TEAM WILSON: Kevin, Rhiannon, and a Frog

Baby Girl is 1!

2012-01-20T10:21:00.001-08:00

We had a simple party with family for Taryn's 1st Birthday. We will be transistioning to a half-birthday celebration in the summer (combined with Reed...we'll see how that goes) since her birthday is so close to Christmas. Has anyone ever done this?

We just love our Baby Girl (she barely has a real name). Here are a few things about Taryn:

*She tries to fit any space she can. She tries to climb in the toy wagon, tubs of toys, laundry baskets, buckets, and her latest--the oven drawer.
* She can't go around anything. She has to go over or through it. She likes to create challenges for herself. She has an "I can do it!" attitude already.
*She will only eat baby food if she is holding a utensil as well.
*She was such a pleasant baby; then she started teething. Still a happy baby during the day usually but a demon baby at night! Only has 3.5 teeth....
*You'd think she was a good eater considering her girth. She has become extremely picky. Refuses vegetables, most baby food, grapes, bread, etc. Aren't those staples?? But put her on the ground in the kitchen and she will eat every cereal crumb on the floor.
*Says "Daddy" pretty clearly. Still a momma's girl.
*LOVES bath time!
*Loves her big brother (most of the time). I'm thinking it will be less than a year before she can make him cry. Oh wait...
*Loves being outside and exploring. Is a bit of a "destroyer" inside.
*Can walk holding onto the wall; not quite brave enough to let go for very long yet. Though when she does, she loves the attention!
*Kind of a tease. Totally knows when she is doing something she shouldn't be. She smiles real big, waves, and then crawls away super fast.
*Still has awesome hair. Haircut coming soon--just to even out the mullet in the back.
*WE LOVE LOVE LOVE HER!

Christmas 2011

2011-12-27T19:22:00.001-08:00

Festival of Trees--one of our family traditions the past 5 years.

St. Nick's Day

Making cookies with Grandma

Temple Square with cousins

Learning about the true meaning of Christmas

Playing in the snow with friends

Joy School party

1 of 3 Christmas celebrations

A little Rock Band (or Kung Fu Panda and they gave Reed the drums to quiet him)

Baby Santa in her sleigh (completely Reed's idea)

Gingerbread house making ("Bethlehem")

Elfing it up on Christmas Eve (annual tradition)

Christmas morning at Oma & Opa's

Some thoughts

2011-12-06T19:25:00.000-08:00

It has been a long time. Along with the holidays approaching, we found out some sad news in our family a couple weeks ago. On Monday, Nov. 21, I received a call that my mom's husband, Bob, passed away unexpectedly. He was 56 years old. He and my mom were married for 8 years, so he wasn't around for my earlier years, but I still considered him a friend and I loved and cared about him, especially for who he was to my mom. He was a great man.

But instead of all the details of what the last 2 weeks have been like, I wanted to just put some of my thoughts down on "paper" about what I have learned. I guess foremost, I realized that family is what it's all about. That is why we are here. And when we leave this earth, relationships are among the only things we can take with us. So shouldn't we be spending most of our energy on improving those relationships and taking advantage of the time we have together? It's funny how we can get caught up with getting things done, or planning outings, etc. when usually, people just want us. I notice that with Reed. Sometimes I will plan these fun activities for him/field trips, etc. when all he really wants is me. Another thing that I thought about was how unfortunate it is if we don't express our feelings and love to those we care about. I learned a lot about Bob the past 2 weeks and there were a lot of people who cared about him. I do believe that Bob was able to hear the wonderful things said about him but, you know, it would have been nice to see his reaction. I have no regrets concerning Bob because I do believe he knew I cared about him, but maybe we need to start telling people in person, or even writing a letter or thank you note before they are gone. Of everything I want my kids to know and learn while I am raising them, I want them to know I love them. And Kevin for that matter too. I'm not sure I tell him enough. And the last thing I have been pondering is that death is a part of life. We all have to go through it. And I don't mean to lessen the grief and mourning that entail it, I am just grateful to know that death is not the end. I know that Bob is in a better place, that he is happy, and that he is healthy. What an awesome reunion it will be when we return to our Father in Heaven and our welcomed there by loved ones gone before. I know Heavenly Father has a plan for each of us. I don't know why this happened or why it happened now, but I do know that if we can live by faith and continue on the path, we will be blessed.

Return of the "Elder" (this is not a Halloween post)

2011-11-01T20:36:00.000-07:00

You know your family is cool when.....

They pick you up from the airport like this.

We picked up Kevin's youngest brother, Mikey, on Thursday, Oct. 27 after serving for 2 years as a missionary in the OK Oklahoma City Mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We wanted to make it memorable. How did we do?

Reed did awesome! Bribing him with candy to keep his Yoda ears on helped too.

Shoulda been our engagement photo...

Kevin's sister, Whitney, converted their umbrella stroller into R2D2. How cool is that?

At home pictures were more successful. Yes, this is success.

Cutest baby Ewok I ever did see.

The whole family. We had a lot of people stop to take pictures of us, especially Kevin as Darth Vader. We only rented the costumes but Kevin is now thinking of keeping a fund for a Darth Vader suit. You never know when you'll need one again, right? WELCOME HOME MIKEY!

Halloween party--Joy School style

2011-11-01T20:23:00.001-07:00

Reed and his Joy School friends (Reed, Chaela, Carter, Annie, Dallas)

Baby sisters were invited too.

Watching a witch's brew

Coloring pumpkins

"Ghost" bowling...it's much easier this way, as you can tell.

A parade, of course.

Dads were invited.

The best part? Jumping in the leaves!

And burying the baby up to her neck. :)

Pumpkin Farming it up

2011-11-01T20:09:00.001-07:00

So impossible to get 2 kids to look at the camera at the same time.

How about just one? Much better. Reed is finally starting to "smile" for the camera again.

Just in time for Taryn not to.

Reed still doesn't like swings. But he's still young enough to force him to do what we want. Perfect. :)

We loved the corn box.

Even mom.

Though this baby girl was pretty unsure of it at first.

The slide was a hit again this year.

Even with Grandma.

We squeezed ourselves into the animal train.

And finished off the day with a hay ride. I love pumpkin farms! They bring back some fond memories of my childhood. One of my all-time favorite family activities ever!

Vacuum

2011-10-24T09:13:00.000-07:00

We got a new vacuum.....

...and her name is Taryn.

Catch up: Summer

2011-10-11T20:27:00.000-07:00

Painting the sidewalk

Building forts

This is what happens when you let Reed put his own peanut butter on crackers

or wash his hands unattended.

Hiking Stewart Falls. Reed did surprisingly well. He hates the backpack carrier, so he walked a big portion of the hike. It was great, Reed says some really funny things when he is tired. (While whining)"I am sooo tired. I need to go to sleep in my bed." Or "I'm too big for this!!!" (while we tried getting him the backpack carrier). It was quite entertaining.

Holy crap, cute baby. Sometimes, I can't even stand it.

Raspberry picking. Seriously the most fun I've had in a while. Something about plucking raspberries is so satisfying. Kinda like vacuuming. Plus it made me feel so domestic for some reason, living off the land in all. :)

Bridal Veil Falls on Labor Day.

Peek-a-boo. Taryn is finally sleeping in the same room as Reed. Oh no, she wasn't sleeping in our room; we would put her in the kitchen. Don't judge. It has gone much better than expected having them in the same room.

Reed started Joy School and loves it! These are his friends in school with him. They are "resting."

Ice cream from ice cream trucks and riding bikes

The Tracy Aviary in SLC with Oma, Whitney, and Matthew. Kevin's sister, Whitney, and her family spent the summer in Alpine while they were waiting on buying a house. It was a lot of fun having her around.

Growing up. We have a crawler on our hands now!

Just hanging out

Hiking the Grotto

Some time in the Canyon

Catch up with best friends, Lesley and Katie

Reed sucking out his own boogers. Yep.

And snuggling with my babies. :) It's been an amazing summer.

Catch up: Reed's Birthday

2011-10-11T20:19:00.000-07:00

Happy 3rd Birthday, Reed! We celebrated with family mostly and per request of Reed, we had a "Blue MIckey Party." The Mickey part was encouraged by me a little bit, but he just wanted a blue party.

