seemed like a good idea at the time...

Okay, well maybe it didn't seem like a GREAT idea at the time, but I didn't think it would be too big of a deal when Chico asked if he could turn on the hose and fill a hole in the dirt with water. They get muddy all the time, right?!

Well this turned into a mud puddle like they had never experienced before. Chico stripped off his shirt so he could lay in it. After he did that I realized I had better pull the camera out.

Eventually Griz took his pants off, or his pants took themselves off, I'm not sure what happened. :)

I forgot to mention there were TWO mud puddles. :)

They were just having the time of their lives out there until it turned a bit cold suddenly.  I stripped them down and tried to spray them down with the hose before taking them into the house but that didn't work out so well. Imagine a naked 3 year old running away laughing/screaming from his mother who was trying to spray him with cold water. Yeah, so since the hose didn't work, I decided I'd carry them by their armpits into the tub and shower them off instead before letting them have a bath.  Chico loves showers but Griz acts like he's being murdered when you turn the shower on him.  It took him about 10 minutes of finger sucking at the back of the tub to recover from the trauma of the shower. Chico took advantage of that time and played at the faucet. Usually Griz somehow boxes Chico out of that position and hogs the faucet.

Near the end of the bath, they were both a little tired after a fun filled day so they were just sitting there leaning against the side of the tub relaxing and laughing with each other. Priceless.

Clear as Mud

I was cleaning up the other morning and found some scrap paper Brent had been working Chemistry problems on the night before.  I just had to laugh.  I mean look at it!  After I showed him this picture he pulled out his notebook and showed me something even MORE complex he had been working on.  It's craziness I tell you!

I sure love my sweet husband and appreciate SO much all the hard work he is putting in. I also apologize to him for the glazed over look I get after he's been explaining Chemistry or Genetics to me. At least he gets a good laugh as he watches my head start bobbing when I fall asleep while I'm trying to listen.

Chico's Cousin-Friend

Chico is so lucky to have a cousin just 6 months older than him that he can play with because for a majority of their lives we've lived pretty close to them.

The other day we had him over for the afternoon to play and these boys had SO much fun. 

 I brought the camera out to take some pictures and Chico didn't quite grasp the concept of a side hug for the picture. N was trying to get him to hug from the side but Chico just didn't quite get it. It's so cute though.  

As I listened to and watched them play I had to laugh because you can sure tell the difference between them. N is the 5th in his family Chico of course is the oldest and their personalities are a lot different.  N was a good peacemaker when my boys were being grumpy about sharing, and he knew a lot of fun games his siblings had taught him.  I think I need to have him over at least once a week. Sound like a deal Christa? :)

Can't get enough of Griz in this shirt. My boys were so well dressed that day. lol :)

Watching these boys work was so cool to me.  They are little men! They were trying to fix something and they were working those little muscles of theirs so hard. I don't know if I can describe it adequately. It was fun to watch though. I don't think I ever played that way.

It started to sprinkle so I pulled out the umbrella. It was adorable seeing these two share it.

We decided to come inside finally and Chico decided to pile all his toys in his "recycle bin".  Silly kid.

tools

Chico has been a little obsessed with tools and building things lately.  It's pretty adorable to see him work so hard at something with such faith and determination that he can do it.  Sometimes he uses his toy tools sometimes he works hard on me to let him use Daddy's tools.  The best is when Daddy can be there himself to teach Chico, he loves it so much.

p.s. I got Griz dressed right after I took this picture so no worries. :)

the rest

I am tired tonight and grateful to be home safe and sound.  I did a fun engagement photo shoot in Logan today and was very grateful the rain waited until I was done shooting. But while I was driving through Sardine Canyon I was wishing I had stayed in Logan until it stopped raining. I hate driving in bad weather and in the dark. Combine the two and I'm like a 70 year old woman behind the wheel.  Gratefully nothing happened, even when I hit some standing water right when a semi was passing me with a tidal spray of water.  Yes, semis were passing me right and left. That's how slow I was driving. I had my sweet boys in the car which always seems to put me on edge more to keep us all safe. Chico was singing the InsideOut's version of Peanut Butter and Jelly. It's a cute song and it took me a bit to figure out what he was singing. Then he was changing up the words. I love when he does that, he's such a tease.

Now Chico is tucked sweetly in his bed. Before he went to bed however he gathered every blanket he could find and stacked them nicely on top of each other until his bed was about a foot higher than it started.   He even stole poor Grizwald's pillow and blanket and he didn't seem to understand why that was a problem. Silly kid.

I hope these two can always be friends..

playin' in the dirt... again

Does it seem like all of my pictures are out in the dirt? Yeah, well... they're out there a lot.

They love climbing in that wheel barrow.  Chico really wants one of his own that he can push and dump.

Chico wanted to take a picture of me.  He was having trouble lifting up the camera so I laid down on the grass.  Guess we'll have to work on his focusing skills. ;)

I saw this article linked on Facebook and I really needed it. It talks about how our children need their moms. Thought I'd share it here. The article below it was really good too, this is the link if you want it here.

