangers singing to her, but the ice cream sundae was a hit. Kennedy shared with London and I think more ended up on their faces then they actually ate.

For those of you who know Kennedy, you know how much she LOVES Barbie. So, when I heard they were doing a sneak peek of the new Barbie movie at the zoo where kids could meet "Barbie" the day after her birthday we had to go. She wore her Island Princess nightgown that Noni and Papa sent her for her birthday and thought she was very special. Then we spent the day wondering the zoo and riding the train.

On Sunday we had a princess party with family and one of her little friends. We did a princess pinata and the kids had a blast trying to break it. However, after giving all the kids multiple trys we had to let the adults at it. Uncle Kent was the hero when he finally broke it. Here are some pitures of the girls taking a swing.

After presents and the pinata it was time for cake. The fingers go straight in the cake and then to her mouth, then she looks up to see if she is in trouble, but is all smiles when she realizes it's my party and I can get away with anything. Happy Birthday to our BIG GIRL!

Car Accident!

2007-09-15T00:44:00.000-07:00

Thursday Night I was coming home from picking some things up at a friends house with the kids and was rearended. I was about a mile from my house and I started to slow down for a red light at an intersection and some guy behind me slammed into the back of me going about 45 mph. He then swirved to the left and hit a truck that was stopped in the turn lane. Of course, he was uninsured & driving on a suspended license, he claims his brakes went out, but witnesses told cops he was on his cell phone and he had his music blaring and wasn't paying attention. Plus, the cops said there were skid marks like he tried to stop last minute and nothing appeared to be wrong with his brakes. So, luckily we have uninsured motorist coverage on our insurance that will pay for the damages, we just have to pay our deductible. But, I just have to say I HATE STUPID PEOPLE! My only consolation is that he was then handcuffed and sent to jail because apparently he had $40,000.00 in outstanding warrants. Ironically, the other lady that he hit husband's a cop. LUCKILY, the girls seem to be fine except for being a little shaken up and London is very concerned that "our car is broken", although when dad brought home the rental (a suburban) today after taking our car into the body shop they were excited that we got a "new car" they may be disappointed when ours comes back. I didn't fair quite as well as the girls and seem to have a very bad case of whiplash, but I went to the hospital and there doesn't appear to be any major damage. For now I'm just very sore and stiff and can hardly move my neck. Hopefully, in a few days I will be back to normal with a little help from 800 mg IBProfin. I'm just so grateful that it wasn't worse, especially considering the circumstances. Here are some pictures of the cars. The piece of crap jeep of course was his, the Pilot is ours and the truck is the other ladies that he hit.

Kennedy's First Day of Ballet!

2007-09-14T21:42:00.000-07:00

Anyone who knows Kennedy very well, knows that there is nothing she loves more than to dance (well, that and Barbie but I thinking the love of dance came from watching the Barbie movies). London took dance this summer with one of her friends and everytime I drove them, Kennedy would cry the whole way home from dropping them off, stand at the garage door and cry and cry the whole way back saying, "me go too, me go too. . .". So, when our neighbor opened a dance studio in her basement and told me she was doing a 2 year old class, I knew I had to enroll Kennedy. So, last Thursday was her first class. It is a ballet/tap class and for weeks Kennedy has been talking about going to Ballet. We bought her shoes and she has been wearing them around the house "practicing". When the day arrived she was so excited and looked so cute in her outfit. Her are some of the cute pictures from the day.

London's First Day of Preschool!

2007-09-12T22:55:00.000-07:00

London has been anxiously awaiting starting preschool for weeks. She received a letter and activity in the mail from her teacher a couple weeks ago and has asked everyday since then, "this day do I go to school?" So, finally last Monday I was able to tell her tomorrow you start school. That was a MISTAKE! I remember when I was a kid I could never sleep the night before school however, I didn't think that would be the case with a preschooler. I shouldn't have been shocked since London will use anything to get out of sleeping, but that night was a nightmare to get her to sleep. We have slowly been making progress with her and her sleeping, but I still sit outside her door until she falls asleep which then lasts until sometime in the middle of the night when she quietly sneeks in our room without waking us up and lays on the floor, she has learned not to wake us up since we send her back to her room (we still have a long way to go but for now I'm just so grateful that I am no longer getting up with her multiple times during the night). Anyway, so I was sitting outside her door waiting for her to fall asleep and all she could do was talk about preschool and what she was going to learn and "what is my teacher's name again?" and "who is going to my school with me?" and "is sissy coming with me?" at which I replied "no, she is too little" and she assured me it would be okay to send Kennedy because she would, "look after her". So, finally after about two hours of questions (the last hour of which I ignored) she finally went to sleep, only to wake up multiple times in the night each time with a new question about school. Midnight: "Are you staying at school with me?" 2:00 am: "Who's taking me to preschool?" 4:00 am: "Is it time for school?" (anyway, you get the picture).

