The Patterson Family

This is Halloween

2011-11-01T20:24:00.000-07:00

This Halloween was the best Halloween I've had in a long time. For starters, we all dressed up this year... including Grant. What? How did that happen? I have to thank his brother Nathan for dressing up, because I really think that helped to motivate him. Yes, he did only go as a fly fisherman. However, he did say (as he was painting my face for my witch costume) that maybe he'd do something a little more fun next year. The other thing that was pretty awesome was how inexpensive our costumes were. We always spend all this money on costumes for the kids, and they end up being made with cheap material, and they just aren't worth it. This year, Hunter was Harry Potter. He wore black shoes, black slacks, a white button up shirt with a maroon tie and a gray sweater over the top. Then he wore a black cape (from my parent's halloween collection), and Grant made him a wand in like 5 minutes. The glasses came from the movie theater. When we went to our 3D movie this summer, we saved the Harry Potter shaped glasses. We just popped the lenses out of the frames and they looked perfect. Ayla was my little kitty. I bought her some black sweats and sewed a tail on it, and I bought a black jacket and sewed some ears on it. Then I painted her face, and it looked perfect. We went trick or treating in a fun neighborhood by Grant's grandma's house. The kids were practically running to the next house. One house gave then pop and after that, Ayla was asking everyone for pop.
So aside from me eating WAY too much of the kids Halloween candy, this was a wonderful Halloween.

FIVE!

2011-10-01T14:49:00.000-07:00

How is my little boy 5 already? I can remember being pregnant with him like it were yesterday. I thought my pregnancy would last forever. And now it's 5 years later.

I feel as though Hunter has grown up so much in the last few weeks. He's doing so well in his school online. He's starting to sight read. He started playing the piano 2 weeks ago. He's done so well with that. I gave him a few chores to do on a daily basis; things like unloading the dishwasher, getting the mail, and giving Oreo food and water. He has really enjoyed it. I just hope that lasts. :) On top of everything else, Hunter learned how to ride a bike this week. He has been so excited. He wants to constantly ride his bike down to his cousins' house to play with them. It reminds me of when a teenager first gets their license and they are constantly driving everywhere... even if it's only 20 feet away.

The first day he learned how to ride, I decided to take him to the church parking lot so he could get some turning practice in. It can be kind of difficult on the sidewalks around here. So I packed up the water bottles, the bike and the kids and headed on over. It was like a playground to him there. No cars and no cracks in the sidewalk. Just a lot of room to ride around in. Ayla was my little cheerleader. As Hunter was riding, she would cheer "go Hunter go!" over and over. It was adorable. And everytime he got close to us, she'd pick up his water bottle and run over to him to give him a drink. I really wish I had brought my camera for that. It was adorable. Hunter loved it. And the few times he did crash, he was all smiles about. He kept saying how he was going to tell Daddy how many cool crashes he had. And he kept talking about going mountain biking with Daddy as well. It was so fun.

Hunter's birthday was on a Sunday this year. We had gotten some pizzas the night before and I made his birthday cake as well. I had decided this year to do a Mario themed birthday cake for Hunter. That was well received considering the fact that it's basically Hunter's favorite thing at this point in his life. It turned out good, except for the fact that after a while, the bottom of the cake started to collapse which made the top of the cake tilt. You'll see in the pictures below that in the end, Grant had to hold the top of the cake up with his finger when we sang happy birthday to Hunter.

Overall, it was a great day. Hunter woke up bright and early to open presents. Ayla wasn't thrilled in the beginning... I don't think she was too impressed that only Hunter got gifts. :) In church, Hunter volunteered to say the opening prayer in Primary. Then he got sung to and got some candy as well. He was just all smiles during church.

Ayla on the other hand was a pain in the butt in church. She has been going through a faze where the only person she wants is me... not even Daddy. This makes it hard since I lead during sacrament meeting. She is constantly upset that she doesn't get to go up with me and gets mad at Grant for holding her. I took her to nursery and as usual, she was pretty upset and didn't want to go. I substituted in Primary that day though, so I had to leave. The wonderful nursery leader took her and let me leave. When I got back to pick her up, she was out cold. The nursery leader said that she had been sleeping for over an hour. I think Hunter must have woken her up that morning to open his birthday presents. Needless to say, she got in a good nap that day.

We had family over for dinner that night, and it ended up being a lot of fun. I'm so happy that Hunter had such a great day. It is sad to see him grow up so fast, but so fun to see the kind of person he is becoming. I am so blessed to have this amazing little man in my life. I couldn't have asked for a better boy. He is one of the sweetest kids I have ever known.

We LOVE making birthday cake!

Opening presents.

If you look closely, it looks like Luigi is holding up the castle. :)

My bike rider!

Ayla's birthday, and all the many doctor visits

2011-09-01T16:36:00.000-07:00

These last 8 days have been LONG and frustrating. Last Wednesday (as mentioned in my prior post) we visited the doctor because Ayla had not been peeing at all in 24 hours. He recommended Milk of Magnesia and told us to follow up with him the next day. On Thursday, we headed back in with bad news: it had not fixed anything. So he told us to try a suppository and follow up with him the next day. Unfortunately, that didn't do the trick either. So on Friday, our pediatrician told us to try Mirilax and follow up with him in a week. Friday, nothing. Saturday, nothing. Luckily, Sunday showed some progression. And on top of it, it was Ayla's birthday! But I will get to that good stuff later. On Sunday, she had 3 really good wet diapers. It was wonderful to finally see some progression. Monday also went well. However Monday night, Ayla started to act really fussy. I thought maybe she was just tired, so I put her to bed. Tuesday morning she woke up acting like she was in pain. She had a fever, she wouldn't eat or drink anything, and she wanted...no... DEMANDED I hold her ALL day. I didn't leave our couch downstairs. Thank goodness for the internet- especially while she was napping on me. She kept acting like she had stomach pain, so I gave her a suppository to try and help things along... especially since I had not changed a diaper the entire day. The bottle says it should create a bowel movement between 15 minutes and an hour. 2 hours later, she was still in the same diaper and we were at the doctor's office yet again. The on call doctor thought she was all right as far as her bowel movements and the fact that she hadn't peed, but he checked out the rest of her. Her tonsils were swollen, so he did a strep throat test. It came back negative. He told me to buy some gas drops to give her to help with any pain in her belly since she was gassy. The next day, she woke up exactly as she had the prior day, minus the fever. However, she was still as grouchy as ever and as clingy. We did the same routine that day as well. I called her pediatrician, and he said if she hadn't peed by today to bring her back in. So I woke up, checked her diaper, and once again she was dry. As soon as they opened, I called the doctor to make her appointment. Not even 10 minutes later, she started acting like she was feeling a little better. I just thought, well she still hasn't peed. As we were leaving to go to the doctor, I changed her diaper only to find a little pee in there. Not much, but some. Then I started questioning myself... was I being over paranoid? I took her in anyways. As soon as we walked in the door, she was giggling, and ran to play with the toys. What in the world? It's not like I wanted her to be sick or anything, but I didn't want to show up acting like everything was wrong when she wasn't acting like it. So we got called back in. After looking her over and asking me a few questions, he noticed something that I hadn't really paid attention to: a rash on her legs and a little on her arms and some around her mouth. Granted, the ones on her arms and mouth were barely even noticeable, but the ones on her legs were. Turns out, she has hand foot and mouth disease. Something that causes a fever, and no desire to eat or drink. Therefore, no pee. After doing a catheter just to rule out a UTI, it was determined that the only problem was the hand foot and mouth disease and that the Mirilax had helped to get her better originally. The only problem was, she happened to have another problem the same time she was dealing with the other thing making us think it had something to do with the original problem. So annoying! However, I am SOOO glad it has all been figured out. Apparently this disease only lasts for about 3 days and today is day 3, so we should be out of the clear tomorrow. Yeah! Needless to say though, it was a long week. Today has become my "do whatever you want day". And I have.

Now as far as Ayla's birthday went, it was wonderful. Grant is seriously like a little kid sometimes. We had his parents here that day, and Grant sent Ayla and Hunter down to wake them up at 7 in the morning so Ayla could open presents. He can never wait. So she opened her presents, and enjoyed the morning before heading to church. I got the opportunity to sing in church that day as well. Now, I say opportunity because this was the least nervous I was singing in front of people that I've ever been. It was kind of nice. Anyways, Grandma P. took Ayla to nursery which was wonderful since Ayla hates going in there. It made her enjoy it so much more. We got home and got ready for dinner. We had a lot of family over (and some friends) that evening for dinner. Then Ayla got to blow her candle out and open a few more presents. By the time everything was over, I think Ayla had had an overload on people for the day. Not that she doesn't love people, but I think she prefers some alone time as well. She was begging to go downstairs by herself to watch Dora. She and Hunter are so different in that way. We had a great time. I can't believe my baby is 2. Where has the time gone?

Other things going on: Hunter just started pre-school this last Friday. It is a different kind of pre-school than most of you are probably familiar with. It is an online pre-school called Upstart, based in Utah. It's a free program that they do online a minimum of 5 days a week and 15 minutes a day. Hunter has loved it so much however, that he has been doing a minimum of 30 minutes a day- most days closer to an hour. He has already learned so much, and he is having fun as well. My nephew did this as well and excelled so much. He was one of the smartest kids in his class the following year in Kindergarten. I can't wait to see how well Hunter does. For those of you interested in learning more, check out this website:

http://www.waterford.org/proven-results/upstart

The other thing that Hunter has been enjoying lately... Angry Birds. For those of you not familiar with was that is, it is an IPAD game. Grandma P. just got an IPAD for her birthday and brought it for the kids to play with. It is a game where you sling shot birds over to try and kill pigs.... sounds pretty gruesome, I know. The first time I saw what it was, I thought it was horrible. Then I played it. Now I am as addicted as Hunter. It's fun to figure out what angle you need to shoot the birds to knock different things down to get to the birds.

Anyways, here are a few pictures.

Hunter playing Angry Birds.

The beautiful birthday girl the night before.

She loved that new baby.

She was a little shy at first when everyone started singing happy birthday. I wasn't sure if she'd blow the candles out. She finally did though (with a little help from me... that candle was hard!) and she had so much fun. Oh, and can you tell that's a Dora cake? Her absolute favorite thing in the world right now.

And her eyes aren't even brown!

2011-08-24T17:28:00.000-07:00

Growing up, my dad used to always say, "you're so full of crap your eyes are brown". Well if I'd ever believed that was true, his saying was proved wrong today.
Let me explain. This morning Ayla woke up and was acting almost like she was going to throw up. She was gagging a bit, and just not acting like herself. She ended up spitting up a bit on her hair while she was laying down, so I decided to give her a bath. Normally she loves baths, but she was acting like she was in misery the whole time. I gave her some dry cereal and Gatorade for breakfast, and she just sat in front of the TV all morning not moving. She ended up falling asleep, and I had to wake her up to eat lunch and get ready to leave- I had to pick up some things for Hunter's online preschool for this fall. As I was getting her dressed, I noticed that it was almost 2 pm, and she hadn't peed or pooped all day. In fact, she woke up dry. Meaning that it had been almost 24 hours since she had peed last. I called the doctor and got an appointment that I was able to go to right after Hunter's school thing.
We got there at 4:45. Ayla was in a great mood at this point, to my surprise. She was running around playing like she had been feeling great all day. After looking her over, the doctor said that it looked like her stomach was a bit descended. So he sent us over to get an x-ray and some lab work done. First off, Ayla was amazing with both of those. I really think that God decided to send me a child that could handle this stuff better than Hunter does. He's almost 5 and I still have to hold him down just to get a finger poke to check his iron. For the x-ray, she just layed still. I told her that they were taking a picture of her tummy. She did great. Then they took some blood. When we first sat down, Hunter started asking the lab technician if she was going to poke Ayla. She said yes. He started panicking and begging her not to. The lady said she had to so we could see what was wrong with Ayla. When he started to panic some more, she told him he could sit away from us so he couldn't see anything. He was more than happy to. Ayla had a few vials of blood drawn and the entire time, she didn't even whine once. She was talking to the technician about Dora and her birthday cake, and she didn't even panic at all. Amazing.
Then we went back to talk to the doctor about her results. Her lab work looked fine, but her x-ray showed some problems. Her x-ray showed (as my dad would say) that Ayla was "full of crap". :) Apparently she has so much poop inside that it was blocking her bladder making it so she couldn't pee. Now, the doctor did say that this may not be the only problem, but he told me to give her some milk of magnesia and lots of fluids and to follow up with him tomorrow. As of right now, that's what it looks like though. We'll see for sure tomorrow I guess. However, my dad's theory was proved wrong- Ayla's eyes are blue. Although I do know that children's eye color can change up to what, age 3 or something, so for all I know they'll change at that point. I'll tell you what though- if they do change to brown, I will be laughing my head off.
Other than that, things have been going well with us. Ayla has shown more interest in the potty lately, so I figured we may be starting with potty training soon. We've spent lots of time in the bathroom lately, so I got a few pictures in there.
Oh, I almost forgot- we just got back from a vacation this last Thursday. We spent 4 days at Grant's parent's cabin in Salmon. It was so much fun up there. We all went kayaking, boating, swimming, and had some fun with the family. It was nice having Grant with us that long since he's been working so much lately. He got a second job about a month ago, and since then he's been working 70-80 hours per week. So I enjoyed having him around, and I know the kids enjoyed it as well. Plus, I got a great tan while I was up there. I loved it.
Anyways, here are a few pictures of our life lately.

Ayla with her blue sucker mouth after getting home from the doctor

Very sanitary, I know. :)

Ayla is GOOD at her pouty face. :)

Grant holding our newest niece Lily along with the new proud daddy (Grant's brother Nathan).

What we've been up to

2011-08-11T16:17:00.000-07:00

We seem to have been keeping ourselves busy lately. I feel as though life just keeps getting busier, and I don't even have any kids in school yet!
A few weeks ago, my sister Melissa and her family came to visit from North Carolina. When they got here, I'd realized that I hadn't seen Melissa in 2 years and Timothy (my brother in law) in 3 years! Time has gone by so fast. Plus, they have an adorable little 1 year old that I hadn't met yet, so it was fun to get to know my niece Natalie. I wish I had taken pictures when I went up to my parent's house, but I totally forgot my camera (as usual). I really need to get better at that.
The following week I spent at the Bannock County Fair doing a Pampered Chef booth. I had a really good time there. I got to visit with my grandpa a lot while I was there, made a new friend who was doing a booth next to mine, tried some deep fried oreos for the first time, and saw a lot of people I hadn't seen in a while... including an old teacher of mine who was one of my favorites. Mr. Robinett was my 3rd grade AND 6th grade teacher, and he was so much fun. He moved 8 years ago to Washington and I hadn't heard from him since. He stopped by on Friday to say hi, and it was so nice to see him.
While I was at the fair, my sister in law Stefani had her first baby! I was so excited to come home and see her. Lily is just adorable, and I have enjoyed holding her as much as I can.
A few days ago I got the opportunity to help a friend cook some food for a party she was having. It was such an enjoyable day cooking and chatting and eating good food.
Yesterday the kids and I went to the fair with my brother and sister in law and their kids. It was such an enjoyable evening eating fun food, listening to music, and playing. Hunter went on a little roller coaster while we were there. I thought he would hate it since he is terrified of swings, but he absolutely loved it. Then there was a little boat ride that Hunter and Ayla- Ayla had a blast. Then they went over to some bounce houses. Once again, the kids had a blast. Ayla was a little nervous at first, but once she got the hang of it she wouldn't come out of there. It was so much fun.
Anyways I have a few pictures to post- I really need to get better at bringing my camera places. I do have to say- the one picture of Ayla with her finger to her lips: Ayla's new thing lately has been telling people to "Shhh". She tells me, and Hunter, and really everyone else to "Shhh" all time. It will probably get frustrating later on if she keeps doing it, but right now it is hilarious.

Hair Cut

2011-07-27T08:57:00.001-07:00

The other day I gave Hunter a hair cut and I decided to be nice and let him watch a movie on my computer while I was cutting it. However I have found that it's just easier to have him naked and then have him take a shower afterwards. I got some cute pictures of him getting ready to get his hair cut. He just makes me laugh.

I also have some other pictures to post of both kids as well. Ayla has gotten to be so much fun lately. She can still be a little grumpy (typical 2 year old stuff), but when she is in a good mood, she is hilarious. She still loves playing with Hunter, and I am constantly hearing them giggle when they are playing. It makes me so happy to hear them having so much fun. Yes, there are still the occasional fights and tears between the two of them, but overall they are great friends and happy to be together. I just love my kids.

Also, I wanted to post some pictures of what Grant and I accomplished a few weeks ago... well, Grant mostly. I helped a little. We have a buffet that matches our kitchen table that we have been needing to finish for years. We finished our table about 3 or 4 years ago, and the buffet has just been downstairs collecting dust. Grant had a week off around the 4th of July, so we finally finished it. I just LOVE it.

The Final Harry Potter

2011-07-15T08:02:00.000-07:00

Grant and I went and watched Harry Potter last night at 12:30. It was one of the best movies I have ever seen. It by far topped the other movies, and it topped my expectations. We saw the 3D version last night. The glasses for it were awesome- they were shaped like Harry's glasses. I totally kept them. I of course bawled throughout the movie. I knew I would. It is sad to think that the movies are over. It has been such a fun 10 years. Hopefully there will be another movie or book that will be as exciting as this one has been. If you get a chance to go watch the movie, do it. You will not be disappointed. I'm hoping to get a chance to watch it again.

