BRRR! It's cold!

Yikes, it is freezing here in Utah. We drove up the day after Christmas and left in the afternoon. We hit Panguitch around 11 PM and it was -5 degrees and 15 min north of Panguitch was -11 degrees. I don't remember it ever being this cold here in Provo. I went out shopping yesterday looking for some snow boots for Drew and it was 7 degrees and warmed up to 11 degrees by the time I was done. I saw one girl walking around in flip flops!! But I guess I can't judge because while at Costco I got a chocolate frozen yogurt! Just kept my gloves on with the heater blowing while eating it in the car. It was soooo good though! Anyways, can't wait to get back to my perfect weather in Gilbert.

Merry Christmas

I have a fabulous friend in my ward, Jill Branch, who took our family pictures this year and the ones of the kids. She did an awesome job, especially dealing with 2 kids that didn't want to cooperate. I love Drew's picture. It is my favorite. Anyways, we have had sick kids in our house this past weekend. Kylee had an ear infection that started Friday late afternoon and was too late to get her to the doctor. I didn't want to take her to Urgent Care because we are heading to UT after Christmas and I wanted a good doctor. So we dealt with a cranky, won't sleep, little girl for the whole weekend. As I went to bed Sunday night, I never in my life was more excited for Monday to come than that night. So I got Kylee to the doctor, and yes, she had a super bad ear infection plus her cold worsened Sunday and ended up having major congestion in her lungs and blocked sinuses. We got 2 prescriptions and finally got a good night's sleep Monday night. I was very disappointed we couldn't go to church on Sunday. I was going to take Drew but then that morning he couldn't stop coughing so we all just stayed home. So the next time Drew goes to Primary, he will be a big Sunbeam! We are all excited for Christmas and it will be fun this year now that Drew understands. I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas!!! The next time I update will probably be next year.

Drew's Birthday

Drew's birthday landed on a Sunday this year, so we went out on Saturday to McDonald's to get his Happy Meal. He loves getting Happy Meals and enjoyed his Nerf gun he got with it. We were going to go down to the train park but decided to do it another time. We let him open his new bike that morning and he had fun riding it. He is still trying to figure it out and so he still loves his Coupe Car the best. I give him 6 months and he will be loving his bike more. Anyways, Sunday we went to my Mom's and had a little celebration with all the nieces and nephews. Drew had a lot of fun and loved his cake. Next year I am going to make a better effort at making his cake. Costco is just so much more convenient. It was a nice weekend, and of course ended the night with both kids on sugar highs. But you only turn 3 once!
The next day, Monday, Drew had is annual check up and passed it with flying colors. He weighs 27.2 lbs and is 35 in tall. He had a growth spurt this past month which helped him climb a few percentages on the growth chart. I am not worried. This is how it runs in Ryan's family. The doctor isn't worried either because he is growing consistently at each check up. I guess my kids will just be petite, at least for now. Drew can tell you all his colors and shapes and all the pictures the doctor pointed to. He can also count to 14 and knows the difference between big and small and mommy and baby animals. I need to video Drew reading his books because he just amazes us with the things he says. So, the doctor was very impressed with Drew, and I walked out of the office a proud Mom!

Happy Birthday Drew!

Today Drew is 3. I can't believe that 3 years ago today, I became a mother for the first time. I have learned so much these past 3 years and just adore my children. Drew is growing up right before my eyes. He speaks such clear sentences and they aren't simple sentences with simple words. He really is picking up on his vocabulary and I love it. He still is my tiny little man but finally decided to grow just in the past 2 months. I thought he was going to be in 18 month pants again this winter but just as we started to wear long pants, he jumped to 2 T and is finally wearing a size 5 in shoe. He is such a good big brother and getting so much better at sharing and playing nicely with his sister. He has been potty trained for some time now but still has to wear a diaper to bed. I am hoping we can stop that soon. He still loves trucks, trains, and fire engines. He loves his cartoons and has many favorites, a few being Wow Wow Wubzy, Maggie and the Ferocious Beast, Oswald, and Roly Poly Olie. His favorites change from week to week but these 4 always are his top favorites. He can count to 14 and knows all his basic colors. He is starting the stage where he wants to do a lot of things himself which I am actually quite happy with. The only negative has been walking in stores. He refuses to sit in the cart now and has to walk. I make his stay right by me or if it is busy, he has to hold the cart. He still is my picky eater but finally likes plain noodles and string cheese. We are mean parents and make him take a bite of things I cook for dinner. Sometimes we have to force it, which some people can argue with me on, but sometimes after being forced to eat something, he ends up liking it and will eat a serving full of it. As you can see, he still is stubborn but those moments are fewer, along with the tantrums. So, I just love my little Drew and so glad I get to see him grow up every day! Happy Birthday Drew!

