Lucky Girl

I'm excited to announce that there is a brand new member of the Kotter Family...Lucky the Puppy!

My 12-year-old brother Jared has been begging my parents for a dog for awhile now, and when my oldest brother Josh called from Blanding saying he knew someone giving away purebred lab puppies for free (!), my parents finally caved and decided to get one. Josh and his family arrived around 9 last Friday night for a weekend visit, and we were all so excited to see the little pup! She is absolutely adorable! Its so fun to play with her and watch her run and jump around in that cute puppy way. Though she definitely does all the normal naughty puppy things, I think Lucky is very sweet and not quite as rambunctious as some other puppies might be. She loves to play tug-of-war, nap in the grass (so cute!), and likes to be held and petted a lot, which I love! It won't be long before she'll be way too big to hold anymore, so we're enjoying her cute puppyness as much as we can while it lasts!

My family has a tradition of always having a black lab for our family dog. We've had quite a few over the years...Sadie was around when I was really little and I don't really have any memory of her. Sailor was the dog I grew up with and absolutely loved...he was actually a black lab, Australian shepherd and blue healer mix (but he just looked like a shorter, fatter black lab.) Then there was Shiloh, who we only had for a short time because he ran away. Then there was our last dog, our beloved Murphy. Murphy was technically my second youngest brother Travis' dog, but we all loved him so much. He was so sweet and mild-mannered. He eventually grew very old and sick, and in August of last year the family all agreed it was time to put him to sleep. It was hard on all of us, but he was suffering so much, we were glad to know that he was ok now. Maybe this is super-corny, but I definitely think we'll see him again someday, and our other dogs too...I totally believe all dogs go to Heaven!

We're so happy to have a family dog again! It will be so fun to watch Lucky grow up with all the grandkids and see the cute memories they'll make together. Though I don't think Ryan and I are ready for a dog of our own right now, I can't wait til we get one someday! I definitely want a lab, but I'm thinking yellow. I have always loved our black labs and they are really just as cute, but I am such a sucker for those little yellow lab puppies!

Kindermusik Fun

Thomas and I went to our last Kindermusik class of the semester last Tuesday...I'm so sad its over! We started the class in January, and it has been such a fun experience! If you haven't heard of Kindermusik, its basically a playgroup-type setting where you get together with other parents and kids of similar ages at a qualified Kindermusik instructor's studio or home and have a fun 45 minutes or so of listening to music while dancing, singing along, playing games with actions or with props (like balls, hula hoops, colored scarves, etc.), or playing simple instruments. We were also given several storybooks that went along with the theme of the class and would have storytime some weeks as well. Every class is different depending on what age group your child is in. Thomas' class was for 18 months - 3 years, and he loved being around all the other kids! He really enjoys playing with other children and I want to be better at setting up playdates and opportunities for him to play and interact with other kids.

Helping Clean Up

How many can I hold?

One thing that surprised me while taking the class was how much Thomas just wanted to watch what was going on! At home he loves to dance and move to music, and I was totally expecting him to be that way when we started the class, but I found he was usually more interested in watching and observing the other kids a lot of the time. I guess its not that surprising because he's always been very curious and observant, especially when he's put into a new situation. One thing I really appreciate is that Kindermusik teaches that all children have different learning styles, and that even if your child is not as involved in certain activities in the ways you expect them to be, or in the ways the other kids are, there's nothing wrong with that...they are still learning just as much, just in their own way.


The class we were in this semester had a theme of "Away We Go!" and focused a lot on songs and games involved with planes, trains, and automobiles. Thomas really enjoyed the class and loved going each week! We were given a kit at the beginning of the semester (in the cutest train-shaped box!) with materials including all the music from the class, and we would listen to the songs all during the week. Then every Monday night and Tuesday morning I would get Thomas pumped up by asking him "Are you excited to go to Kindermusik? Do you want to go dance and sing and see the other kids and Miss Julee?" and he would get so excited, it was so cute! We absolutely loved our teacher, Miss Julee...she was so sweet with all the kids and knew everyone's names by the end of the very first class. Although most of the activities are done with the parent and child together, Julee often found chances to interact with each of the kids one-on-one, and Thomas really liked her. For the last class Julee set up a cute little obstacle course for the kids, and then we did some of the usual songs and games and had treats at the end. We were also invited to bring along a guest, so my mom came with us...she had come with us once before too, and has so much fun watching Thomas playing and dancing and running around.


I'm very sad because we probably won't be going back to Julee's studio...its in Provo, and since we are moving to Saratoga Springs within the next week or two (YAY!) I don't really want to have to commute in. When I signed up for the class in January it was right before we sold our Provo house, and when we closed on the sale and moved to my parents' in Spanish Fork I had to start driving into class for the majority of the semester. It was a little hard, and we were always late! I've found a couple of Kindermusik instructors in Lehi and we will probably sign up for a summer class with one of them...its much closer and I definitely want to continue with Kindermusik!


