Random October

We've all been sick off and on...so we've had a lot of days at home.

There have been some not so great moments, but most of the time we try have FUN and play!!

Here is some random cuteness I caught on camera:

Tave was very insistent that he wear his shoes and only a onesie. NO pants.

He looked so funny, West and I just laughed and laughed. Tave thought he was pretty cool!

Weston watched me wash my face one morning and decided he needed to as well.

So now I have a little partner while I get ready.

Pumpkin Carving!

We carved our pumpkins for family night!

Somehow Weston remembered that the only thing he wore for last year's carving was a diaper.

He absolutely insisted that diapers were the only thing for him and Tave to wear this year as well.

They are so funny!

Tave is really into 'feeling' things with his tongue. (should I be worried?!)

So he licked the pumpkin and West thought it'd be worth a try.

Funny funny boys!

They loved carving with dad and Weston thought the goop was AWESOME this year. He played with it during the entire carving, it was his pumpkin pie.

Tave, yeah, not so much. He hated it and if a single seed got on him he would scream. Oh I love sensory activities!

We had a blast and loved creating some holiday memories with our boys.

Daddy and dancing...

We all absolutely LOVE when Jeff gets home. (on school nights he gets home right before bed, hence the no-clothes)

The boys can't wait to tackle him and wrestle and play.

I am so grateful that I have a husband who is such a wonderful daddy. He truly loves our boys and enjoys playing as much as they do!

Diaper Dance

The boys love to run around in diapers before we get pjs on. This is a nightly occurrence.

They dance around for awhile and then they end up under the table....For some reason that is a fun place to play when you're not dressed!

Our little Linus

The boys blankies really are a part of our family.

The minute Tave has his, the fingers go in his mouth.

Oh we love our little boy!

Pumpkin Fun!

We had a blast decorating our pumpkins! The boys thought it was hilarious to wear the mouths.

We are having so much fun with our boys!

The Aclarium

Jeff had the day off work, so we went to the Living Planet Aquarium!
(aka the Aclarium to West)

It was awesome to be able to take our time and just follow the boys to what they were most interested in.
Our favorite things:
Tave: walking. Doesn't matter what he sees. Just walking.
Weston: the octopus
Nicole: petting the stingrays
Jeff: the jellyfish & stingrays

Perfect family day.

Getting Dressed

Weston gets himself dressed pretty much every day now.

He thinks it's great that he can put his shirt and pants on all by himself.

And most days, his outfits look something like this:

I just love how excited he gets and that I never know what he may come out in.

I sure love this kid.

(ps. the pillow was his idea too. He thought it would be a fabulous photo prop!)

Pumpkin Patch!

For family night we took a trip to the local pumpkin patch!
We had so much fun riding the wagon:



choosing our pumpkins:

and playing in the dirt:

My handsome pumpkins.
We love the fall!

Bijou Market

Me and my hats are going to be at the Bijou Market on November 7th!
I posted about it on my personal blog because it's more my thing than my family's.
But I am so excited.... I thought I'd share with anyone who doesn't read that blog as well.
I have grown up going to craft fairs and boutiques with my mom and have always wanted to be on the making end of it. Now I get to be! If you're in the Utah County area, you should check it out.
Lots of cool stuff, get your Christmas shopping done early, and it's all handmade!

Shar's friend, Aimee, is a wonderful photographer who worked with me on a product shoot!

The girls were so awesome and Aimee did a great job catching their adorable personalities.

Thanks to Aimee White Photography for the wonderful photo session.

We had a blast!

A family walk

Last week when we were all so sick, we didn't hang out with anyone but ourselves.

We had to get out of the house sometimes, so we went on a lot of walks.

It was so refreshing and nice just to be together as a family and to let the boys explore.

Tave was thrilled to be outside. It is his favorite, favorite place to be.

He can say 'outside' now so guess what we hear all day long! ;)

Weston wanted to wear this hat and jacket so he could look like a pumpkin. (the jacket is Tave's...so it's a little small.) He also loves to do crazy poses and be silly. He sure is our little comedian!

ps can you tell I've been having some fun editing in Picnik. It's cool...you should try it out!

