The Widerberg Family

Christmas

2012-01-04T00:13:00.000-08:00

Officer Drew

Officer Drew enjoying tea parties with his sister

Doesn't Ella look thrilled about her adorable new outfit?

But only a little excited about her new Barbie car

I love that all of this year's Christmas pictures showcase my son's battered face

His black eye from when his dad accidentally kicked him from behind walking up the stairs

And here are his two front teeth that got knocked backward while playing with his cousins

And yes, they will look like this til the day they fall out. Oh well!

We had a great Christmas!

We did things a little different this year and plan to keep the new traditions up every year. We opened gifts after the kids woke up of course; Santa brought toys for them but as for our little family we each made 1 homemade gift for every person. It was perfect and so fun to get Drew and Ella involved and enjoying the giving part of it all. Then we made breakfast and relaxed while the kids played all morning (until church anyway). We had dinner with Andy's family that night as we did on Christmas Eve. We're so lucky to have our little munchkins to spend this day with! They make this holiday so much fun.

Birthdays!

2011-12-03T22:25:00.000-08:00

Batman turned four...

And my little princess turned two...

We're so lucky to have these two little ones in our lives.

Costumed Cuties

2011-11-07T09:59:00.000-08:00

Here are the kids in their Halloween costumes!

Halloween night we had dinner at my cousin's house and trick or treated with them and their son Ruger. I forgot my camera so I had to dress them back up and snap a few pics a couple days after Halloween. I did the exact same thing last year... I guess my mind is completely gone. I blame these two cuties:

The first pic was from Boo at the Zoo before we got the Little Red Riding Hood outfit (made by my amazingly talented friend Akaela) so we used her Snow White dress up clothes instead. I really enjoyed watching these two enjoy the holiday. They are so much fun!

Preschool Days

2011-09-09T14:45:00.000-07:00

Here's the big man at his new preschool - it's in someone's house and she lives right up the street from us so we get to walk there.

The first day of school I pushed Ella in the stroller and Drew walked. We met some classmates while we waited for the door to open and then off Drew went after a kiss and hug from Mom. He wasn't afraid or nervous at all and was excited to go.

We turned to leave and Ella was whining, but it was a sad whine rather than an annoying one. When we got home she wouldn't get out of her stroller so I brought the whole stroller inside and she just sat there with a sad face so I got down to talk to her and she just said "Bubba" over and over trying to figure out why we left him.

When we picked Drew up he said he'd had a great time. He said he used paint to make a hand print on his school bag that the teacher gave them, that they had a snack and that he played with a big buzz lightyear toy during free time the first few minutes. He also told me though, that the teacher was mean because she told him not to sit on the couch. I asked if his teacher said "please get off the couch" nicely, or if she said "get off the couch!" in a mean way. He said it was the second scenario but I highly doubt that. I told him to tell me if she's ever mean to him. Now I'm a little concerned about what he tells his Sunbeam teachers at church about ME!

The second day went just as well for him but was just as hard for Ella. I guess I should have prepped her as much as I had prepped him about him going to preschool! He made a little girlfriend named Ella and told me that another girl left the light on in the bathroom and he reminded her to turn it off lol.

I'm glad my kids are so close - I hope it stays that way forever.

Baja Mexico anniversary cruise

2011-08-07T23:10:00.000-07:00

Leaving California:
Dinner in the restaurant:

The family we met at our dinner table:
Me & Heidi laying out, listening to the live music and playing cards
Ensenada:
At the beach:
The blowhole:
Shopping:
Free drinks:
Comedy Club:
Saying goodbye:

There's a lot I didn't get pictures of but we had a blast... we spent a LOT of time eating, went to a hilarious "newlywed" game show and a bunch of great comedy shows. I gambled for the first time and lost $20 playing horribly at blackjack. Heidi and I tried to participate in everything including the conga line and dancing on stage!

I'll never forget the hilarious steward on the plane ride there that Heidi almost ran away with, me asking her for her playing cards so Andy and I could play then realizing she thought I was asking her to change seats to come play with me, Andy and I being serenaded for our anniversary and having our faces pushed together to make us kiss, making friends with Fran and her family, seeing Heidi and Troy really stress out about the pushy salespeople and a really funny thing Andy said about the ship that I'm not allowed to share.

We also got the kids these cute wrestling capes with masks; Drew's has Superman on the back and we had to search for one where Superman didn't have long girl hair or crazy eyes. Ella's is a little creepy since instead of a mask it has a princess face with the eyes cut out. We missed the kids but it was wonderful getting away for once. Thanks to Andy's parents for babysitting!

What a great way to celebrate 10 years of marriage! Love you hun.

Going back to school!

2011-07-14T07:56:00.001-07:00

Andy finished his last pre-requisite a couple months ago and since the Physical Therapy Assisting program is first come first serve, it got filled up fast and Andy got put on the wait list. We have been waiting/hoping for someone to drop out so he could go this Fall because otherwise we would have to wait a whole year for him to start. Keep in mind we sold our house (and dog) and moved to our apartment in order for him to be able to quit his job and go to school full time just in case he got in this year. Well folks, I'm happy to tell you that he got in this morning and will start in the Fall. We will continue working at the apartment complex in exchange for our rent which has already saved us a bundle. The waiting has been a big fat test of faith for us! Things happen for a reason people. I'll try to keep that in mind next time something doesn't happen according my timeline! Congrats Andy! You rock :D

Family Pictures

2011-07-11T21:41:00.001-07:00

We took these at the Great Salt Lake - it was hot and there were a million brine shrimp but it was worth it. I love them! Even though Ella refused to smile after the first 5 minutes we still got some cute shots. These are some of my favorites:

Love my kids.

2011-06-27T22:35:00.000-07:00

Drew is such a stud. He's on his first soccer team and Andy is his coach! He scored with the ladies more than with goals today. It was a just a clinic, not a game, and he spent the whole time holding hands with and sticking like glue to the only two girls on the team, Emily and Meliah. It was adorable but also gave me a glimpse of the future when he's going to replace me with another woman!! Sad! He's growing fast! He'll attend preschool in the Fall! He already knows all his letters and their sounds and we're now working on writing them all. He's very sweet and is turning into his dad... he even has the same strange finger twitch as Andy lol! He tells the funniest stories and is never stingy with his "I Love You"s.

And here is Ella sleeping in the same exact position she does every time she falls asleep:She's so good at listening and understands just about everything I say to her. She says "uh-hu" or "nuh-uh" and nods yes or no when I ask her if she wants certain things (like foods) and that makes my life a lot easier!

She loves to point at people and things and she says about ten or so words and makes the funniest animal sounds. Usually you could swear she's going to the bathroom when she makes most animal noises like horse, sheep, tiger, etc!

She hears me teaching Drew his letters and thier sounds so she can now tell us what the A, H, and P say. So cute.

The two of them are best buds (he calls her sweet-heart and a princess) and she's going to be one tough cookie because she puts up with a lot from him.

As for Andy and I, we are going on a cruise to Baja Mexico for our 10-year anniversary in a couple weeks! Without the kids!!! Thanks to Andy's parents! Can't wait.

I recently went to San Diego to visit my best friend Debs and we had a blast. Her husband flew me out there to surprise her for her birthday! We ate at the gaslamp, went to the San Diego Zoo, and stayed up at night talking, eating ice cream and watching movies.

Andy and I like it here in our apartments and have made some great friends. My job is still going really well and Andy is still hoping for someone to drop out of the Physical Therapy Assisting program so he can go this Fall!

We're getting family pictures done this week at the Salt Flats and we're also running in a 5K together next month so get ready for at least a couple posts in July :-)

Our New Apart-a-ment

2011-03-18T13:09:00.001-07:00

We like the place so far and the Assistant Manager job is going well too - the commute is the best part since it's next door. The kids love rolling around on the carpet for a change instead of wood floors and we're enjoying having a second bathroom - yay! The noises from upstairs scared Drew at first but he's okay with them now.

We're in a branch instead of a ward now so our church is pretty small and Drew's entire Primary consists of under 10 kids! They combine them all for classes and once they turn 8 you have to move to the ward. I've been able to attend my classes for a change now that I'm out of Primary and that's been awesome - minus having one distracting baby girl with me who will finally go to Nursery in just over a month.

Drew always tells people that "our new 'apart-a-ment' doesn't have a yard... but it has a pool" :) We can't wait to use it in April but at least we've been able to enjoy the hot-tub and I'm dying to reserve the clubhouse for our next get together!

$0.16 Icecream!

2011-02-03T19:47:00.000-08:00

I haven't been couponing much lately but when I saw a deal for 16 cent ice cream here I couldn't pass it up. Since I was going to go to Rite Aid for the ice cream anyway, I also snagged this free dishwashing system here. Both deals were found on Money Saving Mom. I get emails from her for Walmart, Target and Rite Aid. I usually pass up the Rite Aid ones because I don't like getting "Up Rewards" which are just a store credit but sometimes it's worth it. I paid just over $18.00 for this stuff and got $17.00 worth of store credit to Rite Aid!!!

Happy Birthday Andy!

2011-01-24T21:14:00.000-08:00

Today was my wonderful hubby's 32nd birthday. We kept it pretty mellow; waffles in bed, matinee with the kids (Tangled) then out to dinner with great friends. I even gave in and watched "Chuck" since Andy likes it. Good thing it was after 10pm because he fell asleep within 10 minutes of it hahaha I love my husband!

Sniffling, sneezing, coughing, aching, stuffy head, fever...

2011-01-23T09:22:00.000-08:00

What being sick means to me...

Missing out on a playdate and girls night out.

But also missing out on having to make dinner and do chores.

Feeling nauseous and having no appetite for days.

