Bathed

 Ryder took his first bath with his brothers today and they had tons of fun

He is a splasher for sure, which West & Tave thought was hilarious. (me, not so much, ha!)

I love his snuggles and giggles afterwards.

My little Ryder is one happy kid.

Working Out

The boys are really into Jeff & my workouts.

A long time ago I found 1 lb weights in Target's dollar section. I WISH I would have bought two sets. 

They boys take turns with them and feel so super cool when they lift them. 

I love that we're teaching them about health and working out as a family.

Tave doesn't make it through quite as much as West, but they are trying and are dang cute doing it!!

Here's to healthy family habits!

Beautiful like a princess

I have the sweetest boys!  They tell me often that I am beautiful like a princess....they especially like when I use different colors of eye-shadow and wear headbands.  Oh I just love my boys.

The other night Weston collected every clip of mine he could find and asked if he could fix my hair. 

So we all climbed on my bed and the boys got to work.  Tave put in the clear plastic claw clips and Weston did all the rest.

They had so much fun and LOVED that I kept it in.  They kept telling me how beautiful I looked and were sad when I took it out (since I was going somewhere...although I'm sure I could have started a new trend, no?!)
I am so spoiled by my boys!

Three things that changed our day

We always ask the boys what their favorite part of the day was. It's a little bedtime ritual that we all love. (Thanks, Jen for the idea!)
Usually the boys say things like:  When we wrestled with daddy, when daddy came home, when I went to preschool, when I played with so and so....etc, etc.
Notice anything missing???? Yeah...that would be the mommy.
I get it, I really do- the day to day things are normal and not 'exciting'.
Except I want to be that and do that for them, at least sometimes.
And today I did.

They really really wanted to play in the snow.  Weston even said he would go out by himself just in the backyard.  I almost said no. I just don't like being cold, wet, in the snow, and the hassle of getting geared up and then cleaned up when you're done.
But instead I said: "Grab your boots!"
The boys began playing and they were having so much fun.  They loved it.  I could hear their shouts and had to grab a picture really quickly.
Then they asked if they could go out the gate into the big field.
I almost said no (opening the gate meant I would for sure have to go out).
But instead I said: "Sure, but stay close."
A white field ready to be spoiled = a little boys dream!
Again I heard their shouts  and this time I had to join them.  I bundled up the babe, grabbed the camera and ran out for some fun.
We did it ALL:  Snowballs, snow angels, eating the snow, running, rolling, and even swimming in the snow. Then they grabbed the sled and started pulling it around.
Tave asked if I would pull them for a sled ride.
I almost said no.  (I was holding Ryder, afterall)
But instead I said:  "Yes! Will you hold Ryder, too?"
I pulled them around for a looooong time. They laughed and screamed and had the time of their lives.  They asked for more and I kept going.
About 10 minutes after we headed inside to take off our soaking clothes & eat dinner, the sun really came out. It started melting the snow and turning it even slushier.  The thought crossed my mind that the snow would probably be gone tomorrow and we just made it before it was too wet and too gone.
And I realized that Heavenly Father had been with me today, reminding me of what was most important and showing me that those three little decisions to say 'yes' when I wanted to say 'no' changed our day from something that was honestly nothing great, to something magical and memorable.
As we were eating dinner the boys kept saying how this was the best day ever because they played in the snow and mommy pulled them on the sled.
I finally made the favorites.

And I plan on being there more often.

Patience part II

 Weston is very interested in my tulips (and that's what everyone calls them: "mom's tulips". He has randomly asked me all winter when they would start showing up.  So I thought it very fitting that he was the first one to spot a teeny tiny sprout in the flower bed.  A couple weeks later, and they are looking like this:

Tulips & Spring.

I couldn't be more happy!

Introducing:

Aren't they the cutest little owl rattles ever?!   

Shar has been telling me for awhile to do owls instead of birdies.

So I did & we ALL love them.  

