The Boyle Family

A Happy Anniversary!

2011-12-22T09:09:00.000-08:00

What a great six years it has been. I have experienced so many moments of absolute contentment. What a blessing it is to have married Russell. Our marriage has brought me companionship, love, growth and two, soon to be three, of the most amazing and loving children in the universe. I am grateful. I am also grateful for all the friends and family who support us with their love.

Photobooks!

2011-12-09T07:53:00.001-08:00

SO EXCITED FOR MY CHRISTMAS PRESENT! Check out the sidebar! I'm getting two Shutterfly books. One for Tanner's first year and one for Jason's. I got 40% off and free shipping too! I cannot wait!

Wierd and Fun Times to Cherish

2011-11-30T11:30:00.000-08:00

So about an hour ago the kids were fighting and I was feeling sick, so I said in a moment of insanity "Hey guys who wants to watch mommy throw up!" (They have requested to watch a couple of times and I've always turned them down.) They were way excited and we all gathered around the toilet, they were full of questions-unanswerable at the moment of course, so then they decided to liven things up and started tickling me and "fluffing" me which means they rub their hair and eyes on me (that wierd term courtesy of our beloved Russell) anyway, SO I was laughing and throwing up and having a great time. Do you think I've scarred them?

Our Big Announcement for the Year!

2011-10-19T14:42:00.000-07:00

We are so excited to welcome our third little addition. He/she is beautiful already! We are due May 2nd. I kind of hope it is a girl, but I wouldn't be sad if it were a boy. I have loved being a mother of boys. We will find out the gender sometime the beginning of January. We decided to wait an extra month.

More tents and forts!

2011-07-08T13:09:00.000-07:00

My boys really love building chair forts. Well, they love having me build forts that is.

Our neighbors gave us really fun tent. So nice of them. We have yet to really camp in it, but we have set it up in our backyard a couple of times.

Russell and Jason's Louisiana B-days

2011-06-02T13:39:00.000-07:00

Russell loves going home for his birthday. We made the trip down to Louisiana and really had a lot of fun.

We all got to swim in the Grandparent's neighbor's new pool!

Russell requested a cookie cake, and I had them put "The Best Walmart Employee Ever" as an inside joke. The joke got even funnier when the cookie company employee misspelled "employee". :)

The next day was Jason's birthday. Grandma made a really cute train cake! I helped a decorate a little too.

Happy 2nd birthday JJ!

Bedtime

2011-05-29T13:17:00.000-07:00

I've tried really hard to be good about the kids bedtime routine: Bath, Book, Family Prayer, Milk, Brushing Teeth, Individual Prayers. It sure tires us parents out! Here is me and my boys reading one of our favorites That's Good That's Bad. It's full of adventure, snakes, monkeys and giant balloons. Good reading.

Best Mother's Day Ever

2011-05-08T12:19:00.000-07:00

A Conversation with Tanner

2011-04-24T18:12:00.000-07:00

It was my turn to put Tanner to bed and listen to his prayers. I love listening to him pray, but usually his prayer is very short, not tonight. This is the gist of it: Dear Heavenly Father thank you for Easter, thank you for Tanner to have fun, please help the rain and tornado to go away, please help the grass to grow and not the weeds, please help the rain to stop and please help the rain to go away so the water doesn't flood our house. We've had a lot of thunderstorms and tornado warnings the past couple of days.Then he asked me to tell him a story about exploring a cave as a family, and then he asked why the earth turns. I explained again about night and day and the sun-this is one of his favorite topics of conversation. Then he asked about the melted rock in the middle of the Earth and why Volcanos had melted rock come out of them. I explained a little about pressure and how that made volcanos erupt. Tanner then asked me how heavy islands were. I feel like I need a degree in physical science just to talk to my 4 year old, or at least a refresher course in everything I have ever learned. These science questions do console me when he claims that he wants to be a monster truck driver and a fireman. I think scientists have much longer life expectancies.

I started writing this and I heard him crying. I went up to check on him and he said "Mommy I can't take care of myself and the lightning and thunder are scaring me." And then Jason started crying, so I asked Tanner to be patient while I went and took care of Jason, and I would come back and hang out with my computer on his bottom bunk. So I am typing this on the bottom bunk of his bed. Just another night in paradise. :)

Happy 4th Birthday Tanner!

2011-03-13T12:11:00.000-07:00

Tanner is 4! I can't believe it. My 1st baby. How I love you! We had quite the party. So crazy in fact that I got very few pictures. We bought a trampoline on black friday last year, and waited til Tanner's b-day to set it up. No point in setting it up in the winter anyway. We set up the trampoline the night before and it stole the show. I did get pictures of the pinata. None of the tractor cake though.

Some winter silliness

2011-03-04T12:23:00.000-08:00

Tanner the Turtle

I asked Tanner what Jason and he were doing here. He said "pretending to be a princess." Uh oh. no more disney movies for you guys. :)

Fashion show. My future Sumo Wrestler!

February trip to Louisiana

2011-02-27T12:57:00.000-08:00

Russell's oldest brother Craig and wife Jamie came down with his kids (Jake, Aubrey, Reese, and Henry) to visit Grandma and Grandpa Boyle, so we drove six hours to meet up with them. It was alot of fun. The boys loved hanging out with their cousins.

Jake is a really good cousin. He's reading Tanner and Jason a Transformer book.

Cousins at the zoo.

Jason did tell me the other day that he loves bananas because he wants to be a monkey when he grows up.

Cute Aubrey!

Add caption

Holy Pelican Batman!

Tanner was less than thrilled about the giant bug display. Being a really mean Mom however, I placed him kicking and screaming on the spiderweb. That is why there is no photo from the other side. You would have seen his terrified little face. Poor little guy.

Snow!

2011-02-10T11:43:00.000-08:00

We had snow so deep we were able to build a tunnel in the front yard. Jason loved it. Tanner finally got up the courage to make it all the way through after dark that day. This is his proud moment!

Forts and Tents=Lots of fun

2011-02-04T11:34:00.000-08:00

The boys love to build forts and tents in the living room. Occasionally we let Tanner sleep in them for part of the night. We haven't been brave enough to let Jason try sleeping there yet. Having kids is like a second childhood. I remember how much we loved tents when I was their age, and older, and now :).

Trip to the Oklahoma City Temple

2011-01-29T12:17:00.000-08:00

We took a fun little trip to Oklahoma as a family to start the new year right! The boys really enjoyed wandering the beautiful temple gardens, and we were blessed that it was unseasonably warm that day!

Christmas Eve 2010

2010-12-24T15:37:00.000-08:00

We were so grateful to be invited to a Christmas Eve party at the Bird family's house where our two boys participated in my favorite christmas tradition of all, acting out the nativity story!

And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And lo, the Angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them Fear not; for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people, For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

Tanner and his friend Porter were great little shepherds. Jason was originally also a shepherd, but refused to cooperate. I think he thought the shepherd costume was a type of bib, and he hated bibs at the time.

And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.

What was Jason doing ? I don't remember exactly but his expression sure looks mischevious in this picture don't you think?

I love that my children got to participate in the Christmas story.

My Christmas Angels.

Happy Halloween

2010-11-10T12:00:00.000-08:00

Tanner, Jason and friends. Jason really has the superhero stance down. :)

We didn't take a lot of pictures. We have some great videos of Tanner and Jason dancing in their costumes, but due to technical difficulties these will not be available until a later date.

Tanner really knew what was going on this year, and ate way more candy than his mother should have allowed. He had a blast alternating between three costumes. We bought two Transformer costumes and a Skeleton costume last year after Halloween for this year because they were so cheap (like a dollar or 2). We tried to do the same this year, but I guess more people had the same idea, and by the second day-- when I went-- they were all gone.

I had alot of fun this year too. The kids were adorable. They did this skeleton dance for me all week. I laughed a ton. No giant party this year which made everything slower paced. My Aunt Laura's funeral was the week of Halloween, so it was really good that we didn't over schedule.

Daddy Moments

2010-10-19T06:02:00.000-07:00

It is true what they say about little boys loving their Moms. But there is something so neat about their relationship with their Dads too.

Water + Rocks= Fun

2010-10-17T17:30:00.000-07:00

I figured out how to do collages!

This was a great day filled with so many things my boys and I love.

A World of Wonder

2010-10-17T14:37:00.000-07:00

One of the things I was most excited about when I found out I was going to be a Mom was sharing this beautiful world with my children. Do you remember how wondrous the world was when you were a child? I'm reminded everyday.

Watermelon weight lifting

2010-10-07T13:34:00.000-07:00

Our watermelons are ripe (in October:)) and heavy!

The Best Day of the Week is . . .

2010-10-07T13:18:00.000-07:00

Monday. Not because we have perfected family home evening--far from it, though we are trying, but because of what me and 2 of my 3 best buds in the world and I do every morning. Tanner has swim class at 9:30, so I go and drop Jason off at the child care center which has an incredible play room, and I watch and clap and cheer for Tanner as he kicks and reaches and puts his "fice" in the water.

I'll explain about "fice": The other day Tanner was taking a bath and I asked him to show me how he put his face in the water in swim class, and he said "Mom it's not face in the water, it's fice in the water." I was confused and then I remembered that his teacher, Miss Joe has a lovely southern drawl and Tanner thought that "fice in the water" was the technical term while you were swimming since that is how his teacher said it. I got a good laugh from that.

But back to wonderful Monday. After Tanner is done with swimming and all dressed and warm again we go retrieve Jason. We then head to the Fitness Center's front desk and check out basketballs and we all "play basketball" on the Fitness Center's gym. We don't do much of what is recognizable as basketball, but I try to show off my ninth grade basketball skills--I don't even want to think about how long ago that was-- while Tanner watches and Jason runs all around. Then I watch and clap for Tanner as he throws the ball, goes and gets it , and then falls down on purpose-- a mix of basketball and football?

Then we go home thoroughly happy and tired to eat lunch and play outside in the perfect fall weather. This monday after lunch I got some amazing pictures of my little boys sharing some rare tender moments. Which made my cup of joy overflow. I love Mondays! Here's the pictures:

This one is my favorite. They are both looking at me with happy expressions! It's a miracle!

