Funny Pants and Fruit Loops!!!

Connor has recently been getting himself dressed every day. I have to say that he does quite well too! Well, on this particular day we asked him to go get dressed. He came out all frustrated because he couldn't get his pants on and didn't know why he couldn't pull them up. Well, we looked over at him and realized that he was trying to put on Rylie's pants, not his own! We got a good laugh out of that!!!

One morning I was doing my hair. Rylie usually hangs around, playing with my comb, pick, or whatever. Well, she crawled off and I didn't think anything of it. Then, I heard some rustling noised and banging around coming from the kitchen. I decided I should go check on Rylie. Well, I walked in the kitchen and there she was! She was emptying Fruit Loops EVERYWHERE! You could tell she had been eating them too because there was Fruit Loop powder all over her face and both fists were full of Fruit Loops. It was so funny! So, I then said, "Rylie, what are you doing???? Are you getting into trouble?", she instantly started putting the Fruit Loops back into the box (seen in the 2nd picture of her).

Future Ski Champions!

I ran into these pictures I took during Christmastime. My brother had brought his ski's up to go skiing and brought them in the house to show us. So, we decided to put the kids in them, to try them out. Don't they look like naturals?

The Wheels On the Bus.....

Today, Connor and I were singing "The Wheels On the Bus". We were going through each part of the bus and person on the bus and what they did on the bus. When we got to the Daddy and what he did on the bus, I couldn't remember what he did or the action. So, I said, "Connor, what does Daddy do on the bus?" Connor got all frustrated and said, "Mom!!! The Daddy on the bus reads The Book of Mormon!!!" I don't know where he came up with that but, I thought it was so dang cute!!!!

Rylie's 1st Birthday!!!

Rylie is officially 1 year old!!! HOLY COW!!! It was so strange to reflect back on a year ago and where I was, what I was doing, etc. I really enjoyed that time and cherished my moments with Rylie when she was first born! It was so excited when we learned we had delivered a baby girl! She's so funny and makes us smile all the time! I get the biggest kick out of her!!! We took her to the Dr. for her well check-up. She's doing well. She's in the 85% for her length and 51% for her weight! She's not quite walking but is getting closer. She loves to tell us no by shaking her head no-no. She loves to wave bye-bye. She also LOVES to dance! Whenever a song comes on she can't help herself and she starts dancing to the beat! She has got excellent rythm!!! I think her favorite toy has got to be her new doll. She takes it with her everywhere with her. She's either hugging it, feeding it, or kissing it! We love her soooo much and are so grateful for her! (Sorry about the long slide show! I can't help it!)

Rylie's Birthday Cake

Here is a picture of the birthday cake (Cute Little Critter) that I made for Rylie this year. In some ways it was easier than the other types of decorating I've done. On the other hand, it was harder. See those little tiny flowers all over the critter's body? Well, you have to make those ahead of time with royal frosting, which is the same type of frosting you use to make gingerbread houses, that firms up after sitting for a while. I had to make 56 of them! I tried making them with the decorating tip that it calls for but, that was a joke for a few reasons. #1: My tremors were not helping the flowers look normal! #2: The frosting kept hardening in the tip and wouldn't come out evenly. #3: It was just making me angry and it wasn't worth it! So, I came up with my own way of making the flowers. It was so fun making a girly cake this year!!!

Connor's 4th Birthday!

On February 27th, Connor turned 4 years old!!!! While we were in Cache Valley we had a little party for him, since my parents wouldn't be able to be in St. George on his birthday. Connor loves a party so he didn't mind having two of them. Anytime I asked him what he wanted for his birthday he said some cake, ice cream, and a candle. He's not hard to please, is he? On the day of his birthday we went to Pirate Pizza for lunch. This place is much like Chuck E. Cheese but it's pirate theme instead. He had a great time there! After that I took him to pick out his birthday cake. Normally I make it for him but, we had just gotten back from our trip up north the day before and didn't have time to do it. That night we had a party at the park. All of Mike's family, living in St. George, were able to come. We grilled hamburgers and hot dogs. We also had chips, salads, drinks, and, of course, cake!!! Connor is already talking about what he wants for his birthday next year!!!!

Jacob's Birthday

Connor and Rylie both love books!!! We were reading some Dr. Suess books and Connor asked if he could read some to Rylie! It was so cute, so sweet, and one of the few times that Connor wasn't pushing Rylie away because she was following him around.

Oh How I Love the Endless Winters in Cache Valley!!!!

