Bliss Is Ours...

Jenn's birthday!

2012-02-02T23:07:00.001-05:00

Today was Jenn's birthday! YAY!

To mark the occasion, Jenn and I made a chocolate chip cookie dough cheesecake:

Here's the birthday girl blowing out her candle - may all her wishes come true!

Marina Del Rey Beach

2012-02-01T00:11:00.003-05:00

We went to the beach again on a nice day since the kids couldn't stop talking about it after we went the first time. We did a little burying.

Connor and Haydn helped build this with some strangers next to us.

Tristan still didn't try the water much but he played in the sand happily the whole 4 hours we were there. Who wouldn't fall in love with this face?

We left relaxed and luckily with a little January tan! We could get used to this!

Hiking in Griffith Park

2012-02-01T00:00:00.004-05:00

We ventured to Griffith Park to do some hiking and see be a little more touristy. We had such fun doing a little off roading. Tristan did get a little grumpy at the end, but that was mainly a timing issue (hiking during lunch/naptime isn't the best idea). Scott, being the amazing father that he is, carried T on his shoulders through the rougher and steeper parts.

The best part was that these two really bonded on the trail. They spent most of it together talking, imagining and working together. This was them walking to the car as we were done. If this is how hikes end, we will go on many more!

Playing at the BEACH in JANUARY

2012-01-31T23:44:00.004-05:00

We FINALLY decided to head to the beach on a sunny warm day in January. We went to the Santa Monica Pier and rode the ferris wheel to get the best view.

Then we walked down to the water. I envisioned the boys running from the waves and getting their toes wet, it is January afterall and the water is cold, but it went a lot farther than that. It started out like this...

And the ended up shirtless and drenched but having the time of their lives!

Tristan was a little nervous about the water but enjoyed playing in the sand...a little too much...stinker!

Modesto

2012-01-31T18:18:00.003-05:00

After we left Sacramento we stopped through Modesto to stay at my Harrison Grandparent's house. We spent an evening talking and the kids played with toys I remember from my childhood there. In the morning we picked lemons (we brought a whole box home, yum) and went to the park before driving the rest of the way home.

Trip to Sacramento

2012-01-31T18:05:00.003-05:00

After Christmas we mad a trip to Sacramento to see my extended family. It was so fun! We stayed with my Aunt Pam and her family but we saw everyone else almost every day too. We played lots of cards, went to the park, made a trip to Leatherby's, went on a hike and had a New Years celebration. It was busy and fun.
When I get together with my aunts playing cards is a given, it's what we do!

This is our Indiana Jones Adventure hike lead by Indiana hinself(my Uncle Jeff)

The boys loved playing a game of soccer with my big cousins.

All of the cousins together (missing a couple families)

Beverly Hills

2012-01-31T18:01:00.004-05:00

We have to be a little touristy since we are still new to the area. Here's a pic of our family in front of a BIG Beverly Hills sign.

Christmas Day

2012-01-31T17:41:00.004-05:00

We had a great Christmas and I just wanted to finally put up a couple cute pics of the most loved presents. All of the kids got pillow pets. Connor's favorites were all the Harry Potter books, and movies and a HP Wii game to boot. Haydn loved his club penguin game, dragon car, and dragon egg. Tristan got a few different Cars related sets. He LOVES his Lightning McQueen pillow pet, talking car and race track set. We opened Santa presents in the morning and family presents after church. We had a great dinner at home together and the holiday couldn't have been better.

Christmas Picture

2011-12-19T17:15:00.004-05:00

This is our Christmas picture for the year. We were just too crazy doing practices for the musical on the weekends and Scott gets home after dark so we never got a chance to take a real family picture. We will soon though! I decided to just have our cute boys pose for our Christmas card. Here they are...

Just for fun, here are some outtakes...

We wish all our friends and family a VERY Merry Christmas!

Noah's Ark

2011-12-19T16:58:00.004-05:00

A friend invited us to go to an amazing place called the Skirball Center. They have a Noah's Ark room for the kids. They have tons of animals made out of random things-rope, purses, keys, etc., as well as puppets, science activities, a craft and a ropey climbing area. The ark has lots of parts. They can make all the sounds of a storm- watch leaves blow, lightning strike and rain fall. Then they can build and load animals onto the arc. Inside there are lots of stuffed animals to play with and an area to climb around. The kids had loads of fun. The best part was, it was FREE. You can't beat a free fun activity for your kids on a rainy afternoon.

A Christmas Walk to Rodeo Drive

2011-12-19T16:42:00.005-05:00

We took a little walk last week to go see the lights on Rodeo Dr. It's so close that we just had to. On the way we passed a McLaren dealership that has a real race car (an F1?) on display. We pass it all the time and just had to get a better look!

The tree and decor were beautiful of course! It's cool to be near all these posh places you only hear about. I'll probably NEVER shop there. It was a fun family outing though.

The Toy Shop Musical

2011-12-19T16:29:00.003-05:00

Our new ward did an interesting activity for our Christmas party this year. They put on a musical production called "The Toy Shop". Primary kids were invited to be in it. Connor and Haydn both wanted to so we started rehearsals. They had about a month to prepare. Connor was a school child and had to learn 7 lines and 2 songs for the play. Haydn was a teddy bear and had to learn 1 line and 3 songs for the play. It was super cute!!! They both were awesome. Haydn kinda stole the show at one moment when the bears were a little confused about were to be on the stage. My camera died but we got a video of the whole thing. If you want a copy I can send one, let me know. I did manage to take some pics of Haydn's costume. Connor was just dressed to look like it was cold outside(hat and scarf). There was dessert afterwards and Santa came to visit.

Setting up for Christmas!

2011-12-19T16:17:00.004-05:00

I'm trying to get caught up on our blog and this happened almost a month ago but we did set up our house for Christmas. We had fun building our tree and stringing lights and hanging ornaments. Connor was very helpful this year with the tree and lights. Haydn was sure it was Christmas the next day and has been impatiently waiting ever since. Tristan is just in awe of everything this year. Santa visited our ward Christmas party and brought all the kids popcorn balls. So if you ask Tristan what he wants Santa to bring him the answer is popcorn. So cute. I love the holidays with little ones!

Dentist Visit

2011-12-19T16:04:00.002-05:00

I took the boys to the dentist recently. Most of them had never been before. It was a superb experience. They explained everything they were doing, showed them videos of what would happen and how and why you need to keep your teeth clean and even let the boys help with the instruments (the water shooter and spit sucker). It really fun for them! In the end they got new toothbrushes and timers and got to choose a prize from their treasure chest.

Tristan got a little boredwaiting for his turn and by the end he was done being confined to a small area. The funny thing is we found a magazine that kept him riveted...Motor Trends. He looked through that thing for a good half hour! That boy LOVES cars!

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-12-19T15:55:00.003-05:00

For Thanksgiving we went to visit Scott's aunt and uncle, their kids and their kids kids. It was a full house with yummy food and lots of playing! It's fun that we live so close to cousins (even if they are second cousins). Of course, I forgot my camera but we'll be seeing them again on Christmas Eve. I brought all the fixings for making these cute turkey cupcakes for the kids. We made more later at home...

