I NEVER thought it could happen....

...falling asleep at the dinner table!

We’ve all seen pictures of children falling asleep at the dinner table and even clips on America’s Funniest Videos of kids eating dinner with their heads bobbing as they are trying to put a fork of food in there mouth and catch some zzz’s all at the same time. I always thought it was so funny, but never believed it would happen. Until yesterday.

My sister-in-law watches Dax for me while I work on Monday and Tuesday mornings, and I watch her little guy Jett on Wednesday afternoons. The boys are three months apart and have always had a love/hate relationship. Dax is a loveable kid, but he is sometimes real rough, not a great sharer and plays really hard. He goes after what he wants and pretty much bull-dozes anything, or anyone, in his way. Jett on the other hand is just as loveable, but totally opposite. He is sensitive and gets his feelings hurt. So the two of them playing together really ended up being Dax taking over and Jett crying. Kinda exhausting and not so fun to deal with.

Oh, and Dax calls Jett “Da”. He’s not saying “duh” it’s just the way it sounds when he says Jett. J’s are hard for a 2-year old, right?

Well, when Wyatt was born Dax stopped going over to play because I was home and my sister in law wasn’t working for a little while. After 6 weeks, the boys really started missing each other like crazy. Jett would ask for me and Dax and Dax would see Jett and give him hugs (which never happened) and the boys were all of a sudden BFF’s! It was great! It made it so fun for them to play and so much more enjoyable to be able to watch them play rather than have to referee.

Yesterday was another gorgeous day and Jett came over at about 12:15. Dax was already outside playing and Jett quickly ran to play. They played soccer, basketball, played in the clubhouse, played in the cars, played on bikes, played with the wheelbarrow, sat on lawnchairs next to me and read books. I filled a big tub of soapy water, gave them rags, and they washed ALL the sand toys, the walls, the orange tree, and anything else that looked like it needed water, including themselves. I filled up a trillion water balloons and let them throw them as far as they could. They even thought picking up the broken balloons was fun. They were non-stop and not one of them cried all afternoon and there was not one fight! They played like this all the way until Jett got picked up at about 4:30. I don’t think Dax came inside once that whole time and Jett only did to ask for some snacks. They played long and hard!

Austin wasn’t home so Dax and I were on our own for dinner. We were eating spaghetti and I left Dax at the table to finish his up. He had eaten a huge bowl and was very quite. I just figured he was loving the homemade sauce I was able to make while they played outside. Usually he is up and down a few times from the table to see what’s going on, but not last night. I would glance around the corner to see how he was doing and could see the back of him and could tell he was eating just fine and doing great. I was distracted by a TV show I was catching up on (I’m totally addicted to the Biggest Loser) and totally forgot about him eating. After a few minutes I realized I hadn’t heard him for a few minutes. I looked over and he was sitting in his chair VERY still. I walked over to the table where his spaghetti was completely gone, his fork was on the floor and Dax was literally falling asleep in his chair. His was sitting on his knees, his hand were completely limp in his lap and his chin was just about to fall into his chest. I bent down next to him careful not to startle him and I laughed as I lifted his head and there was spaghetti sauce from his forehead down to his neck. I knew he loved that sauce!

I wanted to hurry and grab my camera, but with my luck he would fall asleep and fall off the chair while I ran to get it and of course earlier that morning the battery had died when I was downloading some pictures! Arggg!! Plus, I did want to pass on the chance of picking up my “baby” and having him fall asleep in my arms because that never happens! His clothes were still wet from the fun he had had outside, and I just wanted to stare at his sleepy spaghetti sauce face. It was one of those moments that make you SO happy to be a mom!

If you are still reading this post after that ginormous story, let me make it worth your while (I just had to write it down since I missed the photo op). This spaghetti sauce that I keep mentioning is the best homemade sauce ever and I am going to share it with you!! The first time I made it was when my grandma and grandpa Kreipl were visiting in Utah a few years back and it was developed by a friend of theirs for her college thesis in culinary school. You’ll LOVE it!

Brown---
1 lb Italian Sausage
1 lb hamburger

Chop---
3 carrots
1 green pepper
1 small onion
3 stalks celery

1 can mushroom
1 can tomato paste
2 cans tomato soup

Combine all ingredients and simmer for 2 ½ to 3 hours. Season with garlic salt, salt and pepper. Serve with spaghetti.

Now, this will make a ton and you can freeze the left over’s, but beware you may have to try mine because the secret ingredient is my grandfathers very own seasoning that is forever a family secret. But I think you most definitely will get a hint at how great this sauce is!! Enjoy!

