My baby is 4!

We celebrated Ryan's birthday on Saturday! I had to work until 1:30, so Steve spent the morning cleaning the house, and picking up the cake and balloons! Good job Mr. Mom! We met Syd at the bowling alley and let the kids bowl a game. Then it was back to our house for presents and (basketball)cake! Ryan loved it when we all sang to him, he just sat there and smiled and acted a little bit shy. After he blew out his candles he said, "This is the best birthday I never had." It was so cute and we all had a good laugh! I can't believe that my baby is 4 years old! I was thinking back to the day that he was born...It was the first time that I'd ever been induced and it was great. Steve and I went to the hospital around 7:00 a.m. and he was born around 11:15 a.m. My doctor guessed that he would be around 7 or 8 lbs., but to all of our surprise out popped a chubby 9.6 pound baby! He seriously looked like he was about 2 months old! He has been our "lil sump" ever since. Today he is so full of personality and thankfully he will still cuddle with me. He gives "cuddle kisses" and "eskimo kisses" and his favorite..."butterfly kisses" I love it! When you ask him how old he is he holds up his "thingers" and says "Four, I got a lot bigger last night." He still sleeps in our bed a lot and Steve and I don't have the heart to fight with him over it. He said the other day that he doesn't want to sleep in our bed anymore because it's getting too squishy! I've been thinking that for a long time!! I love you, my lil peyunkin!

Zach's 1st Soccer Practice!

We were all excited for Zach to have his 1st soccer practice! It is right down the street from my house and we all went to watch. There is a little playground right next to the soccer field, so Bree and Ryan played on that a bit. There was also a little stream and to my disgust, Bree was catching tiny snails! Yuck! Zach has never played on a team before and doesn't know a lot about soccer, so I'm excited for him to learn! He drank a whole water bottle and came home and ate a big bowl of Goolosh. More than he'd ever eaten before! He really worked up an appetite! Way to go Zachy! We are proud of you!

Playing at work

Here are the kids playing at Mommy's work!

Alpine Slide

On Saturday we had a fun afternoon at the Alpine Slide up Little Cottonwood canyon!  I love going up the canyons, it is so beautiful!  We went up with Jared and Courtney and their kids.  Steve rode down with Zach, I rode with Ryan and Bree got to ride all by herself!  It was so much fun, but I was smiling and laughing and I almost ate a bug!  I think I enjoyed the chair lift the best.  I could seriously ride it all day long, it's so relaxing! That night we went to dinner and a movie with some of our friends and had a great time!

Children's Discovery Garden

I met my friend from high school, Jana, and her two boys at the Children's Discovery Garden at Thanksgiving Point.  I hadn't seen her for about 9 years!  It was so good to see her and catch up!  Ryan had a great time playing in the water at the Noah's ark display and pushing his way to the front of the line to go up in the little light house!  My kids all had dentist appointments today and I was so proud of Ryan because it was the first time that he let them take pictures of his teeth!

August 16, 2008

On Saturday morning, I cleaned the parade model again with Steve while Bree babysat. We all had lunch together at McDonalds then Steve went golfing and the kids and I went to the Draper pool! Bree and Zach loved the diving boards! I couldn't believe my eyes when Zach climbed the ladder to the high dive, walked fearlessly to the end and jumped right off! He's only 6! I was quite impressed because I was scared to jump off the high dive when I was 8! I was so sad that I didn't take my camera! We went to Mulligans again that night, so the kids and Steve could hit a bucket of balls. I am happy to just watch and take pictures.

August 15, 2008

-The kids had a blast playing out in the rain!
-Steve and I cleaned the Parade of Homes House  (I used to think that it would be a great gig to clean model homes, but I got a taste of it and it's really hard work to do it perfectly like I like it!)
-We Got our carpets cleaned this morning.  I was in the best mood all day knowing that my carpets were so clean!
-I went into work for 2 hours with my kids and no one showed up for the day care, so I just played with my kids at work!  I can't ask for a better job than that!
-I took Bree to the doctor because she had a really bad croupy cough the night before. The doc thought she heard a pocket of pneumonia in her lungs, so we had to go to the hospital for a chest x-ray. Thankfully, it came back clear.
-Bree and I stayed home that night so she could rest and the boys and Steve went to Mulligans to mini golf.

