Rediculous, I know

Yes, I am really bad at this. This is for my poor family that lives 2,500 miles away.

July

September

First day of preschool!!! Peter LOVES Miss Katie's preschool.


First day of Kindergarten for Dane. Yes, I cried. These last few months have been rough for me. My kids are growing up WAY to fast. I want to stop time.



October
Our annual fall family pictures. Thank you Anne! They are amazing!



Playing in the leaves


Never thought I would see this day. These are my favorite pictures from when I was a kid. In the tub with all my big brothers.
Surprise!!! My mom turned 60 this year so we had a big surprise costume party for her. She was totally surprised and it was a blast. My mom is the most incredible woman, mother, grandma. I just hope that someday I can be half the person she is. Love you Mom!!!

Inside out and backwards

Sweet Pete has made us laugh again today. He has been enjoying dressing himself lately. Mostly because he thinks it is better to wear all articles backwards: shorts, shirts, underwear, etc. So this morning I come in the door from running and Sam quickly motions me to look up the stairs. There stood Peter with a sheepish grin. Shirt on backwards, pants on inside out, rolled at the top and open at the button, as well as wearing Dane's underwear backwards. I snatched a few pics as quickly as I could. It looked so terribly uncomfortable. But, he has been perfectly content all morning.

Thank goodness for Sassy

I just had to say thank you to my friend Lynn for introducing me to the this baby feeder. It has been a lifesaver! Any of you with babies, you have to get one of these. You can put anything in it from ice, to apples, to green beans, to whatever is on your dinner table and your baby will suck out all the juice without choking! Andi loves it! And so do I. At our famiyl reunion it was soooo hot all day and I just kept putting ice cubes in it for Andi. It was great.
The one I got is made by Sassy, but I am sure there are others. I got mine at Babies R Us. It comes with 4 mesh bags, and you can buy spare bags too, which I suggest. For the feeder plus the extra bags it was about $11. Definitely worth the money.

The house wife gets out!

So, I am still terribly behind, but I can't help post all of these fun pictures of when Nana and Papa Lauri were here almost a month ago. They definitely helped this house wife get out of the house. I guess I am just a homebody. Having them here made me wonder why Sam and I don't do these things more often, or at all :)

Andi's first time in the baby pool. Kai was there to distract her from her nervousness.

We haven't been to the zoo for a couple of years. The boys LOVED it. It really wasn't too bad. I might be able to do it on my own. Well, we bought a season pass, so I better be able to. I welcome any invitations for company to the zoo. I need a little encouragement!

Andi's experience at the zoo was limited mostly to the bike trailer. I thought she did pretty well, considering. I think she must have been looking up at the monkeys here. I'd like to think so anyway.

We had a blast out in the back yard having a water fight, which I haven't done in years, and playing on the slip n slide. Super fun.

On their last day here we went up to Cascade Springs and to Deer Creek. The boys had so much fun, and Andi, well she was a good sport. We had such a great time with Nancy and Lauri. We love you guys. Thanks for coming and getting this house wife out!

T-Ball, Jerry, and 2 fingers

Wasn't quite sure what to call this, as I will be playing blog catch up for the next few days. So this will have to do.

Dane played T-ball in June and Sam was lucky enough to be his coach :) It was a bit painful for me as a parent, but I think Dane had fun.

His favorite part was running the bases. As you can see, he never watched where the ball went when he hit it, he was only focused on 1st base.

Sam wanted to grow a mustache to see if he looked like his dad. I told him he could grow a goatee (yes, I googled it to see how to spell it) and after it was long enough he could shave and see how it looks. Here is the result. Just as I expected, he looks so much like his dad, Jerry, who passed away almost 3 years ago. Oh, we miss him. It was fun to see Sam like this, but I couldn't stand it for too long. It was way to strange, and I am not a mustache kind of lady. He shave a few minutes later.

I just have to give a cheer for the 2 fingers. They are a lifesaver. I had to take of picture of this. Andi has been sucking on her 2 fingers of her right hand since she was about 2 months old. She almost always does it to go to sleep, and since she has started eating, she likes to follow up her bites with the 2 fingers. It helps the food go down I guess. So cute. I am sure I will hate it when she starts going to nursery. I am kind of a germaphobe. I guess I will enjoy it for now though.

Andi loves our big Kai Kai and he is so sweet with her. We love having our Kai. As I am writing this, the boys have built a fort for them and the dog and he actually quite likes it. He is laying in there chewing a bone while they have a little picnic in there. I love boys!

It isn't about the candy!

I shouldn't say anything cause I will probably ruin everything, but I must give major credit where credit is due. Our boys have been so amazing lately. They have been playing together so well. Hours go by, the two of them playing and I don't hear a single peep. I must be the luckiest mom ever. It makes me so happy to see them love each other and love playing together. These pics were taken about a week ago one day when they decided to play "pinata" with a milk box from Costco. You know, come to find out, it isn't about the candy! It is all about breaking things with a bat! They were not happy until that milk box was in 20 pieces. They had so much fun. I am too lazy to load up the video I took, and I didn't get any pics of them in the act. Anyway, my handsome boys.

I had to bribe Peter with a popsicle to let me take pictures of him. This is Dane teaching him how to smile. UGH! Dane's picture smile was so bad (by that I mean fake) back when he was 3, that I told him to smile with his mouth closed. Big mistake. Now that is all he will do, and he his teaching it to his little brother.

Today Sam sat Andi down on the grass and she just sat there! For quite a while she sat up. I think she really enjoyed it. This is the first time she has done this for more than a few seconds. She will be 5 months in a couple of days. CRAZY!

Oops! Good thing Daddy was there.

It's done!

Our piles of dirt and rocks are gone forever! This corner of our property has been such an eyesore for so long and I can finally say it is done, sort of. I love this picture of my boys. Sam is looking at the gravel in the truck wondering if it is ever going to be gone. Peter has quickly turned his back to the camera as always lately, and Dane is just being his happy helpful, smiley self. I must say our boys were big “helpers” through this whole process.

Andi and Dane in her crib. Dane looks so little in this picture. Maybe that is why I love it so much.

A fun FHE activity for all. Dane's new legos have provided a lot of entertainment for all of us. I think my favorite was Sam's snowboarding robot in blue and white. Clever.

Andi won't take a bottle, so Peter has been been exploring some options. She's not to fond of much but Mama's milk.

We had Ben, my parents dog, over for a playdate one day while they were out of town. He spent the day hiding in my bishop's weed under a bush, and then, my favorite, in the sandboat. Our dog, Kai, spent his time standing next to the sandboat begging Ben to come out and play. Sad I didn't get a picture of that.