The Johnson Family

Christmas time 2010

2011-01-14T20:46:00.000-08:00

Brinley is our big helper. She does so much for our family. She is doing so well at school and she loves having a little sister. She is our beautiful dancing and singing ballerina :)!

And then there's Tyler :) We love him so much he is such a sweetie, but boy does he give me a run for my money. He is into everything, and he loves vacuums. When we walk through Target, he doesn't get as excited in the toy isle as he does in the vacuum isle. I can't wait until he's actually a productive cleaner - he's getting close!

We had a Nativity at Grandma and Grandpa Hansen's house on Christmas Eve. Brinley was Mary, Tyler was Joseph or a Shepherd (he was kind of all over the place ) and Braden was an Angel and Kayla our dear Baby Jesus again.

Braden and Brinley got these AWESOME Harry Potter wands from their aunt Shelby. (She and Asia got one too). Braden LOVES Harry Potter and got all 6 on DVD for Christmas.

Marc took the kids miniature golfing and to McDonald's while I rested....I love my husband - he's the best!!!

Some places in Utah got 2 feet of snow while we were there, we didn't! It rained the whole week of Christmas and snowed on December 26th. The kids had so much fun playing in the snow. With dad's help they made this amazing snowman.

This is the day it snowed and Brinley decided to head out. What you can't see is that yes she has on her boot and her winter coat, but under that coat and boots is a Leotard....yes just a leotard :)! It looks like a nice full dress, but it's just a leotard with a long netting tutu. She surprisingly stayed out for a long time. Apparently the tutu kept the snow off her legs. :)

Our live Nativity Star!

2010-12-13T22:28:00.000-08:00

Kayla was baby Jesus for our local live nativity for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was very neat, except for the fact that she cried through the entire thing :). Everyone says that they think it adds to the reality that it's a real baby up there. It is really neat to think about how Mary must have felt holding the Christ child, and realizing all that would be required of her dear sweet baby. I am grateful she was willing to experience that so that we could be blessed by our Savior's ultimate sacrifice. This was a wonderful way to start the Christmas season. Here's the happy baby before the show, surprising how quickly she changed her mind on the whole thing.

Making Gingerbread Cookies

2010-12-11T21:52:00.000-08:00

We made Gingerbread cookies for the first time this year and the kids had so much fun.

Tyler did not get the process at all, he basically used it as playdough and we did not dare to cook and eat what he was playing with....I don't think there's enough heat to kill those germs :).

Braden and Kayla, so happy to be part of everything. Braden is a good brother to Kayla, she "talks" to him in the car now. He loves it!

Brinley is such a good helper, she was so cute at putting it all together. She has really been stepping up so much lately, she is definitley my big helper, I know that I can depend on her...whether it's to feed Kayla a bottle, or to pull Tyler off the table, she's great!

The happy kids with cute faces!

Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!

2010-11-29T16:49:00.001-08:00

We did a last minute trip to Utah and the kids had so much fun in the snow!

Braden 5 yrs

Brinley 6 yrs

Tyler 2 yrs

Kayla was with mom in the nice warm house :)

BFF's

2010-11-11T23:28:00.000-08:00

Brinley has learned the term BFF and she drew this picture. It was so cute, the kids were coloring and Kayla was fussy so I put her in the bumbo to watch them. So fun!

Some more loving!

The boys get so excited when Marc gets home, they are literally all over him to come and play.

Kayla part of the action too...she also lights up when Marc comes in, he's such a great dad! He's such a huge blessing to me, I am so grateful that he married me.

Happy Halloween 2010!

2010-11-01T21:53:00.000-07:00

We celebrated Halloween at the ward Trunk-R-Treat. We had a yummy chili dinner and the kids had fun trick or treating and seeing all of their friends. It was a great time!

Helping Mom

2010-11-01T21:19:00.000-07:00

My sweet boys just love Kayla! Braden does not hold her often, but when he does I catch him in these cute poses just soaking it up. :) And Tyler loves her and he's actually getting better at loving her "gently" but we can't say the same for how he plays with his friends...the little stinker! But he does look cute in his new favorite helmet. We've decided it's never a bad idea for a 2 year old to wear a helmet. :)

Kayla's smiling!

2010-10-18T22:33:00.000-07:00

This isn't her smile, I just love this little Zebra outfit so I had to include this picture. You can't see it in this picture very well but there's a little stuffed Zebra that goes in the pocket in front, what can I say....darling! Thanks Brooke!

Here's her smile! It's not the best picture of it, but she has the cutest smile and she smiles all the time. She is especially smiley when dad gets home from work, she's already joining the other kids in celebrating his homecoming. He's a great dad and Kayla's already learned that.

These big eyes remind me of Tyler as a baby. So cute! She sleeps great and usually only needs 1 bottle in the night and then she's right back to sleep. She is such a sweet blessing to our little family. The Lord knows what He's doing, He always has!

