Talk of the Tower

"I'm fun. I'm colorful. I'm educational. I'm growing."

"Look at me I'm tall and straight. I'm strong and bold. I'm built to perfection.

Nothing can bring me down."

"Except the mighty forces of the Sawyer giant."

CRASH!

"Ouch, that hurt. But I will be built again.

I will stand strong and proud."

At least until Sawyer comes again.

Just in case you ever wondered what a block tower is thinking as it's built and destroyed.

Spring Time Inside.

During preschool on Tuesday we did a fun little flower craft in hopes of showing mother nature what it should look like outside.

These are Kaydee's flowers.

Dawson's flowers.

As we worked on our daffodil's it was snowing outside.

Hopefully, Mother Nature gets the hint and decides to give us warmer weather soon.

Dawson's funny's

Yeah, Dawson entertained me today as we drove in the car. He was saying stuff that kept a constant smile on my face. I really wish I could write down everything he says so I can recall it all later. I think I might just have to keep a tape recorder in the car.
Today as we headed to the doctor's office for Sawyer's 1 yr check-up (more on that later) Dawson informed that when he's older he's going to move out and live far away from me. Imagine my sadness when he told me this. But, I was quickly overjoyed when he informed me that 'far away' was going to be next door. I said, "Oh good, then I can come visit." He responded, "No you can't you won't know where I live." I said, 'well, if your next door I can find you." He then explained that next door means that he'll have to come visit me that way I won't have to leave my house.
He's always thinking of others. :)
Dawson also had a first this weekend. On Sunday he woke up, came in my room and said, "mom hold out your hand." I should have known better as he placed his tooth in it. He was so excited to have the tooth fairy come for the first time. He exclaimed, "now she can turn my tooth into a 'golden dollar'.
Xander asked me once what the tooth fairy did with all their teeth. I told him she made necklaces out of them and then sold them and that's where she got the money she puts under their pillows. I kinda also told them that if their teeth are really clean maybe she'd make more money selling her necklaces and then she could leave them more. It worked really well for a while until Dawson said once, "I think someone will want a yellow necklace so I'm not gonna brush mine for awhile." Unfortunately for him, mom is mean and I made him brush.
I am happy to report that the tooth fairy did not disappoint and Dawson's first 'gold dollar' was discovered this morning under his pillow.
One final story for today. This happened while in the doctor's office.
When I took Dawson in for his Kindergarten check-up they were out of the 2nd chicken pox booster shot. So, since I was already there for Sawyer I figured, hey let's get Dawson caught up too. When I told Dawson he was missing a shot and needed it for kindergarten, his first response was, "I don't need to go to kindergarten. I already know how to write my name." Oh son if it were only that easy! I told him he was still gonna get the shot,but it was a nice try. When the doctor came in and finished his exam of Sawyer he said, he'd send the nurse in to do the boys shots. Dawson then asks him, "Is it against the law to shoot people?" The doctor looked and him laughing and says, "yes it is." Dawson then says to him, "Then you can't give me a shot cause that's like shooting someone. And you'll go to prison."
Luckily, I've been going to this doctor since Ty and I got married and I know he has a sense of humor. He laughed and explained to Dawson that this kind of shot is to keep him healthy and it's OK to give them.
In the end Dawson walked away a little sore and with camouflage band-aid on his bum.

1 April, 3 Labors, 3 Birthdays

Who would have guessed 3 out 4 of my babies would be born in April. So when we have a month full of celebrations how do we balance it all out? We have a huge family celebration.
We postponed Mackenzie's 'friend' party back a few weeks because of our Spring break. Her friends were all going to be gone. But, because it is her 10th birthday we had to honor her. We took her out to dinner and then Tyler took her on a date. While they were gone I wrapped her presents and got her cake ready. When she got home she found her surprise party waiting for her.

This is what Kenzie came home to
from her daddy daughter date.

The boys all made her cards.

(Dawson did the blue one with orange writing.

Guess he's learning something in school.)

Happy Birthday my sweet Mackenzie!

She's been wanting Taylor Swift's new CD. since it came out.

She was so excited.

A week has passed since Kenz's birthday and it is officially Sawyer's 1st birthday. Ty and I decided to do the big family party on Sawyer's birthday because we knew the family would all be here.

