Christmas 2010

We had a wonderful Christmas this year.


It was our 2nd annual nativity with cousins Jake and Allie. My boys were the 3 wise men and Jake and Allie were a little Mary and Joseph. Super cute. I love that we do this, it really helps bring the spirit into our home.


Kyle's favorite present, a general grievous light saber. Wow.


Blake's favorite, a star wars gun.

I got a blender that will just about take your arm off. Thankfully there are a dozen safety features on it. But it does sound like an industrial strength drill. I am excited to make smoothies with it.


Christmas day was beautiful, sunny! So we went outside to enjoy the new toys.


Hi smiley face!

Blake made this present for us at preschool. It was rudolph the red nose rootbeer. :)




Dallin enjoyed the crinkle of the wrapping paper and bows more than anything else.


My favorite present to the boys, I got each of the boys cute new towels. Dallin's is a puppy, Blake's a frog and Kyle's is a hippo. Love this picture.


We finished the weekend up in Star Valley and visited family. It was great, the kids had fun. Most importantly, I think they understand why we have Christmas. It is not all about the presents but the gift of our savior to each of us.

Merry Christmas!

I Forgot

...how messy it is to clean a self feeding baby.

First Tooth

Yesterday, Dallin's first tooth broke through. I thought, where is all the screaming, and bawling, and nights of no sleep? Oh, that was Kyle and Blake. Dallin just took it in stride. I didn't even know it was about to come through. He actually has been pretty happy these last few days. I'll try not to jinx myself. Hopefully we all stay healthy during Christmas break.

Note to Santa

Kyle wrote a letter to Santa in his class at school.



It's hard to read. What it says is, "Dear Santa, I was sorta good. I want a general greivous light saber for Christmas." Sorta good!? Yeah, that is what he wrote. I have been laughing about that.

Actually, Kyle has been awesome. He is the sweetest boy, so helpful, kind and loving. When Brian or I explain spiritual things, he just gets it. He remembers everything (sometimes to my detriment). He helps both of his little brothers, who just light up when he is home. Nobody can make Dallin giggle like Kyle can. And Blake gets so excited when they play together. He is amazing to have a conversation with; he is like a little adult. Age 6 has been just wonderful. I have loved watching him grow and change.

I think he may just get that light saber he has been asking for.

Happy Birthday Brian

33!






I don't usually do anything cool for his birthday but this year, I actually thought of something good. Since Brian never looks at this blog, I can say what he is getting. It won't ruin the surprise.
All he really wants is a snowmobile. But that is not going to happen right now. Maybe next year. So, instead I am arranging for his brother Scott to surprise him next Monday with a trip to go snowboarding. Brian has no idea. He actually thinks that I am having a day to myself, like a hair appointment and stuff. So he is expecting to stay home with the kids and play mom for the day. But his brother is going to show up instead and go snowboarding. Yay! I hope he has fun.

The Joy of Discovery

Dallin has figured out the pincer grasp. It is so cute to watch the intense look of determination as he uses his fingers instead of just a closed fist.





I sure have changed as a mom now that this is my third child. Yes, that is an orange peel he is chewing on. You are technically not supposed to give citrus until one year, but I just didn't see any harm in it. And no allergies sprung up. He didn't really even eat any; he just had the small remnants of an eaten wedge. He loved it and threw a fit when I took it away. He definately loves being able to feed himself.

Compare

I am trying to decide who Dallin looks more like, Kyle or Blake. I found some pictures to compare them.





So far, I think he looks more like Kyle. But other days he looks more like Blake. What I do know for sure is that he looks a lot like Brian!!

Thanksgiving

What a blessing to have a whole day set aside to think of what I am grateful for. Of course, I am grateful for my family, my home and all the good food.



The stranger danger phase is in full effect for Dallin right now. Also, all the noise of having a house full of people was hard on him, but he warmed up after a few minutes. Then he was his normal smiley self.