I couldn't feel more blessed this holiday to just be together again as a family and be settled in our new place. Three beautiful, smart boys and a wonderful hardworking husband. What more could I ask for? Oh ya, another sweet boy to join the clan, of course!

2011-11-14T15:38:00.002-05:00

You might be wondering where we are since we've been crazy busy the past few weeks! We made it to Cali and we are pretty settled in our new place! We had to do a Home Depot run and we got a nice picture of the kids with a great view...check out the word in the background.

So far we are just loving it here. The weather has been wonderful, Tristan won't go outside without sunglasses because it's to bright for his little eyes. We made it here just in time for our new ward's trunk-or-treat and that was a fun way to introduce ourselves and let the kids play games. We had a fun Halloween with a little monkey, and 2 Harry Potters! Haydn was actually superman at the trunk-or-treat but Nana sent him a Harry Potter costume too which arrived on Halloween so he switched costumes. Here's some fun pics of the kids trick or treating. I think this is the first year they were really into it and didn't want to stop. Connor did have a run in at a house that had a haunted house display in part of the yard. He decided to go in, without asking and without a grown-up. I was getting nervous because I couldn't find him in the chaos of this overly decorated house and finally he came out but he was a little shaken up (must have gotten a good scare!) and was ready to head home. Poor kid! I felt bad for him but I was just so happy that I'd found him that we had a hard time not laughing at how shaken up he was.

Anyways, we are doing great in Cali. Connor is in school and already has some good friends. We have friends in the ward just 2 houses down so that is fun to be so close to them. I can walk to everything I need-the school, my doctor, even the hospital (no wonder we hear ambulances way too often, I'm just realizing this). I've even started potty training Tristan and we are having a little success here and there. I'll definitely post more soon now that we are more settled.

Pumpkins and Packing

2011-10-11T07:13:00.005-04:00

The boys didn't have school Monday so, despite the BIG packing project going on at home, I decided that we needed to get out of the house and do a fun Fall New England activity. We went to our favorite farm and went pumpkin picking! We had a wonderful time and I even managed not to lose anyone despite my lack of extra hands. The boys got their face painted, played croquet, played at the playground, went on hayride, ran through a corn maze and picked a pumpkin.

When we got home I got a text from one of my friends that she and another friend were coming to help me pack. They swept through my kitchen and packed most of it. YEAH! I'm that much closer to being done. Thanks for your help ladies!

New Baby...

2011-10-05T20:49:00.002-04:00

So, we are expecting another baby in our family! We found out today what we are having too. I decided to make it special for the boys and tell them in a fun way. I made a cake and dyed the inside pink or blue to tell if it's a boy or girl. The frosting covered the color so they wouldn't know until we cut the cake. Anyway, I videoed it so we could have their reactions...WATCH and find out what we are having...

California Here We Come...

2011-09-22T20:05:00.006-04:00

I've been playing single mom for about 3 weeks now. Scott started a job out in CA about 2 weeks ago and is loving it. Today we finalized plans to move into a townhouse in Beverly Hills. I'm here in CT still hoping to find someone to rent or buy our house before we leave. Crazy huh! We are all so excited to go and it makes it even more real to actually have a place to move into. YEAH! The funniest part is Bolton, CT and Beverly Hills, CA are about as polar opposites and you can get! We are so excited to have a winter without piles of snow. Haydn wasn't so sure about that idea. I had to reassure him that Santa will know it's Christmas there even if it doesn't snow.

Here's a little catch-up of what we've been up to in these past crazy weeks...

We went at the end of summer to a celebration at the library for the summer reading challenge. The kids got their face painted and snacks. It was really fun.

While the big boys are in school Tristan and I like to play outside. He LOVES to be outdoors. He pushes his little car around everywhere. He also likes to ride on the back of my bike He even tells me which direction to go and if I turn toward home he starts saying, "NO, NO, NO! That way!" This is one morning when he found a caterpillar.

Connor started playing soccer this fall. He loves it. His favorite position is to be goalie or defense.

Tristan likes to bring a ball and kick it around while we watch practice.

First Day of School!

2011-09-06T18:03:00.002-04:00

Today was the first day of school! I had some VERY excited boys in my house. Here we are taking some quick pics before driving them to school...

It's a little tradition of ours that I make them a BIG cookie for a back to school celebration! I started this last year and the boys had totally forgotten about it but I hadn't! It was fun to surprise them and totally make their day, after-all there's nothing better than cookies with frosting and milk to win over your kids right?!

Here they are with their pieces of cookie! They were amazed I let them have such big pieces yet still asked for more, what's that all about?!

Anyways, the boys had good days! Haydn has a half day of preschool so he came home for lunch and told me all about Preschool. He got to play with potato heads that had "openings on their butts" (he thought that was amusing apparently), write his name with shaving cream, and sang songs. He made some new friends too. He said there is another Hayden and an Aiden in his class and one of his teachers is named Mrs. Connors so he'll always remember them.

Connor came home on the bus happy but so excited about school that he forgot to bring home his backpack, oops! He got to choose your own desk and set up his supplies inside it. He's sitting by one old friend and one new one. He said he got to start off his day in art and then they played some get-to-know-you games like a scavenger hunt about people. They got to bring in 5 things from home and tell about themselves. They also did word searches and talked a lot about their class and each other. They had indoor recess and he got to play on the computer right in his classroom (he thinks that's awesome)! He also got to play with legos.

I'm so glad they had an awesome day! It was so strange just having one little 2 year old in the house for the morning but Tristan and I enjoyed our alone time! He brought me lots of books to read and we watched a baby einstein movie. We also played with cars and I tickled him a lot and just about anything else I could do to make him laugh hysterically because he has the cutest laugh EVER!

What next, a plague of locusts?

2011-08-29T11:03:00.001-04:00

We are alive and well after this crazy week (an earthquake and a hurricane! REALLY?!?) but are without power. It looks like our little town is about 90-100% in the dark, and the power company might get to us in 5-7 days. We're fine, we have a couple of options for now, but keep your fingers crossed that we get power back sooner rather than later!

Soccer Camp

2011-08-27T19:30:00.008-04:00

I heard about a fun soccer camp I just had to get my boys involved in. They loved it! Even Tristan, that wasn't technically part of the group, enjoyed playing with the coaches a bit.

Here's a fun video of a song one of the counselors did with the kids, my kids LOVED it!

Tristan Turned 2!

2011-07-21T15:07:00.004-04:00

My baby is now 2! He's the sweetest thing ever. He's finally starting to talk more and seems to learn new words all the time. He had an awesome birthday at home right after our big trip. Nana was even here to help us spoil him. He got a bunch of cars and some tracks to play with them on. He hasn't put them down and he usually can be found with at least 5 cars in his hands. He also got a cool sprinkler toy with balls that shoot out, and some bubble toys.

Tristan's cookie cake and blowing out the candles!

Nana and a BIG ADVENTURE!

2011-07-21T13:34:00.006-04:00

Scott's Mom came into town and so we got some amazing time with Nana! We went on an amazing trip to upstate NY together. We got to go to the Hill Cumorah Pageant and see some other LDS church historical sites. We got to see the printing press that printed the first Book of Mormon, Joseph Smith's childhood homes and the Sacred Grove where he saw the first vision. It was so fun! We also took an amazing trip to Niagara Falls!