I have heard from several people that 3 is much harder than 2. I do understand what they are saying--more demands, more whining, more manipulating, more lying. But I also think 3 is much more fun than 2. For one, Reed is much funnier. He knows when he is funny and tries to be funny. He also has made advances in development and interests. I love that he wants to draw now when before, he really could care less. He wants to write letters and tries to draw actual pictures. He thinks he is drawing cows but in reality, they look like smiley faces. But I love it! He has always been interested in books, but I think it has reached a whole new level. He understands the story line more and tries to "read" on his own. (Good thing he has memorized all the books we own). :) 3 really has been great. We love our Frog!

Catch Up: Vacation

2011-10-11T20:02:00.000-07:00

Minnesota trip with the Wilson family
(*A couple days before we arrived in MN, we found out that the state basically shut down. All our plans of renting a boat, water skiing, etc. were out the window. We had to make our own fun...)

Lots of sand play

Reed thought he wanted to swim in the lake when he saw his older cousins doing it. It took less than one second to realize he hates to swim.

Tiniest-parade-in-the-world-watching. However, we got water balloons thrown at us and a array of dogs in costumes. Very creative.

More sand. They had a cute little beach area next to a lake that we spent most of our time at.

Kevin's older sisters had a few minutes with Taryn and this is what happens! :) Pigtails!

Short canoe trip. I was just happy we got Reed to go in it at all.

Cousin-burying

This is as good as it gets with Reed.

Just the thought of going in the water made him crazy. Okay, okay, we get it.

We celebrated Reed's 3rd birthday!

The humidity did something CRAZY to Taryn's hair! I love this picture.

Halloween fun

2011-10-10T09:09:00.001-07:00

Magnetic pumpkin--just a fun idea I found that I thought others would want to try.

Dirty Dash 2011

2011-08-25T11:43:00.001-07:00

Kevin and I ran the Dirty Dash 5K a couple months ago and it was a blast! We ran it with some friends from the ward. I have to post things like this so I can remind myself that I still have fun!

"Before" (I know I look like a guy)

The group again

Ready, Get Set, GO!

It was so fun running with Kevin! (It doesn't happen very often). :)

We had to climb over walls, climb through tubes, run through tires, etc. SO FUN!

We got really muddy. :)

We slid down a really long slide.

We're definitely doing that again!

"Things they say..."

2011-08-25T11:26:00.000-07:00

Reed: "I have poop in my toesies...it goes up my legs and out my butt."

Reed: "Baby Girl has a cute butt. You [Mommy] have a BIG butt."

Reed: "Kevin. Kevin Daddy."
Kevin: "I'm not answering unless you call me Daddy."
Reed: "Rhiannon."
Kevin: "You need to call Mommy, Mommy."
Reed: "Mommy?"
Rhiannon: "Yes, Bud?"
Reed: "Kevin's in a bad mood."

:) I love him.

Brotherly Love

2011-08-04T19:09:00.000-07:00

Ever since Taryn joined our family, Reed has been in love with her. I really have not had to worry about sibling jealousy as of yet; in fact, it's quite the opposite. Whenever she is around, Reed wants to be around her. I have to worry more about him smothering her with hugs (seriously, it was a concern when she was really little though she can hold her own a bit more now). She doesn't always have the same feelings in return, but she certainly loves her brother. Reed always wants to help give her a bink, change her diaper, make her laugh and smile, etc...

...but I wasn't expecting him to feed her. (Notice the boppy and lifting of the shirt). :)

Pooped

2011-07-29T15:59:00.001-07:00

"I was fussy. But I'm feeling much better now."

Love,
Taryn

Family Pics 2011

2011-07-17T19:53:00.000-07:00

My BF, Lesley, took our family pictures a few weeks ago and I love how they turned out! And this is about as good as you'll get for a blog post for now....sorry, it has been hard to make blogging a priority during the summer.

Our "cute baby girl"--what is she up to?

2011-06-01T12:51:00.000-07:00

Watching her big brother play with cars...a lot.

Trying to survive love attacks from Reed.

Blow-outs (gross, I know).

Eating rice cereal.

Spending a lot of time in her baby carrier.

Waking up with a pirate eye

Smiling...

and chunking out.

Trying out a new hairdo.

Watching Mickey Mouse with her brother.

We absolutely love our cute baby girl! She has been such a joy in our lives. She has a sweet personality and a cute smile. We couldn't ask for a better baby--I won't bite your head off if you ask me about having more kids--she's THAT good! Reed loves her (a little too much)--I'm afraid to put her in his room quite yet. He will definitely wake her up every morning and I'm not ready for that. So for now, she still resides in the kitchen in a pack-n-play. She gives Kevin the biggest smiles, so I think she'll be a daddy's girl. Sometimes I just look at her and think, "Dang, we have an awesome baby!" We just adore her!

Swinging

2011-05-13T13:32:00.001-07:00

Happy Easter!

2011-05-03T20:31:00.000-07:00

Dyeing eggs. Reed loved it! And he is now in the Guiness Book of World Records for being the fastest egg-dyer. Like 8 eggs in 5 min.

Eliza and Reed at Macey's collecting eggs. Don't let his smile fool you though, it took a lot of convincing to get him to wear those bunny ears and ONLY after Eliza did it.

Family Easter egg hunt

Finding eggs on Easter morning

Happy Easter!

Competition

2011-05-03T20:21:00.000-07:00

There may be some more mini-men pining for this little girl, but for now she's got her eye on this one...

"Dang, we look good."

Deep in thought.

Looks like they've got their eyes on something...
"You hungry?" "Yeah, me too."
....My face is up here, baby.

"Hey mom--his lips are going to get me!"

Reed, Taryn, Porter, and Scout. I'm thinking of a couple future marriages...

Projects

2011-04-06T21:34:00.000-07:00

Car playmat

Book sling

Monster baby toy

Cute kids

2011-04-05T13:17:00.001-07:00

I LOVE them!

The Reveal

2011-03-24T15:14:00.000-07:00

I've always wanted to cut my hair super short, just to try it out once. And I finally did it! And I mostly like it. Who knew guys had it so easy this whole time?! I have to say, there are some major benefits to having really short hair. It is so easy to do, for one. But then there are little things--like when you walk in the wind and don't have to worry how your hair looks; or when your son crawls all over your face and head and your hair doesn't get caught. So awesome.

Hair

2011-03-15T15:13:00.001-07:00

It's a little difficult to see, but we're trying to show how long Taryn's hair is getting with a ruler. It is over 1.5 inches long! It still sticks straight up and we were curious as to how long it will get before gravity takes over and it falls down. Any guesses? I'm not too sure if I'm too keen on the idea of having a newborn with a bob though. Weird.

What we do

2011-02-10T14:15:00.000-08:00

We play with beans.

We play Starfall.

We pump. :)

We read books.

We play in the sink.

We make cookies (and eat the dough).

And we hold baby Taryn.
It's a good life.

The obligatory photo shoot

2011-02-07T13:19:00.000-08:00

As a duty to womanhood and being the new mom of a baby girl, I knew I had to dress her up at least once and do a photo shoot.

She is cute, isn't she?

Add it to the list....

2011-01-31T21:34:00.001-08:00

UTI.

The Labor Story and some

2011-01-28T10:06:00.001-08:00

I know you've all been dying to hear the labor story...(really, all this info is for my own benefit when I'll one day make my blog into a book).

So on Monday, Jan. 3, I had been having mild contractions all day about every 8-12 min. Nothing too crazy just uncomfortable. Though remember, I was induced with Reed so I never went into labor on my own. So this was new. I was also feeling really crappy. Not just end-of-pregnancy crappy but something felt different. I was kind of in pain. So the day goes on and we head up to Kevin's parent's house for dinner that night. Kevin's sister, Whitney and her husband Marty and baby Matthew were heading back to VA the following day, so we wanted to get together one more time. Plus, I hadn't been able to hang out on New Year's because I had gotten the flu (awesome, I know). Anyway, I was doing my best at breathing through the contractions--I'm not very good at the whole mind-over-matter nonsense--so it was a struggle at times. I was laying on the couch when all of a sudden, I felt like the baby had punched through my pelvis! I heard and felt a pop! Then there was a little gush and I had an extremely painful contraction. I ran to the bathroom to check things out. Even at this point, I wasn't positive that my water had broken. I doubt my opinion a lot; really, she would have to be crowning before I'd be 100% positive I was in labor. So I called the doctor and asked his opinion. He told me to go to the hospital if I continued to "trickle." He probably thought I was bluffing though because I had called the night before thinking I was leaking amniotic fluid. Okay, a lot of info. ANYWAY, we decided to drive to the hospital (luckily, Reed was already sleeping at Oma's) and make sure. But immediately after walking out the door, I started getting really intense contractions every 2-3 min. Then the picture-perfect TV show labor story continues. Kevin was speeding and breaking traffic laws as I was moaning/yelling during contractions and then crying in-between (lots of emotions--like thinking how it wouldn't just be me and Frog anymore). Poor Kevin was probably a nervous wreck (he likes to obey traffic laws, to the point of annoyance). We finally got to the hospital, they checked me, and admitted me about 9pm. Happily with an epidural, I delivered baby Taryn at 2:22 am on my due date--Jan. 4. Yahoo!

