Our Vacation

Jared took a week off of work so we planned a camping trip to the family favorite camping area. The boys loved it, we thought we all might get bored without Grandma/Grandpa on either side coming too but it was very relaxing and nice to go at a slow pace. We took bikes, baseball equipment, and our dog. This little hike was perfect for Bennett, it wasn't too far from camp either. We had our first experience running the trailer into a tree trying to make a tight turn. The tree and trailer were okay though.

The only part about camping that was less than ideal were the mosquitoes. We all came home with a few bites, even using repellant. But the temperatures were ideal during the day and chilly at night, perfect for a campfire.

 I don't know what it is with boys and sticks but they literally go hand in hand. And, there's always a BETTER stick in your brother's hand. Somehow. Thankfully no one got their eye poked out. We did see some of the fish who were spawning trying to jump up waterfalls and generally get up river however they could. It was interesting, and they were large fish.

Paxton was SURE he wanted to swim in a lake...we kept telling him he'd get too cold but we did let him wade in and see for himself just how cold the water is. Not exactly the giant swimming pool that he probably thought he'd get. He didn't get in past his knees before he said "sometimes I want to swim and sometimes I don't". This time he didn't. We did have the canoe and took the boys out in it; I didn't take the camera in the boat for fear our two year old, who loves to lean over the side, would tip the whole boat over.

Some of the days the wind kept us off the water but Jared had other ideas. He spent a little time harvesting his own clay to make pots. One of the pottery teachers at his work warned Jared that digging his own clay is a sign of things to come - long hair, a beard, and wearing tie-dye.

On the last of Jared's days off we decided to take Frontrunner and Trax up to the Arts Festival. The boys enjoyed both train rides and the festival was great. This photo shows our "friend" the trombone player who was waiting for his train too. He was a friendly kid who asked if his playing was bothering us. To the contrary, it was fun.

This was at the festival in the children's art yard where kids could paint a piece of cardboard that would later be used to assemble a monster. Paxton also got to play a trumpet in another booth.

This "spider web" was Bennett's favorite part. He liked to walk under it and was also fascinated with the "bugs and spiders" hanging from it. This was another project kids could work on and add their creations to. There was a booth selling peanut butter/jam sandwiches and milk for $2...that was too good to pass up for the boys.  They wouldn't appreciate spanakopita or  Peruvian food anyway.

This little staged scene included a couch, rug, lamp, table and walls which could ALL be drawn on with colors of the kids' choice. There was a sign posted "Do not try this at home" in front of the exhibit. No kidding. I don't think even the magic erasure could handle that job.

Since it was a warm day, the boys asked to splash in the fountain. When it was time to go, Bennett did NOT want to leave the water and had as close to a tantrum as we've ever seen. He does have a little temper showing up these days, as well as changing his mind waaaay to much.

But Bennett is also hilarious. One day he was interrogating Paxton at lunch with questions like, "Is this  mine?, Is that yours?, Can I have some?, Is this your shoulder? (while he grabs Paxton's shoulder). He's also a tease in more ways than one.  We've reached the awkward to-nap-or-not-to-nap stage. He will lay down, and mostly stay in his bed, but in it he is looking at books, playing with toys, singing, jumping up and down, you get the idea. And then when he doesn't nap he's falling asleep at dinner. Most of you have been there.

We (meaning Mom, the boys, and Grandma) were able to go to the Parade for Strawberry Days. I thought it would be too commercial, as some have become, but it really was great. Just the traditional kinds of entries, bands, high school and local dance groups, fire and police people and just a few politicians here and there.

The policemen on their motorcycles in this pic were definitely the boys' favorite, with the firetrucks (our city has a GIANT one) a close second. There was also a little group with bikes and a ramp that did flips and other tricks...my favorite.

And, we were lucky enough to run into good friends to sit by with a little shade too. When the candy was thrown out, Bennett eventually caught on to run and grab some...the group next to us was pretty quick though, and not the kids in it if you know what I mean. So we had a nice week, more of our style than taking giant trips to distant places. Someday we'll get to Disneyland : )

Sand, Tulips, and Supermen

We decided to take the boys to the sand dunes at the end of April. These are at Little Sahara and were just right. Because we went on a Tuesday we had the place to ourselves, only seeing one RV the whole time. At first we needed our jackets but after a while it was great and the sand itself was a lovely warm temperature on our toes. Occasional wind was the only unpleasant part.  

I had forgotten how much work it is to walk, let alone climb in sand but the boys managed well and came home with their pockets full of sand.  

There is a "play area" which is fenced off from any atvs but the one we found was too small so I was glad we could roam free wherever. I'm told the place is a madhouse on certain long weekends so we won't visit then.


Bennett in particular hated the sand in his eyes. But even then he didn't complain all that much. He is a mellow little man generally but lately has been asserting himself in the usual two year old way with "mine" and "no" and the like.

