Offically Old

I am sure everyone has this experience sometime. This just happened to be my first and I didn't like it.
Grant and I were watching some of my nieces and nephews and they thought it would be fun to look through some of our old photo albums. Of course, my neices thought our old high school dance pictures were especially entertaining. Grant asked the innocent question, " Are you girls excited to go to dances when you get older so you can have cool pictures?" My eight year old niece said, "Yes, but ours will look better 'cause our dresses won't be so old-fashioned." The way she said would make you think I was a pioneer or something-- prairie dress, bonnet and all.

In that moment I felt officially old for the first time.

Some Fun Times

Well, it's been awhile since I have posted anything so I thought I might catch up. We have been busy, what can I say? This summer Grant and I made a pact that we would do anything and everything that came our way. That we would party hardy because last summer we didn't do a darn thing. Zip. Zero. Nada. We had a newborn, that's what we did. The world revolved around feedings every three hours and naps three times a day and even leaving the house was a three-ring circus. I am glad that is over (for the time being, anyway.) Now that we have a toddler on our hands, we said LET THE SUMMER FUN BEGIN! So here's what we have been up to....

This isn't a big event or anything... I just thought it was cool. I spent a few days in early June pruning back our enormous, overgrown lilac bushes. (So enormous and so overgrown that pruning them was like cutting down several trees... and that was just a little pruning!) Anyway, while I was pruning away, I found a robin's nest with three beautiful blue eggs in it. The next day I wanted a picture, and this is what I found:

One beautiful blue egg and two tiny baby birds! Mama bird was not happy about the picture taking. I was a little worried she might peck my eyes out.

Happy Birthday To Me

I turned the big 2-8 this year. In my mind I am still 23. I don't know where the last five years has gone. Anyone know?

Anyway, I wanted to have a nice, baby-free evening out for my birthday, so Grant called my nephew to baby sit. This is the best gig we have found yet: My nephew likes to sleep over at our house, so we put Wes down for bed at 8, then set up my nephew with the video baby monitor and let him watch a movie or play video games while he listened for the baby then we went out. Seeing as Wes sleeps like a log and doesn't wake up until 8 the next morning (knock on wood) we were able to enjoy a late dinner and a movie. We went to Famous Dave's (I can't resist their bread pudding) and then saw UP! in 3D. It was such a fun, birthday-ish movie to see (maybe it was all those balloons...) The picture is of me wearing the 3D glasses, in case you were wondering. It was an awesome evening out. Thank you to Andrew for babysitting!

Fathers Day

Wes giving his daddy a Fathers Day smooch.

For Fathers Day/ June birthdays, we had a big party over at my parents house. It was especially special because every single one of my siblings and their spouses and kids were there. With Scott and Lara in Arizona, and Sam's kids in Washington most of the time, it is a rare and wonderful treat to have everyone together.

Grant decided to organize a little friendly competition. He got a bunch of random supplies together and divided the family up into teams of kids and adults. Then everyone was allotted certain supplies and a raw egg, and had to construct a protective contraption for the egg. Each team then dropped their contraption off the top of a ladder, and the person whose contraption best protected their egg won! It took several drops, but finally the last egg broke and we had a winner! It was the NASA Rejects by an egg crack! Above, Sarah is showing off her team's egg contraption. Sadly, it wasn't the one that won.

Speaking of fathers, Wes is getting at a stage where he is really into his dad. He loves to watch (and participate, whether Grant likes it or not) in whatever Grant is doing. Grant was putting something together in the yard a few weeks ago, and Wes wanted to be a part of it. It was very sweet.

Sadly, Wes also had his official initiation into toddlerhood: scraped knees. He is still a little unsteady on his feet, and ended up scuffing both knees. Poor thing. He felt better with his Sponge Bob bandaids, however.

The Lehi Roundup Rodeo

Wes being helped along by his cousins Tim and Sean.

Wes and his Grandma enjoying the Rodeo.

Wes liked the rodeo more than I thought he would. He loved the horses, and would "moo" when the cows went by. The whole thing was fascinating to him... especially the treats his big cousins were munching on. He has learned the fine art of being cute so that people will share some of their candy.

Earlier that same day, I had the exhausting pleasure of watching six of my nieces and nephews for the day!! Above: Karli, Robbie, Tim, Heidi, Jadon, and Sean enjoying ice cream and the Burger Stop.

The most valuable lesson I learned from the day: never ask six different kids what they want to do.

Wes lookin' cool in some shades... but not liking it very much.

Sean and Tim feeding ducks at the park.

