Pumpkin Pickin'

We went out to Black Island Farm last week to go pumpkin picking. We had a lot of fun. We rode on a tractor's trailer (just like ours at home, as Sean will tell you). We had donuts and apple cider, we tried our skill in the corn maze and we played on the homemade playground. What more could you ask for on a nice fall day?

On our way to pick pumpkins. Tyler had to check with his big brother to see if this was safe.

If only we had seen this 20 years ago. Does this look familiar? When I saw this, it reminded me of our old treehouse. Only this had stairs the whole way up. I guess ours was more for a workout. Once you got to the top, you got in a potato sack and slid down the black tube. Joseph had so much fun with this slide. He wouldn't even sit still long enough to let me explain to him that mommy had a treehouse this same size!

This is one of the other homemade slides. So if you can't figure out what to do with all your hay, just turn it into a playground! Sean liked this one. Here, Mom and Tyler are racing Sean down the slide. I don't think Tyler was as excited as Sean. There was also another slide similar to this one, only twice as big. Obed took the boys down that slide and he had to admit it was a little breathtaking at first glance down. What a fun day we had. The boys talk about it all the time, especially when they see our beautful pumpkins on our stairs.

Our Not-So-Little-Baby

So, Just a few pictures to show Tyler's first foods. He's actually been eating baby food for a month, now (I know, I'm such a slacker). But his take on food has not changed much; which surprises us, because we started Tyler on baby food a month earlier than the other two because he was showing more signs that he was ready. Maybe he just has a palate for finer foods.

Are you sure that's edible?
I'm supposed to like this?
Oh, okay, I guess I'll eat a little more.

Also we have mastered sitting on our own. Okay, there again, this is old news in our house. Now, he has again learned that if I sit him down, it is to walk away to do other things (not all the time). So he likes to stand now--with assistance, of course. But here is a picture, hopefully capturing his growth.

Tyler loves to laugh. Here, I think he is lauging at his brothers--one of his most favorite activities. Now that Tyler is more interactive, I think his brothers are getting along with him better, too. If you can't tell, Tyler's shirt is all wet from drool. Yes, Tyler got his first tooth on Friday! I'm not sure if that relieved any of the pain or not, but he is still drooling and chewing on everything. Gotta love growing up.

Antelope Island

There are many things to do in Utah, that even growing up here I have not done. One of those things is visiting Antelope Island. Well, we finally ventured out to the island and had lots of fun during our visit. Our first stop was, of course, the visitor center. Who knew there was a visitor center on the island. We then made our way to a picnic area next to one of the "beaches." Well, as beach-like as you can get in Utah. I guess I've been spoiled after living in New Jersey and having actual beaches, but for the desert, it wasn't too bad.

Joseph, Sean and Mom made the 1/2 mile trek out to the water. The boys had lots of fun skipping rocks on the lake. I'm not sure if because the lake is so salty that the rocks actually skipped several times, or if it is because we were in the shallow water. But we had fun skipping rocks. The boys really just threw the rocks--any size and shape--head on into the water and they actually skipped. We had fun.

First Day of School

Joseph started preschool this month. He has the same teacher as last year, so it was an easy transition back into the school year for him. He goes to school on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. I think he is ready for a longer school week, though. He asks everyday if it is a school day. But that day will soon come and he'll be asking for a shorter school week! :)

Sean is such a big boy, he wishes he is going to school. But he is practicing going to school everytime we take Joseph. Joseph handed down his old book bag to Sean, so Sean has to take his book bag with us everyday we take Joseph to school; both to drop him off and pick him up.

Joseph's first day of school was actually a parent/student orientation. So Mom and Joseph packed up and went to school. Uncle David was kind enough to spend his day with Sean and Tyler. They did so much stuff with each other, that the next thing to do was. . . .sleep!

Our Stay-cation

For some reason, when summer hit, so did the busy season for Obed at work. However, Obed was able to take a few days off last week, so we decided to do a few things around town. We went to the Zoo, the Dinosaur Park, the Clearfield Aquatic Center, and of course to G'ma and G'pa's for a fun swimming day. We even introduced Tyler to the water. He loves bath time, but was only able to endure the few minutes of pool time. That's okay, there'll be plenty more where that came from. :)

August Firsts

Seems like we've not had as busy of a summer as others around. But we have been having fun. Some new things we've been doing this month include:

• Tyler rolling from back to almost tummy (if only his shoulders would turn) - we are still working on tummy to back. We are doing things in reverse with this one :)


• Sean getting dressed by himself


• Joseph is now riding a 2-wheeler.

