Merry Christmas! We feel so blessed to be able to enjoy the holidays with both sides of the family. We love you guys!

Brynlee was a natural at opening presents...

And I just thought this was funny. Not quite sure how she got here...

Graduation

Finally! Yes, I finally graduated.

Thanks dad and mom for your continued support and love. I couldn't have kept going without you.

Thanks Whit & Ellie for coming and cheering me on. Love you guys!

Thank you RILEY, my wonderful husband, for supporting me and making sacrifices so that I could finish school. I love you!

And my sweet little Brynlee Bear. What a trooper! She has been my biggest support this past year. She hung in there with me as a ran across campus, holding my {growing belly}, to keep from being late to class... again. And this past semester, she happily woke up early every morning so that I could say goodbye before I left her all day long.

And a HUGE THANK YOU to Brynlee's two wonderful grandmas... for putting aside their "to do" lists to watch little Bryn. I owe you BIG TIME!

Farewell ASU... may I never have to walk that campus again. (We didn't always get along...)

The Love Birds

Sarah (Riley's sister) and Jordan are getting married!! I got to take their engagement pictures the other day. Here are a {few} of my favorites.

(With over 400 pictures it's hard to choose just a few!)

And my very favorite...

I really enjoyed taking their pictures. Thanks guys for letting me be part of the wedding fun!!

Student Teaching

I finished my last day of student teaching on Friday. Four months ago, the "last day" seemed like an eternity away. But, alas, I am DONE with anything and everything that has to do with college... finally! It's only been 5 1/2 years, 24 semesters, 4 different Universities, over 100 classes, 30+ "lost" credits, and the list goes on.

These kindergarteners drove me crazy some days, but I'm definitely going to miss them.

They had a little party for me on the last day.

What cute kiddos!

Throughout the semester, I wrote down some of the funny things they said. Here are a few of the best...

"When you're 15, that means you go to High School Musical." -T.G.

(Looking at sandpaper during our study on 'wood') "This looks like my dad's hair!" -D.C.

(Also during the wood unit) "It smells like Home Depot in here!" -D.S

"Fake nails are really good at getting the glue out." -D.S.

"Can I get a drink? My tummy is dried out." -H.M.

"Guess what Miss Cormack (that's me), I went to the hospital last night because my mom said I had the creep." (I THINK she means croup). -T.G.

Insights on Motherhood...

So I've been reading this great book called "A Mother's Book of Secrets: Keys to Making Motherhood Memorable, Meaningful, and Magnificent"... and I love it! I've laughed, I've cried, but mostly I've learned to enjoy the little things that come with motherhood. I wanted to share a quote;
"It's true that as a mother there is always a never-ending list of things to accomplish. Pay the bills. Check. Do the dishes. Check. Make dinner. Check. Do the shopping. Check. But are we successful if we don't notice the look on our child's face when he learned to "pump" on the swing by himself?... Sometimes success is when we don't get through the to-do list but instead stop long enough to notice the little things. To savor moments. Not only to notice the delight in our children's eyes, but to help create that delight."

Anyway, this book is full of little treasures like this one. Check it out here.

On another note... Brynlee is 5 months old today! Hooray! She has learned how to sit up on her own (a little wobbly, but not too shabby) and can now roll in every direction. She's such a joy! It's sad to look back on how fast she's grown, but I'm loving watching her learn and grow each day.

Looks like someone needs to clip those fingernails!

Thanksgiving in California

We flew over to California to spend Thanksgiving with Riley's side of the family. It was a wonderful day. Great food, Great company, and an overall great time!

Trick-or-Treat

We started our morning off with our Ward's Fall Festival.

With all the fun and festivities, Brynlee wore herself out!
That night we walked around with Ellie on her first Trick-or-Treating adventure.

Candy... what candy?


What a day! Happy Halloween!

Family Halloween Party

Our Annual Family Halloween Party...

All the cousins... plus some.

Kindergarten Cuties

We had a Halloween Party at school on Friday. These kids are so cute! ... Never a dull moment in Kindergarten!

My Mentor Teacher. We were Flappers!

Silly Girl

Brynlee is almost 4 months old... and she has picked up a few new tricks! She is now officially a 'rollie pollie'. She can flip from her back to her tummy super quick, but then she gets so angry. She hates being on her tummy, but rolls over all the time anyway.

Brynlee is all smiles these days. She smiles and giggles at everyone she sees. She's becoming quite the little flirt!! Yikes!

I'm about half way through with my student teaching right now, and I'm having a hard time doing what I need to for school when I have a cute little baby at home to play with. I try to spend as much time as possible with her, but I'm gone Monday through Friday until about 4:00.

Brynlee has noticed my absence as well and she's not too happy about it. And she's definitely not afraid to let me know. As soon as I walk in the door, I run to see her, but she won't look at me for about 10 minutes. It's the funniest thing. She just wants me to know that she's mad at me for leaving her all day.

Brynlee has recently discovered that her fingers taste yummy...

... and so do her toes!

She's always holding her feet up in the air. It makes it very convenient when it comes time to change her diaper!

We love seeing Bryn's cute little personality come out more and more each day. She's the princess of the house, and she knows it!