A Girl, a Geek, and 3 Kids

Sammy is 6!

2011-06-19T22:38:00.000-07:00

....wait, what?? Jeez, 6 already??

I can't believe my little boy is already 6. It seems like just yesterday that we had him, and on the other hand, it seems like it was a lifetime ago. I love that goofy, energetic, smart, imaginative, loving, sweet, and silly boy. He has always been really energetic and silly, always wanting to play pretend games, whether acting as a Superhero or a character from a tv show, he finds ways to pretend. He's so creative when it comes to creating props for his pretend play, like he'll ask me to tape a frisbee to his back to be a disc from Tron or he'll create objects out of legos or other blocks. He even drew a picture of his Leapster one day when the batteries died, so he could still pretend to play it. He makes me laugh on a daily basis and everything seems quiet when he is gone (which isn't always bad, hehe).

He is a smart little kid, already reading words that I wouldn't expect a 2nd grader to know. I didn't really teach him any reading, or even the alphabet before he started school. We did a little here and there when it was natural, but I never pushed anything and I just let him be himself and have fun, but this year in Kindergarten, he just sprouted! He was at the top of his class and got all A's every quarter.

His interests change on a monthly basis, usually depending on what video game Kenny is playing or the latest movie that came out that we've watched. His latest has been Tron, so he got lots of Tron toys for his birthday. He still loves Cars, superheroes, trains, board games, Kinect video games (you use your body as the controller), etc etc. He is hardly ever bored because he can find things to do out of anything, even just a piece of cardboard becomes a sword and shield.

He loves his brothers so much and is protective of them and bossy and takes care of them so well. He is wonderful at giving hugs and telling us he loves us. He is such a sweet, obedient boy and always trying to do the right thing. We love having him in our family and can't imagine what life would be like without him.

Great-Grandma Clara

2011-05-30T19:39:00.000-07:00

My earliest memories of my great grandma clara were playing with toys from the seafoam green suitcase she kept in the basement. They were the little people with round heads and round bodies that fit into different things like cars and horses and merry-go-rounds. She also used to LOVE doing fabric painting and we would get a chance to make our very own t-shirt when we would go over and she had tons of colors, and some with glitter or glow-in-the-dark or puff-paint. They always came out so goofy, but she just loved sharing the fun times with us.

She always loved taking us out in the backyard to look for yummy fruit on the trees. She had an apple tree and pears, and even concord grape vines that we used to make grape juice (when I was already married and Sammy was little).

When she was still able to travel, she used to come down to Arizona to visit with us for the summer and she would just be part of our family. My favorite memory is making home-made noodles and chicken dumplings. They were like heaven.

She loved doing the family reunions too and that was one of my favorite times of the year. I think she started right after one reunion, to prepare for the next, buying fun toys she knew "the kids would like". We had watermelon eating contests, bake sale, a raffle (which would always bring out the best and worst of the family members, lol), sawdust treasure hunt, flashlight tag, ah memories.

When I lived with her after I got out of high school, the best times we had were watching old TV Land shows. Love Boat, I think, and Wheel of Fortune. We'd go over to the senior center and she always liked showing off her great-granddaughter to all of her friends. And she taught me how to make tapioca (not with pudding stuff like at the store, but just the little balls with different fruits & berries) - that was also like heaven! I think my staying with her must have been for a reason... I slept in a bedroom downstairs in the basement but occasionally I would watch tv in the livingroom down there and end up falling asleep on the couch or floor. Well, one particular night, I fell asleep on the floor and woke up in the middle of the night and the carpet was a bit moist - I thought some of the water that occasionally came in through the basement window must have just been seeping in a bit more, but after about 20 minutes, I woke up again and turned on the light and the basement was flooded. A hose for the washer had burst and water was gushing out. I went up and told Grandma and luckily she was smart enough to know how to turn off the water and then we called Aunt Jana to ask her to come help. She wasn't answering the phone, and I knew we needed some help, so I drove over to her house, way too early in the morning (and some person randomly threw a spinning firework deal toward my car as I was driving over), but they were awesome and came over to help us out. We used wet vacs, fans, towels, whew that was some night! (and next day and the next)

I remember once when my family was visiting her house, a skunk got into the garage and my step-dad thought it would be a good idea to spray it with some water to get it to leave. We all tried to convince him otherwise, but he wouldn't listen... and the skunk sprayed back and the whole garage and part of the house smelled for hours.

Every summer we went to Utah, we would go up the highway and stop at the fruit stands and Grandma would help us pick out peaches. She knew all about the different varieties and which were best for canning and how to know if they were ripe, and she made the BEST canned peaches (the secret was probably just a lot of sugar, but I don't care). We would go down to the dairy and pick up fresh cream and pour it over the canned peaches - mmm I bet she's eating some canned peaches and cream in heaven right now :)

Anyway, Grandma Clara was a sweet lady that cared about everyone and loved her friends and family. She kept track of everyone's birthdays and would send out cards. She remembered how old the kids were in the different families and how everyone was doing and she would keep us all in the loop about people in the different parts of the family. She was our family hub and everyone loved and respected her. She was a strong woman with a stubborn streak but it was because she had so much experience and she knew the best way to do things. I'm proud to be her granddaughter and I hope that I can be as wonderful as a woman as she was. Meet you on the other side, Grandma :o)

Happy 1st Birthday Josh!

2011-05-22T06:30:00.000-07:00

My little baby is turning one today! I still remember, like it was yesterday, riding with Kenny in the car to Banner Gateway with a paper and pencil keeping track of all of the contractions along the way, down to about 2-3 minutes apart. He was 4 weeks early and 6lbs and very healthy.

This sweet boy has been more challenging than our other two, but he is the most happy baby I've ever seen. He has had worse colic, he screams in the car on long trips (even 1/2 hour trip) especially at night, worse teething, and worse luck with formula - everything we've tried gives him a stomach ache later that night. But he is the sweetest boy - all you have to do is look at him and he gives you a 10 mile grin, and he'll smile for anybody! He is wiggly and silly. He LOVES water and is more brave about getting his face wet (in the sprinklers) than the other two put together. He has very good hand-eye coordination - he can pick up a tiny piece of thread if he wants to. He also learns cause and effect very quickly, so he figures out how to do things really quickly. One example that wasn't exactly right, but was pretty funny; one day I was changing his diaper and before I took the diaper off, he stretched his hands way up high and touched the wall behind him and he passed gas at the same time, and I laughed and said "what was that?" and he smiled and laughed and tried to do it again! ...by reaching his arms up high and touching the wall, lol.

He's a very determined child and even when you try to get him out of something, he'll still try to fight you to stay there, like last night when I was trying to pull him out from under the rocking chair since Ken had the footrest up, when I tried to pull him, he wouldn't budge and I had to climb under and pry his fingers from a metal bar that he was clinging onto. This one is going to be a challenge!

He also loves adventure! Since he was about 8 months old, he discovered flipping upside-down and thought it was the best thing ever, so when someone was holding him, he would randomly arc his back and throw his head back to try to get the person to flip him over. It worked because what else can you do when he's in that position, lol, so as I said, he learns cause & effect very quickly.

I'm excited to get to know this silly happy little boy more and love having him in our family. Happy Birthday Josh!

Happy 3rd Birthday Tyler

2011-05-18T05:43:00.005-07:00

Tyler is already 3 years old! I really can't believe it. It seems like just yesterday that we had him. He lasted the longest out of the 3 kids and was only 3 weeks early, and the had the biggest head, lol. He is such a cute, funny little boy. Since the first time he climbed up on the dining table, I knew we were in for an adventure. Tyler has always been very curious about how things work and a little destructive. We've managed to tame the latter but he still loves to go places and discover new things. He has always loved animals, even scary ones. He would cry when he saw something scary but still want to see it again, like alligators and dinosaurs.

At 1 yr old, he still wasn't speaking any real words, not even mama or dada, or even really babbling. At 18 months, he started saying mama and dada and things slowly progressed from there. Today he has a huge vocabulary but he still struggles with language and communication, including his "k" and "g" sounds sounding like "t" so he says things like "tup" instead of "cup". He's also pretty bashful so it makes it hard to help him work on it because he gets embarrassed easily and doesn't want to repeat things.

He's a very independent kid, always trying to do things for himself, including getting stools or chairs to climb up and get food out of the pantry, or other people's Easter baskets. He has become best friends with Sammy and they love playing pretend together. They both love superheros so they will play forever pretending to be ironman, superman, spiderman, and sometimes the villains. We found that halloween costumes are the best and cheapest way to build up their dress-up collection, so they have everything from transformer costumes to cowboy hats, lightsabers, capes, and helmets.

This little boy reminds me a lot of me - quiet and stubborn, and I love him with all my heart. Happy Birthday Tyler!

Splash Pad Fun

2011-05-14T18:58:00.000-07:00

I have been so ridiculously busy this past month that the kids have kind of been stuck at home so we decided to finally get out and have some fun. We went down to the splash pad and played in the sprinklers. In the first 5 minutes we were there, Tyler, for WHATEVER reason, decided to strip down naked in the middle of the splash pad! I think he must have been thinking of bathtime or something. All I know is I hear the lady next to me chuckle, I look over and see a pile of shoes and pants, and look up at my half-naked child. Life is an adventure, I tell you. So I run over with the towel and get him clothed as quickly as possible! Then I took Josh over to show him one of the little sprinkler fountain deals and he touched it and then fell forward into it and got his face all wet. Soo, it took a little bit to get him to warm up to the idea again but as you can see, he sure did! It wasn't long before they were both crawling/walking/running around chasing after the small fountains and running away when they got high and splashy.

Josh Walking

2011-05-11T07:02:00.001-07:00

Year of facebook posts 2010 (just the interesting, important & funny ones)

2010-12-25T22:57:00.000-07:00

Jan 1 - had a wonderful New Years with friends and family. Realizing how blessed I am to have such a wonderful husband, fun silly kids, and caring family and friends. And realizing how many more fun changes we'll have this year. 2yr b-day, 5yr b-day, new baby, kid starting school, and ken will probably end up starting a new job at some point

Jan 8 - woohoo! Tyler learned how to nod his head "yes" and shake his head "no" hooray for being able to ask yes or no questions and get more than a whine or point

Jan 21 - stupid IRS won't let us e-file because we are claiming the first time homebuyers credit. grrrr

Jan 22 - Verdict: It's a boy! (again :)

Jan 29 - :o( my brother Charlie (that's 13 and has had 2 heart transplants) just had a seizure at school. Mom & PJ are going to take him to PHX children's.

Feb 4 - loves that Tyler's sign language for Thank You looks like he's blowing a kiss

Feb 4 - well, Charlie's home now with an internal defibrillator. They've decided he's gone into humeral rejection, which means he'll have to have another transplant. so now the process begins...again, just not sure when they'll have to get over to UCLA again

Feb 10 - If you don't see any blood, your kid probably didn't stab himself in the finger with your sewing machine needle. It's probably just wedged behind and curled around the needle

Feb 10 - ROFL - Sammy just asked PJ if he was going to play "Barbershop"? PJ: "What, I don't have a game called Barbershop!" .......Me: "BioShock?" laughter ensues

Feb 13 - had lovely dinner with the hubby after a surprise of edible arrangements, flowers, and an ipod shuffle. Man I love him!

Feb 25 - my "baby" went potty in the potty for the first time today. hooray for the little things!!

Feb 27 - just unclogged my own bathtub drain - suck it plumbers! I probably just saved myself like $50

Mar 1 - just saw on the news one of the buildings in our last apt complex went down in fire :( guess everyone's ok though, fortunately

Mar 2 - Sammy: Mom, I'm hungry AGAIN. Me: Jeez! Sammy: I'm not eating cheese! Me: I didn't say cheese, I said jeez! Sammy: I'm not eating "jeez"!

Mar 3 - deciding what to make for dinner based on my energy level after raking sand, rocks, weeds and dirt in the backyard half the day

Mar 6 - Fun night with friends, family, games & yummy food. Thanks Shari Starks Trujillo for the pampered chef party. Good times

Mar 10 - just caught my 22 month old before he fell in the toilet, butt-first with diaper and pants on

Mar 10 - feeling really pregnant today and somewhat like an aquarium with a floppy eel in it

Mar 20 - LOL - Yo Gabba Gabba freaks out my (almost) 2 yr old

Mar 20 - laughs that Tyler calls Sammy "mama" sometimes because it's easier to say than "sasa"

Mar 25 - bittersweet moment - Tyler's learned to say mmm-mmm (like uh-uh for "no") useful, but I wish he would just say yes and no

Mar 27 - Today Tyler followed me into our closet where we have a picture of the First Vision and he points to Jesus and Heavenly Father and wants me to tell him who they are. After a couple times, he totally said "Heav Fa" and "Jes's" just like normal (rather than the gmm gmm sounds he usually makes) I swear that kid knows how to talk

Mar 28 - Sammy brought home a church coloring page that included the disciples and Tyler saw it on the fridge and thought one of them was Santa (heehee)

Apr 1 - thinks it's cute that Sammy is counting down the days to LDS General Conference on Saturday. It must be the hanging out & watching it with extended family...or maybe it's just the yummy treats he gets for winning conference bingo

Apr 8 - is changing the name of Podcast Designs to WPpro WebDesign :o) FB won't let me change the name of the page, so I had to create a new one. I'll give lots of free stuff to make up for it :o) www.wpprowebdesign.com

Apr 9 - is feeling particularly pregnant today... only 75 days left

Apr 13 - Thank you hubby for letting me buy a shaved ice machine - best purchase EVER!

