Halloween 2010

Brandon-Buddy the Elf (he wore this hilarious costume to the office)
Nash-Mummy
Canyon-Vampire
Paige-Bee
Our pumpkins before:

And after.

Growing up...

Anyone still out there?? I have been horrible this summer, and almost gave up on it completely. Until, I read through my blog and decided I needed to keep going at it since scrapbooking around here has not been happening, and doing this keeps things organized for future reference.

So Paige is now 18 months old and I can hardly believe it!

She has developed such a fun personality. She loves to run into a room and say "boo". She loves to do silly things to make her brothers laugh. She loves to play outside. She is such a sweetheart. She loves to snuggle and give long cuddles to everyone, and she's a great hugger. She loves people and most always has a big smile on her face. She just brightens up my day! The boys really enjoy having a girl around. Nash loves to take her outside to swing. Canyon is the sweetest with her and they definitely have a strong bond. Coleman likes to talk to her in his cute baby voice, and he likes to make her scream by bugging her. And she is a HUGE daddy's girl! We are so grateful to have her in our family. Here are her favorites, and what she is saying these days.


Favorite Song-BINGO and Animal by Neon Trees (she loves to sing the "oh,oh" part)
Favorite Animal-puppies, she will stop and want to pet every dog she sees. She loves to say "I see a puppy".
Favorite Book-Any book with puppies or kittens
Favorite Toy-Balls, purse, baby doll
Favorite Foods-Spagetti, Pizza, bananas, grapes, salad (yes, she is weird)

Recent Phrases:
"I see a puppy"
"Guys, EAT!", she likes to yell this down the stairs to the boys when I am setting the table.
"All done"
"Eyes, Nose, Mouth"
"Night, Night"
"Help you", she says this when she needs help with something.
"drink"
"Mama, Daddy"
"no,no"
"I gotta go potty, poo, poo."
"I did it, Yeah!"
"more"
"Woof, woof"
"Meow"
"oink"
"Moo"
"Sheep", "Bah, bah"
"bye, bye"
"up"
"owwweee" (ouch)
"pretty", as she points to her hair
"slide"
"I got it"
"Good girl"
"Don't"
"MINE!"
"kitty"
"Boo"
"Na" (Nash)
"I wanna eat"
"Peek-a-Boo"
"stinky"
"cookie"
and this week she added "candy" to the list

My first Triathlon

So I did it!!! It was such a blast, and I can't wait to do it again and improve my times, or do the Sprint which is twice as long. This was a perfect beginner Triathlon! It was a 200 yd. swim, 5 mile bike, and 1.5 mile run. I know, really short huh?! I didn't do as well as I wanted, but I did okay. I placed 12th out of 24 in my age group. I really need to work on my transition time, it was way too long.

Here we are in the transition area getting ready for the race.

Here I am after the race with my cute and patient family as they waited for me to finish. I know I look like a drowned rat, but I really did have fun, even though I don't look very happy.

It was so fun to do this race with my Brother Ryan, Nikki (Ryan's girlfriend who kicked all our butts) and my sister Amy. We will all do it together again soon!

7, 8, 9, 10 & 11 months

Obviously I haven't updated on Paige in months. Just want this for my records. I can't believe she will be one year old tomorrow!! She has been so fun, and we have all enjoyed having her in our family. Can't wait to celebrate her birthday this weekend. Happy Birthday Baby, we love you!

7 months (Oct-Nov):
First Halloween-Kitty costume
Loves gerber baby snacks
Smiles at everyone


8 months (Nov-Dec):
clapping hands
First Thanksgiving
Cut her first two teeth.
Loves to smile her big cheesy smile.


9 months (Dec-Jan):
First Christmas
First word-"kitty"
LOVES to wiggle and dance to music, at home or at stores.
Likes to eat most everything, except for green vegetables.
LOVES finger foods the most.
Reaches pretty far for toys without falling over.
Refuses to get up on her knees.
Pushes herself backwards and rolls to get where she wants to go.
Still reaches for anyone to hold her.
Likes walk around holding one of our fingers.
Clicks her tounge.
Loves to rub and try to bite daddy's head.
Tried a little sleding for the first time.


