Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from our family to yours! 

XOXO, 

The Wright Family

Catch Up.

Okay you guys, let's get real. I don't know what happened to me. One day I was all "I love blogging!" and "I'm doing a post everyday!" Then one day I woke up and I didn't feel it. I didn't feel like taking my camera places to document and I didn't feel like putting my thoughts and feelings into words and creating a blog post. I just wasn't (and still not) feeling it.

I'm in a blogging rut

So in hopes of documenting events that have happened in the past two months, I'm  doing this catch up post. Hopefully, I can do something and my desire for blogging will come back full force! For my blogging friends, any suggestions? How do you find inspiration for blog posts? How can I get out of this rut? 

Okay, Let's get down to business...

Halloween (yup, it's been that long, my friends)

I have a love/hate relationship with pinterest. Seriously, I get so much inspiration from pinterest and I actually feel like I could be creative/crafty (which doesn't come naturally) so naturally I wanted to make Abbi's costume and I wanted all three of us to match. So I turned to Pinterest. Long story short, Halloween this year was SOOO stressful for me and procrastinating probably didn't help my feelings one bit. But I was doing everything last minute and I know we could of had better costumes but this is what we came up with: 

Seriously, Abbi could make anything look cute... But safe to say next year I'm going to buy our costumes. 

Also, the week of Halloween my Sister-in-law gave birth to a beautiful baby girl and their little boy Ryker came up to Inkom and stayed with Drew's parents. It was So fun to play with Ryker! Abbi LOVES him! She would follow him everywhere and laugh at every silly thing he did! They are so funny. 

At the beginning of November there was a gorgeous fall day and I forced Drew and Abbi to go outside and take pictures with me. I think they turned out pretty good. Obviously, they would have been better if Abbi would have been looking at the camera, but it was her nap time and I'll take what I can get. 

Thanksgiving

For Thanksgiving, We drove to Washington to spend time with my family! We had such a nice time! My Aunt Holly and Uncle Casey and their seven kids drove up from Utah. We had a packed house, but that made it all the more fun! Of course we got spoiled while we were there. (My mom is really good at doing that, and I love it! ;) 

Also, 1000,000,000 brownie points to my Sister-in-law Nicole for having her baby while we were there! Seriously, It made my whole week! There is just something about holding a newborn baby that makes the whole world seem okay again. Right? Kaysen is the cutest little guy in the world! I'm one happy aunt! 

Proud Grandma and Grandpa. 

Seriously?! Have you seen anything cuter?

Drew's Birthday! 

On December 3rd, Drew turned 25! I can't believe I married such an old man! But in all seriousness, I am so blessed to have Drew in my life! I knew two weeks into dating Drew that I wanted to marry him. It was the easiest and best decision I have ever made! For his birthday Abbi and I took him his favorite lunch at school and then we he got off work, We dropped Abbi off at Nana and Grandpa's and We went out to dinner. It was pretty relaxed and very enjoyable! Happy Birthday Handsome! 

The next day, we had our ward Christmas party! Santa came! Abbi met Santa for the first time last year:

She couldn't have cared less about the guy. This year was a whole different story! 

She couldn't stand him! But, I guess that's pretty typical.. Maybe next year will be more of a success! 

Let's speed things up a bit, shall we?! 

We set up our Christmas tree that same week and I LOVE it! So does Abbi! She loves taking the ornaments off the tree, I hate love putting them back on and we both love the eat the candy canes off the tree! MMMMM! 

Drew's Great Grandma Passed away on December 7th. She was 97 years old! NINTEY SEVEN! She was so sweet and happy. She is and will be missed by many, but we are so happy she can be reunited with her sweet husband. I'm grateful that we will be able to see her again! Also, a lot of family came from out of town for her funeral, some of whom I hadn't met before. That was nice to have the whole family together. 

Abbi learned how to say "cheeeeese"...

... and how to take pictures of herself on the iPad. 

It's been snowing quite a bit lately, one morning we took Abbi out and introduced her to the snow. She loved it until she fell... then she didn't like it anymore. 

I think that pretty much gets us caught up. Life is so busy, but at the same time nothing is really happening. Does that even make sense?! Abbigail is such a joy. Her personality shines through and even though she can be a handful, I love how independent and stubborn she is ( I guess she gets that from me.) 

Thanks for reading this EXTRA long catch up post. If you finished you deserve a plate of Christmas cookies or something...

15 Months

I can't believe our baby is 15 MONTHS old! What?!?! When did that happen? I was just telling Drew last night that I'm starting to forget her as a baby. We have tons of pictures and some videos but I'm having a hard time remembering specific events if we don't have them on video. It's making me all sad! My baby is growing up! 