Apr 17 - had an awesome time with friends at the paintball trip this weekend. And the inflatable mattress stayed full and the kids slept through the night, so extra awesome for a camping pregnant lady :) Thanks Steve & Erin for inviting us!

Apr 21 - I think I can finally say that my 23 month old is talking, not sentences yet, but he's saying lots of words and actually trying to repeat words and sounds we say :oD

Apr 23 - Why is everything happening on Monday?? weird! visiting teaching, dr. appt with glucose test, ken has a mtg (on his day off), we're feeding missionaries, and I had a request for a phone interview then too that I had to delay..... watch me go into labor and all of it go down the drain, haha.

Apr 28 - Sammy: Mom! There's all kinds of butterflies outside! They're so cool, they don't eat anyone!

Apr 28 - hm, contractions

May 3 - just got back from visiting the Gila Valley temple. What a beautiful and spiritual place. The lighting and flooring and all the attention to detail is amazing. If you haven't had a chance to go, I really suggest it

May 6 - So I have to share this, for posterity's sake because I couldn't stop laughing. So Sammy was trying to take apart a bagel and it tore a little and he says "Ugh, I broke the bagel!....gosh!!....golly!!" oh you seriously had to be there

May 6 - is glad her husband didn't die in a horrible accident today. He went to brake to avoid someone that was stopped and ended up skidding and doing 360's across the freeway - didn't hit anyone or anything, just scared him half to death. Someone was really watching out for him.

May 8 - my little almost 2 yr old is practicing his terrible twos a little early. I didn't even know he could scream that high!

May 9 - had a nice start to mother's day. Sam was sitting on the stool helping me make waffles and he got down to do something and Tyler stole it. He wanted his seat back and I told him to hold on and I would entice Tyler to get down with a waffle, which worked. He says "Wow mom, you're...my hero!"

May 18 - Happy Birthday to my "baby" who is turning TWO today!!! ack! time has flown by. Even though you can't read this, just want to let you know you're the sweetest funnest little guy and I can't wait to see what this next year holds.

May 22 - so we went to the hospital last night - contractions down to 5 minutes apart, down to 1 minute apart once we got in but they decided to try to stop them since I'm only at 35 weeks...but that didn't really work but it was enough they could send me home to sleep and come back when they get up to 6/hr again...here we go again - 12 minutes apart

May 23 - This is Becky's Husband posting from her profile: Joshua James Crockett born 10:06 pm May 22nd
2010 6 pounds 3 ounces and 20 inches long

May 28 - why is it that my kids hardly ever get sick, but then once we bring home a newborn baby, they both take a turn - Sammy got a cough and Tyler has a fever of 101.7

Jun 3 - hm, baby's up to like 7 hrs of straight sleep now from 3am - 10am...now to just get that down to 11pm to 6am

Jun 9 - :( Just heard from the lab that I have to take Josh to get his PKU test AGAIN. Apparently there was an error (probably didn't get enough blood). Worst part was the poke in his tiny foot, but second worst was I almost passed out. this sucks

Jun 10 - My poor Bubba, Tyler, apparently can't eat yogurt. We knew he was lactose intolerant but he's always been fine eating yogurt but yeah not so much any more. he tossed his cookies

Jun 11 - Thing #1 is attempting to duct tape a tupperware box to his back to use as the wings for buzz lightyear

Jun 13 - just set up a payment on the remaining balance of a credit card I got in 2003 on which I have paid waaaay more than I ever borrowed. Tip of the day: don't get credit cards when you're young and stupid.

Jun 22 - daily lack of sleep has reminded me why "two is enough" but the precious little involuntary smiles and cuddle time and the sweet way Tyler says "hi baby" remind me why we "tried again"

Jun 22 - holy cow, i think Josh just beat the record for distance in the "pee with your diaper off" sorry babe, i think he got your jeans wet, about 4 feet away

Jul 12 - I love my husband - he gave me a blessing for the worst abdominal pain I've ever had on Saturday, made the most delicious steaks ever for dinner yesterday and watched kids while I ran errands today. I think I don't give him enough credit

Jul 18 - please keep PJ (my bro) in your prayers. they took him by ambulance to the hospital for severe upper abdominal pains. he had liver failure last year but it wasn't nearly as painful as this so I'm really worried about him. my mom's there with him now so I'll update when I know something

Jul 21 - first time I've had to use an alarm clock in 5+ years (to make sure to get Sam to school on time), and yet here I am awake an hour before it's set to go off. Who needs an alarm clock when you have kids?

Jul 21 - got Tyler some Buzz Lightyear shoes last night so now he's going around the house singing "buzzy shoes, buzzy shoes"

Jul 28 - poor baby... every time he tries to start fussing because he has hiccups, he's interrupted by another hiccup :(

Jul 31 - sometimes the planets align and I can take a shower without a child screaming or knocking at the door when I get out. Today is going to be a good day!

Aug 7 - drove 2 hrs to Payson Farmer's Market with family. Hubby thought I was crazy but went along anyway. spent 20 minutes & got fresh honey, corn, mango salsa, dinner rolls and tamales and lunch at wendy's and came back... but it was really just about the journey :)

Aug 15 - starting off the Sunday bread-making tradition with a loaf of my Great Grandma's banana bread :o) with no nuts (for Ken)

Aug 19 - apparently "Si Do" is "sit down" and "mosters so" does not mean Tyler is afraid of monster nightmares, but that he wants to sit down and watch the "monster show", Futurama. I kept trying to reassure him that there were no monsters, but he was very adamant about it...he was right

Aug 22 - whoo, that rain and lightning last night was awesome! We put a towel under the front door to make sure the water didn't come in because it was beating down. We just opened the blinds and watched videos on the ipad in the dark. fun times!

Aug 24 - little one just handed me the TV remote, sighed and dropped his head, after going to some menu he didn't mean to go to. A boy of not many words sure has a way of making you laugh with body language

Aug 30 - I love my husband! We were going to get massages together to celebrate our anniversary (which is actually tomorrow) but he called them back and changed it to a massage and facial for me. What a sweetheart :o) soft music, no kids, and soothing relief for 2 hours!

Sep 8 - Sammy is holding hands with his baby brother while watching TV from the couch. so cute

Sep 19 - Sammy just came running to me crying "I don't have any homework" (because 1: it's the weekend and 2: they have the next 2 weeks off) I shall cherish this day.

Sep 27 - fun weekend at Grpa Jim and Grma Pat's house. Went to the fair and the kids got to pet animals incl. bunnies & alpacas and we met Smokey the Bear and got balloon swords, did a wienie roast & s'mores, Ken & grpa did target shooting, and the baby cried for about an hour on the way home. It was an adventure!

Sep 27 - loves that Tyler is starting to learn his numbers and letters "5, 7, 8... 11!" "w, x, bye be z"

Oct 4 - is thankful for auto warranties to pay for expensive repairs and auto insurance to pay for towing :o)

Oct 6 - so proud of my little smarty-pants kindergartner that just got an Award of Distinction for all A's :o)

Oct 13 - Very exciting, emotional times watching the chilean miners being rescued...kind of makes you put things into perspective watching something like that.

Oct 15 - 2 days until California! We're going to San Diego for vacation with my little brother Charlie for Make a Wish. I can't wait! And I think the kids are excited too, hehe. Last time we went to the beach was when Sammy was pretty little so he doesn't remember. Going to SD Zoo, tide pools, sandy beaches :)

Oct 20 - Got back from San Diego last night. Drove through the worst rain and fog I've ever driven through to get back and the baby screamed for about an hour and a half, but other than that, the vacation was awesome and I think Charlie had fun (he even accidentally sprayed a hobo with a fire hose). Pics to come!

Oct 20 - My two-year old is trying to pawn off his Apple Jacks to me "Yours...mmmm... 'licious"

Oct 30 - Josh just flipped! from back to tummy :o)

Nov 4 - Holy cow, ok I don't think I can keep up with all these birthday wishes. I feel so LOVED! (and just so I don't spend the rest of my birthday writing thank you's ;o) ... Thank you everybody!!!!!!!!!!!! You're all wonderful :o)

Nov 19 - has been up for an hour with a goofy early-riser baby, who is sure to fall asleep again soon, just in time for the other two to get up. ah, the life of a parent

Nov 19 - the conversation every time Tyler sees a bug... Tyler: Aaah! A bug! It's a naughty bug?... Me: No, it's nice... Tyler: It's nice?... I wanna pet it

Nov 25 - I'm thankful for my kids, my husband, other family & friends, God, the Atonement, the Gospel, our house, yummy food, the internet, music, the Earth, crayons, fluffy bunnies, a good job...Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Dec 10 - had to laugh today when I went to Sammy's school to help with gingerbread houses, they went outside afterward to play and his friend asked if he wanted to play follow the leader and he started humming "Follow the Prophet" as he was running along. lol

Dec 11 - Gotta start getting ready for the GoDaddy party tonight! Jewel singing the national anthem, ZZ top and George Thorogood & The Destroyers performing, lots of money prizes - can't wait!!!

Dec 21 - uh-oh, my army-crawling bubba is doing girl push-ups...please oh please don't crawl until after christmas!

Our boys

2010-11-20T21:21:00.003-07:00

Baby Josh is starting to show his personality now and already I can see how different he is from the other two boys. I thought I would go through sort of a comparison of their personalities here (since I haven't posted here in forever, again)

Sammy
From very early on, he never liked to be messy
A bit self-centered as far as wanting attention
Energetic and happy, but shy when you tried to get him to talk to others
Always competitive and gets upset when he can't do something right
Very bright like his Daddy (remembers information, etc)
Loves praise and rewards when he does something right (positive reinforcement works wonders)

Tyler
Curious, inquisitive and loves to figure out how things work and take things apart
Didn't start saying anything until about 18 months old - mama & dada, didn't start saying sentences til about 2 1/2 (a couple months ago)
Creatively figures out how to get things he wants, whether physically or by being really cute
Loves songs and dancing
Has always loved the water
Stubborn, strong-willed kid like his mom
Negative reinforcement works better than positive most of the time

Josh
Very "interactive" baby - responsive when you smile, dance, play with him
Likes to observe things that are going on around him, whether tv or kids playing or people talking
A Daddy's boy for sure! He loves to watch his Daddy from anywhere in the room, and he will fall asleep in Daddy's arms within minutes
Moody - he is one of the most smiley kids, but also one of the fussiest - if we drive anywhere at night, he'll scream the whole way home (1½ hrs on the way home from San Diego)
My best sleeper - wakes up once at night and takes normal fairly predictable naps during the day
Earliest nurser

Babies are time-consuming

2010-09-10T21:56:00.000-07:00

Wow, I just realized that I haven't posted to our blog since May!! Yikes! Well, shows you how busy having a baby makes you. So, just to catch you up...

Sammy started Kindergarten in August, and even though it wore him out in the beginning, he now loves it and gets sad when the weekend comes because he loves school so much! He's doing really well, learning lots of writing, math, colors, shapes, you know. He got his first ice cream scoop (a paper one - they post them in class and once they get 10 altogether, they get an ice cream party) for learning his first 10 sight words. He's having fun helping put together his lunches for school and getting to walk to school with his mom and brothers every day.

Tyler is getting used to being without his big brother to keep him busy, and keep him out of trouble, but he's sure enjoying the attention. He's talking a LOT more now. Even though we can't always understand what he's saying, he knows what he's talking about. Sometimes he's too smart for his own good, very curious about how things work and loves to try to put things together and take them apart. He loves peanut butter and grape jelly sandwiches and chicken nuggets and watching movies all day long.

Josh is now 3½ months old and he can hold up his head pretty well and smiles and coos at the drop of a hat. He's starting to lose his thick head of hair so we'll see if it comes back like Tyler's or if it stays dark. I have to say he's been the fussiest of my 3 boys, crying as soon as he's wet or stinky and we thought he may have had a bit of colic for a while. He likes to chew on his tongue and has the cutest little beady eyes. His brothers love him so much. They talk to him and try to make him smile and are the best helpers, even when he's screaming in the back seat on rides, which he does about 60% of the time.

Ken has been doing great at work, and even applied for a new position in a new department. He's totally excited about it and we should hear something next week. He's a shoe-in for the department, but he also applied for supervisor over it so we'll see what happens with that. He's mostly excited about the new Halo: Reach game coming out though. He actually took off a whole week next week so he can play it (and hopefully spend some time with his family too, lol). We had our 6th anniversary this year and he was sweet enough to trade in our couple massage for a spa day for me so I got a massage and facial. It was wonderful! He's been taking care of the yard and barbecuing. Can't wait til it cools down! Also, I moved the DVD's so he can have his 'game shelves' back so all his Halo and other xbox stuff is displayed again. I have to admit, it looks pretty sweet.

And as for me, I've just been working, way too much I think. I have one client that's had me on a regular tab so I've gotten almost full-time hours lately and my brother, PJ, has been watching the kids for me. Tyler loves having the full attention from Uncle PJ, but I feel like I'm neglecting him a bit. I used to take Sammy places all the time, so I'm going to start making some time for fun outings for us too. I was called as a visiting teaching supervisor in our ward, so I have to be the bad guy that has to call and find out if people have done their visiting teaching. Hopefully people don't start avoiding my calls, lol. Anyway, I can't wait until it cools off so we can go out and fix up the backyard and play outside and...just not melt every time we go out - that would be convenient.

