Happy New Year's 2009

Our sweet family at the way sweet cabin!

So for the CONTINUATION of glee...Yes I am still in Idaho---It has been 7 days 12 hours and 3.5 minutes since I left my lovely abode. (okay I don't have it down to the hours and minutes but pretty close). We left the bitter cold of Island Park only to enjoy more 10 degree bitter bitterness. We have been camping out at Grandma Tootsies and Grandpa "B's" for some time now and the laundry pile isn't getting any smaller. I do have to say It isn't much of a "camping" experience though. I sleep in a nice bed, I have hot water, great company and food is never scarce. As for the latest of the adventures and good times- We have had a smashed finger in the door incident, a hot tub vs. snow and shovel fight, we have had a mini van stuck in the snow event and the continuation of contamination. As for my boys- we have had our very own teething time (an event in itself) Jamison has his two bottom teeth finally cut, and Reed is getting (what I suppose are his 2 yr. molars)One side came in awhile back and now the other is finally making its own appearance. The milk storage has come to a shortage and the boys have had to taste the healthy side of SOY-Reed doesn't mind too much but after finishing his first morning sippy Noah came to this conclusion, "mom, that milk was bad, my sippy had bad bad milk in it..." Over and over he continued to remind us. Then he lead me to the bathroom saying that he needed to throw up. Hmmm-well he didn't but he did take a healthy nap afterwards. Do I blame it on the milk or the bug that has been biting us all around here???

So we are here anticipating the New Year- Tonight we are going to enjoy a family lip sink, talent show and of course FOOD!!! on the play list so far: yellow submarine, snow man rendition? Niel Diamond and Steve and I are getting call backs for Moulon Rouge...It is gonna be good. The night will rock until we eventually pass out one at a time. For some reason there is this undefined rule where you can't go to bed on your own will. No one wants to miss a THING!!! don't get me wrong. I am a party animal and I don't want to miss a thing but...I like as much sleep as I can get. Bring it on 2009!!! I will be the first (maybe) to wish you all the best and ----


HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Here are the boys getting ready to DIG in on a BIG JUD'S hamburger. YUMMY!!!
This is 1lb of burger and all the dressin' How can you resist?
Here are a few December Photo moments!

Reed, Jamison, and Noah Christmas Day!

This is our annual trip to see Santa

It's a good thing snow is beautiful!

I was going to put this in the funny moments section but it was a little longer than a phrase. To set the scene...So for Christmas we have been at Steve's parents house in Rigby Idaho. After the Christmas day festivities we hung out at their place and then Saturday we headed up to Island Park. B-E-A-UTIFUL!!! Tons of snow, TONS-We are staying in a very nice cabin with his entire family. HMMM...2 great grandmas, 2 grandparents, 6 siblings plus 6 spouses and (drum roll please...) and 20 grandchildren (all under 12) I will not lie-It is crazy fun but at least we have our own rooms. We have been filling our time with Food, guitar hero, snow fun, games, movies, more food, and of course we can't go without the migration of illness. With that many people we are bound to have sickness and of course an occasional accident. A few tumbles down the stairs, a swig of Ajax, a call to poison control (grateful it wasn't my child) and the drama of freezing hands. And we are half way done.
But for the funny tid bit...Noah was outside with Steve trudging through the snow when he asks,"Dad, is this the woods ?" S-"Yes" N-"And don't wolves live here? and bears?" S-"Yeah" "And they can bite you then right?" S-"Yeah" N-"Well, then I don't like this any more dad."

The rest of the adventure and pictures are to be continued...

One day Older and Wiser Too!!!

