Tyler Turns Three

Although you will still find him in diapers (eek) and with the occasional binkie in his mouth, our baby is certainly not a baby anymore! Tyler turned three in March and is, as always, keeping us on our toes (and in our running shoes). He is our Teeny Little Super Guy.

For his birthday, we were lucky enough to have Grandma & Grandpa Brown come to celebrate with us. We had a train cake (that he helped me decorate) and lots of fun presents. We love our T-Bone!

Tyler's three-year-old self:

Height & Weight: 36 inches and 31 pounds

Obsessions: watching the bathtub drain, sneaking food, his bike, his scooter, CANDY, giving zerberts, and pulling on your earlobes when you snuggle him.

Must-haves: Don't look at him while he is sneaking into anything or going #2, his binkie during a "past-the-point-of-no-return" tantrum, water (NOT milk), buckling himself into his carseat, quick 5-second hugs every 30 minutes or so, and Little Einsteins.

Favorite Foods: Goldfish, popcorn, hot chocolate, CANDY, graham crackers, and cheese pizza.

Favorite Song: "Wheels on the Bus"

Nicknames: T-Bone, Teebs, T, Stinky Cheese

Hair Style: Getting more manageable - although still a fuzz-head.

Favorite toys: Cars, trains, Pat-pat rocket, balls, the swingset, his bike & scooter.

Favorite pasttimes: playing "good guy, bad guy," playing outside or in the garage, throwing things and overall mischief-making.

Smile: an infectious, mischievious, slightly bucky smile.

Favorite words/phrases: "You're a loud-mouthed shnook!"; thank you, mommy, for this....; DON'T DO IT!; i love you, mommy/daddy; Parker, look at....!; cool.

He amazes us with: His speed; his vocabulary; his hilarious giggle; his athletic ability; his love and admiration for Parker, his daddy and his grandparents; and his zest for life.

The Graduation

Even though he technically graduated last December, Peter and I returned to Lawrence, Kansas in May so that he could walk with the rest of his cohort at graduation. We left the boys with my parents (thanks, guys!) and met up with Peter's parents and his brother, Jared, and fam in the Midwest. It was so fun spending time with them!

The 2009 Clinical Child Psychology Graduates (with program director, Michael Roberts)

We had fun seeing old friends. It was very cool that he graduated with two of his great friends there, RJ Rowley and Jon Thayn. I, of course, was happy to meet up with their wives and two of my great friends, Debbi & Rachel!

We had a great time visiting our much-missed Mass Street, and of course hitting up the Cheesecake Factory and Jack Stack's in Kansas City.

For his graduation gift, I got him a grill - every man's dream come true. Congrats, my love!

Parker Turns Six

We can't believe our first-born child is six years old! Everytime we look at him, we are in awe of how he has turned from this chubby-cheeked little monkey to this long & lean almost first-grader!

We celebrated with his friends by having a backyard beach party. My great friend, Amy, made a darling slideshow of the event but I can't get it to load! Suffice it to say, we had 17 kids and luckily some of our friends stayed to help out, and we partied like it was 1999. We played water balloon volleyball, had a shell hunt in the sandbox, played Pin the Coconut on the Palm Tree, made visors, played "Dolphin, Dolphin, Shark!" (aka duck duck goose), Musical Islands, ate a beach bucket dump cake & had lots of presents & prizes. For our family party, we had our traditional ice cream sundaes and sent him on a treasure hunt to find his present, which was a bike. He also had fun bringing Ho-Ho's to class and being celebrated there at school. We love our Parker Boy!

Here are Parker's six-year-old stats:

Height & Weight: 45.5 inches and 47 pounds

Obsessions: Bugs, his bike, his scooter, volcanoes, the weather, snacks, Skittles chapstick, and lest we forget - VEHICLES!!!

Must-(not)haves: His food must not have anything hanging on it or out of it (think melted cheese and oozing jelly), and different foods really shouldn't touch; he must have the last word in an argument with Tyler, all of his questions answered very thoroughly, lots of hugs, enough sleep or else he is quite grumpy, breakfast first thing in the morning, and stories & prayers at bedtime.

Favorite Foods: pepperoni pizza, lollipops, marshmallows, crackers, string cheese, and bell peppers.

Favorite Song: Once There Was A Snowman (church), Mahna Mahna by Cake.

Nicknames: Parker Boy, P-body, P-diddy, Chicken Little.

Hair Style: Short, so he doesn't have to endure the torture of me cutting it as often.