Thoughts

2010-05-28T23:39:00.002-07:00

So I wanted to try to make this more of a personal blog, but I just can't find it in myself to do it. I read other people's blogs and love how honest and introspective they are, but when it comes to putting my own thoughts into words...I suddenly have none. I sit here writing this as my husband is gone at a video game party...actually I think the last time I wrote a serious personal post he was gone too. Why do I have such a hard time opening up about things. I have no problem speaking my mind when I'm angry or hurt, but when it comes to things that make me happy or proud or excited, I tend to suppress it.

With a new baby in the house and having my hubby at home all day, I've had a lot on my mind about how our family life is and how things are going to change. My biggest worry about having another child was how I would be able to handle things with 3 kids, and only 2 arms and only so much patience. I thought when my husband told me he would take a month off to help with the kids, that I would just get annoyed really quickly with him being in my bubble, but it's been so fun to be able to spend time with him and see him grow to appreciate the funny little traits in the kids, that I love, that he doesn't normally get to see when he's at work during the day. He's been a really big help with the other kids, even diapers and dr. appts!! I'm so proud! He's such a sweet protective Daddy and I'm sure these boys will all look up to him in different ways.

I can't wait to see what the next couple weeks hold for our family now that I'm pretty much recovered. I'm excited to make some new family memories together that involve more than video games or tv. We haven't been to the beach since Sammy was a baby, so about 4-5 years ago so we're going to finally try to go again and I'm so excited to get to see the boys play in the sand and find shells and run away from waves and all those silly things that I grew to love as a kid.

And now, it is getting too late, but I want my husband to know that I love him more than anything in the world and I'm so glad that we're together forever and I can't wait to see what the next year, 5 years, 10 years, etc hold for us.

Joshua James Crockett

2010-05-26T18:32:00.002-07:00

Well, as with our 3 other impatient boys, our June 24th due date turned into May 22nd and Joshua James Crockett decided to come 5 weeks early.

He was born May 22nd at 10:06pm
6lbs 3oz
20 inches

The week or so before, I had been having random contractions on random days and times so we were wondering if he would come early, but knew it was possible I could have false contractions for another month. On Friday, May 21st, they started out about 9 in the morning about half an hour or so apart, and by 11 that night, they were 10 minutes apart and stronger than they had been. So my awesome brother PJ stayed with the kids (who were already asleep at that point) while Ken took me to Banner Gateway. By the time we got there, they were every 5 minutes. We got into triage and they were down to every minute. Because I was early, they decided to try the Tributaline to stop the contractions. After 3 doses, half an hour apart, I was still having contractions, but not as often. The dr. decided not to try to stop them with anything else. The nurse came and told us we had a couple options. Since they didn't have any labor & delivery rooms available, we could either go home and sleep until the contractions got back up to every 10 minutes, or we could stay in triage until something opened up. So we went home and got a good night's rest.

The next morning, Ken had to go into work to take care of things and make sure it was ok if he left since I was still contracting. By about 9am, I was sure it was the real thing again and they were 15 minutes apart, so Ken came hurrying home and took me to the hospital again. We had to wait in the waiting room for about 20 minutes before they had a triage room available. Once we got in, we just had to basically wait until baby was ready to come out. When we were in triage, I had this horrible knot in my lower back that was killing me no matter which way I turned, sat up, laid down, and it would get 5 times worse when a contraction would come, and was actually more painful than the contractions themselves. I was seriously dying by the time they moved me to labor and delivery. Once we got in, I had a lightbulb moment and asked the nurse how soon I could get the epidural and if that would help the pain from the knot and she said it should, so I went for it. Awwwwww, relief!!!! So I was numb for most of the day, but it was nice that at least I could catch up on some sleep. In the afternoon, my contractions were still regular but not as often and not as hard, so the dr. broke my water...and still we waited. Finally that evening, I had gone from 3cm/50% to 5cm/90% and then all of a sudden, went straight to 10cm/100% (like what happened with Tyler). They had to call in the doctor from home while I tried not to let the kid fall out. Then (once the dr. got there) with one push, Joshua was here :)

Paintball Trip

2010-04-18T13:13:00.004-07:00

Our friends Steve and Erin put together a paintball trip and invited us so we had been looking forward to it since they announced it and Ken was able to get the time off of work. Even though it was just overnight, it was a great little getaway and we had a great time with current friends and got to know some more :) We arrived Friday afternoon and had fun just getting a campfire put together and letting the kids play and get used to the bugs and get to know the dirt...really well.

That night Tyler started getting really sleepy around 9:15 so I got him in his jammies and tucked him in his sleeping bag with two fleece blankets. I think his face must have been cold because as soon as I put him in, he stuck his face down in the side of the sleeping bag and stayed there. I laid down with him for a couple minutes and he was out. About 9:30 Sam decided he wanted to go to bed too and he got his jammies on, two blankets and sleeping bag and was out. They both slept through the night, in their own little two-man tent next to us! It was so awesome :o) If you're a mom, you'll definitely understand my excitement, heehee.

And Ken and I had an air mattress thanks to his mom & dad and like 4 blankets - two on top, two on bottom and we both stayed warm. And I didn't have any restless legs, so for a pregnant lady, it was wonderful. It's so awesome when the thing you worry about most (camping with kids in tents), goes off without a hitch :oD

The next day the guys went off to war and the women and children stayed at camp to explore more bugs and dirt and hang out and talk. No one got hurt, except for welts of course, so that was cool. When I asked Ken who won at paintballing later that day, he said he didn't know, so you know what that means, haha. Had a nice trip home, weather was beautiful and yeah, couldn't have asked for a better trip!

Only down-side was that when we got home, Ken found out he didn't get the corporate job he interviewed for, so he's pretty frustrated about that. He'll get it eventually, just have to keep trying :)

Life as usual with little adventures thrown in

2010-03-26T22:44:00.003-07:00

So lately it seems like life has just been 'same as usual'. We did buy a new car, and we've been fighting a weed battle from all this crazy rain we've had lately, but other than that, life is day by day.

But here's a couple of our little adventures...

Sam and Tyler playing in one of the new tents we got for the paintball trip with the Morrissey's (and other friends) in April. We can't wait for the little vacation. I just hope Tyler gets over his fear of closing the tent door before then.

Playing in the kiddie pool in the backyard. They sure had fun but don't get one of these non-inflatable ones if you can't fill it at least half full and don't have a really flat surface. It kept trying to collapse and we had to put a box on one side to keep the 'deep' end from spilling over. I think Tyler had gotten his face wet right before the picture. He's so silly - I love that little boy. Sammy loved splashing around but I can't wait to get to the big pool to let him swim in a little deeper water, hehe.

This was at the AZ Science Center. The pole and the middle circle there rotate around and I think if you swing out, it goes slower and if you pull yourself in towards the center, it goes faster. The boys had fun playing on that together but Tyler wouldn't put his feet all the way on so he kept falling off, but he just laughed about it. Sammy had fun spinning around really fast and trying not to fall after he got off, hehe.

I love this little family we have and my wonderful husband that takes such good care of us and loves us so much. I think I should be glad for the lull in "life", that things are going well and nothing horrible has happened lately, lol. I look forward to this summer (really mostly May & June) with all the birthdays - Tyler will be 2, Sam will be 5 (ack! I can't believe it!!), Ken will be 26, the baby will be born, and Sam will start school in August. I hope I can keep everything straight - I tend to turn into an uncomfortable blob those last several weeks of pregnancy, but considering I have 2 crazy monkeys, I don't think I'll be able to sit still for long.

ugh, unmotivated

2010-03-16T13:11:00.003-07:00

Why am I feeling so unmotivated today?

It's cooler outside than it is inside, so I want to get a screen door for the back door for better airflow, but I'm tired of spending money and I don't think it'll fit in my car.....

I kind of want to try to make another purse again but I don't need it and I don't know anyone else who does, so why do it? I've had enough projects come out great and sit in a closet.

The house is a mess but not much worse than other days.....

The science center would be fun but we just went the other day....

The library books need to go back but they're not really due until Thursday...

.......maybe I just need to write a list

....really I just need something that HAS to be done today, then I'll get on a roll and finish everything else

I think this stupid car-buying process has left me feeling defeated...I'm going to forget about it for a couple months, like originally planned and get back to real life, to real projects that aren't so ridiculous.

We can do a lot more than we think

2010-03-06T15:55:00.003-07:00

So a friend of mine posted about pushing herself a little harder and it reminded me of my days in the Coast Guard, a particular experience anyway. First of all, bootcamp definitely taught me that people can do a LOT more than they think they can. My first real proof of that outside of bootcamp was at my station. Occasionally we had to be able to pass certain physical tests and one of them was being able to do 1½ miles in, I think, 12 minutes. In junior high, I think my fastest 1-mile was never shorter than 10 minutes, so yeah. So of course the first couple times I didn't make the mark and thought I was going to die by the end of it. Well, on the third try, our second in command came with us and he told me to stay with him, that we wouldn't run but just keep a good pace. I agreed and we started off. A few times I slowed down but with a gentle "Come on, Phillips" I was able to catch back up to him and by the end, I could see the finish line and because I had kept the pace with him I still felt like I had energy and pushed myself just a little harder and ran as fast as I could the last 100 feet and ended up making it in under 10 minutes.

I'm just amazed sometimes at how much we can really do when we put our minds to it and how easy it is to forget that. Sometimes we feel like we just can't handle another trial or setback or one more mess on the floor or screaming child. It's been something that has been bothering me since we decided to have another baby, because I only have 2 hands, only so much patience, and I really suck at multi-tasking and I got scared if I would be able to handle it all. And then the famous scripture comes to mind, that God would never give us more than we can handle. Sometimes I forget that He's there to help me when I need it; I'm independent and stubborn and want to try to make everything happen, and it's not that I don't want help because I always appreciate it when someone does, but I just forget that sometimes I need it. Maybe this is my lesson in humility and relying on the Lord, and my husband, and those that love me and are willing to be there for me, even when I don't know I need it.

Over a month? yike!

2010-02-22T14:59:00.004-07:00

Hehe, I didn't realize it's already been over a month since I last posted. In the past month...

* We got a new dog, a pug, named Ziggy, who's the best dog for kids ever - doesn't chew on toys, hardly barks, tolerates ear and tail pulling, doesn't jump on people, is potty trained, and can be just as silly as the boys when he wants to be

* We found out we're having a boy and his heart is healthy and everything else looks healthy

* Ken got moved to working with the "Ranch" team at work, the new-hires for the call center, and has been acting pretty much as a trainer and loving it

* And he took off the friday before Valentines so we had friday through monday to have a Valentines weekend - it was fun to spend time with him without monkeys bouncing around

* Tyler is starting to say more words and trying to make more consonant sounds

* Sammy is learning to write letters and can write his name

Here's some pics to recap the excitement...well mostly just silliness

I've been working on an idea for a service to design & host websites for moms that are working but want to be able to stay home with their kids, sites they can use to sell products (either manufactured or home-made) or advertise services they offer...so stay tuned for that...let me know if you have any suggestions :)

Blessings from Overcoming Challenges

2010-01-15T22:32:00.002-07:00

Sometimes I think I tend to be too vanilla.... when challenges come, I take them in stride and work through them, and I think I do the same with blessings - just say "thanks" and move on.

Thinking about this past year and everything that's happened, I realize how many challenges we really did have and how much we've learned and how much we really are blessed.

Tyler becoming a toddler and 20 months old now and still not talking
- We've started to learn sign language and ways we can help him communicate
- We've been blessed to be excited for the little things he does that show that he's progressing and how intelligent he really is

Attempting to purchase a home in Maricopa, deciding our lender was untrustworthy and breaking the deal and losing $1000 of my family's money, finding another house in Queen Creek, finding out we'd have to put a down payment after all and having to borrow it from Ken's retirement, and borrowing from Ken's family for other costs and making it all work despite a few setbacks.
- I can't even list the number of things that we have learned about buying a house, but besides that...
* learning to trust the holy ghost, and to trust your spouse if you're having a hard time hearing the answer (or being too stubborn to listen is probably more accurate)
* to know when to fight the good fight and when it's time to give in
* to not get too attached to something that isn't yours yet (....which leads to not counting your chickens before they hatch, but I don't think I've quite gotten that lesson down yet)
* But most importantly that the Lord has a plan for us and even if it's rocky and we don't understand it, it's there and I'm so glad that I listened to Ken and gave up on the Maricopa house, even though I wanted it really really badly, just because we had worked so hard to buy a house and we had wanted one since we got married. I am so glad to be where we are now and to have this beautiful, big (to us anyway :) house that will fit our growing family and is near friends and family and is just perfect for us in every way that the Maricopa house wasn't.

I don't think I could have imagined my life to turn out this way if my life depended on it. We've had so many challenges in the short time we've been married but I think it's strengthened us tenfold- spiritually, mentally, and in our relationship. I am so thankful to my Heavenly Father for the plan that he's set in front of me, for every challenge that has strengthened me in one way or another and for all of the blessings he's given me. I wouldn't have it any other way :)

A change

2010-01-02T14:47:00.004-07:00

I've been reading blogs for a while now, since we started our own, and I have to say my favorite ones are those where the writer is really honest about things that they are going through and feelings they're having whether about motherhood or relationships or whatever. Since I've kind of failed at the blog thing because it's soooo much easier on Facebook, I think I'm going to use this blog as more of a personal journal. Nothing too personal of course, because it's the internet. But hopefully it can be a nice outlet for me and hopefully I can share some of my struggles and help others feel the way I do when I read those types of posts, that they're not alone. I love to read that I'm not the only one that hates washing dishes or has piles of laundry or doesn't always know what to do when my child or family is going through something I didn't bargain for.

