Grandpa and Grandma's House

We had an amazing vacation in Boulder City, NV. While we were there we were able to visit with Grandma and Grandpa as well as Aunt Debbie. The boys were able to go fishing and bike riding with Grandpa. They also went on the train ride out by the highway. The weather was incredible so the boys spent a lot of time outdoors playing ball. Lily enjoyed the outdoors and also had a blast with her grandparents and Aunt Debbie. It was a nice time for a much needed vacation. We ended our trip with a birthday party for Grandpa--Cinderella cups, plates and crowns included. It was a fun time!

Our Trip to Grandpa's House

Lily Sings

Today we were getting ready for preschool and Lily saw her pink boots. Despite my urgings, she insisted on wearing the boots with her red shirt. Not the best fashion sense, but she can get away with it since she's so cute. Here is a little clip of her singing (in her boots and red shirt).

Jack and Hank got surprisingly good reports today when Darin and I went to their Teacher/Parent Conferences. We are very, very proud of the young men they are at school. Can't wait until we see those same young men at home more often.

We will be leaving for Grandpa's house tomorrow. I will post pictures and a report when we get back on Monday.

Aspen Hollow

Today after lunch Darin and I took the kids to Aspen Hollow, which is just down the street from where we live. We drove out to the gate and then walked about 10 minutes to get to the campsite. We looked at the pretty Aspen trees and took some pictures. The boys took the opportunity to complain about the long walk, lack of restrooms (it's an emergency!) and tried to catch the one lizard who is still out and about in the cold weather. Lily and Will tried to get out of the stroller and cried. Overall though, Darin and I had a nice time.

Grandpa's Birthday!

Here's a little video from this morning. Happy Birthday, Grandpa! We love you!!!! We can't wait to see you!

Brrrr...it's cold out here!

This morning after we dropped the boys off at school, we went for a walk. It was about 35 degrees outside so I bundled the little ones up tightly. We had a nice walk. Afterwards we came home and got ready for the day. Lily was invited to a neighbor boy's birthday party. At first she didn't want to go because it wasn't for Grandpa or herself and because it was a Pirate Party. She had a pretty good time, but was afraid of Pirate Pete (the boy's dad) who read the little ones a pirate story. She cried and spent the rest of that time on the deck away from the scary guy. The boys are at a friend's house playing right now and the babies are asleep...so there's a little break for Mom!

Breakfast for Dinner!

Tonight we all had breakfast for dinner. You see, the dining hall was serving breakfast for dinner and the boys really wanted to go out, but as Lily was busy screaming in my ear, I thought better of taking them out by myself. Also, I checked and the dining hall's eggs have milk in them which would mean I would have to bring my own eggs for Lily to eat. Anyway, we went to the store and bought some bacon and sausage so that we could do our own version at home. We had scrambled eggs, chocolate chip pancakes, bacon, sausage and strawberries. It was quite a feast!

On the Move!

This was the first day that Will has used his arms while crawling! I am sure he will be cruising around the house after Lily and his brothers in no time!

Soccer Awards!

Well here it is...the real reason the boys play soccer. You may have thought it is because they love sports or being outside with friends, or the chance to score goals on fellow classmates because all of these are true, but the real reason they like soccer is for the trophy. Yes, the gold participation trophy awarded to all who play. When it was just Jack playing, the trophy was the focus of many disagreements in our home (who gets to hold the trophy, who gets to polish the trophy, who gets to sleep with the trophy, etc.). Well tonight was the night. The boys went with their friend's family to the awards party (see earlier blog) and they came home with their certificates and trophies (which I haven't checked, but are probably tucked into bed with them!) Now Lily will have to whine about not having one. Will is still too little to care really.

