Ian's Piano Recital

Ian had his first piano recital this afternoon. He played "Love Theme" from Star Wars the Clone Wars. We are so proud of him and happy that he is learning to read and play music!

BJ B-Day

The twins turned 3 on the 19th. Here are some thoughts I have about 3 year olds:

1. 3 year olds like to sleep in their parents' bed.
2. 3 year olds do not like to clean up.
3. 3 year olds must get potty trained before they are 4 year olds.
4. 3 year olds don't want to take naps any more.
5. 3 year olds are too smart for my own good.

Oh the horror.

We had Jill's family down for the birthday. Jackson was so excited for "my Tyler" to come over for his birthday. Hailey was convinced that it was only Brandon's birthday. We let them open their cards that morning. Marianne sent some that made noises/sang songs. They Played with them for a good half hour. We went to church and the nursery leaders gave them candy bars. Afterward they had a birthday nap. Then we had birthday tacos, birthday presents, and birthday cake. What more could 2 little kids ask for?

I don't know if I've ever seen a kid love a birthday present so much.

The older kids seemed to enjoy the dragon castle even more than the birthday boys, haha.
Let's see....where to begin? Brandon and Jackson have become quite the pair. They are finally playing together a lot, which is usually in a destructive manner. Brandon loves dinosaurs, Jackson loves Power Rangers. Brandon is now a full 2 inches taller than Jackson. And quite a bit heavier. They both love candy. Jackson and Hailey pal around a lot. Sometimes they lay on the couch together under a blanket. Brandon still loves yogurt, and eating in general. Jackson still sleeps with all his "friends" in his bed and has added a couple more since I last wrote about it. They are both funny little guys, and mischievous. I keep finding them hiding under the table eating cookies or candy they aren't supposed to have. I can't help but laugh every time because the fact is, it's kind of hilarious that they steal candy and cookies and hide under the table to eat them. We spend a lot of time at the park these days, trying to burn off all their energy. Brandon likes to ride his tricycle down a big hill at the park, he must take after his mom, lol.

So we survived 3 years of infant/baby/toddler twin boys. They say the worst is over....but I know 3 year olds. I'm sure this next year will be full of fun surprises.

January

January flew by way too fast. Adam had his surgery on the 19th. So far, so good. He hasn't had any episodes since and we are hopeful that he never will again. My mom came to help out with the kids for the surgery and took over 100 pictures. Here are a few.

Brandon wore a bandaid on his forehead for 3 days straight. He did not have a boo-boo.

That Jack is something else...

Ian and his cousins, Chad and Tyler.

Brandon and Jackson doing what they do best: rough-housing. Jackson has recently discovered Power Rangers, so he goes around the house saying "hi-yah!" and kicking the air (sometimes people). Brandon likes to chase everyone around with his "Dinosaur Rex." Here they are doing both to each other.

Hey, if you're going to throw a tantrum you may as well go for the full face plant into the floor style.

Ian got to go to lunch with Grandma. It was, of course, the best day ever.

After my mom left, Adam's mom came. It's been way too long since her last visit, the kids were so excited. Ian played games with her any chance he got.
One day I got a phone call from my sister Jill who said, "Hurry, walk out your front door!" I did, and this is what I saw. WOW.

Wow, finally finished!

Catching up with 7 months worth of posts has taken all day, but it is done. I am proud of myself for doing it before the end of the year. This year has been pretty crazy. We were so sick for the first 6 months. Ian and I had strep over and over again. His surgery seems to have cured that problem. Hooray! Adam made more than 6 trips to the emergency room because of his heart. One while we were on vacation. Four of those trips were in an ambulance. He is having another ablation procedure in January. We are hoping this time he will be fixed for good. When he's not at the hospital he is working working working. Ian is busy with school and piano and playing with his siblings, friends, and his video games. Hailey loves to draw and play Play-Doh. Brandon likes to wander around and eat all day long. He also loves his dinosaurs. Jackson is my little wild child. He's got a great big personality for such a tiny kid and he makes me laugh all the time. He also loves to wear his "Shrek shirt and green pamps" every day. I have been teaching piano lessons. I have 3 students. I finally joined the ward choir and am still the Primary Secretary. Life is super busy. What more can I say? I am trying to enjoy this stage more than hate it, but some days the hating it side wins. My children are very demanding and young and there are a lot of them. But we survive. And they all seem happy. That's what matters right? I can very easily say "goodbye and good riddance" to 2011 and we are hoping for a wonderful new year.

