What's in the News

We have been SO crazy busy with SO many things lately. I'm hoping to get around to posting about some of them before too long (even though I don't have pictures to go along with any of it). But first, we decided to was time to share some news. Here is what we recently sent our family (We printed it out with pictures, but I couldn't get it all to come up on here AND our scanner doesn't work, BUT you get the idea)....

Ode to Family

Some of you’ve been asking,
and really want to know.
Is there a baby in Mauri’s tummy?
Will she ever show?
So, in answer to your questions,
We’re sending you this little verse.
Mauri’s feeling so much better,
in the beginning it was much worse.
Indeed, there is a baby inside,
and April 13th is when it’s due.
We won’t find out the sex this time,
A surprise for US and You.
Kyri wants a girl,
to play with oh so much.
Graysen wants a brother,
to kick and poke and punch.
And so, the next time you see us,
Mauri’s belly will start to show.
Of course, there’s a baby on the way!
Isn’t that what you all want to know?

We never tell our families we're expecting until we know the gender of our baby, but since we aren't going to find out....we still waited a while :) We are really excited and looking forward to one more source of chaos around here! Oh, and even though Kyri wanted a sister at first she is now hoping it's a boy!!

And please feel free to participate in our sidebar poll!!

Halloween....and Such

Well just as we were getting the kids into their costumes it became a downpour outside! We waited a while, but kids kept coming to OUR door...in the pouring rain...so Kyri kept asking if we could go. It finally cleared up, just long enough for us to hit a few houses in the neighborhood!

Seriously....have you ever seen such cute little animals before?!?!

The lamb and the lion

pleased as punch to be all dressed up

all dressed up with no place to go...EXCEPT Trick-or-Treating...and she is READY!

The kids were really getting anxious, so while it was pouring outside and kids were knocking on our door I decided to put one candy in each of their buckets.

This picture cracks me up because Kyri's looking at who-knows-what and Gray could care less about anything but his CANDY!!

The kids had a great time trick-or-treating and never complained about being cold.

And the best part is that they have never even asked to eat any of their Halloween candy!! When we got home they each got to choose one candy to eat. They both picked NERDS which spilled all over the floor and involved some crying. We put the rest of their candy up and we haven't even heard a word about it. Kyri talks about trick-or-treating and we look at these pictures (and others, which include their candy), so it's not like she forgot...but I'm not going to mention it if they don't!! Surely Gray is wishing at this point he knew a few words, though, because I'm sure he'd be begging for it if he just knew how to talk!! :)

Sunday afternoon we decided to make a yummy Halloween treat....because the candy just wasn't enough sugar! Here's our black and orange (it actually looked more orange in real life) Oreo Dessert

YUMMMM-MY!

On Monday we got to go to the Pumpkin Patch for Kyri's Joy School field trip. Yes, we went, even after Halloween. It was actually supposed to be last Monday, but it got rained out. Anyway, the kids had a great time! Here they are picking out their very own pumpkins!

The best one of the bunch

although, Gray found one slightly bigger

They got to go on this little "train" ride and they both LOVED it!

However, for some reason, Graysen was not about to sit on the little seat next to Kyri. I tried and tried to put him there, but he really REALLY wanted to sit in the bottom. And so he did. For the entire ride! All the other moms were laughing because at first they didn't know where he went...and then they saw just the top of his head! Too cute!

Another funny photo.

Again, Kyri's doing who-knows-what (she's very good at that) and Gray is totally posing for the picture.

Plus, Graysen looks as big as Kyri in this picture....maybe they're twins?!

I love that he's sleeping with Kyri's baby doll! :)

Sunday afternoons turn into family naps in our bed. Gray always starts out in his own bed, but ends up here. And Kyri usually falls asleep around the time Gray comes in. It's kind of a nice little tradition we've started.

The other night Kyri wanted to sleep in a "tent". That meant we also had to make one for Gray. This is what we came up with

Graysen LOVED this! The top of his crib was completely covered and I thought it would be down in seconds, but he actually left it there!

Kyri really loved the idea of this, but never got to sleep in it. :( She lost that privilege when I could no longer count on my hands how many times she came out of her bedroom that night!

It was fun while it lasted, I guess.

Dirty

His clothes were so filthy they had to come off before we even came into the house. If this boy ever steps foot outside he is immediately "digging"...and dirty!

Updates Galore

It's been a while, so I decided to update....A LOT.

Read on!

There's about 4 new posts.

Maybe if I did this more often I wouldn't have to do so much at a time.

What do you think?

Happy Birthday Big Girl!

It seems crazy to think that Kyri is already 3!! Where has the time gone? We have loved every minute (well, most minutes) of her 3 year old life!!

Kyri's birthday was on September 19th. Unfortunately, she was really sick with the stomach flu. We decided it would be best to forgo the cake on this day, but we still let her open and enjoy (as much as she could) her birthday presents. Don't mind her pajamas and uncombed hair...at least she doesn't look so green in these pictures, like she did earlier in the day.