August 14, 2008

I went to the pool with Krisha and her boys on Thursday and had a great time! I hadn't been to the pool for a few weeks and it felt so good to soak up the sun! Steve was supposed to test with UFA on Thurs. but they called and canceled because they were a day behind. It was a good thing because Steve shaved his head that morning and missed a huge spot! hee hee Usually he has me check his head and make sure he got it all, but he didn't that morning because we were all in a hurry. He went to the gas station to get a diet, but luckily he didn't have to go to his job interview like that! Too funny!
Thursday night I went to Suzette's baby shower at Katie's house! It was really good to see old friends and catch up! I hadn't seen some of them since high school 11 years ago! To all of you who couldn't make it, we missed you!

August 12, 2008

I had my 2nd day care shift on Tuesday night. My kids came with me and it was just us for the first 45 min. or so. I couldn't believe that I was getting paid to play with my kids and do crafts. Zach said, "Mom, you have the best job, I love it." So that made me happy. Steve came to get the kids after an hour, but they were being so nice and helpful that I said they could stay. Ryan wanted to go though, he's a total Daddy's boy. There were quite a few kids there last night, but it was better that way because the time went really fast. Brianna was so cute with the kids. She helped them do crafts and was so good with them! What a great helper!

August 8-10, 2008

Here is Ryan's typical outfit for the day. His "Hoop Star" jersey. He seriously is obsessed with it and wears it everyday, I'm not joking! If we're lucky, he wears the glasses and sweat band too!
I went shopping with my friend, Lisa, on Friday and had a lot of fun! We ate lunch at the Cheesecake Factory and had some luck finding cute stuff at Buckle. I got some jibbits for my kids crocs too, those things are quite pricy for such a little thing. Steve took Ryan with him to help Andy and Hayli move in, so it was a nice break for me!
On Saturday we had a lot of chill time! I'm reading the 3rd book of the Twilight series and after I read for awhile I fell asleep. Reading makes me tired! :) That night Steve and I watched U.S. Marshalls on t.v. We hadn't watched it in years and it was really good!
On Sunday we helped Andy and Hayli move in a bit. Mainly Steve helped because I was too busy holding baby Charly! She is an absolute doll and Bree loves to hold her too. Before we even left our house Bree said, "I call I get to hold Charly first!" :)
Tonight is my first day care shift and I'm really excited to get working! I hope this turns out to be a good job! I signed Ryan up for a different pre-school and we go on Wednesday to meet the teacher. He starts his official day on Friday! I switched him because this place is closer to my house and it's 2 hrs. 45 min. instead of 2 hrs. I hope he likes it!

August 7, 2008

I have been busy putting together some small shelves in the garage for shoes. 5 people in this house times at least 5 pairs of shoes each, and that's just the shoes we keep in the garage!...You do the math! I love to organize, so if any of you are cleaning out a closet...call me! I made a yummy pasta salad on Monday and Steve and I loved it, but the kids didn't. Shocker :) Zach couldn't get past the fact that the noodles were cold instead of hot and Ryan and Bree just pushed it around wondering why there were grapes in it! Picky eaters. It is hard to please everyone. My kids are seriously happy when I make PB & J's or Ramen!
Bree has started up dance and I have found someone to car pool with! Yeah! It makes it so much easier! So I drive on Monday's and the other mom drives on Wednesday's. This makes it easier for me to schedule which nights I can work too.
School is going great for Bree and Zach, I just can't believe how different our nights are now. When my kids were all little, I would have them in bed by 7:00! Now they are not in bed until 9:00 or later!!! My quiet nights with Steve are over! B and Zach are so hard to wake up in the morning, Steve calls them "Logger Heads" Where Steve comes up with all the nick names is beyond me!
The boys got into SO much trouble last night...They wanted to take a bath, which I normally do not let them do because they are so rowdy together, but it had been a while and I thought I'd give them another chance. I got them all washed and said they could play for a little bit. About 10 minutes later, I hear them acting up and laughing...Not a good combo. I go up there and they were sliding down the back of the tub like a water slide and water was everywhere. I was so angry and they knew it! Note to self: Do not let boys bathe together anymore!!!
We have our 1st professional family pictures being taken later today, I am dreading it, but excited for the outcome.

