The Three of Us

First Time Playing in the Grass

She actually really loved the grass, but not was not so sure about touching it with her hands

Aleana and her little friend Kaylee playing together

First time at the Zoo

Last Saturday May 4th we took Aleana to the Willow Park Zoo, She could not see very well from her stroller so we carried her. She really enjoyed seeing the animals.

Here favorite were the monkeys and the bob cats because they we both up and moving around.

She also really liked the turtle and wanted to grab it. He was a very friendly turtle.

We hope to take her to the Hoggle Zoo sometime this summer and let her see a lot more animals.

First Barbeque

On Friday night we went to Adams park for a barbeque with our friends the Sanchez's, they were running a little behind so we enjoyed some time together. The weather was so nice.

Look at our matching outfit!

What a big girl!

And yes her cute sandals are crocheted, but they only stayed on for a few pictures.

My First Mothers Day!!

I am so blessed to be the mother of such a sweet little girl who loves me and to have the best husband whole world. I love you Curt and Aleana Thank you for a wonderful Mothers Day.

I also wanted to say thanks to our wonderful Birthmom Jesica who gave me the opportunity to be a mother. We gave her a similar necklace except instead of pink and purple hearts it was a pink little girl and a green heart for her and Aleana. Saturday was national Birthmothers Day, so we went and visited her and took her the gift and a bunch of pictures. Both Jesica and Aleana's half sister Brooke were so happy to see her. I think we really made Jesica's day!

Here is a Card that Curt helped Aleana make for me for my first Mothers Day!

Curt traced Aleana's cute little hand

If you Can't read the card it says "Roses are red violets are blue your flowers are pink and purple and our birthstones are too! You are my mommy and I just wanted to say your the best mommy ever I love you and Happy Mothers Day!

Then Curt had Aleana help him hold the pen while he wrote her name. I just thought it was the cutes thing ever.

Here are my pink and purple flowers from Curt and Aleana

Here is the necklace Curt put together with Aleana and my birthstones

I love the necklace and flowers. I will wear the necklace all the time and I hope I can keep my flowers a live for a least a few weeks :)

After Church we went to my parents house for dinner, which Curt helped to prepare.

My mom gave me so pink flowers and I gave her a salt down print of Aleana's little foot print.

I love my mom and I am so grateful for all she has done for me. She always believed I would be a mother someday!

Here are some cute pictures we took in my parents back yard after dinner

Some adorable pictures of me and Aleana on my first mothers day!

Fun Family pictures, I love my little family

Aleana and daddy chilling in the grass

Aleana and my parents

Aleana with my sister Debbie, who might be winning on favorite aunt!

Aleana and my brother Brian, they have fun playing together!

I love my family and they helped me have any even better mothers day!

Sunday May 26, 2013

Aleana has done a lot of fun new things since she has turned 7 months. She now has 6 and ¼ teeth, she will probably have her front 8 before too long. She has started reaching for us which is so much fun. She is also saying mummm mummm and daddd daddd, she is even started to associate it with us. I don’t think she completely has the mom and the dad thing down yet but it is so fun to see her learning. There was one day that she was me walk into the kitchen and she rolled in front of the door way so that I would see her when she walked out and reached up her hands and said “mummm mummm”, it was the cutest thing and I could not resist picking her up.

I had my first Mother’s Day. I love being a Mother and I truly love Aleana so much. Curt and Aleana bought me flowers and a necklace with a purple heart charm and a pink heart charm for Aleana. They also gave me cards; one was from Aleana that Curt made with Aleana’s help. He traced her little hand and wrote mommy on the front and wrote on the inside and then had Aleana help him her name. On the inside it said, “Roses are Red, Violets are blue, your flowers are pink and purple and our birthstones are too! You are my mommy and I just wanted to say ours the best mommy ever and Happy Mother’s Day! I love it and will treasure it forever.

Earlier in the week we went to Callaway’s for dinner and on that Sunday we went down to my parent’s house for dinner. I am so grateful for Curt and for all he did to help us bring Aleana into our family and allow me to be a mother. I am also so grateful for my mom who sacrificed so much for me over the years.