Chicago

2011-06-21T08:46:00.000-07:00

I can't believe how long it's been since I last posted. I had made a goal to do better, but apparently I failed. However, I have some time now so I will post what we have been up to.
First of all, we finished the soccer season. Hunter did so much better after those first 2 games. I wasn't able to be at the very last game since I had a Pampered Chef party, but Grant said he did great. Plus, they gave everyone medals and Hunter LOVED his. Ever since Grant and I got our medals for our half marathons, Hunter has been begging us to have one. I am so happy that he was able to get one for his accomplishments.
The main thing we have done over the last few weeks is our trip to Chicago. Grant's sister Laura got married on June 11th, so we were able to drive out and celebrate. We left here on Wednesday evening after dinner and started our long drive. I was so nervous before we left. I thought it was going to be miserable. It really wasn't as bad as I was expecting. Of course we had a few melt downs in the car, however that was to be expected with a 1 year old trapped in a seat for over 40 hours. We pulled over to the side of the road somewhere in Wyoming the first night for a few hours of sleep. Ayla had a hard time sleeping in her seat- I felt so bad for her. Hunter had no problems though, so that was good. Ayla just kept bobbing her head and it was so uncomfortable for her that she kept waking herself up. When we pulled off to the side of the road, I pulled her out to lay on me so she could get comfortable and sleep for a while. When we left, I put her back in her seat and since she had been in a deep sleep, she was able to go back to sleep in the car seat just fine. We ate breakfast in Nebraska the next morning and then continued on our way. We made quite a few pit stops at rest areas, however there was one in Nebraska that I remember quite a bit. I swear I got eaten alive by mosquitoes while we were there for just a short 15 minutes. It's like they all swarmed around us as soon as we got there. On Thursday night, we got to a motel in Iowa around midnight, and we fell fast asleep. We were all exhausted. I'm sure Grant was the most though because he refused to let me drive the whole time. He's so stubborn. :)
We woke up the next morning and continued on our way. We only had a few hours left, so that made it easier. When we first pulled in to Chicago, it was amazing to see all the buildings everywhere. It was definitely different than I was used to having grown up in Arimo, Idaho. :) When we actually got into the city, I was not too thrilled to be on the roads. They were over crowded, and I felt almost claustrophobic being there. We headed over to the beach to meet up with Laura, Erik, and Amanda and Jeff and their kids. We only stayed there for a few minutes as it was a cold day. Then we headed back over to Laura's apartment. We spent a while over there visiting, and then the girls headed over to either get a manicure or a pedicure. It was fun and relaxing. When we were finished, we watched the kids while the guys went go-kart racing. I took the kids back to the place we stayed at and we had pizza and watched a movie until the guys came back. The next morning, we woke up and got ready to head over for the wedding. Erik proposed to Laura at their favorite restaurant and they decided to get married there as well. It was a beautiful little place, and they had a nice set up for weddings as well. When we got there, we started setting everything up. Laura is so organized that everything went quite smoothly. Nathan and I were in charge of setting up the room for the kids. As soon as we finished setting up, we left the kids down there and headed upstairs for the ceremony. I, of course, bawled like a baby as I usually do. Laura looked beautiful, and it was a beautiful ceremony. After that, we headed inside for a wonderful meal. It was weird having the kids gone for so long, but it was a nice break. They had hired babysitters to watch during the entire time. After eating, and all of the wonderful toasts, we took a few pictures, visited, and then started taking everything down. Then we headed back to our place. It took quite a bit longer than we were planning since we got LOST. We even had a GPS, and we still got lost. Chicago is a crazy place to find your way around in. Salt Lake has really spoiled us with it's numbered system. It's just so much easier that way. Anyways, then I took Hunter down to a park with Amanda's kids and let them play for a little bit. Then we had dinner and headed back over to our house. There were 2 houses we were all staying in which were very close to each other. When we got back, we packed up and got ready for bed. We woke up around 5:30 the next morning and we started our drive back about 6. The drive home seemed to go a lot faster, and it was so much better. The last 3 hours or so were really rough; Grant and I were exhausted. We ended up getting home about 5 in the morning on Monday morning. We slept for a few hours and then got to work cleaning up and unpacking. I was so nervous for the trip before we started out, but it went by so quickly and smoothly. I had fun visiting Chicago, however I know that it is not the kind of place that I would enjoy living in. I love small towns so much, and I hope to get back to one someday. Ogden is even too big for me.
Other than that, we have just been enjoying the summer.... at least, as long as the weather has been permitting. We got to spend a few hours at the zoo in Idaho Falls with my sister-in-law Traci and her boys last Saturday, and Ayla and Hunter loved it. I am looking forward to this summer since Ayla is so much more aware of her surroundings as opposed to last summer. Hopefully the weather will start picking up. Anyways, here are some pictures- enjoy!

I love Ayla's cute little swimming suit!

Day 3 of Soccer and more

2011-05-17T10:19:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday was Hunter's 3rd soccer game. And this time, it went GREAT! I couldn't have been more excited. We told him if he played in the game when he was needed, we would take him out for ice cream when the game was over. He was so excited. In fact, before the game started he was inviting everyone there to come with us. :)
This game made me feel better watching it as well. The last few weeks, the teams that Hunter played against seemed to be at least a year older, and therefore much better. It was hard to watch. This week, they were the same age. Normally, the game is 3 on 3. Our team only had 3 players, and their team had 5, so they rotated one of their kids onto our team so we could play 4 on 4 and let all the kids play the whole game. The other kids were such good sports! Hunter scored the first goal. It was hilarious. He had fallen down when he was kicking the ball near the goal and as the other kids were coming closer, he pushed the ball with his hands, got up and kicked it in the goal. Apparently my kid knows how to cheat. :)
After half time, they switched which goal they were supposed to kick towards. Needless to say, this confused all of the kids. In this process, Hunter ended up scoring for the other team. But after scoring, he was giving high five to everyone. I swear... every few minutes he was running out of the game giving me high 5. All of the other spectators thought he was hilarious. He ended up playing in all of the game, and he did so well. I was so proud of him. It made me so happy to watch him play. He only has 1 more game until this season is finished. I hope it's another wonderful game. Grammy is coming to watch this time as well, so I hope her drive down here is worth it.
After the game, we went and got ice cream at Farr's. Yummy. Hunter picked bubble gum ice cream- he was so excited.

*****

Yesterday, Hunter had been looking for a toy all day. I suggested that maybe he say a little prayer and that Heavenly Father would help him find his toy. So he said a prayer and within 5 minutes, he had found it. I then told him that we needed to show Heavenly Father how thankful we were. So he knelt down and said a prayer of thanks. It was so cute. I thought it had been such a great lesson.
Later on, he had our fly swatter and was trying to hit the fly in our house. He LOVES to do that. He was having a hard time catching this particular fly though. So he knelt down and prayed to Heavenly Father that he would be able to catch the fly so that he could kill him and throw him in the garbage..... well that was a prayer I never thought I'd ever hear.

I just love how funny kids can be. Hunter just cracks me up. I guess this lesson will just take some time to completely learn.

The toy Hunter was looking for.

Hot stuff

2011-05-11T18:17:00.000-07:00

I have decided that Ayla is a crazy little chick. I think she is in love with things that are hot and spicy. Months ago I remember Grant's mom making these ribs that had a very hot sauce on them and Ayla was devouring them like it was nothing. I couldn't believe it.
Lately I have really been wanting Ayla to stop sucking her thumb. I had mentioned to Grant that maybe I'd just duct tape it, and he said to put a hot sauce on it. So we tried the hot sauce idea. The kind we used was Louisiana Hot Sauce. For those of you that don't know what that is, it is EXTREMELY hot. I poured some in a bowl and dipped her thumb in it. As soon as I was done dipping it, she stuck that thumb in her mouth as usual. We stood by waiting for the face. You know the face I'm talking about. It's like when a baby eats a lemon for the first time. Classic.

She did not make that face.

She LOVED it. She started dipping all of her fingers in the bowl and licking them up. She was asking for more. We could not believe it.

It finally kicked in a little later... like 10 minutes later... when I was putting her shoes on. All of a sudden she wanted a drink pretty bad. But I'll tell you, it was quite the delay. I just can not believe how hot of food she can handle.

Day 2 of Soccer

2011-05-07T11:18:00.000-07:00

Today was Hunter's 2nd soccer game. I think it went a little better....

Maybe.

Yesterday while I was at the store, I told Hunter he could pick a candy bar. He was really excited about that. I told him that it would be his if he played his whole soccer game and didn't throw any fits like he did last week. He was more than happy about that.
All morning, he kept reminding me not to forget his candy bar. I told him I would bring it to the game so he could have it right after if he was good. He walked onto the field telling his coach all about it and was really happy.

He played for about 2 minutes. Around the same total amount of the time he played the entire game last week. And that was in multiple segments. This time, he just got his 2 minutes out at the beginning and that was enough.

He started playing and was very enthused and very happy. He even scored a goal!... Well, I must admit, it wasn't his goal. But hey, a goal is a goal, right? I was thrilled about it. I cheered him on. I wish I would have had a picture of it. After he scored, he walked back to the middle with the proudest look on his face. It was priceless.

But once again, the team that he played was pretty dang good. I think he had a hard time with that. I stopped counting after the other team scored 10. Aside from Hunter's "goal", I don't think our team scored. Hunter was getting so frustrated. But he held it up inside pretty well until he came out of the game. Half way through the first quarter, he said he needed a drink and ran off the field while another kid went in for him. He took a big drink, and I figured when he was done he would be ready to run back into the game. But apparently he was done. Whenever someone tried to talk to him, he just hid behind me and didn't say a word. At the end of the game when each team cheered for each other, Hunter wouldn't go over with his team to do it. He wouldn't go give the other team high fives either. And when a nice boy from the other team came over to tell him good game, Hunter wouldn't give him five, or even look at him for that matter.

GRUMPY.

He does not handle losing very well, that's for sure.

I'm kind of glad I haven't been able to register him for the fall. I mean, I want him to play soccer. I loved playing sports, and I would love more than anything to have all of my kids play so I can go support them the way my family supported me. However, I want to see how this all plays out. I know this is only his second game and I shouldn't worry too much about it, but I am having a hard time with that. I guess all I can do is keep trying and if it's something that he doesn't enjoy, then I have to accept that. Man, that is hard.

No pictures from today, but if you didn't get a look at my last picture I posted of his soccer game, then check it out. It sums it all up.

Soccer

2011-05-02T15:07:00.000-07:00

We just found out last week that I could fit Hunter into a soccer team this spring. We were all so excited. Around here, you can't start soccer until you're 4 1/2, and they do sign ups for fall and spring at the same time. So since he turned 4 last fall, I couldn't sign him up yet. Luckily, my visiting teacher told me that her son's team needed another player. So last week we dove right into soccer. Hunter had his first practice last Wednesday, and his first game on Saturday.

Unfortunately, it was not one of the best experiences.

Hunter is a VERY sensitive kid. And I got to witness that first hand at his game. They play 4 quarters and there are 5 minutes per quarter making it around 20 minutes of playing time, plus half time and time outs. I think Hunter probably played a total of 2 minutes. He was so excited at the beginning. Then when he realized that the kids weren't going to just GIVE him the ball, that was a little too much for him. He started getting mad every time the other team scored a goal, and he would start crying because he was so upset. Then as all the other 4 year olds were running after the ball, he ended up falling. That was it for him. He didn't even get hurt. But he started bawling and ran off the field. Honestly, I think he was just embarrassed that he had fallen down. After getting off the field, he would try and hide behind me crying. We would ask him if he wanted to go back in, and he would say no. He finally got the courage to go back in, and within 30 seconds, he had accidentally gotten hit in the head. That was it. He once again ran off the field crying and would NOT go back in. By the last quarter, we had enough and just left. Let's just hope that this week goes better.

This picture pretty much sums up the game.

Spring is here.... sort of...

2011-04-25T18:35:00.000-07:00

Lately I have made a goal to make more plans to get out of the house. It can be very depressing to sit around home all day, so I knew I needed a change. Unfortunately, this crazy weather has not been helping. One day it's in the upper 60's, and the next it's snowing. I am SO ready for the warm weather to get here. However, we have tried to take advantage of the warmer days as much as possible. We were able to spend time with my friend Becca and her two daughters about a week ago. We went over to a duck pond in Layton where they had an awesome park for the kids to play at. Ayla has been so very excited to go to the park. She finally figured out the slide and has been obsessed with it. She also really loves the swing. Hunter just loves running around and playing. I think they've both been going crazy sitting around the house as well. I don't think I've ever been so antsy for spring to get here. It just can't get here soon enough.
One other thing we've been making a priority has been going to the library. It gets us out of the house, the kids love it, and best of all- it's free. Hunter spends a little time on the computer there while Ayla and I look for books for her. Then after he is done, they play with the toys that they have there, and then we find some books for him. I've also been making it a priority to read as well. I had went through a long period of time where I hadn't read at all. I used to read all the time, so I really had missed it. I have really enjoyed getting back into it. I have a hard time controlling Ayla while we are in the library. She loves books so much that she goes crazy every time we step into the library. I can't even read books with her there because when I start to read, she sees all the other books and wants to just go pull them off of the shelves.
We've also been dealing with some sickness in our house lately. Last week Hunter had a temperature of 103, but when I took him in they couldn't figure anything out. The next day he was fine. Must have just been a 24 hour thing. Also, Ayla has had 2 ear infections over the last 3 weeks. That's been fun. Hopefully that's over and done with.
Other than that, we've just been keeping busy as always. Here are a few pictures.

This one is Ayla kneeling down to pray. She is so proud of herself for being able to do that.

Grant

2011-03-12T16:38:00.000-08:00

So as many of you know, Grant is extremely talented. I really like to say he's a man of many trades because I feel he can do just about anything. He taught me how to cook (however I must say my Mom DID try to teach me, I was just stubborn). He tried to teach me how to crochet (that just takes so long). He's helped teach me how to sew. He can fix just about anything on our house, our cars, etc. Well today, he took me to a bead store to see if I wanted to make any jewelry. I told him that I liked that idea, but that I didn't know if I had the imagination to put everything together. I just don't think creatively. So he asked me if he could make some for me. I of course agreed. They turned out so pretty, I just had to post them on here. So here they are along with some other random pictures of the kids.

Just ignore the woman wearing the necklace. :)

Ayla in her super cute dress.

Ayla does this all the time when she is in her high chair so she can see what's going on. I love it.

Bathtime!

What have we been up to lately?

2011-03-01T18:20:00.000-08:00

That is the question of the day. I have been horrible at blogging lately. And I've been very forgetful at getting the camera out to take pictures as well. I'm trying to do better though. We had a fun Valentines' Day. I tried to do a few fun things in February. I'm not super crafty, but I figured we could still try a few things. We cut out hearts and decorated them and put them around the house. We also made a little Valentines' box that we used throughout the month. Every day when I saw something that one of my kids did that made me happy, I wrote it down and put it in the box. Then at the end of the day, I read them to Hunter. He was pretty happy to hear them. And it was good for me to remember to point them out.
On Valentines' Day, I also decided to make a fun breakfast. I am not a morning person so we usually do cereal here at our house. So the kids were quite happy and surprised to wake up to chocolate chip pancakes. We also had some friends over that day and made some Valentines' cookies. Overall, it was a good day.
We also have a new tradition that's been going on every Tuesday night. I am a huge fan of the Biggest Loser, and I've been letting Hunter stay up to watch it with me. We usually have a bowl of popcorn, and sometimes Grant will do a few exercises that Hunter likes to mimic. Grant will usually do punches from side to side with his shirt off. So now, Hunter has been taking his shirt off while he does them as well. It is pretty comical to watch. But it's been fun to have this tradition every week. I love how much he loves this show. He can see Bob or Jillian's picture in the store and he knows exactly what it is. It is so funny.
Today we had Ayla's 18th month doctor appointment. 18 months? Really? Time just seems to be flying by. She was 31 inches tall and 21 pounds. She's still my little girl. However, I know she is growing. She has almost outgrown her shoes too. And I am so happy for that. She has been in size 2 shoes forever. That's right. My 18 month old is still in size 2 shoes. She is my petite princess. She just started in the nursery in our ward and so far things are going much better than I thought. She is so clingy, I just thought she wouldn't want any part of it. But so far so good.
Ayla has also started enjoying helping me around the house. She LOVES to throw things in the garbage. Unfortunately, quite often she throws things away that she isn't supposed to. but she is getting better. She also just started helping me cook. I really felt like I bonded so much when Hunter and I started cooking together and I am really looking forward to doing the same with Ayla.
I also just moved our port-a-crib into Hunter's room. I wanted to see how the kids would do sleeping in the same room. So far it's gone great. I love hearing them laugh when I wake up in the morning. They just love each other so much.
Other than that, we haven't been up to too much. More than anything, we are anxiously awaiting springtime. Hurry up and get here already!

Christmas and more

2011-01-20T12:00:00.000-08:00

I have been such a slacker at blogging lately! So now is the time to play catch up. Luckily, not a whole lot has gone on lately, so I won't be playing too much catch up.
Since my last post, Grant had his birthday, he graduated with his bachelors (YEAH!!!), and we celebrated our 7th anniversary. So that week was pretty busy. But it was a lot of fun.
We had such a fun Christmas this year. This is the first year that we didn't have ANY priorities. It was so nice. I mean, I LOVE having family in town and all, but it was kind of nice to just relax on Christmas day and play with the kids. It was kind of nice to try and build our own Christmas traditions as well. On Christmas Eve, Grant talked to our family about the birth of our Savior. It was really nice, however I think it will get better as the years go on because Hunter was really wound up (I'm sure it was a mixture of Christmas being the next day and being 4) and wouldn't sit still. However, it was still a lot of fun. We went to family Christmas parties and got to spend a little time with family on both sides. The week after Christmas we headed up to Idaho and had a fun pinochle tournament with my family in Pocatello. Grant seems to kick butt every year we go. It just makes me so proud. :)
It was very nice having Grant home during that whole week, and it was sad to see him have to go back to work.
As for everything else going on, Ayla just got her first (much needed) hair cut yesterday. And let me tell you- cutting a little girls hair is MUCH different from cutting a little boys hair. With Hunter, I just got out the razor and shaved. With Ayla, I'm dealing with her moving her head back and forth while I try to cut her hair and try my hardest not to cut her in the process. However, I think it turned out okay. It wasn't a whole lot that ended up getting cut off, however I think she looks SO much different. She almost looks a little older I think. She has been such a fun little girl with a LOT of attitude. One thing that I have to share that just cracks me up... Ayla LOVES the ice and snow outside. One day I decided to let her walk with me out to the car while I just held her hand. She ended up slipping on the ice. She thought that was the funniest thing that had ever happened. She just started giggling like crazy. After that, she was purposely trying to find the ice patches so she could slip. It was hilarious.
Hunter just seems to keep getting bigger and bigger. I swear he's a weed. He's so much different than Ayla. She still fits into 9-12 month clothes, and she's almost a year and a half. Hunter on the other hand no longer fits 4T clothes even though he's not even 4 1/2 yet. He has officially moved on to 5T now. I feel like he's just getting so big so fast, and I can't stop him! He continues to be super helpful at home. It's kind of nice having him get bigger since he is able to help me with so much now. He is a great kid. He also LOVES his new primary class. It took him a long time to get used to sunbeams last year, and there were many escape attempts made by him- some of which he succeeded. This year though, he just seems to be thriving in there. That just makes me so happy.
I just recently started teaching every 3rd Sunday in Relief Society. I'll tell you what: I was SUPER nervous the first Sunday that I taught in November. I thought I was going to pass out. However I just recently taught for the second time (I was gone in December and wasn't able to teach) and it was a million times easier. That made me feel SO much better.
All in all, things seem to be going well here. Enjoy some pictures!

This little girl seriously has an obsession with her blanky.

Enjoying a much needed nap with his little girl.

Enjoying a rainy evening while looking at the lights in Ogden.

Opening up their Christmas jammies.

