The Bergs

Australian Tid Bit's

2011-06-19T05:32:00.003-06:00

I just wanted to jot down a few of the things I learned about Australia before I forgot.......

1-There are a few things they say that are different:

No Worries.......They say this all the time. In place of your welcome, or where we would probably say No problem, or that's ok.

Righty O..... for ok, or alright.

How you goin? ......For How are you?

Mate......for man, or dude.

Pram....stroller

Nappy.....Diaper

Rubish......garbage

I know there are more but they have slipped my mind at the moment :)

2- They LOVE roundabouts! They are everywhere!

3-They don't tip here.

4- Things are very expensive! It was pretty normal for us to spend $100 feeding our family of 5.

5- They don't have fast food restaurants everywhere you look. In fact, it was pretty hard to find one. They do have McDonalds, KFC, Subway, and Hungry Jacks (which is Burger King to us) but they aren't on every exit like in Utah.

6- I think the most popular thing to eat here is Fish and Chips. I don't think I went to one restaurant where that wasn't served and you see signs for it everywhere!

7-You can't use your U.S. hairdryer with just an adapter, you have to use a transformer. WHOOPS! I now have an Australian hairdryer that I will be having to use with an adapter at home, lol.

8-Driving is the least convenient way to get around the city. The tram, train, or walking is the way to go. One....it's just too busy and scary, two.....there is little to no parking, and three....the parking that they do have is ridiculously expensive.

9-There is still ridiculous amounts of laundry to do, even when you are on the opposite side of the world.

10- Keeping a two bedroom apartment clean is much easier than keeping my house clean!

11-I am one lucky girl! I have an amazing and hardworking husband that made it possible for us to have the experience of a lifetime. And I have amazing parents that will follow us across the world and help with our kids! I could NOT have done it without them.

Australian Adventure, Part 2!

2011-06-14T03:57:00.049-06:00

The next part of our trip was a favorite for everyone. Once again I took a zillion pictures. This is probably going to be overload but since this blog is mostly for my records I don't want to leave anything out. So if you're brave, or just bored, read on!
After a few fun filled, but rainy days in Sydney we were looking forward to some warmer weather. We jumped on yet another plane and flew to Cairns. It is up towards the very top on the North East side of Australia. We were only there long enough to get our rental car and then started our drive to Port Douglas. We had been told that it's a beautaiful drive along the coast but unfortunately it got dark right as we were leaving so we weren't able to enjoy it that night. It was extremely curvy though which made it plenty interesting! We got to Port Douglas at about 7 or so and got settled in the house and then grabbed a quick bite to eat at a fabulous restraunt called Zinc which we went to a couple more times while we were there because it was so good. In the morning we woke up and got aquatinted with the town. It wasn't
long before we had all fallen in love. It's a tiny little town and has the best feel to it. It's the closest town to the barrier reef. The weather while we were there was around 80 degrees the whole time and was perfect!

This is the house that we stayed in. It was called the Garrick house. We had an apartment style place with two bedrooms, a kitchen, and a big living space. My mom and Kelly had their own apartment. It was perfect! We also had a big balcony at the front of the house that we spent a lot of time on first thing in the morning, listening to the cool birds.

A picture of my cute boys enjoying the view from our balcony.

This picture is taken from our balcony. We had a swimming pool in the front yard as well but only went their once. The beach is much more exciting :)

This is a picture of the beach just one street over from our house. It's called 4 mile beach, and it's amazing. It's absolutely beautiful, but the sand is compact enough to comfortably walk or jog on, but also great for playing in and making sand castles. We could have spends days on end here!

Aidan and Baylee sharing a smoothie the first morning we were there.

This was Mason's very first experience with the beach. I think he loved it more than anyone. He loved the water! He also loved the sand though, and just kept picking up handfuls of it and taking it to the water and throwing it and then doing that over and over. It was so fun to watch the kids experience and fall in love with the beach.

As soon as the kids started making sand castles Mason would run over and knock them over, and anytime he saw a hole in the sand he would climb into it and start filling it up. So stinking cute!

The only time he cried on the beach was when we had to leave and this time. He had face planted. Such a sad, but cute face! lol

I didn't think it was possible but Mason has become even more attached to Nanny on this trip. He went from a mommy's boy to a Nanny's boy. If she is around he insists that she hold him. He just can't get enough of her. Luck for him, the feeling is mutual :)

We found a super cute Gelato shop and it became an almost nightly treat to stop in for a scoop. So yummy!

The second day we were there we went on a snorkeling trip! We took this big boat over to an Island called the Lower Isles, which is part of the Great Barrier Reef.

Miss sassy pants was pouting about something on the boat ride over.

The ride out was a littel over an hour. Mason definitely worked on getting his "sea legs." He wanted to walk aroudn constantly, but the boat was pretty bouncy so it was pretty entertaining to watch him try to get around.

This is the beautiful island. It has this cute little Lighthouse on it. By the time we left the tide had dropped so much that a lot of the reef surrounding it was exposed and it was connected to anouther island by a sand bar.

Aidan did really good snorkeling for his first time! He loved it as long as he was near the shore. When is started getting a little deeper and murkier he got nervous which is understandable, but there was still a lot of fish and coral to see close to shore.

Mason was a good spectator. He was just happy to be back on the beach and in the sand.

Baylee actually did pretty good too, but eventually hitched a ride on dad's back and was able to see things from there.

Barry and I went out with Kelly for a little bit while my mom watched the kids and we were able to see a bunch of turtles. It was so fun! Such a cool expretience, and we all had a great time!

The next day we traveled back towards Cairns. This time we were able to enjoy the shoreline drive and it was awesome. We also saw quite a few fields of wallabies. We went to an aboriginal village call Tjapukai (Jap a ky). We watched some performances, and got to learn how to throw boomerangs and spears. Aidan says this was one of his favorite things we did.

When we got there someone painted all of the kids faces.

Then we watched them do some dances and songs to didgeridoo music.

Aidan and Baylee even got to get up on the stage and dance with them. So cute!

This is Baylee throwing the boomerang.

And Aidan throwing the spear.

Then the kids each got to paint their own boomerangs to bring home with them. They loved it!

It was so fun and so fascinating to learn about some of the aboriginal's history.

A couple hours later we went took a sky rail over the top of the rainforest. It was about a forty five minute ride total and was AMAZING!! So beautiful!

These pictures don't even do it justice but it is huge! It is the oldest rainforest in the world. That river you see in the background is the Barron river.

We got dropped off at a little town in the middle of the village called Kuranda. We had lunch there and walked around all the little shops.

Cute little Mugger waiting for his lunch.

He found a fountain and entertained himself for quite a while.

My little Crocodile Dundee!

We got off the tram at a lookout spot and got to walk through the rainforest. It was so beautiful We had a great day.

The next morning my mom and I went for a long walk on the beach and got to watch the sunrise.

Afterwards, we all decided to spend our last day in Port Douglas doing our favorite thing......playing on the beach!

We had to stop and get gelato one more time before leaving. We were all really sad to leave Port Douglas. Luckily we still had two weeks of vacation left and we had so much more fun ahead of us in Melbourne and more!

I am actually typing this on June 19th and we head to the airport to go home first thing in the morning. We are soooo sad to be leaving, especially since Barry won't be joining us for a couple weeks, but we have had the most amazing time! We have made so many memories and experienced things that we will remember forever! I have so much more to post about but will have to do it once we get home. See you soon Mates!

Australian Adventure, Part One!

2011-06-10T16:47:00.041-06:00

Hello!! We are still in Australia! We have been here for about two weeks now. We have already seen and done so much that I don't want to forget any of it so I thought I better blog about it in chunks, plus I know some of our family would like to see what we have been up to. I have taken over 700 pictures so far so it was hard to narrow them down. Fair warning.....this is a long post! SO if you are still interested, grab a snack and get comfortable :)

We flew out of Salt Lake on May 25th and had a layover in LA. We finally flew out of LA at 11:40 p.m. so by the time we got all situated we were all pooped and still had a 16 hour flight ahead of us. We were on a Quantas Air Bus and flew Premium Economy so it was pretty sweet! We had plenty room, lots to eat, and our own personal entertainment systems. The two older kids did amazing!! I think they actually enjoyed it! They slept for a good chunk of it and then just enjoyed movies the rest of the time. Such good little travelers. Mason was a slightly different story, lol. He fell asleep right as we got on the plane but that didn't last long. He screamed for a good little while and then woudl sleep for little spurts here and there which made it hard for me to get much sleep. Overall, he did fine though and it wasn't nearly as traumatic as I thought it was going to be.

By the time we got to Melbourne and got through customs and gathered our crazy amounts of luggage we were all more than excited to see Barry. We have missed him soo bad! My mom and Kelly stayed at a hotel near the airport and the kids and I went back with Barry to his apartment.

This is a cool tunnel you drive through on the freeway in Melbourne. It's such a fun city with lot's of colorful buildings and random art and statues everywhere you look. We were all exhausted so we took a short nap, but Barry woke us up before too long so that we would have an easier time adjusting to the time difference. (They are 16 hours ahead of us!)

Barry has a great apartment right outside the city at a place called the Docklands. It's got fabulous views!We went on a tram ride around the city and ended up at a park not too far from the apartment and then walked home. I love this building.

There are little bike stations like this one all over where you can rent a bike for a couple hours. Hardly anyone drives in the city and it is easy to understand why. It's crazy!!! There are trams all over the place, tons of traffic, people that cross the street wherever and whenever they want, and what little parking they do have is ridiculously expensive. As in $2o an hour!!

This is an odd little sculpture of a cow stuck up in a tree. Our apartment building is the second one from the left in the background.

These little sculptures are on the dock right outside our apartment. The kids have a good time running around and climbing on them.

We just stayed one night in Melbourne and then left the next morning for Sydney. Getting adjusted to the time difference took a while. I still don't think we are all all the way there, lol. The first week though, we had to fight to stay awake until 7 p.m. and we were all wide awake and ready to go by 4 a.m. YUCK!

This is the view from our hotel in Sydney when we first arrived. We stayed on Darling Harbor and it was awesome!

The next morning we walked across the bridge and went to the most amazing aquarium. Unfortunately most of the pictures I took are less than impressive because of the flash or lighting but it was something I don't think we will forget. It was HUGE! There were a couple sections with tunnels that you would walk through and it felt like you were right inside with the sharks or Manta Rays, and Dugongs. IT really was incredible and the kids loved it!

This is inside a shark cage in the aquarium. After spending the morning there Mason and my mom and Kelly were exhausted and wanted to go back to the hotel. Barry and I took the kids on a ferry ride over to Sydney Harbor where the Sydney Harbor bridge and the opera house are. Then we spent a couple hours walking around little shops and markets and just enjoying all that there is to see.

This is a little set up right on the harbor where they play the didgeridoo, and do aboriginal dances.

This guy had very little teeth but one of the biggest smiles I have ever seen. He feeds the birds and actually does a little choreography :)

It had been a long day for Baylee and she ended up crashing on Barry's shoulders, lol.

We stopped and got some delicious corn on the cob for a snack. It was pretty entertaining watching Aidan try to eat it with so few front teeth :)

I got teary a couple times as I was looking out at the harbor and the opera bouse. I seriously can't believe how lucky I am to be here and experiencing such an amazing place with my family! The Opera House and Bridge are a couple of those places that I have seen pictures of my whole life and I never would have dreamed that I would get to experience them with my kids. We are so lucky.

Barry and I as we head under the Sydney Harbor bridge.

My mom and Kelly in front of the Opera house.

I can truely say that this building is even more impressive in real life than it is in pictures and movies.

Me and my lucky family in front of the bridge the next morning on our way to Taronga zoo. This zoo is the most incredible zoo I have ever seen. You can see the opera house and bridge in the background and it is nestled up in a hill and not visible from the outside. The kangaroos walk free in their habitat and were so fun to see.

I already loved Koalas but I fell even more in love with them after this visit. We got to get right up close to them and take pictures with them. They are sooooo cute! They sleep 20 hours out of the day and just curl up in little balls and rest their little noses on the trees.

Unfortunately about an hour after we got their it turned into a downpour. We tried to stick it out as long as we could but it was just too wet. We did get to see the elephants put on a little show, but you can see in this picture just how hard it was raining. After the zoo we went back to the hotel and had some dinner and called it a night. We left the next morning (Tues) for Port Douglas. I will post about that next time, but it was AMAZING! Definitely a favorite for everyone.

These are a couple pics of Darling Harbor at night. I am pretty sure that is required that all the buildings turn on EVERY light at nigbht because there are never this many lights on until late evening. It sure is pretty though!

Well if you made it this far congratulations! I will try to do the next recap soon.