Music is so important to me, and I really want my children to have an appreciation for, knowledge of and love for music. I think these classes are the perfect way to introduce children to learning about music in a fun, no-pressure way. There are classes for children clear up to 7 years old, which I think is a great alternative to starting children playing an instrument when they are really young. I've even thought I might like to qualify to become a Kindermusik instructor someday...I love music so much and think it would be a wonderful opportunity to teach children, while doing something totally flexible where I'd be able to make my own schedule and teach as much or as little as I wanted. If you want to find out more about Kindermusik, click here to go to their website. If you are in the Provo area and want to know more about Julee's studio, her website is http://www.km-ajoyfulnoise.com.

Thomas with Miss Julee
So, it was a fun semester and I look forward to starting a new class! I love doing these kinds of activities with Thomas. I am so excited for all the things we are planning to do this summer! We're going to take a parent-child swim class (which we did last year and loved!) and we'll definitely be taking some trips to the Zoo, to Farm Country and the Dinosaur Museum at Thanksgiving Point, and as much fun stuff as we can squeeze in! I love my little guy and all the fun he brings into my life...with him I can be the kid I really am at heart! =)

Laidlaw Family Weekend

Last weekend we were excited to see Ryan's dad and mom, Glenn and Kathy, who came down to Salt Lake City from Wyoming for a nursing conference Kathy was teaching at. Ryan and three of his four siblings live in the Utah County area, so when his parents come into town we always take the chance to get all of us together. On Saturday night some of us met up at the Macaroni Grill, a family favorite, and had a fabulous Italian dinner. This was a real treat because Ryan and I rarely go out to eat anymore with such a rambunctious toddler...Thomas doesn't usually have the patience to last through a whole meal at a sit-down restaurant, but when we have lots of other company with us to distract him he is so much calmer and happier! Sunday night we all met up again at Sara & Jon's house in American Fork, and just hung out and ate pizza from Costco. Then Monday night we got together at Nathan & Fabi's in Payson, where Fabi made a yummy meal of bratwurst sausages, empanadas, potatoes and salad.

It was so fun to watch Thomas with his one Laidlaw cousin so far, Nathan & Fabi's daughter Julia, who is 3. Thomas & Julia are so cute together and really enjoy seeing each other and playing together. When we drove up in front of Nate & Fabi's house Monday night, Julia was so excited and impatient to see him she ran out the door calling "Tomas! Tomas!" Fabi is originally from Argentina & Nate served a Spanish-speaking mission to the Dominican Republic, so they have taught Julia both Spanish and English...they all call Thomas "Toh-MAHS," the Spanish version of his name, and I think its so cute! One funny thing is, Thomas is a year and a half younger than Julia, but he is only a couple of inches shorter than her, and we're pretty sure he weighs more than she does! He's such a big, tall boy, I love it. =)

So, three good meals and three great nights of hanging out with family! I love all my in-laws and I am always reminding myself how blessed and lucky I was to marry into such a wonderful family!

9 Months, 4 Days, 13 Hours and (about) 52 Minutes Later...

...I have finally finished reading "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows"!!! I am so glad to finally know the ending to this epic tale and that I no longer have to live in fear that someone will accidentally (or purposely!) spoil it for me...its amazing I've gone this long without overhearing how it ends! As a whole the book was great and I was very satisfied with the ending. I can't believe it took me so long to get around to finishing it...I went to the midnight release at Barnes and Noble last July and was so excited to read it I was sure I'd do it in a matter of days! I think I got pretty far into it initially, but then I got distracted, put it down and only read it sporatically over the following weeks and months. This week I finally decided I couldn't stand being in the dark anymore, and I absorbed myself in the book every spare second I got!

After taking a creative writing class this semester (which I truly enjoyed but I am so happy to say is over! No more homework!), I have so much added respect and appreciation for J.K. Rowling and other successful authors. I have a new perspective on everything I read now, trying to look at the story from the writers' perspective. Crafting just a decent short story is hard...Crafting a great story, much less a very long, intricate one that fills 7 best-selling novels, is incredible! Miss Rowling is a wonderfully-talented writer and the depth of her imagination just amazes me. I am sad that there will be no more tales about Harry to read, but happy that I no longer have to worry about him. (Sounds dumb, but weren't we all worried?!)

Now on to my next read! I've really been wanting to start this new book I got for Christmas, but refused to allow myself to do it until I finished Harry Potter. I've heard an awful lot about this little series...something about some guy named Edward.... =)