Closing out 2020

 Wow- what a year! I don't think anyone expected 2020 to go the way it did, and yet, it did. A global pandemic, school cancelled and home schooling, stores out of basic necessities, a very ugly presidential election, everyone wearing masks. Not at all the year we had pictured a year ago. And yet, here at home, one of the sweetest years we've had. Hard, but sweet. The top highlights of our year:

With no question- the highlight of the entire year was adding Miss Lila Carly Hugo to our family on February 19, 2020. She's the sweetest girl in the world and we can't imagine life without her now.

2. We spent the summer at the pool! This was from the 4th of July. In a summer where so many options were closed, it was amazing to have the pool close by! All three boys are total fish, and Lila learned to tolerate it.

3. Our camping trip in July. Camping with a new baby and three other kids is no joke, but it was absolutely beautiful and absolutely worth it (and also absolutely exhausting).

4. The boys got to start back to school in person in the fall! At first it was only two days a week, after one month it progressed to 4 days a week (which is the plan through the end of the year). After our experience in the spring, we won't take school for granted!

5. Our family trip to Bryce Canyon in September. This is such a beautiful spot and we loved exploring it and getting away as a family!

So many beautiful memories in 2020, along with some  hard ones. This was a year of a lot of family time. The chaos in the world mandated that we spend more time at home with each other and I will always be thankful for that time. I saw my big boys grow in their relationship with each other, and grow in their relationship with Davis. Everyone got more time with baby Lila. Ben got to work from home for a big part of the year. While the world was falling apart, our family was growing closer and stronger.

I also witnessed so much GOOD in people. Unprecedented times made a lot of people focus on their blessings and focus on others who needed help. We watched our community rally after a crazy windstorm. We watched them rally around people in heartbreaking circumstances. Our little family was the recipient of so much love and thoughtfulness. I'll never forget in the first weeks of the pandemic when groceries and other goods were hard to come by, and I had a brand new baby at home and didn't want to go out to stores. Not a single day passed without a neighbor texting me to see if I needed anything, reminding me that they could easily run to the store for me. People came together to help one another in a beautiful way.

Our theme scripture this year was "Search diligently, Pray always, and Be Believing and all things shall work together for your good. D&C 90:24" This described our year in the nutshell- we did a lot of searching. Both emotional and mental searching and spiritually. We read the whole Book of Mormon as a family. We studied the words of God! We prayed a lot. And we believed things would work out. They did. Maybe not everything the way we'd hoped, but it has worked out and we've become better through it.

We rang in the New Year at home. Ben made us a delicious Korean dinner, which the boys loved. We made homemade ice cream and watched an Avengers movie. We celebrated East coast new years and put the boys to bed at 10:00. It was quiet and simple, but still sweet in it's own way. While most people were saying "Good riddance 2020!" I was feeling grateful for the gifts it brought me- a new baby, a closer family, better perspective, added strength that comes from trials, and a hope for a brighter future!

Lila Fashion Show

 As much as I truly loved dressing my baby boys, having a baby girl took it to a new level! Picking out her outfits has been a highlight of my day every single day since she was born. I thought it would be fun to do a round-up of all my favorite outfits (it was hard to narrow down- but these are my very favorites!).

This little lemon outfit was the first thing I bought when we found out we were having a girl! She wore it home from the hospital and I just loved it so much! This is also the outfit that she got her nickname "Lemon-pie" from. It was newborn sized and she wore it a lot for the first 6 weeks or so until she sadly grew out of it.

Besides the above outfit, I didn't buy anything else in newborn size. Luckily, Katie did! So Lila wore lots of hand-me-downs from her cousins for the first month of her life. This little denim romper was so darling and was an absolute favorite! 

My mom gave me this little tutu outfit at my baby shower, and it might be my favorite outfit she EVER wore. It's the most "Courtney" thing I've ever seen! Plus the fabric was so soft. She looked so darling in it.

I loved this little pink outfit too- also a gift from Nana. My mom actually bought this (along with the flower print one below) back when I was just barely pregnant with Lila- we hadn't even confirmed she was a girl via ultrasound yet! Nana was too excited and bought these darling little outfits and gave them to me and I looked at them hanging in my closet for months and months. I was so sick and when I'd look at these tiny outfits I would just get so excited for my baby girl to come! I know they are just clothes- but they gave me something to look forward to during the yuckiness of the pregnancy. Also- she has ballet shoe socks on and they were my favorite until sadly one got lost in the wash.

Heidi bought this little outfit for Nora six years earlier and it looked so cute on Lila! It started getting hot and Lila was still so tiny- and all her baby gifts in 0-3 were understandably winter clothes (February baby). It was so nice to have Nora's hand-me-downs to help us get through June! It's hard to see in the photo, but there are cherries printed on this chambray fabric- I love a good cherry print!