The kids have so much fun with her, it is so nice having some helpers and protectors for Kayla!

Kayla's 7 weeks old

2010-09-29T23:30:00.000-07:00

I know I'm biased, but isn't she the CUTEST thing you've ever seen?

She brings so much joy to our family, the kids just love her! She brings a wonderful sweetness to our home, she's such a blessing.

My curious handful...Tyler

2010-09-29T21:36:00.000-07:00

Tyler is my curious little guy who if given enough time can figure out just about anything! He turned 2 in August and he can already open a new 2 liter bottle, take off child door knob (not just open the door - literally he takes the child locks off), he knows how to take apart and put back together his breathing nebulizer plug it in and put it on his face. He has figured out how to climb up on the desk to where we "hide" the camera. He can turn it on and we see bright lights in the other room and hear "cheeeeeeeese" as he takes pictures of everything and anything. This may not be extreme to some of you, but it is driving me CRAZY! As my mom always said..."it's a good thing you're so cute!"

Here's Tyler in his usual spot on the desk taking pictures when he's caught by dad...

This is one of those "you're so cute" moments, but don't let him fool you :)
Another picture taken by the photographer Tyler, I love how he was able to squeeze in the picture of him with food all over his face. We literally have dozens of these beautiful pictures.

Kayla Johnson is here!

2010-08-18T00:06:00.000-07:00

Kayla Johnson was born 8/7/10 at 7:15 am.

She weighed 7 lbs 10 oz and was 18.5 inches long. Welcome Kayla!

Kayla's birthday

1 day old

Kayla - 2 days old - getting ready to go home!

*She's so precious*

Look at our little sweetie pies!

2010-08-17T23:10:00.001-07:00

Long Post Warning - I wanted to get the whole story written down, so scroll down for pictures of the kids if you don't want to read the whole story!

Kayla made her arrival an unforgettable one for us and the hospital. We arrived at 6:30 or 6:40 at the hospital and the ER staff just laughed, apparently 20 women (or it seemed like to them) had come in to deliver that night. When we got to the floor, they put me in a tiny room to sit until there was a delivery room available. Since my babies come fairly quickly, the nurse moved me to the OR so that I could have some privacy and could lay down. She checked me and I was about a 4 or 5 but she did say that the baby was sitting low. The contractions were getting very strong, but I was in line for an epidural and it would be a little while until I could get one. I thought it was going to be a long day if I was only a 5 and the contractions were that bad already....little did we know...

The nurse found an empty delivery room and went and cleaned it herself so that I could move over. When she came back she had me move to a wheelchair but I was in so much pain I could barely move. I sat in the chair and it felt like I sat on a waterballoon because my water broke and went everywhere. I just remember saying I needed to push and the nurse telling me to not push yet and then everyone was panicing to get me across the hall quickly to the delivery room without slipping on the water all over the floor. (Marc included) :)

They had me lay in the bed and the Dr. was throwing on his robes quickly and I felt an incredibly strong urge to push so I pushed and then everyone just kept telling me to give one more little push. I couldn't figure out why they would say "little" they never tell you to only give a "little" push. I hadn't realized that the 1st push was her head and the little push was the rest of her. Needless to say I was in shock for the next few hours that I had really delivered a baby. I went from a 5 to delivery in 15 minutes! It was crazy, exciting, and unforgettable for our family! She's such a blessing already, she's happy and she sleeps well! I definitely am blessed to have this sweet family of mine!!!

Kayla was born the day before Tyler's birthday (yes that's what happened with Brinley and Braden too - go figure???) Tyler loves Kayla despite his grumpy face in this picture. He was just extremely tired, but I loved this picture, so it's included here. Happy 2nd birthday Tyler!!!! We love you bud!

Braden is our little "protector" for Kayla. He is in charge of making sure Tyler doesn't poke or prod her when we're not looking. He is so cute with her, he calls her "little cutie." He's getting so big, he starts Kindergarten this year!

Brinley is Kayla's 2nd mom - although she would argue she's the 1st mom and I'm 2nd. :) She is definitely a little "me" I remember my mom having to remind me that she was the mom! Brinley is extremely helpful, she will sit and hold Kayla forever and she loves to help feed her. She is also good at protecting from Tyler. Don't get us wrong, Tyler has good intentions he just isn't gentle as he pokes her eyes or tries to "hug" her.

Random pictures

2009-05-31T00:06:00.000-07:00

As you can see he's feeding himself more these days and loving it! He just has a hard time getting it all in his mouth - but I love the way the orange brings out his eyes :) Again with the orange - Brinley loves to put her headband on him - I must say he'd make a darling little girl too. He's so happy!

