12 Days of Christmas!

Well I have been doing the 12 Days of Christmas for Josh this year! It has been really fun so far! I got the idea from the Dating Divas Blog! I wanted to post on here what I have been doing every day so I can remember! I need to take pictures too, but I have been bad at that! Each day has a cute saying and something fun to do or eat etc!

1- I made him a picture frame of picture of our family for his desk at work!

2-I got peppermint kisses (SO GOOD!) and taped little things that I loved about him on each one! (Cheesy I know, but that's what it's all about!)

3-Special Night! :)

4-Share our favorite Christmas songs.

5- Read each other our favorite Christmas stories!

6- Recreated one of our favorite memories! Before Josh left for Milwaukee when we were dating, he drove me up Ephraim Canyon and we danced outside the car and it was raining and muddy! Ha it was a great time! I had planned to do something in our backyard but it was POURING so we just danced in our bedroom! It was fun! I recommend dancing often with your hubby! :)

7- I made his favorite dessert!

8-Watch our favorite Christmas movie!

9- A candle light dinner with his favorite things!

10- Create a new memory!

11- His day, I do everything and he gets a foot massage!

12- Christmas! This year I wrote Josh a song!!! Ha ha I have never done that before so we will see how it turns out! I hope he likes it! This has been a fun Christmas and I LOVE to give gifts early so it has made this year easy because I get to give him a gift everyday! MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!

24, 25, & 26

WOW I am stinking at doing this everyday! It is a bad time of year!! Busy!!

day 24- a letter to your parents

How about I just write this and send it to them! :)

day 25- what I would find in your bag

Well, in my purse I have a TON of receipts that I need to deduct. I also have all the normal stuff, wallet, a picture book of Jax, a pen, chap stick and trash!

day 26- what do you think about your friends

I have great friends! I am so blessed! I have great friends from High School, College, and our married friends! I also have all of Josh's friends from High School and their wives! I love that saying "Make new friends, but keep the old. One is silver, and the other is gold."

22 & 23

day 22- what makes you different from everyone else

I'm not sure....I sing! I guess that is different than a lot of other people. I love to cook too!

day 23- something you crave for a lot

SUGAR!! Sometimes I just get cravings! Usually it's late at night. I am LOVING Kneaders lately. They just built one right by our house and it is a bad thing. I love their sweets and treats! Like their brownies and cookies. YUM! In the summer I crave Hawaiian Shaved Ice!

20 & 21

day 20- someone you see yourself marrying or being with in the future

Well DUH....JOSHUA ANDERSEN!!!!

This is the first time Josh met my family when we first started dating! One of our first dates! :)

day 21- a picture of something that makes you happy

And MANY more things!!!

Day 19

day 19- nicknames you have and why you have them

Well I guess my overall nickname is Maddi because my real name is Madison!

When I was in High School my nickname was Mad-Dawg. Not really sure why, I think some boys just called me that one day and it stuck!

When I was a little girl my parents called me Wilamina Whiner because I whined all the time! Ha ha. As I got older they shortened it to Willie and called me Willie for a while!

My brother and Callen when I was little would always call me anything that had to do with being small like pint size, shrimp, midget etc. I'm glad that only lasted until about my sophomore year because I finally grew!

Utah Game!!

Last night Josh's work gave him two FRONT ROW tickets to the University of Utah Basketball game! We have never been to a Utah game or a Basketball game together since we got married! It was really fun and a great little date! Heidi (Josh's mom) was able to come watch Jax for a few hours and we were so grateful! It was a much needed out! Utah won and it was a close game! I could not believe how tall some of those guys were! It was so fun and made me want to get back into Basketball and watching it!

17 & 18

day 17- someone you would want to switch lives with for one day and why

I don't know if anyone knows who she is but I love Hilary weeks, and just recently I was able to see her at Time Out for Women. I think to do what she does would be absolutely awesome! She is an LDS recording artist and gets to write and sing music and make CD's, yet she is still a mom and not crazy busy like other professional singers! It would be cool to switch her for a day just to see what its like! I would love to sing all the time and create music and inspire people with my voice!

