Our House

4 bed/ 2.5 bath, 2100 square feet, 2 car garage, No HOA, Split level, Automated sprinkler system

Master Bedroom

Master Bedroom

Master Bath

2nd Bedroom

2nd Bedroom

Hallway

Hall Half Bath

Dining Area

Kitchen

Upstairs Living Room

Downstairs Bath

3rd Bedroom

3rd Bedroom

Downstairs Hallway

Downstairs Bath

Family Room

Family Room

4th Bedroom

4th Bedroom

Tyler Turned 3!

Tyler turned 3 on December 19th. I still can't believe I have a 3 year old. He seems like such a big boy and so not babyish at all. Especially since having Bennett, Tyler just seems so grown up. We had a little birthday party with Tyler's cousins (and wishing Thaddeus lived closer) and a couple of his friends from nursery. Tyler had a blast and insisted on having a dance party. Ever since the Halloween party at his cousin's house, it's his favorite thing- there's no stopping his moves when some music is pumpin'.

Tyler is such a special boy and is a great big brother. He has his moments where he forgets to be gentle and tries to wrestle with Benny like he does with Daddy, but he loves being a big brother. Here are some things I love about Tyler at 3:

-He loves all things sports- whether he's playing himself, or watching his daddy play. He even loves watching sports with his dad.
-He is rambunctious as all get out and has a need to climb all over everything and everyone
-He loves to have Family Home Evening and leads the music with a baton. "Popcorn Popping" is a known must for the opening song. When we give the lesson we HAVE to use the gospel art book, or Tyler feels like we didn't do it right. He calls the book scriptures.
-When he says he prayers he still starts like this: "Heavenly Father, thankful for me. Please bless me..."
-His all time favorite meal is macaroni & cheese.
-He still gags when fruit is in his general vicinity, but he likes carrots, peas, beans, and applesauce.
-Tyler is very smart! He can navigate on the computer so well and loves to play games on the computer. He can sound out words with my help and likes to write the letter T to sign his name. He recognizes numbers 1-10 and loves counting things.
-Tyler LOVES his cousins. He loves having play days with Eli and loves to go to Claire & Savannah's house or have them come over. I'm so happy we live so close to family!
-Tyler loves to go to the store with me. He's actually a really great shopping buddy. Wal-Mart is one of his favorite places to go (wonder where he got that!).
-He really enjoys reading books before bedtime and loves to have his back and feet tickled. The only song he wants me to sing at bedtime is "I am a Child of God" (The 2nd verse is his favorite)
-He likes charts and and is very motivated by them. He loves to earn stickers and fill up his charts to get a prize. We've used charts for potty training, chores, staying in bed at night, and learning to get dressed. His favorite prize is a trip to Golfland.
-Tyler has a great laugh. He keeps us smiling and finds humor in everything. People who hear him laugh can't help but laugh too.
-I feel so blessed to by Tyler's mom. He is so patient with me as I try to learn how to be a good mom. He tests my patience, but I'm sure I test his as well. I love his boyishness and sweetness all bundled up in his jump-into-your-arms hugs. I enjoy seeing his mind work and make connections. Thanks for letting me by your mommy Ty. I love you to the moon & back!

Halloween 2011

Halloween was simple and fun. Tyler has been loving Charlie Brown lately, & I like the idea of doing a theme for the fam, so I thought it would be great for Ty to be Chuck, Jake to be Linus, Benny to be Snoopy, and me to be Lucy. Well, I always have high hopes, but decided I needed to simplify. Tyler's costume delivered well, and Bennett used Ty's old puppy dog costume. But I made a sad attempt at making Jake look like Linus, and decided against painting black stripes on his red shirt. He carried around a blue blanket, so that was a good clue. And me as Lucy, well, let's just say that Goodwill, Savers, & DI don't carry Lucy-type dresses, and I wasn't going to pay an arm & a leg for a real costume. So here you have the Richardsons on Halloween:



My brother in law Nate & his wife Heather put on a fun Halloween party a few nights before. It was so much fun and Tyler discovered he LOVES to dance. His older cousins are in hip hop classes and have some pretty sweet moves, so Ty was trying to copy them. It was so fun to watch. Benny loved being passed around and especially snuggling with Grandma. After the party we hung around to chat, and Bennett discovered he could army crawl! This kid has not stopped moving since!

