Dall and Claire

With baby #3 just days from making her debut, I (like most mom's) have been getting a litte emotional thinking about my other two kids and how their lives are about to drastically change. I thought I would take a minute to document a bit about each of my sweet kids at this phase in their lives.

Dallin A:
-Mr. Social. Loves friends, playing with friends (mainly his new BFF Zach our neighbor
-Kindergarten goer. He absolutely LOVES school. I am totally amazed at how much he is already learning in the short few months he has been going. He reads, writes, and is using his imagination so much more
-Mr. Sassy pants. He has been acting like a teenage girl lately, talking back, gracing us with tons of attitude
-Wiggle worm. Cannot. Hold. Still. Ever
-Poor sleeper. Stil wakes up in the night, and up by about 6 every single day.
-Smartie pants. Just amazes me with his knowledge ever single day. Love it.
-Snuggle bug. Still loves to give hugs and kisses, and cuddle up with mom or dad. This never gets old.
-Mr. Artsy. He has been loving arts and crafts lately, something he NEVER used to like. Keeps him occupied for a bit, which I like,
-Imagination? What's that. He still struggles with this one. He cant play alone very well and has a hard time with free play when he is alone
-Has the most darling "crooked smile". Basically his bottom jaw is crooked and will definitely require orthodontic work in the future. Better start saving now!
-Is very adaptable. He has adjusted to moving twice and switching schools over this past year beautifully. So proud of him.
-Soccer star. Still loves soccer and is truly a natural. We are excited to try him in football this next season (per his request)
-Mr. Mature. In most cases I feel like I am interacting with a 10 year old!
-Tries to "parent" Claire. Seriously drives me nuts.

Claire A:
-Ms. INDEPENDENT. She is 2, need I say more?
-My little monkey. Seriously, she can climb ANYTHING and does.
-Picky eater. Lately she has been refusing so many foods. Hopefully it's a phase. I try not to read into it, but dont make her multiple things. She goes without if she doesnt eat it.
-Sleeps. All. Night. Ahh.
-Should really start potty training...
-Cannot wait for her baby sister to "Come Out"
-Dora obsessed. Like bad.
-Loves to sing songs, especially before bed.
-The word "No" has entered her life, and she is in love. Me, not so much.
-Has the typical love/hate relationship with Dallin. Loves him when he is gone and misses him, but they bicker like crazy when they are together.
-Loves to sit in the swing and go "high" like she is 5 or something.
-Seriously needs some help getting her hair to grow in thicker. There are literally bald spots on her scalp. Any suggestions?
-cuddle bug. She like her brother is very loving and offers hugs and kisses all day
-Plays well alone. It's a true blessing for us, really.
-Speaks really well, can talk in sentences and knows her ABC's and can count to 15
-Follows her brother around and wants to do everything he does.
-Is in love with my phone and playing games on it. Dangerous though, cuz she has accidentally signed me up for some monthly 9.99 playboy charge. OOps!
-She insists on using her hands to eat most things. Forks are no fun at all!
-Has a very sweet personality, but is definitely gaining a bit of sass
-Just melts my heart every day!

Well there ya have it, a little info about my kiddos. I will be glad I did this, more for my own reference in the future. Cannot wait to add the 3rd child to the list in 2 DAYS! I will keep everyone updated on the induction which is scheduled for 7:30 on Sunday morning. Until then...

Quick Update

Since I am so far behind on posting I decided to give a quick update on our lives, and when I get time to actually sit down and post pictures I will, even if they are a few month's late.

Family Vacation: We took a family road trip to Boston over the summer. We rented a beach house on Cape Cod and shared it with Andy's parents. We were able to see both sets of his grandparents, along with many aunts/uncles and cousins. It was such a blast. We spent most of our time playing on the beach, building sandcastles and boogie boarding. My kids were in HEAVEN, and Claire even took her daily naps in our laps (how sweet). Dallin is a water weinie, and fearless. Claire was a bit more hesitant but loved being held and brought out into the waves! They both got so tan, but Claire did especially! Love that girl! We celebrated our 7th year wedding anniversary on Cape Cod (we also celebrated our 1 year wedding anniversary here too).