Oh the bunny outfit! This was a gift from my Aunt Georgia and cousin Erin. She wore it for her first Easter (fitting). The print was so sweet, the light pink color was perfect. The first time she wore it, I told Ben "This is what my baby girl dreams are made of."

Lila had these darling sleeping gowns (also a gift from Nana- there is a theme- Nana bought her lots of cute stuff)- but this one was my favorite! The words say "hello gorgeous!"

Kate bought her this darling little number. Pretty much everything else she wore during this time was pink, so it was nice to break it up a little with orange.

This outfit was so cute- it was a hand-me-down from Eliza Shaw. It only fit for a few weeks of summer, but it was darling while it lasted!

This outfit was a gift from my cousin Kelly. It was an absolutely favorite. It was so soft and the perfect blush color. I loved the ruffles and the way it fit her. She wore it all the time during the spring. Also, this bow is still one of my favorite bows. I love the liberty of London print and the way it compliments her mostly pink wardrobe.

This cute dress was a gift from Heidi and it looked beautiful on her! It also had a little navy cardigan but for some reason I don't have many pictures with the cardigan on. I had planned on her wearing this to church...and then church didn't happen for so long. But she wore it to home church a bunch and looked cute nonetheless.

I love this mint whale outfit for a couple of reasons:

1. I bought this for Nora six years ago! So sweet to put my daughter in it (and so nice of Katie to save it for me).

2. I love Lila in mint green! Although she mostly wears pink stuff, Ben and I both agree that she looks gorgeous in mint green and blues!

Oh the pink dress had a red version in the larger size! This was one of Hudson's favorites that he'd always pick when it was his turn to choose. I loved the poppy print too!

I loved this mint green outfit! It fit her right in the middle of the summer, so she didn't wear it a lot. But it was perfect for the cooler days and when we were camping. 

Again, I love her in mint green. This dress was the absolute cutest! It was a gift from Laura Scott- Heidi's best friend in Boston! Shortly after Lila was born the cutest package came in the mail, such an unexpected surprise! I put her in this almost every Sunday for awhile there. 

This onesie was also a gift from Nana- it came in the most darling 5 pack and she wore them all a lot, but this one was my very favorite. I just loved the print!

This darling swim suit was also in that package from Laura. It was so cute I just almost couldn't stand it! (It was even cuter in the back- those ruffles crossed in her back!)

This pale pink romper was also a gift from Kate and looked so darling on her! I definitely have a thing for blush pink and sweet little floral prints!

I just loved this whole ensemble- from the bow socks (also a Nana gift), the cute little jeggings (hand-me-downs), sweet pale pink stripes and that heart headband- dressing and accessorizing her was just such a blast! I loved picking out a bow every day to match her outfit. As I'm typing this she's 10 months old- she's worn a bow every single day of her life. It's just too fun!

This might be tied for my favorite outfit ever. Nana bought her this and I planned our whole family pictures around it because I knew I wanted her to wear this. Everything about it was darling- the colors and print and ruffles! 

The print on these jammies were so cute! These were a gift from our friend Merlyn.

These pants really had me- you can't even see the ruffle bum, but believe me it was adorable. They also just had a nice fit to them that worked on Lila's tiny build. They fit right around Halloween time and were so perfect for fall!

This dress was so special to me! It was mine when I was a baby and my mom saved it. It was hand made by her cousin and even though it's 32 years old held up incredibly well. The delicate smocking was just so cute! (In the next few years she'll have lots of things to wear that my mom made- most of them with darling smocking- but my mom wasn't doing as much of that back when I was a newborn).

I love this outfit- partially because I bought it for Davis! It looked so cute on him with his darling red hair- he wore it for his first Christmas. When I was getting rid of the little boy clothes I just couldn't part with this one, and then realized that it couldn't totally work for a baby girl! Lila looked darling in it as well (although I had forgotten that the buttons on this are a real pain!).

I called this her "Audrey Heburn look".  Heidi got her these darling tutu onesies (there was a pink one too, also adorable) and I just loved pairing it with her grey tights and red shoes (which were Nora's). As I look back I guess I have a thing for tutu's! Maybe 10 years of ballet lessons did that to me!

So that's a wrap on Lila's 2020 fashion. Really, every outfit was my favorite and it was hard for me to narrow it down to these. She has been one well dressed baby! As we began 2021 I pulled out her size 12 month clothes, so get ready for more adorable outfits! 