It's Training Day

What better time to teach your two year old how to ride a big bike with training wheels then when there isn’t a cloud in sight and it’s a gorgeous 73 degrees outside…oh, and your 7 week old just went down for a nap?? Monday Madness of course! I’ve deemed Monday’s as Monday Madness because all I do all day is clean, wash and fold laundry, unload and load the dishes and so forth. You know how the house gets when your husband is finally home for the weekend and you try and cram in every waking hour doing something meaningful and productive. So, with today being one of those madness days, I was more than happy for an excuse to be outside with Dax!
A few weeks ago Dax, Wyatt and I ventured to the park in the afternoon to meet some girlfriends and Dax really took to his little friends bike. His friend Eli was so gracious and shared so nicely with Dax, but Dax wasn’t so willing to give Eli turns on his own bike. My friend asked if Dax had a bike and I said no, that Austin was really dying to get him one and had even picked out the one he wanted to get Dax at Costco.
Dax had already mastered the scooter, was ready for bigger and better things than his mini coupe car, and tried the skateboard, but that was a little too much. A bike was exactly what he needed. We hadn’t really gotten around to doing it yet with just having Dax’s birthday, Christmas and the new baby coming and we felt like we needed some sort of occasion to go out and spend the money, so we just hadn’t yet.
My friend told me that all of her and her husband’s brothers and sister treated them as a “Used Bike Lot” and they had 6, yes 6, bikes in their garage and she would love to give one to Dax. If she was just going to give them away, why not? So yesterday Eli and his mom came over and rolled the bike right in. Dax was ecstatic and Eli had picked it out especially for Dax to have. It was Sunday and we were on our way to Church, and let’s face it, getting out of church at 5:10pm isn’t really a spectacular time to go home and ride a bike, even if it wasn’t Sunday. Even though it was still in the house when we got hime, it broke Dax’s little heart that we couldn’t go out right then and there and go for a ride.With it being such a gorgeous day Dax and I went outside for a crash course on riding a bike with training wheels. I knew Austin would want to be the one to teach him so I just basically took a bunch of pictures as he sat so proud on his bike. We moved to the backyard and he sat there, not really moving, for close to a half hour. He’d come running in the house after “sitting” for a few minutes and announce he was “riding” his bike. He was so proud of himself and I loved it and couldn’t be more proud even if he wasn’t moving an inch! Thanks Eli and Ashleigh!!

Can't Complain

With this being the end of my first depressing week back at work (albeit, it is from home), I really can’t complain when this is just one of three faces I get to wake up and see! I love being home with Wyatt; he truly brightens my day!

Oh, and Austin did his hair!!

Dax's new pet

I never understood the craze about pet rocks. They're rocks! They sit there, they don't do anything. How can that be fun? But, when comparing a pet rock to other animals, say, birds, dogs, cats and so forth, I see the appeal. All those animals make a mess; they misbehave; they cost too much money. On the other hand, a pet rock is an ideal pet - easy and cheap, and it has a great personality! Well around here, Dax has found himself his own version of a pet rock. I'm not sure if I should attribute this "pet rock" to his creative imagination, or the fact that there is a newborn in the house and even though we are in AZ it is RSV season so there aren't too many outdoor excursions going on, but either way, our family has a very new pet. Take a look.....
If you can't tell what it is, let me describe him to you. His name is "Roary". He came from a faux fur blanket that sits in a basket in our living room. The other day the blanket was out and this little fuzz fell to the floor. Dax immediately adopted it. He sat it on the couch and kneeled down to inspect it. Then he brought it over to show me. I hadn't noticed what he had in his hand and when he was close enough he kinda tossed it at me and said "roar". I practically jumped off the couch thinking it was some dead insect or something and Dax got a big kick out of it. I think he adopted it more because he thought it was so funny that he scared me, but regardless this little "Roray" kept him entertained for a good half day. We had a few almost casualties when Dax would put "Roary" in his hand and he'd run down the hall and "Roary" would float away. That in turn lead to me searching through the carpet for him (forget just going over to the blanket and replacing his fuzz). Before bed we put this pet fuzz on a side table and the next morning Dax saw it and said "Oh Roary" put it in his hand, gave him a hug (which was more like Dax hugging himself, because let's be honest...how do you hug fuzz) and together Dax and “Roary” had another great day! I love kids and their imaginations, and I think I can finally see the appeal of pet rocks!!!

Finally I finished

The week after Thanksgiving and the week before Dax turned 2 he started climbing out of his crib. Our stress-free, easy nights of putting Dax to bed and not having to worry about him for the next 12 hours quickly became a nightmare! Naps became a total disaster, bedtime was worse, and now he was waking up in the middle of the night...something he hadn’t done since he was three months old. We made an emergency decision to ditch the crib and get him a twin bed. I had decided a long time ago I was going to skip the toddler bed phase so we would only have one transition to worry about rather than two. It was cold turkey, one day his crib was in his room; the next day it was his "big boy" bed.