See loves making music; she will roll over to the tile by our front door or the laminate in our kitchen and pats them with her hand or toys to experiment with the sound. We have started giving her Tupperware containers to use as drums and she has loved it. She still loves her piano that Brian gave her.

Aleana thinks that she wants to learn to crawl, she has been lunging forward to get toys and has almost gotten into the crawling position a few times, but her she gets stuck on one leg and then topples over when she gets enough momentum to get her self over her leg. I bet she will be crawling by the time she is 9 months old.

Aleana got to meet the dogs and horses at Grandpas house this weekend. She was a little weary at first about the dogs trying to lick her toes but by the end of our stay she wanted to get down on the ground and play with the dogs. She diffidently favored Coley over Fred because Coley was more calm but she never acted scared of Fred even when he Aleana kisses. When she is old enough she will be sneaking out of the house with Hannah to play with the dogs. She pet the horses right off, but later on was not to thrilled about petting them but never really acted scared. She even sat up on the horse with Grandpa’s horse all by herself and took a couple short horseback rides with Curt and me. She also saw the kitties and she wanted to grab it and pulled its ear. I was surprised how comfortable she was around the bigger animals. I told Curt that one of these days he will have to by Aleana a dog. I think that he would be just fine with that.

Aleana is also starting to figure out how to pick up the puff cereals and put them in her mouth. She does still drop them a lot or get them into her fist so that she can’t get them in her mouth but she does occasionally get them into her mouth. Grandpa Snelgrove was helping her learn how get the puffs out of the container and how to eat them. It is fun to see her learning to be independent. She also kind of learning how to feed herself her bottle and Sippy Cup, most of the time she does not get much milk or water out but she is figuring out how to hold it on her own.

We also went up to Rexburg on Thursday for a job interview for Curt. It is for the athletic director position at Madison High School. Curt felt the interview went really well, but he is trying to decide if it is the right job for him. It was really fun to visit with Ryan and his family. The girls loved seeing Aleana, Becca loved holding her and playing with her and the other girls especially Marianna loved playing with her on the floor. Marianna kept finding toys and saying this is for Aleana. It would be fun to be close to them and have Aleana grow up around her cousins, but it would also be sad to leave cousin Layla and all of our family down here. I guess we will have to see if they even offer us the job.

We took Aleana to the Logan Temple to be sealed to us on Saturday April 27th at 11:00 am.

We can now be a Family Forever!!

Having Aleana sealed to Curt and I was one of the most spiritual experiences of my life.

Aleana did amazing and looked liked an Angel!

It was neat to be in the temple as a family with our family and friends.

The temple workers made me feel like I was getting married again and just made it an experience I will always remember.

We went to the Temple the Friday before the sealing and my friend took some amazing pictures of us and Aleana. Here are a few of our favorites.

I love my little girl and I am so happy I get to be her mother forever

She has stolen her Daddy's heart, he loves his baby girl!

What a happy girl!

I love this picture, I think it will go on her wall!

We are such a happy family!

Sealing

Here are some pictures from after the actual sealing.

We got to come out in our whites and take pictures.

Right after we come out of the doors of the temple.

Aleana with her little cousin, she was so excited to meet Aleana.

What a beautiful sight all in white in front of the temple were we became an Eternal Family!!

Blessing

We went over to the church after the sealing and Curt blessed Aleana. Then we had a luncheon.

It was a great day and it was fun to see family and friends!

Here is some more about the special day!

We had an amazingly spiritual weekend! We took Aleana to the Logan Temple to be sealed to us for Time and all Eternity on Saturday April 27^th!! I feel so blessed that I am a member of the true church of Christ and have faith and testimony in his plan. I am also so grateful that I have a wonderful loving husband that was worthy to take us to the temple to be sealed together as a family. The power of the priesthood is such an amazing thing and it has changed my life forever.

On Friday we went up to the temple and my friend Chelsie Atkinson took pictures of us. I have not seen them but I hope that they are amazing!