But also seeing how flat my tummy can actually get.

Realizing I can't "call in sick".

But also realizing I can get as much help as I need from my family.

Paying $30 for Urgent Care and then another $15 for Antibiotics.

But also remembering I have a coupon for a "free-gift-with-office-visit"

Even if it is just hand sanatizer.

You see I used to actually enjoy getting sick because it meant staying home, watching T.V. and being pampered by my husband. Now that I have kids it's a different story. Staying home isn't quite the thrill-ride it used to be because it's no longer a "day off" and my husband, who used to be able to dote over me, is now a daddy to two little kids who need the attention more than I do.

So that's why I made the above list; to remind me of the little perks I do still get to enjoy when a sickness takes over my life for a week.

My 3-Year-Old's Colonoscopy

2011-01-22T07:00:00.000-08:00

I figure if you care to read this you won't mind the gross parts and this information may be helpful someone out there who's having the same issue so prepare yourself or turn away...

For the last 6 months or so we'd occassionally noticed a little blood in the toilet after Drew used it. The doc kept saying it was normal and not a big deal; probably a tear that was being re-opened every time.

One Sunday Drew was sick and had diarrhea so there was a ton of blood in the toilet and it freaked me out. I called a triage nurse and she said get to the ER. They ran tests and told us to follow up with the doc. We did that and he told us it was nothing... again. I finally asked to see a specialist to be sure.

The Pediatric GI said it was probably a polyp and they needed to remove it and biopsy it. That meant a Colonoscopy and since he's a kid the would have to put him under for it.

The day before the procedure we could only give him clear liquids, jello, popsicles and laxatives. He didn't mind any of it one bit - he was such a trooper! I kept waiting for him to say he was hungry but he never did!

For the procedure the next morning we went in at 6am and he was so brave. We'd been explaining it to him all week and he wasn't scared at all.

The nurse gave him his own doctor's hat, mask and gloves and let him choose which flavor gas he wanted. He chose rootbeer.

He drove this little toy car back to the room where they would do it and we couldn't go with him so we watched him drive down the hall with the doctor and nurse. He didn't even look back once! It was the cutest photo-op but I wasn't thinking about that at the moment. I was so sad to have missed it afterwards but I'll forever have that image in my head.

After it was over the doc came and talked with us and said that as soon as Drew came out of it, he immediately asked for his hat and started talking about Spiderman. Only one of us could go back right after and see him and they warned that he may be very upset coming out of it and to send the "stronger" person out of the two of us so of course Andy went back! But turns out Drew was just fine! Until he saw his dad anyway. For some reason that upset him and made him cry for just a bit.

Once I was allowed in he was happily eating a popsicle and drinking a slushie while he played with a Batman toy they'd let him borrow. Then out of nowhere he told me, "I want to cry". The nurse said that feeling was just a side effect. He never did end up crying.

They let us leave so we went and picked up Ella from Andy's parents and then bought Drew his own Batman toy since he loved the one at the hospital so much. He was fine the rest of the day! We were amazed.

The Pediatric GI doc said he's never removed a polyp and then found it to be cancerous in all his years. He also thought it looked just fine but we had to wait a few days to get the results. It was non-malignant. Phew! We're so thankful that it wasn't anything serious and that it's all over with.

Swimming Lessons

2011-01-21T07:31:00.000-08:00

Drew's taking swimming lessons and it's the cutest thing ever.

The first day we went it sucked because we went to the class for beginners and it was for babies. So lame. Andy got in with him and they sang a few songs and floated the kids around in the deep end. The end. Drew hated it and kept asking to go over to where the other kids were playing so we switched to the preschool aged class (also for beginners) and it's great!

Now he gets to get in without us since it's in the shallow part where he can touch bottom. His class does a fun game called "Alligator, Alligator" (Drew loves to be the alligator), they do "Supermans", "Monkey, Airplain, Soldier", take turns jumping into the pool, blowing bubbles and tons more. It's a blast.

***Edited to add(after latest lesson): This is the first thing Drew's done (besides going to Primary in church) where someone else is in charge of him besides us. It's been a challenge to watch from the sidelines when he's naughty and wanders off or doesn't listen to instructions. It's hard to know how much to jump in or let his teacher handle. Kind of stressful and makes me worry my kid is *that one* student that is out of control!

New Years Eve 2010

2011-01-20T12:00:00.000-08:00

Our friends Ben and Debs were visiting from Cali and Ben's family was having a party in Oakley. We were invited to join them for lunch so we drove 1.5 hours there and then our transmission died 10 minutes from where they were.

Ben and his brother left the party to come tow us. Once we got there Andy got online and priced tow trucks to get us home but it was hundreds of dollars so he called all over looking for a place to rent a car dolley from but no one was open OR close by.

Debs thought there may be a neighbor with a car dolley so she asked Ben's dad. Andy thought Debs was nuts and he was embarrassed that she would even ask such a question. Well guess what? Two houses down from him there was. After the boys dug it out of the snow the neighbor let us borrow it to drive back to SLC! Amazing!

Every man in Ben's family came outside to get the car onto the dolley. It was freezing. We felt terrible having crashed the party and put the whole family (all visiting from out of town) to work ON NEW YEARS EVE!

Here are those brave, sweet souls:

Luckily I had 2 perfect excuses for staying inside:

Then after dinner, Ben's dad freaking loaned us his truck and let us steal Ben and Debs away from their family. Our friends were nice enough to spend their New Years Eve towing us all the way back home to Salt Lake.

What amazing people. We are so lucky!

Lastly, Debs loves to take pictures and after she and I got one taken in front of the tree she thought it only natural that Ben and Andy stand in front of the tree for their picture lol

"Our heros" (said in unison by me and Debs):

Christmas 2010

2011-01-16T22:07:00.000-08:00

Man. Our kids made this Christmas so amazing.

Look at them in their matching PJs!

Andy and I opened our presents on Christmas Eve so we could make Christmas morning all about the kids.

Watching Drew enjoy all his presents was so fun. He also loved leaving cookies and milk for Santa and seeing the plate and glass empty in the morning.

Ella was yelling the whole time she opened her presents... we couldn't hand them to her fast enough!

They played with their toys for a bit then we went to Andy's parents' for brunch, then my Aunt and Uncle's to open more presents and have lunch, then to Andy's Grandma and Grandpa's for dinner! We were glad to spend time with everyone but exhausted by the end of the night!

Big help.

2011-01-05T13:38:00.001-08:00

Me: Can you please stay out of the bathroom for a sec so I can go potty?
Drew: Okay. Don't forget to wash your hands. And use soap.
Me: Okay
Drew: Also, use the towel.
Me: Okay
Drew: Call me when you're done.
Me: Alright.
Drew: And don't dip your bum in there.
Me: What!?
Drew: Don't dip your bum in there.
Me: Okay
Drew: Are you done?
Me: No.
Drew (to Kya, our dog): Mom said nope.

Snowball Fight!

2011-01-05T12:36:00.000-08:00

These red cheeks and snotty nose are the result of Drew's fun snow day with dad...

One of his favorite books is "Snowball Fight" by Jimmy Fallon so he kept repeating a part from it before throwing snowballs; "Fifteen snowballs coming at you, ATTACK!" lol

Dad's snow fort: Drew's first time boarding (thanks Uncle Eli for the board!)...

Good times. Especially the part at the end when he said he had to go and I had to hurry and rip him out of his boots, gloves, snow-suit and two pairs of pants.

Funny boy

2010-12-22T11:55:00.000-08:00

Me: It's going to be Chrismas this weekend Drew!
Drew: Why is it going to be Christmas?
Me: Because it's Jesus' birthday. That's what Christmas is.
Drew: Oh.
Me: And we're going to visit family and have fun and open presents under the Christmas tree...
Drew: And Jesus is going to get a gun and we're going to fight!
Me: No that's not what we do with Jesus.
Drew: Why that's not what we do?
Me: Because Jesus is an angel. We give him presents by being good and nice.
Drew: Oh.

Me: El-la!! (as she pulled on either the table lamp or Christmas tree lights)
Drew: I have an idea.
Me: What?
Drew: I can shoot Ella!

Drew: Mom can you hold me?
Me: No baby. What am I doing that I do every time you guys are done eating?
Drew: Cleaning.
Me: Yep.
Drew: Are you my cleaner?
Me: Yep.
Drew: My cleaner-messer.

Drew: You're my best friend. And Dad and Ella and Jake and Wyatt...

Out Of Town-ers

2010-12-09T07:24:00.000-08:00

I had to make a separate post to say a special thank you to our family members who came from out of town for Drew's birthday. My brother Eli flew in from New York and my cousin Heidi and her daughter Oakley drove here from Arizona. I was so glad to have them here and Drew loved spending time with them. So many fun memories :) We love you guys!!

Drew's 3rd Birthday

2010-12-06T18:24:00.000-08:00

Drew loves Spiderman right now so we got a spiderman pinata and Andy made a spiderweb on the ceiling out of streamers. When he woke up on his birthday and saw it all, this was his face:

He's a big fan

He kept pointing his new laser gun the wrong way :)
5 presents on him at once:
Later we made and played with play-doh
He cried when I squished up his snakes at the end

I hope this sweet hug made up for what he was about to do to Spiderman...

OUCH! Unfortunately the candy wouldn't come out until he broke open his stomach

We ate at "Chick-a-lay" that night since they have a play-land and even snuck in his little cake. Too bad he sneezed a mouth full of chicken on it as we were lighting the candles!

Two days later we celebrated with family and friends at a rec center.

Notice him wearing his shirt that he got on his birthday. He wore it all three days in a row along with his new Spiderman boots that light up!

Love this pic!

