{weekend away}

We have been dying to take our kids on a little vacation! So when my parents offered us their hotel room at the Grand America this weekend, we jumped at the chance!!

The kids were so excited, they packed their own backpacks to take to the hotel!

{I promise, Ayden really was happy to be there. Just not in a picture mood.}

We knew the weather was going to be bad but luckily the hotel has an indoor pool too! The kids had a great time swimming with Daddy! And Mom even got in the pool, much to everyone's surprise, including her own!

{A very happy Myla NOT to be in the water!}

On Saturday we headed to the Children's Museum at Gateway. We've never been there so I thought it was high time to go! The kids surprisingly got off to a slow start, they didn't quite know what to expect, but I think they had a pretty good time!

{Sophie playing with the flying balls}

{Riding the horse}

{Soph was a little scared}

{Climbing the rock wall}

{Spelling her name on the computer}

{Reading the news}

{Making friends in the helicopter}

{Go UTES guys!}

Of course Logan got a group of kids together and tried to put on a play. He's so fun with those kids, I loved sitting back and enjoying the show!

After the museum we had lunch, shopped around a little, and headed back to the hotel for more swimming! It was a wonderful and relaxing weekend. Much needed!

Nothin better

Spending the day at discovery gateway...


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Posted from my iPhone

{ 3 months }

As much as I beg and plead . . . my baby girl won't stop growing. I just want her to stay little so bad and she just keeps getting bigger!

Myla is still a perfect angel. So much, in fact, that when she got a tummy ache the other night and actually cried for one of the few times she has since she was born, the kids were extremely concerned. They both came in the room very upset and wanted to know what I had done to the baby to make her cry.

She's just always happy . . . or sleeping.

She is a sleepy girl. Not only does she sleep between 6 and 8 hrs at night, she takes many long naps throughout the day. I couldn't ask for a better baby.

Thank you for the last very happy 3 months

Myla Jae

{Myla's blessing day}

There's something so special about getting your family and friends

together to honor a new little life.

Myla's blessing day was a sweet and special day.

To say I adore this child just doesn't cover it. She is incredible. I can't express in words the intense feelings of love I have for this special little spirit.

In her blessing, Logan mentioned a lot about the effect she has had and can continue to have on our family. She brings such a spirit of love and unity to our home. She has an ora about her that you can only understand once you've experienced it.

I was a little busy with the lunch so I didn't get very many pictures. We decided to have it at the park since there would be about 70 people.

I'm so grateful that we got to devote a day to her and celebrate her life.

{ The Birthday Girl}

Happy Birthday Sophie Lynn!

Today is Sophie's birthday! I have been excited all day to sit down and write some great things about this very special girl.

I think I often comment on how much of a stinker she is. Just to remind you of a few things she's famous for . . .

-eating dirt

-chasing kids with poopy diapers

-throwing jars of jam down the stairs

-the pudding monster (she put pudding all over her hair and face, then proceeded to chase her cousins around the house)

-dumping a 2 lb bag of cheese on the love sac and then jumping in it so as to catch the cheese mid air

-decorating herself and the furniture with Nana's lipstick

-many many head injuries

-giving my iphone a bath in dr pepper

And many more I'm sure I'm missing.

I frequently use the phrase "Its a good thing she's cute" because of what a stinker she is. But that is an understatement. She has always been incredibly beautiful. So beautiful that even strangers comment about it.

We saw her dimples moments after she was born and they have become even more apparent over the years.

But Sophie is so much more than a beautiful face. Sophie is so good at sharing. She lets her brother have pretty much anything of hers that he wants. She also shares with her friends.

Sophie is extremely friendly. Everywhere we go I can expect her to come up to me and introduce the newest friend she's made. And sometimes I worry that she would take off and head home with another family because she is so trusting of others. There is just something so like able about her.

Sophie has a specific interest in things regarding the gospel. She comes home from primary with many questions about the things she has been taught. She wants to understand it all. And most things are difficult to explain to the 4 year old mind, but she still listens and tries to understand. And she often uses the phrase "You're not the boss of the world mom . . . Heavenly Father is!"

Sophie loves to play with her friends. She likes taking baths, and playing with babies. She LOVES to help me in the kitchen with anything and everything, especially if there's potential to make a mess. She likes dora and any other type of interactive TV.

When I asked her what she wanted to do on her birthday she said "EAT CAKE!" I asked her what else and she said she wanted to take 2 of her cousins and her best friend Ashlee to Arctic Circle and play on the play ground.

We had Lauryn and Clara sleep over so the partying started first thing this morning!

{Daddy decorated the house}

She opened presents and had breakfast with her cousins. Then, when it got warm enough, they put on their swimming suits and ran through the sprinklers.

At lunch time, we picked up Ashlee and headed to Arctic Circle!

{the party}

Since eating cake was the main event of her big day, I decided to get princess cupcakes with rings in them to make it extra special!