I asked them to give each other a kiss. And they did--how many wonders can one camera/blog hold?

He looks like such a gentle little guy in this picture!

Do you think he could smile any harder?

My handsome boy is growing up way too fast.

Love this picture!
Perfect day + perfect pictures=happy and contented and blessed beyond measure Mom

Put to good use at last

2010-09-04T21:11:00.000-07:00

My pilates band died while being enjoyed. Not a bad way to go.

Don't faint it is just melted red popsicle

2010-09-04T21:07:00.000-07:00

Sometimes Mommy would rather that big brother not share with little brother.

15 months and absolutely perfect in every way

2010-09-04T20:50:00.000-07:00

Jason was pronounced "absolutely perfect in ever way " by our doctor yesterday. I think she really likes our little JJ. She says he is perfect every time we go in, and she told me this time how sad it was that after the next appointment he would only need to come once a year on his birthday. I wanted to ask her if she was up for babysitting if she really felt that way :).
So the 15 month stats are:
32 3/4 inches (91st percentile)
23 pounds (35 percentile)
Developmentally right on track
oh and 18in head circumference

These are pictures of Jason playing dress up. He finds clothes and brings them to me saying "peesh, peesh" which means 'please mommy put this on me' :)

Watermelons in September

2010-08-30T20:08:00.000-07:00

We are so excited!

Duck Duck Goose

2010-08-30T20:00:00.000-07:00

Tanner's favorite game is Duck Duck Goose. His version has a lot more running and tickling and falling down than your average duck duck goose game. I really should give him all the credit for my recent weight loss.

Duck

Goose!

Hillbilly Hot tubbin'

2010-08-30T19:42:00.000-07:00

No bathtubs, just showers at the Wray family farm, so we decided to install a hot tub on the porch.

What was I thinking? I wasn't.

2010-08-26T12:42:00.000-07:00

I let Jason feed himself yogurt right out of the container because he really wanted to. He has been doing so well using utensils, but the first thing he did when I handed it over was to dump it on his head. Tanner thought the whole thing was really funny. Jason was a little upset about the yogurt running into his eye.

Jason's 1st Birthday and Russell's 28th!

2010-08-11T08:20:00.000-07:00

Pure bliss :)

Jason's birthday was June 3rd. Yes I'm two months late, but better late than never right ? Russell's is the 2nd so we kind of joined them-I made two cakes, but really Russell got a little neglected this year. Sorry sweetie, but you were turning unexciting 28 and it was Jason's first. (I think Russell is fine with it).

Jason loved the balloons and the cake about equally. He was so happy with all the commotion. He really wanted to touch the candle too, but he did try to blow on it. We love you Jason!

My cakes turned out in unexpected ways. Jason loved sheep and baaa was his first animal noise. He has since moved on to dogs. The cake turned out looking more like a polar bear than a sheep which is actually more appropriate for Jason's personality. Russell's cake which also depicted a favorite thing of Jason's--bathtime with rubber duckies-- turned out very pertinent to certain current events going on in Russell's home state of Louisiana. I couldn't figure out how to coat the ducks in yellow like I planned so they turned out a very "oily" looking brown. So instead of a sheep and a bathtime cake we got a polar bear and an oil spill cake.

Tanner took awhile to warm up to this whole idea of a family birthday party and presents for someone other than himself, but once the toys came out Tanner had a blast, and he played really well with Jason!

Funny and oh so wonderful boys!

2010-08-11T07:51:00.000-07:00

Wow its been a w h i l e! My boys were cracking me up today. I'm a little slow when it comes to anything mechanical so it took me about 5 minutes to figure out how to put the bag cover back on the vacuum cleaner after my boys took it off this morning. Then the boys took it off again in less than 5 sec. The kids love the vaccuum and Tanner tells me as he hands me the electric plug "Mommy turn the shocker ball on!" He got the words electrical socket and soccer ball mixed up when he was a toddler and then he got shocked and has called the electrical socket the shocker ball ever since."Tanner helps me vaccuum the corners and anything else I use the hose for. But his favorite thing to suck up is Jason's lips, and well, Jason enjoys it too.

Wow I love these pictures

2010-06-01T19:52:00.000-07:00

It makes me feel like maybe I can have my little boys forever. At least I'll have the memory

Happy Birthday Russell!

2010-06-01T19:47:00.000-07:00

Happy 28th birthday Sweetheart! Hope we can make you as happy on your special day as you make us every day!

The Sweetest Things in Life

2010-03-22T13:05:00.000-07:00

The best things in life are nearest:

Breath in your nostrils,

light in your eyes,

flowers at your feet,

duties at your hand,

the path of right just before you.

Then do not grasp at the stars,

but do life's plain, common work

as it comes,

certain that daily duties and daily bread are the sweetest things in life.

~Robert Louis Stevenson

Happy Birthday Tanner

2010-03-22T12:49:00.000-07:00

My oldest baby boy turned 3 on the 13th of March. I am in the process of going through all his baby pictures and organizing them into a book, well, 3 books actually. Looking at those first moments in our family's life I realized again how much I love Tanner and how much he has changed my life. On my way home from the hospital after having Tanner I was completely overwhelmed by the powerful feelings of love I had for my newborn baby. They were complicated by how close we came to losing him, but mainly it was just a huge fuzzy warm love feeling. I felt like the feeling was so big it would tear me apart. I think it was the sensation of a heart growing to accommodate a bigger feeling than it had ever felt before. Like the Grinch I guess my heart grew three sizes that day. I still feel that giant love for you Tanner, and now for Jason too, and Russell is loved more because my heart has more capacity. It doesn't feel like I'm torn apart by this enormous devotion anymore because I am a bigger, (in more ways than one ;)) and better person because of you Tanner.
We threw Tanner a Go Diego Go party. I made the cake and was pleasantly surprised that you could tell that the waterfall was a waterfall and the road a road. I knew if I just bought a lot of cute cake toppers it wouldn't matter much what the actual icing looked like.

Jason laid claim to certain toys that he thought were really interesting.

We forgot about the grandparents gift until right before he fell asleep for the night.

It was a helicopter that really flew! It was great fun until it broke two days later. I guess three year olds are really not ready for that kind of thing, but he absolutely adored it! He's still sad that it is broken. :( Poor kid. He wouldn't let us help him steer it. Anyone with a three year old would not be surprised by that.

In honor of his birthday we let Tanner wear his Optimus Prime costume two days in a row all day. Except when we left the house.

Some great things about Tanner: He senses what other people are feeling and he has a big heart. He tries to make peace and he avoids contention.
He is a great jumper, runner, climber, and an accomplished somersaulter.
He has a great sense of humor. He gets irony and senses immediately when something is ridiculous or contradictory.
He has a great memory.
He has the most beautiful smile in the whole world.
He is a fast learner, and is curious.
He is enthusiastic.
And he is very friendly and kind.

My Little Bathroom Friend

2010-03-15T14:57:00.000-07:00

The Bathroom is Jason's favorite place in the whole world. He loves it because water is there, brushes are there, and Mom is likely in there too.

I am the Mamarazzi

2010-03-15T14:54:00.000-07:00

I don't care if you don't want a picture, and even if it is a sad picture I'm going to take it because I am the Mamarazzi. Not only will I take the picture against your wishes I will love it, treasure it and post it. I love you Tanner. It was love at first sight, and no matter how grumpy you get at times, I love you more every day. No, actually I love you more every minute.

Two Men in a Tub

2010-03-15T14:45:00.000-07:00

Yes I'm posting about Valentine's day now . . .

2010-02-28T07:51:00.000-08:00

For Valentine's day I thought it would be fun for Tanner and me to make a heart chain together. You know, quality time. Well, Tanner was not impressed. He spent his time creating a clever little death trap for his little brother. While I was completely immersed in heart making he mixed those glass beads in the picture with the little puff snacks and put them all back in the puff snack container together. I didn't notice this choking hazaard until I poured some snacks out for Jason. Luckily I poured them onto a hard surface and noticed the unusual clunking sounds before it was too late.

The boys got balloons for Valentine's day. One transformer for Tanner and one absolutely adorable octupus for Jason. The transformer balloon is still floating around a month later (these were supposed to be temporary clutter. I'm a little annoyed at the longevity). The octupus got beat up one too many times and has gone to rest in the trash can.

Russell gave me beautiful orchids, and doesn't my heart chain look great! I didn't get any credit for it in my house of boys.

Did I mention that I got orchids, and that I love them. And they are still alive and beautiful miracle of miracles, but only because when it said "just add ice orchids" it really meant that's all you have to do for them.

Well I guess I got a little credit for the garland. Jason thought it was really tasty and would seek it out behind my door until I found a purple wad in his mouth and decided I really needed to toss my precious creation before Jason had a reaction to paper glue.

We had pink milk and raspberry banana heart shaped pancakes for breakfast. I should have just used seedless raspberry jam instead of real raspberries. Tanner didn't like the crunchies in his pancakes one bit. I still made him eat it and tell me they were yummy because I had made these puppies from scratch for heaven sake. Not a whole lot of love for these pancakes at the breakfast table , but aren't they cute?

I heart you Jason!

Russell got a surprise under his pillow from me!

Why were conversation hearts so hard to find this year? Who decided that sweetheart conversation hearts could replace the real thing???

Gratitudes:

I am so grateful for . . .

my three handsome Valentines.

to be a wife ( there was a point when I really thought that was never going to happen right around Valentine's day about 5 years ago :)

to be a mom. As hard as it is sometimes to do a good job at it there is never never a second when I would trade being a mom to my two boys for anything in the universe.

for other bloggy mom's who give me motivation and inspiration to do a little better each day.

And I am grateful for friends who are worth waiting for. Especially my best friend Russell. Love you sweetheart!

Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy

2010-02-08T10:12:00.000-08:00

No I'm not a Ren and Stimpy fan. I never was, but they had a pretty good chant/song there. And when I looked at these pictures happy, happy, joy, joy is what came to mind.