I decided that I wanted each one of my kids to feel special for their birthdays so I planned to do 3 different cakes. 1 for each kid. The cakes would be miniature representations of each kid's birthday theme.
Kenz's friend party is going to be a chocolate/ spa party. Xander wants a Lego party and Sawyer got a 1st birthday theme. I also made cupcakes for everyone to enjoy.
Here are some pics from our Birthday Extravaganza.

I know there are a lot but, I loved them all.

Kenzie's and Xander's cakes.

Sawyer's cake and the coordinating cupcakes.

All 3 cakes.

Singing 'Happy Birthday'

Sawyer can't wait to blow that candle out.

Sawyer couldn't resist not touching Elmo.

Time to unleash the beast.

Dig in little dude.

Apparently cake makes good body paint.

Bath time for my little man.

After Sawyer's bath it was time for presents and then a good sugar crash.

This weekend is officially over. Bring on next weekend. It's time for Kenzie's and Xander's friend parties. Kenzie's is Friday and Xander's is Saturday followed by Easter on Sunday.

Eye of the Tiger

If you've never looked Dawson closely in the eye you might not have seen his tiger stripe.
Dawson has a brown stripe that goes right through the blue of his eye. It's a really cool look.
He only has the stripe on his right eye.
We had lots of fun during our attempt as I tried to get a pic of it. And at last, I got his tiger eye captured.

He's trying to hold his eyes open for me.

We laughed more than saw the stripe.

Kinda got it.

His mouth my be open, but so are his eyes.

Preschool fun

We were working on a cute little letter 'X' pirates during preschool this past week. While the kids were coloring they wanted their pictures taken so I was happy to oblige. Plus it gives me a new thing to blog.

The kids hard at work.

Landon's Pirate

Kaydee and Dawson hard at work.

Sawyer wanted in on the coloring action.

Attack!!

I am so grateful that despite the years between them Dawson and Sawyer are best buddies. I guess they have no choice when comes down to it cause they're the only ones home all day. But these 2 brothers are inseparable. Sawyer idolizes Dawson. He lights up when Dawson comes downstairs in the morning. He will instantly climb down from me to go be with Dawson.
Sawyer also 'attacks' Dawson when ever he gets the chance. One of the classic 'Get Dawson' games turned into about 45 mins of giggles, squeals, and growling.
Dawson would hide under a big blanket and Sawyer would attack him under the blanket until Dawson popped out. When he found Dawson he would squeal with delight and Dawson would change locations and hide all over again. Then Sawyer would crawl over to him and the game would start over.

That big brown bulge under the blanket is Dawson.

Sawyer found him!

Where did Dawson go?

Get him Sawyer. Get him!

They had so much fun together.

I love the adoring look Sawyer has for his big brother.

Out side fun.

We finally had some nice sunshiny weather this past week. So Dawson, Sawyer and I decided it was time to bust out of our cabin fever and fell the warmth of the sun on our faces again.

The boys played outside together while I did a little work in my garden. Finally I decided enough was enough. It was time for mommy to play too. We colored with side walk chalk, blew bubbles, explored new areas Sawyer hasn't ever been, discovered doggy poo and mom's reaction when it was almost crawled onto, rode outdoor toys, and we all came back in the house worn out and a little pinker on our cheeks.

By the time it dawned on me to go get my camera, Dawson was at a friends house playing. So here our pics of Sawyer enjoying his time outside.

Sawyer riding on his rocking/big wheel.

He's actually crawling away from me.

Our back yard slopes down so he's crawling backwards down it.

Boys and their sticks!

Brotherly love.

What's The Lesson?

Have you ever looked at your current situation and thought to yourself, what is the lesson I am to learn from this? I found myself asking that exact question yesterday when it came to my house full of boys.
Why would such a loving Father in Heaven feel the need to bless me with 3 boys all in a row? Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love these little men of mine. They are priceless in my eyes. They keep me on toes and I can usually be found with a smile on my face because of one of them.
So, what is the lesson to be learned?
I asked myself this after Dawson came running down the side walk back home. As he got closer to me I noticed a stream of blood coming from his nose down his chin. Through the screaming and tears I faintly understood the words, "Xander punched me in the face." Within a second here came Xander running back home. Knowing full well he was in some deep trouble. Sure enough, he punched Dawson.
When I confronted him he kept saying, "it was an accident. It was an accident." I responded with the simple statement, "How did you "accidentally" punch your brother in the face?"  To which he said, "I meant to punch him. The blood was an accident."
Really, this was his answer. He even questioned me when I disciplined him. He wanted to know what he did wrong. After all, he did tell me the truth. I told him he was grounded from playing with friends for a day. He got mad and said, "a whole day!" I looked at him as big crocodile tears streamed down his face. I put my hand on his cheek and wiped away some tears and said, "I'm sorry a day was an accident, I meant a week." He stormed off mumbling under his breath as I turned around and giggled.
What's the lesson? Who knows. I'm just thankful we all made it through the day.