Jared thought to bring a medium sized shovel which worked perfectly to dig down in to the wet sand to make sand castles.

We were especially lucky this year to go visit the Tulip Festival with Jaylene. Jared was lucky to be at work : ) Although he is very tolerant of my gardening obsession, he doesn't share the same interest in flowers. It was beautiful as usual, and I went back again to take some of these photos. If you get bored with these, just scroll down to see the Supermen.

Our boys are spoiled by all their grandparents. One Grandma in particular made these Superman costumes and they are awesome. Jared says Superman is his favorite superhero (and actually the only one he remembers as a kid). So I couldn't help but get the boys out to fly around on the trampoline.

Truly the Best Two Years

Many of our loved ones were able to be here to celebrate Bennett's 2nd birthday, but for those of you who are far and still follow the blog, this post is for you.  It's hard to believe how fast these two years have gone by. And our little Bennett isn't little, he's growing taller and becoming more well balanced. I laugh at older photos when I see his chubbiness. He still has the cheeks for the most part. And his eating habits are still impressive. In some ways we've created a monster because he'll ask for broccoli or asparagus over noodles or bread.




I looked at a lot of cake ideas and this is what ended up happening. The cooked frosting worked better than I thought it would to make a dirt road. And I did have fun making the pretzel fence.

We have loved having more cousins close by to celebrate birthday parties with. They make the party and help us put the toys together when "some assembly is required".

This little one was getting so excited, we all had to laugh at her enjoyment of the ball.  If only we could still be so easily entertained! With so many expecting more babies we'll have a lot more birthdays to enjoy together. Paxton really loves it when everyone comes over, it makes his day if someone comes to the door. It's been great for him to have a different set of friends at preschool, he sort of has a life there we know little about. But we'll get the scoop at his parent-teacher conference next week. Yep, in preschool.

One of Bennett's gifts was a balance bike, some call it a glide bike. The idea is that the kids learn to ride without pedals. A friend of ours had one and we liked to idea that he wouldn't ever need training wheels because he'll learn balance earlier then grow into pedals. So far he has ridden it all over the house as well as outside. Luckily he enjoys putting the helmet on too.  The best part is that he can be out with Paxton who is very adept on his bike. Actually he goes super fast and I cringe thinking he'll crash into a parked car because he's watching us watching him. But other than that it's fun!

March

It's time to post again...the last month+ has gone by quickly.  The photo on the right shows the beautiful orchid that Jaylene gave us last year. Now it's in bloom again, just as amazing as when she gave it to us. I didn't do much to care for it except giving it adequate water and consistent light. And there's a second shoot this time off of the main stem which will have flowers. Now I can see why orchids are popular.

The picture is of our tiny crocuses that bloom at the first signs of spring. When I planted them they were supposed to include purple and white but so far they're all yellow. At this point in the year I am happy with any color in the garden.

These little sprouts are Nasturtium, a plant that has edible leaves although I started some indoors for their orange flowers. There should be variety of flower colors, ranging from yellow to orange to red. I am also growing Zinnias, which sprouted easily and are doing well.

So there you can see some of my gardening obsession. I also planted peas a couple weeks ago with Bennett helping. And he really did help, he loved putting the peas in the holes I made and kept saying "more peas" until we did all 10 rows. Maybe that's a sign of what is to come, if we had a little farmer on our hands I wouldn't mind a bit. These two both like to play outside and have enjoyed the warm weather too.

This was one of those times I left Bennett in his room too long, although this didn't take much time at all. He likes to "wipe his nose", whether it needs it or not but I guess this time was just too tempting with the endless supply. I don't keep the tissues by his bed anymore.

Some of you know of Jared's pottery, well he was part of Utah County's "Bowls for Humanity" fundraiser again. Potters from all over donate bowls at the Food & Care Coalition in Provo and the public comes to buy the bowls and get soup. It has grown quite a bit and although we arrived right when it began, there was a large crowd. Paxton chose his own bowl. Bennett apparently likes tomato-basil soup.

 This is a portion of Jared's bowls, he donated about 21. The potters range from hobbyists to students (both high school and college level) to professionals. They also hold a silent auction with some of the best ceramic pieces, not just bowls.

Is it Spring yet?

The amount of snow we've had has been fun, but I'm pretty ready for a thaw. At this rate I won't be getting my Christmas lights off the bushes until Easter. Paxton happens to love playing in the snow and I like that he is happy to be out there being active. There have been stretches he stayed in since the horrid air pollution was hanging around. But he stays pretty dry and warm enough...at least when he doesn't get snow down his boots and up his gloves which somehow he manages to do simultaneously. Our dog also goes out with him enjoys rolling in the snow too.