August 1-3, 2008

Steve had a small concrete job that he did for a neighbor on Friday morning, so Ryan and I stopped by to see him. Ryan loved seeing how the concrete came out of the big truck! Then I ran a bunch of errands with my big helper! On Saturday, Steve woke up at 5:00 a.m. to go boating with his brother and Dad. Steve woke up Zach to go with him. Zach got up on the wake board! He was so nervous last year to do the ski trainer, so I didn't see wake boarding in his near future! When Bree and Ryan found out that Zach got to go they freaked. It is so hard to take everyone everywhere you go and we are trying to make it all fair, but the kids are always getting upset and saying that it isn't fair...any suggestions?
Anyway, when they got home, Zach fell asleep while I was getting ready and Steve headed off for more fun at the golf course with his dad and brothers. He hasn't golfed with his brothers forever, so I was happy that he got to go. Don't worry about me and the kids, we know how to have fun too! We went bowling and ate lunch at the bowling alley. The kids like to eat there on the high stools probably just as much as they like to bowl! Then we went over to the mall because I needed a pair of pants hemmed. I told the kids that if they were good, we could stay and shop. They were very good, so we went in a few stores. I am trying to decide what colors to wear for our family pictures on Thursday, so I was looking around for that too. Bree got some cute shoes at Payless (love that store!) and the boys got some Lightening McQueen slippers.
We had our niece babysit Saturday night and I met Steve, Jake and Liz, and Courtney and Jared at Ruby River for dinner. Then we went to see The Dark Knight, I think everyone liked it except for me! I don't like really dark movies, I like it when the sun comes out the next day and it never did in the movie! Steve now wants to be Batman...oh boy! After the movie we went to Red Mango....YUMMY! It was so dang good! It's my new fav and Liz was saying that they are going to build one out my way!
Sunday was nice again because Steve was home. Same old story with Ryan...wouldn't go to Sunbeams. I brought some air freshener to nursery, so that made my day more pleasant! My friend in nursery and I never want to figure out who has the stinky diaper....It is the worst part of my job in nursery, so we try to take turns. Gross!
After church, we ate lunch, cleaned up, and I went upstairs for a nap! I'm not sure what anyone else was doing because I was asleep! I usually come home from church with a major headache, so I usually take some Ibuprofen and go take a nap! The kids watched SpyKids the other day, so now they play "spies" or "wipeout" with little obstacle courses! I love to see them play together. We went up to Steve's parents for a visit which is always fun. Then home for dinner, showers, and BEDTIME!

July 30&31, 2008

On Wednesday, Steve had a golf tournament with Zions Bank super early, I think he teed off at 6:30 up in Bountiful! Marian called me that morning and invited me down to Draper for a pedicure! So nice, and we had fun chatting and Ryan loved being the center of attention at the nail salon. After that, Ryan and I went to Haggermann's for lunch. The Hawaiian Hula sandwich is the best sandwich in the world! Ryan was full after his sugar cookie. I used to hardly go anywhere during the day with the two boys, but Ryan has been so bored that I've been out and about a ton more trying to keep him busy. It's so different going out with 1 child, we talk and all of my attention is on him. I love it. Sometimes I will go run errands with just Zach or shop with just Brianna and I love the one on one time. They are so different and super chatty when they are all by themselves. They really open up and tell me so much! I know it makes them feel special and I love that!
Bree had dance again tonight, so Steve, the boys and I met Marian, Sunny, and her kids at Arctic Circle for dinner. After dinner, Steve wanted to take Will to see the firetrucks, so we went to the Fire Station and Will loved it! Zach is always so curious about everything when we go. He checks out every nook and crannie!
On Thursday, I met Lorilee for lunch at Paradise Bakery...without kids! Then I went to get my hair done because I scheduled family pictures for next Thurs. We have been married for over 10 years, had 3 children, and haven't had a family picture taken! I am really excited to finally get one done!