A Chef in Training

Tyson loves to cook (eat). He is a natural in the kitchen.

It must be genetic because I dislike cooking. His birth mom, however, is a great cook.

She was happy to learn of this connection with Tyson. For Christmas she gave him a gift certificate to attend a children's cooking school. We decided to save it for this summer.

A couple weeks ago he attended a three day cooking (eating) camp.

He loved it.

The camp he chose had a French theme. He made French s'mores, souffle, chocolate crepes, snails*, and lollipops (I'm not sure what lollipops have to do with France, but whatever.)

They also played some crazy games, like this one where he had to knock water bottles over with a baseball in the toe of pantyhose on this head.

Who comes up with this stuff?!

*Not real snails. He tells me it was just a sandwich thing that looked like a snail.

Death By Sugar

Nothing brings a Grandma more joy than spoiling her Grandchildren.

For my mom, that means candy and cookies.

She has been pretty good about not giving treats to them when they are babies. And she will often check with me before indulging them.

I do my best to let her spoil the boys. After all, it is a Grandmother's prerogative.

The boys certainly don't mind.

She just can't get mad at me when they goober her throw pillows with their sticky hands and faces.

*Please note the chunk of sucker on his neck and the smear of stickiness holding his right eye open.

Wordless Wednesday

Swimming

My children are fish.

They both love to swim.

We've been invited to a couple of pool parties recently. I've been completely amazed at their natural swimming ability.

Tyson is a great swimmer. Despite that fact that he can't do actual swimming strokes, he can swim great! He is very buoyant. He can swim for hours in the deep end without tiring.

Preston has no fear, so he is required to wear a life jacket at all times. But with the life jacket on he can swim all over the pool by himself. He makes balancing in the jacket look easy.

We still haven't had swimming lessons yet this year, and have at least one more pool party on the calendar.

My Little Buttercup Has the Sweetest Smile

My little Nolie is five months old.

He is officially in the fun chubby baby stage.

He is happy and playful. He is social and very ticklish. His laugh is intoxicating.

I love every inch of this kid. From his curled eyelashes to the rolls on his chubby little legs.

He recently discovered his toes and sucks on them every chance he gets.

He loves having his diaper changed. The cold wipe on his bum makes him smile every time (even when he is crying!)

He loves Pat A Cake, Itsy Bitsy Spider, and My Little Buttercup (from Three Amigos).

Wordless Wednesday

The Diary of a Potty Training Mom

Day 1
9:00 Put child on Potty. Nothing happens.

9:05 Convince child to swap Pull-up for Lightning McQueen underwear. Set Potty timer for 25 minutes.

9:20 Ignore prompting to take child to the potty

9:25 Ignore second prompting to take child to potty.

9:26 Hear child yell, "I peed!" Run to find him squatting in your office chair. Rush child to potty. Nothing more happens. Reset potty timer for 45 minutes.

9:28 Clean chair

9:30 Help child find new Elmo undies.

9:35 Bibliotherapy. Read Underwear by Mary Elise Monsell.

10:10 Potty timer beeps. Drag child away from cartoons and into the bathroom. Child climbs up on the potty. Nothing happens. Reset timer for 15 minutes.

10:23 Remind child that it's almost time to go potty.

10:25 Potty timer beeps. Child informs you that he already peed. Remove wet underoos. Make child climb on potty to 'finish.' Nothing happens. Child dons a new pair of Lighting McQueen. Reset timer for 45 minutes.

11:10 Potty timer beeps, but you don't hear it because you are in the shower. You send older sibling to help child to the potty when he complains about the noisy timer.

11:20 Older child informs you that he did NOT take child potty when you question him after your shower. Rush child to potty. Nothing happens, except a juicy fart. Encourage child to sit a little longer, but child refuses. Bribe child with toys and candy if he will poop in the potty. Child jumps off the toilet and runs away. Reset timer for 10 minutes and PRAY child does not poop in his underwear before then.

