Corn Maze Fun!

The Jeppesen's

Ella pretty much the whole time..twirling

her hair and looking for sticks!

The MacNair's



It seems like I have been posting a lot lately, but I think I am trying to document all the last fun memories we have while we are still in Utah. Yesterday we went to the Green Canyon Corn Maze with our neighbors the Jeppesens, and MacNairs. We had a fun time, even though most of the corn was dead and leaning over! We got through in about 45 minutes and mostly because of my slow, distracted two year old who was to busy finding sticks and didn't want to get in the stroller! Thanks for being patient guys! We have fun with our neighbors and will be so sad to leave them!
After the corn maze we went back to eat pizza all together. We enjoy the fall so much, I wish it never had to lead into the dreadful next season...WINTER! I won't be sad to taking an early leave from the snow!

Pumkin Walk!

Tiger Woods, John Wayne, and Michael Jordon

Isn't Ragnar a very pretty Cinderella!

Ella wanted to be snow white!

Every year since I have lived in Logan, Utah we have gone to the pumpkin walk that the city puts on. Each year they have a theme and you can go and look at all the pumpkins that people either carved or decorated. We enjoy going and seeing what's there and this year we took the kids and went with our neighbors the MacNairs. We had a fun time and the boys were so excited that we waited in a long line for a string cheese! We had fun though and I love this time of year!

It's Official!

Cavin isn't sure he wants his sister to hold him
in the box!! He looks a little scared!

"peekaboo!"

Well, after much thought, we have decided to go ahead and move to Houston. We have been waiting for the house to sell, but regardless of the house selling, we need a change in employment and we need some forward progress for our family. Our hearts are full of many different emotions. We have made so many great friends in our 4 years here together. We have both been in Logan for at least 7 years and it has been a place, I swore I couldn't wait to get out of and now am sad to leave. I guess you really can grow to love anywhere you live. We are excited about our new adventures and the job opportunities in Houston, TX. I am also very excited to move closer to one set of grandparents and let the kids have a chance to be close to them at least for a time. As I told Ella we were going to move by Grandma Speers she immediately said "oooo I love Grandma Speers, come on let's go...whoo ooo" and then proceeded to jump in the box! We are very grateful for our family's support and willingness to help us in the scary endeavor. We will miss everyone and hope that our house will sell quickly after we leave. Our plans are to leave on November 29th. So, we say a sad goodbye to Logan, UT and a familiar welcome back to Texas! We will both be city slickers once again!

Our Munchkins!!

Today Cavin had his 6 month check-up! I can't believe he is already that old! He was 22.4 pounds and 27.5 inches. He is slowly coming back to the charts! Yeah! He did great with his shots and has never cried! (I think partly because he has such chubby legs he can't feel them!) He also started his first solid foods...oatmeal and squash, didn't love the oatmeal, but I think he liked the squash! He is so smiley!
Ella on the other hand is loving the "presents" that come with potty training. This is her in her new tiara and wand! I sure love dollar store bribing! I can't believe how old she looks now, I mean she looks like she is 5! Oh she is so adorable!

Our Not So Little Girl :(

Ella is getting to be such a big girl! It's weird to think of her as a little girl and not my baby. It does help that I have another baby to call my baby, but she is growing so fast. This past week we decided she was ready to be potty trained, so that's when the fun began. It has been a week now and she is doing pretty well. The last two nights we had no wet pull-ups and haven't had an accident for two days! She is really getting the hang of it. I mean I don't believe people who say that do it in one day, I just think it's a complicated concept for little ones. She is doing well, but I'm sure it will take a while before I will consider her completely potty trained. She is making good progress though and I am proud of her! (For those of you who think Presents don't work...they did for us.. that's the only way she would go in the beginning!)

One other thing about the terrible two's that I was dreading was the awful 2 year molars everyone talks about. I kept thinking, I know they will come when Cavin starts teething. Well....I was brushing her teeth last night and I looked a little closer and 3 had already popped through!! I had no idea, she never said a word and I said Ella your teeth are in, and she just said, "I know mom!" I couldn't beleive it, so only one more to go and maybe I won't even notice that too! We can only hope we have this good of success with things with Cavin!