Weston & Tave named the pink one Cora. We haven't named the rest yet but the boys are working on it... they have come up with some pretty funny stuff.

Ryder absolutely LOOOOOVES these. He won't even touch his birdie anymore. :( 

When he sees an owl he reaches and grabs and won't let go....he tries to munch on the ears but so far I've saved them (since they are for sale) but as soon as the Bijou Market is over, each boy will be getting his own (and they can't wait!)

Do you want one? 

Well, today's your lucky day! 

Head over to the Trading Place for a chance to win...I would love to send one off to one of my friends. :) 

But hurry, the giveaway ends tonight  (Wed)!!!

Ryder- 8 months

 Wow, another month has flown by with this little man!

He is such a joy to have in our home.

EVERYONE loves to  hold him and be around him.  He makes us laugh constantly with his slobbery kisses and adorable laugh.

He loves his brothers and has so much fun watching them.

He rolls around a ton and now plays more on his tummy.  

He will lay on his tummy and scoot himself in circles with his feet to get what he wants. So cute!

He sits up with assistance.

He loves to stand while holding your fingers and still kicks like CrAzY!!!!

He is super super SUPER grabby. He wants to touch and hold pretty much everything in sight.

He still really only likes bananas and sweet potatoes, but we do have him try a variety of fruits and veggies.

He loves graham crackers, club crackers, cheerios, and bread.

He is really good at feeding himself the cheerios, pieces of bread, and small crackers.

He is super ticklish under his cute little chinny-chin-chin and has THE BEST laugh when he's tickled.

He likes to eat books more than read them.

He loves to be outside.

He loves his naps and bedtime and has started really liking his blanket that he sleeps with. He snuggles it right up to his face when he's ready to go to sleep. 

He is so happy and smiley and just loves to be held and snuggled.

We started baby sign with him...we'll see if he likes it!

Ryder, we LOVE you!

Rewarded: Arrrrr Matey

The boys just filled up their jars  of gems* and so they earned a trip to Pirate Island!  

For the few days leading up to it, Tave would say Arrrrrr, a LOT.  It was so funny. He would tell us he was going to eat pizza, say ARRRR, and get a sword.  

We had a ton of fun playing the games and being pirates.  

I love being their mom!

*for those who have asked,  they each earn gems individually.  They earn them for helping, sharing, obeying, talking nicely, etc.  We try to make this be a reward/positive reinforcement so we only take away gems for more serious things...  They 'earn' different amounts of gems depending on what they've done.  The better we are at remembering to do it, the smoother and better it goes. I like that it reminds Jeff and I to offer praise and positive reinforcement often.  They don't always both earn gems, but we try to keep it sort of even. If Weston is getting too far ahead, then I'll try to find some things Tave can help with around the house to earn more gems.  They are young enough that we don't want this to be negative in any way or discouraging. It usually takes them about 3 weeks to earn their prize.  So far we've tried to make the prizes be a family activity that we wanted to do anyways (to save on costs and promote fun family time) If you have more questions or any suggestions, let me know!

Our Lucky Day!

Our St. Pattie's Day was lots of fun!  

The boys have been talking about the leprechaun's visit since last year. (This is a tradition they won't let us get out of!)  They were determined to see the little green man this year and Weston, especially, had tons of questions about him. Yikes! I had to brush up on my leprechaun stories!

This year we decided to make a leprechaun trap to see if we could meet the guy and ask him questions.  Both boys wanted to color the rainbow, so our trap was especially inviting, and of course we had to put a pot of gold at the end for him to find. (Our gold was white gold...that's the best kind ;)

That darn leprechaun is just too fast and tricky. By the time we got back from our walk he had left his footprints all over the house, had found his gold, and was already gone. But he left a few little rainbow treats for the kids to enjoy.  Which was a good thing, since Weston was so disappointed we wouldn't be talking to him afterall.
Those tricky leprechauns!

After our little visit, we had green things for dinner... the boys really liked the green sprinkles I added at the last minute (my easy-out for not coming up with something better- score one for mama!) and then they got a delicious leprechaun pie for dessert.  