I do love my life though and I have ALWAYS wanted to be a stay at home mom and now that I am I LOVE it! I will be glad when school is over though!

day 18- plans/dreams/goals you have

(Not in order of importance)

#1 TO FINISH SCHOOL! It seem like it will never end, but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel!

#2 To raise a righteous family.

#3 Be a better wife and mother!

#4 Buy a house and car someday.

Christmas Card!

So I was way lucky this year and won 50 free cards from Shutterfly for posting on my blog about them! :) They turned out so great and I LOVE them! They open up and there is a cute pic of Jax in his Santa outfit! Here it is for those of you who won't see it....sorry I only got 50! :)

With Love Chartreuse Christmas 5x7 folded card

Make a statement with custom Christmas cards at Shutterfly.

View the entire collection of cards.

Day 16

day 16- another picture of yourself

Oh how I love my boys!!! :)

Jax is getting so big. I can't even stand it! I remember when he wasn't even long enough to take up my whole chest. Now he is almost too big!!! :(

Day 15 & 6 months!!

day 15- put you ipod on shuffle: first 10 songs that play

Taylor Swift- Fearless

Keith Urban-You'll Think of Me

Lifehouse-Walk On Water

Jo Jo- Too Little Too Late ha ha

Wicked- Dancing Through Life

Daughtry- You Don't Belong

Ne-Yo- Lie To Me...I don't even know this song

3 Doors Down- Here Without You

Cartel- Save Us

Sons of Sylvia- Give Me Love

Jax is 6 months old today!!!!!

I can't believe it! Time flies so fast. Jaxson is the funnest baby to have around. He is so happy and we love him so much! Here are some things Jaxson loves:

• He can sit up all by himself!
• He sleeps like 10-12 hours each night! He usually goes to bed between 10-11 and sleeps till 10 in the morning! It is so nice!
• He rolls all around everywhere.
• He loves to chew on everything.
• He has this 'poo face' and it is so funny. Whenever he has to go to the bathroom he pulls the funniest face.
• He still LOVES his bath.
• He loves baby food....well most of it. If he doesn't like it he sure lets you know and WILL NOT eat it! He likes fruits a lot better than veggies!
• He loves his walker and his jumper.

• He loves his feet and to play with them and eat them!
• He LOVES his daddy and whenever Josh gets home he only wants Josh and is SO happy. It is so cute!

Day 14

So I'm skipping day 13 because I don't think I want to share a letter to someone that has hurt me recently...

day 14- a picture of you and your family

Andersen Family!

Beagley Family!

Our little Family!!

We are so blessed to have great, loving families! We love spending time with them and are so grateful to them!

11 & 12

day 11- another picture of you and your friends

This picture takes me WAY back!! This was Senior Ball in High School and all my girlfriends and I at dinner! Oh High School....some good memories and good friends :)

This is Merica and my Sister-in-law Cori and Merica's cute little girl TyLee at lunch last Christmas. It is so fun to get together with lifelong friends and catch up! :)

day 12- how you found out about blogger and why you have one

I don't remember which friend it was that I first saw a blog, but I decided to do one because we were moving to Pennsylvania and I wanted all my family and friends to be able to keep in touch and see what we were up to! I love it to keep a journal. I really want to get it printed off one day! It will be such a fun thing to have for my kids and their kids to look back on!

And I HAVE to share these pictures because they are just too cute not to! This is my little Santa Clause! Thank you Grandma Joyce for sending Jaxson this cute outfit!

Turkey Day!

Grandpa Carving the Turkey!

My two Sweet boys!!

This year for Thanksgiving we went to Josh's Aunt's house in Eden. We had 52 people at dinner! Needless to say it was a little CrAzY! There were kids running around everywhere and people all over! It was fun though. We had a wonderful dinner and took a few family photos with Josh's family in the frigid weather.