10 Months:
Says "ma ma", "da, da", "kitty", "hi", "bye,bye",
Started crawling
Still loves finger foods
Refuses to eat vegetables, I have to sneak them in little by little
LOVES to snuggle with mom and dad
Gives brothers hugs
Loves to tell her brothers "bye, bye" at bedtime
Loves to smack her lips and give kisses
Likes to pull the kitty's tail, still does it even when the cat retaliates
Starting to get into cupboards
Pulls herself up to the coffe table and stands up
Loves to groove to music. She bops her head and wiggles her little hips (so adorable).



11 Months:
Tries to sing with "Ba, ba, ba's".
Still dances whenever she hears music.
Gives her brothers high fives.
Loves to be pushed around on Lightening McQueen by her brothers
Says "Ohhhhhh" when she gives hugs and snuggles.
Pats her baby dolls back when she holds her.
Loves to wash herself with the wash cloth in the tub.
Cruising along the coffee table and couches and beds.
Loves to explore the house now and gets into a lot of things.
Likes to eat anything she finds on the floor, but when we tell her "no, no, yucky", she will hand whatever she has to us.
LOVES to take a bath.
She loves to drop things on purpose just so she can say "uh-oh".
She likes to drive cars and around and say "vrm, vrm".
Cut four more teeth.
Touch and feel books are her favorite.
Her newest words I can add to the list are: "uh-oh", "nigh, nigh" (night, night), "puppy", "all da" (all done), "mo" (more) when she wants more food and she always nods her head when she says it.
She is starting to scream and tenses and shakes her little arms now to get my attention, or when the boys are bothering her.
Eats almost anything, she is just picky about what vegetables she will eat.
Still struggles drinking much out of a sippy cup, and she doesn't like cow's milk (not sure what to do about this).
Loves and sometimes hates all the attention she gets from her brothers.

Tiger

Our cute little kitty died over the weekend. I noticed on last Tuesday that he was seeming more tired than usual, and he wasn't drinking as much as he usually did. Then he disappeared for a few days, which he did sometimes, but he would always come back. I was starting to get worried about him. I checked in our shed thinking he got locked in there, he wasn't in there. I called for him in our yard and he wasn't around.

On Saturday morning Brandon went out in the backyard and saw Tiger under one of our big bushes trying to stretch out a little into the sun. Brandon said, "hi, Tiger", and he didn't meow he just looked at him with sad eyes. He brought him inside and I was so sad cause he looked so tired and sick and he had been laying in his own excrement.

Brandon took him to the animal hospital. In the ultrasound they found his kidneys to be very enlarged and a little unusual looking. His red blood cell count was really low. There wasn't really much they could do for him. They weren't sure what caused it, but they were thinking he had some kind of kidney malformation or disorder that he was born with. I told her that he drank at least 3 bowls of water a day and was always up at our sinks meowing for more water. They said that was pretty unusual for cats. They said we could sent him up to get an autopsy done, but we didn't want to. So I guess we will never really know what caused him to get so sick.

So I took the kids there to say their good-byes and it was heart wrenching! Nash and Canyon cried and cried, then we were all crying and the doctor came in and she was crying. Tiger had looked so miserable at my house, but now he just looked peaceful and was giving up. It made me sad. So they put him to sleep and we left. It was a good life lesson for the kids and it was a good opportunity to talk about the Plan of Salvation. And to tell them that we will all live again together in heaven some day. We just need to focus on doing what is right while we are here on this earth, so we can have that blessing.

Nash cried about it for a few days. Canyon asked through his tears if we could get a picture of Tiger and put it in their room. What a great idea. So this is the picture that will be up in their room so they won't forget their Tiger.

We love you buddy and we are missing you!!