...as I write that, I tear up, because I'm pregnant, lol

So it'll probably make me much more emotional than anyone else to read these, haha, but at any rate, I want to do it. Hopefully I can stick with the goal. I'll try not to get too distracted by Facebook and work.

So today I'm just excited to get to see Avatar in 3D at the Imax with my hubby. I love 3D movies and I've been missing my husband, even though he's home. It's not the same with the kids here. We need a real date, so thanks to my WONDERFUL brother, PJ, for watching my monkeys tonight. I'll love you forever :o)

Expecting!!

2009-10-18T09:37:00.002-07:00

Well, we're expecting a baby!! According to the online calculator it should be around June 24th, but we'll see what the doctor says...and we'll see what the baby decides - since our other two were both early. I put the ticker at the top so I can keep track, because I'm not very good at that, hehe.

We're hoping for a girl this time but we'll see what happens, hehe.

All day babysitting: The Final Frontier!

2009-10-10T08:27:00.004-07:00

Yep so I took over the blog again.

So Becky went with my mother to Time Out for Women Conference out in Phoenix today. Now honestly I don't remember her telling me she was going to go. Seriously I really don't remember, but I'm a guy so that's nothing new right?

Anyways so I decided to see if I could pull off playing video games with the guys last night till around 3 AM this morning and I woke up at 7:30 AM so we shall see how this goes down today. Tyler of course is a complete mama's boy (and what boy not only isn't but of course they all are at that age) and was not thrilled to wake up with mommy gone. He had to look all over to see that she really wasn't here under the table, in the closets, he even wanted to check under Mommy and Daddy's bed covers just to make sure she wasn't hiding.

So yes I watch the boys all day today. And honestly can't wait till Tyler goes down for a nap cause that means I can take a nap as well! And in Star Trek, This for me is the final frontier!

Dreaming of Poptarts

2009-10-02T22:39:00.002-07:00

So this is what you get when you put a grumpy, hungry, but also sleepy baby in a high chair with a Poptart...

Polka Dot kids & Other Happenings

2009-09-11T21:30:00.010-07:00

Last Saturday, Ken wanted to go somewhere fun so we decided to go to Jump 'n Shout. They have a huge jungle gym and inflatables and fun stuff like that. We each took a kid, so I didn't get many pics but here's one of Ken & Tyler and one outside the place next to Humpty Dumpty, Sammy's favorite nursery rhyme character.

Then today Sammy and Tyler found some sticker dots and decided to be polka dot kids. Tyler looked like a ladybug by the time Sammy was done with him, lol.

Then this evening we went to listen to Grandpa Jerry sing with his barbershop chorus and a few quartets. It was very nice and Tyler even danced for a couple songs.

PS - THANKS to the nice people next to us that had to get up twice, once when we came and again to go potty, and who let my mom & sister switch seats with them so we could sit together!

Happy Anniversary!

2009-09-01T22:11:00.002-07:00

On August 31st, Ken and I had our 5th wedding anniversary :o) Grandma Linda was nice enough to watch the boys for the day (and night ;) so we could have the day to ourselves :) We went to the Arizona Mills and had lunch at Rainforest Cafe. Ken had never been there and he loved it :) so we'll be taking the kids sometime. Then we picked up some yummy smelling lotion and caught a movie. We went bowling and had dinner at In & Out Burger. Fun times!

I'm writing a blog post since Ken wants me to keep writing on the blog, so I'll dedicate the post to him, my love. Kenny I love you with all my heart. I love how intelligent and sweet and dedicated you are and that I can count on you to be there when I really need you, sometimes even when I don't realize I really need you. You're my true love and I wish for the next 5 years to be just as wonderful as the last :) Love you!
And just for fun, I wanted to post a link to the Tar Cookies recipe my family loves (watch out - they're addictive!)
Tar Cookies

It's been some time....

2009-08-29T09:17:00.007-07:00

So it's Ken (or Kenny as many of you know me as) writing this blog post. So ya our blog is totally and incredibly BORNING! lol Becky said that she really doesn't update cause of Facebook. I think thats crap! lol Yep I said it crap! I noticed many of you who frequent our blog actually post of Facebook and on your blog with no problems. I enjoyed reading what she posts while I'm at work as he helps break up the monotony at work sometimes. So I decided that I would post about what's been going on with us so far, so you all didn't think we dropped off the face of the planet.

So many of you probably already know that we didn't get the house it's a LONG LONG LONG LONG story (Did I emphasized how long of a story it is? hehe) so to everyone in the ward that wanted us to stay you guys got your wish and we are staying for a while. We didn't feel good about the house at all. Feelings continued to get stronger that it wasn't where we are supposed to be. So in about 6-12 months we will look at moving and staying somewhere in the east valley.
The boys are doing great! Tyler has 4 new teeth coming in on the top and me and Becky think it's all at once cause he has been feeling pretty crappy around the same time every day and the baby tooth soothers seem to make him feel better. Sam is doing great as always and is becoming an awesome help around the house.

Becky is doing awesome and has a ton of work that has come in as of late which is always a nice thing. And well me good as always. I still writing for the gaming website in my spare time, and go to the semi-weekly Friday night gaming nights. There is a group of LDS dads and all of us meet up at my buddy's house to play Halo 3 till the wee hours of Saturday Morning. That's the pic up above we were recently in a gaming magazine for our gaming nights (that's where the image is from click to open up and that's me in the bottom left there). Yes that guy has a lot of Halo 3 stuff I thought I was a fan till I started playing over there. And soon the new Halo game comes out which will take up much of my free "me" time. Thank you to my wife who has completely accepted me for the total dork and geek that I am and is so awesome to let me go to these game nights. Also I have had this need to listen to music my parents listen to. Lot's of 80's pop and classic rock, as well as of late John Denver. I'm afraid I'm turning into my dad :/

I also started a 4/10 Work schedule at work which I LOVE I work 6 am to 4:30 so traffic sucks on the way home from Downtown Phoenix but I get a 3 day weekend every week so I really can't complain too much! And thankfully am have vacation for the next 11 days as well as our 5 year anniversery is Monday (Aug 31st). Can't beleive it's been 5 years already!

So if you go to http://gallery.me.com/goodeye84 you can see pictures that I upload from time to time. I just recently got an iPhone thanks to my work for reimbursing everyone who gets an iPhone! and I upload pics like crazy from it as well as one Becky takes with the regular camera. Also Sam took the camera the other day and holy crap! That kid might end up being a photographer some day!

Anyways that's what’s going on with us. Everyone leave us comments we only get like two comments and I know more than two people read the blog. I think that's why Becky wont post anymore :(

...........another update

2009-07-25T20:43:00.003-07:00

So it's been about a month and a half since I posted anything on here :o(

To tell you the truth, I post stuff on Facebook every day - stuff we do, silly things the kids do & say, news about the house, and all sorts of stuff, so if you have an account, I would love to be your friend :) If you don't have an account, you should make one, really, it's awesome, a little addictive, but for good reason because you can keep in touch with family & friends SO easily. It's so much easier to upload a picture or video or a little comment at a time, than spend an hour trying to come up with a post. So yeah :)

Anyway, as far as the house, we should be closing in the next couple weeks!! It was supposed to be Monday, the 27th, but it's taking a little longer than they expected. Anyway, it'll be nice because if we close after the 5th of Aug, we won't have a mortgage payment due until October :) We had our final walk-thru a couple weeks ago and everything looked perfect, so we're so excited to start moving in (not excited about moving, but you know)

Kenny's been doing really well at work with his current job, and he's shadowed with the Training department as well, so he'll have an option of applying for Training or he can work towards becoming a Supervisor. Either way, I think he would be wonderful, but then again, I'm probably bias.

My graphic design business has been going great and keeping me very busy. I've started working with my cousin, Chris, since he's about to finish school and he's really talented with Flash programming, etc. My bro, PJ, has also been helping out with some projects, and with watching the kids when I have too much on my plate, so I'm forever grateful for how patient and sweet he is. I've also been teaching a Photoshop class in Chandler for the Tumbleweed Rec Cntr so that's been kind of fun and a good experience.

Sammy has been learning all about his ABC's & 123's getting ready to go into preschool. He knows how to count to 20 (pretty much) and I got him an xbox controller-shaped calculator the other day so now he's learning how to add numbers too. He's starting to learn the letters and how to write them - he even hand-wrote his father's day card for Papa. He's so imaginative and silly and he loves to be just like his Daddy.

Tyler is getting into EVERYTHING! He's so smart and curious. He's so persistent in trying to find out how things work and now that he can walk & run & climb, I'm doomed! And he LOVES water, so the second you leave the bathroom door open, he runs in and tries to climb in the shower or play with bath toys or...stick his hand in the potty, if it's open :oP - luckily, he isn't strong enough to open the lid yet, but I'm sure it won't be long. He loves to dance to any music that's playing, even sometimes when we don't realize there's any, and he loves to smile and giggle. He's the sweetest baby. I just hope he starts talking soon. He growls and makes noises, coos and giggles, but no words yet. He just doesn't try. I'm hoping that he's just shy and observant and one day he'll start talking in sentences, but he's starting to worry me.

Anyway, life is great and we can't wait for this new house and the new adventure that awaits us. I'm so grateful for everything that Heavenly Father's given us, for our funny little family, for Kenny being so hard-working and sticking through the tough times to be able to provide for our family, for our extended family that has helped us more times than I can count, and for our faith in the gospel and all of it's blessings. I hope everyone is doing well and that life is treating you well.

PS - do Facebook!

Birthday Week!!

2009-06-24T07:38:00.005-07:00

On Wednesday we went down to Grandma Linda & Grandpa Jerry's for some backyard water fun!!! The kids played in the sprinkler and Rosie chased down a goose so we could pet it.

On Thursday, it was Kenny's Birthday!!!! In the morning, we went with Grandma Linda & the kids to Golfland and did some laser tag. OF COURSE, Kenny won! haha. I didn't get any pictures of laser tag, but we played a few arcade games before we left. That evening we went to hang out with Ken's cousins that came in from Utah and their sweet baby (and a half) and his other cousins that live in-state. We went to Serrano's in Queen Creek for dinner - Ken can now say that he's been to every Serrano's! We told them it was his birthday but they only did the fried ice cream. They had us sing, and no sombrero or polaroid pic - I was dissappointed, but Kenny definitely wasn't, hehe.

On Friday was Sam's Birthday!!!! So we started off the day with some FastCar racing (ok, not so much racing as following PJ until he lapped us!) at Golfland. We brought along Uncle PJ for some fun, and because he just got his driver's license and needed some practice, and because we were supposed to go goofy golfing for his birthday but we didn't get a chance. So anyway, that was fun times, but we forgot to get pictures, so you'll just have to believe me.

Then that afternoon, Grandma Linda & Grandpa Jerry & the gang came over for some swimming and then Grammy & Papa and my friend Aimee & her friend Heather joined us for ice cream cake, games, and presents at our place. Sammy had a blast and loves all his new toys! Thank you to everyone that came :)

Bartlett Lake

2009-06-23T20:53:00.003-07:00

Last week the boys and I drove up to Bartlett Lake - middle of the week, middle of the day = nobody there = awesomeness! We had a nice time throwing rocks and even did a little swimming. It was a nice relaxing day :)

Our offer was accepted!

2009-06-10T19:43:00.002-07:00

Wow, it's been a while since I've updated the blog. I update things much more often on Facebook. Anyway, we've been searching for a house since about April. We started looking in Queen Creek to be close to some of our family and then tried Maricopa, since it would closer for Ken to get to work. After being denied twice on offers in Queen Creek and watching the prices quickly rise with the news of a $8k tax credit and 100% financing deal in rural areas, we focused our attention more towards Maricopa since the prices weren't rising as quickly. It's a smaller town and further out than Queen Creek, but it's growing quickly. We were excited to hear they have a brand new Walmart and library and a park with a shaded play area.

So anyway, we found a brand new 3 bedroom, 2 bath home for $87k. The latest our closing date will be is July 27th. We get a 2-10 warranty so anything that's wrong in the first year will be fixed free of charge, then there's some things that are covered for another year, and the structure is covered for 10 years. Here's a link to some pics :)

Tyler's First Pickle

2009-05-29T08:21:00.002-07:00

Kenny got to do the tradition of giving his baby his first pickle. It was great! No sour face! lol He liked it, he really liked it!

Happy First Birthday Tyler!!

2009-05-19T08:18:00.004-07:00

First of all, we went swimming with Grandma Linda, Grandpa Jerry, Aunt Rosie & Uncle Charlie. Uncle Brad and Uncle Pj played games with Daddy at home.

Then Grammy, Papa, Uncle Jason and Uncle Andrew came and joined in the fun.

Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday dear Tyler. Happy Birthday to you! and Daddy blew out the candle...

He devoured the cake like a Hershey chocolate bar. It was a chocolate cake with chocolate ganache so it was kind of solid on the outside

Fast forward a couple minutes and here you have end result! I love that exclamation point on his nose and the innocent eyes, haha.

Here's the Elmo cake for everyone else. I'm so not a cook so thanks to the bakery at Walmart :)

Here he is opening presents - he loves that ball, but he was willing to give it up to look at his other gifts...

...and try a few out

Sammy wanted to help with that gift - they shall have to learn to share that one - cars are definitely a common interest
Yay, new cups! He's becoming a big boy. Thanks to everybody for all the clothes too!! Now his pants won't fall off. He has a hard enough time trying to walk without pants around his ankles, hehe.

Tyler is ONE

2009-05-18T13:37:00.002-07:00

Today my little baby turns one year old!! So I've done a 25 random things post about Sam and I think it's fitting that we do one for Tyler on his first birthday - but 25 is a lot for a baby, so 20 it is. We're having a party tonight so we'll post pics of that later.