As for the following weeks, it has been a challenge. Not just with the normal newborn adjustments (which lasts a good 3 months for me) but I had to deal with a couple of crappy things. I developed mastitis, a horrible breast infection; I did all I could to reduce the ridiculous engorgement including cabbage leaves which apparently can really affect your milk supply. After 10 days of antibiotics, I was worried about my milk supply being insufficient. So I started taking an herbal supplement to increase my milk supply. But for some reason, I tend to get every side effect listed on the side of the bottle, and I got a crazy case of hives. No, I WAS a hive. I was covered from head to foot, including the bottoms of my feet and palms. Yep, it sucked and I was put on more medication for that. Luckily, it looks like I am finally in the clear and there are only a few lingering hives left. So in the past 8 weeks, I had gotten the flu twice, a yeast infection, a sore throat bad enough for antibiotics, mastitis, and hives. But after all that, I am still so grateful that through it all, not anyone else in our little family got sick. Really, it was such a blessing. We had a ton of help the past few weeks from family and friends and it really is humbling to know that so many people care about you. I feel very fortunate.

Fun in the Winter

2011-01-16T11:15:00.000-08:00

Again, another delayed post. But we did do some fun activities over the holidays:

Temple Square

Lots of cookie making and eating

A Christmas parade

No explanation needed

And trying snow for the first time. Now he will get into his car seat and eat snow off his shoes. Yum!

Christmas 2010

2011-01-16T11:07:00.000-08:00

I know, I know, being an elf and all I should've had this post up weeks ago. But really, life has been a little hectic lately. We had a great Christmas and Reed is just starting to understand Santa. When he woke up on Christmas morning and we asked him if he was excited, he knew right away that it was Christmas and Santa had come. Granted, he was most excited about the idea of candy in his stocking, but he certainly was happy to see some new toys as well.

Reed finally has started wrestling with his cousins! We are so proud. :) He has been a sort of sensitive little soul until now.

Not really getting the whole smiling thing...he tries.

Cousins (minus Colton)

More Baby Taryn

2011-01-10T10:43:00.001-08:00

"Yes, I am a girl..."

"but my mom has no idea what she is doing."

Proud big brother, Reed.

Welcome Baby Taryn

2011-01-06T13:06:00.001-08:00

Taryn Lesley Wilson
Born 1.4.11
7 lbs. 2 oz.
19.5 in.

This kid LOVES his family!

2010-12-02T14:03:00.000-08:00

Reed is obsessed with his extended family! Yeah, he loves us too and is such a touchy, snuggly little boy, but nothing beats time with a grandparent or cousin!

Fun with Grandma

Watching cousins play video games...

He copied what they did.

Reed would try to get as close as possible to them...luckily, Mckay is a really great cousin and didn't complain.

Random hug for Rhettsky. We tried to catch Reed putting his arm around Rhett's waist and laying on his shoulder during the game, but we weren't quick enough.

Playing with "goofy Grandpa." Reed thinks my dad is hilarious! He followed my dad everywhere for 8 hours straight on Thanksgiving. Seriously, I tried to play the same games/toys with him and Reed would just look at me and yell, "Grandpa!"

Grandpa taught the grandkids the fun that can be had with tape balls. Apparently all the weird stuff my dad enjoys and says is perfect for entertaining little kids! As long as Reed doesn't learn any swears from him, I will consider it a success.

Watching a Christmas movie and snuggling with Grandpa.

Harry Potter Party

2010-12-02T13:54:00.000-08:00

In celebration of the 7th Harry Potter movie coming out, we threw a small party. Only one among us had seen the movie, but we were all Potter fans. We consumed a whole lot of Honeyduke-like treats and tried to stump each other on Potter trivia. We even sorted ourselves into houses--and a lot of people were mistaken on what they previously thought was their House. Yes, we are dorks but very cool ones.

Honeyduke treats

Mike and Bruce with their "Deathly Hallows" cake. Yes, they MADE it!

A close-up of the masterpiece: the cloak, snitch, and Elder wand. So freaking cool!

And best of all, Harry and Draco dualing!

Cabin Fever already??

2010-11-15T18:15:00.000-08:00

With the weather changing, I am kind of dreading the next few months. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE SNOW! But when there is no snow to play in and it's just plain cold, we have to resort to other things than playing outside. In the summertime, we would spend hours outside so I am a little worried what the winter will hold. So what are some of your favorite go-to indoor activities? What kind of "field trips" do you go on with your kids? A few of Reed's favorite indoor activities are playing in the sink, playing with his tub of beans, and he could literally have me read books to him for hours. We still try to leave the house at least once a day (though that may change when the baby arrives), but we like to play at the mall treehouse, visit the pet store, and play at various toy stores. Let's swap some ideas and maybe we can survive the winter together.

Trick-or-Treat

2010-11-01T12:27:00.000-07:00

On Friday night, we went to our ward's trunk or treat. Reed was pretty miserable to say the least. He was tired and I think a bit overwhelmed by the number of people packed into the gym. Seriously, I think our entire neighborhood heard "free food" and came on over to the church. I didn't even recognize 1/3 of the people. Once we finally got outside to trunk or treat, we went to about 5 cars and Reed had enough. He kept asking to go to our car and go home. So I walked him home and put him in bed while Kevin finished giving out candy.

Our miserable little Draco Malfoy. He had a wand but it was too much to carry. We even taught him some spells: "Expelliarmis!" and "Accio candy!" A lot of people thought he was a vampire...I guess we were too cheap to buy the actual Hogwarts robes, so we used what we had on hand. Oh well, I'm sure it's the last year we'll be able to pick what his costume will be. (P.S. I really wanted our entire family to be star-bellied sneetches--one-piece yellow pj's--how cool would that be?!)

On Saturday, we went to my brother's neighborhood to trick-or-treat with all the cousins.

Reed getting his hair slicked back in preparation.

He was so cute! He knew to say "trick-or-treat," and always said "Thanks" and "bye-bye" at the end.

Cousin Colton and Reed. I think Reed was more interested in what Colton got...
Trick-or-treating was a huge success! Especially considering the downpour! Reed didn't even care. After the first couple houses, he totally got what was going on and would run to the next house. It was awesome! However, whenever someone let him pick a piece of candy, he'd always pick "blue candy." I was a little bugged--who likes Almond Joys and Crunch bars anyway?!

Happy Halloween

2010-11-01T12:10:00.000-07:00

Pumpkin Farm I

Grunting and everything, "Too heavy."

Apparently he doesn't like sticking his head through a tiny hole...

We were so proud of Reed for jumping in the Bounce House. If you know him at all, you know that this is a big deal! He spent like 30 min. in there. Of course his favorite part is copying the other little kids and trying to make them do what he does.

Pumpkin Farm II

Reed loved the corn box last year but didn't spend too much time in it this year. I guess he's growing up.

He "drove" a cool car.

He kinda hated the horse. I can't say I was too disappointed. Like mother like son.

Lots of slides! I think people were surprised to see such a little guy go down that last one. I was a little hesitant about the idea myself, but Reed loved it! Slides are the one thing in life that he is pretty brave about!

Choo-choo train with Daddy. Lots all take a moment and laugh at Kevin trying to fit in one of those cars. HAHA!

...and decorating pumpkins the next day.

Double Stroller

2010-10-12T12:16:00.001-07:00

I need some opinions on double strollers. What do you have and do you like it? Why? Pros and cons. Reed still loves riding in a stroller, so I definitely need a double. But did you carry your baby for the first few months and then put them in the stroller? Or do you have one that you can click in your car seat (which is what I am leaning to)? Side by side or front and back? So many decisions....

