Mr. Max

Our Christmas decorations are located on the highest shelf in the garage. In order to retrieve them for use, one must climb a very tall, very high ladder; then pull the huge totes off the shelf and balance them all the way down the ladder. I know what you are thinking-no I did not fall off the ladder...I am not that clumsy. But I did happen to drop one of my precious totes!

As I was pulling one of my Christmas totes from the shelf I realized that I had gotten myself pinned between the tote and the garage door railing. The tote couldn't move because it was wedged between me and the shelf. As I was trying to maneuver myself around the railing and the tote... my Christmas tote slipped from my hands. First it hit the shelf next in line, then it bounced off of some boxes Charlie has stacked up, then into our wheel barrow and onto the cement garage floor! It all seemed to happen in slow motion and there was nothing I could do to stop it.

So there I was standing on top of my ladder looking down at this tote hoping upon hope that there wasn't anything I truly loved in there (nativity scene). Then in the background I hear, "Wow Mom! I closed my eyes for that!" I turned around to see Max standing in doorway, eyes as big as saucers. All I could say was "Me too." Max then followed with: "Good Job, Mom." I thought he was being sarcastic..then he continued "Good job getting those down so fast. That was real fast!" Too funny, thank you Little Man! He always knows when I need him the most. (It wasn't my nativity-and can you believe that only one thing broke! Some wings broke off an angel-SUPER GLUE!)

As I was snuggling Max at bedtime tonight he was asking me questions about living with Heavenly Father before he came here to be my baby. It was so great to have a such a loving and meaningful conversation with him (as meaningful as any conversation can get with a 3 year old). When our conversation ended I climbed out of his bed and I felt good-I was proud that he 'gets it,' it was a good Mom moment for me. Then as I headed out the door I heard, "Mom, why is pee yellow?" WHAT?! Thanks again Max. :) Just when I thought I had you figured out!

GO POKES!

A few weekends ago we took Max and Kaysie to their first UW Football game. Max absolutely loves to watch football on TV, so we really thought he'd have a great time. Charlie and I were a little excited too, we haven't been back to Laramie since we graduated a few years ago.

We (I mean Charlie) decided to leave at 5 am and drive straight to the game. We had hoped that our little ones would sleep most of the way-like I said we hoped. I think Max slept for maybe an hour...he was way too excited. We sat through Wyoming's beating we didn't realize that they weren't even going to score ONE point against the "stinking BYU guys." (Max's quote) After sitting through a terrible game and great weather we went to our hotel for a quick nap.

Max thought our hotel was a "beautiful house," he wanted to stay there "for lots of long times." After our very quick rest we headed back to campus to take in a UW Basketball game. Thank you Cowboys for getting at least one win for us! Max and I spent almost the entire first half of the basketball game chasing Pistol Pete down. Charlie thought we were hilarious-he said he'd watch us pop out of an entrance tunnel just in time to see Pistol Pete moving to the next section. Max kept telling me I wasn't going fast enough-so we ended up running a few times. By the time we tracked Pistol Pete down he was right in front of our seats! We could have just waited patiently at our seats and still have met him. (but then I wouldn't have been put in the running for Mom of the Year! ;) It made Max's whole weekend-he enjoyed meeting Pistol Pete far and above anything else we did.

Go Pokes! Great win last weekend-let's do it again!!!

Happy (Belated) Halloween!

I know it's a little late but I couldn't let Halloween get too far in the past without saying Happy Halloween to everyone...Halloween is Max's favorite holiday so we were kept pretty busy. Here are my excited Trick-or-Treaters

Here are the final results of our yearly Pumpkin Carving Contest. Charlie's turned out so neat that Max (once again showing that he is a fair weather fan) ditched our pumpkin and claimed Charlie's!

Kaysie Jo

Little Miss Kaysie is growing so fast I think I can actually see it! I wanted to share a few of her great highlights....

Kaysie loves, loves, loves eating food! In fact the only way you could possibly understand, (or truly appreciate) her love for food is by watching her eat! She is definitely taking after her Mommy!

Her love of food brings me to my next point:

At Kaysie's four month check up I was told that she is in the 50th percentile for height and 30th for weight. Her stats: 12.1 pounds and 25 inches long! Most of you reading this might not see that as anything spectacular but to us little people it is incredible. Max was never above the 3rd percentile for anything-ever.

A few weeks ago Little Miss started to get her two bottom teeth! I know what you are thinking.."she is only four months old, she can't possibly be getting teeth." Wrong-she got them and they are sharp! My baby girl never, never cries and one Sunday afternoon I could not get her to stop..ta da teeth! Poor thing. Max never hurt when his teeth came through and they came so fast. Kaysie's took a whole week to pop through, and it was pretty painful for her. Isn't it amazing that two people can be so much alike, come from the same place and still be complete opposites? Max and Kaysie seem so much alike and yet everything about them and each milestone has been completely different.