Not too many great shots at the pool... we were busy having fun!

Happy Birthday my little man I love you SO much!

Check my craft blog for all the decor including Andy's spiderweb masterpiece.

Thanks to everyone who made his birthday special for him!

Hot Target Coupon

2010-11-24T22:46:00.000-08:00

Target has coupons available on their website here and right now they have one under "apparel" for $10 off 3 women's sleepware items. You can print this coupon twice and do two separate transactions. I got all this stuff from the clearance rack (2 shirts, 2 tanks and 2 pj pants) for $6 and change! Sweet!!

Backtrack for a photo...

2010-11-19T18:57:00.000-08:00

I never got a good picture of my kids in their costumes so when Drew asked to play in his Buzz costume a little while after the holiday, I threw Ella's costume on and grabbed my camera. To get a picture of both kids looking and smiling was nearly impossible but here you have it.

California!

2010-11-15T22:00:00.000-08:00

It was a great trip - we got to do so much. We were there Sunday to Thursday and went to Disneyland twice and the beach once.

Drew LOVED it. All of it. Every minute.

The four of us got a bedroom all to ourselves with a bed and a fold out couch so Drew got the whole fold out bed and Ella was in a pack & play. It was daylight savings the day we left PLUS there's an hour time difference in California so it threw poor Ella 2 hours off and she woke up at 5am every day. She also kept all of us up at night. Punk.

The plane rides weren't terrible (4 all together because of lay-overs) but I don't really look forward to doing that ever again.

We had the best time in California and loved seeing Drew enjoy himself and hearing him talk about it all. Although we were exhausted by the end it was well worth it :)

Get ready for picture overload...

Andy's parents have a timeshare and let everyone stay in their condo... THANK YOU GUYS!

Debs and Ben took work off and showed us the sites... THANK YOU GUYS!

Airport:

Airplane:

Our family at Disneyland:

Carousel:

Buzz Lightyear ride:
Hot-tubbing:

Movies:

Cotton candy:

Churros:

Sully:

Cars:

Goofy:

Kisses:

Seeing the seals:

The beach:

(hahah his pants were so wet they were falling down)

A Year

2010-11-04T00:24:00.000-07:00

Baby girl is one!

That morning she opened gifts from mom and dad (and a build-a-bear Drew made her):

Later that day we had family over for cake and ice cream and she got even more gifts...

Look at her checking this doll out!

And how adorable is this?

We took off her birthday tutu and put her in her birthday suit:

She knew what to do as soon as she saw cake...

That's my girl!

This year Halloween fell on Sunday so everyone in Utah celebrated the night before - on Ella's birthday. So right after Ella's party we went to a Halloween party at our friends' house. We ate good food with good friends, went trick or treating, had a pinata and watched movies.

Thanks to everyone who made her birthday so great!!

We just love this girl so much.

Widerberg Halloween Party

2010-10-24T22:35:00.000-07:00

Andy's parents had everyone over for a Halloween Party tonight and we had lots of fun. The kids dressed up and we ate dinner, carved pumpkins, frosted Halloween cookies and hung out with family.

Here is our Fairy Princess with her two (count 'em TWO) ponytails: Here are all the pumpkins including the annual butterfly carving for Ashy by Andy the pumpkin artist:

Here's Drew after he switched into his cousin Wyatt's Iron Man costume (he's actually going as Buzz Lightyear this year):Say hello to next year's costume!

Thanks Arnie & Vickie, we had a blast!

Ella's Walking!

2010-10-23T23:13:00.000-07:00

Ella walked for the first time lastnight. Cutest thing ever. She was so happy with herself and Drew was so proud!

Little Miss

2010-10-21T21:46:00.000-07:00

Lots to tell... I was finally able to get her hair into the smallest ponytail known to man

And since I was on some kind of high from feeling like I really do in fact have a little girl, I painted her nails for the first time ever tonight!

Wait there's more! Here is my little lady standing up - she's a pro at it now:

She says "Dada" and actually knows what it means. Here's the proof:

And here she is doing her favorite pastime; dancing:

The Greatest Show On Earth

2010-09-25T10:22:00.000-07:00

Andy's sweet grandparents took the whole family to the Circus lastnight; all their kids, their grandkids, and their great grandkids (there were around 50 of us)!

This guy loved it... we got there early and went down on the floor for the pre-show and his mouth dropped open when the guys on stilts walked all around us and over us. Ladies were handing their kids to them for pictures - NO WAY would I do that! The kids got fake tattoos and clown noses which they loved!!

Drew helped himself to everyone else's popcorn, cotton candy and drinks. Sorry guys!

Ella squirmed in my lap the whole time. She must have been trying to immitate the circus people because she kept doing back bends. She was TIRED but such a trooper - it went from 7-10pm! We had a great time. Thank you Grandma and Grandpa Widerberg!!

Recent Happenings

2010-09-16T22:18:00.000-07:00

We're trying to move... we listed our house the other day and even put an offer on one but we're still looking for a live-in job or an apartment. But our house is looking so cute right now I don't want to leave anymore! Getting it "show-ready" and staging it is a lot of work so we've been busy. I can't believe we've been here almost 5 years! The other day Drew and I were talking about why we're looking at houses and I told him our house is too small. He informed me that our house is big... I guess it's all relative ;)

Baby girl:

-called Drew bu-buh

-puts one arm up and hula-dances to music

-climbs

-has a major attitude

-still has no hair

My boy:

-tells me and Andy "you're my best friend"

-tortures Ella

-counts to twenty

-says "can you hear me" before telling us something

-complimented my hair and shirt when I was mad at him

-I was mad because stepped in poop

-he stepped in poop because he got up from the potty to shut the door

UGH.

Permanant Marker

2010-09-03T13:32:00.000-07:00

Drew woke up before me and did some coloring. He "forgot paper" as he put it.

Here he is by his wall art:

Ella was pretty upset about what he did to the table:

And where did he get the permanant marker? Ask Andy about that one.

Lately...

2010-08-22T16:34:00.000-07:00

We've really enjoyed the 3 weeks Andy's had off from school! We've been able to do a bunch together. He starts back up this week with two classes, one of which is Physical Therapy 1010 so he'll get to see if this is something he's sure he'll enjoy! I've been working more on my craft blog and selling lots on Etsy and I love it!! I'd love to do it part-time instead of just when-I-have-time. Drew and Ella are such a riot and are keeping us incredibly entertained.

Drew's new phrase that he says millions of times a day is "cuz why".

We'll be driving home and out of no where he says "I'm not tired" or "I'm not tired anymore". That means he's tired. He gets the "anymore" part from times he's been crying and I've said "You're not going to get {this or that} if you're crying" and he'll stop and say "I'm not crying anymore".

Lastnight Andy offered to help me do the budget and if you know Andy you know he can't stay up past 9pm so I told him he was going to fall asleep if he tried and he said "I'm not tired" and we both started laughing cuz it sounded just like Drew.

He immitates me and Andy all the time. That's been quite an eye-opener :/

Ella loves to dance and clap to music or singing. She's such a happy, well behaved little thing.

I finally let her cry it out lastnight for the first time (I should clarify - this was when she woke up in the middle of the night - I already let her cry it out at bedtime and she does fine with that). I know it should have happened much sooner but I was too worried about Drew being woke up since they share a room. Anyway she cried for ten minutes, then stopped crying and started to yell (not an angry yell, just making noise), then stopped yelling and started to talk. She then fell back asleep before it had even been 15 minutes at which point I was going to go in and comfort her! Phew that was easy! And nobody woke up! (Thanks Katie for being my moral support through that one!)

Last, here's a sad picture of Ella's bite mark on her shoulder from Drew. He was just playing and "pretending" to bite her like Andy and I do to the kids all the time. Guess we'll put a stop to that!!

Kiddos

2010-08-03T12:48:00.000-07:00

I haven't been good at posting when my kids have done new/exciting/cute things so here's a catch up list of things I want to remember...

Ella:

Cut her first tooth on the bottom left
Is crawling on her hands and knees
Is walking (while holding onto stuff)
Can eat pretty much whatever now. In fact she even ate bird poop during our photo shoot

This is the view I see of her constantly. She climbs on me all day.

Drew:

Is potty trained
Loves "bein' Buzz" - it's the excuse he uses when he gets in trouble for climbing on stuff
Loves to bless the food & says the same exact prayer every time; "Father, thank you for the day & food. Name. Help bodies good. Jesus Christ, Amen."
Calls eyelashes "eye-flashes"

"I want to help you make dinner Mommy"

I remember working on this with Drew a ton and walking behind him in case he fell. One day I just saw Ella doing it out of nowhere and it made me realize how much I miss out on now that I have two kids to divide my attention between! It's not that she picked it up faster than him but I just missed a lot of the attempts that I was able to focus so much on with #1. How cute is she?

July '10 Family Pics

2010-08-02T14:32:00.000-07:00

Now I have two bald kids :/

2010-08-01T14:43:00.000-07:00

9 Years

2010-07-27T11:21:00.001-07:00

So yesterday was our 9 year wedding anniversary (we went to Cheesecake Factory to celebrate - YUM!) and Andy tried to be nice and surprise me with a post about it. I have two separate blogger accounts; one for my craft blog and one for my family blog. The computer was logged into my craft blog when he posted it, then he realized what happened and didn't know the password to get into this one so he just deleted it and never said anything to me about it. Well I privately follow my craft blog (I did this because I'd never followed a blog before back when I first started it and wanted to see what following was all about) so it showed up in my reading list even though it had been deleted :) Isn't he sweet? :)

Happy Anniversary Andy♥♥♥

*Side note: Andy also had his Anatomy Lab final yesterday (YAY!) and has worked his butt off studying so I wanted to tell him how proud I am of him. He's not only had to get back into student-mode after 6 years (and with a full time job and 2 kids to boot) but he's been learning something completely different than what he studied for his bachelors degree in Sociology. He never even had to take Biology back then so this is all brand new to him! That's my man!!