Holiday season

2010-10-01T12:58:00.000-07:00

Let the holiday season begin! This is my most favorite time of the year: Halloween and Christmas!!! I can't wait! Oh yeah, Thanksgiving is alright. I usually decorate for Christmas the day after Halloween, but I'm trying to decide if I want Reed to know that another holiday exists in between. But there's never enough time to really celebrate Christmas. We'll see.

I decided to make a Halloween advent calendar this year. I debated between candy or an activity in each pocket and went with an activity. I still have a few spaces to fill, but I may just keep them empty. I am so excited for Fall! Let's hope we have one this year...

Summer's almost gone :(

2010-09-21T13:32:00.000-07:00

We haven't had the internet for a few weeks, so I have become a slacker blogger. Plus, I'm trying to take advantage of the last little bit of summer and be outside as much as possible. Come winter, I'm sure I'll be more regular. I must admit though, blogging has become a little like scrapbooking for me. It's definitely time-consuming, so oftentimes I'd rather just slap pictures up here and call it good. Recently, naps have won out over blogging for me. But nevertheless, here are a few things we've been doing this summer.

Playing with friends, Eliza and Ruby. Reed had his first kiss, by the way. He grabbed Eliza last week and open-mouthed kissed her...I think he only got her nose though. :)

Went on a short hike.

Looked at flowers.

Played video games with Daddy.

A little hide-and-seek.

Made breakfast in the Canyon. (Finally used our camping stove. Wahoo!)

And went to Farm Country with Reed's cousin, Rhett. Both boys were a little timid around some of the animals. But here is the BEST SAD FACE EVER!!!....

This is after Reed's fingers got pecked by a rooster. He hesitated a second and when I asked if he was okay, he said, "No," and then did this face (and cried, of course). I'm so glad I captured it!

Reed Frog Facts

2010-08-20T11:52:00.000-07:00

He loves being outside, but the sun bugs him. He'll say "Sun off" when it's too bright.

He is absolutely obsessed with his Grandma! I think even I come second to Grandma.

He loves the water, but he hates getting water in his face. Sprinklers are a no go.

He loves animals especially my mom's cat. He cried and cried when they put her in the basement to sleep. He grabbed her neck and hugged her unprompted. He also is obsessed with snakes (mostly pretend ones).

He LOVES flowers! He spent over an hour watering my mom's flowers in ID. But we often spend up to an hour walking around outside picking flowers (dandelions) and putting them in his baby stroller. (Man, he's sounding pretty girly...)

He also collects rocks.

He likes to watch "Homer" with his Daddy. Don't judge us.

He loves the temple! He knows when we get off at a certain exit on the highway that we will pass the temple. He gets so excited about it that he gets pretty anxious if there a lot of cars at the stop sign previous to the temple. He calls it the "big, pretty temple" and chapels are just small temples. He is also ridiculously smart. He knows that Moroni is on top of the temple and he knows pictures of Enos, Nephi, Lehi, Captain Moroni, 2,000 warriors, etc. etc. He becomes obsessed with things until he can master it. That's how he was with his letters, shapes, etc.

He loves his cousin, Colton. He has some other cute little friends that he loves being around, especially Eliza and Zack. I'm sure he'll love having a little sister once he stops hating the fact that there is another person taking up Mommy's attention.

It's a...........

2010-08-17T19:26:00.000-07:00

GIRL!!!

We are so excited! I must say, I did look up some little girl hair bows and things and was a bit overwhelmed by it all. I'm afraid our little girl will be quite the tomboy, especially since she'll be wearing some of Reed's clothes. :) I am okay with hair bows though.

Oh yeah...

2010-07-29T12:47:00.000-07:00

I'm pregnant. I'm 17.5 weeks and due Jan.4. We find out what we are having in a few weeks!

Guess who's 2? Happy Birthday, Reed!

2010-07-09T14:44:00.001-07:00

We spent the day in Ogden and took Reed to the "Treehouse" for the first time. Reed LOVED it! As he should, because that place is awesome!

As you can tell, Reed had a blast! There were so many more themed areas/rooms that Reed didn't spend a lot of time in. He liked the tractors the best. And this is what happens when you try to take Reed away from all this. A very sad boy.

So then we drove to the cabin in Ogden...

We threw some rocks in the river...

Reed took a 10 min. nap in the car...

And we went back to the Treehouse for round 2! :)

Happy Birthday to the cutest Frog in the whole world! We love you!

Finally motivated

2010-07-05T12:37:00.001-07:00

Introducing my latest project: the cozy car caddy created by http://homemadebyjill.blogspot.com/2009/12/cozy-car-caddy-tutorial.html
Reed has really gotten into cars lately and I have been wanting to make one of these for some time now. A friend in the ward finally gave me the motivation to start and finish this little project in just 2 nights! And that's a big deal for me. I thought it would make a great stocking stuffer. :)

Then I was STILL motivated, so I busted out this hot/cold dinosaur pack in about 30 minutes! I know it's not the best sewing job, but luckily I have low expectations for myself. (http://www.etsy.com/listing/48736358/hotcold-ouchie-pak-dale-the-dinosaur)

P.S. I have no idea why these pics are turned sideways. They weren't when I uploaded them.

Time out

2010-06-15T12:16:00.000-07:00

You know you need to change something when your toddler puts himself in time out.

Happy Sunday : )

2010-06-13T12:09:00.000-07:00

It's summer...finally!

2010-06-09T18:48:00.000-07:00

As all you Utahns know, we have been waiting for summer for a long time now. I can appreciate winter (being an elf and all), but once I had a toddler, I was ready for warmer weather. Mother Nature doesn't like spring around here, so it went from snowing to about 80 degrees+ within a week or two. But I'm not complaining. We were finally able to go outside for an extended amount of time! Yaay!

Stewart Falls

Hiking Stewart Falls. Reed cried the first 30 minutes of the hike. What kid doesn't like to be carried?! Oh yeah--mine! Luckily, he gave up and we were able to have an enjoyable time.

I'm pretty sure we're not wearing this carrier correctly, because Kevin and I had to switch several times. Our shoulders almost FELL OFF!

He smiles!

The family shot in front of the Falls.

Bike Ride

The first bike ride of the season...A SUCCESS! He screamed bloody murder last summer but no tears this year! You have no idea how happy this made me. He still hangs on for dear life, but that's the least of our worries.

Splash Park

Getting lubed up.

Testing the waters.

Tried and true.

Check out this trick.

Venturing into new territory. This is deceiving, because Reed really isn't getting wet here.

And if he started to get a little "too wet," he made sure to get out of there fast. Not a normal child.

Reed LOVES the Splash Park! Really, he does.

Farm Country

2010-06-09T18:36:00.001-07:00

Looking at a cow...from a distance.

This guy was okay.

And ducks are always cool.

But this was still probably the best part.

And running up and down the ramp, of course.

Gathering corn from the ground so mom could feed the goats. Get close enough to feed them myself? Are you kidding me?

Okay, fine. I'll feed the goats, but only when they are far enough away so I can just drop it in there and then watch them go after it. I'm getting so brave.

I look good.

Peek-a-boo.

Wagon ride with mom. She told me it was a truck so I would get on. I wasn't too scared of the horses pulling us, but I held onto mom so she wouldn't be scared.

Lunch break. It was a fun day.

Adventures

2010-05-17T19:45:00.000-07:00

Dinosaur Museum

I went out on a limb and took Reed to the Dinosaur Museum at Thanksgiving Point for the first time. I thought it was so cool and would have had a fun time reading all the cool facts about dinosaurs but, naturally, we pretty much ran through. There were really only two places that Reed liked--the water play area and the sand area. Besides that, he was scared out of his mind! SO SAD! He would literally crawl up me when he saw any big dinosaur bones displayed. In fact, he had his first nightmare that night which (I'm assuming) was a result of the Dinosaur Museum. :( I only took a few pictures since I was holding Frog most of the time.

A little upset in the water play area when sand was accidentally thrown on his head. Plus, he didn't want his hands wet. Tricky, eh?

Searching for bones.

Hogle Zoo

This past Saturday we went to the Hogle Zoo for the first time. It kinda sucked. It really was not a good zoo. But Reed didn't know any better, so I guess it was fun to see him looking at the 6 animals that actually were there.

We all liked the elephants, especially the cute baby elephant!

Reed making elephant sounds. :)

Observing...

And the best part of the whole thing was still the playground!

He is his father's son

2010-05-03T21:03:00.001-07:00

Our first trip to Nickelcade...

He LOVED it!

Summer is coming....