Favorite toys: CARS STILL TOP THE LIST! the swingset, and his bike & scooter.

Favorite pasttimes: playing outside or in the garage, drawing, writing, reading, going to the fair(?), going to the park, or riding his bike or scooter.

Smile: he still has all of his baby teeth!

Favorite words/phrases: Sweet, awesome, so cool, I'm hungry, NEVER (as in, "Aw Mom, now we'll NEVER get to....!), Can we get that?

He amazes us with: his loving care toward his little brother, his awesome reading skills, his ever-growing courage to try new things, his curiousity, his friendly personality, enthusiasm for life and his desire to choose the right.

Gunny Sack Monster

If your kids are anything like mine, getting them to pick up their toys is like pulling teeth - from all of our mouths. It takes FOREVER for them to clean up their playroom, with a million bathroom & drink breaks in between. Last week, I decided it was finally time to implement an idea that worked for my mother-in-law - the Gunny Sack Monster.

As you see, the Gunny Sack Monster hangs on the wall of the playroom to remind the boys throughout their playtime to put things away as soon as they are through. We're hoping to thus eliminate the toybox explosion we find at the end of the day. When the end of the day does come, the boys have a timer set for them to pick up the toys in their playroom, and put them away NEATLY. (Parker has just entered the stage of stuffing things in closets and under beds an proudly announcing "All clean, Mom!" Right.) So, after the timer has ended, the Gunny Sack Monster makes his appearance. Anything that is not put away neatly is eaten by the Gunny Sack Monster and not regurgitated for one week. I hope my string of jute can withstand the weight of his consumption!

Poop

I feel a little bit crazed today - and I've gotta talk about it.

I've already vented to many of you over the phone, email, facebook, even this blog, about my neighbors' dog (now DOGS - have a boxer, and they just bought a doberman pinscher) pooping in our yard. Plug your ears of you're sick of me - I'm getting sick of myself over this!

We got the backyard fenced, and so, of course, no more poops in the backyard. Hooray! However, "fido" has not taken the hint and is still pooping in the small part of our yard in front of the fence gate. Oy. This is worse than the initial poopings in the side yard, because you can see them right from the driveway and they are closer to where the kids like to play. Our neighbors are very aware of our dislike of the poops, since from day one we have shoveled/flung the poop right back into their yard. One time we even made a neat little pile, and they talked to us about it, blaming it on their kids not watching where the does does his business. In my stalking, I have since learned that it is not just the kids' negligence.

I bought some Critter Ridder (granules) to try and keep the dog out - to no avail. I've found three poops since yesterday afternoon. This is making me absolutely crazy! I almost don't recognize the crazed insanity that has possessed me over getting rid of these poops! I think it has a lot to do with the fact that I already deal with poop WAY more than I wish! My three-year-old is still refusing to be potty-trained!

After much googling (apparently this is a major problem with a lot of people everywhere), I've found and purchased this beast:

It was a good deal on Amazon (free shipping, honey!) and has many great reviews - and it had better work, for that dog's sake. Who knows what crazy will do to me if it doesn't!

Beachy Keen

Today I was supposed to be headed over the mountains to my mom's. Every year she puts on our neighborhood's easter egg hunt at the park and every year I have wished for my boys to be a part of it - this was going to be my chance! Alas, the menacing snow is making his appearance once again on the Pass and I'm not desperate enough to take my chances alone with two kiddos. b-u-m-m-e-r.

In an effort to get over the disappointment, I designed Parker's birthday party invitations:

As you see, we are having a beach theme (take that, snow) and Parker is beyond excited to invite his whole class, along with a few other friends. How glad I am for our new fence to keep everyone corraled! We have some very fun plans in the works and I will update on it after the fun is over!

How Michelle Got Her Groove Back

Three months have come and gone, my little chickens' birthdays come and gone. Why did I stray from the ways of blogging? I know only that my family was tired of digging for clothes to wear out of the hamper, and eating cereal out of tupperware in the mornings. I think I've found some balance lately. Hence, I've decided to make a comeback.

Where do I start? Today is always a good place to start...but since this is technically my family journal, I will have to do some backtracking at some point. For now, I'm catching up Facebook style.

Right now I am happily listening to the fence guys outside drilling holes in my yard for fence poles. Ahh, a lovely sound indeed. Lovely when you have dreams of a sandbox that your neighbor's dog won't poop in - a garden that the Chinook winds won't thrash. The boys and I made strawberry jam today, so Domino's was a great solution for dinner. Peter is teaching at WSU tonight, a side job that he enjoys, but will be happy to be done with in May to give him extra time with us in the newly-fenced backyard. His practice is thriving. The weather is getting warmer, the grass greener. I am sublimely happy here in "little tuscany," as I like to call my new home and neighborhood.