Wow, November is Almost Over???

Here's a sneak peak as to what we were doing for Family Home Evening this week!

Where does the time go?? Seriously. I feel like the days are just racing by and I am not getting done with what needs to get done. It's a good thing I am just about done with my Christmas shopping. I just have to get a few things on Black Friday and I think I am good to go. YAY! I do love this time of year, even though it is just crazy. I like to get things done in November so I can sit back and relax and enjoy my December.


Anyways, earlier this month I was released from my Sunbeams calling and called as an Enrichment Board member. Once officially called, I had 2 days to put together a project for our Super Saturday activity and that was crazy. Then, a week later I had to start getting ready for our activity which was this last Saturday. I really love my calling and so glad that I can once again go to Relief Society and be spiritually fed. Not that I didn't love my Sunbeams, but it is hard dealing with a whiney 1 and 3 year old in Sacrament and then dealing with 4 year olds for the next 2 hours. It is nice having a break from kids. So I survived my first Super Saturday where I was involved and was so glad to have it over with. But then this week I have been busy with all the little things that got neglected from the past 2 weeks. Man, I never want to get behind on my housework again. It took my 3 whole days to catch up and I had to be finished today because Ryan's parents are staying with us and should be here in the next few hours. But now I have the rest of the week to relax and enjoy my family. And I can't forget Black Friday...so excited.


Enough rambling, a week and a half ago we went to my Mom's Fall Festival and the kids had a blast. Of course, I finally decide to take my camera some where and only took these 2 pictures and it was the first ride the kids went on. But Drew had fun with all the bouncy rides and Kylee was content eating her whole box of popcorn in the stroller. I kid you not, she ate the whole box. That girl loves her popcorn. We didn't stay too long but long enough to have fun.


That was really the only big thing we did this month. Pretty pathetic, but I am just so glad to have cooler temps because my kids just love playing outside. Drew loves to drive his little coupe car all around the backyard and make a mess of the rocks. Kylee loves just being free and doing as she wishes. She loves the slide and the swing (still need to take a picture of that one) and sometimes loves to just sit on the little ledge and just chill. Sometimes she also likes to eat the leaves over there too! I love Arizona weather in the winter time.

I love this time of year and love to think of all the things I am grateful for. I love that my husband still has a job. It's not the best paying job, but I love that he can be flexible with his hours and home by 5 PM every night. I would rather be poor and have a husband who gets to spend time with his family than rich and feel like a single mom. I don't know how single moms do it. I am also grateful for Kylee and Drew. I am so grateful that Kylee is a part of our family. She brings such a balance to Drew and Drew is getting so much better at loving her. My kids are both growing up so fast and glad that I can be their mom and see them grow up every day.
There is still so much I can type, but I will stop. I don't want to bore anyone, but I probably already have. Happy Thanksgiving!

I Know!

I know I have been MIA on blogging and I apologize but life has been a bit crazy. Super Saturday is finally over with so I will try and have a post up before Thanksgiving but I can't make any promises. Ryan's parent are coming in town and I have to get the house ready, and we are trying to get family pictures done, so my week is already full and it is only Sunday!

Halloween Fun

This is our pumpkin Drew designed with just a little help from Ryan. It turned out really cute.
All lit up!

