Today You Are Three

Dear Jett,

You know how I am always telling you that you aren't allowed to grow up? That you are supposed to be my baby forever? Well, I think I've come to the realization that you aren't going to obey me in that aspect. Every day you wake up I swear you are taller and look more and more like a little boy than a baby. And now you are three. The time has gotten away from me and now you truly are a little big boy.
Jett, you are one of the funniest, silliest, most entertaining children in the world. I love how you are infatuated with superheroes, particularly Batman. I love that you tell the truth, even when you know it will get you in trouble. I love that you have a deep fascination with flashlights and anything with moving parts. I love that you can sit down and do a 24 piece puzzle all on your own. But I also love that you'd rather have us "help" you, just so you can spend time with us. I love that you always ask to go see "da bonesth" and want to call "Papa" on the phone. I love that you are so forgiving and that you are willing to apologize for mistakes you've made.

I love that you love your brother and that you have so much patience and understanding when playing with him. I love that you are so independent and love to learn new things. I love that you can talk to us and tell us what you want, even if it means you scream what you want or how you feel. I love that you are so social and outgoing, but also observant. I love that you want your "woof" Lucy to sleep with you and that you sing her to sleep. I love that you find joy and humor in everyday situations; a talent that many people wish they could boast.

I know some days are hard when you can't do the things you'd like to or if it seems as if I'm being unfair, but I always want you to remember that I love you and your brother more than anything. I love being your Mom and I love hanging out with you during the day when it's just the two of us. I wouldn't want to be doing anything else. Just running errands with you is so much fun and I wouldn't trade a minute of me and you time for anything.

Jett, you are such a loved little boy. As you continue to grow, remember that all your wonderful talents, knowledge and wisdom come from our Heavenly Father, who loves you so much. He has blessed you with so many wonderful gifts and wants you to share them, just as you do now. Never be afraid to do the right thing and to always tell the truth. We are so proud of you and the wonderful child you are. We are so blessed to be your parents and we continually learn so much from your big spirit.

Don't ever change.

All my love,

Mama

Holy Birthday Batman!

I don't know what it is about birthdays that makes them so exciting and fun and yet horrifically stressful and exhausting all at the same time. I think I'm just glad I'm done until next August.

For Jett's birthday party this year, he obviously wanted a Batman party. I have never really done an indoor party with little friends, so it was an interesting experiment that made me decide we are choosing a venue next year.

I was deathly ill most of the week, which meant that I got absolutely nothing done for the party until last minute. Which also meant I was up until 2am the night before getting everything ready. But I think I pulled it off...except the fact that by the time we were done doing all the activities, we still had 45 minutes left. 

The Invitations:

The Decorations:

The Cake:

The Party:

The party started with everyone decorating their capes and masks. I made the huge mistake of giving the kids glitter glue. But they all loved it and instantly began fighting crime. 

Once that was all cleaned up, we had lunch of pizza and apple slices. Second lesson learned: only buy ONE large pizza instead of two. Kids eat like birds.

Then we played "pin the bat sign on Batman". Third lesson learned: plan more games.

Next we did presents, which everyone was psyched about. Jett got some great gifts that he wouldn't let anyone touch. Needless to say we had to put all the gifts away until the party ended. 

And finally, we ended it with cake. Wonderful, glorious cake. 

By the time the party ended, I was ready to go to bed. Seriously, indoor parties are exhausting. Mommy experienced a little sensory overload today. But what mattered was, Jett had a blast. Happy Birthday Jett-Man!

OCTOBER POST #2: Family Pictures, 27 on the 27th & Halloween!

Family Pictures
My generous Uncle Dodd is a great photographer and was so awesome to do our family pictures this year! The colors of the leaves were just gorgeous and I think it was the first family picture session we've ever had that didn't end in crying, whining, meltdowns, or feelings of complete frustration and exhaustion. They turned out so good!

27 on the 27th
Yep! That's right! I celebrated my Golden Birthday this year! Dave had been prepping the boys for about a week or two by writing and putting together a special social story. It was about me and what they were going to do on my birthday. It was pretty awesome. So Dave had taken the boys out and given them money to buy their old mom a birthday gift. I kind of knew what to expect considering I know how the boys get when being set free in the middle of Target.

Since Dave works Saturdays, it was just me and the boys for the morning and early afternoon. My awesome parents called me up unexpectantly and invited me to lunch at Olive Garden. It was so much fun and they gave me some money to spend on myself. Money is always good. : ) Thanks Mom & Dad!

Dave came home from work that evening and had the boys give me their gifts. Jett was up first. He gave me a box of Berries Cap'n Crunch and some rubber spatulas (definitely knew Dave helped with that last one). Cruise then handed me his gift which was a small astronaut Lego set (just what he I always wanted!), some gloves and a package of Hostess cupcakes. And of course, I got an ADORABLE card.

I love Cruise's tongue as he makes a yummy slurp sound as he looks at the cupcakes.

Dave had made me a birthday cake the night before, so we pulled that out and the boys sang happy birthday to me. 

Around dinner time, my awesome sister Abby came to watch the kids while Dave took me out. Since we were still full of cake, we decided to do a little shopping. I could've decided on going to a movie, but I felt like getting out and doing something I don't normally do. So we went to IKEA and wandered around the maze leaving with a .99 cent item: funnels. Then we went to the mall where Dave picked out and bought me a new church outfit. I was pretty impressed! He did a great job! By this time, we decided we were finally hungry, so I chose a restaurant I've never been to before: Mikado. It is a Japanese restaurant in Sandy and it was really good! I got the salmon teriyaki with rice, miso soup, 2 California rolls, and vegetable tempura. It was A LOT of food and had to take about half of it home. 

After that, we ran some errands and made our way home. It was such a great birthday and I feel so blessed to have such a sweet husband and little boys. 

The Sunday after, my sweet in-laws had a little party for me and was given some wonderful gifts as well. Thank you family!

Halloween

I love Halloween, mostly because the boys love it. Cruise has been asking for a whole month when Halloween will be. The night before Halloween, I had the boys paint their pumpkins and then we carved a little one just so they could experience pulling all the guts out. They weren't really into that. Dave had carved his earlier in the day and it was pretty much awesome. 

Halloween morning, Cruise got all ready for school, which included his costume. Of course, Jett had to put on his astronaut costume as well.

Some early morning reading.

Stitching Jett's Batman costume.

Good morning Daddy!

I volunteered to help in Cruise's class for the Halloween party. I was in charge of the paper craft and the food craft. For the paper craft I had the kids make ghosts out of paper plates and white streamers. For the food craft, I had the kids make witches hats and witches brooms. Two other moms did the games and the snacks. After the party, we had the kids practice trick-or-treating in the classroom. The whole thing turned out awesome and the kids had a blast! 

Cruise last week asked Dave & I what we were going to be for Halloween. I hadn't planned on dressing up, so I asked him, "What do you think I should be?" He said a vampire. So I had to make that work out. I bought the cheapest costume I could find and bought some fake vampire teeth. It took me two hours and a trip to Walgreens to get denture adhesive to get those things to stick. But I finally got them to work!

In the evening, my parents came over with a jack-o-lantern pizza and we all had dinner. Then they hung out and passed out candy while Dave and I took the kids trick-or-treating. They both had difficulty understanding the concept of ONLY ONE CANDY. So they ended up with a surprising amount of candy so after two blocks they decided they had enough and ran home. After a bath and a movie, they passed out. It was a great Halloween!

Vampire, Dr. Doofenschmirtz, Astronaut & Batman

Oh yeah, and let's not forget this little gem. Our neighbor texted this picture to us last week: