Happy Father's Day

June 15, 2008

Dear Jeff, Happy Father's Day, to my sweet sweet husband! I am so blessed to have you in my life. I love watching you become the wonderful, amazing, and truly incredible father that you were meant to be. You have such kindness and patience in you and constantly show me how much better I can be. I am so grateful that we found each other and that we are going through this crazy, wonderful, thrilling thing called parenthood together. You always take the time to play with our boys and make my load a little lighter any chance you get. You aren't afraid to get down in the dirt to dig for bugs with Weston, or roll up your sleeves to clean the dishes for me. You take spit up, poopy diapers, and scraped knees in stride, and continually give all that you have. Thank you. Thank you for honoring your priesthood and making sure that it is what truly guides our home and our family. Watching you bless Tave on this day- the day to honor fathers- was the ultimate honor. Thank you for showing our boys what kind of men they should be and for being the man of my dreams, always. I love you and so do our sweet little boys. Love, Nicole

Tave's Blessing: Our sweet little Tave in his blessing outfit. My mom crocheted this gorgeous blanket for him. It will be such a wonderful reminder of this day. I love it and I love you Mom, Thank you!!!

Our little family on this special day.
Weston wanted to play with his cousin, Cole, in the dirt-- hence the tears. :) What do you do?! :)

Dad, Mom, Jeff, Tave, Nicole, West, Shar, Kapria, & Trav. (The Abreu fam) We missd you, Shawn & Mckenon! Okay, this pic just cracks me up...I think we are all looking at a different camera. Oh well...it's all about the memories, right?!

Dad, Mom, Jeff, Tave, Nicole, West, Cole, Joe, Amanda, James, Amy, & Jonathan (the Drysdale fam) ALL of the brothers were here for the blessing...how cool!

All of the men on Father's Day!! Thank you everyone who came! You made this day so special by being with us.

One Month Old!!!

• 
• Tave is getting so big!
  
• He is about 9 lbs + and 22 inches long.
  
• Stays awake for longer periods of time
• LOVES to be held
• Is very patient through all of the MANY kisses and hugs Weston gives him
• Sleeps through lots of noise
• We don't think he looks a LOT like Weston...has his own distinct features
• Has a cute cute dimple on one cheek when he smiles
  
• Has done about a 5 hour stretch at night...wahoo! (but not long enough for mom yet!)
• We just love our sweet little guy!
  

Uncle Rick meeting Tave for the first time! We were so glad to spend time with you!

Weston's Birthday Celebration!!!

Weston's birthday party was a hit!!! We had so much fun and it turned out wonderfully! Jeff's family was in town for a reunion the next week and then my parents came for Tave's blessing that would be the next day. So Weston was able to have all of his cousins, all of his aunts, most of his uncles, and both sets of grandparents there, not to mention some of our closest friends!!!! We were so lucky!!! We celebrated with a bbq and a sports themed party (Weston's all time fav.) and had a blast. The kiddos got to play with all sorts of balls and at the playground and I had a few games planned. Really SIMPLE games. Still...when 2 year olds are involved things are anything but simple. haha. We had a great time, though, and got to break in a bunch of Weston's new toys!!!

Thank you everyone who came and made his day so special. We love you all!!!!

Our little family. Weston really DID have a great time...he just dislikes pictures VERY much. He wanted to be playing. :P I just love that we are now a family of 4. It's so great. :)

Blowing out the candles.

You'd think I would learn after his last party that cupcakes are NOT easier than a cake. Oh well...they're cute, right?! Thanks to all of the Drysdale gals for helping me telling me they looked good.... ;)

Ahh...swinging. What more could you ask for?!

Weston helped me make the cupcakes for his party and he was SO thrilled to lick the beaters...I don't think I've let him before. We had so much fun. This kid just gets more and more fun everyday. I love having a toddler!!!

Meeting Tave! June 13, 2008

I love how intently Tave is staring at my dad. Isn't this SO cute?! For those of you who don't know...Tave (Daniel) was named after my dad: Daniel
My dad is such a tough guy, but under it all he is a huge softy. I LOVE seeing how great he is with kids and babies. They ALL love him. And I do too! Love you dad!!

I love this picture of my mother-in-law, Jeanne. This was the first time she held Tave, it just sums up what an amazing grandmother she is. (and so young looking, too!! Isn't this a great pic?!) She held Tave pretty much whenever she could and then some! It was great. She loves her grandkids and is so willing to help out in any way possible. She made the last two weeks awesome. Thanks mom!

Happy 2nd Birthday Weston!

June 13, 2008
Dear Weston,

You turned 2 years old today! I can't believe that you have been in our family for 2 entire years. They have flown by and have definitely been an adventure for us! You are getting to be such a big boy and growing so fast. You are so fun to be around and make us laugh constantly. No matter how frustrated I may be when you do something you shouldn't...I can't help but laugh out loud when I see your mischievous little grin and hear you say "sorry" in that sweet way of yours. Some of your favorite things to do are:

• Play ball! Any kind any time. You love to have me and daddy tell you what kind of ball each one is and then you tell us what we can do with it: kick a soccer ball, throw (or spin) a football, catch a baseball, etc. We love playing with you!