Christmas

We had such a beautiful Christmas! Christmas Eve we spent with the Smith family and had a lovely time! We played some games, which were hilarious with all these excited kiddos. The kids put on their adorable talent show! Chase and Hudson played their piano songs, Davis did his flip trick with Ben and Lila crawled up the stairs. Possibly the most darling part was Anna doing her talent- giving hugs. She went around the room with a big smile and gave everyone a hug! We did our traditional candlelight dinner, Davis wanted to blow out the candles for most of it. He was delighted when he let him at the end. We did the Nativity with a really crazy puppet show and then did presents. Davis was possibly the cutest, most excited child ever during gifts. He was so thrilled with each gift he received, and anyone else's gifts as well. It was so loud and adorable- so many excited kids! 

My favorite gift the boys gave was to Nate- they wrote and illustrated a book for him! It was so darling! They spent like six hours one Sunday creating it together. After Nate opened it and was looking at it, Davis exclaimed in the most excited voice ever "A STORYBOOK!" and then walked right away again to continue playing with his recently opened gifts.

It was such a lovely night, just as it always is! We loved having everyone together and I'm so thankful for these sweet relationships we have! 

We put all the kids to bed and enjoyed a quiet night together. Even though the kids all slept like rocks- Ben and I did not! Even though we told the boys to sleep in, they didn't. They were up at like 5:30- but they mostly stayed downstairs and put together the lego set Hudson had gotten the night before from Heidi. They had it totally completed by the time we let them upstairs to do presents! 

The kids were all so thankful and excited about their gifts! The big kids got the nerf guns they wished for, Davis got his "red present" (A firetruck), and Lila got her first little dolly!

Lila also got this little basket of babies from Nana and Papa- she loves them! It's fun to have some girlie toys around!

After our traditional biscuits and gravy breakfast, which was super delicious, the kids spent the rest of the day playing with their new toys! Lots of legos and Nerf guns and scooter riding (and naps for mom and dad and the little ones!). We did Christmas dinner up at Ray and Diane's, which was lovely. Lila even went to Great Grandma Beatty for a little while- she loved playing with her necklace.

We had a really lovely Christmas holiday this year- but really the gift of these four kids is the greatest part of it all! I love having little ones at Christmas, they make it all so magical!

 

December

Going into December this year, like every other month, I knew it would be different. I was kind of worried it wouldn't end up being fun enough or magical enough, but actually I think we pulled through it just fine! I'd say we even enjoyed it!

Right before Thanksgiving, I floated an idea to Ben to put a huge desk in this space. Our family room is a little long and narrow, so there was definitely space there (the piano was there before, but we moved it to the front room). Mostly, I wanted another workspace for the kids to use. Since we don't have a bar or any extra counter space, our kitchen table has become the homework/homeschool station, where we eat every meal, and any extra projects. Keeping it clear for the next activity was a little exhausting. Also, as our kids grow we wanted a good spot for computers to be that are in a family area. Ben was immediately on board with the idea (I'd been toying around with this for like 2 years!) and the day after Thanksgiving we found ourselves at Home Depot looking at desktop options! We found this butcher block, bought it and we were off!

I stained the butcher block and it turned out so pretty! We had a little issue with applying polyurethane- lesson learned! The garage was too cold and a little too dusty. So we sanded some more, heated up the garage, and the last coat went on as smooth as can be! 

Then finding bases for this was a pain- the ones I wanted and conceptualized the idea around were from IKEA and no one longer in stock! We toyed around with doing just normal legs- but I really wanted storage space for all their art supplies. We found these on IKEA's website and after verifying that there were a few in stock we immediately threw the kids in the car and drove the hour to IKEA to get them! We put them together that very night (Davis was super helpful with his little tools) and within just a few days- we had this beautiful desk! Ben wired the top with an outlet, so it's easy access for computers and iPads to charge. The boys spent the rest of the month doing all their school work here and at least once a month Ben and I pat ourselves on the back at how great it turned out! 

Just two friendly neighborhood Spidermen running around! These two are so funny- Davis is going to be so sad next year when Will is in school all day! Almost every morning all fall/winter these two (plus Ollie if it's a day we are watching him) run around and play and have such a great time outside. Since Halloween we've gone back to only outdoor playdates, and while it's been cold, the kids have done really well.

Babysitting the Joseph boys on a distance learning Friday- Davis made them all scoot down so he could put his "computer" up on the desk too and get his "work" done.

Little Lila angel made all our spirits bright all month long. I am not sure what it is, a baby's first Christmas is magical. Not maybe so much for the baby, who doesn't care about presents at all. It is so magical for me to have a sweet, innocent, perfect baby at Christmas time. This year was no exception.

