December

We had a busy month. Things I want to remember:

Ward Christmas party. Greyson sat on Santa's lap and cried AGAIN! It was kinda funny.

I was called to be primary president. I am really scared and freaked out.

Parent teacher conferences. They were both good and are both doing very well. I was happy.

Lots of christmas activities to keep us busy. Baking, caroling, work Christmas party, cousin gingerbread party, and a trip to springs preserve.

I did not take any pictures. This is something I am working on being better at.

Now that Christmas is over I feel the need of putting everything away.

Carson's baptism

Wow! I have some catching up to do.
Carson was baptized on 12.10.11
It was a nice day. He had a lot of friends and family that came to support him. Nana Jean gave a talk on baptism. Dad baptized and confirmed him. Then we had lunch at our house. I didn't take one picture. I need to be better about that. He had such a nice day. He even wrote about it that night in his journal. I love that kid!!

Happy 5th birthday Crew!!

This little boy makes me happy. He's my little buddy and he make me so happy. It has been so fun to watch him grow and become a little person. I love his laugh and the way he talks. He is funny like his dad and loves his mom. He even tells me that he loves me more then dad! How can I not love my Crew Bear?? I am so happy that I am his mom and get to be a part of his life.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY CREW!!!

Eleven on 11.11.11

1. I was up early this morning. 6am to be exact. But I am not complaining cause Greyson slept all night.

2. So happy that B is home from deer hunting. We (Greyson and I) had a rough 11 days.

3. I realized that I would not be a good single mom.

4. I have a long list of to do's today. We'll just have to see how much I get done.

5. We had our family pictures taken by Heather and Kristin. I am in love!!!

6. Excited to get our Christmas cards ordered.

7. I am looking forward to the weekend.

8. Cause I have a bunkbed that needs to be put together. And I am sure that Brian is really looking forward to that.

9. So excited for the holidays. I really need to get started on my christmas shopping!!

10. Feeling lots of love for Russell and Caitlin today.

11. Happy Veteran's day! So thankful for this country and our freedom.

Halloween 2011

This year for Halloween we had elmo (this was Tanner's costume when he was 2. I guess he thought it was funny to wear it again when he is 10!!), wolverine, captain america and a transformer. We went to see great grandma and then nana jean and grandpa paul. We could have gone right home after that because they already had plenty of candy! We went to grandpa and grandma's ward trunk or treat. Then came home and passed out candy for a little bit. They were in bed by 8:30. I think I did pretty good since I did that all by myself.

Now we just need to get rid of all this candy!!!

Greyson fell down on the kitchen chair and hit the back of his head.
It was not the best time of the day. We were all getting ready for work/school and this all was happening at the same time.
I ended up taking him to the quick care and he had to get 2 staples. Ouch!!! He did well and only cried for a minute.
This did not stop him from climbing or being a destructive monster.
I think he is just going to be my child that will have many more trips to the quick care with broken bones or stitches.

Carson's 8th birthday!!

10/17/2011 Carson turned 8!

He decided to have a halloween party this year.

He had lots of family & friends there. They all looked so good in their costumes.

Even the Herrera brothers. AKA "the party animals"

Things I love about Carson:

* He loves to be at home.

* He loves Greyson and can always make him laugh.

* Is a big helper when he wants to be.

* Is doing so good in school. Especially with his reading.

* Loves all animals.

* His smile and his laugh.

* Is so excited to be baptized and go to cub scouts!!

Happy Birthday Carson! We love you!!

Greyson loves baby Finn. He is so sweet with him. He always wants to give him kisses and hold him. He likes to look at pictures of him on my phone and kiss the screen. I hope that these boys will be good friends.

Shooting

The boys have been begging to go shooting for awhile now. It seems like every weekend is packed and busy with something to do.

We finally got to go. I haven't been with them in awhile and I was really surprised at how good they are. They are still learning and have to be reminded a lot about the safety rules.

Crew love it too. He wanted me to take a picture of his target. And Greyson just likes to be outside. It doesn't matter what we are doing.

Crew and Greyson really miss the big boys when they are at school.
Crew will ask me all day "when is it time to get the boys?"
I hope this will change once he starts preschool.
Cause there is only so much wrestling that mom can do.
They need their brothers!!

Tanner (5th grade)

Carson (2nd grade)

And my Crew Bear who is going to be my little buddy. He is already missing his brothers. he told me that he wishes that he was starting kindergarten.

Tanner has been working hard this summer on his scout book. He earned his religious square knot, handyman, forester, naturalist, aquanaut, traveler, hiking belt loop, family travel belt loop, fishing belt loop, and swimming belt loop at pack meeting this month.

It was also a fun one because they got to race their boats.

Camping

We went to Mt Charleston last weekend and went camping. It was our last little trip before school starts. It was nice to get away. The boys had fun with the swing and getting dirty.

Brian relaxing around camp. Or was he trying to hide the huge hole in his pants?? Hmmm.

The swing kept them busy. But the adults had to constantly moniter who's turn was next. That is always annoying.

Tanner and Karley stayed real busy building this fort. They worked hard on it. It was awesome!

Oh and what do you think of my new blog design?? I asked Kim to redesign it for me. I just told her I wanted clean and modern.....and I love it. Check out her other cute stuff she designs.

Thanks Kim!!

Greyson,
Where do I even begin? You are 19 months. You keep me so busy. And like I am not busy enough!!


