First Snow!!!

This month at our house....

Kashton was so tired, he fell asleep on his Exersaucer...

...bathtime will forever be the favorite time of day...

...Thanksgiving was spent with Kashton's best friend Parker...

...Daddy went to Disneyworld and brought back the perfect gift...

...my little seven month old drooling machine...
...and finally, we made it to Utah safely and we were SO excited about the fresh snowfall. It was absolutely beautiful. We drove in at 3:00 AM and I found myself holding back tears looking at the snow covering all the evergreens and weighing them down. Everything seemed so peaceful and quiet. I didn't care that it was 3:00 AM and I had been in the car for 21 hours, I just wanted to revel in the wonderful moment. Even Hershey was so excited to romp around in the snow and lap it up. I guess we all felt like we were home at last. We're officially ready for a wonderful Christmas!!

Six Months Old!!!!

We finally went and got Kashton's six month old pictures taken (even though he's almost 7 months). He was SO cute the entire time. I was very afraid that he would be in one of his fussy moods and I'd have a bunch of pictures of him crying. Kashton doesn't get to see Cameron very often because he works so hard, but I was grateful Cam was able to come with us. Like the song says, it's as if Kashton's always singing in his head "I'm so glad when Daddy comes home...." Cameron can always make him smile and laugh. So here is our absolutely adorable six month old!!!

I love his cute little newsboy hat. The picture of him in the suitcase with the newspaper is a favorite. It was difficult to get this shot because every shot was of him trying to eat the newspaper. It was very entertaining.

That's our sweet boy!!! I'm so grateful to FINALLY have some pictures of him. YAY!!!

I Love Bathtime!!!

I mean, how could you not when you're looking at this cute thing splashing around?










Again, these pictures were taken with the video camera so the quality is terrible. Still, isn't he just so DANG CUTE???? I'm so thankful that the colic has passed (it took five months) because look at this cute thing that was left in it's place. I'm now starting to experience the absolute JOYS of motherhood. I'm sorry that it took five months to get there and I'm sorry for having such guilty feelings consisting of hating motherhood. It was just a hard time. But I love him so much. I thank Heavenly Father every day for this miracle (even if I did feel like killing him a few times :> ) !!!












My dog is completely all brown and she LOVES to get into everyones face and kiss them like crazy. She's appropriately named Hershey. So, here's Hershey giving Kashton "Hershey kisses." Gross...but still very cute. He thinks it's very funny. Hershey loves Kashton and protects him very well. We always see her laying underneath Kashton's crib when he's taking a nap. Also, (annoyingly enough) she barks whenever anyone drives by, walks by, or comes up to the house. Such a sweet dog.

Us just being cute and sillly!! I have the best husband...even though he wears ugly hats!!!

A LATE Halloween Post

Yes, I know Halloween was weeks ago, and I'm just now posting pictures. Please excuse the horrible quality of these pictures. Since we are currently without a camera, we took some still shots with our video camera and here are the results.

Here we are as pirates at a Halloween party. I was sporting a pretty awesome hairy mole that you can't really see. Kashton was absolutely adorable. I made him a sword out of cardboard and foil.

My cute little pirate!!! Check out that 5:00 shadow!!!!! He loved his little sword. It was difficult trying to keep it out of his mouth (considering the permanent marker on it).



These are our good friends Steve, Kelly and Parker Aiden. Parker and Kashton are a week apart. Obviously, they made a cute little family consisting of Captain Hook, Tinkerbell, and Peter Pan.


Parker and Kashton....Best Friends Forever!!! Just like their Daddies!!! Kashton kept stuffing this afghan into his mouth. I couldn't stop him. Such a cutie!!!

Yay for Halloween!!!!

I've been tagged!!!

My sister-in-law Barb tagged me...so here goes nothing!!!!

A. Each person list 6 facts/habits about themselves.
B. At the end of the post, the player tags 6 people and posts their names, and then goes to their blog and leaves them a comment, letting them know they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog for the rules.

Bethany's Facts or Habits:

1. I really don't like it when my food touches each other on my plate. I'm getting better at it but whenever my food touches each other, there is always some kind of mental conflict going on in my head as I stare at my plate. Mixed tastes...yuck!!! Especially when it's gravy that has run-over into my veggies or rolls.