• Play outside! You love to explore and always find something to bring home. You always pick a flower, leaf, or pine cone to bring back to me and I LOVE getting these sweet little gifts. You are so thoughtful.
  

• Find bugs! You search for bugs around the house, outside, anywhere you think they'll be hiding. You usually squish them and then like to bring them to show us. You think bugs are pretty cool and are fascinated with watching them.
  

• Read books! You look at books every morning in your crib. You love to have me and dad read them to you and always point out the balls, bugs, etc on each page. You especially love books about animals and like to make the animal sounds when you read about them.

• You love your little brother! Every morning, the first thing you say is "bebe", asking about Tave. You love to hold him and you give him kisses and hugs all the time. You especially like to give him a kiss when he is crying and you even share your blanket with him when he's upset. That is love!

• You love to help! You bring me diapers, put away wipes, throw things in the trash, and just love to do anything that is helpful. I love having such a good helper and have so much fun cleaning and cooking with you.

• Run! You love love love to run! You don't usually walk places- instead you RUN! You have this cute way that you kick your legs out when you run and it is so fun to watch! :)

• Color! You love to color in coloring books or have me and dad draw you pictures of balls and fish. You are very interested in the different colors now and call most things yellow or 'yeyo'. Too cute!

• Swing! You absolutely love swinging from bars. You make monkey noises and even lift up your feet as you swing back and forth. You are getting so strong and very daring! It sometimes scares me, but you love it and think you are so funny!
  

There are so many more fun things that you love to do!! You love bathtime, animals, fish, movies, music, dancing, wrestling, and anything active! You are saying so many new words and love to talk to us all the time. You are exciting and fun to be with and we love all of the many adventures that we get to have with you.

Weston, you are such a wonderful little boy and we love you more than we could ever say. Dad and I hope we are showing you just how important you are to us and our family. You hold a very very special place in our hearts and in our home. I love being your mommy and am so grateful that Heavenly Father lets me take care of you. I love you, bud. You are my sweet sweet little boy.
Happy Birthday!
Love,
Mommy

Birthday Suprise!

For Weston's birthday Jeff and I got him a basketball hoop. He was SO excited. We didn't have his party until the next day, but we just HAD to give him his gift on the actual day!!! Happy Birthday kiddo, we LOVE you!

This was his face when he first saw the basketball hoop...I think he couldn't actually believe it was his!

He was so cute and wanted EVERYONE to get a chance to shoot a basket...even Tave. :)

4 weeks old!

June 11, 2008
We can't believe how fast Tave is growing! He is such a sweet little addition to our family and we love him more than we ever thought possible. It is truly amazing how your heart just expands and makes room when you love someone new. This little boy is already such a blessing to our family. Weston is so sweet with him and gentle most of the time. He loves to give Tave kisses and hugs and tries to comfort him when he cries. It's a side of Weston that is so fun to get to know!

Tave is staying awake a *little* bit more during the day. He loves to be around people and to be held. Night time is not his favorite time...he's always a little tired and cranky...but overall so sweet and fun! We are loving getting to know this new little person!

Weston was so great and just loved holding 'beebee's' hand so I could take this picture. It's supposed to be horizontal...but it's cute no matter what. I love my two boys!!!

Some fun days

Busy few weeks!!!

We have been so busy the past few weeks and so my blogging is WAY behind. These pictures were taken the week of June 9th. We had some friends visit and we had a lot of fun together!


Jenni, Katie, Lexie, & Nathan:

I worked with Jenni at Giant Steps many moons ago. :P We have kept in touch since and I LOVED meeting her cute girls and little Nathan. The last time we were able to see each other her girls were just a few months old. (yes, they ARE twins! how cool is that?!)
We had a lot of fun catching up and reffereeing the kiddos. All 4 of them had a hard time sharing...it's a tough concept! but it was a blast. Thanks again, Jenni, for such a fun visit and for taking the time out of your busy trip to see us. We miss you!
Katie, Weston, & Lexie having fun:

Tave's first REAL bath. He loved just sitting and soaking...SO much better than sponge baths.

My cute friend Lori had little Adelaide at the end of April. We FINALLY were able to get these two cute kiddos together. Addie is only about 3 weeks older than Tave, but look at what a difference those 3 weeks make! Isn't she a doll?! Thanks, Lori, for coming to see us, it was great!

Weston loves bringing friends to eat with us at the dinner table. This week it was his new octopus. (He picked it out himself) He decided the octopus needed to fold her arms too...
I just LOVED this pic and had to share it!

We had a fun and busy week getting ready for the Drysdale reunion. It was great and we were so glad we could spend some time with friends in the midst of cleaning and party planning. Thanks everyone!
Stay tuned for: Weston's birthday celebration, Tave's blessing, fun times with family!

Wake Up call!!!