We went to the Yucaipa Easter Egg Hunt with Marc's parents - the kids had fun! Always a good time with Grandma and Grandpa. This was Tyler's first Easter too! I think he loved it :)

It's funny - he's so happy in this picture, but he did not like the Johnny jump-up! We ended up sending it to the DI but he loved having all these stuffed animals at his feet. (obviously Braden's doing). Again - so happy!

My little Mickey Mouses! What cuties - I love them sooooooo much!

I am so blessed with such a sweet family, they bring so much joy to my life. The Lord knows what we need in life to make us happy - we just need to be sure that we're looking for it and recognizing it! I am so grateful that I get to be with them forever - if I'm good!

Look who's 7 months already!

2009-03-09T17:39:00.000-07:00

Tyler had his 7 month (okay he's late for his 6 month) check up today. He's such a sweetie pie, he's been sick with a cold, so I wanted to post this cute picture of him smiling his usual smile. He is such a cuddly and fun baby. We all love to play with him, he's rolling now and about ready to start scooting - trouble's around the corner with him. For Marc's birthday we went to Disneyland. It was a lot of fun, he took the day off work and we just soaked up all the time together. We usually don't stand in lines to see the characters (we wave as we walk by - my kids don't realize you can stand in line to see them - are we horrible or what?) Anyways, there was a tiny line for Mickey and Minnie so we jumped at the chance to get pictures with them. Tyler was very intrigued!

This is the cutest picture! My little princess and my Mickey superhero just taking a stroll to Disneyland! Need I say more?

I know I know....it's been forever!

2009-03-08T23:20:00.000-07:00

So all I am good for these days are face-lifts...but the good news is I did this one by myself! I have a million pictures to post, my excuse now is that I need to learn how to download the pictures from our new camera to the computer. I am hoping to do this in the next day or two...you shall see! UNTIL THEN HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!!!!

What a face lift!

2008-11-25T00:10:00.001-08:00

Okay so I finally talked Marc into helping me make our blog look nice. He has refused to participate in blogging in the past, but he is beginning to see the fun that they are. So we finally have an organized and cute background with nice colors. Who knows what will be next!

I'm Cold

2008-11-25T00:02:00.001-08:00

The other day we were getting dinner ready and we heard Brinley complaining that she was cold. We looked to see how to help her warm up and this is what we saw. There's a pretty obvious solution to her predicament! :)

You gotta love him!

2008-11-24T23:09:00.001-08:00

Okay, so there's not a picture here but I just have to share this with you. Yesterday I was telling Marc how i hate driving in my high heels. And he pipes in with this "great analogy." Wearing high heels is like smoking.....WHAT????? Okay so he's crazy, I told him that he was crazy. He said that the only reason people wear high heels is for their image, and according to him it's the same thing with smoking. "Both are probably equally bad for your health and there's nothing good that comes from either of them...in 100 years historians will look back at us in shame".....and for that matter "earings are the same." You gotta love them for all their quirks! :)

Preschool for Brinley

2008-10-31T22:46:00.000-07:00

I know this is really late - but better than never. Brinley has started a joy school with kids in the ward. She LOVES it! This is the first day. Of course Braden wanted to take his backpack too to drop her off. He misses her so much for that 2 1/2 hours. He constantly asks where she is. It's pretty cute.

It's hard to see, but this was "B" day and she is wearing butterfly wings. She loved them, apparently they ran around outside as butterflies or bees. So fun!

This was the second week of school, I just thought she looked cute. They were being cheesy and both pulled the same face, it cracked me up!

My all-time FAVORITE artwork yet!

2008-09-30T00:15:00.000-07:00

Okay, so call me crazy but I think this is the cutest picture in the whole wide world! Brinley loves drawing and is constantly adding new "features" to her people. It started with heads with arms and legs out of them. Slowly she'd add hair and ears and bodies and eye brows. Well, here's her most recent addition...EYES! I think she is figuring out how our eyes have layers within them, she's just not accurate yet as to how many and that some of them are filled in with color and others solid black. So this picture of our family makes us look like mad people (maybe we are a little crazy!). But she was very proud, also the spikey hair is new too! It goes from left to right...Brinley, mom, dad, Braden, and Tyler. I just get so giddy looking at it, it makes me so happy! I love you Brinley!

Grandma Hansen's Visit

2008-09-29T23:38:00.000-07:00

My mom came to visit after Tyler was born. She was wonderful! She helped with everything around the house and with the kids. They had so much fun with her here (I did too - she's my emotional support - even Marc will tell me to "go call your mom" when he knows I'm irrationally emotional and I just need to talk to another woman). So needless to say it was a wonderful week for all of us.