Barry heads to Australia

2011-04-25T12:49:00.016-06:00

On April 17th Barry left for Australia. He will be there for 3 months! He has only been there for a week and we are already missing him like crazy. He is there for work and is heading up an office move. The good news is.......because he is there for so long his company will fly us over there to be with him. We are leaving the end of May and will be there for a month. I was really nervous about flying for 20 hours, alone, with 3 kids so my mom and her husband Kelly are going to join us! We plan to spend a week vacationing in the Northern part of Australia, up towards the Barrier Reef because that will be the warmer part of the country considering that we will be there during their winter. Then we are going to head back down to Melbourne where Barry's apartment will be and spend the rest of the time there. We are going to try to fit in a few weekend trips to Syndey and a few other places. It is such an amazing opportunity and we are very excited! Aidan has already been busy googling Australia and researching all that he can. He is also practicing his accent (which is more like a spanish accent) and learning all the Australian words that he can, such as G'day Mate, rubbish, and blokes. lol We have been able to skype with him a few times but the time difference makes it a bit of a challenge. He is 14 hours ahead of us! That means he is almost always a day ahead of us which is weird. He got to celebrate Easter before us this year. He usually has to stay up until about 11, which makes it 7 a.m. for us so that we can talk. Sometimes we are able to catch him before he goes into work, if we call in the afternoon. It's really weird trying to coordinate schedules with that much time in between us but we make it work.

Barry travels quite a bit but has never been gone this long. Dropping him off at the airport was hard on all of us. There were a lot of hugs, and tears, but we are glad we have such a fun reunion to look forward too!
Baylee and Aidan were very helpful with the luggage!

Mason wasn't sure what was going on and was cheesy as ever!

We love and miss you sweetie and can't wait to see you!

My baby turns 1!

2011-01-19T15:46:00.023-07:00

Mason turned 1 on January 13th. I really can't believe it. I know people always say this, and I have said it many times before, but they really do grow up sooooo fast. I think the fact that he is my last one, makes it even harder. I am just shocked that it has already been a year since this little guy came into our lives. What can be said about sweet little Mason, AKA..... Mug, Mugger, Muggins, Mugger-Moo. Mason is the happiest and most smiley baby I have ever known. He is so excitable and animated. He loves everyone, but REALLY loves his mom. He is my first momma's boy and I have to admit I love every minute of it. He puts up with a lot from his big sister but is starting to put her in her place when she takes one of his toys or picks him up when he's not interested. It's really amazing the younger ones survive the torment of the older siblings. He LOVES going to Little Gym and is the star of the show. He is super busy and has mastered going up and down the stairs. He wasn't walking by his first birthday like my other two but is now. He started when he was about 13 months. He still walks like a drunk man and is constantly falling on his butt. He talks like crazy but doesn't say many words, although he thinks he does. He will just jabber and jabber and then look at you like he is waiting for you to answer him. He loves to eat. He is more picky then my other two and will let you know if he doesn't like something by just spitting it out or throwing it on the floor. Some of his favorite things are banannas, sweet potatoes, oranges, peas, yogurt, and bread. He absolutely loves playing in the water and taking baths. He will splash like crazy and laugh hysterically. At his one year appointment he only weighed 19 lbs. He is in the 75 % for height, 25% for weight, and 90 % for his head. He has always had a big old noggin, lol. I am not sure what we would do without this little guy in our lives. He adds so much happiness to our family and we just can't get enough of him.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-19T16:25:00.002-07:00

Well......as much as I would like to send a Christmas card to everyone I know, it's just not going to happen. But I don't want to go without wishing each of you a Merry Christmas. I also can't miss an opportunity to show off how stinking cute my kids are. I will post with the other pics from this shoot soon. There are some pretty cute ones :)

I hope you all have a fantastic christmas with your family! Can't wait to read about how the holidays were for all of you. Merry Christmas!!!!

Sleep Eating

2010-11-18T18:35:00.004-07:00

This is one of my favorite videos ever! We had spent the day at Snowbird and the kids had done everything from mechanical bull riding, to alpine sliding, and rock climbing. It was obviously enough to completely wear Baylee out. She wanted a snack as we were leaving so I gave her a string cheese. I shot this video shortly after we left. As tired as she was she was determined to eat that string cheese. I can't tell you how many times I have watched this video. I laugh my butt off everytime I watch it. Enjoy!

Major Catch Up!

2010-11-17T20:32:00.030-07:00

OKAY......Seriously???? Has it really been 6 months since I posted? Obviously life with three kids has kept me a little busier than I thought it would. Truth be told, my lack of blogging is probably just a result of lack of desire. I planned on getting caught up one post at a time. That got overwhelming and is the main reason I haven't done anything SOOO...I decided to bite the bullet and just do one incredibly long catch up post and call it good. Hopefully I will be able to keep current from here on out. (Fingers crossed!) So grab a snack and get comfortable. Here it goes. Starting with the current and moving backwards here is what is going my little fam.

Barry, is BUSY! Working a ton. In fact he is out of town right now and has been for most of the last two weeks. Boo! He works so hard to provide for our family and we appreciate it so much, but it really kinda sucks.

As for me, I am just trying to keep up with the kids and all the activities. Between karate, little gym, dance, tumbling, school, and preschool, I spend A LOT of time running kids around. I have also been working hard at losing weight and getting healthy. SO far I have lost almost 60 lbs. YAY!

As for the stars of the show, Aidan is the smartest little 1st grader ever. He is reading at a 3rd grade level and can't get enough of it. I just went to parent teacher conferences and was so proud of him. He is such a sweet boy.

Baylee is in preschool and LOVES it! She would love to go every day if she could. She is a spunky little girl and keeps me on my toes. She thinks Mason is her own doll and can't be left alone with him, lol.

Mason is the cutest, happiest, best baby in the world. He is crawling everywhere. LOVES to go up stairs and sneak off, and stands up and walks along anything he can. He is my first mamma's boy and I have to admit I love it.

My pictures are all taken on my i-phone and aren't the best quality but they'll do the job. Enjoy.

Mason and I at a wedding last weekend. Sure do love this boy!
The shirt says it all! Mason is 10 months and I plan on nursing him until he is one. I'm just not sure how I am going to wean him at that point. The kid LOVES to nurse.

Aidan (swamp monster) and Baylee (minnie mouse) for HAlloween. Unfortunately Mason hated being a dragon and I don't have any decent pictures of him :(
I mean seriously, could you not just eat him? Too cute!
Aidan gave himself his first haircut a couple weeks ago and wasn't very impressed with his skills. I think it's safe to say he won't try that again.

Sleeping beauty crashes hard. I love the cheetos scattered on the floor and the orange on her fingers and mouth. True Baylee style!

Aidan got his first set of golf clubs and was able to go with Barry a couple time this summer. He loves it!

My mom and Kelly got married! I will have to do a post on that later with some more pics. It was a great weekend and we are so happy with our expanded family!

Baylee started dance and tumbling and loves it. She is so cute to watch.

Baylee on her first day of preschool.
Baylee got her ears peirced when she was about 5 months old. She did great with them until a year or so ago and one of them closed up so we got it re-peirced. She didn't love that experience but a sucker fixes everything right?

My little stud on his first day of school. How did this happen? I can't possibly have a 1st grader!

I'm telling you.....I am in trouble with this girl. Too cute for her own good :)

Aidan got his purple belt in karate! He is doing soooo good. We are so proud of him and the progress he is making in karate.

This is Aidan and Tony Martinez. For any of you that know anything about karate, he is an impressive man. He is the owner of the studio and is a well known name in the karate world. He is also a seventh degree black belt!

He looks so little in all his sparring gear :)

I turned 30!! gasp! My family threw me an 80's themed surprise party and it was a blast. In case you were wondering I didn't show up to the party in this attire. This was the outfit that was waiting for me when I got there.

We spent A LOT of time at the pool this summer. Aidan and Baylee both did swimming lessons again and Aidan is an amazing swimmer. It was Baylee's first time but she did great.

Aidan has lost his four front teeth now. Don't worry his two front teeth are already at the top of his Christmas list this year.

You could find Baylee doing this on a daily basis with her otter pops this summer. I have a freezer out in the garage and it didn't take the neighbor kids long to figure that out. I went through an insane amount of otter pops this summer.

Baylee turned three and took a couple of her friends with her to get pedicures and manicures. They thought it was the best thing ever! Barry is a little worried that I started her out so early.

Mason's first time eating rice cereal. Always a fun experience!

Awww.......I already miss him being so little. I wish they didn't grow up so fast :(

This picture just makes me smile.

Well.....if you made it this far, I am proud. I promise I am going to be a better blogger. Promise!

Jr. Jazz

2010-05-06T09:18:00.008-06:00

Aidan participated in Jr. Jazz for the first time this year and had a great time. He loved that he got to be on the court for most of the game, unlike Baseball which was a true test of his patience and attention span. He didn't have a clue what was going on but sure had fun! lol It was so funny to watch all the kids pretty much stay all huddled up and run from one end of the court to the other. Aidan would periodically stop and ask the ref or the coach where he should go. He had a blast and we had a great time watching him! I didn't do a very good job with the pictures but you get the idea.

If there happened to be a dull moment in the game, Baylee was very good at providing entertainment as usual.

Grandma and Grandpa made it to almost every game. Such loyal fans :)

Aidan is in the blue #34 jersey.

And the best part of all........the trophy. Good job buddy!

Stitches x 2

2010-05-05T22:46:00.007-06:00

Back in march my baby girl had to get her first stitches. We were at my cousin Lindsay's house and Baylee was standing on a kitchen chair and reaching for something on the table. Next thing I knew she fell and hit her chin on the table and her upper teeth went THROUGH her chin right below her lip. Luckily my mom and Barry were there because I panicked. It was bleeding so bad and she was so scared. We loaded up and went to the hospital where she had to get 6 stitches. The shot was obviously the worse part and I am not sure who cried harder between her and I. She was so tought though through the stiitches and the hospital staff all fell in love with her. She is so stinking sweet. The stitches were only in for 5 days and the scar is barely visible now.
A picture a snapped while we were getting checked in. The hold isn't really visible in this pic but her her sad little look kills me.

The end result.

A couple days later. Already looking so good.

Well, fast forward to May and we are now at the Instacare, only this time it's for Aidan. I was sitting on the porch the other day talking on the phone with my mom. Aidan had gone in the backyard to get his boomerang. He was reaching under our trailer to grab it. The dog grabbed the other end and pulled him smack into the corner of the trailer. I didn't see it but all the sudded heard screaming. I went running into the backyard to find Aidan covered in blood and panicked. AGH! I hung up on my mom and ran him to the front yard. We washed it out with the hose and I quickly realized it was going to need stitches. Luckily my mom lives close and was able to come sit with the two little kids because we were at the Instacare for TWO hours. The stitches themselves took 10 minutes. I was dreading having to got through this ordeal again but luckily had a much different experience. They put some "silly gel" numbing stuff on him right when we got there. Because we had to wait so long he was super numb by the time we got seen. They didn't even have to give him a shot so the stiching was done with no problem.

Here he is waiting with the silly gel on his head. Such a trooper, still smiling.

Not a very good picture but this is the gash.

And the beautiful stitching job. They were in for 7 days and he thought it was pretty cool that he got to keep them afterwards. Come to think of it.......I have no idea where those have ended up. Hmmm.

Hopefully this is the last of the stitches in our household for a while.

Catch up

2010-05-05T22:19:00.008-06:00

I am alive I just took an unintentional break from the blogging world, atleast from my own blog. I have stayed caught up with all of yours thanks to my middle of the night nursing sessions, lol. Somehow though between a new baby, soccer, karate, Jr. Jazz, Holidays, and well.......life, I have gotten really far behind on mine. It wasn't until I uploaded nearly 400 pictures that I realized just how behind I was. Needless to say I will be playing catch up for the next little while. I really want to be able to turn this blog into a book some day do I am setting a goal to get caught up in the next week and a half. Although I will have two more birthdays and Mother's day to post about at that time. lol Never ending. Anyway, if you want to see a few of the shenannigans my little family has been up to lately stay tuned.
So......a couple months ago we decided that since the "puppy" (a 75 lb. black lab) was spending more time outside due to the arrival of the baby that we should get him a dog house. Barry thought it would be a fun project to work on with Aidan. Nevermind that it cost more and took up a ton of time! Oh well it's the thought right? So Barry, his dad and Aidan got to work on a dog house. Barry's dad was an engineer so a plain old dog house just wasn't going to cut it. It had to be framed, insulated, slanted, carpeted, shingled, painted and sealed. It turned out pretty nice and the inside walls lasted longer than I thought they would. I think it actually took Ty a week to eat the carpet and insulation rather than the one day I imagined it would take. Let me briefly backtrack and tell you that our "puppy" is a bit of a nightmare. He has chewed the siding off of our our house, dug out every cable including our phone line in our back yard, destroyed our $2000 playset, and chewed a 4 foot hole THROUGH our new camping trailer just to name a few. I feel like the worst pet owner in the world because I just don't know how much longer we can keep him. We jsut don't have the time to give him the attention he obviously needs. It's a dilemma. Anyway, he has a dog house, for now.
The first two sides getting framed.