2010-04-15T12:49:00.000-07:00

We already have gone to a park every day this week and most of last week. I don't know how long the park will be exciting. What are your favorite summer activities? With and without kids.

Frog update

2010-04-09T12:53:00.000-07:00

So I always take random pictures of Reed but never really have a good reason to post some of them. Let's just do a Reed Frog update:

He starting to look like such a big boy. But if we ask him who or where the big boy is, he points to to the little "Big Boy" (hamburger) statue we have on our kitchen counter.

He loves slides! Especially big ones.

But he kinda hates the swing.

He loves ducks.

But he hates crossing bridges (if they have a sloped curve). He gets to this point every time and then screams and cries until I help him across. It's a real fear--he is literally shaking. After about 30 min. or so, he gets enough courage to cross by himself.

Playing "squeezes" with daddy.

He loves doing an alphabet website (www.starfall.com) at night with daddy too. In fact, he would try to request it about every 30 min. during the day and throw a tantrum, so we ended up putting our office chairs in the back room. Did I tell you how obsessed he is with letters? It is crazy! Some kids are into cars, trains, maybe animals; Reed is into letters. We got him a DVD called Letter Factory and a few months ago, he got really into it. He also has magnetic letters, a ABC felt book I made him, and starfall. He sees letters everywhere and is constantly pointing them out. He'll even be eating food (ex: toast), and then look at it from different angles and see letters. Believe me, it's not something we forced upon him. I think the whole "My Baby Can Read" is a little weird and freaky. He just really got into letters. As a result, he knows all his letters and their sounds. It's pretty funny. I guess there are worse things to be obsessed about.

Playing letters with daddy.

Happy Easter...he still doesn't get it

2010-04-09T12:41:00.000-07:00

Like every year, we had to keep tradition and dye eggs. We invited our friends, Ann and Brian over. It turned out to be Brian's "first time" dyeing eggs! They did something weird using flowers to dye eggs when he grew up.

I helped Reed dip the egg into the dye, he put stickers on his chest, and then he proceeded to crush the egg. He couldn't figure out why it wouldn't go back together. It was actually a very stressful time for him, not enjoyable at all.

Saturday morning we went to an Easter Egg Hunt. We were there an hour early to help set up, but there wasn't really much to do. So we froze our butts off and listened to Reed scream for an hour.

Reed was really anxious/excited to get the eggs. Sadly, he thought they were giant jelly beans (he kept saying "jelly bean") and he was pretty upset when he tried to take a bite out of it.

We left immediately after the meltdown.

The Easter Bunny left a trail of jelly beans to Reed's basket. He must've known he wouldn't be old enough to really try to find his basket.

He was pretty excited about the books in his basket.

So we had to read it right away.

The jelly beans were his favorite part. :) He ate them all in one sitting. Take it back; he misplaced one egg full of jelly beans and finished them off a couple hours later.

More Hawaii!

2010-04-05T12:29:00.000-07:00

We're on our way!

We knew the trip was going to be awesome when we busted out our cameras at the airport!

Hanauma Bay

Snorkeling at Hanauma Bay. We were the only ones that didn't see the sea turtle (I know, you should feel bad for us). My dad even saw an octupus and, with all things, ignored the comment to refrain from touching fish and got a puffer fish to "blow up."
I felt like I was in a giant aquarium.

Pit stop at insta-care for a toe problem. I'll spare you the disgusting details.

Sunburns after the first day: Sarah, Clinton, Chris. These whities just can't handle the sun. Or maybe people like Kevin who used 2 full bottles (for real) were smarter than we thought--he did not get an ounce of sun (which is what he was going for).

The U.S.S. Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor

Catamaran ride

They got soaked! It was quite entertaining. All the little Asian girls on the boat thought it was hilarious. I think I have a crush on Asian girls. So cute.

The group

Getting tatoos at the Paradise Cove luau.

A frog tattoo was very fitting. :)

We saw this a couple times...must not be very hard. ;)

Hawaii is awesome.

It's okay to laugh. Let's just say that I decided not to take the picture of my dad and the Polynesians shortly after.

Pretty beach...sorry, I lost track of all their names.

Polynesian Cultural Center

Tongan island presentation--hilarious!

Laie Temple. You could put the Provo Temple next to this foliage and it would be pretty.

View from Diamondhead Hike

My crazy father braving the waves at Sandy Beach. The rest of us were too scared to get in the water. Shortly after, some professional boogie boarders told us we shouldn't be there and to go to another beach. Apparently, this beach had the highest number of neck injuries in Hawaii.

So we went to Makapu'u Beach down the street. Scary enough waves but manageable to boogie board. Probably my favorite activity we did.

Kevin, Clinton, and Chris played a lot of water football.

While Allie played in the waves.

Sunset at Waikiki Beach.

Hike to Maunawili Falls. It was so pretty, I felt like I was in a jungle. Actually, I think it was. I was waiting to turn the corner and run into the black smoke monster.

Kevin and I

Clinton

One of the billioneth time we crossed a river. Not one particle of Tera likes to hike. Kinda funny to look back on it now.

Okay, so the waterfall was a little disappointing but I thought we'd be able to swim in the little pool of water. We didn't realize until we got there that you could get infected with Leptospirosis. Look it up, it's some nasty stuff. But we did watch one crazy jumping from a cliff 25 ft.+ and landing on his back. He came up bleeding all over himself.

We spent a lot of time looking for this guy. There were a couple more turtles there as well.

Evidence of the amount of sunscreen Chris (and Kevin) put on during this trip.

The Dole Plantation

Aloha!

What an AWESOME, AWESOME, trip!

For those of you wondering, Reed did great with his Oma and Opa. They reassured us that he didn't miss us one bit. Kinda sad. He at least was really excited to see us when we got back. I cried when we left the airport (and when I saw him again). :) But all of us did pretty well at just enjoying our vacation. :) I think I am becoming more and more of a warm weather person. I still love snow, but I could handle maybe a 3 month winter rather than 6 months. Where should we move???

HAWAII

2010-04-01T13:38:00.000-07:00

....was awesome. (More pictures to come).

Biggest Loser

2010-03-18T12:17:00.000-07:00

My family has been participating in a Biggest Loser competition for the past few months and the guys are kicking butt! The contest officially ends this upcoming Monday, but Kevin reached his personal goal as of this morning. He lost a total of 40 pounds! I am SO proud of him! It looks like he will take 2nd place behind Bob, and Heath will follow (though he said he was going to starve himself this week to win, so we'll see), and then Clinton (who, of course has to gain weight to win). Sarah may sneak in to pass up Clinton too. We're taking a family trip to Hawaii next week (no kids!), so that was our motivation. I just wanted to show off the new "skinny Kevin!"

Kitchen Helper

2010-02-26T12:31:00.000-08:00

Just a cute picture of the Frog helping out in the kitchen:

Snowboarding 2010

2010-02-18T21:09:00.000-08:00

We finally were able to go snowboarding again, after taking off 2 years a.k.a. pregnant and then breastfeeding. Our fun neighbors, Ann and Brian, went with us too.

So I didn't get the greatest pictures, but I need to document fun things we do in our life if I ever decide to make this blog into a book. Proof that we are still fun.
We did pretty well considering we hadn't been in a couple years and, even so, we've only snowboarded 3-4 times total. We never left the bunny hill/mountain...seriously people outside of UT, skiing/boarding anywhere else and our bunny hill is a black diamond, or at least a blue. Anyway, only a few good bruises and separated ribs. Poor Kevin. At least he didn't break them again. He is getting so old.

Swimsuit shopping

2010-02-10T17:09:00.000-08:00

I know it seems a little early, but my family is headed to Hawaii at the end of March (I am so excited I could jump out of my skin!). However, I am having a hard time finding a swimsuit. There are a lot stores that have swimsuits already, but I can't find one that works for me! I am looking for a tankini (easier to go the bathroom) but I want it tight around my stomach so it doesn't fly up when I swim. Seems easy enough, right? No! I think the style for tankinis is generally fly-away type thing which just doesn't work for me. I bought a swimsuit from Shade last year, and I loved it until I went swimming. It flies up and no one wants to see that. I do think that Shade might have some other styles that would work, but there is a big chance their suits won't be in stores on time. So any suggestions of things that worked for you and where to find a suit? I'm also thinking a swim shirt, but don't you have to wear something under it?