I hate to think about my kids growing up. The only thing that makes thoughts of college and missions and their own families and houses less lonely is the hope for lots of grandkids!

It's snowing again here. We are supposed to get almost seven inches. I need to load the snow pictures from the camera, but Jason filled the plug-in on the cord with spit and spit up and it isn't working right now. Yuck I know I should have caught him earlier, but they are just so busy, and Jason climbs on things. He only turned eight months old a few days ago. Jason, please stop reaching your developmental milestones so quickly and let us catch up.

For those of you who have spoken to Tanner on the phone and have found it challenging this might help explain why. Tanner refuses to hold the phone in any other position.

The photo below is a great shot of Jason's sharp teeth, and his gregarious personality. Is his hair really that red?

Tanner painted snow! Snow is the theme of everything lately. I love it!

Jason likes to talk to his reflection in our fireplace. Doesn't he look like he has a backwards mullet?

Gratitudes:

I'm grateful that . . .

my grandmother's funeral was beautiful, and there was a very loving spirit there.

I'm not a single parent, or single anything.

Tanner is learning how not to go ballistic anytime Jason seems to be having fun with something.

my kids are healthy.

I don't feel super guilty about bribing Tanner to take a nap with doughnuts and candy.

Russell feels good about his interview.

and of course I'm grateful that The Saints won the Super Bowl. I hate it when Russell has the football mopes.

Who Dat!

My Memaw

2010-02-03T13:18:00.000-08:00

Memaw, I love you so much. It still doesn't seem real to me. Just like your Alzheimers didn't seem real. I just thought you had gone away for a little while and then we would see you again, and go visit you in your little house in Orange. I miss your hugs, and I remember your clean smell. Last night as I fell asleep I smelled your lavendar smell. Were you here? I wish you had known my sons. I think you would have liked them. I'm so happy that you are reunited with Pawpaw, and William and your other loved ones. I'm so sorry you had to go through so much pain.

Until we meet again,
Crystal

Obituary written by Ronda Wray Harris

Feb. 2, 2010

Lillian Earlene Hart Wray

Lillian Hart Wray went home to be with her Lord Jesus Christ on Monday, February 1, 2010 in Hot Springs, Arkansas. She was born in Ennis, Texas, on January 4, 1919, the daughter of Earl and Mary McClure Hart. She had many happy childhood days living on White Rock Lake in Dallas, Texas, where her father was the superintendent. She graduated from Dallas Technical High School in 1936. In 1940, while working at Dallas Power and Light, she met a young engineer named Hal Wray. They married on May 2, 1942, and moved to Orange, Texas, where Hal built battleships during WWII and Lillian enjoyed being a full-time mother and homemaker. After the war, Hal and Lillian lived all their married life in Orange, owning and operating Wray and White Auto Supply.

Lillian earned a degree in Elementary Education from Lamar University in 1976, but continued working at Wray and White. In 1980, Lillian lost her husband and best friend, Hal. After Hal died, Lillian devoted herself to service. She was a member of the First United Methodist Church in Orange for most of her life. She is a past president of the United Methodist Women, organized a widows’ support group, and went to Romania to carry gifts for orphans. She welcomed her aging aunt, Helen Roberts, into her home for five years.

In her later years, she moved to Hot Springs, Arkansas, to live with her son Charles Wray and his wife Carolyn. In 2001, she became a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. After her Alzheimer’s worsened, she needed constant care and resided in Lakewood Nursing Home. The family thanks the staff of Lakewood for the loving attention they gave to Lillian.

She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, her brothers John and Richard Hart, and her sister Betty Hart. She has one surviving sister, Jacqueline Morgan, and many nieces and nephews. She also has a surviving brother-in-law, Rowland Lewis and his wife, Neeta, and a sister-in-law, Helen Lewis.

She is survived by her daughter Ronda Harris and husband Jim, and grandchildren James Harris, Kay Archbold, Christy Parsons and Wendy Tingey, her son John Hal Wray and spouse Mel, and grandchildren Michael Wray and Angela Christian, her daughter Pat Vassilaros and husband Dan, grandchildren Ian Vassilaros, Sean Vassilaros, and David Vassilaros, her son Charles Wray and wife Carolyn, grandchildren Crystal Boyle, Ben Wray, Robert Wray, and Joanna Wray, plus 32 great-grandchildren.

A visitation will be held Saturday, February 6, from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Hot Springs, Arkansas, with a memorial service following from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. She will be buried at the Wray family farm in Bonnerdale, Arkansas, following the service.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that memorial donations be made to the Hailey Mayz Foundation, 19041 Canyon Terrace Dr., Portola Hills, 92679 or on Facebook, founded in memory of Lillian’s great-granddaughter who died in 2009. This foundation helps young families that have seriously ill and hospitalized children.

Freezing Fogs and Bunny Paws

2010-01-31T12:43:00.000-08:00

We got about seven inches of snow on Friday. It was wonderful. Tanner played outside as much as we would let him before we made him come inside to thaw out. He was so cold he even enjoyed his hot chocolate. He usually insists on his chocolate milk products being cold. And last night and this morning we had freezing fog which left the most enchanting ice fur on everything. The fog and snow and ice crystals on everything made it so white I would have loved to get some more pictures especially of the foggy black cows we saw on the way to church. I took pictures a little late to get the full effect because the wind had blown most of the ice crystals off the trees.

And there were bunny prints all over our front yard. Bunny prints are almost as cute as the actual bunnies.

I love this picture with Tanner's and the bunny's footprints right beside each other.

Gratitudes:
I am grateful that . . .
we had a beautiful white, foggy, quiet, happy, safe drive to church this morning.
when I gave Jason a raspberry this morning on his neck he immediately returned the favor on my shoulder. He's a bright one that kid.
when I explained to Tanner that even though Dad didn't take him to go get doughnuts yesterday, today was still nursery/church day and not doughnut day that he looked at me and said "You bet Mom!" and then hopped out of bed without the least trace of disappointment.
That Tanner sat in his chair at church the almost the whole time and listened to the speakers, and said in a pouty voice (as if the speaker was disagreeing) that "The Holy Ghost loves me."
That the Sacrament Passer didn't look shocked, but instead looked amused when Tanner refused to drink the water and exclaimed "Nuh uh" loudly. Nuh uh is Tanner's new favorite non-word, which is by no means part of this list of gratitudes.

An Attitude . . .

2010-01-26T12:35:00.000-08:00

of Gratitude. I used to do Gratitudes after every post. I think I'm going to start that again. Starting right now!

I'm really grateful that the harder it is to get the kids to take their naps the more rewarding the peace that comes afterwards.
I'm grateful that I haven't caught what my husband has.
I'm grateful that Tanner told me that I'm the "best girl ever" today. I needed that. (Not that it's a competition ladies. I think every little two year old should think that about his mommy.)
I'm grateful that Jason's first word is Mama, and I'm just as grateful that Tanner's was Dada. Let's keep the score even kids.
I'm grateful that I've stuck to my diet for half a day now. That's a lifetime record.
And I'm grateful for happy memories I never would have remembered without my camera. In the Book of Mormon it says that if the Nephites had not brought the Brass plates with them and been able to read them to remember what God had done for their Fathers they would have dwindled in unbelief. (Mosiah 1:5) I don't want to dwindle in unbelief and I don't want to forget to be grateful for the sweet moments in my family's life.

Thank you Aunt Melba, Tanner, Mom and Jason for creating this one.

Quite the Contrary

2010-01-24T15:37:00.000-08:00

Tanner has been a little headstrong lately. I'm glad he is strong willed; the world is tough. Sometimes the constant power struggle gets a little old, but sometimes it is downright funny. It's old when I come up in the morning and he's awake and I say, "Tanner you want to get out of bed and eat breakfast and play?"
"No Mom, I have to go to sleep." (not that he doesn't want to come down but just for the sake of argument) So I leave and he cries like I broke his heart, and I say
"Tanner you can stay in bed, come down by yourself, or come with Mom."
"Okay I go with you." Hmmm. Isn't that what I came up here for the first time?
But there are the funny things too. For example the other day I said "That's right Tanner." (As in you are correct.) Tanner said "No Mom that's left." (Where did that come from? I laughed, What a cute little stink bug.)
Or when Russell said "Your birthday is coming up." Tanner just couldn't resist saying "No Dad, it's coming down."

Just a really cute picture

2010-01-24T15:20:00.000-08:00

Einstein is that You?

2010-01-24T15:10:00.001-08:00

I know. I know. How many posts can I do just about Jason's hair. Well look at him! The possibilities are endless. :)

Mine! Mine! Mine!

2010-01-24T14:59:00.000-08:00

I saw the following little watchamacallit on my sister-in-law's blog today and I just had to steal it because it describes my last few weeks so perfectly. Now that Jason can get around all I hear all day is Tanner screaming and crying "NO Jason NO that's mine. Don't touch it" or "Do NOT eat my toys/my carpet/my blanket/ my movie/ my mommy's necklace." Well you get the idea. And they used to get along so well. {sigh}

Laws Of A Toddler

If I like it, It's MINE!

If it's in my hand, Its MINE!

If I had it a little while ago, It's MINE!

If it's mine it must Not appear to be yours in any way.

If I'm doing or building something, all the pieces are MINE!

If I saw it first, It's MINE!

If It looks just like mine, It's MINE!

If your playing with something and you put it down,

it automatically becomes MINE!

If it's Broken IT'S YOURS!

