Costume party

One night we somehow came across some of Ayden's former halloween costumes. Of course the kids wanted to put them on. There is something so incredibly adorable about these little guys walking around in costumes together, laughing and playing.


It's moments like this when I can't fathom how someone could not want to become, or not enjoy being a parent. They are moments of absolute joy and happiness that is immeasurable. What a gift these little angels are.

Oh the things these little people say

I know that I thrive on all the great stories about the things my nieces and nephews say. It is so fun to see what goes on in these little heads, and the things they pick up on. Well, Ayden has been talking a lot more lately and I thought it was high time to post some of the funny things he's been saying.

On Sunday morning I was working on my lesson and he wanted me to play mega-blocks with him in his room. I told him I had to finish my lesson first and he said, "Mom, when you done with you lesson, you play mega-blocks in my room. That's a deal?" I realized that I say that a lot to him and I couldn't believe that he used it in the right context!

Logan was playing with Ayden in the yard and he was holding a rock. He gave the rock to Logan and said "Daddy, you hold my rock?" Logan said sure, and he said, "don't eat it. . . you will choke."

Whenever Ayden is crying, usually because he's tired, he started saying "Mommy, I don't feel good."

When he was with my mom last weekend he found some change in her house. He brought it to her and said, "here Nana, I found a hundred dollars."

He is becoming such a funny guy. He is a joy to have around and we are really enjoying him.

Ayden's new face.

The female body. . . what a phenomenom!

I think that most of the time, as women, we are not all that impressed with our bodies. We are critical of every bump and curve. We examine every angle and constantly long to look like someone else. Well yesterday, my big sister ( I guess technically I should say older sister since she is substantially smaller then me) gave birth to her third child.

Whenever someone you know has a baby, you stop and think for a minute about the miracle of life. This time I have been consumed with thoughts of the the miracle of the female body.

My 5'1" sister gave birth to a 9lb baby. That is ridiculous! Ridiculous that her body can even carry a baby that large, let alone deliver it. I am in absolute shock. The fact that our bodies were made to be able to do something like that is unfathomable to me. And it gave me a little perspective on the purpose of these bodies we've been given. They are not given to us to perfect. They are give to us to experience all the wonderful things this life has to offer. And I think everyone would agree that the experience of carrying a child inside of you, and bring that child into the world with a body of their own is one that cannot be matched. I'm so grateful that I am female and that I've been blessed, twice, with that incomparable experience.

Welcoming Ayden Sean to the world!



Introducing the beautiful Sophie Lynn!

It never hurts to pretend. . . right?

I think everyone has, at one time or another, toyed with the thought of getting a tattoo. Even if you aren't serious about it, it's still fun to think about. When our friends bought the 2nd book in the twilight series it came with some fake tattoos. We decided to whip them out last night.

I'm Edward and Michelle is Jacob. (not to say that I don't love Jacob too but,just like Bella, I had to choose!)

Ayden and Madi had to join in the fun with some flower tattoos

Logan got stuck with the flower tattoo (very manly!)

I'm still going through major withdrawals so it has been really fun to have my Edward tattoo so that I have an excuse to think about him every time I look in the mirror. (like that's the only time! ha ha)

Dancing kids

We had the neighborhood kids over today and they wanted to play freeze dance. I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to try out the new video feature.



Pretty fun!! I love having the kids over here to party!

Does anyone have a calendar I can borrow?

Last weekend Logan and I made a quick decision to set up a booth at the "What a woman wants" expo and the South Town expo center. We knew were cutting it close so we spent all week getting ready. We shopped for all the decor, rolled the wraps and put the tags on, made a banner and posters, etc... Last night we borrowed our neighbor's truck to take all the stuff down and get set up. We dropped the kids off with Brammy, and headed to the expo center. We were a little surprised to see that they had signs up for the RV Expo, but just assumed that the other signs would go up in the morning. We were wrong. The other signs will go up next weekend. . . because thats when the womens' expo is!!! Oh ya, we are a week early! For some reason because we knew we were cutting it close, we just assumed it was this weekend. We had a good laugh, tried to look at the bright side, and headed home. I usually consider myself a relatively organized person, not flaky ya know. But I think I just crossed the line. This was definitely a flaky move.

Where my mind has been...

I feel like I have been slacking so much in the blog department. It is one of my favorite things, posting and reading about my friends and family. But my mind has been completely distracted. What, you might ask, would have a strong enough pull to take my attention away from something I love so much?

At the beginning of the summer we talked about starting a book club with some of our friends. It was a little out there for me since I don't really enjoy reading all that much. We threw out a couple of ideas for books, but nothing really took. Then one Sunday, I was visiting with my Mom, and she mentioned something about a book called Twilight that was getting a lot of hype. I thought, why not give that book a try. I have been fighting the urge to post about this trilogy because I know everyone has heard of it, and I didn't want to seem like one of those crazy fans. But I can't help myself. I'm hooked!

It took me almost a week to read Twilight because I had to choose the busiest week possible to start. Then I read New Moon in 2 days. Because I was so in love, I didn't want to rush through the 3rd book, I wanted to savor the pleasure. But of course, that wasn't possible. I read that one almost as fast as the second. I'm nuts. I love it. I feel like they are my friends. Like I know them somehow. Like they are little parts of me. I'm so excited for the next book that Stephenie is writing. She is a great writer. I'm also looking for some suggestions on some other books that I would enjoy reading. I found the joy, the sheer enjoyment of losing yourself in your imagination. And if feels great! I doesn't compare to anything I've seen on TV.

I read these books with my friend Texie, and it has been so much fun. She is just as nuts as I am and I truly see the point to a book club. When something makes you think this much, and touches your life, it's nice to have people to share it with!

So once again, I've got my eyes peeled for a new book to fill the void that finishing this one has left. Suggestions would be greatly appreciated from all my reading friends out there!

Can this be true?

This is Ayden on his first day of pre-school! My boy is all grown up. I have been so excited for him to start. Most of his friends are older then him and they all started kindergarten this year. I signed him up for pre-school so he could be like his friends and go to school. Plus he's a little clingy and I want him to get out and get used to being around other people besides mom. He did great! He loved it! His teacher is really nice and she is very patient with him. Everyone kept telling me how sweet he is. And he really is. He is the sweetest boy. He is always telling me that he loves me and Sophie. I'm so lucky to have such a great little guy!

Labor Day '07

Ever since my horrible 4th of July (just a rough day as a mom) I have had low expectations for holidays. Well, this Labor Day was definitely more then I expected. We spent the night at my parents house in Orem. Logan and I both agreed that it was the best night of sleep our children have granted us at Nanna and Papa's house in a long time so we were off to a great start. That morning we went to Riverside Country Club for a carnival and lunch. The kids had a blast with the cotton candy and the slides!


After lunch the boys were able to go golfing, with I know Logan always looks forward to. They really get a long well.

We had a minor set back when we told the kids that we would go swimming, forgetting that all the pools are closed to children 5 and under. We were dressed in our swimming suits and ready to party before we remembered so they were pretty let down. We headed home for a neighborhood dinner. We didn't remember that there was going to be slip n sliding involved so that cheered the kids right up!

Mom and Ayden

Ryan's butt slide

Michelle's knee slide

Texie's crazy slide!

Tatie- the marching man

It was a great day, together with friends and family. I'm trying not to get my hopes up for future holidays, but man I sure do love them!!