The cousins came and had so much fun! I love that the boys have great family that they can play with. Jake and Allie are such good kids. They all got along great, there were no battles or any sadness. Just some crazy giggling and squealing. It was awesome.



I filled the boys plates and the boys kept asking for Turkey. I kept thinking they wanted more turkey meat. But these cute little turkeys were what they were asking for. So after eating a good amount, they got these treats. Cute! They were a pain to make though. The oreos kept breaking on me. But they still came out ok.



After most everyone went home, the boys and I made these little pilgrims and Indian. We talked a little about what Thanksgiving means. Kyle said he was glad that the Indians gave us this country. Uh, I don't think he really got it. But oh well. So does the girl pilgrim really look like she went shopping at Victoria's Secret? I guess she kinda does. That is supposed to be a bib, by the way, not a bra.

I certainly have much to be thankful for. This is a year that I do not want to repeat, but I have seen many blessings. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

A lollipop makes everything better

Dallin has been doing so good with solid foods. So I decided to introduce some of the meat babyfoods. It didn't go so well. He thought it so bad that he made gagging noises and literally shivered. Poor kid. He was very patient about it, he never cried, just kind of stuck his tongue out like he wanted to get rid of it. We happened to have some lollipops around so I made him a peace offering. Of course that was a hit. I doubt that he actually swallowed anything because it all just drooled out onto his bib. That is what baths are for.



Guess we will be sticking with fruits, veggies and cereal for now.



A year or so from now, I probably won't love that he sucks his thumb, but right now I think it is the cutest habit ever. He only does it when he's falling asleep. It helps him not need me so much in the middle of the night. Cutie pie.

I'm a Fan

I refused to read Harry Potter for the longest time. I am not a sci-fi/fantasy fan so of course I wouldn't like it. After much prodding from the book club girls, I finally I gave in. Turns out, these are some of the best books ever. A deep moving story about good vs. evil and how love conquers hate. Amazingly well written.

One of my problems with all the Harry Potter nerds was that they would get so ridiculously into it. Wearing costumes, saying wierd things like, "lumos," having the chills when anyone would say Voldemort and listening to the chat groups online (though after the cliff hanger ending of book 6, how could you not?). I am eating my words, I so wanted to dress up as Hermoine this year. And, as you can see my blog is well decorated for the upcoming movie release.

I am officially a Harry Potter nerd.

Costumes

The boys are at the perfect age to enjoy Halloween.




Kyle as Optimus Prime! He looked great! Love it! He loved having my umbrella to keep dry. I think that was almost as fun as anything else.



Blake was Darth Vader. This costume came together so well. We already own the light sabers. The helmet was a DI find a few months ago and Grandma made the cape, thanks Grandma Bonnie! So I just bought the bodysuit and mask. Perfect! He looked so great. About halfway through trick or treating, he looked up at me and said, "I wanna go home." So I helped him carry his helmet and everything else. Suddenly, he was ready to go for more. He didn't mind the rain at all. I first was trying to keep Blake under the umbrella, but he didn't care. In fact, he was seeking out the mud puddles to jump in. They were both pretty well layered.




Enjoying the spoils.



OH! I can't stand it! So cute! I was lent a costume for Dallin, but I just couldn't resist buying this one. He is only this age once. So I splurged. So worth it! Those chubby cheeks!



Sweet baby!

Happy Halloween!

;)

Pumpkins

We finally got our pumpkins done!

Parade

The USU Homecoming Parade is always something fun to look forward to.



Lobbying for candy!





What? Paper?!



Look how full that bucket was. As if we needed more candy around here the week before Halloween. But, that bucket of candy bought me a lovely nap when we got home. I laid down when the baby fell asleep not thinking I would actually sleep, then an hour later I woke up. The boys were so quiet; wrappers were everywhere.



Here are my boys with Rachel, my friends daughter. I used to babysit Rachel and she is getting so big! That is whose pink stroller Dallin is sitting in:



He was getting heavy so I put him down. Cute little smile.