Warning: This Post is Mushy

2010-01-22T15:00:00.000-08:00

I don't talk about Russell enough in my blog. He really is a great husband. We have our little arguments, and lately because of the baby blues those are without fail blown out of proportion by me, but making up is almost worth the arguing. I was telling my friend today that one of the reasons I fell in love with Russell is that he always talked about his friends from his Mexico mission and how one of his main goals in life was to be financially stable so that he could take his family and go do service and donate cows, chickens, cement floors and walls (because that's all it takes to be wealthy down there). I think about our goals to help others alot right now because of the tragedy in Haiti. I wish we could do more. I am so glad that I found someone who cares about others more than he cares about toys and money. Russell makes friends easily because he is a good friend. He is funny, easy going, and kind. He does like to tease, and growing up with so many brothers he sometimes doesn't know what is okay to say and what isn't, but he never says it to be mean or hurtful. I just tell him "that was the wrong answer". :)
When we were dating I gave him a list of 28 things I loved about him. Here is some new ones to add to it:
He hung up Christmas lights on our scary-high roof because he knew I was so excited about it. He made a cardboard box tunnel for my Halloween party. He tells me I'm beautiful. He never minds hugging or kissing even when a games on (well as long as I keep it to a minimum :)
Our boys adore him. I'm always having to try really hard to compete with how fun and loving he is because I want to be the boys favorite every once in awhile. I feel like I'm the one Tanner should ask for when he's hurt, but I'm not usually. Russell is a really good comforter. And I'm lucky/ blessed in love.

Aaahh Tulips!

2010-01-18T13:56:00.000-08:00

My Sweetheart and PJ (Pride and Joy), or Russell and Tanner as most people refer to them earned 990 billion points and a big smile and hug because they brought me these gorgeous pink tulilps yesterday. It feels like spring is blooming in my kitchen. It was Russell's idea to buy flowers,and Tanner picked which ones to get. Good job to both of you!
Tulips are not only beautiful, but they are also 100 times easier to photograph then squirmy jumpy take flighty little boys.

Tanner's Prayer

2010-01-17T13:16:00.000-08:00

"Dear Heavenly Father, thank thee for 's day, snakes, spiders, grasshoppers, and thank thee for fun playing with kids. In the name of Jesus Christ Amen." I'm just relieved that I finally figured out that he had said " 's day, snakes" instead of "stay snakes" like I had originally thought. I had all sorts of nightmarish thoughts about snakes being brought home . . . . and staying.

Books, Books, Books

2010-01-17T05:00:00.000-08:00

Sometimes all I want to do is read. Actually make that most of the time. Any suggestions?

Tanner caught the book bug from me. Russell has stalwartly resisted that bug all his life, and refuses to let me infect him even a little. I think he read a business book once, and of course, the Book of Mormon and Bible, Doctrine and Covenants etc. But besides Go Dog Go when he was little and the books he reads to our kids, that's it. He does however, read the news religiously.
Books I've read this month:
The Lightning Thief
The Mysterious Benedict Society
Fablehaven
Books I have under my bed waiting to be read this month:
SuperFreakonomics
The Help
The Graveyard Book
Books I would have under my bed if I had more time at the library and required less sleep:
The Book Thief
What the Dog Saw: and Other Adventures
Hunger Games
Three Cups of Tea
Stones into Schools
and Parenting Books (maybe I would get more sleep if I put these under the first heading.)

Beauty and Beast

2010-01-11T07:51:00.000-08:00

Cool Tricks

2010-01-11T07:45:00.000-08:00

Jason has learned a few things over the holiday season. He's sitting up like a champ without any help. He eats finger foods by himself, but one of the most impressive is crawling, but he only goes backwards. I tell Russell that if there is anything on the floor Jason can't have then please aim him right at it, and the harder he tries to get it the farther away he'll get from it. Poor kid, must be frustrating. The other day he crawled himself under the bed. What a cute little bed bug. Doesn't he look so proud of his accomplishment? I wonder if that is actually where he was trying to go.

Making Peace with Grandpa's Grandfather Clock

2010-01-11T05:00:00.000-08:00

Tanner's number one enemy for the last few months has been Grandpa's Grandfather clock. He thought it was a little too loud and rowdy for his liking during the day and down right terrifying at night. He has talked about it every day. Saying to me nervously "I'm crying about the clock", "the clock makes me sad", "the clock is scary, or nice? scary!". He slept in a room nearby it this summer and woke up crying almost every time it chimed. But this New Years he has finally decided that the clock is "talking nice to me," and the "clock is a friend." So we got a picture with Grandpa, Tanner, and Tanner's new found friend. Way to face your fears Tanner!

A White Christmas

2010-01-09T22:22:00.000-08:00

It snowed on Christmas Eve. Tanner woke up to see the first inches of the fun white stuff on Christmas morning. He tells me that "Santa brought snowing." We've had another snowfall since then and none of it has melted thanks to our single digit temperatures here. Good thing we have our love to keep us warm, because our upstairs heater broke. We have a heater for downstairs which actually heats the upstairs pretty well too as long as we keep all the doors open, and we have a space heater in the upstairs hall ( a very safe cool touch one) that keeps the kids even toastier.

Watch it Tanner! You're being scoped out by a four ball snowman.

Caught in the act of removing the gloves. The hat is next. Freedom to move the body parts is more important than the actual body parts to kids. The temperature was in the teens with a wind chill in the negatives.

It was a beautiful day.

Here are some pictures of what the warm and dry part of Christmas day was like:

Santa Clause came and brought a slide for Tanner and Jason, a Train for Jason and a Robot Dump Truck for Tanner.

Tanner loved Rocky The Robot Dump Truck, but he thought the Train was a little too cool for such a little brother, and asked me if maybe Tanner should have that too.

Stockings:

One of my favorite parts of Christmas has always been the lights of Christ mas. Each little point of light is a beautiful symbol of the Light of the World, and at Christmas time their numbers overwhelm me with joy. Merry Christmas and a Happy 2010!

4 years and 3 months ago, I found this . . .

2009-12-22T22:27:00.000-08:00

While hiking up Rock Canyon I stumbled upon this message. If you can't tell what you are looking at, these are rocks that form the question "Will you marry me?". I wondered why Russell wasn't surprised to see them, and when he knelt down I was a little flabbergasted that he would use someone else's rock proposal, because I knew he had been at work all day. We were at least a mile up the trail, and it took me awhile after saying "Yes!" to understand that he had left work early, and with the help of some friends had made this message and also had hid some sparkling grape juice and wine glasses in a hole over in the dry stream bed. He then had returned to work. He hiked up the Canyon twice that day.
After we were in agreement about the getting married part, a pair of Bighorn sheep interrupted us. We watched them feeling like they were a good omen.

4 years ago today Russell and I were married for time and all eternity in the Salt Lake Temple. 4 years and two children later we still love each other, and I still think those Bighorn sheep were a good omen.

Wonderful and then Wacky, but still Wonderful

2009-12-19T05:14:00.000-08:00

The other morning everything went more smoothly than usual. My kids were so enjoyable and funny and there was such a lovely feeling of peace and joy in our home all day. Days like these are probably rarer than they should be with such great kids like mine. I'm still adjusting to being outnumbered. Somehow I had for once a clean house, time to get laundry done and time to play with my kids to their heart's content. The whole morning I just kept thinking, "Wow! This is heavenly. I love this!" and "What in the world is going on. This is wonderful!"The wackiness mainly involves my son Tanner who is getting wackier and more wonderful by the day. I wanted to make play-doh gingerbread men with him, so I got out the play-doh and then I couldn't find my christmas cookie cutters anywhere. So we had a little more Halloween in December. Tanner insisted on adding bellybuttons on the ghosts and then smeared on some red here and there. We ended up with gorey bellybuttoned ghosts which were definitely wacky and not so much wonderful.

Tanner and I were clapping for Jason because he was rolling over and pushing up on his hands to almost crawling position, and then Tanner had to do some log rolls and push ups so I could clap for him too.And then we had a rolling party with Tanner, Jason and blue whale, whom Tanner calls "Dolphin". Below is Tanner teaching Dolphin to roll over.

It was time for Jason's morning nap after that and usually Tanner comes and checks on (wakes up) Jason right as I'm about to put him down to sleep, so Jason is really good at putting himself to sleep in his crib. But today there were no interruptions, and I took a little longer cuddling my sweet baby who doesn't like to cuddle unless he is sleepy. He is such a sweet happy boy. I love holding him when he's not trying to wrestle me and winning.
I was up there for quite awhile, and things were very quiet the whole time. I realized this and panicked. I ran downstairs prepared for destruction or carnage of some sort, and found Tanner reading the phone book in our bathroom floor. And for the next hour that is all he did or wanted to do. I asked him if he wanted to eat a snack or come play, and he told me "No mom, I'm just reading this big book." So I got lots of chores done. He sat in there for over an hour. I'm not sure if I should be concerned with that behaviour but it's only happened once and we both enjoyed it for different reasons. What can I say? He's a little wacky, but so incredibly wonderful too.

My New Favorite Things are . . .

2009-12-16T08:52:00.000-08:00

photo gift tags from Walmart! I thought this would be perfect to help cousins who live far away put a face to the name and the gift. And of course I think pictures of my two little ones make anything more meaningful.

A Scary/Funny Moment for Tanner and His Parents

2009-12-08T14:15:00.000-08:00

We visited both sets of Grandparents for Thanksgiving. My parents are just an hour out of the way in Hot Springs on the drive to Russell's parents who live in Monroe, Louisiana. I wanted to take our family pictures this year at the Wray farm which is located 30min from Hot Springs. My grandfather bought the acreage 50 years ago, and now that he is gone his four children and his grandchildren share it on special occasions. It is beautiful and peaceful. I lived there for a few years when I was really young. and all my favorite childhood and many of my favorite adult memories are there.

There is a big hay barn with huge rolls of hay, and we decided to go take pictures and let Tanner play there. My brothers and I used to play tag on the hay bales and I fell down many a hole in my day, but it is a different experience when you watch your 2 year old son suddenly disappear completely right before your eyes. Luckily we were able to reach him easily. He was laughing and crying a little as we pulled him out. We watched him like a pair of hawks after that.