Tyler showing his groove.
The hostesses.



Halloween night we went to a nacho party at our friends' and hung out outside and passed out candy. Then we took the boys around for some trick or treating. Tyler caught on really fast and would run up to the neighbors sitting on their driveways and say "Trick or treat!" Then he would usually remember to say thank you as he ran back to us to show us his loot. Before long he had to hand Dad his pumpkin bucket in between houses because it was so heavy. This neighborhood is very generous with their candy and almost everyone participates. It was such a fun environment.
The boy in action!
Our friend Aaron as Mr. Fredrickson from "Up". My favorite costume of the night (besides my cute Charlie Brown and Snoopy, of course).

My Joy

Aren't these boys just the 2 cutest boys you've ever seen? How selfish of me for not sharing any picture of them! Here are some things about each one of them that I want to remember. Probably a bit boring for you, but anything but boring for me and Jake who get to see these 2 little stinkers learn so much everyday:


Tyler: 2 years, 10 months
Tyler is a great big brother, but is still figuring out how to interact with Bennett. I feel like I am constantly telling him to be soft, keep his fingers out of Benny's mouth, stop bouncing him so high in his bouncer, stop swinging him so high in his swing, gently hold Bennett's hand instead of twisting his arm, etc. It's a miracle younger siblings live past a month! But Tyler LOVES to be helpful and bring me burp cloths, diapers, Benny's binkie, or whatever else I need to help Bennett. Today they were both on the floor and Tyler was talking to Bennett and making him laugh. Bennett was on his stomach, pushing himself up to get a closer look at Tyler. Such a cute scene. Then Ty says, "Mom! Benny has a waterfall!" Me: "Huh?" Ty: "Yeah, it's dripping from his mouth!" Ha ha. Yes, I suppose a drip of drool does kind of resemble a waterfall.

Tyler LOVES helping me in the kitchen. I've made a lot of cookies lately, since my Grandma Murdock passed away in May. I like using her recipe, and it just brings back memories with her and her goodness. That's another post in and of itself. Anyways, Ty is becoming quite the pro at pouring, stirring, and taste-testing. He is such a boy and is anything but delicate in the kitchen. We usually end up with a big mess of flour on his Spider Man table, and sugar granules all over the floor, but we have a good time and the cookies are always extra delicious!

Tyler is very bright. He has known all of his letters and letter sounds for quite some time now, but now he's is beginning to make sense of it all. He'll will walk around the house saying words and repeating the first sound of the word, and identifying what letter makes that sounds. For instance, he'll say, "Book. B, b, b. "B" starts with book Mom!" And lately he's been learning that "C" "H" makes the Ch sound. "Chocolate. Ch, ch, ch, "C" "H" starts with chocolate Mom." He also recognizes letters on signs and storefronts. What an observant kid he is. Today he wanted to make a book out of a paper towel (Classy, I know. I'm telling you, we've got a genius on our hands...). I wrote the words, dog, map, and cat, and he was able to sound out all of them (with a little bit of help).

