Mother's Day

I got to spend the day with a few of my favorite mothers. This is my mom! She is the best lady in the world! I love and admire her more than she will ever know! She lets me tag along with her on errands, hangs out with me when I am lonely, answers the phone when I call her 15 times a day, and makes me laugh. She is talented, supportive, loving, caring, etc. She is my best friend! I love you mom!Renee is my favorite older sister! She is one of my best friends in the world. She is such a good mom and wife! She is ALWAYS volunteering at her kids schools, running between piano, gymnastics, soccer, basketball, and ALWAYS has a basement full of kids. On top of it all, she is a very supportive and loving wife. She is such a wonderful example to me! I love her!I love my Grandma! She is the sweetest lady! She is so supportive of her many grandchildren and great-grandchildren and she shares a special relationship with my grandpa. She is also a wonderful example to me of the woman I want to become.We missed Ryan's mom yesterday who is in Arizona with my SIL who delivered a beautiful baby girl yesterday! I hope she knows how much we love her. She is an incredible mom and grandma and a wonderful example to me as well!

I had a wonderful day! Ryan got up with the kids and made me breakfast and we all ate together. It was so yummy! I was spoiled rotten and got what I have really wanted for a long time...My amazing parents also gave me a pass here. They are the best!I can't wait to go! Anyone want to come? You get in half price with me!

I feel so blessed to be a mother! What a wonderful calling to have in life! I hope everyone had a great day!

Disneyland Day 1

WARNING...Picture overload!!

Monday morning we got ready and headed to Disneyland! Brady was a little unsure of the whole thing at this point. He was in the stroller and when they opened the gates and we were walking towards our first ride he was sitting in the stroller crying and yelling, "don't push me to Disneyland." I felt so bad like I was traumatizing my child and at the same time I was so mad. We got in line for Peter Pan and he kept saying he wanted to go back to the hotel and go home. We just kept telling him how fun it was going to be and ignored him. Of course, they all loved it and my kids had no fear after that! Oh, except for the characters. My kids wanted nothing to do with them. I decided I was not going to ruin the trip by forcing them to take pictures with them so we don't have any. Every time we would walk by one they would wave and I would keep walking. Sad, I know.

The weather was perfect and it was not crowded at all. Our longest wait was about 25 minutes. It was great!

DumboThe trainMy kids would not cooperate for pictures!Roger RabbitRocketsJungle cruisePiratesThe whole gangSo cooperativeThe carouselTea cups We each had a buddy...My mom and BradyAbbey and EastonMe, Brady and Aria (Brady only went with me because my mom didn't go!)Geoff and LailaAll of us (minus the photographer)It was a great first day! We were all exhausted by the end of the night! Geoff and Laila drove back to Las Vegas that night and Aria stayed with us! The kids were out the moment their heads hit the pillows! More to come from day 2!

On Our Way!

On Saturday we drove down to Vegas where we got to spend some time with these cuties!I love them! I also got to see our friends Scott and Shea and their adorable girls! I should have taken a picture. Seeing them makes me miss them more. We took the kids to the park and got take out! Geoff and Aleena were nice enough to let us all crash at their house! It was great until all the kids woke up at 5:30.

We headed to California that morning! The plan was to go to the beach but due to traffic and being sick of the car, we ended up just hanging out around the hotel. Right outside our room there was a little pond with fish. It was pretty entertaining for the kids. We took the kids swimming which they all loved! For dinner that night we took the bus over to Downtown Disney! The boys thought the bus was the best thing of all! The kids were exhausted by the end of the night! Brady fell asleep at 7:15. They slept great and we were ready for the next day!

We're Back!

We got home from Disneyland on Wedensday night. We had a great time! I am still exhausted. We have had an eventful 48 hours since being home.

Last week we noticed a sore on the palm of Brady's hand. It was all red and looked infected. My mom popped it and got the pus out and I figured it would be fine. It didn't really get better but he didn't complain and with everything else going on, I kept forgetting about it. Yesterday morning he woke up and his face was covered in what looked like hives. I called the doctor and took him in. He has a staph infection that was spreading. Lovely! He is on an oral and topical antibiotic. He has to keep his hand covered at all times because it is contagious. Lovely! Not the best picture but if you can look close you can see all the red dots. He looks 100 times better today thanks to the medicine.