We went to our Trunk or Treat on Halloween and they had this little Merry-go-Round type contraption. Drew decided this little guy, Rex, was his best friend that day. Rex was a good sport and sat next to Drew on the ride. Drew loved it.

Kylee wishing she would keep up with her brother but had fun hanging by the fence, trying to climb it, while waiting for Drew to be done with his ride. She dressed up as a fairy.

We went to my Mom and Dad's house to go Trick-or-Treating. A few of Drew's cousin met up with us there. This is Kennedy as Snow White, Drew as a dinosaur, and Hadlee as an elephant. It was a busy but fun day. We scored lots of candy and even the munchkins the neighbor passes out every year. Ryan took all the Halloween candy to work the next day, but of course, I buy more candy 2 days later at Walmart when it hit 75% off. Up next, Thanksgiving, YAYAYAY! I love this time of year.

Kylee's Birthday

(I wrote this post up last week and have been waiting for Ryan to upload my pics from my phone. As soon as he does that I will add the pics.) So 3 weeks ago was Kylee's first birthday. We went to Jason's Deli for her birthday dinner and I was pleasantly surprised that she ate 1/4 of their kids pizza. I have a very picky girl when it comes to food, but I already knew she loves chocolate ice cream. So we started out with a little bowl of ice cream but she picked it up and held the bowl up like she was trying to drink the ice cream. I didn't want it to slide down her entire body so we tried a cone. I put a small amount on a cone for her and she was in heaven. She worked that cone so hard, she ate most of it and had a fit when I took the final little piece away from her because we were ready to go.


Then that Sunday we had a little celebration at my mom's house and I was unsure how Kylee was going to act. She had an ear infection and lost her appetite, but she was pretty good and ate a little bit of her cupcake. I think she liked her ice cream better!

This is the "I'm done" face!

So birthdays are done with till December and the ear infection is gone so we are finally getting back to normal here. Last week Kylee learned to climb up the slide on our little climber toy and yesterday Ryan was watching the kids play outside, and she learned to slide down the slide. Head first of course and she loves it! I am so glad the weather is so beautiful now. Keep those 100 degree temps away from us till next summer!

Kylee's 12 Month Stats!

So we finally got Kylee in for her 12 month check up and she is doing great. Her doctor was really impressed with all the new thing she can do. Here are her stats:

Weight: 17 lbs 14 oz (5%)
Length: 30 in (75%)
Head: 18in (65%)

I laughed at her height because Drew was around 36 in. a few months ago. She is going to pass her brother here soon. Anyways, she is such a picky eater and won't eat any diced up fruit and since her ear infection wont eat any finger foods except for crackers. So I am forced to go back to baby food. Her doctor thinks she should grow out of it in the next month. I sure do hope so because I am getting sick of feeding her baby food. She went a whole week eating finger foods, except for fruit, so I know she can do it. As for her milk, Kylee is quite picky and has to have it warmed, not cold. Again, her doctor says she should grow out of that one soon too. He gave me some tips to help her so we will try those this week. I guess I am just going to always have picky eaters for kids. That's OK, I will take that over being allergic to certain foods. That would be so hard. Anyways, Kylee is just growing up fast, right before our eyes.

Happy Birthday Kylee!

I can't believe my baby girl is one today...time goes way too fast. I still remember the day she was born. Ryan and I went and saw Batman the night before. I had contractions through the whole movie and we joked on the way home about going into labor that night. Well, I must have been exhausted because I woke up at 5 AM to contractions and slept through all the contractions I had during the night. We get to the hospital at 7:30 and I was at a 5. Kylee arrived not much longer at 1:45 PM. We are so blessed to have this sweet little girl be apart of our family. Of course I came 3 weeks early and my doctor was out of town, but I was just happy not having a Halloween baby.