I "know" creative people

2010-01-26T22:42:00.001-08:00

So I really get all my ideas from other people--not even people I know but blogs I read online. You know those sensory tubs? Reed has a bean tub which he loves, so I decided to try out this "arctic type tub." I colored some ice and gave him some frogs (I didn't have any real arctic animals). He loved playing in the water! He liked just holding the ice and dropping it back in.

The water got nasty pretty quick from the food coloring, so I dumped it out and just added "lily pads" (peas). He mostly just ate the peas. Somebody feed this kid! Jeesh.

So I do try to feed this kid, but the last week or so he has decided that he doesn't really like to eat anymore. He is getting 4 molars right now so that could be the problem or maybe he's just entered that super picky toddler phase. It stresses me out big time! Have you heard of Muffin Tin Monday? See my sidebar to check it out. It's just a creative way to feed your child a meal once a week. They usually have a theme--I thought about doing the letter A as a theme but didn't really have a lot of "A" foods. I really think he liked it! He definitely liked sitting on the floor, and I do think he tried a variety of foods that he wouldn't have otherwise. Nope, he didn't like the avocados though.

My first Muffin Tin: apples, applesauce, avocados, cheese, pretzels, and peas. They always have cutesie muffin tins for Muffin Tin Monday, but you can obviously just use what you have. I recommend giving it a try...to do something different nonetheless.

I threw this together in like 30 min. during Reed's nap (my own idea even!). He loves to take the pegs out of my FHE board, so I thought this would be a good alternative: matching colors! He has enjoyed it so far and I think it will be good to us on Sunday as well! :)

I love to see....

2010-01-18T19:48:00.000-08:00

...the temple.
We talked about temples in FHE tonight. Reed has just started recognizing temples and pointing them out. He calls them "bop-bos." Very cute.

We thought it was necessary to take him on temple grounds after he pointed at this and said "bop-bo." Close.

We kept tradition and followed our "temple trip" with ice cream.

Snowshoeing

2010-01-07T11:57:00.000-08:00

Half frozen Bridal Veil Falls

CHRISTMAS

2009-12-30T12:07:00.000-08:00

Christmas with Mom
We had wonderful Christmas celebrations. We celebrated with my mom the weekend before--she still thinks that coming down to UT a week before will make the drive more safe--we had Christmas with my dad on Xmas Eve, and then spent the night at Kevin's parents' house to wake up for Xmas morning there. Here are pictures from the festivities:

Reed played with his lego blocks for like an hour! He never has that long of attention span!

Colton in his cute Christmas PJs. I don't know why I didn't get any for Reed. I also forgot to take him to see Santa. What kind of elf am I?!

All the nephews checking out Kevin's present.

Christmas Eve

This is the only time you will see Reed sharing with Colton. Every other time he was screaming at him and bawling his eyeballs out.

Opening more presents.

Fun toy.

Possibly his favorite toy now.

Check this out. Reed loved his push toy so much that he would hoarde it from Colton. He would hide it and then play with something else. Who is this kid?

Christmas morning

"Opening" his stocking...which he could care less about, because he just wanted to play with Oma's toys.

Breakfast break

The Stack Master

Things started to get a little stressful when we wanted Reed to open the last presents.

Thanks Walsh cousins!

This made Kevin very happy....gosh, this kid got WAY too many toys! For real, I came home and packed up some of his old toys. I don't know why we even bother getting him things for Christmas when everyone else takes care of it. Thank you everyone for a wonderful Christmas(es)!!!

Christmas Happenings

2009-12-15T20:38:00.001-08:00

SNOW TIME

He hates his snow pants.

He liked touching the snow once he figured it out.

Daddy and Reed

There were many tears...I realized his snow boots were 4 sizes too big. That would explain why he could barely walk in them. Sorry Frog.

Frog and Snow Frog.

TEMPLE SQUARE

PLAYING SANTA

It has always been my dream for Kevin to play Santa. My dream, not his. But they found out in ward council that Kevin owned a Santa suit and our friend volunteered him to play Santa for the Ward Christmas party. He agreed only because he only had to hand out goodies to kids at the very beginning, then he could go change. Next year I'm going to ask if I can play an elf and hand out goodies too.

Most of the kids were happy to see Santa. Older kids were punks and pulled off his beard. One older lady asked if she could sit on his lap and asked for something awkward for Christmas. Kevin didn't let her sit on his lap.

Reed had no idea who Santa was.

FINGER PAINTING ORNAMENTS

I drew ornaments on cardstock and put paint on it to see what Reed would do. He was very confused at first.

He liked it best when I gave him spoons.

Of course he had to taste it...don't worry, it was made of flour and water. Still don't know how that would taste good, but he kept eating it.

The Frog

2009-12-07T11:33:00.000-08:00

He knows who he is! YAAY! (Sorry it's on its side).

Let the countdown begin!

2009-12-01T09:03:00.000-08:00

24 more days until Christmas!!!

My first solo sewing project (that's a snow globe ornament). I feel pretty good about it. Though I had to completely redo the pockets because at first I only put 7 boxes across. Grrrr.....
But now it is done! Yaay!

Family Pictures

2009-11-24T19:53:00.001-08:00

He's getting tired of this....

It was worth a try.

That's better.

A few videos

2009-11-08T14:22:00.001-08:00

A few fun videos for your viewing pleasure....

Remember the dancing Frog? He's gotten more aggressive. Sometimes I think he'll rock the highchair over. He knows it's funny, so he'll do things just to make us laugh. It's awesome.

We were about 2 minutes too late on this video. The cute part happens in the first 5 seconds. But earlier, Reed would go press a button, then come get a kiss. Like 10 times. It was so cute!

Halloween Festivities

2009-11-02T11:38:00.000-08:00

We had a great Halloween weekend! Kevin's company throws a HUGE party! Actually, they just decorate the buildings in different themes. They spent 2 weeks planning it and several days decorating. In fact, all the employees are required to stay and decorate the day before until it is finished (everyone started at 12pm and ended around midnight). It's serious business. And SO fun!

Work Party

I was an elf last year, but I didn't want to go buy another costume (I wear this every Christmas Eve--its main purpose). Kevin had a Santa suit on hand, so Reed had to fit the theme: Rudolph! I thought he made a very cute reindeer. It was so cute that tons of little kids would point out Santa and some even asked him for certain things for Christmas. I wish I could play Santa so bad!

G.I. Joe area. I think they brought all the plants from the building to make it look like a jungle. Cool, huh?

An employee dressed as Beetlejeuse. He played the part very well.

Watching "Thriller." Very cool.

Looney Toons.

Scooby Doo.

Flinstones car.

Pirate ship from Peter Pan. This was my favorite. The canons actually worked! (They shot air at you).

This guy got a $1000 for winning the costume contest. Can you guess who he is?? :)
Kevin's department won the decorating contest with Pac Man. Sadly, I didn't get any pictures. I guess they had employees dressed as Pac Man, Mrs. Pac man, and all the ghosts and they were all running through the maze they built.

Carving Pumpkins

We made Reed take out all the pumpkin goop. :)

Kevin's pumpkin--kinda looks like a frog, huh?

My pumpkin--notice the snaggletooth? I did that on purpose.

Trick-or-treating

We only went to two houses. Reed had no idea what was going on. He didn't even want to hold the bucket.

He did notice something in his bucket. I let him eat a couple pieces of chocolate on Halloween and he loves it (naturally). His face was like, "Holy cow, you've been holding out on me! Who knew food could taste so good?!"

Halloween party

Ghosts

Carrot finger dip

Eyeballs

Witch's brew

Puking pumpkin

Graveyard (contributed by our neighbors)

Carmel apples

The cupcake family: Ryan, Jayna, and Eliza

Aladdin and Charlie Brown: Chris and Allie

Condiments: Brian and Ann

We ate a ton of junk and played games late into the night. It was super fun! I'm just trying to hold tradition for Cassidy since she moved, though there is no way I could live up to her creativity!

Pumpkin Farm

2009-10-25T19:07:00.000-07:00

When I was little, we went to the local pumpkin farm every year. And I LOVED it! I want to start this tradition with our family, so we took Reed to a pumpkin farm this weekend. There were a lot of fun little activities.

Miniature maze for tykes. Reed almost found his way out too! Almost.

I love these things.

They just let you loose in the petting area with a bunch of animals: pigs, chickens, sheep, and a goat. It was hilarious trying to chase and corner them. Though I'll just say that Kevin is quite a pansy about touching farm animals--he didn't even want Reed to touch the sheep because it was "dirty."

