Passing Out, Ice Cream, Pot Scrubbing, Where's The Baby, Naughty Sand Castles

Parker doesn't take a nap everyday anymore and one day when I was making dinner he fell asleep watching Backyardagains.

The boys.
You know its not your first kid when you give your 6 month old some ice cream.
I never gave Staucie or Parker anything like that until they were a year old.
I have now given Bensen some of my Otter Pops, ice cream, and I occasionally give him a pretzel rod to suck on.
Bensen was able to roll under the slide. He stayed for awhile.

Everyone loves Baby Tad.

Sometimes I make Parker scrub dishes. Ha ha.

WHERE'S BENSEN?

They decided to go digging in the potted plant.

Staucie said she wanted to make a sandcastle.

Naughty. Naughty.

Not My Plan

Not My Plan

My eyes long to see you

Now you behold Him

My arms ache for you

Now you know perfect love

My ears yearn for your voice

Now you sing His praises

I desire to feed you

Now you will never hunger

I anticipated the pitter-patter of your feet

Now you play at His pierced ones

I dreamed of years of love and laughter

Now you will never know pain

I loved to watch you grow and develop

Now you are perfect

This isn't how I planned

But I know He loves you

And Me.

~Monique Stam

(This poem does not pertain to us, but to people we love. I just thought it was a beautiful poem.)

The Kiddos & Other Random stuff

Rolling on the floor together is always fun. Bensen loves it when the kids pay attention to him. They can make him laugh like no one else can. It is so cute. They are all so good to each other and have so much fun together.

Take our picture, Mommy.

We went to "Pump It Up" on Friday, July 3rd with Matt and Brittany and Noah. Daniel and Matt had the day off for the holiday. Parker loved it and just kept climbing up the big slide over and over by himself. He was a brave little guy. His eyes got huge every time he went down. He looked scared but would go right back up.

Noah and Bensen having SO much fun. Ha ha.
Daniel and Staucie flying down the slide.

Parker and Matt going down. Parker went on his own after that!

So I do not allow my couch pillows to be on the floor in this house because the carpet is gross. I used to let them play on the pillows in our condo all the time. Well, the other day they put all the pillows on the floor. I asked Staucie what she was doing and she said, "They are not on the floor mom, they are on the rug. The rug is not dirty." ...How do you argue with that. (And if you are wondering why Staucie is in just her underwear...I don't know. I did dress her but then she decided she was done with that outfit. She goes through 10 wardrobe changes a day.)

The other night I found a gecko in our bedroom on the wall. I think it came in to eat all of our bugs. Daniel had to catch it of course since he is the man. He does not like reptiles or amphibians. I think he would rather catch a cockroach, ha ha. He got a big cup to capture it but it ran behind all of the junk in our bedroom. I still have boxes and junk against the wall because I think I am too depressed to finish unpacking and organizing. Anyways, Daniel had to move everything to find the gecko and low and behold...... A COCKROACH was hiding down there too. Gotta love it.

Daniel took a picture so we could blog it. Ha ha.

Daniel broke its leg off when he was trying to get it.

Some More Catching Up

I am trying to catch up on my blog...

So far:
Grandpa Randall's Funeral
The King of Pop
Bensen
Parker is Two
Happy 4th of July

More to come for the Grandparents...

Grandpa Randall's Funeral

We flew to Utah the last weekend of June because my dad's father passed away. I was so sad to that Grandpa had died. I wish I could have been in Utah for his 90th birthday party. He had just had it the weekend before Father's Day, and then the morning after Father's Day, June 22nd, he passed away in his sleep.

I know that he is in a good place now. I am grateful for my knowledge of eternal families and life after death. I know that Grandpa is with my grandmother now and he is no longer suffering. I am grateful for the man that he is, that he raised up a righteous posterity, that he served the Lord, that he raised my AMAZING father and helped him become the man that he is. It was heart breaking to watch my dad during the funeral services. I cried for my dad and I cried for me and I cried for all who love him. I know that he will be exalted in heaven and that we will all be together again. Thank you Grandpa for your testimony, your example, your love, your humor, your tickles, and for our family. I/We love you.
The Utah Patriot Guard rode to the funeral on their bikes and stood in a line with flags for hours at the church and at the cemetary. It was neat to see them their in honor of my Grandpa. My dad and uncle rode their Harleys with them. My dad's bike is painted to match my Grandpa's B-17 Bomber airplane that he flew in World War 2. (I stole all these pictures from my cousin's blog, that's why they are small, because I forgot my camera, which I am still very sad about since I can't get anyone to email me their pictures.)