Getting the walls up.

They had to take a break for some brief karate chopping of the wood action.

Even Baylee got in on the action. By the way, those are Aidan's old pajamas that she found and refuses to part with. They are her favorite. I will put her in others and she will be back in these when she gets up in the morning, little stinker.

Milestones

2010-03-24T21:57:00.002-06:00

It's so bittersweet for me when my kids reach these milestones. I am a little late on this posting but wanted to get it up anyway. About a month ago Aidan lost his first tooth. It had been loose for a while and he had been so excited! He was constantly wiggling it and showing everyone. Finally one night when he had me feel it I told him it was loose enough that we could pull it out if he wanted. I was shocked when he said he wanted me to pull it out. After a few tries it came right out. He was really excited to put his tooth under his pillow. The toothfairy didn't disappoint. She left him 5 dollars!!! He had so much fun spending it at the dollar store the next day. Like I said it has been about a month now and his permanent tooth is poking through, and the tooth right next to it is loose. He has been wiggling it like crazy. I warned him that the toothfairy may not leave as much next time and that maybe she just left him that much becasue it was his first one. We'll see I guess ;)

A Lesson in Discipline

2010-02-22T14:44:00.007-07:00

I can hardly believe that in just a little over a year Aidan has recieved his Orange Belt in karate and he is only 5 years old. This makes it his 4th belt and I couldn't be more proud. He is the youngest in his class and does amazingly well. I can't believe the amount of information that his young little brain can hold! This obviously wasn't the first belt test that he has done but this was the one that made me the most proud. Part of what they learn in karate is characteristics to strive for such as discipline, and perserverance. He was tested in both of the areas more than we ever would have imagined that day. He had been struggling with his asthma for a couple days but it got really bad the morning of his test. We took him into the Dr. that morning and he had to get a double nebulizer treatment, a dose of steroids, and put back on two different inhalers, and Cingulair. It was a lot of medications for his little body. The steroids make him really volatile and emotional. We let him decide whether or not he felt ready to take the test. He said he wanted to so off we went. When we got to the studio he started getting a little nervous. When he got inside he got a little overwhelmed. There was probably 30 people testing in his group and he was the youngest by a long shot. They test according to level not age group so there was a lot of loud adults testing with him. He has done it before but I think the fact that he felt so crappy and was on so many meds was too much for him to handle. His instructor Mr. Hatch talked to him and told me he was doing good so I went to the studio and waited. When he came in to test I could tell it wasn't going to be easy for him. He was crying and coughing really hard. I didn't get many pictures because I was trying not to look at him too much cause everytime we made eye contact he would cry harder. He did NOT want to finish but he did. He showed me and everyone else what it means to finish something even when you really don't want to and he definitly knows now when it means to perservere. I sure do love this little boy and he makes me proud every day! He teaches me lessons even when I don't expect it.

This is him coming into the room. It wasn't hard to tell how he was feeling when I first saw him.

Trying his hardest to smile. His eyes are saying exactly how he really feels though.

This is part of the belt tradition. After they test they wipe their brow with their old belt and then with their new belt.

Putting on his new orange belt!

This is his amazing instructor Mr. Hatch. He has so much respect for him and I don't think he would have made it through the test this day without him their and supporting him!

Way to go buddy! Love you!

So lucky!

2010-01-31T10:14:00.026-07:00

I am so lucky! Not only do I have the cutest kids in the world, I have an amazing photographer for a cousin who is willing to pack up a SUV full of equipment, and her two year old, and drive from Grantsville to do a photo shoot for me! We did this when Mason was 10 days old. The big kids weren't in the mood and weren't exactly cooperative as you will see from the fake smiles they are sporting, but I think we got some cute shots none the less. Mason was more alert than he had been before so he presented a little bit of a challenge as well but he was a trooper. We got some super cute pictures and I had so much fun with my cuz! Thanks Emily......you really are the best.
By the way......if any of you are looking for a great photographer let me know and I will get you her info. You can also check out her blog for some more of the pics she has taken. Her blog is in my blog list under Ron and Emily.

This is when we decided Mason was done. :)

One week already!

2010-01-20T16:42:00.015-07:00

I really can't believe Mason is already one week old. I think that knowing that this is my last baby is making me want time to stqand still. I really want him to stay little forever. He is such a good baby. We are all just loving him to pieces. We cam home last Saturday and I was so ready! It was so great to get him home and finally introduce him to his anxious big brother and sister. They were sooooo excited to meet him. They are both great helpers and so interested in what he is doing all the time. Baylee absolutely loves to get me diapers, wipes, binkies, and help me drink water while I am nursing. Aidan loves to hold him and read to him. Barry is still on vacation so he has been able to be home with us and has been such a big help. The recovery from this c-section has been harder than the other two for some reason so I have really relied on him and he has been amazing! I really don't want him to go back to work. I also have to say thank you to my parents, and Barry's parents, along with my friends and neighbors who have brought meals and helped with the kids and so much more. I really am lucky to have such awesome support!
We are just loving this guy to pieces and my heart could not be more happy!

Getting ready to leave the hospital.

The signs that Aidan and Baylee made to welcome us home. So cute!

First time holding her baby brother.

He is a natural. Such a cute big brother!

My three cute kiddos! Love them!

Aidan is learning to read and it is so cute! He wanted to read to Mason. I love moments like this!

Daddy of the year!

2010-01-20T16:31:00.007-07:00

There is something undeniably special about a daddy and his little girl. I absolutely love to watch Barry with his little princess. I have been telling him for a long time that he is in big trouble when she gets a little older because he CANNOT tell her no and she knows it. Well yesterday Baylee asked him to paint her nails. Barry was happy to do it. The surprise twist came when she insisted that she paint his afterwards. Sure enough, he let her! lol A couple of toes on each foot anyway. They are so cute together and nothing makes my heart happier than watching them do things like this together.
On a side note......Barry had to go to the back Dr. today and was sent to get an MRI. That means that he had to get in a gown twice and both times the doctors found it quite funny that he had bright pink toenails. lol

He's Here!

2010-01-15T00:41:00.019-07:00

Mason Berg (Middle name yet to be decided)

Born January 13, 2010

8:08 a.m.

7 lbs. 12 oz.

21 inches long

We are so happy to welcome little Mason to the world. He is absolutely perfect and couldn't be cuter. He looks just like his big brother Aidan. Our day started by getting to the hospital at 6:00 a.m. I was prepped and ready to go for our scheduled time of 7:30. Things started right on time and moved very quickly. He was born

One last Prego picture!

First pouty face, seconds after he was born.

Grandpa Steve getting to meet his grandson

Proud Nanny

When he's not eating he loves his binky!

I love this picture. You can see his cute little dimple on his right cheek and he looks so content holding daddy's finger.

Again........sucking his finger, lol

Auntie Haley

Grandpa Kelly

Grandma Berg (I believe this makes grandchild number 19 for Barry's parents?)

Grandpa Dale

One proud Momma!

Almost there!

2010-01-12T22:07:00.002-07:00

Well....I survived! I made it through my third (and last, lol) pregnancy. At times I wasn't sure if I would. As I sit here making sure I have everything done that I need to before tomorrow morning I can't help but be filled with emotions. These kicks and somersaults are the last I will feel. Anyone who has ever been pregnant knows there is no feeling quite like it! I don't ever want to forget the way it feels. I am sooooo excited to hold this little guy. I can't wait to find out if he looks like Aidan, Baylee, or completely different. I am excited beyond words, and scared half to death! My life is going to get a whole lot crazier and my heart a whole lot fuller. Here we go!!!! I will post pics as soon as possible.

My little Fireman!

2010-01-04T20:28:00.016-07:00

We had such a great Sunday afernoon. My friend Reggan is married to a firefighter. For years now we have talked about going to see him at the firestation and letting Aidan see the firetruck. For some reason it has just never gotten planned until last Sunday. I am so glad we finally got it scheduled because it was the experience of a lifetime for Aidan! He was so excited he even wore his fireman costume that he had at home. J.J was so awesome to Aidan and so were the other firemen we met, even the captain. We started by getting a tour of the firetruck and getting to explore all the different compartments and stuff. Aidan was able to test out one of the fire extinguishers, and help pull out hoses and everything. While we were seeing all of this the other firefighters were making Aidans favorite lunch for all of us, grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup. We took a break and went and ate lunch with all of them. It was so cool cause they talked to him about getting good grades in school, and safety, and he listened so intently to them. Then we went back downstairs, Aidan took the firepole of course, and got ready to go for a ride in the firetruck. The captain let Aidan have his seat in the truck (the front) and he got to wear the earphones and microhphone so they could talk. Barry and Baylee got to go as well. They went for a little ride and Aidan thought it was awesome when they turned the lights and siren on and everyone pulled over for them. He was smiling from ear to ear when they got back to the station. Then he got to spray the actual firehose and try on J.J.'s uniform. They gave the kids firemen helmets and badges and all sorts of fun things. What a great day we had. Aidan has said for a long time that he wants to be a fireman so I know this was a day he will remember for a long time. Thanks J.J. and Reggan!

Learning that the hoses are a lot heavier than they look!

Trying out one of the extinguishers. He really wishes he had one of these at home for water fights.

Baylee trying out the back seat in the truck.

So funny! This uniform is so heavy and huge on him he could barely stand up. He actually has the pants on as well but they are gathered around his ankles because the suspenders were too longs.

He got to try on the air mask.

Lunch time.

About to go for a ride.

He loved this part of course. The rest of us were a little nervous and had a few close calls but managed to stay dry.

Baylee and Reggan.

Aidan, J.J., and Baylee.

The other firefighters we met too. I wish I remembered their names. They were all so nice and made Aidan feel super special!

Christmas

2010-01-03T20:10:00.019-07:00

Well......Christmas came and went too fast once again. I think this year may have been one of the best for our family. We were super busy but it was well worth it. We celebrated old traditions and started new ones. Our family grew and we got to celebrate our first Christmas together. The kids had a great time and made it so special!
We spent Christmas Eve at my mom and Kelly's house. They made a delicious prime rib dinner and the whole family was there..... my mom, Kelly, James (Kelly's son), Kat (Kelly's daughter), and Chad ( Kat's fiance.) We read the Polar Express and opened the traditional jammies. Christmas morning I held off as long as I could but ended up waking everyone up at 5:30. I absolutely love to see the excitement on my kids faces when they see what Santa brought them! We all got spoiled again as usual. Some of Aidan's favorite gifts were....an electronic drum pad, a guitar, hot wheels, a dinasaur cave, and a really cool ant farm! Baylee got lot's of dolls, barbies, lip gloss, and bracelets. I got an I-Phone which I LOVE, a gift certifcate from from Barry for a three day vacation (one day of which has to be spent at the spa), gift cards, and perfume. Barry got clothes, and a 32" T.V. We had such a great time, but it was weird to think it was our last Christmas with just the four of us.

This is at my mom's house after the kids opened their Christmas jammies.

The kids waiting to see what Santa brought after I woke them up super early. lol

Looks like Santa found us!

Baylee with her doll that she has since named Sparkle.

Aidan absolutely LOVES hotwheels.

Is she the cutest or what? She loves this purse and carries around her lip gloss and brush with her everywhere we go. I think we may be in trouble! lol

Doll #5 I believe. Barry doesn't quite understand why girls need so many dollies but he is getting there. lol

All the boys got these lovely Air cannons from my mom and Kelly. All I can say is UGH! lol

This is the denim quilt that I made for my mom and surprised her with. She has wanted me to make her one for years and did not expect it this year. It was so fun and I think it turned out pretty good.

Chad giving Aidan some pointers on his new guitar that Aunt Haley got him.

James and Kat finding a new way to wear the jacket that she got. lol

Playing with one of her new barbies.

Safety first folks, safety first. lol

Trying out the new quilt that Nanny got her. Both the kids got new bedding thanks to Nanny and Kelly!

The kids were obviously thrilled that we were able to make a trip to visit Scott on Christmas too. They sure do love their Uncle!

Hope all of you had a Merry Christmas and a great New Year as well!

I caved.....