Crazy donkey.

Fun slide.

We made Reed try to get out all by himself. We're so mean. :)

Hehe.

Buried in the corn box.

Not quite, bud.

Ignore the dirt on his mouth. He fell face first and, apparently, we don't care about having a dirty boy.

The Happiest Place on Earth

2009-10-20T08:52:00.000-07:00

Prepare yourself for a whole lot of pictures! We just returned from an 8 day vacation to Disney World! Kevin's parents were so nice to take the whole family out to Florida. It was SO SO SO fun! And Reed did so awesome! He had his moments but, overall, he was a champ!

SEA WORLD

Kevin and I went to Sea World our first day. Kevin's parents watched Reed which was so nice. I don't think he would've lasted sitting in the 95 degree weather + humidity. I thought I was going to melt. Plus, for some reason, we torture ourselves by not buying food in the park (understandable since it's so expensive), but then we also try to ration our food/water all day. I'm pretty sure I was dehydrated at the end of the day. For real, I was sick.

This is possibly the ugliest animal I have ever seen. Walruses are huge too!

DISNEY WORLD: Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Epcot, and Hollywood Studios

Entering Magic Kingdom for the first time. Reed was intrigued by the castle.

Trying to cool down. It was SO hot all week (except our last day was perfect weather...it even got cold at night!)

There were a lot of "firsts" for Reed on this trip: raspberry lemonade slush, M&Ms, and apple juice.

Some of our crew: Marty, Whitney, and Kevin's parents. With everybody, we had 15 people.

The Pirates of the Caribbean ride was a little too much for Reed.

Reed has become quite the paper eater. He ate at least 2 napkins, toilet paper, and about 10 straw wrappers on our trip. I guess he's taking after his girlfriend, Scout.

Bats in Animal Kingdom. I think bats are really cool.

Dinosaur ride with Frog (similar to Dumbo).

We had such a cool splash area for little tykes at our hotel, but for some reason Reed wasn't into it.

Reed Frog doesn't usually like stuffed animals, so we were glad to see him playing with the Mickey Mouse we got him (at Walmart--so much cheaper!). He likes sucking on his nose.

He loved It's a Small World ride! Probably because all the singing people are his size. But not as much as he liked the Lion King show. He was giggling so much at these monkeys (acrobats) doing flips on the trampoline. It was so dang cute.

How cool is this?

Florida has its pretty parts, I guess.

Meeting Chip and Dale. To my surprise, he LOVED them. He tried talking to them (babbling like crazy) and kept touching their noses. It was awesome. Another reason to have kids. :)

As we were leaving, Reed discovered some wood chips (of course) and sat down. Chip and Dale decided to join him, and Reed offered some wood chips to them. It was very cute and all the people watching thought so too. Also, there must be a lack of babies in Florida (besides Disney World). Every time we ate out or were at Walmart, people acted like he was a famous baby or had never seen a baby before. He charmed everyone.

A fun little play area. Reed loves watching kids run around. He thinks it's funny and he tries to do it too.

Epcot at night.

We knew Reed wouldn't wear this hat all week, so we didn't buy him one but managed to get this picture at least.

Soon-to-be Elder Michael Wilson. He makes us so proud! :)

Very recently returned Elder A.J. Wilson. Can you tell? :)

Reed warmed up to Mikey just in time for him to leave on his mission.

Entering the greatest ride ever: Toy Story Mania! It was possibly my favorite. Plus, I want to decorate a room like this.

Cousins: Ellie, Aidan, Reed, Cade, and Colin. We learned that it is impossible to get that many kids to look at a camera at the same time. Especially when there is so much more to look at.

Our friend was so nice to let us borrow their travel car seat, so we didn't have to check ours at the airport. It slid around a ton, so it was hilarious to see Reed fighting to stay up straight.

Kevin grew a beard (then a goatee) in Florida and Reed was trying to figure it out.

Hanging on for dear life.

The famous Dumbo ride. I still don't understand why people wait up to an hour for this ride. But Kevin insisted that we did. Can you even see Reed? Don't worry, I didn't go on it by myself.

Much easier and faster to get a picture this way.

Kevin did a lot of carrying.

Our family on the Winnie the Pooh ride (which was a lot less scary in Disney World, I thought).

It really was magical at night.

Kevin and Reed (fireworks).

We had to meet Mickey and Minnie.

The trip was so awesome! We definitely didn't want to come back. Thanks to Kevin's parents for making it possible.

Fun Frog Moments

2009-10-07T19:17:00.001-07:00

Reed's first experience with a sucker. The nurse at his appointment asked if she could give him one after his shots. I begrudgingly agreed--it was so gross but so cute.

He loved it!

Playing in the tub again. I still don't know how he gets in there.
Reed just learned how to spin. He thinks it's really funny.

Idaho

2009-10-06T12:12:00.000-07:00

We took a trip to see my mom and Bob in Idaho 2 weekends ago. They had a really cool zoo in Idaho Falls that was perfect for Reed. It was small, so you didn't have to walk a billion miles to see the next animal.

Reed was way more curious and interested in the animals than we thought he'd be.

It's hard to tell from the picture, but this black swan had the longest neck I've ever seen! It looked like a snake neck.

Looking at some baby ducklings. I think these were his favorite animals.

We made him touch the goat. :) He only likes to touch animals if they are smaller than him. He LOVED Bob's cat, Missy.

Kinda majestic, huh? We were all in awe by this lion...and a little freaked out too.

Now that Reed has mastered climbing up stairs, he is obsessed with it. As long as he spots stairs, he has to climb them.

Apparently he likes to kill flowers too.

And eat dirt.

I took this picture for my mom. Notice Reed holding her finger--it made her day!

I also made a superhero cape for Reed while I was there. It was intended to be for a future gift, but he didn't even notice it on, so it might also be his Halloween costume this year.

Batman and Superman reversible cape.

We had such a good time. It's nice to get away. I think I could maybe even live in Idaho if it wasn't so dang cold.

Boating

2009-09-21T10:25:00.000-07:00

Our neighbors, Ann and Brian, invited us to go boating with Ann's dad on Utah Lake. Kevin and I have only been boating a couple of times in our lives, so we jumped at the opportunity. (I've always been jealous of those people who go to Lake Powell every year). I have tried water skiing one time and Kevin had once or twice as well. So we were newbies.

Reed was so cute in his little life jacket. He did awesome on the boat! He only whimpered a few times and usually when the boat was stopped.

Brian giving Kevin some instructions on wake boarding.

Almost there.

Good job Kevin! He got up a couple times which is impressive considering he cracked at least 2 ribs in the process (one on each side)!

Somehow I got up the first try.

I ended up doing pretty well wake boarding. I even got some air jumping the wake!

I also tried knee boarding which was super fun! Kevin was done due to the rib-cracking situation.

Doing a 360 on the knee board. Ann and Brian made it sound really easy but it was pretty tough. I got stuck going backwards for a little while before completing the turn. Then they gave me credit after. Thanks guys.

Reed's hair was awesome! And he didn't even fuss about the wind in his face, probably because he was so dang tired. He hadn't taken a nap yet.

He couldn't last.

Our little water adventure was SO fun! And since we had so much fun we realized there was only one solution: we need to buy a boat (or convince Kevin's family to get one). :)

He walks!

2009-09-17T16:36:00.000-07:00

This is for my mom....

Black Beans!

2009-09-15T09:47:00.000-07:00

Reed loves black beans and I love how messy he gets when he eats them! He also likes to pull his hair, so notice his hair sticking out to the right side. I think he looks like a mad scientist.
(He's also wearing a very cool bib that he got from his Aunt Christi. Thanks, it's awesome!)

Sunday with a 14 month old

2009-09-13T15:02:00.000-07:00

So I was just wondering how to deal with Reed during a 3 hour church day. My question is this: If I want him to know that he can't just cry and be crazy and expect to have fun in the hall, what do I do? He just wants to crawl/walk around, and I don't really let him do that much in sacrament meeting/classes. Do I refuse to let him "have fun" in the hall and wait until he calms down and bring him back to class or just let him get the wiggles out in the hall? But like I said, I don't want him to think he can just cry and get his way. Or is he just too young all together? I ask this because I rarely see people in the hall with their kid and they're also not running around in class. What do you guys do? My child just doesn't like to be held very much...(I now know what you mean, Trine).

