So Much News

So a lot has been happening in the Larson Family. We bought our first house in Draper and we are loving it. It is just our size and we love the area. It is a 4 bedroom 3 bath house with a great backyard that Bella can actually play in. It has a great playset and unfortunately we have not been able to use it much because of the snow that we have had. We are so glad that we found it.

We are expecting our 2nd child. I am due the first of May and so far the pregnancy has been fine. I am hoping that since Bella came four weeks early that maybe I will be lucky enough to go early with this one as well :). Bella was due on May 5th so their due dates are only a couple days apart.

Some more news is that it is a girl. Bella got her wish and is getting a baby sister. Rick and I thought for sure that we were having a boy, mostly because at our 12 week ultrasound the doctor said that she thought she saw something between the legs and Rick thought he did too. Obviously it was way too early to tell since it is for sure a girl. This is definitely our last child and we are both fine having two girls. I just had to promise Rick no more pink poodles for this baby.

We are still very much considering going back to Dallas. Even though we have a new house and a new baby on the way, Rick has been offered a job there that is very hard to refuse. We are constantly going through the pros and cons of moving back. One HUGE con would be leaving our families. We have really enjoyed being so close to them and that will be hard to lose, especially if I have another Bella. But the pro would be the stability of the economy and a bigger patient base (oh and I cant forget better winter weather). I hate being an adult and having to make such big decisions. Why don't you all just make them for me...

I will post some pictures of our new house and of Bella's 1st dance performance. She did great and loved being on a stage. As soon as I get our other computer up and running I will post them.

I hope that all of you are well!

Happy Halloween

First Snowfall in Salt Lake

Wee Witches Day at Gardener Village

Our Wards Trunk or Treat

Dress up day at dance

Carving Pumpkins

Trick or Treating with good friends Lucy and Gracie

Witch, Tinkerbell, and Black Cat...So cute!


What a fun time of year it is! We have been busy celebrating the Halloween holiday with many parties, trunk or treats, and of course trick or treating. We also had our first snowfall in October. Bella loved it and with us being up on the mountain we got at least four inches. It has since melted, but it was fun while it lasted. I am trying to be a good sport about it (being cold and the snow) and it has helped to see how excited Bella was to play in it.

Bella loved trick or treating this year. She has had an overload of candy and the sugar is really getting to her. She has been super hyper and you can tell that she belongs to her dad with the love for chocolate. She decided that she wanted to be a witch over Cinderella which was very surprising with how much she loves Cinderella. Our good friends the Weidman's came up from Provo to go trick or treating with us. It was a lot of fun watching the girls get dressed up and getting so excited to go get candy.

We really like being back in Salt Lake and being so close to family. It is so nice to be able just to drive down to St. George whenever I want without having to plan months in advance and also having to buy a plane ticket.

I hope you all had a great Halloween!

Friends, Friends, Friends

Bella and her cousins

Bella with her new friend Regan.

This was taken at Gardener's Village. Such a fun place.

Sugarhouse Park

Bella and her "old friends" Lucy and Gracie.

Bella and her friend Sophia at dance.

Anyone that knows Bella, knows that she is a very social person and loves to play with friends. Bella has made some new friends and has had one of her old friends move to Utah as well. Life has been crazy, but fun. The weather has been so nice here and we have been able to get out and do a lot of things. Bella has just started dance and gymnastics for the fall session. She loves gymnastics and is getting used to the dance. She is still suffering from a little separation anxiety and she has to go alone to dance so that has been difficult for here. I think that it will be really good for her, but it is a little hard being the parent of the child that cries when you leave. We are still working on the potty training and it definitely has its ups and downs. I have a feeling that this will be a six month process :). She is cracking me up with what she says. Her latest saying is, "Mom stop freaking out!" She loves the soundtrack to Madagascar II and has to dance to it every time it comes on. She has finally started to like one vegetable and that is broccoli. Weird I know. Anyways that is all of the news for now. Hope all is well!

My Tribute To Blue

This was actually taken at the concert that we were at, I was right next to this girl.

