Joe's 2nd Birthday!

We went to Keith's grandparents cabin for the weekend, which was a nice break from the ordinary for all of us. We were able to go the weekend of Joe's birthday and he thought it was all about him--which is fine. We had a lot of fun watching the boys have a lot of fun at the cabin. The only problem we had was that Grandma Lila has a little bear statue by one of the doors, and Joe was pretty scared of the bear. Keith put a blanket over the bear and everything was fine after that. 

Joe has always loved a party, and this was no different. We had our movie night up at the cabin and Joe was the last one to fall asleep. 

What a life saver!

This is something that has changed my life, and I forgot to blog about it! We had been married almost a year when we bought a used washer from my aunt. The washer had a motor replaced within the first year we had it, but it has lasted us FOREVER! I went shopping for a new washer around the time Joe was born (2 years ago) because I was sure the thing was going to quit on me. Well, I am positive that paying our tithing has kept the thing running for so long. A couple of months ago I told Keith that by the end of the year I'd like to get a new washer. Then about a week later I was folding laundry and nothing smelled clean. THE TIME HAD COME! We went shopping and took the plunge on the super capacity, super efficient  Whirlpool Cabrio washer. 

Normally, after spending 7 years with an appliance, I would feel some separation anxiety or miss it a little. I am so thankful the old washer ran as long as it did, and I am EVER so grateful for the new washer. It is quiet, it holds 2 1/2 times what my other one did, I don't have to catch the rinse cycle to get softener in or to make sure the bin is "just right" so it doesn't leak all over the floor. I don't spend as much time or energy getting clothes washed as I did before.

The purchase couldn't have come at a better time. We had Matt on some stool softener to help with some issues and it must have softened much more than the stool. The poor little guy was waking up soaked every morning, even with a pull-up. So, washing all the bedding (including comforter) was no big deal with the new washer. I probably would have pulled my hair out or something worse had I dealt with that situation with the old washer. With the new washer I was able to have the patience needed to work through the situation with Matt, who was more upset with himself about the issue than anyone. Every time I use my washer I fall in love with it all over again. 

Fishing with Dad

The boys went fishing with Dad on Labor Day at Steineaker and had a great time. As Josh would say, "The best day, EVER!" They each caught 10-15 fish and were catching them so fast that Keith couldn't keep up with unhooking them and getting their polls ready to go again. They were able to go with their cousins and then we had a fish fry that night together. That was a great treat for the boys because I don't like to eat fish or seafood, so unless it has been caught or someone else buys it, we don't have it. 

It was a great day for everyone, Joe got to take an undisturbed nap while I got some Mom time to work on some projects for fun. The boys love any time they get with their dad. They all sure love him--and I think he's the best dad ever, too. 

Awesome Bike!

Finally, a picture! Don't let the look on Joe's face fool you--he loves the bike! We bought Joe's birthday present early because we are running out of warm days. He's been talking about a bike for a while, so I finally told him we'd get one for his birthday. He doesn't know the difference of when his birthday is, and boy, did he have the best birthday ever the day we bought the bike!

"Awesome bike!" "I'm happy." "I love my bike!" "My daddy for me!" "Bike, my birthday." These are all phrases we continue to hear from Joe about his bike. He is one happy little boy. He sat in the cart with the bike on the way to the checkout and had a fit anytime anyone tried to touch his bike. He shares it well now, but it was his moment and no one else's when we got the thing. He hasn't been able to ride it yet, but loves to be pushed around on it, and it won't be long before he's off and riding with the others. 

It has been so much fun to listen to Joe talk about his bike and how happy it has made him. We never expected the little guy to be SO excited! 

School..Ah, Man! Preschool...All Right!

School has started and Josh is a great student. He works hard and has really nice handwriting. I'm excited that he is doing well academically. He always has fun at school, but would rather be home with Mom and his brothers. We've already had a "sick" day, but I  think that was cured by lots of prayers and all the extra homework he had. Whew!

