Henry Turns 3

For Henry's birthday we decided to go up to the cabin.  Nana planned a fun little pirate party that started with popping cannon balls.

 Then Jaxon and Henry got into a brawl over who knows what and I sat on the couch to capture the mess with photos.  After a few punches were thrown, Devin decided it was time to step in.

(I don't just let them fight it out all the time, but sometimes, yes, I do.  They need the chance to figure some things out on their own.)

Ollie was adorable, even when he got sleepy and a little fussy. 

After the brawl, it was time to go on a pirate treasure hunt!

The treasure they found was a pirate pinata.  Because it had rained on and off all morning we couldn't hang the it outside.  So, Daddy tried holding it and with Jaxon swinging the bat I'm sure you can guess what happened.  Seconds before, Josh even said, "We all know how this turns out.  We should be filming this."  He was right.  I felt bad as Devin dropped to the floor, but we all couldn't help but laugh!

 Yummy red velvet cake (of Henry's choosing)

 Devin and Josh went fishing that morning and also caught some crawdads.  We boiled them up and tried to eat them.  I'm not sure if we'll be doing it again or not...

 That's what Jaxon thought of the crawdads:

 But they were fun to wear on his finger!

 Yep, Ollie is under the couch.  He rolls all over when he plays now and he ended up under there.  

Little cowboy!

My man even looks attractive in his fishing t-shirt, baggy pants, and hiking boots!

 Enjoying the beautiful weather while shooting BB guns off the balcony.

 Lucky Henry got some Harry Potter legos from Nana and Papa!

 He's so good at playing on the floor with a couple toys.

 This is Ollie's crawling stance.  He gets into this position and hasn't figured out to drop that right knee.  If he does, he automatically falls to his tummy.  He's so close, but hasn't quite got it yet!  

(He just turned 8 months.)

We are so blessed to have such a wonderful place to go and have family time together.  It was such a great weekend!  

Happy birthday to Henry!

The Big 25

So I turned 25 this week.  I can't mark the "18-24" age group for surveys and anonymous statistical information forms.  It's a big deal, I know.

For some reason birthdays always make me think back to the things I have and haven't done in my life. I haven't done much anyone will remember in my life, but here's a few of the things I am proud of...

I got married for all eternity to the most amazing man
I graduated college (Associate degree, but still, it's a degree I am proud of)
I became a mommy
I bought a house (and since then have sold it)
I became a mommy all over again, but this time without the assistance of an epidural (purposely)
I bought a minivan
I completed a sprint triathlon
I raced in a half-marathon
I raced in a marathon and achieve my goal time of under 4 hours
I became much more confident in my home canning abilities
After some scares and blessings, I became a mommy for a third time (again without an epidural)

What things am I currently doing?

Trying to train for some more races.  Definitely a half marathon and possibly another full.
Trying daily to be a better mother to my 3 boys (includes trying to keep my sanity in the process).
Trying to be supportive of a husband working 2 jobs and getting his masters degree (again, here's where my sanity is at risk).
Trying to serve the Lord and show my love for him through my obedience to the small and seemingly big things he wants me to do.
Hoping I keep my figure!

Life is so wonderful.  It is stressful, fulfilling, sad, exciting, hard, fun, and so much more.  I am blessed beyond what I deserve.  I am happy, healthy, have an amazing family, and food in my pantry.  I can only pray my next 25 years will be as good as the last.

Here's how the week went:

10th
Today I had a few favorite moments.  One was when I went to the Verizon store to get a new phone.  Mine has been in serious danger of completely dying and I have been putting off getting a new one.  So, I finally went to get one and my brother came along.  I was set on getting one without a data plan and sticking to the cheapest options, but then I started playing with the iPhone.  We have a few apple products and love them all.  I knew I would want an iPhone if I really knew all it could do.  It was really fun to sit and listen to my brother explain tons of advantages, options, and features of the iPhone.  So, I gave in and I am so glad I did!  I love it!  But, the best part about getting my new amazing phone, was the fun my brother and I had in the store together.  We don't have many moments like that so I really enjoyed it.