2009-11-19T21:13:00.009-07:00

I can't believe I am posting this. I have had a lot of people ask me to post some prego pics. Unfortunately I don't take many of them so I don't have many to choose from, which means I don't really get to choose a cute flattering one. Ugh Anyway.....Barry took this picture last weekend before I left for my cousins baby shower. My adorable cousin Summer is having triplets. So crazy, and so exciting! Anyway...here is the belly, the backfat, and the big behind at about 30 weeks pregnant!

Me and my cousin Summer. Is she cute or what?

Remember it is her that is having the triplets. I know this picture is deceiving. What makes it even worse is that she is only due ONE week after me. Um....seriously???? Lol Let's just say I ate a big piece of humble pie this day. Remember.....I have big babies. hahahaha Sheesh

Me and my sister Haley.

My mom, my cousin Allie, and my aunt Betty.

Summer, Me, Haley, my mom, Aunt Betty, and cousin Allie. I wish my cousin Sky and Aunt Marsha had been in this picture.

It was a diaper themed shower which was awesome. Can you imagine the diapers they are going to go through. Let me help you with some math.....

On average they will got through 24-30 diapers a day. Which is over 200 diapers a week. About $50 per week in diapers. Oh my! I think they got enough diapers and wipes to last them a while though and I am soooo excited for them!

Ready or not!

2009-11-16T09:50:00.002-07:00

I just looked at my blog and was really caught off guard by the little baby counter on the side. As of today I have 69 days left. And that is if I go to my due date which is really unlikely because I have to schedule another c-section. Anyway......holy crap! Physically, this has been the hardest pregnancy by far. With my back issues, my hernia, and being anemic I have been struggling through most of the days. But mentally, I am feeling really unprepared for another one. I think the fact that the last part of my pregnancy falls during the busiest holiday season is stressing me out a bit. I know I don't want to save all my Christmas shopping and everything until the last minute like usual or I will miserable. But I have so much to do that Christmas shopping just doesn't seem to be making the priority list yet. I have so many projects around the house that still need to get done. Barry is traveling again all this week which doesn't help my stress level. I am so grateful that he has such a great job and that I am able to stay home with my kids but the traveling part of his job is not my favorite. It is so hard to juggle the daily stuff with the kids (school, little gym, karate, basketball, Dr. appts, etc.) plus try to get the house organized, plus try to get prepared for the holidays by myself. I feel so overwhelmed sometimes it just doesn't seem possible.
What I do know is that ready or not this baby is coming. I will get done what I can and try not to stress about the rest. I am learning to prioritize a little better and to not get all worked up about things not getting done when I want them to. Things will work out. I just have to stay positive. One thing I can say for sure is that I am soooo lucky to have the family that I have. I don't know how I would do it without them! Thanks to those of you that are always there when I need you. I am not use to having to depend on others so much but know that I wouldn't be able to make it without you!
Ah....I feel a little better. Apparently I needed to vent this morning. lol

Snowbird and Halloween

2009-11-06T20:04:00.039-07:00

I am going to start this post with a disclaimer.....This could be the longest post in history. Seriously. Anyway, we love Halloween at our house and it is a good thing because we celebrated it over and over and over this year. We had a busy month but loved every minute of it. We started off by going to Thriller which has become a yearly event for my mom, sisters, cousins, and aunt. The boys came this year though which was a lot of fun. Then my mom had a halloween party complete with bobbing for apples, decorating caramel apples, and carving pumkins. Aidan had a halloween party at his karate studio which turned out great. Then we left for our annual week at Snowbird with Barry's family. For 25 years or so Barry's parents have had a week long time share at the Iron Blosam at Snowbird. A few of his brothers have purchased timeshares the same week so between the whole family I believe we have 7 rooms. I have been able to go for 5 years now and it is something we look forward to every year. His family grows faster than the average family so each year there are more and more Bergs up there and it only makes it more fun. There is usually about 30-40 people a day up there. We usually stay all week and the kids could not be more happy about it! There are more than plenty cousins to play with and I love catching up with the family. Thanks again Dale and Della for the amazing memories and traditions. It is something our family will never forget! We came home Halloween day and went trick-or-treating with our neighbors and the kids friends. They had a blast. Baylee lasted for a while but really liked handing out candy at our house. Aidan lasted a lot longer this year and had a huge bucket of candy to show for it. Like I said this is a ridiculously long post so be prepared for picture overload. :)

Posing in her cute little Halloween outfit!

Trying on the skirt that I made (with a ton of help from my friend Lori) for Baylee for Halloween.

The Thriller crew...minus my aunt Melissa and cousin Allie. We had so much fun!

My cute little witch crashed before my moms Halloween party even started.

My beautiful mom! Baylee HATED those teeth and wouldn't go anywhere near my mom when she had them in. She actually made her throw them in the garbage. lol

Stirring the "witches brew!"

Aidan bobbing for apples.

Aidan on the hunt for the "perfect" pumkin at a cute little pumkin patch.

Baylee is always such a big helper!

It's only getting harder and harder to get a picture with everyone looking at the camera at the same time.

Aidan, there cousin Kyson, and Baylee laying in bed our first night at Snowbird. SO cute!

On the playground at Snowbird. Good thing we took advanage of the nice weather the first day we were there because it snowed the rest of the week.

Playing Bingo is always one of the family's favorite activities while we are there.

Aidan with Brandon, Cayden, Alicia, and Anne playing Bingo.

Me holding my adorable chunky monkey nephew Jacob. He is actually my eigth "great-nephew" on Barry's side. I have 9 and will soon have 11. Is that crazy or what?

Baylee and her cousins Caleb, and Cayden wearing the snowbird shirts they decorated.

Aidan and his friend Blake with the pumkin they carved for the contest.

Baylee and daddy with their pumkin.

This is proof of how much fun Aidan had during the day. I found him sleeping like this. lol Silly boy!

Baylee and Callie waiting to see their big brothers in the school Halloween parade. Unfortunately the boys walked by too fast and I couldn't get a good picture of them.

This year we had some fun craft projects for the kids to do. They made cottonball ghosts, spiders with their handprints, and decorated their own masks.

Aidan and his mask that he decorated.

Baylee loved this project. She sat still longer than I have ever seen before to do this mask.

Trick or treating at the Iron Blosam.

Trick or treating at Aunt Melissa's house on Halloween.

Callie and Baylee Halloween night. These cute little girls have so much fun together

I could not get Aidan to look at me for anything. For some reason the witch behind him was getting all the attention. This is him with his BFF Riley though.

Seriously.....have you ever seen anything so cute?

The Ninja and all his loot!

Too busy eating the candy to pose with it. True Baylee style!

I caught Baylee getting her own cup for a drink. Yikes!

We did it!!!!!

2009-10-21T09:00:00.003-06:00

I have always said that potty training is one of my biggest challenges as a mom. Aidan was about 3 and 1/2 before he was finally potty trained and I thought we would never get there. I had always been told that girls are much easier and usually do it much earlier. I was counting on this! Sure enough before Baylee was even 2 she was showing interest in potty training. I took the cues as best as I could and we started geting her used to the potty. Unfortunately around this time we got a puppy, I found out I was pregnant, and potty training just seemed like too much for me to deal with. I didn't stick with it and we would work on for a day here and there but never made a whole lot of progress. It was so frustrating for both of us. For those of you that know Baylee well you know that she talks like a five year old. I knew when she would come up to me and say "Mom.....I need you to change my bum" or "Mom....where are the wipes? I am poopy" that it was time she learned to use the toilet. lol
Anyway..... I am happy to announce that my baby girl is potty trained! Once I finally got serious about it last week it really didn't take long. I am still having a hard time dealing with my baby girl conquering this milestone. Why is it that with our first kids we are so anxious for them to learn how to crawl, walk, and talk? I am noticing that I am holding on to the little milestones more and more as they come. I can only imagine what I will be like with this next little guy. Anyway...congrats my little Baylee Boo! I am also giving myself a big fat pat on the back for conquering my potty training nightmare once again!

This is Baylee during our first "Potty training boot camp" back in April. We basically sat in the kitchen and drank juice and sat on the potty and played with dolls and read books all day. lol

And here is my big potty trained two year old! When she goes potty and I tell her I am proud she gets the cutest look on her face and says "thank you mommy!" I sure do love this girl!

I love this time of year!

2009-10-12T22:06:00.014-06:00

I reall do love Fall! Unfortunately I don't think ours is going to be nearly long enough once again this year. Here in Utah we seem to just get a little tiny taste of Spring and Fall which are both of my favorite seasons. But we have been trying to enjoy it while we can. The other day I got a surprise phone call from an old friend Dani. She was going to Gardner Village to look at the witches. Luckily we live just a few blocks from there and happened to be free. Aidan was in school so he wasn't able to go with us but we had a great time. Baylee LOVED seeing all the witches. It was so fun to be able to spend some time with Dani and her girls. I had never met her youngest and she had never met Baylee. Thanks for the fun day Dani!
Baylee and Isabel. I love the look on Baylee's face....she was so excited to see the witches!

Paisley, Baylee, Isabel

Notice how Baylee has her hands in her pockets and is trying to pose just like the witch. Silly girl!

Some of the displays really are amazing. They do a great job! It's ridiculously crowded there but still worth going.

This picture cracks my up becasue Baylee is holding onto a big old bag of Taffy that she wouldn't put down the rest of the day. Her mouth is also completely full of taffy! Paisley was just really interested in the cat chasing a mouse underneath the witches skirt.

They also have a little petting zoo and pony rides. The girls all thought this was a blast. Baylee's pony was named Pal and she kept saying "Giddy-up Pal!" So cute!

Holy crap I have the cutest kids!

2009-09-29T16:36:00.025-06:00

So....I happen to be lucky enough to have a cousin who not only loves to take pictures but does an amazing job. We went to Wheeler Farm the beginning of this month to get some pics of my kids. I knew she would do a great job but she totally exceeded my expectations. I just keep looking through them and can't stop smiling. Man I love these two kids! It probably doesn't hurt that they are absolutely beautiful, but I can totally see their personalities when I look at these pics and I love it. These are my favorite pictures I have ever had of my kids. I tried to narrow it down but had a really hard time choosing so there is quite a few. Thanks again Emily! You really are the best, and I owe ya big time!

Our Trip To Seattle

2009-09-23T14:57:00.029-06:00

We just got back from a four day trip to Seattle. Actually we were in Sequim but not very many people know where that is ( a ferry ride and couple hour drive) so it's just easier to say Seattle. Anyway, we had an absolutely great vacation and owe a big fat thank you to my mom and Kelly! The reason for the trip is that my mom and her fiance have a new sailboat that they dock in Sequim. Throughout the summer they have been making trips out there every couple weeks and really wanted us to come see the boat and where they have been spending so much time. We were able to turn it into a big family vacation and my brother and sister went along with my family. We had a busy couple days but enjoyed every minute of it! There are a ton of pics but I had a hard time choosing. The bumer is that my camera died two days into the trip and I didn't get any pics the last two days....ugh!

The kids on the airplane on the way out. It was Baylee's first time and she did great. Aidan has flown a couple times and loves it!

This in when we first got there right befor we got on the ferry. Lucky this fog didn't last too long. The kids had a great time on the ferry though.

This is their amazing sailboat. It's like the ferrari of sailboats. lol We took a little joy cruise the first day we got there, but all of the boys (excpet for Aidan thank goodness) got to go on a super fast, wild ride in a crazy wind storm that hit. They had a blast but I know I would have had a heart attack!

Daddy and Baylee on the dock, waiting to get on the boat.

I love this picture. Baylee sure does love her Nanny.

Aidan got a chance to steer the boat with the remote control. Is that crazy or what? I had no idea they could be steered by remotes now.

Haley chillin on the boat.

We stayed in the most amazing beach house with my brother and sister. The only problem was that Baylee loved playing with everyone so much that she had a really hard getting to sleep and staying asleep. This is how she finally fell asleep late one night.

A picture of a crab that I saw crawling up one of the poles on the dock. It was so much fun to see all the little sea creatures that we never get to see, like starfish, sunfish, jellyfish, seals, and tons of clams and crabs.

A picture of the beach during low tide. We liked to go out and look at all the shells and clams and crabs in the morning when we could actually walk along the beach. During high tidethe water goes clear up into the trees.

Aidan holding one of the baby crabs he found.

Not the best picture of Baylee but she is still super cute.

We bought Aidan a little pirate book and it came with a bandana, eye patch and compass that he wore forever. lol

These are the steps that we would have to climb up and down in order to get from our house to the beach.

A really cool lighthouse. We wanted to walk out to it but it's five miles one way. Bummer!

The whole gang at a little restraunt called "Three Crabs" that we ate lunch at. Yummy!

This is Scott's friend Steve that came with us. He and Baylee became good buddies. She is such a little flirt already!