Preschool is twice a week, which isn't enough for Matt, but is plenty for Mom. I thought preschool would be good for Matt with all the changes this year of a new baby and  Josh being gone all day at school. I'm so glad I did. We have a co-op with some kids Matt already knows and it is the highlight of his life! The other day he was ready to go to preschool before Josh even left for the bus. Later, Keith sat him in front of the clock and told him when it would be time for preschool. To help take his mind off of the waiting, I asked him to bring me Joe's shoes. In reply I get a happy little voice saying, "Sorry! I'm watching the clock!" For 25 minutes he watched! I didn't know he could sit and focus on anything that long. Then, when I took him to preschool, he told me I didn't need to take him in, he wanted to do it himself, and he did!

Night and day--that is the best way to describe the difference between the two. We sure love them both!

Tagged!

I just had to add this picture because Keith looks like he's having so much fun, and it reminds me that there is always a part of us that never grows up.

It's been a while since I've been tagged by Rachel, but I'm finally getting around to doing this. It looked fun, and got me thinking.

Here are the rules:

1. Link to the person who tagged you. 

2. Post the rules on your blog.

3. Write six random things about yourself.

4. Tax six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.

5. Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.

6. Let your tagger know when your entry is up.

Myself #1 My favorite things used to be swinging, laying on the grass watching clouds, eating ice cream and daydreaming. Now swinging makes me sick. I don't like to lay on the grass anymore so I watch clouds from sitting down. I can only eat ice cream if I have bundled up enough to keep warm. And daydreaming....who has the time?

Myself #2 My new favorite things are: Visiting with Keith, or as he would say, talking to Keith (nothing makes me feel better than to be able to visit with him). Reading stories and playing games with my boys. Going to the mountain with Keith and the boys and taking pictures of the beauty around us. Family movie night where we get in pj's and stay up late watching a movie and eating candy and popcorn. Powerful computers that never have problems and do anything I want them to (courtesy of the geek I married). 

Myself #3 I enjoy doing handwork (embroidery, quilting, crocheting....) in my spare time, when there is some.

Myself #4 I like to bake, and I like learning to cook new things. My favorite show is "Good Eats" on the Food Network. 

Myself #4 Some of my favorite times are when we can spend time with our families. We have good relationships with both of our families and love the time we get together and the friendships we have. 

Myself #5 I became addicted to Lego Star Wars I and II on the computer with the boys at Christmas time. It was great for me because the boys each wanted to play a level with me--so I got to play ALOT! Thankfully I got pregnant and the morning sickness was so bad I had to take a break. I sure love that game.

Myself #6 I love watching and listening to the boys play and laugh together. It is so fun to have a little window into their minds and they have the best laughs. I love that they think they have the greatest dad ever, because they do. I love that they think I'm just a "lame mom" because I don't do fun stuff all the time. I love being at home and taking care of my family even though it is harder than going to work everyday. 

I'm suppose to tag people, but I think most of the people I keep in touch with (and I'm new to this) have been tagged already. So, if you see this and would like to do this on your blog, I'm inviting you. Also, those who haven't started a blog, but enjoy them, please consider yourself tagged and start a blog. 

Dumb Stuff!

Dumb is a word we've tried hard not to use at our house, I didn't want the kids calling each other dumb. It worked pretty well until July 4th last year when Matt was in the bathtub after a fishing trip. He was jumping up and down trying to get his little brother to laugh as I'm telling him to STOP jumping. Well, he slipped and ended up with stitches on his chin. Keith took him to the ER and explained that "when you do dumb stuff, dumb stuff happens." Matt has learned this, but hasn't changed his ways. I could go on and on about the dumb stuff that happens, but here are some recent ones.

Keith took the picture for posterity and Josh explained what happened. Matt had found some gum and was playing around with it, he asked Josh, "Should I put this on my eye?" Josh said, "I don't think that's a good idea." So, Matt put it on his eye. After being gooped up in peanut butter, I don't think he will be putting gum on himself again--hopefully. 

You may notice his nose in the picture, too. This is just another classic look for Matt. While scootering around at his cousin's, he took a tumble on the driveway and has had this mark for a while. He's been asked many times why he was trying to wipe his nose on the driveway, which he thinks is funny. He also loves to wear shorts, and ALWAYS seems to need bandaids for his knees. It seems to happen on Sundays while running around at his Grandma's house. One week while cleaning him up, he said through the tears "But I just love my shorts!" He tries to remember to change into pants before he goes now, because he knows he always falls--hard.

