Choo choo!! Look who's two!

Nolan had his 2nd birthday on January 11th. I'm gonna be all cliche and say it: I can't believe my baby is 2!! It really feels like yesterday he was just a little one, big blue eyes and all. He still has those same baby blues, but with it, a huge, guffawing laugh (just like dad), a teasing grin and oodles of personality. We love him so much.

Nolan is starting to talk quite a bit now. He echoes everything I say. When we ask him how old he is, he says "TWO!" He loves to ask for a "nack" (snack.) He loves smoked almonds from Costco, pizza, and anything with sugar. We don't give into his sugar habit very much, so he is kind of a small kid. But he packs a big punch :) He is so into trains, it is insane.

For Nolan's birthday, we kept it low key. We had his favorite food for dinner-pizza. We played all his favorite games (duck duck goose, hide and seek, redlight greenlight). Matt bought prizes for whoever won the games and Reagan threw a fit when she didn't win, so we shared the twizzlers and reese pieces.

Here is Nolan as he blowed out his candles--it was a boogar-y week for us!

Trying to get in the car portion of his shopping cart from G&G Rasmussen.

Playing with his trains! He hasn't let go of these trains.

Happy Birthday bubs!

Eight

On the 28th of December, Matt and I celebrated 8 years of marriage! We went on a traditional "date night." Our good friends watched the kids for us while we went to eat in Walnut Creek, then saw Harry Potter. It is hard to believe that we have been married for that long. Time really has flown and what a great 8 years it has been. We have shared many many happy times and even struggled through some tough times that refined us and made us even stronger. I am happy to be married to my best friend.

My sweet Matt as a toddler and I see where Nolan gets his big grin :)
A goofy missionary :)

Are you seeing a theme to these pictures? My favorite thing about Matt is how he makes me laugh...literally everyday. Sometimes he teases me and I roll my eyes at him, pretending to be annoyed. But deep down, I just love it. I love that he looks at the bright side of things and always has a positive outlook. Wow, we look young here. Many years ago, when we were dating in college.

After almost 2 years of marriage, life took us out here to Concord. Before the children, I must say we lived it up.

This is us the day after we got engaged and I am rockin my ring. I remember sitting in chemistry class in the Benson building and watching how it sparkled in the auditorium lights. Life was good :)

Thanks for an amazing 8, Matt. Love, wife

The Holidays

Our second annual Christmas just ourselves at home went by without a hitch. We ate fun food Christmas Eve (panko breaded shrimp from Costco, seriously it rocks), dad told the nativity in kids language, then had the Rasmussen traditional rice pudding with a nut. Guess who got the nut? Reagan did, of course ;) She got into the game really well, but it was funny because like most food we place in front of her these days, she didn't like the rice pudding. But we knew she had the nut, so we told her to look for it anyways. Matt and I each pretended like we had found the nut and we knew the minute she had found hers because (even though we told her to keep it a secret), she announced, "I know you guys don't have the nut--I know it!!"

She got to open the first present, then chose presents for all of us to open as well. She chose a present from my sister Lindsey, a Rosetta fairy doll. Nolan opened a present from Reagan, a Thomas Train car. And trust me, he has been playing with that car ever since. If that is all he received for Christmas, he would be the happiest kid still.

We then opened jammies, even mom and dad got some. Actually, I got a snuggie, it is so awesome.

Nolan clutching his train for dear life.

While visions of sugar plums danced in their heads, Santa came!!! Actually Santa had a rough night. He started putting together a bike and it took him about 3 hours since the directions were so awful. I'm afraid the words that came out of Santa's mouth may have landed him on his own naughty list.

Reagan woke up about 5am and we told her to go back to her room and play with the light on for another hour. I guess she made a detour because seconds later, she yelled, "A BIKE!" Thats when we knew Christmas morning was here to stay, so we got up.

Nolan bubs LOVES his basketball hoop! Good form, yes?

Playing all day long, in pajamas.