We went for a really pretty walk down to a cool beach area. The walk was so fun and pretty!

My mom, Kelly and the kids at the beach that we walked down to. The kids had so much fun playing in the sand, picking up sticks, and running from the waves.

The kids in their hididng spot.

Aidan loved walking into the ocean and waiting for the waves and then screaming like a little girl and running from them. After a while he fell and got drenched from head to toe. The water is freezing but he didn't care!

Even soaking wet he kept going and going!

So.....we went to Olympic animal park. It is one of those places where all the animals are loose and you can feed them bread. They come get it from inside your car if they have too. It was hilarious. Aidan and Baylee were in this car with my mom and Kelly. I was in the second one with Barry, Scott, Haley, and Steve. Scott was insane and thought it was hilarious to get as many animals to stick their heads in our car as possible. I was a little freaked out, especially by the bison. We were told to NOT stop because the animals would ram your car. Seriously? We fed Zebras, bears, buffalo, llamas, Elk, and peacocks just to name a few. Unfortunately this is when my camera died but I got a few pics that will show you just how close some of them got. Even though I thought I was goign to have a heart attack I don't think I have ever laughed so hard in my life.

Thanks again mom and Kelly for such an amazing trip. We had so much fun and will always remember this trip! can't wait til we can go back!

It's a BOY!!!!!

2009-09-09T11:06:00.002-06:00

How did this happen?

2009-09-03T17:38:00.009-06:00

My baby boy........a kindergartner? I really don't know how this day snuck up on me so fast. I have been mentally preparing myself all summer but it still blows me away that my little guy is old enough to go to school. i am so excited for him becasue I know he will love it, and he will do great. I am excited for myself because I know I will get a little more quiet time and will enjoy the break especially when the baby gets here. Yet, I am going to miss having my buuddy around all the time. When Aidan woke up this morning and came and cuddled with me in bed I got teary and told him I was sad that he is growing up and will be goign to school every day. What is so special about this kid? He was bummed for the rest of the mornign and when I asked him what was going on he started crying and said "I am sorry that your sad mom. I'm sorry that you are going to miss me. I will miss you too." Seriously? He wasn't worried about himself, he wasn't nervous. He was just sad for me. I had to explain to him that even though I was a little sad that I was even more excited for him because I knew how much he was going to love it and how many new friends he would make. He was totally fine after that. What a kid! Anway...for some reason he was having a hard time with his smiles today. The are pretty cheesy, but he still looked super cute for his first day of school! Love you buddy!

Baylee giving her big grother a good luck hug! I know she is going to miss him like crazy!

Showing off his new GI Joe backpack that he has been SOOOOO excited to use!

Aidan and his best buddy Riley are in different classes but go at the same time which will be perfect!

Playing on the playgroung while we waited for him to go into class!

Lining up with his new classmates!

Relaxing on the couch and watching a show after a successful day at school! can you tell Baylee skipped her nap today? lol

Timpanogas Cave

2009-09-03T16:57:00.014-06:00

Last Sunday we decided to hike the Timapanogas Cave Trail. Neither Barry or I had been since we were young and thought the kids would probably enjoy it. It was a lot of fun! I have to admit Baylee got a lot of help from daddy but Aidan walked the whole way without any whining! He did great! I was quite proud of myself for doing it as well. My physical therapist was not! I probably won't be making that trip again for a while, lol. It is almost 2 miles one way and when I say it is ALL up hill on the way to the caves it's not an exaggeration! It took a little while but we made it! The caves were even more cool then I remembered. The way down was really steep and I was a little bit nervous because of the steep sides but we made it. Baylee fell asleep on daddy's shoulders about half the way down. I am not sure how she slept up there but she did! For those of you who have never done it I highly recommend it!

Not sure where Baylee picked this up from it but she had been doing it in a lot of her pictures. lol

Again with the funny face. Good thing she is still super cute!

On the way up! Still full of energy at this point! lol

Taking a break! The one on top anyway!

I thought this was super cute of them walking through the tunnel holding hands. Man I love these guys!

We made it to the top and had a minute to eat a PB & J before we went through the caves.

Sleeping beauty! I couldn't believe she slept like this. We wore her right out!

Yellowstone

2009-08-25T22:40:00.019-06:00

A couple weeks ago we were able to take our first family trip to Yellowstone. It was our first trip in our new trailer and was a pretty long drive but we made it without any major mis-haps and had an amazing time! We actually stayed at Hebgen Lake which is about 13 miles outside of West Yellowstone. It was a great place to stay because there was so much to do. The kids were able to fish, boat, paddle boat, canoe, catch crawdads, swim, ride bikes, and play on the beach. It was beautiful and the weather was perfect. I am hoping to make it a yearly trip. Yellowstone was a lot of fun as well but made for a long day. We spent one day driving around the park and the kids lost interests about halfway through. Luckily we were able to see Old Faithful, a bunch of hot pots, and a herd of bison before the kids got bored and started begging to go back to Hebgen.

Aidan thought it was sooo cool to drive to drive the boat.

My beautiful cheeser!

Unfortunately we didn't cach anything but he had a good time trying and looked really cute doing it. lol

Daddy and his princess hanging out on the boat while Aidan fished.

Baylee even got a chance to drive the boat.

Aidan catching his first crawdad and not to sure what to think about it. He wasn't nervous for long. lol

Baylee got to hold a crawdad too.

These bison statues are everywhere and the kids loved pointing them out. By the way......they posed themselves like this I promise. They crack me up.

In front of some of the hot pots. It was fun to walk on the trails and see tons of them!

Baylee was super excited to Old Faithful! Isn't she stinkin cute? lol

An up close view of the bison. They are a little freaky, especially this close.

This bison walked right down the road in front of us and blocked it forever.

Aidan and daddy on the canoe at Hebgen.

Baylee hanging out on the beach with my while we waited for the boys on the canoe.

We went into town for icecream one night at a cute little place calle "Buffalo Bill's" I think.

The trip wore Baylee out. This was her on the way home.

Zuchinni Bread

2009-08-18T16:00:00.003-06:00

This time of year I am usually taking full advantage of all the zucchini that is growing rampant in other people's garden. ( I have yet to develp my own green thumb) Thankfully there isn't usually a shortage of zucchini. My family absolutely love's zucchini bread so I bake and freeze as many loaves as possible. I think I have made 10 so far this year, and will be making about that much more today and tomorrow. I have found the perfect recipe over the years and this year more than ever I have gotten asked for it a whole bunch so I thought I would share. Here it is, hope you enjoy. Please let me know how it turns out for you!

Zuchinni Bread
3 C. Flour
1 Tbs. Cinnamon
1 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder
3 eggs, beaten
1 C. Sugar
1 C. Brown Sugar
1 C. Veg. Oil
1 Tbs. vanilla
2 C. peeled and grated zucchini
1/2 C. chopped nuts (optional)

Mix flour, cinamon, salt, baking soda and baking powder together. Set aside. Beat eggs, sugar, brown sugar, vegetable oil, and vanila. Slowly mis in dry ingredients. Blend in grated zucchini and nuts. Pour into 2 greased and lightly floured 8" x 4" loaf tins. bake at 325 degrees for 60 to 70 minutes.

Side note.......I don't use nuts but I LOVE to put chocolate chips in half of my loafs (my hubby doesn't care for it or I would make them all that way.) I just add them at the end with the zucchini. YUMMY!

Get Comfortable!

2009-08-14T08:40:00.043-06:00

Okay.........so here's what happens when you go three months without blogging. I don't have a real good excuse for going so long. Just busy, procrastinating, and uninterested, lol. So here it goes....the world's longest and most disorganized post ever. This is basically just an overview of what we have been up to this summer. So far we have been busy with weddings, new babies, Aidan's 5th birthday, Baylee's 2nd birthday, karate, swimming lessons, play dates, a new puppy, parades, the 4th of July, bike rides, camping, Yellowstone, and lot's more. Like I said the pictures are all backwards and mixed up but you get the idea.
Also, I have been getting asked about the pregnany.....I am 16 weeks plus a little. We find out on Sept. 9th if it's a boy or a girl. I am doing much better. I had a lot of back issues but have gotten it under control with Physical Therapy and watching my activity.
So get comfortable and get ready for picture overload.

Baylee and my dad at our annual Anderson 24th of July Breakfast up Millcreek canyon.

Have to get a picture of the kids on this rock every year cause I remember always climbing on it when I went to the breakfast as a little girl.

Aidan, Baylee, and friend Cohen feeding the ducks at Wheeler farm.

Going for a wagon ride at Wheeler farm.

Miss Baylee and Miss Kobree laying dress ups. Hopefully Baylee will get better at applying lipgloss.

The princesses playing house with Baylee's kitchen.

One of the many reasons I love having a girl. There is just nothing like watching them play dress ups.

Isn't she just the cutest princess ever?

Aidan doing some karate moves with his sparkler.

Baylee and Nanny (my mom). The fireworks were a little too loud for her.

The most delicious fourth of July cake ever. I was very proud of this cake and it was a huge hit.

Aidan took part in his first parade with his karate school. He did a lot more riding on the trailer than walking but it was a really long parade and he was pooped. he had fun though.

Baylee watching for Aidan during the parade.

It didn't take her too long to figure the parade thing out. She loved chasing all the candy and all the music and pretty floats.

Baylee and daddy at the parade.

Getting ready to walk in the parade.

This is baby Damien. He is my 9th great nephew. He is the son of Barry's niece Annie. Such a cutie.

Baylee chillin in the pool.

Apparently Baylee thought she would cook some malt-o-meal in my Scentsy. Ah....what a mess that was.

Showing me her breakfast creation.

Trying on her birthday high heels for the first time.

Aidan and Baylee with their new second cousin Jacob. So he is the son of their cousin Alicia. (My 8th great nephew) Adorable......I think Baylee and Aidan are going to be big helpers iwth the baby.

Aidan and Baylee with Jacob again. Adorable!

Baylee with her first flowers. Barry brought these home for her on her birthday. She was so excited. She smelled them every single day and would just smile and say "My Fyowas"

Baylee with her flowers that were as big as she is. By the way.....I have no idea what was up with her hair that day.

Baylee after the bike ride. Don't worry that's water in her lap. She didn't pee, lol

getting ready to go for a bike ride.

Aidan and Barry on the tagalong. That thing is sooo much fun!

Baylee with her birthday cake.

Aidan danced the night away at my cousins wedding. So cute!

Baylee was partied out by the end of the night at my cousins wedding.

Me and my beautiful cousin Lindsay at her wedding. Such an amazing night

Cute little dance partners.

Baylee and the beautiful bride.

Ice cream night

Aidan surprised me with a whole sheet of tattoos on his stomach. Silly boy. lol

Aidan after placing 2nd place at his karate challenge.

Aidan and his awesome teacher Mr. Hatch after the karate challenge.

Can you say slacker?

2009-07-08T12:43:00.002-06:00

Oh man....it has been a while. I have so many pictures and things I need to post about. Mainly, Aidan's cute little preschool graduation and Baylee's 2nd birthday. I will get pics of them up soon. Barry has changed the operating system on my computer and it has made it more difficult for me to upload pics from my camera for some reason. I will get it figured out soon though hopefully. Things have calmed down for us a little bit this summer. We are spending a lot of time outside playing, swimming, and at the zoo. I LOVE summer. I can't believe that Aidan will be starting preschool this fall. It seriously seems like he is way too little. He is thrilled though. My sweet little Baylee turned two on June 22nd. When I took her to her check up with the pediatrician he told me she could passs for a three year old because of how well she talks. It is so weird to hear such a little thing talk like she does but it's so dang cute! She has the cutest personality and seriously captures the spotlight everywhere she goes. I just love that little girl!
My other big news for those of you who may not know yet is that I am pregnant again! I am almost three months and due January 26th. I will have to have another c-section though and my Dr. usually likes to do that about a week early to avoid and labor issues so my due date will probably more like January 19-20th. I can't believe I will be a mother of three. Aidan is thrilled and Baylee is clueless. lol
Well that is a brief overview of what has been going on with me lately. I am sure I am leaving a bunch of stuff out but will post soon with pics!

I must be out of my mind!

