Recent Happenings

Jeff's brother Justin got married this weekend and we got lots of fun pictures. We LOVE his new wife Whitney. She's kinda shy around the family, but I'm sure that will change once she gets to feel more comfortable around us all. She's gotta be able to hold her own in the Baumann household! They got married in the Jordan River Temple and the weather was so perfect for them! Low 50's - which is VERY warm for mid-February believe it or not. Anyhow, here are a few pictures.

Valentine's Cookies for Uncle Taylor

Last Thursday, Mason and I made Valentine's cookies for Taylor to send him in the MTC. Mason helped me make the dough and the frosting, then we had a blast eating them! I had Taylor's picture on the counter so Mason could maybe grasp who we were making the cookies for - half way through our adventure, he told me, "kiss La-lor". He wanted to kiss Taylor - so I got a cute picture of that too.

I've Been Tagged! All about Jeff...

Where did you meet your husband?
Well it's a long story. The first time we met was in 2003 at my guy friends' apartment in Provo. He didn't pay me any attention. Then I met him again in 2005 after my mission in Provo - he was my neighbor and in my singles ward.

How long did you date before you were married?
We started dating in July of 2005 and were married at the end of April, 2006.

How long have you been married?
it will be 3 years in April

What does he do that surprises you?
He'll sometimes let me hold the remote control. j/k!!! Um...occasionally he'll bring me flowers, clean the whole house when I'm out running errands, or call me from work just to say hi.

What is your favorite feature of his?
Physical feature? His legs. He's got such strong legs!

What is his best quality?
He is the hardest worker I know.

Does he have a nickname for you?
Hottie. lol that's so gay!

What is his favorite food?
His mom's homemade Mac and Cheese. I've tried to make it - I guess it can't be duplicated, cuz it turned out AWFULLY!

What is his favorite sport?
Volleyball for sure, but he loves to watch basketball (the Utah Jazz) and football (go BYU Cougars!)

When and where was your first kiss?
It was in June (yes, before we started to date!) - there was a ward camping trip in Moab and we kissed there...with another girl on the other side of him (she was infatuated with him - she was also my ride home. That was not a good ride home!)

What is your favorite thing to do as a couple?
Honestly, we love to relax and watch t.v. together or play board games. We also love to go to pro volleyball tournaments together, but that's only like once a year.

Do you have any children?
one kid - Mason. He's almost 2.

Does he have any hidden talents?
He does the most amazing, realistic monkey impression

How old is he?
30

Who said I love you first?
I really don't remember. I remember where we were (at a park by the Provo temple...taking a rest from the motorcycle ride), but not who said it first.

What is his favorite music?
He loves 90's rock, Alicia Keys, and Bruce Hornesby.

What do you admire most about him?
His work ethic and his determination to be a better person.

What is his favorite color?
green for sure. One look at his wardrobe will tell you that. He's got like 15 shirts in different shades of green.

Will he read this?
No - he never reads the blog

I NOW TAG JENN JULIAN, JEN BAUMANN AND RACHEL H.

Mason's Gotta Win!!

Jeff and I entered Mason into a Cutest Baby photo contest. The prize is a $2500.00 scholarship! The catch is that the public votes - not judges - so we need your votes!!!

https://www.greatamericanphotocontest.com/voter1/index_e.aspx?referid=EmailFriends&p=1081609&x=.jpg

Get everyone you know to vote for him too! :) THANK YOU!!!

Some hilarity (is that even a word??) for your day...

Mason's been providing quite a bit of humor lately, so I thought it was time I shared. I'm not sure if "sassy" is a word that can be used to describe a little boy - I usually hear it to describe girls - but Mason's downright SASSY! No matter what we ask him, his response is "NO WAY!!" When we give him instructions like, "Mason, sit down please," he responds with "Mama sit down!" If he doesn't want someone around, he doesn't hesitate to tell them to "go way" (go away) - he learned that one where I used to nanny.

Yesterday he slapped me in the face while I was putting him in his car seat cuz he didn't wanna be there. It actually hurt pretty badly because he hit my eyeball with his fingernail, so my eye started to water and I pretended I was crying. He looked at me and started to rub my face and said "wub wub, okay?" It was so cute. Then he said "Mama kiss?" SO I let him kiss it better. He still had his pouty lip out - he felt pretty awful that he hurt me, but it was nice to see that he understood that hitting hurts people. Jeff and I have to try so hard not to laugh when he does crazy things that we really shouldn't be okay with, but honestly he's hilarious and we struggle to stay strict sometimes..