I have the coolest story! Josh's Grandpa Andy has had this rocking chair forever. We asked him about it a while ago and he told the story about it and that his Grandma brought it over from Sweden in 1900 and it has been in the family ever since. He has a picture of him in it when he was a little baby about Jaxson's age! Well tonight we went over to visit him and he gave it to us! It is so cool and it is our first real family heirloom! It would be Jaxson's Great-Great-Great Grandma that brought it over! Little things like that really make you appreciate the little things and how much things like family and family history mean to you!

Day 10

day 10- songs you listen to when you are happy, sad, bored, hyped, mad

I really only listen to music in the car, and sometimes when I am getting ready or making dinner. As of late I have loved Taylor Swift's new CD! On Sunday's I like to listen to Sunday music like Hilary Weeks! Usually my radio is on Country if I do not have a CD in the car. Music brings back lots of memories though. Like sometimes if I hear a song on the radio that reminds me of something from High School that was fun it makes me happy and I want to sing and dance! Or when I hear a sad song it brings back those feelings too! I feel the spirit really strongly through music also, I love uplifting music! It makes your whole day bright! :)

Day 9!

day 9- something you're proud of in the past few days

Josh's Christmas present! I am working on something totally and completely different and fun! I hope he likes it! :)

I got my house cleaned! Well...mostly! That is always nice.

I got 50 free Christmas Cards from Shutterfly! YAY!!

7 & 8

day 7- a picture of someone/something that has the biggest impact on you

First and foremost is my Savior. He is the reason for everything and why I am everything I am. I love him so much!

Next is Josh. He is such an awesome AMAZING husband & father and I love him so much. He helps me through all of my meaningless struggles and makes me a better person. I would be nothing without him. I'm so glad I get him for eternity! :)

Jaxson definitely has had a BIG impact on me in his short almost 6 months of life! He has really put my life into perspective and made me want to become better for him. He is so perfect and pure! I love being a mom!

Last but not least is my wonderful Mom! She is truly my best friend and has taught me so much! I am so grateful for our relationship and her wonderful example to me. I love her so much!

day 8- short term goals for this month and why

1-Do better at my scripture study because I need to get into a better routine. It has been hard since Jax was born!

2-Get all my Christmas shopping done...ALMOST THERE! :)

3-Try at least two new recipes each week. So far so good. There has been good and not so good nights!

4-Work out regularly....we'll see about that ;)

Shutterfly 50 free cards!!

So I love Shutterfly and have made many books on the site! I made one of Jax when he was born and one for my Grandparents 50th Anniversary, and I'm making one for Christmas for a gift. They are super affordable and have great, quality products! I found out from a friends blog that they are giving away 50 free Christmas Cards if you write about them on your blog! Visit here if you are interested in getting 50 free Christmas cards! They are way cute cards and are super easy to make! I am liking this card below. It is simple and cute and I want to send it to all my family and friends! :) This will be my first year sending Christmas Cards and I am super excited to show off Jaxson to some who haven't met him yet! Visit here to see more of their cute Christmas Cards. Good luck and happy card making! :)

Day 5 & 6 & SiCkNeSs!!!

day 5- a picture of somewhere you've been to

With living in Pennsylvania Josh and I got the opportunity to see a lot of the East coast! We went to NYC a few times and went to Wicked (twice)...AWESOME! Josh went to Yankees game and we went to the NYC temple! We went to Niagara Falls and to the Palmyra temple quite a few times. We also we to DC, Hershey and lots of fun places on the East coast! We have also been to Hawaii which was AWESOME as well!

day 6- favorite super hero and why

I have never really thought about this. I don't think I have a favorite super hero. My favorite cartoon character has always been Minnie Mouse! Ha ha.

SiCkNeSs

Yes I have felt like crap for the last few days. I have mastitis for the 2nd, yes SECOND time!! Jaxson is only 5 1/2 months old and I have had like 10 clogged ducts and now mastitis.....AGAIN! It is awful! I have had a fever and body aches and feel like I have the flu. I'm feeling a little better, but I still have a big 'abscess' they call it. Basically a big old clog like hard ball thing. It hurts so bad, I hope it goes away soon. Needless to say I will be quitting pumping as soon as I get rid of this horrible thing....sorry if that was an overshare for anyone, but I needed to vent! :)

Day 3 & 4

Day 3- A Picture of me and my friends. These are all of our wonderful Snow friends! Snow was the greatest....we miss it :( Most of these are Josh's football buddies! Most of us met at Snow too and married! It's a great place!

