This ones for the girls

One of the coolest things about getting married, is you automatically get to add a whole new family into your life! Some people might not agree with me, but I happen to really enjoy my in-laws :) This is also true when one of your siblings gets married...all of the sudden you have a new sister or brother, which ever the case may be. I feel really blessed to have had really great experiences with the people who've been added to my family. Due to lots of life changing experiences in my sister-in-laws lives, I find myself thinking about them a lot, so with the risk of being too cheesy, I'd like to tell you why I think my sister-in-laws are the greatest!
My first sister-in-law was added about 4 1/2 yrs ago when my older brother married Yannette. He sure got lucky! (and he'll admit that it's true). The picture above is my brother John and Yannette at our annual Christmas party, they were showing us their version of 'All I want for Christmas is my 2 front teeth', (she's gonna love that I put that pic up!) Anyway....every time I hang out with Yannette, I am in awe of all of her many talents. Maybe it's because my family drives her crazy, but she is forever knitting or sewing a new project during all of our family get togethers. Her children are going to be by far the best dressed, not only because she has awesome style, but because she can make all of their clothes as well. They will definitely have the best Halloween costumes. Yannette also has such a capacity to love, whether it be cats, dogs, or small children, she is an equal opportunity lover! She is already a fantastic mother to my one and only niece Kensley, and she teaches me more than I think she knows. Some of my favorite memories of Yannette are when we took a trip to San Francisco, just girls! and the few times we hit the Utah Chocolate Show! if you can't bond over chocolate, you're just out of luck!
Tamara was the next sister-in-law that came along, just a few years ago. I think Tamara and I are the most alike...we both love running out for a good pedicure, and to chat about the goings on in life and our family. Our talks nearly always lead to tears, which kind of scares our husbands, but is a great emotional outlet for us both. Tamara would do just about anything for anyone, without a second thought. I am amazed at the way she deals with the trials in her life, and even though she is physically and emotionally beat, she still stays positive and inspires me every day! I love that I can call her up to chat without a reason, and she always sounds happy to hear from me...even if maybe she's not. Tamara also has mad editing skills, and I know we'll have the best reunion videos around.

My most recent and last sister-in-law is Lisa. Lisa is the sweetest of us all, when the rest of us are relaxing, Lisa is looking for a way to help out. When Matt and I first moved into our house, not only did her and Adam come up from Provo to help us move, Lisa brought fresh bread...it doesn't get more thoughtful than that! Lisa is expecting our first nephew in a couple of months, and although I bet she's tired, she is still smiling. Lisa has an enormous talent for singing, theater, and flute playing, that always blows me away when I see her perform. We are lucky to have her in the family!
I thought about mentioning the awesome brother-in-laws I have, but those Hall boys have big enough egos as it is, no need to butter them up! So before I close this out, I'd like to say I think my mother-in-law is the greatest as well. There were 2 big times in my life that I'll be forever greatful that she was there, first being when Matt and I were first dating. My family had recently moved to St George, and I was kind of living on the streets (well not really, Cara and her grandma took great care of me), but it was a tough situation. Katie allowed me to hang out at her house constantly, always including me at Sunday dinners. I distinctly remember talking to her right before I went through the temple, and it was most helpful. The second time in my life was when I first had Alexis. That was such a difficult time for me emotionally and physically, and to have her come stay with us for a week was incredibly helpful. She is a great mother, and 'grammy' and we're all lucky to have her!
I think this blog is a bit more sentimental then usual, however writing is sometimes easier then saying the words, and want these ladies to know what they mean in my life!
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Anyone reading??

So in my spare time, I read! Seems like a lot of my stay at home mom friends say they have no spare time...course they have more kids than I do, but the truth is, I have lots of spare time. So until I'm ready to brave the whole new world of multiple children, I read! I'm always looking for good titles, so if anyone is reading anything good out there, let me know! My favorite book these days is Gone with the Wind, it's a classic. I also enjoyed the sequel Scarlett, but don't waste your time with the new one, Rhett Butler's People...unless of course you have tons of spare time like me :) It was pretty much the same thing as Gone with the Wind, which I enjoyed...but I found myself saying over and over, "I've already read this chapter!" Kind of aggravating... I also read a series called The Circle Trilogy, by Ted Dekker. That was really great! Couldn't put them down (Matt will testify to that). The other good ones I read recently were the Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer. They are on the rage here in Utah...I have been wondering if other people in the world are reading them. They were written by a girl from BYU, and you know we mormons love to support our other mormons, whether they are authors, politicians...etc! And the last one I'll put out there is Austenland, by Shannon Hale, another BYU alum. It's short, but great for anyone who has a love for Jane Austen, as I do. The picture I posted is old, 19 months old actually! This was the first few weeks we had Lexi at home, but since I wasn't blogging back then, I feel fair to post it anyway. So forgive the outdatedness, (and the extra 30 pounds I still had on!) But as you can see, Lexi and I have been reading together from day one :)

Life is like a box of chocolates.....

