our three

The kids had so much fun during our trips to St. George.  Lily was so excited to see Eve, one of the two other girl cousins on my side.  It had been a long time since we'd seen Nathan and his family!  There is a fun park over at Little Valley that the kids loved.  There was a swing there that was mostly a balancing bouncing thing that Adam had Lily on and bounced her, she let go and was flung up in the air to come crashing down.  I was in the car about to go to lunch with some cousins, and came back to see Lily with quite a bit of blood on her (and Adam's shirt).  We were very lucky she didn't get injured worse!

Here are the kids having a party in our closet.  I love their outfits, and love when they play together so happily and have so much fun.

I took a shower one day and asked the kids to watch Isaac.  I came out and they were having a sleepover.  So cute.

Lily got the scissors this time.  She got Jackson pretty good, and herself as well.  I was super grateful I could cut their hair this short as I (obviously, since I didn't bother before going to the salon) detest combing it.  Lily had the best story about hers though: she cut the little locks, then dipped them in water and stuck them to her baby picture "so the baby has hair!"  haha!

And here is the "after"!  So good looking!  Jackson was so darn excited to have short hair, and I told my parents and Adam to pretend they couldn't recognize them - they thought that was pretty funny.  Here grandpa is taking them on the train at the mall.  They have asked me many times and I say "No way - that is a grandpa thing to do!"  So they were quite happy when they came to town.

We got tickets for the summer movies down at the mall.  It has been great except for messing up Isaac's naptime.  I give the kids a quarter, they pick out some candy at the machine, and they don't whine for popcorn and treats at the concessions.  :)  Afterwards they play at the little mall playground and then it's lunch time!

Last but not least is swimming lessons!  We did them up at Weber State and I am so happy with the results.  Lily was excited but super hesitant the first time; she ended up being a little fish by about the 4th lesson!  Now she loves to go under and dive for things.  I love love love having her comfortable in the water.  Jackson wouldn't even get in at first but his teachers were persistant and got him in!  Even he will dip his head under now, which I think is amazing.  Adam and I are planning this year's activities.  I am very excited.  More swim lessons, tumbling for Lily, soccer for Jackson.  I would feel complete if we only had a piano!  I love that Liz and Nathan give such perspective to how cheap Utah is, also.  All of those things combined are well under $100/month, which is great since we're not paying preschool tuition this year.  :)

our first

 Adam and I have been trying to take the kids out on little separate dates for one-on-one time.  One of the first things I did with Lily was take her to a Fairy Ball at the Treehouse Museum.  She got to dress up, the museum was decorated so cute, Cinderella and her wicked stepsisters (men dressed as women so they were pretty awful) were there, and her favorite part was a magic show.  It was a fun night - she seemed pretty overwhelmed for the first little while because there was so many other little princesses everywhere, but she was so amazed at the magician she had a great time.

 Lily is such a cutie - loves everything girl, including drama!  She sure keeps us on her toes.  She loves to set things up, especially parties.  Here she set up a bird's nest with some hard boiled eggs, leaves and rocks.  She found a birthday princess music CD at the library and when my parents were visiting she made cupcakes with grandma and then set up a cute little birthday party in her room with Jackson. (Side note:  Kudos to my daughter for noticing how I clean up as I go when baking - she kept on telling Mom how much of a mess she was making and that I don't make messes in the kitchen.  :)  I have been trying to let her do more in the kitchen and sneak in little tidbits about what ingredients do and why recipes work.  I love having a cooking buddy!

 She loves taking care of Isaac still, although yesterday was quite upset when I said I was putting him down, because she HATES being quiet.  She unfortunately has picked up my bad temper - nothing like kids displaying your weaknesses to make you feel like a complete monster because you know they got it from you! - but is mostly willing to talk things over and work things out.  It's amazing how much she needs limits.  When she's free she becomes a little whining terror, but as soon as we set limits she is so much happier.  Very wonderful discovery.

 

For her birthday (6 months ago....) we gave her a certificate to go climbing at iRock.  We finally used it!  She was so cute, and worked so hard.  For some reason she got to this certain point on the wall and then was terrified she would start swinging around and fall.  But she was so darn brave.  Jackson went up a few feet a few times and then was done.  I'm hoping to be able to do this again soon, she was pretty excited to go up.
Hopefully we didn't do some irreparable damage since towards the end Adam would give her little boosts which scared her, and I was saying she wouldn't get ice cream unless she got to the top...Luckily I realized the ridiculousness of what we were doing and we let up and didn't force her to fulfill our expectations. 

 She finished preschool and is ready for kindergarten!  At her graduation they asked each child what they wanted to be when they grew up.  Lily answered "Rapunzel."  Pretty cute.  Grandma has been encouraging her to work at Disneyland as a Princess when she grows up.  I guess it's a step up from just wanting to be a Princess!