11:30 Timer beeps as you are nursing the baby. Verbally send child to the potty on his own. Child runs into the bathroom and shuts the door. A few minutes later child emerges from bathroom, still wearing his underwear. Child proudly announces that he put diaper rash cream on his bum. Verbally instruct child to remove his underwear and go sit on the potty. Child runs into the bathroom and shuts the door. Finish nursing the baby. Go into the bathroom and find child hugging, not sitting on, the toilet. Place child on the toilet. Listen to child scream about how he wanted to get on the potty all.by.himself. Witness the first successful peeing of the day while child is still yelling about not wanting to go potty. Put underwear back on child and reset the timer for 45 minutes.

12:15 Timer beeps during lunch. Child jumps out of his chair, runs to the potty and quickly climbs on. He sits there for 0.25 seconds when he announces that he's all done and jumps right back off.

12:30 Put child back on potty when lunch is over. Child again sits for 0.25 seconds, announces he is done and jumps off. Child runs downstairs begging for a movie.

12:31 Child yells from the basement, "I peed!" Breathe deeply and fight urge to give up.

12:35 Send child to get new underwear while cleaning the carpet.

12:40 Notice "skid mark" where still bare bottomed child was sitting. Rush child to the toilet. Encourage him to poop. Put him back on the potty repeatedly. Bribe child to stay by reading books, including but not limited to "Everyone Poops" by Taro Gomi. Continue until your butt goes numb from sitting on the bathroom floor. Nothing happens.

1:00 Help child into his fresh underwear. Make him promise not to poop or pee in them.

1:20 Find child squatting in the corner. Rush child, mid poop, to the toilet. Cheer as child finishes the job in the toilet, over coming his pooping-in-the-potty phobia.

1:30 Reward child with candy. Older sibling rewards child with a dollar.

1:45 Naptime. Put child in a pull-up. Tuck him in, and say Good Night. Breathe a sigh of relief.

Fun for Everyone

We recently participated in our city's Family Festival. One of our favorite parts has always been the parade. The parade route runs right through our neighborhood, and we always get a TON of candy and toys.

This year was a first for us though. Dan and Tyson were in the parade, as Dan is trying to promote his booming Real Estate career. This was also the first year Preston really appreciated the parade. It might as well have been Christmas morning with how excited he was when the parade began and people started throwing candy.

"Look Mommy! They are throwing candy at me!"

He waved adorably at all the politicians and the military men. He stared in awe as the band and firetrucks went by. And he squealed with glee when he saw his Daddy and brother in a truck throwing Frisbees to the crowd and spraying us with water. He was happy to help "clean up" at the end of the parade by picking up unclaimed candy in the street and gutter.

Nolan, thankful for the shade, enjoyed his first parade.

Dan's face on a banner. (You can see Tyson in the truck bed, wearing red.)

After the parade we walked over to the park for more fun. Bouncy houses, free balloons, and a dunk tank were enough to keep the boys busy for hours. But the most memorable part of the afternoon was the Fireman spray.

The day was very warm, and the kids were more than happy to get wet. So when the Firemen hooked their hose to a hydrant there was no stopping my boys. They ran to join the crowd, filled with anticipation. This was our first year attending this event, so I wasn't sure what to expect.

When the firemen turned their hose on full blast and pelted my kids with it, I was a little concerned for Preston. I tried to find him in the deluge, to no avail. The field was chaos. I prayed he was OK and not hurt or scared. After several minutes I spotted a small child wearing an orange hat pinned against the back fence 50 yard from the action. He didn't look too frightened, so I just waited for the water to stop.

I waited and waited and waited. . . and waited!

Those firemen sprayed those kids for a good 20 minutes.

When it finally subsided I made my way through the muck toward Preston. I could see another parent talking to him. As I got closer I saw that it was someone from our neighborhood. She had recognized Preston and was keeping him company until I came to get him. Amazingly he was totally and completely dry! Not Tyson. I had to practically drag him out of the puddles. He was soaked to the bone and loving it. And in typical Tyson fashion, he found a friend in the crowd.