Dandelion hair

2009-12-07T15:56:00.000-08:00

Last week Tanner found a late dandelion. As he held it up for me to see he said " Momma, a baby Jason hair flower!" How observant of him. :)

My Little Mighty Ones

2009-11-20T12:36:00.000-08:00

Today as I was cuddling my oldest son in a warm fuzzy blanket, I felt so overwhelmed by the gap between the parent I would like to be and the one I am actually. We had had a battle earlier in the day, and I spanked him. I wish I had thought of a way to teach and not to punish. I hate punishing my little boy. I have to be absolutely 100% sure that the punishment is perfectly appropriate to the crime and that I am not doing it out of anything but perfect love; otherwise it makes me absolutely miserable for days. I stroked his hair and told him that I loved him so much I wish I could give him a perfect mom and a perfect life and that he could be perfectly happy all the time. But as I was saying that a thought from a quote I heard somewhere recently came to my mind. We are to bear with one another's infirmities. The world tries to tell us that we are all victims of each others imperfections, that because we are sinned against by parents, friends, strangers we can't be expected to live our lives well and joyfully. That is not true! We are not helpless victims! We are mighty. We are mighty because our Savior is "mighty to save." He conquered death and sin. He conquered not only the sins that we commit but also the sins that are committed against us. We can rise above our experiences and be better. I fall into the trap of thinking I can't be as good as I want to be because I've never seen how. Baloney. I have a perfect Example. Even if I can't take perfect care of Heavenly Father's children they are still Heavenly Father's children and as such their potential will never be diminished by anything other than their own choices. It is my privilege to do the best I can to facilitate the development of that potential. My son will never have a perfect mother, but he has a perfect Father in Heaven and a perfect Savior. That is enough. I choose to give him and his brother these spiritual power tools: prayer, faith in Christ, a knowledge of Heavenly Father's plan, and an example of someone who uses the gift of repentance in their daily life, someone who hungers and thirsts after righteousness.

The 5th Day of Thanksgiving

2009-11-19T06:01:00.000-08:00

On the 5th day of Thanksgiving I thought of gratefully, f i v e t h o u s a n d l e a v e s, four moose footsies, three Tan Gogh paintings, two cute children, and a Russell in my family tree!

The 4th day of Thanksgiving

2009-11-19T05:08:00.000-08:00

On the 4th day of Thanksgiving I thought of gratefully, four moose footsies, three Tan Gogh paintings, two cute children, and a Russell in my family tree!

The 3rd Day of Thanksgiving

2009-11-17T14:46:00.000-08:00

On the third day of Thanksgiving I thought of gratefully 3 Tan Gogh paintings, 2 cute children, and a Russell in my family tree!

Day 1 and 2 of the 12 Days of Thanksgiving

2009-11-16T13:13:00.000-08:00

(To be sung to the tune of "The Twelve Days of Christmas")

On the first day of Thanksgiving I thought of gratefully, a Russell in my family tree!

On the second day of Thanksgiving I thought of gratefully, two cute children, and a Russell in my family tree!

"Mommy, Mommy! I'm a Flower!"

2009-11-07T09:34:00.001-08:00

I thought this was so funny! Tanner was playing with his plastic alligator sand biter thingy, and he came up to me just like this and said, "Mommy, Mommy I'm a flower! I'm a flower!" Just like a boy to get alligators confused with flower petals.Tanner is going to hate this picture (and this story) when he gets older, but I love it! He came over and looked at this picture as I was posting it, and he said "Yeah, I'm a flower." It has been at least two weeks since this happened. What a funny little guy.

"Mommy I Want to Read Transformers to Jason"

2009-11-07T09:30:00.000-08:00

Not Like Martha's

2009-11-06T23:14:00.000-08:00

I got the idea for this Ghost cake from Martha Stewart. Somehow it just didn't turn out the same, but it was still cute, and best of all it was easy enough to do for little hands to help! The Spider cake is actually from Bakerella's idea for cookies. I just enlarged it. And the googly eyed pumpkins were a project I tried to do with the little one's for Monday's playgroup, but they were not interested. Tanner loves helping Mommy and Daddy. His favorite activity is stirring. He loves to stir cake mix, koolaid, pancake mix, whatever you are making, so making these little projects was really fun for him, and so of course it is fun for us too!

Pumpkin Patchin' It

2009-11-05T20:35:00.000-08:00

The Saturday a week before Halloween was absolutely gorgeous, and we took advantage of it by going to a pumpkin patch with some friends. Jason wore his Halloween costume because he was too cute in it for me to save for Halloween!

Our friends have a boy Tanner's age. They were adorable together. What a cute little team they made pushing and pulling the cart all by themselves!

"Kinda squished" Tanner said.

Can't remember now why this pepper looking pumpkin spawned so many jokes that day, but I remember it was hilarious!

I just couldn't get enough of pictures in carts. Don't worry I'll have more from a pumpkin stand we went to in another post!

For those of you who haven't held Jason recently he is a squirmer. I call this picture "Wrestling a Tiger" because even without the tiger costume that is what it feels like to try and hold Jason.

This is the Tunnel that Tanner could not get enough of. He threw a fit when we made him come to eat lunch after about 17 trips through this hay tunnel. He smelled of molding hay for the rest of the day!

The colors and the eyelashes in this picture make my soul so happy!

Go ahead Tanner . . . come on, you can do it! Tanner, touch the mutated pumpkin, so I can get a picture.

He jumps off with such fearless freedom! I miss feeling invincible don't you?

I'm so grateful for beautiful autumns.

Gratitudes:
Go through the pictures one more time . . . these are my gratitudes: My family, friends, a beautiful world, and cameras.

Halloween Hullabaloo

2009-11-04T00:00:00.000-08:00

We were super involved in Halloween this year. We did lots of activities and wore ourselves and our little ones out! What with crafts, the visit to the pumpkin patch, our crazy party here, the Trick or Treating at Russell's work on Friday, Trunk or Treat at the church on Saturday afternoon, and Trick or Treat in the neighborhood we are definitely ready for a break before Thanksgiving festivities! Tanner absolutely loved Trick or Treating (mainly because he got to take his favorite flashlight with the blue filter on it) He was a very cool Optimus Prime with his blue laser flashlight! I thought Jason's tiger costume fit his personality perfectly. He is very tiger cubbish; a little fiesty, very playful, and very very strong and quick for a baby. He clobbers me daily.

Here's Tanner and Jason all loaded up to go see Daddy at work! Tanner asked me to take a picture of this moment!

Someone brought a cotton candy machine to work that day! How cool is that?!!

Awesome blue laser Optimus Prime Eyes!

So about all the Hullabaloo aka Our Rather Large Mom's and Tot's party:
It all started when we went to "First Friday at the Square" a few months ago and they had about a hundred cardboard boxes out for the kids to play in/with. Tanner was in Heaven. He loved all the chaos of kids running in and out of the boxes, making forts, tearing them down. And then I saw a cowboy theme birthday party on a blog where the Mom had made a western town out of cardboard! (the blog link: Eisele Family News the party is only found under the label "throwback thursdays" not sure why ) Only problem was Tanner doesn't know what a cowboy is, so what to do? I knew I wanted to build him something out of all the cardboard boxes we had bought for our move, and along came Halloween! So convenient. So we made, well Russell made and I decorated, a Haunted house/tunnel out of 9 very large cardboard boxes. The other ingredient I needed to tip Tanner over into cardboard bliss: Lots of kiddos! So we invited about 30 kids and their moms over on a thursday morning a few days before Halloween! We ended up having about 40people show up and it was so fun!

The black Hallow-bean dig actually stole the show! I guess kids love being able to make a mess even more than galloping through a cardboard box tunnel! As a side note and a wierd coincidence today one of the blogs I follow "the magic onions" did a post about a bean box!http://themagiconions.blogspot.com/2009/11/make-bean-box.html (See honey! I'm not totally crazy!) We also decorated cupcakes. (Thanks Aunt Suzie for the idea!) The kids were okay with the cupcakes, but generally just wanted to get back to throwing beans and hiding in the cardboard as soon as possible. I hope I helped make this a fun Halloween to remember for my sweet Tanner and maybe some of the kids who came to the party! I took lots a pictures because as neat as it was to thrill the kiddos my husband made me promise that crazy huge parties with huge cardboard creations would not be an annual tradition! (And I didn't really disagree, I think biannual is often enough ;))

Ideas I was most proud of:I made cutout bats and had them flying around attached to black balloons and, I thought my Purple People Eater Picnic Area was very clever; is it our guests who will be picnicking there or will they be the picnic for a purple people eater! Mwaahaha!

Amen

2009-10-29T20:38:00.000-07:00

So we had a big day today. We had about 40 people show up for our Mom's and Tot's Halloween party. It was so fun! I really love being around tons of wonderful people! But this post is just about what happened after all that was over, and Jason was sleeping peacefully, and Tanner and I were having a chat before he went to sleep. Lately Russell and I have been telling Tanner stories as well as reading them. Usually the stories involve super turbo robot dinosaurs, and the first one I told him did actually include an optimusprimosaurus. The second story I changed things up a little and told him about how Heavenly Father had sent him here to Earth and to our family so that he could learn how to be like Heavenly Father and return to live forever with Him and us and the family Tanner would have some day. I mentioned he would "marry a girl and have cute kids". Is that too much detail for a little guy? I told him that Jesus was a really good helper and that if Tanner was sad Jesus could make him happy because of the atonement. I told him that Jesus would always help him, he just had to pray and have faith. I stopped talking and Tanner said "the end . . . .amen. Good story Mom!" The best stories are true.

That Kid Plays You Like a Violin

2009-10-15T13:55:00.000-07:00

"That kid plays you like a violin" is what my husband said to me as I was frantically trying to charge our camera battery last night. It was 8:40pm and I had been saying goodnight to Tanner. (His bedtime is 8pm but he was still awake and I wanted to see him before he fell asleep since I had been gone all evening getting my hair done. ) As I was leaving his room, and as a last ditch effort to delay being left alone to go to sleep Tanner says, as he is snuggling all his animal friends "Mommy take a picture of Tanner and animals." That kid knows me like the back of his hand. There was no way I was going to pass up a great photo opp like that! The only problem-- I had forgotten to charge our camera batteries. We have three. You would think one would be charged, but no the stars had aligned to grant Tanner 10 more minutes of lights on- awake-make Mommy run around like crazy for my every whim time. Finally I grabbed Russell's cell phone and took the picture below. You can't tell me it wasn't worth it. Look at his expression! He totally has me pegged, and boy does he know it. Tanner, just remember, with great power comes great responsibility.