Potty training is long behind us now and it's so nice to just buy diapers for one kid. He still wears a pull-up at night, but almost always wakes up dry. However, the other night after his bath Jake was getting him dried off and ready to get dressed in his jammies. Ty decided it would be funny to pee all over the floor, started laughing and said, "Look! I made a fountain!" Ughhh. Really? Thanks for keeping our life exciting... or something like that. :)

Tyler loves to plan. He is constantly saying, "Mom, next week I can go to (insert whatever thing it is he's thinking would be fun, usually Claire and Savannah's to go do their slip 'n slide)." One of Ty's favorite things to do (much to Mom's dismay- it's a battle I've lost to both Ty and Dad) is taking all of the cushions off the couch and making a jumping pit. Jake's argument is that Tyler needs to get his wiggles out and jump on things. True, but our furniture isn't going to last long... So the other day Tyler came up with the great idea to go to a "jumping place". He was insistent on going, so we made a little chart for him to fill up with stickers for doing certain things so he could earn a trip to the "jumping place". We got to cash in on that last night and the whole fam went to Bounce U. It was cosmic bouncing, so all the lights were off and there were colored lights flashing all over and loud music. It took Ty a little bit to warm up to it all, but before we knew it he was all over the place and having a great time. He's already making plans to go back "next week" (everything is next week to him).

Ty still HATES fruit, and gags at the sight of any fruit, but especially bananas. He will eat applesauce and apple juice, but that is about as much fruit intake he can handle. Silly boy. He's very texture picky when it comes to foods. He will down a whole jar of baby food squash and zucchini, but gags if I offer him sliced, cooked zucchini. I'm thinking I just need to put my foot down more and make him eat like a normal human being! His favorites are still macaroni and cheese, chicken nuggets, pizza, applesauce & cottage cheese, and peanut butter sandwiches. Healthy, I know...

Tyler is growing like a weed! His church pants are a size 3T and they're already verging on too short. He's not all that tall though. Maybe his clothes are shrinking in the wash. Speaking of church clothes- every Sunday is a major battle trying to get him ready for church. He screams when we put his pants on, he fights getting his shirt on, and he avoids getting his hair combed at all costs. But once we're in the car and sees the church building around the corner he excitedly says, "That's where it is! That's where we're going!" He loves church. I just don't know why he hates getting ready so much!

Tyler keeps us on our toes, makes us laugh, makes us pull our hair out, and brings so much joy and love to our home. We love you Ty Guy!

Bennett: 5 months
This little guy is now 5 months old! What a joy Bennett is. He is such a super happy baby and smiles all the time. The best word to describe him is pleasant. From the get go he's always been really easy going and enjoyable. He has been sleeping through the night consistently since he was about 2 months old, with just a few rough nights here and there. His crib is in our bedroom and it's fun waking up to him cooing and talking in his sweet little voice. And as soon as I make eye contact with him he flashes the cheesiest grin and acts as if he's embarrassed, squinches up his little nose, and buries his face in his blanket, and then pops back up with a big smile again. Nothing melts my heart faster. He also does this little thing where he does short, quick little breaths through his nose when he's excited, accompanied of course by his cute squinched up nose. It's almost like a little snort. Cutest thing.

Bennett has lots of nick names around here: Benny (which originally I thought I would hate, but absolutely love and what I call him most), Benners, Benny Boy, Ben, Bennyson, and an occasional Benihana. He's starting to recognize and respond to his name. He usually turns his head and flashes that sweet slobbery smile when he hears us calling him.

Bennett is so mobile! It scares me! He has been rolling now for about 2 months, but now he rolls all over the floor and is starting to wiggle his way forward and backward. Ty didn't start crawling until he was 10 months, but I think Bennett is trying to keep up with his awesome big brother.

Bennett got his first tooth on Friday, October 7th, with his second tooth quickly following and making its debut on Sunday, October 9th. He has been sticking everything in his mouth and drooling a lot lately (like a "waterfall", apparently :). He's been uncomfortable lately and a little cranky, which we are so not used to. But he still smiles a lot and is still what I would consider a happy kiddo.

Bennett LOVES to eat. He started eating rice cereal about a month ago and took to it like a champ! He scarfs it down and gets upset if there isn't a new spoonful waiting for him before he's done swallowing the previous spoonful, literally. It's so funny. He has to let out a little yelp of impatience in between each spoon. He cracks me up. He's had butternut squash, carrots, and sweet potatoes, and loves them all. Maybe he won't be quite as picky of an eater as Ty (although Ty ate everything as a baby too). He hasn't caused Mom any pain with his new teeth, so he's still nursing like a champ too.

