Blenders & Baths

It was a relaxing weekend around here. A few things that we had to do like a company party, church, and folding laundry, but other than that it was low key. So, it was a great time to try some new things.

First new thing was bath time with 3, yes THREE, boys in the tub. For quite awhile now, Ethan has been taking showers rather than baths, but when he heard that Trevor was going to play in the tub with Cooper, he decided a bath wasn't just for "little kids" anymore. They had a blast and poor Cooper didn't even realize that he was right in the middle if the cross-fire.

Then on Sunday, since we had some down time after church before the Packers played, I decided to make some food for Cooper. Carrots and sweet potatoes to be exact. He loves his carrots and now we moved to sweet potatoes which he loved just the same. This is the first time I have made my own baby food and I have to admit that it is kinda fun to do and I feel really good when I know he is eating food that I made rather than the store bought food. Not that it makes any difference (as Ethan and Trevor both had the store bought food), but it's fun to do something a little different with each child.

So that was our weekend of blenders and baths...

days like today

I love days like today.  No major events for us.  But we did....

~ Not set an alarm.  No work to get up for (even for Rick). No school to get up for.

~ Have a lazy morning with a relaxed breakfast and some play time.

~ Watch 2 soccer games... Trevor at 11am, Ethan at noon...and the weather was beautiful!

~ Stay outside ALL afternoon.  ALL of us.  The kids played. Rick and I got work done (Christmas lights off... yes we still had them up (not turned on though)), cut the lawn, laid new mulch in our large front flower bed, sprayed weeds, and played with the kiddos between the various tasks.)

~ Eat dinner as a family as we watched the first of two Final Four games together.

It was a wonderful day full of nothing but family time, nice weather and accomplishing things. 
Loved it.  Loved it.  Loved it.

Oh and did I mention that it was sunny 90% of the day?!?  That helped me love the day even just a little bit more :)

Family Update

My blog posts lately have been a bit less than desirable in terms of how I like to communicate things and the types of things I like to communicate.  So, I am going to give a quick - well, not really all that quick - update on everyone since the glimpses into our life and personalities have been lacking lately.  I am hoping (still) to change this, but for now we'll just see what happens.

Ethan -

He's only 2 months away from being done with Kindergarten, and he is still loving it.  He enjoys reading and we are so proud of him and how well he is doing.  He can read higher level books and loves the challenge of them.  In terms of academics, the one thing he loves more than reading is Math.  He LOVES math.  (oh and how happy that makes the his two "engineer" parents!) 

He is also becoming "too big for his britches" on some days.  You know, that sweet innocent kid that all of a sudden has his body and mouth taken over by some aliens that are looming in the air.  The snotty-ness and sassiness comes out and you wonder where in the world they get it from.  There have been a number of those days lately and they have resulted in early bed times, taking away of the Wii privilege, etc.  Hopefully this is just a phase and the sweet boy that we know and love will be present on a regular basis once again.

He is still into each and every sport possible.  We are at the beginning of spring soccer here and he is a bit nervous about the season.  Prior to this season, he was in the Pee-wee division (4 and 5 year olds).  this year, he is moved up to the Minors division which includes students that are 6, 7, and 8, I believe. He's not used to being the "little guy" on the team so it's a whole new ball game for him.  Being the youngest.  They now have goalies. Bigger field. Tougher competition.  It will be fun to see him rise up to the challenge after he gets those first few little butterflies out of his system. 

Here is a quick run down of adjectives that describe Ethan at this point in time (and by no means is this list all inclusive): inquisitive, sweet, kind, knows how to get away with things (so he thinks), loving, funny, smart, up for a challenge, athletic, helpful, always-on-the-go, gentle (with everyone but his brother), sensitive, competitive

Trevor -

Trev is doing well in his Preschool and looks forward to going each Tuesday and Thursday.  He is also very excited to be signed up and already in a Pre-K class for next year at the same school as his big brother.  He has been ready to attend there (in his mind anyway) since last year so hopefully next year will be a lot of fun for him.  It will definitely be a switch for him being in school ALL day EVERY day (oh and it'll be just a little switch for me), but hopefully we'll get through that first tough month of adjustment and all will go smoothly after that.  He has taken a liking to coloring "nicely" rather than scribbling, he enjoys doing activities with his letters/numbers and can recite all the letters, their sounds, and has finally caught onto how things rhyme. 