Once she was in bed I was the typical first time school mom, I picked out a cute little sun dress and made sure it was washed and ironed and set all her clothes out. So, I wake her up (she is not an early riser especially after the restless night she had) and inform her it is time to get ready for school. I have daddy get her breakfast with cereal and toast and juice so she won't get hungry while at school. Then, it is time to get dressed. I tell her I set her clothes out in her room and to go get dressed. She goes to her room and comes back with a disgusted look on her face and says, "That's not what I'm wearing to school, I want to wear my brown polkadot dress". After trying to convince her that the dress I picked out was much nicer I finally caved and went to her closet and pulled out a brown dress she has with little dots on it. She says, "No, not that one, my new school one with the blue and brown dots on it, come her and I'll show you". So, she takes me to her closet and points out a new outfit that I had bought her back in July for fall, it is really cute, but not quite in season. I tell this story so you know that I do not try to abuse my child by sending her to school during 90 degree weather in long sleeves, but those of you who are moms just know that sometimes it is not worth the fight. There was no convincing her that she would be too hot or that she could wear that next week, she had decided probably weeks ago that that was what she was wearing for her first day of school and no one was going to convince her otherwise.

So, finally after all of that, it was time for school. Daddy, mommy and Kennedy all took her and dropped her off. She didn't even look back. It was a hard day for me to see my little girl looking so grown up and Kennedy missed her and kept asking, "where's nondon?", but overall we are just so proud of what a big girl she is.

Luckily, the next day I did convince her to wear the cute dress I had picked out. However, being the observer she is she said she needed a jacket because some of the kids at school took jackets (probably kids whose parents dress them appropriately for the weather). She said, "there is one big girl in my class who could do her zipper on her jacket all by herself so I think I can do mine too". So, I gave her a cute pink jacket to put over her dress, but it never did get zipped (maybe she'll ask the other girl for some tips). I guess that's the hard thing about being one of the youngest in your class. Let the peer pressure begin!

The Things Kids Say!

2007-09-04T20:42:00.000-07:00

So, quick post to tell a funny London story. So the other morning London wakes up, comes in our room (amazing she wasn't already in our room sleeping on the floor) and climbs in bed with me. I, of course, am barely conscious and roll over to try and get a few more minutes of sleep and Regan is getting ready for work. London shakes me with her hand and says, "Mommy, I have a hole in my bum" Regan of course being the third child in our home starts laughing hysterically and replies, "don't we all". I sit up ready to give my daughter an anatomy lesson and she has her finger sticking out of a whole in the bum or her pajamas. The things kids say!

I am having mommy anxiety because London starts school tomorrow! I will post the dorky first day of school photos shortly.

Regan's Graduation!

2007-08-24T22:47:00.000-07:00

Although, Regan finished with classes the end of June, his official graduation was last Friday. We were so glad we could go and support him and his accomplishment. London was very excited and kept calling it "Daddy's Big Party", Kennedy on the other hand was a little freaked out by Daddy's outfit (see pictures) and was definately not putting the hat on. One of my old BYU roommate's (Kristina) dad was the guest speaker which made the graduation a little more personal for both Regan and I, as we know Kristina and her family very well. Despite having to be in Provo by 7:45 in the morning, overall it was a great day. Of course, before officially leaving BYU we had to make a stop at the bookstore and load up on plenty of BYU clothing to support our cougars this football season (I think Regan and I are even going to make it to some games this year). My favorite purchase was the pink BYU sweatshirts for the girls (I will post pictures this fall). That night we had a big Pizza party with our families to celebrate and per Madison and MacKenzie's request watch High School Musical 2.

What a good looking graduate! Congrats! Can you believe we did it!

London was so proud of Daddy! I think she just glad he is home more.

Kennedy wanted nothing to do with daddy in that outfit! No way!

We kept getting blinded by the Sun! We didn't pick the best photo spots!

We were greatful my parents were able to come and support Regan. They have been such an amazing support over the past two years to both Regan and I. They usually had three extra mouths to feed at least once a week while Regan was at school and would come and keep me company and help me keep my sanity. It was a proud day for them to have both Regan and Kent graduate.

London and cousin Tyler wearing their daddies hats! What a cute picture!