Which brings me to another story. Yesterday he kept saying "play, play, play" so I decided to take him to the park. Keep in mind, THIS IS NORTHERN UTAH AND THERE'S SNOW EVERYWHERE! I just bundled him up and let him get cold and wet having a blast in the snow at the park. Finally he decided his hands were freezing and he was ready to go. At home after we play in the snow, he gets to put his hands under warm running water (he thinks he's washing his hands). So yesterday he was like, "Doll-done mom mom. wash hands?". Well, there's no warm water at the park so I just turned the car on and blasted the heat, sat him in the front passenger seat and put his little hands up to the vents. I shut the door and walked around to my side when all of a sudden I hear the sound of the doors locking. Mason found the lock button. THE KEYS WERE IN THE CAR and the car was on so I had no way of getting in. I wish you could have seen me outside my car yelling "PUSH THE BUTTON, MASON!!". The lady getting back in the car next to me must have thought I was the most awful mom. haha!! Finally I was able to convince him to push it and he let me back in. Whew!! Quite the moment! Glad I don't have a heart condition.

And finally, today. This morning Mason went to his first ever dentist appointment and it was so fun! The place I took him is called The Dental Barn. It's all red like a barn inside and the dentist chairs are just like beds with a tv screen on the ceiling. They gave him headphones with handles that he could play with and put in and out of his ears to distract him while the dentist did his thing. Mason was so good!! He just laid there while the dentist did an exam and a cleaning. Mason loved it, and he was SO excited when he got his very own Power Rangers spin brush toothbrush afterward. I'm so glad it went so well. I was really worried.

Now one last note: I'm so grateful for holidays. Why, you ask? Well during Valentine's there's SweetTart hearts and every variety of Hershey's Kisses. So good! During Easter, there's SweetTart animal shapes and Reese's Eggs. I'm starting to wonder why 4th of July is my favorite holiday? There's NO SPECIAL CANDY! I also decided that I'm not one of those people who goes to the gym every day so I can be skinny - I go every day so that I can eat what I want and not gain weight. :) So bring on the SweetTarts!!

Vivaaaa Las Vegas!

This past weekend I went on a girl trip to Las Vegas with a lot of my friends. It was so much fun!! I met most of them back in 2000, and we've been friends ever since. We stayed at the fabulous Tahiti Village - I highly recommend it if you're looking for a really affordable, posh, family-friendly place to stay. It's on the strip, but it's far enough from all the huge hotels that there are no traffic issues and none of the nasty things Vegas tends to be known for.

A car of girls went down on Thursday, then the rest of us got in town on Friday and we stayed until Sunday. Enjoy the pictures!

Life sure has a way

...of helping to remind you where your priorities lie (or should lie). We've had a lot of small changes here and there lately in our family, and I'm finally in a place where I'm happy and not stressed out. It's nice!

I was working as a nanny for about two and a half months. It was the ideal job because I was able to bring Mason with me each day, I got 40 hours a week, and the pay was pretty good. That family is moving to Florida though, so I don't have a full-time job anymore. Financially things will be challenging, but it will be a huge blessing for me to be able to devote more time to Mason. It was so interesting to watch him change from happy-go-lucky Mason to almost-depressed, always cranky, super whiny and sad Mason while I was nannying. I mean, going from being an only child to having to share his mommy's attention with 3 other children must have been incredibly confusing and hard for him. He's getting back to normal though since we've been home together this week, and I'm loving having my Mason back!

I was so blessed in that I found another job almost immediately. I've been hired as a seller's assistant for an antique dealer on eBay. I go to their home to take pictures, then I list things from home. It's pretty time consuming, but it's perfect because I only work out of the home about 5 hours a week (just 2 evenings) and then do the rest from home. It leaves me time to study for my Medical Transcription course still, and have plenty of time with Mason.

Speaking of Mason, here are some recent fun pictures from our last big snow storm. Mason LOVES the snow, and LOVES wearing Jeff's ski goggles even more. Oh, about the ice scraper - Mason thought he was helping Jeff shovel the driveway. He called it sweeping. So cute!

Merry Christmas!! (This is our "official" Christmas letter)

Merry Christmas everyone!! This past year has been full of so many wonderful things - I'll just give a brief year-in-review for those of you who we haven't kept informed (sorry!).

