Babies

Claire LOVES her babies. I think it's so fun! She has two dolls and then a little glow worm baby that used to belong to the boys (but every single one of them were terrified of it.) She just loves it! She gives her babies hugs and kisses and doesn't say "baby" but says, "Ohhhh" with a little giggle whenever she's holding them or whenever you say "Where's your baby?". It's so cute! Even if she's crying and nothing else seems to help all I have to do is say "Where's your baby?" and she'll stop and say "Ohhh!" and look around for one. She puts them over her shoulder and pats their backs and gives them squeezes. I just think it's amazing to see the differences between boys and girls. My boys were all fascinated with anything with wheels from the youngest age! I was amazed that they could be so interested in cars when they were sooo little! They just gravitated to them. How did they know? They would lie on the floor and push their cars back and forth watching those wheels and of course making the sound effects. (Boys would NOT be boys without sound effects.) They had some stuffed animals that they liked, too, but you could tell that things with wheels were way more interesting. And while Claire does like pushing cars around (let's face it...there are way more cars and dinosaurs around here than babies) nothing gets a squeal of delight and smile out of her like her baby dolls do. Man! I love these four little babies of mine. They're so fun!

Dancing, Music, and Fall

We were very fortunate to be able to grow up in Kansas with one set of Grandparents close by. Grangran and Grandad lived just a few miles away from us and we saw them several times a week. I could do an entire post, actually it would be more like a book, about all of the memories and things I remember from my childhood that include them. They were always there for us and with us.

When they would come to visit, my sisters and I were always happy to have a very attentive audience to watch us dance. We'd put on our best twirly skirts, put on our favorite record by Roger Whittaker to dance to "Durham Town" or "The Ship Song" (The Last Farewell), and then dance and twirl around and around. We knew just where to put the needle when the song was over so we could do it again. Grangran and Grandad would clap and cheer for us and never seemed to tire of our dancing.

It didn't end when we were little girls, or "the twirlies" as we often called. One of my favorite memories was when I was home from BYU my Freshman year. I think it was during Thanksgiving Break. Grandad had passed away 5 years earlier and our family had moved from Kansas to Colorado but Grangran was still there for the holiday. It just wouldn't be the same without her. We had a new Enya CD that we were listening to and Grangran once again asked us to dance for her. Of course she didn't have to ask any of us twice! We cranked the music up and the whole family joined in the dancing. Grangran clapped her hands and cheered for us. The song was "Only If". To this day when I hear it I think of that happy time and while it makes me happy to hear it it also makes me a bit sad but mostly just because I miss those times and I miss Grangran and Grandad. I still love the song though!

(Clockwise from left: Me, Amy, Levi, and Kirsten)
When Fall comes around I have to change up my music playlist. I go to the more mellow music because that's what we always had playing at home and it reminds me of being cozy and warm in our comfy home with brothers and sisters and parents and grandparents all there. That's what Fall is to me. Family, holidays, puzzles, yummy smells, cool and crisp outside but warm and cozy inside. As I was making my new "Fall" playlist for my blog I had to make sure to include "Only If". It's number 9 on my playlist below if you want to hear it.

(Me, Grangran, and my sister Amy)
Visiting Grangran in Kansas a year and a half later.

Camping Rewards

The boys' room has been a disaster zone lately. The kind you try to avoid. It looked like they took all of their toy baskets and all of their clothes baskets, dumped them on the floor, and then stirred it up for good measure. Tory finally got them to get it clean Saturday with a little healthy bribery. They've been wanting to set up the tent in the backyard and Tory told them if they cleaned their room COMPLETELY then they could not only set it up but SLEEP in it, too. And as a little extra incentive...they could have Root Berry Floats. (Austin started calling Root Beer "Root Berry" when he was little and the name has stuck in our family.) It took a few hours and some not-so-happy moments but they finally did it. It was so clean that I even wanted to spend some time in there, curl up and read a book, do a cartwheel...ok maybe not. But they did a really good job and Tory came through with his rewards and was a good sport about sleeping out with them. I think he really thought they'd never get it done. Did I mention that their room was really messy? Oh boy. It was bad. I guess they showed him!

The happy campers.

Getting all zipped up for the night. It turned out to be one of the most humid nights ever. Ha. We'd been having rain solid for over a week and I think the humidity finally caught up. They were soaked when they woke up but still had lots of fun.

