The Jedi Shepherd

We had our ward Christmas party last night and while we were there, all the Primary kids were supposed to dress up in shepherd's robes and wander around in them (to give us the feel of being in Bethlehem I suppose). Ty flat refused to put anything on. I begged. I reasoned. I threatened. Nothing was going to get him in costume. Until I pointed out that they kind of looked like the robes that the Jedi's wear in Star Wars. Enough said. The kid quietly put the robe on and allowed me to tie it. He spent the rest of the evening running around with his pretend "light saber" and told anyone who would listen that he was a REAL jedi knight. That has something to do with the Christmas spirit... right!?

I wish I had a picture of him- he made a pretty cute Jedi/Shepherd.

What have you done?

The object is to copy & paste the list of "99 things" to your blog & bold the things you've done!! I put mine in RED. I apparently need to get out more, but this was fun :) I saw it on a friends blog and thought I would give it a try.

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Visited a Castle
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt

43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China.
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square

74. Spent New Years Eve in Trafalga Square
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been a passenger on a motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Have been published
81. Visited the Redwoods
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Testified in court
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Got a tattoo
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

You'll Shoot Your Eye Out

Let me set the scene:

Ty is on the bus on his way to school this morning. It has been bitter cold here, and when he left for school, it was -19. There are a lot of kids out this week because of some cold that has been going around, so Ty has his own seat on the bus this morning. It's early and Ty is kind of in a mellow mood. So he sits back and looks out the window. He notices the black metal bar that runs across the window- it's right at his eye level. Ty eyes it for a minute and has a 'great' idea.

At this point, I want to remind you all of the movie, "A Christmas Story." Ralphie has a friend (who's name I can't remember) that is "double-dog dared" to stick his tongue out on a frozen pole on the playground. When said friend does this stupid thing, he finds his tongue is stuck to the pole and he can't get it off.

Ty- having never seen this movie- thinks he is onto something "fun." He proceeds in sticking out his tongue and placing it on the frozen metal bar next to him. Apparently he screamed and started to cry when he found that his tongue was in fact, stuck to the window. Rather than waiting for a teacher or bus driver to help him out- he wigs out and pulls back. This rips off a large chunk of tongue and a good number of tastebuds with it.

Apparently he was pretty subdued the rest of the day.

It's one of those things that I want to laugh at, because I can't help thinking "WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?!", but at the same time- he is my son and is in pain. Anyway- bring on the Tylenol.

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

Christmas preparation has begun at the Kidd household. I tried to keep it low key since I am kind of tired- but it's just so much more fun to have EVERYTHING out and a few projects. Once we started pulling things out- it was too hard to stop.

Ty and I put together an advent calendar that my mom bought for us. It took us most of the morning, but we did it! And Ryan helped us out by staying asleep the whole time. Anyway, it's a big box with a bunch of little boxes in it. We put a chocolate kiss in each one along with a little note. We had to glue and cut everything and I think it turned out great!!

The next thing was probably what Ty was the most excited about... THE TREE! We could only decorate the top half of it since Ryan keeps trying to touch it all. It was probably my fault. When we were pulling out the ornaments and things- we have a couple strands of what Ty calls "Jingly Bells," and Ryan had so much fun dragging them around the living room all the while jingling. Once they got put on the tree though- Ryan kept trying to jingle the Christmas Tree. I'm thinking that it's inevitably going to end up on top of him this year- but for now- I just put some extra bells on the front door handle so any time he gets up the urge to jingle something, I just send him to the door.

We think it turned out beautifully and the boys love it when we turn the lights on each night.

Girls Night Out

Don't you just love those words? They make my month. This time, we decided to go over to Logan for dinner, a movie and some shopping.

We left at about 5 (it takes a little over an hour to get over to Logan from here) and went to WalMart for some Christmas shopping. It was packed! I couldn't believe it. Okay- actually I can- WalMart is always busy. It drives me nuts.

Anyway- then we went to Texas Roadhouse (they just opened a few months ago) and it was soo good!

Then we went and caught a late movie- what did we see you ask? New Moon- what else!? For the record- I want you to know that I think Stephanie Meyers is a terrible writer- but I do think that she has an entertaining story. Anyway- this movie was supposed to be ten times better than the first. Which it was! It was crazy though- we got to the theater about thirty minutes before it started (probably about 9), and the line was out the door and it wrapped around the building!! We did get some pretty good seats and it was fun.