Random happenings

2009-09-03T18:51:00.000-07:00

Has anyone made these file folder activities? Reed is still too young I think, but I'm trying to get ahead of the game. What are some more activity ideas? I have letters, numbers, shapes, and colors.

Reed loves putting his finger in the funnel. Then he cries when it gets stuck. Which happens every time.

I have no idea how that happened.

Cool Dinosaur Park in PG. Reed will have a lot of fun here in about another year. Walking would help.

Reed loves carrying things in his mouth. Like slinkys.

And cotton balls. Again.

The post-nap snuggle.

More Splash Park. He is always so happy there.

We were hoping the fountains would go off while he was in there.

He got out about 5 seconds before they went off. Shucks for us, probably a relief for him.....But it would have been so funny.

The latest vinyl project

2009-08-28T10:00:00.000-07:00

I saw this idea in someone's home and tried to replicate it. I like how it turned out, but the tile weighs a billion pounds, so I don't know where to put it now.

Tired frog.

2009-08-27T06:19:00.000-07:00

I cannot remember the last time Reed woke up happy in the morning. Maybe when he was like 8 months old and was still sleeping 12 hours at night. Now he goes to bed between 7:45 and 8:00pm and wakes up between 6 and 6:30am. And he wakes up tired and angry. We always let him cry until it seems like he will not fall back asleep and ocassionally we'll go in his room, give him a binky, and lay him back down (because he is usually sitting or standing in his crib). That usually doesn't work, but we keep doing it in hopes that it will. I've tried giving him a drink too to no avail. We have attributed it to teething for a while now, but can a kid really teethe for 4 months straight? It has to be something else. On some miracle mornings, he has slept until 7 or 7:30am but, honestly, I can't remember the last time that happened. AND, we didn't do anything differently to make those magical days happen, it just did by chance. He's not sick just crazy.

So, does anyone else's baby/child do this? Any suggestions to make him sleep longer? It just sucks when he is whining and tired for the next 5-6 hours until his nap (which is usually short too). I'm about ready to drug him with Benadryl. I feel angry every morning.

"Buddy the Elf, what's your favorite color?"

2009-08-24T10:12:00.000-07:00

Yes, that's a cotton ball.

Splash Park of Awesomeness

2009-08-18T10:50:00.000-07:00

There is a really cool new Splash Park in Highland at the Town Center Plaza. They have a man-made river with big rocks in it and an area with shooting fountains and then tons of grassy area. Frog and I spent over an hour there and he can't even do much! I imagine older kids would LOVE it and they must, because it was packed! These places are free too.

He really liked the river.

I think he mostly liked watching all the kids. He couldn't stop smiling. :)

Don't worry, I put him up there. He's not that good.

I have the cutest baby in the world. Or toddler. Whatever he is.

Fountains

He was a little skeptical, so he usually stayed clear of them.

He found his way to the wood chips while crawling around. Jackpot!

These wood chips must taste good too. Luckily, he couldn't really fit any in his mouth. They should call these ones wood logs not wood chips.

It was a fun afternoon.

How'd that happen?!

2009-08-09T16:40:00.000-07:00

I was getting ready for church while Reed was playing in the bathroom. He likes to throw stuff in the bathtub just to see what it looks like. Then he tries to retrieve it. Occasionally, he falls in. Fortunately, he didn't cry very long at all but was just content playing in the empty bathtub.

Fun at the park

2009-08-04T08:38:00.000-07:00

Feeding ducks while Reed watched.

Yaay, he likes the swing now! (I don't have a normal baby. He hated swings the first 11 months of his life).

Reed LOVES wood chips......

....including eating them.

Kevin decided to bury Reed in the wood chips.

Reed also loves to crawl on cement. He has calluses on his knees.

He's not so sure about the slide yet.

Picky Eater

2009-08-03T11:29:00.000-07:00

What do you do when your 1 year old turns into a picky eater? This is definitely a new thing. Anyone who knows him knows that he would eat almost anything and A LOT of it! But just lately he has decided to get really picky...even with foods I know he likes. I feel like he does it because he can. He even ate baby food once in a while up until a few weeks ago (and we still have some on hand just in case). we just give him what we eat. The worst is when he'll take 2-3 bites of something and then decide to refuse it. I can't make a billion types of food at every meal. My idea is the 3 strikes you're out rule. Once he refuses 3 different foods, he's done with his meal. Any other ideas? He doesn't seem old enough to compromise with yet.

I joined

2009-07-29T08:59:00.001-07:00

I am a facebooker now.

Facebook or not?

2009-07-23T07:01:00.000-07:00

I have avoided Facebook for all this time for a few reasons. First off, I have a blog so why would I need Facebook? And I really don't like the idea of Facebook. For some reason, I associate it with MySpace which I think is dirty. So fellow bloggers, could you educate me on Facebook? Blogs are fine and all, but I really don't have any contact with my high school friends, and they all use Facebook. A lot of them have asked me to sign up. What are the pros and cons, if there are any? Do you get a bunch of dirty pop-ups? Can you have a joint account with your spouse?

Reed and Scout

2009-07-19T18:45:00.000-07:00

My friend Cassidy and her baby, Scout (who is only 2 weeks younger than Reed) came out from San Diego to visit for a few days. We were lucky to have them stay with us. We swam a lot, watched the tykes play, ate ice cream, and just had fun hanging out and talking. I really miss having her around.

Cass made Reed an awesome frog bib for his birthday.

Not a good nap day.

The stars.

This was my favorite Reed/Scout moment. Reed was pushing Scout around and absolutely cracking up. He loved it! The extra weight helped him keep stable while walking. :) It gave me a glimpse of their future when Reed will be pushing his grandma wife in a wheelchair. :)

There were only a few scuffles.

Flirting.

"Let me help you with that, honey."

The magic moment.

The future Reed and Scout Wilson.

Us

PARTY

2009-07-12T19:55:00.000-07:00

We had a house-full of people for Reed's birthday party. It was a bit crowded in our apartment but was so fun! Reed obviously didn't really get what was going on but once he saw new toys, he did get pretty excited (maybe since he has been playing with the same three toys for most of his life). It was awesome.

The first new toy.

A little overwhelmed by everything.

Great gift Grandma Debbie! This was the hit of the party. Reed LOVES it! In fact, when cousin Rhettsky rode it past Reed, I was helping him walk and he grabbed onto the back handle. Rhett was going pretty fast, so he tried to keep up by running and still holding onto my hand for support. He finally fell and kept hanging on as he was being dragged behind the car. It was hilarious! It reminded me of the scene in Runaway Bride when that boy was dragged by Julia Roberts' wedding dress.

Frog cake for the Frog. I had to....This is why I had kids.

A little confused by all the singing.

He liked the clapping.

Trying to figure this cake thing out. By the way, Macey's will make you a cake for your child's 1st birthday for freeeeee! :)

Oh my goodness, sugar!

He doesn't really like having stuff on his hands.

Okay, he's mad.

And then content.

And now it's time for bed.

I now understand what they mean by "living through your kids." I had so much fun at Reed's party! Maybe someday he'll get it too.

Happy Birthday Reed!

2009-07-08T09:09:00.000-07:00

Reed turned 1 today! He woke up happy, so maybe it will turn out to be a good day. I'm waiting for a leap in maturity to happen any minute now. I tried getting a birthday picture of him this morning but ever since he's gotten really mobile, he doesn't sit and smile at the camera anymore (which he was great at before). Now he crawls over and tries to play with the camera cord. So here are my best shots.

Here are a few of my favorite things about Reed:

1. His "dance." He's been doing it for months now--it usually happens at lunch or dinner when he's the happiest. It's evolved into an extreme head shake. He knows we think it's funny, so he does it all the time.

2. When he crawls and wants to pick up the pace, he puts his head down in concentration and often runs into things because he can't see where he is going.

3. He anticipates getting tickled and he'll laugh even before we touch him.

4. When I start crawling toward him, he'll crawl toward me and start cracking up. Its my favorite "game" we play.

5. His snaggly teeth that aren't quite growing in the right order.

6. His slobbery kisses.

7. Even though it sometimes drives me crazy, how he flicks his Cheerios with his finger to see how they can fly.

8. His many noises and sounds he makes. I think he babbles a lot differently than most babies. I've heard one of his "famous" sounds described as a seal or bird.

9. How he sticks out his tongue a lot.

10. His amazing stacking (blocks, cups, etc.) abilities. And how he looks at me for validation.

I love this Frog! Happy 1st Birthday, bud!