While visiting my family last month it snowed a whole bunch, OF COURSE!!! That was a bit of transition, coming from St. George, where Spring is obviously upon us. For some reason, Cache Valley just refuses to let go of the winter weather and continues to pour out an abundance of snow!!! I talked to my Mom today and they received 24 inches of snow yesterday!!! Holy cow! I do love Winters but, good heavens!!! Makes me glad I am in St. George again.

It's D-Day!!!

It's D-Day and all my fingers and toes are crossed!!! Not to mentioned I'll be praying alllll day long! All the schooling, studying, countless nights preparing, and planning have led to this moment. Mike is taking the Bar exam today and tomorrow! Strangely enough, I'm not nervous yet. Maybe it's because it doesen't seem like the time has finally come, or that it snuck up on us faster than expected. Who knows? All I know is that I am dang glad it's almost over with and will be even HAPPIER when we receive notice that Mike passed the Bar. Mike's brains must be like jello right now. He has worked so hard and has spent hours upon hours to get ready for the Bar. I'm impressed and proud of him. I know that I couldn't have done what he has done! I know all of his fellow classmates have been working just as hard to pass their Bar exam! So, GOOD LUCK to all of the others taking the Bar and may "the force" be with you!!!

Rylie & Her Baby!

Rylie poking the baby's eyes and nose
Rylie was on the verge of giving the baby a hug.

Rylie holding the baby's bed.

My Mom has a few baby dolls for the grandkids to play with. Rylie discovered one of them and has loved playing with it!!!! At one moment she is loving, cuddling, kissing, and putting the baby to bed. The next minute she is throwing the baby around, smacking her head on the ground, or just mawling the baby! It's been so fun and cute to see how she reacts and plays with the baby.

Hanging with the Call's!

Megan & the girls came up to my parents house to hang out. She even slept over so we had a lot of time. Allie and Connor have playing together so much better, now that they're getting older. They're friendship has always been so love/hate but, lately they've played together so much better. I wasn't able to get pictures with Rylie & Zoey together because one or the other would be sleeping. They're funny together though. They just stare and poke each other. Rylie even gave Zoey a love-wack a few times! The kids definitely had a great time together! Megan and I attempted to make some hair bows but, that didn't work. Oh well. I'm just glad we got to hang out again!

The Kids and a Video to their Dad

Rylie's hair is getting long enough on top that we can put a little pony tail up there!

Connor LOVES to have his picture taken!

The kids made a little video to say hello to Mike.

I LOVE NEW HAIRCUTS!!!!

(Don't you love my tag sticking out?)

**********************

My hair has been in desperate need of a good trim or cut and a new color! I finally got my butt in gear and got it done! I love getting a new haircut and new color done on my hair! I feel so much better about myself and just feel fresh!!!! We'll see how long this fresh feeling lasts! :)

Blogging Break

Me and the kids have been staying with my parents for the past week and will be until Mike has finished taking the Bar. It's hard for me to step back and never ever bother him. Mike started attending school right when we got married 7 years ago. So, our whole marriage has never known anything else, besides him going to school. Well, as bad as this may sound, I am sick to death of it!!!!!! I am so ready for this whole Law School experience to be OVER with!!!!! Mike takes the Bar exam. Feburary 24-25th. With a large amount of luck, and a huge amount of help from above, he will pass this "lovely" exam and he can get a job!!!! Until then, I'm chillin' and chasing kids around at my parents house. For that reason, I won't me blogging too much. Rylie did get her first tooth this week. It's the top, front, left tooth (if that makes any sense). I would post a picture of it but, you can't see it yet. I can just feel the tip of it sticking out of her gums. So, I'll post a picture when it's visible. Good luck to everyone else taking the Bar this month!!!! May the force be with you! LOL!

My New Obsession!

I've picked up a new obsession. Yes, I still love making hair bows, sort of. However, now I am obsessed with making interchangeable watch bands!!! They are so simple and easy to make! The hardest part is figuring out the pattern in which to make the watchband! I love doing it! It's a good way for me to get my mind off things and they are wayyy cheaper to make than to buy! Yay for new projects!

SO PROUD of Connor!!!!