Just another Speed Bump!!! So my post this go round is for myself-Well of course for all to read, but it was my birthday. I know, I know you all wish me well and hope I had a great birthday-THANK YOU ALL!!! I say that in all seriousness because I know how sweet you all are. (I am smiling and laughing at myself-I think I am so funny)-Any who...December 21st is always a great and splendid day! Brittany Erin Brown (Helm) was born on this special day. I arrived in a "ONE in a MILLION" way. Who doesn't love a good grand entrance? Sideways and already a pain in my mothers side. j/k but I did make the delivery a bit of a trial. I will hear this story every year and I am sure it will get better and better. My mom labored FOREVER, bless her heart and then I decided to make it even more memorable by positioning myself in a very unruly position sideways-as two or was it three? doctors push on my mothers tummy and sides they managed to squeeze me out...As my dear mother lay in sheer exhaustion the doctors knitted her closed for a good TWO hours (at least). As I think about this grand event I can't help but feel pain, serious pain for what I put my mom through (of course I blame myself a bit, 'cmon I was the one causing the pain...then I think "shall I blame the doctor-goodness how educated was this man? I do remember that he told my mother I was going to be "brain dead"-some may still question-but please keep the chuckles to your self thanks) Anyway- I do have to give credit though, those doctors got me here as safely as they could and the most important...they made sure my mother survived. I SURE LOVE MY MOM, for more than a million reasons. And as for my sweet dad-Thank you for holding me for the first three hours of my life. There will always be a sweet bond. We all know I am the favorite child, esp. the favorite daughter. I am beginning to give myself a lot of credit in this post but what the heck IT was MY BIRTHDAY!!!

This is my LOVE! (not the chocolate cake-even though it was yummy) Steve my hunk-a-hunk of burnin' love. He always makes my birthday great. Here are my top TEN reasons in no specific order:

1. He woke me with a sweet bouquet of beautiful flowers next to the bed (not cheesy I promise)

2. He always gives the best hugs and kisses

3. He gives the funniest cards with a pinch of seriousness and LOTS of Love!

4. He set a great example by going to church by himself-2 of the 3 boys plus myself were still sleeping. What a good boy!

5. He surprised me by wrapping and giving me a steam mop for my kitchen floor-no grief please, I really really wanted one-I hate mopping my floor and it is wonderful. A very great gift!

6. He invited my family over for a birthday dinner-I love being with my family!

7. He MADE everything for dinner-A delicious honey ham, real mashed potatoes, corn, salad and rolls. AMAZING!!! my family raved all night about it-

8. He got me a yummy chocolate cake with ice cream and put 26 candles on it. How cute!

9. He always makes me so grateful and happy and made this birthday very special!

10. I DIDN"T HAVE TO DO ANYTHING!!! I did what I wanted and then Steve did the rest. What a babe!

Of course I could continue but I will save your eyes...

I am now officially 26 years old. I am very happy and blessed and I appreciate everyone who makes my life so wonderful and shiny! I LOVE YOU ALL!
Special thanks to all the cute phone calls, "comments" and Birthday wishes-and a very special thanks to my MOM, dad, and family for squeezing me into their lives and loving me everyday. And a very very special thanks to my boys and sweet husband for always making me smile, laugh, cry, grow, and LOVE LOVE LOVE and giving me more and more reasons to LOVE! Thank you!

The Carriage Ride- TRADITION!!!

December 10, 2008--- Last year most of my family decided we were going to make a little trip to see the Christmas lights down in Spanish Fork-Salem area. As for this year??? Some didn't feel the need to make it a yearly "tradition"-I think it had to do with-driving too long, too cold, or was it driving too long? I am not sure, but one thing I am sure of ...We had a great time!!! My sister Heather and our families decided we wanted to make the 30 minute trip and enjoy the festivities. It's this pond tucked away in a neighborhood and when you look out onto the water there are strands of Christmas lights formed like trees floating on top. Gorgeous and very Christmasy!!! Not to mention- we are on a CARRIAGE RIDE! the boys loved it. Jamison not so much. It could be because I am a "dumb mother" who brought their 5 month old out in the bitter cold (the carriage driver "humorously" portrayed that to me-Thanks and how much are you getting payed? and can you give us back the hot chocolate that Jon just gave you. j/k He was a very nice guy and made the ride very entertaining) it was probably the bad timing...Jamison was starving and the "hooter hider" was not coming out in that kind of weather. Other than the crying child, we had a great time enjoying the lights, the ride and the Christmas Cheer!!! The nice driver, Clyde also complimented on our "twinkle twinkle" song. We were trying to calm the babe and the kids thought that was a perfect song. Clyde hadn't had twinkle twinkle-mostly Christmas whoha's. We would definitely do it again. It is always fun being with my family!

