Recap of 2008 continued...

Recap of 2008

Introducing....Liana

Well, we are suckers for Taidyn's interests ...

She has been watching Barbie and the Diamond Castle for weeks and prancing around here wearing a white, spring dress that is meant for the beach or a hot, sunny day.

Until now ...

Steve and Taidyn went to the store last week and found a replica of the dress Liana wears in the movie and she LOVES IT!!! She would wear it all day, every day if we would let her.

She also ended up getting an Alexa Barbie doll (Liana's best friend in the movie). She sings songs from the movie and Taidyn really loves dancing and singing with her. It is a beautiful combination!

Yes, she has her daddy wrapped tightly around her finger. If she only knew that I was the one who sent her daddy out for those two items. ;)

Here are some pictures of Taidyn, oops, I mean Liana in her beautiful dress.

FYI, to all our family and friends we will see over the holidays, Taidyn will correct you if you don't call her Liana.

You better start practicing now. Cheers! ;)

Giving thanks for these moments and many more...

Originally I was going to post a slide show of all our fondest memories, but when attempting this we see some other families memories instead! ;(

These are the moments that I re-live in my mind-

Logging on and finding the love of my life the fourth profile down on a dating site
Our whirlwind courtship
Shopping for my wedding attire with my Grandma Miller
Seeing each other in the airport for the first time
Our romantic get-away to Toronto, Canada (the proposal site)
The Whirlpool boat ride, wine tasting, lunch at the Anchorage and the breathtaking views that surrounded us
Lake Las Vegas
Our non-traditional wedding in Vegas- wedding dinner at Chin Chin's with our chocolate cov'd fortune cookies sharing several lucky numbers
Chocolate covered strawberries and wine on wedding night in hot tub overlooking New York, New York
Our first Christmas together just Steve and I
Confirming our pregnancy
Taidyn's birthing story- it was perfect (Mother's Day of 2005)
Baby World Tour (Oregon to New York)
My first time in the Pacific Ocean
Packing/Unloading/ re-packing for Utah (a long story and drive)
Taidyn's milestones/ first's esp first smile and saying Momma
Our spa experience and dinner at Brian Head on our third anniversary- ahhh pampering
Purchasing our first place together and making it our home
Our announcement/loss of our second child who is flying with the angels
Steve getting a job at the University of Wyoming
Going to massage school and missing my family from afar
All of our family vacations, holidays, and photos....priceless

We are very thankful this Thanksgiving Day!!
Happy Holidays to all our family and friends we love you and miss you!

Re-enacting Rapunzel

So I am sitting here laughing so hard I am having a hard time even blogging this.

Our funny and VERY imaginative daughter is in love with the Barbie Rapunzel story line.

Currently, she is re-enacting several scenes from the evil lady (the part she respectively gave to me), to the meeting of Rapunzel and Stefan (the role that her daddy is playing). And of course she is playing the part of Rapunzel (dressing like her, speaking like her, even wearing her hair like her etc..)

She has danced with Stefan, fell asleep on the floor next to Stefan (a scene she has added herself), and walked around with Stefan. She won't even let Stefan have some privacy to use the bathroom. Yes, she is obsessed with her Stefan!!

Poor Stefan, Rapunzel is on fast forward mode, changing scenes so many times (it is morning, it is night, it is morning) all in a matter of minutes. Now I think Stefan has really fell asleep out on the kitchen floor because I am not hearing.....oh wait, there he is. ;)

And they are on the move again.....

Kiggins Look-alike Meter

MyHeritage: Family tree - Genealogy - Celebrity - Collage - Morph

We've always been told that Taidyn is a good combination of the both of us. But Cass and I have always wondered, "Does Taidyn look more like one of us than the other?"

That mystery was solved today, when Cass found the above test on the Internet and downloaded pictures of all three of us. The results ... Taidyn looks equally like her mommy and daddy! Perfect, huh?

But, let me say, Taidyn has her daddy's disposition. I think that's good ... maybe. ;)

Trick-Or-Treat

We had so much fun last night!!! Taidyn (our little monkey) really got into the whole Halloween thing this year.

We started the night at Harold and Lilian's house/neighborhood; Steve works with Harold at UW. Taidyn would say thank you and then trick-or-treat (a little backward, but at least she said it). We only went to a few houses, and Taidyn didn't seem to understand that she was supposed to stay outside. The social butterfly she is, she wanted to go in and sit down and chat with everyone! It was too cute. :)

Even though we only went to eight or nine houses, Taidyn was loaded up with a lot of treats, because most everybody gave her four or five pieces. When we went to one house, Taidyn just stood and stared at the lady after she only gave her one piece of candy. Steve and I knew exactly what our little girl was thinking ... can you blame her? We pulled her away from the door and continued down the street.