All in all - a pretty lucky day if you ask us!

Ryder's New Trick!

He is SO proud of himself when he does this!! 

He absolutely loves it & screams and squeals the entire time. 

He thinks he is the greatest thing ever... & we pretty much agree!

The early bird catches the....

Superhero!

Tave is our early (early, early) riser. He is often up before anyone else and usually we can get him to snuggle in bed with us for a few more minutes or hours. (depending on how early he's up!)  

Since I was crocheting late into the night for Bijou, early mornings were a little tricky for me. So I'd often have something in the room for our resident early riser to play with. This morning it was superheros.
He played by himself for awhile and then woke me up to show me his handy work. 

I must say, I was impressed. :)

February Funnies

We spent a lot of February inside with colds and just hanging out together.  

The kids are SO.MUCH.FUN. right now.
We definitely had our share of crazy moments and busy busy days, but we also had a blast. 

Weston & Tave both adore Ryder and love to make him laugh.  

Ryder is such a sweet little guy and is getting to be tons of fun.

They also are getting along super well and pretend play together often. It is incredible to take a step back and watch their relationship grow.  We did lots of super hero stuff, lots of pretending, lots of coloring, singing, games, and yes some tv (how else could I get through months and  months and months of snowy, cold weather!)

I love being a mom to my three boys. Their personalities make my days more fun and exciting than I ever thought    in all my 'someday-i'll-be-a-mommy-dreams' :)  

Conversations

Oh my goodness, the boys have been cracking us up lately.
They are definitely the bright spots of our lives and help us to have so much fun every single day.
Here are a few of our recent conversations with them:

Weston:  Me & Tave are magnet brothers.
Me: What does that mean?
Weston:  We're magnet brothers because we stick together like this.  (Gives Tave a huge hug)
Now take a picture of the magnet brothers, okay.
Me & Jeff (laughing): okay!


The kids really like watching Super Why on PBS.  If you've seen it, you'll understand this:

Me:  Goodnight my little Tave. Love you.
Tave:  I love you mom.  But mom, I'm hungry, I need a cracker.
Me: Well, it's bedtime and you already brushed your teeth. You can have a cracker in the morning.
Tave: But it's in my story, see, "Tave gets a cracker." 
Me: hahahaha.  Nice try, buddy. :)

He has started doing this tons lately for things that he wants..... he'll say 'It's in my story, see....'
Funny guy!

I love these little moments with my boys.  I am so grateful I get to be their mom.

Rewarded: Mini Golf

I took an entire week off from posting and 'catching up' on the blog. It felt good to take the break and now I'm ready to get back into the groove. I'll try to post once a day until I catch up. I'm down to the really big things (like Christmas, Thanksgiving, family visits) so we'll see how fast I can get them done.

In the  meantime, I have been busy with playgroups, the new Music Makers group (I got the idea from Shar and we are LOVING it, so much fun) and I started crocheting again & crafting some girly things.  I am having a lot of fun doing girl things, they'll be up in the shop soon for some spring time cuteness. 

The boys are also keeping me oh-so busy. We have fun every single day and they are just the sweetest, funniest, cutest guys I know. 

We started a new reward system, where they earn gems for helping, being kind, talking nicely, and obeying. It is working well, as long as Jeff & I remember to reward them. When we see a spike in negative behaviors we realize it usually correlates with us forgetting to give positive feedback regularly & reward them for good behavior. So we, as the adults, are working on that. 

The boys filled up their jars with gems (over the course of about 1.5 weeks) and earned a trip to Trafalga.

It was AWESOME!  They think golfing is the coolest thing ever and then to be under black lights for it, with neon under-sea stuff, well, it was pretty much perfect! 

We had a blast and loved treating our boys to a fun afternoon:

02.12.11



ps. I love Groupon & KSL deals. This was one of the deals of the day that we got & it has been totally worth it!