Some things we are still working on (and this is more because of his stubbornness than anything) are getting dressed by himself, putting his shoes on by himself, and covering himself up at night when he wakes up.  For Ethan, these things seemed to "just happen", however, with Trevor it's been a bit more of a struggle.  But we're getting there....slowly, but surely.  Did I mention we're getting there SLOWLY??

This spring season, Trev is finally old enough to play soccer here.  He is SO EXCITED!!!  It's been a long time that he had to just sit and watch Ethan, but this season will be different.  He is on his own Pee-Wee team and will have to learn the rules of the game.  It will be interesting to see how he does.  Being the "little brother" some days he is very in-your-face competitive and other days we hear a lot of "awwweee... he took the ball from me" or "he won't give the ball back to me...." type of comments.  It'll be interesting to see how things play out when he is on the field and doesn't always get the ball.   Either way, it'll just be fun to see him out there running and having fun (I hope) with the other kids his age.

And the list of descriptions to hit a bit on Trevor's personality at this point: cuddly, humorous, instigating, faithful, caring, determined, competitive, sweet, loving, whiny, picky eater (at dinner time only), interested in what bigger kid are doing, imaginative, smart (even though he likes to "pretend" he doesn't know the answers), compassionate

Rick

Well, I can't really say that Rick is changing all that much.... you know they tell us women not to expect to change them after we marry them.  And for the most part, that is correct.  No changing going on around here - he still likes to know where the money is going, still hates to do the dishes, and even more so hates to dust - nothings changed there! ;o)  But some other things are still the same and I am thankful for that.  Rick is still very much enjoying his job. He takes pride in doing a good job and strives to continue doing that.  (and I thank him from the bottom of my heart since he is giving us the life we have right now - allowing me to stay home with the boys, a wonderful home that is filled with love from all of us.) 

He is enjoying time with the boys and their faces just light up when they get to spend the time with him.  As an extra special treat this spring, Rick is helping coach both Trevor and Ethan's soccer teams.  He is excited to do something "non-work related" and the boys are ecstatic that Daddy will be at every practice with them!  Since neither Rick nor I ever played soccer except when we were forced to in PE class, it is a learning experience from him.  But the head coach of the teams is fantastic at the sport and with the kids so it will be a great person to learn from this season. 

Amidst being a hard worker, a wonderful father and amazing husband Rick is trying to fit in time for exercise as well.  The challenge of making it a routine, just finding the time to do it, and making it happen has been a struggle.  However, hopefully with the warmer weather on it's way it'll somehow work itself out and he'll be on his way to a routine again. 

And this just in so that you can see what Rick really does while he's at work...

(it was perfect timing for him to send me these pictures as I was writing this post)

  (ok ok ok.... I have to admit, I think it's a pretty cool thing that they do.  Each year for Dr. Seuss's birthday, individuals from the leadership team of their company take time out to read stories to local school children of all ages. Some in grade school, some just in preschool or younger.   This year Rick had a group of youngsters that were not even in school yet - 2 maybe 3 at the most.  He enjoyed it and loved seeing their reaction and how they tried to repeat certain words and animal/object sounds.  Can't say he was overly thrilled with being sneezed and "snotted" on, but hey, that comes with the territory.  It's a great activity that their company allows and encourages them to do in the community!)

Angie

Me, well, that's a bit harder to write about.  You know, it's always easier to write about others than it is yourself.  But I'll give you the point blank run down of what's going on with me.  No added adjectives to make myself feel better or worse about myself ;o)  So me - I'm growing.  Unfortunately, not height-wise.  I gave up on that fantasy many years ago.  But my belly is growing, growing, growing. (Be on the look out for belly pictures - I have decided that if I don't put them on here, they will just be lost in "picture space" never to be seen again).  I am officially 24 weeks and some odd days pregnant.  I am loving it, like I did with the other two, however, I am not absolutely loving the "getting bigger" part this time around.  But I am feeling good so I am not going to complain.  (enough about the pregnancy - that I'll leave for a different post). 