I just love Blue! This was the 2nd concert that I have been to and it was so great to be able to be so close to the stage. Their music is so inspiring and has so much meaning behind it. We saw them in Austin while living in Dallas and were so excited to learn that they would be playing in Salt Lake. During the concert Justin sang to me and then threw me a guitar pick. I told Rick that he should be jealous :). After the show I got to meet him, he signed my shirt, and then I got a hug from him. It was so great and I can't wait to see them again. Thanks mom, Jackie, and Cari for watching Bella and letting me have such a great b-day present!

Life in Salt Lake is good. The weather during the summer months here is so much better than the hot and humid summers in Dallas, but I REALLY miss Dallas. This statement is so funny to me because I hated it there for the first year and I really wanted to move home, but it was such a great place to live and the people there are so friendly! Not to mention all of the great things that there is to do there. I wouldn't be surprised if one day we move back :)!

The house that we are living in is great and we love our ward. We are right smack on the mountain and the views from our deck are amazing. You can see the entire valley. I am sure the winters are going to be a nightmare, but lets not think of that quite yet.

Bella is doing great and has almost mastered potty training. Okay so that is a little premature, but we are on our 3rd day and the accidents are getting fewer. She is now signed up for dance and gymnastics. She has been wearing her ballet slippers to bed at night, because she is so excited to start dance. She is getting so big and her vocabulary is just growing. Her funny saying now is when we ask her what her name is she says "Bella Dr. Larson". We don't know where she picked that up other than maybe from Rick's graduation, but it is so funny.

Rick is enjoying work and is keeping busy. I must say that I love his four day work week. He is staying active with soccer, flag football, and cycling, which can get a little annoying :)...love you Rick!

I am just busy with Bella and work of course. It has been great to be around old friends and especially have Rachel move here.

Hope all is well!


Bella playing dress up.


This was Yancy. We had him for one day and I am tempted to go get him back. He was such a great dog and I just wasn't ready.

Happy 4th of July

4th of July parade with our friends the Gramse's. Doesn't Bella look enthused? She actually really loved the parade and she got to meet some real life firemen and get into a fire truck :)!

Bella with her friends at the splash park.

Rick and Bella tubing in the lake. We had such a good time with the Ence's.

So life has been crazy and great here in the SLC. I love hanging out with old friends and I have loved the weather here during the summer. It definitely beats the Dallas summers! Rick has been keeping busy with his new job and is mastering his dental skills :). I have been busy with work and taking care of Bella. Bella has been enrolled in swimming lessons and gymnastics. She loves swimming and has really taken to the water.

We have had some fun visits from our friends the Dorny's, Jepson's, and the Berry's. It was so great to have our friends from out of state come and see us. Bella loves playing with her "Texas friends".

Not much else is happening, or an other words, we are very boring people :). We hope you all are doing great and we will write more soon.

*I added our family pics that our good friend Whitni Parker did. She did such a great job and I was so impressed with how well Bella did during the shoot.

We Made It!

So obviously it has been a long while since we have updated our blog. A lot has happened in the last few weeks; Rick passing his boards, Rick graduating, moving to Salt Lake, and getting situated in our new house. It has been a very exciting time, but it also has been very sad. It has been so great getting reconnected with my old Salt Lake friends, but I definitely miss my Texas friends.

Bella has been adjusting really well! I have been surprised at how well she has taken to the new house and getting to know new friends. She actually stayed in nursery all by herself yesterday, which as most of you know has been a constant battle for the last 6 months. She loves having a backyard and having her very own playroom. It has been so great, but I do miss all of the activities that we had to do in Dallas.

It was so exciting to see Rick graduate on May 13. What an awesome accomplishment. He was the 1st to graduate from College in his family and now from graduate school. He is amazing and I am so proud of him! All of our families came out to Texas to support him and I must admit that I got pretty teared up seeing him get his diploma. These past four years have definitely been the hardest and most stressful years of our marriage, but also the best years! I am so blessed to have such a wonderful husband and darling daughter!

The move was easy thanks to family and friends. Getting all of the minor details down was definitely a headache, but it all went so smoothly! Thanks to all of our families for everything that they did in helping with the move. You all are the best!

I will definitely start posting more now that everything has settled down. I can't wait to get caught up on every one's blog! Talk to y'all later!

This is just a slideshow of what we have been up to for the last two months.