It took some confincing to get London to put the hat on, but she was quite pleased with herself once she did! We never could convince Kennedy!

Yummy Cinnamon Rolls!

2007-08-13T21:54:00.000-07:00

We had Grandma Terry and Papa Rod over for dinner last night. They brought cinnamon rolls for dessert and as you can see they were definately a hit with the girls!!!

Congratulations Regan!

2007-07-05T22:36:00.001-07:00

It is finally over!!! After two years in school, Regan is done with his MBA and will graduate in August We are so proud of him. Congratulations, we know it has been a lot of time and hard work (especially listening to me complain about always being gone).

Happy 3rd Birthday London!

2007-06-07T13:36:00.000-07:00

On June 2nd London celebrated her 3rd birthday. It is hard to believe that our little London Lou is 3! She had a great birthday, except for wishing daddy could have been here to celebrate with us. Although, I think she thinks birthday's last a month not a day because she had so many parties.

A couple weeks before her birthday Papa and Noni (Regan's parents) came to visit and we had a small birthday celebration with them. We ate Barbie cupcakes and she opened her present from them. They gave her a Disney Princess cash register which she loves to play shopping with, but she always has to have a paper and pen to make her "list" before she can "go to the store".

Then, the morning Regan left for his trip, we gave London our present, a battery powered princess jeep. She is very excited to drive it all around the neighborhood. Now, she just needs to get the hang of steering so she stops crashing into everything. Although, I think it is a game to her as she giggles everytime she

crashes. She's not quite ready for her license yet.

Then on her actual birthday she decided she wanted to go swimming. so mommy, London and Kennedy hit the pool. The girls had a lot of fun splashing around. Then that night we had a party with Miranda's family and adopted "Uncle" Kevin and "Aunt" Kristina who were in town visiting. She was spoiled as usual getting a wide array of "girly" toys. By London's request we all ate Barbie Fairytopia cake and ice cream. Overall I think she had a wonderful day.

Regan's adventures in Asia

2007-05-31T22:04:00.000-07:00

If anyone is interested in checking out Regan and Kent's adventures in Asia check out the Besaw Family Blog www.besawfamily.blogspot.com.

I love my sister!!!

2007-05-22T15:00:00.000-07:00

We went to Thanksgiving Point Gardens just before Easter and the girls had a ton of fun. Even though sometimes it seems like all they do is fight, they really do love each other and have a special bond.

My London's Growing Up!

2006-09-06T21:31:00.000-07:00

London is defiantely Regan's daughter when it comes to the computer. It is very common at our house between work and school, that if Regan is home, he is on the computer. Whether it comes from watching dad or if it was just built into her brain, London LOVES the computer.

It is a common occurance for London to pick up the laptop flip open the top and start typing. Since Regan introduced her to disney.com it has only gotten worse, since she now understands how much fun she can have on the computer. She loves playing the games and listening to the music. It won't be long before she is typing her own blog. It is hard to believe as I look at her typing away concentrating on what is usually a blank screen how big my little girl is getting.

The problem is London thinks she is much bigger then she actually is. Whenever London is around other kids, it is very apparant that she is convinced that she is much older than two. She feels right at home with the 4-8 years old in the neighborhood, but if another two year old wants to play she treats them like a baby. She is normally pretty good about knowing her limits, but around older kids she tries to do everything they do. We were at a ward activity where they had rented a big bouncer for the kids, she ran right over and got in line with her "friends" from the neighborhood (I think the next youngest child playing was 4), when I informed her that I thought she was too little to go into the big bouncer with all the big kids, she informed me, "No, London's big, sissy's little". This is also funny because the big kids have learned that London doesn't expect to be treated any different than them just because she is little, she can hold her own bouncing on the tramp, going down the slide head first or chasing after them. It is a regular occurance lately for me to hear a knock on the back door and one of the 4-5 year olds in the neighborhood is asking if London can come out and play. She even got invited to her first birthday party for a four year old who insisted to her mom that London be invited because she was her friend. As a mom this new stage has been very weird for me as I still think of London as a baby. I just wish she would grow up enough that I could reason with her about bedtime.