Then...after getting my awesome new phone, my brother dropped me off to have dinner with Devin.  It was a birthday date dinner at The Deli.  We love that place and this time was no different.  Devin told me about work and we talked about some of our future plans.  Every time I get a date with Devin, I am reminded how amazing he is and how much we belong together.  Date nights are the best!

11th

Today is my birthday!  I had lots of favorite moments.  The first was when I went out to the kitchen to get breakfast and saw the bowl of cream of wheat Devin had made for me.  It's one of my favorites!

Later, Devin came home for lunch and made sure the boys' meals were all taken care of - including dishes!  Then, my mom took me, the boys, Jeni, and Joshua all out for ice cream.  We got Thrifty ice cream, which was super yummy!  Poor Ollie was jealous he couldn't have any yet!  He just got Cheerios!

After coming back from ice cream, I got ready and took the boys to spend the night at Nana's so I could go to my Relief Society meeting since Devin wouldn't be home to leave them with.  I opened my present from the family of a nail salon gift card (for a pedi), a movie theater gift card, and dinner gift card to my favorite, Buca de Beppo, plus free babysitting!  Another date night!

So off to Relief Society I went, happy to know I would have the day to myself (and Ollie) until Devin got home from work when we would go out for another date together!

And...between there sometime my mom and dad brought me a cupcake with a candle so I could make a wish.  It was sweet.

That night, Nana had to call because Jaxon was upset that he forgot to give me my birthday card.  What a sweet little boy!  He told me he did not want me to be sad and think he forgot about my birthday.  I told him I knew he did not forget because he gave me super big birthday hugs earlier and it would be okay for him to make a card tomorrow.  He feet better after we talked for a little bit.  That boy has such a tender little heart.  I hope he stays sweet and kindhearted.  I am so blessed.

12th

Today was great because I got some nice time to myself.  I love my boys more than anything in the world, but it is really nice to have some time for myself too.  Ollie didn't stay with Nana and Papa since he is still nursing.  He woke up at 6:00, which was kind of a bummer, but, after playing for about an hour, he went back to sleep until 9:30.  So...so did I!  It was so great!  I n.e.v.e.r get to sleep in so it was really, really, really nice!  Every once in a while Devin will get up with the boys on the weekend and let me stay in bed, (and even then my sleep is interrupted with noises from the boys playing) but pretty much since Ollie was born, I'm up early to feed him every day.  So, anyway, I really enjoyed the peace and quiet that allowed me to sleep in.  After a nice workout and playing with Ollie, I put him back down for his nap and was able to do some playing with my new phone to get it set up and synced with my desktop.  Uninterrupted computer time is also something I don't enjoy much of, so that was really nice too.

After Devin got off, we dropped Ollie off with Nana and Papa and headed out for date number two for the week.  Multiple birthday celebrations are so great.  I don't think I've celebrated my own this many times in one year before, but I think I want this to happen every year!  It was once again so wonderful to spend the time with Devin.  Having him gone Monday through Thursday nights (and every other Saturday) is really hard for me.  I love when we get time together.  Our date was amazing, then we picked up the kids and headed home just in time to watch an episode of Smallville, only one of the best shows ever!

We still have our movie gift card (none of the times worked for our schedule today) and my pedi gift card for next weekend.

13th

Today my favorite moment was during our cheese party.  Yep, it was actually at Elisha and Josh's.  They got 9 cheeses from around the world for us to taste.  It was so fun!  We got a few ideas and plan on doing it again too!  It was so fun to visit with Josh, Devin, and Aaron about the creepy expired food store and joke about how weird, yet awesome it is.  Adult time is nice.  Laughing is even better.

14th

Today was my birthday Sunday dinner.  Devin's family came over and made me a beef roast, veggies, noodles, gravy, and fruit.  Devin made a (frosting-less) chocolate cake from scratch and mocha ice cream (coffee free).  It was all a.mazing!  The food was fabulous and the company was even better.  It was such a fun week of alone time, Devin date time, and family time.  So far, it feels good to be 25!