Ayla loves to say how old she is.

After the haircut.

Thanksgiving and more

2010-12-07T06:47:00.001-08:00

It has been so long since I posted anything, I figured that even though I don't have any pictures to post I should post what we've been up to. For Thanksgiving, we went to my parent's house this year. We had so much fun. We headed up on Wednesday night and I made my cake the night before. It was yummy. It was a german chocolate bunt cake with chopped up mounds in the middle. It was fun making something new. That's one thing I've really liked about selling Pampered Chef is that I've learned a lot of new recipes that I get the opportunity of trying out. Thanksgiving was crazy, but a lot of fun. Our family is getting so big! 11 adults and 11 grandkids were there. And that isn't even all of us! It wasn't as eventful as normal because of the weather. My brothers usually play football with the grandkids, but it was freezing and there was snow as well. But we still had fun visiting with everyone. We stayed until Sunday and during those few days played a TON of games. I am such a game person, and don't get to play very often. We played lots of games of pinochle, clue, scrabble, and ticket to ride. I wish I could play every day- I just love it. Grant enjoyed going up in the mountains and getting stuck in the snow. I wouldn't have enjoyed that- but Grant loved it. He says it's like a challenge for him to see if he can get out. What a weird husband I have. :)
We came home on Sunday during a storm. It took us a little longer to get home, but that was just fine. We were exhausted and went to bed early that night. Ayla has been waking up in the middle of the night for some unknown reason. During that week, she had an ear infection I found out about later, so we blamed it on that, but she has continued to do it even after getting antibiotics. Sometimes she was up during that week for 3 to 4 hours straight at night. I do not do well without my sleep. So I fell asleep on Sunday around 8:30.
The week after Thanksgiving, Ayla had a doctor appointment. She is such a petite little girl. She is in the 10th percentile for her weight and 30th for her height. She is almost 20 pounds now. She may be small, but she has a lot of personality. She is a screamer, and it drives all of us crazy. She screams when she's happy, and she screams when she's sad or upset. Sometimes I wonder if she heard me yelling at Hunter when I was pregnant with her and she just thought that's the way it is. :)
She is walking EVERYWHERE now and is starting to be a little independent. She is still a little hesitant, and loves to be held still. However every now and then she goes on her own to play. She loves brushing her teeth, turning her light on and off, petting Oreo, throwing food on the floor (this I hate), and playing with Hunter. It's amazing to see how much she's grown.
Hunter is getting bigger every day and every day he amazes me by how much he knows. He loves to spell his name, say his phone number and the street he lives on, the city and state we live in, as well as the country. He is a pretty smart little guy. He loves to help me cook, help out with Ayla, and help with chores around the house. His new favorite thing is the wii. He played the nintendo at my parent's house during Thanksgiving and had such a GREAT time. It was so funny listening to him as well. Every time he would jump in the game, he would jump himself as well as make the noise that they do on there. So we would hear him saying "boing, boing, boing" over and over again. It was hilarious. The wii has now been my new leverage on him which has been nice. I used to take things away from him when he was naughty but lately some of those things didn't matter anymore. This does. I have never seen him clean his toys so quickly when I threaten to take this away. And it's been kind of fun for Grant and I to play Mario with him as well. I grew up on Mario and I used to love it.
That's basically what we've been up to since our last post. Just getting ready for Christmas I guess. I love Christmas so much more now that I have kids. I love seeing the excitement from them. I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving, and have a Merry Christmas!

Halloween and more

2010-11-02T08:27:00.001-07:00

We had SUCH an eventful weekend this last weekend. Grant took Friday off so he could do some much needed chores at home to get our house prepared for the winter. He put some new shingles on the roof (some of ours got blown off a while back from a big wind storm), cleaned out the gutters, mowed the lawn, did a little sanding on my buffet table, and on top of it, he cooked breakfast and dinner. I'll tell you, my husband acts like superman sometimes. I felt like I was so lazy. I did help him, but he did the majority of the work. Saturday was a crazy busy day. We had invited some family and friends over for dinner, so Grant and I were getting dinner prepped in the morning when all of a sudden we heard a really loud noise downstairs. Lo and behold, our washing machine was broken. One again, my superman just opens it up and takes a look inside and finds the problem. A part that balances the washing machine had broken off. So he went to the store and ordered a new part for it. Sometimes I wonder if there is something Grant doesn't know how to do. He amazes me. Anyways, when Nathan and Stefi got here, we went off-roading which is one of Grant's favorite things. So we loaded up the dogs and took off. We played fetch with the dogs and had some fun up there. When we got home, we got dinner ready (once again, Grant did the majority) and then got the kids ready to go to the trunk or treat at our church. Apparently we didn't get enough candy for everyone, so we only lasted for like 15 minutes. Next year we'll have to get more. Hunter had a blast. We were going to go to a few other houses, but then it started to downpour, so we decided just to go home. We enjoyed the evening together and finally fell asleep late that night. On Sunday, we went to a baby blessing for Grant's cousin in Kaysville. We had a little lunch there afterward and then came home. We enjoyed some of the afternoon outside for a little while as well. Grant just found this 3rd wheel (I think that's what it's called) online for really cheap and wanted Hunter to try it out. Basically it's like a bike without the front wheel and there is a piece that attaches to another bike in front. So Hunter was hooked up to Grant's bike. They rode around for a while, and Hunter had a blast. I'm sure they'll be doing that much more. Now all Hunter can talk about is going mountain biking with Daddy.

I love the pictures of the dogs jumping in the water going after the ball.

Hunter got to drive with Daddy through the mud. He LOVED it.

My army man and my little lamb.

The Truth

2010-10-28T12:37:00.000-07:00

One thing that has been very challenging as a mother has been trying to explain the meaning of things. For example: During the summertime, I told Hunter to run through the sprinklers.... something that I figured would be easy enough to understand. He had no idea what I was talking about, and I then had to have Kenny demonstrate (thanks Kenny) :). There are many instances that happen often, and now that Hunter is getting older and trying to understand more things daily, it has become even more of a challenge trying to explain things that us adults just know.
The newest example of this is honesty. Last Sunday at church, Hunter's teacher gave him a paper that talked about honesty. It also mentioned that as a home activity, we should talk about it in our everyday lives. Yesterday I asked Hunter to pick up his toys. When he came upstairs, I asked him if he had. He then said "yes". However one of Hunter's many qualities (I'm not sure if he considers it a quality, but I find it hilarious) is how he tattles on himself constantly. As soon as he told me he had, he said, "don't go downstairs, okay?" I wanted to laugh, but had to control myself. I then proceeded downstairs and turned the corner only to find a huge mess down there. I looked up the stairs and said, "Hunter, you lied to me. I want you to be honest and tell me the truth." With the pure innocence of a child, he looked me in the eyes and said, "The truth". Every way I tried to explain "the truth", he didn't seem to get it. Every time I ask him to tell me the truth, he just says "the truth." Sometimes I feel like explaining things to a child is as difficult as trying to explain to someone what salt tastes like. However with all the difficulties in doing so, Hunter's pure child-like attitude makes it difficult not to smile.

Gettin' Dirty and Hunter's Birthday

2010-09-27T12:57:00.000-07:00

This last weekend was SO much fun. Saturday was Hunter's birthday and we also competed in a race called the Dirty Dash. Best race ever. I seriously loved it. It was a 10K in Midway, UT that was basically an obstacle course in the mud. Our group (the Mud Slingers) consisted of Grant and I, Jamie, Nathan, Stefani, and our friend Mikol. We got there around 8 on Saturday morning and watched a few groups go before our wave left. There were literally 4000 people that ran in the race on Saturday. It was awesome to see all these people having so much fun. When it was our turn, I was so excited. I had been looking forward to this ever since I heard about it. Around 10:40, we were off. First we ran up "Big Pig Climb" which was basically a mud hill. Then we went past this machine that normally blows snow on mountains, except they had it filled with water shooting at us. That was intense. Then we hopped over the bails of hay, followed by "razorback alley" which was long tubes we had to crawl through. Then we ran through tires- that reminded me of a football camp or something like that. Then we climbed over walls that had mud before and after so we were sliding around as we were trying to climb over them. Then we went through this mud bog that was awesome. There were people losing their shoes in the mud, and people pushing each other in the mud and throwing it at each other. After that, we went down the largest slip 'n slide in the world- I was so excited to do that. Finally, we had to crawl through this muddy hole filled with water and we had to crawl our way to the finish line. Seriously best time ever. They are having a 5K and a 10K next year and I am getting ready to sign up for the 5K. We just tossed our shoes afterwards since they were so muddy. There was a group there that was taking shoes that no one wanted anymore and cleaning them up to give to kids in Mexico. I was totally fine with that. Oh, and I almost forgot one funny part- they had these group showers afterwards to shower off a bit before getting in your car. It was FREEZING cold water. There had been a "Piglet Plunge" as well where kids 2-12 got to run in the mud too. Well in the shower, it sounded like all these kids were being tortured to death. The water was so cold all the kids were bawling. As much as I felt bad for them, it was hilarious at the same time. I thought, "it can't be that cold". Boy was I wrong. I didn't completely get cleaned off since I couldn't stand how cold it was. I figured I'd wash my car later. Hunter ran a little bit of the piglet plunge, but for some weird reason didn't want to get dirty. Don't most little boys look for an excuse to get dirty? He didn't want me to touch him after I was done. He let me take him down the huge slip 'n slide, but he was nervous all the way down. Funny kid. Honestly though, I had such a great time and can't wait to do it again.
After we finished there, we drove to my sister Kori's house to shower up. (Thanks Kori for letting us walk in your house as dirty as we were!:) After we got done, we had some pizza, and then headed over to Fat Cats to their bowling alley for Hunter's 4th birthday. We were there for a few hours and had some fun. Hunter loves bowling, so it was a lot of fun for him. After that, we drove home and put the kids to bed. Yesterday after church we sang Happy Birthday to Hunter and had some of his ice cream birthday cake that he and I made together. It was delicious. I think I might try and make another one of those in the future. It was actually pretty easy.
Overall, we had such a great weekend. I am so glad that Grant was able to be with Hunter on his birthday this year. Every year on his birthday so far, Grant has had to work or be in school. So it really made this year special that we got to spend the whole weekend with him. Here are few pictures from this weekend.

Hunter with his birthday cake.

Ayla REALLY enjoyed birthday cake. She licked her plate clean.

Hunter and Ayla playing together.

The Dirty Dash

Ayla's 1st Birthday!

2010-09-11T18:40:00.000-07:00

I still can't believe that 2 weeks ago my little girl turned 1. I remember when Hunter turned 1... I cried so much that day. This time around however, I controlled myself... for the most part. I almost started crying as we were singing happy birthday to her. But I pulled myself together.
The day before Ayla's birthday, Uncle Nathan and Aunt Stefi took Hunter and Ayla with them up to the cabin. I then had all day to myself to clean. Oh yes, I had tons of fun. (And I'm not being sarcastic either... is that weird or what?) Grant and I were running another 1/2 marathon. This time we ran in Logan. We had a great time. And we beat our old time by 10 minutes. That felt good. After the run, we drove a long drive up to Salmon to Grant's parent's cabin. We did suprisingly well. I thought I'd be more tired, but I only started getting tired about 30 minutes outside of Salmon. When we got up there, I ran in and gave my kids a hug. After opening some presents, Grant and I ran outside and jumped in the lake... it was COLD.
Grant went home a few days later since he had to work, but I stayed up until the next Thursday. It was a lot of fun having Grant's family in town. We definitely stayed busy.
Ayla is in such a fun stage right now. Here are a few things that she has been up to:

1. Ayla is currently walking along furniture. She started getting brave at the cabin, and now she stands up everywhere. She has also learned how to climb up stairs. It still makes me a little nervous, but overall I am glad she has learned that.
2. She loves to growl when she doesn't get her way. And yes, I am completely serious when I say "growl".
3. Ayla is the exact opposite of Hunter when it comes to eating. Hunter loves pasta and breads and won't touch meat. Ayla basically only eats meat. It is so funny to see her eat. She practically starts shaking when she sees her food coming. This girl loves her food.
4. Ayla really struggled with her sleep until I stopped nursing her. Now it is rare if she doesn't sleep at least 12 hours at night. Man, if I would have only known this before...
5. She thinks she owns everything and everyone. If she doesn't get her way, she will make herself known.
6. She loves to brush her teeth. She actually gets mad at me when I take the toothbrush away from her.
7. Ayla thinks that her brother is one of the funniest people in the world. Needless to say, this makes him quite happy.
8. She will not smile for people that try to make her smile. For example: While in a store, random people will come up and talk to her trying to make her to smile. She basically just looks at them and then looks at me as if to say, "really?"
9. Ayla's "blanky" is practically magic. If she gets hurt or is frustrated, all I have to do is hand that to her and the thumb goes in her mouth and she is content for the time being.
10. Ayla's hair is FINALLY long enough to put in a pony tail! I love it... Grant just says it looks like a candle wick. It's just nice to finally be able to do it.

Also, Ayla had her doctor appointment this week. She is currently in the 60% for her height, and the 10% for her weight. She's my petite little girl.

Ayla has made our family feel so much more complete. It is amazing how babies do that. We felt like a family before she was here. But she has just made such a great addition to it. There are days that I feel as if she's always been here. We just love her so much.

Enjoy some pictures!

The bib says it all.

Ayla telling me what to do... as usual. :)

Hunter still just loves her to death. I hope it stays that way.

The newest game that Hunter and Ayla have come up with. Ayla lays on her blanket and Hunter drags her around the room. It is hilarious to watch.

My sleepy little man

2010-08-19T11:22:00.000-07:00

The other day when I was out for a Pampered Chef party, Grant was watching the kids. When I got home, I asked him where Hunter was. He said that he had been naughty so he had sent him to his room for time out. He then asked if I would go in and talk to him. As I walked in, I couldn't help but laugh. Apparently he was so tired that after he pulled his hands and feet in his shirt, he fell asleep. It was too cute!

RaNdOmNeSs

2010-07-27T14:01:00.000-07:00

It is so hard to believe that Ayla turns 11 months old tomorrow! Where has the time gone? 1 more month and my baby will be 1! Wow. Time really has gone by fast. And for those of you who are wondering when we'll have the next one..... who knows. I'm not expecting it will be any time soon though. How can I when it seems like I was just pregnant with Ayla?
Recently Ayla has been pulling herself up along side furniture. She has yet to take her hands away, but I'm fine with it if she wants to wait. She's still my little baby. She also currently has 5 teeth, and getting another one here soon. She sure has a beautiful smile. Unfortunately, not many people get to see it. When we go out and random strangers try to get her to smile, she just stares at them and then looks at me as if to say, "am I supposed to be impressed with something here?" She is the exact opposite as Hunter who would randomly smile at strangers without even making them do any work. However, Ayla is starting to get a little bit of a comic personality. If there is something around that she knows she's not supposed to get (a computer cord for example), she will crawl over there over and over and laugh every time I pick her up and take her somewhere else. She sure thinks she's pretty funny.
Hunter continues to be a silly little man of mine. He just recently went to the dentist for the first time and LOVED it. Since then, he will ask us to get the floss out every once in a while. And he loved that he got a new toothbrush, floss, and a toy just for going. I was worried that he'd struggle since he has a hard time doing easy things at the doctor such as get weighed or measured, but he did great. It's crazy to think he will be 4 in less than 2 months from now. He's talking better every day, and he is a great helper. He's also been doing better trying new foods lately. He never used to be good at that, but he is improving.
Grant and I have been preparing for our next 1/2 marathon in Logan. We are really excited to do another one; especially since we have heard some really great things about this one. So if anyone is in Logan on the 28th of August, come watch us cross the finish line!
This last weekend our great friends Jamie and Kenny moved to Tooele, Utah. Now, they are only like 30 minutes closer to us than they used to be, but for some reason it seems so much closer. We went and helped them unpack a few things this last weekend and had a great time. We always seem to have so much fun when we're around them.
They weren't sure if they could bring their 2 cats with them, so for the time being we have been cat-sitting for them. Chevy and Abby have been really fun to have around. I think Oreo has liked having company as well. I know it's not permanent, but it's been really fun having some extra cats around for a while. I'm a huge cat person, and since Grant is allergic to cats, it's just not feasible to have lots of cats in the house. But he was very willing to help out our friends and let us keep them here for a little while.
Anyways, here are a few photos of what we have been up to lately. Enjoy!

Hunter has been learning to ride his bike without training wheels. He hasn't gotten it yet, but is getting better.

Hunter and Grant playing with silly putty.

Getting into trouble.

Some fun at Jamie and Kenny's house

Camping and the Dinosaur Park

2010-07-20T14:32:00.001-07:00

This last weekend we had the opportunity to go camping for a few days. Unfortunately I am retarded and always forget to bring my camera to things, so no pictures.
We left on Thursday thinking that since it was a Thursday and not a holiday weekend, it would be easy to find a camping spot. Boy were we wrong. Plus, we were meeting Grant's sister and brother in law up there, so we also had to find them. And with no phone reception up there, that was a trick. That night we celebrated my niece Finley's birthday with some cupcakes. On Friday, we headed up to Causey reservoir and we swimming for a little bit. After we had lunch, we drove down to the river and got on some tubes and went for a little river ride. And when I say "little", I mean 2 hours. It was one of the longest days of my life. Ayla went with Grant and Hunter went with me. Ayla screamed for the entire 2 hours. I felt so bad for Grant. Hunter and I fell in at a spot where the water was going fast, so I held Hunter up out of the water while I tried to get myself out. Grant had to come over and save us. I have a fear of drowning as well (I don't know why... maybe it has something to do with me being short, I don't know), so we were both a little shaken up by that point. It was fairly shallow, so my butt found every rock that came our way. And I think I was magnetic to the trees because I happened to hit just about every tree possible. Luckily Hunter thought that was funny... he would laugh so hard every time I told him I hit my butt on another rock. Needless to say, I was RELIEVED when that was over. Would I do it again in the future? Probably not. ESPECIALLY not with kids that age.
After we finished with that, we relaxed the rest of the evening roasting hot dogs and making s'mores. I'll tell you what- those things are addicting. After sleeping a great night's sleep, we woke up and packed up a bit. Grant then headed over with most of the kids and took them fishing. He was brave. Then we loaded up and headed home. I'm looking forward to more camping trips this summer; it had been a while since we'd been camping. And you know one of my favorite things about it? I love that you don't have to look good while you're out there. I mean, it's almost a requirement to look bad. However, as much as it's nice not to shower for a few days, that shower when you get back is a great one. It does feel nice to be clean after a few days of dirt.
On Monday, I headed up with the kids and met up with my sister Kori and her kids at the Dinosaur Park here in Ogden. We had a great time walking around looking at everything, and Hunter was in heaven with all those boys around. While we were there, we went up to the craft area to do some coloring and puzzles and such. Hunter attached himself to the building blocks. The funny thing to me was that even though there were plenty of kids to play with, he attached himself to one of the few adults in the room who we had never met before and wanted to play with her. He just cracks me up sometimes. He loves to talk to complete strangers so much.
After we finished with the Dinosaur Park, we headed down to get some ice cream. After being outdoors in the heat, it sure felt great to cool down. Overall we had a great day with the kids. It was definitely crazy with all the kids, but lots of fun.
Hopefully next time I'll remember to bring my camera along!