*WARNING: The following announcement is LONGGGG! :)

One thing I've been learning from Connor is that things are done and milestones are reached when he, himself, feels truly ready to complete or accomplish them. I know that sounds so simple but, it has been hard for me to learn and understand that I really don't have a lot of control of when he picks up on things and that's a hard thing for a control-freak, like me, to handle. With Connor and potty-training, I tried FOREVER to get him trained. I tried all the different programs, read books, etc. It wasn't until he said, "Ok Mom! I go pee-pee in the potty", and a little help from the shower (ha ha!), that he was potty trained. Well, the same thing has happened with his binky! I HATE his binky and have tried many times to get rid of it! We've tried bribing him, tried sending them to the binky-fairy, I've tried returning them to the store to give to other babies, etc. It just never worked and he always had a hidden stash. We finally got him to quit taking a binky everywhere we went and he was only allowed to have it at night or naptime. A couple weeks ago we were fed up with it so, Mike decided to cut the tips of them so that there was a crack in all of them. Connor didn't like that, when he discovered what happened. He said they were broken and we needed to go the store and get more. We didn't do that. Then, one day I said, "Connor, you know that you shouldn't have a binky anymore". I was so tired of him losing them and trying to track one down. As many of you know, Connor has a temper like me and has no patience. So, finding a binky was a fight! Well, Connor then says to me, "Mommy! I'm a big boy, I growed all up! You know Mom, big boys don't have binkies?" As if this was a new concept or something! It was so funny! So, I told him he was right and that he shouldn't go to bed with one. He agreed. So, I put him to be without a binky. We've done this before and he always ends up crying and screaming that he wants a binky. So, I left his bedroom, fully expecting him to freak out. He didn't. In fact, he never asked for it once!!!! I was in shock. Of course, he didn't go to sleep until 3:30am. I think he was used to the binky getting him to sleep. Anyway, I made a sticker chart for him. Each naptime and bedtime he goes without a binky, for that day, he gets to put a sticker on the chart. After 2 weeks we'll take him to Chuck-E-Cheese (his choice) if he's done it for 2 weeks straight. Well, I'm happy to announce it has been 5 DAYS!!!! All the binkies have been thrown away, he doesn't ask for one, doesn't look for one, and goes to sleep really fast, too! Not to mention, he saw one of his binkies the other day and brought it to me. He said, "Mommy, we need to take this to the store and give it to the man!" I am so proud of Connor!

***************************

Yes, I know he's nearly 4 and him having a binky this long may make me one of the worst mothers out there. I feel bad about it and embarrassed. Some people have their opinions on what is best for a child, binkies being one of the issues. I know binkies weren't the best for his teeth, etc. However, I think there are worst things for a child. I just know that I am so happy that Connor decided on his own that he didn't want the binky anymore!!!! He's growing up more and more all the time! So, Chuck-E-Cheese...HERE WE COME!!!!

Day at the Park

Last Sunday was a BEAUTIFUL day! The weather was perfect; so warm and sunny outside. So, we took advantage of it. We loaded up the kids, Connor's bike, Rylie's walker, the dogs, and went to the park. We had a great time, especially the kids! I think we spent 2 hours there, easily! Where we live the sidewalks are pretty uneven and Connor falls a lot while he's riding his bike. So, we took his bike so he could ride it easier. We took them out on the tennis courts. Everywhere Connor went on his bike, Rylie would follow after in her walker! She's pretty fast in that thing. After that we took the dogs for a walk around the park to the splash pad (not near as cool as the splash pads in MI). After cruisin'around there for a while we went and let Connor play on the jungle gym, slides, etc. It was a great afternoon!!!! I could get used to the nice, winter weather down here!

Curly Sue!

When I was younger, and would get perms (because we didn't realize how much natural curl I had), I would come home the curliest hair you've ever seen! My Dad would call my sister and I "Curly Sue". Well, it looks like Rylie has inherited the curly-hair gene that my Dad, myself, and others in my family have. I love it and think it's so adorable on her! Hopefully she'll enjoy her curly hair her whole life, instead of hating it as much as I did as a teenager!

10 MONTHS OLD!!!!

Rylie is 10-months-old now! I can't believe how fast the time has flown by with her! She has brought so much joy, laughter, and fun to our little family! Some of the different things she has been doing lately are:
* Waving hello, waving bye-bye and saying, "Buh-bye!" at the same time.
*When she is eating anything that she likes she will hum the entire time she's eating.
*She's been eating a ton of food! She'll eat around 2 1/2 jars of baby food, Stage 3, each meal.
*She's enjoys rough-housing and going after people, especially Connor. If she gets lucky enough to hit someone then she squeals really high-pitched with excitement!
*She's figured out that binkies mean nap or bed time. So she'll turn her head, close her eyes, and turn her nose up....like she's snooty or something. It's so funny! She does that when she doesn't want to eat anymore, too.
*Her hair appears to be curly!!!! How fun!!!!