A few of my favorite things...

As a Mom there are days, and there are DAYS! I have to say that at the end of the day I am so happy for bedtime. For the quiet, the time that I can think to myself, pick somehting up and have it stay put away. No one screams, no one pulls on my clothes, no one wants a sippy or a snack...it's peaceful. But then by morning I find that I miss them! I long for them to wake up and for the noise and the interaction! I just have to state that I love them! They are my favorite and I am living my dream! I had to share a few pictures of my favorite things, that are not things at all, they are my life, MY whole world. I live such a blessed life! :)

Dave and Hailey at Cherry Hill. Dave is such a great Dad, always taking the kids and making my life sane! He walks in the door and it's a breath of fresh air!
Kate fell asleep and stayed asleep as I got her dressed for bed.

My boy LOVES the Rodeo. From voting who would win, the cowboys vs. the bull/horse/sheep. He also loves nuts! His favorite treat. He is all boy and delightful!

Kate is so close to walking! And so happy! She's got this up and down the stair thing down! She loves climbing and is getting quite good at it.

Hailey and Kate playing. I am hoping they will be good friends and sisters!

Swimming Lessons

Preston loves to jump in, even when he's not supposed to! Which he did during Hailey's swim lesson, got in trouble and then screamed for 20 minutes because he wanted to swim!

Preston floating and laughing that the teacher is tickling his back.

Preston holding his breath.

Kicks!

Hailey in mid-air walking the plank.

Preston trying to "patiently" wait his turn for swim lessons.

Hailey swimming on her back. "airplane" position.

Hailey and her friend, Elsie.

H. back float.

H swimming!

The kids did a great job at their swim lessons. I was grateful for good teachers and small classes! Hailey can now jump off the "plank" as she calls it and then put her head down and swim to the side! I was so proud of her! Preston just likes to be in the water. He put his head under and held his breath for 20 seconds (the teacher counted pretty fast, but he kept telling me it was 20!) They learned to back float, front float, crawl siwm and do "monkey, airplane, soldier", blow bubbles with their noses, and other adorable skills they performed for the parents. I loved watching them and it made me realize just how big they are getting! :)

(Note: Hailey had to wait for her friend Elsie to swim to the side before the teacher would tell her to jump, so it takes a couple seconds.)

Pretters is 3!

Preston holding up 3 fingers to show how old he is.

I know this is late, but we had a great time for Preston's 3rd birthday. He is getting so big! He is very tall and slender. I scheduled his 3 year check up on his birthday and then thought that would be a crappy birthday to have shots on your special day, but is just so happened he was all caught up on shots and didn't have to ahve any! His Dr shared the same birhtday and gave him her balloon that came with her flowers. She figured he'd like the balloon better than she would anyways!

We did Chuck E Cheese for the family party and then had everyone over for his actual birthday. He was very specific that he wanted 2 diggers on his cake, one digging and one not. I was skeptical that the bakery would have that exact one to order, but by some miracle that is the exact cake the bakery had! Preston got some new clothes, lots of cars and trucks and his favorite a bubble mower!

Dave singing the National Anthem

Dave was asked my someone in our ward who is the Exceutive Assistant to the Dean to go and sing the National Anthem at the U of U Graduation today. I thought he did a great job! The kids and I went to see him and I got chills at the end. He is G-O-O-D! No wonder I love this man so much! :)

(Sorry that it is in 2 parts, but I was trying to zoom in and let go of the record button so it stopped recording!)

Utah Voices

Kate and I spent some time in the hall, and she was adorable!

Dave and his Ma

Here's there in the top middle, handsome fella, eh?

Evan holding Kate, he's such a good uncle!!

Dave and his Ma are in a local community choir. They did show tunes and it was amazing! I took my chances in taking the baby with us and although I did have to spend in the hall, I didn't miss hearing them. It made all those nights of him rehersing all worth it. Just to see the look on his face and watching him perform, made me realize just how passionate he is about music.

Girls Weekend to St. George!!

Heather and I riding bikes behind the condo. (like our matching jackets that mom got us?)
Heather cutting Hailey's blanket to be tied. Our fingers hurt after tying them all!

Me with Kate, Mom, Carole, Maddie and Heather hiking to the ruins in Leeds.

Carole and Mom doing "1,2,3!" with Maddie.

Maddie was playing peek-a-boo with Kate.

Me and Mom with Lacey. She taught us cooking classes and then moved to SG.

Doing what I do all the time, rocking the baby and enjoying holding my sweet girl!

Grandma with kate and maddie in their matching monkey jammies from Christmas.

Heather and I on a mammoth rocking chair at the gas station in Beaver!

Carole, Kate and I at dinner, yummy!!

Ah, a break from the everyday life and daily tasks, to the warmer climate of Southern Utah!! Since Kate is still attached, literally, she came with us on our girls get away. It was a great trip! We hiked Leeds to some Anasazi ruins. Shopped, hung out, went on a bike ride, made blankets for my kids and just enjoyed the good company and good food! Already planning to go again! :)

4 months and growing

My sweet little kate'r bug is getting so big! She will smile at anyone who talks to her and laughs easily! She likes to rub her big toes together (Our peditrician says it's a comfort mechanism). I can't keep socks on her, even if I pull them up to her thighs. She just kicks them off. I have invested in shoes to keep her socks on and altough they are cute, it is one more accessory to put on her in the mornings and keep putting back on as she gets out of them. But they keep her feet warm. She has just started to notice people eating and will watch you intently as you eat. She also has stared to notice the TV. I used to sit down at nights and watch my shows to nurse her, but she won't nurse, she'll turn her head and would rather watch the light box with moving pictures! (I have been getting some good reading in!) She is strong, she has always been strong. Since day 1 at the hospital she would curl her legs into her chest and roll to the side. And although she would rather be held, when I put her down she likes to scoot herself sideways on the floor on her back. (I am soo in trouble as soon as she can REALLY move!) She is not sleeping through the night yet, but she has her own room now. We moved the older 2 kids together so we can let Kate learn to sleep longer without waking her siblings. I have yet to do this, I find that I enjoy my alone time with her in the quiet of the night, even if I do fall asleep in the chair holding her and wake up with a kink in my neck! Or have her fall asleep next to me in bed. She is my tender girl, and I look back at these last 4 months and can't imagine life without her, she seems to have always been here!