The 4th of July and other fun things...

2010-07-05T12:42:00.001-07:00

Can I just say how much I loved the weather last week? 90's almost all week. It was great. I got the swimming pool out for the kids and they had a great time playing in the back yard while I laid out. It had been such a LONG time since I'd done that- it was great.
Unfortunately, it got a little CHILLY up in Idaho last weekend. It was still lots of fun, but colder than it had been. We headed up to Idaho on Thursday and spent our time at my parents house until last night. We went to Lava to go swimming on Friday, and it was lots of fun. The breeze that day made it a big chilly to get out of the water, but all in all it was fun. I hadn't been there since they updated everything, so it was interesting to see how much it had changed. Those new slides looked like tons of fun. Grant and Kenny went mountain biking before we met up there, and then after swimming we went back to my parents house just in time to see them get home from North Carolina (they had been gone a week visiting my sister and her family). Kori and Buddy (along with their family) arrived the same time they did as well. The kids had so much fun playing together, and having a sleep over together. As always, it was crazy trying to get them to go to sleep, but it was well worth it since they have so much fun together.
The next day was Arimo's celebration for the 4th of July. We got ready and walked down by the church down the road to watch the little parade they have there. It was great seeing how much fun the kids had. They had some festivities as the park afterwards, however we didn't stay long since it was so cold outside. Before all of the races and games really got started, all the kids were so cold they were asking to go back to Grammy's house. Since the rest of us were frozen as well, we didn't mind. So we headed back for some lunch before Kori and Buddy took off to visit other family in Idaho Falls. Ayla went to sleep early that night since she was stubborn and wouldn't nap during the day. So she was out by 6. We got out the fireworks and let Hunter have a go with them. Last year he was terrified by them, so we only bought poppers and sparklers in addition to the ones that were left over from last year. He loved them this year. He would cover his ears on the loud ones, but he still loved them. We walked down by the church when it got darker and let him see some of the bigger fireworks going off around Arimo. Then after he was in bed, my parents along with Grant and I enjoyed a few games of pinochle... something we usually play when we're together. Grant and I met up with a friend of ours (Alicia) that night and visited for a while. We were going to check out their fun fireworks but got there right when they were finishing them. But it was still fun to visit with her. The next day was church which is always fun in Arimo. Then we played some more games after church and headed home in the evening. All in all, we had a great time.
Last night after we got home, I went outside after I put the kids in bed and watched all of the fireworks going off around town. There was a lot to look at in the short time I was out there. As I sat outside, I started thinking about how blessed we are to live in such a great country. I know there are many times we all forget how great this country is, so it was nice to sit back and think about all of the wonderful blessings we have here. I am so grateful for all those who fight for our freedom.

My dad swinging with the grandkids. My mom said that she doesn't remember ever seeing him on a swing before. I thought it was pretty funny.

1/2 Marathon

2010-06-21T11:50:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, June 12th, Grant and I ran our first 1/2 marathon. It was so much more fun that we could have anticipated. It was the Utah Valley 1/2 marathon in Provo. Before the race, Grant said that after we finished, he was going to take a little break from running and maybe run another one next year. After the race was over, he was saying he wanted to run another one in August. And now, he wants to not only run that one, but another one in October. We both got hooked. We loaded the bus at 4:30 in the morning- which can I say, I was so worried about at first, but it didn't end up being that bad in the end. They drove us up the canyon, and at about 5:45, we started running. I was so proud of how well that Grant did. I have been getting ready for this since last October, but he really started this year. We decided that we were going to run the race together no matter what. We ran the first 7 miles non-stop- that was amazing. Because I have never been a runner, I was so worried that I would be at the very last- which is fine, because at least you're still doing it, but I didn't think I would be good at it at all. We were passing people left and right at the beginning. It felt great to know that we could actually do it, and do it well. The last few miles, Grant's knee started to bother him, so we walked quite a bit, but it still ended up being great. We finished the race in 2 hours and 25 minutes. Our goal is to be closer to 2 hours the next time we run another 1/2 marathon. In my life, I never thought I would be able to run that far. When I first started running, I thought going more than a mile would kill me. But through practice, I learned that I can accomplish a lot more than I thought. Depending on how everything goes, I think I'd like to try and run a full marathon next year. It was one of the most fun experiences I have ever had. We are really looking forward to August when we can run again.

9 Months Old

2010-06-03T11:13:00.000-07:00

Ayla had her 9 month appointment last week. She is growing, but she didn't grow as much as I thought she did. It's funny comparing her with my niece Sophie, because it seems like they are following the exact same pattern.

Currently Ayla is 27 inches (45%), 17.4 pounds (25%), and her head is in the 25%. That means that she only gained 1 pound in the last 3 months. It's amazing how fast they grow in the beginning and how things start slowing up as they get closer to a year. At least for my kids. I think once they start moving around they stop gaining as much weight.

Here are a few things that Ayla has been up to:
1. She has been teething. I HATE IT. She currently has 2 bottom teeth, and is in the process of getting more. It looks like her entire upper gums are white from teeth coming in. She has been miserable lately, so I'm hoping that it goes quickly.
2. She still isn't crawling. And honestly, I'm okay with that. At least she's not getting into trouble, right? She still gets stuck scooting on her bum though, but that hasn't been too bad. Hunter is usually right there to pull her out. Or at least come and tell me she's stuck.
3. She loves feeding herself. Her favorite thing to eat (aside from chocolate:) is crackers.
4. She loves taking baths so much that lately she's been getting so excited that she keeps tipping over while she's in the tub. Last night for example, I sat her in the tub as it started filling with water, and she was bouncing up and down so much that I had to stop her from tipping quite a few times. I think she's going to be so happy next week when Hunter starts swimming lessons so we can go swimming a bit.
5. She is a little cuddle bug. Lately she's been giving these little hugs that are just too cute.
6. She still adores Hunter more than anything. And Hunter loves her too. Last week at her doctor appointment, she had to get a little blood drawn (a heel poke) for some tests, and Hunter was freaking out. She was totally fine- didn't even notice that anything was wrong. Hunter on the other hand was practically crying. He was so worried for her.
7. She's finally starting to get a little hair! I think I may be able to put barrettes in there soon.

Ayla has been so much fun to watch these last few months. She is starting to learn so much, and you can see it just by watching her look at things. She has been a great addition to our family. It's hard to believe that her next doctor appointment will be when she is a year! Time really has gone by fast.

Ticket to Ride

2010-05-21T17:35:00.000-07:00

So Hunter really didn't learn how to ride his bike last year as Grant was working so much and I was pregnant and didn't really feel like bending over and killing myself. So we decided that this was the year for Hunter to learn. He has had a GREAT time learning so far. We have only had a handful of times we have gone outside to ride bikes so far this year and he has not only taken a liking to it, but he has done such a great job. It is so much fun to see him excel and realize that he is doing a great job. I have a feeling that Grant is really excited to have a little mountain biking buddy when he gets bigger.
As for other things we've been up to, we went to the Hogle Zoo yesterday and had so much fun. I personally always have fun when I go to the zoo since I am infatuated with animals, and Hunter loves it too. But yesterday was better than usual. At the Hogle Zoo, they have a section called "Asian Highlands" where they have exotic cats. For those of you who know me pretty well, my DREAM animal is a WHITE TIGER. Oh yes, I would be so happy to have one. Since everyone tells me it will never happen (what party poopers), I just have to believe that when I am in heaven, I will have that wonderful opportunity.
Anyways, back to my story. Normally when I go to the zoo, all the cats are sleeping in the shade, and you can barely see them. Well yesterday, they were SO much fun to watch. ALL of the tigers were out playing. They were jumping in the water, biting each other, chasing each other.... it was so much fun to watch. I was so mad at myself for forgetting the camera. But it was a lot of fun. Ayla didn't really get what was going on, but Hunter had a great time. His favorites were the tigers (obviously), the giant tortoises, and the snakes (yuck). Plus we rode on the carousel (which he was afraid to ride up high on the animals, so we just sat on a little seat), and got to ride the train. Needless to say, he LOVED that. It went much better than last time as well. Last time I had to drag him off of it as he was crying and screaming when our turn was over. I guess he's growing up.
Well, here are a few different pictures. Enjoy.

This is Ayla's little problem area lately. She still can't crawl, but she likes to scoot on her butt everywhere and gets stuck under chairs.

Ayla was having a great time looking out the window.

Where is Hunter looking?

Ayla LOVES her Daddy.

Pictures

2010-05-12T14:15:00.000-07:00

We really haven't done much these last few weeks due to the temperamental weather, but I still have been taking pictures. Enjoy.

I really love this picture. Hunter loves giving Ayla kisses. It's so cute.

Eating her blanket like always.

It finally got warm enough for Ayla to wear this dress... well, at least for one day. But I was so excited because it is so cute!

My handsome little man.

8 Months Old

2010-05-01T19:14:00.000-07:00

It is hard to believe that Ayla is already 8 months old. I figured I'd write about what she is currently up to and post a few pictures of this sweet girl.

1. She still has no teeth. Which being honest, I don't mind one bit. My goal was to nurse her until she was a year, but teeth just scare me a bit. I stopped nursing Hunter as soon as he got his first tooth (5 1/2 months). However, I'm pretty sure she's currently teething, so I may have to face my fear soon.
2. She is perfectly content to either roll, or sit. She does not want to have anything to do with crawling. I put her on her knees the other day to see what she'd do, and as soon as I got her on there she was trying to roll over. And she was quite insistent on that as well. However, she does like to scoot around with her belly on the floor.
3. She is DEFINITELY NOT as good as a sleeper as Hunter was. She actually started out being a great little sleeper, and I was loving it. However for the last month or so, she has been horrible. I don't know if it has something to do with teething, separation anxiety, who knows. All I know is I am TIRED. I do not do well without sleep. So whatever it is, she'd better get better at it.
4. She loves to feed herself. I can tell she is just so proud of herself too.
5. She still loves her brother. They are really cute together.
6. She can say "Momma" and "Dadda", however she prefers to say "Dadda". I have been working with her on baby sign language lately... especially during feedings. When I was trying to teach her to sign "all done", I SWEAR she tried to actually SAY it. It was so funny. I would sign and say "all done" at the same time, and afterward she says "ah da". It is really cute. She has done that a lot, and it still cracks me up every time.
7. She is obsessed with Oreo.... well, I guess any cat in general. But anytime that Oreo is in the room, all she can do is stare at him. Dogs on the other hand... well, she's terrified. My dog Cody licked her to death one day outside, and now she won't have anything to do with him. She won't even sit on the ground outside if she can see him... even if he is locked up somewhere else. She is terrified.

I'm sure there are plenty more to mention about this little girl, but that's all I'm coming up with right now.
As for Hunter, he is still a little fireball. He is learning so much more everyday and shocking me with the things he knows. It scares me to realize how much he is picking up from Grant and I. He can be a challenge, but he really is like the class clown. He cracks me up.

Here are a few pics... enjoy.

Here comes the sun!

2010-04-20T13:43:00.000-07:00

I am SO happy that the weather has been so amazing lately. I've heard it's supposed to cool down a bit tomorrow, but it's totally fine after having these AMAZING sunny days. The last few days we have been able to have the windows open letting the wonderful breeze blow in to cool us off. Hunter has been able to play outside a ton, which has been wonderful for me. He's not bored all the time now. He just comes in and out as he pleases, and it is wonderful. Ayla has loved wearing dresses, and summer clothes lately with no socks- she hates socks so much. As for me, I am a flip flop person so I have been in heaven not having to put on shoes to go outside.
Today we decided to go for a walk at the Ogden Parkway. There is a playground there, so we walked on the parkway up to it and Hunter got to enjoy some social interaction. That boy is hilarious. He was talking with the kids there like crazy, and when they stopped showing interest, he just walked up and sat next to one of the parents and started chatting away with them. I had to call him over at least 3 times so that he would leave them alone. But he had a great time playing and by the end was ready to leave. The walk back to the car was rough. He kept saying how tired he was. But honestly, it was great. Maybe he'll sleep amazingly tonight. Not that he doesn't already; he really is a great sleeper.
Ayla had a great time playing with the grass, and trying to eat as much as she could get her hands on. I finally had to move over to the cement so I wouldn't have to keep her from eating grass and rocks. She was content on the cement as well; it was a great shaded area, and it was a nice break from the sun.
Here are some pictures of our beautiful day.

Hunter was so concerned when another little kid started to cry.

More pictures

2010-04-09T10:51:00.000-07:00

We took a few pictures today for fun, and I figured I would post them on here. I decided even though it's only like 60 degrees here that it is time for summer. So Hunter is in shorts, and Ayla is in a skirt. I figured, as long as we don't go outside much we should be fine. Especially for Ayla, I hate that a ton of spring/summer clothes she has she will be grown out of by the time the warm weather actually gets here! So, I decided that she at least needed to wear them at least once. Enjoy!

Easter

2010-04-05T14:36:00.001-07:00

Easter was a lot of fun this year. Mostly just because Hunter actually remembered Easter from last year, so he was excited to look for the Easter eggs, and all the other fun things that came with it.
This year we colored Easter eggs and did a little Easter egg hunt which my dog almost ruined. I went outside to hide the eggs and came back in thinking that it wouldn't be long until we went back out. We were back outside within about 15 minutes or so. Grant was the first one out and I could hear him yelling at our dog. When I got outside, I saw Easter eggs all over our back yard. Apparently Cody wanted to have a little candy as well. I'm just glad he didn't get sick. At least Hunter isn't old enough to realize that his basket wasn't as full as it should have been. Honestly, I think he would have been happy to have found one egg with candy in it.
That night, we went to Crystal Hot Springs, and then followed it by eating out at Pizza Hut. We had a great time. And to top it off with General Conference on Sunday- it was a great weekend. Kids really make holidays so much better. I'm sure it will only get better as all our kids get older.

My Prince

2010-03-29T12:32:00.001-07:00

So I decided that I'm always telling stories about how mischievous Hunter can be that I need to tell a story about how sweet he can be. Today was one of those days that he showed me once again how sweet he really is.
Hunter wasn't feeling well today, so I decided we were going to have a day of movies and cuddling so he would hopefully start feeling better quick. The movie that was chosen was "The Princess and the Frog". Once the movie ended and the credits came up with music, Hunter turned to me and said, "Dance with me?" I couldn't resist and took him up on it. So we stood up by the TV and he grabbed my hands and started dancing. As we were dancing he said, "Mommy, you're a queen". I looked at him smiling and said that he was a prince. He said, "I'm not a prince, I'm a boy. You're a queen."
Honestly there are days that Hunter can be such a challenge, but overall he is such a wonderful little boy. He really is my little prince.

Tag of 4's

2010-03-20T17:39:00.000-07:00

Grant's cousin Melanie tagged me, so here we go!

Four Shows I like to watch
Criminal Minds
NCIS
Law and Order (any of them... but my favorite is SVU)
Biggest Loser

Four things I'm passionate about
The Gospel
My Family
Music
Keeping things clean

Four Phrases I say a lot
Do I need to get the spanking spoon?
You're so stinkin' cute!
Go to timeout.
Hi, this is Shelley with the Pampered Chef...

Four things I've learned from the past
Change is hard, but it's worth it.
I hate how sick I get when I'm pregnant... however, it's worth it in the end.
Don't agree to something if it sounds fishy. You never know when it may be a scam from Nigeria.
Murphy's Law always seems to be accurate.

Four places I want to go
Australia
Germany (again)
Italy (again)
Hawaii

Four things I did yesterday
Talked to Jamie on the phone
Cleaned my house
Played on Facebook
Ran 4 miles or so

Four things I'm looking forward to
Moving to the place we plan on being for the majority of our lives
Grant graduating
Having our debt paid off
Sleeping in

Four things I love about Spring
The warmth
The beautiful green grass
Flowers
Being able to let the kids play outside more

Four things on my wish list
Lose a little more weight
Pay off debt
Go on a vacation
Get my dream animal... A white tiger...:)

Four people to tag
Kori Scott, Melissa Larson, Tami Evans, Selena Guthrie

6 months old

2010-02-25T09:44:00.000-08:00

Ayla turns 6 months in just a few days. It's hard to believe that in just another short 6 months, she'll be having her first birthday!
We had her 6 month doctor appointment yesterday. Here are her stats:

16 pounds 4 ounces (50%)
26 1/4 inches (75%)
I can't remember how big her head was, but she was in the 25%.

I couldn't believe how much she's grown. She gained 2 pounds in the last 2 months. Although I'm sure being on solid foods sure helps. She has been doing great eating solids. She is really starting to like her sippy cup as well. And I officially accomplished getting her to take a bottle the other day. She was really fighting me on that one, but in the end, I won! That was such a relief. Now I can actually go somewhere if I need to, and I don't have to drag her along with me everywhere.

I don't have any new pictures to post since I just posted some the other day. So if you want to see pictures, see below. :)

Preview to the summer

2010-02-23T14:44:00.000-08:00

We have all been getting antsy in our house impatiently waiting for summer to arrive. So even though it was cold today, we went to the park. Hunter had such a great time. Even though he was a little wet from going down the slides, he had a great time. I just can't wait for it to get warmer. I hope summer gets here soon, because I know that Hunter is going to have so much fun this year. I think Ayla is going to have a great time too, because she hates to have clothes on... she would be naked all the time if I let her. Honestly- when she's grumpy, all I have to do is undress her and let her roll around and she is as happy as could be. I think swimming is going to be a blast as well since she loves taking baths. And we are going to put Hunter in swimming lessons this year, so that should be lots of fun. He was sad last year that his cousins were in lessons, but he wasn't.
Anyways, here are some pictures from the park today. I've also thrown in a few of Ayla in her jumper. She has just recently started getting it, and she loves it.

