Watch Me Grow!

2 month weight and length: 11 lbs. 12 oz and 24 ¾ inches

I am sleeping 9 hours straight at night (mom is happy!) * I have an expanding vocabulary…I say coo and goo * I can follow Dax across the room as he dances around me * I sleep in my own crib in my own room * I love going for car rides and on walks * I sometimes take baths with my big brother Dax * My most ticklish spot is underneath my cheeks * I love it when anyone sings around me * My favorite toy is my yellow musical duck * * I can sleep through almost anything * I have retired a drawer full of clothes that are too small * I love tummy time still * I love sitting in the back yard and watching the kids play * I love to be snuggled and hugged * I always hold real still when dad comes into the room and I hear his voice * I am grabbing at things * I love looking at my mobile * I am a huge sports fan even though I sleep through most of the games * I love getting kisses from Dax

Wyatt is so lovable! He is still a little sleepy-head, but when he is awake he is so happy and so talkative! He tells the best stories...especially to Dax! I LOVE being in a house full of boys. If the Lord blesses me with only sons, I would be a VERY happy mother. I can tell Dax adores him just as much as I do. He is always wanting to help carry his car seat, put blankets on him, asking where he is when he's sleeping, bringing him lots of toys and giving him hugs and kisses. Dax still calls him Wyatt-y (pronounced Whitey). We sometimes catch ourselves calling him that too. It truly is his official nickname. We love you Whitey!!!

Spring Trainin’ & Easter Egg Huntin’….oh and some brotherly lovin’

To me, one of the perks of living in Arizona is enjoying Spring Training games the month of March. And about a ½ hour away, we’re even luckier to be the home of the Angels, our favorite baseball team. When we moved here last March we didn’t get our act together fast enough to make it to a game, so this year I knew I didn’t want to miss out. For Valentine’s Day I bought Austin tickets to yesterday afternoons game…the Angels vs. the visiting D-backs (they train out in Tucson). We have been looking forward to going for sometime and were really excited to take Dax. We bought tickets for the outfield lawn, packed a picnic, some blankets, and lots of sunscreen and headed for an afternoon at the ballpark.

We got there just as the game was starting and found an open itty-bitty spot on the lawn out in left field. The lawn area was packed with hundreds of people, and we had Wyatt in the stroller, so we were in the back, but it ended up being perfect to get up and stretch and for Dax to play around a little. Again, Wyatt missed out on the entire experience because he slept the entire time…even through two homeruns right next to us! It was so much fun being their as a family and spending an afternoon in the sun watching baseball. It truly is one of our favorite pastimes.

Funny story: There was this chain link fence and bushes behind where we were sitting. Dax pretty much spent the day hanging on this fence with his back to the game looking out at this back road and talking to the random people who walked by. He was well entertained and we were able to catch almost all the game thanks to this cheap entertainment. I couldn’t help laughing when I heard him yelling at the street (there was no one walking by and no cars were even driving on this road) “Always, always, ask mommy daddy help! Right mom?” Just to give you a little background, since Dax is a 4-wheeler riding machine on his bike we’ve needed to pound into his head how we don’t ride our bike in the street and how we need to stop and ask for mom or dad’s help to cross the street. I guess he felt the need to tell the street this very important rule!

After we made it home we headed to Austin’s parents house for dinner and a family Easter egg hunt. I had gotten my Easter eggs down a few days ago and Dax and I had been taking turns hiding the Easter eggs and doing some mini Easter egg hunts around the house. Dax loved to hide them as much as he loved to find them and would constantly tell me, whether he was hiding or finding “No peeking!” After dinner last night, the boys went out in front yard to hide all the eggs. Dax was so excited and made sure none of the other 10 kids got an advantage over him and kept yelling “noooooo peeeeeeeking!” They had 216 filled eggs for all the kids and the yard was covered. They let Dax and his cousin, Jett, out first to give them a head start and Dax came running out the door where there were probably a good 20 eggs right along his path and ran straight into the garage. I have no idea where he was headed or what he thought he was looking for, but obviously our week’s worth of practice did no good!

Austin redirected him and when he came to his first egg he opened it up and said, “Surprise” and proceeds to eat all the jellybeans before moving on. With this little routine, the yard was pretty wiped out by about the time Dax had 6 or so eggs in his basket, so some of the kids with a lot more eggs would set some of their extras around the lawn for Dax to “find”. He was more than pleased. And when there were two $5 eggs left, he was one of the lucky ones to find one…with help from Austin of course. Apparently Austin ALWAYS found the golden egg when he was a kid so he wanted to make sure Dax carried on his legacy. It was such a fun night. We can’t wait to do the Easter egg hunt with my family next weekend! Maybe a week’s more of practice will help Dax out a little!