Here's some poses with the cast members of the Hill Cumorah Pageant...

An amazing view of the printing press where the Book of Mormon was first printed...

This inside Joseph Smith's cabin...

This is Connor by the fireplace of Joseph Smith's frame home where we learned that he actually hid the golden plates under the bricks in the fireplace for a time.

This is our family after walking through the sacred grove...

Amazingly we ran into some old friends we hadn't seen in years, the Velingas, while on our trip! That was a great surprise!

Here's the photos from our Niagara Falls adventure...

We rode on the Maid of the Mist boat...

We stayed until late so we could see the lights on the falls and an amazing fireworks show as well.

Haydn's Joy School Graduation

2011-06-20T15:42:00.006-04:00

We have a Joy School Graduate! Haydn has loved doing joy school this year. He got to do it with 5 friends from church. All of us Moms took turns teaching and they were such a great group. Here are a couple pics of his graduation and a video of the kids singing "I've Got Joy". Haydn got an award for being the friendliest. Yeah Haydn! We love this kid!

In case you were wondering, the capes were made by me and my friend Liz, they are basically the same as the Jedi capes I made for Connor's party, minus the big hood. I made the cute Joy Boy cake too.

Prophet Tristan

2011-06-20T15:28:00.002-04:00

Reading scriptures with kids can be crazy. Half the time it seems they don't listen but we love it when they obviously do and we have some great conversations around our breakfast table. We rarely, however, get any input from our 1 year old. Here's a video of Tristan enjoying our family scripture study...

Connor Turned 7!

2011-06-20T12:58:00.003-04:00

Connor turned 7 last week! Wow 7! He's such a big boy! Tomorrow he graduates 1st grade! I'm feeling old! Anyways, he had a great family party. He got some great presents, his favorite is probably the watch that his Grandma gave him that he is OBSESSED with. He asks me all the time what time things are supposed to happen and he sets timers on his watch. Here's some pics of his big day and a video of his birthday wish (this is the best part, we can't stop laughing about it!)

What's he into these days? He's obsessed with the Wii, specifically Super Mario Bros. lately (Haydn is too). He loves swimming, biking, baseball, and soccer. He LOVES to read and sometimes even asks to bring a book to a friends house (in case he gets bored). He's unfortunately getting a little bit of an attitude and starting to think he can make his own rules, YEAH! Mostly he's a great kid though and we love him! I can't believe it's been 7 years!

It's Officially Summer

2011-06-06T19:21:00.002-04:00

I love June! It's just great outdoor weather. We've been working on opening our big pool for the summer but it's still in progress so I filled up the little pool today for the kids. When Connor got home from school and saw it he exclaimed, "yes, Yes, YES!!!" They had a great time breaking it in this year. Here's a few pics...

A Weekend With Grandma

2011-06-06T19:00:00.004-04:00

We had a nice long weekend with my Mom in town. We tried to go to the lake house of a friend and had a nice picnic there. Our dreams of paddle boating all day and swimming didn't work out as our heat wave ended and a nice cool breeze blew too strong. The house was right over the Mass boarder and they power was out because of the tornado that hit close a couple days prior. Oh well, we made the most of it. Connor even got in the water.

We got to see the boys play baseball this weekend. Connor even got to try out being catcher.

My Mom spent a lot of time reading to the kids and they loved playing games on her phone!!! We're glad she could join us for a short while. We don't see enough of our family. That's the biggest drawback of living out East all by ourselves. Love you Mom!

Baseball Season

2011-06-02T14:02:00.002-04:00

The boys are on baseball/t-ball teams this Spring. It's so fun to watch them get excited about playing! They love it! They got a chance to go to a Rock Cats game with their Dad and it was COMPLETELY rained out. They get to go again later. Even Tristan likes watching their games. He wanders around playing with balls and couldn't be happier. Here's a couple pics...

Easter PhotoShoot

2011-05-23T13:48:00.003-04:00

I know I haven't updated this in WAY to long! There is so much going on these days. We are all well and having fun. I just wanted to start with a couple cute pics of the boys all together. I promise I'll update more soon with everything we've been doing. Aren't they so cute!? And growing so fast!

An Update!

2011-03-17T12:55:00.007-04:00

I am getting really bad at keeping this updated. I just wanted to post a few pictures I recently took and show you how my little ones are growing...

Connor is an amazing guy. He's helpful, loving, independent and smart! He's been in a bit of trouble at school lately though. He's just so physical and doesn't seem to know what personal space is. I think it's also that he may be a little bored and finding other means to distract himself. Anyways, he's working toward a fun incentive and his behavior has been much better. I think every parent hates to hear bad things about their own perfect angels. What kills the most is that I know he knows better and I just pray he turns out right in the end-being able to think through his actions before he does them. He's really progressing at piano and is playing some simplified Primary Songs and the Star Wars theme which is really fun for him. He's trying out for baseball soon so we've been practicing that too.

Haydn is loving joy school and he's getting so independent too. He's starting to read which is soooo fun! The look on his face whenever he sounds out a word and recognizes what it is is PRICELESS. He is such a good friend. He can play for hours with his friends and have no problems. I love having him home with me. We play games, read, play outside, go to the library, etc. He's also going to do T-ball soon and he's really excited about it.

Tristan is just my sweet cuddle bug. He plays well on his own, with his brothers and with friends. He's starting to talk a little but he gets his point across rather well with body language, sign language, sounds and pointing. The other day he brought me a toy and repeatedly said, "On, on, on!" It was so cute! He's such a little clown and he loves attention. He LOVES to be outside and I'm glad I can finally let him out more. Every time I get out of our car he runs to the bikes and wants to play outside. He's heartbroken when I make him come in.

So that's my crew! Scott's still loving his job and I am too. I've been busily Heritage Making our own things too. I finally finished my wedding album...

A board book for Mr. T...

And a canvas of the boys for our wall...

Haydn's 4th Birthday

2011-02-22T20:29:00.003-05:00

Haydn turned 4 years old on Feb 11th. I know I've been bad at blogging but I just have to get his special day on here. He wanted a "How To Train Your Dragon" party. I had plans of doing something really cool with his chosen theme but it got put on a back burner because I was out of town and everyone was sick the week before. Anyways, we still made his day special. We started out with going to choose donuts, this is kind of a tradition now. We sang to him and he got to open his presents in the morning.

One of his presents was a dragon egg that he got to hatch by putting it in a volcano! It was pretty fun to watch it fizzle and then he got to put the dragon together.

He got a helmet, shield and ax like every good viking should have.

We spent our morning building a viking ship.

When I asked him what vikings eat for lunch he said "oatmeal" so that was what he ate. Then he watched "How To Train Your Dragon" while playing with all his viking gear and accessories.

In the evening he got to open one more present from Grandma Beckie- roller blades! He loves them and has been wearing them non-stop since.

Then I made a chocolate cake, per his request and celebrated one more time. We decided we had so much fun having a family birthday that we didn't need to do a big party this year. I think maybe we'll do an every other year big party. It's nice to just celebrate low-key and enjoy our boy growing up!