He is the most smiley kid ever
He LOVES water!
The best way to make him laugh is to tickle under his chin with your nose and act like you're eating him
He's still not talking and that worries me
He can take about 4 or 5 steps on his own now
He eats EVERYTHING
He has curly hair just like his Grandpa Ron and Uncle Brad
He gets the biggest smile from ear to ear when Daddy comes home
He likes animals and bugs
His favorite shows (I think) are Jack's Big Music Show and WonderPets
The best way to get him to settle down in the car is for Sam to sing "You are my Sunshine"
He gets carsick on long trips (and sometimes it's delayed)
He loves to get into cords
He can climb up steps
He has blue eyes, like his mama
He likes to wake up his big brother by patting him on the head when he falls asleep on the couch
He loves to play instruments and make music
He can crawl REALLY fast
He was born at Banner Gateway - the best hospital ever!
He was 3 weeks early

Splish Splash!

2009-05-12T07:32:00.002-07:00

Who cares if we have a huge regular pool just a few hundred feet away!! We have our own awesome pool right on our own patio, haha. Ok, so Sammy's a little big but they had fun just splashing and being silly boys. Plus the bottom of the pool is inflatable too so it's nice and cushiony :)

PS - Saturday we talked with our real estate agent and we may start looking in Maricopa for houses too since you can sometimes find even better deals and it would be much easier for Ken to get to work since he could just hop onto I-10. So we'll see. It'll be sad because we know no one out there but it's a nice area and our families are on the way to everything in the valley, so we'll still see everyone pretty often I think.

Tyler's first word

2009-05-07T21:34:00.001-07:00

It's official, Tyler's first word is blech! Totally makes sense considering I say it to him about 10...million times a day because he tries to eat everything! LOL

Ketchup

2009-05-06T10:03:00.005-07:00

I just realized it's been 2 and a half weeks since I posted, so thought I should post what we've been up to (catch up :) ...and maybe I'll manage to find some pictures too.

I once told Ken that I'd be willing to stay in this apartment until we're rich enough to buy a house in our current ward. This ward is the best ward ever and I HATE to move - they are so wonderful and giving and caring and I hope that everyone can have the chance to have such an awesome ward family.

Well, we found out we're pre-approved to buy a house and since we can get so much for our money in Queen Creek, that's where we've been looking, PLUS there's a new loan program for rural areas like that so we won't have to put any money down!! So with a bittersweet taste in our mouths, we search...

As for Sam and Tyler, they've been silly and fun as ever. Sam has learned new phrases like "Give me a break" and "I was thinking...". Tyler is starting to stand up on his own if you give him a toy to hold onto so he thinks you're holding him. Once he realizes you let go, he sits down, lol. He'll get it one of these days, I hope. We got him a walker, so hopefully that helps. But he crawls REALLY fast so even if he never learns, he can just crawl everywhere really fast ;)

Kenny has been busy at work and getting used to his new office in Phoenix and the commute. And he's been helping XCast get their new site up and running. It's been kind of a comedy of errors, so hopefully it runs smoothly from now on.

I've just been busy as ever working on a bunch of websites and other design work. Hopefully it'll bring in some good mulah so we can get everything we need for the new house. We're so excited! Here's some of the things Sammy, Ken and I have decided we want to do sometime after we get our new house...

Get a little dog
Get a sandbox
Make a playhouse
Ken gets a gameroom
Teach Sam to ride a bike
Play the tv as loud as we want
Get a BBQ & have friends & family over
Hang out outside
Be able to do laundry, in a laundry room inside the house!
Paint the rooms however we want

My mom painted a picture of Rosie's teacher, Ms. Duke, so they had an unveiling at their school artwalk. The kids loved it and I think I may have seen a tear in Ms. Duke's eye, maybe. PS - shameless plug - if you'd like a painting of your family or kids, she does do them - see www.foxartonline.com
Here's my little Rocker rockin' out on the food storage can drums.

Kids Rockin Out!!!

2009-04-20T19:38:00.003-07:00

This week, we had our good friends, Dan & Cj and their kiddos Sarah and Fletcher over and they had a great time rockin' out.
And here's Sam on the drums playing Rock Band 2 with Daddy.
And a guitar solo, just for fun.

Coloring Fun

2009-04-15T13:28:00.004-07:00

We've been trying to do more things as a family, especially since Ken finally gets home around 3:30pm now instead of 6pm! A while back, I set up a family activity points site at http://familyactivitypoints.wordpress.com/ and a email list so it sends an email each day with a random family activity you can do and the number of points you get for it. Then we keep track of how many points we get and we'll have some kind of reward once we hit a certain number.

Anyway, the activity the other night was coloring and I knew Ken wouldn't be too excited about that, so I took his favorite thing, Halo, and made a coloring page of Master Chief. And he actually joined in the fun! Here's his masterpiece!

and there's a blank one if anyone else wants to do it :) - just click on it for full-size

And Sammy got a huge Wow Wow Wubbzy coloring book from the Easter Bunny and it has a puzzle where you have to match the pictures with the letters...anyway, you'll see what I mean in the photo. He did this one all by himself! I didn't have to help him find the letters or write the letters or anything! I'm so proud of him :)

It says "No problemo little buddy" if you can't tell :)

My Little Guitar Hero

2009-04-14T16:35:00.002-07:00

Monkeyin' Around

2009-04-13T19:57:00.004-07:00

Today was zoo day, yet again!! Here's some of the funny animals we saw. Tyler laughed at the ostrich every time it would bend its neck down to take a drink of water. Hehe, I love that he loves animals - that's my boy :)

And enough with those monkeys - now onto mine!!

Sammy having fun playing in the water. It took some warming up to get to this point - he always has to have a transition when it comes to playing in the water - every summer. He gets splashed in the face a little with water and gets upset and I remind him that he came to play in the water and about 10 minutes later, he's splashing and having fun. Silly boy!

I put Tyler's feet into the little "creek" they had near the water play area but he decided pretty quick he didn't like getting splashed in the face by kids running by. So I dried him off and he discovered other things. After a while we tried again standing up and running through the creek too and if a big kid came by, we'd jump so he didn't get splashed.

Thanks to the nice lady who offered to take our picture :)

Lunch Time! Tyler eating a carrot - he loves his carrots!

And a good poke to the nose to end the day. Fun stuff and beautiful weather! Gotta soak it in before it's 15,000 degrees outside.

Easter Sunday

2009-04-13T19:45:00.002-07:00

This year the Easter bunny brought the boys some much-needed new suits. So here's the handsomeness.

and a little silly

Church Softball

2009-04-08T14:09:00.004-07:00

It's been way too long since we've been to a baseball game, let alone play in one, so when Ken decided to join the church softball team, we were surprised, but pretty excited. Sammy really wanted to go watch Daddy play softball, so even though the games are at 8 & 9pm, we decided to go.

The first game they did pretty well but they lost 11 to 20. The second game, they were up 7-1 and then the other team rallied in the 3rd inning to get ahead to 8-14 and then they just couldn't catch back up.

Maybe next time boys. It sure was fun to watch though!

See!! Sammy had a great time!

Catching Up...again

2009-04-06T22:34:00.005-07:00

It's been a pretty silly week, so lots of pictures and lots of fun. One thing we didn't get pictures of is the boys going Goofy Golfing. Ken, Sam, Papa, and Uncle Jason got to go to Golfland last week since they didn't have to work on Friday. It sounded pretty fun. Maybe next time they'll let us girls go - mean boys!

And we also got pre-approved for a home loan this week so we are really excited to be able to get a house in August when our lease is up. We're going to try to find one in our current ward because we LOVE it, but we'll see what's available in a few months. If anyone knows of anything under $115k let us know :)

So here's the pics of the silliness...
Tyler with a carrot in his mouth
Delicious biter biscuit turned slimey goop
Conference weekend at Grammy & Papa's. Those kids sure love their Uncle Jason.
Tyler, Kenny, Grammy, & Papa watching Conference...or trying to...sort of

And here's Sammy, my smart little puzzle doing kid. This was his first puzzle over 24 pieces, and it had two sides! who makes these things!? hehe, but he was a trooper and got it all done, with a little help.Here's Ken and Tyler rocking out on air guitar to Crazy Train! Lovin' every minute of it!

Aw, it pooped him out
Bathtub fun with swimsuits, since the pool is still too chilly

24 hr stomach bug :oP

2009-03-29T22:00:00.003-07:00

Wednesday night Tyler woke up all...barfy so I got him cleaned up and thought maybe it was just his formula not sitting on his stomach right and he was still hungry so I tried to nurse him and he barfed all over me. blech. Then Ken woke up and started feeling icky, partly from the smell and because he had caught it too. Then not even 15 minutes later, Sam wakes up and does the same thing. All three boys sick at once. We went through lots of blankets and towels and clothes that night.

I thought I wasn't going to get it! I figured God had a funny way of blessing Mommies and just left me to deal with their ickiness. Well...Friday night was my turn :( So all of our plans for Saturday including going to Bounce U, the Photoshop class in Chandler I was supposed to teach, and ice cream sundaes at Grm & Grp's were put on hold, as well as plans for break the fast at Ken's Aunt & Uncle's.

So that was fun :oP I'm just happy it was only a 24 hr bug :) Reminds me to be grateful for being healthy without feeling like puke all week.

So anyway, we got in some fun between the sicknesses on Friday at the park. So here's the cute pics...

A busy, scary week

2009-03-24T21:14:00.003-07:00

Last week was sort of a blur...sorry to the primary presidency and anyone else I might have pooped out on. My brother PJ has been having stomach pain and all sorts of problems for a couple months and then his symptoms got worse really quickly and he went to the ER and found out he was having liver failure. They did lots of tests that kept coming back normal so they aren't sure what's causing it. But I guess his levels in his blood were getting better so they were trying to see if he would get better on his own. Anyway, they did a liver biopsy today and let him go home to wait for the results. So since it was Spring Break for my little brother and sister, Rosie was registered for a drama camp all week so I helped take her back and forth and she stayed with us one night. Here's PJ - don't mind his beard, hehe. He usually has it long and then a week in the hospital, so he looked like Abe Lincoln ;)

So I've been CRAZY BUSY the last week with that plus lots of projects for my business so finally today I had a really productive day and got to a nice stopping point so I took the kids to the ...zoo...well, we were going to, but I forgot they close at 5, so we would've only had 20 minutes, so we went to hike up to Hole in the Rock.
Sammy the bear in a cave - Beware the Bears!!
Tyler, a smiley bear cub, not so ferocious, but don't anger his protective brother bear or you'll be lunch!
Sam sure was fast going up those stairs!
Don't fall in!!

Dinosaur Museum

2009-03-14T23:14:00.003-07:00

Friday we got to go with Grandma Linda and Grandpa Jerry, and Rosie & Charlie, to the "Dinosaur Museum". I thought they would have a lot more animatronic dinosaurs that would freak out Sam, but there was only one and it hardly moved. But they had tons of other fun stuff...

After a long walk down a spiraling hallway with lots of cool stuff like minerals and fossils, we came to the best room in the place. They had dinosaurs! Sammy was so excited to see all the different species and make them pretend to eat each other. haha, he's such a boy :P

I think it was Tyler's favorite room too because he got to check out a solar system floor puzzle. He decided it was pretty tasty!

They had a real live alligator in that aquarium. The top was kind of slanted up so you could peak over the top and see in. Tyler enjoyed the view.

At this point, Sammy didn't realize what this huge thing was. He started to walk away after the picture, and I said "Look!" and that's all it took and he realized it was a huge dinosaur about to eat him and he ran away, hehe. He wasn't too worried though - he figured out pretty quick it wasn't going to get him and he thought the big teeth were pretty cool.

Blessings

2009-03-11T20:37:00.003-07:00

Today was Wednesday so it was Music Class day at our friend Cj's house, but she sent everyone a message saying that her little girl, Sarah, was sick so she had to cancel music class. I told Sammy that there wouldn't be music class because Sarah was sick and he said, "Can we go with Papa and give Sarah a blessing with Daddy?" (they're not LDS) so I told him, "Well, that's a pretty good idea, but I don't think they really know about [priesthood] blessings."

It's interesting to see what kids learn just from watching and how the gospel really effects our lives in ways we don't realize. It's so comforting to know that if we are in physical or emotional pain or going through a rough time in our lives that we can have a priesthood blessing from our dads, husbands, ward member and be able to feel the comfort and relief of such a powerful blessing.

*In the LDS church, once a man turns 18 and if he's worthy, he can receive the priesthood and he's able to give blessings for the healing of sick and afflicted...see mormon.org for more info

GoDaddy Picnic

2009-03-09T19:54:00.004-07:00

This weekend we got to go to Ken's company picnic. Since it was for Go Daddy, of course they had to make it big and lots of fun. They wouldn't have it any other way. They had 4 pirate/ maritime themed bouncers (3 with slides), rock climbing, a bungie trampoline deal, balloon animals, relay races, beanbag throws, volleyball, a horseshoe tournament, and of course yummy food! It was pretty great. We are so blessed to have them in our lives. Ken has worked for them for about 4 years now and they have been so great to him, I think they'd have to shove him out the door to get him to leave their company.