Thank you Heather, Jon and Kate- We sure love you guys!

(just in case you were wondering, I am the red nosed reindeer)

And for those of you who have not read your Christmas card - It is down below- Enjoy!

A gift from ME to YOU!!! December 2008

I have decided that I am inviting you all to view and enjoy my CHRISTMAS CARD (newsletter). Once again I did not send a Christmas card to all those I love...and I apologize. Yes, I had plenty of time but I procrastinated. I was given the guilt trip more than once from a source I will not disclose. Still time? probably not. I know I will not get it done...picture printed, envelope stamped and to the mail box it would have to go...maybe next year. So visualize this...

A nice enveloped with your name on it and probably a cute Christmas sticker or so. You open the envelope with much excitement and anticipation to find...(drum roll please) TA DA!!! a cute and extremely adorable family picture (Kris really liked this one)

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

We hope you have a very Merry Christmas and of course a Happy and well deserved
NEW YEAR! Love the HELM family

Steve, Brittany, Noah, Reed, and Jamison

And if that wasn't enough for you...well, I would throw in a cute little piece of Christmas stationary with an overview of the year 2008.

"The Helm family has been quite blessed once again. Three little boys keep us filled with love, joy and lots and lots of laughter. Everyday is a blessing! I may have messy rooms, piles of laundry, and a time out chair; but when it comes to the things that are truly of importance at the end of the day, all I have to do is look into the faces of our three amazing boys and a husband whom I adore and love so much. As for the year of 2008 we have much to celebrate!!!

Steve is working for Allegiance Inc. in South Jordan as an "account executive" and is a fantastic salesman. Steve has always been a project man. I do have to admit, I am extra spoiled with the fact that he can do anything. He loves staying busy, last summer it was the yard, this year there was the shed and garden and when he wasn't working on a project he took up a new hobby. My TRIATHLETE!!! Yep, he finished four triathlons this year (AF Icebreaker, Salem Tri, Scofield, and the Bear Lake Brawl) Way to go babe! Aside from being my talented sales man, my handy man, and bulging bicep babe, Steve is the greatest DAD! He loves being with his family and makes it a priority.

As for me...I am the trophy wife!!!hahaha just kidding- I am a stay at home mom which I am extremely grateful for. I love to blog as you can see, attempt to sew, use my new "kniffty knitter"-I love to travel, spend time with my sisters and fam. and most of all be with my boys.

(I apparently think that my tongue is photogenic)

As for Noah who is 3-1/2 years, he is a great big brother who is loving, sensitive to his mother, sweet and charming. He loves inventing things and being the leader. He loves sports, the Wii, movies, cars, airplanes and helping his dad.

Reed is 2 years old and loves to do whatever Noah is doing or tells him to do. He has a smile that can melt the world and a heart that is bigger than the world. He loves to be outside, loves cars, baths, and sippy's and of course food (yummy food). They love to wrestle, read stories and are practically inseparable!

Jamison is now 5 months old and yes, time does fly, not sure how, but it does. His little personality shines right through his bright eyes and sweet spirit. He loves to watch his brothers, he is great at rolling all over the place, loves to be tickled, drools like crazy and LOVES bath time. My boys are the best and I will continue to say it.

Life is great! No doubt about it! We are Raising Helm with love and truly enjoying the blessings! Thank you 2008, we sure have a lot to appreciate!!!

Continuing with what is becoming a tradition!

