6 years

Mikey (as Andrew calls him) has been gone from us for 6 years now.

It seems like it has been nowhere near this long.

Andrew thinks about Michael everyday and misses him more than anything. Michael dying was extremely hard on Andrew and it is still hard to remember the good times without getting emotional.

I (Starrie) have personally felt Michael's presence in our home frequently and I feel as though he is a sort of a guardian angel on our family. I know that him and Andrew were very close especially the last 6 months before his death, which is why I think I may feel that connection.

It is hard to explain to Jocey who he is and to not just expect her to remember him as I or especially Andrew does. It's hard to explain the concept of heaven to a 3 year old. I know she has at least felt Michael and more than likely other members of our family, but is just too little to let us know how and when she does. I know she does by the things that she has said.

We are grateful for the gospel in our lives because we know that we will see Michael once again. Andrew was able to do his work for him on October 22, 2010. Which is not only our 1 year wedding anniversary date, but also the day Andrew and I had our work done. Michael is close to our hearts often and we look forward to seeing him again or as Andrew has said, "I cannot wait to be greeted with the same hug that Michael gave me the day before he died."

We love you Michael, please continue to watch over the family and help us celebrate your life!

Jocey giving uncle Michael a drink of Dew

                 

It's Jocey time

Ok so I feel bad because I always feel like I need to update on Jocey, but then it is hard because she is growing at a more stable pace than Vivi so I tend to update Vivian more often. Vivian changes basically everyday and Jocey is kinda mostly out of that stage. So here is Jocey's update.

Jocey is the funniest/sweetest/most dramatic/ loving child I know. And she is all ours!

Independent:
Jocey can pretty much do everything on her own. She gets her own food, clothes, blankets, puts her shoes on, feeds herself, can get her own drinks, puts on her own movies and TV shows etc. etc. The only thing she still cant do is go potty on the toilet. It is frustrating for us as parents and are trying to let it happen on its own time.

Playing:
Jocey loves playing, babies, barbies, horses, running away from vacuums, playing pretend with anything and everything, dancing, primary (not really playing but, she loves being there more than anything. Much better than nursery) etc.

Movies:
Tangled (she knows all the songs), Sleeping Beauty (her favorite), The Little Mermaid, Cinderella (it's hard to not catch her singing this all the time), Thumbelina, Snow White and The Princess and the Frog.

Funny Kid:
Jocey know's how to makes someone laugh, I must admit she is pretty dang funny. Her favorite thing to do lately is make Vivian laugh. No matter what that en-tells. Sometimes Jocey's personality is why she is so funny, she just says things in such a way that it puts a smile on your face.

So Much Love:
It does not matter what happens Jocey ALWAYS tells us she loves us everyday, on her own. Sometimes when she calms down for the night all she wants is mommy, daddy and sissy snuggles and she can't get enough. She will always ask how I am doing, if she can do "favors" and asks how she can help with anything. Jocey loves temple's, when she prays at night she prays that she can get older so she can go inside and get married. It is adorable. She also always looks out for her sissy. One time we joked with Jocey saying," Jocey? Should we put sissy in the oven and cook her up for dinners?" and Jocey's response was," No! She is my best friend! And I am her best friend! Please don't cook her!"

There is sooooooooooooooo much more but alas my hands are getting tired of typing. Here is an adorable picture of my beautiful daughter. We love her to death. 

6 dandy months

Vivian is ^ as seen above.

Today was her well baby check-up.

75%- Height- 26 1/2 inches

29%- Weight - 15lbs

49%- Head Circumfrance

When she was born:

40%- Height - 19 1/2 inches

20%- Weight - 6lbs 9oz

16%- Head Circumfrance

Vivian sits up (with help), say's "mama" (not on demand), chew's chew's chew's her hands and whatever she thinks taste's good, loves being held 24/7, LOVES to smile and laugh, stands up on her legs most of the time, snuggles, grabs, rolls over, lunges (she thinks she is big like sissy and can walk) and recognizes her name.

LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE.

We love our baby and that is all.

North Dakota

So we took a spontaneous trip to ...... *drum roll please*........North Dakota! Don't worry we drove out to Andrew's sister Nicia, so we're not totally crazy. It was much needed for our little fam. We were out of Utah for almost 10 days. On the way there we drove to Mt. Rushmore, it was super awesome and the landscape out there was really cool. The rest of the time we were in Cavalier with Joe, Nicia, Alyssa and Logan. It was nice to have no worries and be with family.We are grateful to Nicia and Joe for being so hospitable to us. It was good. On the way back returning to Utah we went to Bismarck, ND. We had the chance to go to the Bismarck LDS Temple and it was quite the experience for Andrew and me, I really do not think anyone will ever know exactly how we felt. We both felt so safe there, happy and comfortable it was actually quite surprising. All in all everything was good!  Along the way Andrew and Jocey got to play their temple game, where they found at least 7 temples on the way there and back. It was much needed and a good "time away from Utah". I am not sure what more to say so here are some pictures!
P.s. Vivian said her first word on this trip "MaMa", Jocey's first word was "DaDa" so I (Starrie) was pretty stoked!

Mt. Rushmore

Pretty good for most the car ride there

Playing in the heavy Cavalier snow with the cousins

Sad to go

Cute little Jocey Crossing a temple off her list.

Bismarck Temple

Swimming with aunt Meecia ( as Jocey says )

Jocey at the hotel in Bismarck