enjoy it while you can

Sam came to dinner tonight, saw that we were having spaghetti and immediately took off her shirt. She learned that at Granny Nanny’s house. But what made it different tonight was the conversation this provoked. Max told Sam she won’t always be able to do that when she eats because “girls can’t take their shirts off.”  Sam doesn't like to be told what to do so she didn't like hearing that.

bean bag game

Max made a bean bag game in cub scouts last week. We decided to play tonight as a family. We have played before so this wasn’t a new game, but Sam decided to get behind the board and stick her face through. She kept telling the boys to throw it at her. They gladly agreed and started throwing the bean bags at her. She just laughed and laughed as they attacked her.

big mouth

How do you teach kids to slow down and take small bites? I gave Hunter some crackers and placed them strategically on his tray so he would only grab one at a time. He wouldn’t eat the crackers until he had them all in his hand at the same time.  He shoved 5 crackers in his mouth at once.

younger ones

It seems a lot of my pictures have been of these two lately.  It is so much fun to have them home all day while the older boys are at school.  I am so blessed to have such great kids. They really make life fun.

aaaahhhh

Hunter is into everything.  I came down and he had completely emptied the church bag as well as my primary bag.  How can one little person make such a mess? 

football fan

Here is our future BYU football player watching the game with his dad.

driving

We went over to the park and played with the remote control cars. Hunter didn’t know what to think when the out-of-control cars came flying by him. The batteries don’t last very long in these cars so when they died he was brave enough to approach them. He enjoyed pushing the cars all over the park.

friends

We had some friends come through town and spend the night with us.  I met Lance at BYU and we have kept in touch over the years.  We are glad they stopped by and we were able to visit with them.  It is always fun to see good friends and catch up.

close up

Elise has been bugging me for a better picture of Sam's new haircut.  This is her new favorite headband.  She wants to wear it with every outfit, regardless if it matches or not.

no bibs

Hunter has never liked bibs.  When I put a bib on him he usually rips it off and throws it on the floor.  I tried a bib that tied so he couldn’t rip it off but he went purple trying.   Tonight I put a bib on him and instead of trying to rip it off he just moved it out of the way.  He held it in one hand and ate with the other.

getting braver

Tonight at family home evening we were all sitting on the couches while Hunter was roaming the room.  He was pushing the buttons on the cable box and touching the t.v., when he just turned around and walked to the coffee table.  I tried to get him to do it again, but he would just drop to the ground and crawl to me.

legos

Today the boys decided to get the Lego Police Station out and  build it.  It's about 400 lego pieces.  It seemed every few minutes they were calling for me or Trevor to come and "help" them find a piece.  It eventually became a family affair.  We had a good time working together.  Sam just wanted to play with it, even though I kept telling her the building was under construction.

owl movie

Today I took the kids to see "Legend of the Guardians."  We got some free movie passes to a special screening of it.  It doesn't come out in theaters until next Friday.  We all liked it, the animation was amazing.  This was the first movie we have seen in 3D.  Very cool!

yikes

This morning I had Hunter in my room with the door shut so he could crawl around and not wake up the big kids.  This is our usual routine because he wakes up before everyone else.  I was not paying attention and the next thing I know the door is open and Hunter is out the door.  He had reached up, grabbed the handle and opened the door.  Then he crawled out of the room happy as ever.  Later in the day I caught him trying to get into the pantry.

soccer time

Soccer started back up tonight with the boys first practices.  I guess I love being a soccer mom, because it felt good to get back out to the fields.  The weather was great, the kids were running around having a fun time and we reconnected with old coaches and friends from previous seasons.  Plus it is fun to watch the progress the boys have made.

back to school night

Last night was back to school night.  We were able to go to Max and Kye's classrooms, see their desks and meet their teachers.  It is always a fun for them to show us where they spend their days.  Kye's teacher did a formal presentation  while Max's teacher just let us roam the room.   This paper was on Max's desk during the open house.

chopped

Sam got a haircut today.  We decided to go short.  The ends were so dead and I wanted to try something new and different.  This was the first time she has gone to a salon and she was excited.  She kept asking if this is where I got my haircut.  She did a great job sitting still.  The girl who cut her hair went a little shorter than I wanted.  She kept telling me she was trying to even it out meanwhile her hair kept getting shorter and shorter. 

kung zhu

Last week I took the boys to Toys R Us because they wanted to spend their birthday money.  We came home with Kung Zhu pets.  I didn't even know what they were, but thanks to advertising, the boys did.  They went a little crazy.  They bought battle training exercises, a tank, some armor and of course a couple animals.  I told them they didn't have to spend all their money, but as Max put it, " we want to."

thirsty

Last night we went to Cafe Rio for dinner.  We were all done and just sitting around talking when we see Sam doing this.  One is orange Fanta and the other is lemonade.  You could see the orange Fanta going up one straw then down the other, it was kind of disgusting.  But she said it was good, so of course the boys had to try it, even Trevor.  They all agreed with Sam.  I just took their word for it.

virtual games

I took the kids to the children's museum today so Trevor could sleep in a quiet house.  He has been working nights since he got back.  The virtual sports game is probably the favorite for my kids.  They did not want to leave today, but I was starving and the BYU game was going to start.

cousins

Mike, Leora, Claire and Randy came to stay the night with us tonight.  Hunter had so much fun crawling with Randy around the house.  These two seriously couldn't stay away from the stairs.  They were having a great time until Randy started whacking Hunter in the head with a barbie palm tree trunk. 

love

Sam brought this home today from school.  I told her this means "I love you."  She said, "No it means I love Sister Bishop."  Sister Bishop is her teacher this week, I have her in a rotating co-op group with some ladies from church.

standing alone

Hunter has started standing without support.  He is so proud of himself.  He has tried to take steps, but just ends up falling down.  He is getting closer and closer to walking every day. 

preschool

Today was Sam's first day of preschool. She loved it! She came home and just kept telling me how much fun she had.

so big

We finally got Hunter out of the baby carrier and in a big car seat. He isn't quite a year but is definitely over the 20lbs, so we put him forward facing. When I first put him in it he just stared at me. He looks so big when I see him sitting in it.

grandpa

Everyone except Grandpa A. left this morning. The kids attacked him today, they wanted to wrestle with Grandpa and have him chase them all over the house.  Sam even talked him into playing princess' with her.  Sam told me 3 or 4 times: "I am sad the Grandma's and Grandpa's have to leave."

baptism

Today Max got baptized. It was a great day. Grandma's, Grandpa's, an Uncle and Aunt and cousins all came to town. After the baptism we ate lunch at the Aliante Casino buffet, swam at the hotel, watched the BYU football game and had a barbeque.

growing up

I made Max get all dressed up and took him over to the park for pictures because he is getting baptized tomorrow and I needed a recent picture of him.  He was very cooperative.  I can't believe he is 8 years old already. He is such a fun kid. He is smart and funny and a great helper around the house. I am so glad he is part of our family.  I love you very much Max! 

scouts

Tonight was Max's first pack meeting. He was so excited. About 3 hours before he reminded me his patches weren't sewn on his shirt. I was willing to duct tape them on (just for tonight) but Trevor said that was a bad idea. I don't own a sewing machine so I ended up calling a friend. She was awesome and told me to come right over and she would do it. He has just started and is loving scouts.

dance class

Sam started back in dance today. We took the summer off and she was ready to start again. We went to a new studio and Sam was convinced she wouldn't like it. She kept telling me she wanted to go to the other place, but I convinced her just to try it out. After class she said, "Actually I do really like it here."