My mom got me a Road ID bracelet for when I go running.  It's awesome!  If you are a runner, get one.  Find them here.


PS...I did post all about our summer.  I cheated and backdated so they posts look like they were done on time:)

J Turns 4!

We celebrated Jaxon's birthday this weekend.  First Granny, Gramps, and Oma came over for dinner.  Jaxon requested some ridiculous meal of beans with tortillas folded up like diapers...gross.  I guess that's what a four-year old little boy mind thinks is funny.  We didn't make that.  

Jaxon was really excited about his presents.

A fun chalk-making project

 Mix

 Shake

 Pour into molds

 Wait for it to dry

Then, on Saturday (Jaxon's actual birthday) Mommy took the boys to Krazy Sub for dinner.  Some firemen came in and started talking to Jaxon and Henry.  We told them it was his birthday and they offered to show him their fire truck!  It was so nice!  He got to go inside and look at all their gear.  They even let him sit in the driver seat!  He loved it!

Henry got in for a second, but said he was scared and wanted out.

On Sunday, Nana, Papa, Reina, Elisha, and Josh came over to celebrate.  Jaxon wanted banana cake so that's what Devin made.  He originally wanted coconut because that's what Curious George had, but we didn't have the ingredients for it so Devin was able to convince him to go for banana cake instead.  

Aunt Reina got JJ a cool superhero play dough kit.  I just realized I didn't get a pic, but Aunt Elisha and Uncle Josh got Jax a glow in the dark Toy Story shirt--an immediate favorite item of clothing!

And the forever anticipated Iron Man suit!

Henry got a little outfit too and loved it.

Mommy and Daddy got Iron Man action figures for the boys.

So happy!

Little Henry likes to be just like Jaxon.

Mommy and Jaxon on his special day!

We sure do love Jaxon.  He made me a mommy and I am grateful for that everyday.  When one of the daycare kids says or does something that isn't very nice, Jaxon always stands up to them.  Every once in a while it does get to be too much because sometimes he makes the kids cry with how upfront he is about it, but I am glad he isn't afraid to stand up to his friends when they do something he knows isn't right.  I hope this continues through his youth.  He will always give me love and wants me to sing "I Have a Family Here on Earth" to him every night after stories and prayers and then he likes to sing it back to me.  He is such a sweetie!

Oh, and he knows the alphabet in sign language.  

Henry's Birthday Pictures

We didn't have a party for Henry's birthday, but Devin wanted to bake.  At first Henry said he wanted chocolate, but then changed his mind to vanilla.  He was excited when we sang and when he got to blow out his candles.  

Blowing out the candles

Eating the sprinkles

Birthday love from Brother!

Devin's Birthday

Today is Devin's birthday!  He's 27!  That's almost 30!

He's done quite a bit in his almost 30 years...  He's graduated high school, served a mission, married the girl of his dreams (me, obviously) for time and all eternity, bought a home, earned a bachelor's degree, became a daddy 2 times (soon to be 3), became a high school math teacher, bought a new minivan, been accepted into a masters program, and is currently the best husband ever.  I mean, really, he is.  I'm so grateful he chose me because I had my eyes on him for a long time!

Happy Birthday to the boy without a nickname!

PS...Jaxon saw these pictures of Devin and thought it was him.  I told him those are pictures of Daddy and he said, "Oh, daddy had blonde hair when he was little, but now he doesn't have hair because blonde hair falls out."  What a cutie!

2 Years!

It's Henry's birthday today!  When daddy told him happy birthday this morning, he said, "No happy birthday, no happy birthday Henry."  I'm not sure why, but he doesn't like to be reminded he's getting older!

He's such a funny little kid.  Devin likes to pester his kids and Jaxon gets so mad, but Henry just smiles and even gives Devin a courtesy laugh sometimes.  It's so funny!  He only likes to sleep in his crib and will go to sleep without a second thought as long as he's got a binki to suck on and a binki to hold.  He's going to have to adjust to sleeping in Jaxon's room the "boys room" and binki free before December when the baby comes.  He'll take his naps in there, but at night time, he wants his crib.  Any suggestions from fellow moms on how to ease the transition?