Bath time and more

2010-02-12T11:11:00.000-08:00

One thing that we have discovered recently is that Ayla LOVES to take baths. Now, I know that most babies love taking baths, but it is so much fun watching Ayla get this excited. She is usually a very calm little girl, and when I put her in the tub she just goes nuts. I don't put much water in, and yet I somehow end up soaked after bath time is over. I wish I had video of it, because it's hilarious, but pictures will have to do.
This morning when Ayla woke up, she was screaming. However, she was not screaming because she was angry, she has been doing this screaming thing lately when she is in a great mood. I honestly think she loves the sound of her voice, because she is constantly screaming. Grant and I were laughing hysterically listening to her. I haven't worried much about Ayla waking up Hunter, however this morning I was thinking that it could possibly happen. I turned the baby monitor off in my room, and I could still hear her very loudly. It was hilarious. When I went in to feed her, I saw that she had turned herself 90 degrees in her crib. I think she was just having a ball moving around. She has just started rolling from her back to her tummy, and I think that she thinks that she is pretty amazing. She is honestly so funny.
Hunter has been loving being around her more and more. She has been laughing at him, so he thinks he's pretty cool. One thing they have been doing a lot is hilarious. Hunter will burp, and Ayla laughs at him. Hunter then laughs and does it again. It is so funny listening to them laugh together. I really think they are going to be best friends.
I recently found out some things that I need to be careful of with Hunter. Yesterday as I was running errands, I left the car running as I dropped off something to a lady in my ward. As I was walking back to the car, I noticed that the car wasn't running anymore. My first thought was, great- the car died on me. After I got in, I realized that Hunter's seat belt wasn't on, and the keys had been messed with. When I asked him what he did, he said he touched the keys. Needless to say, I apparently can NOT leave my car running with him in it anymore. I'm just grateful he didn't try and drive it off.
Another thing I have to be mindful of is when I'm cooking. Yesterday (why was everything yesterday???) I had my blender on making whipped cream (I seriously love homemade whipped cream!) and I heard Ayla wake up. I went and grabbed her and came back into the kitchen. Hunter had left which was a little weird, but I continued cooking. As I was pouring the whipped cream into a bowl, I heard something clanking. When I finished pouring, I discovered a part of my kitchen aid blender (a screw) in the bowl. I asked Hunter to come upstairs, and I asked him what he did. He answered that he put something in the bowl. I'm just glad it wasn't broken. Honestly, I think he was tired yesterday because I put him in bed at 5 and he was out extremely quickly. And he slept until about 6:30 today- like normal.
As for Grant and I, we just recently got our new running shoes this last week. We went to a running store and they had us step up on this mat that was connected to a computer and it showed us where we put the most pressure on our feet. They then picked out some shoes that would be good for us. It was really fun. For those of you who may not know, Grant and I are planning on running in a half marathon this June in Provo. We got signed up a few weeks ago, and we are really excited. Nervous, but excited. We both really aren't runners, but we are trying to be better at that. I have been running my butt of these last few months, and I am starting to enjoy it a bit more. So we'll see how it all goes.
Enjoy some fun pictures!

5 Months old...

2010-01-29T09:03:00.000-08:00

Time is just flying by. It's hard to believe that Ayla is already 5 months old. She has such a fun personality and I just love getting to know her more every day.
Here are some things that have been going on with her lately:

1. She is a great sleeper. She usually goes to bed between 6:30 and 7 and wakes up that same time the next day.
2.She is SPOILED. She loves to be held, especially by Mommy and Daddy.
3. She loves to nurse and will NOT take a bottle. That would be fine except for the fact that it means I can NEVER go ANYWHERE for a certain amount of time without her.
4. She LOVES her thumbs.
5. She just started eating solids a few weeks ago. So far, not too horrible. Although her hands immediately go in her mouth which makes it a HUGE mess.
6. She is perfectly content to not roll over. She has rolled a few times from her front to her back, but that was weeks ago. After she did it it was almost as if she thought, "well that wasn't anything special". So she really doesn't try anymore. She'll go on her side and look around, but that's about it.
7. She loves to "talk". Grant is TERRIFIED that he will live in a house FULL of talkers.
8. She loves Hunter so much, and he loves her too. I know there is going to be a lot of fighting between them as they get older, but all I can imagine is Hunter being the protective older brother. He is always kissing her, and wanting to hold her hand.
9. She doesn't smile much for pictures. She smiles for me a lot, but for some reason I just can't get many smiles like I did with Hunter. It is so frustrating!
10. She wakes up super happy. I love it. Some times I don't even know she's awake because she just wakes up and looks around and sometimes just jabs to herself.

Overall, we just love this baby girl. She has a great personality, and we've had so much fun having her in our home. I just wish time wouldn't go by so dang fast!

The Holidays!

2010-01-05T13:58:00.000-08:00

Wow, the holiday season went by WAY too fast! We had so much going on that I felt as though we never had time to sit still. Although Grant would tell you that I never sit still anymore anyways. I think I've officially turned into my mother (which by the way is NOT a bad thing at all). Everyone would sit down to watch a movie and all I could do was think about the laundry or the dishes or something and I'd have to get up to do them!
Anyways, we went up to Idaho the Saturday before Christmas for my family Christmas party. It was a blast, and it was GREAT seeing all my cousins. We came home that night (it was a LONG and LATE night) in some pretty thick fog. The next day was our anniversary, so we cooked up a pizza, had some yummy Pomegranate 7-up, and had some good ol' Ben and Jerry's for dessert. It was a very relaxing day. It's hard to believe we've been married 6 years. I think having kids makes the time go twice as fast.
On Christmas Eve, Grant's mom and dad and his sister and her boyfriend flew in. That's when everything got super busy- it was great though. We have extra room in our house, so Mom and Dad P. usually stay here. Santa came that night and brought some goodies and toys. It was fun to see Hunter so excited this year. I think it was the funnest year so far with him. Although, I'm hoping the Santa threats work better in the future. This year every time he was naughty, I told him that if he wasn't good, I would call Santa and tell him and then he wouldn't bring him a present. Well, that plan backfired on me a few times. Especially the time he brought me the phone and told me to call him. When I finished he said "Daddy gets a present, Mommy gets a present, Ayla gets a present, but Hunter doesn't get a present". And then he went on playing like it wasn't a big deal! We're just going to have to work on that next year. Grant said that we should just wrap up a bunch of dummy presents and hide the real ones and when he's bad we can throw a fake present in the fireplace and burn it.... but I think that could be a little devastating for him- don't you think? :) And the problem is, if he's not actually affected by that anyways, he may just ENJOY the fire and want to throw all of his presents in the fire. Needless to say, I think we're going to have to try something else.
While Grant's family was in town, we went on a horse ride to see some elk, went to see his Grandparents, did a LOT of shopping, went up to Idaho to play in my family pinochle tournament (it was awesome), and spent a ton of time with family. We ate lots of good food too... I'm amazed I maintained my weight this year- it was delicious. Grant and I took the opportunity to go running outside a few times while his parents were here. That was fun. I'll tell you- I thoroughly enjoy running outside so much more than on my treadmill. It went by so much faster.
We also played a bunch of games while his family was in town. The last night, we played a game of speed, and also B.S. and spoons. It had been so long since I'd played those games- it was so much fun. Spoons was a bit rough, but I think that's what made it so much more fun.
Oh, and we also had Ayla's 4 month appointment as well. She got shots which made it no fun, but it was fun to see how big she's grown. She was 25.5 inches (96%), 14.5 pounds (80%) and her head was in the 25%. She's just gotten so big, I just can't believe how fast time has gone. And she is continuing to sleep well which I love. She usually sleeps anywhere from 10-12 hours at night, and typically will wake up to eat around 6:30 and go back to sleep for about 2-3 hours. That makes it great for me to exercise in the morning.
It was great having family in town, but Grant and I took some time to relax after everyone left. It was so crazy it felt like we never slept the whole time. So it was nice to get some much needed sleep after everyone left.
Enjoy some pics!

Making our gingerbread house... well, graham cracker house anyways. I was horrible at it. Grant had to fix it up a bit.

Ayla is getting so big, and Hunter and Ayla just LOVE each other so much.

Playing games.

Hunter in his new apron, and Ayla in her new chair.
Unfortunately we didn't get any pictures from Christmas, only video. I may post that later.

Happy Birthday!

2009-12-15T13:05:00.000-08:00

This last Sunday (the 13th) was Grant's birthday. We celebrated a day early and had a fun filled day. First we played in the snow for a good part of the day. Needless to say, Hunter had a great time. We built a snowman, started (but have not completed yet) a snow fort, pulled Hunter around in the sled, and had a snowball fight. Afterward, we came inside and had some hot chocolate and relaxed for a bit. In the evening we went over to Christmas Village" in the middle of Ogden. They had different booths decorated for Christmas, and of course Santa Claus was there. After walking around looking at the lights, Hunter went to see Santa. Even though he has told me a million times what he wants Santa to bring him, when asked what he wanted he just shrugged his shoulders. Apparently Santa intimidated him a bit.
It was great having such a fun day with Grant. Not only was this last weekend his birthday, but it was his first weekend in a long time without homework. Grant finished up his classes for the semester this last Thursday. Now only one more semester to go until graduation! It is such a great feeling knowing how close he is to being done. We never see him. Unfortunately, this last semester will be his hardest one yet (19 credits, plus a full time job), but we just keep reminding ourselves that once it's over, he's DONE. I have a feeling I'll need to keep reminding him of that a lot after he starts this last semester as I'm sure he'll be stressed out. So wish us luck.
As far as the kids go, they are just getting so big so fast. I just realized the other day that Hunter only has 2 more weeks in Nursery, and then he's in Primary. It's so crazy to think how fast time has gone. My little boy is getting so big. And he's been a great helper with Ayla too. She just adores him. She's started "talking" a lot to him lately. She's also been holding her head up really well and moving a lot more. She is also our little thumb sucker. She is also usually sleeping 12 hours a night which I have greatly appreciated. I just love my kids so much.

Family Pics, Thanksgiving, and more...

2009-11-28T12:57:00.000-08:00

This year I decided that I wanted to host Thanksgiving since I'd never done that before. Grant was a wonderful help... honestly, there are times that I don't know what I'd do without him. We had a small gathering of people: Grant's sister Amanda and her husband Jeff along with their 4 kids, along with Leslie who is Grant's other sister. Dinner was delicious (as I'm sure everyone else reading can attest to), and we had a lot of fun. My biggest fear was the turkey, but Grant helped a lot with that so it turned out great. After dinner we rented a movie and spent some time down at Jeff and Amanda's house. We slept in the next morning while everyone was out doing their Black Friday shopping. Then we relaxed the next day watching movies until Grant's brother and his wife (Nathan and Stefani) came over. When Grant went out to the car shortly after, he noticed that our stereo had been stolen out of our car. Honestly, I wasn't ticked- I was mostly just annoyed. Because of that I had to call the police and deal with that whole headache. I just hate it when people are dumb. Luckily the cops were really nice, and I actually enjoyed chatting with them and the CSI lady (who dusted for prints). It was just an extra thing that had to be done, so that bugged me. Honestly, we can't wait to move from here. Hopefully it won't be much longer.
So that was our fun Thanksgiving. We also just got family pics, so it was fun to look through those. I didn't take any pics of Thanksgiving, but here are a few from our family pics we got done.

Getting big...

2009-11-12T10:05:00.000-08:00

I figured I'd better post these things about Hunter while they're fresh on my mind. I'll start with the funny story first. Hunter recently saw one of his cousins standing up while they peed. He thought that was quite interesting and wanted to give it a try. He couldn't quite get it at first, and he was getting quite frustrated. He even tried to stand ON the potty... I'm thinking that he didn't think he was tall enough. Anyways, he recently has got that down and is getting better at it. He still misses occasionally, but I guess that's what happens with boys. One thing that is funny though is that he still insists on taking his pants and underwear off before doing that. He just thinks they do not belong on him while he's going potty. Okay, so now onto the funny story. As he was still getting the hang of things, this one day I walked past the bathroom and he was looking frustrated and looking on the floor. I just thought he had missed. Well apparently, he didn't understand that you only stand up to pee.... yep, that's right. As he was peeing standing up, he had to poop as well and pooped on my floor. As much as I don't like having to clean poop up, I couldn't help but laugh. He hasn't had that problem since, but it sure was funny while it lasted.
Another funny story I wanted to mention... last week Hunter and Grant were wrestling a little bit and Hunter bumped his nose and ended up getting a bloody nose. I took him to the bathroom to clean it up and what does he ask? He wants a picture of his bloody nose. So I called Grant in laughing my head off and asked him to get the camera. Hunter loved posing for those pictures.
The next thing I wanted to mention is how proud I was of Hunter this last week. I cut his hair and he was actually good. Now just to give you some background on this, he has NEVER liked getting his hair cut. It usually takes 2 people to cut his hair.... One person to hold him down, the other to cut. Plus, it usually didn't look very good because he was moving all over the place. I have even sat on him to try to cut his hair before. It was a struggle. Well, this last week I asked if I could cut his hair. He agreed. I turned on a movie for him in my room to help entertain him. He sat and watched the movie while I cut his hair no problems. I don't know where this came from, but I am loving it. I just hope he keeps it up, because I was actually satisfied about the cut this time. Now, I'm not saying it's perfect- I cut it. But for me, I thought it was pretty dang good. It just looks like my little boy is growing up.
As for Ayla, she too is getting big. It's crazy to think how fast time has gone. She is just this little person now, and I am loving every minute of getting to know her. Daylight savings time really screwed her schedule up though, so that was a bit annoying. But even with that, she is typically sleeping 10 hours a night any more, and I'm hoping she keeps it up. I LOVE my sleep, so this has been wonderful. She is starting to "talk" more every day as well and it is so fun.
Anyways, here are some pictures of the kiddos.

He wouldn't let me take that yellow shirt off at first, but eventually let me. Oh, and he kept getting mad at me standing in front taking pictures... I was blocking the movie and he couldn't see. So this is sort of a smile, and sort of a "get the heck outta the way!"

Halloween!

2009-11-01T17:48:00.000-08:00

This year for Halloween we went down to Provo to visit Nathan and Stefani. We got there Friday night, and had an enjoyable evening watching movies and playing with their new puppy. On Saturday, we spent the day visiting, and then headed out to do a little shopping. Grant had decided to make his famous White Chocolate Raspberry cheesecake for Stefani who had never had the opportunity of having it. And let me just say... YUM. I love that my husband cooks, let alone some of the best cheesecake ever. Honestly, whenever we go out to eat and I order cheesecake, I am sadly disappointed anymore. Anyways, after we got the ingredients, Grant and I came back and turned a movie on for Hunter while Grant made the cheesecake. After that, we got our little cuties dressed up for Halloween. It was so much fun. Hunter actually understood what was going on this year which was great. He was a fun little spider. He didn't end up making it to too many doors though because at the last house there was a lady dressed up as a witch... she did such a great job. Hunter was a little stand off-ish. He sure didn't know what to think of her. After that house, he asked to go back home. Which we were totally fine with by the way because he really doesn't need that much sugar. Well, I guess I should say we ALL don't need that much sugar. Let's face it, of course the parents are going to dip into the Halloween stash. :) Anyways, we ended up dressing Ayla up like a mouse since she squeaks so much. She was a fun little mouse too. Honestly, I think I want my kids to dress up all the time. It was sad to think that they only dress up like that 1 day a year. And by the next year, they are too big to fit into their outfits. What a waste! So I'm hoping that Hunter wants to wear that spider outfit around because he was so cute it in, and had so much fun.
After trick or treating, we came home and ate dinner with Nathan and Stefani and then we watched another movie. Afterwards, we decided it was time to hit the road. Luckily, our kids are great at being put in their beds after being asleep in the car. We had no problems with that.
And the great thing is, I was so worried about it being daylight savings time- but there was no problem with it at all. At first I thought- great... I'll be up at 6 in the morning. But Hunter slept in until about 7:45, and Ayla woke up about 7. It was wonderful. I love that Ayla has been sleeping so well lately. Honestly, I don't know how I'd handle a child that didn't sleep well. I've heard so many horror stories about people's kids who sleep 3 hours a night until after they are a year old. I could not do that.
Anyways, that is how our weekend went. Lots of fun, lots of candy, and some fun time with family. Who could pass up that combination?

2009-10-26T14:00:00.001-07:00

Ayla's 2 month appointment

2009-10-26T11:27:00.000-07:00

Ayla had her 2 month Dr. appointment today. Poor girl, I hate it when they give shots. I know they're important, but it's so sad to see them jab that needle into their little legs. Needless to say, she's sleeping right now. It sure is rough on them.
Anyways, all went well with the appointment. And we got her stats in as well. I thought it would be fun to compare Hunter and Ayla from their 2 month appointments. At 2 months, Hunter was 24 inches (60th percentile), 12 pounds 12 oz. (75th percentile), and a 40 cm. head circ. (50th percentile). As for Ayla, she is 22 inches (55th percentile), 11.6 pounds (90th percentile), and a 36 cm. head circ. (3rd percentile). So basically he was bigger overall, but as far as percentiles go, Ayla is a chubby little baby compared to him. Yes he was taller and had a BIGGER head, but she is chubbier. The funny thing is she is only 1 inch taller than he was when he was born. So basically she's short and chunky. I love it.
It's hard to believe that Ayla is already 2 months old. She continues to make me smile every day. Here are a few things that Ayla has been up to:
She has the best internal clock ever. She goes to bed at 8. Not 7:45, not 8:30, but 8.... every single night.
She usually sleeps for about 7-8 hours which means she typically wakes up about 4. And after she eats, she goes back to bed pretty quick. I'm usually only up about 30 minutes to take care of her. And she's so good at going back to bed on her own now. Even if she's awake when I lay her down, she knows it's bed time, and she just goes to sleep on her own. I love it. Then she sleeps for another 3-4 hours.
As far as nap time goes however, I have a more difficult time with her. She is spoiled. It's like she thinks that her bed is for BEDTIME, not for NAPTIME. Occasionally I can rock her to sleep and get her to sleep in her bed, but typically the routine is the swing. Boy does she like that swing.
Ayla is such a happy little girl. When I change her diaper in the middle of the night, or go to nurse her, she usually looks at me and gives me the biggest smile. That makes waking up in the middle of the night totally worth it.
She LOVES to have her hair brushed. If she cries after getting out of her bath, I can just brush her hair and she calms right down. What a girl.

While I'm at it, here are a few things about Hunter:
He is currently learning how to put his underwear and pants on after going to the bathroom. He hates doing it (a lot of time he says "I can't), but he can do it. The more I have him do it, the better he gets. And lately, he hasn't been complaining as much about having to do it. And I haven't had to help him with that for a few days now.
If he walks up to you with 3 fingers in the air and doesn't say a word, what he's trying to tell you is that he's 3. The first time I saw him do this it was hilarious. He had just had his 3rd birthday and we were at the doctor for his appointment. While I was checking in, he walked up to random people with his fingers up and didn't say a word. They had no idea what he was doing.
Hunter loves his little sister. He is always asking to hold her, and wants to help constantly. Sometimes, a little too much. :)
Hunter loves to help me do chores. Especially the laundry and the dishes. I just hope it stays that way for a while.... maybe that's too much to hope for. :)

We just love our kids.