I'm loving where we are at though. Abbigail learns a new word or two every day! Seriously, I think she will be talking in full sentences by next week! ;) 

I decided to video her talking to me because well, like I said, without a video I forget things pretty easily and she sounds so darn cute when she talks! Enjoy! 

(Also, I recorded this on the iPad, so the quality isn't the greatest. I hope you'll forgive me.)

... and some more just because she is so dang cute! 

Waiting.

We're all waiting for something. Right? Some are waiting for graduation to arrive, the right job to come along, to have a baby, see family, etc. We're all waiting for something.  And can I tell you something? 

I HATE WAITING!

I've heard time and time again that "patience is a virtue." Well I stink at having patience. I want what I want and I want it RIGHT NOW! The hardest part for me is that I want a good thing! In fact, I felt inspiration from God that this was the right thing. So why do I have to wait for it?! 

+Having children is a really good thing. So why does it take some couples years to conceive a child and why are some couples not able to conceive at all?

+Having a career and supporting a family is a really good thing. So why are so many people "jobless" and why is it so hard to find a job? 

+Spending time with family is a really good thing! So why does time seem to pass by the slowest when you are counting down the days until you can see your family?

This has been pressing on my mind quite heavily. We live in a world offering fast food, instant messaging, WiFi internet, smart phones, on demand movies and immediate answers to almost any question we may have. We want immediate results and instant gratification.

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf spoke on this very subject. He said, 

"Patience is a purifying process that refines understanding, deepens happiness, focuses action, and offers hope for peace."

He continues,

"Often the most difficult times of our lives are essential building blocks that form the foundation of our character and pave the way to future opportunity, understanding, and happiness."

Although this is true, it doesn't make the wait any easier! Does it? 

One thing I do know is that no matter our circumstance, Jesus Christ has felt our pain and afflictions! He absolutely knows exactly how we are feeling. No matter how long or difficult the wait may be, we are not alone! Our Savior understands. We can turn to him and he will "give us rest." (Matt 11:28)

"Patience means to abide in faith, knowing that sometimes it is in the waiting rather than in the receiving that we grow the most."

Here's the deal..

Okay, so funny, not so funny story: My SD card in my camera is freaking out on me and my card reader won't recognize it.

So currently, I am trying to figure out how to save all of my pictures and get them off my card and onto my computer! 

... and I need to get a new SD card! So bear with me as a figure this mess out! Forgive me for not posting! Once I save my pictures you can expect quite a few catch up posts including Halloween and when Ryker came to town! {Yeah, I'm that far behind!} 

Thanks for still reading!

 + Oh and if any of you guys are computer/camera geniuses and have any ideas to help me... I would really appreciate it! 

Inadequate.

Last night I laid in bed for almost three hours before I was able to fall asleep! I hate nights like that! My mind was going crazy and had like a Bajillion things going through it at the same time! One of the thoughts on my mind last night was that I am struggling. I am a mother, wife, sister, daughter, teacher, friend, cousin, example, etc. That is a lot to be right? I guess I was just feeling overwhelmed last night. What am I doing in my life to fulfill each one of those roles? Am I doing enough? I came to the conclusion that I am not. 

I'm a mother. I love my daughter and take care of her but we probably watch too much TV and eat too much junk food. I need to give more of my attention to her and less to social media. 

I'm a wife. I love my husband and I tell him that but I could probably be better at showing him that I love him. I should be more consistent about making healthy dinners and keeping the house picked up! {I've been especially struggling with cleaning the house lately}

I'm a sister. I love my sisters and I think they know that but why don't I call them more?! When we all lived at home we were kinda forced to talk to each other and sure we fought quite a bit, but I knew what was going on in their life. My older sister was sick for almost a whole week and I didn't even know about it until she posted about it on her blog and my younger sister just went to Homecoming. I heard she had a good time, but I haven't even called her to see how it went. 

I'm a daughter. My mother is such a great example to me and she has been my whole life! We talk on the phone quite often but do I show her how much I appreciate her? Do I send her little notes in the mail or call just to tell her I love her? 

I'm a teacher. I obviously have the responsibility to teach Abbigail and help her grow and develop. However, currently I also have the calling of "nursery leader" in my ward. I have really learned to love the sweet children I work with! They know I love them and I think we all really enjoy our time together on Sundays. But I have so much room for improvement. Instead of looking at the manual on Sunday morning, I need to prepare for my lesson all week long. Two of my girls had birthdays last month and I had NO idea. I could have brought them little treats to make them feel special, but I didn't. 