Kylee has always been easy going and such a good baby. I never had to train her to sleep, she would just do it. At 2 months she got RSV which I wish she never got. I caught it really early which was good but we dealt with mucus in her lungs till she was 7 months. We were both happy when the doctor finally prescribed an asthma steroid and she hasn't had congestion since. This past week, Kylee took her first steps and can walk across the room if she really puts her mind to it. She can be lazy so she always crawls but she is definitely a no fear little girl. She will be walking along the couch and then let go and walk towards the middle of the room. She does this on anything she walks along. She loves to climb also and has the bruises to prove it. Her favorite thing right now is this nasty squawk. Oh, I can't stand it, but if she wants something, she will squawk and it will gradually get louder and longer. She does it more in the afternoon and by the end of the night, I have no patience for it. We are trying to teach her not to do it, but I guess it beats screaming on the top of her lungs.


Kylee now weighs just under 18 pounds. She doesn't have her 12 month check up for 2 more weeks because this week she got an ear infection. So I decided to wait 2 weeks so the doctor can check her ears then to make sure the medicine got rid of the infection. So I will post her stats later. She can say Mama and Dada and Uh-Oh, which is her favorite. She's not really into TV which is fine but loves to play with the tv boxes. She drives Drew crazy when she keeps turning them off. I think she does it on purpose to make her brother mad...she is quite smart. She loves to mimic and try and do the same sounds Ryan and I make with our mouths. It is hilarious to watch her try and do what we do. I am so happy the weather is so nice now, because Kylee loves to play outside and it is nice for me to have a little peace and quiet. I am trying to think of her favorite toy but I don't think one stands out above another right now. She loves playing with different toys everyday but loves the hard plastic ones, none of the soft fabric kinds unless it is her blanket. I guess that would be her favorite toy, her blanket and binky. She has started to build a strong attachment to both lately, but don't worry, I learned my lesson with Drew. The binky will get cut up at 15 months.
We are bad and turned her car seat to facing forward this week, because I couldn't take her screaming in the car anymore. She loves facing forward and the first day she rode in her car seat that way, she giggled and smile all the way to the store. No more fighting and screaming to ride in the car anymore, so I think it was the right decision. Anyway, we always celebrate their birthdays with a kids meal, usually at Chick fil A, but we went their for lunch yesterday, so we are going to Jason's Deli. We went their last month for the first time and loved it. Drew and Ryan loved their free ice cream...yes I have 2 little boys at times! Kylee loves anything with chocolate, that's my kind of girl and of course she loves ice cream.

I love this last picture.
All these pictures are some of my favorites this past year.

Drew, Drew, Drew

Life hasn't been too exciting over here but it is never boring when you have Drew around. He is such a little turkey, but I couldn't imagine life without him. Last week, I knew my day was going to be one of those days when Drew came to me just after he finished breakfast and handed me his bowl. He then proceeds to tell me he peed in the bowl. I didn't believe him until I actually looked in his bowl and saw a yellow liquid. I then smelled it and that confirmed he was being quite honest. Don't ask me how he did it. I still have no idea how he managed to not get a single drop on my floor. Then there is always the constant battle of keeping his clothes on when he goes outside, but when it is time to go to the bathroom, he refuses to pull his pants down himself. I finally refuse to do it for him when he is doing it all by himself outside and doing it when he pees in my family room in a bowl. The first few days it was quite hilarious watching him do a dance while in the bathroom. He refused to do it so I would leave the bathroom and he would get so mad at me and continue his dance and cries. The first time he lasted 5 min. till he finally gave into his urge. Now, I can announce, he will pull down his own pants all by himself but I still have to be in the bathroom when he has to go. Go figure. I just have a very stubborn boy. I wonder where he gets that from.