I love this little girl.  So much spunk, but in such a sweet package.

our second

 

Jackson still loves loves loves dirt, digging, dump trucks, and this spring discovered mud holes.  Luckily for me and my garden he is still a super big helper and so when it was time to transform his play area into a place for veggies and herbs, he happily helped me dig holes for the pots and is now very good with watering and pulling weeds.  Also we found another spot for him to go crazy with digging.

Jackson loves being outside and is always up for a bike ride or going "fast!"  After our trips to St. George where Jack got very comfortable on his bike, he is so fun to watch pump up hills.  He's so strong!  He always yells out when he's going down hills "wee-haaa!"  Pretty awesome.

He finished his first year of preschool.  We filmed the ceremony but I took no pictures except him enjoying the treat afterward.  We appreciated this program so much, and are so grateful that he can go again next year.  Every few weeks he'll ask if it's time to go to school or ride the bus.  He is talking so well and we don't have any major concerns, just me and my motherly worrying of other kids being nice to him, or other adults not paying attention to him since he's so quiet or they can't understand him when he does try to talk to them.  Which then leads to me worrying that I am giving him special treatment and making him a bit spoiled.

Jackson loves taking pictures and setting them up for me to take them sometimes.  Here he wanted me to get him and the flowers.  Something else cute he has been doing is telling me to close my eyes and follow him (? I began telling him he had to hold my hand since I couldn't see) and he'll say "not yet.  not yet." until we get someplace, where he'll say "ok.  open your eyes!"  and there will be a surprise of some sort.  Once he had watered my raspberries; yesterday he and Adam cleared the deck; a lot of times it will be a 'castle' he has made of dirt.  So cute.

And of course he loves all things moving - trucks, motorcycles, trains!  We met up with Amanda, Henry and Peter at City Creek in Salt Lake, and the kids loved the skybridge.  Since he is starting to talk so much more he is deep in the "why?" stage.  I feel pretty guilty that I indulge pretty much every time he asks me, and I'm sure I got exasperated a lot faster when Lily was constantly asking "why".

Probably my favorite thing about Jackson right now is his sweetness.  He is always bringing me little things - flowers/petals from the garden, art projects, treats - and will say "you" as in, "this is for you."  Hard not to spoil that boy!

our third

About Isaac:  He is 9 months today!  This little munchkin has quite the personality.  He likes familiarity.  When we are in St. George, or he has to nap other places or at other times besides his normal schedule, he does not appreciate it.  Otherwise he is just as pleasant as can be.  Adam set him up at the sand dunes like this before he could sit up.  He LOVED it and wasn't too happy we weren't letting him stuff his face with sand.

 With Uncle Tyler.  Very puzzling to me, as I don't think I have done anything different, is that he detests anything that is edible.  Dirt, rocks, leaves, paper, and other things will go straight into his little mouth, but as soon as a bit of fruit, or vegetable, or whatever I'm eating, or whatever 20 different baby foods, at varying temperatures, we have offered him, it is met with clenched lips.  And let me tell you he has a strong mouth.  We started shoving stuff in when he would open his mouth to cry, so he just starts crying with his teeth clenched.  So he nurses.  I'm not too worried, just selfishly wish he would move on so I could get some more energy and less stress for babysitters. 

 Here he is with his preferred diet.  And WATER!!!  He loves it.  He will play in the shower in the morning for such a long time.  Sometimes he stays in with Adam, and then me, and then the kids before we take him out.  He is a big splasher and so loves swimming pools and sinks.

 At first he was super obsessed with Lily, but recently he has become a lot more interested in Jackson.  He thinks rough housing is pretty fun and loves to watch Jack be a crazy boy.  Yeah for brothers!

He is crawling now and is just so cute.  He loves his Dad and being upside down.  I love to see little bits of Lily and Jackson in him.  We are so happy to have Isaac in our family!

girls

Let me just start out by saying that I love my boys.  Like I am completely head over heels in love with them.  That being said, it just breaks my heart that my little Lily doesn't have a sister.  I grew up surrounded by women: an amazing mother and sisters, wonderful aunts and cousins. 

 Such support.  Such love.  The more I watch Lily grow up and reminisce back to my childhood to determine any similarities or differences, the more I realize how incredibly blessed I was.  It's the biggest temptation to move to St. George - family! 

We were in St. George for two weeks in April.  The first week Liz was there with her family, along with Amanda and her kids.  So. Awesome.  Cousins all over the place.  Amanda and I took our kids to the crack and I decided to try to get Lily and Jack to do it.  Jack was too scared; I gave up on him.  Lily was quite nervous as well but I picked her up and told her to be brave like Rapunzel and sometimes when we do scary things they end up being fun.  So Lily, Brooklyn and I ended up going up and down, and Lily loved it and was so excited when we finished.