The 4th

2010-07-11T22:29:00.001-07:00

Can I just say how much I love these kids? They make everything in life so much more fun! We did all kinds of fun stuff for the holiday. First we went to a REAL soccer game where they had fireworks afterwards and we actually got to go on the field to watch them! Drew was in heaven and Ella was even a little mesmerized by the show. We got to bed late late late.

The next morning we got up at the butt-crack of dawn and went to a parade a few blocks from our house.

Yes Drew is still wearing his jersey from the previous night.

I normally hate parades but I loved watching him live it up dancing and getting excited - he was so cute! Plus we went home with a whole truck-load of candy because everyone was throwing it to him :)

After that we went to a local park putting on tons of activities and let Drew play games and go on the bounce house, the big slide and the climbing wall. There was one activity for 3-5 year olds where they dropped a bunch of quarters in a pile of that hamster bedding stuff and had the kids look for them. We let Drew do it even though he's not quite 3 and soon realized why the age limit. The guy in charge next to him kept dropping quarters right in front of him so he'd find one and he never did lol. Here's a video of him "searching":

Motherhood

2010-07-04T22:57:00.000-07:00

I was really glad that I came across this and thought someone else might enjoy it as well.

Happy Father's Day!

2010-06-20T13:51:00.001-07:00

I took this at church today after I finished speaking in sacrament meeting. Poor Andy had to manage both kids while I spoke and had to take them out in the foyer where they eventually both fell asleep like this. Cute, right?

Target

2010-06-12T09:26:00.001-07:00

All this cost me NEGATIVE FIVE DOLLARS!

I'm sorry to be annoying and post about my couponing but this is really exciting for me! This stuff rang up to $50 but after using my stack of coupons I only paid $5 and will bet getting a $10 rebate - now I kinda feel like superwoman!

Now for the WHOLE story. It took a little more effort than that. Target has the best deals because you can pair their coupons with manufacturer's coupons but I tend to have bad experiences there. I swear that every time I go there if by a miracle they're not out of the item then the cashier forgets to scan something, won't accept it or just gets really confussed and has to get a manager while the people behind me in line give me dirty looks.

Trip #1: I tried to get all this but they didn't have most of it then they wouldn't accept the Scrubbing Bubbles coupons then they forgot to scan my Shout coupons AND they forgot to charge me for something. I went back to pay for the item but didn't want to deal with the other mistakes right then because I had two screaming kids with me, I needed to change Ella's wet pants and it was lunchtime/naptime.

Trip #2: I returned it all so I could go to another Target and start over.

Trip #3: This time I had Andy who took Drew while I shopped! They had everything but one item that I wanted and it didn't take long to find it all. After dealing with a somewhat clueless cashier and getting more dirty looks in the line I got my $50 worth of stuff for $20. I knew it wasn't right but again I wasn't in the mood to stay there and figure it out to fix it so we left.

Trip #4 Later that night Andy helped me figure out the mistakes on the reciept because I was too frustrated to do it alone. I went back and explained to customer service all the mistakes the cashier made (including overpaying me once again) and they gave me $15 back.

SO was it worth 4 trips and a very frustrating day? I honestly don't know. But I do know I'm glad it finally got all worked out. I'm thinking of making a sign to wear on my back that says "I have a lot of coupons" so nobody gets behind me in line next time I go to Target.

PHEW.

Ella's 8 Month Photo Shoot

2010-06-10T14:47:00.001-07:00

This one was my fave.

These were cute too

I had to come home and try to recreate the one pearl shot because there was a gap in the pearls at Sears. I forgot the headband though but she's still so cute!

Scooty McScootston

2010-05-31T11:48:00.000-07:00

Remember Scooter McScootsalot?

Well now it's Ella's turn.

What's funny is these videos were taken in the same spot only what was once the nursery is now our room. They're both 7 months old in these videos too :)

Zoo

2010-05-21T12:25:00.000-07:00

We got a pass to the zoo this year (if you're looking to get one ours is the couple's pass because my kids are free - it was only $60 for me and one guest). I've only gone twice so far but I'm so glad we got it because Drew LOVES it (especially the train) and it's nice for me too because I get to get out and do something fun with friends and even get a friend in free if they don't have a pass. Andy hasn't had the chance to come yet but we're hoping this weekend he will.

Here's the group of gals I went with the first time (notice Ella's borrowed hat AND borrowed stroller - I told you I'm losing my mind - just to clarify though... I thought our stroller was in the trunk)

And here's a picture of me and the kids the second time. HOW CUTE are these kids in their little hats that I remembered this time around!!!???

Picture-Fest

2010-05-13T21:46:00.000-07:00

Sorry that last post was a whine-fest. Thanks everyone for being so sweet :) I wanted to turn things around and post something fun plus I realized I haven't posted pics in about a month!! So here goes my picture-fest!

Clark Planetarium (FREE & fun for toddlers!)

Kids holding hands

Ella (always with the hands/fingers in her mouth)
Gorgeous smile

He always falls asleep like this - we think it's so cute

Check out that chub! Drew was always (and still is) such a skinny-mini it makes me really happy to see Ella's rolls

Ever since Drew saw his cousin Wyatt being brave at the Aquarium, he got right over his initial fears and now he loves it there. These are sting rays that he's reaching for! (BTW an adult's annual pass costs $18 and it's $9 to go once so if you're going to go, make sure you buy the pass!)

Drew and his buddy, Debs, at Clark Planetarium (this is who we have to thank for all of the pictures above btw)

This was at my good friends' baby blessing and I love the pic -

I don't know why but it reminds me a little of this...

Drew & his cousin Wyatt in their cool sunglasses

Mark your calendars folks - thanks to Andy's REAL jersey I got hit on. It happens once every 5 years so it's pretty special and needed to be mentioned. I was so excited (Wow. I'm awesome.) that I called him right away to tell him and his response was "Happy Mother's Day?"

I cooked! This also only happens once every 5 years so I wanted to share. It's easy, yummy fried rice and the recipe is at Sweet Little Smoothie. I recommend throwing ham chunks in there too.

The End.

The Ugly Truth

2010-05-12T11:59:00.001-07:00

I don't know what's wrong with me but I'm having a really hard time with two kids! I know I have it soooo so easy; there's only two and they're both easy babies, I have a husband who helps me more than I could dream of, there's nothing especially difficult to deal with - so I shouldn't complain... but still I feel so overwhelmed and stressed all the time. I constantly worry that I don't do enough to teach them, play with them or even feed them healthy enough for goodness sake! I'm tired of feeling guilty and I'm really tired of cleaning up poop and spit up non stop. I know I shouldn't compare myself, my kids or our family to anyone else but I do and I always end up thinking I'm doing it all wrong while other moms are super-moms! I don't know if I can handle any more babies... EVER! There. There's the ugly truth I just had to get off my chest. I am a crazy person.

Now...

On a totally random side note: I've told some of you about the guy who gave us REAL tickets for listening to him talk about fire safety... well we ended up buying a smoke alarm and a carbon monoxide detector from him and he said that if 3 stations are sold to our friends/family we can get another one for free and whoever we refer to listen to him gets a free gift certificate ($25ish - depending on where you choose to go) to whatever restaurant they want even if they don't buy a thing (DATE NIGHT!). So.... if you're interested give Darrell a call at 435-654-4186 or email him at mstrgrd4fire@msn.com and tell him Star and Andy sent you. It was an eye opener for us and I'm glad we heard him out and learned a little more about different smoke alarms. BTW even if you don't do this at least check your alarm to see the date and if it's more than 10 years old get a new one!

$1.89

2010-04-29T20:39:00.000-07:00

For this:

Total savings: $16.00

If you want to get in on any of this just email me and I'll tell you where to find the coupons! Besides taxes everything was FREE except the lotion - those were 0.49 each (regularly 3.49) :) :) :)

So worth it! Yay for coupons!

2010-04-28T20:25:00.000-07:00

I went grocery shopping today and it went so good! K, so I decided to try again to price match at Walmart because I have a couple friends who do it and they love it so I did and it was so easy this time! I also used coupons (that I just printed off the computer) and already managed to get 24 disposable razors for FREE (with a $0.06 overage, even!) and 2 Dove deodorants close to free (.47 each)!! Total I saved $16.00 in coupons alone and I don't even know how much I saved price matching but I know it was a good chunch of change. Another thing I learned... there's a memo at each register saying they don't need to see the ad to approve the price match. They just do what you say (within reason I'm sure) so that guy I got my first time didn't know what he was doing. As I was shopping I just wanted to tell everyone around me what good deals I was getting but I held it in because I knew I'd blog about it later! Why didn't I do this sooner?

I should be folding laundry right now...

2010-04-23T21:06:00.000-07:00

but instead I am on the computer because it's more fun. Andy's out camping because he's in the Young Men's presidency and I'm alone on a Friday night :( The kiddos are both sound asleep so I thought I'd blog about what I've been up to.

TONIGHT:

I'm the disciplinarian and try to limit TV, treats and staying up late, which is hard when I'm competing against the kids AND the husband! But since Andy was gone tonight I decided to play his role and just enjoy myself instead of being such a stickler.

1. Drew got a treat after dinner. Sounds harmless right? But the reason this wouldn't have happened any other day is because at dinner he threw his cup across the room (it was empty thank goodness) and I told him there would be no treat after that stunt. The normal me would NEVER *not* follow through like this but A) I really needed to be good cop just once! and B) I decided it was long enough after the incident that he wouldn't really remember or relate the two - maybe I'm justifying but whatever.