For me the first article's meaning had another meaning, it was that they need our time and our smiles and our playing with them.  I can't constantly be trying to get them to entertain themselves. They need their mommy. (Brent is so good at this when he is home and he really tactfully encourages me to do the same, I really want to be better at this).

Tonight Chico and I were giving each other BIG hugs.  He could feel my huge love for him and I know it made him feel so happy.  I love those moments.

no longer a baby?

So many things are leading me to believe that my cute little Grizzly Bear is no longer a baby. Acting like he wants to use the toilet. Starting to talk. Teasing us and his older brother.

And, I mean look at those jeans! Does he not just look so grown up in them?!

At least he still cuddles with me and sucks his fingers and likes me to hold him. I wish he could stay little for longer.

 I know he won't though. This one wouldn't either...

Preschool in the fall. Really!?  Where has the time gone?

proud moments

Caution to reader: If you're not amused by stories about kids poop and pee then you might want to skip to the next post (unless wedding pictures bother you too, then skip on to the next post, unless children bother you too, which if that's the case just don't read my blog). ;) For some reason I find these stories worthy to tell but I understand if you don't. Feel free not to read ahead, I won't be offended.

When you're single or have just a little baby in  your arms and you hear stories about kids pooping and peeing in places they shouldn't and all of that nastiness you have this illusion in your mind that you can probably prevent that from happening. Your kids will never do things like that! And then your kids get older and you realize  that you have less control than you think and kids will be kids.

Just in the last two days I've had two such experiences.

I walked outside to check on Chico and it looked like he was pulling up his shorts. For some reason I didn't think much of it for some reason. But then a little later he just randomly told me, "I peed in Grizwald's bike".

Fabulous, this is Grizwald's bike in case you were wondering how he could pee IN it. That's how.

And then the other morning Chico had just gone potty and he came out and I was helping him with something. Then I sensed that quiet that comes when one of your kids is up to something they shouldn't be. I told Chico to run and check on Griz.  Next thing I hear is Chico yelling, "He's drinking pee!!!" I sprinted for the bathroom and sure enough Griz was dipping a flosser in Chico's freshly peed in water and putting it in his mouth. Blech!!! Man I need to be even more viligant about making sure Chico remembers to shut the lid and close the bathroom door when he is done.  The reason he doeesn't have much practice in this is because he poops almost every time he goes to the bathroom so I come in and wipe him. His mode of telling me he needs to be wiped is classic. He yells at the top of his lungs, "Mom! You are ready to WIPE me!!!!"  Then he hides his head in the shower curtain and I walk in and he says, "Say, where is Chico?" and I say it then he says, "Say, I can't see his eyes or his mouth!" and I say it while I'm wiping him. Then he says, "Say, I'm just going to shut this lid on him." and I say it and shut the lid on him.  Then he throws the curtain aside and I say, "There's Chico!"  There are of course a few variations to this scenario but it usually follows that pattern.  It's quite the ritual.  So anyway, I'm usually in the bathroom with him and shut the lid for him and shut the door behind us. Guess I've got to start making him do it instead so that Griz can't get in again!

An interesting thing happened last night.  Brent was giving Griz a bath and he kept climbing out and at one point started peeing on the floor. Brent put him on the toilet and he finished it up on the toilet. Then a tiny bit later he wanted to sit back on it and he pooped in the toilet! We're shocked! He's only 18 months old, I'm not sure what to do. Part of me wants to seize the moment and potty train him.  It might not hurt to try, he's so interested in using the toilet. He just seems so young to me!

Flash from the past

I've had a certain event that happened about five years ago on my mind lately. Thought I'd share some pictures for a fun trip down memory lane.

flossers and achey legs

A while ago Chico got out the flossers out of the drawer and they had so much fun playing with them. Kinda a waste of flossers I know, but they were being so cute and entertained I couldn't say no.

Chico is growing up so fast.  Last night was rough for him. He woke up crying telling me his knees were hurting. I got him back to bed but then a couple hours later he woke up again crying about his legs hurting.  It was right when Brent and I were going to go to bed so we laid in our bed with him trying to get him calmed down. I had given him some Tylenol but he was still crying.  I finally got him to listen to me and asked him if he wanted to say a prayer.  I said the prayer and after I finished I had the thought to tell him WHY it was that I was trying to rub his legs (because he had been fighting me off when I had been trying). I told him about how when I was a kid my legs would hurt during the night too but that my parents would rub my legs and it would make them feel better.  After I told him that he started to calm down and within minutes he was asleep.

Singing Songs

Chico looked so handsome a couple Sundays ago in his blue shirt and blue tie and I was really trying hard to get a picture of him smiling to show how grown up and handsome he looked. Every time I would ask him to smile he'd do this new lip thing he's picked up...  (I happen to pull that face a lot myself but never would have thought he'd pick up on it!)

We have been singing a lot of songs lately. I cannot tell you how much it helps cheer up my kids. Especially songs with actions. Like, "I'm bringing home my baby bumble bee", "The Wheels on the Bus" and "The wise man built his house upon the rock".

So, when he wouldn't smile for me I asked him to sing a song to see if I could sneak a smile. While it may not have been what I was going for they sure turned out adorable...