As far as the rest of the family, we spent this last weekend carving pumpkins. Hunter had a blast. He loved pulling all the gunk out of the pumpkins, and he loved it when Grant lit the candles and let him blow them out.
The next day we enjoyed some time together making suckers. My mom just recently gave us all of her old candy making stuff, and we decided it would be fun to try it out. Grant didn't seem too excited at first, but apparently had a lot of fun because he decided to make another batch later. It was a little hard doing around Hunter since it was so hot, but Hunter loved it. And of course, he really enjoyed the suckers.
Anyways, here are some pictures of what we've been up to. Enjoy!

I love putting bows on her, but I feel so bad when I take them off because they always leave an indention on her head.

Hunter putting his pants on.

Funny faces... he loves the camera.

This is what he does to random people everywhere...

Hunter loves Ayla.

Carving pumpkins

Hunter and Daddy watching movies afterwards.

Who wants a 3 year old? Anyone?

2009-10-22T15:18:00.000-07:00

So apparently I didn't get upset enough the other day when Hunter destroyed my house every time I fed Ayla. Today, he topped them all. Once again, I'm feeding Ayla, Hunter disappears. When I finish, I walk downstairs to see him with scissors cutting up my porta crib that is practically new. I bought it a while back at a great deal even though Hunter didn't need one anymore, so I just barely started using it when Ayla was born. Honestly, I want to keep him in his room the rest of the night. I am FURIOUS. This is how I found it. Anyone know how to repair mesh on porta cribs?

Pampered Chef

2009-10-19T11:54:00.000-07:00

I'm looking for hosts for November and December shows. The Pampered Chef is doing a sell-a-thon for consultants during those months. If I sell a lot, I can get new spring products for free. You can do a catalog party, cooking show, or an open house. November hosts save 60% on our Simple Additions pieces, and December hosts save 60% on holiday favorites (snowman platter, plates, and cookie press). Any help would be appreciated.Thanks!

My 3 year old...

2009-10-13T17:53:00.000-07:00

So today I made up my mind- 3 IS worse than the terrible twos. And what makes it especially horrible for me right now is that every time I have to sit down to feed Ayla, I get the feeling that I should either walk around to keep an eye on Hunter, or tie him up to make certain he doesn't get into EVERYTHING. These are just a few of the things he did today while I was feeding Ayla:
Got into the suckers in my room, ate who knows how many, and left what was left over on my bed leaving my sheets a sticky mess. Therefore, I had to change the sheets on my bed. However the next time I sat down to feed Ayla, Hunter decided it would be fun to take the pork I was letting thaw in the kitchen for dinner out of the Ziploc bag it was in and take it into my room, and put it down on my bed under my pillow. When I went into the kitchen later and noticed it was missing, I asked him where it was and he took me right to it. So once again, I had to take the sheets and blanket off my bed and wash them and re-make my bed for the second time today.
Around lunch-time as I sat down to feed Ayla, I hear Hunter run into the bathroom and slam the door. After Ayla finished eating, I went in to see what in the world was taking so long. Hunter was completely naked on the toilet, and his shirt was soaked. And to top it all off, he told me to "go away".
Tonight after dinner, I was feeding Ayla when Hunter came in with a sheepish look on his face. Terrified to see what he could have done, I walked into my kitchen. At first all I saw was a Tupperware of biscuits that were crumbled completely. A little mess on the floor- no big deal. Then as I went to put the dishes away that I had washed right before sitting down, I noticed that my food chopper had mashed biscuits in it. That thing is sharp! Then I looked around and noticed that ALL the other dishes I had washed were also used to "chop" the biscuits up. My measuring cup had biscuit inside, my pan lid was covered, etc. And of course the crumbs all over the floor. Let's just say by that point I was done. Even though it was only 6:15, I decided it was time for bed even though he normally goes to bed around 7:30. I got Hunter ready, and he was in bed by 6:25. And surprise surprise- when I went into check on him 15 minutes later after cleaning up the aftermath in my kitchen, he was blissfully sleeping. I guess it's pretty tiring being naughty.
So even though Hunter only turned 3 a few weeks ago, I am looking forward to him being 4. Do I think he'll be a saint at 4? Absolutely not. Do I think that he'll actually react normally when I am frustrated instead of laughing when he gets into trouble? I sure hope so. All I know is that I will be able to communicate with him better in a year, so that will hopefully make things a little easier on me. Plus by that point Ayla will be playing with him, and he may not be so bored as to go looking for trouble quite as much.
It's going to be a long 50 weeks....

6 Weeks

2009-10-10T09:25:00.000-07:00

A lot has happened over the last 6 weeks. And the crazy thing about it is the fact that it's gone by so fast! I guess it's true- time does seem to go more quickly when you have kids. To me, it seems like it's going even faster now that I have 2 of them.
Ayla is now 6 weeks old as of yesterday. She is just getting so big. She's getting all kinds of fat rolls (I love that), and she is getting such a personality. Hunter still loves her to death. I am so happy about that.
My mom left yesterday. She was basically here for 6 weeks minus the weekends. She was a tremendous help, not only when I had Ayla, but after getting my gallbladder removed as well. She even let me sleep the first 2 nights after my surgery and took care of Ayla. Okay, so I honestly have the best mom ever! She offered to take her the last night she was here too, but I told her I'd better get used to it. I'm healing well from the surgery, I'm just a little sore and tired at this point. The first few days were hard, but then again I had my mom here the whole time, so I can't complain too much. Hunter bawled yesterday when my mom left. He is going to have a rough time adjusting to not being the center of attention anymore. This morning he went down to the room she had been in and was knocking on her door and calling for her for a half an hour. He didn't believe she was gone until I showed him that her room was empty. He sure loves his Grammy... well, we all love and appreciate her. Thanks again Momma!
Anyways, here are some pictures of Ayla at 6 weeks.

Hunter's birthday, and the ER...

2009-10-05T07:27:00.000-07:00

September 25th was Hunter's 3rd birthday. I can't believe I have a 3 year old now! Time has gone by so fast. We spent the day at Union Station where there was a train museum that Hunter could not get enough of. There was a section of it that had battery operated trains going back and forth, and he just kept following them throughout the museum. My mom and I didn't think we'd ever get out of there. :)Then we went home and started to work on Hunter's cake. My mom was teaching me how to decorate all cute. We made a train cake for him. It turned out pretty good too. Unfortunately, I don't have any pics of it though... Grant just took a video of it. Hunter loved it. And he was so happy when we sang Happy Birthday to him too. After cake, we opened presents. He had a blast with that of course. One of the things he obsessed over was the new tracks and trains we got him... what can I say- this kid loves trains! Overall, it was a good birthday for him.
I however, did not have a great evening. After my mom left, I started feeling really sick. My stomach started hurting so bad.Grant called his dad who recommended we go to the ER. So we left Hunter with our neighbor, and took Ayla with us. They did an ultrasound of my gallbladder which answered the question they thought to be true... gallstones. You can guess how excited I was to hear that. So I met with a surgeon last week and I am having it removed tomorrow. So that'll be my 2nd surgery in 6 weeks. And once again, I'm not supposed to lift more than 10 pounds for 6 weeks. I would normally be excited to be forced to take a break, but I just got the okay to start exercising again the day before my attack. I'm ready to start moving! My body just frustrates me so much sometimes.
Anyways, moving on to better things. Ayla is officially over a month now. She'll be 6 weeks on Friday. She is just getting so big! In fact, this weekend I decided she is officially an infant and not a newborn anymore. She started "talking", and smiling, and looking around much more. Plus, she's starting to settle into a routine now which I love. She is just such a good little girl. I just love my kids so much!
Anyways, enjoy the pics. I don't have a lot from Hunter's b-day on this camera though, so I'll have to post more of those later.

Hunter at the train museum

He did not want anyone (including Daddy) to touch his new trains or tracks.

Daddy and Ayla

2 weeks old

2009-09-14T12:57:00.000-07:00

Ayla turned 2 weeks old this last Friday. We had her 2 week doctor appointment today, and she is getting so big! She is now 20 inches (50%), and 7.45 pounds (50%), but her head is still so tiny! She is only 10% for her head size. Talk about completely opposite with Hunter! He was in the 80% when he was a newborn. And he still has a big head. His waist is tiny, so he still fits 2T pants, but his head is so big that sometimes I have a hard time getting a 4T shirt over his head! Apparently Ayla is going to be a bit different. I am curious to see how big she gets at her 2 month doctor appointment though, because she has chunked up fast! And she is still sleeping really well too. She doesn't always sleep 6 hours at night, but she very rarely sleeps only 3. it's usually somewhere between 4 and 6, so I am happy with that. Today Grammy Yearsley decided to take Hunter to her house for a few days, so Ayla and I will have some peace and quiet for a little while. It is going to be so nice! Grant won't hardly be here either since he has work and school, so we will have just a little mommy/daughter time. I am very much looking forward to it. Hunter continues to be a great big brother. He is still wanting to hold Ayla, and he kisses her all the time. I hope he continues to love her as much as he does now.
We blessed Ayla on September 6th, along with her cousin Owyn who was only born 12 days before her. It was a very fun occasion. We had lots of family around- Hunter loved seeing so many family members there. Overall it was a great day.
Since then, things have calmed down quite a bit here. It has been great having my mom here still- she has been such a wonderful help. And Ayla has made this very easy- she is such a calm baby. At the doctor's office today, everyone kept saying how mellow she was. The only time she cried was when they had to stick her foot. And she was fine as soon as I got her socks back on. She is just a very laid back baby. One thing that I find hilarious with her is that after I give her a bath, she is usually crying a little bit- but as soon as I brush her hair, she calms down and usually falls asleep. She is such a girl already...she just loves having her hair brushed. Needless to say, this has been such a fun 2 weeks. I hated being pregnant since I was sick every day for 9 months, but the end result both times have been wonderful. It is so much fun being a mother.

Ayla after her bath

The day of the blessing

I love how she sleeps

Ayla at 2 weeks old

Introducing... Ayla Jean Patterson

2009-09-05T09:09:00.000-07:00

Our newest addition was born on August 28th, 2009 at 6:41 pm. Ayla was 6 pounds, 8 ounces, and only 17 1/2 inches long. My doctor said she is the smallest baby she's ever delivered that was full term. She is such a little bitty thing, but she is adorable. The c-section went very well- much better than last time. It sure helps when you haven't been in labor for 20 hours prior. My newest sister-in-law, Stefani, was in the operating room with me since Grant has a very weak stomach. She was extremely helpful- especially when I got my spinal block done. She did a great job of trying to distract me during that part. I am so not a fan of needles, so she was very helpful with that. As soon as Ayla was out, she was screaming- she has some powerful lungs, that's for sure. The hospital stay was wonderful as well. There was only 1 day that was pretty hard as far as pain went, but other than that I managed it fine. We came home on Monday the 31st, and she has been great at home. She eats well, and she sleeps amazingly. The last 2 nights, she has even slept 6 1/2 hours straight! I couldn't believe it. The first time she did it, I woke up to Grant getting ready for work. When I asked him what time it was, I nearly jumped out of bed when I realized how long it had been since Ayla had last eaten. We both ran to her room to make sure she was okay, and she was just sleeping soundly. I was shocked. She woke up 30 minutes later just fine and ate wonderfully before going back to bed for another 3 hours. And she did the same thing last night as well. I'm only hoping that this trend continues. The fact that she's only a week old and sleeping that long is amazing to me. Hunter was a great sleeper, but he didn't start sleeping this good for at least closer to a month old. So this has been amazing for me... and I'm just hoping it continues. Ayla has been such a blessing in our home already. And Hunter loves her so much as well. On the way home from the hospital, he held her hand and sang his favorite song (baby beluga) to her. He constantly wants to hold her, hold her hand, and kiss her. He just loves his little sister so much! My mom has been here to take care of Hunter, and she has been such an amazing help. I can't thank her enough. She will be here for the remainder of the month as well. It seems like every time I mention that to people, they just gasp and can't believe what a great help she is. My mom does this every time me or my sisters have kids; she is amazing. I only hope I'll be able to do this for my kids someday. So thanks SOOO much for the help Momma!
Anyways, I have lots of pictures to post today. Enjoy!

3 days to go...

2009-08-25T12:52:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I officially have 3 days left of my pregnancy. This pregnancy has gone by SOOOO fast, it's so hard to believe. I'm hoping these last 3 days don't drag on too much, but so far it's looking good. Hunter got back this last weekend from Grandma and Grandpa Patterson's cabin, and he had so much fun. He was a little handful from the sounds of it, but he loved it. He keeps asking to go back. I just about sent him back after 1 day with him back at home too! :) He has just been wired. But it will be good to get him to calm down a bit before Ayla gets here. I plan on getting some final cleaning done today and tomorrow and then on Thursday I have a Dr. appointment for Hunter. And then my mom gets here on Friday. I am really looking forward to meeting this little girl. I know it will be tough- I remember how tired I was before. But at the same time, I'm already tired from not being able to sleep at nights, so I guess it can't get much worse, right? (okay, I hope I just didn't jinx myself). But I'm guessing the next time I post something on here will be after she is born, so it's very exciting to think about. I can't wait to post lots of pictures of this little girl! Wish me luck!

One week to go...

2009-08-21T08:45:00.000-07:00

I don't have any pictures to post yet, however I am thinking today is a good today to take a picture of myself. So you may see one on here later. It's hard to believe that I only have 7 days to go. I am so happy I made it through the crazy weekend last week. And let me tell you what happened.
Last weekend Grant's brother Nathan got married. It was all hectic at the beginning of the week as it is with family coming into town, finishing up last minute details, etc. We had the endowments and the luncheon on Friday, and then Saturday was the wedding itself. It rained so much last weekend... but luckily as soon as we got out of the temple, it warmed up! That was very lucky considering the reception was outside. One funny story was that when I was coming out of the temple, I thought I saw someone I knew, but then decided I was just seeing things. That is until that person started following the wedding party taking pictures. It turns out my cousin Nick's wife (Jen) was the photographer for the wedding! That was pretty funny.
So then later that afternoon, we went to take pictures only to find out that the reception wasn't quite set up yet, so everybody went to work to try and set up. We were able to pull things together in time, but weren't able to take pictures until after. Of course to top it off, Grant's sister Amanda started having contractions and was thinking that it was possible she may be in labor. Lo and behold, she was. They left after the reception and went to the hospital and had the baby the next morning at 6:50. And they had a little boy which was really exciting because this is their last child and they have 3 girls. So that was fun.
Then on Monday, Grant's mom (Linda) and I went shopping with a few of the kids, and came home in time to start on dinner and take it over to Grandma and Grandpa Hunsaker's house. The next morning, Linda and Kerry took the grandkids and headed up to the cabin in Salmon, ID. So I have been childless all week- it has been weird. I've gotten a few things accomplished, but not nearly as much as I would have hoped. I've mostly just been relaxing, and I'll tell you- my cat Oreo has been in heaven these last few days. No 2 year old chasing after him, and being able to sleep in with me in the mornings. It's been a good week. Hunter gets back tonight, and will stay with me even when Grandma and Grandpa go back up to the cabin. I want him to be here for when the baby is born.
And that leads me to my last point- I can't believe I have only 1 week to go. This pregnancy has flown by so fast. I am excited, and a little sad to be finished with this pregnancy. This pregnancy hasn't been as bad as the last one, and I love having the pregnant belly.... they are just so much fun. However, I'm done with throwing up every day, all the heart burn, not being able to sleep on my stomach, having a hard time bending over, getting out of bed, etc. It will be nice to get on my exercise program again as well and start getting back into shape. I mean, I have to in order to keep up with Hunter! He is a handful. So I'm hoping this last week goes by smoothly and quickly so I can start on this new phase in my life... 2 children. I just hope I can handle it. :)

Ultrasound Picture

2009-08-12T14:53:00.000-07:00

Hey all- I know I just posted a few days ago, but I loved this picture from my ultrasound today. Every other time we have ever gotten a good view of her face, she looked so skinny. After seeing this picture of her, I was so excited to see her chubby cheeks! I love babies with chubby cheeks. So I thought I'd share. Enjoy!

Goodbye 4 Runner!

2009-08-10T11:39:00.000-07:00

So Grant finally did something that I was extremely happy about.... the 4 Runner is officially out of our driveway. He pulled off the parts that are still worth something to sell, and we donated the body to the Job Corp where he works, and we will just write it off for taxes! So I officially have my driveway back! I hadn't seen that part of my driveway in a year and a 1/2, so this was really exciting to me. Thank you babe!
As for me, I have 18 days left in my pregnancy. I am excited, but kind of sad too. This pregnancy hasn't been as bad as when I was pregnant with Hunter. Ayla is just so much more sweet and doesn't kick me as much. I'm definitely not looking forward to the sleepless nights ahead. But I do know that I will love this little girl so much and I am really looking forward to meeting her. Plus, I will get to have my Mom here for about a month or so, and I am so excited for that! I'm thinking these last 18 days will go by quickly too. Grant's brother Nathan gets married this weekend, so there are lots of family things going on this week, next week Grant's parents are taking Hunter for a little under a week to go to the cabin with them. I am actually going to have some time to myself before this new baby gets here! What will I do? I have no idea. I have already been cleaning, and have pretty much gotten most of the things ready for when Ayla gets here, so I will have nothing to do! As much as it will be nice to have a break, I'm actually dreading it too though. Hunter can be a handful, but I love that little guy. When I don't see him for a day I have a hard time with it. He can be a very sweet kid when he wants to be. So I think I will be a little lonely. But I'm sure I'll manage. Plus, I'll have him back the week that Ayla is born, so we'll have lots of time to play before she gets here. There is just so much going on, I really think time will fly by so fast. It really already has too. This pregnancy has gone by WAY faster than with Hunter, so I'm excited about that. Only 18 days! Can't wait!

Our busy month... with Pictures!

2009-08-07T11:25:00.000-07:00

I finally just sat down and downloaded some pictures. I don't know why I never do- I have them available, but I just don't want to take the extra time I guess. But here are some pictures of the summer. First is the week that Grant had off... the 4th of July week. Wow, that was a while ago. We forgot our camera when we went up to Idaho to my parents house, but it was a blast there. The week prior to that, we went to the fish farm here in North Ogden, and took Hunter fishing. He LOVED it. We took lots of pictures of that.
I also have a few pictures of the work we've done in the house... moving rooms around, and getting a new bathroom floor thanks to Jamie and Kenny. They had some extra linoleum and we got to use it in our bathroom! So excited, you have no idea. We've had this crap linoleum since we moved in 4 years ago, and it had to be taped down. I've never actually felt like our bathroom floor was clean until this last week. I love it!
Also, today marks my 3 week countdown to my c-section. 21 days and counting... I can't believe how fast this pregnancy is going! I also got my hair cut yesterday, so you can see that in my prego pic. Anyways, enjoy the pics!