By the way, at his 4 year old WCC Haydn's stats were:
37 lbs (60%) and 42 1/4 in (90%)
He DID NOT like his shots this year. He ripped one of them out of his arm! It was so sad!

I can not say enough good about this boy. He is definitely an outgoing, friendly, funny, smart, sneaky, sweet, happy, and independent little man. I'm so glad he's OURS!!! I love you Haydn!

Our Igloo

2011-01-28T15:09:00.000-05:00

We built an igloo to celebrate the most snow in one month EVER recorded! We have a had I think 5 snow days(1-2/wk) since Christmas and more snow is on the way! Our driveway is getting narrower and the banks around it are as tall as me almost! CRAZY! I'd been complaining (not quite the right word) about not seeing a true New England winter yet! Here it is! Our igloo is family sized with a kiddie pool as our roof and a tarp for the door. It only took Scott and I 9 hours to complete. It's awesome and luckily it just keeps getting stronger with every storm!

Christmas at Grandpa's House

2011-01-04T15:18:00.000-05:00

We took off after our Christmas morning at home to visit my at my Dad's house. We had a blast hanging out with them. The kids got more presents from their Grandparents. I got to see my sister Susie too. It was even worth the blizzard we braved to get home!

I made a fabulous new dessert...a red velvet cheesecake! YUM!!!

Our Christmas Morning

2011-01-03T15:23:00.000-05:00

We started our Christmas morning with Connor and Haydn woke up around 6am (like every day). They were so excited! We decided to start by reading the scripture account of Christ's birth in Luke 2. We put together our nativity set while the story unfolded. Then we went to get Tristan and to see what Santa brought! Here's some of the scenes from our Christmas morning!

Connor's wish list for Santa was a calculator, and sunglasses. He also got some fun lego games, a magic set and a dictionary. We also gave the boys a box of some of our favorite books-Magic Tree House, Magic School House, A to Z Mysteries, etc. What did he want to bring with him to Grandpa's house later that day? The calculator and the dictionary!

Haydn asked Santa for a calculator (if brother wants one he must too), sunglasses (his idea, Connor copied that one) and a dragon car that changes colors. Santa did good this year and he also got a butterfly garden, books, and a lightsaber (to replace one he lost).

Here's the big boys having fun with Tristan and his new ball house. It was probably the biggest hit of the day!

Here's Tristan and the rest of his loot, you might notice a theme...ball, Ball, BALL!

We hope you all had a Merry Christmas and carry the spirit of Christ with you all year long!

Ornaments

2011-01-03T15:19:00.000-05:00

I had the boys decorating ornaments one day and they couldn't get enought out of it. Looks like I will need to come up with some more painting projects. The ornaments turned out beautiful!

Cookies for Santa

2011-01-03T15:08:00.000-05:00

We had the boys paint a plate and cup to put cookies on for Santa. Then they decorated some sugar cookies for Santa.

Our Own Christmas Party

2011-01-03T14:50:00.000-05:00

Connor had a Christmas party at school and Haydn felt a little left out so we did our own party. He made a Christmas card and we had a special lunch of cheese and crackers and star apples (this Mommy invention was a hit)!

Catch-up and getting ready for CHRISTMAS

2010-12-14T13:58:00.000-05:00

We are teaching Kallie to run out some energy on a treadmill.

Haydn and his joy school group performed a nativity play at a retirement home last week. Here he is with one of his friends.

My sweet little baby is turning into a little monster! He's into EVERYTHING. One morning while getting ready for church I came upon this scene. He was happily helping himself to more cereal!

Decorating and trimming the tree...
Here's Connor working hard. We didn't give them any direction this year, we just let them go at it, and the tree actually looks pretty nice! Now if we could just get the dog, cat and baby to leave it alone that would be awesome!

Here's Haydn...

I'm not sure what Tristan is on his way to fix with that hammer but he sure looks cute!

The star is the most important part. It was Haydn's turn this year and he was in HEAVEN!

Somebody hit the BIG 3-0!

2010-11-29T20:08:00.001-05:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY HANDSOME HUSBAND! We celebrated with my Dad and his family since they came to our house for Thanksgiving! I made Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bars...

Here's the present the boys and I gave him...

Scott we LOVE YOU! Happy 30th BIRTHDAY!

I made the book through Heritage Makers! For more info. visit www.simplypreciouspictures.com

The First Snow

2010-11-10T14:37:00.001-05:00

On Monday we were all surprised to find snow outside! The boys begged me to play and since school was delayed they went out and tromped around outside starting at about 7am! They LOVED it! It was so freezing and a mix of snow and rain was still falling so I didn't let Tristan out and he wasn't too happy about that. It was all gone by the afternoon but the boys can't wait until it snows some more.

Soccer Team

2010-11-10T14:34:00.000-05:00

I coached soccer again this year and Saturday was our last soccer game. I had to get a picture of my team! Go Speedy Turtles! I think we won every game, not that that matters!

Brothers in LOVE

2010-11-01T17:58:00.000-04:00

Is it too cold or do they just love each other? Maybe a little of both! I just LOVE finding my boys loving on each other like this. It warms my heart!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN FROM MY JEDIS!

2010-10-31T21:05:00.000-04:00

We had a Happy Halloween and we hope you all did too! Ours were Jedis this year. Connor was Obi-Wan Kenobi, Haydn was Anikan Skywalker, Tristan was R2D2, and our friend Cole was Darth Vader. Here are the boys posing at our ward trunk-or-treat activity:

Why I love FALL!

2010-10-26T20:48:00.000-04:00

My boys spent an hour or more just jumping in a small pile of leaves! Can't get much better than that!

Apple Picking

2010-10-18T12:55:00.000-04:00

We went apple picking on Columbus Day with some friends. The boys have been eating apples non-stop ever since. It was so fun! Take a look!
The Pumpkin Patch...

Mommy and Tristan riding on the hayride...

The BIG black cat...

The corn maze...

My little walker...

Face painting...

Croquet...

Tractors and slides...

Apple Picking...

Heritage Makers Projects

2010-10-18T12:48:00.001-04:00

Check out some projects I've already made through Heritage Makers! It's so fun and easy to use.

Here's a look at a little swatch book(it's the perfect size to go in my purse!)

and here's a look at the big canvas I had printed of my boys!

My NEW Business....

2010-09-24T13:29:00.000-04:00

I take TONS of photos of my adorable kids and our adventures as a family and I'm always thinking of new ways and places to display them. They are, after all, the most important thing in my life. Last weekend I was introduced to a business opportunity I just COULDN'T pass up. When I saw the products I was just in love and so I signed on to show others how awesome this is. Heritage Makers is a business that allows you to turn your pictures into awesome projects like photobooks, storybooks, playing cards, calendars, canvases, greeting cards and much more. But it's not your ordinary digital scrapbooking. They are the leaders in the industry and designed the ideas that make it all possible. Think you could never figure it out? They allow you to upload your photos and save them as you make your projects with THOUSANDS of templates and art pieces to guide you. If you think you aren't creative enough to write your stories, NO PROBLEM. You have access to story maps (questions that guide you in writing your stories), and cute and memorable quotes that you can look up by topic. You can edit pictures and change out anything you don't like simply with a drag and drop system. IT'S SO EASY! Can you tell I'm excited!? If I've intrigued you just a little, check this out...
What it's all about
and how to do it
The Business Opportunity

Here's my website. Click around and see what you think.