In November of last year we moved to Saint George, UT (about 4 hours south of our home) for a job Jeff was assigned to run. We planned on being there for six months, but permits were delayed and we ended up being there for a full year. We made so many wonderful friends down in Saint George, and we loved being in the same city as Jeff's best friend Christian and his wife April. We fell in love with the weather, the surroundings (Zion Nat'l Park, tons of hikes, lots of fishing spots), and the people. By the end of our time there we were so excited to get back to our home in Riverton, but the move home really was bitter-sweet. It was hard leaving our friends that we'd grown to love, separating Mason from all the little friends he made, and coming back to a home that wasn't nearly as close to a park as it was in St. George (a 10-minute walk). We are so grateful, however, to be back in our real home in Riverton. Our neighbors are wonderful, as is our ward. We're so excited to be near family and our long-time friends again, and also make new friends. Here's what each of us have been up to this past year:

Jeff - Jeff was promoted this past year to Superintendent at work; he is employed by CRC Construction, which was started by his Grandpa Baumann and is now run by his dad and uncle. Along with that promotion came the opportunity for Jeff to be in charge of building a Mountain America Credit Union in Saint George, UT. It was such an amazing learning experience for him, and he did such an incredible job (as you can see). Jeff turned 30 this year, but it didn't seem to phase him one bit; he has continued to be very involved in playing volleyball and working out at the gym every chance he gets. Although Jeff's favorite college football team, BYU, didn't make it to a BCS bowl game like he hoped, he's still a HUGE fan; he's also really into the Utah Jazz (NBA) and loves to watch them play any chance he gets. Jeff takes great pride in his family, and has especially enjoyed watching Mason grow and learn this past year. It seems like Jeff looks forward to Mason's enthusiastic greetings after work just as much as Mason does!

Sheri - Sheri has had a wonderful year as the transition was made to St. George and back to Riverton. She made some really close friends in St. George and really misses those associations, but has easily kept in touch thanks to her slight obsession with BLOGGING! That's one of her favorite hobbies, along with working out, scrapbooking and reading the "Twilight" series. Sheri was also able to go to some amazing concerts with her girlfriends this past year - Reba McIntyre/Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, and NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK (her childhood friend Amber flew in from South Carolina to relive the past with her). Sheri also recently began working 5 days a week as a nanny for a friend - she tends their 3 children (ages 6, 2 1/2 and 3 months) and is able to bring Mason, so it's a huge blessing. Most of all, Sheri has loved the joys that have accompanied being a mother and a wife. She feels so blessed to have such a wonderful husband and son and anxiously awaits the day baby number 2 will finally decide that it's time to be conceived!! :)

Mason - Mason is now three months away from his 2nd Birthday and is such an amazing addition to the family! He continues to surprise and amaze his mom and dad as he changes from baby to little boy. He's definitely a little monkey; he can never just walk somewhere - he has to run, jump, or hold his parents' hands so he can swing his way to his destination. His parents have finally learned how to keep up with his endless energy and have so much fun being entertained by his goofy antics. Mason is entirely absorbed in the world of Thomas the Tank Engine, and can quickly be pulled out of a bad mood by the mere mention of his special blue train friend. Mason has learned how to count to 10 (he usually forgets the 1 though), can recognize letters A, B and C and knows their sounds, and he's great at copying anything his parents say (time to be careful!). If only he was as intent on eating as he is on having fun! He doesn't enjoy mealtime much - probably because that means that he can't be moving and playing! Even with the few challenges that inevitably come along with having a child, Mason sure is such a joy to have around.

As we celebrate Christmas this year, we are so grateful for this special time when place extra focus and emphasis on our Savior Jesus Christ. His birth, life, death and resurrection constantly bring us hope and renew our faith. We take great comfort in knowing that He knows and loves all mankind - each of us on a very personal level. May we remember to follow Christ's example of unconditional love, compassion and service during this special time of year and always.

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

We love you all!
Jeff, Sheri and Mason Baumann

Our Christmas Choirside

I just got home from one of the most uplifting, spiritual events I've ever attended or participated in. Our Stake (for my non-Mormon friends, a "stake" is a term we use for a group of all the different congregations in our area - there are 8 congregations a.k.a. "wards" in our stake here in Riverton)...anyhow, our stake had what's called a "Choirside" tonight - each ward's choir prepared a Christmas song to sing, then we prepared a song as a Stake Choir (prob. close to 200 people are in the stake choir). The entire chapel was full, and the overflow area was opened up and was also full almost to the opposite end of the gym area. It was awesome to see so many people there!