It was eventually going to happen anyway. Once Wyatt would grow out of his cradle and would need to sleep in the crib, that's when we figured we would make the transition with Dax. We figured we would leave things as they were until Wyatt came along and see how Dax adjusted to that, and then once he was comfortable with Wyatt in the house we would try and transition him into a new bed. Well, Dax must have sensed a big change was coming. It was probably the size of my growing belly that I would catch him staring at in confusing that tipped him off. Now all of a sudden, with six weeks until Wyatt would be arriving I knew I had my work cut out for me so that I wouldn't have a toddler running around in the middle of the night with me and the baby!

Dax definitely made us work to get him used to his bed. There were many a nights that he slept on the floor, in the living room, in the hallway, anywhere but his bed! He was throwing the biggest, baddest tantrums in the middle of the night that we were constantly battling. You would think at nap time he'd be so exhausted from being up half the night that he would just lay right down. No such luck!

Now looking back, the funniest part was the stories he started coming up with as to why he wasn't staying in bed. He would come to the door and say "I stinky again"---not true. Or he would say "Owie" and hold his head like he bumped it---not true. Anything to get us back into the room with him. Needless to say we started telling him the story about the Boy Who Cried Wolf! Who knows if he understood the moral, but we tried! J

His room was a total makeshift room when the crib moved and the bed came in. I couldn't hardly stand to look in it because everything was jumbled around and looked so out of place. The bedding was random (like I said, emergency decision with no planning), there was nothing fun and “boy” about it and he had toys everywhere which made for even a harder battle when he would get out of bed because he would wind up playing. I had bought a headboard from a neighbor for $10 and planned on re-doing it, but that wasn't going to happen until the baby was born when it was okay to use paint.

Just as Wyatt arrived we started to make progress with Dax. Naps finally became routine again and bedtime was a lot easier because he actually had some shuteye under his belt. I think about it now and he was probably just trying to help his mom out and get her used to being up in the middle of the night! Either way, now I was excited to work on his room. I just wanted to make it as "boy" as I could....Camo sheets, bold navy blue and moving out all of his "baby" toys. I re-finished the headboard, did a little artwork for the wall with some pictures that my friend Jen took that are some of my favorite of Dax, and replaced all the baby toys with a fun train table he had gotten for Christmas that we didn’t move in until he was sleeping better. I couldn't be happier and Dax is sleeping like a baby. I think he likes his new room and finally gets the concept of big boy now that Wyatt is around. Now if the rest of us could just get back to 12 hours of sleep…

I've been tagged!

I've been tagged! This is only because I love Kat too much to disappoint her, so here goes....

Book rules,

1. pick the nearest book of 123 pages
2. Open the book to page 123
3. Find the fifth sentence
4. Post the next three sentences,
5. Tag at least five people

This should be oh so boring since the closest book to me is BabyWise. I can't help it, it was a great reference when Dax was a baby and I still love it today and keep it close by to flip through it whenever I become forgetful and can't remember back to when Dax was a baby. So here's the 5th sentence along with the next 3 lines... "Start with eight or more feedings for the first two to three weeks. After that you may average eight feedings over the course of the next six weeks. The number of feedings will depend on your assessment with feeding times occurring at just about every 2 1/2-to 3-hours. By the end of this phase, you should be averaging seven to eight feedings in a 24-hour period and will most likely not have a middle of the night feeding.

Ironically, there's my day in a nutshell!!

I'm tagging the people I think will most likely play the game: Shanen, Nicole, Jamie, Dara, & Amera

Winters in AZ

We may have white legs and arms, but Arizona winters were definitely a deciding factor in moving here! This is our first "winter" and let me tell you, we can't complain! How can you go wrong when it's 74 in the middle of February! We spent a day outside running around! We're so glad we put that sod in last November!

Watch Me Grow!

1 month weight and length: 8 lbs. 13 oz and 21 ½ inches

Memories and milestones as told by Wyatt:
I have graduated from newborn diapers to size 1* I now take a bath in my big boy bathtub rather than the sink * I love tummy time * I kick and flail my arms like I’m going to take off when my brother comes and hugs me * I can zero in on mom or anyone else close enough for me to focus on * I made my first park debut and slept the entire time…no slides yet even though Dax really wanted to take me * I sleep 5 ½ hours straight during the night and then go back to sleep for 3 more after I eat * I grew out of my very first outfit * all the while turning bright red, I have survived my first round of shots * I have been to the movies and didn’t make a peep…way to go dad taking mom on a date * My belly doesn’t care too much when mommy eats Mexican food * I take naps in my crib * I can lift my head * I love reading books

We love having Wyatt! He is so much fun and fits into the family perfectly! He is such a blessing to us! We can’t wait to watch him grow!