Mr. Fix-It

Do you ever feel like things tend to break around the same time at your house? Like everything starts wearing out all at once? That seems to be the streak we're on now. Our cars are even in on it. Dead batteries, tires, need new transmission fluid, washing machine is making some awful noises, TV is starting to get wavy and blink on and off, the "silent" dishwasher sounds like it has a cat inside of it, the ice dispenser guard is no longer whole, computer monitor died, and now our DVD player won't play movies. And I break into a lovely tune of "It's raining, it's pouring......" because let's face it, when it rains it pours.

Luckily Tory has been able to fix or will be able to fix a lot of the problems. This does require a lot of "taking things apart". Secretly I think he enjoys taking things apart more than almost anything in the whole world! I, on the other hand, cringe and worry every time. Most things are not supposed to be seen on the inside...ever. While Tory's having all of his fun with tiny screws and computer chips and wires, the boys have a great time watching him. I think they like it almost as much. I mean check out the audience Tory's got! They'll sit there for hours watching him. Crazy guys. I just try not to look. I don't know why. In our almost 9 years of marriage there have only been a couple things he's not been able to fix after taking apart and those were pretty long gone in the first place. So good job Tory! It's nice to have the DVD player working again. Playing movies on the Play Station was just not as convenient.

The First Style

Claire is getting a little bit more hair up on top of her head. It's just enough to barely get in one little piggy tail. It's hard to see since her hair is so blond. She just needs a little more up in the front...and the sides...oh and the back. At least it's growing! Sweet tiny girl!

Building Blocks

The boys LOVE playing in the garage. How can three little boys resist a room full of fun and treasures? Even on hot summer days I find them out there soaking wet with sweat. Now that school has started they often run straight out there to play. Their favorite thing to do is gather up all of Tory's scrap wood and hammer, glue, or just stack them to create things. We tend to go through a lot of wood glue but the boys sure have fun. Their very own craft room. It's kind of nice to have a place for them to play but boy have they ever left some GIANT messes to clean up! Here is their latest creation. Pretty impressive!

Muffin Mischief

It's really been fun having just the two little people at home with me during the day. It's very quiet and they really don't make a lot of messes. But they do know how to get into mischief. Last week I was in my room for 5 minutes max and this is what I came out to find. They didn't see me at first and it was so cute that I had to get my camera. They (well I should say Coen) found a couple muffins up on the counter and decided to help himself. This is how he gets onto the counters. My poor oven door. At least he was nice and shared with Claire. He looked pretty guilty when he heard me taking his picture though! How did he even know there were muffins up there? We didn't even eat them that day. It's almost like they plan ahead and when Mom's gone...Plan A! Go, Go, GO!

Tooth Number 5 Gone

The Tooth Fairy is staying busy at our house. Austin lost his fifth tooth a little over a week ago. I keep forgetting to post his picture on here. He was very excited to get more money. He's had a bit of a dry spell lately.

While I'm on the tooth topic, Dallin's teeth are all still there and all back to normal. Thank goodness. You can't believe how loose they were! And one of his front teeth turned really dark grey. I thought for sure it was a goner. But it's nice and white again. Yeah!

Claire is Walking

The last couple days Claire has started walking all on her own without someone on the other end to "catch" her. She's feeling pretty big and very brave. I think she looks so tiny walking around. I decided to record her tonight and it was her best walk yet! Go Claire! Check her out in action below. (Scroll down to the bottom of my blog to turn off the music if you want):

Little Chefs

This morning the boys woke up at about 7:00 and told us not to come out to the kitchen until they told us to. We heard lots of pots clanging, drawers opening and closing, and packages crinkling. Finally a scent starting making its way in. We couldn't quite figure out what it was. Smelled a little like burnt toast but we weren't sure. We were finally allowed to come out and they presented us with their masterpiece. They call it "Chocolate Pie". The ingredients include: almost a whole bag of chocolate chips, brown sugar, and corn syrup all melted together and then topped with miniature marshmallows, caramel sauce, and sprinkles. NOT for the faint of heart. Pretty much every single item in my pantry that had some form of sugar in it. They packed it into a pie plate and put it in the freezer to set up. The chocolate chips got a little burnt during the process (hence the burnt toast smell we just couldn't quite put our finger on). It was quite the treat! Thanks Austin, Dallin, and Coen! It definitely made us happy!

Tired Out

This little girl is ready for naps by 11:00. If she's still eating her lunch this is what usually happens. She just can't hold those little eyelids open. We've had to switch to a one nap a day schedule because it was just too hard to get two in with the boys' pick-up time. So now she takes one nap in the afternoon and it is usually 3-4 hours long. Can't complain. Coen's nap overlaps for 1-2 hours so it works out very nice!