Garage Sale!

Only two days after the rodeo, our family had a great big, combined garage sale. Steve and Jen were paring down their belongings as they were preparing to move. My parents are thinking of moving as well, and in their retirement years have found that they just don't want or need so much stuff! Some of the rest of us simply found ourselves with too much extra junk. It was a lot of work (mostly on Steve and Jen's part) but it was pretty lucrative, and-- dare I say-- fun!

Wes and his grandpa playing with a bear that was waiting to be sold.

Check out all of that stuff! Thank heavens we got rid of it all! What didn't get sold went to D.I.

Wes found this old, beat-up rocking horse that belonged to my brother's kids. Wes liked it so much that they gave it to us for free! My next project is to refinish it. Wish me luck.

The Ward Pool Party

After the garage sale, we needed to cool off! We headed over to the ward pool party. We have lived within walking distance of the Layton Surf n' Swim for three years now, and had never been! It was so much fun! We will definitely be back.

Grant and Wes getting ready to slide!

Wes is a sucker for anything musical.

Just enjoying the playground before it's time to swim!

I love the next series of pictures. It says it all as far as how Wes acclimated to the pool.

"Mom, are you sure about this?"

"Mmmm... it's not so bad, I guess."

"This is more fun than the bath!"

It didn't take long for it to take all of my strength to keep Wes from diving into the water on his own.

FIVE Years of Bliss

On July 2nd, Grant and I celebrated our fifth wedding anniversary. Five years later, and I still can't get enough of that husband of mine.

We celebrated by sending Wes to the neighbors and treating ourselves to a couples massage at a nearby spa. Eighty minutes of pure heaven that left us both feeling like a wet noodle. Ahhhh....

The Fourth of July

This was possibly the busiest day of my life. We live near a park that has amazing 4th festivities. So we invite all of our family over to enjoy it with us! Like I mentioned before, we wanted to do it all this year so we spent days beforehand preparing. My cute cousin even came all the way from BYU- Idaho to attend! We started the day bright and early with the 5k. I was able to look up the route a month ahead of time and run it several times (seeing as it was right in my neighborhood) before the race. It didn't make me any faster, that is for sure, but it helped me to know what to expect.

Approaching the finish line. You can see me waaaaay back there in the red shirt, blue hat and white legs. (I am so patriotic, I know.)

So happy to finally come across the finish line! I was actually still fuming over the fact that the last water stop RAN OUT OF WATER! So the last 50 or so runners (that included me) didn't get any water! I blame my slowness on being so dehydrated.

Grant and Wes and I at the finish line. Grant walked the route with Wes. They left 15 minutes before the runners, and I was hoping to catch up with them so we could finish together. Alas, I was too slow. I still feel pretty good about it: I only trained for a month, and I ran the whole way. SLOWLY... it took 36 minutes. Let's face it, people can walk it faster than that! But by golly gosh darn it, I ran and I finished and that's all that matters!

Feeling tough after the race.

After the race, we went right over to the amphitheater for the flag raising ceremony. I enjoyed the flag raising and the music, but the speeches contained a little too much politics and not enough patriotism for my taste.

Above: Mom, Michelle, Dad, and Wes and I.

My cute nephew Erik had spent the night at our house. Steve and Jen were moving on the 4th, and so we kept him with us so he wouldn't be into trouble while they were busy with other things. He is such a fun, high-energy, high-curiosity kind of kid who told us all about how he loved to see the horses and bulls at the "radio" and how his mom also has a scale in her bathroom so he can see how tall he is. Life is never dull with Erik around.

After a hearty (but quick) breakfast with our neighbors, we walked to the parade that was just at the end of the street. We missed part of it, so I didn't get many pictures. This is after Erik cleaned up on the candy that the cheerleaders tossed into the crowd!!

There was a carnival after the parade, but we were all so exhaused that we all went home and took a nap!!

The fam came over that evening for a fantastic BBQ and some games. Did I mention that the weather couldn't have been better? Overcast and cool most of the day. I don't think it ever even hit 90! Most years it seems like the 4th is around 100 degrees.

Grant is checking on his awesome raspberry chocolate cobbler.

Sam and Brittany brought over their three-man, super-cool slip n' slide for the kids to play on.

Erik thought it was a little cold.

Not Wes! He LOVED this thing. We couldn't get him off of it! It was freezing water, and all of the other kids were too cold to play very long, but Wes just kept on going and going..... much like an energizer bunny.