2. I didn't make the little guy shower or read tonight although he enjoys both - this was more for my sake since I also had Ella to take care of (usually we each take one kid for the bedtime routine).

3. My son and I watched a movie together on the laptop in my bed. I try to only use television when I need him to be occupied in order for me to get something done but tonight it was pure entertainment like it always is for him and his daddy.

4. Numbers 1 and 3 were combined and that was a big mistake since his treat was grape and frozen and my duvet cover is white. 'Nuff said.

5. Baby Boy stayed up til 9pm and his bedtime is 8pm.

It was totally worth it and I don't feel the least bit guilty. He was being so frigging cute while we watched! He kept hugging me and doing this new thing he does where he gets right in my face -like nose to nose- and talks to me as if it's totally normal. If I got up to do something he'd call to me to come back in and sit with him and watch. It was clear he was really happy mom was being so relaxed and it was a nice change for me too.

GROCERY SMARTS:

I'm doing a new thing that's totally NOT new at all but since I'm so out of touch it takes me a while to catch on to the latest trend - or what has been the latest trend for some time now. It's called Grocery Smarts and it's coupon clipping on steroids. When people would tell me about how they ordered multiple papers to clip coupons from I was like "no thanks" but then, just to be nice, I went to a "class" because my friend put one together and I wanted to support her. Turns out whenever I hear someone's presentation I decide I have to have/do whatever they're selling (which explains why when Andy "won" free REAL tickets from Coldstone and in order to get them, had to listen to someone talk about fire saftey, we ended up with a *quite expensive* state of the art smoke alarm and carbon monoxide detector! Seriously though if you want to hear this guy explain it let me know - you will end up buying one too and I still feel like it was worth it to keep my family safe since over half of all smoke alarms you get at the store fail to work in a real fire).

Anywho, this great website lists all the stores and their 4 and 5 star rated sales for the week along with coupons available to combine with the sales and therefor you get a screamin deal and stock up on those items when they're available. I'll be honest, my first attempt turned into 3 separate trips to the grocery store but I think I've got the hang of it now.

First I tried just straight price matching at Walmart (no coupons because I haven't recieved my Sunday papers yet) and that was a joke because A) Walmart already has lower prices than almost everyone else even though I was using sale prices and B) I didn't bring the ads because they told me on the phone I wouldn't have to. They lied.

Second I went to Smiths and used the sales & online coupons but everything I wanted was out of stock. Now I know to check what days the sales start and end.

Last, I went back to Walmart but this time I brought online coupons (which is all that's available with them because they don't have a weekly sales flyer so if I want to clip newspaper coupons I'd have to locate them all myself instead of Grocery Smarts just telling me where to find each one). That worked well except I had to print like a million coupons.

So I'm trying to decide if I should find another store to shop at using the info provided or do the work myself by finding coupons for the sale items at Walmart. Regardless of how it works out I'm so glad I went to the class because I learned this:

1. Instead of making a grocery list from your weekly meal plans you should make your weekly meal plans from the items that are currently on sale! Duh!

2. How to use this simple FREE website to find great deals even without coupons.

A DIRTY JOB:

I have been struggling lately (seriously getting really stressed out) with how much spit up and poop I have to clean every day. It's ridiculous. I change at least one blow-out a day (this includes diaper, clothes and a blanket or two) and go through 5 or more outfits between Ella and myself from all her spit up and I can't even count how many burp cloths and bibs. I plan to try out different diapers and check into acid reflux at her next doctor's appointment but for now I just need to vent - sorry.

GOING BACK TO WORK:

So with Andy going back to school we decided it would be nice if I could work since his classes are only offered in the daytime and he'll need nights to study and do homework so we thought a live-in job would be perfect because I could be home all day with the kids and still be getting paid and also not have to worry about a mortgage/rent while he's in school. SO if you know of anything like that let us know. We actually found an apartment manager job close to our home but Andy's leaning more toward a storage facility because some of those have *little* yards.

THAT'S ALL FOLKS! Thanks for reading through this post even though I'm sure no one actually made it to the end lol. I guess this is what happens when the only people I talk to all day and night are under 3 ;)

Oakley

2010-04-15T08:38:00.000-07:00

Oh how I've missed my Debs! She and Ben came to town so we took a trip to Ben's parents' house in Oakley to take Drew on the horses and go 4 wheeling. Debs took a million pictures of the kids (it was her first time meeting Ella) and Ben was Drew's BFF for the day!

Drew said no to getting on the horse once she was all ready to go but we put him up there anyway and he rode her like a champ while I held his hand. Most of the time he was pointing out other horses he saw even though he was on one :) We didn't get a pic of Drew on the horse because the poor thing is old and jumpy and we didn't want to freak her out while Drew was on her but she let us take some afterwards.

Here are some pics along with a video clip of Drew and Ben riding stick horses in the house:

Things That Make Me Smile

2010-04-09T21:44:00.000-07:00

Ella's so dang cute...

she's even got her brother wrapped around her finger

And no I didn't pose them like this, I just came out and saw them like this while Drew was watching cartoons :)

A few other things that have made me smile lately:

I caught Drew singing along to "Need You Now" the other day and I've only ever heard him do that with nursery rhyme type songs but not the radio - it was so cute. Not sure how I feel though about him singing a song that says "I'm a little drunk" hmmmm...
Ella is loud and talks a lot.
If I get frustrated and say "ugh" out loud, even if it's just to myself, Drew says "Its okay mama". I can count on it every time. He must've learned it from his dad. Along the same lines, if I get mad at him I hear "Sorry Mommy, sorry".
Ella rolls over like crazy, can sit up on the couch, is currently cutting her first tooth and is eating baby food now.
Andy is going back to school to become a Physical Therapist Assistant - yay!
I got a little award on my craft blog today :)
Sometimes I think I'm the luckiest person to have such great friends & family.

Easter

2010-04-05T18:31:00.000-07:00

How cute are these two?

Each kid looks for their own color eggs and USUALLY the little kids' eggs are easy for them to find.

I didn't mean to make us match!

The hunters, shortest to tallest:

Andy found Ella's for her :)

Happy Easter!!!

At the end of the night as we were leaving, Drew told his grandparents, "Thanks findin' eggs outside"

I feel bad because I didn't remember to color eggs with him and I didn't even think about going to the mall to let him meet the Easter Bunny and he would have loved that. Someone please remind me next year!

Firsts

2010-03-24T22:04:00.000-07:00

I came in the living room to find them like this... ADORABLE!

Okay I just want to jot down a couple things about the kids; Ella rolled over a couple days ago for the first time and tonight she had her first serving of rice cereal. She loves to play with toys now and likes to watch Drew. She laughs and smiles all the time and loves attention.

Drew is talking a lot now (I love this) and he's also going to bed without one of us having to be in his room (thanks to Andy). He had his first ear infection a week ago and from that we found out he's allergic to Amoxicillin. He's really into Barney now and is just such a sweet heart. He's so polite and well behaved most of the time, I really lucked out with this kid that he takes after his dad more than his mom!

My Two PUNKins

2010-02-28T17:52:00.000-08:00

My little drummer boy cracks me up. He wears his hat and gloves all day and night - yes, even while he sleeps, loves to be naked and runs around yelling "naked!" after his baths, and instead of saying "okay" he says "yes mama" when I ask him to do something (or stop doing something). He also thinks its funny to tease me with food and acts like he's putting it in my mouth then hurrys and puts it in his mouth and laughs. That's totally something Andy would do!

I adore these two kids (most of the time) and they are so dang cute together lately! Now that Ella's getting to be more fun they actually interact and it's so great to watch. She is so happy and loves to laugh. Often her laughing attacks happen when she has hiccups so it's really funny to hear. She's grasping for toys now and jabbering up a storm.

Ella has officially joined us at the table. We bought a booster seat for Drew and put her in his old high chair. I LOVE having our family together at the table although it makes for even tighter quarters than before (if that's possible) but it's worth it :)

Happy V-Day

2010-02-14T18:21:00.001-08:00

Andy and I had plans to go to dinner Saturday night for Valentines but I came down with something so we picked up take-out and a movie and stayed in instead. It's strange to think Andy proposed to me the night before Vday almost 9 years ago! I love you babe.

Drew and Ella made some Valentines and Drew got to use scissors and have a sucker while he colored on them. Watching him give them out was the cutest. He almost ate the sucker from one on the way to give it to his little girlfriend but Andy stopped him in time. I loved hearing him say "Happy Valen-times"!

Kid Update

2010-02-03T22:00:00.000-08:00

How cute is he holding his bear and his Elmo while he sleeps? Some nights we just want to go in and watch him sleep because he's so cute. And because he's not driving us crazy at that moment.

And when I look at this one I can see him saying "Cheese!" like he does every time the camera is out immediately followed by "I wanna see!"

Baby Girl in her photo shoot

And Baby Girl smiling at her Daddy
I just think it's so cute when we play in their room and she sits in her Bumbo watching. He always tells her "Watch this Ella" and tries to give her toys to hold

Here's what she's finally started to do lately:

I was getting worried! She's always smiley but hasn't laughed until recently. She's starting to get really fun :)

And Drew has been so independent lately wanting to do everything himself. He sneezed and Andy told him "Bless you" and he got mad and said "I do it!" and proceeded to say "Bless you" to himself :) He's usually really polite and sweet and tells me good job and gives me a high five when I fix something for him. He'll even tell me "It's okay Mommy" when I'm frustrated.

I love my kids.