Brandon's first love, and his new love

I am sure you are all thinking that I was Brandon's first love. Grievoulsy, I have to tell you that I was not (sigh). Brandon first fell in love with a girl who was born in 1979, yes one year younger than me. She was a tough and sweet little thing. Not everyone would say she was beautiful, but Brandon would say she was stunning. He loved taking her to new heights and taking her on new adventures, many of which I have heard about with some jealousy and admittedly, a little fear. He always took good care of her and I know that she really appreciated him. I am sure she appreciated him as much as I appreciate how well he takes care of me now. She was one lucky gal. But, he had to end that relationship shortly after we got married, it just wasn't working out anymore. It was just getting to be too much and things were getting a little complicated. And we were moving across the country and he knew the relationship would rust if he couldn't care for her everyday. And the expense was too much for us.

He recently had a a chance to rekindle the old flame with a newer version of this true love. She was born in 1997 (I guess he likes them young now, I can't say that I blame him). I didn't have a problem with her at first, but after him being gone for hours and hours with her I started to get REALLY frustrated. Then she started having all these problems and some of her physical aspects needed improving. So Brandon was gone often trying to fix her problems and improve her self esteem. It was almost the end of us-until I saw the new and approved version of her. I felt much better and I knew all his efforts and time were worth it, and I could tell that he was happy too! And that made me happy. She stands taller now, in fact she is quite a bit taller than Brandon. She is comfortable, constant, stable and reliable now, and she is gorgeous!! Who couldn't be with a man such as Brandon, working so hard and taking such care? I have come to appreciate her too, and in some strange way she has brought our little family together. I think a lot of you probably know her or one of her sisters. They surely get around (if you know what I am sayin', wink, wink). Let me just give you a hint...


Wow! Just that small glimpse might set Brandon's heart a flutter!! Okay, one more hint...


I think you might have guessed it!


Yes, her name is Toyota Land Cruiser. (We have yet to give her a nickname.)

Isn't she a beauty? This isn't even with all the improvements.
She has brought our family together (more thoughts on that to come). Although she did take a lot Brandon's time and caused a lot of stress in the beginning, it was worth it. I know Brandon isn't done with all improvements, but I am glad he has found her.
(I hope everyone understands that I am being totally dramatic, except for the part about it taking too much of Brandon's time, ha, ha.)

Our Valentines

This is how we started out our Valentine's this morning with a little holiday inspired breakfast, heart pancakes, heart strawberries, eggs and ham. YUM!!

Brandon ate by candlelight and dined with music (provided by Nash). Sorry about the pictures, I was too lazy to set up my tripod.

Then the boys got their treats from us.

We will spend the rest of the day being lazy, going to church and then eating a Valentine's dinner at Grandpa and Grandma Weeks' house with all the cousins. Yeah! Hope you all have a great Valentine's Day!

Alibis for my Absence

Besides raising 4 kids, this is what I have been doing besides NOT blogging.

1. Keeping up with this cute thing. She is now crawling and needs her mommy more these days.


2. Trying to keep both of these kids occupied and entertained during the day.

I might also add that my afternoon alone time is now limited due to Coleman laying in his bed for an hour and not falling asleep for nap-time (6 days out of the week). I am sure he is done with naps, which is really sad because for the last 6 months or so he was taking one almost every day. We will see what this month holds, although it isn't looking good.

3. Reading The Mortal Instruments trilogy (which I loved).




I am finding that I really love fantasy books, they are so entertaining. They are making the first one into a movie and I can't wait!


4. Swimming, running, and biking 5 days a week.





My training for a Mini Triathlon I am doing in St. George in April. I have wanted to do one for a long time. It is a really short one- a good place for me to start. I am really excited!

5. Washing, folding, hauling and putting away this every week. It seems to be growing more each week. I had to mention it because it is a HUGE part of my day.