Forrest Gump was on TV last night, it has been a few years since I've really watched that show, but I have a new appreciation for it! I think he was really on to something with the box of chocolates comment, we really don't know what we are going to get, do we? Sometimes we can guess that the bumpy looking chocolate will have nuts, or a particularly round chocolate will have a cherry..but you just never know because it might be coconut! Course there is going to be someone out there who says, well you know if you look at the map, but then they haven't eaten chocolate with my mother, who has been known to take a chocolate out to inspect it, and then may return it to a totally different spot. Course I learned this from my mother too, so if you're eating chocolates with me, that map isn't going to do you much good either :) Anyway, life brings us all sorts of surprises every day...some are good, some are bad, but usually they are what we let them to be. Life is all about the attitude we bring to it.
I think the greatest thing I didn't really know I was going to get is my family. I wish someone would have told me I was going to marry Matt Hall in High School, that would have made for a good laugh at the time! I also wish someone would have told me how hard it is to have a child, how much you worry, how much you laugh, how much you cry in the middle of the night when she just wont sleep. Although, it is possible someone did tell me these things about children, but maybe they should have just told me to listen up at the time...because it's so true! I also didn't know being married would be so much, that I'd still be excited for Matt to come home every night after 4 years...ya ya that isn't such a long time, but it means something to me, and is a good sign for the next 40 right? Anyway, after watching Forrest Gump, it got me thinking about the ones you love, and the lucky chance we have to raise this little girl, and watch her learn and grow. Ya know, I'm really glad we don't know what we get, it keeps us on our toes and allows us to enjoy the journey!

To Blog or not to Blog

So I really wanted to blog...for a day...as you can see. However, I'm going to recommit myself to Blogging and try to get in one every couple of days or so. My main reason for not blogging is I'm up to my elbows in caramel and candy, well that and my devotion to nap time! I only have a few minutes to use the computer without Alexis wanting to bang on the keys too, so during her nap I have a dilema whether to do something productive or nap, and you can guess which one ususally wins. Anyway, back to the caramel, Matt and I are caramel apple professionals these days! Check out our webste http://www.christascandyapples.com/ It's been lots of fun, but also a little crazy. I have to say the hardest thing about a business is dealing with the people, am I right or am I right?? People expect the craziest things...the other day someone ordered a chocolate pecan apple, and was really upset with me that there was chocolate on it, go figure! And ya know, I've worked at McDonalds, and in the welfare office so I know all about ridiculous people...but it's even worse when you can't just hand over those silly complaints to a manager, cause I am the manager, and the secretary....etc But it has been mostly a good experience and I'm extremely greatful to all the people who've tried them out. Special shoutout to Katie Hall for the most orders yet! Anyone want to try and beat her??? j/k! Anyway, I'll work on blogging more often. I have to say it is a little intimadating to blog when we've already got such clever bloggers in the family....

I want to play too!

Everyone has a blog, so I want one too! I think Matthew set up this blog to express his extreme devotion to the Lakers, however since he hasn't posted any actual sentiments, I'm gonna do the blogging around here :) As I now ponder my thoughts on what I will actually say on the blog, I am stuck! However since the only point of a blog is to voice our thoughts, that's just what I'm going to do.
I had two great phone calls today, the first one was from my super favorite New York sister-in-law Tamara (as pictured above). Tamara's life is tough today! Since it is in-fact posted to her blog about their baby making issues, I feel fair talking about it. Needless to say they have had a little trouble getting a younger Hall here, however they are working it out through the miracles of technology. Of course technology doesn't come with a price, and she is paying for it shot, by shot, by shot...OUCH! We had a great chat about these treatments and the crappy days it brings, and sent each other on our ways with vows to take a shower and get on with our day.
Before I managed to get into that shower, next came the phone call from....well I can't really say because I was sworn to secrecy. And in the event that she reads blogs, I'll keep her name a secret. Anyway, my dear friend is pregnant. She has a 2 yr old that is something else, that kid does NOT stop, and then a 10 month old, and she's on her way to #3! whew, evidently for her #2 was an oops, and so is #3...family planning just isn't going their way. She cried a little, and then we to parted ways with promises to take a shower and get on with the day.
So here I am pondering the situation of these two favorite girls of mine, and I just am in awe the way our lives turn out. We all make plans for our lives, and try to make choices to get us where we want to be, and yet that doesn't seem to matter most of the time. Such is life!
So now I close this entry, with hopes to be a great part of the blogging community!