2. I really don't like how insecure and shy I tend to be. I wish I knew how to overcome this. I know I come across as being stuck-up or snotty,but really it's just being insecure in my own skin. Those who know me well probably think I'm not shy at all. It's only when I get around new people, I kinda get quiet and act weird. It's because I really want people to like me...but I just act like a nerd instead. Therefore, the outcome ends up being that people just think I'm weird. Silly me!!!

3. I can be really messy, but really organized at the same time. I like things to be in their place...but I have a hard time getting them there. Everything in my house has a specific drawer, box, shelf, etc., but I have a hard time putting things away once I pull them out. Before I was married, my mom would try to clean up after me, now my husband does it, but I get really annoyed because then I can't find anything. I like to say I have ORGANIZED messes!!!!

4. I love to go shopping when I'm sad. For some reason, buying something for someone always tends to make me feel better when I'm either sad, mad, or depressed. However, my current finances don't let me do that...so I can't relish in this "release" anymore. :<

5. I LOVE baking and eating sweets. I like to blame this on the fact that a) my father was a baker my whole life and b) my family got a kick out of watching me shove my face with butter and M&M's when I was a baby and then proceeded to nickname me "Fat Bessie." They just kept feeding it to me because I (apparently) was funny to watch. Thanks guys!!! I still can't stop shoving the M&M's into my mouth!!!

6. I have this weird obsession with my family. I think my family is like the COOLEST family ever. Even in my teenage years, I enjoyed hanging with them and playing games with them more than hanging with friends. This is not normal!!! I still prefer my family over anything else. My husband thinks I need psychological help!!

I'm choosing to tag....Ang, Dani, Annie (aka Emily), Nan, Kelly, and Wyatt!!! DO IT GUYS!!!!

Little Miss Grump!!!

Yup, that's me!!! I've been grumpy lately. First, thank you SO much for everyone's help with my little boy. I didn't think I could give him juice because I thought he was too young. I'm still having some struggles with him. Poor little guy!!! The doctor gave us a laxative and an iron suppliment.

So, why am I so grumpy??? It was Halloween!! It was a LONG day!!! And my camera is broken!!! I couldn't get a picture of us in our Halloween costumes and I felt that was pretty traumatic having a new baby and not even able to take a picture of him in his first Halloween costume. GGRRRRR!!!!!!

He had his six month appt. and he's getting smaller. Is this a bad thing?? My doctor says "no," but still....

He is now 16 pounds and 6 oz. and 26 in. In the 50%!!! This is why I'm concerned. He's been in the 90% and suddenly....50%!!!! Sorry, my mom likes to tease me that I'm overly paranoid!!!

Things have been going pretty well for us. For the past three weeks I've been choreographing the Christmas show for the Showboat Branson Belle and I had SO much fun doing it. They opened their show today and it all went very smooth. I know this may sound kind of arrogant...but I can't help but feel good that my work is being shown in a professional setting.

It has also been my first time leaving Kashton with babysitters. It was really hard but at the same time, good for the both of us. First, I was thankful I didn't have to leave him for long periods of time. Second, he's much more comfortable with other people now. The last thing I want is a "momma's boy."

Another funny thing happened!!! It's kind of a confusing story but I'll do the best I can to not be long winded and boring ( I know I'm really good at that). Last year I worked on the Showboat as the Soprano (there are only four cast members in the show; a quartet). There are two casts on the "boat." A day cast and a night cast. Cameron and I worked in the night cast. The nice thing is that both casts do the exact same show, so if you wanted to take a day off, you could because the person in the other cast could just fill in for you. Not very many shows have that luxury.