6. Attending Nash's basketball games and practices.

7. Planning and attending scouting activities each week. Including the Pinewood Derby (pictures to come). Yes, I am a leader of the Wolf pack, and I really like it.

8. Decorating and trying to at least complete one room in the house. I am almost finished with Nash and Canyon's room.



A big step up from their purple room -2 years in the making. My boys wanted a "camo" room, so it was their idea. I thought of the pattern, and my sister-in-law was the one who helped me pick the colors and helped me lay it all out. I couldn't have done it without her. I think it turned out so fun! Next I need to complete the finishing touches on Paige's room.

9. Researching and shopping for healthier foods. We are trying to get in better shape around here. It has taken a lot of my time surfing the web and a lot of time at the store reading food labels. I am going to miss you white pasta, white rice, white flour and white bread. I am going to miss you Peanut Butter Crunch and Fruity Pebbles. I am NOT going to miss you chocolate because there is no way I would give you up-I just might not eat you as often (maybe).

I am also trying to come up with a different dinner menu. We are so tired of our spagetti, taco, lasagna, stroganoff, and BBQ chicken and rice menu. Anyone have any recipes they love? I would love any ideas in this area.

10. Playing Super Mario Bros. Wii with my boys. I love that game, it takes me back to the good old days.




11. Going on fun little outings with my little family. Here we are in Park City...

we stayed at Brandon's uncles condo. It was a nice relaxing weekend of sitting in the hot tub, eating yummy food, sledding and taking walks. We stopped in Midway to see the ice sculptures and eat at a local Mexican restaurant. Good times.

Hopefully I will make blogging more of a priority while continuing to do all the necessary things.

Should I be worried?

I was busy cleaning up the kitchen the other morning when I heard Coleman say, "I need a blanket mom." I looked over at him and this is what I found. Funny boy!

My Home

I recently took an intermediate photography class. One of my many assignments was to take a picture of something that represented my home. I thought of a million things I could do, but nothing really stood out as being spectacular. I had remembered seeing some cool pictures of reflections on bubbles and had always wanted to try it. I thought that my home was kind of like 'my bubble' and it would be pretty cool to capture that. So, for half an hour I blew bubbles and frantically chased them around in my front yard with my camera. (I am sure my neighbors thought I was a little looney.) This picture isn't as cool as some I have seen, but I managed to get a few decent ones after Brandon came out and helped me. I will definitely keep trying to get an awesome bubble picture. Anyway, it got me thinking about what home is for me. Well, this is what home is for me...

Hugs, kisses and I love you's
Fits, tantrums and time-outs
Dirty, sticky fingerprints on doors
Rowdy, loud wrestling boys
Smiley, happy, and giggly Paige
Shutting the fridge and turning out lights
Fevers, coughs and cold cloths
Warm blankets and hot water bottles
Telling childhood stories with snuggles in beds
Dancing, singing and being so silly
Disagreements, investigations, hearings and rulings
Teasing, taunting, and some name calling
Making beds, scrubbing toilets, and vacuuming floors
Giving encouragement, drying tears, calming fears
Clipping nails, brushing teeth, doing hair
Wiping noses, and wiping bums
Playing UNO, Slamwich, Incredible Hulk Smash, and Dominos
Squeezing cute bums (little ones that is)
Squishing cute cheeks, and kissing cute noses
Laundry, laundry and more and more and more laundry
Sleep and lack of sleep
Baths and holding wrinkly kids in towels
Pearler beads, crayons, and paints
Homework-science, math and reading
Bouncing, rocking, and patting backs
Dinners, dinners. The. Same. Old. Dinners.
Little baby snuggles and little baby hugs
Movies, game cube, legos and Wii
Basketball, friends, scouts and soccer
Asking and reminding, and asking and reminding again
Bedtime stories and a Bushel and a Peck
Scriptures and breakfast, FHE and family prayer
A lot of "It's not fair!"
'Ugh's', rolling eyes and throwing up arms
Tag, Leap Frog, and Hide n' Seek
Pushing swings, and sliding down slides
Disappointments and frustrations
Up the stairs and down the stairs and then back up again
Kids slamming doors and yes, some yelling here
Snuggling Brandon on movie nights
Proud moments and happy tears
Me-flushing unflushed toilets again and again
Packing lunches with little notes
Feeding my babe-Again? Didn't I just do that?
Little fingers squeezing my face and pulling my hair
Tucking kids up TIGHT in their beds
Kissing each soft, peaceful, sleeping child
Waking up to start again

