Date Night Swap

So, my friend Becca thought of this amazing idea where we watch each other's kids every other weekend so we can go out on dates! Last weekend I watched her boys and this weekend she watched mine. Jeff and I had the best time, we saw When in Rome and got ice cream in the 30 degree weather. It was wonderful. Thanks Becca for the great idea! And thanks David and Alicia for our Christmas present- movie passes and Cold Stone gift card! It was so nice to go out on a date, and even better that it was totally FREE!!

Tyler Funnies

Tyler's been sick this week with a horrible cough.

Everytime he'd cough, I'd look at him and say "I'm so sorry you're sick."

He'd say, "yeah, but it ok."

Later in the week when he'd cough, he'd say to me, "you sorry mommy? I so sick."

One day he told me he wanted some chocolate. I told him, "no, that will make your throat hurt"

He said, "No mommy, it will make me feel all better"

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A few days after Tyler and Jeff made cupcakes together, Tyler was licking the frosting of the last 2. I told him to eat what he wanted and then I would throw them away. (they were hard and stale) He said he wanted to make more cupcakes. (one of his favorite things to do/eat)

I told him, "Not today. Some-other day"

He asked me "when mother day?" I must have blurred some and mother together, cuz when I played it back in my head, it did sound like I said some Mother day. Funny!

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The last few days, I've been doing all I can to make him eat something. anything.

I've tried my dad's famous "Don't eat that!" and it really works. A little too well. Now when I really mean don't do...something, he looks at me with this silly grin and does exactly what I told him not to do.

Such as: "don't hit anyone with that. Be careful" --Brother gets conked in the head.

"Don't climb on the couch please." --Little monkey is on top of the couch in a second.

"Please don't yell anymore." --The noises get louder.

Now I've resorted to:

"Give me that stick or you're on timeout." -- here you go mommy.

"Did you know there are monsters on top of the couch?" --plop.

"Wow, Tyler I love that singing. It's so pretty. Can you go sing to Daddy?" --works like a charm.

and my all-time favorite:

"Tyler, don't eat those carrots. Daddy really wants them." --gone.

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Potty Training

Lightning McQueen, Wall-e, Woody, Buzz, Nemo and the Incredibles have agreed to help me in this quest to go diaperless.

This morning, Tyler peed in the toilet right after he woke up and about 4 times after that! He wore underwear for about 4 hours, until he had 2 accidents back to back and I decided that was great for day 1. Tyler explored all the different ways there are to pee in the toilet (standing up, sitting down, sitting sideways, squatting down, on the toddler seat, not on the toddler seat...) and my poor toilet needs a really good scrub down. As well as the hall carpet and the carpet around the toilet (oh how I hate carpeted bathrooms, what the heck, who thought of that?!)

Anyway, I am very grateful for my many Disney friends who allowed us to make this experience more enjoyable and I really apologize Mr. Incredible that Tyler peed on your face. He felt bad too. I watched him do it and he really didn't mean to. He was trying to get to the toilet and then sadly said, "Oh no, I go pee pee on increbible!"

oh, p.s. If any of you have ever potty trained a boy, I'd love some tips. I really don't know what I'm doing!!

Cleaning, Grooming, and Catching up

I've closed my etsy shop for a few days and I feel brand new. I didn't realize how much I worked until I stopped working. I still have a few orders to catch up on and honestly dreaded getting another sale. I promised myself that when it got to that point, I'd take a break.

So, I'm taking a little break. A break to renew myself, pay my bills, organize my house, give the boys haircuts, take them to the park, clean the kitchen and just plain pay more attention to my family!

The boys' room. I love it! Especially when it is clean. There's not a lot of room for playing, but all the essentials fit in there. They have really enjoyed falling to sleep together. I remember that being one of my favorite types of memories with my sister. I always loved sharing a room with her!

Here's Tyler's letter R rabbit ears. They must have talked about frogs too, because he hopped around the house with his rabbit ears saying "ribbit, I'm a rabbit, Ribbit, ribbit!" It was so funny! He has had a ton of fun this week at Luke's. On the way home he said, "Mom, I want to do that again." I asked him what he wanted to do again and he said "That. Preschool." :) Thanks Hillary!

Jackson has really funny hair. It is perfectly straight on top, and in the back it is fuzzy and sticks straight out. It has a really thick course texture too-- I call it Katie hair! (Good thing she's a girl and she gets to have it long and pretty!)

So, I decided to trim the back to see if that would calm it down. I think it looks much better.

It was so funny as I was trying to take a picture of the back of him, he just kept turning and turning as I did. But he was looking straight up at me, so he kept falling over. I was laughing so hard, I couldn't even take a good picture!!

I cut Tyler's hair this morning too, so I'll take one when I do the boys hair today for our Target trip today!

My Jack Jack

My little Jackson... Oh how I love him. At a little over a year old, he is very good at:

• Saying mama and dadda. "mamamamam, dadadadadada"... you get the picture. He also says a very funny tchtch sound that I think means Tyler.
• Giving kisses on demand. Whenever I say "Gimme a kiss!" he'll usually move his face closer to me, so I can nibble his cheek, but sometimes he actually opens his mouth and goes in for a big one!
• Clearing his high chair tray in .5 seconds-- he is a great eater. His favorites are fruits, veggies (finger food, not baby food), apple sauce, turkey, cheese and of course, cookies. He loves 'Nilla Wafers.
• Snuggling his face right into my neck. I love it! He is the best cuddler.
• Laughing. It doesn't happen very often, but when he laughs, he lets it all out. It almost sounds like a cry its so powerful. The other day, Tyler was banging a metal straw on another piece of metal and it made a really funny sound. Jackson sat there and cracked up so hard I was almost in tears watching, it was so hilarious.
• Opening and closing doors. He has a love/hate relationship with doors. Sometimes he shuts himself in a room and screams until I find him. When I open the door for him to get out, he just instantly closes it again- trapping himself yet again.
• He can fit anything in his mouth- ping pong balls, little people toys, a whole oreo. This guy has a large mouth!