Always Remember

Eight years ago today on September 11, 2001, Tory and I had an early appointment for our ultrasound to find out if our first baby (Austin) was going to be a boy or a girl. We were so excited! It was a beautiful morning. We stepped into the office and it was very quiet. There were several people there but nobody was talking and nobody was moving. A few people had their hands over their mouths and everybody was looking up at the TV. We listened for a few seconds trying to figure out what was happening and as we watched, an airplane crashed into the second tower at the World Trade Center. Tory was originally guessing that we were having a girl. After watching this he said he changed his mind. This world was too crazy for a girl. America was never the same after that was it?

I'm sure most of us remember where we were or what we were doing on that day. I hope we always remember. And I hope we never forget those who continue to sacrifice to keep us safe.

*Where were you on this day 8 years ago?

Labor Day Adventures Part I

It was so fun to have a 3 day weekend this week! Tory had patients to see in the morning and while he was gone the boys and I planned an adventure. We decided to go to the Dinosaur Valley State Park. We've heard lots about it and have always wanted to go so we figured today would be a great day! A nice drive out of the area (first time in MONTHS), hiking, water, picnics...and dinosaurs! It sounded like the perfect day trip for our family. We loaded up and made a quick stop at Walmart for picnic supplies and gas. I ran in to get the groceries and Tory filled up the van. I had just checked out and was heading out the door when I spotted four sweaty little faces that belonged to my children. Apparently when Tory turned off the van to get gas, it never turned on again. Dead battery. At least we were at Walmart and could get a new one instead of being stranded at the State Park right? So an hour later we were back on the road. Nothing like starting with a bit of an adventure! It was a beautiful drive. The park was a blast! We had lots of fun hiking along the riverbed and various trails. Of course the boys couldn't resist the water and I had planned ahead and brought swim trunks and sandals...but they jumped in too soon. At least they changed their shoes first!

Austin and Dallin loved the water!

This is what Coen thought of it. He didn't like it one bit and everyone in the park knew it. He jumped in once and that was all he wanted.

He switched into his DRY swimsuit and shoes and had much more fun on dry land.

He played in the sand and of course had to throw handfuls of it.

He found lots of sticks to play with.

He inspected the puddles from a dry distance.

Austin had to stop and try out every single water hole along the way! We couldn't get him out of the water for anything!

Tory had to dip his feet in as well.

While Tory was loaded down with the backpack...

I got to tote this little cutie around. Claire just hung out and drank water. I couldn't believe how much water she drank! But then again, I guess we all did. I brought a case of 20 water bottles and we drank 18 of them! It was so hot!

Just starting out on the trail.

I loved this part. So pretty!

Luckily most of the trails were in the trees and shade. That helped a lot. It was a really pretty hike and we just barely dented it! Little legs can only go so far.

The boys loved hiking around and just KNEW they saw dinosaurs around every corner. Every rock looked like a dinosaur tooth and there were tracks everywhere according to them! What a great place for little imaginations. Did I mention that my boys are obsessed with dinosaurs? I don't think I could have suggested Disneyland and gotten such excitement as Dinosaur Valley State Park got. Even Claire loves dinosaurs. She'll pick one up (because they're always out at our house) and growl with them just like the boys. So funny!

Cute Coen and his wild outfit.

Stopping to explore along the way.

Posing by the dinosaurs on the way out. What a fun day! We were all very tired and worn out and ready for a nice drive home. But was it a nice drive home? Continue to the next post to find out...........

Labor Day Adventures Part II

So we're all packed up snug in the van on our way home from Dinosaur Valley State Park. Everyone has a little snack and we've got a movie going on Tory's laptop for the boys.

I decide to get out the camera and check out some of the photos from the day. All of a sudden there was this terribly loud noise. I looked out my side mirror and saw black smoke. I looked over at Tory and he's trying to control the van while slowing down and pulling over and trying not to get hit by all of the other cars. The speed limit on this particular road is 70 mph and that's what we're going. Tory finally gets us off the road and...wow!


I've never seen a flat tire like this one! Exploded is more like it! We're just hoping and praying we have a spare and a jack. We've never had to use it but we remember the van didn't come with one when we bought it. Ahhh...yes, we bought one before one of our big trips to CO and UT. Thank goodness.


The tire is so flat that it's hard to even get the jack under the van.