Here is Hunter's new room! He loves his new bed.

Here is Ayla's room... it's not completely finished, but it will work for now. Hunter loves it in here. He loves turning on the mobile, and playing with the toys in the crib.

Hunter fishing with Daddy. He loves to fish. He caught 2 fish that day, but here is his first one.

Hunter loved looking in the bucket at his fish. He kept trying to "pet" them. And the bag that Hunter is carrying as we left is his two fish all cut up! He actually ate them that night too, I was very impressed.

Our new bathroom floor!

Hunter really wanted me to take some pictures of him. Look at my little cheeser!

And finally, me pregnant at 36 weeks! I'm getting big, but not half as big as I was with Hunter. And this shows my new hair cut too. I was so happy to get it off my shoulders again!

Selling our 4 Runner

2009-07-30T14:06:00.001-07:00

Okay, so we have had our Toyota 4 Runner sitting in our driveway for a year and a half unusable. We have been selling parts off of it for about 6 months or so. We still have some left, including the body, and the engine. Grant bought the engine used last year thinking he'd upgrade the vehicle, but it ended up being too big for the 4 Runner. And apparently it would have cost us a ton more to make it fit, so we decided to just sell it and get a new one. Grant bought the engine for $1500 (I think) and it was not used by us at all. If anyone is interested in parts or anything, or you know someone that needs parts, please let me know! Grant will be able to answer the questions as I know nothing about cars, but he teaches mechanics and will be able to answer any questions you have! I'd love to get it out of my driveway... I think I'm being too optimistic to say before the baby gets here, but I would LOVE it if we could just get this thing gone. So PLEASE... PLEASE.... let me know.

29 days and counting!

2009-07-30T08:33:00.001-07:00

Okay, I know I just posted a few days ago, but I am so excited to hit the 20's in my countdown to end this pregnancy. Only 29 days until my c-section, and I can't wait!

24th of July!

2009-07-27T14:18:00.000-07:00

Once again, no pictures. It's probably no fun reading this without them, but I figured I'd better update and let you all know what we've been up to. For the 24th of July, we decided to go camping at Crystal Hot Springs. We had a lot of fun. It was definitely interesting being so big and pregnant and camping, but it was still fun. We went with Grant's sister Amanda (who is due the same day as me) and her husband Jeff, and their three girls Moira, Finley, and Sailor. On the 23rd, we got there after dinner and just went swimming in the evening. It was so nice. Then sleep was interesting that night... at least for me. I have officially hit the point in my pregnancy where I have horrible heart burn, and so I typically have to sleep sitting up now. So I tried sleeping in the back of our Land Cruiser with Grant and Hunter, but that didn't work out so well. So I went and slept out on the camping chairs. As soon as the pool opened the next day, we went swimming again. Then we came back for lunch and naps... and when I say naps, I mean just about all of us. We were tired. My nap was wonderful too. Then when we woke up, we went swimming again until dinner. Then we came back for dinner and right after we immediately went swimming again. Can I just tell you how nice it was to swim that much? I love swimming while I'm pregnant. Plus, I have gotten a little tanner over the last week from swimming so much, it's been great. After we swam that night, we came back for bed. Once again, I couldn't sleep in the Land Cruiser so I slept outside. However this time, I noticed there was a recliner type of chair out there, so I slept on that one much more comfortably this time. There were only 2 bad things: the train tracks were literally just behind us so every time a train went by we definitely heard it. And because I was outside, I got eaten alive by the mosquitoes! The next morning we took off after packing up. It turned out to be a great trip over all. Grant was so wonderful too. He watched Hunter almost the entire time and just let me relax for the most part. It was wonderful. He took him swimming most of the time and just let me hang out in the pool. I am so grateful that he let me have that time to relax. Plus, Hunter just loves spending time with him. I must say I am so happy to be home in my air conditioned house, but I have so much to do before this baby gets here. I have about 32 days left (yes I am counting), and I feel like there is so much to be done. I can't wait to get all of this over with though since I have hit my uncomfortable phase of pregnancy. If it weren't for being uncomfortable and having horrible heartburn, I don't think I'd mind being pregnant so much. I love watching my stomach move constantly, and I love feeling her move inside of me. But I can only take so much of the no sleep/feeling sick all the time phase. Plus I just can't wait to meet my little girl!
Anyways, that is our update for the week. Sorry no pictures once more. This time we actually forgot our camera. We were very upset to have forgotten it. Hopefully more pictures will come soon!

Pictures!

2009-06-26T08:54:00.001-07:00

Okay, so I know I've told you guys that I had pictures and that I would post them soon. It's taken me this long, but today I finally decided to sit my butt down and post some! I am officially 30 weeks pregnant today, and maybe that's why I am suddenly motivated to post pictures. I am so excited to have only 9 weeks to go! This pregnancy has gone so much faster than when I was pregnant with Hunter- I'm sure it's because he keeps me on my toes so much. Potty training was an adventure with him, and that has kept me really busy. Not to mention all the Pampered Chef parties I did this month. Thanks to all those who helped- I had a great time! We have so much more to get ready before Ayla gets here- getting her room ready, moving Hunter to his new room, etc. Grant has a week and a half off of work starting Monday, so we figured we'd get a bunch of stuff done while he's home. So happy to have him home as well- I love and miss having adult interaction. Pampered Chef is sure a great way to get that, but now my parties will be slowing down again so I won't have it as much. Don't get me wrong, Hunter can talk my ear off (he's just like his Mommy), but it's nice to have an adult to talk to.
Hunter has been such a great little helper lately too. I printed off a chore chart for him so that whenever he helps me with chores he gets a sticker. He loves helping me do the dishes. I open the dish washer, and he pulls stuff out and brings it to me. He is very proud of being able to do that. Honestly, I don't think he cares about getting the sticker for that one. He loves to help with that. He also helped me put all my Pampered Chef products away yesterday- that was fun. It was hilarious when he tried to pull my stoneware out- it was a little heavier than he thought it would be.
I really think he's going to make a great big brother. Sure there are days that I wonder if that's true, but for the most part I think he will be a big help. Yesterday he found a binkie and I told him that it was Ayla's binkie, and he came and lifted my shirt up and tried to put it in my now outie of a belly button. He kept saying that it wouldn't fit, and I told him that we had to wait until the baby came out to give it to her. I have a feeling that he will be such a big help getting things for me when I need them.
I am seriously counting down the days and weeks I have left- after today, my Dr. Appointments are moving to every 2 weeks which makes the time go by even faster in my opinion. Before I know it, Ayla will be here. Anyways, I hope you enjoy the pictures. There aren't as many as there should be, but I have a few.

These ones are from Easter... yes I know that was months ago, but I finally am posting them! Hunter had a great time looking for eggs, and an even better time when he discovered what was in them!

My handsome boys watching TV before church.

Hunter loves getting cozy in the laundry basket when he watches movies.

Me at 30 weeks!

Saturday!

2009-06-13T17:59:00.001-07:00

Today was a wonderful Saturday. This morning Grant woke up to fix his aunt's car while I cleaned the house. Then we enjoyed some lunch and got ready to head out to the pool! We just went to Family Dollar yesterday and saw some water wings for a $1 and thought we'd let Hunter give them a try. When he first had them on at the pool, he did not like them one bit. We had to force him to keep them on. And the first time we let go of him, he freaked out a ton not knowing what to do. However after a few minutes, he was off. He started having a blast with them on and was swimming everywhere! Towards the end of the day he was on the edge of the pool jumping in by himself into some deeper water. The whole time he was just laughing; it was so much fun to see how happy he was. I think today was the best day at the pool for me. I loved seeing how much fun he was having. He's always loved going down the slide with Daddy too, so he had a blast doing that as well. But these water wings sure made the difference in the main section of the pool. I think the only thing that we need to work on is pool etiquette and sharing. He kept climbing over people and crowding to get ahead in the line for the little slide. He was just so happy to be there. After all he did, I'm sure he is going to sleep very well tonight; and boy am I looking forward to that.

3rd Trimester!

2009-06-01T18:58:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I have been horrible at posting pictures lately- I really do use my camera still, but I never get them on here. I will be posting some soon though. I swear, I have lots. But the biggest thing I wanted to put on here today was the fact that last Friday officially started my 3rd trimester of pregnancy. I'll tell you- the second trimester went by FAST. I have a feeling the 3rd one will go by slowly though. UGH. But on the positive side, things are going well, I'm feeling better, and things are picking up. I currently have 12 weeks and 4 days left since I am having my c-section a week early. I'm hoping for at least June to go by quickly. I have 14 Pampered Chef parties due this month; and I want to thank everyone who volunteered to do one for me. I really appreciate it. I'm hoping for a big month! Then I don't have any parties set up for July (yet... I am willing to do some though). And the first 2 weeks of August are the last before it starts getting crazy again. Grant's little brother Nathan gets married on the 15th, and then family will be in town etc. And of course then on the 28th I will be having the baby! So I think as long as June goes by quickly (and I think it will with all these parties), then I should be good. Just gotta get through July I guess. But then again, I'm sure this little girl will be here before I know it. It seems like only yesterday I was pregnant with Hunter and here is is 2 1/2 and a HANDFUL! But hopefully I'll get some pics posted so you all can see how FAT I am! :)

Anyone else???

2009-05-19T13:31:00.000-07:00

I'm still looking for a few more people for Pampered Chef parties in June. Any help is appreciated. Thanks to all who have helped so far!

PAMPERED CHEF! PLEASE HELP!

2009-05-04T09:29:00.000-07:00

Hello all! I have a goal in mind that I'm hoping ALL of you can help me with. I want to try and do as many parties in June if possible. This can be anything from a cooking show, an open house, or a catalog party (for those of you who don't want to have people over, or who live far away.) Now if you can't do a party for me but know of someone who can, please let me know. I am getting bigger and was thinking that I will probably start hitting my uncomfortable phase in pregnancy mid-July, so it's the perfect time for me to do this. Now for those of you up in Idaho- I go up there ALL the time for parties, so don't feel like that is too far away. For those of you who have never hosted a Pampered Chef party before, it is super easy. This is how it works. I send you a packet with invitations and you send them out to family and friends, even those who you know can't come. I post your party online so they can post orders on there too. I send you some emails with some ideas for food that you choose. You buy the ingredients, and I show up early to help prepare the food. Then those you invited come over and share in a fun night of food and talking, and then I take any orders and help you clean up afterward. If there are any orders that someone gives you outside the party, you give those to me. Then when the orders come, they come to your house, and you deliver them. Now for the GREAT news of hosting. Here are some of the benefits you get for hosting: Free product (depending on how big your party is, aka. how much is sold). That can range anywhere from $15 to over $200. The bigger your party, the more free stuff you get. A minimum of a 15% discount. Once again, if your party is bigger you get more. You can get up to a 30% discount. Half price items (more depending on how big it is). You also get a host special which Pampered Chef chooses every month. For the month of June it is our collapsible serving bowls- meaning you can get 60% off of those. You also get free shipping, and a 10% discount for a year. Oh, and if someone books a party from your show and they host within 6 months from your party, you can get their host special for that month as well. Plus it is so much fun to have an excuse to have a party. For those that do catalog parties, I mail you a packet with catalogs and some receipts and you get orders and let me know what they are, and they can also order online. Then you get the same benefits mentioned earlier. And help would be greatly appreciated. Please either give me a ring, or mention it on my blog in the comments section. THANKS FOR ALL THOSE THAT HELP!

Who knew poop could be so exciting?

2009-04-13T12:45:00.000-07:00

So I have Easter photos to post, but I have to download them first so that will have to be for another post. The one thing I just had to post was my excitement with poop today. We are currently potty training Hunter, and have only been doing so since Thursday of last week. He's been doing pretty good at peeing on the potty, but I have been struggling to get him to go poop on the potty. I was bribing him like crazy to convince him to do it. Today I was at my wits end sitting in the bathroom on the floor for about 30 minutes, and I started saying that if he would just poop on the potty, I would get him candy, stickers, bubbles, and his kite. He would not do it. After I put his friend Ethan down for a nap, I got on the computer and Hunter turned on a movie to watch in my room. Not 5 minutes had gone by when all of a sudden Hunter is running down the hall yelling "poop Mommy, POOP!" I ran to get him on the potty as fast as I could and he ended up finally pooping on the potty! I was almost crying when he was done, I was just so dang excited. Although, that could be the pregnancy taking over- who knows. The reason I was so happy was because not only did he finally do it, but he knew what was happening and knew he was supposed to go on the potty and told me for the first time. Today has just been great for potty training all around because not only did that happen, but as soon as he woke up this morning he asked to go potty, and has been doing great all day. I hope this continues this easily because I was really hoping to have him potty trained before his sister gets here. Plus, I know I will be so lucky if he continues to be this way because I know potty training can be a whole lot more difficult. Ohhh, what a great day.

Preparing the baby room... I think...

2009-04-01T15:27:00.000-07:00

So today Jenny and Ethan came over to visit. Jenny and I decided that for nap time we would put Hunter and Ethan in the same room for nap while we watched a movie. Not that we thought they'd sleep much, but it was a good break for us. After the movie was done we decided to go and check on them. Jenny walked in first and said, "oh Shelley, you are going to cry". So of course all I could think about was that they had destroyed my crib and I really didn't want to have to get a new one. So I took a deep breath and walked in. For a little background, Hunter loves to rip things (books, wallpaper, etc.) and his room has seen a bit of that in the past. However, today he decided to take just about ALL of the wallpaper down. On top of that, the room was pretty much destroyed.... mattress on the ground, coats and blankets everywhere, the changing table in disarray. It was a disaster. But Hunter just wanted to help me get the baby room ready, right? I've been debating on exactly what to do. I had thought that I would just replace the pieces of wallpaper he had destroyed before, but now it's either all new wallpaper, or none at all and repaint. Here are a few pictures from what we found.
Also, a week and a half ago we went to the Hogle Zoo- you know, when it was actually warm here and NOT snowing. Here's a few pics from that too.

Here is Hunter, Ethan, and Jameson (Ethan's cousin). Hunter loved the turtles, the snakes, and the bears the best.

We told the boys that if they wanted to ride the train they had to hold hands. They did a pretty dang good job of that.

Here's Hunter happy on the train... and not so happy when I had to drag him off of it.

This was a fountain at the front of the zoo. Hunter loved it.

We are having a...

2009-03-18T19:42:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I had my doctor appointment tonight and we found out that we are having a little GIRL!!! I am so ecstatic at this point. I was so hoping for a girl this time around. I love my boy, but it will be so fun to have one of each! Just wanted to let you all know our great news!

Our life...

2009-03-10T19:26:00.000-07:00

Once again, it has been a while since I've posted. But I have great news... I actually have pictures to post today! So here's an overview of the last month... if I can remember it all.
To start with the crap, our basement flooded this last week. I wasn't feeling well, so Grant was letting me sleep in when all of a sudden he yelled for me to get downstairs. I knew we had problems. So the ball on our sump pump got stuck apparently, and it didn't pump the water outside, so the room it's in, 1/2 the living room, and 1/4 of the spare bedroom were flooded. So we got to deal with that on that wonderful Sunday morning. Luckily, a member of our bishopric lays carpet, so he was able to talk to us about what to do. Apparently the carpet pad had no hope of being saved since it's like a sponge, so we tore that out and let the carpet dry. Today he came and installed a new carpet pad for us in those areas, and we finally have our basement back after a week and a half. That has been miserable!
Other than that, it seems like the main things going on in my life is my pregnancy. It seems to occupy everything I do. I am currently 14 1/2 weeks, but the picture I have to post is from when I hit 13 weeks- officially ending my 1st trimester! Luckily the morning sickness has calmed down some. I guess it all depends on the day truthfully, but if I'm being completely honest it seems to be calming down. Let's just hope it gets even better from here on out! In a week from tomorrow we should be finding out what we're having for sure, but I am still convinced that it is a girl. We'll see in a week though!
Hunter has been pretty decent lately. He can still be a handful, don't get me wrong, but he has been mellowing out a bit as well. He is seeming to understand a lot more and he has been talking a lot more too. I know he doesn't completely understand the fact that I will be having a baby, but I talk to him a lot about being a big brother and I think he will be a great big brother. Yes he will be there to torture the poor kid, but that's what big brothers do, right? At least, that's what mine did.
Well, that's pretty much it from our end currently. But I hope to get a little better at this blogging thing the way I used to be. Enjoy the pics!

This is Grant and Hunter at Union Station here in Ogden a while back. Hunter just loves those trains, and he cries every time we have to leave!

He kept leaning so close to the water, we thought he was going to fall in!

This is just Grant and I goofing off, doing what we do best.

This is Hunter playing a game of peek-a-boo.

Grant and Hunter doing a little cuddle time.

Hunter just loves playing with his trains!

Hunter at the Treehouse Museum

Hunter and his best friend Ethan playing at the Treehouse Museum

13 weeks pregnant

Ok fine, I'll admit it...

2009-01-27T15:18:00.001-08:00

Okay, so I've known something for a while that some of you know, but I wasn't going to say anything for, oh about 3 more weeks. But I've been really sick, and I'm already starting to show, so I guess I'll just admit to you that I am pregnant! I'm only about 9 weeks along currently, so I'm still in my first trimester but I just wanted to let you all know just in case you happen to see me and wonder "what the heck is wrong with her?" Like I said, I've been pretty sick so far and I'm hoping that this will ease up soon because I'm already annoyed with throwing up every single day. I threw up almost every day my entire pregnancy with Hunter, so this baby had better be better than that!
But on a happier note, I am actually really excited for this new one to be coming! I am due September 4th, but I am hoping to do a c-section the week before which would make it August 28th. It should be interesting as well because Grant's brother Nathan is getting married August 22nd- it will definitely be a busy month! Our goal is to not find out what we're having, which will be really hard I know. We'll see how long that lasts!
Anyways, just wanted to let everyone know- and hopefully I'll be feeling better soon so I can update my blog more often, I have been such a slacker!