Because I'm a new consultant I get some awesome deals to get friends and family started up so let me know right away if your interested. You can get started as a client and I can help you through some projects or you can host a party and get your friends involved and earn products for yourself or you could even sign up to be a consultant like me and get some pretty amazing commission and products as well. I can even meet you in a "webinar" (online seminar) to tell you all about it if you don't live close to me. I'm so excited to show you this...Be the Heritage Maker in your family!
You can e-mail me at jenn@simplypreciouspictures.com or call (860)281-9311.

It's A......

2010-09-17T10:55:00.000-04:00

GIRL!!! I have a beautiful little princess in my house! We named her Kallie. She's a 6 1/2 week old (tiny) black lab. She is just adorable and we are loving her a lot already.

A little more of Haydn...

2010-09-08T20:00:00.000-04:00

Here's Haydn and his big cookie after his first day of joy school. After doing it for Connor, he requested a cookie too. I guess it will have to be our new tradition!

Oh, here's a funny story... we were sitting in a restaurant with our crew of little boys recently and the kids we drawing on there little place mats being very good and Scott and I were having a conversation. All of a sudden Haydn stands halfway up and yells..."FIRE"! We were both seriously caught off guard and there was no reason for him to think there was a fire. It just came out of nowhere! Holy cow! Of all the things you could scream...that was just too perfect! We were then reminded why we don't like to go to sit down restaurants with kids!

(addendum by Scott - at least we weren't in a crowded theater!)

Joy School Starts!!!

2010-09-07T10:58:00.000-04:00

Haydn went off to his first day of joy school today. To say he was excited would be the understatement of the year. He's been asking me all week when he gets to go. He was so happy to have me pack his lunch and talk about what was in his backpack. Then we got to hop on the "bus", my big blue bus (car) and drive to school. When we got there he was greeted by one of his friends and her mom(the teacher for the week) and he took off. I love this little man. He's just growing up too fast. He's so smart and he's the little clown of our family too. His laugh is just to die for! He's really so sweet to his brothers and a great friend. My little Haydn is off to his first day of school! The house is quiet (Tristan is napping)! I could get used to this I suppose.
Showing off his backpack...

This was the forgotten goodbye I got.

2010-09-03T08:10:00.000-04:00

Conversation this morning...
Me: "Haydn please finish your breakfast so you can walk with Connor to the bus." (he missed yesterday because he wasn't finished and Connor went by himself)
Haydn(nonchalantly): "No, I don't want to go to the bus."
Me: "Connor, do you like going to the bus stop by yourself?"
Connor: "Well, I like having Haydn to go with me, it's more fun."
Haydn(brightly): "Just me!"
Connor: "Well, I like everyone to go with me." pause..."I would be sad if you couldn't come with me Haydn."
Haydn: "If you are sad, I hope you get happy again Connor." Then Haydn went into high speed to finish so we could all walk Connor to the bus. Nothing like a loving brother for motivation!

Tristan WALKING!

2010-09-01T15:52:00.000-04:00

Here's my Mr. T. walking! He's getting better every day! He also learned his first word other than Dada and Mama...if you know Tristan well you could guess it, BALL. Listen close and you'll hear his version of it. He also says car very similarly by saying Broom Broom, more "R" rolling than when he says Ball.

How's Haydn?

2010-08-31T15:11:00.000-04:00

Since Connor isn't around all day Haydn doesn't have his best buddy. If asked whether he misses Connor he says "No" but he's always asking, "What do we do now?" since he's not as occupied playing with his brother. We are having fun together at home just reading books and playing games. We've had a nice quiet couple days at home. He's really looking forward to joy school which starts next week. He's a little in denial about not getting to ride a bus to school and at my suggestion at pretending that I'm the bus driver he said, "No, you are silly Mom! I want a real bus!"

After a nap today Haydn found Percy on the ground and cuddled up to him. Percy decided that was cool (which he rarely does) and as Haydn put it made his hair handsome. So cute...

Connor's First Day of 1st Grade

2010-08-31T14:36:00.000-04:00

By the time I got up Connor was dressed and ready to go. We packed up a lunch (I don't eat lunch with my baby anymore :*( ) We had plenty of time to eat and get to the bus. Here's Connor all excited for school.

Racing to the bus stop, with Haydn still in PJ's!

Saying our final goodbyes, which went better than expected and, in Haydn's case, MUCH better than last year.

Excited to get on that bus and go off to school like a big boy.

At home he told us all about it, with much prodding! He's got his own assigned seat, cubby and mailbox. He got to go to P.E. He LOVED eating in the cafeteria, that was the favorite part of the day! He loved meeting up with his friends again, he's already asking about playdates. He even brought home a picture that he colored that he actually took time coloring (patterns and staying in the lines, such a difference from last year)! He also got to pick a jewel out from the teacher's treasure chest because he was sitting so quietly. He likes his teacher a lot and I think this year is starting off just right. After dinner I surprised him with this giant cookie to celebrate his first day of a full day at school.

Tristan's 12mo. WCC

2010-08-16T16:56:00.000-04:00

Our Little Mr. T. had his 1 yr old check up today. And the stats are...23lb 6oz(50%), and 30 3/4in tall(70%). He's really the sweetest boy. He'll give me the biggest smile EVERY time I say his name. He still LOVES his momma like nothing else (which I LOVE)! He has a favorite blanket that he'll cuddle with if you give it to him. His favorite toy is any ball he can find. He'll pick one up, throw it, and crawl after it over and over and over. If he throws it to me and I roll it back he'll throw it back me to do it again. He's gonna be our ball player. He's started using a sippy cup and he loves it and now that we are back from vacation I am weening him for good. He OBVIOUSLY misses me though and it's been hard to say no but he's doing ok. The biggest news is that he's starting to walk. He'll randomly catch his balance on things and let go to stand on his own and then take a few steps at a time. We just love this little guy!

We're home!

2010-08-10T11:23:00.000-04:00

We are home now. It was an interesting trip back. I had all three boys by myself along with 3 carseats to check, 6 bags to carry on (3 rolling and 3 smaller bags), 2 5hr airplane rides (one a red-eye) and a 2 hr layover. I have to say it sounds pretty bad but it went almost as well as can be expected. The boys were well behaved and all of them slept during the red-eye(restlessly but slept none-the-less). I did have my drink spill into one of my bags and get peed on more than once thanks to Tristan but other than that I was proud of my boys and we made it home.

The morning before we left I took this picture of all of the 5 grandbaby boys on my side of the family. We have yet to have a girl, but we think my brother will bring a little girl into family someday since my sister and me aren't having any luck.

Hawaii Pics

2010-08-04T02:08:00.000-04:00

Here's a compilation of pictures we've taken of our family at the beach thus far.
A Family Shot in the Ocean...

Connor's craziness...

And heeeeeres HAYDN...

Our littlest sand monster in action...

Some group shots of our adventures...