This morning Easton came in my room and told me his tongue hurt. I thought he was just attention starved since Brady got a lot yesterday and ignored him. He kept asking me to hold him and would cry everytime I put him down. Pretty soon he was saying his teeth hurt and I was thinking he had a cavity. It quickly changed to his arm and then his leg. Again, I was thinking my child is a hypochondriac and he was making it all up. I finally asked him if he wanted to go take a nap in my bed and he said yes. I put him in there and left to start picking up the house. Within a few minutes he was screaming bloody murder. I ran in there just in time for him to start throwing up everywhere. It was so sad. He told me he wanted to brush his teeth so I took him in the bathroom and then ran downstairs to turn on a show for Brady and came back to find him like this. Poor kid. He is so sick.

This afternoon I was talking to my mom and cleaning up my kitchen. I sprayed one counter with cleaner and turned around and it was gone. It was so weird. I looked everywhere, retraced my steps, and could not find it. I told my mom I was losing my mind. I got distracted and forgot about it and about 15 minutes later Brady walked up the stairs with an empty spray bottle. Great. I took him downstairs and asked him where he sprayed it and he pointed to every couch, chair, toy, etc. Seriously? At least he didn't put it in his mouth right?!?

It has been a miserable day. Brady has been stuck in the basement and Easton in my bedroom with a lap top to watch movies on. I am trying to keep them both away from Luke. It is going to be a long weekend. Can I go back on vacation yet? Pictures from Disneyland to come when I have the energy to sort through them!

Congrats Grads!

These 2 love birds graduated today from BYU! We are so proud of them!

They have a busy few months ahead. Abbey graduated in Early Childhood Education and is on the job hunt! Taylor is studying for the DAT and working on dental school applications! We are looking forward to the wedding on June 3!

We are headed out tomorrow. I have decided to leave Luke behind. We think Disneyland will be easier without him. Thanks to Ryan for agreeing to keep him and Sue and Julie for helping out! I have held him all day and kissed him a million times over. I am sad. Today Brady told my mom we are really going to miss Luke...yes we will!

We will drive to Las Vegas tomorrow and stay at Geoff and Aleena's. We are so excited to see them! Sunday morning we will head to California and spend the day exploring and hitting the beach. Monday we will hit Disneyland and Tuesday we will go to California Adventure! I am so glad it is finally here so we can stop talking about it! It is going to be so much fun!

6 Month Stats

Luke continues to be our big boy! We went to the doctor for his 6 month check-up the other day. Here are his stats.

Length: 27.9 - 89%
Weight: 19 lbs 4 oz - 78%
Head Circ: 17.2 - 47%

Luke is the best baby! He is a great sleeper, great eater, and all around very happy boy! He loves all the baby food we have given him. He is rolling all over the place. He is almost sitting up on his own but still falls over pretty quick (maybe because of his big belly)! We all LOVE him to pieces!

Deja vu

Here we go again...I took Luke to the doctor today to have his head looked at and can you guess what they told me? Yep, he needs a helmet. Oh my gosh, seriously?!? My eyes welled up with tears and I almost broke down right there. Although deep down I already knew it was coming, I was hoping the doctor would tell me it wasn't as bad as I thought and he would grow out of it. Nope. Now I am headed up to Salt Lake to have his head measured in order to try and get our insurance to pay for it. It was almost exactly 3 years ago I did the same thing with Brady and Easton.

I feel like a failure. I did not want to go through this again. I tried so hard to put Luke on his tummy and turn his head when he was sleeping. I even went against the "back to sleep" saying and had him take at least 1 nap a day on his tummy (making sure he was breathing every 5 minutes). Despite my best efforts I find myself right back in the same situation.

Ryan doesn't want to do it and I am dreading it. It was hell with the boys. They had a hard time getting comfortable and stopped sleeping through the night. Luke is the best baby and an awesome sleeper. I really don't want to mess with that. I am dreading the constant stares, whispering, and questions that will come our way every day. It is really annoying. Plus, it is almost summer and just thinking about having that huge thing on his head 23 hours a day makes me sweat.

Okay, I am done complaining. I am lucky to even have this cute, flat-headed baby to put a helmet on! I am grateful that there is something that can help him have a more normal and rounded head. I am grateful that I have good health insurance that will help us pay for this. I am grateful I have a sister and a mom who are willing to help with my kids so I don't have to drag all 3 of them to all these appointments. I am going to make the best of the situation and just be glad that I can help my baby in case he is bald some day :) Wish us luck!

P.S. If you didn't see Brady and Easton with their helmets you are missing out! It was quite the sight. Luke's is going to be a clear plastic, not as thick or blue so hopefully we won't stand out as much! I will try and find a picture later to post.