Christmas

2009-01-09T19:46:00.000-08:00

Wow, I have been a major slacker lately... especially with pictures. Once again, I have no pictures to post, but hopefully I'll get some on here soon. Christmas went well. We left on the 23rd to go up to the cabin in Salmon, Idaho and it was really nice up there. We got a lot of snow, but then again so did everyone else it seems. We had fun cross country skiing, playing on the sleds, playing games, and watching movies. The only downfall was that it seems like everyone got sick up there. Luckily it was just a 12-24 hour thing, so we got over it pretty quick. Linda of course made wonderful food as usual, and really did a great job on the homemade chicken noodle soup the day that a lot of us were sick- including me. Maybe that's why I remembered that so well. On the 30th, we drove to Lava Hot Springs and enjoyed our tradition of soaking in the hot pots and then heading over to the Royal to eat pizza and salad. That was wonderful. Then Grant, Hunter and I headed over to my parents house for a few days. My parents cracked us up by bringing home Wii Fit- I swear they are getting so technological lately. That was a fun little game to play. It really does work you out as well. We also got to play some pinochle which I was so happy to do- it seems like I hardly ever get to play that. Jamie and Kenny came over on the 31st and Grammy was wonderful to babysit while us adults went sledding- that was pretty fun too. Then we came back and enjoyed spending New Year's Eve with my parents. We ended up coming home the next day and trying to clean up a bit since it seemed as though our house was destroyed. But, I guess that's how it goes for the holidays. But we had a great Christmas, and hope all of you had a great one as well.

Thanksgiving

2008-12-01T13:25:00.000-08:00

I don't have any pictures to post from this last weekend, however I realized that it has been FOREVER since I posted anything so I figured it was about time. Last Wednesday Grant, Hunter and myself went up to Arimo to celebrate Thanksgiving with my family. The only person who was not able to come was Timothy, so it was nice seeing just about everyone there. There was a lot of good food, and we had a lot of fun. Grammy and Grandpa just bought a Wii, and we all had a blast goofing off on that. We also played board games, and had a great time enjoying one anothers' company. On Friday, Grammy babysat while Grant and I went to Pocatello to spend time with Jamie and Kenny. The boys went off and played with their guns (of course), and us girls went to watch Twilight.... again. We both watched it on the 21st, but we wanted to see it together. Plus, it is an awesome movie. I would watch it again if I could. Grant just wants me to wait until it comes out on DVD.... I'll try I guess. Then we went back to my parents house and had some more fun with the family. Hunter had a great time with his cousins, and I'm sure he will miss being around all those boys for a while. But overall, it was a great weekend.

DC and more!

2008-11-01T08:45:00.000-07:00

Wow... a lot has happened in the last month. I guess we'll start with our trip to Washington DC. Grant's parents flew us out to their place in Alexandria, Virginia which is not far from DC. We flew out on Thursday the 16th so Grant could do some work on his parent's cars. Hunter and I got to tag along and enjoy the vacation with Grandma and Papa. The first flight was the hardest for me with Hunter. He was awake most of the time, and was not happy to be strapped in. But overall, he did really well on the flights. We got there Thursday afternoon, and got settled in. The next day, Grant spent the entire day working on vehicles while Hunter and I went with Grandma to do some grocery shopping. The next day was really the start of the fun. We started the day at the NRA museum (that was more for Grant than for me), and it was pretty interesting. Grandpa Patterson got Hunter a toy gun that Hunter just loved. After that, we went to Mount Vernon to see where George Washington used to live. That was really fun. It was fun learning more history about George Washington as well. I knew a little about him, but there was a lot of history that I was able to learn there. That night, we went out to eat and enjoyed the evening together. The next morning Grant flew back to Utah while Hunter and I went to church with Grandma and Grandpa. Then we enjoyed the afternoon relaxing. The next day was the start of a busy week. Grandma took Hunter and I on the bus (Hunter loved that) to go to the metro (okay, Hunter REALLY loved this) which took us to the "Mall", which is the Smithsonian and a lot of other famous sites. We walked around looking at everything which was way fun. First we went to the Aerospace Museum. Hunter had fun looking at all the airplanes. Then we walked around and looked at the Library of Congress and the Capitol. We went home that night exhausted. Hunter and I took a break the next day since Grandma had to work. I think that was really good for Hunter- he took a LONG nap that day. The next day we did our "drive by's"... meaning that we didn't get out to look at a lot, but mostly drove by the historical sites. First we went to the Pentagon- I got out while Grandma drove around with Hunter so I could take some pictures. I got some great pictures of the memorial they just did for those who died there on 9/11. I loved how respectful everyone was. After that, we drove to Fort Marcy which was a fort during the Civil War. We drove past Arlington Cemetery, and went on to the CIA. We weren't able to go into the grounds, but I did get a few pictures on the outside. There was one point where I wanted to take a picture of the sign, and the security guards started yelling at me to put my camera away. So Grandma drove back out to the highway and I took a quick picture of a sign near the CIA. Then we went on to a real mall, and walked around for a while. I had never been into a Pottery Barn before (I love Pottery Barn), so Grandma took us inside so I could walk around. I especially loved Pottery Barn Kids though- I got lost in that store. Then we drove to Grandma's work to meet the people she worked with. Hunter immediately found the toys and had a hard time leaving them. Then we drove on to the DC temple which was beautiful. After that, we went home to relax. On Thursday we went back to the Mall to see more historical sites. Of course we started out on the bus and then the metro and Hunter was just thrilled. Then we went to the Natural History museum. Hunter had a blast there. There were so many animals to see- he loved it. So did I to tell you the truth. After that, we walked over to the Washington National Monument. Then we moved on to the WWII Memorial, and the Jefferson Memoral. Then we walked over to the Vietnam Vet memorial, and then the wall of those who died during the Vietnam and Korean wars. That was one of my favorite places. The closer you got, the more quiet it was. People were so reverent and respectful. It was a very emotional place. After that, we walked over by the White House. I got a few good pictures of that. I hadn't realized that there were secret service on the roof of the White House constantly with sniper rifles, and telescopes for protection. That was really interesting to me. At that point, we were really tired, and decided to take off. So to help us relax, Grandma decided to go get pedicures..... however, we didn't get normal pedicures. We got Dr. Fish Pedicures. For those of you who don't know what that is, you stick your feet in what looks like a fish tank and these fish from Korea (I think that's where they're from) nibble on your feet and eat off all the dead skin. That was such a great way to end the day. It was a little ticklish, but not too bad. Then we go normal pedicures after that. Hunter loved watching the fish, and actually did really well sitting on our laps. Then we spent our last night there enjoying some time with Grandma and Grandpa. The next morning we took off about 6:30, and got back to SLC by 11:30. Then after Grant got home from work, we drove up to Idaho. I had 2 Pampered Chef parties up in Idaho Falls on Saturday. We got home on Sunday, and that night my sister in law (Amanda) dropped off 2 of her kids- Finley and Sailor. Amanda had a conference for her work in Logan for a few days and had me babysit. So until Wednesday I had a 3 year old, a 2 year old, and a 1 year old. That was fun. It actually went better than I thought it would. Hunter was entertained by the girls, so I actually got work done around my house. Needless to say, Hunter was pretty sad when they left Wednesday night. But luckily Halloween was only a few days away. Hunter was a Vampire for Halloween, and he was so cute. We went to a trunk or treat, and it was a blast. Hunter was a little confused by the first two people, but then he got the idea. He was so excited running around with his bucket of candy. Needless to say, he LOVED Halloween. It was really fun seeing him this year. Last year wasn't as exciting because he didn't understand. But he had a blast this year. I'm sure Christmas will be a blast as well. Anyways, here are a lot of pictures- hope you enjoy!

Hunter was getting sick of his bed since it was pretty small, so I brought up a bigger bed that my parents had given us, and put his new sheets on it (speed racer) that Grammy Yearsley got for his birthday, and he loves it now!

Hunter's Birthday and Fun!

2008-10-13T18:40:00.000-07:00

I decided that I needed to get Hunter's birthday pics on here since it's been a few weeks since his birthday. There are some other pictures I wanted to put on here, but they are on Grant's brother Nathan's camera. I'll have to post those later.
First of all, Hunter had his 2nd birthday on September 25th. It's hard to believe that it's already been 2 years since he joined our little family. He has been such a fun addition to our family, and we love him so much.
On Hunter's birthday, we had a few friends come over for dinner. All in all, there were 9 adults and 8 children here. It was very busy, but very fun. Hunter had a blast with his cousins and friends. This year's birthday was a lot more exciting than last years, that's for sure. Hunter actually understood a bit more of what was going on. Last year, he didn't really want anything to do with his cake, but this year he was all over the cupcakes I made. He even snuck a few in before the party by climbing on the counter when Mommy wasn't looking. He also really enjoyed opening presents. Last year he didn't understand and just wanted to play with his toys- he didn't get that there was something fun under all that wrapping paper! This year was different though. He loved ripping all the paper off, and seeing what was underneath. I am really looking forward to Christmas now that I know how he will react.
The next day Grant, Hunter and myself went camping with Grant's brother Nathan and his girlfriend Stefani. Nathan's roomate also joined us for the first night as well. We went down near Provo, and had a blast. Hunter really enjoyed himself. On Saturday, we skipped the camping experience and went back to Nathan's apartment for a swim. Hunter had such a great time swimming. I'm glad he had such a great time since it will most likely be the last time this year.
Okay, moving on to what's been going on this last week. Ogden got a few inches of snow on Sunday- can you believe that? I was so annoyed. I am so not a snow person. Overall it's not bad, but I hate driving in it. Plus it just seems to last forever around here! Hunter loved the snow. In fact he loves it so much that every piece he sees, he eats it! Today I took him outside and let him wear his new snowboots (thanks Traci) even though there was hardly any snow outside. They have the Car's characters and he loves it. He was wearing them all day. Anyways, he just kept eating all the snow outside. When I was ready to go inside, I tried to bribe him with a cookie. He said no, and then he turned around to eat more snow! So apparently he prefers snow over cookies.... hmmmm..... I have one confused child! So needless to say, I think he will love this winter. Although, Grant is worried he will eat the yellow snow- that could be bad news!
Anyways, enjoy the pictures. Hopefully we'll get more on here soon- Grant, Hunter and I are leaving for Virginia to see Grant's parents this weekend. We are all so excited, and I'm sure we'll have great pictures to post in a few weeks!

This is Hunter's birthday cake- If you can't tell what it is, it's supposed to be a car. I was trying to be creative!!!

Hunter loved his birthay presents and couldn't get enough of them!

Our friend Eric came over after the party was over. Hunter loves him to pieces! He kept wanting Eric to read his new books to him. It was cute.

This is Hunter's new way of trying to get cookies while Mom isn't looking- just tip the garbage on it's side and climb onto it to reach the counter!

Here are a few pictures with Hunter in his winter apparel. He had a blast outside, and of course loved eating the snow!

Hunter has loved bread lately for some reason. He was evening hugging our loaf today at dinner- what a silly kid!

Twilight Trailer

2008-10-10T12:55:00.000-07:00

For those of you who can't wait for Twilight, check this new trailer out!
Just click on the box, and you can watch it- it's awesome.

What else can I expect?

2008-09-24T15:35:00.001-07:00

In the last 2 weeks I have learned that Hunter can get into just about everything. As time draws closer to his second birthday which is tomorrow, all I can think is what else can I expect from this little monster? Okay, he's not a monster- I love him to death. But he definitely keeps me on my toes.
For example, one new thing I've found is that if I tell him no, he takes that as "okay, mom doesn't want to do it, or give it to me. That means I should go and do it myself". Last week as I was on the phone, he asked for a cookie. I said no of course since it was getting late. So what did he do? He climbed on top of the garbage cans to get onto the counter to get a cookie. He also handed them out to his cousins who were over. At least he shared, right? But of course as he was getting down, he tipped the garbage cans over and when I came into the kitchen there was garbage everywhere. That was fun to clean up.
One other thing he's been doing a lot of is getting into the fridge. He is constantly wanting to snack all say which I guess is to be expected for a growing child, but when I don't immediately get him something to eat, he climbs into my fridge to find something tasty. One of his personal favorites is the butter.... yep, butter. Apparently butter is like candy to him, because that's the thing I catch him with most often. And not only does he eat it, but we buy our butter from Costco, so it's like butter super sized. One day I found him downstairs watching a movie with that block of butter in his hands and butter all over his face. I have no clue how much he ate that day... all I know is that there were some pretty good sized bite marks in that thing. He has also enjoyed the taste of fry sauce apparently since I found him with a packet of that open and all over his face. Today however, he must have had a different craving. We had some chinese food the other night and still had a container of rice left. I seriously went downstairs for no more than 5 minutes, and when I came back upstairs he had gotten the rice out of the fridge, grabbed a plate, and poured the whole rice "block" onto his plate. I guess he was enjoying it, because he was pretty ticked when I threw it away.
Oh, and one other thing.....he has figured out the locks on our doors as well. Yesterday I went outside to get the mail. When I came back, the door was locked. I couldn't believe that Hunter locked me outside! And to top it off, after I opened the door with our spare key, he quickly locked it again before I could get inside. When I finally did, he was laughing and took off running. Now you can't tell me he didn't know what he was doing. All I can say is it's a good thing we have a spare key outside now....thanks Jamie and Kenny.
So for the last bit of news: Grant and I spent last weekend fixing up our house a bit. We finally painted our room white from this reddish color- it definitely needed a change. Then we put up my new curtains and sconce.... well, they were new a year ago, but we decided to wait until we painted. So after a year of waiting, it is done, and they are hung up. Then we reorganized our room, dejunked our house, Grant put some shingles on our roof since some had blown off a while back, we did yard work, put storage in the attic... what am I missing??? Oh, and we ripped the rest of our carpet out of the upstairs since we have wood floors. Needless to say, it was a busy busy weekend, and we are happy it's over. But our house looks a ton better now, and I am glad we did it.
I'm sure I'll be writing on here soon since tomorrow is Hunter's 2ND birthday- I know I'll get a ton of pics. But enjoy these ones for the time being!

Family Time

2008-09-15T09:57:00.000-07:00

This month is barely half over, and already it has been busy busy busy. Labor Day weekend Grant, Hunter and myself went camping at the City of Rocks in Idaho. That was really fun to get away.
The next week was the last week we got to spend time with our friends Matt, Jenny, and Ethan. Grant and I went on a double date with Matt and Jenny that Friday and had a blast. We got a babysitter for the kids and let them stay up until we got back since it was the last time for them to play together. It was really hard saying goodbye, but luckily they won't be in Hawaii for too long- so we'll get to see them again in a few years.
Hunter has also been learning a lot and wanting to be big. He has been helping me in the kitchen- we made bread and brownies one day together, and he had a blast. He has also been trying to play the piano- it's been so cute. He wants to get a book out and pretend to play from it. It's been really fun to watch him learn and grow. It's hard to believe that he will be 2 at the end of this month. Time has really gone by fast.
The following weekend, we all went up to my parent's place in Arimo, Idaho for a family get together. My sister Melissa and her family (Timothy, Dylan, and Sophie) came into town- they currently live in Charlotte, North Carolina. We hadn't seen them in a long time. They last time I saw Timothy was 2 years ago... right after Hunter was born. It was nice seeing all of them again. Because they were in town, my whole family got together since it had been so long since we had all seen each other. We had a lunch, took family pictures, and played games. It was really nice to be able to spend that much time with family. I stayed up in Idaho all week because I had 3 Pampered Chef parties up there- one on Thursday, one Friday, and my mom did one on Saturday. They all went really well, and I am continuing to love my job. It was nice to have a few days before my parties to just play and relax. Hunter and I spent a few days with Missy and Tim- they left on Tuesday to see his family. The rest of Tuesday, and Wednesday we were able to spend some time with my parents which was really nice. We brought our Nintendo Wii up there since Missy and Tim had never played one before and we got them addicted by the time they left. Even my parents are addicted! Needless to say, it was a blast being with family. We got home on Saturday night, and relaxed a bit from our busy week. It was great, and I look forward to going up to Idaho again.

Working and Playing!

2008-08-29T06:45:00.000-07:00

August has been a very busy month for us. Grant's parents came the first part of the month and were here for a few weeks. We had the opportunity to go up to the cabin again. I was able to go up for a week, Grant was able to be there for a few days, and Grandma and Grandpa Patterson thankfully watched Hunter for a few days while we were at home! It was a weird thing to not have a child to watch for about 5 days. We got a lot done during that time. We ripped the carpet out of Hunter's room since we have wood floors underneath. After we finish ripping all of the carpet out of the upstairs we will refinish the floors.
Grant has been really busy lately...especially this last week. He just started back into school again at Weber State to get his Bachelor's. He's thinking he should be done in about 2 years. Just 4 Semester's to go! Not only is he in school full-time, but he is working full-time as well. It's a good thing he's smart and tough- I don't know how I would handle that!
I have been staying at home with Hunter as usual. I have also been VERY VERY busy with Pampered Chef. I have really been enjoying having something else to call my own. This month I didn't do any parties since Grant's parents were in town, but I have been planning for next month where I currently have anywhere from 8 to 11 parties that I will be doing! But it will be a good paycheck, so I am really excited for that. So if anyone is interested, let me know- even if you just want to do a catelog party as many of my hosts will be doing that. It's 60% off the pots and pans for anyone who hosts a show in September, and everyone wants to get that great deal!
Hunter has been pretty busy himself this month. Like I said before, he was up at the cabin in Salmon for a week and a half playing to his heart's content.... he just loved the boats and playing in the water! He has also been trying to get in as much play time with his best friend Ethan before they move in a few weeks... he will be very sad when they leave- to tell you the truth, so will I. He has also been enjoying his new lawn mower that we got from Ethan- as you can see, he's putting it to good use. I'm just training him early so that he will be prepared for the real thing soon! :) And as usual, he always enjoys having some of his daddy's pop- in the pictures below he has a bottle of IBC Root Beer, and he was loving it. I loved the fact that he was all dressed up for church, and he's got his bottle just relaxing watching tv- I thought it was funny.
Anyways, we hope you enjoy the pictures- I know they're all of Hunter, but what can I say...He's the cute one of the family!

At the Park

2008-08-20T14:16:00.000-07:00

Today Hunter and I went to the park with my friend Jenny and Hunter's best friend Ethan. We are trying to make the most of our time in the next few weeks since Jenny and Ethan will be moving. So we decided today would be a great day for the park. We packed a lunch, and let the kids play for a few hours, and they had a blast. Here are a few pictures of their fun day.

In Remembrance...

2008-08-20T14:08:00.001-07:00

Okay, for those of you who know me well you will understand why I was so sad about this. Two days ago, Grant was looking at my brown recliner I have had for 10 years and said that it was broken and that it needed to go. I thought about it for a while and finally decided to let go. Yesterday my neighbor Michael helped me load it up (along with another couch that we needed to get rid of) and took it away. Now my basement is empty... for the time being. My mother and father are going to give us their hide-a-bed couch and we are so looking forward to that. However, I did have to give up my recliner in the process. To give you a little background on this, I am not a very lucky person. This chair was won 10 years ago at a fireman's ball in Arimo and my parents gave it to me because I had told them to enter the drawing; they didn't think they would win, but they said they would give it to me if they won. Lo and behold, they won the drawing and it became mine. I slept in it that night. I know I'm weird, but I'd had it for 10 years and it was hard. This is my chair, and this is what my basement currently looks like.