ZOO Time!

Jeff's parents came in town for his graduation and we had an AWESOME time!!

It really was one of the most calm, laid back, and fun little vacations we've ever had with them. Jeff was able to take off Thursday and Friday, so we had an entire four days to play and enjoy. The boys were absolutely wonderful and LOVED spending time with Grandma and Grandpa.
Thanks, mom & dad for such a fantastic time together, we are SO glad you came!! We miss you!!!

The first thing we did was head to Utah's Hogle Zoo. It's always a favorite of the boys and we thought it would be nice to spend some time outside:

The playground was the boy's favorite part of the entire day. They were SO sad we had to leave (because all of the adults were freezing!) Next time we'll remember to come here first:

B3 = eggplant

I had to put up a widget on the side bar because I keep forgetting how far along I am.
Who does that? Apparently me.
I like this one, it compares the baby to food. hahahaha. Like I don't think about food enough already!

Catching up!

In my attempt to clean up, organize, and get things under control I am doing that with the blog as well. I think nesting is starting early for me!
I have some random posts that have been waiting a LOOOONG time to get done. So here's a couple to start. Easter is coming soon!!


Christmas

Linus

Spring Break Adventures

Jeff's spring break came at a perfect time!

He didn't take the entire week off, but enough of it so we felt like it was fun and special.

We had some warm weather towards the end so we headed to one of the boys' favorite places: Thanksgiving Point's Farm Country.

They loved feeding all the animals and we were able to see a bunch of baby goats, one that was probably only a week old. Tave loved him, he was so cute and tiny!

The boys each got to ride the ponies twice and they were so brave and proud of themselves!

We also made sure to do something 'fun' every day Jeff stayed home, whether it was going to a park or out to eat.

We had a great, relaxing week together as a family. We just love extra time with Daddy!

Puzzle-d

Tave has discovered the joy of puzzles.

He is SO fast and is very determined to do them by himself.

This is his favorite activity right now so we do puzzles at least once a day.

Love that adorable look of concentration!

SuperKids!

I love finding a good deal.

I really love when that good deal is something I've had my eye on because we need it.

I especially love when it's something my boys happen to love as well!

The boys have both needed the 'transition' jacket. The jacket that's a little bit thick so as to provide warmth in the spring, but not so thick that it's a winter coat and not so thin that it's a glorified t-shirt with a hood.

I spotted these awesome Super jackets when they were full price and said NO way. $20 for a jacket just because Superman's on the front. Sorry kiddos. Also, I didn't realize that they would both have growth spurts over winter.

Lucky us, we caught a super clearance deal. (wink wink, i'm cheesy, I know) And guess what, they had just the sizes we needed, and this was THE last superman jacket. Good thing that's what West picked because there was no Spiderman in his size. Both of these jackets should even fit through fall and the next spring. wahoo!

They LOOOOVE wearing them and say they have super powers when they put them on.

Gotta love boys and super heroes!

Easter Weekend part II

Conference Weekend is my favorite. I love being spiritually uplifted and edified, the personal revelation received, and the desire and determination to be better. More than anything, I love feeling like it IS possible to become the person I want to be- the person my Savior wants me to be.

My aunt took this beautiful picture of the Salt Lake Temple. It reminds me of this weekend and that changes are possible. We can always be a little better, and it all starts here.

My aunt, Meg, was in town for the weekend and we were SO glad she took some time out of her busy, full weekend to see us. We had a blast! This is how she won over the boys:

(that's her iphone) West had been so excited for days to hang out with her. I told him she was my aunt but she's also a gramma, so he could call her Nana Meg. He loved that idea and just kept talking about when 'the gramma who's not my gramma comes to play with me...'

We had my family over for Easter lunch and of course the kiddos had to do one more hunt together! It's always a lot of crazy fun when we get together. Someday maybe we'll get around to playing adult games again, but for now it's all about the food and the kids. Here's the whole group:

We had a delicious lunch of pork bbq sandwiches (recipe found here - AWESOME)

and then everyone brought DeLicIoUs sides. Abby's was the coolest looking so we had to get a shot:

Random pics from the hunt and the hanging out:

We didn't think to take a pic with Meg until the end when most everyone had gone home...so here's us girls:

It was a wonderful day full of all the things that matter most.

Thanks everyone, for a beautiful Easter!

Easter weekend part I

The Easter Bunny found our house this year, much to the boys delight!

That bunny was smart and came on Sat. so we could have a Christ centered Easter on Sun. We love that General Conference fell on Easter weekend. There's no better way to spend the holiday that celebrates our Savior, than by listening to His chosen prophets and apostles. It was wonderful!

Here are the festivities:

The boys were so cute looking for their baskets. The especially loved opening each and every egg!

Uncle Johnny came to enjoy the holiday and General Conference. He was so nice to bring eggs for an extra egg hunt for the boys. Looking for hidden treats is always tons of fun! (and he packed them FULL, so Jeff and I got to enjoy them too!) Thanks Jonathan!!!

And of course, what is Conference without our 'tent' to hang out and watch it:

Then the boys had fun with Dad and Uncle Johnny:

Weston was being a ball and they were throwing and catching him! Oh to be 3!!