Henry is usually really easy going unless he's hungry or tired.  When Jaxon turned 2 he seemed so grown up, but Henry still seems so little.  He talks all day and can say almost every word he needs at this point in his 2 year old life.  He always asks questions and tilts his head to the side when he does it.  It's so funny.  Oh, and he does this cute thing when he's excited where he puts his arms in the air above his head and says, "yes!"  And, oh my gosh, he is the cutest little dancer!

A few of his favorite things to eat are noodles, popcorn, and oatmeal.  He likes watching Harry Potter (only the first one, the rest are too scary) and The Incredibles.

Here he is falling asleep on the couch yesterday (while attempting to finish his peanut butter sandwich).

I tried uploading the video of him falling asleep, but it didn't upload:(  It's hilarious!

(And no, I don't dress Jaxon in pants and sweaters in August.  As usual, he's in character with one of his outfits.)

Have Your Cake and Eat it Too

I don't want to have a cake or eat one.

Devin and I had an interesting discussion last night.  Well, I thought it was interesting, maybe you'll think it was boring (should you decide to read this now).

Anyway, he asked me what kind of cake I wanted for my birthday.  I told him I didn't want one.  I said I would rather him spend 3 hours doing pretty much anything else besides spending 3 hours in the kitchen.  (It really would take like 3 hours since he does it all from scratch.)  Plus, I don't want the kitchen to be a mess of dishes and cake ingredients.  He said, "How can you not want cake on your birthday?"  I told him I don't really like cake anyway, so it doesn't matter.  "But it's your birthday!" he said.  Yes, since it is my birthday, I am deciding to have no cake!  Living 3 hours husbandless to get a birthday cake in return is not worth it.

On his birthday, he can bake himself a cake.  I'm not being sassy, that's really what he'll want--to bake his own cake.

I think he'll try again to convince me to let him bake me a cake.  It won't work.

Kiva.org

For Henry's birthday, my brother gave him a $25 gift certificate to Kiva.org.  This is what the website says about itself...

We Let You Loan to Low Income Entrepreneurs

Kiva is the world's first person-to-person micro-lending website, empowering individuals to lend to unique entrepreneurs around the globe.Kiva's mission is to connect people through lending for the sake of alleviating poverty.

The people you see on Kiva's site are real individuals. When you browse entrepreneurs' profiles on Kiva, choose someone to lend to, and then make a loan, you are helping a real person make great strides towards economic independence and improve life for themselves, their family, and their community. Throughout the course of the loan (usually 6-12 months), you can receive email journal updates and track repayments. Then, when you get your loan money back, you can relend to someone else.

Basically, you donate money to people across the world who use the money as a small business loan.  It enables people to get loans to further their business so they can support themselves and their families.  Then, they pay the money back and you get your money back and can reinvest in someone else.

I think it is so great.  Kiva doesn't take any of the money you lend either; 100% of it goes toward the entrepreneur you choose.  You get to pick who your money goes to.  I picked a musician who plays a drum at weddings.  He wants to get more instruments so he will be in more demand.  I picked him because Henry loves music so I thought he would be happy with this choice.  Also, this man has a wife and 2 kids to support so I feel really good about helping him.

Anyway, I just wanted to post about this site because I think it is a great way to help people.  For one, it's a loan, not a donation so your money will be returned and you can continue to help person after person with the same money.  Also, seeing pictures and reading about these people who are asking for help makes me realize how blessed I am.  I have an amazing live and am so thankful.

Thanks, Joshua, for a great gift.  And thanks for your example of charity.  Jaxon and Henry are so blessed to have you as an uncle.  I love you, brother!

Jaxon's Birthday

Jaxon turned 3 on October 9th. As you can see, he's a little obsessed with Buzz Lightyear, so when he opened his real Buzz wings, he said it was the best present ever. We sure do love our little Jax!

Oh, and I just wanted to add this pic. He loved the Chick-Fil-A cow at the mall. He hugged it about 10 times. It was cute.