Gratitudes:

I'm so grateful that I'm stuck in "Align Center" and can't get back to "Align left" (actually I'm not grateful about that at all. It is driving me crazy! so this gratitude doesn't count)

I'm so grateful that we have one surviving fish from our 3gallon to 10gallon upgrade. Which definitely deserves its own post, but I am currently slightly traumatized about it, so I'll wait to talk about it until I'm over it. (that was alot of it's) (what is wrong with me today) Must be the weather.

I'm so grateful that . . .umh Oh Yeah! I got a haircut and I love it!

I am so grateful that Jason is doing great he is 50% for his weight 15.5lbs. 90% for his height 26.5 in. and 99% for cuteness!

I'm grateful that Tanner sings "I'm so glad your my family!" to me daily! Thank you Nick Jr.!

I'm grateful that I have some great ideas for our little party on Saturday. I really hope I manage my time well, and get those ideas realized. NO MORE BLOGGING CRYSTAL!

Guess Who!

2009-10-03T21:22:00.002-07:00

One of these pictures is of Tanner at 4months old and one is of Jason at almost 4 months. So, can you tell which baby is Tanner and which is Jason? (I can hardly tell! )

I'll post the answer in the comments in a few days!

That's What Little Boys are Made Of

2009-10-03T21:08:00.000-07:00

When I found out I was pregnant with Tanner I just knew he was a boy. My days were filled with daydreams about me and my little boy running through the woods, making fires, swimming, and just enjoying nature and being a family. I was constantly outside, alone, as a little girl; that was where I was happy. There is no reason why I didn't picture a girl doing this with me as well, but I just knew I was having a little boy. I married a man who was just as much in love with the outdoors as I was. Besides Wal-Mart and the occasional restaurant we spent our 9month courtship hiking (not just because we were poor, but that was part of it). After we were married, and before I got pregnant, skiing/snow boarding, hiking/snow shoeing, camping, fishing and cooking over a campfire were our weekend activities.

These days I have two little boys that fill my soul with peace and well-being, and they remind me of how I felt when I was a child and filled with wonder at this beautiful world. Spending hours with my boys by the river while Tanner and I throw rocks into a sparkling river, and Jason grabs and coos at the wind makes me feel young and free again. I can't wait until Jason is a little older and can fully appreciate our little outings.

These pictures were taken at our ward campout. I wasn't brave enough to stay overnight with a 2 and a half year old and a 3 month old, but we really enjoyed the campgrounds. We want to go back when we have more time, and the kids are a little older.

There is a fun little park nearby that is filled with all the things my Tanner loves. A lake to throw things in, and sometimes go fishing in. Airplanes landing and taking off. Sand. Two exciting slides, and often other little kids to play with. We have so much fun there. Each time we go Tanner is interested in something different. This last time he was all about the slides. I'm so glad he's over his fear of them!

I can't leave out bugs right! Today my husband moved the coach to vacuum. ( I love how thorough he is). We found a dead spider, and it reminded me of a Tanner spider story. One day in our old apartment in Bentonville Tanner came running from our room into the living room squealing delightedly "A bug! A bug! So nice bug!" He grabbed Russell's hand and guided him to where a little spider was scampering towards our bathroom. Tanner was so excited that he had found a little friend in our house. After just a few moments of gazing at Tanner's new best friend, Russell grabbed some toilet paper, scooped up the spider and with no warning to either Tanner or me, flushed him down the toilet. Tanner was horrified. He watched his little friend swirl downward to his unknown destination crying hysterically and saying "by by bug! by by bug, by by bug." Russell was remorseful, and I was in tears, both of sympathy and of laughter. Poor little guy. Poor little bug. Tanner talked about "by by bug" for months afterwards everytime he saw a toilet. These days if Tanner finds/adopts the bugs before we do we scoop them into tupperware where they can't do Tanner any harm. He plays with (tortures) them for a little while and then we get rid of them when he's not looking.

Currently Tanner is partially made up of this disgusting gummy bat that Russell bought him. And in about eight hours Jason will be partially made up of way to many Almond Raspberry M&M's.

Gratitudes:
I'm so grateful that . . .
We're eating Papa Johns tonight!
I got to see as much of Conference as I did even though I heard even less than I saw!
Jason hasn't fallen off anything today.
That Jason is smiling at me right this very second!
That we got to babysit 4 kids last night. Tanner was in heaven. The kids kept saying "He sure is happy! Is he always this happy?" (I wish!) Tanner kept yelling at the top of his lungs "I love kids!"
That I walked into Tanner's room last night and Tanner was on sitting on a chair on his bed. The eight year old girl we were baby sitting was looking in Tanner's mouth with a mirror. Tanner was saying Ahhhhh. They were playing dentist. It was adorable.

A First Meeting

2009-09-25T13:07:00.000-07:00

Jason met his Great Grandparents on my Mom's side for the first time on the way back from our Louisiana trip. Jason was a hit! Tanner already has won their hearts. They love his little antics, and as you can see below, he's not shy about showing off for them. It was good to see them and spend a little time with our extended family.

Tannerisms

2009-09-15T14:39:00.000-07:00

I've had so much fun with my kids today! We didn't do much of anything really. I went to the doctor for Tanner early this morning to have him check out a spider bite, and Tanner was cracking me up while he was playing with the toys in the lobby. He kept saying things like "That's wonderful!" "That's beautiful!" and "What a funny guy!" He answers anything you ask him by saying "yeah", and then giving you an update on what he is currently doing. For example:
"Hey Tanner are you excited to see the doctor?"
"Yeah, I'm playing with this funny guy." (the funny guy was a veggie tales cucumber toy)
"Tanner, does your arm hurt?
"Yeah, I'm playing with blocks; they are so wonderful!"
"Hey Tanner, can you come here please."
"Yeah, I'm playing fire truck; its so beautiful!" (He makes no move to actually do what I asked him.)

"Uh oh!" (As he trips over a tractor and falls face first on a Barbie.)
"Yeah, I'm okay now."
We then went to a bookstore so I could get the new Dan Brown novel: The Lost Symbol. I bought Tanner a little book with glow in the dark stickers, and we have been charging them at the window and then checking them out in the dark closet pretty much all the rest of the day. And Jason is just so adorable. He doesn't cry much but he is SO LOUD! His happy sounds are loud, his complaining is loud, and his laughter is pretty loud too. It's pretty funny except when it makes my ears ring. :) I was able to make Jason laugh quite a few times today, and Tanner too. I love that. And I love, love, love hearing positive things about my kids! I'm willing to bet all parents do! So, when I went to pick Tanner up from his little play group yesterday I was thrilled to hear that he had entertained the Hostess with his little sayings. Like "MMM this bread tastes like candy.", "That's totally awesome!" and " Water is sooo yummy! And I love that he said "I miss my cute baby brother." and then burst into tears.

This isn't the spider that bit him. Well maybe he snuck back into the house to seek revenge. 'Cause Tanner kept him in this tupperware for quite a while and kept shaking it really hard.

Gratitudes:
I'm so grateful that . . .
Tanner's spider bite wasn't a brown recluse bite.
That Jason gets so excited when we play that he arches off the floor so hard he scoots.
That Tanner isn't picking his nose and then saying "I got it!" in public as much anymore.
That my husband got a haircut. He looks dreamy.
That I didn't weigh quite as much today, and that I didn't see anyone I knew at the bookstore, 'cause I was lookin' rough.

Amateur Child Psychologists in Training

2009-09-08T19:43:00.000-07:00

Ever since Tanner was terror stricken with the larger than life mouth and teeth model at the Children's Museum he has been generally fearful about all sorts of things. He is now afraid of slides, gummy worms, Santa Clause (he's always been afraid of Santa Clause, who isn't? But he just started reacting dramatically again about him since the teeth) shadows on the wall, and oreos. I offered him an oreo yesterday and he burst into tears saying "NO! Not an oreo, a bug. All done! All done! Put it back!" This was very painful to me for two reasons. 1. I already felt guilty for offering the kid junk food to begin with. 2. I scared my son with junk food that I shouldn't have offered him anyway, and I must be pretty low down on the parent scale to cause my son trauma trying to feed him something that turns his poo black, causes cavities for sure,and may even cause cancer. BOOOOOO to you Mommy.
Well, so here comes the psychology part. We decided to desensitize him to slides. Slides are an essential skill for small children since most playgrounds include them, and we don't want him to be the kid that is crying at the playground because he his scared of slides. We want him to have friends and fun and be confident. I especially want my kids to be confident because I know both how miserable not having self confidence can be and how wonderful having that self confidence can be. We took him to a different playground today and yesterday. Both Russell and I demonstrated the slide, then we took him with us, and then we had him try it himself. It was wonderful to see his little face go from terror to pleasure as he realized slides were still his friends, and that "He did it!" all by himself.

Gratitudes:
I am so grateful that. . .
Tomorrow is another day, and I can do better.
That I saw the person I had to call at the store, and I didn't have to agonize about the best time to call.
My husband is so patient. How did I find such a perfect temperment match to my intensity?
I have two amazing sons who are adorable both outside and in.
That the other night Tanner said "Goodnight sweetheart mom."
That I am signed up to receive pottery barn catalogs, and Russell couldn't say anything because it was his work friend's wife who signed me up :).

A Night of Introspection

2009-09-08T10:06:00.000-07:00

Last night I read my cousin's wife's blog about their little girl's death, and a mother's grief, and her testimony. She has made it public as part of her healing process, and in the process I am certain she will help others heal as well. I cried with her until I fell asleep, and then I woke up at 3:00am and cried with her some more as I waited for little Jason to wake up hungry. I kept thinking: Am I doing all I can to keep my children's family strong? If I lost a child would my testimony be strong enough to survive in the face of such pain? What can I do to help other people who are mourning? Why am I so blessed?
Her blog is http://haileyshalo.blogspot.com and if you would like to join her facebook page or contribute to the foundation to help families with children in the NICU visit http://www.haileyshalo.com/.

Happy Quarter of a Year Jason!