POCKET KNIVES. I've dreaded the day. After a while of good behavior, the boys earned pocket knives. They can only use the pocket knives when their dad is with them, and he keeps them hidden away...somewhere...glad I don't know where. Matt was an "expert" after the first lesson, so he thought. One day, Matt decided to cut an apple on his own, with a regular knife, because he's an expert. I walk in the kitchen to bright red blood dripping from his hand and an apple cut in half. I can't find a knife and he won't tell me what happened. Finally, amongst running water over his hand to find the cut, yelling at him about using a knife without permission and loosing his pocket knife use for a while, I find the knife he used carefully placed back in the drawer where he got it with a few drops of blood. Hum, at least he knew he did something wrong. Luckily no stitches were required, but he had a large bandage on his thumb for a few days which seemed to make him think twice about things he did. 

Matt told me later, "Mom, sometimes I do dumb stuff because I just want to see what happens." That explains a lot!

Be sure to scroll down!

Be sure to scroll down, as I have added a few new things this week. This is one picture I couldn't leave off the blog. Josh got a camera for his birthday in January. It isn't a very good one because we weren't sure how he would treat it. It has been a lot of fun to get some of his pictures even if the quality isn't what our camera is. Josh was playing with Joe and asked him to make a funny face--and this is what he did. We sure love our little boys and love those laugh-worthy moments that go along with them!

Cousin Camp & Kissing Snakes

I'm late on telling about Cousin Camp, which happened 3 weeks ago, but it was noteworthy so I'll tell now. Each year Grandma Lila has a Cousin Camp where all the kids and moms get together for activities, movies and sleepovers. The dad's are always welcome and usually come around meal time (except for Keith this year, who was at Youth Conference). We started out with lunch at Remember the Main Park, and my kids couldn't wait to go to that "you know, the main park!" We are still trying to help them learn that we don't just remember the main park, it IS Remember the Main Park. After all the fun at the park, we had dinner and a movie in Grandma's back yard. Joe didn't sleep all day, and wasn't about to when the movie began at 11 pm. The other boys fell asleep, so I hauled them all home instead of sleeping over, as this pregnant mom was sleeping in her own bed that night! Which I was glad to do since our party 

Joe never crashes until all is quiet and dark. 

The next day we started with breakfast at Grandma Nena's, which I was suppose to help cook, but couldn't wake little boys up in time (so sorry, still). That day we had activities and a Carnival where every family did a booth and the kids went around with tickets to play each booth. I don't know what all of them were as I was at my own the whole time, but I know the boys had a great time going around, particularly Joe at Grandma Nena's bean bag toss and Aunt Connie's duck pond! It was great because all the kids had fun, no matter the age. 

The craft that Josh and Matt really got excited about was the bead snakes. I'm posting Josh's pictures that he took with his camera. I finally loaded them on the computer and laughed at what I saw and heard about them. Josh told me "The snakes are doing what you and Dad do sometimes, kissing."

We had a lot of fun at Cousin Camp, including the downtime for a nap the 2nd day. At the end, Josh was very sad and emotional, as he gets at the end of every family get-together. He always makes teary-eyed comments about wishing people didn't have to go home or that we could do those activities everyday. I'm so glad he enjoys spending time with all his cousins. 

Pictures with Spencer & Gabby

Our sweet new sister-in-law, Gabby who is from Ecuador, hasn't seen much of Vernal and the surrounding parts. So we hope to take her a few places while they live here for the summer. Our first trip was to the Red Canyon Overlook area. It has been a while since we have gone ourselves, and we were reminded why it is one of our favorite spots. The boys always have a great time looking for "wild animals" such as chipmunks and lizards. 

We found that there are perks to taking Spencer and Gabby with us. They help take pictures, something we don't do much of anymore since we are usually chasing little boys. So we were excited to have pictures from the trip (thanks, Spence). Keith was able to take a few of the crazy cliff pictures for Spencer, which was fun for the guys. Gabby and I couldn't watch while they were doing those. We also really liked the chipmunk pictures Spencer was able to catch. We look forward to taking them to some of our other favorite spots--even if we can't take credit for many of the pictures!