I also got to bike with Liz and Jared in Snow Canyon.  Here we are at the top.  So gorgeous!  I love that ride, it feels so good to finish. 
Amanda and I met up with Amy and Meg for a birthday lunch, where we decided to go get Dixie Nutrition frozen yogurt for old time's sake.  On the way we decided to go check out Grandma and Grandpa's property in Middleton.  We laughed so hard we cried remembering how we would spend all of our time in Grandpa's irrigation ditch, the "Pond", which was a concrete structure covered in moss and crawdads, but we were thrilled to have a place to go swimming.  So crazy!  Mostly we laughed at what our parents were thinking, as we don't remember showering very often. 

Here we are in the grapevines that Uncle Steve still cares for.  I lived on this property during my 8th grade school year and would spend a lot of time hiking the red hills, listening to Jon Schmidt and John Lennon on my walkman.  Now most of that land is developed, and the (real) pond I would sit by and pick cattails at has been turned into a park that I plan on taking my kids to. 
I feel so renewed after a month filled with time with my mom, sisters, sister-in-laws, aunts and cousins.  Even though Lily doesn't have any sisters now, I hope she realizes the strength that comes from sisterhood with those around her. 

spring breaks for everyone!

(Waking up Grandpa - following in our footsteps.  Poor Dad.  He probably thought he was done with being jumped on in the morning on the weekend.)

A few weeks before the kids had spring break, Mom mentioned that she was wondering why I never sent the kids down to St. George without us to stay with her.  Bingo!  Everything came together and much to Mom's surprise she got what she asked for!  Janet and Terrel came and picked them up on their way home from Idaho, and had them the first few days of the week before dropping them off at my parents.  In the meantime Adam and I got the chance to relive, for a week, having only one baby to take care of.  WOW.  Kids are a lot of work!  I didn't fully realize until I was at home without them.  We went on lots of dates and lots of drives (absent Lily whining about how BORING car rides are), and I was able to get a ton of stuff done, plus a lot of little projects that I have put off for a long time.  It was an amazing spring break for me, and pretty much I am eternally grateful for our parents, who are so supportive and know that those breaks help us be better parents.  :)  Hopefully we can do that every year, although I think Mom is still reeling.  hehe  Adam and I have been struggling with our wanna-be teenager/5 yr old girl, so it came at such a good time for us to take some time and figure out some things we need to change at home.  It was so fun to drive up to the house and see Jackson outside digging and come running over to give me a big hug.  Both kids were super-sun kissed from hours in the pool, and their hair all tangled and sandy from playing outside.  Mom described Lily as a little lost Indian.  It reminded me of how much happy time I spent in St. George with my grandparents when I was young.  Hopefully Lily and Jack are creating wonderful memories to look back on.  And we know now that Jackson likes his house and Ogden, and Lily wants to move to St. George because it is FUN and home is BORING.  The night before we were planning to leave, Jackson was so upset that we weren't going home immediately; Lily on the other hand said that I could leave her there for a few weeks (we were coming back the end of April) because she had gotten to see me and was okay and didn't want to go home.

a long time coming

 I thought about post dating things but decided against it.  February and March were so. busy. 
A ton of Lily and Jack's friends have birthdays in those months.  Pretty much if we're not planning a party Lily is BORED.  Hard to live up to that girl's expectations. 

Jackson had his first Primary assignment of saying the 2nd Article of Faith.  He did such a good job repeating every word.  When he got his first invitation for a birthday party it was the neatest thing to see - he was SO excited!  He kept on asking me to read it over and over again. 

He also had a Parent Teacher Conference.  His school and teachers have been such a blessing.  We definitely are in the right place. 

Lily had a PTC as well - on track for kindergarten!  We have LOVED that school as well.  Both kids got much needed haircuts.  Adam was upset about Jackson like always. 

Isaac passed his 4 month mark and is just the cutest little guy.  Big smiles for anyone who talks to him (unless he's tired).  We lucked out with another very nice baby!  It's so fun to see him interact with the family. 
Adam has been working working working, and with school and the CPA done has found extra time to golf and bike a bit more than usual (as long as he gets in all of his fantasy reading - the current phase he's focusing on since he dropped computer games). 
As for me, I am sustaining a 7 month old who detests solids and am trying to find ways to deal with the guilt of letting him cry at night because he is STILL WAKING UP.  We got a new bishop that is more organized than I am.  And with more organization comes more work to do!  I'm not sure if it's spring or what but for those two months I felt like it was just meetings and more meetings with visit after visit to go to.  It has been a growing experience.  I seriously don't know how I got away with morning sickness last year. 
We are looking forward to summer and being schedule free for a while.