Paige: 6 months update

*Loves to giggle to her brothers in the car
*Sleeping better at night (usually only up once)
*Sick for the first time-no fun
*Loves to see her daddy walk through the door
*Getting more unsure of strangers
*Is content to play in her saucer now
*Sitting up really well, and can reach for things
*Snuggles mommy and daddy
*Holds tight around our necks when we hug her
*Likes to rip my hair out, and she does it fast
*Can't sit in bumbo anymore-she can almost get out
*Has a silly, funny personality, she loves to giggle
*Refuses to get up on hands and knees
*Perfected rolling
*Getting longer and leaner
*Acts coy with strangers
*Happy baby
*Loves to splash in the tub
*Snuggles with her favorite stuffed animal giraffe at nap/bedtime
*Can pick up food with two fingers and feed herself

Mr. Distracted

I thought I would continue on with my "Mr." theme. It makes me write down stories that I just don't want to forget, and I think it gives you all a good idea of what my kids are like.

I could have MANY different titles for Nash, like Mr. Active, Mr. Social, Mr. Giver, Mr. Kind, Mr. Thoughtful, Mr. Talk back, Mr. Sass, Mr. Affectionate, and Mr. Messy Face and Shirt. But, the one I chose for this title fits him the best lately.

Nash is easily distracted. He gets distracted when he gets ready in the morning for school. He gets distracted in school, and he gets distracted when I ask him to do things at home. We have been dealing with it for a while, and it is slowly getting better. But, when Nash really focuses-he does a SUPERB job at what ever he does and really goes the extra mile to make us happy. (Which is why he is currently still living.)

In the morning, my boys are expected to get up shower (if necessary), get dressed, make their beds, and have socks on their feet before we go down to read scriptures and eat breakfast. We call these things "automatic" things. Whenever they hear the word "automatic" they know what we are talking about. It's doing those things they are expected to do automatically without having to be asked. Like putting on their seat belts in the car, taking dishes to the sink when they are done eating, and getting ready in the morning. There are some mornings when Nash gets up and does all those "automatic" morning things before I am even out of bed. Those times I usually find him down stairs, ready, and waiting for me. (I love those mornings!). Then there are those mornings where I have to ask him to do EVERYTHING 5 to 6 times. He even gets REALLY frustrated at himself and is constantly saying, "sorry, I got distracted by my legos, or by that book, or by my Star Wars guys". I know he is trying, and he is starting to get better. Then there are those mornings where he gets mad at me because those "automatic" things I am asking him to do are wasting his time. Oh boy, something happens when little boys turn 7. They get an attitude and somehow we are the bad guys. So, I never know what is going to happen on which morning. Although, lately he has been doing it automatically.

How does this affect him at school?-Nash has been missing a few assignments (either lost in his desk, or just not completed). A few weeks ago he kept forgetting to bring his Math book home so that we could finish them. So, one day when he got home from school, I drove him right back and we went into his classroom to get it. The classroom was set-up so that 3 groups of 6 desks together were in the back and 4 desks were up in the front in a row all about 2 ft. apart from each other. Nash showed me where his desk was. He is front and center in that front row which is separated. I asked his teacher if he was up there because he talked a lot. She smiled. "Yes." She said. "Nash is very social, and he gets distracted easily. I would love to have him sit right here up by me against the chalkboard, but I think that would make him feel bad. I think he would probably focus a little better though." Nice. Oh my poor little Nash. That made me feel bad, but frustrated at him at the same time. Despite him getting distracted, he is a good student and likes to participate and he really is doing pretty well in school. He just has to bring a lot of work home because he doesn't finish it. I think that other kids can hurry and finish their work and then have some "free time". But, it takes Nash a little longer and then those having free time are distracting to him. He said he is doing better, and he has brought less work home. He just needs to find ways to keep himself focused. I think I have found that when he talks out loud to himself while doing his school assignments, he can focus better because he is listening to himself and not other noises around him. Anyway, we are working on it.