Weekends are fantastic! As for our latest...We got to visit the beautiful vistas of Park City. Sounds relaxing and a great way to get out of town right? Well yes to all of the above except there is this other part...So Steve and I have this thing where we get those phone calls about "time shares" and "vacation ownerships"- So for those of you who have not yet been introduced to the luxuries of...well, these long presentations where the poor guy/girl shows you a film, takes you on a tour of their beautiful hotel/condo whatever and then they sit you down, give you some food and torture you into thinking that you HAVE to have this luxury right now, not tomorrow, not in ten or twenty years when you might be able to afford it, but YOU have to have it today or else all the perks will be gone tomorrow. WOW!!! so we are getting pretty good at these things. I think this is our third one. WHAT??? yes, that is right. OUR THIRD! we of course have said no to a few phone calls and then on occasion we feel pity for them and give in. So what is in it for us??? well we like the FREE stuff...and apparently the "90" minute "look interested" and then break it it to them with the "We aren't interested, we don't have the $ right now and our most recent and favorite excuse of the year...the economy is..." It is amazing though at how these people work and how good they make it all sound and then how quickly they turn on you and disappear when you have made the FINAL decision. Well we had a great time though. We had a free nights stay in a nice hotel, the kiddies got to go swimming and at the tour we got free breakfast and lunch and...$50. Afterwards, Steve took me shopping at the outlets. 'CMON who could complain? Okay so it might sound a little cheap to some, but we enjoyed ourselves and the boys loved the cookies, popcorn and juice I continued to hoard to keep them entertained. HA HA HA-yes, we took all THREE children. After I told Noah we were going to Park City his reply was, "We are staying in a hotel? I love vacations!" what a cutie-he was a little disappointed that we only stayed the night. I think he had it all planned out in his mind(Noah thinking...we will go swimming then we will play ping pong, then we will get in our pj's and then we will make popcorn and watch a movie and then...) So for those of you who like free things...enjoy! but be prepared. And remember that they usually give ya a check up call every year to see if you got a better job, more money, or feel that YOU still need Them to help in the get-a-way field. Just kidding on the very last part and my apologize to anyone who might read this and are affiliated with any of these great companies. The people are nice, great, and wonderful at what they do, but at this

time it is not for us...maybe one day!

So I didn't take advantage of some great photo ops in Park City so enjoy this recent tub party!

Sweet potatoes, sweet sisters, and sweet sweaters!

So I haven't updated recently, so here it goes....Thursday 27th-Thanksgiving was a quiet, yet filling day. We went to Farmington and spent the afternoon with my mom's side of the family. Steve likes to say that he knows them better than I do. What can i say-we only get together once every other year and my mom and dad are the youngest in their families so all of my aunts and uncles are older therefore our cousins are older. Some of which are the same age as my mother. What can I say??? Then we came home and rested our full tummies. We played some killer wii with the boys and I do have to say, Noah aka. "meatball canonball/maaco" is smokin' the screen. It amazes me at how talented my children are. As for Friday 28th...It was pretty unproductive, when your husband doesn't have to work and you are a recovering turkey-pumpkin pie stuffed puppet you can be a bit sluggish. Saturday the 29th, I pretty much was tired of picking up my house and anticipated the evening. My sis Kris and I planned a sweet date. Our husbands decided that going to see Twilight was not an option for them so they opted for the babysitting card. Hey I'm all for that. A major highlight was the new ride we got to sport over to the theater. A 1989 Honda with the nickname "Tuner"-Better believe it...Kris was driving and we were instantly thrown back into high school driving stick and turning heads as we pulled into the parking lot. We laughed our heads off and we will forever reminisce about our fun night. Thanks Kris for a blast and thanks to our fellow manny's who let us have the night off.

I thought this might give a good visual for the adventure we had takin' the "tuner" for a spin.

.A bit exagerrated, but it is from back in the day and...You can never be too prepared!

As for Sunday we made it to church. We ate lunch and took a family nap. Then we went to my parents to have birthday dinner for my eldest brother Scott. It is always fun to get together and enjoy the chit chat and kiddie chaos. I truly have the greatest family!!!

What a sweet family! and some sweet sweaters!