Each song was so beautiful, and I am so grateful for this special night where the Christmas-time focus was taken off presents, family meals, decorations, and stress, and was redirected to where all the focus really should be during this time of year - CHRIST. As I listened to the words as each choir sang - stories of the wisemen, shepherds, Mary and Joseph, and of course Christ, I was filled with the Spirit. The last song was "O Holy Night" (an amazing arrangement by Sally DeFord that is free to download on her website), and it was sung by our huge stake choir. There was a viola accompanying the piano and the organ, and it was just breathtaking. Even from my position up in the choir seats, I could feel the power of the choir as we sang praises to our Lord. It was hard to sing through my tears!!

I am so grateful for a wonderful Heavenly Father who loved us enough to send his Son, Jesus Christ. Tonight's events gave me the extra nudge I needed to fall back into stride and center my life around His. I'm going to try extra hard to make this a super-spiritual Christmas in our home. We'll see what kind of resistance I get from the troops (i.e. Jeff who hates Christmas music and protests each time I turn it on), but I'm determined to get our focus back where it should be. May our hearts be filled with love toward God and our fellow man as we remember the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ.

"Mamma!!!!!"

Mason's been cooped up inside all week cuz he's been so sick, and I didn't wanna get any other kids sick with his croup (the doctor said that any child within a 200-ft. radius can catch it if Mason coughs)....so this morning I took him to South Towne Mall right at 10:00 when the Santa booth opened. There wasn't a single person in line, so Mason didn't have contact with any kids (good for my peace of mind!). Even though I prepared him well by showing him pictures of Santa, reading him stories about Santa, and even practicing "ho, ho, ho!" with him, the second he saw Santa today he was TERRIFIED! Poor Saint Nick tried everything he could to soothe him, but he was so scared, and all he could do was cry "mamma!!!". So, they took the picture real fast and got him down. It's one for the books, that's for sure!

My Brother, Elder Donnelson

Yesterday was such a special day; I got to accompany my youngest sibling, Taylor, to the MTC (Missionary Training Center) where he'll live for the next 12 weeks as he prepares to spend two years serving the Lord and the people of Cambodia as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

You know, so many people don't understand everything that's involved in a Mormon mission - I'm so proud of Taylor for the sacrifices he's made so that he can lose himself in service for two whole years. He won't see his family, friends, or girlfriend the whole time he's gone. He won't come home for visits. He will only be able to call his family, and even those phone calls will only happen on Mother's Day and Christmas. He'll receive no financial compensation for his time in Cambodia, in fact he (and my parents) will fund his entire mission. He won't go out and do touristy things, won't go to the beach, won't go out on the weekends and party, and will never be without a companion (fellow missionary) unless he's on the can.

It's such a huge sacrifice, yet I know Taylor doesn't see it that way. He was so excited yesterday when we dropped him off at the MTC. We were all emotional and he was just ready to get going on this the next chapter in his life. My mission changed me - the way I talk, the way I think, the way I dress, the way I see and treat other people. Taylor is much more Christlike upon his entering the MTC than I was when I entered - I don't think the adjustment will be as difficult for him as it was for me. Learning Khmer (the language in Cambodia) may be another story though! Please keep Taylor in your thoughts and prayers!!










Taylor with Gma & Gpa









Mom putting his name tag on him









Taylor's crazy name tag!












Going in the "missionary door"













Pointing to Cambodia on the huge map in the MTC

I'm Back In School!

I guess I forgot to blog about this pretty big development in my life! Jeff and I would really like for me to be able to stay home and work in the future, so I signed up for an online Medical Transcription school (www.careerstep.com). It's a little expensive, but not when you consider that it only lasts a year and I can begin making around $40K when I'm done with school. It's a job that's in very high demand now since doctor's offices are trying to streamline everything now - and it's cheaper anyway for them to employ someone working from home (a contractor) than it is to have an actual in-office employee.

So I'm doing that schooling right now and Jeff's studying for the GMAT so he can go get his Masters in Business. We're gonna have a busy next year and a half while we both finish up our schooling...then once we both finish what we're currently enrolled in, I'm gonna go back to REAL school and finish the one year I have remaining to get my Bachelor's Degree. Can't wait!!!

Sick Child

So just like last year around this time, Mason is way sick. Fun times! He's had a cold for a while, which is inevitable because Jeff and I have had bad colds, AND he's in the daycare with a bunch of kids every single day, and I nanny 3 children. Anyhow, his cold turned into...(brace yourselves)...a double ear infection, pink-eye, an upper respiratory infection, leading to CROUP. Poor little man!!