Nash LOVES to be outside, and I love that! He is either riding his bike, playing soccer, basketball, or exercising (as he calls it). He loves to play with friends and has quite the little social life and social circle. Sometimes I have to remind him that he is only 8 years old. He would love to hang out with friends until late at night, every night. He is a good friend too. A nice one you can always rely on. And he is a FUN friend. He always knows how to make things fun.

He doesn't like people to feel bad. He won't let people make fun of other people. He will say, "hey that's not nice to say that about so and so, that's making fun of them". One time Nash and I were watching American Idol. The episode where the really bad singers are on. I was laughing pretty hard at someone singing. Nash looked at me like 'what are you doing?'. He said, "why are you laughing? Don't laugh mom, he is trying to do his best". Oops, he put me in my place. He is most always concerned about how others are feeling. Isn't that so sweet!! What a great quality to have.

A few summers ago we went to Lava Hot Springs with all of Brandon's family. We took several pennies and put them on the railroad tracks to smash them. When we went back later a lot of them had fallen off without getting smashed. The kids all scrambled to find a smashed penny and there just wasn't enough for everyone. His little cousin Gracie started to cry because she didn't get one. Nash was quiet for a few moments, then he put his penny in her hand and said, "you can have mine". I was so proud of him. I knew Nash really, really didn't want to give up his penny-he had been looking forward to it all afternoon. I could tell that he was trying not to cry. He just knew he should give up what he wanted because he didn't want her to be sad. I love that little man! He's so sweet sometimes.

Last month we had a FHE where we went around and shared what we liked about each family member. Nash had SO many nice things to say about everyone. He went on forever and he really enjoyed expressing his feelings to us, and the spirit was so strong! It was so nice to see that. He really does have a GREAT desire to be good. He's a good boy (most of the time, just like I am a good mother half of the time).

So we will keep working on helping Nash not get distracted. Any other ideas out there that might help with that? I know a few of you are teachers. Anyway, we love Nash and he is a such great older brother to Canyon, Coleman, and Paige!!

Recessionista Party

If you haven't heard about Recessionista Party you really need to check it out! They have some really cute stuff!! And, they are having a giveaway right now.

My sister is co-hosting a Recessionista party on Thursday, November 12th here in Utah. You can read more about that on my sisters blog-The Idea Room. If you want an official invite you can email her and she will send one to you. It sounds like a blast. I will be there for sure!

Happy Halloween

My boys weren't willing to get their costumes on and pose for pictures today. Guess that will have to wait until they are all dressed up tonight. But, I did get my little Paige to pose for me. Doesn't she look so cute in her costume? Can't wait for all the festivities tonight. The kids are so excited!


Here are the rest of the troops...


And, the rest of the troops in action...

Poor Baby

Brandon came down with something icky Saturday night. Paige came down with it two days later. (I guess Daddy gave her too many kisses over the weekend). They thought it might be the Swine Flu, but she tested negative.

I haven't had a sick baby for a while and I forgot how much snuggle time they need. I have loved snuggling my little girl, but I hate seeing her feeling bad. She's such a happy girl, that she still gives us those charming smiles in between her grumpiness. Hope you feel better soon baby. And hope it doesn't spread anymore. I LOVE the fall, but hate the cold and flu season!

California!

