Cookies that I would never hand out to friends and family

I decided to make peanut butter cookies for family home evening one night and the boys really wanted to help. As I put on my apron they went and grabbed their aprons, I couldn't say no. They were very hands on and even though we washed their hands I would not hand these out to anyone but our little family. I'm pretty sure Ryan coughed on them at one point- yum! Regardless, they were still delicious and it was a great time.

1Box+2Boys=rainy day fun

There was a good week that we were stuck inside and things got crazy at times with these wild men. I found a box in the garage, got out all of our stickers, markers, and other craft supplies and let them go to town with their box. They played in it all day. I love that they are so imaginative.

Bye, Bye Diamond

When Daniel and I lived in San Diego we wanted to get a kitten. There is a kitten shortage down there so it took us three months to finally find an available kitty. When we saw Diamond we knew she was the perfect kitty for us. We adored her. When we would come back and visit Oakdale, she would make the trip with us- we didn't want to leave her alone. We bought her treats and toys and played with her everyday. Then we had Ryan and Dylan and Diamond was not so fond of all of the love and attention she was getting from them. It got to the point that people didn't even know we had a cat because she would hide out in our closet all day until the boys would go to bed. Then she would come out and cuddle on our lap to watch some tv. She also slept on the end of our bed everynight. She was a good cat. We kind of became disenchanted with having a pet once we had the companionship of Ry and Dillybug, but we would have kept Diamond until the end if it wasn't for the fact that the boys were having several asthma attacks a year and the pediatrician finally said that the cat had to go. It took us awhile to find someplace for her to go, but we finally found a pet rescue that did not euthanize. We didn't want her to die just because the boys are allergic. I cried like a baby when we dropped her off- weird, since I didn't particularly feel a strong connection with her anymore. I did get a little reminiscient and remember all the good times we had together. Ryan was sad and Dylan kept saying, "my kitty gone". Then Dylan kept going into the closet where she would sleep all day and say, "kitty die". I don't know why he thought she died, but I explained that she has a new home with her kitty friends. So, this is my tribute to Diamond, a great cat that gave us the best seven years of her life. Thanks for all the memories!

Sweet Baby Girl

On Saturday we went and saw our little baby girl. Let me just clarify that it is definitely a girl. We were so nervous that it was going to change on us. We also discovered that she is quite stubborn (I have no I idea how that could be?!). She was sleeping with her hands over her face almost the whole time. She would peek out for a second and then go back to hiding. She has the cutest pouty lips and just a sweet little face. We are so excited for her to come!

Family Pictures

Here's the most recent picture of our family- only a few more months until we add our little girl!

Movie Night

On Saturday Daniel and I painted the hallway. We had to finish it after we went out to dinner for Grandma's birthday so we put a movie on for the boys. Ryan has been wanting a tv for his room and Daniel came up with a great idea. He put our portable tvs on the bunk bed and they had their own little theater. They loved it and sat there pretty well, we were able to finish painting.

Happy Valentine's Day

Traditionally I make dinner for Valentine's dinner, but this year we went to the Elder's Quorum Dinner at church. I decided to do breakfast instead, which I think will be our new tradition. I set everything up and made waffles with strawberries. I still put the candy on the table, so the boys pretty much had candy for breakfast. They loved it and they loved that they got little presents too. I was so lucky to have three Valentine's! Daniel asked me, "Do you mind if I don't wrap your present fancy?" I told him I didn't mind and expected a gift bag or something, but that was just too fancy so he used paper grocery bags- very classy. We had a great Valentine's.

We love to see the temple...

The next week after our zoo trip we decided to go to with Daniel to work and then visit the temple in Oakland. Funny, but his appointment cancelled again. We had to make a couple stops at some schools for Daniel and then we visited the temple. That was quite an experience. That day it was pouring! Walking around did not seem to be on the agenda. We all got out of the car and went inside the visitors center. I was holding Dylan, and although it was pouring down rain I thought it was interesting that his pants were wet. Well, we had a blow out diaper! I had to change him but it was not your usual diaper change. All of his clothes were stained and he had to get his bum washed in the sink (isn't motherhood glamorous?). We had to leave and go get him some new clothes so Dylan walked out of their in a diaper and sweatshirt. We were quite a group! Ryan was being crazy too so they must have thought we were crazy. So, $50 later at Baby Gap (the closest store to the temple) we returned and had a great experience there. They had a nice exhibit on families and it made me feel so grateful for my sweet little family. I'm so happy that I get to be with them forever! After walking around the visitor's center the rain subsided and we went and walked around for a few minutes. All in all I would say it was a great trip, definitely memorable.

The Oakland Zoo

Since the beginning of the year Daniel's been working in the bay area. One day we decided to go with him and visit the Oakland Zoo. It worked out nice because his appointment cancelled so we got to spend the whole day with him. The boys LOVED the zoo. The last time we were there Dylan was just a baby and Ryan was about Dylan's age. The enjoyed all of the animals. Their favorite exhibit was the penguins. Daniel and I enjoyed them too. It was fun to watch them race in the water and then they would jump up. It had all of us laughing.

Things Ryan does instead of going to bed...

We are having quite a time getting Ryan to bed at night. He usually falls asleep around 10 or 11 every night. We don't know what happened to him, he used to go to bed at 7 or 8. We have tried everything! Here are some pictures of what Ryan does instead of sleeping. Coloring is one of his favorite things to do. We finally took out his desk because it was such a temptation.