Who needs pants anyways?

Just the other day at the grocery store, Tyson had to go potty (Tyson is potty trained, Mason isn't yet). We asked Ivan to help him so we could grab the last few things on our list and head up to the front of the store. Just as we were approaching the check out stand I hear a little excited voice behind me say, "MOM, I WENT PEE!". I then turned around to see my delighted little 2 year old running toward me with nothing but his birthday suit on!

Oh dear, I apparently need to teach my toddlers about the appropriate times to be naked; running through the store naked, definitely not appropriate :) My first reaction was to pretend the naked child wasn't mine, but I just couldn't help but laugh. These two definitely keep things real and entertaining around here. Our lives would be kinda dull without all of their silly adventures!!

Around 6:00am on June 27, I noticed my husband, brother, and Dad giving my mom a priesthood blessing in the twins' bedroom. After they finished, they all walked out into the living room where my mom sat down and wished everyone a wonderful day (as they were headed up to Island Park to fish with my brother, Rhett before he and his family moved to Texas). She was smiling and upbeat. Dad, Randy, Garret, and Brett were excited about fishing and as they pulled out of the driveway, my mom--in her calm/collected way--said to me, "Mandy, I think you probably should take me to the Emergency Room. I think I'm having a stroke." You can imagine the panic and confusion that set in... I couldn't figure out how she possibly held it together and put on a happy face long enough for the men to leave. Here I am thinking, A Stroke? That's kind of a big deal, Mom! And if you know anything about my mom, the last thing she'd ever want is to interrupt anyone's plans and have a big fuss made over her. So, I did as she asked, and that was the beginning of arduous journey. It blows my mind to think of the bumps and hurdles she has had to overcome (and still must overcome) and the amount of grace she's trucking through with. She is positive. She is happy. She is full of faith and enduring strength. My mother never ceases to amaze me.

This is a video that my brothers and I put together for my mom, to lift her up if ever she felt weak or defeated during her recovery.

I can never fully express how grateful I am that my mom is still around and able to regain her strength and health. I feel the influence of her goodness everyday and I am constantly learning how to be more like our Savior from her example.

I LOVE MY MOMMA!!

Puddle Jumpers

As I grabbed the barely dressed twins to toss them in the car, I quickly realized the days of my cute little boys running around in their diapers and underwear have come to an end. It's often a struggle to keep clothes on these boys, but almost overnight we've plunged into our very short season of fall and in the blink of an eye we will have snow, so nakedness isn't much of an option anymore :) Well, Tyson and Mason were so thrilled about the rain after we dropped Ivan off at school that I just couldn't stand for them to just observe the rain from behind our windows. We ran inside rounded up some clothes and rain jackets and headed back out to play in the puddles and the rain. Mason was a little hesitant at first... 

but it didn't take long for him to find the courage to follow in Tyson's footsteps...

These two make my heart HAPPY!! Splash away, boys!