2009-06-09T13:24:00.010-06:00

Well......we have a new member of the family. We have a 11 week old black lab puppy named Ty. We have had him for four weeks now. Having a puppy is craziness which is why it has taken me four weeks to post about it. He is absolutely adorable and the kids love him, so do Barry and I, most of the time. Housebreaking isn't my favorite thing, nor is waking up to him barking in his kennel, or the fact that he chews on EVERYTHING. I don't honestly know what happened that made me decide this was the right time to get a dog. Barry and Aidan have been bugging me for a while to get a dog and I haven't really had a hard time saying no. But then Aidan's birthday was coming up and I thought it would be a lot of fun to surprise him with a puppy. I couldn't find one that I was happy with in time but kept looking afterwards. Aidan had no idea I was even considering it. I was thinking that a meduim sized dog would be ideal because I knew the dog would be inside for the most part. I grew up with a black lab though and they have always been my favorite. Well, I found one that I fell in love with him right away. I picked him up that same day while Aidan was at school and surprised him when he got home. He was so excited. The kids have been great with him. It has definitly been an adjustment and a whole lot of work but he has been a fun addition to our family. Plus, he is super cute.

I found him sleeping in Baylee's doll crib. I only let him get away with it because I knew he wouldn't fit too long. lol

And this is what Baylee did to him while he was sleeping. She plastered smiley face stickers all over him. Poor dog...he already puts up with so much from the kids.

How can you not love this face!!! He is so dang cute!

Aidan turns five!

2009-05-30T21:45:00.016-06:00

I still can't believe that my baby boy is five. His birthday was May 16th but I am just now getting around to this post. I love birthday's and have so much fun with my kids on theirs. I think Aidan had a great day. I started a new tradition this year with Aidan. I made him breakfast in bed, and it was a hit. He felt pretty cool eating breakfast in our bed while the rest of us ate down stairs.

THen he got to open presents from us. He got a book for his Tag reader, some clothes, and the wolverine claws he has been asking for.

These are the Wolverine gloves that he had been asking for, for weeks. They are bigger than I thought they would be, but he LOVES them. He plays with them every single day.

Later that day it was time for his birthday party. We had an animal themed party and it was a blast. We had a presentor from "Wild Things Science" come and bring a bunch of animals for them to meet and pet. They brought 9 animals and they were all a huge hit.
These are the spider cupcakes that I made for the party. They were a lot more time consuming then I had anticipated but worth it.

The kids sitting in a circle to meet the animals. They were all so good and stayed entertained the whole time.

Here is one of the snakes they brought. I believe it's name is Digger.

This is the biggest snake she brought. They thought this one was really cool!

This is the iguana, Don Juan. He was a lot bigger than I thought he would be.

Aidan and his "girlfriend" Eri.

This hedgehog was probably my favorite. He was so cute. She put him on the floor while she did the rest of her presentation and after a little while he came out of his ball and walked around. He has the cutest little face.

Petting the hedgehog. Kind of like petting a pin cushion. lol

Aidan got to feed the chinchila some raisens. I had never seen one of these. They have the softest fur I have ever felt though. Super cute.

She let them wear a "snake bracelet."

Aidan and his buddies eating cake and icecream. There was twenty kids there and it was actually really easy. They were all so good and had such a good time with the animals. I think overall Aidan had a great day!
Happy Birthday buddy! I don't know what we would do without you. You are the most loving, funniest, and happiest boy in the world. I love you more than you will ever know.

My Baylee Boo

2009-05-14T13:04:00.011-06:00

So last weekend we threw a bridal shower for my cousin Lindsey. It was so much fun, but I forgot my camera. Luckily my fabulous cousin Emily brought hers. The next day I got an e-mail from her with some pictures she had taken of Baylee. I didn't even realize she had her outside taking pictures but I am so glad she did. I thought they turned out adorable. Especially just for a spur of the moment thing. I just had to post them because I thought they were so cute. Thanks Em! You're the best!

Okay seriously..........why is this so cute? I thought this was hilarious!

This is Emily's son Aidan on the left, my Baylee in the middle, and my cousin Aaron's daughter Sydnee. I think it's so funny! From left to right they start out super happy, slighly concerned, and then just plain old ticked. lol Cute little things!
Thanks again Em!!!!!!

Easter Fun!

2009-04-25T22:08:00.016-06:00

I know it's a little late but I wanted to post some Easter pictures. We had a great time at all the different parties and Easter Egg hunts. We colored eggs at our house just like we do every year. THe kids had a blast. Aidan was a lot more serious abotu it this year, and Baylee just like dropping the eggs in the dye and watching it splash. tHen we had the annual Easter egg hunt at Barry's parents house. It's always really fun, and I am always amazed by the effort that they put in. There are now 18 grandkids, plus about five or so of them are married and there are 7 great grandkids all under the age of two. Barry's parents put fifteen eggs out per kid and then one big egg for everyone with ten dollars in it. They are numbered so everyone has to find a specific number. The kids hide the adults eggs and each year they get more and more creative with were they hide them. My mom had us over for dinner and an egg hunt there as well. The kids got way more candy then they needed and a whole bunch more money. They had a great time. Thanks eveyone for making it such a fun day! For some reason at this age they refuse to just smile when you take their picture.

Yes.....I made them take of their clothes to color the eggs. lol

Baylee getting ready to find the eggs at Grandma Bergs.

Of course she had to have a snack. It's hard work to look for all those eggs.

Aidan being a good big brother and helping Baylee find her eggs.

The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly.......Very Ugly!

2009-04-01T20:40:00.015-06:00

So today was a particularly rough day. Between meltdowns I took a little time to think about my days as a stay at home mom. What I came to realize is that my days can pretty much be summarized by the saying "The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly!" There are many many bad and ugly things that happen each day. From lotion being squirted throughout the house, wall murals painted with deodorant, and food that gets eaten everywhere BUT the kitchen table. It's exhausting! And yet, I wouldn't give up my opportunity to be a stay at home mom for the world. Even on the days when the bad things seriously outnumber the good things (like today). It's amazing how hearing my kids laugh when I tickle them, or Baylee singing the Barney song to me, or the surprise hugs and kisses, or watching them play so good together, somehow make me forget all the bad. These pictures are what a typical day for me looks like. The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.........and for those of you with a weak stomach, you might want to skip the ugly section cause it IS UGLY!!!!

The Good...............

There's really nothing sweeter than a sleeping princess!

I love when they entertain themselves. They got themselves dressed in these outfits and played forever together!

THE BAD........................

This is a sample of Baylee's fingernail polish artwork on Aidan's bedroom rug. Of course she couldn't get into the clear polish!

Notice there is two colors? Yes the red is from yesterday. I thought I had thrown all of the fingernail polish away after that incident but Baylee managed to find another bottle. I was so mad yesterday that I didn't get any pictures. She was covered from head to toe. I was wishing I had gotten pictures but didn't expect to get a repeat performance and a chance to get those pictures. ugh

I tried about 10 different remedies from online to get it out of the carpet. Not with a whole lot of success unfortunately.

The artist herself pouting in the "naughty spot!" I didn't dare put her in her actual time out seat downstairs because that would mean leaving her unattended for a whole 2 minutes which I wasn't willing to do!

And the UGLY..........Brace yourself!

Yes folks, you guessed it. That's poop! This is how I found Baylee the other morning. She slept in earlier than usual (or so I thought) so I went to check on her. She had been so quiet that I wasn't prepared for what I found. Unfortunately this isn't the first time she had pulled this stunt. If I am not quick enough she decided to take care of business on her own. The smell alone was enough to make me sick but the fact that she had it all over her face really freaked me out. I hope I am not the only one who's kids do this. It's bizarre, disgusting, and I have had enough of it. Potty training boot camp starts tomorrow. Stay tuned!

Baylee's First Haircut!

2009-04-01T13:55:00.018-06:00

Well I finally did it. I took Baylee to get a much needed haircut. She was beginning to look a little scroungy, and couldn't really see out from under her bangs. I don't know why it was so sad for me, but it was. I have taken Aidan to a place called "Cookie Cutters" since he first started getting his haircut. He loves it because they get to watch movies, or play nintendo games. They sit in cool little chairs, and the stylists are really great with kids. Baylee did great and looks adorable. It wasn't nearly as sad as I thought it would be. Aidan got his haircut also, and looks super cute. Here are some before and after pictures of the kids.

Here is Aidan playing a game while he waits for his turn to get his hair cut. You can tell his hair was getting pretty shaggy.

My handsome little boy. He loves his "Fohawk!"

Baylee playing on the slide before her haircut. She loved it!

Sitting in the "ehpayne" before her haircut.

This is a shot of how long her hair was in the back. Her hair grew in so funny. The top and back are super long, but the sides are really short. She was totally rockin the mullet. When you pulled the back straight it was really long.

The sucker was a good idea for a minute. It kept her entertained, but I was getting really grossed out by the hair on it so it got tossed.

And the after. I wasn't going to cut all her hair as short as the sides because it would have been ridiculously short, but it is much better. At least the back is all one length now.

My cute little peanut!

Isn't she adorable? I sure love this girl! I can't believe how fast she is growing up!

Both the kids love this little toilet. Now....if only Baylee would ralize she can't pee standing up like Aidan does. I am pretty sure she thinks it come from her belly button. Silly girl.

They are so easily entertained. They think this "secret door" into the bathroom is amazing!

Here they are with their balloons, suckers, and cookie cutters that they get after each haircut.

My Little Tender Heart

2009-03-30T09:29:00.003-06:00

Anyone that really knows Aidan, knows that he is extremely sensitive. I am constantly surprised by his ability to be so sympathetic and loving to other people when they are sad or hurt. But Friday night he surprised me again.
We were having our regular family movie night and I decided that we were going to watch Annie. I grew up watching this show and it has always been one of my favorites. Aidan loved it as well, and was sitting on my lap watching it. Towards the end, when Annie leaves with her "parents" and her and Daddy Warbucks are singing that song about how "She was almost my baby.....maybe", you know what I am talking about right? Anyway, Aidan turns to me and is bawling. Full on tears and he is really upset, and says "That's a sad song Mom!" I was in shock. Barry and I looked at eachother for a minute because we were so surprised that he had been that affected. So I paused it and asked him what made him so sad and he just said "I don't know it just makes me feel sad. Daddy Warbucks really loves her huh?" I got teary too because I couldn't believe that a four year old had the capacity to understand what was really going on and to be so affected by it. I told him we better watch the end because it's a happy ending. He was very relieved when they ended up together.
I just had to write this down because it's one of those things I don't ever want to forget. I am so proud of Aidan and his ability to be so loving and thoughtful. He is the sweetest little boy and I know he is always going to be that way. I think it's a great character trait, and I love that he is my little Tender Heart!

Mexican Rivierra Cruise!

2009-03-24T13:35:00.016-06:00

Well.......back to reality for me after a week on a fabulous cruise. My mom, my sister Haley, and I went on a cruise to the Mexican Rivierra. I had never been on a cruise before so it was well beyond my expectations. It was also the first time I had been away from my kids for that long. My amazing husband took a week of vacation to stay home with them so that I could go. He took such great care of them, and the kids really enjoyed spending a whole week with their daddy! I am the luckiest girl in the world. We left last Saturday and spent three days cruising to Puerta Vallarta. Just spending time laying by the pool was a treat because I didn't have to worry about anyone but myself and could just lay their and do nothing, which is something I haven't done for a long time. The food was unbelievable and never ending. I had heard that the food was great but it was much better than i had expected. Let's just say my clothes weren't fitting the same towards the end of the week, ugh! The first stop we made was in Puerta Vallarta. My mom has a friend that has a vacation home there and invited us to come spend the day with him. His condo was amazing! I seroiusly felt like I was on Lifestyles of The Rich And Famous. Then the next day we were in Mazatlan, where we did the traditional shopping and beach day. We rode in a cool little buggy around town and got a reality check. The way people are living there is extremely humbling. We were hounded like crazy on the beach by vendors, but it is all part of the experience. On Thursday we wre in Cabo San Lucas, which was my favorite port. We went on a snorkeling excursion and had an amazing time! Our tour guides were a blast. It was my first time snorkeling and I loved it. Then on the way back we got a surprise treat and saw three whales playing for about 20 min. They literally gave us a show and it was incredible. We couldn't believe how long they stayed in one spot and entertained us. The last two days on the way back were hard. They were still a lot of fun, there is always plenty to do on the ship, but at that point I was defintely ready to get home to my family. I want to tell my mom thank you for such an amazing trip. I had an amazing time with her and my sister and will remember it forever! It was a much needed break, but also a good reminder of how lucky I am to be able to be a stay at home mom and spend so much time with my kids. I am so happy to be home, and appreciating all the little things a lot more.

Here Haley and I are on the flight to Long Beach to board the ship. In case any of you haven't flown into Long Beach before, let me just warn you that it is a tiny airport. The terminal is literally a double wide trailer.

Ready to go out the first night. I think we watched karaoke in one of the 7 clubs on the ship.

My sister Haley, me, and my mom enjoying the view from the ship.

This wasn't the best thing I ate but for some reason it's the only picture we took of the food. lol It was delicious though, and very pretty!