Another little incident from yesterday involves every ones favorite little Dawson.
Sawyer woke from his nap and as I picked him up and we sat outside on the porch together I noticed some hair on his shoulder. As I looked him over I found a little clip of hair taken out of the back of his head. I pulled all the kids together to find the culprit. Would it surprise any of you to discover that 'not me' did it. I told them that 'not me' better have a name or none them would see the outside of their bedrooms for days.
As Dawson stood there laughing he said, "I cut Sawyer's hair." When I asked him why he said, "Cause it was messy and I cut the mess off."

And as I type these little stories, My dear sweet Sawyer is playing his bottle and my toes are becoming wet with milk because he thinks it's funny to push the nipple of the bottle on my foot and spray the milk out.
Am I smiling? I actually am.

Gymnastic Girl

I forgot to blog Kenzers last Gymnastic meet. I thought I was in a blogging rut, but it turns out I was just a slacker and forgetful.
Kenz decided (once again) to compete in a last minute meet. I say once again, because she had decided she wasn't going to compete this season. I spoke with her coaches and we all agreed she should maybe wait to build her confidence. I supported her in her decision. I am not going to be the mother who forces her kids to do sports or any activity they don't want to do. If she didn't feel ready then so be it. This particular meet was on a Friday. She came home Wednesday after gymnastic class with a huge smile on her face begging to compete on Friday. She made her jump and her coach said, "Kenzie you are ready. I think you should compete. I'll talk to your mom." So after another talk with her coaches and with Kenz I paid for that meet only and she was able to compete.
She had a blast as usual. She doubts herself and her abilities so much then it comes down to 'show time' and she knocks it out of the park. She amazes me but, her self doubt frustrates me. What to do with this girl. Guess all I can do is love her.
Here are some pics from the meet and her scores.

Kenz took 6th place in the All-Around and beam rountine.

She got 5th place on the floor and bars.

Halle is the girl next to Kenz.

 She and Kenz have been in gymnastics together since they were 4

I had to put this one in because of the face she was pulling.

Way to go Kenz. Once again I am so proud of you and all your accomplishments.
Stay tuned for her next meet. April 30th!

Surprise Reunion

When we were up in Idaho this past March we made an unannounced stop. Long story short, we found out that our niece Brooke, Ty's older brother Todd's daughter, whom he hasn't seen in years is attending BYU-I. We lost contact with Todd's kids after his divorce years ago. I haven't seen Brooke since she was 9. She is turning 19 next month. I wasn't kidding when I said it's been a long time.
Todd informed us that she was at school up there and because I have connections up there (thanks Darin) I was able to get her address and e-mail address. On Sunday before we headed home we detoured to campus. As Tyler and I discussed what we were going to do we felt that we need to at least try and see this long-lost niece of ours. Remember, she hasn't had contact with anyone in Ty's family for over 5 yrs. And here we were about to pounce on this poor, unexpecting girl. We figured the worse she could do is slam the door in our faces. Then we would be no worse off than we already were.
We tracked her down and believe it or not, she let us in. She had a very confused look on her face as we entered, but Ty quickly broke the ice when he said, "What, you don't even recognize your own uncle." Her mouth dropped and her eyes got wide as she exclaimed, "Uncle Tyler!"
It was a wonderful experience. We all chatted and visited with her for about 2 hrs. It was an amazing experience. When we left she said we could stop by next time we were up there. I told  her she better be careful cause we really would. I think or hope she needed the visit as much as we did. As Ty and I drove home we reflected on our visit and both of us agreed that we felt so honored to be the ones to reconnect with her after all these years. We pray that we left her with a feeling of how loved she is. And hopefully we were able to break down some of the walls she has put up and that maybe we repaired a bridge between her and our family.