My new craft blog, "A Load Of Craft"

2010-01-25T07:29:00.001-08:00

I decided to start a craft blog and post tutorials and links to tutorials on crafts I make. Go to http://www.aloadofcraft.blogspot.com/ to check it out and become a follower!

Happy Birthday Andy!

2010-01-25T06:43:00.000-08:00

Andy turned 31 yesterday, on January 24th. He was nice enough to share his special day with Ella's blessing day. We celebrated them both at Andy's parent's house after church with Andy's family and my aunt & uncle who live here. Here's some pictures of our family:

And one of Ella in her blessing dress:

And one of her by a picture of her cousin Ashtin who she had quite a resemblance to that day:

It was a nice day. We love you Andy! Thanks for being so wonderful.

I know - all I talk about is my kids. So sue me!

2010-01-06T16:38:00.001-08:00

So my little boy is pretty funny and I want to document some of the little quirky things he does so I don't forget.

When he's naughty and I give him a warning he lays his head on his shoulder and then if I have to walk towards him because he won't listen, he runs and hides. If the offense is something he's doing with an object and I ask for it, he throws it far away from me.
He loves to get on my bed and jump (only after it's all made with all the pillows set up nicely) even though he's not supposed to so I tell him "no jumping" and he smiles and says "monkeys".
He'll be singing or dancing or using the potty and I'll start to say "Wow Drew you are so good at..." and he'll tell me to stop. Same thing when we try to sing or dance.
If he's peeing in his potty he allows us to be there but if he's going #2 he shuts the door and gets mad if we open it. He likes his privacy.
He tries to get Ella to watch him when he's doing something he's proud of like coloring or playing tee-ball.
If we tell him that something he did hurt us he'll say sorry and kiss our owie.
If I'm holding Ella I'll sometimes use my toes to push buttons on the DVD player or pick up toys and he sees this and copies me. I think he thinks that's how you use the DVD player.
For some reason he loves to put socks on his hands and play baseball
I always ask him "Do you want me to hold you?" so lately he's been saying "hold you" when he wants me to pick him up
Instead of just saying yes he likes to say "yes I do". It sounds like "Essa-doo"
When Ella crys he tells her "Shh-shh-shh, it's okay Ella"

Baby girl is just doing her job of being a cute little 10 week old baby. She mostly just eats, sleeps and poops. She has, however, started to smile a ton at anyone who will smile at her or talk in a high pitched voice and is easily amused when she has a full tummy. Her favorite past-times are looking in the mirror and watching TV.

Christmas

2009-12-29T11:25:00.001-08:00

This Christmas was so fun. Now that it's over, I'm going to miss Drew looking out our window every single night to see our neighbors' blow-up Santa.

We spent Christmas Eve at Andy's parents' and had a nice dinner there. Christmas morning we opened presents with our family at home and then went back to Andy's parents' for breakfast. We then went to my aunt & uncle's house at noon to open presents and eat. We usually go to Andy's Grandma & Grandpa Widerberg's house Christmas night but we missed going this time because we all fell asleep :( I don't know if we can keep doing both families every year!

Here's Drew's 2-seater sled. We also got him a kiddie shovel so he can help clear the driveway when it snows, cute huh!?

Here's Drew with his new Elmo DVD.
Look at her cute little smiling face. I think she likes her new doll :)

Here's Drew showing Ella her new jacket. He got to open all her presents and show them to her.

Ella loves to look in the mirror so we got this for her basinet.

I saved the best for last. This chapstick was in his stocking and it was his favorite gift of all. He would carry it everywhere if we let him!

Growing family freaking me out

2009-12-22T19:49:00.001-08:00

Both my kids are growing so fast! Ella's 7 weeks and already smiling at us when we smile at her. I didn't expect that for at least another month. She's also outgrown all her newborn clothes :(

As for Mr. Drew well he is a big boy now and has been using his potty all on his own. We haven't been pushy about it at all so I was surprised when the other day he wanted to be alone in the bathroom with the door shut and came out afterwards telling me he went poo! Don't get me wrong he's not completely potty trained but I think it's a big step that he's initiating it.

We finally broke down and bought a double stroller for our growing family and even though it's enormous it's so nice to have. It's the "Sit & Stand" and I love it especially cuz it didn't cost a ton. I took both kids out shopping by myself today for the first time since she was born! How lame am I for taking this long!?

We also bought a baby carrier that straps on the front of you like a backpack but we're not sure if we'll keep it. Any thoughts from you other moms on those things? Will I use it enough to make it worth it? I have a sling that I use a lot for Ella so should I just stick with that instead?

Anyway it's just strange to be getting older and for my kids to be doing the same... I found out tonight that I still can't read "I'll Love You Forever" without breaking down just thinking of Drew leaving me one day when he's grown!! I'm such a dork.

Here's some recent pics of the little darlings (haha yeah right - Drew's a monster lately)

Breath-Holding Spells

2009-12-11T09:07:00.000-08:00

I'm hoping someone reading this has had experience with this and can give me some advice. Drew is having at least one a day lately and I'm getting concerned. I don't even know if it's really a "breath-holding spell" anyway or something different.

I'll start by saying it is completely involuntary even though the name implies he's holding his breath on purpose. He will start crying for whatever reason (hurt, mad, etc) and then exhale on another cry and not be able to take a breath. His face gets all blue and he nearly passes out then he finally breathes and is sleepy for a while after. He's done it since he was only months old and it seems like it's worse when he's tired.

After getting his shots one day as a baby the nurse saw him do it and told me that's what it was. I described it to the pediatrician and he agreed. They both acted like it was no biggie and told me to prepare myself for the day he passes out so I don't freak. I've researched online and found out that a lot of kids do pass out from it and even seizure but luckily he never has done either.

Today he did it 3 times all before 11am. Last night he had one while I was making dinner. He was standing in the kitchen crying and then he stopped breathing and he started to get weak and wobbly so he stumbled and bumped his head on the stove but I caught him before he fell to the tile floor. I try to tell him to sit or lay down when it happens (so that he won't fall and his his head) but he refuses - it's like his body is beyond his control and he can't stay still.

I hate that when I look it up a lot of people describe it as a choice he's making because I'm positive this is something different. Since it's not a behavioral issue, it's more like a reflex his body has, I can't ignore it in order to teach him to stop doing it and blowing in his face just makes it harder for him to catch his breath. I read that instead of picking him up and putting his head on my shoulder that I should hold him with his head tilted downwards to reestablish bloodflow to the brain so I'm hoping that will help. I haven't been able to try it yet because it's been happening while he's in his high chair. The pediatrician said that it's not dangerous and even if he's not doing it on purpose now, it could turn into that if I give it attention (pick him up) so I tried to ignore it at first but I refuse to do that anymore.

Happy 2nd Birthday Drew!

2009-12-03T14:30:00.000-08:00

First thing in the morning he opened presents from mom and dad. This picture made me laugh

Then we met with his little friends at a bounce house. All the pictures I took there look like I used a camera phone due to my crappy camera so I will just include this one of him and his dad going head first down the big slide. He had a blast there! (And so did Drew lol)

We came to our house afterwards for pizza, cake and ice cream. Here he is enjoying his cupcake.

Here are the cupcakes I slaved over all night and they still look like Drew decorated them. At least Drew knew who they were supposed to be! His favorite TV star Elmo

Here's all his bounce house buddies minus our only female guest Monae.

Later that night after going to McD's for dinner, we had family over and somehow managed to cram everyone into our little house

Drew loved all his gifts but Grandma & Grandpa's was his absolute fave. At one point when asked to let his cousin have a turn he refused to get off so his dad lifted him up but he managed to hold onto this thing in the air with his legs! It was hilarious

Happy birthday my little man! I love you to pieces!!!

2nd Photo shoot

2009-11-28T17:17:00.000-08:00

I took some more pictures of Ella since the tutu ones came out so good & I promise I tried to get some of my Drew too but he simply refused to sit still for me so I only got one good shot of him. But isn't the one that I got of him adorable!?

These last two were taken by Holly and Ev on Thanksgiving. We tried some naked shots and lets just say poo and Zebra print don't look so hot together so we only came out with a couple good ones.

Tutu Cute

2009-11-24T10:49:00.001-08:00

Loving Life

2009-11-07T14:04:00.000-08:00

Just had to say how smoothly things are going & how much we are loving this new chapter in our lives! We've been really lucky this past week to have such a healthy little baby. She's nursing and sleeping well and she hasn't even woke Drew up with her crying!! Not once!!! I've actually ventured out of the house a few times since we've had such amazing weather which is something I didn't do for months after having Drew.

Drew hasn't acted jealous at all so far. He holds Ella and gives her kisses and even trys to help push her in her swing (yikes!) so we think he likes her. He's taken up a new sport he calls "bolf" since Grandma Widerberg got him a golf club and he's actually pretty good!

Everyone has been so nice and helpful and concerned and we just love that we have such amazing people in our lives. Here are some pics of the kids this past week:

Our Daughter

2009-11-01T12:42:00.000-08:00

Ella Ashtin Widerberg

Born October 30th, 2009 @ 11:55pm

7 lbs 1 oz, 20" long

Burr

2009-10-16T16:00:00.000-07:00

First Alpine Slide Experience

2009-10-01T13:33:00.001-07:00

Andy's parents have a timeshare in Park City and they spend a week there every year. The whole family stayed overnight last weekend and Andy got to take Drew up the ski lift and down the slide for the first time because he lied and said Drew was 2 ;) He's close enough, right!?

Drew looking up at the lift while waiting in line

This was the scary part for me & Andy but I guess he was just falling asleep on the ride up

Picture courtesy of Holly's blog, thanks Hol! :)

My favorite part about the video is the fan club cheering in the background for Drew.