On Saturday morning Chelsie came over and took video of Aleana and her dresses, getting her ready and us getting ready. She also took video of us walking into the temple. She is going to make of Aleana’s special day. I am excited I because It will be great for us to show her when she is older and we tell her about the day she was sealed to us. Her and her husband took pictures and video of us after we came out of the temple.

Curt, Aleana and I had to be in the temple by 10:00 and the sealing was at 11:00. We got to the temple, checked in and got all our paperwork figured out. Then we took Aleana to the Youth Center. I was surprised Aleana did not even fuss when we left. I saw my mom coming in just before the sister who was helping me took me back to get dressed. We had to stop Curt and the guy helping him so they could go grab my Dad who was a witness and an escort. While we were in the temple they made me feel as special as I did on my wedding day (if not more so because they were not as busy as the Salt Lake Temple. I got to go back into the bridal dressing room and into the brides’ room to get ready and wait until it was our turn to go up. I thought my mom was going to come back to the Brides room with me, but they had her go to the youth center with Aleana which I was happy about. The lady that helped me was so sweet and made me feel so special. The temple matrons assistant told me a story about this lady would who could not have kids and 20 years went by and she heard about this girl in the foster care system who was wanting a home, she fostered her, then adopted her and was sealed to her. The sweet 15 year old girl got a family and this lady and her husband got to be parents. The lord works miracles all the time in the lives of his children and I know Aleana is heaven sent.

We were called up and headed to the elevator where we found Curt, my dad, Curt’s dad and the brother waiting for us. We headed up stairs and they took our dads to our sealing room and we went into a smaller sealing room to talk to the sealer. He gave us some instructions of wear to kneel at the altar and made sure he was saying our names correctly, which was a good thing because he was announcing Aleana’s name the Spanish way. Then my mom walked in with Aleana dressed in her beautiful dress and wearing the white head band with the three flowers. I wanted to cry seeing her looking so beautiful and in the temple. Aleana loved the beautiful chandelier. She was just in awe at how beautiful the temple was. Then the lady who was helping me took my mom and Aleana into the sealing room. It was nice to have a quiet moment with Curt before the sealing took place to feel the spirit and think about what was really about to happen. We got brought in after all our guests were seated. It warmed my heart to see friends and family sitting in the room, you could feel the feel the spirit so strong and the love that they had for us and Aleana.

Curt and I sat on the bench between our parents. I sat next to my mom and Aleana. Aleana loved looking at herself in the mirror and seeing all the people in the room. I wonder if she could see people in the room that no one else could see like Grandma Alice, Grandpa Pete or Snellie or Even Jesus. She was such a little angel. Here is what I remember about the sealing, since I was crying and kept looking at my precious Aleana and all those people in the room who support and love us. The Sealer started off by welcoming the Snelgrove family the, the Stauffer family and friends. He thanked us for the wonderful spirit we brought into the room and also thanked everyone for the sacrifice of being in the temple today. Then he thanked us for our sacrifice for bringing our family to the temple to be sealed. He talked about the symbols in the sealing ceremony (Patriarchal/Patriarch) and how the alter is a symbol of sacrifice itself. He talked about how we needed to set a good example and get in a habit of doing things that will make this sealing stick, such as praying together, reading scriptures and family home evening. I liked one thing that he said about family home evening was “by darn make it fun”. We want to have activities that will help us to grow closer as a family. And we will strive to continue to do those things that will make this sealing stick because I want Aleana to be part of our forever family. He talked about Curt being a great priesthood holder and his desire to have a wonderful family and that was evident in Aleana and me. I just thought how blessed we are to have his priesthood authority in our home and a wonderful husband and father to preside over our home.

The Sealer invited us up to the altar and we took our places and my mom brought up Aleana. She was so good; she actually dove forward and tried to grab our hands before it was even her turn. During the ceremony she played with the little cloth doily and did not even try to pull away. Aleana kept looked up at Curt and I who had tears running down our faces and each time she looked up at me I just wanted to cry harder knowing that she was going to be my little girl for eternity. She is such an angel and a blessing in my life. Although, I did not cry as much as Curt did he started crying as soon as we walked into the room and did not really stop until after we left. In that moment I felt the spirit so strong and it testified to me that these blessings are real and can come true according to our faith.