Make-up Fiasco!

So today I was talking on the phone with my mother and Ella went into the bathroom as she usually does. She always goes where my makeup is and gets my chap stick to put on and comes out and says "oooo pretty!" Well today I thought that is what she was doing when she came out like this....with mascara everywhere. She said as usual..."oooo pretty" until I said oh no and scared her and said no no no and then she was sad and then it started getting in her eyes, so that wasn't fun. So, as a bad mother would, I ran and got the camera and took a picture of her even though now she was mad at me because it was starting to hurt. I guess her Aunt Marisa is going to have to come teach her how to really put it on (in a few years of course!) As usual Cavin was just chilin being amused by his silly sister. Oh the joys of kids!

So...I've been TAGGED!

Now that I have been tagged by 4 people, I guess I better do one of these silly things, so here goes:
10 years ago: I was anxiously awaiting my 16th birthday and being able to drive and date. I had just lettered as a freshman in Cross Country and thought I was so cool. I was dating someone who, as any other first love, I was sure I was going to marry....funny how things change!

5 years ago: I had one year left of college and wasn't sure what I was going to do after school. It was probably one of the worst years I have had, everything seemed so unsure.

5 months ago: I had just given birth to my adorable baby boy Cavin, he was so fun and so cute and I was trying to figure out life with two munchkins and wondering if my body would ever go back to normal!

5 things on my to-do list tomorrow: Go to church, take a nap, make dinner, play with the kids, read a book (it's sunday not much goes on!)

5 things people don't know about me-
I had my appendix out when I was 10.
I broke my arm rollerblading at 7.
I ran my first half marathon pregnant with Ella.
I always sleep on my left side (rags told me to write that!)
I love rolls (ok everyone knows that about me!)

5 bad habits:
I have ocd about the lines in the carpet.
I put everything away before everyone is done using it.
I want to do everything myself!
I get embarressed far to easily!
According to Ragnar I am horrible at loading the dishwasher (you try doing it with a kid in your hand all the time!)

5 places I've lived:
Midland, TX
Littleton, CO
Humble, TX
Spring, TX
Logan, UT

Post a random picture:

This is a picture of my sweet baby having fun in the blanket!


I'm not tagging anyone, because I don't love doing these, but if you love them, then consider yourself tagged!

Ella's First Haircut!!!

Before her Haircut!

After her Haircut!

The missing inch and 1/2

Her sitting in the new booster!

Today Ella got her first haircut! I have been trying to bring myself to want to cut it for a while now, and I finally got the courage! Her hair has gotten a little stringy at the end and so it was time to give it a trim! I thought about going to my neighbor and getting a trim, but I couldn't bring myself to pay $10 for three snips! I know I may be cheap, but how hard can it be to cut in a line, I mean it doesn't have to be super straight because they never hold their head straight anyway. Well, so we sat her in her new booster chair and gave her a haircut! She had fun coloring and when she was all done, she got to sit in her booster chair at the big table with us for breakfast for the first time too! Cavin is now the rightful occupant of the highchair! It was a fun day!

Brooklyn Mae Bailey

Today we, sadly, had to attend a graveside ceremony for Brooklyn Mae Bailey. Brooklyn is the 2 1/2 month old daughter of my first roommate at Utah State University, Angeline Bailey. Brooklyn was born with a heart condition and after many surgeries and hope, she finally ended her battle here on earth. It is amazing to me to see the strength and love that she brought to her family and the lessons that she taught us all. Today as I watched her father bring out her little casket my heart broke, thinking that no father should have to carry their child to their grave. Through the sadness and tears, I am so glad for the knowledge that God has a plan for us and that she received the body she needed to fulfil her purpose here. As the Bailey's grieve for their daughter, I am grateful for them sharing her life with us and what love she brought to the lives of us all.

Picnic with the Fam!

Yesterday Ragnar's dad and sister Sandra and son came to spend the day in Smithfield with us. Ella had fun with her cousin Jonas at the park and we had fun laying in the sun. We just hung out and watched "Iron Man", watched the kids play, and ate hamburgers of course. It was nice of them to come down!

(i took these pictures from sandra...thanks!)