2009-09-05T13:53:00.000-07:00

Jason turned three months old on September 3rd! What a great quarter it has been. I can't believe how much he has grown. We are really having fun being parents of two adorable boys. Last night we were putting Tanner to bed, and he asked us to lay Jason down next to him. Tanner put his arm around Jason, and then started tickling him Tanner Style, which is Tanner running his fingers over your arm like he's gently playing a piano or something. And Jason laughed! He chuckled in fact. It was precious. Then Tanner said "Wuv you Jason." Sometimes being a parent is pretty much heaven. We all wuv you Jason!

Son of a gun we had good fun on the bayou!

2009-09-04T21:20:00.001-07:00

The first day: Grandma Boyle, Russell, me and the boys all went to a hands on children's museum in downtown Monroe. It was pretty neat. Tanner was tired from the drive the night before, so I think that is why the mouth pictured below was so traumatic for him, or maybe he is just smart; Nothing good comes of being in a huge mouth. He went inside without realizing, and then Dad pointed out a tooth to him and it dawned on him where he was. He was terrified and wouldn't go near them for the rest of the time we were there, but he kept asking each one of us to "go to the teeth". I'm not sure how I feel about my toddler wanting to feed his Grandmother, Father, Mother and baby brother to the giant teeth. He talked about the teeth non-stop for the rest of the day, and he's talked about the teeth every day since then. Poor kid! I can see how it is disturbing to him. ;)

There was a really cool eel in the saltwater tank. You can't tell in the picture but he was really big, and he reacted to your every move which was kind of scary, but really cool.

Tanner made his first Tornado!

My pictures don't do the place justice. This is cute, but there was a little firehouse behind this dalmation complete with a bar to slide down and a lookout loft with a telescope.

I loved the color of the museum's building. It was a very bright purple!

For lunch Russell decided he wanted to treat everyone to a meal at Warehouse No.1 which is an amazing little restaurant on the river. We got to watch the bridge on the right raise up to let boats through, and then watch the train bridge on the left swing out wide. There was also a house boat with a pirate's flag, and a couple buildings on stilts. Lovely Louisiana scenery. But the best part of the whole day was the food at that place. I had a tilapia and mango wrap with southern boiled cabbage. Russell had a humongous crawfish po boy. Oh boy! Grandma Boyle played it safe with a chicken wrap, but I think she liked it. It was seriously the best food I have had in ,well, almost ever! The mango was almost as good as the ones I had in Puerto Rico, and nothing like what we have here, thank goodness. The tilapia, and crawfish were tender, perfectly cooked, perfectly seasoned, and everything was just so delicious. They had amazing jalapeno hush puppies too. Russell and I share a passion for seafood and cajun spices. YUMMY!

For the rest of the day we celebrated Uncle Ryan's B-day. It was fun to be at a grown up birthday party. Not that I don't enjoy toddler parties, but variety is nice. Happy Birthday Ryan!

Goodbye joe, me gotta go, me oh my oh. Me gotta go pole the pirogue down the bayou!

2009-09-04T20:06:00.001-07:00

We drove to Monroe, Louisiana last Thursday to visit Russell's family. I'll just say I was not as organized as I thought I was. Driving conservatively (as in no more than 5 miles over the speed limit) it is a 6.5 hour drive. It took us 8.5 hours to get to Russell's parent's house, and there was lots of crying. Hitting a drunk/stoned guy riding a wheelchair in Star City around 11pm that night was the shortest delay we had. Don't be disturbed; We barely tapped him. He and his wheelchair were unscathed. He had no clue we were even there much less that we hit him, but it was definitely scary for us. Anyway, The drive back was much better. I had a better idea of what I would need to do to make my boys happy, the 2.5 year old, the 3 month old and the 27 year old. Even with adding an hour to the route by going through Hot Springs to see my family it only took us 7 hours. The pictures below were my little photo shoot for the boys on the bayou. I realized I'm not in any pictures for this trip. Tanner, Jason, I am there! I am just on the other side of the camera, but I was having fun with you too!

Tanner was a challenge because he was always in motion and the light was low, but these shots of my little race car in a boy's body warm my heart. A picture of Tanner absolutely still wouldn't be the real Tanner anyway.

Look at that big mossy cypress in the background! There is nothing more eerily beautiful than a bayou at sunset or dusk, laden in spanish moss with big white egrets floating through it. I wish I had been able to take a picture of the huge egret that flapped slowly through the bayou right as we were walking toward the door.

Tanner and Jason were still in their church outfits, and Russell obvioualy wasn't. That's because Mom controls what the babies wear, but not what Russell wears. :)

Jason's Blankie

2009-08-24T20:57:00.000-07:00

Jason is 2months and 2weeks old and he already has a blankie that he loves. It is green satin on one side, and green furry stuff on the other. I thought it was just the material, but the other day I tried to substitute a similar blue blanket that Tanner liked, and he didn't want it. If he is fussy or restless I just give him his green blankie, and he almost always calms down. I don't let him sleep with it at night, but sometimes during the day it is the only thing that helps him to sleep. Today he was getting really hungry, but I wanted to finish dinner before I fed him. I gave him his blankie and he balled it up in his little fists, stuck his legs straight out and sucked on it furiously until I was ready.

Mommy, go to the corner!

2009-08-24T20:37:00.000-07:00

Our discipline for Tanner for almost everything is to go to the corner and count to 10. It works like a charm. He counts to 10 in his cute little Toddler voice, and is happy in 10 seconds. If there is no corner, just counting to 10 does the trick for him. Today I raised my voice at Tanner when he didn't deserve it. He wasn't doing anything dangerous or naughty. He was just annoying me with begging/whining, and I had had it. He had just been in the corner as punishment for whining, and he was actually not whining when I raised my voice, and it wasn't fair or just of me. He knew it wasn't just, and he looked at me and said, "Mommy, be nice to Tanner! Mommy, go to the corner." He was right and my husband and I knew it, so I went to the corner and counted to 10. Wow! When they said counting to 10 helps you to calm down, they were so right. I was in a bad mood and by the time I reached 10 I was laughing and in a great mood. Sometimes Mommies need time outs too. It is so cool that Tanner knows what is appropriate and what is go-to-the-corner behaviour even for Mommy. It's not so cool that I deserved it, but I think it was a great ending to a bad beginning.

Great Kid's Books

2009-08-23T21:03:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was picking out a book for a gift at a birthday party, and a lady who had been an elementary teacher for many years shared with me all her favorite picks and told me why they were great for little kids. I had so much fun listening to her advice that I thought I would give, and ask for some more! I'm always looking for new books for Tanner. Books that aren't about construction trucks, or automobiles etc. We have plenty of those. You can make those educational, and I guess it is pretty cool that Tanner knows the difference between an excavator and a backhoe loader, but I get tired of vehicle books. I look for books that teach Tanner, and now Jason, about shapes, colors, words, and even more importantly, how to make sense of, enjoy and be good to the world and all the people and things in it. If you have any suggestions please share! Here is a brief review of four of my favorites:

The first two, Go Dog Go and Happy Baby Colors are books that we have read to Tanner since he was just a few months old, and he still loves them two years later.

Go Dog Go is fun and Brightly illustrated. It teaches colors, location words (in, out, up, down, under),and simple comparisons (big, small). The book also teaches activity words: skiing, skating, working, playing. This was my husband's favorite book when he was growing up. A true classic! It is also one of the books that my teacher friend recommended. I was proud to tell her that I had read this book to my son since he was itty bitty.

Happy Baby Colors is full of bright and pretty objects (photographed not illustrated). I think it is good to have some books with real images instead of illustrated. Obviously it teaches colors, but it also provides images of other real happy babies. One baby per color. There are also 4 pictures of things that are orange, purple etc. and their names. Tanner knows what an eggplant and a beet are only because of the purple page in this book. Tanner still asks for this book, and is so proud of himself that he can name every object and their color.

The Miss Spider Books: I love these books because of their gorgeously brilliant and almost 3D illustration, and because of the emotional and social lessons they teach. Tanner knows that Shimmer is sad in Bug a Boo Day because her friends left her all alone and weren't "good helpers". The social lessons may be too advanced for children younger than 18months, but maybe not, and the pictures are colorful enough to keep very young kids interested. You may have to shorten the read part of the story.

Last but not least "That's Good!, That's Bad!"! this is our current favorite. The story is really really fun, though parents beware, there is a slightly scary snake. I would suggest this book for ages 24 months and older. It is the only relatively long story that Tanner will follow completely from beginning to end. He picked it out himself at the bookstore, well, he picked it out from the 10 books I picked for him. Otherwise we would have ended up with another Transformer or Vehicle book. The book teaches sequence of events, judgement words (good, bad) opposites (good, bad). And I love the ending; Tanner gives me a big hug and kiss everytime. I won't give too much away, because even I was excited to see how it ended the first time I read it.

Sick Kids and Moles

2009-08-20T13:04:00.000-07:00

My poor babies both have colds. Tanner is getting over his, and Jason just started to get really congested last night. I wish I knew how to balance their needs perfectly so that each one felt totally comforted and loved and important. I read a magazine article recently that helped me not be so freaked out about having two kids, and only being able to be one person. The article talked about how hard it really is to screw up your kids. The author thinks there are way too many parents burdened with guilt constantly that they can't be the perfect parent and ensure their kids a perfect childhood and headstart into responsible and happy adulthood. (Keep talking I thought, that's me) The author said "Stop it!" Good enough parenting is not a myth, nor unattainable, it is (according to this author) what 99% of parents who care enough to read a parenting magazine are doing. So stop worrying you! (me) and have fun and your kids will have fun too. I'm going to focus on making as many happy memories as I can, so next week I'm taking Tanner to JumpZone, and if Jason doesn't like it or feel totally secure in that atmosphere it will be okay. Jason won't be scarred by the experience (right?). And Tanner will hopefully feel like he has his Mom Buddy (Muddy?) back for an hour or two. At the moment there aren't too many activities that I can think of that they both enjoy.