I just had to post this picture of Dax and Wyatt. Dax loves his brother, but is never willing to hold still for me to get a good picture of the two of them together. For some reason this morning he was very willing to spend some time in front of the camera. I love this picture!!

Flashback Friday!

For those of you who know both my twin sister and I, most would say we are pretty identical. When we were younger only our close friends could tell who was who, and only the closest of friends could tell us apart on the phone. Our older sisters friends would always ask us to smile because the only way you could tell us apart was by our teeth. Once someone figured out a way to tell us apart, or keep which one was which straight, that was how we were known.
When we were babies we were known as either the “yellow baby” or the “orange baby”. Don’t get me started on why those awful colors were our “colors”, but that’s how it was. That’s how my mom would identify us when she would ask my sisters, “Go feed the orange baby” or “Bring me the yellow baby”. Then as we got older, thankfully, our colors changed. Jamie was always in red, and I was always in blue. As we got older still we spent most of our time on the soccer field or softball field. That’s when my dad came up with the system that I would always always wear the number 4 because there were 4 letters in my name and Jamie would always be number 5 because she has 5 letters in her name. That way no one would ever confuse us.
That’s how it worked most of our lives, not much of an identity, but that’s all we knew and I loved being a twin. So now, when we look back at pictures, we have a pretty good idea of who was who. And in those pictures that we happen not to be in yellow, blue or wearing the number 4, my mom was very careful to mark the pictures so she would know years down the road who was who. At least she tried to be careful.
A few weeks ago I was over at my mom’s and she had a small pile of pictures of Jamie and I as babies that some how managed to go unmarked. She was trying to organize to get ready to start our scrapbooks and needed to know which picture to put in which book. She asked if I could tell. A few I could, but there were plenty left that no one could quite be for certain who was who. We decided in the end that it didn’t really matter what pictures went in which book, even if it was wrong, because no one would ever really know.Well, today I sorta feel like my mom. I was looking at a recent picture I took of Wyatt and couldn’t get over another picture in my head of Dax wearing the same shirt when he was about the same age. Although they aren’t twins, and the obvious difference is their hair, I still better remember to organize their pictures well because one day I may be sitting at the table trying to remember which baby was which! They look so alike to me! What about you?

Is it time??

....for another haircut? It's been since last November that we've cut Dax's hair, and I tend to think if you can get this many hairstyles out of your SON, it's about that time again!



Austin and I are having a little bit of a debate. Austin wants to keep growing it out and I want to cut it short. Help! Any opinions?!

Thanks to the GORILLA….

Don’t you always wonder who is under that mascot suit at your favorite teams’ game? Who that crazy man or woman is jumping around, getting the fans pumped up and poking fun at some poor soul in the front row? Who it is doing those crazy flips, hilarious skits and out of control behavior? Well, we happen to know the Gorilla!

Yes, you heard me right. Thanks to the Gorilla, we got free tickets to the Suns vs. Jazz game last Friday. The official mascot of the Phoenix Suns called Austin and asked if he wanted two tickets to last Friday’s game. Of course! Lower Bowl! Watch Shaq! Be out on a FREE date! Sounds like a no brainer?! Well, you’re probably wondering why the Gorilla called Austin. Here’s their story….

Back in our Provo days Austin worked as a manager at a Physical Therapy Clinic and hired a young man. The two became quick friends and secretly, this young man confided in Austin that he was one of the BYU Cougar mascots. He invited Austin and I to go with him late one night and a few other friends over to the good ol’ Smith Fieldhouse where they practice their trampoline slam dunks for the basketball games. We thought it sounded like a lot of fun so we went. It was a blast! Obviously this young man was a way better dunker then the rest of us, but we still had a great time jumping on the trampoline, trying our best to make a super cool dunk, and landing on the mats without hurting ourselves. It made it way more fun to go the basketball games and anywhere else the Cougar hung out. We felt like we sorta had an undercover celebrity status. We knew who the Cougar was, but we were under strict confidence.

Austin and this young man worked together for a few more years until a job opportunity came up for the young man with the Phoenix Suns. He flew to AZ, tried out, and is now the official mascot for our favorite basketball team!

We were so excited to go to the game on Friday. We called a babysitter for Dax, strapped Wyatt into my sling (which is still by the way the best shower gift EVER) and headed to the arena. Wyatt slept the entire time; the fans surrounding us didn’t even know a baby was with us! Our seats were perfect, on the lower bowl diagonal from the Suns bench. I had never seen Shaq play before, he was taller and thinner than I expected, and even though the Suns lost in the end, it was a really great game! The best part? Cheering on the Gorilla, knowing who was underneath that suit! We had him and his wife over Sunday night for dinner and we now know so much confidential stuff it’s crazy!!

