July 2012

Life in July via Instagram.

 

1 – We bought a mini.van – a Honda Odyssey.  Never thought I’d drive a van but I’m loving it.

2 – New van meant it was time to wash carseats.  GROSS.

3 – We had some cousin time which is always wonderful.

4 – I love this goofball.

5 – We had cousin Julia over for Sunday dinner.  We love her!

6 – Nate set the table for cousin Julia’s dinner.

7 – Crafts & icecream cones with the cousins.

8 – We went to the beach.  It was fabulous.

9 – We love Metro Pizza.

10 – Kendal came to visit from Alabama!

11 – Ryan & Blake – little buddies.

12 – 24th of July Parade – our primary did a float with squirt guns!

13 – Aunt Ali took Nate to see Madagascar 3.  He loved it.

14 – Happy 4th of July.

15 – Austin Whitehead, a family friend, sent the boys these shirts from Annapolis.  My kids love Austin & Noah.

16 – Boys love to play tennis in the driveway with their dad.  Even in 110 degree weather.

17 & 18 – practicing their can-openers!

19 – Ali & I took the kids back to Lake Mead to play.

20 – Nate loved this guy, Brejden.  They are at Run plus Fun in this picture.  Brejden just moved – bummer!

21 – There was a major fire in Duck Creek that altered our 4th of July plans!

Ryan is [2.5]

Once again, photos courtesy of Camera Shy in Utah!

Oh, this little man of mine has made it to the age of two and a half!  Sometimes I wonder if either of us are going to survive the toddler stage.

Ryan is not lacking in personality – that’s for sure.  When he’s happy, he’s REALLY happy and quite funny.  And when he’s mad, he’s REALLY mad and is quite mean.

But he really is a darling kid when he wants to be.

Here’s a little about Ryan at two and a half:

- A lot of times he just doesn’t eat.  He will skip entire meals. 

- However, if we let him, he’d eat sugar and pure junk all day.

- He wants to be big like his brother in every way.  He especially wants to carry his own backpack everywhere.

- He loves toys, to play outside, dogs, babies, nursery, movies, books, the bathtub, superheroes, his friends, family & more.

- He is a fish – loves to swim!

- He has a temper like you’ve never seen before.  And he’s already sassy.

- He is either really nice or really mean.  You can tell by the look on his face or in his eyes which way he is going.  He has no fear being mean to other little kids – even complete strangers.  Yes, the playground bully is my child!

- Luckily he has a really great other side to him.  He says the funniest things.  For instance, after he finally climbed the ladder to the pool slide and went down – he comes up out of the water with his hands in the air and yells “I fun now!”  Apparently he was quite boring prior to going down the slide.

- He’s energetic & full of life.

- He loves to help cook.

- He is determined.

- He wants to do everything himself – “me do it.”

- He is still a good sleeper!  He sleeps in his crib, takes a nap every afternoon & doesn’t argue about bedtime.  However, he will drive all the way to Salt Lake City without an ounce of sleep.  He’s not a car-sleeper.

- He still has a binky.  I know, I know.  But it’s the ONE thing that calms him down. 

- He likes to poop on the potty.  I’ll ask him – “do you need to go potty?”  He says – “treat?”  He caught on fast that going in the toilet means he gets candy.  Real potty training will occur this fall.

Nate is [5]

Photos courtesy of Camera Shy in Utah.  I won a free photo session so we took advantage of it when we were there in August!

First off, how in the world is my little man FIVE?  Five seems like a really big milestone to me.  This is one of those ages where I truly wish I could freeze him.

Here’s a little bit about Nate now that he’s FIVE years old.

- He is a clever little man.  He’s always creating things.  He seems random objects and his mind immediately has a plan of what to do with it. 

- He could be starting Kindergarten tomorrow but we’re holding him back.  It won’t hurt for him to be the oldest!

- He loves to swim.  I can’t think of one time got out of the pool without me telling him it was time to stop swimming.  He will swim for hours and hours.  He has turned in to an awesome swimmer this year.  He’s at the point where he can swim without going from point to point.  He can tread water and swim deep.  It’s really fun.  And yesterday he mastered a back flip while Wes throws him in to the air.  Oh, and he’s a great diver too!  He amazes me every day in the pool.

- While he’s a dare devil in the pool – he’s a total weenie at Disneyland.

- He will give most things a shot at least once.  He rocked the high dive for the first time last week!

- He’s a great eater.  Will try just about anything and goes through phases where I’m getting a glimpse of life with a teenage boy.  I just can’t fill him up!  He’s hungry a lot.

- He loves books, root beer, super heroes, legos, Café Rio, In.n.Out, candy, cucumbers, his friends, cousins, school, crafts, TV shows, bowling, tennis/golf, family, the cabin, primary and more.

- He has the potential to be a fabulous older brother.  Sometimes he amazes me with his patience with Ryan and other times?  He’s a normal big brother.

- He loves to help people.

- He holds a grudge.