About the moles: I went to the dermatoligist this morning and I guess I have 3 questionable moles. :( He looked at me and said. Hmm blonde hair, blue eyes, used to be a lifeguard outdoors. You are cancer just waiting to happen. So he dug some holes in me and I got my first visible stitches ever. I've had staples and butterfly bandages, but seeing these black pokey things coming out of my body is a different experience. It had to be done. I want to know my grandchildren.

Connected

2009-08-19T13:18:00.000-07:00

My cousin's little girl died last week. She was three years old. I have only met her a couple of times, but I kept up with their family through their blog almost since she was born. I don't want to talk too much about it, especially if those closer to her than me read my blog. I just want to say that as little as my life probably touched hers, she has changed my life. I find myself holding on a little longer each time I have one of my little boys in my arms. My desire to be a good mother, a good wife, a good sister, a good friend, and a good neighbor are increased. This little girl inspires me to pray, inspires me to love all the human family more, inspires me to stay connected, and to be kind to those who may not be kind to me. Wow, if I could just inspire someone to do a portion of that! This little girl and her family have been through so much. I know God has blessed them, and I believe that he must have unimaginable blessings still in store. Each life is so connected to so many others. Thank you Hailey for helping me to treasure what is most important.

Cooking with Tanner

2009-08-14T21:41:00.000-07:00

Ever since Grandma Boyle made pancakes with Tanner and Tyler, and since Russell bought him a step stool Tanner wants to help me with everything in the kitchen. I love it. For me it is killing two birds with one stone. It may take longer to make things or clean up with Tanner's "help", but I don't have to feel that I am neglecting him to take care of the house, or visa versa. He is a joy to share a kitchen with. Who wouldn't enjoy doing the chores with someone who runs into the kitchen brimming with excitement about dirty dishes and saying "help mommy!" "help mommy! It makes it more fun for me too.

No More Dora the Explorer for Tanner

2009-08-14T20:40:00.001-07:00

Tonight we tried to get Tanner to sleep in his big boy bed. He sleeps there for his naps and he was all for it, but he wanted Mom and Dad both on the bed with him. So we decided to humor him for a few minutes. We played and tickled and had a great time. Oh, a little background: Tanner really loves to bring his hot wheel cars to bed. We limit the amount, and we would like to cut the habit out entirely because sometimes he lays on them in the night and wakes up crying with car imprints in his face or neck or wherever. So Dad grabs his hot wheel while we were playing and Tanner was distracted. He grabs it and says to me "I put his "coche" in my pocket!" Tanner turns to me and says "Dad put bumblebee (what Tanner calls that particular yellow hot rod) in the pocket". So, thanks a lot Dora for teaching our son Spanish. We no longer have a special code as parents. So what was the point of us both going on spanish speaking missions?

Oh, and Tanner chickened out and ended up sleeping in the crib. . . . again.

Tummy Time Champ

2009-08-14T20:24:00.000-07:00

Jason is very good at tummy time, and he has rolled over 3 times now. He is growing up way too fast. Today he is lifting up his little head like a pro, and tomorrow he'll probably be asking my advice on how to impress the girl babies. Stay little, little man.

Jason's blessing

2009-08-14T20:08:00.000-07:00

We were lucky to be able to have both grandparents here for Jason's baby blessing. Thank you so much, grandparents, for making the trip. I know it will mean alot to our kids that you were involved in their lives. And one day you will get a big "Thanks for being there!" from them too. Right now you will have to be content with their mom saying it for them.

It was so neat to think that we have two kids now! They are both such awesome little boys. Tanner and Jason you are your Mother and Father's most precious blessings!

How I Love That Smile!

2009-07-29T16:09:00.001-07:00

We Don't Really Make Tanner Sweep For Shoes

2009-07-29T15:51:00.000-07:00

So I was scanning through my recent blogs and realized that in one called "The Free Ride is Over" I jokingly said that we were making Tanner work for money for shoes, and then in "Small Victories" I said that we were at a shoe store buying shoes. Just to clarify: Tanner does not have to earn money for shoes, he was just playing with the big broom, and doing a good job by accident, or because he is a yard work savant, not because we were forcing him to earn money for clothing at the tender age of 2 and 4 months. I have no problem with him earning money, but I think if we made the reward shoes we would discourage him from being a good helper. He works for gummy worms right now, and later when he wants money we will change his pay!

Small Victories

2009-07-29T13:15:00.000-07:00

The picture above was actually taken a few weeks ago. It is Tanner sleeping in his big boy bed because he asked to sleep there! I was so excited that the transition was going to be that easy. Well, it wasn't. He slept only an hour and then he was wandering around, and he didn't want to sleep in there again until (drum roll please) TODAY! He is taking a nap and he has already been asleep for 2 hours! Could the transition be this easy! I can only hope and pray. The title of this post is somewhat misleading, I mean small for some, but for me today has been full of these huge victories. Yesterday after a disastrous visit to a house where Jason exploded from both ends and Tanner almost knocked a girl senseless with a stick, I thought I was going to have to have some counseling for anxiety or something, but today I woke up happy! I woke up happy and my kids were happy, and I LOVE TODAY. Another victory was when Tanner asked me if I could read the "Transformer book letters" to him. He gets it! You read the letters! I've never told him that that way. He figured out that we read the letters! Could teaching him to read be this easy :)! He knows his letter sounds, so next week if he spontaneously starts reading I'll blog about it. I promise. And this morning at the shoe store I somehow chose the right words to convince him that he would rather have the timberland sandals than the atrociously ugly Transformer sneakers that he picked out. I told him the sandals were "fast shoes". Anyone who knows my son's obsession with Transformers will realize how amazing that vicotry was. Before you decide I'm a horrible mom, I did not let him see the movie. He has been obsessed with robots since Dad told him that the heaters in the attic were robots, and then showed him some old 80's Transformer cartoons on Youtube. Not what I would have done, but he really is a good Dad, really. Back to the shoes, Tanner didn't just take me at my word that they were fast shoes he had to try them out and took off full speed in them around the store leaving me to choose between lugging Jason's car seat or leaving Jason to have a chance of catching Tanner before he left the building. There were only a couple of mom's in the store, so I left Jason and caught Tanner. I scared Tanner by grabbing him and being stern, so he started screaming. A concerned Mom kept peeking at me probably to see if she should call child services. Anyway, we got the sandals.

As I was writing this (I kid you not) I heard a thud, and Tanner started crying. He fell out of his big boy bed. Yes he really did. However, I raced up the stairs lightening quick and he was calmly lying in a tangle of blankets and saying "Tanner crash on the floor." He doesn't seem upset at all, so maybe there is hope. Please let there be hope. I can't wait much longer to have our bedroom back to ourselves. And if he starts sleeping in his big boy bed maybe I'll have the courage to really focus on toilet training. I hear funeral music in my head when I say those two words. Wish me luck!

Such a Good Brother

2009-07-18T15:19:00.000-07:00

Tanner is already really protective of Jason. He got really upset yesterday because Jason was crying and I was trying to feed him which was not what he wanted so he cried harder, and Tanner said "Mommy Stop!" and then he burst into tears too. Tanner shares his toys with Jason and shows him "cool rocks". The other day we took separate cars somewhere, and for the ride home we took Jason out of the Truck and put him in the car and kept Tanner in the truck, and Tanner was so sad. He kept asking where Jason was, and finally came to the conclusion that Jason was going to the doctor with Dad, and that was okay 'cause he would "be back soon." Jason wasn't going to the doctor, but that idea seemed comforting, so I didn't argue. Cute boy!

Bandaid Nose

2009-07-18T15:10:00.000-07:00

Tanner bumped his nose, and wanted a bandaid for his ouchie. Makes perfect sense to me. Of course ever since we got Transformer bandaids it seems like more and more ouchies need the extra protection of Optimus Prime and the gang. Actually he doesn't even use the excuse of an ouchie to ask for Transformer bandaids these days.

Cousin Soup

2009-07-18T14:45:00.001-07:00

Just add two cousin's. Water and toys, and black stuff from the exhaust pipe are optional, but a sure fire way to get a crazy mess. Aunt Suzie, Tyler and Bailee came for a visit and Tanner and Tyler were such a cute little pair of loonies. They ran around chasing each other or just ran around to fall down on purpose for much of the visit. We are sad that we don't live closer to Tanner and Jason's cousins or any family for that matter.

The Tail End of Some First Smiles

2009-07-18T14:28:00.002-07:00

I almost captured some of Jason's smiles! He is smiling alot. He didn't smile at me for a couple days after I got my hair highlighted. Today My hair has been wet almost all day, and he smiles at me all the time. I guess he likes brunettes. He is so cute. I remember one day I was at Sam's when Tanner was about 5 months old and I guess I was staring and talking to him the whole time as I walked the aisles. One of the people who worked there stopped me to take a peek of the little guy. The lady asked me if he was my first, and I said yes. She said "Well you are obviously obsessed, but I guess that's okay since he is your first." I am already the same way with Jason, so I think I just fall madly in love with my little babies. They are such an amazing gift. I waited so long for them, and was so afraid I would never have them and now here they are and they are perfectly perfect. Who wants to look at where you are going in a wholesale store anyway?

The Free Ride is Over

2009-07-18T14:16:00.000-07:00

We are making Tanner sweep the sidewalks to earn money for shoes. Now that he can walk and communicate somewhat we thought he should get a job. As you can see from the picture on the grass if sweeping doesn't work out he has a future as a male model. What a little poser! ;) I've noticed as I go through pictures that I don't bother to put shoes on Tanner as often as I should. That's my hillbilly upbringing coming out I'm sure! :)

Little Angel Photo Shoot

2009-07-18T14:08:00.001-07:00

We have a beautiful professional photo of Tanner the day after he was born. He is all in white and it is heavenly. I wanted a picture of Jason all in white as a newborn so I could hang them up together. Jason is a couple weeks older, and these aren't professional but he looks like a little piece of heaven to me. I think they will work for what I wanted to do.

Hair Wars

2009-07-18T13:55:00.000-07:00

I noticed after my blog about Jason's post-bath hair that he did not have a monopoly on gravity defying hair styles. Tanner's post-nap hair is quite spunky as well! Let's have a vote! Which one of my boys has the craziest hair!