I didn't get many other pics to post on the blog but we mostly hung out at the pool & in the room eating snacks and playing games. That trip was the first time Drew has gone a whole day without a nap. It was a lot of fun and we get to go back Friday for another sleepover.

Babe Ruth

2009-09-17T11:51:00.000-07:00

It will break his dad's heart if he plays baseball instead of soccer but you just can't deny his mad skills when you see the video :)

Changes

2009-09-04T08:27:00.000-07:00

I get teary eyed when I hear the song, "It Won't Be Like This For Long" by Darius Rucker. It should be playing while you read this cuz it's first on my blog's playlist. It sums up how I feel right now which is that Drew is growing up too fast! He can understand just about everything I say (I constantly have to spell words to Andy if I don't want Drew to know what I'm saying), he can toss a ball in the air and hit it with his bat, he's transitioning to a big boy bed, he's down to one nap a day, he's peeing in his potty a few times a day, his stats from his doctor's appointment are actually high (ABOVE 50th percentile for a change!) and he's about to be a "big brother". It's crazy how our little family is growing.

Here are some pics of our new bedrooms since we swapped to give the kiddos more space:

Our Room

Ella's side of their room

Drew's side of their room

Middle of their room

*Notice Andy and I FINALLY got a bedding set :D Now I officially feel like an adult. Trust me I know it's pathetic that that's what made me feel like an adult as opposed to being a wife, pregnant, a mother, etc. But it's so cute, right!? I love all the pillows. Can't believe it took 8 years to get tho.

One more thing I have to add is this cute story: Andy and Drew don't like cherry tomatos but I love them so Andy would always pick them from our garden and bring them in to me to eat and this made me very happy. Drew would see this and so he now goes out back every single day while Andy is at work and picks one or two at a time and brings them in to me and smiles as he watches me get excited and eat them. Unfortunately he doesn't realize there's a big difference between the green ones and the red ones :) Nevertheless it makes me happy to see him taking after his sweet daddy already. Here's a pic I took when he brought me one just now as I wrote this:

Things I almost forgot about being pregnant...

2009-08-24T11:23:00.000-07:00

not to eat hot dogs, cookie dough & brownie batter
to talk to the baby
having vivid, crazy dreams
back pain
andy's fat jokes
playing the "i'm pregnant" card with andy
swollen fingers = can't wear wedding ring
my "outie" belly button
to take belly pics
being hot all summer
tossing & turning all night
sitting with andy while we feel her moving around like crazy
how hard it is to be patient until we can meet this baby

Buncha Stuff I Want To Make

2009-08-19T22:09:00.000-07:00

These are all super cute (and easy) tutorials I've found online and want to make...

Funky Bow-Holder Thingy
Toddler T-Shirt Gaucho Pants
Ruffle-Butt Onsie
Framed Fabric
Car Seat Cover
Old Sweater Brimmed Beanie
Hair Bows

"Sooz"

2009-08-01T11:40:00.001-07:00

Drew loves wearing our shoes. These are Andy's flip flops but he'll even sometimes put on my heels and make his dad very sad.

Today he put his own shoes on for the first time :)

Pee-pee in the Potty

2009-08-01T11:17:00.000-07:00

HE WENT PEE IN HIS POTTY!! Yay!! The first potty seat wasn't working out that great so we got this one and he used it right away. I never pictured myself celebrating a moment like this LOL

Summer Fun

2009-07-24T20:37:00.001-07:00

Here are some random pics on our camera from this summer:

Hiking up Big Cottonwood Canyon

Drew's face after eating mud

Mom & Drew boating

Dad & Drew laying in the grass in our backyard

Tubing with unhappy toddlers

Grandpa's birthday pool party

This video is from when our awesome friends let us come stay with them up East Canyon. We went on a walk and passed this splash fountain area. Drew was fully clothed but we decided to let him play because he got so excited. He was drenched big time so we came back the next day with his suit on and had the video camera. He wasn't as playful this time but he still loved it. The best part was when he was sticking his hand in one of the holes and the water shot up out of the hole right next to it and went straight in his mouth :)

Poo-poo in the Potty

2009-07-20T19:30:00.001-07:00

Soon after getting a potty training seat today, Drew said "poo-poo" and got that look on his face (you know the one) so I hurried him to the potty. He loved sitting on it but didn't go. I finally gave up and put a new diaper on him and sure enough he went. We took the messy diaper and dropped the poop in the potty. As we flushed, he waved goodbye while saying "poo-poo" over and over. He's been going back to try and see it again all evening.

I know it's a little early to start potty training (19 months) but I won't have time, energy, motivation, or enough arms to do it for a while after Ella's born plus since he always tells me when he's going in his diaper I decided to at least get him used to the idea of going to the potty. I'm not expecting much and I know it will take a long time since I'm not going to be a fanatic about it but I'm fine with that.

Our Yard

2009-07-06T19:43:00.001-07:00

I love our yard. And our garden. I don't even hate pulling weeds anymore because Drew loves being outside and picking raspberries while I work. Andy has done so much hard work on it and it looks great. I LOVE going out there with Drew to play as soon as he's done with breakfast. It's also nice to be able to let him go out to play on his own. Here are some before and after pics so you can see the work my man has done.

BACK OF HOUSE BEFORE:

BACK OF HOUSE AFTER:

SHED AREA BEFORE:

SHED AREA AFTER:

GARDEN AREA BEFORE: GARDEN AREA AFTER:

I don't have a good before pic of this but where there's rocks it was just dirt:

Here's a close up of the patio:

Way to go Andy!!

Handmade Baby Bedding for Ella

2009-06-27T09:01:00.000-07:00

Making this stuff for Ella wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. I did a crib skirt (I couldn't find a good tutorial for this online so I just copied Drew's), a fitted sheet, a quilt (I cheated and did self binding instead of the hard binding) and a fabric memory board to match. Drew's pediatrician says not to use a regular bumper pad so I didn't make that. I got a mesh crib liner from Walmart instead.

Lagoon

2009-06-26T19:31:00.000-07:00

Check out these cute pics. Andy's mom was nice enough to take all the grandkids and their parents to Lagoon today! Andy took the day off since it was Drew's first time and he couldn't miss him going on rides like a big kid. Drew was mostly interested in steering the wheel of whatever ride he was on and probably wouldn't have noticed if the ride moved or did anything else but he had a blast!

18 Months

2009-06-16T18:07:00.000-07:00

Drew went to his first day of nursery at church yesterday and he did great. I can't believe he's in class with the kids that I always thought were so much older than him! The nursery leaders didn't have to come get me at all - I just dropped him off and left while he was distracted. They told me afterwards that the only time/s he fussed was when someone came in or out of the room, but we knew he'd do that since it would remind him that there was a way out!

As always with my long blog posts about Drew, I don't expect anyone to read all of this! It's just my way of journaling all the cute stuff I don't want to forget about my baby. So here goes...

For a while he was walking everywhere on his toes, shaking his head "no" to everything even if he wanted it, and squinting his eyes as he said "mom" in a funny little voice. He still thinks running in circles is dancing and he likes to copy our dog Kya by licking water off the ground and out of the dog bowl. He also picks up toys with his teeth and lays on the dog's bed. Oh and I caught him eating grass the other day because he saw her doing it. He has a growl-laugh that is so stinking funny to hear and he loves to sing songs in the backseat of the car or at night before bed. So cute. He's scared of small things that move until he gets used to them like wind up toys, little dogs and my cousin's little ferret. It's funny since he has this big dog at home that even adults are scared of but he's not! When I vacuume he gets out his toy lawn-mower with pop-up balls and works along side me and he likes to help clean up by throwing stuff in the garbage or handing me little things he finds on the ground. Not so much with toys though because as soon as I put them away he pulls them out. He does the "chicken-run" where he puts his hands in his armpits while he runs and he's been making a fish-face ever since I showed him how. He's climbing on EVERYTHING and recently started throwing food off his high-chair. I've pretty much stopped that though just by giving him lots of attention while he's eating (like saying "yay, Drew is eating so great!") and paying close attention to when he says he's done. He loves watching soccer games with his dad while they wear their matching REAL Salt Lake jerseys. He really gets into the game - he kicks and claps and runs around, it's so strange to me that he would be into that! Oh and one more thing he did that was so funny is when his Grandpa Widerberg was watching him for us while we got our ultra-sound done. He went to his diaper bag and got out a diaper and handed it to his Grandpa. Sure enough he was poopy! LOL

We're so excited for him to be a big brother and see how he handles it - he still doesn't realize there's a baby on the way but he likes to poke my belly button since it sticks out now :) Speaking of Ella, Andy felt her kick for the first time yesterday. I've been able to feel it but it was never strong enough to be felt from the outside til now. Wow, time sure does fly!

Here is a video of Drew saying some of his words.

Sew Obsessed

2009-06-05T11:53:00.000-07:00

I've been sewing like mad lately and here are pictures of all the items I've made for Baby Ella. It's just so much fun to shop for girly, flowery fabrics!! I'm really bummed that I can't use any of these for another 5 months! Everything is reversible except the nursing cover only because the contoured neck can only point one way. The hardest one was the boppy cover since I put a zipper on the rounded edge but the rest were easy-peasy and I'm pretty sure none of them cost me much over $10. The links to the sites where I found patterns are listed below although I tweaked each one a bit.