Making cookies is always funner with Grandma - she lets you make them whatever size you want and wherever you want on the pan. (Yes they went in just as you see them). She also lets you layer on the frosting and just dump on the sprinkles. They were so excited!
But not nearly as excited as when they "grew doughnuts" with Grandma. It was the cutest thing I would recommend it to anyone to try. My mom brought a little baggie of cheerios and told the kids that they were doughnut seeds. She had the kids fill up cups with dirt and they "planted" the seeds and added water. She also had them each color a tongue depresser and stick it in there for the doughnut to grow on. We had intentions to leave it overnight, but didn't have the patience. So while they were playing in the living room, my mom stuck a doughnut on each stick and we called the kids in to come and see that they had grown. It was as exciting as Christmas! (See the video)
Brinley refused to take the doughnut off of the stick, she kept saying "look at how beautiful my doughnut is" (as if it were a flower). Braden however did not hesitate - he just ate the doughnut. This is definitely a new tradition with Grandma that will last!
My 1st child enjoying his "doughnut." I think he liked this tradition as well. He probably also liked having a home cooked meal every night while my mom was here too.

Look how cute!

2008-09-08T10:55:00.000-07:00

Here's a couple of pictures with Tyler awake. He has just started smiling. He smiled once for me on Saturday morning, and again today for Grandma. We have yet to get it on camera though.

Got Milk???

Here are the kids with their favorite babies, this is the baby that Braden has been carrying around everywhere. It's actually really cute, it gave us a little taste of how Braden was going to be with Tyler before he came. We just got a little nervous when he would drag it by a foot or chuck across the room when he was done playing with it. Normally he would sit with his arm around it on the couch. It was darling.

This one is a little random, but this was Marc loading up our car on Labor day. I thought it was just a funny sight. But we had a great weekend. Marc's parents invited us to come stay at their time share on Sunday night. We played games, ate great food, played in the sand at the beach, and the kids enjoyed swimming with everyone in the pool. I also got a lot of sleep with all the help there. It was a perfect weekend!

Mommy's Little Helpers

2008-09-07T13:06:00.000-07:00

The kids love Tyler so much and they love to hold him. Brinley especially loves to hold him "on my shoulder" and Braden loves to hold him generally no longer than 2-3 seconds (literally). At least that way I don't have to sit by him too long to protect Tyler.

My cute boys!

Tyler enjoying the lounge w/Brinley

Tyler not enjoying the lounging with Braden

Tyler's 1st Bath

2008-09-03T02:05:00.000-07:00

What a sweetheart! He loves taking baths, he just lays there eyes closed. It's amazing, especially with Brinley and Braden constantly pouring water on his arms and legs, and cleaning him with the wash rag.

Cute little bundle of joy!

Picture tagged!

2008-09-03T01:06:00.000-07:00

Ashley...sorry it's taken so long...but I did take the pictures that night. It obviously just takes me awhile to post anything.

**************

This was really fun! Sneak peak into my house!
Read after the last picture to see if you've been tagged....The rules are you have to take 10 pictures of the following things and you have to do it right away. No straightening, cleaning or wiping your child's nose (I mean it!). Then you tag six others.

Take a look:

1. My closet

2. Laundry Room

(a closet really)

3. Fridge

4. Kitchen Sink

5. Favorite Room

(Also includes my favorite place to sit)

6. What kids are doing right now:

sleeping - also a favorite :)

7. The bathroom

8. Favorite shoes

9. Dream Vacation: France

(yes it does include Marc)

10. Self Portrait

(obviously pre-Tyler...told you I took them that night)

I tag: Stacie, Heidi, Lanay, Abby, Marly, Wendy

He's here!!!

2008-08-11T11:05:00.000-07:00

Tyler David Johnson was born on Friday 08/08/08 at 2:02 pm. He weighed 8 lbs even and is 20 inches long. (Thank heavens ultra sounds are not an exact science)

Brinley is such a big helper, this morning I was falling asleep while nursing and she said "You and dad go to sleep and I will take care of him" ...if only... She is definitely a great help. She can sit and hold him forever.

Braden loves him so much, he loves to lay by him and talk to him. Today he even started playing peek-a-boo with him. He can't stop giving him kisses on the forehead. It's darling! He is even able to sit still to hold him every once in a while.

He has dark brown hair - so did Braden so we'll see if it stays. He is such a precious little thing. We came home from the hospital on Sunday and he has been a perfect little angel so far. Brinley and Braden LOVE LOVE LOVE him!

Proud daddy! He was so anxious for Tyler to come, it was fun to see, it was like Christmas morning for a little kid. Tyler is definitely a welcome blessing in our home. He is definitely bringing out the best in everyone!

What a crack up!

2008-07-30T19:55:00.000-07:00

Tonight at dinner Brinley was telling us that her friend Gavin has a cool "Cars" clock on his wall. She then went on to tell us that she wants a princess clock on her wall. She has seen them at the store. But I told her that you have to have money to get one at the store. So I asked her if she had any money and she looked at me funny and said no. So I told her that she has to have money before she can get her a princess clock. (Thinking this would be the end of the conversation). Then she said "I've got a good idea, how about you give me some money so I can get the clock." Me and Marc started laughing, it was hilarious...her and her good ideas. I swear we have to cross these bridges so young with her. I can't (actuallly I can) wait to see what kind of teenager she'll be.