Here's to a few phone calls from old friends lately that have inspired me to return to blogging and remember to "make new friends, but keep the old - one is silver, and the other gold."

My Reality

'Twas the month after Christmas,
and all through the house,
Nothing would fit me,
not even a blouse.

The cookies I'd nibbled,
the chocolate I had to taste
At the holiday parties
had gone to my waist.

When I got on the scales
there arose such a number!
When I walked to the store
(less a walk than a lumber),

I remembered the marvelous meals I'd prepared;
The gravies and sauces and beef nicely rared,
The punch and the rum balls, the bread and the cheese
And the way I'd never said, "No thank you, please."

As I dressed myself in my husband's old shirt
And prepared once again to do battle with dirt...
I said to myself, as I only can,
"You can't spend a winter, disguised as a man!"

So, away with the last of the sour cream dip.
Get rid of the fruit cake, every cracker and chip.
Every last bit of food that I like must be banished
'Til all the additional ounces have vanished.

I won't have a cookie, not even a lick.
I'll want only to chew on a long celery stick.
I won't have hot biscuits, or corn bread, or pie.
I'll munch on a carrot and quietly cry.

I'm hungry, I'm lonesome, and life is a bore...
But isn't that what January is for?
Unable to giggle, no longer a riot.
Happy New Year to all, and to all a good diet.

- author unknown

One Crazy Christmas

Grab a cup of hot chocolate and a few leftover Christmas cookies for this one...it's a doozy!

Friday, December 19th - Leave home to drive to Lacey to spend a couple of days with Mom & Dad B., Uncle Mark (back from BYU-I), Aunt Megan & cousin Kate (in from Oklahoma). Snoqualmie Pass looks iffy and a huge "Winter Blast" is expected over Washington and Oregon, so we head out a little early and make it in five hours (as opposed to the normal four). Make it just in time for the Lacey 1st Ward Christmas Party - always a good time.

Saturday, December 20th - Enjoy the winter wonderland that is, uncharacteristically, western Washington. The boys enjoy being pulled around on a sled by Daddy and Christmas gifts are exchanged early, since we were to spend Christmas in Dallas* with Peter's family. Parker and Tyler LOVE their gifts from Gran & Gramps. Thank you!!

*Brian, Peter's brother, was to wed Amanda Brown, a native to Dallas, on
December 27th - Peter and I's seventh wedding anniversary. In an
effort to avoid any of the family missing the wedding due to flight
complications right after Christmas, we all were to spend Christmas together in
a vacation home in the Dallas area.

Sunday, December 21st - Snow is still falling and is not quite so pretty today, as we have to travel down to Portland in it to get to Peter's parents house in time for an early Monday flight to Dallas. While packing our car, we discover that our 4-wheel drive is not working. Since we are dealing with 14 inches of snow on unplowed roads, this is not going to work. So Dad B. lends us his truck and we begin what is normally a two-hour journey, all chained up. After removing/breaking/replacing chains four times and six hours later, we arrive in Portland! We found the parents & the groom-to-be fairly stressed yet still optimistic about our expected departure out of the Portland airport the next morning, of which there were many reported cancellations.

Monday, December 22nd - The next morning, we wake early to find that the flight is still scheduled to fly, despite 18 inches of the white shroud and off-road driving conditions on the freeway. Our typical 25 minute drive to the airport takes us an hour, and we are happily in line to check in when we are told that our flight had been canceled. Stressed groom, stressed parents!! We are told to go home and re-book online or over the phone; that staying at the airport was useless (I concur; I run in to use the potty and find what appears to be a homeless shelter for those who had no where to go after learning their flights had been canceled until AFTER CHRISTMAS!!). Upon returning home, we find the groom very distraught, as he needs to be in Dallas by the close of business day on Tuesday in order to sign the marriage license in time for them to be married on Saturday. Eek! So after much drama, he heads back to the airport in an effort to beg his way onto an airplane - any airplane - and make it to his fretting bride! In the meantime, the only flight we are able to find and book for Mom and Dad S. and our own little family is a flight on Friday, December 26th, out of Seattle. The plan now is to spend Christmas with Mom & Dad S. in Portland, driving up to Seattle on Christmas day, stay at a hotel Christmas night and fly out early the next day. Seems to be a solid plan, pending no more crazy weather on or around Friday. Brian eventually makes it on a flight that would take him first to New Jersey, then Austin, and to Dallas in the nick of time. We enjoy a game of Bohnanza that night with Mom & Dad S.