The boys deliver me my frustrated days; however, I am doing a better job of taking a step back, taking a deep breath (or maybe 10) and then reacting to whatever is going on.  I am enjoying the little things with them - playing board games, coloring, doing workbooks/homework, just sitting and watching a cartoon or part of a movie, acting silly, and just being there to spend time with them. 

 (At this exact moment I just had a conversation with Trevor about how Ethan can make farting noises with his hands.  Trevor thinks this is the coolest thing and was telling me all about it.  You see, it's those type of moments that instead of saying, "oh Trevor, that's not nice to do", I'm sitting here laughing with him and telling him how silly it is when Ethan does that.)

This winter, I loved the snow!  We got a bunch of it and it was so fun to be outside with the kids in it.  However, I'll admit, I am SO READY for the warm, summer weather!  My body might not be ready for a swimsuit, but I don't care.  (that might change when I actually go to put on that swimsuit, but at this precise moment I am saying, "bring on the swimsuits".)  I am ready for warmth, shorts, tank tops, and yes, even time at the pool.  I know that time will be cut short with the baby due in July, but I want to enjoy it while I can and plan to do just that!  So that we can visit the pool frequently this summer, I am trying to get better at my cleaning routine.  It doesn't always work, but I'm getting there.  Floors are getting vacuumed on a regular basis.  Things are getting dusted on a regular basis.  I'm more on top of my laundry piles than I have been in the past.  My menus are getting completed ahead of time.  

All in all, our family is doing very well.  We are still trying to find our "niche" here in our town so that we have things to keep us busy, but overall we are liking it here and have met some great people along the way.  The smaller towns are a blessing in some ways and a bit more difficult to get used to in others.  With the warmer weather will come more opportunities to do different things and that we are looking forward to once again!

Almost Perfect Afternoon

Back in October we had some beautiful weather (and are still having it in mid-November) and the boys and I took advantage of that weather by playing outside.  One day in particular, they had an absolute blast playing football.  Kelty even got to play with them - more by her choice than theirs! 

I wish it could stay like this all winter!! It was an almost perfect afternoon.  The only thing that could have made it perfect is if Rick would have been home to enjoy it with us.

Where Am I?

You know, I really wish I knew the answer to that question. I wish I could tell you that we are out doing these amazingly fun, exciting things that are keep me away from my blog. I wish I had some crazy, beautiful, and fun pictures to show you from all of these adventures that we are taking part in. However, I have to admit. We are NOT doing anything major. We are NOT partaking in grandiose adventures. We are NOT. We are just not doin' it. We aren't doing much of anything these days except for the normal, daily stuff. So here's a run down of what we have been doing.

- getting up in the morning
- going to school (Ethan and Trevor)
- going grocery shopping
- making breakfasts, lunches and dinners
- playing out side in the warm weather - playing soccer, golf, kickball, baseball, blowing bubbles, playing in the sandbox, shootin' hoops, riding bikes and scooters.
- dropping of the van to get new tires.
- picking up the van after the tire work is done.
- going to Ethan's soccer games
- going to the high school girls' soccer games
- playing with our friends
- going to the park
- reading books
- helping out at Ethan's school with end of the year events
- playing indoors
- taking baths (to get the loads of sunscreen off each night)
- golfing
- playing tennis in the driveway
- saying our prayers before bedtime
- spending any time we can as a family
- loving the spring time weather before the real heat sets in

So - that's what we've been up to. Nothing spectacular. Nothing major. Just normal, everyday fun.

What Daddy's Are For

This morning was a lazy morning.  Ethan was not feeling the greatest on Saturday night so we decided to keep him home from church this morning.  Trevor and I went to church, but after we came home it was all about Daddy.  Daddy had to play games. Daddy had to make lunch. Daddy was the jungle gym.  It made for a great day; however, Trevor is now going through withdrawl being that Daddy had to go back to work and Ethan had to go to school.

Thanks for being the one they like to climb on, Daddy...

What They Missed

Now, we did have a blast while in WI; however, it's always fun to see the first thing that grabs the kids attention when you get back to your own house. We returned home on Saturday evening and as Rick and I were unloading the vehicle, the boys took it upon themselves to get changed and start playing. Here is what they gravitated to not one hour after being back home!