I’d tell you all about…then I’d have to kill ya! My lips are sealed!!!

Home Sweet Home

Time flies! I realized last week that we were coming up on our year mark of living in Arizona. I can hardly believe it! Today is the day! It seems crazy to think that when we moved into this house we didn’t even know about Wyatt and Dax was only 14 months old. It was a crazy time in our lives. Let’s flashback...

Austin had moved to Arizona before Dax and I at the first of the 2007 year to start a new job and begin classes. Dax and I waited in Utah to sell our house in Lehi. When Austin moved, our house had only been on the market for 2 weeks and we had no idea how fast it would sell with it being the dead of winter and oh so freezing! We had no idea when we would be a family again! Austin lived with his sister and their family and kept his eyes out for houses in this beautiful neighborhood that we absolutely loved in Queen Creek. But we obviously couldn’t make any moves because there was no way we could afford two mortgages and we had no idea when we would sell in Utah. Lo and behold, our house sold just less than 5 weeks of being on the market and escrow would close March 1st. Dax and I jumped on the first plane and quickly began our house hunt. We had to make a decision on a house in Arizona fast becuase I had been approved with my company to work from home, but that process took close to two months. The first place we headed back to was this dear neighborhood that for some reason kept drawing us in.

We had looked for houses earlier in December when we had been in Arizona for Christmas, and really loved two houses in the community. We debated long and hard whether or not we should just snatch one of them up since the market was so great for buyers at the time in AZ, but we didn’t want to get ahead of ourselves. What if our house in Utah took 6 months to sell? Well, when we retuned to Arizona in February, both houses were already gone and the development was basically sold out. We had already looked at every existing home for sell in the neighborhood, and there wasn’t really one that we feel in love with or felt right. I really wanted a brand new house, but we didn’t have time to build. We finally were able to touch base with the realtor of the builder of the development and he mentioned to us that his friend had purchased 4 houses in the neighborhood as an investment, but with the change in market, was planning on only keeping two. These houses weren’t even listed for the public to see. Basically the neighborhood was sold out and for some reason we were really lucky to be speaking to this guy. We walked into the first of the four houses and immediately fell in love. The floor plan was perfect, the location was perfect, the colors were perfect, the cabinets were perfect, the carpet was perfect....Everything I was hoping our new house would be, it was! It was completely finished and brand new, ready to move in. We just had to pick out our appliances, which we had an allowance for! We signed papers the next day and Dax and I headed back to Utah to pack the house up and move to Arizona!

It has been such a great year. We absolutely love our neighborhood and where we live. I knew we were supposed to be here for a reson. Our ward is amazing, we’ve made better friends than ever, and we have so much family around us. Utah was home to us for so many years, but finally we feel like we are “home”! We love being in Arizona! I decided to make our top 10 reasons of why we love Arizona so much!

10. AZ has more than one main highway in the valley (We love the I-15 and all, but seriously…)
9. We won’t ever have to remember the saying “Spring ahead, Fall back” and won’t ever need to remember what weekend Daylight Savings is!
8. We have street names. I know everyone says the grid system is the easiest thing in the world, but honestly, after almost 8 years it still confused me!
7. AZ has more than one professional sports team to root for (Sorry Jazz, we just weren’t that in to you!)
6. We will NEVER have to drive on an icy road, see our cold breath, or scrape off our windshield or driveway again! Hallelujah!
5. We can wear flip-flops, and sunglasses practically all year around!
4. There will never be a question if it will be snowing on Easter or Halloween.
3. Not only did we not have to say goodbye to Café Rio, but BONUS: we’ve got ourselves In ‘N Out
2. No more driving over the dreaded point of the mountain to go work…I just have to walk down the hallway.
1. The fact that we have a combination of two sets of parents and 5 sisters all within 10 miles of our house is the best thing by far about being in Arizona!

What a Blessing!!

