When Daddy Comes Home Part I

a photo essay by Weston

Baby, it's cold outside!

It doesn't matter how cold it is outside, every so often we MUST get out of the house.
The boys had a blast braving the snow and ice.
Weston tried making snow angels, but the snow is pretty frozen now and Tave loved to crunch in it.
If you know me at all, you know that I am NOT a cold-weather person.
But even I had fun...how could I not with these adorable boys?
Being a mother sure gets you out of your comfort zone!

Switcheroo

My good friend, Des, makes these most adorable ties!! I am so in love with them. She asked if I'd want to do a switch and I was in!!

I decided I wanted matching Christmas ties for the boys and I found this awesome Michael Miller fabric.

Des whipped up two of these darling ties:

and here's her handsome Jack in his newsboy beanie from me:
If you're interested in quality, unique, handmade ties-
check out Desi's shop here.

PS- My favorite is the popular paisley tie -- to.die.for. LOVE it.
It's the boys Easter ties!
Thanks, Desi!!!

Christmas Tree Part II: Decorating!

We were a little late getting out all of the Christmas goods...
but the boys didn't mind.
They loved hanging the bells on the tree and Weston HAD to put on the star.
Truly the very best part of Christmas is seeing how excited the kiddos are.
Tave loved his stocking from Grandma D. and both boys had tons of fun playing with Jesus and the nativity.
I love how the simple things become so magical because they are done at Christmas.

Christmas Tree Part I

The boys loved putting up the tree this year!

They both thought it was so great and had a blast helping Dad.

All finished! (photo taken by Weston)

Beans Beans...

We've been stuck inside for awhile so I decided to make a sensory bin.
(pulling out ideas from preschool days!)
1 bag of beans
teaspoons, spoons, plastic cups
little bugs to search for
And voila!
A fun (but messy) afternoon.
They LOVED it and we have played with the beans many many times since!!
(Just be warned: you WILL find beans everywhere. everywhere. But it is worth it!)

ThanksGiving

We had a deliciously cozy, fun-filled, jam packed, busily wonderful day!

13 adults + 6 kiddos = some sort of magic to all fit at the table!

But we did it!! And it was great!!
These pictures look *almost* the same, between the two we have our entire Thanksgiving crew pictured. :)

We had fun talking, chasing kiddos, eating, eating, and of course more eating.


At the end of the day, our cousin Alex stopped by with his sweet wife and adorable 5 kids!! It was so fun to see them again and meet the 2 youngest we had never seen before!


Thanks, everyone, for making our first time hosting Thanskgiving dinner so wonderful and memorable!

Snuggled

After a long day, the boys love to snuggle with their blankets in the love sack and watch a show. (usually while I get dinner going)

They are so sweet and turning into the best of buds.

My heart is full.

A Mess

This is proof that my house is sometimes a disaster.
The boys had tons of fun while I organized their toys.
They thought it was great to climb on and in every bin and dump out anything that wasn't already on the bed/floor/dresser/any bit of space you can find.
It was a crazy day, but oh so fun!

Dear Weston,
This picture makes me smile every time I see it. It reminds me of all of the reasons I love you. First and foremost because you bring so much happiness and light into our home. You are always making us laugh and love being funny. You aren't afraid to get dirty and love to make a mess. You teach me that it's okay to play, to get messy, and to enjoy every minute.
I need you in my life and I am so thankful to Heavenly Father for giving you to us.

Today, you gave me a gift. You showed me that I am doing some things right as your mom.
Namely: that when I decided not to *push* you into potty-training, I made the right choice for you and me.
I decided to let you take the lead in this whole potty-training thing. Something that was really scary for you. (and for me!) You didn't really want to try and didn't like the toilet.
So we waited. And we talked about how cool it would be when you didn't wear diapers anymore and how you could use the big boy toilet when you were ready. And when I worried that I wasn't doing the right thing and that I should just start making you wear underwear and 'go', I made myself take a step back and just let you take your time.
And now you are ready.
You were SO excited to wear big-boy underwear today-
and you kept them dry ALL DAY long. You went to the bathroom all by yourself & were so excited that you didn't need help.
This was a really really big deal for you. And for us.
I love watching your newfound independence.
I love watching you discover who you are- your likes, dislikes, triumphs and joys.
I think I will need to remember in the future that we work pretty well as a team,
that sometimes the best way I can love and encourage you is to take a step back so you can take your own step forward.

It's a hard thing- learning to be a mom.
I am so glad I get to learn with you.

I love you, bud.
Love, Mom

Tave- 18 Months Old!!!

The past 6 months have been awesome. Tave has grown in so many ways and learned a TON. He has filled our lives with so much light and life.

Here are his highlights:

• He learned to WALK!
• His language development has grown drastically. Here are some of the words he says: cheese, Daddy, Mommy, Weston, Grandpa, Olivia, Mila, Trav, Abby, eat, more, please, thank you, a bunch of animal names and sounds, truck, car, guy, hot dog, hot diggity, stuck, help, down, up, outside, octopus (one of his first words), mine, alright, and lots lots more.
• Has recently (as in this week) started using 2 and 3 word phrases: 'Thank you mommy' and 'Oh man'
• His absolute favorite place to be is outside.
• Now sits in a booster seat at the table.
• A trip to Texas, which meant his first ever plane ride.
• visits from Nonny & Papa, Grandpa Great, and lots of hanging out with family
• He loves reading and books
• A trip to Montana & Idaho
• Favorite song is the 'hot dog' song from Mickey Mouse clubhouse. He loves the characters but doesn't really like watching shows.
• The only show he will sit and watch is Diego. He LOOOOOVES it.
• He is absolutely in love with his brother. He follows Weston everywhere and wants to do everything Weston does.
• He HATES to get dressed. He LOVES to run around in just a diaper.
• He has turned into an excellent climber. Chairs, tables, boxes- you name it, he climbs it.
• His blanket is his comfort. He takes it everywhere.
• He still sucks on his two fingers.
• He is eating better but is still very picky.
• He is a daddy's boy/mommy's boy. It really is about 50/50. But when he wants you, nothing else will do.

Dear Tave,

You are becoming such an adorable and fun toddler! You are so sweet and love to snuggle and cuddle. Dad and I love that. You love being in on all of the action and make sure to get right in the middle of things. You play with Weston all the time and have recently started to like wrestling with him. You are an excellent walker and run all over the place now. You bring so much happiness into our home and say the funniest things all the time. I don't know how my heart could be more full. You and Weston are the best blessings we could have ever hoped for.

We love you and love being your parents.

Love, Mom & Dad

Cars!

Grandpa Great came and visited us at our house.

He brought an awesome surprise for the boys:

They LOOOVED the remote control cars.

Tave chased his all over the house and Weston caught on to driving really quickly.

We had so much fun with Grandpa.

Thanks for the fabulous visit and *early* Christmas gifts!

Date!

Jeff and I were able to go up to Park City for a night away. It was fantastic and a much needed break together!

We had so much fun and only managed to take a few pictures of bowling the next day:

Thanks Shawn & Abby for taking care of the boys. We know they had a blast with you!

Fallen

Why is this always so much fun?!