called to serve

Elder Matthew B. Burr

Argentina Mendoza Mission

March 2010 - March 2012

Cameron made all the food for the Saturday night open house and farewell party.  We dined on steak and grilled chicken, beef empanadas, chips and salsas, guacamole, a cheese and salami platter with crackers, grapes, and the most amazing potato vegetable vinaigrette salad.

Cam also made four or five amazing cheesecakes and Kneaders dessert platters.  It was all amazing!

At the end of the night, Charlotte was done with pictures and with all the new people she met.  Lucy and Audrey were still more than happy to keep on posing.

The evening Matt was set apart as a full-time missionary was very spiritual and sweet.  Everything was hitting me too close to home as I pondered sending my own identical twin boys to serve the Lord for two years.  Luckily I still have 11+ years, but I'm afraid it will go as quickly as the past 11 have gone.

These handsome boys have been inseparable for 19 years.  Despite what they may say, they enjoy each other and haven't been apart for longer than 10 days. It will be very interesting to see how they handle their lives where not everyone knows they are twins.  While I think it will be good for them, I'm sure that it will be difficult at times too.  

Matt is so well prepared and ready to preach the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.  His farewell talk was by far one of the best I have heard.  He was so filled with the spirit, and he spoke with the preparation and knowledge of someone coming home after serving 2 years.  He looked so hansome and I was so proud of him!

After a delicious Kneaders breakfast with the family, my parents, Matt and Marc were off to pick up Matt's luggage and drop it and him off at the MTC on Wednesday.

Uncle Matt, we love you and are praying for you!
God be with you, 'til we meet again, my sweet brother.

If it doesn't get all over the place, it doesn't belong in your face

Isn't that the Carl's Jr. ad?  

Charlotte has enjoyed--and that doesn't come close to describing how happy she is about it--eating rice cereal in the past week.  

I started her much later than any of my other kids because I didn't want to admit that my baby is growing up.  The past 5.9 months have positively flown by.  I'm trying to savor every minute of my kids being the ages they are now.  It will all be over before I know it.

I love this sweet face and those blue eyes!  This girl is going to get ANYTHING she wants from me--not that that is a new concept around here!

Look what baby girl is doing!

Why is it that when I'm trying to relish and enjoy every little thing that Charlotte is learning, does she decided to be super-advanced?  I thought maybe, just once, I would have a child that wasn't walking by 10 months.  It looks like I thought wrong.

She is so sweet, and she is really a mommy's girl.  How is it that at 4 1/2 months she is up on all fours and lunging forward?  I'm going to blame it on wanting to keep up with her older siblings.
So I remember, here is when she has reached milestones.  (okay, just the ones I remember)

Holding head up   5 weeks
Rolling over    3 months 1 week
Sleeping in her own crib at night!     4 months 2 weeks
Getting up on all fours     4 months 3 weeks

Another big announcement for this little girl is that she is sleeping, at night, all night, in her own crib and in her own room!  That is HUGE.  I have never been able to put my baby in a crib and expect them to go to sleep.  It has been nice.
At her four month appointment, the doctor asked if she was sleeping 4-6 hours at night.  She wasn't, so he told me it was time to sleep train.  I wasn't really ready, but that Saturday night she just wouldn't go to sleep and stay asleep.  She was tossing and turning and constantly nursing.  I was done, so I put her in her crib.  She cried for a few minutes, but she was so tired!  She got up once or twice more, but I put her back in her room each time.  The next two nights I put her to bed earlier and she cried for 10 minutes solid, and then whimpered for 10 more minutes on and off.  And that was it!  She still sometimes cries for a few minutes when I put her down, and she does wake up once to eat during the night.
I have my evenings!  Who knew that I could get so much accomplished or get to have such a good one-on-one conversation with my husband?  I'm reading again, the laundry can get folded, and I've been able to catch up on my waste-of-time shows.
I'm a new woman!

Kauai 2010

To sum it all up, we had an amazing time in Kauai.  Even Charlotte enjoyed herself and was so good.

We explored the island by Jeep, by sweet mini van, by boat, by helicopter, and by body board.  Everything we saw was beautiful and breathtaking.

We will definitely be going back...soon.

Our Merry Christmas

Our Christmas was filled with family, friends, traditions, and lots of love.

Lucy had a darling preschool program.  I knew she would love singing all the songs; I just wondered if she would get shy at performance time.  She did really well and sang every word.  She didn't even cry when the north pole sign fell during one song, hit her on the head, and knocked off her elf hat.  She was stunned and fell off her chair, but she went right on singing.  I was ready to run to her rescue if she needed me, but I just watched her quickly wipe the tears from her eyes and put on a brave face.

The boys also had a Christmas program at school.  It was a little loud and disorganized, which surprised me considering how wonderful everything else at their school is.  We were more than happy to leave after they performed their two songs.  Did anyone know "Home on the Range" was a Christmas song?  I think they must have just finished the unit on the Westward expansion in history.

One highlight of the month was watching Matt open his mission call to Mendoza, Argentina.  He leaves for the MTC on March 10.  He is so excited to be a missionary, and we are so excited for his call.  Everyone we talk to that knows that area says it is a wonderful mission.  My parents have already scoped out the hotel where they will stay when they go pick him up.  I will miss that kid!  I can't believe he is old enough to be a missionary.  He was Cam and Coop's age when Shea and I were dating!

Miss Charlotte had a merry Christmas, and is our best Christmas present!  We love those cheeks and those bright blue eyes.  All my other kids are brown-eyed, so it's a fun change!

Christmas morning was so exciting.  I think I had a harder time sleeping than the kids!

Their requests from Santa were so easy this year.  #1 on both boys' lists was a Snuggie.  They have worn it every day since!

Another request...water bottles with their names on them--a little strange, but easy!

Lottie and her dad have mastered the Burr Balancing Trick.  In the process, they have almost given Nana a heart attack!  Shea does this trick on purpose to see how quickly he can get Candy to rush over and save Charlotte.

We have had a wonderful holiday season.  I can hardly believe it has come and now gone.  We have had a wonderful year and are excited to see what 2010 will bring for our family.

Thanksgiving celebration

Ally, the eldest granddaughter, and Charlotte, the youngest granddaughter (for a few more days)

Both sets of the "three amigos"

Most of the Taylor grandkids with Chrismom and Poppy (who are 90 and 91 respectively) and Nana and Papa.  This picture will be a treasure, I'm sure!

We enjoyed our Thanksgiving dinner and vacation with the Taylor family this year.  It was filled with fun, great food, and family together time.  I am so lucky to have in-laws that I love so much (and who are amazing cooks!)

We had sleepovers, dinners together out and in, hunting outings, Black Friday shopping outings, attempted movie outings, and gingerbread house making.