Dad with his loot. We played all day, took naps and then headed over to the Muhlestein Christmas dinner, it was really fun. All in all, a good Christmas, but I do admit to being happy about the new year. I am ready for it!

Matt got an early start to 2011.

We went to the Berrett's for more holiday fun on New Years Eve, then went home and went to bed. I didn't watch the ball drop or anything like that. It was nice. We were just so tired and like I said, I am just ready to begin a new year :):)

Dad let mom sleep in the next day and he made blueberry waffles.

Happy New Year!

Twas the Week of Christmas

It was kind of fun to have Christmas fall on a Saturday so that you can celebrate it all week. It was a long week of waiting for the kids, but a fun one. Then it is nice to have today to rest and relax. Reagan and I went on a GNO last weekend to see The Nutcracker on Temple Hill. I wasn't sure how she would last through such a long time sitting and watching a performance, but she did really well. We went with friends and of the 4 girls, 50% were asleep by the final act :)

A pic in front of our tree in the kids best Christmas Sunday dress is a tradition, but it can take several tries...as indicated below.

We started with several with one kid not smiling.

Then one kid wouldn't look while one smiled and said "CHEESE" really loud.

Then she smiled!....oh, but the other one was eating his shoe.

And finally, this was our best! "Good job, kids!! Here's your piece of candy."

On Monday night for Family Home Evening, we went up to Temple Hill to see the lights and the visitors center. Reagan was sawing logs the whole drive there.

We woke her up, but she mostly complained about it being cold and rainy. And it was, so I can't blame her :) We saw several families from our stake, so we definitely weren't the only ones who had this idea for FHE activity!

One of my favorite things is the star on the side of the interstake center.

Oakland Temple with Nativity Scene

We found warmth and rest in the visitors center and everyone in the lobby got a good chuckle when my son walked in and upon seeing the Christus, screeched "OH, WOOOWWWWW!" and laughed like a hyena.

One of the reasons for visiting was also to see the Mark Mabry Photography exhibit on display called, "Reflections of Christ." Wow, it was amazing. One of his most stunning and popular is of the angels. But my personal favorites are of John the Baptist and Jesus Christ embracing as well as the Savior walking on water. I would watch the slideshow of his work, it is well worth a few minutes.

Love to all!

Rasmussen's Favorite Things 2010

This year we had quite the varied group of favorites. I won't waste any time, so here goes:

1. One of my favorite things to do during the month of December after my kids have gone to bed is plop myself down on the couch with a big glass of milk and dunk some Candy Cane Joe-Joe's from Trader Joe's. I tried to pace myself more this year, but we have already gone through 2 packages. And by "we" I mean 4 for me, 1 for the kids :)
2. A friend of mine is a Scentsy distributor, so when we bought the house and it wreaked of old people, I knew who to call. Although I can't smell it much anymore (I think I am immune :)) there are many things I love about it versus other home smelly things. I love that I can plug it in and warm it all day, all night, and even when I am home. Before when we burned candles, I would have to keep blowing them out all the time because we would be in and out of the house. These are not a fire hazard. With my wall plug-ins, my kids go to the outlets and remove them. This is on my counter, away from little hands. The wax is not hot at all, so even if you spill, it won't burn you. My absolute favorite scent is Peachy Ginger.

3. These are the best flour tortillas ever. They sell them at Costco. They come uncooked and you just heat them on your skillet. I have not been able to go back to store-bought Mission brand. They make excellent enchiladas because they fold easily without tearing. Sometimes if I have a surplus in my fridge (they come in packs of 22), then I will just heat them up and eat them plain. I also like to dip them in soups. I am warning you---you won't go back to store bought!!