So, this year they are doing the EXACT same show that they did last year. My really good friend Kelly is the Soprano in the day cast and she has had a really yucky time lately. She has had laryngitis for a MONTH now. Poor thing!!! Well, the girl who replaced me was getting a bit worn out doing three shows a day everyday. Since I was already an "employee" because I was choreographing their Christmas show....and since I KNEW the show already (remember, it's the same show that I did last year) I was asked to fill in for Kelly while she was recovering. OH MY GOSH!!! I was so excited. The nice thing is that because Cameron works in the Night cast he was able to watch Kashton while I did the Day cast show. It was SO incredible to get out on that stage again and sing and dance all of my old stuff. But it all had a new meaning this time. I felt like I was a new person. Kashton has made me a new person. I feel like I can walk out on stage and just have fun. I don't have to be such a perfectionist anymore because there is something else that is more important. I also was grateful that the costumes still kinda fit me. A little snug, but we could still zip them up. :)

Even though I wouldn't trade being a mom for ANYTHING, a little part of me returned when I was on that stage. I hope no one judges me too harshly for saying this. Keep in mind that I've always wanted to be a stay-at-home mom and raise my children. But this past year has been harder than I thought it would be. I felt like a little light flickered out inside my spirit. A sadder version of myself appeared. GRANTED, the colic didn't help either. And being out on the stage with the costumes and the lights and with the comfort knowing that Kashton was in really good hands (thanks to both Cameron and Kelly), that little light flickered back on. Wow!!! I love performing, I love my son, I love my husband, and I can't recall a time in my life when I sang Phantom of the Opera, or Thoroughly Modern Millie better!!!!

Even though my camera is broken, I'm happy!!!!

HELP PLEASE!!!!!

Okay, all you mom's out there. My little guy is having some bowel problems and my doctor wants to give him a prescription. I feel really uncomfortable giving my 6 month old a prescription drug. Do ANY of you have any recommendations that are a little safer...a little more natural? He is averaging a BM maybe once a week and it's SO sad. The weird thing is he still is mainly breastfed. Weird huh?? I feed him solids just once in the evening.

I NEED HELP!!!!

Homeward Bound!!!

I'm just really excited to say that I'll be back in Utah around the 6th or 7th of December and I will be there for probably two months or so. My brother-in-law is flying out to Branson to hang out with us for a few days and then he's going to drive back with me. I'M SO EXCITED!!!! I miss Utah so much and I'm so excited to be there during the Holidays. I'm also THRILLED that my family will get to spend some time with Kashton and maybe he'll get to know them a little bit. It's been so hard being away and my little one doesn't even know his family.

And FYI, I also got offered a really fun job. I've been asked to choreograph the Christmas show for the Showboat Branson Belle this year. The nice thing is I don't have to be away from Kashton for too long and I'll make a little bit of much needed income in the process. What a blessing!!!

My Trans-Sexuality????

Weird title??? Weird story!!! I'm a swing for a show here in town that's called "Red, Hot, and Blue." For those of you who don't know what a "Swing" is. It's basically someone who covers a show for entertainers when they're unable to do it based on illness or vacation. The DIFFICULT thing about being a Swing is that you technically should know ALL the different parts of the show so you can cover ANYONE at any given time.

About two weeks ago I covered for a girl that went on vacation. Last week I received the phone call asking if I was available to cover for a different girl who was going on vacation. At first I panicked a little because I didn't know this girls part and I had only three days to learn it. When I showed up at the studio to rehearse a big dance number with the director of the show (who's also a performer in the show), he told me he didn't need me to cover for this girl anymore. He was able to get the other swing to do it who already knew the part. BUT he still needed me to do a few shows. Not to swing in for the girl but to swing in for HIM!!!!

WHAT!!!!!

Luckily, I didn't actually have to go out on stage and try to be him (thank the Lord). He was unable to find a guy to cover his part that could sing. The only guy that was available is just a dancer. So I was needed to sit backstage and sing with the men. I learned his part and sang it all an octave lower. This is probably the most unusual thing I've ever done in my professional life. Needless to say, I'm not use to singing that low and I started to lose my voice a little. Whoops!!!!

When I showed up to swing the last show, I was met with a few more surprises. One of the girls had an emergency and couldn't make it to the show. So I quickly found some spare costumes that fit me, a wig, and some make-up. Had to rehearse a few parts of the show that I've never done before. And was thrown to the wolves....not only covering the choreography for the missing girl, but still singing for the guy.

Oh, the stressful, anxiety-filled life of a Swing.

A Red-Neck Wedding Reception!!!

We have a good friend that got married recently. He was a fellow entertainer here in Branson but he moved to Tennessee last year to be with his fiance, and then returned to Minnesota for their wedding. All of his friends here in Branson were invited to Minnesota for the wedding, but sadly, given the schedules that entertainers have, this made it very difficult for any of us to travel up to Minnesota. So we decided to throw him our own wedding reception....BRANSON STYLE!!!!