- He is competitive.  He tries to make everything in to a contest.  And boy he loves to win and hates to lose!  I wonder where that trait came from.

- Stubborn. 

- He loves to sing.  It’s never on tune and he sometimes yells as he sings in primary, but he loves it.

- There are times when he just doesn’t want to be bothered by anyone.

- He’s a leader & a follower.  Depends on the situation.

- He hates trying on clothes.

- Loves to play with big kids but he also loves taking care of the little guys.

- He’s quirky & goofy.  Sometimes I just have to smile at the things he likes to do! 

- He’s quite coordinated.

- He’s caring.

- When he puts his mind to something – he’ll do it.

- He struggles when he’s not the best at something. 

I have to say that I’m LOVING this age. Overall, Nate is a great kid. Things just keep getting better and better – so glad he’s my kiddo!

Nate is FIVE.

Nate’s birthday weekend at the cabin was on the calendar for almost a year.  He was excited about it which meant he never asked for a party or any real gifts.  Which made it the perfect year for a surprise party. 

It was a rather spontaneous idea – I decided a few days before we left for our Salt Lake road trip knowing I’d have to throw a party the morning after we got home.  Thanks to friends & family – it was perfect. 

Nate’s birthday morning started with streamers hanging down from his door [he thought that was pretty awesome] and balloons scattered upstairs.  The highlight of the morning was the fact that he got this Nerf gun back.  It was taken away shortly after he turned four and we told him he could have it back when he was five.  He didn’t forget about that gun and was thrilled to get it back on his fifth birthday.  I think that lesson actually worked because not one single person has been shot yet!

He thought it was a normal day – running an errand or two and then going to grandma’s to swim.  We walked around through the backyard, turned the corner & SURPRISE!  He had a lot of family and friends there ready to party on his 5th birthday.

I kept it simple -  We swam, ate pizza/watermelon/frozen grapes & ice cream.  Nate’s dream has always been to have his own piñata so we did that, too.  I’m just glad Sam and Kiley took some photos for me to document at least a little of the party!

The party was great & most important of all – Nate loved it.

But the fun didn’t stop there!  My sister, Ali got really sick that day and had to miss the festivities.  Which meant Nate got to hang out with his cousins ALL day while their mom just tried to survive.  My mom was a trooper and let Ryan sleep [he took a whopping 45 minute nap] while I took Nate, Abbie & Daisy to Ice Age 3. 

On our way home we stopped by Aunt Sam’s so she could give Nate her present: this 53” bear from Costco!  Apparently it’s an Aunt’s job to buy things their mom never will.  He loves it.

And then off we went to In-n-Out – Nate’s birthday dinner of choice.

I can’t believe he’s FIVE.  I sure do love this boy!

Nate’s birthday weekend at the cabin

For months and months Nate talked about his 5th birthday at the cabin.  It was his sole request this year as he turned FIVE.  We’ve been planning on it for a long time and it finally happened! 

The boys and I arrived late Thursday night.  I was just glad we made it after almost hitting a huge buck in the middle of the road.  It freaked me out!  But, we made it.

The rest of the family trickled in on Friday and Aunt Sam made her debut from girls camp on Saturday.

It was another great weekend at the cabin complete with visiting and feeding the horses [Nate rode one early Friday morning with Papa], a fishing boat on Panguitch Lake, geocaching, birthday celebrating, a nice mountain storm, lots of 4-wheel riding, etc.

The fishing boat on Panguitch Lake is always a hit.  Wes is a trooper and always gets up at 6am to go with my dad for a few hours before the rest of us arrive [Sam, you were missed on this early morning adventure].  This was Ryan’s first time on the boat.  He lasted a little while before he was kindly escorted off of the boat.  Nate, Daisy & Abbie each caught a fish!  It was a little sad being out on the lake – the water levels are soooo incredibly low up there that we hope the lakes survive.

Cabin car rides are always a hit.  We rode them all over with numerous visits to see the horses.  Nate & Daisy could live with animals and love it.  Abbie & I on the other hand could do without the smell.  Ryan developed a love for the cabin cars this time – the helmet didn’t bother him at all.

One of the highlights of this trip was our first experience Geocaching with The Thompsons!  Tripp & Ali took us out on our first adventure and we found a few right in Duck Creek.  Even my suspicious dad had a great time. Then Tripp got a geocache all ready for Nate for his 5th birthday weekend at the cabin and took Nate to hide it.  Nate is pretty stoked to go check it out when we’re back up there over Labor Day!  Thanks Ali & Tripp!

We were supposed to go horseback riding on Saturday afternoon but a nice mountain storm came instead!  There were chunks of hail coming off the roof – it was pretty neat!

We did cake/icecream and presents for Nate on Saturday night.  He’s been looking forward to his own cake and candles at the cabin for soooo long so it was fun to see him so excited – even in a blurry photo.

A cabin trip wouldn’t be complete without creating something outside.  This trip?  Bird nests.

We heart the cabin.  Thanks Marz clan for making Nate’s birthday weekend at the cabin so fun!