Tuesday, December 23rd - I wake with a sense of urgency for Mom & Dad S. - they need to be in Dallas! Peter's brothers' families are still planning to be in Dallas for Christmas at the vacation home, and the parents need to be there! We end up finding a flight for just the two of them to Dallas that very day out of Portland! Our Christmas plans change once again, as we brave the trip back up to Lacey to spend the holiday with my family. Another five and a half hours back up in the same crazy snow, this time adding a flat tire to the mix! Luckily it blew out right near a tire store!

Wednesday, December 24th - Christmas Eve day! We are all excited to not be in a long car trip over the next two days. The boys spend the day playing with Daddy and the newly-arrived Uncle Jason. I spend the morning shopping with Uncle Mark - a very fun little trip that I'm glad we got in there. The girls then spend the afternoon baking in anticipation of the Christmas Eve festivities at my Uncle Loren & Aunt Karrie's house. It is great to see a lot of my dad's side of the family there and be part of the fun. The night ends traditionally by putting on Christmas pj's and putting out cookies for Santa & food for the reindeer. The boys are SO excited for Santa to come.

Thursday, December 25th - Ah, Christmas! It is a great morning, filled with gifts and goodies and lots of love. The boys love the scooters and other gifts they receive. I do the "Twelve Dates of Christmas" for Peter and he gets me lots of "spa" stuff for my soaking tub. We have dinner that night at my Uncle Dallon & Aunt Monica's house with the whole fam damily - another fun time - and then pack up for our trip the next morning to Dallas. We discover that night that there is no long-term parking available whatsoever in or around the Sea-Tac airport, so we devise a plan to have my dad take us to the airport (at 4 a.m., poor soul) and for Meg & Jason to drive our car up on Monday, park it in short-term, and hide they key, as they were to fly back home that day.

Friday, December 26th - We miraculously make it out the door and up to the airport on time, and make our six-hour flight. We arrive in Dallas exhausted, but ready to drive another hour to hit a party at Amanda's parents house in honor of their wedding. It was 80 degrees in Dallas that day - how froiling was I in my turtleneck and fleece vest? Very. We had a BBQ there and a good time getting to know Amanda's family a little better. We then trekked it another hour back to Arlington (the vacation home) and crashed after some kibbutzing with the Stewarts.

Saturday, December 27th - Wedding Day! And Happy Anniversary to Peter and I! We drove the 40 minutes to the temple and witnessed a very beautiful ceremony. I ran into my old college buddy, Elise, who was Amanda's Young Women's advisor there in Texas. It was fun to catch up. We all get pictures, then drive across town to a luncheon, which was also very beautiful and fun. Peter & his brothers wrote "The Book of Brian," scripture style, in honor of their youngest comrade and read it with great hilarity. We then traverse another hour back up to Denton for a quick break before the reception. I think Tyler's official rebellion happens at this point when I wake him from his nap to get him dressed in a tuxedo. Yeah, that does not go over well with our tiny boy. We manage to get most of it on him and hustle over to the reception hall for pictures. The reception goes well - the boys have so much fun with their cousins, Peter loves hanging out with his brothers and I just adore my SILs. We trek it back the hour "home" to Arlington that night.

Sunday, December 28th - We say farewell to Jared & Heidi and sleep in!! Well, at least, I do. Thanks, honey :). We spend the day munching & chatting, exchanging some gifts and head to sacrament meeting. Poor Mom & Dad S. are sick that day, so we play a low-key game of Balderdash that night to end our fun time together.

Monday, December 29th - We wake at 4 a.m. to make our early flight back to Seattle. Everything goes off without a hitch - only a one hour delay on the flight and we're able to catch a few winks on the plane. After that six-hour flight, we find the car (thanks, Meg & J!) and hop in to hustle back over the mountains home. Another five hour trek! This one is a little scarier, as the Pass is pretty snowy. But, we make it home by eight! Miracle! We are SO happy to be back in our little home, in our little town!

If you've lasted this long reading, congratulations! Peter and I logged over 42 hours of travel time in our ten-day trip! I think we are ready for our New Year's Eve at home with friends tonight! Hope your Christmas was as crazy as ours, as crazy Christmases are the most memorable ones...

Ho Ho Ho-ly Frijoles It's Cold