Grandpa Joe & Grandma Dean!

We were so excited when Grandpa & Grandma Dean told us they would be in Utah!

They drove down with Bob & Susie to hang out and go to dinner.

When I told Weston they were coming his exact words were:

"Yayayayay!!! I love my grandparents and they love me!"

They came and visited at our house for awhile and then we headed to Red Robin. Mmmm...so delicious!

Jonathan and Weston jammed on the guitars while we waited:

In the past Weston has taken a little bit to warm up. But this time he was so adorable with them. He loved talking and playing with them and just had to sit by Grandma Dean at the table. Then they colored together. So sweet. It was great to see them having so much fun!

Thanks for a wonderful visit! We love and miss you!!

Mixed

We've started doing play-doh a lot more often. I had kind of forgotten about it and decided we needed to do more manipulatives.


The boys have had so much fun and Tave does surprisingly well! He likes the containers and toys more than the play-doh, but it works. He put this lid on and off for about 15 minutes!

Weston is really into cutting and we've also been working on rolling it like a snake. That's kind of a hard one.

We usually keep the colors separated.
I have been a stickler abou this.
Until today.
Weston asked to have more than one color out and I thought we would do okay keeping them apart.
When he started smashing them together my first inclination was to say No!
But then I realized it really didn't matter.
So what if the colors mix?
They actually look super cool and it was a good chance to teach him that
yellow+red=orange and yellow+blue = green.
I had to pat myself on the back- I'm gettin over some of my perfectionism.

Play-doh time = success

Conference Weekend!

Our church has a semi-annual conference where our wonderful leaders give us spiritual guidance. It is a weekend that often comes right when I need it. When I've become complacent and could use the extra spiritual boost to get on the right track, become better, and grow in my faith.

We LOVE conference weekend!

With little kids it can be a bit difficult to get everything we want to out of the talks. It has been fun, though, to start some traditions that will grow with our little family over the years.

Saturday Morning

We made our traditional Monkey Bread for breakfast. (James & Amy, it just wasn't the same without you!)

And we had to put up the tent to watch. Weston insisted on his tent from Nonny & Papa...we were a little sad to find that a few poles were missing (due to someone doing a little sword fighting...) but it worked and did the job:

This is the boys version of note-taking. Works for us, it kept them occupied quite awhile:

And puzzles always make things a interesting:

Tave's favorite part was the box:

We switch off entertaining the boys and actually getting to listen. Jeff was wonderful and let me switch with him as soon as Elder Bednar started speaking. I was able to listen to his and President Uchtdorf's talks and they were by far my favorite talks of Sat. I learned so much and have so many things to work on, but I love how they make becoming better seem possible. Because it is.

Sunday Morning

We made the tent like we usually do. Jeff did an awesome job making it particularly cozy and the boys absolutely LOVED it!

Both afternoon sessions we were able to sit back and listen the entire time because the boys were napping. Ahhh, heaven!

It was an incredible conference and we both feel renewed and edified. We will definitely be studying these messages throughout the next six months so we can become better spouses, parents, siblings, children, and friends.

Sunday night Shawn & Abby came over for dinner. It was awesome to spend some time with them and the boys absolutely LOVED having them over. They were all over them the entire time. What a great way to end the weekend!

Two things

Conversation while laying Weston down for his nap

Me: Okay, bud, you have a good nap.
West: Why do I have to take a nap?
Me: Because you need your rest. You'll feel better after.
West: Why do I need my wrist, it's right here. (showing me his wrist)
Me: Well, that is your wriiiist (enunciating) and reeeesting is like sleeping.
West: I don't know why I need to wrist when it is right here. But I will sleep.
Me: Okay, you do that.

And item 2: the Renegade hat is now up in the shop.
Don't you just love the colors?!
Weston has told me this is the one he MUST have. So he'll be getting one soon.