Trevor's back into tackling...

Occupying Their Time

Our wonderful friend's, the Thoresen's, sent a package for the Ethan's birthday. We received it after returning from Wisconsin for Rick's Grandpa's funeral and the contents of it were Heaven sent!! There were two things.... the first one - PixOs.

Ethan loved them. And it just so happened that his cousin, Jordyn, had made him a PixOs design when we were in WI. He thought it was so cool... so this was perfect timing. He wanted to sit down right away and make something. We did a couple simple things first and then he made the bike above. Not that you can play with these, but he has enjoyed having them on his dresser.

And then there's the item below...The Imaginarium Marble Race. The boys LOVE it and it was a great distraction during a time of getting back into the swing of things after being in WI for the week. The boys play with this marble maze like I've never seen them play before (or not very often anyway). There is no fighting, they laugh, they giggle, and did I mention there's NO fighting (I am writing this several weeks after receiving it, and to this day there has not been any fighting with this toy!!)

Thank you, Thoresen's! The boys love this toy and so do I!!!

Outside Fun

Since Trevor's birthday we've had some fun outside time... here are just a few of the fun things we've done to enjoy the nice weather.

Scooter Riding Time

Football Kicking & Catching Contests

Small-town Homecoming Parade

(much better than the Horse Parade in UT)

The High School Band

The Cardinal of Clinton High

My Players

Once again, it's football season. I know you've seen pictures like this before, but they are just so darn cute in their helmets with their game faces on....

Play Ball Boys, Play Ball! Just be careful while you're doing it...PLEASE!!!!

How We Make It

This post is going to show you one of our little tricks to getting the kids through the waiting game. Whether it be waiting for a vacation or for waiting for visitors to come or as of late, waiting for our big move. It's been rough with Rick being gone for so long. It was great to have him home this past weekend; however, that brings about a whole circle of emotions with the boys and missing their Daddy. But our "trick" has gotten us through many of these waiting games and I'm sure it will get us through many more in the future.

It started back when we first moved to Utah. We had heard that some visitors were coming out to see us long before it was actually going to happen. At the time, Ethan was so excited about the visitors that he would ask everyday, several times a day, when they were going to be here. To take the blame off of Mom and Dad when we would say, "not for another 3 weeks", we decided to make a calendar of all the days between then and the arrival date. The arrival date had an airplane on it so Ethan would understand that was the day the visitors flew into the big airport to come see us. It worked wonders. Each night before bed, he would get to cross off a day and would then understand that it wasn't quite time for our visitors but we were one day closer.

This concept of a calendar has helped me tremendously during our move this summer. Not only is it Ethan that wants to know when Daddy is going to be home or when we move, but Trevor is right in line, too. Each night one of the boys grabs a pen and crosses off the day. We've had to switch every other night so we don't have a fight in regards to whose turn it is to cross off the day -- go figure. And the concept worked great for my mom when she was with the boys during the house hunting trip Rick and I took. The boys knew just how many days it was before Mom would be home and it made the world of difference. But anyway, here it is... our calendar for the month of July/August.

There are not many days left to cross off (which makes me very sad and very happy all at the same time.) We've had lots of stuff going on - the last day of school for Ethan, Vacation Bible School at our church, Daddy coming home, etc. Some calendars are hand made, others (like this one) are from the computer, but it doesn't really matter to the boys. As long as they can see what day they are on and the day they are trying to get to, that's all that matters. This particular calendar has gotten us through some rough days and nights, and I highly recommend doing something similar to anyone that needs help making their child "tell time" when it pertains to an event in the future...

It's Hot...

There's really no other way to describe the weather here in Utah lately. It's been in the mid 90's with an abundance of sun for much of the week and is supposed to continue into next week. Trevor is our "hot-box". His little face gets so red when it's warm out and he just looks miserable. Today, he was in heaven when I said that he could take his shirt off outside, as long as he kept that little white body in the shade. He did great! As soon as we made our way inside, he decided he didn't want his shorts on either so he took those off on his own. And this is the way he ran around until it was time for his pjs.

Trevor's not the only one that has a hard time with the heat of summer. Kelty, pitch black Kelty, also has a rough time. This was her favorite cool spot today....