It's widely joked that we are in "White trash," "Red-neck," "Hillbilly" country. And yes, these statements are fairly true (what do you expect? After all, we're on the border of Arkansas). So we did a nice Branson tribute to Matt's wedding by having a White-trash wedding reception. We made a big poster for them that contained all of our "Congrats" wishes and it had beer cans trailing from it. We also recorded every minute of it with the video camera to send to them. Sadly, Cameron and I didn't quite get the "white-trash" look down as good as others.

What you cant see in the photo.....

Cam was wearing cowboy boots with spurs and a big belt buckle that said "The Osmonds" on it. I was wearing INCREDIBLY, DISGUSTINGLY tight pants with these ugly boots that came up to my knees.

Since is was a wedding reception, everyone else was a little more dressed up. Girls were wearing dresses with their hair all done up. But they also had bruises (from domestic abuse) all over their bodies, missing teeth, bruises from drugs (we crazy entertainers like to play with all that stage make-up). One girl had a pillow up her dress so she looked pregnant and was sporting a tattoo that said "I Love Jeremy (the Jeremy was crossed out and replaced with) Steve." Another girl showed off her legs while wearing an ULTRA mini-skirt, fishnets, and a flourescent pink, furry "pimp" coat the reached to the floor. Many of the guys were wearing the most awful multi-colored suits and tuxes I've ever seen. Some of the guys even sported some pretty nifty Mullets and white T-shirts with ties drawn on them.

All in all, we had a blast leaving Matt and Jenn messages on the video camera, sitting around the firepit, watching Britney's performance on the VMA's (appropriate right?), drinking beers (or in me and Cameron's case, water and Mt. Dew), and eating crackers with CheeseWiz and Chips Ahoy.

CONGRATS MATT AND JENN!!! WE LOVE YOU!!!!

Cameron's New Pet

Those of you who know me well would know that I had a near heart-attack when I met Cameron's new pet.

This little (or should I say BIG) guy made his home right off of the side of our front porch. I have an EXTREME fear of spiders. I really hate them. Yes, I know "hate" is a very strong and not a very nice word...which is why I feel perfectly okay using it in this situation. :) This has got to be the LARGEST spider (and I mean THE LARGEST) I have ever seen (besides a tarantula). As you can see, it's as big as a plank of our siding. It's easily as big as the palm of my hand. I immediately started to tell Cam to kill it but he was too busy playing with it.

Now, in Utah the only thing I really had to deal with was the Black Widow...which I found them quite often making their sticky little homes on the stairs in my parents garage. I avoided going down those stairs like the plague. I use to dread the Christmas season because I KNEW that meant many a trip up and down those stairs carrying box after box of my mother's ENDLESS supply of Christmas decorations. By the way Mom, who does that now that I live in Missouri???

Anyway back to the subject....now that I live here in "Misery" I not only have Black Widows to worry about, but also tarantulas and the VERY scary Brown Recluse (which are VERY common here).

Side note: Last year I was walking off of the Showboat after work and Cameron and I walked around a corner and I almost stepped on a HUGE tarantula....traumatic experience.

My other "side note": A lady that we worked with on the Showboat was just sitting at her desk in her office and was bit by a brown recluse numerous times. She's now completely blind in her left eye.

I'm starting to think: "What in the world was Heavenly Father thinking about when he chose Missouri?"

Anyway, back to our new "pet." I, being the paranoid person that I am, immediately ran into the house and Googled this spider. I was SO incredibly happy to learn that it's a Yellow Garden Spider and COMPLETELY harmless. Ever since I learned this bit of material, we have co-existed together in (or on) the same house for almost a month now. Family: You should be so proud of me. This little guy has brought such a fascination of spiders into my life. Amazing isn't it? I find myself watching him quite often. I've also found myself joining in on Cameron's fun of finding a grasshopper or katydid and throwing them to the mercy of the UNmerciful black and yellow spider. It's so interesting to watch him move so quickly. Wrapping and wrapping and wrapping that web so quickly and efficiently. It always reminds me of Frodo and that HUGE spider (for you Lord of the Rings fans).