Thanks for the night out ladies! I look forward to the next one!

An Announcement

Shaun and I are officially ushering in an age of chaos. We found out a couple months ago that we are pregnant with our third baby!! Nothing could be scarier at this point, but Shaun has been very calm about the whole thing- pointing out that no matter how much we freak out about this- it's not like we can put a "return to sender" sticker on the baby once he/she gets here just because we weren't ready. It helps having someone like him around someone like me.

Anyway- once the initial shock wore off- we discovered that we really were excited about this- nervous- I mean- we're going to have three little ones running around here, and I can barely keep up with the laundry now!!

I have felt really wonderful with this pregnancy. The only way that I even know that I'm pregnant is how exhausted I am at the end of the day. And for that... I thank this baby in advance. Anyway- we'll keep you updated as we go along.

Another Dinner Post

Candied Chicken

1 pound chicken, cut in cube chunks

1 cup cornstarch

¼ teaspoon garlic powder

2 eggs; beaten

Combine cornstarch and garlic powder.

Dip chicken chunks in beaten eggs and then in cornstarch mixture. Brown chicken over medium heat until lightly brown, about 2-3 minutes on each side. Put in baking dish.

Slice up onions and peppers, or you can throw in the frozen veggies from the bag- it has broccoli, carrots and cauliflower. Really- whatever kind of veggie you want. Throw them in with the chicken.

Sauce

¾ cup sugar

1/3 cup vinegar

¼ cup ketchup

¼ cup water

1 Tablespoon soy sauce

Combine sauce ingredients in a bowl and pour over chicken and vegetables.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Serve with rice.

What's for Dinner?

I don't know how many of you out there are like me- when 4:30 hits you totally panic because you haven't got a clue as to what to make for dinner. So in an effort to help my three readers, I am going to start posting some of my easiest and yummiest dinners! Now- today's dinner won't help you at 4:30 because it's a crockpot dinner- sorry. But if you have two seconds tomorrow morning- it's a really good, warm meal that we love here at our house. They are called crockpot fajitas!

You will need:

4 frozen chicken breasts

1 medium onion; sliced

1 package Fajita seasoning

3 peppers; sliced (it can be bell peppers or jalepenos... whatever you want)

Tortillas

Sour Cream

Cheese

Guacamole

Step 1. Put chicken and onion in crockpot.

Step 2. Pour seasoning mix and add water (I usually add enough water to cover my chicken completely- otherwise it dries out in the crockpot).

Step 3. Cook on high for 6 hours.

Step 4. Shred chicken and add peppers to crockpot. Cook one more hour.

Viola! Dinner is ready! It really is yummy- and I'll try and remember to take pictures of it tonight so that I can post it. Anyway- now it's your turn!! Post your favorites on your blog so that I can get some new ideas too!!

Tyler-isms

Scene 1: Ty spent the weekend with my parents. On Saturday afternoon, my mom placed a bowl of Spaghettios in front of Ty. Ty being Ty- shook his head and said "I don't want Spaghettios." My sister who was in the kitchen whips around and tells Ty that there are starving kids in Africa that would love to have that bowl of Spaghettios. Ty sat there for a minute, then turned to Melissa and said, "I don't live in Africa."

Scene 2: Preschool rug time. They are learning about pioneers tonight. They have a guest speaker telling them stories about the little boys and girls that crossed the plains. She turned to them and asked them, "Does anyone know how that pioneers got here?" Ty throws his hand up in the air and yells out "Heavenly Father and Jesus sent them here!" Which was true... to a point. Though probably not the answer they were looking for at Preschool.

Scene 3: Ty has been asked four times to put his seatbelt on. I start to count (usually the only thing that gets his butt in gear). I get to "2" and Ty puts his hands on his hips and says "You quit talking back to me Mama!" I might have popped him if I hadn't been trying to cover up the fact that I was laughing.

Scene 4: I asked Ty what he thought we should get his dad for his birthday (it's in a couple of weeks). Ty sat thoughtfully for a minute before turning to me and saying, "something boring." I asked why we should get dad something boring and Ty told me that it was because he liked boring things. I kind of sniggered, but asked him if we shouldn't get dad something fun instead- and Ty said no. It needed to be boring- "Maybe something for his work." So if you end up with a paper-clip for your birthday Shaun... I'm sorry....