2 in the same day

Last week, I had two very tired boys. Ethan wasn't feeling well and Trevor was just having one of those tired days. This is what most of the day looked like for them.

Sunning the Belly

No, it's not MY belly! And if it was - I definitely wouldn't be posting about it AND showing a picture. But rather, it's Kelty, our pooch! Not often do I get to do a post just about the dog, so I am taking this opportunity to do so. Kelty was outside enjoying the sun on the deck today and this was her pose for quite some time. I couldn't help taking a picture, nor could I help wishing I was her. Not a care in the world, relaxing in the sun, and just waiting for the next meal time or for the kids to play with me. (However, I will say that I would probably be a bit more "Lady-Like" than she was.)

Technology Catch Up

If you know Rick and I, you know that having the latest and greatest product/technology out there is not all that important to us. Over the last 6 months or so we've been toying around with the idea of getting a new printer for our computer. Going back to that first sentence, we had a very old printer... you know, the kind that has only 3 buttons (on/off, paper feed, and replace ink) and sounds like you can hear every little movement it makes.

This past weekend STAPLES started running a sale that if you bring in your old printer you get $50 off a new one. Again, we hemmed and hawed and then I decided to go down and print off one of my collages on photo paper to see if our old printer would do the trick. (Originally I was going to print all those collages at SAM's, but the quality of a JPEG compared to the original Power Point was terrible. So I have to print them all at home.) Upon putting paper in and clicking on print, the paper started going through and then one of the "levers" inside got stuck in the up position, putting a slice in the paper. UGH. Fluke? Let's try again. Ran through all the same steps. Result #2.... slice in paper AGAIN. Well, guess that answers my question -- Yes, we need a new printer.

So, we've upgraded into the 2000's with a new printer and I love it!! (Here's a picture of the "tank".) I've printed off the collages that I have completed (and this amounts to a very small portion of what the final number will be. Why do I wait for YEARS before starting projects like this??) The quality is far superior to anything we could have dreamed of with our "back in the day" printer. Oh, and the best thing. I sit on the couch with my computer, finish a collage on the laptop and then hit print and the printer (that is located downstairs) will start working away. YEP - it's wireless. What a great invention!

A Girl's Day

Oh what a day it has been (and it's not even over yet)! I've had some Christmas money burning a hole in my pocket the past few months and today was the day that I blew it all away. I decided last night that I was going to go shopping a bit after dropping Ethan off at school today. I was in desperate need of some new summer tops and pants since most of mine were well past their expiration date and had been worn for way too long.

So, off Trevor and I went and that "a bit" ended up being the ENTIRE morning. Trevor was such a trooper and that made it much easier to keep trying stuff on and putting it in the cart. And I was proud of myself at the end of the day -- I only spent a little bit from our account, but most came right from the Christmas money (Thanks, Granny! I hope you were watching me have fun in the stores.)

Here are a couple pictures of what is now going to be hanging in my closet. There are a couple pair of pants, a pair of shorts, 4 dresses, and 14 tops (3 of which are sweaters - you can't pass up the end of winter clearance buys). Oh, how excited I am to wear the fun, colorful stuff I bought! Now we just need to have spring stick around for more than one day.

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Now, not only did I go shopping today, but I had things delivered to our house! Our Blog Book that I was waiting so patiently for arrived today... and I LOVE IT!! I can't wait to start on the book with our 2008 entries. At the ripe ol' age of 32 I am already forgetting things that the kids and Rick and I do so this will be a great great way to recap each year and to have everything documented in a fun format! Thank you Blurb for supporting Blogspot once again...

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Today was not just a good day for me, but also a good day for the other girl in the house, Kelty! Much like my need for new clothes, Kelty was in desperate need of a new bed to sleep on. This bed is normally in the living room for her and it was getting so bad that the other night she dragged it through the dining room, down the stairs and to the basement. She wanted it out!!

Today was the day she got that new bed... and was laying in it only 5 minutes after I put it in the living room.

Out with the oldIn with the new...

Bored with the Hoop?

Back in February (yes, I'm catching up on some random posts) the boys had a day when they got a bit bored of using the basketball hoop the way in which it was meant to be used. So, instead of shooting a ball into the rim, they decided to do the following....