Presents from Mom, Dad, and Gray

All week Kyri was telling us she wanted balloons for her birthday. Then she woke up and, I think because she was so sick, decided she probably wasn't going to get any. So, she said to me, "I don't need any balloons for my birthday. I can just wait until my next birthday for balloons." Oh, sweet girl! You can imagine her surprise when she came downstairs and saw these! And then, to make the story even sweeter: after seeing her balloons she immediately said, "Graysen might want a balloon too. He can have one of mine. He can have the small balloon!" She's not always willing to share, so it was sweet to hear her say that about her birthday balloons, especially since Gray was still in bed! And the 2 kids did carry around a balloon all week long!

She was sick and it was Sunday, so we wouldn't let her ride her new bike outside, but we did let her take it for a spin indoors!

The kitchen she got from Grammy and Grandpa. She LOVES to play with their toy food, so this was a fun gift.

She also got some very nice cards and money for her piggy bank from the other grandparents and great grandparents. What a lucky girl to be SO loved and spoiled!

We finally got around to having birthday cake. Kyri had been asking if she could have a bunch of people over for her birthday cake, but instead we let her share her cake with me, on my birthday! She was pretty excited about that!

Kyri kept going back and forth between wanting a heart cake and a star cake. So, Gary decided to make a "Shapes Cake" for her.

She LOVED it!

Making a wish and blowing out the candles

We made the cake decorating a family event. Actually, the kids and I just sat around and watched as Gary decorated. After he made the frosting he let the kids each lick off one of the beaters. Kyri had hers cleaned off in no time, of course. But Gray had his, well, ALL over. His face, hands, and shirt were covered. So, Kyri, being the clever girl she is, said, "Can I lick your face, Gray?" I immediately laughed out loud and then said, "NO! You can not lick his face. That's gross." Funny. But gross. As my mother pointed out: at least she asked first!

Happy Birthday to the sweetest Kyri girl!

We LOVE you!!

Randomness...

Here's a few random things that I thought were worth sharing.

Look how excited Kyri was on her very first day of Joy School!

On her first day she got to take her backpack and something for show-and-tell. She decided to take Pink Bear (her favorite stuffed animal...she's had it since she was born) and Whitey (her favorite blanket...also been around since she was born)

Yea for Joy School!! She is loving it!

One day I was gone. I was actually gone overnight and Gary was in charge....of everything. When we moved here and actually had a dishwasher I was SO excited. I even told him I would never ask him to do the dishes again. I mean, I can load a dishwasher likes nobody's business....he could have a break for a few years ;) Anyway, being the awesome guy that he is, Gary decided to load and start the dishwasher while I was gone. But when I opened it to unload it, this is what it looked like:

So, random, right? It made me giggle. And I just HAD to take a picture. I couldn't even be upset. I mean, he was nice enough to even load it. And surprisingly enough EVERYTHING came out clean.

You can load the dishwasher ANY time you want, love!! :)

Cute kids on the stairs. Unfortunately, this was the best shot I could get. But it does show off Kyri's cute new haircut.

Pet Peeve

No pictures needed for this post.

I just have to mention a real big pet peeve. Seeing how this is something almost everyone I know says, I figure this would be a good way to address it rather than telling you all individually. Please know that this does not change the way I feel about you or our relationship in any way. It's just that every time you say this it gets to me, deep under my skin.

So, let's just address it this once and be done with it. And if you ever say this again, I will forgive you, but I will probably roll my eyes a bit.

Now, on to the peeve:

TEXTED is not actually a word.

However, it is just fine (and even CORRECT) to use "text" as the past tense of text. For example saying: "I text him back" rather than "I texted him back"

Get it?

Good.

Stop saying texted.

It's not a word.

AND

It drives me CRAZY!

The End.

Family Pictures July 2010

First I have to say how annoyed I am with blogger right now!! I have had SO much trouble uploading photos. I had to do these one at a time. GRRRR. Nevertheless, here they are....FINALLY!

Back in July we had a family reunion and our fabulous sister-in-law took some family photos for us! THANKS, AMBER!!

Here's just a few:

It's been nearly a year since we had family pictures taken. Now I remember why we don't do it more often....I never look as thin as I wish! However, I think that there are still some really great shots, despite the fact that I need to lose 20+ lbs

Cute little family

I LOVE this one. It truly shows off Gray's real personality.

Our model.

Isn't she, though?

My boys!!

Amber couldn't stop snapping pictures of this beauty!

And we didn't even have to rent a fan to get the wind effect...it was actually real wind!!

LOVE her!!

Again, I love this one! This is typical of what goes on around our house. Kyri wants loves. Gray's not so sure, but not quite big enough to push her away...yet. Just you wait, sister....

Again, a typical scenario of our family life. Kyri, being her silly self. Gray, playing in the dirt and getting ready to put it in his mouth, no doubt. And Gary and I pretending not to notice and believing we have the most perfect children in the world!!