Halloween

Well, Halloween has come and gone, and with it, big smiles, fun and tummy aches. We spent this Halloween down in Salt Lake this year, just for something different. Montpelier has a lot of houses that just don't open their doors to trick or treaters and for whatever reason- don't believe in trunk or treats... So- in an effort to give my kids the kind of holiday that I remember- we headed back to my old stomping grounds.

In reviewing my pictures as I get ready to post them- I found that I don't have a decent picture of both Ryan and Ty together- so you get to see them separately. Anyway- here is our Cowboy Ryan playing outside before we head for the Trunk or Treat down at my parent's ward. It was such a gorgeous day! I couldn't believe it! I can remember having to trick or treat through snow drifts!

And here we have Ty, the NOT scary Vampire Bat. I made the effort this year to make him look creepy with the make-up and he took one look at himself and said that he didn't want to be scary. So... there you have it. This is also a picture of Ty's cousin Daniel (the Fearless Firefighter) who stopped by for a few mintues.

And here- you can have a glimpse of what we grew up with as kids in the Henriksen household. My mom dressed up this year- nose and all! We had some fun with fake eyelashes this year, and when Ty saw my mom's (they were covered in fake crystals) and asked her why she had sprinkles all over her eyes. And, in case you were wondering, I am the stunning pirate on the right. I wouldn't have needed to raid ships- my victims would have just handed over their jewels and treasures based on my looks alone- thinking themselves lucky to have been robbed by such a ravishing beauty.

And last but not least- just the Kidds. Shaun hates dressing up, but I appreciate the effort he puts into things for the kids (and when I want a picture).

Hanging Out With Grandma and Grandpa

We have spent the last couple of weekends with Shaun's parents down in Declo- and unfortunately, for the majority of both weekends- my camera battery was dead. So I did NOT get any pictures of Dani's baby shower or Kent's birthday party. Which is too bad- because both were a lot of fun. Fortunately- I did get a couple of cute ones from around Jacki and Orllo's house while we were just playing around- which is good since those are my favorite anyway.

Papa Orllo and Ryan

Shaun with his boys on the tractor (and yes it was COLD!)

Ryan and Grandma Jacki (I think they were out chasing cows...)

Books

I loved story-time when I was a kid. My favorite book was "The Cat in the Hat" by Dr. Suess. My dad got so sick of reading it over and over, that he finally recorded him reading the book on tape for me so that I could listen to it whenever I wanted (and I think he thought he was getting out of having to read it so often... which I don't remember working that well...).

Granted we haven't gotten to that point (yet) with our boys- they too love story-time. And it's one of those things that neither Shaun nor I mind doing in the evenings with Ty and Ryan. At first- it was just Ty that wanted the stories, but recently, whenever you sit down with a book- here comes Ryan just as fast as he can toddle. I snuck a picture the other day of my boys with a Thomas the Train story and as I'm sure you can see... all three of them are totally enthralled!!

Carving Pumpkins

It's that time of year again!! I happen to love this time of year because it kicks off the whole holiday season. I love Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Despite the cold and the snow- I love what comes with it. And I think the reason I love Halloween so much- is because of all the good childhood memories that I associate with it. My mom is and was kind of a Halloween nut- she went all out every year. She had a witch costume that was known for blocks. We still have pictures- you wouldn't recognize her unless you knew it was her. She would also go crazy with decorations and treats and parties... It was so much fun. Now that I'm the mom- I know how tired and how crazy life is without the addition of holiday extras- but I remember how much effort my mom put into these things and how big a payoff it was for me as a kid. So- even though I AM tired, and it just feels like one more thing... I keep telling myself that the memories I am helping my kids build- is totally worth it.

So today- we carved pumpkins. We only did two for now and hopefully we'll be able to get the others finished before Halloween- but if not... I guess we can just leave them out for Thanksgiving decor!

Now I want you to take a look at the pumpkins we have on our front porch... There are some serious pumpkins sitting there. Both my parents and Shaun's parents brought pumpkins to us this year. My parents brought the normal sized ones and Shaun's parents grew Giant Pumpkins this year in their garden... They weren't kidding!! These things are freaking huge! Ty wanted to carve one of them- but I put my foot down... I'm not near dedicated enough to the pumpkin carving process to carve one of those babies. Besides- I think you'd have to have a chain saw to get through all the flesh!!!