I could go on and on, but you get the idea? I have every intention of being better, but where do I even start?! I feel like I need to change SO much about myself and I feel so overwhelmed. I finally fell asleep last, woke up and this was still weighing heavily on my mind. I decided to turn to the scriptures and conference talks! They always seem to ease my mind. I found a talk given by Elder David A. Baxter titled "Overcoming Feelings of Inadequacy." Obviously, this was exactly what I needed to read. In his talk he clearly states: 

You're Better Than You Think You Are! 

 "When things go wrong in our lives, it is easy to lose all sense of perspective. We forget our divine inheritance, when we should remember that we come from heavenly parents who love us. We are impatient for instant solutions, when often it is the passage of time that will allow things to work out. We ignore or downplay our strengths and abilities, just at the time we should be recognizing and applying them."

So that's what I'm going to do! I need to stop thinking that I am simply "not good enough!" That is a lie!  I am a daughter of God! I am beautiful, smart, determined, strong, reliable, loyal and I am more than enough! I need to strengthen my relationship with my Heavenly Father and my Savior! God has called me to each one of these roles! I know I can turn to him and he will help me to feel more confident and able to fulfill the roles I have! 

Has anyone else struggled with feelings of inadequacy?

What have you done to overcome those feelings?

Breakfast Pizza!

Did I hear someone ask for a super tasty, semi-healthy pizza recipe?!? 

No worries! Your wish is my command...

My In-Laws introduced us to this recipe and at first we were a little skeptical. "Breakfast Pizza" sounded a little suspicious to us, but we gave it a shot! It has become one of our favorites! Hope you enjoy! 

*You don't need to buy a specific brand of any of these ingredients. It will be good regardless!
{Trust me!}

Ingredients:

+Pizza Crust (Homemade or Store Bought)

+Pizza sauce 

+Eggs

+Spinach 

+Ham

+Sausage (We used already cooked turkey sausage)

+Peppers (red is my favorite)

+Cheese

+Olive Oil

Directions:
 1. Preheat Oven to 350 degrees.
2. Scramble your eggs, chop peppers, cut up peppers, etc.
3. Rub a little oil on the crust, spread pizza sauce all over, then pile on spinach, peppers, ham, sausage, scrambled eggs, cheese and if you have more pizza toppings you like, put 'em on too! ( I was thinking mushrooms, green peppers, tomatoes, etc would be tasty.)
4. Bake pizza for 8-10 Minutes (unless packaged crust gives different instructions). The cheese should be all the way melted.
5. Take out and enjoy!

Try it! Let me know how it turns out! 

14 Months.

      Dear Abbigail Anne, 

I can't believe you are growing up so fast! Today you are officially 14 months old! It has been 2 whole months since you went and turned one on me. As much as I didn't want it to happen, I'm glad it did. Watching you grow up brings me so much joy and happiness! You have so much personality and it brightens my whole day, everyday!

+ You love to dance, "jump", play outside and climb on just about everything! (And by jump, I mean squat down, wait for us to count to 3, then stand up tall with your arms in the air! You never actually leave the ground, but you're pretty proud of yourself!) 

+ Your favorite foods are applesauce and hot dogs (nutrious right?) 

+ You're learning new words everyday! I love that you are able to tell us what you want (or don't want)

+ Currently, you have 8 teeth. I thought your fourth molar popped through.. But it was just teasing us. Hopefully soon! Teething stinks!  

+ In the mornings we watch Dora the Explorer and Bupple Guppies! Those are your favorites! 

+ Bathtime is still a favorite activity. Although now you think it's fun to stand up and dance or run in the bathtub. {It's caused a lot of unnecessary Owwies}

+ You sleep awesome during the night and your morning. But lately an afternoon nap is kind of hit and miss! I would like you to take two naps a day until your 5, but you've kinda decided one will do. (We're still "discussing" it)

+ You have the cutest voice and the cutest giggle! It's hard not to laugh when you are giggling. Thanks for that! 

+ You know where your nose is and where your belly button is and you are quickly learning all of your other body parts! You're a smarty! 

+Tantrums are becoming your specialty! It makes grocery shopping and church a lot more exciting! 

Thanks for being our sassy, silly princess! I can't imagine my days without you! You're my favorite little toddler {even if you did pee on my couch today!}

Love you Abbi Girl! 

XOXO,

               Mama

Real Life.

Okay, I'm going to be honest. I intentionally try to stay positive and post about happy things on this blog because those are the things I want to remember. But ALL OF US have weak moments. We all have days that are discouraging and seem like too much to handle! Right?!? 