There's a big baby on the way!

2008-07-30T19:52:00.000-07:00

I had a routine ultra sound on Monday to check on the baby, and guess what...he's already 8 lbs 9 oz!!!! I still have 3 1/2 weeks to go. So I will be getting induced early if he doesn't come on his own. I know that's not a huge baby, but considering Brinley was 7 lbs and Braden was 6 lbs 8 oz, that seems gigantic to me. I'm excited! And we will for sure post when our little one comes.

What should we name our baby?

2008-07-24T18:04:00.000-07:00

As many of you know, Marc is impossible to work with when it comes to boy names. So, today he finally agreed to broaden his horizons and said ok to some names. Here they are, we are looking for your opinions. You can vote for more than one if there's more than one that you like. The middle name is going to be David so you know how the name will sound all together. Thanks for any input you can share!!!! And to those of you who have kids with these or similar names, let me know if that bugs you, but I figure I am taking what I can get from Marc. :)

Thanks everyone!

Summer Fun!

2008-07-20T22:06:00.000-07:00

Okay, so it's been awhile, but I am alive and the baby is still kicking inside. I am currently 34 1/2 weeks - but if things go like my other two, I could have this baby in about 3 weeks...my fingers are crossed). I'm again overwhelmed with the blogging that I want to do. So here's a revised versions of some of the things we've done this summer. I'll try to stay on top of things better. Thanks for the concern all you wonderful friends out there! :) Or at least the annoyance with my not writing :)

I love this picture! We went to San Diego with my friend Charise and her family over Memorial Day weekend. On our way home we stopped at the San Diego Temple. This picture shows the tender joys of being an Eternal Family is we're good! This one also does - minus Brinley's grumpy face. They were tired after a long weekend of playing with no naps. But it's still a cute picture.
This is a much better picture of Brinley. Marc had these waffle blocks when he was a kid and I guess now as a big kid. We currently have 3 sets so that he (I mean the kids:) can play more creatively and build bigger. The kids also love the juice drinks - they also get that from their dad.
Braden LOVES WATERMELON! Marc chapperoned a youth dance and came home with this whole container full of watermelon. We knew we couldn't finish it before it went bad, so we let Braden have free reign. He was in heaven with all the "triangles." He also started in with "all mine." He would share the triangles (missing one corner) with Brinley. Luckily she didn't seem to notice or mind.
Okay since you have all seen the pictures of Brinley with her blanket fettish, here's her new thing. It cracks me up, I keep laughing out loud just looking at the pictures again. She gets herself and her babies all situated for anything. We for sure love the dish towel under the Minnie Mouse hat, with the skirt around her neck and you can't tell but that's a dish towel tucked in her back as a cape. And of course she always puts on her church shoes too. She's such a crack up with her phases. I'll try to keep you all posted as she goes through each one. Luckily there's been no battle to go in public like this yet....knock on wood! :) I"m sure you'll all see soon enough.

Okay, my friend Lisa did a very cute slide show of a little getaway we did with our mommy's group a couple of times this summer. One of our friends parents have a beach house that they let us come and stay at for a couple of days (Thanks again Charise). The kids loved playing together constantly and us moms loved just sitting and socializing. It was also during the really hot days this summer, so it's always cooler at the beach.

http://www.slide.com/r/jZlaJpqr5j8DvHjIaGtjhhESU9OyArsF?current_view=TICKER&previous_view=TICKER_MENU_SHARE&previous_action=SHARE&cid=1585267068852014168

http://www.slide.com/r/DINY0wQzyT-Gbl7T71BDfcCuj6bWYaFR?previous_view=lt_embedded_url

More Utah fun!

2008-06-19T22:34:00.000-07:00

Okay so I know that it's been a long time since the Utah trip, but I am still posting some of the fun the kids had there so that I don't forget everything. So bare with me...besides I figured this was better than doing 10 posts at once. (Okay it's ending up to be about 10 posts - good thing I split it up)
There was this awesome place where the kids could play on all of the HUGE bounce houses - they also had a skating rink and during the day the kids can bring ride-ons or bikes to play with. We met my cousins Sarah and Kimberlee and their kids. It was a lot of fun!
That's Brinley in the little window at the bottom - I told you they're HUGE!Brinley & Braden (his feet) climbing one of the housesI love to Fly!!!! :) ( I just love this shot!)
My sisters Elise and Nikki making bead jewelry with the kids.
WHO WANTS CHOCOLATE MILK?????
My kids wanted chocolate milk and my sister made them each do this little dance with her in order to get some...it was hilarious they were spinning and bending and anything she wanted! I should try that at home! After my enrichment night lesson on getting kids to work...you can tell that it runs in my family (I just have to work on it myself).