Truly, I think I deserve a trophy for just getting through this evening and getting them to the party. Lily never did take a nap, thus her overly pleasant attitude the rest of the day. Will woke up early...equally pleasant! We rushed to get soccer stuff on and out the door to the game. Then I carried Will and dragged Lily over a soccer field as quickly as I could as to avoid the older kids kicking one of us while they practiced. It was alternately freezing cold and blazing hot so we were taking jackets off and on. When the game was finally over, we walked back to the car, dragging the pleasant (now crying) Lily as we went. We rushed inside threw in a frozen pizza, made some scrambled eggs for Lily (allergic to dairy), and fed the baby squash and rice cereal. I practically forced pizza down the boys throats and then put all three in the bath begging them to wash themselves quickly. Meanwhile I cleaned up the dinner disaster, gave Will a quick bath in the kitchen sink, and swooped in to give Lily a quick wash in the tub. I got all three out of the bath, into soccer clothes or PJs, got the brownines ready on a plate for the party and cleaned up the bathroom. The baby sitter arrived, I went to feed Will before going to the baby shower, and the boys got picked up for the party. Whew...It makes me tired just writing about it. All of this took place between 4:00 and 6:30! Craziness. Now everyone is asleep (cross my fingers) and I am trying to wind down before I go to bed. It seems like an eternity since Darin left. I can't believe it's still two more days before he gets home.

Our Day

Look how "big" our little Lily is now!

Today was just another week day. I walked with the ladies, but chose to not go on the second hill (mostly my pride did-I didn't want to have one of the better in-shape women have to push my stroller up the hill :) ) Anyway we came back home, got ready, did some house work and then played for a little bit. We picked up Jack and Hank at noon and then we came back home to have some lunch. Jack was late once again back to school after lunch. It is so hard to cook something different for all four of the kids and then get him back all within 35 minutes. I have failed every day this week... oh well... I did pick him up on time each day!



Today is the last soccer game and the soccer awards party. The boys are going to that with another family. I am nervous that it will be a disaster, but she volunteered to take them. I was just going to have them stay home with a babysitter since I already had plans to go to a baby shower and I knew I didn't want to take all four of them to the awards party by myself. That is one of the most crazy, out of control things we have to do all year and I didn't want to do it if Darin wouldn't be there to enjoy it with me! Look for more pictures of the last soccer game tomorrow!



I did end up having to make brownies for the party even though I am not going. So I made some from a box for the party and then I made some from scratch using crisco butter flavor so that Lily can have some. She may not get any though, as she is currently messing around in her crib, not taking a nap and seeing that Will has trouble taking one too!



Well here are some pictures of our morning. Lily can now put on her own clothes (with a little help) and her own pull up. The problem with this is that she can also take clothes off by herself and also her pullup or diaper. Several nights she has called us back into her room after we put her to bed. When we get up there we find her pants-less in the crib and a diaper in the middle of the floor. Not a great thing to find. So far we have avoided any major messes, but I guess it's only a matter of time. She can also go up and down the stairs by herself (although she is not quite tall enough to reach the rail securely, thus forcing me to stand close by to catch her if she falls.)



The picture of the boys is from this afternoon. They are busy making a card for Grandpa's birthday. Lily is planning a Cinderella party for Grandpa when we go next week. The boys don't think that is a good ide as they said, "No Grandpa's having a boy party!" Either way, Grandpa, hope you wanted a party, because there is definetely one coming your way!

Soccer 2007 highlights

The boys have been loving soccer this year. Their team name is the Green Vikings. Daddy who is one of the coaches, really wanted them to be called the Green Beans, but they didn't really get it I think. Well they both have been playing well and have each scored goals. Lily loves going and spends her time playing with the other little ones or trying to distract Daddy as he is coaching.

Dinnertime!

Today the boys went to play with some friends. After they came home we had dinner at home (since Mommy doesn't want to brave going out alone!). Jack helped make dinner and everyone seemed to enjoy it. We had chicken tacos, strawberries, corn and rice. Here are a few pictures highlighting the evening!

Lily's 2nd Birthday!

This is my first try at a slideshow! Here are some pictures from all the festivities surrounding Lily's birthday. She had an amazing time and everything was Princess! Princess! Princess!

October 16, 2007

Hello! This is my first attempt at blogging. Don't know much about what I am doing, but I am intrigued by the idea and the possibilities. I am hoping this will be a fun way to keep in contact with family, as well as keep a little journal of my hectic, child-filled life. Today I am a single mom once again, as Darin is with Joshua on their Habitat for Humanity trip. Things are going pretty well so far. It helps that he is gone over weekdays and not the weekend. We have so much going on with school, preschool, playdates and soccer that it helps time pass more quickly.