We love having Bennett in our family and can't get enough of his cuteness (unless it's at 1:30 in the morning like last night- teething is no fun!). It's difficult to imagine what life was like before he came into our lives. I love the way he grabs my face and plays with my hair (when he's not ripping it out of my head, that is) and his slobbery kisses. Thanks for always being so pleasant and lovable Benny Boy! We love you!

I'm not going to lie and say that adjusting to 2 kids has been a breeze. Probably one of the hardest things I've done in my life. Thank goodness Benny's a happy and pleasant baby. I can't imagine what it would be like if he were a difficult baby. It's so hard to find time to fit everything in. Like showering. And making the bed. And simple things like that. You know you're a mom when making the bed, successfully taking a shower uninterrupted, and getting dressed into something more than sweats makes you feel really accomplished! I feel like I am now getting the hang of things and like I'm almost a normal person again. And although I don't always get to do my hair or put on makeup or have my house spic 'n span, the joy of having my 2 boys makes up for all of that and more! Being a mommy is hard, dirty stuff, but I love it and wouldn't trade it for the world!

And now, for your viewing pleasure, my cute cute boys!
Ready for Halloween anyone? We are! Daddy looks like he needs a nap... and possibly a hair cut :)

Tyler all "thugged out". Yes, I know his face is a mess, welcome to our life. And yes, those are his undies in his hands. Which is why the camera shot is above the waist. He's still working on getting his undies on all by himself after going potty. Quick story: Cindy and I went to Ikea a couple weeks ago and Savannah and Tyler went to the little play place/day care thing they have there. I guess Ty decided to go to the bathroom (even though I had taken him just 5 minutes earlier) and so he had to get his undies and shorts back on by himself. We had to come back and pick the kids up early because they were both crying so we had them for the remainder of the shopping trip. The kids were trying out some of the kids beds and whatnot, and Ty's shorts were kind of falling down and all I could see were his cheeks! I quickly rushed over to assess the situation and realized that he had put his undies on backwards and it had given him a major wedgie. Ha ha. He didn't seem too bothered by it, but boy was I! Needless to say, we had a good laugh at that one.

Good morning! How'd you like to wake up to this every morning? Sorry, he's taken.

Ha ha. I just thought this was a funny picture of Benny

Happy to be trying rice cereal for the first time.

Tyler loves playing with his cousin Savannah. They're both hams. Check out those cheesy smiles!

Evidence that Tyler likes to jump on things. Only this time he replaced the couch cushions with every pillow in our house. And Jake thinks he's a Ninja and all stealthy, hiding in the picture. His brother Sam would appreciate it.

And this is the crowning picture of this blogpost. Ty with his "gobbles". He was so excited to get his own pair after having fun with his friend Teagan's "gobbles" at the pool. I love summer clearance items. He wore them for a day straight. This picture alone is worth the $1 we paid for them at Wal-Mart. And they've only broken twice!

Running

I started running again recently, and thought this was so fitting.

Marcel Calder Photography

My talented friend Marcel is doing a giveaway for her birthday. Check out her blog here. Wouldn't that be fun to win a free photo shoot with her? Hope I win!

Smart Kid

Tyler is such a smart kid. He speaks really well and picks up on things really quickly. Last night I was making dinner and Ty was watching his Curious George DVD (this kid LOVES Curious George!). Benny started getting a little fussy and so Ty said, "Mom, can you turn it up a li'l bit?" Me: "I can't right now buddy, I have chicken on my hands." Ty: "But he's distrackin' my movie!" Ha ha. I've told Tyler a few times not to distract Bennett while he's eating and he remembered how to use the word... pretty much anyways. I love that kid. He keeps me laughing all day. P.s.- listen to the first song on my playlist. Especially if you have boys. Such a sweet song.