We did our Christmas kick-off party back mid-November. On such a weird year, putting up the tree early seemed like a good idea! I love my house all decorated for Christmas! The kids opened their jammies (don't tell Lila, but hers were Davis's old jammies- she didn't seem to mind). We snuggled up at watched "The Santa Clause" together. I love this tradition so much! 

Our usual gingerbread house party was a no-go this year, but I picked up this fun kit at Target and the boys decorated it together. After we pretty quickly determined that Davis was a huge pain during this activity and just wanted to shove candy into his mouth as quickly as possible, he got a show and the big kids got to decorate in peace. It turned out so cute! They did a lot of "landscaping" the front and backyard and I just loved it! They picked the candy off it for about a week before we finally just smashed it and threw it away!

Ben and I love sitting in these chairs at night, in the glow of the tree, to just relax and chat. Davis was up this night and laid on Ben's legs like this for a solid 20 minutes (he is watching something on Ben's phone). Davis obviously loves his dad so so much.

6:26 am- my boys. Chase is a good 20 minutes into his piano practicing. Hudson is reading for school. I love them so much! (But shortly after this we had to make Chase move his practice time to 7:00- much to his chagrin- it's too loud upstairs and we don't want it to wake the little guys!)

He's my little charmer! He delights in a long, relaxing, warm bath after the big kids are in bed. This kid owns us.

Although I don't give into everything he demands. This particular morning he really wanted cookies for breakfast. This is him lying on the floor in protest.

My big kids are such amazing helpers with sweet Lila! Hudson loves to play with her and is so good at getting little games going!

Hudson got another week of quarantine! His buddy Hyrum came down with Covid and since Hudson sits by him at lunch, he got a 10 day quarantine. He was bummed, but was a good sport about doing his work and getting everything done. 

Lila's teeth! During November and December she had the funniest little smile- her laterals on the top (without her front teeth!) and just one on the bottom. Ben called this her "Jackie-lantern" look. Right before Christmas her top two teeth came in, making four on top, one of the bottom. 

I took so many pictures of them all working at the desk! What can I say, I'm so proud. Of the desk, and the boys.

Lila loved hanging by the tree, but thankfully never tried to pull herself up on it! She did love using boxes of presents to cruise around. And she occasionally tore the paper off.

Our church schedule right now is every other week, and then we zoom in on the other weeks. So this was our last time going before Christmas, even though it was mid-month. It's weird to go with everyone sitting far apart, wearing masks, only like 60 people there (instead of normal 200+) but in some ways really nice to go too.

This is what happens when Davis dresses himself. Always red. 

These two! Despite how adamant Davis was a year ago that this baby sister was NOT coming, he's sure taken to her in a sweet way. He's already getting great delight out of teasing her, which I probably should have expected. He loves her so much- I think she finds him kind of fun and interesting and a little scary.

We call this double airplane. They both like to do it at the same time! 

The season of giving- Ben had a little secret Santa this year! Our sweet neighbor Blaine did the 12 days of Christmas for Ben and it was sweet and thoughtful and funny! Every day "Pierre the Penguin" delivered little gifts with poems attached- mostly treats, but also a book, DVD, scarf, a tie, a shirt, shave gel and man soap. It was seriously the sweetest. I knew Blaine was doing it (Lindsay told me), but by about day 7 Ben had figured it out. It definitely was a sweet part of Christmas this year.

Also, my friend Katelyn nominated our family for a Secret-Santa giveaway that a local influencer was doing. She said she just felt like she should- and we were selected! They gave us $500 cash! It was incredible. I felt so touched and humbled, and also a little weird about it. Our budget is tight, but doable, and I know so many other people are probably in need right now. But we graciously accepted it and plan to use it to travel a little with the kids next year. And it helped free up some money to use to serve others this season as well. 

This Christmas season, while our world is suffering so much, also seemed like a time of so much giving and generosity! These two examples of truly exceptional ways our little family felt loved during this season brought so much light into my world at the end of a hard, weird year. There is so much good in the world.

We did our daily acts of service to Light the World as we always do. So many of our usual service activities aren't COVID safe- playdates, homemade treats, the gingerbread house party, to name a few. But we got creative and did a few more store-bought things, did more acts of service around our home, and it was still very sweet and memorable. A few days before Christmas Hudson told me he really wanted us to take treats to the Code Enforcement Officers again. The boys made these sweet cards and we picked up a dozen donuts. The two officers who came out to get them from us were so sweet and touched. We told them about Jill (they knew the story already) and our connection to her and were very sweet and thankful.

We made sugar cookies- initially I thought we may take them to a few neighbors, but after seeing the amount of finger licking that was happening during the process we decided to just keep them all. Davis loved using sprinkles and took a "more is more" approach.

Hudson made this one look like the Liberty Bell, he was very proud of it!