This was the big outdoor pool area. I think there was 7 pools total on the ship. Insane.

Haley and I messing around in one of the clubs one night.

This is the view from my mom's friend's condo. It's one of the biggest infinity pools in the world. It is literally a couple blocks long. It was huge and those circular things are lounge beds and I could have spent all day laying on them. Oh wait........I did. lol

This was a cute little restraunt we walked to on the beach in Puerta Vallarta. They had the best shrimp tacos, and guacomole I have ever had. I think I may have eaten my weight in guacomole on this trip. sheesh!

This was in Puerta Vallarta. Our cab driver took us to the mall so we could get a good shot of our cruise ship. I am still in shock over how huge the thing is.

My mom, Haley, and I at Senor Frogs in Mazatlan. It's a really fun little souvenir shop.

That white building on the cliff is an amazing mall in Mazatlan.

At one of the 7 restraunts in the ship about to have dinner.

This is on the tender boat that took us to the dock in Cabo San Lucas.

This is called "Los Arcos" I believe right next to Lover's Beach in Cabo. So pretty, and right next to this is a little area where we saw a whole bunch of Sea Lions. So cute!

My sister and I on the catamaran sporting some awesome snorkieling gear. We were listening intently to the safety instructions.

I AM

2009-03-09T22:40:00.002-06:00

I AM!
I got this from Danyette, it looked like fun so here you go.

I AM...so excited about my cruise. I leave in five days!
I WANT....to get a nice tan and get out of this snow!
I HAVE...everything I ever wanted and more.
I KEEP...clothes for ever. Even when they don't fit and are way out of style . Mostly I hate to go through them and get rid of things.
I WISH I COULD...hire someone to clean my house once a week.
I HATE...the smell of belly buttons and earing gunk. lol Nasty I know.
I FEAR...loosing someone I love.
I HEAR...Barry watching House.
I DON'T THINK...I will ever get caught up with laundry.
I REGRET...nothing, honestly.
I LOVE...spending time with my family.
I AM NOT...excited to see the snow when I wake up in the morning.
I DANCE...with Baylee to Barney on a regular basis.
I SING...along to every song I am listening to, whether I know it well or not. I can't help it.
I NEVER...get tired of listening to my kids laugh.
I RARELY...get tired of ice cream.
I CRY WHEN I WATCH...Extreme Home Makeover, oh okay pretty much anything, lol.
I AM NOT ALWAYS...in my p.j's, I promise. lol.
I HATE THAT...it's not spring yet.
I'M CONFUSED ABOUT...the state of our economy.
I NEED...to get a crap load of stuff done this week before I leave.
I SHOULD...quit blogging and start working on that crapload, lol.

Everyone who wants to should try it!! Write down the 1st thing that comes to your mind.

A Bunch of Randomness

2009-03-04T22:04:00.021-07:00

Well February has come and gone, and I am officially declaring myself a blogging slacker. I don't know what I have been so busy with but I couldn't even bring myself to upload the 168 pictures that have been sitting on my digital camera. After I finally did that tonight I realized I would have to do about 15 different posts to cover all the different things we had done. So.....I am just going to post a whole BUNCH of pictures from the last month or so. Get ready for an onslaught of pictures. lol Anyway, we have been having a great time. The kids are doing awesome. Aidan is staying busy with karate and preschool, will be starting baseball in about a month, and was just officially enrolled in kindergarten which is killing me. Baylee continues to be my daily challenge, and my daily sunshine at the same time. She is absolutely hilarious. She has a new found love of Barney and insists on watching it daily much to my disliking. She sings and dances with all the songs though which makes it not only tolerable but adorable. Well enjoy the pictures, and I hope I don't overwhelm you.

This is Aidan and his "girlfriend" Eri at their Preschool Valentine party.I had no idea that little crushes developed so early. It's been a little scary, but adorable at the same time.

Aidan was such a sweet brother and let Baylee come into the party and even shared his cupcake with her.

These are the cupcakes that Aidan and I made for his class. The ones with ridiculous amounts of candy are the Aidan's works of art. lol

I just thought this was an adorable picture of Baylee and her pretty eyes. Not the best smile but cute all the same!

My brother Scott and Aidan. This was when we went to breakfast for Scott's birthday. Aidan loves his uncle Scott.

Barry and I at Scott's birthday breakfast. Not the greatest picture but we don't get them of us together very often because I am usually behind the camera.

Again....just a cute picture!

I think she was probably saying something sassy when I took this picture. Those are her sassy lips. lol

Bath time is a favorite for the kids. When they aren't fighting for the front of the bath or over who gets what toy it's actually really cute to watch them.

Baylee's first pony ride. She loved it although she kept getting the sound that a pony makes a little confused. She kept saying "moo" while she was going around in the circles. I think she had a good time though.

Aidan got to go on an elephant ride and was SOOO excited. We went to a mini circus with my friend Shea and her boys. The two in front of Aidan are hers, Jaxon and Jayden. They all thought it was amazing. I thought so too....I've never been on an elephant.

This was Baylee's method of decorating Valentine cookies at my moms house. She wasn't too interested in decorating, but she sure thought the frosting was awesome. She dipped that same cookie in about 30 times. Makes double dipping sound good huh?

Then she just gave up with the cookie and decided a spoon was a much easier way to chow the frosting. True Baylee form.

Baylee and Kobree (my friend Chansey's daughter) playing dress ups. They are so cute together which is good because Chansey and I decided while we were pregnant that they would be Bff's.

My little cheeser! I just realized that I posted a ton more pictures of Baylee. Not because I don't like pictures of Aidan.....just because he never seems to be around when I am taking pictures. He's a little to cool to pose for my pictures these days!

Busy, Busy, Busy....

2009-02-19T13:01:00.002-07:00

I can't believe I have gone so long without posting! Things have been a little crazy for some reason, and I just haven't taken the time. We have all been passing around a yucky cold so it has been a neverending battle. Hopefully, we will get rid of it for good soon! I am heading to Vegas for the weekend, tomorrow morning. I am going for my friend Genell's Bachellorette party. There is 15 of us going and it is going to be a blast. I can't wait! I have a ton of new pictures to upload but that will probably have to wait until I get back.
Aidan said somehting the other day that had us laughing so hard and I keep meaning to write it down so I don't forget. Barry and I were sitting in the family room when he got home for work. I was tired and not in the mood to do much for dinner. Aidan came down and asked me what I what going to cook. I said "Nothing, I don't want to cook tonight." A few minutes later I realized he was in the kitchen and getting into the fridge. I asked what he was doing and he said "Looking for cheese to make quesadillas because you don't want to cook so I will make us dinner." Meanwhile Baylee was climbing into the fridge with him and pulling things out, so I kept saying Aidan close the fridge. I asked him over and over, and he wasn't listening. Barry finally said, "Aidan if you don't listen to your mom you are going to have to go to your room!" Aidan came stomping over to me completely frustrated and said..."Mom! Can you help me with this conversation? It didn't start out very good!" It was all I could do not to laugh. I just thought it was so funny becasue he was clearly upset that he was gettting in trouble when he was just trying to be helpful and had such good intentions. He cracks me up all the time.

Lil' Dragon

2009-01-26T14:02:00.010-07:00

Well Aidan has been in karate for about six months now and finally got to test for his next belt. At his age they go from white to the Little Dragon belt which is a camo belt. His next belt will be the yellow. He absolutely loves karate and it has been so much fun watching him grow and improve. For those of you that have little boys, I strongly recommend karate. He has learned so much abot repect, dedication, motivation, and discipline. His teacher, Mr. Hatch, is amazing. He is so patient with them, yet firm so they take him seriously. Aidan has gotten so good over the last 6 months I am amazed. His belt testing was so awesome. Right before he took the test we were all sitting in the room waiting and I asked him if he was excited, and he said..."yeah, but I'm a little nervous." It was so cute, but I was worried about how he would do because there were so many people there watching for the next few classes after theirs. They did so good, and he was so excited to get his new belt! I am so proud of him for working so hard, and reaching this first goal. I just love this little boy! Sorry the pictures aren't the greatest. I was sitting in the back and the mirror didn't really help my flash.
This is Aidan and his best friend Riley and all their supporters. Rileys family lives two houses down from us and we have all gotten so close. They are such good buddies.

This is them doing their inward blocks. Aidan is the one in the middle.

Roundhouse kicks!

This is Aidan receiving his new belt.

Cute, cute, cute. They just look so little to me!

This is one of my favorite pictures. They "meditate" for a minute at the end of each session. Doesn't Aidan look so relaxed? lol

Aidan with his teacher, Mr. Hatch. I think he is only 19 but he is sooo amazing!

Best Little Dragon Buddies. Love you guys!

From Little Birds to Little Beasts

2009-01-19T15:27:00.012-07:00

Well...Baylee jsut completed her first semester of Little Gym. That's right she graduated. She is no longer a Little Bird. She is now a Little Beast (they couldn't have named the age group better). I have been taking my kids to the Little Gym since Aidan turned one. When he turned four he decided he wasn't interested anymore which worked out great because Baylee was ready to start so I only had to pay for one at a time. Baylee was a lttle star right away. She is so active and strong that she did great from the very beginning. She loves to hang on the bar. She could stay up there for ever. Her teacher uses her to demonstrate all the skills in her class. She gets so excited when I tell her we get to the Little Gym. She knows the sign for play, so she will start signing it and chanting " I pay, I pay!" She has been so much fun to watch in this class and I can't wait to see her in the next class. She will get to do some slightly more advanced skills, but most importantly she will have a blast again! Good job Baylee and congrats on graduating from your first semester of Little Gym! Love you!!!
This is one of the warm ups we do at the beginning of class with the parachute. They get to sit on it while we do ring around the rosy.

This is her doing her part to pull the parachute. She is such a good helper.

Our little gymnast on the balance beam. She has no fear! I have to warch her really close or she will climb up the steps and try to go across it on her own.

This is her doing a backroll on the foam roll. This is to get them prepared to learn backhandsprings.

Aidan usually has to watch from the lobby so he had a great time spotting and playing with her in the gym. This is him trying to help her do a flip around the bar. Yikes!

Playing on the uneven bars.

This is her hanging on the really high bar that most of the kids wont even try. She will hold onto this bar for about 30 seconds. I am always worried her little arms are gonna pop out of the sockets.

Aidan being a good big helper again. He is such a good big brother, and adores his baby sister.

Making a basket. She always gets really excited when she makes it and says "2 points!"

Baylee with her little acheivement certificate, ribbon, and bubbles that her teacher gave her.

Walking With Dinosaurs

2009-01-15T09:55:00.002-07:00

Last night my family went to the "Walking with Dinosaurs" show at the Energy Solutions Arena. Aidan is really into dinosaurs right now so for Christmas we got him tickets to the show. My mom, her friend Frieda and her grandson Justin were all able to come with us too. We weren't sure how Baylee was going to do, but she did great!
It was such an amazing show. Aidan absolutely loved it. It's basically and educational journey through all the different periods of time. The dinosaurs are all life size robots, that are so life like it is unreal. The Brachiosaurus and T-Rex were unbelievably HUGE! Aidan was filling me in on tid-bits about the dinosaurs all the way through the show. Like which ones were carnivores and herbivores, and what each of there defense systems are. For instance, the Brachiosaurus is an herbivore but it is so big and fat that none of the other dino's really mess with it. We were out in the hall before it started when he spotted some paleantologists. They had real fossils and bones so we went to talk to them. They were showing him the skill of an Allosaurus which is like a small T-Rex. Aidan "informed" the paleantologist that they had three claws but the T-Rex only had two. The paleantologist agreed. lol He knows so much about dinosaurs it kills me. He has a Leap Pad that he reads everynight before bed. One of the books is about dinosaurs which is where he gets the majority of his knowledge, because it's definitely not from me. He had a great time and Baylee did too. At one point she was hanging out with my mom in the little tunnel thing, and went to walk up to the fence to get a closer look. Right then the T-Rex roared SOOOO loud. I have never seen the girl move so fast. She was back in my moms arms in no time. It was hilarious. She was still smiling and laughing, but didn't want to do too much exploring after that. lol
We had a great time! Unfortunately I was one of the only people there who followed the "no cameras allowed" policy and missed out on taking any pictures, but it was a great night! We are also going to the Dinosaur Museum on Friday for his school field trip so it will be a Dinosaur themed week.

Feeling Lucky!

