Our Big Little Girl

Eliza Lane had her 2-year appointment today. She was apprehensive at the office since she frequently gets shots there... but she was great. She is staying consistent with her size. She is in the 87% on height and 80% on weight. She wears a size 6 shoe right now and seems to grow like a weed. We most importantly happy that she is healthy! She does, however, insist that she is NOT a big girl, but she is a little girl, even when she uses a "big girl" potty! :)

Birthdays, Birthdays, Birthdays...

It was my birthday and then it was Eliza Lane's birthday! Soon it will be Skyler and Isaac's birthday!! We decided to have a lot of family celebrations. Our first was in Modesto, CA at the beginning of the month. Eliza and I got brownie sundaes, games, dinner, and even presents. This picture is so fun because it shows that the dress my mom bought Eliza and the doll's dress that Nathan's family bought are almost identical! CRAZY!

Eliza Lane has been singing "Happy Birthday to You" for a couple weeks!!

More details and pictures to come!

Chauncey went to Prom tonight...

Chauncey went to LDS prom night with a nice boy named Brigham. Eliza got to use Chaunceys glitter nail polish. Lucky girl! Chauncey was able to borrow my dress and Mom Bricker was able to make some adjustments. And the gold shoes from our wedding worked perfect! We did lots of fun braids in the front and then let the rest hang down. Eliza Lane let her borrow her purse. AND we are having a girl slumber party with Grandma Bricker. So fun!

How would you spell "J- th"?

Skyler and I have been playing around with a few names. This is a unique experience. We had Eliza Lane's name before she was conceived. But this time we haven't chosen one... until now. So, as of today: our little boy's first name will be "Isaac" and his middle name will sound like "J-th". We haven't decided on the spelling yet. Here are some possibilities: Jayth, Jaith, Jeith, Jaeth, Jathe... I am leaning towards the last two.
What do you think?

The Little Girl Around Here...

It has been so fun to watch Eliza Lane turn into such a little girl. I am definitely convinced that gender is an eternal element of each of us. Our afternoon together involved holding and rocking her babies, trying on dresses, playing with her kitchen set, trying on shoes, trying on jewelry, and then wearing her dress and sunday shoes over her clothes to the park... That wasn't a good idea. But that bad idea was the only one initiated by me... She seems to just be full of good ideas!

She enjoys watching me get ready in the morning in hopes that I might let her have a little lip gloss. If she is quiet in a corner, she found lip gloss or chapstick. She loves her nails painted... and yes she LOVES anything related to Cinderella or a princess. I can't wait to see how much girlier she gets. She definitely didn't get it from me. :)

cognitive development and negotiation...

Some days I really get excited to watch Eliza's cognitive development progress. I think, "Wow! how exciting to have a cute little bundle of intelligence." And then other days, I think, "Uh, why did we teach her that?" Eliza has been counting to 10 for awhile, but she was just reciting words. Recently, we has figured out that two is a bigger number than 1, etc. This was exciting, especially as we have been reading books and counting. It was pretty cool to realize that she actually understood what the numbers meant. And then it went too far!

Now that Eliza knows the difference, she feels the need to negotiate her wants. On Saturday night, I told her that after she finished eating we would be able to watch a movie. To this she responded, "No. Two movies." I then responded that we didnt have time for two movies before bed and that we would only be watching one. Her response was immediate. "No! Watch two movies!" It took awhile to continue exchanging ideas... and in the end, we watched only one movie. If she didn't understand her numbers and the meanings, I would not need to negotiate with Eliza Lane; however, it is probably better.

It has been interesting to see her personality and interests start to really solidify. She knows exactly what she wants in most situations. After she got her two-year immunizations, we told her that she could have a treat. We offered: candy, ice cream, or french fries. She responded that she wanted a sucker. So, there you have it. She knows what she wants and is willing to try to negotiate for it. We will see how this all turns out....

Dave Ramsey and tender mercies...

So, Skyler and I are currently aspiring to become Dave Ramsey groupees. We have listened to most of his book and are on the same page basically. Which means that we are committed to try to get out of debt, and make it through unpaid maternity leave. Are are motivated for various reasons. One is that we need to make it through unpaid maternity leave. The second is that we really believe that debt is a type of bondage. Three we believe that delaying immediate gratification for a more lasting gratification is an eternal principal. With that said, we are currently living in a one-bedroom apartment in order to scale back our life and be more self-reliant. We are still yet to complete our new budget, but we are beginning to think seriously about what is a necessity and what is a want. We have never been so determined to think outside the box. And... we are getting better at it.

The biggest thing has been that we have seen tender mercies and blessings since we started on our journey. The Phoenix area cost of living is still a little higher than Provo. Since Skyler and I are both technically working part-time, we aren't making tons of dinero. So, we are trying to plan ahead and get things that will save money and space in the long-run. Our most frequent saving grace has been Goodwill's 50% off days. Skyler and I have made lists of things that we need, prayed in faith, and then found exactly what we needed. One great example is Eliza's future birthday present that is hiding in our storage unit. I will have to tell you that story on another day.

We have been slowly stocking up Baby Boy Bricker's wardrobe. I have felt it was a boy since October 2009... so I have sporadically gotten a few things on major clearance. But right now we are actually trying to fill in the holes. I told Skyler that I didn't mind having mostly second hand clothes, but I just really wanted a cute "coming home from the hospital" outfit and a cute blessing outfit. We will probably get a cute blessing outfit after Easter and everything is on clearance... but I have been keeping my eyes peel for the "coming home" outfit. When I saw this one, I think I heard singing in the background. It was and still is perfect. Skyler and I have really quite similar style in a lot of things, especially baby boy clothes. We like color, and even silliness. Baby girls are supposed to look pretty, but baby boy are cutest in something silly, well we think so. I think this is perfect because it is fun, it is definitely boy, it looks brand new, it says "I make Mommy happy" which is something I will want to be reminded of as I am exhausted, it is the right size, and we both like it.

So, miracles never cease. I know that this is not a life or death situation. There are definitely more important things going on in the world... but it reminded me that Heavenly Father loves me individually. He cares about things that I care about. And most importantly, when our family is trying to align our wills to His, we are ALWAYS blessed with what we need.