An interesting weekend and Kenny's "vacation"

2009-03-03T22:53:00.002-07:00

Starting Saturday, I got a lovely toothache in my wisdom tooth that was trying to come in sideways and had a cavity. So I suffered with that Saturday and Sunday and called the Dentist Monday and got an appointment Tuesday at 7:30am! Crazy dentists have been taking laughing gas I think to wake up that early, lol. But I'm glad because I was so tired of it, I would've come in at 2am if I had to. Anyway, when I got there, he looked for a minute and said I would have to go to an oral surgeon and be knocked out while they pull it. So I knew that meant I would have to get an IV :'(

I HATE IV's!!!!!! The one I had when I had Sam hurt the whole time it was in and left bruises. When I had Tyler, they had to do it twice and tried to kill my arm while they were searching around the first time. Not FUN!

So really I wasn't scared about them pulling it or pain afterward or the anesthesia, I just didn't want an IV - I was sure it would hurt worse than my stupid tooth! But Kenny went with me to the Maxillofacial oral surgeons and the nurse gave me the IV and it was a tiny prick and no other pain!!!! IT was AWESOME!!!! YAY! So I wasn't too worried about the rest, haha. The laughing gas did make me feel REALLY weird though - I am not a fan of that.

Ok, so to back up a bit, Kenny had planned on taking Monday and Tuesday off because he was going to go to a midnight launch event for a game and cover it for the video game podcast he works with. Well, they didn't have enough pre-orders so they couldn't do the event, and then he thought he wouldn't even be able to get his game until the next morning. So to make it short, he was not a happy camper...but it all worked out - the employees at the store hung out and he got his game at midnight and it was peachy keen.

And on Monday, my best friend got a $11k in a bodily injury settlement so we got to go use it to buy her all new furniture for her humble apartment. It was pretty fun - I got to live through her for a day, haha. Now to get everything put together...

Oh wait, I forgot Sunday (sorry so long, it was a really crazy weekend, and I promise I'm not on any fancy meds making me talk so much, haha, not yet) Well we were at Kenny's parents' house for break the fast and his aunt walked over to the sink because she started choking. I realized what was going on and since I've had some practice (on people who will remain unnamed) doing the heimlich maneuver, and I was professionally trained in the coast guard and through red cross, before I knew it, I had started doing it on her. One big pull and she still needed another...for some reason at that point it ran through my mind that her life could be in my hands...but I did one more big pull and we got the piece out. She still had to go to ER because she still had something stuck and was coughing up pieces occassionally - found out she got some in her lungs. So the ER had her drink coke and every time she would burp, they said it would bring up more food. weird, but I guess it worked. PS - if you haven't already, I suggest teaching your children the heimlich maneuver and CPR/First Aid, or go take a class - it's so easy to do and can save someone's life.

So that was our interesting crazy weekend. Sorry so long, but it's one of those things you don't want to forget, and I forget.

"Story while I was sleeping"

2009-02-27T23:39:00.002-07:00

So I had my painting class again today (too bad! no picture - mwahahaha!) so Sammy got to go play in the Treehouse (childcare place) and when I went to pick him up, he needed to go to the bathroom but he didn't want to go and was all spastic and crying.

Finally he told me "you know the story... in that story... when I was sleeping... I fell in the potty"

My heart sank :(

After lots of hugs and an explanation that it was a dream and it's just pretend, he's ok again.

Super Mario Crockett

2009-02-24T20:04:00.003-07:00

Sam loves to play Super Smash brothers on the GameCube with his uncles and his favorite character is Mario, so he found this red (Lightning McQueen) hat and red suspenders in his drawers and decided to dress up like Mario! haha - totally his idea! Don't you love it?
Also, I wanted to place the link to this post about marriage by Holly because it's pretty awesome and useful and I don't want to lose it.

PS - if anyone wants to take Photoshop or Blogging classes at the Tumbleweed Center in Chandler, I'll be teaching classes there soon. Check out the Chandler city website for more info.

@ the Zoo

2009-02-23T16:21:00.004-07:00

It was a beautiful day today - mid 70's and overcast. Can't ask for better than that! So we HAD to go to the zoo and enjoy it! Here's the two cuties. First we saw the sting rays. I thought Sam would weird out about touching them but he was actually pretty excited. They had a couple babies that liked to swim the opposite direction from the rest, lol. Sammy liked to pet them more than the "big ones".

And here's some of the animal pictures we got. I LOVE being able to zoom - you can do so much more with the pictures :) PS - those birds in the top right have bright red eyes - not sure what that's about but maybe I'll do some research and find out.

Park pics and a cute video

2009-02-19T16:36:00.005-07:00

Here's some fun pics from our trip to the park this morning :) We think the bike rack should be closer to the playground since it's just as fun.

And this one is of my baby's adorable blue-gray eyes.

And last but not least a little video...

Tyler is 9 months, Grammy & Papa's, & Our Crops

2009-02-19T08:55:00.002-07:00

So Tyler turned 9 months yesterday! He can pull himself up to standing next to the couch, chair, bookshelf, your legs, the wall, lol. He still has 4 teeth - his two middle teeth on the bottom and two incisors on top - he's a jack-o-lantern ;) He occassionally says "da da da da" but mostly just giggles and whines. Sam loves to play with his little brother (until Tyler starts eating his stuff).
For Valentines I got Kenny a half-hour massage from Massage Envy and while he was enjoying himself, we went to Michaels and I found this fun stretchy yarn that you can use for socks. Well, apparently I think my kids' feet are much smaller than they really are, because I made this one for Sam and it didn't even fit Tyler. The only thing it fit was Sam's Superman...and he said he didn't need it because Superman already has red socks :( So I shall try again.
Yesterday we went over to visit Grammy and Papa and it was such a nice day and their flowers are beautiful so we took a picture!
And lastly our Cilantro and Chive plants are finally big enough to cut off pieces to use, so if anyone needs any of either, let me know and I'll be happy to share :)

Rebecca's Masterpiece!

2009-02-18T18:43:00.006-07:00

So Becky said she wouldn't post her picture that she painted in her Mom's art class a couple weeks ago. Well she said she wouldn't But I didn't say that I would not!

She doesn't think it's any good. I on the contrary think it's pretty dang good. The extent of my drawing and painting ability is drawing/painting stick figures. She is not only talented with art on the computer she is very talented with traditional art as well.

-Ken

P.S Click the image for a much larger image.

Pictures!!!

2009-02-16T21:19:00.004-07:00

Woohoo! Got my new camera and I've been testing it out a bit, but hopefully tomorrow we'll do something fun and put up some interesting pictures rather than just test ones. But anyway, I got a few cute pics and some good ones of random stuff... so here you go...

Two More Days!

2009-02-11T21:43:00.003-07:00

Yay! Do a dance! Go ahead! I'll wait....

In two days we get our tax return and I get to buy a new camera!! woohoo!! I'm so excited, can't you tell?! I'm going to get a Panasonic Lumix. They have really crisp pictures and a little face finder deal that makes sure it focuses on people's faces and an image stabilizer so you can catch those crazy little critters I call kids without a big blur across the picture and a super macro setting so you can take pictures of things really close like flowers and bugs and stuff. So keep watching for me to post beautiful pictures sometime soon. I'll try not to get too snap happy and post a million pictures, I promise.

Sammy's 25 Random Things

2009-02-10T11:38:00.002-07:00

So there's been a virus going around Facebook where you write 25 random things about yourself and then TAG 25 friends who have to do the same thing. It's fun and I thought I should do it for my Sammy on here for journaling purposes. So here we go...

He LOVES anything to do with trains and cars
He asks me to let Tyler play with him all the time, but as soon as Tyler crawls on his car track carpet, he yells for me to get him.
He's lactose intolerant
He still doesn't know how to ride a tricycle because we live in an apartment and don't have enough room for him to do it.
He surprises me every day with the amount of letters and numbers that he recognizes
He can count to 20
He makes up letters in the alphabet song
He makes up words all the time, even sometimes for things he knows the names of, like the vacuum
He loves to sing and play pretend
He's the most imaginative kid I know
It's hard to argue with "Yes, I don't!"
He sings along with "Life is a Highway" and "Love Song" when it comes on the radio
He was born 6 weeks early and was only 4lbs 15oz
He's completely potty trained but he still tells me every time he needs to go
His favorite color is blue
He likes to eat plain ice cream cones
He likes to sit/lay on Tyler, out of affection, when I'm not looking
He gets to start preschool next fall, hopefully
He says his favorite Primary song is "I am a child of God"
He got to play Sam in the story of Nephi and his family traveling to America during a skit in Primary
He loves his Uncle PJ more than anything in the world
He's scared of snakes
He would play computer games all day long if I let him (which is not very often because he throws a royal fit when I tell him it's time to stop)
He's a geek just like his Dad and probably knows more about technology than some adults.
He's a wonderful, silly, imaginative, goofy, funny, smart, creative, happy, independent, lovable, polite kid.

A little catch-up

2009-02-06T22:09:00.004-07:00

Well, since my camera broke, I haven't been as motivated to blog, but alas things have been happening and if I don't write them now, I'll forget, because I forget EVERYTHING.

So, starting today... because that's what I remember the most... I signed up to take my Mom's oil painting class so Sam got to play in the Tree House for a couple hours.

It was kind of embarrassing because most of the class already recognized me from this painting my mom did of me (sorry, don't mind the immodest dress). She showed it to them because she won artist of the month from the Arizona Artist Guild for it :)

So Sam had fun playing with toys and learning to share and Tyler got to hang out with Grandpa while I painted with Mom. I won't show you my masterpiece, because... well, it was sad... I mean... my camera is broken so I can't take a picture ;)

Also, Tyler has been starting to pull himself up on EVERYTHING, furniture, shelves, legs, Sam's high chair (which is on the floor) and he's been eating EVERYTHING that's on the floor. I just don't remember Sam being so silly eating everything in sight when he was a baby, but like I said, I forget.

Kenny's been really busy at work, doing much more than his share most of the time, because he can and will. He's so dedicated and hard-working - I just hope they recognize it soon...a raise, promotion, something, it's tiring him out.

So we got our taxes done and we're getting enough back to pay off 4 out of our 6 debts. I am SOOOOO excited!! We have been so burried for so long, it feels so good to finally be on top of things. And we can get a new camera, and carpet cleaner that we DESPERATELY need (if you've been to our place lately, you'll probably agree, lol) So this week will go by slow, but it'll be a nice Valentines gift :D

So now you're caught up!

Wesley Crusher on the guitar

2009-01-24T18:10:00.003-07:00

Ken had an opportunity to go to the Phoenix Comic Con this weekend as press for XCast Online - a podcast about xbox video games. He was so excited about it and had a great time! Here he is playing Rock Band with Wil Wheaton, who played Wesley Crusher on Star Trek. He's a great guy, very down to earth and friendly. The video's a bit short...

Snow Angels

2009-01-23T23:49:00.003-07:00

This post is for Grandpa Ron. Here's a snow angel for you Grandpa!! Since Grandma Caroline isn't so fond of the snow, we got Sammy to do one for you :)

MLK Day = Snow Day

2009-01-21T20:28:00.004-07:00

So, as promised, here are the fun pics from our awesome day in the snow up in Strawberry, AZ...Here's Sammy on the ride up. He couldn't wait to try on his gloves, but they made it kind of hard to hold his cup (and go potty, but that's a long story)Here's Sam and Ken getting ready to play in the snow. You can tell Kenny is really excited ;)
Tyler got a chance to eat some snow. We made sure it wasn't yellow before we gave it to him.Grandpa Jerry, Uncle Charlie, Daddy, and Sam built this little snowman, complete with rocks for a top hat, a stick bow tie and arms, and rock buttons and eyes.

And me and Sam after sledding down a hill and ending up backwards. That was a fun ride!

My Poor Camera

2009-01-19T20:22:00.003-07:00

So we went and actually found snow today up past Strawberry!! It was wonderful - there's a big clearing with great hills and is a really popular place to play. :P to the Rim Country Chamber of Commerce that told me you have to go to Flagstaff to find snow and hooray for the scouts in my parents' ward that just went up there a few days ago and found snow in Rim Country!

BUT....

My camera broke :( I'll have to get the pictures off the SD card later. So many fond memories that camera has saved for us - we got it when Sam was a baby and have taken hundreds of pictures with it. RIP my handy, reliable, tough little camera.

So alas we shall get a new one with some of our tax return...time to do some research...

Ack!! No comments :(

2009-01-18T07:55:00.002-07:00

No one was leaving comments :( we thought nobody loved us, so we ate some worms...and then we realized the link was messed up for some reason. OOPS! So we changed it so the pop-up window comes up and it should work now.

Hiking on Wind Cave Trail

2009-01-17T17:15:00.003-07:00

We had a great time hiking the Wind Cave Trail today. The weather was PERFECT. There wasn't many bugs, and we even saw a lizard :) It was a good day. Here's me with Tyler - sorry about the selective cropping - it was a very toothy smile - trust me, it's better this way. Here is a picture of Ken and Sam at the top of the hill where we stopped. Maybe next time we'll make it all the way up. We made it farther this time than we did before so we were pretty happy about that. (PS - check out the cactus coming out of Sam's head, hehe)

Danger: Duck!

2009-01-14T19:34:00.004-07:00

I don't know why but we went out to play at my parents and for some reason Tyler was scared of that silly duck, named Moose.

Sam sings Love Song by Sara Bareilles

2009-01-14T08:53:00.002-07:00

This is Sam's favorite song to sing on the game "Lips" for the xbox 360 - it's a karaoke game. (sorry the audio is delayed - I don't know why it does that)

Catching Up!

2009-01-14T08:31:00.003-07:00

One of the things Sammy and I like to do together is make orange juice and lemonade. It's just one of those times where you get to enjoy the fruit of your labors, literally :)
Here's my silly boy tyler starting to learn to crawl. He's got the army crawl down pretty good and he can rock forward and back on his hands and knees - and on his hands and feet!!