Kaysie loves her brother and is already trying play with him. She doesn't fully understand that she is too little to try crawling. She can't support her body yet, so she tries "worming" or rolling across the floor to catch him.

Like I said she is growing soooo fast!

Game Day!

This is what my family was up to last weekend.

My husband got the kids dressed after I bathed them...Go Redskins! You should have seen the proud Daddy! (I had to put a bow in Kaysie's hair, without it she looked a little like a boy!)


During the game the Redskins started to lose and Max took his jersey off. Charlie was teasing him and trying to get him to put it back on..after a while Max got up and stopped watching the game. Charlie's teasing continued..Charlie finally said, "Max, Kaysie is still watching the game." Max's comeback: "Yeah, cuz she can't walk!" SNAP! I thought I was going to bust my gut I was laughing so hard! In other words if Kaysie could have walked, she would have walked right out of there.


Later in the game the Redskins started to win and my fair weather fan decided he'd put his jersey back on. :)

Why?

"Why?" is a word-or in Max's case; a phrase that I hear about 200 times a day...
I have gotten so used to hearing "why" all day long that I don't really notice it-I answer and then we move on to another "why". The other day my brother spent a few hours with Max, by the end of the day Devin said, "Why do you say "why" all the time?" (It was driving him crazy!) Max looked right at him and said, "Because I don't know." DUH Devin! Pretty simple!

As I was driving Max to school yesterday, we passed the sugar beet piles. He started asking me questions about the beets; what they are for, what they do with them, can we eat them, are they good, etc. He asked questions for what seemed like forever and then when he was satisfied with this new information he just said, "Oh, I didn't know that."

These two conversations with my little man were pretty priceless. They were very simple-so I had to write them down, I didn't want to forget them.

September 15th

For the last 3 years September 15th has been a very special day-it is my nephew Hudson's birthday. This year not only did we get to celebrate Hudson's birthday but we got to welcome my baby brother home! He just served a two year mission for the LDS church-he was in Roseville California (welcome back to Wyoming! You missed it didn't you?!).

We started our day by partying at Chuck E Cheeses-thanks for inviting us and sharing your birthday with us Hudson!

The boys had a blast!

The boys thought Kaysie needed a ride too

This is my favorite picture- Hudson was having way too much fun so Cari had to climb up and join in!

After convincing the boys to leave we headed for the airport....

My camera happy Dad

The Family

Here the boys are- waiting...

waiting,

and waiting!

And finally.....

Hugs from the Momma!

Loves from Dad!

The boys and Uncle Devin!

Max's first day of school

You read that right...much to my dismay, my little boy is growing up very quickly. He started preschool this last Friday and will only go twice a week. He thinks it's great-I had a hard day-it was not because he was gone for a few hours, it was because he is actually old enough to be gone to school! Where does the time go? I thought he'd be my little baby forever.

This new adventure in Max's life happened quiet fast. We came to this decision in a little under a week-definitely not enough time for the Mom to adjust!

Here is his picture as he is heading out the door... saying, "I'm going to SCHOOL!" Good Luck Baby-We know you'll be great!

As for our newest baby, she is growing like a weed! She absolutely adores her brother, he can always get her to smile. I am telling you, time flies! I am pretty sure the last three months have been the fastest in my life.

Weekend at the Cabin

A few weekends ago we finally took our summer cabin trip. This year we made the Walker family join us for some much needed fishin'! We had so much fun! We can't wait to do it again! Here are a few good pics from our trip.

I had to put this picture up-Aren't Max's Grils (girls) so cute!

Max loved riding the 4 wheelers-I don't know which he enjoyed more the ride or the helmet.

The littlest ones just hanging out-the Dads decided it would be easier to carry them down in their car seats, rather then putting them into the baby packs, so that they would have somewhere to sit once we were situated. It worked pretty well for Aubrey and I...but I think the Dad's underestimated the weight of baby + car seat!

Thanks for coming with us guys! We had so much fun!

Summer

First I'd like to thank everyone that left me feedback about their double stroller situations...I know you have all saved me a lot of back aches and trouble! In case you care-I ordered and already received and used the Joovy caboose...the one Tina recommended. It is really nice-it's not any heavier than my graco one-seater and it folds flatter!

Anyway...Our summer-so far-has consisted of a few main events.

The first of course was the arrival of Kaysie! I think we are still getting used to having Kaysie around. She is a great baby, she is so quiet I worry that I am going to forget about her! Max is a super big brother...he would and does do anything for her!