HERE is the car seat canopy:

HERE is the Boppy cover:

HERE is the nursing cover:

HERE is the pouch sling:

Drew's First Bee Sting... Don't Worry I'm Okay Now

2009-06-05T06:07:00.000-07:00

Andy & I had just gotten back from taking Drew on a stroller ride when I noticed him staring at his arm. I looked to see what he was looking at and saw a big ugly bee just sitting there and then all of a sudden he started to scream. I of course freaked out, swatted it away and grabbed Drew to run inside and google what to do but Andy knew to look for the stinger to take out and told me I was scaring Drew so I calmly took him inside while Andy searched online. Andy said to get Drew an ice pack so Drew and I waited there with the ice pack on his arm. It was taking too long for me to handle so I called my cousin Heidi who was there and knew exactly what to do the first time I ever got stung. She told me it was a Hornet since it got him more than once and since it was was both yellow AND black. She said just to get bee sting relief wipes out of our first aid kit and watch for swelling. After that Drew was totally fine and smiling and it soon went away after getting a little red and puffy. I kept waiting for his whole arm, hand and fingers to swell to double their size but luckily that never happened :)

Thompson Falls, Montana

2009-05-22T20:13:00.001-07:00

Here are some pictures of me and Drew on vacation in Montana. We're visiting my cousin Heidi, her husband Troy and their three kids Jayden, Paige and Oakley. Their yard is full of tall tall trees with a river right out back, it's beautiful! Drew is having a blast with his cousins and their little ferrett, Max. I swear Drew's been extra cute this week and he's been lovin' me more than ever. We miss Andy and wish he was here too :(

Perfect Baby Shower Gift

2009-05-16T10:37:00.000-07:00

There are 10 girls in my ward who are pregnant besides myself so we have a lot of showers happening right now. Instead of spending all kinds of money on gifts I decided to try my hand at sewing! I found a tutorial on making a car seat canopy and bought the fabric for $10 at JoAnns. I've always liked and wanted one of these for myself so I can still hold the car seat handle without the blanket falling off. It only took me a few hours and I love it so I'll be making one for Ella as soon as I find a butterfly pattern I like.

We're having a baby girl!

2009-05-06T12:33:00.000-07:00

We are so excited to announce that Drew is going to have a little sister and her name will be Ella Ashtin. We were going to keep it a secret til Mother's Day but couldn't. YAY for little girls!!! She better look like me since Drew doesn't.

Drew can read!

2009-05-04T10:09:00.000-07:00

So my aunt Ginny is a teacher and saw an infomercial for this program called "Your Baby Can Read" when she decided that she needed to buy it for Drew :) The idea behind it is that babies are more capable of learning than 5 year olds are so instead of waiting till the "window of opportunity" is closing we should start teaching reading as early as possible. At first they just memorize how the words look but later they see the patterns and learn phonex.

We've been watching the videos, reading the books and playing with the flash cards for about a month and a half now and today he read his first word! It was the word "book". The pages each have a single word on them and when you lift the page up there is a picture of that word. Before I said it or lifted the page up he looked at the it and signed book. I was so proud - I didn't expect it to work so fast! Just to make sure it wasn't a coincidence I went through some other words and came back to book and sure enough he did it again.

Pop Goes The Belly

2009-04-28T18:44:00.000-07:00

Last time I was pregnant I didn't get a belly till I was about 16 weeks. I'm not even 14 weeks yet and I'm already showing! Here's the first prego pic with baby #2. Nine more days until we find out what we're having!!! According to a muscle test my neighbor Jenelle did I'm having a girl. If that's true her name will be Ella. If it's a boy... Cade. We're so excited :D

"Grapes"

2009-04-26T15:09:00.000-07:00

Instead of calling them "grapes" Drew just calls them "ps".

Owie

2009-04-23T07:52:00.000-07:00

I'm a horrible mom. We were headed out to play in the backyard and as soon as I opened the back door, our dog Kya ran out and knocked Drew over. I should have known better since she does this every time even if he's standing right there. He fell head first off the door step and onto the concrete porch :( He's had little scratches and bruises before but this is the first real big one.

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T12:37:00.000-07:00

Here is Drew hunting for eggs at Grandma and Grandpa Widerbergs the night before Easter

This is him with his cousins, Katelyn and Jake, checking out what they got

He finally knows how to open presents! It was the cutest outfit from Grandma and Grandpa but he chucked it on the ground when he saw that it was clothes.

On Sunday we had our own hunt in the backyard

He was so good at finding eggs and putting them in his basket!

When he spotted an egg he would point all the way over to it

Here's the cute outfit from Grandma and Grandpa Widerberg (doesn't he look old?)

The shorts were a little big and kept falling down so he put them on his head instead

Here he is with his easter basket and no pants.

We hope you had a happy Easter!

Update

2009-03-24T08:59:00.001-07:00

We got to see the new baby and its heartbeat on an ultrasound! The doc confirmed that there's just one baby in there (phew) and that everything looks good.

It's so different for me being pregnant a second time - with Drew I read the "What To Expect" emails every day and now I never do. I thought about it constantly before whereas now I sometimes forget that I am! It's not that I'm not excited because I am but it's just different. I'm SUPER tired - even when I'm laying down I'm too tired to crochet. Speaking of which, I'm taking a break from it for a while. Although I did knit my first beanie, yay for me!

Drew is almost 16 months and will be in nursery in 8 weeks!! Wow. He wears me out lately wanting to climb on everything including me. Last week we went to The Treehouse Museum and Wheeler Farm with friends and he loved it. I'm so glad the weather is getting nice so we can play outside - he LOVES to play in our backyard. He's said a couple new words this week: bubbles and night night. Here are some pics of him and his favorite things:

Idaho

2009-03-08T21:52:00.001-07:00

We drove to Pocatello, Idaho this weekend to visit our friends Jason, Akaela and their baby girl Mckynlee. We mostly played games and stuffed our faces. Speed Uno is my new favorite game and Bubble Loaf is my new favorite food! It was so much fun to hang out with them and we can't wait til they come back to Utah when he's done with school! Here are some pics of us at a petting zoo we visited. There was a monkey, an emu, ostriches, donkeys, ponies you name it. And you thought there was nothin' to do in Pokey, ID!

The kids even got in some Wii fit time too!

We're Pregnant!

2009-03-04T12:27:00.000-08:00

Maybe I should wait to announce this to the world but I can't! We are so thrilled and I feel great so far. It will be quite an adventure having 2 little ones in our tiny place, both in diapers and carseats but we couldn't be happier. I'm only 6 weeks and won't find out what we're having for 9 more weeks. A boy would be easier since we have the clothes and they'll be sharing a room but it sure would be fun to have a girly girl so we'll see. Either way Drew will finally have a playmate! :D The due date is sometime in the end of October. YAY!

Stitched By Star - My New Website!

2009-03-04T12:16:00.000-08:00

I've been working hard on my little crochet biz lately and even got a new website: www.stitchedbystar.com I've kept really busy with it and have been able to make items and then sell them rather than taking orders then making them. I like it better this way because I get to experiment and make new things that I want to try my hand at instead of just hats. Check it out and tell me what you think!

Ashtin

2009-03-04T12:02:00.000-08:00

The 21st of last month was the one-year anniversary of Ashtin's accident. We went to the intersection and put up flowers with family. The next day we went to the cemetary and released balloons with family and friends. It was really hard to be at the intersection that day. I miss Ash and think about her every day. She was amazing to be around. She had so much love for everyone and I hope we can teach Drew to be as sweet and loving as her. We miss you chicky.

WARNING: Looooooong post about Drew

2009-03-04T11:35:00.000-08:00

I realize the following may not interest anyone but me, Andy and possibly grandparents so I won't be mad if you don't read it ;)

Drew is changing so much and getting to be a little boy already. He loves to brush his and my hair with his little baby hairbrush and he's also using baby toothpaste now and loves to brush his teeth whenever I brush mine. Some signs he's been using are brush hair, brush teeth, bath, milk, phone, jacket, fish, banana, more, done and hat. He knows what nose, eyes, tounge, ears, hair and belly button are and likes to point them out. He says up, down, fish, dog, dad, done, ball, down and makes a noise like a vacuum when he sees it. He gets so excited about me vacuuming and makes me do it at least once a day by going to the closet and making the vacuume noise until I give in.

Oh and this may not be blog appropro but he won't stop grabbing himself while I change his diaper! It's very frustrating and I have to be careful not to get mad at him when he has a poopy and does this. I try distracting with toys but to no avail. The doc said this will last for 6 months!

He loves to be outside. Andy and I take him out in the backyard and on walks in his wagon when it's nice weather. Yesterday he found a nice pile of the dog's poo back there :( Speaking of Kya, she is really getting used to Drew constantly climbing all over and attacking her. She just takes it now. His favorite place to hang out is on her dog bed in our room or her matt in the back room. He really loves her and she makes him laugh all the time.

If I'm sitting on the floor he wraps his arms around my back and waits for me give him a piggy back ride. He's very good at hugs especially when he wakes up and he even likes to pat your back while he rests his head on your shoulder.

He understands so much of what I say lately it amazes me. The other day I couldn't find my crochet hook and I said, "Where's my blue hook?" and he went in the bedroom and got it and brought it to me! I have never taught him the word hook so I couldn't believe he knew what I meant. He's a baby genius.

Today was his 15 month check up and I'm happy to announce that he is ON the chart in weight now! He has been below the chart (in weight) since he was born so I'm pretty excited. I usually don't post anything about his stats because I get tired of hearing about how small he is from everyone but this is great news that I had to share. Here he is at his doctor's appointment today:

New Blog

2009-03-04T08:23:00.000-08:00

Over a month ago I accidentally deleted my old blog when I tried deleting an unused gmail account. Well technically it's still "there" but I can't access it and all my links and pictures are gone. When it happened I was bummed but decided I was over blogging anyway. Today I changed my mind :) I was reading some other people's blogs and started feeling bad that I haven't been documenting any of the new things Drew has been doing so I started this new blog.