He has the most amazing and most beautiful web I think I've ever seen. Kind of like Charlotte's web. It's so amazing to see at the end of the day the imperfections and signs of battle and war that have occurred on that web throughout the day. Then, come morning, the web is once again restored to it's perfect and beautiful state. It has made me think of this thing that I've feared my entire life and what beauty has come from such a scary and intimidating creepy-crawley. But, it also makes me think of the many imperfections and battles that have occurred in my own life. I'm grateful for the Atonement in my life. I love knowing that my imperfections will be made whole by the time the "morning" rolls around. Can you tell I teach Sunday School? :)

This is just a cute picture I took this morning. Kashton's favorite toy lately is his feet. He's also officially 5 months old now (as of yesterday!).

Summertime...and Colic!!!

Hello everyone!!! I thought I would break away from MySpace and try this out instead. This will be a MUCH easier way to keep you all posted on the happening of our family rather then my newsletter that I send via email. I think I'll enjoy this a bit more too. Well, I know the last time I wrote a newsletter was when Kashton was born, so....here is what has happened since then.

Kashton was born April 26, 2007!!! We learned very quickly that something just didn't seem quite right with him. Yes, he was a perfectly healthy little boy...BUT...the crying, crying, crying,crying....and the CONSTANT spitup that left me changing my clothes and his clothes a few times a day. Not to mention all the showers that were taken if the spit-up ended up all in my hair (ugh, long hair). So, what could possibly be the problem? Yup, you guessed it!! We were blessed with the colicky baby from ....well, you know where. I'm pretty sure I cried more than he did, the entire time thinking: "What did I do to deserve this?"

Because I stopped working to become a stay-at-home mom, that just meant that Cameron (bless him) had to work harder. That also meant that I was in this pretty much alone considering that Cameron leaves the house at 8:00 AM and doesn't come home until 11:00PM. The only comfort I really had was thinking Heavenly Father probably really trusted me with this little guy.

Mom was able to come out here and help for a week and that was the biggest blessing of my life. Cameron's younger brother Cory came to live with us the day I came home from the hospital. It was a bit of a challenge with a new baby, being a first time mom, being 2,000 miles away from family and home, and having a semi-permanent house guest who will be staying with us until January.

I needed a bit of a break. So I went back to Utah when Kashton was six weeks old. I was SO happy to be there and to have the opportunity for my family to all meet him. It's been so difficult living away knowing that he's growing up not knowing any of his aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents. While I was in Utah, it was the Larsen Family Reunion. We went down to Panguitch, Utah ( close to Bryce Canyon) and had so much fun camping and hiking. Yes, I took my six week old hiking and I would do it again, knowing that we're in the good hands of my family. We went on some pretty difficult hikes that involved passing kids up and down cliffs and climbing up and down ropes. I loved to watch the teamwork of my family. None of us would've EVER made it through these hikes without each other. It was SO much fun. You can click on these pictures to get a close up of them. I love this picture of the "system." It shows what it took to get Kashton from me, to brother-in-law Jeff, to brother Jess (wedged in the "slot"), and up to the top to cousin Brandon. Whew...it was FUN!!

It was such a rejuvinating vacation for me. It was also nice to have a break from the colic. Kashton was constantly passed and bounced from one sister, to another, to sister-in-laws, to mom, to aunts....and it was nice to just sit and relax. :) And I know I keep saying this over and over...but ya'll (yes, I've been living in Missouri for TOO long) take advantage of where you live. It was SO nice to actually be able to walk through the grass barefoot. I think I did it everyday while I was there.

Kashton was blessed the 1st of June. It was sad to not have my family there. I probably cried a bit more than I should have. But none-the-less it was nice that Cam's parents were able to come out. I'm glad his dad Ron was there in the circle with Kashton.

We had our first and only (so far) family photo on the day of his blessing. We felt so blessed that our non-member friends came to share the special day with us. As much as I don't like living here, we really do have such amazing and caring friends who would do anything for us.

As difficult as this summer has been, there really has been some incredibly rewarding times. Of course, whenever there was a break with the colic and I could get Kashton to be happy...the camera came out. Here are some fun memories of his first few months.