The second event wasn't a happy one...well for Max anyway. Our "beloved" fish (that's right I said fish) died. We had this same fish for over two years! (one year shy of Max's age...so to him it's been around forever.) The day it died I decided it would be best to tell Max what had happened. As I proceeded to tell him his first words were, "Can I see it?" Charlie and I then assumed that this would be an easy conversation and an easy "good bye." We were wrong! After Max looked at Fishy and realized he was really dead-he lost it. He began to cry and sob...I couldn't believe it. This was over a fish-how attached can you really get to a fish? Apparently more than I gave Max credit for. After a long discussion of Fishy going to Heaven to be with Heavenly Father Max seemed okay. We then had a burial at sea (toilet). Throughout the next few days Max would have a breakdown here and there and cry for his Fishy. When the breakdowns began to subside he liked to talk about Fishy going to see Heavenly Father....then one afternoon as Max was finishing up in the bathroom he shot this question at me: "We flushed Fishy for him to go to Heaven. Do my poops go to Heaven too?" YIKES! That was a whole different conversation-I'll spare you those details! Max has let Fishy go...I honestly couldn't believe he was so upset-he fed him every morning and said goodnight to him at night-that was as deep as that relationship went! I hope and pray that nothing ever happens to Buzz! Buzz is Max's true companion.

Our third event...SWIMMING LESSONS! Max was absolutely terrified of water-but he did it! He had to have pep talks every morning before we left for lessons, but he did it. He got in and tried everything! I couldn't be more proud of him...if you only knew how he feared water. He used to freak in the tub if water splashed his face! Now he wants to take a shower! I don't think he would have been so successful in his lessons if he hadn't had such great teachers that he trusted completely. Yeah for Tracy! (and goggles)

Stroller Dilemma

I have a few questions for anyone who has ever had or ever used a double stroller. Did you like it-or not like it? What kind did you get?

I am looking into buying a double stroller for my two kiddos. Max lost his opportunity to walk through the stores the second he did it-I realized that without the Dad around (or an extra eye from the Nana), Max really needs to be contained in the stores. He is so small I loose him very quickly and that terrifies me-I am a worrier about kids being stolen. (I still worry that I might get stolen -crazy I know-but it is true.-Thanks Mom!)

I have been very close to buying the Graco dou glider-I like that it is tandem (easier to get through shopping racks) and it can hold a baby carrier-for the littlest one. I just don't know if Max is too big for it already-in his eyes anyway. I have also seen the Sit-n-stand-which would be great for Max...but I am not sure about Kaysie. The front bar has to be removed and replaced in order to put the baby carrier on. I didn't think this would be bad- I thought I'd just lay Kaysie in it- but apparently it doesn't lay flat and she can't sit up yet... blah, blah, blah!

So I have a dilemma on my hands. I don't want to spend a fortune on a stroller when I have a great one kid seater and I don't know how long I'll need a double. If anyone has had experience with any kind of double stroller-please let me know.

My Brother

My Little Brother has been serving a mission for the past two years-we miss him incredibly! In his last email he shared the good news he is coming home....not yet, exactly-but he got his official date of release. We get to see him September 15th! (on Hudson's b-day!) We still have a while, but we can't wait! The boys (Max and Hudson) are really excited to see Uncle Devin. Before Devin left he was very close to each of the boys, not a day went by that he didn't stop by to just "hang" with them. We aren't sure if they really remember him, or if they are going by our stories of him...but they know the words Uncle Devin mean fun!

Here is a picture of the boys now

This is a picture taken of Max, in Utah-dropping Devin off at the MTC

Here is Hudson at Devin's going away party

Devin and Max outside the MTC

The boys have changed quiet a bit since Devin saw them last. Last week in his email he made some comment about how weird it is to see your nephews grow through pictures and how much weirder it is to only know of your niece through pictures and emails. I sent Devin some pictures from the 4th and he said, "it is always crazy to see them! (the boys) I am always like those are not my nephews! but they are! it is so crazy! i cant wait to just hang out with them!" They can't wait either!

A Day At The Park

Kaysie and her favorite blanket

Max and Hudson

Baby Blessing

We blessed Kaysie at church this last Sunday...she looked beautiful! Her dress was so pretty, my Grandma Leonhardt had kept my Mother's baptism dress from when she was a baby and we were able to use it for Kaysie. I thought I'd share a picture of my baby girl in her pretty dress with you. (The picture doesn't show all the neat details and stitches in the dress.)

Fireworks!

Max had a blast over the 4th! He decided that he really likes fireworks. After we attended the Mustang days fireworks he couldn't wait for more fireworks. Before the actual fireworks started on the 4th we started our festivities with some s'mores roasting and some sparkler racing. Max and Hudson were having so much fun with the sparklers they went through about 50 of them. Of course they got the standard-"Don't touch them they are hot" lecture and "Don't get close to each other with them" lecture as well. All was going great for quiet a while, they went through about 3 packs without an incident. Then it happened....Max's sparkler went out. I swear it happened in slow motion, he reached up and pinched the still orange end of the sparkler. He burned the tip of his pointer finger pretty bad. I rushed him into the house to get cold water on it. He was pretty tough...after the initial crying stopped and Aunt Cari saved the day with an ice pack, he went back to the fireworks. He did have to keep coming back to the ice throughout the night-but I was pretty impressed when he wanted to do sparklers again!

Kaysie in her festive, Red-White-and Blue outfit