Here are a few photos that I snapped prior to our trick-or-treat adventure. Sorry, I took the video camera for the trick-or-treating adventure.

We ended up at Laramie High School for some fun games and more treats and prizes. Taidyn loved the haunted tunnel but wasn't sure of the "severed leg" inside of it. She loved seeing and spending time with her favorite "boyfriend" Jordan and his sister, Alison.

We finished the night off by exploring her treat bag and dining on a few chocolates prior to bed time. Taidyn was LOVING IT!!! It was really a fun family night for us all.

Tonight is movie night in the Kiggins' household, a special treat for us all!!!

Tomorrow, we will be visiting our friend Garrett, who is in Fort Collins, Colo., to shoot a wedding that I wish we could have attended today. But, for various reasons, I opted not to go. We will be going out to lunch with him before he hits the road back to Utah. Taidyn is so excited to see one of her favorite "uncles." :)

Time For A Make-Over

Steve, Tai and I spent most of last weekend painting, cleaning and decorating my new massage room. We had so much fun, and everyone got their hands dirty! Steve helped clean out and organize misc. stuff at the center, Tai helped her new friend, Adam, put together furniture (she made herself in charge of the tool box ;) ) and I painted, cleaned and organized!

Well, that was all on Saturday.

On Sunday, we went shopping and found great bargains to give the final touches to my new and improved (non-medical) space. Although, it is not completely decorated the way I want it (the room still needs a rug, a new chair, few more pictures, a big mirror and a ladder shelf), I AM LOVING IT!!!

Simple, but relaxing and pretty! Don't you think? The best part ... we didn't break the bank. I get to use my own massage table (finally!) and I am putting to use my graduation gift (an iPod with over 500 songs) that were downloaded for me from my school's clinic! It sure brings back fond memories of when I first began my journey in the massage world. Pinch me, please. Is this for real???? I LOVE MY LIFE!!!

Meet SURPRISE

Tai and Steve carved Mr. Pumpkin on Sunday night. Prior to cutting him open and scooping him out, Steve and Tai went to the drawing board (the easel) to figure out Mr. Pumpkin's funny face. This is the one they came up with ... meet Mr. Surprise!!!

Didn't they do a great job? One pumpkin down, one more to go ...

A Few More Pumpkin Photos

The Search For The Great Pumpkin

We walked down one row, then the next, then another.

We surveyed. We searched. We scavenged. It's never easy to find that perfect pumpkin, is it?

For about two hours on Saturday, we patrolled an immense pumpkin patch in Colorado in hopes of finding our "Great Pumpkin." In the end, we found a few of them -- including a mini-sized one for Taidyn that has quickly become one of her favorite possessions.

The search for Taidyn's "little" pumpkin, which she had requested before we left Laramie to go to the pumpkin patch, was actually over within minutes. After walking past several rows, I decided to hang a right and lead the family down a row of pumpkins. A minute later, I spotted a little pumpkin hiding beneath a few vines and retrieved it for Taidyn. "Ooooohhh!," she exclaimed. She was sold!

It wasn't nearly as easy to find a few good carving pumpkins. There are hundreds of rows of pumpkins and thousands of the orange vegetables to choose from at The Bartels Farm, located on a quiet country road near Fort Collins. Oddly, we found a frog (of all creatures!) before we found our "Great Pumpkin." Check out the photo of our little froggy friend. :)

I wouldn't even wager a guess on how many pumpkins I picked up and inspected. Every few feet, I stopped and took a look at one or two of them. But, most of the time, I placed the pumpkin back on the ground and continued the search. Eventually, though, we found two pumpkins that fit the bill. We even found a man with a wagon who was willing to transport our pumpkins back for us!

Once we made our way out of the pumpkin patch, we found a petting zoo with goats, pigs, sheep, chickens, a donkey and a bunny. Taidyn has never been crazy about goats, but she liked the pigs, chickens and the bunny. And I didn't like the goat much, either. He tried to pee on my leg!!!

After snapping a few more photos and taking a few more minutes of video, we loaded our pumpkins and hit the road for home. A few minutes later, Taidyn realized she had a sliver (which turned out to be one of those sticky things from the stem of a pumpkin) and said to us, "A ham and cheese sandwich will make it all better." We laughed, then headed right for Arby's! :))

Happy Halloween!!