She amazes me daily with how much personality she has in that little body of hers. As much as she may frustrate me at times, she couldn't be any cuter. She is constantly getting dressed up and dancing around the house. Her latest love is ballet, she puts on her leotard and ballet shoes and dances around the house for hours, especially when the Barbie Nutcracker movie is on. Quite regularly as we are playing outside, the neighbor girls will come out in their dress-ups and London has to run inside and get her Barbie dress so she can be just like them. It is funny to watch how her personality changes as soon as she is all dressed up. She poses and gives me her pretty faces as she prances and dances around. It is obvious she feels very fancy in her dress-ups. On Sunday as I was getting dressed in my skirt for Church, London started with one of her favorite questions "Why?". I explained to her that we wear skirts and dresses to Church so that we can look nice when we go to Jesus' Church. She got very excited and ran into her room, when she came back she had put on her ballet skirt over the leotard she was already wearing and with her ballet shoes on informed me that she was ready for Church. It was quite a struggle explaining to her that although that was a skirt it wasn't quite the appropriate attire for Church. In the end we settled on pink skirt which I convinced her was just as beautiful as her ballet outfit.

On a daily basis I'm reminded of just how quickly my little girls are growing up. I can't believe Kennedy will be one next week. No matter how hard I might try to convince myself, they just aren't my babies anymore. Before I know it London will be getting all dressed up for the prom instead of just to dance around the house. Luckily, they still let me hold them and snuggle every once in awhile and they make me feel needed (sometimes too much s0), but I better enjoy it because I'm sure it won't last, as my little girls are definately growing up!

My version of "The Good LIfe"

2006-08-26T20:53:00.000-07:00

After much prompting from many friends and family members, I have finally entered the world of blogging!

The Guth Life is my version of "The Good Life". It is funny how life has a way of turning out just how you wanted, but not at all how you thought it would be. Ever since I was a little girl, like most other little girls, I dreamed of one day marrying my prince and spending the rest of my days as the best mom ever to my perfect children. It is funny how everything seems so easy when your little. Then, as you get older you realize the things that you wanted when you were little are the same things you still want now, except somehow getting them becomes a lot harder.

I remember Melissa and I sharing a room on a family trip to the Ricks beach house in Carlsbad, CA just before her and Craig got married. I think I was doing my best at being an annoying little sister and was teasing her about changing her name. She decided to get back at me by informing me that my future husband was Mr. Magoo, making me Miranda Magoo and my children little Magoos. Little did she know after teasing me for years about whether or not I had met Mr. Magoo yet, I would become a Guth instead. It is funny how with all the name combinations I put together for myself over the years I somehow never wrote Miranda Guth all over a notebook, just to see how nice it looked. But, what do you do if your prince's name is Mr. Guth? I laugh everytime we ask London what her name is and she proclaims proudly, "London Goose" she then informs me that I am "Mama Goose", I guess Melissa wasn't far off with Mrs. Magoo. Little does London know that she shouldn't worry about pronouncing her name correctly because no one else ever will either.

So, I got my prince, "a rose by any other name still smells as sweet". Let the fairy tale begin, right? Isn't this when all the happily ever after begins? I watch a lot of princess movies and read even more princess books these days, isn't it ironic that they always end with the prince and princess's wedding, riding off into the sunset, or some other equally romantic setting. I don't think it is by mistake that they leave out all the years afterwords and that they would never dream of showing you the prince and princesses children who I like to image as being ten times worse then my own. So, I got my prince and rather than the fairy tale, THE GUTH LIFE began!

I should clarify that this isn't a bad thing because after all, we all know fairy tales aren't real, The Guth Life is just a little more work then my little girl mind imagined when I dreamed of how my life would be. Who knew that getting married was just the beginning? Who knew that by the time my "perfect daughter" was two I would already be reading Supernanny's book trying to figure out where I went wrong. The good news is that while I am reading Supernanny who tells me it is all about my parenting, I am also reading Freakonomics in which economist Steven Leavitt informs me that from his research parenting only accounts for 50% of your childs behavior and 50% is their own personality and abilities. I figure I'm pretty safe since all her bad qualities must just be the way she was born and all the good qualities have come from my excellent parenting. Yet, as I fight to get London to sleep in her bed night after night and after trying to control yet another tantrum I can't help but think, "Is this really what I dreamed motherhood would be?". Isn't it interesting that the one thing I've wanted more then anything since I was a little girl playing with my dolls is the one thing in life I'm just not very good at. I look at my two beautiful girls and wonder if they realize how lucky I feel to have them, yet how insignificant I feel in being the one trusted with their care.

I still want nothing more then to be the best wife and mother I can be, if anything that wish has only increased since actually becoming them. I wouldn't trade THE GUTH LIFE for all the fairy tales in the world, it is "THE GOOD LIFE", but who knew you had to work so hard to get it. I guess it is true that the best things in life are the things we have to work the hardest at.

So, as I begin my blog, I will keep you updated on the craziness I call THE GUTH LIFE!