Anyway- once I finally talked Ty into carving a normal sized pumpkin- we got to work. We carved a little "happy" pumpkin and a big "scary" pumpkin. At least that's how Ty described them. He actually did most of the little pumpkin himself- and he even managed to keep all his fingers- a feat I was pretty impressed with. I mean think about this... Even though they are just little knives- they have to be pretty sharp in order to make all those little designs and cut through the pumpkin itself... Why do we, as parents (you know- the supposed responsible ones) give these knives over to 4 year olds? It seems somewhat silly to me. But I did it anyway- and it turned out pretty well! The other pumpkin we carved was supposed to be a scary vampire pumpkin (Ty's idea)... We tried hard to make it scary- and if you don't think it is- don't tell us- we don't want to know. We'll have to light them tomorrow and see how they turn out in the dark!

A Tuesday...

Since Ty has been in school, it has allowed Ryan and I to have some one on one time in the mornings. And I have to tell you- it has been soo much fun! Ryan has such a spunky little personality. He's almost as bad as his brother as far as the fact that he is into EVERYTHING! We've baby-proofed the house, but Ryan can still find things to get into. His favorite lately is the bathroom and the cupboard in my kitchen that holds the bread pans. I find bread pans everywhere. I went to go put Ty's PJ's away yesterday, and when I opened his dresser drawer- I found a bread pan.

Besides being a smidge on the mischievous side- Ryan is also pretty smart! I know. I know- I'm totally biased- but since this is my blog- I get to brag all I want! Ryan can say: Mama, Dad, Ty, Hi, No, Go, Big Truck, How Are You and What's That. He can also tell you what the cow, horse, duck, lamb and puppy say. He understands everything. If I tell him to go get in the tub- he'll walk down the hall, into the bathroom and wait next to the tub for me. If I say it's time to go- he'll walk to the back door and pound on the glass until I come with the car keys (granted sometimes he'll do this and yell "go" at me when we are just hanging out in the house). But he really is a smart little fart... Smart enough I have a feeling that between he and his brother- they just have Shaun and I outsmarted by the time they are in Elementary School...

The Tooth

We had a casualty this weekend. We went up to Declo this weekend to spend some time with Shaun's family, and so that I would be able to go to my sister-in-law's baby shower on Saturday.

Saturday morning, we were spending some time outside in the sunshine and Ryan got into a fight with the brick patio... and consequently... lost. He fell down face first and when I picked him up- there was blood EVERYWHERE! And he was just screaming. I kept trying to calm him down to see what was wrong- and Shaun points to his mouth and asked me, "Is that a piece of his tooth sitting there on his tongue?" Sure enough- Ryan had knocked out half of his front tooth.

He's fine now- I took a picture of him in the tub this morning- and even though it's a dopey picture of him- you can kind of see what happened to the two front teeth. The one was pushed back up into his gums, and the other is half gone. I took him to the dentist and there isn't a whole lot they can do until the teeth kind of come back down- then they will be able to re-build the broken tooth. Poor baby.

Fall

Fall seems to be a busy time. There is just always soo much that finds itself needing to be done. When Jacki was here over Conference- I made a comment that I was embarrassed by how much stuff was on my kitchen counters. Jacki just laughed and told me- it's fall... that's what happens when there are things to can and stuff that needs put away. I felt a little better.

And it has been a busy fall. My grandma, grandpa and mom taught me how to can this fall, and I have kind of been so amazed by what you can put away in your pantry via canning. So, while I had done a lot of peaches already- I also did tomatoes and apple pie filling. The apple pie filling was an idea that I got from a girlfriend up here- who does it every year. The idea is- you make your pie filling in the fall and then later in the year, you can have apple pie by just dumping your jar of stuff into a pie crust and VIOLA! Pie. So- I canned apple pie filling- and we actually tried it tonight- it was really good! I'm impressed and my pantry is just that much fuller.

Conference Weekend

These post may be disturbing to those potential visitors out there. Visitors beware... we WILL put you to work. And both sets of grandparents can vouch for that.