Super Eggs!

We dyed Easter eggs for the very first time, EVER, with the boys!!

It was a huge hit:

I Love how serious they were as they watched daddy put the first one in. After their 30 sec. training, they were pros and did the rest!

The great thing about kids is: once you start a tradition they will NOT let you forget. Weston is already talking about when we dye eggs again next year. He does a good job of keeping us in line. :)

March Favorite Faces!!

I love looking through our pictures of the month and finding my favorites. They bring back the simple and sweet memories from that day and remind my why I love being a mom.

These two sure make it awesome!

I don't want to forget some of these crazy funny things that they do, so I just have to write it down.

West-man! (who insists that that is his favorite nickname)

He is constantly making goofy faces and getting us to laugh. He poses in the funniest ways just to see a smile and is the sweetest boy. He absolutely loves riding Kapria's tricycle and hates when he has to give someone else a turn (hence the grumpy face). He LOVES chewing gum. Not a great habit to start, I know, but he is so cute and thinks it's the best reward ever. He had disappeared one day for a little while, so I went to investigate. I found him all comfy in his bed with a good book. This kiddo loves to read. I love how excited he gets over a book and that it is something we both share. He is turning into our little buddy and is just.so.much.FUN!

We sure love you, West!

The Tavester!

Oh this kid is a hoot. He has discovered that markers are great fun. (Shar thinks he was trying to put makeup on- notice it's on his eyes and mouth!) He is okay about timeout but definitely likes to sneak out when he thinks we're not watching. He LOVES Kapria's big wheel (hmm...I think we need to get our kids bikes) and loves to sit in the bumbo. Good thing he won't have to share it for awhile!! He thinks Weston's dress up stuff is the coolest ever (well, and that his older bro. is the coolest ever) and even though he was taking it off- HE was the one who asked to have a towel like mommy. Tave has a humongous personality in a tiny little body! He sure makes us laugh and loves to give us lots of hugs and kisses.

Love love love you, Tave!

Play Group Egg Hunt!

Easter Egg hunts are so fun. They just are. I love getting the kiddos excited for them and then watching them have at it and discover all the goodies inside. Holidays are just so much fun with kids.

West was one of the first into the cultural hall, while Tave and I were pretty much last.

West ran up to show me that his basket was already full...so no pictures of his 'hunt'. :)
He's so proud:

Finding his first egg on his own:

Enjoying the spoils:

Being two...

Tave isn't quite two, YET, but he's almost there. As evidenced by this:

Yes, that is a little leg, trying to kick me.

You can't quite tell, but he was screaming his head off. SO loud.

And it was pretty darn funny.

I have a long ways to go before I am the kind of mother I really want to be. I have lots and lots of things to work on. But I would like to think that I am improving in some areas.
Having a sense of humor is one of those areas.
Tave's tantrums crack me up. I wasn't so fond of Weston's but I'm learning it's just life. Sometimes you have to scream and yell and cry. When either boy does this, they get to go take a 'break' in their room. (Time out is not in their room). Your room is a safe haven, somewhere to play, dream, have fun, and relax.
And when you need to cry, you can do so without being yelled at for breaking down.
Weston is mostly over these huge fits but Tave is just coming into his own. He is realizing he has a mind that he wants to make up all by himself. When one of these (very hilarious) tantrums ensues we tell him he gets to take a break on the bed. We lay him there and he can get up as soon as he wants to talk nicely. (Lucky for us, our kids don't hurt themselves or other people, so this method works.)
He usually cries for another minute or two, then he just lays there and snuggles with his blankie. He comes out a few minutes later ready to play and have fun again.
He gives us a big hug and wants to hear us say "I love you." Then we get to hear "I love you too, Mommy/Daddy."

Our snuggly-sweet little guy can have all the tantrums he wants. ;)

Outside!

The boys very favorite place to be is OUTSIDE!!!
The minute it looks even somewhat decent outside, that is where you'll find us!
Walks, going to the park, playing t-ball, or just hanging out, everything is better in the sunshine!!



Just since last fall, the boys have learned tons of new 'outside' tricks.
Weston can hang like a monkey, and IS a monkey on anything and everything.
Tave loves going down the slide on his own now and only wants to sit in the big boy swing.
I love watching them explore and discover new things.

Going Green!!!

Our St. Patrick's Day:

About a month before the holiday, Weston started wondering what the leprachaun was going to bring him... I had forgotten about that little game we did last year. But 3 year olds don't let you forget!
So we had our (now) traditional visit from the trickly little leprachaun. He came and left little footprints all over the house for us to follow. Of course he didn't leave his pot of gold (or any of the green Jeff and I would have liked) but he did leave a basket full of green-fun for the boys. They had a blast thinking they were really going to catch him this year. But that fellow is a tricky one. We missed him again.

Our very green dinner:

And my handsome non-irish guys:

We started a new tradition this year of making green smoothies. They were VERY green but tasted delicious!! It was a little tart for the boys, so we might be tweaking it a bit for next year.

Happy St. Patties!