Use it as a SLIDE

And... use it as a TUNNEL

I'm happy to say that they are back using it the "correct" way, but what a fun day it was to have both a tunnel and a slide in our kitchen and not just a boring ol' basketball hoop!

Grocery Store Tantrum

We have been pretty fortunate with our boys. They have their fits and tantrums like any kids, but they typically happen when we're in the confines of our own home. That is, until today. Before nap time I realized that I needed sour cream for a recipe I was making for dinner. Rather than waiting until after naps I decided that we should go to the grocery store beforehand and that way I could pre-make dinner while they were napping. Great idea, right?

Not needing a lot at the store (only sour cream and milk), I didn't even get a cart, but Ethan wanted one of the little ones that they have for kids. I told Ethan it was a great idea but that Trevor gets to push it to the milk and he would get to push it back to the register. All was fine until we got to the milk and were trying to make the switch from one child to the next. For some reason Ethan, the one that was going to now push the cart, had the BIGGEST emotional breakdown ever!! He screamed, he cried, he jumped up and down stomping his feet and punching his fists like he was doing bicep curls! Absolutely wonderful exhibit of how we act in a store.

Now what was all the fuss about? It was because he wanted to push it TO the milk and not FROM the milk. Well... Hello.... Ethan, if you would have told me that before we got to the milk I could have changed things around! So, we eventually made it to the check out, with Ethan still crying, and figured I'd help ease some of the pain by letting him push it all the way out to the van. He agreed, but oh was this the wrong move on my part. First, he was walking like Pokey-Joe Turtle and I had to nudge him to go a bit faster since he was creating a line-up behind him. That did not make him happy and he said, "Mom, stop pushing me!" Then, we get out into the parking lot and as he was walking next to the curbing, the cart hit a hole and tipped over into the curb and of course, to follow the pattern of the trip, he went down with it. Ethan got up (crying again), I tipped the cart back up, put the milk back in it. As Ethan was walking between the curb and the now standing cart it fell over again. This time hitting him, making him fall while the cart slid down the side of this leg, giving him a huge knot on the side of his calf. That caused yet another uproar from him with screaming "Owie, it hurts" over and over and over again!

I truly hope I don't have to go through that series of events again any time soon. But seriously, it could have been sent to America's Funniest Home Videos had someone caught it on tape! No one did, unfortunately, which means that we won't be making any money off of our emotional breakdown....so why don't we just go back to being the nice boys in public and the tantrum throwing boys within the walls of our house!

Let the Games Begin

The time has come. The games of March Madness have started. What does that mean around our house?? Pretty much that nothing will get done. Well, I shouldn't say that. Little things will get done. Laundry will continue to be loaded, unloaded and folded. The dishes will get put away and things will get picked up. But these are all things that can be stopped and started several times while a "game break" is taken to see who's winning. However, large projects that take concentration and uninterrupted time - not going to happen! It's just fun to watch the excitement and determination that these college kids have during the tournament time.

This year Rick and I are once again doing brackets with our crew from WI, and Ethan even picked his bracket again this year. I do have to say though, that Ethan's bracket last year was much more accurate. This year being that he knows more teams and state names and is a true Aggie (USU) fan, his bracket got a bit skewed! His final four picks include - Louisville, USU, Pitt and Gonzaga. His champion USU. (I'd like to see USU go further into the tourney too, however, I just don't think they're going to make it to the championship -- sorry).

Now, here are some of his reasons for the picks he made. He picked American because "We live there." He picked Minnesota because "We have to fly there when we go to WI." And USU got picked because, "I just like them!"

Time will tell who the eventual winner is.... Go March Madness!

Very Odd Combination

One morning we were getting ready to eat breakfast which is typically just cereal or waffles during the week. We were running low on the amount of cereal left in most of the boxes, but Ethan decided that he wanted to make use of everything we had (at the same time). I told him he could finish one cereal and then have some of another since there wasn't much left of either. Against my recommendation Ethan told me quite forcefully, "No, Mom, I want to eat them together!"

The "them" in this case .... Foot-Loops and Life cereals. Ugh - not the best combo in my book, but he at it and said it was YUMMY!