While in Utah we stayed at my mom's parents house. (Thanks Grandpa and Grandma for taking us all in. It was so great to see you.) It was nice to see my parents and siblings and nieces, and hang out.

Parker loved to sit in the little wagon and scoot around.

Tyne & Kyle with Bensen and Alaina.

My cousin Jessica and her husband and baby were there one night too on their way back to Rexburg, ID. Her daughter, Alaina was born the same day as Bensen. They were so different. Tyne is practicing for twins. Ha ha!

My brother Austin and is oldest daughter, Bella. She is one right now and is SO adorable. I just love one year olds.

Our attempt at a picture...

Staucie and Parker jumping. The weather was so nice. Not hot and sticky like Houston :)

We attempted to fly home on Sunday at noon but our plane had mechanical problems and we ended up in a hotel in Salt Lake for the night that the airline paid for. They shuttled us to the hotel and gave us meal vouchers.

Eating on the hotel floor in our room.

Bensen after his bath.

I was short on diapers so we attempted to walk to a store. We walked miles to an Albertsons with the kids, it was NOT fun. We did have our double stroller but Daniel carried Staucie. She fell asleep in his arms.

Eating yogurt for breakfast.

Parker doing his famous squat in the hotel vanity area.

Bensen's hotel bed.

We were worried about how the kids would sleep. They shared a bed. We put pillows around them so they wouldn't fall off and tried to position them so Staucie wouldn't kick Parker. She is a WILD sleeper and he hardly moves. Daniel and I laid on the other bed in the dark while we waited for them to fall asleep, then got ready for bed and watched TV until we went to bed. The kids slept very well. I don't think I slept at all. Then the next morning we took the shuttle back to the airport and tried again. We made it home on Monday at 6:00pm. Daniel missed another day of work which was a bummer. The kids were good travelers though and it was nice to be able to go. I wish we could have stayed longer.

The King of Pop

I have listened to his music since I can remember. made up many dance routines. as a kid, I loved the song "Man in the Mirror." still do, but my all time favorite is "Bad." can still picture my parents' record album cover for Thriller. spent many hours on the boat blasting his songs. always have a few on my playlist. his music never gets old, is always good for dancing. one of his songs is on my wedding video, "The Way You Make Me Feel." no one can dance like him or has music like him. RIP Michael Jackson.

http://www.eternalmoonwalk.com/

Bensen

On July 3rd Bensen reached 6 months. Half way to a year. Today I took Bensen and Parker to the doctor for their well-checks and both are doing well. Bensen weighed 15 lbs 4 oz (15%) and was 26 inches long (35%). He is a rolly-polly little baby. He gets all around the front room by rolling. He can get to whatever toy he wants that way. Sometimes he rolls onto toys and cries in pain. He is a happy baby who smiles and sticks is arms and legs straight down and wiggles his feet and hands when he gets excited. He thinks Staucie and Parker are funny and he loves when they talk to or play with him. He is very ticklish and grabs everything. Today he ripped the bandaid off his leg from his shots and tried to eat it. We love him and enjoy him very much.

There comes a point when the blanket no longer serves its purpose.

He is starting to eat baby food but can't get that tongue out of the way.
The other day he got wrapped up in all the tangled necklaces.

Is it okay to let your baby eat plastic golf clubs?

Mmm. Yummy.

Bensen Bryce, I adore you.

Parker is Two

Parker turned 2 on July 6th.
We celebrated with Aunt Brittany and Uncle Matt (and Matt's sister, Bre).
Oh, I can't believe how fast it has gone by. My baby is no longer a baby. He has grown so fast that I can't believe he used to weigh 6 pounds. Parker is so much fun and makes us laugh. Not many get to see Parker's real personality, but this picture captures him well. We have loved having him in our eternal family. We love you Parker!

Blue suckers make blue mouths.

Bensen loved his party hat... ha ha.

Parker tried several times to blow out the candle and then Staucie just blew it out. She was SOOOO excited for his birthday!

While Parker would stop to play with his new toy, Staucie would rip into the next present. She was so excited to "rip, rip, rip the presents." Parker didn't mind at all though.


He got lots of cars, trucks, and things with wheels.

He likes to watch the wheels roll.

He got a baseball cap that is so cute on him. He likes to wear hats.

Bensen likes to play with the trucks too. He likes to roll around and play with whatever he can get his hands on.

More blue lips from blue suckers.

He looks so grown up in his hat.

Happy Birthday Parker!

We love you!