Tyson also really enjoyed the dunk tank. There were two lines of kids: those that wanted to throw balls at a target to dunk people, and those who wanted to sit on a little platform and be dunked.

Do you even have to guess which line Tyson stood in?

Three times!

(I wish I had a picture!)

Identity Crisis

A recent conversation with Preston:

P: Mommy, Fank you for making dis yummy dinner.

M: You are welcome sweetheart.

P: I don't know why you call me sweetheart. I fought I was Pweston. It's silly to call me sweetheart.

The Truth of All Things

Tyson was asked to give a talk in Primary this last Sunday. His has been reading so well lately, I decided that he should read his talk all by himself. I stood next to him and held up the pictures.

I am so proud of him!

****************************************************
There are lots of important things we need to know.
We need to know how to tie our shoes.

We need to know how to write our names.

There is one thing that is more important than anything else. Knowing our Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, is the most important knowledge you will ever have. This knowledge is called a testimony.

When you need to know something like how to tie your shoes, your parents can help.
To have a testimony of sacred things, you can ask Heavenly Father. He usually uses the Holy Ghost to answer you.
The Holy Ghost bears witness of the Father and the Son.

Through His still, small voice, the Holy Ghost can help you know that Jesus is the Son of God.

He can witness to you that Joseph Smith restored the gospel

and that we have a prophet today.

Through the power of the Holy Ghost, we can know the truth of all things.
As you listen to the still, small voice, you can have a testimony. Your faith in Jesus Christ will grow when you listen to the Holy Ghost.
I know this is true. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Off and Running

(With my sisters after the race)

I ran my first 5K of the summer a couple weeks ago.

My original goal was to run the whole thing without walking.

My second goal was to finish in 30 - 35 minutes.

I am proud to say that with a time of 30:14 I successfully met both of my goals!

I felt really good about my race. I held a good strong pace until about the 2 mile mark, when I started to get tired. By the 3 mile mark (where they threw in a hill) I was struggling to keep going. As I approached the finish line I heard a guy yell "Only 30 more seconds!"

That, along with the sight and sound of hundreds of cheering people, motivated me to kick it up a notch and finish strong.

I was very proud of myself.

Unfortunately, about five minutes after finishing I started experiencing the visual symptoms of a migraine. I am now a little hesitant to race again. My theory is that racing is too much of a strain on my body while I am still nursing Nolan. I still want to run, but I really don't want another migraine. I was going to run another race this weekend, but I decided to sit this one out. I do plan to run another race in July.

Wish me luck.

My next goal is to break the 30 minute barrier.

Pitch Coach

Tyson played baseball this spring.

If you ask him, he will tell you he played "pitch coach."

His favorite thing about coach pitch was the uniform.

His second favorite thing was the treat at the end of the each game.

He was pretty good at batting.

And if points were given for socializing in the outfield, he'd be the champion.

Our spring weather was less than desirable this year, so sitting through his games twice a week was a labor of love.

Overall, Tyson enjoyed the season. But I doubt he will be playing next year.

Anytime is Cookie Time

Tyson invited his friend Abby over to play.

They usually get along great but this day they just couldn't seem to agree on an activity.

Tyson wanted to play Transformers.

Abby just wanted to hold Nolan.

I suggested they bake cookies.

They both thought that was a great idea. Their favorite part was decorating the cookies. It's not too hard to tell which cookies are Tyson's and which ones are Abbys.

Be The Match

I know of a two year old little boy named Preston.

He has a rare blood disease called, Aplastic Anemia.

He is in need of a bone marrow transplant.

.

What if this was my two year old little boy named Preston? I would do anything to save his life. If I was unable to donate my own bone marrow for him I would hope and pray that somewhere, some stranger would be willing to save my son.

.

So in honor of this other little Preston I joined the Marrow Registry. It was simple. I just went to their website, filled in all my information and requested a test kit.

When the kit came in the mail I simply swabbed the inside of my cheek with four long Q-tip thingys, sealed them back into the envelope, and put them back in the mail.

They are currently processing my sample and adding me to the registry. It will take about five or six weeks to test my tissue type and add me to the registry.