So our trip was such a blast, the weather was pretty close to perfect, and it was so fun to be able to surprise the kids. We told them we were going to Disneyland in November, so they were expecting to go there eventually. They were counting down the days. Our flight left at 8:00pm on the 7th of October. So I was able to get all the packing done while they were at school. I left my bag out and told them I was going on a small trip with my mom (cause she was going to take our car home after dropping us off at the airport). They were a little bummed that I was going somewhere and they were staying home.

We picked up my mom and drove to the airport. When we got there we said, "okay, everyone out of the car". They all said "What?" We said, "we are going to Disneyland right now!". They didn't believe us at first, and Nash thought it was a dirty trick to play on him. But, as soon as it sunk in they were all cheering, except for Nash. He looked a little nervous. I asked him what the matter was and he said, "I am going to miss a lot of assignments at school". What?! What eight year old would worry about school when they were going to Disneyland? Anyway, he was done worrying about school as soon as we got on the plane.

So we spent 3 days at Disney. It was so fun to go back and experience it again. Brandon and the kids had never been, so it was fun to show them things I remembered. And it was fun to see all the new things. I talked my kids in to going on all the rides they were tall enough for even though they were a little nervous at times. Coleman and Canyon were both pretty brave boys. They don't share Nash's enthusiasm for adventure parks.

Nash's highlights: The Jedi Training Academy (which was pretty awesome)! As you can see he was pretty into it.


He also loved spending his earned money (probably on the top of his list, ha, ha), the Indiana Jones ride, Jungle Cruise, Splash Mountain and the churros! Here is a picture of all the boys on Splash Mountain. You can really tell that Nash loved it.

Canyon's highlights: Splash Mountain (although it doesn't appear that way in the picture above), Jungle Cruise, and Pirates of the Caribean. Making his double light saber. I am not sure any of them liked the Haunted Mansion although they didn't cry on the ride. (I am not that mean).
Coleman's hightlights: Buzz-Lightyear ride, Jungle Cruise and the Nemo submarine, and being a complete dancing, jumping SPAZ from lack of sleep, but he was SO happy.

Paige's highlights: being entertained by all the comotion, riding in the stroller, taking naps, and snuggling with mom all night because she wasn't a good sleeper at the hotel (yeah, for mom!). And putting on her adorable Mickey Mouse hat.

We were able to see the Halloween firework show which was pretty cool. The boys were all half asleep and they were so tired, but once the show started they thought it was pretty awesome.

The boys made out with Light Sabers that they designed themselves, some lego guys and Mickey Mouse hats.

And you can't go to Disney without a picture of the castle. This was the only place I could get one without a million people around. I seriously just wanted to yell, "okay people, everyone just step back for 5 seconds while I get a picture of the castle, please!!". But, Brandon wouldn't let me.

We hit all of the big rides and most of the little ones. I really felt like 3 days was perfect. We had just enough time to do everything we wanted, and we didn't get too burned out. So then we had to leave Disneyland.


The next day we drove one hour South to Legoland. The kids LOVED this place, Brandon and I thought it was pretty fun (not as clean as Disney). They had a "Brick-or-Treat" trail which was pretty fun for them. They were able to ride some fun rides and build race cars and race them. Nash and Brandon especially enjoyed riding this Bionicle ride.


The last day we went to Huntington beach. I forget how much my kids love the beach. It was the coldest day of our trip (in the low 60's), but that didn't stop them from getting a little wet. Paige enjoyed watching the birds flying, watching her brothers playing in the sand,

hanging with her daddy,

and discovering the ocean with mommy,

She was such a great trooper on our trip (except for her 4-5 nightly feedings)! We thought about leaving her home, but I am so glad we took her with us.
The boys loved playing in the sand,


and being buried in the sand.


Brandon's highlights: Star Tours, the Jedi Show, Matterhorn, and Splash Mountain, and talking to random people in line.
My highlights: spending time with just US, laughing with Brandon, seeing the boys so smiley (with some grumpiness in-between), and getting several big random hugs from Coleman because he was so happy! I can't wait to go back again in a few years!