Firefighter, feeding ducks, and Superman

2009-01-05T14:38:00.002-07:00

Here some of the cute silliness from the last week or so

I am a Child of God

2009-01-05T14:16:00.002-07:00

Friday 5

2009-01-02T22:23:00.002-07:00

Where is your favorite beach?

My favorite beach is Point Reyes Beach up near Bodega Bay, CA where I was stationed in the Coast Guard. It has the longest stretch of sand it's angled just right so you can lay and watch whales and birds and read a book and it's always a little windy so it's just a nice beautiful serene place to go. There was never a lot of people around either so it was a good place to go just to think.

Where is your favorite place to spend money?

Definitely Michaels, since it means when I get home, I can start something crafty.

Where is a great place to watch people?

It's fun to watch people walk around the temple. To watch little kids discover the Christus, and look at the flowers and stick their fingers in the water fountains. People always seem to be happy and smiling at the temple, so it's a nice feeling.

Where is a good place to be totally alone?

At the beach is probably my favorite, but from a practical standpoint, it's pretty nice to be able to get work done on the computer with the kids asleep at night.

Where is your favorite place to go on vacation?

I love nature, so anything with beautiful landscapes, water, critters, snow, stuff like that is fun. I also love making those annual trips to Utah to see my long lost family (actually we're the long lost family, since all the rest of my extended family is up there, hehe)

Christmas at Grandma & Grandpa's

2008-12-31T12:28:00.003-07:00

So many grandparents, so little time :) We spent most of the day at Becky's parents' house exchanging presents and eating Grandma's delicious strawberry crepes with whipped cream for breakfast...should have taken a picture of them - they were beautiful. Here's some pics of Sam looking at his new LeapPad, Tyler with some teethers, a picture of Uncle Brad even - that's a rare sight :), and one of Sam and Aunt Rosie trying out their new little propeller toys.

Christmas at Grammy and Papa's

2008-12-31T12:12:00.004-07:00

Then we went over to Grammy and Papa's house to exchange gifts. Papa helped Sam open his gifts and Ken helped Tyler. Kenny's favorite gift this year was the game Lips for the xbox - you sing karaoke and it gives you points based on how well you did and all - he loves to sing "Take on Me", though I think his voice is starting to hurt from singing falsetto.

Happy Christmas Day!

2008-12-31T11:59:00.003-07:00

Well, here is our fun little Christmas at our house. We woke up Sam to come out and see what Santa brought, but when Kenny told him Santa came, he said "No, Santa didn't come" and tried to go back to sleep, lol. He's been waiting for so long, I guess he didn't realize it actually was the day this time. I love the face on Sam when he got that "Sonic game" - it was priceless. Tyler got mostly clothes and lots of teethers but he didn't mind (most everything is a teether to him anyway)

First Tooth!!

2008-12-23T14:59:00.004-07:00

Tyler got his first tooth last night. We were playing Scene It on the xbox and he was chewing on my finger and I thought I felt something. I felt around and took a look and there it was - a tiny little tooth on the bottom right.

And I found this this morning - pretty sure it's Sammy's doing, lol. Three pairs of Mr. Potato head shoes lined up with the rest of ours.

Sam is on the Nice List!

2008-12-22T09:01:00.001-07:00

Check it out! Sammy is on the nice list this year...at least so far ;)

http://family.go.com/santas-list/video/76574-rcrockett5321/

Gingerbread Houses

2008-12-21T19:57:00.005-07:00

So here are the pics of our gingerbread houses. They were so fun to make. Thanks Grandma Linda for setting it all up! And Sammy made it out without a stomach ache (even though more candy went into his stomach than on his gingerbread house) Here's the names of the creators in order: Ken, Becky, Sam, Grandma Linda, Grandpa Jerry, Uncle Brad, Uncle PJ, Aunt Rosie, and Uncle Charlie.

Sam

2008-12-21T19:48:00.002-07:00

Well, here is Sam's picture. Silly kid :) Hm...5T is way too big...thinking maybe I'll take him to the park tomorrow and get some better ones and Ken and Tyler can have some guy time since he gets this whole week off :)

Friday 5

2008-12-21T19:18:00.004-07:00

Ack!! I forgot the Friday 5! I'll get in the habit, I promise!

So here they are...

1 - What's your favorite holiday tradition?

My favorite holiday tradition is making gingerbread houses with my side of the family. My mom collects a bunch of candy basically from Halloween on - every different kind of thing you can think of to use as architectural elements... (oh, I still need to post about that...coming soon)

2 - A favorite cookie recipe

My favorite cookie recipe, not necessarily Christmas-y, is no-bake chocolate peanut butter oatmeal cookies. They are so delicious and addictive and if you use dark chocolate cocoa they look like tar.

3 - Share a story about a special ornament on your tree

One ornament we got from Kenny's Great Grandma for Sam's first Christmas is pretty special since she was really important to him and made a big difference in his life and she passed away last year.

4 - All I want from Santa is...

No debt!!

5 - Why is Christmas special to you?

It is such a beautiful time of year where all Christians celebrate Christ's birth and are happy to be with family and give gifts and sing songs and all that fun stuff. It's too bad that it sort of ends at New Years.

Tyler

2008-12-20T09:37:00.004-07:00

Thanks Mom for helping us take pictures of the kids! Tyler's came out really cute, so here is his, but I have to try again with Sam. He was being really silly.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-18T21:19:00.002-07:00

Santa Pics!

2008-12-15T10:45:00.004-07:00

Our good friends Dan and Cj had a Breakfast with Santa on Saturday. Sammy had a lot of fun and was excited to tell Santa everything he wanted but he only remembered to tell him he wanted trains, hehe. Tyler pooped out before he got a chance to talk to Santa, but we caught a pic anyway :)

To the Zoo! again!

2008-12-15T10:32:00.004-07:00

So we went to the zoo a couple weeks ago (on the 6th) but I've been way too busy to blog, so here are the pics now. Ken actually got to go with us this time, so it was fun to make some memories together. He doesn't like his picture taken, so no fancy poses, but I caught him a couple times. I got some great shots of a lioness and Ken was quick enough to catch a squirrel shot along the walkway.

Friday 5

2008-12-05T09:01:00.003-07:00

So every Friday, I and some friends are going to answer the same 5 questions on our blogs. So here is mine (Becky). Ken can do his own if he wants :) Feel free to join in on your own blog, if you want - and comment with a link to the post - I would love to see your Friday 5.

1 - Would you consider yourself an organized person? Why or why not?
Yes, I consider myself pretty organized. I use something like the computer or to-do lists and such to do it because I have to. If I didn't do that, I would be a mess!

2 - Do you keep some type of planner, organizer, calendar, etc. with you, and do you use it regularly?
I do use my google calendar occassionally for events planned out more than a couple days ahead of time, but mostly I just use a paper at my desk.

3 - Would you say that your desk is organized right now?
Eh, sort of, but this is lucky timing because I just cleaned it up this morning.

4 - Do you alphabetize CDs, books, and DVDs, or does it not matter?
If I had the time, I totally would, because that's just me, but as it is, nope!

5 - What's the hardest thing you've ever had to organize?
A closet at the church for the primary kids. There was old crafts and junk in there from many years previous and people had been kind of lazy about putting stuff away and it was crazy.

Ken's List (I didn't see this till today 12/8)

1. Would you consider yourself an organized person? Why or why not?
No and yes. At work I am very organized I kinda have to be. At home I am somewhat I need to get into the organized mood to do that.

2 - Do you keep some type of planner, organizer, calendar, etc. with you, and do you use it regularly?
For personal life not really. I got a pretty nice cell phone so I add stuff in there. At work I have everything in a Calendar that actually I am able to see upcoming events in my email for so I know whats coming up without loading the calendar thank goodness for our Devs at the company I work for adding that it helps me a TON!

3 - Would you say that your desk is organized right now?
Yeah I have to due to the work I do. I actually have to make sure my desk is locked up when I am not near it too. So My desk has to be immaculate.

4 - Do you alphabetize CDs, books, and DVDs, or does it not matter?
All the regular DVD's I don't recall if I have or not.... My Xbox 360 games (and PC games) as well as all my HD-DVD movies are alphabetized.

5 - What's the hardest thing you've ever had to organize?
I used to work for a cabling company and was contracted to work at Intel. I had to do an audit and was assigned to organize and figure out exactly what cable went to each cubicle for an entire building. Trust me it was harder than it sounds (and it probably sounds really hard).

Zoo Trip

2008-12-03T15:39:00.004-07:00

Today we went to the zoo, just me and the boys. It was a beautiful day so I couldn't pass up the opportunity. We had fun just taking our time playing around. It was kind of fun not to try to see as many animals as possible and just enjoy the day and the little adventures in the small discoveries. By the time we made it around to the Monkey Village, Sam was too tired so we just made our way back to the front. We got to see a peacock up close and we saw a flying fox - I'd never even heard of it - looks like a huge bat (sorry no pics, they were in the shade)

Our Trip to Douglas

2008-12-01T20:49:00.002-07:00

My mom is doing an art show at the Douglas Art Gallery this month, so we went down the Friday after Thanksgiving to go the reception. Here's some of her artwork if you want to check it out. Here's some pictures from my grandparents' house in Douglas. My naughty son trying to wake up his Uncle PJ, hehe ...

Bounce U Party!!

2008-11-26T12:48:00.004-07:00

On Saturday, we got to go to a Bounce U party for Sammy's long-time friends, Sarah and Fletcher. We had so much fun bouncing and sliding. Lots of good exercise!

Silly Giggles

2008-11-23T09:48:00.003-07:00

You gotta love baby giggles. So cute and silly so I got a video of Tyler. He just loves to laugh and smile.

Crawdad Eagle Project

2008-11-23T09:33:00.002-07:00

On Nov. 7th, I went with PJ, Sam, and Tyler to help photograph an eagle project for a kid in my mom's ward. He actually asked her to photograph it but since she had to teach a class and she couldn't be there until about half-way through, she asked if I would do the first half.

They were pulling crawdads out of the river up near Usery Pass since they are an invasive species. It's actually illegal to throw them back if you catch them (who knew?).

They also cleaned up the picnic areas and went on a hike to learn about an invasive species of trees growing in the area.

Here's a picture of one of the traps they were using to catch the crawdads. They used cheesy hotdogs as bait! They had lots of leftovers so we got to take some home, hehe.
And here's a picture of Sam on the trail.
*I didn't want to post any pictures of the other kids since I don't have their permission.

Just like his daddy!

2008-11-10T13:34:00.007-07:00

So yeah it's my turn to finally write a blog post. So as most of our friends may know, in my spare time I write for a gaming site, a Xbox 360 specific one actually. Well recently I have been playing a lot due to a lot of new very much anticipated games coming out week after week after week. One of these was Fable 2 I won’t go into the game and what it’s about but the game does have a lot of bright colors and contrasts that really grab your eyes and you want to see more, (This might be due to the fact I was playing on an HDTV) anyways Tyler seemed to usually calm down if he was crying or upset if he was watching the TV while I was playing. So one day I sat him on my lap while played and Becky sneakily snapped this picture.

He was getting his start in gaming a little early. That’s my boy!

Trick or Treat!!

2008-11-07T22:01:00.005-07:00

We had fun going to the neighborhood Halloween party. Lots of great costumes, yummy food, and fun games. Ken was Charlie Brown for Halloween - complete with ghost costume with a bunch of holes cut out and a bag of rocks. Sammy was a skeleton even though he only had a skeleton shirt. I was going to add some bones to his pants, but I got sick that week and didn't get a chance. Tyler was a darling pumpkin. I was a witch but I'll have to add a picture later.
We had a great time with all our friends from the ward and with my good friend Cj and her kids and our friend Scott, as well as my mom and step-dad and brothers & sister. After trick-or-treating, we went back to our apartment for some cake for my brother, Charlie's birthday and they brought presents for him and for my birthday on Nov 4th. It was a fun night!

Tubing & Cooking

2008-11-07T21:55:00.003-07:00

Here's some cute pictures from the last couple weeks.

Tyler helping out in the kitchen. He just loves to cook! ;)

Going tubing down the river in our living room. My silly boys just hanging out.

Tyler is 5 months!

2008-10-27T22:07:00.003-07:00

So we went to the doctor's a few days ago and Tyler was 18 pounds and 27 inches!!! I can't believe he is so big! He's at the 90th percentile for height and weight, but only at the 25th for his head circumference. So we got a huge kid with a small head, but then a kid (about 3 yrs old) at the park today told me he has a big head. "Your baby has a big head. Some kids have big heads and some have small heads. Yours has a big head." Haha, all I could say was, "yeah, he's a pretty big kid" and try not to laugh.

Icky Tummy

2008-10-25T20:30:00.002-07:00

Poor Sammy had a stomach ache tonight and threw up on the couch. We think it must have been from something he ate because he's all back to normal now. I was getting worried because he wouldn't even talk to me earlier this evening before he had a good sleep. I asked if he had a stomach ache or if he wanted a drink, and no answer. That not knowing is what kills me. I'd rather he tell me he's sick and about to vomit than just lay there all icky not responding. Well, it's a testament to priesthood blessings and I'm thankful for that and glad he's all better.

Roll Over!

2008-10-20T16:30:00.004-07:00

Today Tyler rolled over from his back to his tummy!!!

Yipee!!