Amber always does such a great job! We feel so lucky to have her in our family! To see more of Amber's work check out these websites:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/echoimages/356017840892

http://www.echoimages.blogspot.com/

First Hair Cut....s

For a few months now we have been talking about cutting Kyri's hair. When we asked her when she wanted to cut it she said "September 19th" (her birthday) and she stuck with that date for months. However, Gary has been bugging me to cut Gray's hair for a few weeks now. I told him we should wait because I wanted them to both get their first hair cut together....isn't that cute? Well, yesterday I was going to cut Gary's hair and we decided it sure would be easy to just cut everyone's hair. We asked Kyri if it was OK and she was SO excited. So much so that she got to be the first client.

Before

I was nervous to cut off the really blond ends! Gary and I were both blond when we were little and look at us now!! But it needed to be done!

After

I haven't taken a picture with it styled yet, but I will soon.

Before

It was hard to get Gray's hair to NOT look like this in the back...even when I put gel and hairspray in it! It was time....

After

Much better....if only there wasn't little hairs all over on his face!!

(I am now realizing that I clearly should have cropped this picture...a mess AND Gary's nose....fabulous!)

Bye-bye precious locks!!

Which swatch of hair belongs to which child?

I guess the color of rubber band does give it away a bit!

All in all it was a great hair cutting day! I even cut my hair! And the kids both held SO still. Not a nightmare like I've been imagining for years. (phew)

Good Bye Summer

This summer has been insanely busy!! I have hundreds of pictures I need to blog about, but for some reason that seemed slightly overwhelming. So, instead I picked a few recent photos in hopes that I will get re-motivated to blog again and hopefully many of those pictures are on their way.

First, a sneak peak at our house. We still have to put things on the walls so I'm only posting one picture

The Kitchen

I LOVE my kitchen!!!

If any of you ever went to our old house you can see why I love this kitchen SOOOO much!

In fact, I love love LOVE our entire house!!

3 years of patience in a 700 sq ft place finally paid off :)

One Sunday afternoon Kyri decided she wanted to do Daddy's hair. Of course Gray didn't want to be left out, so we did them both up.

And who could resist a kiss from either of these when they look so strikingly good-looking?!?!

(Now whenever I tell Kyri it's time to do her hair Gray gets REAL excited and I always have to do his first. And when I'm done he runs his fingers through his hair, in search of a rubber band....even though this was a one and only time for that!)

9:00 Church is just too much for a little man who needs his morning beauty rest

Chocolate Pudding....

Everyday I choose my battles.

This day I was not about to put up a fight to spoon feed him.

He was very happy with my choice.

Playing Dress Up

We have been having SO much FUN with family and friends and are actually a little sad that summer is coming to an end. Saying good-bye to summer means saying hello to school. Gary started this week. But on the more positive side of school: Kyri will be starting Joy School next week! I am SO excited for her to have this socialization with other kids in our neighborhood. More to come on that, I'm sure!

And stay tuned!!

I mean, you never know when I'm going to hit a big blogging streak :)

4 Years and Counting

Well, tomorrow Gary and I are taking off for a little Anniversary excursion...without our kids! This will be our first time vacationing without them. And to be honest, we're kind of looking forward to it. I know my kids will do fine. My mom took them for a couple nights a couple weeks ago and she said "they were angels". And for some strange reason I believe her. Let's hope Tammy can say the same after the next 4 days. (Thanks Tam!!)

And...

Happy Anniversary to the Love of My Life!!

I can't believe it's only been 4 years. I cannot remember my life without you being in it. Thank you for taking me away (oh, wait I won the free vacation ;) ) to celebrate the best 4 years of my life!

I LOVE YOU!!

Moving On

Well, it's official. Today we closed on our very first home.

And we couldn't be more excited!!

It has been SO amazing how things have totally and completely fallen into place. It is a true testimony that this is the place we are supposed to be....for a while, anyway.

I don't think there's a single thing I'll miss about this house.

I take that back.

I will miss that I can be lying in bed and Gary can be clear across the house on the computer (or something) and we can carry on a conversation as if we are in the same room. I've become quite lazy. But oh how we are looking forward to a little more space. Okay, a lot more.

I think the thing we will miss the most, though, is our wonderful neighbors and ward! My kids will especially miss our dear neighbor, Carolyn, who let's them swing and slide in her yard any old time. And I will definitely miss her giving me all her coupons! What a fabulous lady!! We have absolutely loved this area! There truly is something special about this little place called Kaysville. Good thing we'll only be 2 exits away so we can come and visit any time!

So, give us some time to settle in a bit and then come and visit!

That's an open invitation to ALL!!

I don't have any recent pictures because everything except the computer and food is packed up! So, more pictures of the kids and the new house, etc. coming soon!

But I for sure wanted to post some of these fabulous photos one of my best friends took for Gray's one year.

Thanks, Britt! They are SO awesome!!!

The other day Kyri told me Graysen was her best friend. Aaahhhh....

Usually she tells me her best friend is pink bear, so I think we're making progress!

Wow! What a handsome bug!

He sat so still for all the pictures...very impressive for a one year old!
He just knows he's cute. And he was more than willing to pose for the camera!
Look at those baby blues!! Now, if that doesn't melt your heart I don't know what will!
Graysen and Alyssa...only one month apart. How fun to grow up with cousins the same age!!
Seriously the 2 cutest kids EVER!!!