It was cold, but it was really fun.

Crafty

If you are in the mood to craft, here is a cute site that was sent to me.

http://www.bluecricketdesign.net/

Picture Woes

Two and a half years ago I took this picture:



This is probably my favorite picture ever. Look how cute! Oh, 4 and 1. The best phase. They were both pretty agreeable, I slept fully most nights and we just played and giggled without any homework cares. Sigh.

So Dallin is 6 months old. I tried to get a cute group picture. All I got were these:





I did feel pretty lucky to get a group picture of just the two boys. Am I pushing my luck to ask for all three of them to smile and be cute? Hmm. I will keep trying.

Break In

So our house was broken into on Sunday while we were at church.



I had a meeting right after church and stayed behind while Brian and the boys went home. When they got there, the back door was wide open. He assumed that one of the boys left it open on the way to church. But when we headed upstairs he noticed that some drawers in my bookshelf were open, and in our room, my dresser drawers were all open and rifled through. Now, my house isn't the cleanest on Sunday when we leave for church, but this was for sure beyond our normal mess.

We called the police, who took pictures (at least I had vacuumed the night before) and a report. They think it sounded like a juvenille because of what was and what was not taken. My wallet, untouched. My camera, still here. The XBOX, fine. The only thing gone was a small metal lock box that we keep around and a video game. We think they were looking for money, but they came to the wrong house. :)

It will be a little wierd for a while, just feeling like you have been violated.

This was a lesson to us, NOT TO LEAVE OUR DOORS UNLOCKED. I used to lock my doors all the time, but Brian has teased me about it our whole marriage. So over the past 10 years (the big ten in January!) I have slowly relaxed about it. The back door being unlocked has been the norm. Not anymore. We are back to locking up our cars, the garage and the house always. Even when we just go out for 10 minutes.

The saddest thing is hearing Blake and Kyle say, "There was a bad guy in our house." I hope they don't get too worried. I told them that it was probably just some kid who came in. And I told them that they are more important than any material possession. Our family is safe. Stuff can be replaced.

Parent Teacher Conference

So, Kyle hates to read. Hates it.

During Kindergarten, when his little homework folder would come home, I would get all excited with him, "Yay! We have homework!" That worked for a few weeks. Then, he slowly realized that it wasn't so fun. So, then the treats/bribes came out. Candy, gum, money and finally the dollar store once a week in exchange for getting homework done. We got through kindergarten in one piece.

New year, 1st grade! Yay! Then, homework battles begin almost instantly. He is so unhappy doing his reading. Math is great. He loves it, and gets excited. However, reading is torture. We still have to do it. It has been such a battle, I was prepared for parent teacher conference to reflect his unhappiness with reading. However...he is doing awesome! For his teacher or anyone other than MOM, he is just doing great. Scoring is 1 to 4 and he got almost all 4's.

So first, I am happy, thrilled that he is doing so well. But second, I am a little bummed that he won't really do it for me. Why is that?

Anyway, the reward system is still in effect. So Friday of next week, if he keeps up his homework he gets a fish. Ugh, a fish tank to clean. But, it is worth getting a weeks worth of homework done without too much of a fight.

Food

We are liking sweet potatoes.



And do I dare say this? He is starting to sleep better at night. Just in the last week or so, he isn't doing the whole eat every 2 hours thing. Most nights he is only waking up once. Whew. So nice.

We are coming up on my favorite age. From about here until age 2. Age 1 is SO fun.

Here is how I think of the difference in age 1 and age 2. When Blake was 1, I was washing his hair in the tub. He just lays back in the warm water, smiling at me and making baby gibberish. So sweet. At age 2, that changes to, "No, I don't want my hair washed!" Scream, hit. (It was him screaming and hitting me. Just thought I would clarify.)

So, I better enjoy Dallin's easy going nature for now.