Shelby and Brinley are the "Princesses" in the family, so this picture is perfect. We are so excited for Shelby to come visit this summer! Obviously Brinley will have soooo much fun!
Elise loves to play computer games fortunately it's the little kid games, so my kids were found many times sitting with her and playing games with her. She's great with them! :)

Obviously new to slide shows

2008-06-13T23:16:00.000-07:00

The captions are as follows:
Grandma and Happy Braden
Aunt Elise and not happy Brinley
Am I in Heaven? (He loved the train)
I love trains!!!!
Last 3 are Brinley and Grandma playing around - Brinley finally warmed up

The front runner train just opened a few weeks before we got there and since Braden loves trains we went for a train ride. It didn't really stop anywhere that we could get off close and go eat lunch, so we rode it for about 30 mins - hopped off and waited for the next train going the other way. Great fun!

Train Ride Heaven

2008-06-13T23:13:00.001-07:00

Bunny Kisses

2008-06-13T14:32:00.000-07:00

My sister Shelby got a bunny and the kids were in heaven. They were feeding it grass and dandelions and Braden was dumping the rabbit feed on his head through the cage. He had the right idea, but i'm sure the bunny wasn't quite thrilled. It was hilarious though, the dandelions slowly made a wave of disappearing from the front yard. Braden would run and grab the closest one he found and run back to feed the bunny, by the end of the week 3/4 of the dandelions were gone but only on the side by the bunny. (Luckily my parents had just put in a sprinkling system so they hadn't been mowing, hence the variety of flowers for Braden.)

Treehouse with Cousins

2008-06-13T14:15:00.000-07:00

While we were in Utah, we went to the Treehouse in Ogden with my mom and my sister-in-law and her 2 kids. It was a lot of fun, we were just glad there was 3 of us to chase the 4 kids. They would not stay anywhere for for than a minute, there was too much going on to see. They had a great time and afterwards we went to Fazoli's for lunch. Definitely good to spend time with their cousins. Braden and his cousin Zack, this is a rare picture! They have not had the best reputation of getting along. Hopefully this is a new year and they will start having fun together. :)

Brinley loved dresssing up. They had dress up clothes for everything, in every room you went in. She especially loved the school house, she would bring everyone books and have everyone sit at the little desks. She also loved the babies and clothes that she found. She's such a girl!

Brinley and her cousin Callie dressing up in the fire truck. They loved this one, around the front was a steering wheel to drive the firetruck. This was the funnest place. The kids were in heaven.
Again, getting along, (or so they want us to believe :) ). Braden and Zack loved the trains, even though they both have some at home. They are definitely a favorite in this family.

Father Sons Campout

2008-05-21T11:39:00.000-07:00

Yes, Braden and 6'6" Marc slept in this tent together! Marc loves this tent and where it's only 1 night and not so cold, he took it again this year. (when he got home he did say that we need to get a bigger tent for next year :)) Apparently it rained a little, and you know what happens when you touch the walls of a tent when it rains .... in their case they had no choice but to touch the walls. :)
Marc is such a cute dad! He said they had a lot of fun, and I think Braden came home probably the cleanest out of all the kids...especially considering it had rained. If you know Marc, you know how he hates to get dirty. But he said they had a great time, and I think the look on Braden's face proves it! What a cute kid!

Hotel - Fumigation Party

2008-05-20T12:35:00.001-07:00

I'm cold...

2008-05-08T12:22:00.000-07:00

I have no picture, but Marc told me a story about Brinley that I thought was hilarious and I don't want to forget. The other night I was gone and Marc made the kids macaroni and cheese. Brinley kept telling Marc that her arms were so cold. So Marc told her the macaroni would make her arms warm. The next thing he knows she's spooning macaroni onto her arms. He was about to get upset, then he realized, she was using the macaroni to make her arms warm just like he had said. Then he apologized to her and said that she needed to eat it and it would make the inside of her warm. :) So hilarious, it's like when Elise was little and my mom bought a bag of Chip Ahoy with sprinkles. Elise took one bite and looked around disappointed and my mom asked her what was wrong. She just said, where's the party? We realized that the advertisement on TV said "A party in every bite," and there would literally be be a party on the commercial. That's the fun of having special needs sisters, they can vocalize the thoughts of young kids. How many kids have been disappointed eating Chips Ahoy in their life!

WHAT???? Marc's COFFEE???- I don't think we can keep seeing each other :) but all the info is true!

2008-04-26T09:52:00.000-07:00

You Are Coffee Ice Cream

Energetic and lively, you are always on the go.

You're doing a million things at once and doing them well.

You tend to motivate others and raise spirits.

You are most compatible with chocolate ice cream.