4. My dearest friend just sent me this in the mail for the holidays. It is the soap flavor Twisted Peppermint from Bath and Body Works. I can't get over how good it smells. I look forward to using my bathroom, just to wash my hands. The positive side of Nolan pooping is that I get to wash my hands with this after. I can smell it for quite a while, too. I am sensitive to how strong mint can be, but this is the perfect blend. It is subtle, not overwhelming, yet slightly sweet. I love it. 5. Last February I went to a class on interior decorating and the lady teaching (who is ironically the YW president in my new ward) raved about spray paint. My favorite decorating blog ever, Thrifty Decor Chick, always raves about spray paint. So I gave it a try on a few things when we moved. I had some successes (one big failure, but I won't go into that). I was able to spray paint my wood mirror a satin black and several picture frames. I spray painted all our old vent covers a bright white or beige to match the carpet, depending on what room. I also redid our TV stand using--you guessed it--spray paint. It is quick and CHEAP! Like I pay 4 bucks a bottle or something. Rustoleum is my favorite brand. I actually like the 2X brand best, but American Accents has a great line of popular colors. Sarah at TDC always finds old things at Goodwill or thrift stores and makes them look brand new with spray paint. It is amazing.

6. Last year we won a gift card to a restaurant in Concord called Elephant Bar. We had seen it several times, but never ate there, probably because I always pictures them serving platters of elephant? I don't know, the name just sucks in my opinion. But the food was KILLER!! When we splurge--which is never these days, LOL--we alway go here. I love the Macadamia Nut Crusted Mahi-Mahi, which is really funny since I don't like fish. They have such a wide variety of food to choose from.

7. Researching paint was the one thing I did while we waited for our house to close. I knew that would be our first thing once we got the keys, so I wanted to plan it perfectly. I looked into hords of paint colors, brands, etc and I just couldn't get over the wonderful colors at Sherwin Williams. I soon found out that their paint is way out of my budget, so I picked out my colors and had either Home Depot or Kelly Moore color match what I wanted. Worked like a charm. My absolute favorite paint in our house is Macadamia, which is in our bedroom. I am thinking of eventually painting our kitchen, dining, and living room in that...eventually, meaning not for a very long time:) Any color on the strip #18 is without fail. They are warm neutrals and go well with anything and looks amazing with white trim.

8. Several years ago some friends moved and they threw out their twice handed down cozy coupe. Matt rescued it before trash man got it, gave it a severe sanitizing wash and it has served as the absolute best toy we have ever had. Both my kids love this thing and fight over it all the time--not a good thing to fight, but sure glad they like it :) Matt and I laugh over the irony of how much this toy cost us. If you want a fun toy for your toddler/preschooler, this is it.

9. If I had all the money in the world, I would shop only at HomeGoods...and Costco, of course :) But seriously, if you are in the need of redecorating and have a HomeGoods nearby, RUN, don't walk!! This place is rocks. It is the home version of TJ Maxx. I have only gone once, it is a bit of a drive for me, but if you need a lamp, something to fill that one space on your wall, a rug, decorations for a cute kids room, you name it...this place has it.

Merry Christmas!!!

December Showers...

...brings green grass! I am grateful every day that we have rain because I know it is feeding my thirsty lawn. For free! We have had some good rain showers. We have immersed ourselves in Christmas already. We decorated before November was even over. Insane, I know, but Costco and Target were ready back in August, so this feels mild. We decided to head to the tree farm known as Home Depot Parking Lot, only to find that the trees were priced higher than our beloved Costco. So we took some fun pics (Shrek faces included) at Home Depot next to pretty full trees.

But ended with this one tree, still bundled up :)

Reagan had a ballet recital, it was so cute!!! She was very excited to perform for us and show us what she has been "learning." I think she still wants to do ballet, too. For a while there, she didn't want to go back because she doesn't like to stretch.

Reagan showing off her MAD hopping skills!

Great job girls!! Reagan and Addie with their teacher, Mrs. Heather (a Davis Dart, I might add!)

Last Friday was our ward Christmas party. The kids wanted nothing to do with Santa, but they seemed okay to sit on Matt's lap.

The primary did the nativity and Reagan was a donkey.

Reagan is the bottom right, 3rd in.

Merry Christmas!