1st Saturday of the Month

Saturday night Austin was putting Dax to bed after a long day and no nap. As Dax was drifting off to sleep he put his hand on Austin's face and said "Depot. Fun." We did have fun at the depot, Home Depot that is. On the 1st Saturday of each month Home Depot has a kids workshop where kids are invited to create some sort of project in the store....for free. Dax has done this about 3 times, and let me tell you...he loves it! The first time we went he got his very own orange apron, which he wore for the rest of the day, and each additional time, they get a pin to put on their apron of the project they have constructed. Dax has made a go-cart, a mini serving tray, and last week, the Saturday that prompted the "Depot. Fun." was a football stool to stand or sit on. Of course, he's already "too cool" for the apron, he won't even put it on, but he loves going to the mini set up of a tool bench and hammering away at the nails, wood, or whatever else looks intriguing while Austin and I read and re-read the instructions on how to properly put the little craft together. We all have fun; you should check it out yourself with your little ones. Trust me, they'll love it! We're already looking forward to next month---a fire truck!

I missed Flashback Friday, so this is my make up post, plus a new post all in one!

Each summer for the past 5 or 6 years with Austin's family we've gone beach camping in San Clemente. We have a blast! It is the perfect place for the kids and a perfect opportunity to get everyone together all in one place for an entire week. At the San Clemente State Park they have a group campsite that allows for 50 campers and up to 20 cars. With as big as Austin's family is, add a few cousins, aunt and uncles, and friends, we definitely hit capacity each year! We love going to the beach and look forward to it all year long. It practically takes a year to plan this annual trip. We pick a theme, plan meals, have activities committees, decorating committees, games, and talent shows. Some of the themes we've had are luaus, hoe-downs, camo, baseball, and this year superheroes!! It is so fun, and funny, to see what everyone comes up with to "dress-up" the campsite and themselves. The year we had the hoe-down we had a horsey clock that would gallop on the hour for every hour that it was. It was priceless. Last year for baseball we each picked a baseball team to represent throughout the week and played over the line, homerun derbies, and good ol' fashion baseball. Everyone has a lot of fun. Here is a flashback to our family, the Phillies last year!

The best part is being on the beach for the whole week. We're all originally from CA but all live out of state now so going back to the beach is going home for most of us. The kids love playing in the sand and water and by the end of the week they are way to brave for me to even stand to watch them play in the ocean. I'm the sunbather, Frisbee kind of girl...the waves make me a little nervous. I'm the aunt who holds the little kids hands who are too tiny to go out very deep and let the waves and sand bury out feet.

Well, the past few years it has been very difficult reserving out favorite group site. The reservations open January 1st and you can reserve all the way through July. We love to go in the middle of the summer to break up the Arizona heat and to enjoy the beach at it's best. Reserving has become harder and harder, and even though we have many family members on the internet and calling in, we ended up only being able to get the first week of June last year. For you non-Californians, the month of June is known as "June gloom". Even though we had a blast as always, we were all determined to get our traditional week in July reserved for this year. January 1st came and we were all geared up to get the week we wanted. Within minutes the entire campsite was booked and we were left even worse off than last year, the last week in May. Yuck!! We were all so disappointed. Our only hope was the shoot for August when the month was open for reservations starting February 1st. So Friday, we were all at it again and luckily we ended up with 5 days in the middle of the month! Not our full week, but we're praying there is a cancellation and we can add the few more days that we are used to. We are constantly talking about the beach around here. Whether it’s the planning of our beach trip, talking about home, going to Oceanside in September with my family or watching Surf's Up (a new favorite of Dax's), we all love the beach! Yesterday Dax made me proud.

With all the commotion going on about the reservations, the beach was definitely on his mind. He was in back helping Austin dig a whole for a new orange tree and he looked so cute. I asked what he was doing and he said, "Dig! Beach!" The little man decided he was going to dig his way all the way to the beach! I couldn't be prouder of my little beach bum!! Now only if his hair would grow a little faster we'd have the cutest little groom in town. That's beach lingo for mini surfer...and I think he fits the bill perfectly!

Happy February

Happy February! Wishing you a Happy Valentine's Day and sending family member's birthday wishes and couples happy anniversaries'. Plus, helping remind those in the family who are forgetful what's going on this month!

* 13th: Happy Birthday Kylee

* 14th: Happy Valentine's Day

* 23rd: Happy Birthday Dwain and Nicole

24th: Happy Birthday Alexia