We were lucky enough to be joined this conference weekend by both my parents and Shaun's parents. Unfortunately for them... we had unfinished projects leftover from this summer that HAD to be done before the snow falls. (Which here in Montpelier could be anytime now...)

First and foremost. We ripped out the back steps because they were rotting and starting to fall apart. So not safe. But- because Shaun was gone so much this summer working for his dad- they just never really got put back together again. We had all the pieces. Just never enough time. So- my dad and Shaun got working on this and after a few hours- it was done! We had stairs and a railing! So talented.

Next! We had a ton of leftover sand from when we put in the stone patio earlier this year. So rather than let it just sit in the garage and take up someone's valuable parking space (*cough* MINE!). I attempted to put together a sand box made from leftover brick. It was okay. It kind of served its purpose. You could at least tell that's what it was supposed to be. But the bricks wouldn't stay standing up. And the boys kept moving them. So... Enter Papa Orllo. Orllo brought some big wooden posts with them when they came, and he spent the afternoon cutting and putting together a sand box. Kudos Orllo and Jacki (his faithful helper).

And finally... The men put their heads together to figure out how to put up a safety gate above the stairs. We have an unfinished basement- so that the bottom of the stairs is a whole lot o

f concrete. Not much of a plush landing if Ryan were to take off down the stairs. I kept envisioning a lot of blood and a smashed head. So- sparing the rest of the graphic details that keep playing in my brain... the men got to work and got it set up for me (and my peace of mind).

Finally- the work was done and it was time for dinner. We went over to Nora's Diner (home of the world's best onion rings), and had a yummy meal (of course- doesn't it always taste better if you don't have to make it?).

We are so grateful to Grandma Janet (she kept things going this weekend), Grandpa JB (for his expertise in building steps), Grandma Jacki (for helping me clear out the garden), Papa Orllo (for his unparalleled sandbox building skills), Shaun (because I KNOW you didn't want to do any of it), Ty (for all the help on ALL the projects... and some that weren't on the list) and to Ryan (for being SUCH a good boy through all of this). I love you all!!

Truckin'

We are on the road a lot. A lot. A lot. I think we have it about down to a science though- and that's probably more than most people can say about traveling with toddlers. We have found the secret. And I'm about to reveal it to all of you. Are you ready?

The secret is...: Chocolate Milk.

I know. It sounds simple. But it's the secret to great and easy car travel. We fill a cup for both of them and then throw them in the car and take off. They both guzzle and guzzle until it's gone. And then they fall asleep. It's wonderful. And Shaun and I are geniuses.

My People.

Eleanor Roosevelt once said: "You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you stop to look fear in the face... You must do the thing you think you can't do." Moving to Montpelier three years ago was terrifying to me. I've never been one to make friends easily or quickly. I am reserved and quiet when surrounded by people I don't know. I had to change when I moved to Montpelier. I knew no one.

I was so lucky to find the friends that I have found here. My people. They have stood by me when I cried with fear when we were worried about Shaun's job. They laughed with me when I laughed about life as a mom. They have always been there when I need a friend. I've never been surrounded by so many good people at one time. (in the picture below: Liz, Clover, Aleisha, Jenny and Jamie)

These girls have helped me re-learn the art of exercise. Every morning there is a group that walks. If it's warm, we walk at the park. When it's cold, we walk at the church. Sometimes we run. Sometimes we weight train. We've done Yoga videos. We play volleyball every Thursday night. There is even a clogging group.

I also think that one of the best parts of being here- is that I have re-learned the art of being a friend. I took my high school/ college friends for granted. We had been friends for so long that everything was easy. We already knew each others histories and quirks. When you make so many new friends at once- you have to re-learn how to ask questions. And it was different this time too... all of these women were also young moms. We are all in the same boat. We have similar routines. We yell at our kids for the same things.

We also get together for girls night/ movie night and we have lunch once a week (sometimes with kids sometimes without). Once in a while it's a phone call to see if you want to take the kids to the park. Or Biggest Loser parties. Around here- it seems that there is always an excuse to get together.

So thanks girls. For making it so easy for me to get over my fear. Thanks.

Who needs an eyebrow?