And what would a 4th of July celebration be without fireworks? This is Karli with her sparkler. We had some fireworks at home, but then we headed down the street to the park to watch the big, awesome fireworks show. Again, I forgot to take pictures of that, but it was incredible. Wes had gone to bed around 8 more exhaused than I had ever seen him before. I couldn't bear to wake him, so my sweet parents opted to stay at the house and listen for him. They said they could see the fireworks show just dandy from our front porch without the walk to the park in the crowds!

What a crazy, busy, fun day it was!

Thunderbirds

What an appropriate name! I have been hearing Thunder(birds) over my house all week while they were getting ready for the Air Show at Hill Airforce Base right here in Layton. After seeing bits and pieces over the last few days, we just had to go and see the finished product. It was an awe-inducing, fun, crowded, LOUD experience.
Watching the airplanes fly over our house (and we get many everyday) is something that Wes enjoys. Even indoors, he will hear the roar of the engine and say "pane" and point to the ceiling. Then he will say, "voom." I knew seeing the "panes" close up would be something Wes would really like.
We packed up the car with the stroller, water, snacks, sunblock, a blanket and ear plugs (all things I would recommend taking if you ever have the chance to go) and drove the few miles to Hill Airforce Base. It usually would take about five minutes... today it took at least 30. It was CROWDED! Eventually we found a parking spot and wound our way to the main area. They had all kinds of aircrafts and helicopters on display, many of which you could go inside and explore.


Just one of the many amazing airplanes on display.


Yours Truly just walking around enjoying the sights.


Grant trying to keep Wes entertained while we waited for the Thunderbirds to take off. Believe it or not, Wes was smiling and laughing about 5 seconds before I took this picture.

Those amazing Thunderbirds... If you look closely, you will notice that one of those airplanes is upside down. And they are passing each other much closer than this picture shows.

Four Thunderbirds getting into formation. Look at that beautiful blue sky. This was the most perfect weather for the show. Sunny, but only in the mid 70's. It was fabulous!

One upside down Thunderbird. It makes me motion sick just watching them.

Wes really enjoyed seeing the planes go by! I wish I got a picture with his ear protecting headphones on. He looked so funny! At first he would NOT keep them on, but after a couple of LOUD passes by the Thunderbirds and he kept them on without any trouble at all!

The Thunderbirds in tight diamond formation. Even a sneeze would be disastrous!

Sam, Grant, Brittney and Robbie enjoying the show.

We had great seats in the shadow of a huge cargo plane. Sean and Andrew are sitting in the open hatch of the plane. In front, Jen, Steve, Erik, Heather, and Dad are all happy to be in the shade!



When we stood in front of the Thunderbird planes, we realized how small they actually are!

Just chillin' waiting for the crowd to thin. We did a lot of exploring after the show in hopes that the traffic would be a little lighter by the time we left.

Sadly, the traffic wasn't any lighter by the time we got to our car. We were parked by this little Memorial Park, so we sat on our blanket and enjoyed the nice day while we waited.... and waited... and waited for traffic to clear (or even move.) Eventually we got out of there! It was slow going, but totally worth it. We had a blast.

A Good Day

Mother's Day was a good day. A very, very good day. My sweet husband and my darling boy made it one of the most special days I have ever had. Grant started off the morning by getting up with Wes and letting me sleep in until 9! I don't remember the last time I got to sleep until 9. I am pretty sure it was pre-baby. Grant woke me up and I immediately smelled the yummy aroma of pancakes and bacon. This was accompanied by fresh fruit, orange juice and-- to top off the pancakes-- pure maple syrup (my favorite.)
Grant took care of Wes for most of the day while I got to cut lots of lilacs from my enormous bushes in the backyard (for both my pleasure and that of our mother's.) I also got to read a whole entire book (a short one.) I even got an afternoon nap!
Grant gave me a brand new iHome to replace my 15 year old CD player that doesn't work anymore. He also gave me not one, but TWO massage gift certificates to the Myotherapy college. I can't wait to use them. I love a good massage.
Wes gave me his own Mother's Day gift: he took his first unassisted steps!! It was so exciting, and I was so happy that both Grant and I were there to experience it. Wes spent a lot of the day walking next to me, holding onto my pants for balance. It was pretty cute. Here is a little video of it for your viewing pleasure.

And the Winner Is....

It's a tie! From the poll results, I gather that Wes is an exact combination of Grant and me. That said, some of you (you know who you are) didn't vote on what you really thought, you voted for the express purpose of making it a tie! So let's just say this poll isn't exactly accurate. But it was fun, all the same.