2008-10-18T21:13:00.004-07:00

Mesa had a little western festival hootenanny something or other so we went to check it out. Sammy got to ride on a pony and the train. He was so excited! He might be traumatized to ever ride a horse though because just on the last round, the pony was itchy and shook back and forth a bit and scared the bejeebies out of Sam so he was a little freaked, but he went on the train after that and he loved it didn't want to get off!

Trip to Bartlett Lake

2008-10-14T21:50:00.006-07:00

On Columbus Day, we went with Grandma and Grandpa and Aunt Rosie & Uncle Charlie to Bartlett Lake. It was a beautiful day!! The weather was perfect and not too many people and just pleasantly uneventful. The only thing we had to fight with were the bees at the picnic area, but down at the water, there weren't any.

Here's Tyler on the ride up being nice and content.

Here's Sam choosing another rock to throw in. Don't mind the undies. I helped him take off his shoes and socks to go wading and next thing I know he's already in halfway up his shorts! Oh well - "come back in and let me take your shirt"...luckily I had an extra pair of shorts.

We brought the fishing pole too, but Sam was too interested in throwing rocks to go fishing, so we let Aunt Rosie and Uncle Charlie use it. We forgot to bring bait though, so we had to use pieces of rice cake.

Zoo Trip

2008-10-10T23:01:00.008-07:00

Today we had a fun time hanging out at the zoo with Grandma Linda, Aunt Rosie, & Uncle Charlie. Here's a video before we went in and some pics from inside :)

Silly Boys!

2008-10-08T15:11:00.004-07:00

Here's a cute pic I took of the kids plus another one of Tyler in the saucer I got for him at Once Upon a Child for only $25!! (they're usually $60-100 new) Well, it's finally starting to cool off so hopefully we'll start posting some pics of other places than the living room ;)

Splish Splash

2008-10-06T23:00:00.004-07:00

Just wanted to post these cute pics of the kids taking a bath, well Tyler afterward, but yeah :)

Sam the Robot

2008-09-25T14:54:00.003-07:00

Hehe, since Widget in the show Wow Wow Wubbzy builds robots, Sammy has been acting like a robot lately. Here's a dose of the silliness

Going Fishing

2008-09-25T14:13:00.004-07:00

Oh, I just realized I forgot to post about us going fishing. Ken, and the kids and I all went to the park to go fishing with Sam's Lightning McQueen fishing pole and some cheese. We didn't catch anything, but a fish did eat a piece of cheese that Ken threw into the lake, so maybe we just need more patience (which will be a lot easier once it gets cooler). Here's a pic!

A Girl, a Geek, and 3 Kids

Sammy is 6!

Great-Grandma Clara

Happy 1st Birthday Josh!

Happy 3rd Birthday Tyler

Splash Pad Fun

Josh Walking

Year of facebook posts 2010 (just the interesting, important & funny ones)

Jan 8 - woohoo! Tyler learned how to nod his head "yes" and shake his head "no" hooray for being able to ask yes or no questions and get more than a whine or point

Jan 21 - stupid IRS won't let us e-file because we are claiming the first time homebuyers credit. grrrr

Jan 22 - Verdict: It's a boy! (again :)

Jan 29 - :o( my brother Charlie (that's 13 and has had 2 heart transplants) just had a seizure at school. Mom & PJ are going to take him to PHX children's.

Feb 4 - loves that Tyler's sign language for Thank You looks like he's blowing a kiss

Feb 4 - well, Charlie's home now with an internal defibrillator. They've decided he's gone into humeral rejection, which means he'll have to have another transplant. so now the process begins...again, just not sure when they'll have to get over to UCLA again

Feb 10 - If you don't see any blood, your kid probably didn't stab himself in the finger with your sewing machine needle. It's probably just wedged behind and curled around the needle

Feb 13 - had lovely dinner with the hubby after a surprise of edible arrangements, flowers, and an ipod shuffle. Man I love him!

Feb 25 - my "baby" went potty in the potty for the first time today. hooray for the little things!!

Feb 27 - just unclogged my own bathtub drain - suck it plumbers! I probably just saved myself like $50

Mar 1 - just saw on the news one of the buildings in our last apt complex went down in fire :( guess everyone's ok though, fortunately

Mar 2 - Sammy: Mom, I'm hungry AGAIN. Me: Jeez! Sammy: I'm not eating cheese! Me: I didn't say cheese, I said jeez! Sammy: I'm not eating "jeez"!

Mar 3 - deciding what to make for dinner based on my energy level after raking sand, rocks, weeds and dirt in the backyard half the day

Mar 6 - Fun night with friends, family, games & yummy food. Thanks Shari Starks Trujillo for the pampered chef party. Good times

Mar 10 - just caught my 22 month old before he fell in the toilet, butt-first with diaper and pants on

Mar 10 - feeling really pregnant today and somewhat like an aquarium with a floppy eel in it

Mar 20 - LOL - Yo Gabba Gabba freaks out my (almost) 2 yr old

Mar 20 - laughs that Tyler calls Sammy "mama" sometimes because it's easier to say than "sasa"

Mar 25 - bittersweet moment - Tyler's learned to say mmm-mmm (like uh-uh for "no") useful, but I wish he would just say yes and no

Mar 28 - Sammy brought home a church coloring page that included the disciples and Tyler saw it on the fridge and thought one of them was Santa (heehee)

Apr 1 - thinks it's cute that Sammy is counting down the days to LDS General Conference on Saturday. It must be the hanging out & watching it with extended family...or maybe it's just the yummy treats he gets for winning conference bingo

Apr 8 - is changing the name of Podcast Designs to WPpro WebDesign :o) FB won't let me change the name of the page, so I had to create a new one. I'll give lots of free stuff to make up for it :o) www.wpprowebdesign.com

Apr 9 - is feeling particularly pregnant today... only 75 days left

Apr 13 - Thank you hubby for letting me buy a shaved ice machine - best purchase EVER!

Apr 17 - had an awesome time with friends at the paintball trip this weekend. And the inflatable mattress stayed full and the kids slept through the night, so extra awesome for a camping pregnant lady :) Thanks Steve & Erin for inviting us!

Apr 21 - I think I can finally say that my 23 month old is talking, not sentences yet, but he's saying lots of words and actually trying to repeat words and sounds we say :oD

Apr 28 - Sammy: Mom! There's all kinds of butterflies outside! They're so cool, they don't eat anyone!

Apr 28 - hm, contractions

May 3 - just got back from visiting the Gila Valley temple. What a beautiful and spiritual place. The lighting and flooring and all the attention to detail is amazing. If you haven't had a chance to go, I really suggest it

May 6 - So I have to share this, for posterity's sake because I couldn't stop laughing. So Sammy was trying to take apart a bagel and it tore a little and he says "Ugh, I broke the bagel!....gosh!!....golly!!" oh you seriously had to be there

May 6 - is glad her husband didn't die in a horrible accident today. He went to brake to avoid someone that was stopped and ended up skidding and doing 360's across the freeway - didn't hit anyone or anything, just scared him half to death. Someone was really watching out for him.

May 8 - my little almost 2 yr old is practicing his terrible twos a little early. I didn't even know he could scream that high!

May 9 - had a nice start to mother's day. Sam was sitting on the stool helping me make waffles and he got down to do something and Tyler stole it. He wanted his seat back and I told him to hold on and I would entice Tyler to get down with a waffle, which worked. He says "Wow mom, you're...my hero!"

May 18 - Happy Birthday to my "baby" who is turning TWO today!!! ack! time has flown by. Even though you can't read this, just want to let you know you're the sweetest funnest little guy and I can't wait to see what this next year holds.

May 23 - This is Becky's Husband posting from her profile: Joshua James Crockett born 10:06 pm May 22nd2010 6 pounds 3 ounces and 20 inches long

May 28 - why is it that my kids hardly ever get sick, but then once we bring home a newborn baby, they both take a turn - Sammy got a cough and Tyler has a fever of 101.7

Jun 3 - hm, baby's up to like 7 hrs of straight sleep now from 3am - 10am...now to just get that down to 11pm to 6am

Jun 9 - :( Just heard from the lab that I have to take Josh to get his PKU test AGAIN. Apparently there was an error (probably didn't get enough blood). Worst part was the poke in his tiny foot, but second worst was I almost passed out. this sucks

Jun 10 - My poor Bubba, Tyler, apparently can't eat yogurt. We knew he was lactose intolerant but he's always been fine eating yogurt but yeah not so much any more. he tossed his cookies

Jun 11 - Thing #1 is attempting to duct tape a tupperware box to his back to use as the wings for buzz lightyear

Jun 13 - just set up a payment on the remaining balance of a credit card I got in 2003 on which I have paid waaaay more than I ever borrowed. Tip of the day: don't get credit cards when you're young and stupid.

Jun 22 - daily lack of sleep has reminded me why "two is enough" but the precious little involuntary smiles and cuddle time and the sweet way Tyler says "hi baby" remind me why we "tried again"

Jun 22 - holy cow, i think Josh just beat the record for distance in the "pee with your diaper off" sorry babe, i think he got your jeans wet, about 4 feet away

Jul 12 - I love my husband - he gave me a blessing for the worst abdominal pain I've ever had on Saturday, made the most delicious steaks ever for dinner yesterday and watched kids while I ran errands today. I think I don't give him enough credit

Jul 18 - please keep PJ (my bro) in your prayers. they took him by ambulance to the hospital for severe upper abdominal pains. he had liver failure last year but it wasn't nearly as painful as this so I'm really worried about him. my mom's there with him now so I'll update when I know something

Jul 21 - first time I've had to use an alarm clock in 5+ years (to make sure to get Sam to school on time), and yet here I am awake an hour before it's set to go off. Who needs an alarm clock when you have kids?

Jul 21 - got Tyler some Buzz Lightyear shoes last night so now he's going around the house singing "buzzy shoes, buzzy shoes"

Jul 28 - poor baby... every time he tries to start fussing because he has hiccups, he's interrupted by another hiccup :(

Jul 31 - sometimes the planets align and I can take a shower without a child screaming or knocking at the door when I get out. Today is going to be a good day!

Aug 7 - drove 2 hrs to Payson Farmer's Market with family. Hubby thought I was crazy but went along anyway. spent 20 minutes & got fresh honey, corn, mango salsa, dinner rolls and tamales and lunch at wendy's and came back... but it was really just about the journey :)

Aug 15 - starting off the Sunday bread-making tradition with a loaf of my Great Grandma's banana bread :o) with no nuts (for Ken)

Aug 19 - apparently "Si Do" is "sit down" and "mosters so" does not mean Tyler is afraid of monster nightmares, but that he wants to sit down and watch the "monster show", Futurama. I kept trying to reassure him that there were no monsters, but he was very adamant about it...he was right

Aug 22 - whoo, that rain and lightning last night was awesome! We put a towel under the front door to make sure the water didn't come in because it was beating down. We just opened the blinds and watched videos on the ipad in the dark. fun times!

Aug 24 - little one just handed me the TV remote, sighed and dropped his head, after going to some menu he didn't mean to go to. A boy of not many words sure has a way of making you laugh with body language

Aug 30 - I love my husband! We were going to get massages together to celebrate our anniversary (which is actually tomorrow) but he called them back and changed it to a massage and facial for me. What a sweetheart :o) soft music, no kids, and soothing relief for 2 hours!

Sep 8 - Sammy is holding hands with his baby brother while watching TV from the couch. so cute

Sep 19 - Sammy just came running to me crying "I don't have any homework" (because 1: it's the weekend and 2: they have the next 2 weeks off) I shall cherish this day.

Sep 27 - loves that Tyler is starting to learn his numbers and letters "5, 7, 8... 11!" "w, x, bye be z"

Oct 4 - is thankful for auto warranties to pay for expensive repairs and auto insurance to pay for towing :o)

Oct 6 - so proud of my little smarty-pants kindergartner that just got an Award of Distinction for all A's :o)

Oct 13 - Very exciting, emotional times watching the chilean miners being rescued...kind of makes you put things into perspective watching something like that.

Oct 20 - My two-year old is trying to pawn off his Apple Jacks to me "Yours...mmmm... 'licious"

Oct 30 - Josh just flipped! from back to tummy :o)

Nov 4 - Holy cow, ok I don't think I can keep up with all these birthday wishes. I feel so LOVED! (and just so I don't spend the rest of my birthday writing thank you's ;o) ... Thank you everybody!!!!!!!!!!!! You're all wonderful :o)

Nov 19 - has been up for an hour with a goofy early-riser baby, who is sure to fall asleep again soon, just in time for the other two to get up. ah, the life of a parent

Nov 19 - the conversation every time Tyler sees a bug... Tyler: Aaah! A bug! It's a naughty bug?... Me: No, it's nice... Tyler: It's nice?... I wanna pet it

Nov 25 - I'm thankful for my kids, my husband, other family & friends, God, the Atonement, the Gospel, our house, yummy food, the internet, music, the Earth, crayons, fluffy bunnies, a good job...Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Dec 10 - had to laugh today when I went to Sammy's school to help with gingerbread houses, they went outside afterward to play and his friend asked if he wanted to play follow the leader and he started humming "Follow the Prophet" as he was running along. lol

Dec 11 - Gotta start getting ready for the GoDaddy party tonight! Jewel singing the national anthem, ZZ top and George Thorogood & The Destroyers performing, lots of money prizes - can't wait!!!

Dec 21 - uh-oh, my army-crawling bubba is doing girl push-ups...please oh please don't crawl until after christmas!

May 23 - This is Becky's Husband posting from her profile: Joshua James Crockett born 10:06 pm May 22nd
2010 6 pounds 3 ounces and 20 inches long