Going swimming in Table Rock Lake with Cameron when he was two months old. That's the Showboat where Cameron (and I use to) works. I didn't get the camera out quick enough for his first "dunk" in the water. He didn't like it too much. :)

This was Kashton's theatrical debut on the Showboat. We went and saw Cameron's show and our good friend Bob brought Kashton out on stage with him. Yup, that's Kashton crying in the microphone and the WHOLE audience going "AAWWW!" And I'm thinking "Oh great, now I have to calm him down." Sure enough, I spent the entire show bouncing him at the back of the theater. Luckily, Kashton has a pretty quiet cry.

Early morning feedings and Sunday afternoon naps together.







He can't fall asleep without his monkey right next to his face.

Cameron's younger sister Carlie and her family (husband Jared and son Talen) moved to Virginia over the summer. En route, they took a detour down to our neck of the woods. It was so fun to spend time with them...something we've never really had a chance to do. We took them to Silver Dollar City and rode some goofy rides, took them to see Cameron's show and Kashton made a liar out of me. He was a complete angel the entire time. Maybe he just likes being with family. As you can see from the picture below, he was a little charmer. Why can't he always be like this?? Thanks Carlie for the cute pictures. And by the way, how come we never took a picture of the two cousins, Talen and Kashton together? Sigh!!!! Next time!!!

I think our pediatrician got tired of me breaking down into tears everytime I walked into her office. She just kept giving me the same answer for EVERYTHING. "You just have a very colicky child and he will soon grow out of it. Then you'll never remember that he was ever colicky." Seriously!!! HOW CAN I POSSIBLY FORGET???? Well, he's 4 1/2 months old now and THERE IS A LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL...finally. Within the past week and a half he has become a different baby. I'm starting to think that maybe motherhood isn't so bad after all.

Because of the colic, the pediatrician had us start him on solids...but only specific ones. We started him on oatmeal cereal and prunes. YES...prunes!!!! To my family (all the rest of you, this is probably "too much information" so you may skip over this part): you have always mentioned how you only had to change a "dirty" diaper on me only once a week. Mom, you've mentioned how concerned you were for me and my lack of BM's ("bowel movements" for those of you who don't speak "Oprah"). Well, I guess I'm getting a taste of my own medicine. I only change a dirty diaper about once in five days. So, we have a diet of prunes and oatmeal...and so far it's not working very good. He may look like his daddy on the outside...but he's mommy on the inside. :) I have some cute pictures anyway.


PRUNE FACE!!!!!!!

He still hasn't grasped the concept of the JohnnyJumpUp. He just likes to chew on the bar and then cry after about three minutes.







Two cute boys about to take a bath.

This was so cute. I could hear him "talking" (or "singing"...which he does VERY loudly, especially during Sacrament meeting) in his room after a nap. When I walked in there, he had discovered his feet and was just having a little conversation with them. It was precious.

Bathtime is my FAVORITE time of day. It calms him and he's VERY happy, laughing at everything and suddenly I become the funniest person in the world. It does wonders for my self-esteem. :) My child thinks I'm pretty cool!!!

Well, as I was saying earlier. Kashton has become a new baby. It took him to be almost 5 months old, but he's just now starting to grow out of the colic. He's a very finiky (spelling?) baby that CONSTANTLY wants to be entertained. He will fuss all day long without someone or something to entertain him...only for him to get bored after 5 min. I'm on my toes with him all day. He has started to laugh quite a bit and he sits up pretty good for only a second (and then he face plants and smiles at the trip to the floor he just took). As of yesterday I got so frustrated with constantly trying to entertain him, I broke down and bought him a walker. Hopefully this will do the trick (for at least 10 minutes). I don't see how you people that have more than one child do it. All of my time and energy go to him...I can't see how I could have more than one child with Kashton being the way that he is. Maybe that's why he's my first. :) You're probably wondering how I've written such a long blog. Well, it's taken me two days and working as fast as I can during naps. Currently, he's bouncing on my knee trying to grab at the keyboard while I type with one finger. :)

This is a picture of him in his new walker with Hershey in the background laying in the sun...she's missing Grandpa Duane. :) And I LOVE this picture. His favorite song is "If You're Happy and You Know It," he's singing it with me.

Well, we're all doing good. Kashton's happier, he's been sleeping through the night for the past week, we're all happier. I just love this little boy......and I miss all of you!!!!!