Someday I may get a phone call or email saying that my bone marrow is someone's match. And if that day comes I will be honored to help someone in need.

Memorial Day

(Tyson and Preston visiting Grandpa Toone. Tyson remembers him and Preston is named after him.)

After celebrating Memorial Day this year, I have a new resolve to teach my sons about the great people they are named after. With a little help from my Grandma I've been learning more about these people. My goal is to create a book for each boy with pictures and stories from the lives of their namesakes.

Tyson Spencer is named after his Fourth Great Grandpa Spencer.

Preston Thomas is named after his Great Grandpa Toone.

Nolan Jacob is named after his Great-Great Grandma Howard.

Each of these people lived wonderful lives. But their great examples go unappreciated if we don't learn about them. I know they are still mindful of us, and want to know us. We just need to put in the effort to learn about them.

I want my boys to be proud of their names. I want them to live in a way that will make their namesakes proud. They have big shoes to fill.

Wordless Wednesday

Take Me Out To The Ballgame. . . .Or Not.

Dan got front row tickets to a recent Bees game. We sat right behind the dugout, next to first base.

We have three boys

Tyson's been playing baseball this spring.

You would think this is a good idea, right?

Nope

Despite the smiles in these pictures these boys were bored out of their minds. We only stayed for half of the game. And for nearly the entire time I was tortured with a constant

"I'm tired, I'm hungry, I need a drink, I need to go to the bathroom, I'm hungry, I'm cold, I'm hungry, I'm bored. I'm hungry."

and that was just from Tyson.

Preston kept trying to run away. He was convinced if he could just get away from us that somehow he would get some cotton candy.

They did have fun when the Bee (Bumble?) and the cheerleaders came right by us.

Unfortunately, we were a little too close to get a good picture.

Next time Dan and I are leaving the boys with a babysitter and going by ourselves.

Summer Goals

I've been dreading summer. But whether we like it or not summer is here and I'm going to make the best of it!

First I've revamped our chore lists. Tyson has more time on his hands and so I'm increasing his load of chores. Preston is also getting old enough to start doing chores so I've added him to the rotation. My goal is to teach them responsibility and life skills. A clean(er) house is just a benefit.

Secondly, I've scouted out several activities to help us fill our days, and keep boredom to a minimum. (It also helps to have motivation to get chores done in the morning).

Our elementary school library is open for a couple hours each week during the summer. We plan to take a walk to the school to check out books once a week.

Cinemark has a great Summer Movie deal going on. You can't beat 10 movies for $5! The boys are really excited about this, especially because several of our friends will be there too.

We have also decided to put Tyson in an all-boy gymnastics class, at least one session of swimming lessons, and a three day Cooking Camp.

I *think* all this should keep us busy and help the summer fly by. In addition to all these activities I have few goals for my family

I want Tyson to get rid of the training wheels on his bike. I am also determined to help him improve reading skills over the summer. His reading ability has skyrocketed in the last year. I attribute this to his awesome school teacher and family Book of Mormon reading. We will continue reading the BOM throughout the summer (maybe even finish Alma!). I also encourage Tyson to read at least one book everyday. He really likes reading to his little brothers.

Preston is ready for potty training, and I am determined to conquer it this summer. We made the move from diapers to pull-ups this week. Our biggest obstacle right now is his hesitation to poop in the toilet. If any of you veteran moms have any tips for overcoming this Please let me know!

Nolan is doing so well. He has life figured out. He's amazing (but I'll save that for another post). This summer we will be working on rolling over and sitting up. And by the end of the summer we will be working on eating baby food!

And for me: In addition to everything listed above I want to finish my 2009 Blog book and my 2009 Family Scrapbook. They are both nearly done, I just need to put the finishing touches on them. My biggest task will be organizing my office and my storage room. They are both in really bad shape, but I need Dan's help with both of them. I also want to run at least two 5Ks this summer.

Wish us luck! We are going to need it!

What are your goals for the summer?

Wordless Wednesday

Life Comes At You Fast