That's right . . . chocolate milk all down the shirt first thing!

And it wouldn't be an outing with Sophie if there wasn't some kind of head injury.

Sophie brings so much joy and love to our family. She has her daddy wrapped around her little finger. She has a happy and spirited personality that, while challenging at times, truly makes her one of a kind.

Happy Birthday Sophie . . . Mommy loves you.

[ pResCHooL GrAduAteS }

Our little Lewis had her first preschool graduation!

She has LOVED school this year. And she has learned so much! She didn't start out with a love of learning like Ayden did so I wasn't sure how she would do with preschool. But we found out pretty quickly that she is very smart. She is a good student and very social.

All the kids fight over who gets to sit by Sophie. And she even had a little boy in her class named Gavin that was reprimanded many times for trying to kiss her.

{Sophie's class (Gavin is the boy next to her)} {Going down the slide to receive her diploma}

{Sophie received the "Miss independent/ busy bee award"}

Congratulations Soph! We are so proud of you!

Ayden also had his 3rd and final preschool graduation! He started preschool when he was 2, and has gone to the same school with the same teacher for all three years. He absolutely adores Miss Marsha though, and he will miss her like crazy!

Ayden is incredibly smart. He is on a first grade reading level. He can sound out almost any word and we know he is going to do very well in Kindergarden. Miss Marsha is a wonderful teacher and we are so lucky to have her.

{Ayden's class } {Going down the slide to receive his diploma}

{Ayden received the "Happy Helper Award" (he loved coming to Sophie's class as a teachers aid.)}

I feel blessed to have kids who love to learn and an incredible teacher to help them grow.

{easy like Sunday morning}

Nothin like a Sunday morning photo shoot . . .

I love this little angel.

{rite of passage . . .}

The Hammer girls get their ears pierced. That's just how it is. I think there's nothing cuter than a baby girl with pierced ears. It all started with my friend Sara back in 2001. I took her daughter to get her ears pierced and I was hooked.

I took Sophie when she was 6 months. I have also taken 2 of my nieces, Hadlee and Elsie. I don't know why I love is to much, I just think little girls should have earrings.

So I held out for about 2 months with Myla, I thought her little ears were too tiny and I didn't want to mess them up. But I got too anxious, so . . . .

(WARNING! these pictures have the potential to break your heart! But keep in mind, she only cried for 30 seconds!)

Look how happy I am though!

And look how cute she looks! I love it!

{sports nation}

Here is the clip of Ayden of that was on espn . . .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mDvc4ta5J-g

And here is the video from the first time they performed at the game . . .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tUPFiLerFNs

{ Dancin man . . .}

This is more for my own record then to share with others. I just wanted to post a few more pictures of my dancin man.

Here they are getting ready to dance at the last Jazz game of the season against the Laker . . .

His good friend Olivia

{Kaylee, Ayden, Bailey, Abrianna, Cami, and Megan}

Ayden competed in 4 competitions, performed at 2 high schools, danced in 2 jazz games, and had his year end concert. All of these events were within about 6 weeks! And the funny part about it is . . . he loved every minute of it! He never complained when he had to spend entire days at dance competitions. In fact, he thoroughly enjoyed it! The kid loves to perform! If you want to watch him, there are 2 of his performances on YouTube. Look under JDS xcite tricky, and JDS xcite and mini jazz at the playoffs.

He even became a little famous when he was featured in a segment on ESPN2 called Sports Nation.

Here are some pictures of our little performers at their year end concert. They stole the show!

Back stage getting ready to perform. Ayden performed 5 dances in addition to his preschool class presentation.

Sophie and Mason. They danced to "I Need a Hero".

That's right!! Even Logan performed that night!! Every year they do a special daddy dance. This year they were sychronized swimmers! Hilarious!

I'm so glad that my kids love to perform as much as I did. I get extremely nervous every time they go out on the floor, but I think it's just because I know exactly what they are feeling. And it is a blast to see the reaction of the crowd. Good job kiddos!

{ 2 months continued . . . }

I didn't get to do an offical 2 month post for Myla since we've been so busy!

Here are her 2 month stats:

Weight 11 lbs 5 oz

Length 22.5 in

She is growing so fast! I want her to slow down. She is still the perfect baby. She never cries, only fusses in the night when she wakes up or if she needs her bink. She LOVES her brother and sister. I have spent so much energy trying to protect her from them that it was a strange experience the day I realized that she actually likes them. She lights up when she hears their voices. She looks for them and sometimes she'll just lay on the couch and watch them play. I can tell that as soon as possible, she'll be following them around. I love this little angel, and I can't believe I'm lucky enough to be her mother.

Baby love

Happy 2 months...Myla Jae!

Posted from my iPhone

Never too old...

...to color pictures on a Saturday morning.




- Posted from my iPhone