This past Sunday we blessed our little Wyatt. It was such a wonderful day! For only having my grandparents travel from out of state to be there with us, we still had the love and support of over 35 family members! It was incredible the love we felt knowing there were all those people were there for us and to see Wyatt receive this special blessing.
I was so overwhelmed with emotion the whole day. Well, I take that back. I was overwhelmed with emotion the entire week leading up to the blessing. It had been on my mind a lot and I think it was just the excitement and the knowledge of what a special day it was for Wyatt and our growing family. I couldn’t help but think that the Lord has blessed us with TWO wonderful, perfect little boys. That He sent two of his children to Austin and I to raise here on earth and then, on top of that great blessing, has given us the wonderful gift of eternal families. I look at Wyatt’s sweet little face and I am so grateful to know that our family is forever. I remember feeling that same exact way when Dax was blessed. And to me, as a mother, there is not one single thing more important than that. That knowledge gives me so much comfort. I love my sons and my husband more than anything else on Earth and to know that we will always be an eternal family is the best feeling.
Overall, I couldn’t have asked for a nicer day. Wyatt looked so handsome and pure dressed in all white. His little blessing outfit is one my mom has bought for all the grandsons to wear and she also has a dress for all the granddaughters to wear. I think it is a wonderful tradition. It’s kinda symbolic that they were all together before coming to Earth and something they can all share to celebrate their birth and being apart of our great family. When I was dressing him I got teary eyed thinking of all the times throughout his life that he will be dressed in white if he stays close to the Savior---his baptism, before he goes on a mission, his temple marriage to his eternal companion, when he visits the temple. I love picturing all those events in my head.
Wyatt fell asleep in my arms just as Sacrament was beginning. When it was time for the blessing, Austin took him and I replaced Wyatt with Dax in my arms. I had been talking to Dax about Wyatt’s blessing for a few days; how Wyatt was going to be wearing all white and how Austin was going to be saying a special prayer just for Wyatt. Dax was so eager to see Austin walk in front of the congregation with his grandpa’s and uncles and listened so quietly as Austin blessed Wyatt. I was choked up the entire prayer listening to Austin bless Wyatt and holding Dax in my arms. Austin gave a very beautiful blessing and you could feel the Spirit so strong. Austin’s dad told me later that he couldn’t help thinking how he was doing the same thing with Austin 29 years ago and all the while I was sitting there thinking how Austin had given Dax the same kind of blessing only 2 years ago. Time flies and I love that I now have two children of God.
I love having Wyatt in the house and being in his presence. It wasn’t so long ago that he left our Heavenly Father and I love thinking that as I hold him and kiss him. I never completely understood in the scriptures when we read to be as little children, but now having two of my own, I can see why we are commanded to be like them. They are so beautiful and Christlike and so innocent. It has helped me so much to feel closer to my Heavenly Father having Wyatt in our family. We are truly so blessed!

Happy March

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

By the way, don't let this picture fool you...it isn't Wyatt. It's Dax at his first Easter. I haven't gotten the Easter box down to get out those adorable ears to take a picture of Wyatt wearing them, so here is Dax!

12th: Happy Birthday Kristin

13th: Happy Birthday Kruz

14th: Happy Birthday Dustin

15th: Happy Birthday Chandler

17th: Happy St Patrick's Day and Happy Birthday Jett

23rd: Happy Easter!

31th: Happy Birthday Sydney

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

A close friend of mine came over a few days after Wyatt was born for his very first photo shoot. I was so excited to have her come because she is a great photographer and so fun to be around! I was really anxious to get some quality pictures of Wyatt with someone else's camera besides my measly one. I have to admit, and Jen can probably attest, Wyatt wasn't on his best behavior. But who can blame him when we kept unwrapping him from his warm blankie, putting him on cold surfaces, stealing his pacifier out of his mouth, and making him lay around naked? In the end, we got some really great shots and I am so thankful Jen came over to photograph this little guy!!

Austin's Mini Me

I am the youngest so I never had a little brother or sister that would copy every thing I did. There was never that younger brother or sister to annoy you or want to be into everything you were, or even that flattering shadow that just looked up to you all the time. You're probably thinking, well, you have a twin, but we honestly thought we were one person. We didn't really get the concept that there were actually TWO of us. We really thought we were the same, one person and that our name was Jamie-Bryn...yes, we though it was all one name and that it was our name. We were kinda weird kids, but that's another post.

Well, with Dax being the oldest, and being a boy, of course the person he is going to look up to the most is Austin. Dax has always had a preference for Austin. When he was a newborn Austin was able to stay home with him in the mornings until I got back from work, and then would leave for work and school for the rest of the day and night. They definitely had quality bonding time, and even though it hurts my feelings, even now a little bit, that Dax still prefers Austin over me, I know that there really isn't one person more important in a little guys life than his dad. And, I am so happy he has Austin to look up to.

I couldn't help but think about that all weekend long as I watched Dax follow Austin around and be his little shadow. Austin still has that crazy work/school schedule so there are days when Dax only has a little bit of time with his dad. We are so thankful for weekends around here!!! They do all the things boys and dads should do. They work in the yard, go through my "honey-do list", cook, play sports, you name it! This weekend especially I noticed how much Dax was connected to Austin's hip, and I took the opportunity to snap a few pictures because it really makes me so happy to see these two as best friends. Dax adores his dad, and I think he has every right to!

On the other hand, is Wyatt a Dax Mini-Me or what? Look at these two pictures of them during their first baths home from the hospital. Can you even tell who is who?? The only difference is about 2 lbs. and a head of dark hair!