Dallin's first ER trip: I cant believe we lasted almost 5 years without taking Dallin to the emergency room, but... it was inevitable. On the last day of our vacation in Mass, we stopped at a sandwich shop before heading home and there was a playground across the street. I decided to take the kids over there while Andy ordered the sandwiches, basically to let the kids get some last minute energy out before the long drive. Well after about 10 seconds of being there, I heard a cry from the dreaded monkey bars. I was over on the swings with Claire and I ran over to Dallin who was holding his arm. I knew immediately what had happened, and I freaked out. I started screaming and picked him right up. Luckily both Andy's parents and Grandparents were still with us, so I ran over to them. I calmed down, and Dallin wasn't even upset. I could tell just by looking at it that it was broken, so I knew we needed to head to the ER. I grabbed the nearest magazine and some guaze wrap and made my lovely homemade sling. Andy's grandpa guided us towards the nearest ER and we were off. 3 hours later, we were called back to the room and they took an xray that confirmed the fracture. Dallin was so incredibly brave, I cant even stand it!!! Anyway, they gave us a temporary sling and some pain meds and we headed back to Andy's grandparent's house where we set up a family sleeping pow wow in the living room. We had to extend our trip on more day, but it all worked out. Dallin was a trooper and didnt ever complain. When we got back to Indiana, we saw an orthopedic doctor who put him in a hard cast for 3 more weeks (waterproof)!!! We went about our normal summer and Dallin wasn't hindered one bit with the cast on!

Dallin's first day of school: We officially have a kindergartener at our house! Dallin started school mid August, and attends the PM class. His teacher is named Mrs. Sirken. There are 20 students in the class, and he is loving every minute of it. I drop him off at 12:40 and he rides the bus home! He gets home about 3:45 every day, and is all smiles! He is already learning how to read, little smarty pants!

We bought a house!!!!!: After months and months of eyeing the rental market, and realizing we would totally be OVERSPENDING, the thought of buying a house crossed our minds. We had a few reservations, the main one being we still have our house in Utah. We have good renters in there, but still, it's stressful knowing that we would be responsible for 2 mortgages. THe other hesitation was "where is Andy's career going to take us, and when?" The sports industry is unpredictable. A job opportunity could present itself at ANY TIME, and we were nervous about being held back because we owned a home here in Indy. Don't get me wrong, we are very happy with Andy's job now, but you honestly never really know what the future holds. We finally decided that we didn't have a crystal ball, we would be saving over $300/mo if we bought a house, and we ultimately would be so much happier in our OWN place, so we started thinking that buying might not be such a bad idea. So anyway, for months we had been getting listings from a local realtor, and didn't honestly think much about buying at the time. Then, a house came available that caught our eye. We decided to go look at it, but didnt love it in person. That next day another one came available, that was SO MUCH BETTER than the first one. I went and looked at it and fell in love. Andy went the following day, and followed the realtor to her office to write up an offer. That's how great this house was. We had to wait a few days for financing to fall into place, but once we got that approved we submitted the offer. After a few counter offers they accepted! They even included the swingset, washer & dryer and stand up freezer in the garage. Hello, am I dreaming? I am still kind of in shock, but as my house continues to pile up with boxes the reality is kicking in. We close on September 23, and I am thrilled. All 3 kids will have their own bedroom, and there is even room downstairs designated as a playroom. What more could a mom ask for! More to come on this!

One Year Anniversary: Yesterday marked the 1 year anniversary of our move to Indiana! I cannot believe it's been that long, wow. It's been a rollercoaster of emotions, mainly for me. Andy has rocked it at his job, which is no surprise. Despite the almost hour commute each way (which is soon to be cut by at least 20 minutes in the new house) he has loved his job. I think around the 8-9 month mark the "newness" of this adventure wore off and the reality set it. I was pretty much a basket case. A lot of the expectations I had created for myself and the move had not been met, and I was feeling quite sad about it. I missed my family dearly, and the thing that was the most devastating was the fact that my sister Sarah was pregnant and I wasnt there to experience it with her. Nor would I be there to enjoy these boys when they are born and growing up. It seriously kills me. BUT... I have moved passed the pity me stage, and have entered the "this is my new life" phase. I have accepted the new life, and now with the new house purchase comes new neighbors (we seriously have a lack of kids in ours)and a new ward. I am really excited. I get to feel comfortable and homey in MY OWN HOUSE. The kids will have a playset, and one of the neighbors have a 5 year old and a 2 year old. Seriously? Good things are ahead, including the birth of my DAUGHTER! Cant wait to meet baby D. 10 more weeks!!!!!