We noticed we were focusing too much on how big Tyler was getting (you know, all those new baby firsts), as well as how much Sean is wanting to be independent. We decided we needed to get Joseph feeling like a big boy, too. His attitude was actually reminding us of that. So we took of the training wheels. It took Joseph all of about 45 minutes to master the balance, then off we went around the block, around the park, and up to Grandma and Grandpa's house to show off.

AND AWAY WE GO!

Happy Birthday Obed

Happy Birthday to You! In spite of Obed having to work late, we were able to celebrate. Actually, Obed and I had a movie and dinner date on Saturday. Grandma was the lucky winner to watch Joseph and Sean while Tyler enjoyed the date with us (as much as an infant can enjoy Batman). There is something about birthdays that just get everyone excited. Even though Obed didn't have "presents" to open, or a big cake with candles to blow out, the boys had been anticipating his birthday moment all day. It is always fun to see their enthusiasm.

Watch Us Grow

Just for fun, I'll throw in some pictures from the past month. It's amazing how fast babies grow in such a short amount of time. Now I just need to remember to step back and enjoy the show. Beginning of July

Mid-July

End of July

Joseph's Art

Joseph is trying to be like Uncle David. He loves taking pictures. Sometimes he doesn't always keep his focus while the picture is processing, but he has fun learning the art of art. I just wanted to show off some of his work.

Rocking Horse










Tip-toes (now we know what he is doing late at night.)















The most wonderful thing about Tiggers is. . .I'm the only one!












Gotta love brothers!

July Festivities

I know, Iknow. . .I haven't updated my blog recently (over a month), but we have just been having way too much fun this summer. We spent the 4th of July at G'ma & G'pa's swimming and BBQ'ing with the cousins (Sean loved swimming with Uncle David--he learned lots of new tricks in the pool); then enjoyed a nice fireworks display by Uncle Nathan.

When we can't make it up to go swimming, we have to be creative in our own back yard. Here is Sean modeling his suit minus a swim diaper--hence the Urkel look. You would never realize what good belts diapers make.


Joseph & Sean love basketball. We found these great shirts for a bargain price, so of course we could not refuse to pick them up. Too bad Tyler is just a little too small to play with his big brothers, but he's learning, and fast.

Brotherly Love

And of course you can't forget playtime!

Tyler is getting so big. Here is a brief moment when tummy time was fun. We even got a few smiles. Tyler is gettin so big, He smiles and laughs and will even grab or bat at things he sees in front of him. If he happens to grab your hand, he'll try to put it in his mouth. Yesterday durin tummy time, it looked as though he was about to roll over except his arm was in the way. But it's only a matter of time.

Sean is a good big brother. He loves to hold Tyler. Here, Tyler even fell asleep in Sean's comfy arms.
Joseph is more for the interaction. He loves to make Tyler smile. I'm not sure how much Tyler was smiling here--he was too busy concentrating on the music and trying to figure out how to clap your hands if you're happy and you know it.

Gardening Fun

So seeing Shelley's beautiful, mouth-watering tomatoes made me look at our own garden. Yes, we are trying on our green thumb this year. You will all have to come out and enjoy the fruits of our labor! Peas

Strawberries

Beans

Tomatoes

Corn

We also have 5 carrots--yes a whole 5! We'll see how they turn out. And the cucumbers had to be replanted because only one sprouted and that was mistaken as a weed by one of our helpers. We can't wait to taste all this yummy food!