  

Yesterday was a pretty good day. Abbigail was in a fairly good mood and things were going good. I even made cookies and did some dishes! I was feeling accomplished. We took some cookies over to Great Grandma Wright and played in the leaves at her house! We had fun. But after we got home, a switch went off in my head and the exhaustion hit. Seriously, my feet were hurting, my head was aching and all I wanted to do was get comfortable and go lay in bed. I was exhausted. {period}

But then I looked around and saw reality. Drew wasn't home from work yet, dinner was half way done, dirty dishes were COVERING my counters and my table, banana was stuck to my foot (thanks Abbi), Abbigail was opening every cabinet in the kitchen pulling out pots and pans, spaghetti noodles, hot chocolate mix, oatmeal or sandwich bags and if she wasn't doing that she was pulling out all of the trash on our garbage can and spreading it all over the floor. Just before I lost it, Drew walked through the door. 

He took Abbi for me and I finished dinner. Before we ate, I told him I was going to run to the gas station and get myself a Diet Coke. Finally, five whole minutes of silence by myself! It was nice. I got home, we fed Abbi and then put her to bed. (we had a late dinner, so it was past bedtime.) Then Drew and I sat down to eat. It felt nice to not worry about Abbi crying or yelling at me. It was just me and Drew, my feet were up, we were eating dinner and I had my Diet Coke. I was starting to feel better. Then, I went to take a sip of my drink, the lid came off and the full 32oz of Diet Coke spilled all over my pants and our carpet. 

I couldn't do anything but cry...

Drew quickly told me to go change, he cleaned up the spilled pop and then left to go get me a new one. {He's kinda the best}

This may sound trivial to a lot of you. You're thinking, "crying over spilled pop?" But I can tell you, it felt like SO much more than that. 

I can't even express how grateful I am that God cares about me and all of his children. Even through the hardest and most exhausting of days, He is still there and He still cares. I am not alone; I always have help. Being reminded of this gives me peace, hope and helps me feel refreshed. Because I can pray to Heavenly Father for help and read scriptures and other inspiring material I feel like I can do it. 

I truly am grateful to be a mother. It is really hard most days, but at the same time it is even more rewarding. I love watching Abbigail grow. I love hearing her talk, learn new words, discover new things. I just love her. Being a mother is what I have always dreamed of being. Even on the worst days, I wouldn't want to be doing anything else. 

"Do the best you can through these years, but whatever else you do, cherish that role that is so uniquely yours and for which heaven itself sends angels to watch over you and your little ones."

               -Jeffrey R. Holland

Inspiring Words.

via

I'm a little late talking about General Conference. You see, it's been about 2 weeks then these messages were originally given. For those who don't know, General Conference is a world-wide conference that is broadcasted from Salt Lake City, UT. It happens twice a year (April and October) Leaders from our church speak to us about the principles and topics that help us to be better people. General Conference has always been one of my favorite times of the year. Most of us have difficulties, trials, or questions that are weighing heavily on our minds. General Conference has always been a time that I can pray to my Heavenly Father about these issues and they have always been addressed somehow during that conference. It's comforting to know God answers our prayers, right? We aren't alone and we don't have to go through this life all alone! God is there to help! We just need to ask for it! 

I've been struggling with something for a little while now. It's something that has been on my mind often. Before General Conference, I prayed sincerely to God to please help me understand why I need to experience this. Why do I need to go through this trial? I kind of had the "why me?" way of thinking. I didn't understand. But, I knew if I prayed to God he would answer my prayer as he has done so many times before. 

The conference started and I got out a notebook and a pencil. I wasn't going to miss the answer to my question. All of the messages that were given were very inspiring. I could tell they were inspired from God. With all the craziness going on in the world today, it was nice to hear peaceful and calming messages. One of my favorites was a talk given by Elder D. Todd Christofferson (Quorum of the Twelve Apostles) about the moral force of women. He reminded us, 

“The world has enough women who are tough; we need women who are tender. There are enough women who are coarse; we need women who are kind. There are enough women who are rude; we need women who are refined. We have enough women of fame and fortune; we need more women of faith. We have enough greed; we need more goodness. We have enough vanity; we need more virtue. We have enough popularity; we need more purity.”

I was reminded I need to be tender, kind, virtuous and faithful. As a mother, I feel like that is even more vital. Not only do I need to be the kind of woman described above to please God, I need to be that woman so I can be an example for my daughter and teach her what is right. See what I mean by inspiring messages? But my question still hadn't been answered...