Day 4- A habit I wish I didn't have.

Oh there are so many where do I start?!

-Biting my nails...but I am SO MUCH getting better

-I always rub my nails on my lips....I know weird, but I have done it forever and I need to stop.

-Leaving the dishes in the sink after dinner. I wish I would just do them then, rather than letting them sit in the sink all night.

-Josh says leaving my church clothes on the floor...I guess I should get better at that if that is the first thing he thinks of! Ha!

Day 2

Day 2- The secret behind my blog name...nothing really! It is just mine and Josh's name! Ha yes boring I know. I couldn't think of anything creative, so I just used our names.

30 Day Challenge! Day 1

I have seen these challenges on some friends blogs and I think it looks fun so here is the challenge!

day 1- recent picture of you and 15 interesting facts about yourself
day 2- the meaning behind your blog name
day 3- a picture of you and your friends
day 4- a habit that you wish you didn’t have
day 5- a picture of somewhere you've been to
day 6- favorite super hero and why
day 7- a picture of someone/something that has the biggest impact on you
day 8- short term goals for this month and why
day 9- something you're proud of in the past few days
day 10- songs you listen to when you are happy, sad, bored, hyped, mad
day 11- another picture of you and your friends
day 12- how you found out about blogger and why you have one
day 13- a letter to someone who has hurt you recently
day 14- a picture of you and your family
day 15- put you ipod on shuffle: first 10 songs that play
day 16- another picture of yourself
day 17- someone you would want to switch lives with for one day and why
day 18- plans/dreams/goals you have
day 19- nicknames you have and why you have them
day 20- someone you see yourself marrying or being with in the future
day 21- a picture of something that makes you happy
day 22- what makes you different from everyone else
day 23- something you crave for a lot
day 24- a letter to your parents
day 25- what I would find in your bag
day 26- what do you think about your friends
day 27- why are you doing this 30 day challenge
day 28- a picture of you from last year and now, how have you changed since then?
day 29- in this past month, what have you learned
day 30- your favorite song

Day 1-

1-I had surgery on my ears when I was little because I was born without the crease, so my ears poked straight out!

2-I have been married 3 years!

3-I LOVE to sing!

4-I have lived in Taylorsville, Koosharem, Richfield, Ephraim, Pleasant View, Pennsylvania, and Bountiful!

5-I have naturally curly hair.

6-I am finishing my teaching degree through University of Phoenix.

7-I love to fish and be in the mountains.

8-I was in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat with Donny Osmond!

9-I watch Ellen every day! Ha!

10-I passed out in the NYC temple :)

11-I was in a bad 4 wheeler wreck in 8th grade.

12-I like to make things, rather its cooking, crafting, or on the computer like digital scrapbooking and blogging.

13-I have two special boys in my life, Jax and Josh!

14-I love sports, especially volleyball.

15-I LOVE MY FAMILY & THE GOSPEL!!!

Summer in November!

The last few days have been GORGEOUS outside! So, I have tried to take advantage of that and have tried to spend some time outside with Jax! My neighbor has a 9 month old boy and we are both home all day so we went to the park yesterday and Jax swung on the big swing for the first time! I think he liked it he just grinned and kicked!



Today we went for long walk in the stroller and even though Jax had just woken up from a 2 hour nap, he STILL fell asleep! He looked so cute I just had to take a picture! And he is getting used to wearing shoes. I think he can feel something heavy on it so he always kicks and kicks trying to get them off. He succeeded with one of them on our walk as you can see... I am LOVING staying home with Jax. It is so much fun! And I'm loving this warm weather!

5 Months!

Jax is 5 months old today!! I can't believe how fast time flies! We just went to his doc appointment and he weighs 16.5 lbs (50th percentile) and is 27 inches long (90th percentile)! He has really caught up since he was born a tiny little guy! Here are a few things about Jax:

-He LOVES his bath and to kick

-He LOVES to squeal at the top of his lungs all day long

-He eats baby food now! He has had peaches and pears so far

-He sleeps 8-10 and sometimes more hours each night!