You love to climb. None of your brothers were this bad. Your favorite is the top bunk on Tanner's bed. You also love to get on top of the kitchen counter and play in the sink. Or on the bathroom countertops. You destroy my bathroom every morning when I take a shower. I have pretty much emptied out the medicine cabinet. The toothpaste is on top of the shower. Everything has been moved up higher. I wonder how long it will take you to figure out how to climb higher! You climb out of your crib. When you wake up in the morning you come out of your room on your own and shut the door behind you.


The dining room chairs have been up on top of the table for months. And you use your highchair to help you get to where you need. The past couple days I have been tempted to get rid of it. You climb out of it when you are not in the mood to eat anyways so I am not sure why I haven't followed through. I need to do that. You are into everything.


You love keys, screwdrivers, flashlights, cell phones, remotes, wii controllers, and anything else that you should not have. We had to take a screwdriver away from you when we had to go into church. And you were pretty upset.


You really don't say much. You understand us but we sometimes have a hard time understanding you. You grunt and point a lot and also take our hand and take us to what you want. You say mama, dada (but usually call daddy 'ama'. it's actually kinda funny!), and then we can understand other things you say but they are not clear words. Like hot and Tanner. You are always making a motor sound. And you love all things that have motors.


You love to wrestle, pinch, punch, and just be rough. But you also love to give loves and kisses, sing songs, dance, and tickle.

Oh and you love the squirt bottle. You love to spray the mirrors. It is kinda is annoying because ......well it just is!! But you love to spay Crew in the bath!

You are my smart and sweet little bubba. I really don't mean it when I tell you that I wish you were 5 this year and going to kindergarten. I want you to be at home with me for a few more years. I think that I have a lot to learn from you.

Love,

Mom

Summer

Our summer has been full of:

Tanner sleeping in. All the other boys wake up early.
Getting wet outside. Slip n Slide and just getting wet on the trampoline.
Riding bikes, playing basketball with the neighborhood boys, and just being hot!
Never ending laundry. I cannot keep up with all the towels!!
Cousin sleepovers.
Snow cones! Thanks to some great friends who introduced this little machine to my boys. We had to go to Walmart the very next day. We now have 9 different flavors.

And me constantly looking for my phone. They all think that it belongs to them. Incuding Greyson!! So that means that my battery is always dead. Go figure!!

15 years

July 6, 2011 was our 15 year anniversary.

Last weekend we were able to get away for a couple days. It was much needed!!!

We decided on a staycation at the JW Marriott.

We went to two movies (Super 8 & Captain America), went out to dinner, slept in, went shopping, swimming, took a nap, ate at the buffet with all the old people, hiking at red rock, late night at the jacuzzi, and just lots of free us time with no kids. We really didn't know what to do with ourselves. It felt like time had stopped. No one was waiting on us or needed anything from us. It was really nice. I wish we could do this more often.

Thanks to grandma for taking good care of the boys while we were able to get away.

Carson lost another tooth. He has had 2 that have been wiggly for awhile. One more then the other. Last night I looked at it. And he did not want me to pull it. It was hanging on. I got a paper towel and pinned him down. Yes, he was kicking and screaming but I couldn't let him go to sleep with that little tiny tooth just hanging there.
He had been pushing it forward with his tounge and so all I had to do was push it back and it just fell out. He was happy that it was not painful.
So the tooth fairy came last night and he got some money. Oh and the tooth fairy.......well, HE forgot to take his tooth. Carson is planning on leaving the tooth again tonight! haha!!!

Sunday

This is what we saw when we pulled up to dad & mom's house on sunday. Part of the neighbors tree fell and was in the yard. Well you know the kids instantly had ideas of playing in it. They called it their playhouse.

Claire & Crew relaxing in Grandpa's chair. These two are so cute together!

We had cupcakes for Connor's birthday. Greyson loved them!!!

Recap of the 4th of July

We had a great time in Kanarra again with the Rose's.

Richard & Cheryl could not be there this year :(

He was recovering from surgery and it was definately not the same.

They were missed!

The boys went with Brian on the hike. I stayed home with Greyson.

They got went and had a great time. As usual!

We had a great weekend. We relaxed, visited, ate yummy food, watched fireworks, played on the slide & swings, and made many more great memories!!

Friday we went to the movies to see Cars 2.
I decided to bring Greyson with us.
I thought that it would all be good.
I thought he would just sit there and love it.
That if I gave him popcorn he would be an angel.
Well....
That was not the case.
He was a nightmare.
Why would I think that he would be any different?
Not sure.
But.....I didn't get to see any of the movie.
Him and I sat out in the hall.
I did get a readmission ticket from the manager though.
I think that he felt sorry for me.
I heard all about the movie though from the big boys.
I can't wait to see it now.


Oh and one more thing!
We have grass in our backyard.
Can you see the smile on my face?
I am so in love!
Can you even understand this love?

Swim lessons

Crew did not like to get his face wet. This made it hard for him to learn anything. He finally started putting his face in the water. It took some bribing. He also needed some help off the diving board too! haha!

Crew and Claire were in the same class. They both had some issues. But they sure did like their free time when they could float around in the rings.

Carson did so good this year. He just needed to build his confidence and realize that he CAN swim. He was swimming so fast and holding his breath for a long time too. He even jumped off the diving board. Then after he realized what he had done (jumped in and swam in the deep end) he had second thoughts on the second day. But his teacher didn't let him stop. He kept doing it.

Now all we need is to practice!!