After the sealing, he had us stand up and have our parents and grandparents come and give us hugs. It made me tear up when I gave my mom a hug because she helped bring an even sweeter spirit to the sealing and I hope someday she will get to be sealed to her parents and siblings. I also got emotional when my Grandma Taylor gave me a hug because she had not been through the temple when I was married and she now she was able to be at Aleana’s sealing. I also when I gave my dad a hug it was special because he was always there for me and I love him so much. Curt got really emotional when his dad came up and gave him a hug. They both were crying on each other’s shoulder. It was a special thing to see. All the rest of our guests came and gave us hugs which was, Allen (Kathy was home with new baby Layla), Brian & Cadence (girlfriend, now wife), Julee, Meagan and Brandon, Tiffany, Ryan and Lisa, Grandma Snellie and Grandma Pete, Jay and Pat (Curt’s Aunt and Uncle), Richard and Kim (Curt’s Cousin and his Wife) Steve and Damaris Kjar, Mike and Nora Molmgren, Ben and Alyssa Owen, Bishop and Sister Carter, Bishop and Sister Crowshaw. It was amazing to feel the love that each person had for us and Aleana.

After we had given everyone hugs and the only ones left were our parents and some grandparents. The sealer had us look in the mirror and said “look at that beautiful sight”. I don’t think anything in this world could compare to that sight or our eternal family dressed in white together in the temple. The Sealer said something to us and our parents but I don’t remember because I was just enjoying the sight and being with my family. I will work hard to make these blessing come to pass and be able to live with Aleana and Curt for eternity. I love them so much. I love the lord and his plan of happiness. Nothing else can bring us more joy in this life.

We went outside in our whites to take pictures. My mom even came out in her whites too. When I went in to pick up Aleana from the nursery she was happy to see me. We walked down the hall to head outside and she started to cry so the sister went back to get her bottle, poor little girl had not had a nap that day and was so tired and hungry. I went to feed her and I realized the stopper was in the bottle. She could not have eaten any food. She drank a little bit but was just upset and crying so we decided to just try taking her outside. She cheered right up and was pretty happy for pictures. I feel bad that I did not have my mom hold her for a picture in her whites or even really pose with us. I will have to remember to have us pose with Curt’s mom if we get this opportunity again. If we have someone come take pictures again I will have a list of pictures I want so it runs smoothly and we don’t forget.

We headed over to the church after we finished pictures. Aleana feel asleep in Curt’s arms before the blessing but gotten woken up, so my dad took her out in the hall to feed her and have her take a nap. I think my dad loves being a grandpa.

So we had a little scare when we found out bishop was sick and could not make it to the blessing, but Brother Garbanati (1st councilors) was nice enough to come at the last minute. We wanted to have the blessing that day because family and friends were already there, so I am so glad it worked out.

Jesica showed up while Aleana was out sleeping in the hall and I went out and gave her a hug. Then Curt led everyone into the relief society room for the blessing. When I got in there with Aleana Jesica was already starting to cry. I hope they were more tears of joy than anything else. She just loved Aleana’s dress and thought she looked so beautiful
.

We sang “Families can be Together Forever” (Karen Carter played and Jody Snelgrove led, also Becca Snelgrove played music as people came in the room) to start out and then I sat up in the chair with Aleana. Curt and those invited to be in the circle came and circled around. Aleana was kind of nervous but Allen kept smiling down at her and helped her feel more comfortable. Curt almost gave Aleana my name, but he quickly caught himself. Curt told her that in her six months of life you have been an amazing blessing in the lives of so many people and brought families closer together. My first thought was how she has been an amazing blessing in Jesica’s life and brought her back to Brooke and Jeremy. Also how she has brought Curt and I closer and brought us closer to our families. He told her she has a great love for those around her and blessed her to have a special knowledge of where she came from both spiritually and physically. We will help her to remember she is a daughter of God who loves her and has already greatly blessed her. Also we will help her understand that she is a blessing to us from her birthmom who loves her so much. They are both extremely important to her life and identity. He told her that those her today love her very much and I know they really do! Curt blessed her to have a strong testimony of Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father. Curt and I have a great task ahead of us to help her gain that testimony. He blessed her to make decisions in her life that will bring her closer to them and strengthen family relationships. He blessed her to have the conviction to always do what is right and to stick to her morals and values. He blessed her to make the decision to go to the temple and be sealed that she also might have an eternal family. He closed by blessing her with these things and any other things that her Heavenly Father sees fit to bless her with. I hope I can do my part to help her have these blessing come true by following the advice the sealer gave us, following the prophets and listening to the promptings of the Holy Ghost. I love Aleana so much and hope these blessing come true for her.

I went back and sat by Jesica and had her hold Aleana after the prayer. Several family members come over and introduced themselves to Jesica and gave her hugs and told her how much they love her and how gratefully they are for her. Lisa told her that her family has been praying for us for 6 years to have a baby. Jody and Julee came and gave her hugs.

We went in at ate lunch and visited with friends and family. Neither Curt nor I got to sit very long and eat, because we were so busy talking to everyone. After lunch we took pictures with some of our friends. People stood in line to take pictures with Aleana. I loved seeing Aleana with our family and friends but especially with Jesica Jeremy and Brooke. I hope Jesica felt loved and appreciated by all our friends and family showing her how much they love her and how grateful they are for her. Here is a comment Jesica wrote on my facebook page. “today was awsome soo much fun to see aleana and how much she has grown had a great time with everyone. thank u for sharring aleans special moments with our family. love u all very much cant wait to visit again.”

Curt Sent this to Jesica

“Jesica it was SOOOOO good to have you with us at Aleana's blessing, and it was wonderful to see you and chat with you a bit. We are extremely grateful for all you do and have done! You have been, are, and forever will be a huge part of our lives, and we are excited to have you as family”

Jesica Responded

“thank you both , aleana’s such a gift i truely am happy for ur family and am thankful to have found such a desurving couple to have placed aleana with you guys do fit im proud to have made such an important choice and have made it right enjoy each other every day and jeremy brooke cindy and i oh and marilyn love yall everyday as well we keep u guys in our hearts thoughts minds and prayers and well as for me also in my dreams i love all of u and hopefully we will visit sometime”

We are so grateful Jesica is and will forever be a part of our lives.

Curt’s Uncle Jay told us a story about Curt’s cousin Chris how was adopted. He said that his mission president knew his dad and was telling Chris how much he was like his dad. Chris said you know I am adopted. His mission president was shocked because he had so many of his dads attributes. It is like our attorney said “Nurture or Nature”. He has seen how so many kids just fit right in with their adopted families like it was meant to be. Jay said that the blessing of being born as if in the covenant is true for all aspects. Aleana really is our daughter she just had to come to us another way and will have attributes like us. We do hope that she does take after Jesica some too because Jesica is amazing.

After the blessing we went back to our house with Curt’s family. I am so glad Maegan and Brandon made it up and Ryan and his family came down. It was good to have the whole family together. Mary and Emma and all of Ryan’s kids loved meeting Aleana. Mary got to meet and hold her friend Aleana. She would look at the pictures of Aleana we sent to Ryan and say this is my friend Aleana. One day when Curt called up Julee to talk to her while she was visiting with Ryans family Mary ran up to the phone “Uncle Curt, Uncle Curt My friend Aleana gets to go to the temple.” I just thought it was the cutes thing, but it was also so cute when grandpa brought Mary up to see Aleana after we came out of the temple and they hugged each other. I hope we can see them often enough that they can become good friends.

After everyone left we opened presents and put Aleana down for a much needed nap and just crashed on the couch. It was an amazing day I will never forget. I am amazed at how well Aleana handled it all. I only really heard her cry too times the whole day. She was a little trooper and knew how special or a day it was. I love my little girl so much and I am so glad she is part of our Eternal Family!