2009-01-13T21:21:00.002-07:00

I had to post about my day today. My wonderful husband got me a day at the spa for Christmas. He really knows the way to my heart. My sister Haley works at a ritzy spa at The Canyon's Resort and hooked me up with an awesomee an experience. I got there at about 12 and was able to relax in the steam room before slipping into a comfy robe and slippers. Then I took a book that I have been trying to read forever but never have the time. I sat in the womens lounge and drank cucumber water and read my book while I waited for my treatment to begin. For those of you with crazy kids and households you know what a treat something this little can be. Then I went into my treatment room and got a full body orange/ginger exfoliation scrub. Then I got a hot towel treatment on my head. While I waited for my bath to be drawn I was given a hot oil scalp treatment. Then I sat in a hot jacuzzi bath for TWENTY FIVE min! I don't remember the last 10 minute bath I have taken. It was heaven. When I got out I was given a 90 minute massage. I fell asleep a couple times even though I was fighting it. I wanted to enjoy every minute of it! When my treatment was over I took my time in the fancy shower (my hair was a nightmare after all the oil) and using all the yummy lotion and hair stuff. It was a fabulous day and just what I needed. Now if only I could do it once a week!
On the downside.....I have had a headache for 12 days straight! I have done everything I can think of to get rid of it and it's still there. I am going to the Dr. tomorrow so hopefully we can figure out what is going on.
We are also taking Aidan to the "Walking with Dinosaurs" show tomorrow night. He is so excited, and so am I. He LOVES dinosaurs! I can't wait to see his face when he sees the T-Rex!

We survived!

2009-01-09T07:56:00.013-07:00

Holy cow...I can't believe it's been so long since I posted, and if it weren't for my Dad's prodding it probably would have been a while longer before I got to it. Thanks for the motivation Dad. As soon as Christmas was over I pretty much spent 2 weeks recovering and doing nothing! It was great! Christmas was amazing this year. We had so many fun parties to go to, and spent so much time with family it was awesome. For Christmas Eve we did the same thing we always do. My mom, brother and sister all came over and we made homeade pizza. Then we read The Polar express and had root beer floats, and opened jammies. Aidan was so excited that he had a very hard time sleeping, which means we all did. We really probably only got about two hours in, but it was worth it! Christmas morning was amazing. The only problem was that I over did it again this year, as usual. Halfway through opening presents Aidan started complaining that he was tired and didn't want to open any more presents. He just wanted to play with what he had opened. Aidan got the Robot that he asked for, a Tag reading system, digital camera, a bunch of games, clothes, and a tool set to name a few. Baylee got her first doll house, dolls, a tea set, shopping cart and play food, clothes, jewlery and jewlery box and who know what else, lol. They had a lot of fun and made it a very special Christmas for us. I am still trying to recover. I still ahve new toys strung out all over the place, and just barely put my tree down two days ago. Hopefully I will get it all under control soon. Hope you all had a great holiday and happy New Year. Just a fair warning...their is a ton of pictures.
This is Aidan and the pizza he made. He looks forward to it every year. This year I was super fancy and made homeade dough and sauce. It made a big difference. They were great!

Baylee in her new Jammies on Christmas Eve. She is such a little cheeser!

Aidan in his new jammies on Christmas Eve.

This year Aidan insisted that we leave a "gorilla bar" aka granola bar, and carrots for Santa and the Reindeer. He wanted to give Santa something healthy so that he would have enough energy to get to all the houses. What a little sweetie!

This is what it looked like after Santa came. Holy crap their were a lot of presents.

At 5:30 on Christmas morning. Baylee not feeling to photogenic apparently. Just waiting to go see what Santa brought.

Aidan with his amazing robot. He absolutely loves this toy. It is pretty sweet!

Baylee trying to peek at the doll as Aidan helps her unwrap it.

Baylee wore this vest for a while. She is such a girl. She loves getting dressed and putting on shoes and jewlery. She walks around saying "tute?" (cute)

And this is after the Christmas tornado. I straightened the present about twenty times to get a picture but could never get back before it was destroyed again.

This is Baylee in the hat that my sister knitted for her. She loves it. Barry was throwing her in the air right before this picture and she is cracking up! I love it!

This is the real tool set that Nanny gave to Aidan. It comes with everything! He wears it constantly and is always trying to find things "to work on" The tools are all real, the are jsut smaller so it's a little scary to have him walking around with a real hammer and pliers. Atleast he has safety goggles though. lol

Party Animals

2008-12-17T12:05:00.008-07:00

Well, three Christmas parties down and 1 more to go. It has been so fun. I absolutely love this time of year. It's so fun to spend so much time with family, and to watch the kids excitement. There are so many fun traditions and activities. It seems like I am just consistenly happy around this time of year. These pictures are all out of order but you should be able to figure out what is going on in most of them.

I have decided that more than one visit to Santa may not be the best idea. This was the second time the kids sat on his lap this month and Aidan changes what he asks for eash time. Last time he asked for a magic set. In line for this Santa he decided he wanted a robot. When it was actually his turn he told Santa he wanted a telescope. UGH

I absolutely love this picture. She is such a little cutie!

Aidan proudly showing me his gingerbread house he labored very loving on. Shorty after this picture he dropped it and was heartbroken.

Baylee was way too busy eating all the candy off of her house to pose for a picture. She is such a little oinker.

Aidan and Devery having a great time working on their houses.

And again...Baylee eating the candy as quick as dad can put it on her house. At least she's having fun right?

Bigger and Better

2008-12-17T11:49:00.003-07:00

Well....it's official, Aidan is growing up way too fast. A couple months ago Barry's brother and sister in law told us about a bed that they had that they would like to sell. It has barely been used and is a great bed. I was a little hesitant at first but asked Aidan if he was interested. The main selling point for him was that it came with a desk. He was super excited to do his
"homework" at a desk. He has been in his toddler bed for almost three years now. It is pretty small and he was starting to look a little big for it. He loved it though and truthfully so did I. We decided it was to good of a deal to pass up so we went for it. I was completely surprised by how big it is. It is a double bed but has a big headboard, eight drawers and a secret crawlspace underneath. It takes up his whole room! lol Good news....he loves it! Bad news......the desk won't fit in his room. We are going to have to wait until we move to use the whole set. He sleeps so much better on it, and loves having a big comfy down comforter. He looks like a tiny little peanut in it. I love actually being able to lay in bed with him to read our stories at night. It is a good transition, but just one more reminder that my baby boy isn't a baby anymore.
Aidan with his cute little Thomas the Train toddler bed one last time.

The new big bed! This picture is a little decieving. It doesn't quite show how big it looks in his room. Baylee has already figured out that she can pull the drawers and step in them to climb on the bed.

Adorable Little Messy Face!

2008-12-08T20:35:00.005-07:00

This is what Baylee looke like after every single meal. I am pretty sure she does it on purpose because she know's she will get a bath. This meal was particularly messy. Apparently she decided her bowl made a better accessory than dish. She was having so much fun that I had to fight the urge to stop her and get her out of her highchair. Instead I decided to take pictures. She was a disaster but I sure got some cute pictures!

Goodbye Johnson and Johnson!

2008-12-02T13:33:00.002-07:00

Well....Sunday was a rough day for Aidan. His first pet died, his fish Johnson and Johnson. It was given to him almost a year ago from his preschool teacher Miss Margaret. When he brought it home he was so excited! He immediately named him Johnson and Johnson (the KBull 93 D.J.'s) Then he wanted to go get him a new fish tank. We found a cute little pirates tank and began the lesson of how to take care of a fish. He did really good for a while. Then a couple months ago he stopped eating. All the food I gave him would just float on the top and he just hung out on the bottom of the tank. I have been waiting for him to die for months and Sunday it looked like he was ready. I found him laying sideways on the gravel, barely breathing. So Barry and I pulled Aidan aside and showed Johnson and Johnson to him and explained that he was having a really hard time breathing and was probably hurting. I told him that I thought it would be best if we sent him to fishy heaven. What came next was completely unespected.

Aidan looked at him for a bit and understood that he needed to go. Then he looked at me and asked if he would come back after he went to heaven. When I told him no he started crying. He was so upset. He just kept saying how much he would miss him, and how he was the best fish ever. It was the most heartbreaking, sincere cry. He was sitting on my lap and all the sudden asked "So will he be with God in heaven?" I said yes. A minute later he brought the phone down to me and asked if we could call God so that he could make sure that he would take care of Johnson and Johnson. I told him that God doesn't have a phone number, and that to talk to him we just say prayers. Then he went upstair and pulled a chair in front of the fish tank and started talking to Johnson and Johnson and telling him that he loved him and would miss him, and thank you for being such a good fish. By this point I was seriously contemplating doing goldfish mouth to mouth. He was so sincere, and so upset. He asked me to take a picture of him so that he could remember him forever. That's why he is sideways in the picture.

This experience taught me two things. 1) I don't think its a good idea for us to have another pet for a while. I don't if he could handle another heartbreak. and 2) that a four year old can be compassionate, and full of emotion. It was so hard to watch him lern this lesson, but I was so proud that he could feel so strongly and sincerely. He is such an amazing little boy and makes me so proud.

RIP Johnson and Johnson!

Thanksgiving!

2008-12-01T13:17:00.007-07:00

Wow....what a fun and delicious week we have had. We started celebrating last weekend with Barry's family. We spent Thanksgiving day with my family, and my aunt, uncle, grandma, and cousins. Last night I had 20 friends at my house for our 7th annual "Friends Thanksgiving." Needless to say we have eaten our fair share of turkey this week. It was so much fun to get to spend time with our friends and family and be reminded just how lucky we are. I really do feel blessed to have the family and life that I have. Thanks to everyone wo celebrated with us, and I hope it was a great day for the rest of you!

Aidan and Baylee sported their Utes shirts at Barry's family party because it was the day of the big game. Almost Barry's entire family is BYU fans so Aidan was getting harassed all day, but if you saw the game you know who got the last laugh. GO UTES!!!

This is my aunts cute little dog Lucy. She and Baylee spent most of the night playing. Baylee chased the poor thing around the house all night, but Lucy put up with it because she was constantly getting food from Baylee.

This is my aunt Melissa's family. They are all so cute, and we had so much fun with them. We are so lucky to have them in our lives.

My family....Scott, Britt, Haley and mom. Love you guys!

Baylee had a great time playing "aka" banging on the piano.

Aidan playing guitar hero and taking it very seriously. He is so funny when he gets so focused on something.

Dinner Idea

2008-11-21T08:39:00.003-07:00

Okay sorry it is a day late....For those of you that are wondering what this recipe is all about read the post below.
Last night I made Hawaiin Haystacks for dinner and they were really easy and really yummy. Here is the recipe

1/2 C. Butter
1/2 C. Flour
1/2 tsp. salt
3 C. milk
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 C. fresh sliced mushrooms
6 chicken breasts (cooked and cut into bite size pieces)

Melt the butter in a large sausepan. Add flour and salt and mix well. Add milk and cook until thickened, stirring constantly. Add soup, mushrooms, and chicken. Simmer for 15 min. Serve over cooked rice and top with the following items.

sliced celery
grated cheddar cheese
pineapple
chopped green onions
coconut
toasted sliced almonds
chowmein noodles

Enjoy!!!! It serves about 8 people, so if you don't have that many either cut it in half or enjoy the leftovers.

I have an idea!!!

2008-11-19T10:55:00.003-07:00

Okay....so everyday, around 2 or 3 I start stressing about what to make for dinner. On the days that I don't plan ahead it's a big headache. I like to have a lot of variety so that my family doesn't get tired of the same old same old. So....I was thinking.....starting tomorrow, because today is too hectic, that Iwould post what I was making for dinner along with the recipe. Then anyone that reads this and struggles with the same thing can put the recipe of what they are making for dinner on their blog. Just leave me a comment that you are going to participate so I know to look. That way you will also be able to see in my comments who else has done it, and then the same thing goes for the comments on your blog. Good idea right? Maybe I am the only one with this dilemma but I doubt it. It will be fun!

Snow day!!!

2008-11-05T20:41:00.008-07:00

We woke up to a ton of snow today. Aidan was thrilled! I was not. The truth is, I really don't like the snow. I don't like scraping my windows, shoveling my walks, and having wet pants around my ankles. I know, I know, I am a party pooper. Anyway...yesterday I spent about an hour and a half looking through old pictures of the kids. I found myself feeling really sad that they have grown so fast. I really can't believe how fast time flies. I told myself yesterday that I was going to spend as much time as possible watching them grow and appreciating all the little things. So when Aidan started begging me early this morning to take him outside to play, I fought the urge to say no. I really just wanted to stay inside my warm house in my pajamas all day. I did end up taking him out when Baylee went down for a nap. It was still snowing and his buddy Riley came and played too so he had a blast. We were out there for well over an hour and that was just because we had to come in for lunch and to get ready for preschool. As much as I dislike the snow it was a lot of fun, and I got a lot of great pictures.