2010-07-31T16:05:00.000-04:00

Scott and I enjoyed a nice date at the Polynesian Cultural Center where we went to a luau and watched their awesome night show (polynesian dance, song and fire throwing).

We went to an amazing beach known for it's snorkling and rock jumping. We snorkled and saw three squid, a turtle and tons of fish and other creatures. Then we went to jump off the rocks.

This one was SO high. I got to the top and I wasn't so sure about it anymore. Scott fixed that by totally pulling me off with him. I was a little shocked.

Hawaii with Kelly and her Family

2010-07-28T03:15:00.000-04:00

We are lucky enough to have not one but two sets of family members living in Hawaii that we get to visit here. Here are some pics of us hanging at the beach with Scott's sister Kelly and her kiddos Ayla, Trayte, and Westyn.

2010-07-20T13:29:00.000-04:00

MY BABY IS 1! I can't believe how fast this year has past. Tristan is such a sweet boy! So smiley and happy! Everybody loves him and he's getting better at loving everyone else every day. His favorite person is still Mommy though-which I LOVE!

For his birthday, our family all got together to celebrate here in Hawaii. Thr group included our family as well as Grandma Beckie, Uncle Michael, Aunt Susie, Aunt Kelly and cousins Ayla, Trayte, and Weston. Aunt Kelly brought over a bounce house she had and the kids had a blast playing in there. We had a BBQ and I made a yummy ice cream brownie cake. Tristan got his first taste of cake and boy did he love it. We filled Grandma's house with new toys and had lots of fun together. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TRISTAN!
The kids in the bounce house...

STRONG BABY!

The cake...

YUM!

The MESS!

A bath in the sink afterward...

Playing with the cousins. Tristan and Weston are night and day, tan and white. They both LOVED the new balls Tristan got.

In Hawaii

2010-07-12T20:44:00.001-04:00

We've been enjoying the Hawaiian sun. We been loving the ocean by boogy boarding, snorkling, and kayaking. The first couple days we went the tide was high and rough. That didn't stop Connor and Haydn from having a blast though. Then this morning we went so we could hit low tide and I took the kids to a calmer beach. Tristan finally decided he liked the sand and the water and he was having a blast today too. He would crawl right into the waves along the shore (they were so small). He was sooo cute! Here's a couple pictures of our adventures...

My Dad's Family Reunion

2010-07-12T02:28:00.000-04:00

After we got to see all my Mom's family we got to go to my Dad's family reunion too. They meet at a camp and we stayed for a few days. We went to a water park and to my great grandma's ranch while we were there too. We stayed through the 4th of July and got to see the fireworks in Pocatello. They boys loved staying up late to see them and Haydn kept saying things like, "That one is HUGE" the whole time. It was so fun to see all my family that I never get to see anymore. It was a great few days.

My Mom's Family Reunions

2010-07-11T23:19:00.000-04:00

We've been busy. We started our trip in Utah and got to see my Sister Katie and her family, including her week old baby boy. Then we went to a my Mom's family reunion in Idaho for a few days. We played with some of my aunts and their families afterward and went to Yellowstone one day too. Then we all went back to Katie's house and celebrated her son's birthday. It was a fun reunion with my Mom's side of the family. I was really close with my aunts growing up so it's fun to get to see them and my cousins again as we all get older. It makes me sad to live so far away.

Star Wars Birthday Party

2010-06-19T18:01:00.000-04:00

Connor wanted a Star Wars party for his birthday (BIG SURPRISE). We went all out for this one. I spent all week preparing, mostly sewing Jedi capes for all 11 kids and my husband. It was a lot of work but TOTALLY worth it. We suited up the kids and had them play a lot of simple games to enhance their Jedi skills. Everyone had a blast! The only sad part of the day is that poor Haydn woke up sick and so he stayed napping, secluded in his room and missed the whole party. He was really sad about it and kept trying to convince me he was ok but I'm glad I didn't believe him cause he's still not. I guess that just means we'll probably do this again in a few months when it's his birthday (cause he wants a Star Wars party too).

To begin our Jedi Training we suited up each "apprentice" with a Jedi cloak and light saber. Then Yoda introduced and obstacle course which they got to race through one by one carrying Yoda on their backs (like Luke did during his training).

Light Saber Training- They had to keep the balloon up in the air with their light saber...

Darth Maul made and appearance and the Jedi Apprentices got to fight him off...

Save the Princess- The balloons were filled with candy and there were two pictures of Padme and Princess Leia in the bunch. They had to find and save the princesses by popping the balloons.

Jedi Freeze- Run when the music plays, Stop when it stops, to heighten their Jedi reflexes...

Wookie Bow Caster Training- Shooting at Star Wars villans- the Emperor, Darth Vader, Darth Maul and General Grievous...

The Food...

Present Time...

Jedi Apprentice Training Class Photos...

Star Wars Cake...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU...

Connor's First Piano Recital

2010-06-19T17:58:00.000-04:00

Connor has been playing piano for three months now and he had his first recital last night. Here are the pieces he played. He had all of them memorized but got a little nervous I think. He did AWESOME for his first time. It might just be me but I think he's catching on awfully quick too, he's good! Here are the videos...

Connor's Graduated Kindergarten

2010-06-19T17:52:00.000-04:00

My baby is no longer a kindergartner! Here are some pics with his teachers...
Connor and Mrs. Toce

Connor and Mrs. Rumovicz his kindergarten teacher

Connor Is 6!

2010-06-14T19:36:00.000-04:00

Today is Connor's birthday. I can't believe I have a 6 year old. He's getting so big and smart and capable. It is sooo fun to watch this kid grow. He's going to have a busy week so I'll be posting more but for now here's the events of his birthday...

He started out the day by having some surprise donuts for breakfast (that was his chance to blow out candles today since his birthday party is this weekend).

He happened to be born on Flag Day and his class had a party to celebrate. I got some festive necklaces for him to give to his class to help celebrate his birthday.

I snagged a picture with him and his teacher Mrs. Rumovicz while I was there too. She really has been awesome with Connor.

We went to the park, played with friends and then this evening he got to choose his favorite food for dinner (waffles) and open presents. He got a solar system puzzle, Darth Vader and General Grievous action figures and a Star Wars swim suit. If you haven't guessed his party will be Star Wars themed!

I think he really enjoyed his day.

Fun with Friends

2010-06-12T19:56:00.000-04:00

We had some friends come play with us this week while their Mom went on a school trip with another child. That left me with 6 kids for a day! It actually went VERY well. The kids all played perfectly and it was easy to keep them all happy despite my being a little worried about it. I even had another girl in the house (which hardly happens) even though we were out numbered 5 to 2. Here's a little of our adventures...
Playing playdough while the big boys were at school.

Tristan getting loved on a bit too much!

Bike riding...

Jedi Lightsaber Duel...

Baseball practice...

Memorial Day

2010-06-02T17:04:00.000-04:00

We started off memorial by watching a parade through our tiny town. Connor got to march with his baseball team and throw candy to the crowd. After the parade there was a memorial in the center of town to remember fallen soldiers close to home. Then there was a family fun day at the elementary school and there were bounce houses, hot dogs, cotton candy...just about everything. The boys favorite was a bouncy relay race that you can see here. There was even a fire truck there and the kids got to shoot water out of the hose. It was a fun day.