So we are still on that day last week that started with peeing in a bowl, running naked in the backyard, and fighting me in the bathroom. Of course there is the constant bullying of Kylee that I am constantly refereeing. But he is getting much better and the occurrences are decreasing every week. Then in the afternoon, he some how got out the back gate and decided to drive his little coupe car down the sidewalk on our street. My neighbors heard me yelling Drew's name from the backyard and saw him steering his car down the street so they ran after him. He was probably 10 houses down before my neighbor's boy caught him. I thought it was a fluke and Ryan didn't close the gate all the way when he got the garbage can out so I wasn't too worried. But I watched him more carefully in the back yard after that incident. I was happy when Ryan got home and handed the kids to him. I was happy to have that day over with and to start a new day. My days aren't always that way, we do have good days and Drew can be the sweetest little boy. Today he shared his toys with Kylee and without me even asking, he gave her one of his crackers which made her very happy. I just keep crossing my fingers that we can start having more good days than bad days. But even with all those days where I fill like keeping my son in time out all afternoon, I wouldn't trade him for the world.


Now, I know this is a super long post but remember when I said Drew getting out the back gate was just a fluke...no, it wasn't. After checking on the kids every few minutes because I was so paranoid, Drew got out again a few days later. But here is where I had the heart attack, Kylee and Mia were right behind him! Yes, my son was about 5 houses down, with Mia, our dog, right behind him, and Kylee in front of my house on the sidewalk trying to crawl after them. I had nightmares that night. He figured out that if he hops on top of his car, he can climb on top of our garbage can and reach over the fence and unlatch the gate. What cracks me up is he closes the gate after he gets out, even when he had Kylee and Mia following him. Our gate is now securely locked and no child can get out now.

A Few Lost Pictures

These pictures are from Ryan's phone that he finally downloaded. There were a few more that I wanted to post but they were a little blurry.

Our first rainstorm of the summer and Drew was in heaven playing in the water.

When we were in Vegas, we went to dinner and forgot Kylee's bottle. Thank goodness they had corn on the cob. She loves it and keeps her quiet for a while.

Drew having so much fun with Daddy up at the cabin by Park City. He loved riding the "motorcycle".

Grandpa got this toy out last year but Drew was a little scared of it. I think he is a little too big for it now.

First time hitting the pool this past summer. The water was a little cold for Drew so he only lasted 30 min.

We had a nice summer and now that it is finally September, I am so looking forward to the fall and winter. I can't wait to be able to send my kids outside to play and not come back 15 min. later to a sweaty mess. I am dying to get back to taking walks with the kids also. I am not a morning person and if you go on a walk past 7 AM, it is too hot for me. Hopefully the weather will start getting cooler in the mornings soon because I can only walk Target so many times a week!

The New Gilbert Temple

This is what the new temple will look like here in Gilbert. I absolutely love the design and can't wait till it is built. It resembles the Washington Monument and the design is so unique that the approval took longer than normal. You can read all about it here.

August in Review

Good-bye August, hello September. I am so happy it is September....I've already blogged about why I love September two years ago but I have a few more to add. We are officially taking our house off the market in a few days, YES!! We have been waiting for this day for 5 months now. No, we didn't sell our house but so sick of keeping the house in perfect condition and having to leave all the time for showings. I cleaned out my drawer last week and threw away 65 realtor cards and we estimate we had between 90 - 100 showings in the 5 months our house was on the market. We got a few offers but nothing even close to considering. We don't have to move, we would like to, but we are happy here and not going to give our house away at Foreclosure price. Another reason I am so happy it is finally September because in 1 month my little girl will be the big 1!!! I am so excited for her to reach this milestone. So enough about September, let's go back to August....

My kids are obsessed with tools...

Kylee's favorite toy is a hammer,

and Drew's favorite toy for the time being is a screw driver.

Kylee fell asleep with it in her hand while we were at the mall!

I found Drew sleeping on the rocking chair one day during his nap. He did it again today. I don't think it is very comfortable, but I guess he thinks so.

I bought this new water toy and the kids loved it. Too bad it gave Kylee swimmers ear.

One day we pulled out the Fish Game and had a fun time playing it.

Concentrating really hard...

Yay! He caught one.

Kylee loved eating them.

So, August came and went and I am hoping I can be better at blogging in September. I can't wait to get back to my routines during the week and that should definitely help! Oh, and I finally got Ryan to download his phone pics to the computer so I will post those in a few days. I already posted enough for tonight.