Tory has to lie down in the grass and guess what he finds? It's full of stinging nettle! I don't know if any of you have ever come across this plant but OUCH! It hurts so bad! And he had to get right down in it to change the tire.


He finally got the tire off and wow!


The tire was peeled back and wrapped around the axle. It also dislodged the emergency brake cable and pushed out the side panel of the van! Wow! Did I say that already because...WOW! We were so thankful it wasn't a front tire at that speed. And we're so thankful we had everything we needed to fix it since we were in the middle of nowhere. Tory put the spare tire on and just as he was getting it settled...BAM! The van fell down off the jack and the tire landed on his foot. Ouch! Back up it went and the job was finished. And back to the road we went. Whew! Dead battery and a flat tire. A little too many adventures for one day!

The hero of the day. I'll tell you one thing...those two hands never left the steering wheel for the rest of the way home!

Parent Orientation

This week I've had meetings with the boys' teachers for parent orientation. Austin's was Tuesday and I am so impressed with his teacher! She is so great! I wish she could be his teacher every year...along with all of my other kids. Ha! I spent half the time laughing. She's so fun and I've already seen how she brings that into the classroom. She has all of these funny sayings that Austin's picked up. I love how she seems to encourage their sense of humor, too. She is older (her parents were musicians and artists in the 30s!) and we all thought she'd been teaching for a long time but this is actually only her 3rd year teaching 2nd grade. She was in the Air Force for several years where she got her psychology degree and then worked with people in a prison. Then she decided to change things up and do what she really wanted to do...work in the classroom. She started out in special ed and even after she moved into our district she continued that until 3 years ago. I'm so glad she chose 2nd grade! It just seems like she really loves what she is doing. Hopefully this will be a great year for Austin.

Dallin's meeting was last night. His teacher is fairly new. This is only her 2nd year teaching. She seems really nice and I think she'll be a great teacher for Dallin. All I know is it must take a very patient person to teach Kindergarten all day! There wasn't a lot to go over since it's Kindergarten but I was interested to see what in the world little Kindergartners do all day for 7 hours. The last couple days Dallin has come home saying it wasn't very fun and there's nothing to do. He even said it was "boring" which is a word we NEVER use in our family. Oh boy. They're supposed to be starting centers soon so that should make it a little more fun. I know Austin always loved centers. Other than that, the main differences seem to be more time for math and science and the addition of art, music, and gym classes. I think they just haven't gotten into the full routine yet. Hopefully it will pick up a little more. He really does like it though. I'm sure this will be a great year for Dallin, too.

More Mischief

Just a few pictures I took of Claire the other day. She found this box of peanuts and had lots of fun climbing in and out and just sitting in them. You can see that climbing in was much more graceful than her exit.

Some cute closeups. You can see her two top teeth in the top left picture. And have you ever seen such a cute little neck? Talk about kissable.

13 Months and Growing!

Little Claire is just taking off! She definitely eats more than Coen now although she is still under 20 pounds. She'll eat a big bowl of oatmeal for breakfast just like the boys! And then she'll top it off with a half cup size of applesauce. She's changing so much and it's so fun to see her personality coming out. She loves to smile so hard that her little eyes crinkle shut. It's so cute. And speaking of smiles...she now has four teeth! Two on top and two on the bottom. She has the cutest little fake laugh that she does whenever she hears anyone else laughing. It's really high pitched and has surprised a few fellow shoppers who aren't used to hearing it! She loves to play with the phone and can prop it on her shoulder and say "hi". She loves to babble away and sounds so funny. Her favorite word is "uh-oh" probably because we have many reasons to say it around here :) Claire is a pro at standing by herself and cruising along the furniture. Sunday she even took her first two steps by herself! We'll probably have a walker soon! We got out the boys little car that turns into a push toy and she loves it. (Best toy ever! If you don't have one yet...get one! We've had ours since Austin was one and it's been well loved. I think they make them blue now days instead of white. Click here to see a picture of ours. You'll have to scroll down a bit.) She is still our little climber and will attempt to climb anything and everything. She can't quite get on the couch or chairs yet but boy does she try! Such a fun little girl!

Climbing on the toys. Coen just plays around her because there's no getting her off. Well, we can get her off but she'll just climb right back up there.

If this pot would have been upside down she would have been on it. Instead she just climbed inside...which she likes to do almost as much as climbing.

Out in the garage attempting to climb the big pile of bikes. I'm sure she could have gotten far but Mama wouldn't let her. She wasn't very happy about that.