That's about it for this post, I will try my hardest to get some pictures uploaded in the next little bit, but packing has taken precidence these days!

Happy to announce....

We are thrilled to be adding another little girl to our family! Baby "D" looks great and we cant wait to meet her!

4th of July!!

This year the 4th of July ended up being one of the funnest days we have had since moving out here! We originally weren't going to even do anything, we thought the kids wouldn't last through fireworks and we honestly didnt really know much about what festivities were even going on. Then Andy's friend from work called and invited us to go hang out with him and his wife over at Geist Reservoir. There was going to be fun festivities for the kids, food and fireworks. We decided to give it a whirl, but figured we would probably not last through the entire night to see fireworkds. We got there right at 5:30 when everything began and walked around. They closed this giant bridge off to traffic that crossed the reservoir, and people were all setting up chairs along the road. We snagged a sweet spot, and set up our chairs and spent the rest of the evening walking around, getting Dallin's face painted, ate from a local taco stand, kids played in a bounce house, and just hung out! Before we knew it it was already 9:30, so we decided to set up shop and stay for fireworks! The kids were soooo amazing, probably one of the best days we have had with them. Before the fireworks started, they relesed tons of the floating lanterns into the sky, my kids were totally in heaven (they both are absolutely obsessed with the movie Tangled). Dallin was very nervous for the fireworks to start, he has never been a fan of them in the past. Once they started, he loved them. They set the fireworks off from the middle of the water, and we were sitting right on the bridge! What a cool setting. Claire was in awe and she said "oo, awesome" after every one! Adorable. It was a great night, and we are so happy we ended up going. We got some super cute pics too, so enjoy!

Sarah and Ty Ty visit!

We were so happy to have my sister Sarah and her hubby Tyler come out for a few days to visit! It worked out that it was over Claire's birthday so that made it even more fun. We had a good time hanging out, shopping, and talking all things BABY! My sister and I are both pregnant, dues just 2.5 weeks apart. This is her first pregnancy and they are so happy to be expecting TWIN BOYS! For Claire's birthday since we didnt have a real "party" I wanted to do something special that she would like. I decided that the Indianapolis zoo would be perfect, and boy was I right! She loved it, we all did for that matter! It was a gorgeous day, and the kids had a blast with Auntie Sarah and Uncle Ty Ty. Claire got to ride a "choo choo train" and Dallin a roller coaster. Afterwards, we hit up a restaurant called The Tamale Place, which we had seen the night before on "Diners, Drive-in's and Dives". We miss all of our family so much, it was so much fun to have someone come out and visit! I hope that I can make it out to Utah to see her babies before mine comes! Fingers Crossed!

Claire's 2nd Birthday

Claire turned 2 on June 11, and we had a little celebration at our house. She wanted a Dora cake, and was spoiled with lots of gifts. She didnt quite understand what a "birthday" meant, but she still enjoyed it! We were so happy that Aunt Sarah and Uncle Tyler were able to fly out for a visit and be there to celebrate Claire's special day. We went to the zoo the following day, more pics to come on that!






Like most others, I wanted to document a few things about Claire at this age because they grow so fast, and we quickly forget.

-26 lbs 12 oz, 36" tall
-loves Dora, and Tangled (seriously she is in love with this movie)
-transitioned to a big girl bed at 22 months, and after a few weeks of naptime struggles sleeps like a champ!
-takes a 2+ hour nap every day
-goes to bed at 8, sleeps till 7-8 am
-is a pretty good eater, but has her picky moments
-loves fruit, oatmeal, bagels, noodles
-plays very well alone, and already has a cute little imagination
-is soooo sweet
-hardly ever cries, and is slightly sensitive. Instead of a tantrum she gives us a frownie face, or covers her hands over her eyes.
-has the smallest feet, still in size 5
-tans like nothin you would believe. So jealous.
-follows big brother around non stop, and does EVERYTHING he does
-is a MONKEY. I have found her on top of my van, the washer and the countertops numerous times
-is talking more and more each day. still nothing can compare to the parables that her brother spoke at this age, but it's fun to finally be able to talk to her!
-knows all her colors
-can sing the ABC's
-is super lovey. She is always giving hugs and kisses multiple times a day
-starting to really get into the girlie things, princesses, purses, babies
-anytime she wears a skirt or dress she just twirls and twirls. Cutest.thing.ever
-loves to swing at the park, and it has to be in the regular swing, no baby swing for her
-is totally in the "i do it" stage. Kind of annoying sometimes, but so stinkin cute.
-loves all things water related
-overall a very obedient child
-is starting to understand that there is a baby in my belly, not sure she quite understands that one day this baby will be coming home with us!