Sunday night his eyes got all oozy, then his cough got super bad. After we put him to bed, he started having a hard time breathing, then he started the barking cough. I took him to the doctor yesterday morning where they gave him a steroid shot, put him on antibiotics, and got us some eye drops. At least the pink-eye isn't contagious since he's been on the antibiotics for more than 24 hours. The croup, however, has a 5-7 day period where it's highly contagious, which means NO WORK for me this entire week. The break is nice - I can get a TON of studying done for the course I'm taking right now - but we really need the money that I can't be making. I don't want to transmit any of his sicknesses to those children.

Keep your fingers crossed that he gets better quickly!! I think he's bored here at home all day long, now that he's used to being around other kids.

Family Pictures

Lee and Kathy (Jeff's parents) haven't had a picture done of their entire family in at least 10 years, and all the kids were getting tired of looking at their old selves up on the fireplace mantle, so our portrait session last month was a huge Baumann family affair and quite the adventure with all the kiddos running around!

We went to Utah Lake and it was absolutely beautiful with the fallen leaves everywhere - the perfect setting for pictures! The kids loved it too, cuz they had tons of room to run around and be hyper.

Mason NEVER stays still for longer than a minute or two, so it was very interesting trying to get a good picture, but Tiffany (our photographer) was awesome and her assistants had great distraction skills, so we were able to pull off a few where everyone was looking at the camera (or in the general direction).

Happenings in The World of Mason

I haven't really posted anything about Mason lately (development-wise), so I figured I would take some time tonight to do just that. This seems to be a time of super-fast language development for Mason, and he's really been saying some hilarious things. Here are a few: (I'll apologize for his "French")
English - "Up the hill" Mason/French - "Oh hell"
English - "Shirt", "shut" Mason/French - "$h#*"
English - "down" Mason/French - "dam..."
And for the non-swear, daycare-worthy words:
I funny
cranky (thanks to Thomas the Train) - "kweekwee
Malia (his cousin) - actually "eeeyah"
holy cow - "hae tao"
train track
milk
juice
drink eat
cracker
kick ball
CRY (when he's upset, he tells us "i cwy" before he gets emotional, so we are lucky cuz that gives us a chance to cheer him up before he freaks out)
dance
jump
bounce
run
walk
get up
Heavenly Father - actually "heh far"
three (he counts to three - "twee, twee, twee!")

There are so many funny things he says. We're always entertained. He's also got SO much energy!! He's always into something or wanting to try a new trick. This past week he was starting to slide down the stairs, so we used the leaf from the table as a slide, and he spent over an hour sliding down the stairs. It was so funny!! I'll include some pictures and a video so you can see what he's been up to.

"Twilight" Premier!!!!!

On Thursday (the day after the Carrie Underwood concert), I went to the midnight premier for the "Twilight" movie. I have read all the books and really, really loved them. Even though I was SO exhausted from having really late nights for a week straight, it was SO worth staying up super late for the premier. We had 15 people in our group, and it was just so much fun being there at Jordan Commons with the thousands of other people who were just as obsessed as we were...actually, there were plenty of people WAY MORE obsessed than us. It was pretty entertaining to see people dressed up as vampires and in prom dresses and stuff.

I thought the movie was super cheezy; HOWEVER, the book was cheezy, so it was perfectly fine with me. :) Robert Pattinson (Edward) was an excellent actor, but the girl that played Bella was just mediocre. All-in-all, it was awesome and so fun and I'm so glad I went!

Anyway, here are a few pictures!! (Pic. 1 - Becky, Nicole, Heather and I; Pic. 2 - me with my sisters in law Jen and Mindy; Pic. 3 - our group; Pic. 4 - dude with cool shirt that said "Husbands against O.C.D. - Obsessive Cullen Disorder", Pic.5 - me with my cousins Camille and Nicole; Pic. 6 - Melea and I)

Carrie Underwood Concert

Life has been so hectic for the past few weeks, and I haven't had a chance until today to update the blog. Lots has happened!

The day after my friend Amber B. flew back to South Carolina, I went to the Carrie Underwood concert with Amber Fujikawa - she got me tickets for my birthday, and we just happened to be right next to the stage on the floor. It was incredible!! Little Big Town opened for her which was awesome, cuz I love them too. We were able to get some amazing pictures, so enjoy!! Thank you for the concert, Amber. You rock!