Sunday morning came. We turned the TV on and once again listened to the wonderful messages. President Thomas S. Monson (the Prophet of our church) spoke as the last speaker on the Sunday morning of the Conference. I felt it. I felt the Spirit so strong. It felt like God was speaking directly to me! He was saying, "Hey Ashley, Listen up! You wanted your answer and here it is!" And I did get my answer. I felt so comforted by the words President Monson spoke. He started off by talking about his sweet wife who passed away about six months ago.  He spoke about how he misses her and how this time has been very hard, but the knowledge that he will see her again has comforted him. He said,  

"It may be safely assumed that no person has ever lived entirely free of suffering and sorrow, nor has there ever been a period in human history that did not have its full share of turmoil and misery."

That was what first caught my attention, suffering and sorrow. That is what I was feeling! But that was only the beginning. He also said, 

"When the pathway of life takes a cruel turn, there is the temptation to ask the question “Why me?” At times there appears to be no light at the end of the tunnel, no sunrise to end the night’s darkness...We become impatient for a solution to our problems, forgetting that frequently the heavenly virtue of patience is required."

There was my first answer I needed to have patience. As hard as this trial was and how I still didn't understand, regardless of all that; I need to have patience! God will sustain me and help me understand in his own due time.

Then President Monson said, 

"Our Heavenly Father, who gives us so much to delight in, also knows that we learn and grow and become stronger as we face and survive the trials through which we must pass. We know that there are times when we will experience heartbreaking sorrow, when we will grieve, and when we may be tested to our limits. However, such difficulties allow us to change for the better, to rebuild our lives in the way our Heavenly Father teaches us, and to become something different from what we were—better than we were, more understanding than we were, more empathetic than we were, with stronger testimonies than we had before."

This trial would make me better, more understanding, more empathetic and help me gain a stronger testimony than what I had before. I loved that and it definitely brought me comfort. But what about right now? I'm still really struggling on how to survive my trial. I can see that after its over I will be better and more understanding, etc...but what can I do to make the trial easier as I am smack dab in the middle of the trial right now. Then, President Monson reminded me of scripture in Matthew. Matthew 11:28-30, 

28 ¶^aCome unto me, all ye that ^blabour and are heavy laden, and I will give you ^crest.

 29 Take my ^ayoke upon you, and ^blearn of me; for I am ^cmeek and^dlowly in ^eheart: and ye shall find ^frest unto your souls.

 30 For my yoke is ^aeasy, and my burden is light.

Jesus Christ has already suffered and atoned for all of my sins and afflictions. Because of this, He knows exactly what I am feeling. I need to rely on Christ, learn of him and He will give me rest. Rest. That is exactly what I need. 

As I rely on Jesus Christ through this hard time I can feel rested. He will help me to be patient so I can survive my trial and become better, more understanding, more empathetic and gain a stronger testimony than I had before. I know this is true for all of you too! I don't know the details of your life or the personal struggles you find yourself experiencing at this time. But I do know that no one is exempt from going through trials. Difficulties in life happen to everyone! So whatever you are going through right now, remember to rely on Jesus Christ! Our Savior is so willing to help and give us rest! All we need to do is ask for it! That brings me so much peace and comfort! 

via

*This post was extra long! Thanks for letting me express what I was feeling to you! To hear more of the messages that were given at the last General Conference, go here

The Pumpkin Patch.

This would probably be considered a "picture overload", but we had so much fun I just couldn't pick a few favorites. 

On Friday, Stephanie and I got together and took our little monsters to a local pumpkin patch! It was the cutest thing ever! Plus the cute farm paired with the crisp fall weather and mountains surrounding us made our afternoon absolutely perfect! Apparently, this farm has been in the same family for generations! They were so friendly, I felt like I was part of the fam! We first got there and we jumped on the big wagon and went on a hayride complete with a huge tractor pulling the wagon. It was dreamy. Abbigail was so happy! She smiled the whole ride! Plus there were other people on the ride and she loves watching people. (I'm a people watcher too, she must get that from me.)

The big tractor dropped us off in the middle of a pumpkin patch. I was amazed at how big all of the pumpkins were! Seriously, What did they do to make their pumpkins so gigantic!?! A few of them were taller than Abbigail and pretty much all of them, including the ones we brought home weighed quite a bit more than her. (but I guess that isn't hard to do.)

We picked out our pumpkins and had to hurry home. (Drew and I had dinner with his boss that evening.) I was pretty bummed because they also had a miniature corn maze that was perfect for little kids, face painting and a little playground. I think we're gonna have to make a second, third and maybe even fourth trip back... 

... can you blame us?!