Claire, you are such a joy to have around. I love your personality, your hugs, and your smiles! You have been such an easy child, I sure hope this continues! We love you so much!!!

Someone had a birthday!

Gorgeous Miss Claire is now officially 2!


..... much more to come about her birthday, and a fun weekend with Aunt Sarah and Uncly Ty Ty!

14 week belly

I figured I had better start documenting the belly progress, since I really started showing at 10 weeks! I am 14 weeks here!

The Chillins

Here are a bunch of pictures of my adorable kids, for your viewing pleasure!

Dallin's Preschool Graduation

Dallin officially finished his second year of preschool. I have been so pleased with our choice for his preschool this year in Indiana. His school was a based on a Montessori curriculum, which Dallin really responded to well. Dallin had a great year, was "the center of attention" his teachers say, and he learned TONS! Dallin is already reading short words, he can add and subtract basic numbers and despite being the youngest in his class, he is totally ready to start Kindergarten in the fall. Dallin made quite a few good friends, a few of which we get together with for playdates. We are so proud of our little squirt, and like most mom's say, "I cant believe my baby is so old!!"

Conor, Dallin, and Delaney. The three amigos.

Dallin's best bud Conor! He and Dallin get along so well, and we love having playdates with him!

Dallin and his "girlfriend" Delaney! What a cutie!

The only family picture we could snap, thanks to my busy 2 year old

Our babysitter, Dani and Dallin. My kids ADORE her! In fact, Dallin always makes me count down the days until Friday when Dani comes! She was so nice to come watch Dallin at his graduation!

Easter Festivities

I had to work Easter Sunday, so we opened packages from the grandparent's on Saturday night! The kids loved their baskets full of goodies! Easter morning the kids were up bright and early, so I got to watch them do their egg hunt for just a few minutes before I had to leave. Claire caught right on and had a ball finding her eggs. Dallin was a big helper and once he found his 10, he helped Claire find all of hers. The kids got all cleaned up and ready for Church with Dad!

Baby Talk

The other day I broused through old blog posts and it made me think how grateful I am to have this blog. Even though I dont update near enough, it's fun to have documentation of things that I forget all too quickly. With that said, I am going to try and continue to document more frequently during this pregnancy so I can years from now flash back and re live these special moments!

I am just about 10 weeks along now, feeling decent. I had my first doctor's appointment where they did an ultrasound and we saw the little heart beat. I have been feeling exhausted, which I know is normal in the early stages, but mine seemed a little more unbearable than I had remembered in the past. I had a feeling that my thyroid was off, and sure enough, the labs came back that they were elevated. My OB adjusted my medication dose, so hopefully I can start feeling a bit more lively here as I enter into my second trimester. As far as "morning sickness", I dont really have any! Sometimes at night after I eat dinner I feel a little blah, but my days go pretty much nausea-free! As long as I keep that belly satisfied (like every 2 hours) then I am good to go! Speaking of that belly, it's definitely starting to make an appearance! 3rd baby syndrome for sure, plus I tend to show pretty early anyway! We waited to tell Dallin about the baby until after my first appointment just to be safe. When I told him, he just LIT UP! Now, he cannot stop talking about it. He tells everyone he sees that "mommy has a baby in her belly". He wants a brother, and if you ask me, I am pretty sure that is what he will be getting! I never had a "feeling" about the gender either way, but this time I am about 95% sure it's a boy! Part of me is secretly hoping for a girl, for Claire's sake. THey will be under 2.5 years apart and I think it would be fun for her to have a sister. BUT, obviously I am happy with either, and Dallin would love a brother! I cant wait to find out! Well, I bet the next post will consist of some sort of embarassing belly shot, so stay tuned!

Easter Egg Hunt

We took the kids to a local easter egg hunt this past weekend. They had a blast, despite the chilly weather. The kids were separated into age groups, so Andy went with Dallin, and I went with Claire. Claire was ADORABLE! I love how she is starting to really grasp things and is really becoming a kid, not my little baby anymore :( Here are a few pictures from the day!