I love my little Jackson-- I think back to the day he was born very often. It was so traumatic and scary, everything went wrong that could go wrong. My body hurt for months, reminding me of the horrible way he was brought into the world. I actually suffered from post traumatic stress for a few months. But, slowly over time, as I think about how blessed we are that he is in our family, those stressful feelings are transferring to peaceful thoughts. I'm so glad his life was spared and that I get to have my little Jack Jack. I just wouldn't be the same person without him. I'm grateful for the atonement that has brought me to this point, and the love of my Heavenly Father who has allowed me to find peace and beauty from such a scary situation. Jackson is our miracle and we are so blessed that he is a part of our family.

p.s. Took him to the dr today, he weighs 23 lbs, 2 oz!

Pinocchio Funnies (brought to you by Tyler)

The other day during "movie time" (the part of the day where I am too tired to talk, entertain or play) I asked Tyler what movie he wanted to watch. He said "NoNoNo" and smiled excitedly. After explaining to him that he indeed needed to pick a movie or else I would pick one for him, he explained to me that NoNoNo is how he says Pinocchio. Oh, got it. That is a hard word to say.

He then turned very sad as he looked at the cover and said, "Oh no! where his eyebrow?" I laughed and showed him that if I cover my eyebrow with my hair, it looks like it's not there, but it really is. I moved my hair over again, and he yelled, "Yay!" :) Silly boy. I usually clean my room while he watches movies on my bed. I was putting clothes away when he yelled, "Look Mommy! Santa!" I looked over at the tv to see Gepetto, in a red nightcap and white hair.

Jackson's 1st Birthday!

Jackson's #1 Birthday Party:

It's wonderful having Jackson's birthday on New Year's Eve because we are usually with family for the holidays. We had such a fun big family party and it was really special to be able to celebrate with my family!

We did a carnival theme with circus games and prizes!

Somehow Lily won pin the nose on the clown, and got it exactly in the right spot! I asked her if she could see with the blindfold on and she told me this: "No, I'm just very smart and I'm really really good at this game"

The boys' favorite game was 'play with balloons' cheapest game ever!

Tyler helped him blow out his candle (twice)

but he didn't need any help eating it.

All of a sudden I look back and Tyler has eaten 5 cupcakes!! He would lick the frosting off and tell someone "want 'nother one". His aunts and grandmas just kept handing him more (he has lots of friends.)

Happy New Year's Party!

On New Year's Eve, my parents hosted a New Year's Party with great food and snacks, games, and lots of fun!

I love this picture-- this is the same height difference we've had forever, probably since we were 9, 10 and 11. Funny thing is Sarah is youngest, and tallest, and Alicia is oldest and shortest. And I'm pretty much smack-dab in the middle!

Fun games-- BANG, left right center, and Word on the Street

My dad usually has a little nap (always on the floor) during these late night parties. Who can blame him?

The ball just dropped: Happy New Year!

(I think my brother is kissing Mel right now.)

We are excited for 2010!

Christmas in Arizona with the Clarks

It was so fun to hang out with Jeff's family for a few days. We got to see everyone except one brother in law (hope you are feeling better, Chad) and enjoyed everyday!

There were tons of grandkids running around, so we found the best place to visit was at the PARK!

Tyler loved all his cousins (mostly boys) and especially Kamarie.

Out of 13 grandkids, there are only 3 girls!!

Trevon and Keenan- the oldest of the bunch

we had a lot of slide fun. Jackson mastered the slide while in AZ and smiles or has his mouth open the whole time!

His Christmas pjs were covered in dust by the time we left, he was crawling all around the playground.

Present time!!

I love how the boys are huddling over their new cars!

The last day we were there, we went to another super fun park with a carousel and choo-choo train!!

more slides, of course

and even an elephant to ride!

We had so much fun! We always miss our family since we live far away, and cherish the times when we are together!

p.s. Kaylynn or Kara-- can you send me a big family and grandkids picture?! Thanks!

Christmas in California with the Wolfes

The boys did great in the flight down. It seems every time it gets easier. We should just start coming down every month now. Sound good mom and dad?

On Christmas Eve, Santa came to visit. My boys were a little scared...

Tyler talked to him about 3 feet away, very quietly...

And if he got any closer, looked a little worried.

Luckily, Santa wasn't offended and still came while we were all sleeping to fill our stockings and bring us toys!

Tyler got this Tiger alive that he is actually scared of too.

I didn't take very many pictures of Christmas day. My dad always says, "You can have a good time, or you can have pictures of a bad time!!" HAHA. That always makes me laugh. Anyway, I had to take pictures of this Batman rain gear that my parents got him. Isaac got a firefighter outfit, and Lily got Hello Kitty. Presents went on pause while they had a little parade around the pool. Somehow I didn't get pictures of that though!! Did you Mel?

We had tons of fun!