Do You Know The Colors Of The Rainbow?

You know the colors of the rainbow, right?

After today, Taidyn sure does! :)

We spent our Saturday doing a variety of rainbow-related activities, using paint, cornstarch, water and a flashlight, among other things, to show off the six colors of the rainbow for Taidyn. She had a lot of fun and, at one point, even asked to watch her Signing Time DVD that includes the signs for all the colors of the rainbow.

After breakfast, we launched our colorful day by using watercolors to paint rainbows. Taidyn needed a little assistance to paint the rainbow in the right order: Red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple. But she did a great job!!!

Next, Cass prepared a unique concoction of cornstarch, sugar and water to create a gooey mixture for "Rainbow Stew." Once the stew cooled, Cass used food coloring to make batches of red, yellow and blue goo. We then divided the three mixtures into three baggies and played. The neat thing about "Rainbow Stew" is that you can use the three primary colors to make secondary colors like orange, green and purple. It was sort of like a fun science experiment! We'd certainly recommend this project for your children. It's simple and not messy!

We then ventured out of the apartment and headed to the library for a few rainbow and colors books. We found several good ones, highlighted by "Mouse Paint" by Ellen Stoll Walsh, "A color of his own by Leo Lionni and "The Rainbow Fish" by Marcus Pfister. Great books!!

After a nap, we made "Rainbow Music." For this project, we created the six colors of the rainbow (again, using food coloring) in six glasses of water. Each glass made a different sound because we varied the amount of water in each one. So, basically, we made a colorful, watery xylophone.:)

We ended the day by making a rainbow of our own! We dropped a small mirror in a glass of water and then turned off all the lights in the apartment. By angling a flashlight at the mirror, we were able to create the rainbow's six colors on the wall. Very cool! We're not sure what Taidyn enjoyed more: Turning the lights on and off or looking at the rainbow on the wall. ;) But she had fun, and that's all that matters.

We really had a lot of fun today. We're already looking forward to next weekend's big adventure: Pumpkin patch, here we come!!!!

May I Take Your Order, Please?

It's only 12:20 in the afternoon and Taidyn has already made eggs, spaghetti and three batches of cupcakes.

Well, sort of.

As our gift to Taidyn for her progress in not wetting the bed at night -- she's doing really well, especially if we limit the juice intake after 6 p.m. -- Cass and I bought her a play kitchen center. It's a sturdy wood model with a microwave, sink, oven and stovetop. We also bought a few pots and pans and other accessories like utensils to go along with it.

Last night, Cass and I spent an eternity (OK, a few hours) assembling the kitchen. At one point, after we had completed top unit, which includes the microwave and stovetop, Taidyn looked at it and said to us, "No! I want the stove on the top." You see, the top portion of the kitchen was sitting on the floor and she just knew by looking at the picture that the stove went on the top and not on the bottom. Smarty!

As Cass and I worked to finish assembly, Taidyn tried to stay awake. But, around 11 p.m., she finally crawled into bed. We finished up a few minutes later, but she was already in dreamland.

When Taidyn woke up this morning, though, she was thrilled. "Oooooohhhhh, my kitchen is done!" she squealed. She immediately went to the kitchen and began banging around pots and pans and offering to cook us breakfast. We asked for eggs and she took a wooden egg, pulled it apart (there's velcro that holds together the two sides) and placed the eggs, no, not in a pan, but directly on a burner!! We couldn't help but laugh before recommending to the chef that she place the eggs in a pan. She did and, soon after, she served us our breakfast in bed. :)

So, if you ever find yourself in Laramie with an appettite, come on over to Taidyn's Kitchen. It's open for business!!!

HOORAY FOR A FUN FALL DAY

We enjoyed a beautiful fall day today. Taidyn loved running, jumping and playing in the leaves and the weather was perfect for such an activity! Here are few of my favorite photos from today and a few others from a few days ago. Enjoy

inspirational passages for life

I thought I would post these because I find them uplifting in challenging times!!!

*NO REGRETS*

LIFE IS TOO SHORT TO WAKE UP IN THE MORNING WITH REGRETS. SO LOVE THE PEOPLE WHO TREAT YOU RIGHT, FORGET ABOUT THE ONES WHO DON'T, AND BELIEVE EVERYTHING HAPPENS FOR A REASON. IF YOU GET A CHANCE TAKE IT. IF IT CHANGES YOUR LIFE, LET IT. NOBODY SAID IT WOULD BE EASY, THEY JUST PROMISED IT WOULD BE WORTH IT.
(thanks Meghan)

*THE DASH BETWEEN*

I read of a man who stood to speak
At the funeral of a friend
He referred to the dates on her tombstone
From the beginning...to the end.