What Flavor Ice Cream Are You?

These are a first for me - but fun!

2008-04-25T23:16:00.000-07:00

You Are Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

You are kind, popular, and generous.

You tend to be successful at anything you try.

A social butterfly, you are great at entertaining a crowd.

You are most compatible with strawberry ice cream.

What Flavor Ice Cream Are You?

I'm Green - what about you?

2008-04-25T23:12:00.000-07:00

You Are a Green Crayon

Your world is colored in harmonious, peaceful, natural colors.

While some may associate green with money, you are one of the least materialistic people around.

Comfort is important to you. You like to feel as relaxed as possible - and you try to make others feel at ease.

You're very happy with who you are, and it certainly shows!

Your color wheel opposite is red. Every time you feel grounded, a red person does their best to shake you.

What Color Crayon Are You?

When it rains it pours!

2008-04-25T22:58:00.000-07:00

Okay, so here are some more posts...you must admit I'm getting better at this. Unfortunately when I do post, you have to read about 5 new posts. But hey, beggars can't be choosers. :)

Braden's new best friend

2008-04-25T22:52:00.000-07:00

These are our home teachers. They are great, and now my kids are in love with them. This is Braden refusing to sit anywhere but right next to Aaron. He had to go through every picture on the Look and Find book. During the lesson, Braden kept tapping Aaron to show him more pictures and when I told him he needed to be quiet and listen, he started whispering as he tapped Aaron. It was hilarious! He had no concept of "he's busy" but what kid does huh? Luckily Aaron was great at just picking up where he left off after finding Elmo and Winnie the Pooh. And during the prayer, Braden was snuggling up to him, what a Cutie!

What a girl!

2008-04-25T22:47:00.000-07:00

This is a little bit of what Brinley is up to lately. She is "huge" on swaddling her babies in blankets/dish towels. It's also a means of much frustration for her. But this is her latest technique, it's very clever how she goes around the head and across the front. She figured that out herself. She gets a little obsessive with straight blankets (notice the top picture). She likes every corner to be perfectly straight. It's a pain when Braden walks in the room, but it's great now that she's learning to make her own bed.

2008-04-25T22:42:00.000-07:00

Brinley and Brody were having a "great time" together the other day. They look very depressed, but they were having fun watching a movie together, eating a little snack. Brinley is beginning to have this "bossy/calming" effect on her friends. She likes to get the boys to do what she is doing (notice the pink blanket they're sharing). The other day I also saw her getting Braden and Jared to whisper because they were "playing a game". Okay, you'd know how odd that is if you have ever seen Braden and Jared play together. I'm sensing a little of myself in her. :)

"Like Mommy"

2008-04-25T22:39:00.000-07:00

This is a first for Braden - make up! He was hiding behind the recliner with my makeup. Luckily the mess was not too bad. But when I went to wash his face, he put his hand on his cheek to cover it up and said "Noooo, like mommy." Okay, so it was darling, but I hope that's now how my makeup looks! :)

Big Brother Braden

2008-04-25T22:36:00.000-07:00

Braden has been loving babies lately, it's very cute. This is his favorite doll right now, and he only plays with it once in a while, but when he does it's very cute. He did this all by himself. It gets me very excited for his little brother to come.

Sleepy Heads

2008-04-19T10:51:00.000-07:00

On Saturday (last week) we went to a Birthday Party for Sebastian, our neighbor. It was so much fun! They had a huge bounce house with a massive slide, seriously Marc was able to jump and go down the slide. It was awesome! The kids had so much fun. Braden was Mr. Gutsy, he would go on his back head first....crazy kid. Luckily there was a big pillow at the end to catch them. Afterwards, we had dinner and gave the kids baths. We told them if they stayed on Mom and Dad's bed they could watch a movie while going to sleep (we never do this for obvious reasons) but this is what we found on 10 minutes later. It was so cute. Now we know, offer the fun things when they are worn out and we are both winners!

2008-04-19T10:44:00.000-07:00

Okay, so we are TV junkies at times. My kids love to slide their chairs together at meals to watch TV. It's really cute. But this time, Marc was wanting to watch something (we can't remember....it was probably a basketball game during March Madness). So he pulled his chair over by the kids to watch his show. What can I say, I have 3 kids and one on the way :) He's such a good dad, he loves playing with the kids and doing everything that they do. Oh, and if you haven't noticed...yes we are eating french toast and peaches (from the can) for dinner. :) One of our favorites!

Conference Weekend

2008-04-19T10:32:00.000-07:00

For conference weekend we went out to Marc's parents house. All of the family in California was able to come it was really fun to see everyone. We didn't get many pictures, but here are some with Marc's Grandpa Bobik and his wife Ampy. They are great with our kids, she is obviously enjoying a party with the kids (putting their nemo bowls on their heads before dinner). They also brought each of the kids an altoid box with a bead necklace in it. Who would have thought it would be the best gift they'd ever received. They are actually still playing with them today. I must say I'm not a fan of Braden in a gold chain :) :) Let's hope he gets it out of his system now. Marc's Grandma Bobik came the night before this for dinner. We had a blast. It was here that we actually started potty training Braden! I know....how much more can one family take in a single weekend?