Tristan's next trick

2010-05-21T10:29:00.000-04:00

Tristan is really moving along nicely with these developmental milestones. He's crawling like a champ and even pulling himself up to a standing position (with hilarious results!)

I nominate the following for his next trick:

I'll start practicing my hadouken tonight...

Cute Connor

2010-05-10T14:15:00.000-04:00

Last week Connor started T-ball. He's so excited and so cute in this little baseball cap. This weekend was rained out but we can't wait til he gets to get some good practice and his first game next week. More pics to come I'm sure.

Also, Connor lost one of his top teeth last week too. It fell out during gym at school. He's got a very big hole in his mouth now. The very same day he lost his tooth Tristan starting cutting his first tooth, FINALLY. I guess they switched. Here's some pics of our cute Connor...

In which Scott attempts to make up for yesterday's post...

2010-05-06T14:22:00.000-04:00

Jenn - you're awesome! I have proof!

Love you!

-Scott

Tristan's 9 months

2010-05-05T14:03:00.000-04:00

Tristan had his 9 month check-up today. He's a whopping 21 lbs 6 oz and 28 3/4 in tall. That's about the 70th percentile. He is such a laid back sweetheart. He just rolls/crawls around the house content to play with anything he can get his hands on. He's a good eater and hasn't found anything he doesn't like. He's starting to climb up on things, especially my lap. He's a great sleeper and takes 2 good naps a day (if we aren't running around) and sleeps through the night. He says "Dadada", and "Bababa" neither of which mean anything in particular yet. He loves to shake his head "no" and make his brothers crazy. They respond with "yes, yes, yes" and he shakes his head harder "no". We love this little guy!

Jenn's willpower is similarly amazing

2010-05-05T13:51:00.001-04:00

Jenn's willpower is similarly amazing

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:-)

Great Tristan Laugh

2010-04-29T12:45:00.000-04:00

We caught this video recently of Haydn making Tristan laugh hysterically. I LOVE IT...

Family Picture

2010-04-26T14:11:00.000-04:00

We got a new family picture recently to finally include Tristan into our family. Here's a picture of the picture...sorry about the quality.

Nana's Visit

2010-04-26T13:37:00.000-04:00

Scott's Mom came out for a visit last week. We had such a nice time with her. We really didn't do much exciting stuff while she was here. It was a short but good visit and we just hung out and enjoyed each other. The boys read tons of books, played games and did puzzles with her. Tristan loved having someone to spoil him. He never had to wait to eat while Mommy was busy. We loved having Nana visit and we miss her. Thanks for coming Mom.

Tristan's crawl

2010-04-14T09:33:00.000-04:00

Last week Tristan started "crawling" forward finally! He's been going every other direction (rolling, turning and going backwards) for months and he's getting better at getting around every day. Here's how he does it...

Pool Time

2010-04-11T15:56:00.000-04:00

Last week we hit a record heat of 92 degrees. So, I broke out our kiddy pool and let the boys enjoy the beautiful day. Here are some pics, I'll let their expressions tell you the rest...

Strong Haydn

Connor HAD to try out his goggles again

The Force is strong with this one...

2010-04-06T13:02:00.000-04:00

Star Wars is "THE THING" at our house right now. Connor is Obi-Wan Kenobi and Haydn is Anakin Skywalker, his apprentice. Even Tristan has been named R2D2 (I think he sounds more like a Wookie though). I can't tell you how many times I tie capes around them in one day. Haydn is constantly telling me that he is Anakin Skywalker and asking if I am Padme or Obi-Wan Kenobi. Scott is obviously getting a kick out of the whole thing. The boys anxiously await their father's return home in the hopes that they can watch more Star Wars or play Star Wars on the Wii with him.

Easter

2010-04-05T13:34:00.000-04:00

These are our Easter pics! We had a GREAT weekend. We started off Sat. with a town Easter egg hunt followed by watching Conference and playing games. On Easter we woke up to Easter Bunny loot and then did our traditional Easter breakfast (explanation here Easter). Then we did an Easter egg hunt in our yard. We took a nice walk in between General Conference sessions and after the final session we had a nice ham dinner and read some Easter books.

THE BIG 5-0!

2010-04-05T13:30:00.000-04:00

We went last week to visit my Dad and surprise him to help celebrate his 50th birthday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD! We LOVE You!

They learn too quickly...

2010-04-01T08:49:00.000-04:00

Haydn decided to barter with me this morning...
Haydn: "Mom, do you want a hug?"
Me: "Yeah, I love hugs!"
Haydn: "Then you have to turn on a show for me and I'll give you a hug. Mom, do you like hugs?"
Me: "Yeah, I do like hugs."
Haydn: "Then turn on a show."

Cookin' Cuteness

2010-03-22T16:36:00.000-04:00

I thought I'd try a little photo shoot with Tristan on this rainy day! Here's my cutie pie in a pot...

1st Piano Lesson

2010-03-18T19:50:00.000-04:00

I've been struggling to find something to challenge Connor since he's so far ahead in school right now. Since Connor is such a good reader I thought we could start an instrument now. So, Connor had his first piano lesson today. He LOVED it. His teacher is our Bishop's wife and she is also the Primary pianist so he knows her well. We really like their whole family, my kids love theirs and vice versa even though there's a big age difference. After his practice he asked me multiple times if he could hold his piano binder. When I would ask why, he'd say, "just because." When his Dad came home he had Scott sit and watch him practice his first assignment. Yeah for piano!!!

Tristan's 8 Months Old

2010-03-17T20:06:00.000-04:00

Tristan is 8 months old on this St. Patrick's day. I thought I'd do a little update. He's still not crawling which baffles me. He does however sit up perfectly well, roll almost everywhere he wants to go, turn 180 degrees and scoot backwards. He's been like this for weeks, he just prefers sitting up to laying down so crawling hasn't happened yet. I also haven't been pushing it since I've seen what that entails and can wait as long as he wants. He's sleeping well but schedules are kind of crazy after the time change. He's such a happy little munchkin as long as someone is paying attention to him. His newest joy is when I say "Yes, yes, yes." and "No, no, no." while shaking my head in the right direction. It gets him smiling really big, if no laughing hysterically. He even learned to shake his head no. He's enjoying being outside with us now that the weather has been nice. I took the boys to the park today and Tristan loved the swing. We love our Tristan. Here's some cute smiles from him.

This is the bald spot that will NOT go away (I will let you know when it finally does.

This is his cute little puppy dog tongue that is out half the day.