PS you have to click on "older posts" at the bottom to see all of the updates.

Summer Randomness

Random photos and events from the last 7 months.

Jackson went through a Minnie Mouse phase. He called it "Mickey Mouse" though. We didn't have a Mickey. He wouldn't go to bed without her. Since then he has added Barney, a Care Bear, a dinosaur, Donald Duck, and Winnie the Pooh. He has to have all of his "friends" in his bed with him at nap and bed time. Cute.

Adam's grandparents (Slama) stopped over for a surprise visit. We were happy to see them, this was the second time in one year, a record! Doesn't Adam look like his grandpa?

We spent A LOT of time at the park near the end of the summer. Especially any park with a water feature. This particular park had a small shaded sand pit besides the water area. It was a favorite summer destination.

One night we found Ian in the hall upstairs like this:

He had set up booby traps at our door and the top of the stairs. Hee hee.

We got a new gas grill on Labor Day. It is awesome. Adam is awesome at cooking on it. Yes, that is grilled corn on the cob. Yum.

My Birthday.

Jackson with his dinosaur tattoo. And blue smudge over his eye.

Jackson showing off his great fashion sense.

One day I looked in the snack cupboard and found a whole unwrapped King Size candy bar with one bite out of it.

Ian's tower.The kids on Christmas Eve.

Halloween 2011

The kids loved Halloween, the twins were so cute. Jackson would say "I got it!" after every bit of candy got put in his pumpkin. Ian was a storm trooper and Hailey was Darth Vader. Hey, that's what she wanted to be. Halloween turned Brandon into a little candy monster devil child. I had to get rid of all the candy after about 2 days. My mom came for a visit that week and we enjoyed her company.

We went to the ward Trunk or Treat and then to a few houses in the neighborhood. The twins thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience.

The Four Amigos. To Ian's left is Liam Clayton, Ian's best friend.

I carved Mario myself. Thank you very much.

That week I chopped about 10-12 inches off my hair. It was over due. I love my new look!

Hailey Turns #5

Hailey turned 5 on November 22nd. I really can't believe she's 5 years old!

We had birthday smoothies for breakfast.

Since her birthday was 2 days before Thanksgiving, Auntie Marianne flew in for the big day.

Dora the Explorer was the theme. I ordered this cake from Albertson's and was so happy with the results. It sure saved me a headache trying to make a Dora cake too.

The Green cousins came over for a little cake party.

Hailey got a Dora bike. She rides it around our small patio in the backyard daily.

Hailey has really blossomed recently. She has been quite a handful the last few years but is starting to become more agreeable and actually quite sweet and funny. She loves school and has a few friends in her class. The teachers call them the three amigos. She is learning to write her name and practices on every surface she can find, including the fridge. She still has many of those "special" moments, but they are getting fewer. She makes our lives interesting.

I don't have any pictures of Thanksgiving but thought I would mention that I made the turkey this year and it turned out delicious. I was very nervous about it. We had a great time with Jill's family and Marianne. On Thanksgiving morning Jill's husband, Doug, and my nephews, Chad and Tyler, surprised us with a major service project in our backyard. They chopped down all 4 of our Oleander trees and hauled away all the yard waste back there. They were amazing. They worked on it for about 5 hours and did an awesome job. We were really surprised and so so happy.