He noted that first came her date of birth
And spoke the following date with tears,
But he said what mattered the most of all
Was the dash between those years.
(1943 - 1998)

For that dash represents all the time
That she spent alive on earth...
And now only those who loved her
Know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not, how much we own:
The cars..the house...the cash,
What matters is how we live and love
And how we spend our dash.

So think about this long and hard...
Are there things you'd like to change?
For you never know how much time is left,
That can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enough
To consider what's true and real,
And always try to understand
The way other people feel.

And be less quick to anger,
And show appreciation more
And love the people in our lives
Like we've never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect,
And more often wear a smile...
Remembering that this special dash Might only last a little while.

So, when your eulogy's being read
With your life's actions to rehash...
Would you be proud of the things they say
About how you spent your dash?

*LIFE'S A THEATER*

Life is a theater. Invite your audience carefully. Not everyone is healthy enough to have a front row seat in our lives.
There are some people in your life that need to be loved from a distance.
It's amazing what you can accomplish when you let go, or at least minimize, your time with draining, negative, incompatible, not going anywhere relationships/friendships.
Observe the relationships around you. Pay attention. Which ones lift and which ones lean? Which ones encourage and which ones discourage?
Which ones are on a path of growth uphill and which ones are going downhill?
When you leave certain people, do you feel better or feel worse?
Which ones always have drama, or don't really understand, know or appreciate you?
The more you seek quality, respect, growth, peace of mind, love and truth around you, the easier it will become for you to decide who gets to sit in the front row and who should be moved to the balcony of your life.
You cannot change the people around you. But you can change the people you are around.

Goodbye, U.S. Highway 287!

Soon, Cass' drive to work will be much easier. And much shorter!

Yesterday, Cass accepted a job at the Albany County Chiropractic Clinic here in Laramie. That means she'll soon bid farewell to U.S. Highway 287, which she has driven five days a week since February to work in Fort Collins. The 130-mile round-trip is simple in the summer; not so much in the winter. I'm relieved she won't be out there in December and January (and February and March and April ... this is Wyoming, after all!), risking her safety to try to get to work.

While Cass is excited about her new adventure, she's really going to miss the co-workers in Fort Collins who have become her friends. We're especially grateful to her boss, Mike, who took a chance on a just-out-of-school massage therapist and gave her a chance to work in a premier spa setting. If only his business was in Laramie ...

Cass' new job makes all the sense in the world. Not only will she eliminate all of that driving, she'll be working the same schedule and same hours as me (no weekends!), plus our poor car (35,000 miles in the last year!) will get a much-needed break. ;)

It's going to be great to have the whole family at home every night ... especially since Cass can now take over the dishwashing and laundry chores. :))))

Umm, just kidding, love. Really. I'm kidding.

A Few Firsts

Taidyn had a lot of new firsts over the weekend....

We never really dine out for breakfast, but since I was feeling ill we thought we would take a quick trip to B-king (we also had coupons to use). It was a first for Taidyn and she has a Burger King crown from the experience, which she refers to as her princess/birthday crown.

Her daddy (mommy was home sick) took her to her first UW football game against Air Force. Even though Wyoming lost, Taidyn still had a blast! She loved cheering, watching everyone else cheer and hearing the band play!!! She was a very good girl! The highlight of the game- seeing/playing with her best friend Jordan, eating a piece of yummy pizza and chewing on some Twizzlers.

Taidyn has accomplished a huge milestone in her preschool life ... she said good-bye to pull-ups at night! She has kept her bed dry for two nights (in a row)!!! We made her a star chart and told her if she could stay dry eight times (not in a row), then we would take her somewhere special to celebrate this huge milestone! So far, it seems to be working. Yeah!

She got to talk to a lot of her family over the weekend: Great Grandma Bennett, Aunt Tami, Gram & Gramps K. She was sooooo happy to tell each of you how she has been! Steve and I thank you for allowing her that opportunity.

I will end by saying even though I was under the weather all weekend, it was one of the best weekends spent with my family! It was nice not to do anything!

Well, I did do something, I captured these photos of Taidyn this weekend! Enjoy!!!

And The Fun Continues After The Bath ...

A few balloons do the trick! ;)