Melissa is in school. She has decided that her calling in life is to be an esthatician (No I'm NOT spelling that right) and has been in school for about a month. They just learned waxing in school and she told us that we were to be her test subjects this weekend. Gulp. Dad even had to put his head in the ring and had his eyebrows waxed.

I kid. She's really good and I only have the tiniest of holes in my eyebrow... but my legs look fantastic!! Way to go Miss- and let me know the second you get into your facial unit! :)

Lunch Bunch

While we were down in Salt Lake, we also went to lunch with my grandparents and aunt and uncle (Lori and Brent) on Saturday afternoon. It was so much fun- my mom's aunt and uncle (Carol and Larry) were up from Nephi for the afternoon, so we got to talk to them as well.

Grandpa was really sweet to share his lunch with Ryan. Ryan is fast friends with anyone that will feed him- so he thought Grandpa was extra nice since he got his own cookie!

And here's Grandma and Carol!

Best Buy

Friday night rolled around and we did all go to dinner at Cafe Trang (sorry Dave and Nat- had to add it just for you!). It's a little Vietnamese restaurant that is sooo good! I think it's one of those places that I could eat at every day!

After dinner, Shaun, Miss and I took one car home, while the others went with Grandma. We stopped at Best Buy (I have been looking for the newest season of Grey's Anatomy that just came out on DVD). We kind of wandered around for a little bit, and got separated. I came around the corner and saw Miss playing the Wii Rockband thing. She made me sit down and we played Rockband together. Way too much fun! I'm sure we looked like absolute morons and Shaun tried not to walk too close until we were done.

Happy Birthday Grandma Janet!

Friday was my mom's birthday, and her only request was that we make time to come down this weekend. So... we packed up the kids and we left on Thursday. Friday morning, we (my mom, my sister, Shaun, Ty, Ryan and myself) all went down to the Gateway (downtown Salt Lake) for some shopping! It was so much fun to spend the morning walking around in the beautiful fall weather (and walking around in all the fun stores) together!

We ended up over by the fountains/ splashpad thing at the end of the mall and Ty and Grandma Janet wove in and out of the shooting water- trying to avoid getting wet. Grandma did alright... Ty did NOT! The one time we thought he'd make it across, he did a total wipe-out. Poor kid. It was so fun though!
Ryan just hung out in the stroller for the majority of the morning. He's such a good shopper! He had a few snacks (that he pilfered from his brother's bag of goodies) and one of the stores was handing out water bottles and he was set.

Busy Days

I feel like we are all being run ragged. I guess after the lazy days of summer that is to be expected. And it's not that we're not loving it! Ty LOVES school. He is so excited every morning and he thinks he's so big since he gets to ride the bus! Last week they did a unit on dogs and cats... and he came home wearing some little paper dog ears that they made in class. It was soo funny- there are about four other little kids that get off on Ty's bus stop... they all had their ears on when they got off the bus and it looked so cute!

Ty also loves art time in school. Everyday when I ask him what he did, he'll either tell me about the painting he did or that "we just didn't have time to paint today. Sigh." So funny. He brought home some of his artwork the other day and I hung it up in the hall- he told me this was a dragon... I'll leave it up to you for the interpretation.
And as for Ryan and I... we are also liking the time in the morning to ourselves. It has been so fun to get to know my littlest boy- he is such a little spitfire! And so stubborn- I guess we know now that he DOES take after his dad. Anyway- he is also a little lunch-gut... he LOVES to eat! So most of the time you'll find him with a snack in hand or in the high chair!

Little Bit Medium

Ty stubbed his toe the other day. When I asked him which one hurt- he held up the second toe and said "It's my little bit medium toe! It hurts!" He was less than impressed when I started busting a gut laughing.

More Peaches?!

Yes. More peaches. The rest of the peaches ripened up and we couldn't eat them all (that's not to say we didn't try... peaches for breakfast, lunch, with dinner, as dessert... ), so it was back to the canner for me. This time Ryan offered to help... Okay, not really- but he did sit there and talked to me while I peeled peaches!

Go For It. (Thanks Katie!)

The finest gift you can give anyone is encouragement. Yet, almost no one gets the encouragement they need to grow to their full potential. If everyone received the encouragement they need to grow, the genius in most everyone would blossom and the world would produce abundance beyond our wildest dreams.
-Sidney Madwed

Ryan Scoots and Walks

Ryan walking... and if you listen closely, he snorts as he laughs!