Our Haydn

2010-02-22T10:17:00.001-05:00

Haydn's 3 year check-up at the doctor went well. He's a healthy 34lbs and 37 1/2in tall. He's about in the 60-70% for both. He's a smart, animated, funny little guy and we just LOVE him so much. He loves to read, color, play games, and do just about anything outdoors. His attitude for life seems to be...I can do it, just watch me! He's definitely trying to grow up too fast. The only sad part about his birthday was that he wasn't turning 5 so he could ride the bus and go to school. We made up for it though by starting a little "school time" at home to learn and do art. Grandma Beckie helped by giving him his own art desk which is just fabulous and he LOVES it.
His Favorites:
Number: 5
Color: Green
Food: "Meat, no I like hamburgers" (um...ok?)
Letter: O
Toy: Buzz Lightyear
Who are you gonna marry? "Um, you Mom!"
Thing to do outside: "Play soccer ball with my Dad"
Book: "the pigeon one" (one we read last night)
Song: "Happy Birthday to You"

Ice Hockey Game

2010-02-22T09:52:00.000-05:00

Scott scored us tickets to his company's executive suite at the XL Center to see the Wolfpack play Bridgeport last Friday. The kids loved it! Connor was intrigued then sat and finished a book. Haydn made friends with everyone else that was there with us and was a little wiggle worm, with plenty of room to wiggle thankfully. It was fun to have a night out and do something we don't usually do.

Happy 3rd Birthday Haydn!

2010-02-13T21:37:00.000-05:00

We celebrated Haydn's 3rd B-day on Thursday! Wow...3 already! He got to go choose donuts with Daddy in the morning and open his presents. His nursery teacher brought him a balloon which went with him everywhere for the rest of the day! Then that evening we went out to dinner. I didn't make him a cake for his birthday so the donuts had to do. I made his cake for his party on Saturday. He wanted a Jungle themed party. We invited 5 friends and we had fun getting jungle animal tatoos, and then making binoculars to search for stuffed animals in our jungle decorated house. We played jungle toss, a bean bag toss game. Then the kids went through a jungle relay where they jumped over quicksand, dodged crocodiles, swam through piranha infested waters and up a mountain to save the animals. All this was followed by lunch(zebra pizza, snake eggs(grapes) and animal crackers), presents and a cool crocodile cake! Haydn LOVED it which was the desired result. Thanks to all the friends and family that helped to make his birthday special. We LOVE this little independant soul. His laugh is to die for and we were so excited to make his day special for him. Here are some pictures of the events...

100 days

2010-02-04T22:18:00.000-05:00

Not only do I have a kindergartner but I've had one for 100 days!!! Connor celebrated his 100th day of school today! He is LOVING school! He's doing AMAZING! He's top of his class, but then anyone who knows Connor would have guessed! I love this little man! He is just so sweet and loves life and learning! Kids don't get any better than Connor!

Happy 27th Birthday Jenn

2010-02-03T17:16:00.000-05:00

I got to be queen for like a week! Scott couldn't wait to give me my birthday present so I got it the day it came in the mail last week...A Kitchenaid mixer! I've been making my own bread this year (that's one of my goals) so this mixer has really sped up the process! AND of course it's great for all the baking I love to do! I was so thrilled! Then Sat. Scot threw me this really awesome flavor tripping party. Don't know what that is? Look up miracle fruit on the web and check it out. It's totally cool! He also made me a fabulous chocolate cake with 4 layers of chocolate orange ganache and topped with chocolate fudge frosting, flakes of chocolate and a cherry! Sounds to die for? IT WAS! Then yesterday...my actual birthday I got sung to many times, had birthday cards made for me by my boys and got more cake! Friends called and dropped by too--that was so nice! Thanks for all the thought from my friends and family! It meant a lot.

Tristan is 6 Months Old!

2010-01-28T21:32:00.000-05:00

My littlest angel has hit the 6 month mark and here are some stats from the doctor...17lbs 5oz (65%) and 26 1/2" (50ish%). He's growing healthy and strong. We battled a little bronchitis recently but he's ok now. He sleeps SOOO well. He's the angel baby that can be laid down in bed and usually fall asleep himself. He's eating baby food 2 times a day. So far we've tried peas, sweet potatoes and green beans along with rice and oatmeal that are the staples. He LOVES to eat (can you tell). He's still very much a Momma's boy but he's starting to let others in if he's in a good mood, or if they give him food. He's not crawling yet but he's pushing up on his hands and starting to wiggle his bum a little so we'll see. He's still pretty content to just stay where he is and watch everything but he's getting more and more interested in toys that seem to get away so maybe he'll chase one soon. We LOVE his very kissable rosy cheeks. He's such a joy to have in our family! Here are some pics of tiny baby Tristan compared to today...

Haydn's Sick

2010-01-23T07:23:00.000-05:00

So...I mentioned earlier that Haydn has been feeling bad lately. He's had flu-like symptoms on and off about 5 times in the past month and a half and this week he was throwing up on Monday and Wednesday again. The strange thing about all this sickness is that no one else catches it...just Haydn. All week he's been so NOT HAYDN(oh boy that's fun)! He's got NO appetite. He whines constantly. The good part is he is VERY cuddly! Anyways, I had ENOUGH and I was thinking maybe it's not a virus since it's not being spread. I took him to the doctor yesterday. The poor thing has a double ear infection. This is the first ear infection that we've had in our house. We are hoping this thing has just really thrown his body out of whack and that now he'll get better and stay better with some antibiotics. The doctor also wanted me to try to cut out the dairy and see what that does for his system. So, this week I'm attempting to cut out milk...this could be an interesting change! Any tips out there are welcome.

Today's Stories

2010-01-22T12:42:00.000-05:00

It's so nice to wake up and find your boys being friends! Haydn loves to let Connor read to him sometimes. Haydn's been feeling really under the weather lately, it was just so nice for Connor to cuddle up with him and read a book.

When I heard Tristan making noises after a nap, I went to get him out of his crib and found this. Percy has never gotten in there before and I have no clue how he did but after Tristan waking and pulling his ears and hitting him hopefully he won't go back.

"My Friends"

2010-01-14T08:52:00.000-05:00

"Mom, can I watch a movie with my 'friends'?" Haydn's has been referring to his toys as his friends, it's sooooo cute. In this case he was talking about the 15 cars he had stuffed in his pockets! I love little boys!

Our 7th Anniversary

2010-01-08T21:25:00.000-05:00

We celebrated our 7th Anniversary on Dec 28th. We spent it walking through NYC checking out the sights. It was so fun! Tristan joined us and he was really good. He gave us a good work out packing him around for about 8 hrs. The other boys spent the day in NYC too but with Grandpa. Our favorite part was watching a light show of snowflakes on a building to the tune of "Carol of the Bells". It was so fun just walking through the city. Here's some sights that we saw and things we did.

Christmas Pictures

2010-01-08T21:18:00.000-05:00

I know I know...Christmas is far gone but I am FINALLY getting some picture up. We had a fabulous Christmas at home this year. Santa was nice to the kids! They were very happy. We spent the day at home, had dinner with friends and then spent a few days at my Dad's house with family. We're still watching Christmas shows and listening to Christmas music (don't tell Scott) but we have taken down the decor already. Here are some highlights of pictures of some Christmas events...putting up the tree, building a gingerbread tree, Christmas Eve and Christmas morning!

Tristan's First Food

2009-12-08T20:12:00.000-05:00

Tristan got his first bit of real food yesterday. He's about 4 1/2 months old. He really liked the rice cereal mixed with a little milk and water. He gobbled it up like a champ. He's still learning where to put his tongue while eating but he did good for a first try! He loves sitting in the highchair. I think he likes to be able to sit upright and see everything! What a big boy! He's growing too fast!