My morning was started by this sound:

BIG Thump! Screaming and crying.
I KNEW, with 100% certainty, exactly what that sound was. Call it mother's intuition. I was out of bed faster than I have moved since Tave was born. Believe me, it was fast. Of course a million crazy scary things that COULD have happened flew through my head. I imagined blood everywhere from him cracking his head on the dresser that is next to the crib. I imagined broken arms or legs from landing on them wrong. I imagined worse, but I'll spare you all of my crazy imaginings. Yup, Weston was laying on the floor of his room. Which means he got himself out of his crib. Somehow. After comforting and cuddling my sweet little, very scared, boy I did a check from head to toe. He wouldn't tell me where it hurt and after calming down he asked for toys. So crisis over. He's okay. I, however, am still shaking with my heart pounding.

So, That brings me to this picture:s picture:

We are buying one THIS weekend

3 Weeks Old!!

June 4, 2008 ~ Our little cutie is growing so fast. He loves to look around at people and things. He stays awake for longer periods of time and is oh so sweet.

Sleeping.

Not sleeping. :)
Tave caught a cold from Weston and so the week has been a little more difficult. He is still such a good baby, but he has a hard time breathing. This makes eating kind of tough, so he is understandably grouchy about that. You can tell in this pic that he's not feeling the best. :( poor baby!!

Hanging out with Aunt Shar!

Proof

Just to prove to you that Weston is NOT getting overlooked amidst all the picture taking of Tave:

Here is our crazy toddler in all of his silliness! How I LOVE this little boy. Every single day he makes me laugh. How lucky I am to be his mom!!!

He and Shar make this face at each other. It's pretty hilarious...I was banned from putting the picture of Shar up on here though. Sorry.

He asks to hold Tave all the time and decided it would be pretty cool to try with Kapria. So he had fun with her sitting on his lap! It was too funny...she didn't know what to think of it.

We don't know where this look came from, but he thinks he's pretty funny when he gives it to us!

If you look closely, there IS a bug on his finger. Gross.

Weston thinks my towel wrapping is pretty cool, so we tried it on him one morning. He loved it and ran around sporting this for quite awhile.
We sure love you Weston, you make us smile every day!!!

2 Weeks Old!

May 28, 2008

Tave 's 2 week check up:

Weight: 8 lbs 2 oz
Height: 21 inches
Perfect health, everything looks great!

He's such a sweet little boy. He loves looking around at everything. He loves being held and snuggled.
He has a strong set of lungs and sure lets us know when he wants something! But he is easily soothed and calms down as soon as we give him food, a diaper change, or lots of love. :)
We are loving our adorable little baby.
Weston is still as cute as ever with him: lots of hugs, kisses, and he always wants to hold Tave. So cute!

Thanks Mom!!!

Moms (and grandmas) are fantastic. My mom especially. I am incredibly grateful to her for coming to stay with us and for extending her stay since Tave was late. Between her and Jeff I was WELL taken care of! They were both so amazing and wonderful. Jeff will get an awesome post later...for now this is for my mom. :)
She left on Sunday and I was so sad. Those first few days without someone there to help are always a little bit scary. Today is going great, so far, so apparently I am managing. I hate to see what happens, though, when the kiddos realize I am outnumbered. haha.

Here are a few of the reasons why I love her and just to show you all how awesome she is:

• She came to stay with us for 17 whole days!
• She cooked meals
  
• Cleaned my bathrooms...thank you thank you thank you
• Helped me keep the house in decent shape
• Woke up with Weston in the morning so we could sleep in a little bit longer
• Took Weston on jogs, walks, and out to play
• Watched the boys for us so we could go on a quick date
• Constantly had whichever boy I wasn't dealing with at the moment
• Offered to take Tave in the middle of the night...why I never took you up on it, I have NO idea...
  
• Played games, talked, hung out, and was just an awesome awesome awesome Mom & Grandma!

I know there are a million other things you helped us with that I can't think of at the moment, but just know that you were very very very appreciated and loved!!
We love and miss you lots Lots LOTS!!

Mom with all of her adorable grandkiddos!
Kapria, Syanne, Mom, Tave, Weston
What a cute bunch!

More of my Boys!!!

I am absolutely loving having two little boys. They are both just so sweet in their own little ways and so much fun. I love having a newborn again. It is easier this time simply because we know that this stage goes way too quickly. It makes it all the more special while we have it.
Tave is such a sweet baby. And Weston, well, he is as fun as ever. He really loves having the "beebee" around and always asks about him as soon as he wakes up in the morning. Weston loves holding Tave and always wants to give him the binkie when he cries.

Jeff and I feel so blessed to have two healthy, beautiful little boys. We are absolutely loving this special time in our family. Thanks to everyone for all of your phone calls, emails, comments, adn meals! We are so blessed in our friendships and families. We love you all so much!!!

Tave will often find a finger to suck on. So cute!

Okay, a big HUGE thank you goes out to everyone who gave us name suggestions. We really appreciated all of your help. Going through the ideas and talking about each of them was a fun part of this pregnancy...and every name we didn't use got us that much closer to what we DID name him!!! So thanks again & again. (and just for the record...we checked ALL of the suggestions just to make sure we came up with Tave's name on our own!)
We love you all!!!