This is Ryan's OTHER mode of transportation... And he goes EVERYWHERE on his bum! I hope that our next kid is a girl... because Ryan has worn out the bum of all his shorts!

Let's Go Fly A Kite

Today is Sunday and most Sunday's we are a little pressed to find things that we can do to make it stand out from the rest of the week. Our little kids may not understand why we don't play with friends or go to the store on Sunday- and we can only lead by example. Still though- I know Ty is confused a lot of the time. And we're working on it. The best we've been able to come up with is the fact that because it's Sunday, Heavenly Father wants us to spend time with our family.

So- today was a beautiful Sunday. Except that it was extremely windy... Enter Ty's new Yoda kite. We walked over to the park (it's only half a block from our house), and I showed Ty how to fly it. It was so much fun. I am so impressed at how quickly he picked up how things worked, he understood that he needed to run a certain direction when the kite started to dive and he understood that sometimes he needed to change the way he was holding the kite before he took off... It was crazy! Shaun is still healing- so he sat with Ryan and watched. Ryan was (naturally) not impressed and cried when the kite went up in the air the first couple of times.

Okay- and I have to admit... I got to fly the kite for a little bit too. I remember doing it when I was little with my dad and my brother... I might have to wish for a few more windy days! It was fun!

Millions of Peaches... Peaches for Me!

I have never canned anything before. But this year... This year is different...

I love peaches. I could eat them on anything and with anything. They are just my favorite things ever. So this year... I bought some fresh peaches from Brigham City and I called my mom and my grandma and we canned! I don't know how much we did- apparently this is something that serious canners always know- exactly how much was made and the cost of each pint... I don't have a clue. I'll get to it next year... I just think they look pretty in a jar!

Anyway- I am so grateful for my grandma and grandpa helping me. I love doing this sort of thing with them because I love the stories that they tell while they are working. They have done it too many years and it's kind of old hat for them- my grandma cuts the peaches and puts them in the jar while my grandpa peels. Ty walked in and watched us work for a minute and then said, "This is kind of like a factory isn't it Mama?" I think he had it about right!

Double Trouble

I finally did it. I pulled the trigger. I moved Ryan into Ty's room last week!! Ty has been begging me for months and I finally gave in! I'm not sure it was such a good idea- Ryan is totally confused at being in there with Ty... but yesterday morning Shaun and I were laying in bed listening to the two of them giggle. I hope that it works out well and that we don't spend too many nights threatening them to be quiet!!

Labor Day

I don't really remember taking a vacation without the kids. It might have been done at one time... but if it did- I'm drawing a blank... Anyway- this Labor Day we decided that we would hop in the car and drive out to see Shaun's brother and his wife in Colorado. I know what you're thinking... "Wait... didn't they just do that!?" The answer is yes- we did. However, Chase and Dani (said brother and sister in-law) have just moved into their new house and we wanted a chance to go and see them again- the last trip just kind of seemed like a whirlwind.

So- we loaded up in Jacki and Orllo's truck and headed out on Friday morning (have I mentioned that I LOVE Shaun's 4-day school week?!). My mom and dad took the kids for us- and from what I understood this morning- Ty and Ryan were NOT going to be sad about it. As we said good-bye to them they were both giggling. Anyway- we made it to Denver and we got to tour the new casa... it was so cute! Dani had done such a good job putting things together and Chase is Mr. Handyman (I kept trying to convince him of the benefits of coming and working for me for a week... I'm pretty sure I can keep him busy!). We also got to go and do a little baby shopping with them! I remember going and picking out our crib and changing table- it was so daunting! What was even more daunting was the idea of putting together all the stuff by ourselves. I have to admit that I'm jealous that Chase had Shaun and Orllo helping. I remember we put together our crib in the living room of our apartment- and we were quickly horrified to find out that once we wheeled it down the hall to put it in the bedroom... IT DIDN'T FIT THROUGH THE DOORWAY!! So we had to take it apart and put it back together again once we were in the room. It was a mess.

Anyway- we had such a good time! We got to talk- which Shaun and I have totally missed since we moved from Boise. And Chase and Dani took us to some yummy restaurants- I already miss them both and I keep checking my calendar wondering if it's too soon to go back out!! Thanks you guys!