I figured it out! Surprise!

2008-03-27T18:13:00.000-07:00

Okay the reason I was giving for not blogging is that our camera won't connect with the computer to download the pictures. TaDa!!!! Today I figured out how to go through Marc's palm pilot by myself. Yeah!!!!! Okay so I'll have to come up with another excuse when i don't keep on top of my blogging! :) Or wait....maybe I should just blog!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2008-03-27T15:59:00.000-07:00

This was our St. Patrick's Day lunch! Yum! A Leprechaun came and changed all of our food to GREEN! It was fun, and just so if you can't tell, it's macaroni & cheese, grapes, broccoli, and cottage cheese. I have to admit the cheese did turn out a little funny looking, but the kids ate it up. Definitely a fun tradition from my mom, althrough usually we had green spagetti noodles (worms) and spagetti sauce (not green). :)

Little "huggies"

2008-03-27T15:55:00.000-07:00

I don't even know when this was taken, Marc must have done it. Again, our little bud's having fun together! Don't get me wrong, they still fight and spend their fair share of time in time-out. But we're getting there.

Little Buddy's

2008-03-27T15:48:00.000-07:00

This has been a common position I have found them in lately. They are becoming great bud's. It's very cute. Brinley will hop up to watch a movie, and a few minutes later I'll find Braden right by her side, sharing a blanket with her. It's very fun! It's also nice that they can entertain each other more. I hope that this will make a new baby less traumatizing, Braden will already have a good friend besides mom. What sweethearts!

It's a Boy!!

2008-03-15T00:47:00.001-07:00

We're expecting our 3rd child - due August 22nd! We are very excited. Braden is a little oblivious, he points to his crib and says baby. He (for the first time) pointed to my stomache this morning and said baby. We are hoping that he will be okay with our new arrival, he loves babies, but he's also a mamma's boy. It should be fun! Brinley is so excited for a baby, every day she asks if she can hold it when he comes out. I think she's going to be great with the baby...it gets me very excited. Her only hold up at this point is that she wants a girl. When we called both Grandma's and Grandpa's today, she told them that "Mommy's having a boy, and I'm having a girl." Whatever keeps her happy. Luckily we have a little system going. She wants a baby in her tummy really bad. So, we told her that when she grows up and gets married in the temple, she can then have a baby in her tummy. She repeats it all the time with excitement! It's great! She also is having issues with thinking that she's the boss. So we've added to the list, only mommy's are the boss. So when she grows up and gets married in the temple, she can have a baby in her tummy and then she can be the boss. She has so much to look forward to in her future. I love it! Unfortunately the boss thing is still in the works.

Family Pictures at the Beach

2008-03-15T00:15:00.000-07:00

We had our family pictures by Lanay and she did awesome! They were taken for our Christmas pictures, but they're the only pictures I have to post right now. So, take what you can get , sorry if you've already seen these. It's a great setting for our pictures because we do love going to the beach. Luckily Braden is afraid of the waves this year, last year he would head straight for them, it was a little crazy. Brinley also realized that she can write in the sand. Writing is her favorite thing to do. She likes to send "emails" (letters in the mail) to her Grandma's, with her recent drawings of people. They are darling, maybe I'll take a picture of one for you all to see.

Playgroup or should I say "chaos group" fun!

2007-10-28T21:12:00.000-07:00

Don't let these smiles fool you....they're obviously secretly planning an attack on the mommy's. They're not kidding when they say blondes have more fun (especially when there's 4 under the age of 3 - and these are just the blonde ones)

I love you!

2007-10-28T21:09:00.000-07:00

When all was said and done, we had a great time and the kids still love each other. Well I guess this image doesn't accurately portray that, it was taken on day 2 of a 9 day trip...

First Family Vacation

2007-10-28T20:52:00.000-07:00

We went to the Dinosaur Museum and they had an erosion pool where you can dig up dinosaurs. Bean told us that she was building a "castle for Cinderella." She's such a girl.

We recently went on a family vacation. It was a blast! The kids were so excited to just be in a hotel room. (So easy to please) The only trouble is that Buddy can open the pull down door knobs, and our first hotel didn't have a high deadbolt that wouldn't unlock by pulling on the handle. Thank heavens for chairs and heavy suitcases. :)

This is us at Cove Fort - it snowed!!! Luckily we packed the heavy coats

My little superhero!

2007-09-24T14:12:00.000-07:00

Buddy's aunt dressed him up with a burp rag and goggles. He was in Heaven!