Summer Fun

Okay, I know it's been a long while since we've updated out blog--thanks for all the reminders! :) So you'll be getting a lot of pictures now. A few weeks ago we went hiking up a canyon here in Layton. I can tell I've been in lower altitudes for the past several years. Even though this was not the biggest mountain I've hiked, I was definately out of breath. As for the boys. . .well, Joseph was a trooper hiking the whole way by himself. Sean rode atop Daddy's shoulders most of the way. And Tyler, well, Mommy had him in his carrier. We hiked and hiked and even took a wrong turn until we found the bridge we were looking for. We even ran into some nice people who showed us the way and told us later that we really weren't lost, we just had to go a little furhter to find the bridge. But we had fun. The boys will still tell you about it if you ask them.
Our neighbors invited us over to play in the water. While Sean and his friends took a warm-up break, Joseph continued running in the sprinklers and even had a water fight with others. They tried the slip-n-slide, but didn't quite get the hang of it, even on a hill. So we stuck with the traditional sprinkler and wading pool. But we all had fun! (except for Tyler who didn't really like getting in the way of Joseph's water fight.)

Pirates Ahoy

So Joseph & Sean have been surprising me at how much they have been playing together lately. This was their activity of choice the other day. . .PIRATES. (Thanks to McDonalds for the fun hats.)

And Sean comes out victoriously!

Poor Tyler. . .seems everyone has forgotten him, so he just does what he knows best. . .aaaah sleep.

Tyler has been getting so big, though. He has been giving us smiles for about 3 weeks, but they were always too fast to capture on film. This is the best we have so far, but don't worry, I'm sure there will be more to come!

Rain Days

Okay, so maybe I'll add a picture or two.

Joseph and Sean enjoyed playing in the rain and discovering all the fun an umbrella brings.

Grandma and Grandpa LeDuc (or Great G'ma & G'pa to the kids) came out to visit G'ma's brother. Here is their picture (left to right: Uncle Frank, Grandma, Grandpa with Tyler, Aunt Wanda)

Sorry, no new pictures to post this time. We just wanted to give an update. Joseph and Sean had their first sleepover without Mom or Dad. Grandma & Grandpa invited them to stay the night on Saturday into Sunday. Joseph had a blast with this (he was a little unsure at first, but then consented). Since Joseph was going, Sean of course wanted to go, even though he probably did not know where they were going or what was about to happen. They did have a great time playing with cousins for the night and going to G'ma and G'pa's Church. Mom and Dad didn't know what to do with a "night off" except to enjoy the quite time. Tyler, however, didn't know why the house was so quiet all night and all Sunday. Hopefully he enjoyed a little one-on-one time with Mom & Dad.

Earlier this year, around March, Joseph's Sunbeam teacher gave each of the kids a goldfish (yes a real goldfish). Their lesson was "I am Thankful for Fish." As we were driving home from church that day, Joseph told us that "It's okay if the fish dies." (Thankfully his teacher prepped them all that they may not survive very long.) Well, the fish lasted a lot longer than we expected; nonetheless, we woke up Monday morning to a dead fish. Joseph asked me what was wrong with his fish because he was on the floor of his fish bowl. The fish often did this, so without examining further, I simply stated, "Nothing, he's just sleeping." Well, after I took Joseph to school, I looked at the fish more closely because he had not moved since earlier. That is when I discovered that not all fish go belly up when they die. So we had to wish him a bon voyage as we sent him sailing. Hey, after all, all drains lead to the ocean, right?


Also yesterday was Joseph's last day of school. To celebrate the coming of summer, the class had a Hawaiian Luau. Joseph had been looking forward to his Hawaii Party all week. He was very excited to wear the new shirt that Grandma brought back for him. They learned how to hula hoop, they played with water balloons and squirt toys, made leis, and enjoyed fruit kabobs. He came home and told us all about it. Before he left for school, he wanted Sean to stay at school and enjoy the party, too. Unfortunately, it was just for the school kids. Joseph enjoyed this past year of school and is now learning what summer vacation means. He keeps asking everyday if it is Summer yet. When I respond that it is not, he cries out "Oh man!" Then I try to explain that he does not have school until after the summer is over. Wow, how confusing to a preschooler!

Anyway, we are off to a great summer--the weather if finally predicting to be warm this weekend (we've been wishing it here with summer attire). We can't wait to see everyone this summer with all the fun vacations planned!

Baby Blessing

Tyler is now just 3 weeks old. We wanted to have Tyler's baby blessing before Grandma and Grandpa LeDuc's visit came to an end. So yesterday we had a small informal gathering for the blessing. Yesterday was actually Stake Conference, so we had the blessing in our home last night. Here are some pictures of the event.