-He is so smiley and happy all the time

-He loves TV. Especially Sesame Street and the Wiggles

-He is getting so good with his hands and to play with toys

-Has the cutest little giggle

-Is ticklish on his feet and tummy

-He is already in 6-9 months clothes!

-Loves his daddy and smiles so big and is so excited when he gets home! It is so cute!

Jax is so fun and we absolutely love being parents! I am so blessed that I get to stay home with him every day!

HaLlOwEeN!

This Halloween was very fun with Jax! On Friday and Saturday it was State Volleyball for my Dad's volleyball team so we went and watched them play in Provo! It was so fun to watch volleyball again and really made me miss playing! On Saturday night we headed to my brother Tyler and Sister-in-law Cori's house for a Halloween party! It was so fun and we played lots of fun games from Minute To Win It and ate yummy food! On Sunday we went to Josh's parents house and had dinner and played some more games! It was a great Halloween weekend!!

Tyler posing for the camera!

Jeff & Hailey

Braden & Mandi

Traysen, Cori, and Lindsay!

Tony, Houston, Will, Jamie, and Mandi

Me and Shrek!

Josh & Shrek!

Life as we know it..

(This is Jax in his jumper, he doesn't quite get it yet, but still super cute!)

Well I have become quite the blog slacker lately. SO much has happened lately! October has been a CrAzY month! First off, Conference weekend the Malan family threw Chelsi and I a combined shower for her wedding and for Jax! It was so much fun! It was SO crazy I was having deja vu the whole time because I still cannot get used to the fact that my best friend all through high school is now my sister in law! I love it! Sadly, I have no pictures because I forgot my camera :( But, hopefully I can get some from someone! It was so much fun though and Jax got some great things that we really needed. It was really nice having a shower when he was like 4 1/2 months old cuz he got all the stuff he needed for winter and bigger things!

The next weekend we spent in Park City with Josh's family. They had a time share they had to use so we all went up there and played games and stayed the night! It was so fun to be with everyone. Except Jax for some reason did not sleep AT ALL that night and so Josh and I were dead. It's so weird cuz he has been sleeping 8-10 hours for months now...he was fine after that too, it was just that weekend. Weird....

The next weekend we made the LONG drive to St. George. I am not used to it taking that long to get there because being from Richfield it is not far from St. George at all. On the way down we broke it up and stayed in Richfield the first night. The next day we finished driving to St. George. On Saturday we spent the day at the pool, playing volleyball, and tennis! Jaxson got in his first BIG pool and he liked it! At first he just kind of laid there and didn't know what was going on. Then he started splashing like he always does in the tub. That kid LOVES water. On Sunday it was my cousin's homecoming so we went to that and then headed home. Jax did pretty good and slept clear till Nephi!! Thank goodness. It was a really fun weekend though, just a long drive with a baby!

This last week Josh was gone for a work trip to Vegas, so I went to Richfield to stay with my parents. On Thursday I observed and taught my first lesson in a classroom! It was kinda scary but so fun! I am so glad I am going into teaching I think I am going to love it. I taught first graders and they were so cute! Friday my Mom and I went shopping and it was SO fun! I have not been shopping since like high school. Seriously, like all my clothes are from high school so it was MUCH needed! Saturday we hung out and Sunday was a marathon church day. I had to sing in two wards and go to a farewell! It was crazy but it was so fun! Oh, Jax also got his pictures taken in his Halloween costume. He is going to be Shrek because he has those little skin tags on his ears and we always call him Shrek! Here are a few of my favorites! Thank you Michelle for doing such an awesome job!

Last but not least, I FINALLY got Jaxson's room all finished and decorated. I had to paint and sand his letters, and now I'm not sure I like the colors....but oh well I can re-paint them if I get the urge one day. I really like the way it turned out! It is a cute little sports themed room. I really like the wall decals that match his bedding set. Babies R Us has the cutest sets that everything matches!