As for me and Bennett, we usually prefer to stay inside and cuddle with a blanket and look at books! He has one of his favorites here, made by Grandma Leslie. Bennett has always loved burying his face in soft blankets and stuffed animals. A couple days ago after I'd put him in his bed for a nap he was pretending to snore, very loudly at that. I was sitting in the hall reading (my usual post) trying not to laugh out loud.








Paxton and Bennett both love playing with these little construction blocks.  They can both manipulate them pretty well, and Paxton built the tower in this photo completely by himself.  He has learned a lot by looking at the instructions and with some help from Grandmas. Paxton is also learning to read. He loves preschool and is excited for Kindergarten which we'll register for soon.








Bennett loves these Spiderman sunglasses and recently discovered pushing them up on top of his head. He thinks he's pretty cool. Today as we got out of the truck he reached for the steering wheel and said "I drive now". He's sounding like Paxton who had those same ideas way too early for my liking.  Although I've been in no hurry to turn him around from his rear-facing infant seat, he's just getting too big. I figured out after two different trips where he lost his lunch, so to speak, that he was getting carsick from facing forward. So we've been slowing getting him used to it.

Winter and snow have not stopped us from getting use out of the trampoline.  We do regularly shovel the snow off of the trampoline so when it dries out Paxton can still dress up and burn some energy.  I heard recently that children actually need 3 hours of exercise a day (not surprising) and it can be hard when it's cold.  But I feel an early Spring coming on (in my dreams) since Punxsutawney Phil predicted it.  How wrong can a groundhog be?

Bennett is still enjoying his bed and his room is much more fun for him now that he has freedom from the crib. He gets into everything but we're learning what to put out of reach and what to let him re-arrange.  His vocabulary continues to grow so amazingly fast.  I am finding I'm becoming the annoying, stereotypical mom who thinks their child is THE GENIUS of the century.  My favorite phrases he says of late are "favorite cars" and "made a mess".

The pirate ship bed he got for Christmas has a reading light and two lanterns on each side which he often turns on.  I found him one night, after he should have been asleep, with them on while he sat up in bed looking at a book.  When we bought the bed we had no idea it came with lights and we certainly didn't think he'd be using them to "read". Those designers are way ahead of us.

Christmas!

A few of Bennett's favourite words.  

 The quality may be poor but it was done spontaneously using the camera on Jared's tablet. It's fairly recent and he's saying more words so fast...he tries to imitate almost anything.

The big deal this year was a new toddler bed for Bennett. It wasn't easy deciding whether it was time for him to break out of his crib.  He has always slept well there but he is tall and physically strong and we didn't want him doing a head dive over his crib rail like he does off the couch.  I had looked a lot for beds that I thought were cute.  This pirate ship is pretty ridiculous and so much fun! He loved playing in the bed Christmas morning and still does, but the first night he cried and left his bed several times.  After he was asleep he didn't get up during the night..not until several days later anyway.

But he is just so adorable, when he comes out of his room and we tell him to go back to bed, he goes straight there.  Sometimes crying, but always goes.  Overall we have been very pleased with the transition.  He does drag his favorite blanket around a lot more these days, probably wanting to keep something familiar.  In his crib he liked to sleep sideways or with his head against the rail too.  The change marks yet another bittersweet milestone.  I love how he's growing but I want him to stay a baby too!

Paxton loves to play in the snow, and fortunately we had a white Christmas.  So he got some new gloves, a pirate ship, and a remote control truck he enjoys.  He's looking forward to summer when he can use his new fishing pole along with Grandpa Mack.

Paxton often asks to dress up so he got several costumes, his favorite is probably the transformer he is in here.  We also gave him a harmonica, he keeps calling it a "euphonium".  That's my interpretive spelling anyway.  I have no idea where he came up with that word.  Sometimes he also calls it a thermometer.  At least that's a real word.  Bennett loves the sounds Paxton makes on the harmonica too.

It was a nice week, Jared had most of it off of work and we were able to see nearly all of both sides of the family. Thanks to Denette for hosting and to my Grandma J, I always enjoy her Christmas Eve party.  We've had some sicknesses to deal with, apparently it comes with having children because before our boys we were rarely ill. But it's the worst when they get sick and can't describe what's going on.  At the moment they're healthy. If only it could stay that way.

It's great knowing a guy with a tractor...it's useful in so many ways!  Luckily with enough snow my dad plowed some up the driveway to make a little hill at the top of the slope in our back yard which was enough for a tube run for the boys.  Paxton had a great time, Bennett was trying not to smile. Chula is close by waiting for an opportunity to steal Paxton's knit hat right off his head.

This little hill is actually at the empty lot in our cul-de-sac. We realized the neighbor kids like it so we strolled over there too.  I always laugh at what a marshmallow Bennett looks like when he's in his snow clothes.  He hates putting on the mittens and hat but after a while he is at least a little amused.  We're trying to enjoy the season, the area needs the snow.  Last year at this time it was near 60 degrees and everything was brown instead of blanketed in white.  That's just not natural.