Why Didn't I Think of This Sooner?

Lately, I have been really jaded with my daily chores! It seriously never ends! I clean up one room, move onto the next, and by the time I turn around room #1 is already destroyed! Every once in a while I make Makaylee help me with some of the cleaning, and the other day I realized that she is old enough to have a little chore chart. Yay! I hit Google up for "Chore Charts

for Kids" and I found this really cool website with free customizable and printable chore charts. You can add their name, their chores, and choose a picture. So cute! Makaylee loves finishing her chores now and putting a sticker on her chart. I don't know how long her enthusiasm will last, but for now I am sure enjoying it!

Cinderella For A Moment

This morning, amidst the pre-church frenzy, I was hopping around the house in one high heel, while trying to find the other. I was getting annoyed, because I didn't want to have to settle for a less-cute (but accessible) pair of shoes. I finally asked Makaylee if she knew where my shoe was, and amazingly she found it quickly at the bottom of a basket of laundry. I was so excited I practically shouted "Thank you so much for finding that Makaylee!" She smiled at me proudly, and then quietly slipped out of the room. I threw my jewelry on and hobbled to the spot where my shoe was 2 minutes earlier and it was missing . . . AGAIN! Now I was really frustrated, and I hopped out my bedroom door hollering "Makaylee. . ."but the cutest sight stopped my in my tracks. Makaylee was walking gracefully down the hall toward me, and she was beaming. She held the small decorative pillow from her bed in front of her, and carefully place upon it was MY SHOE! She presented it to me as if I was Cinderella, it was so adorable, I started laughing so hard and I just had to take a picture!

Lagoon Day

We went to Lagoon for Aspen Ridge's Lagoon Day!Makaylee was quite the daredevil, and went on all the big rides that they would let her on! This is what Rowen thought of the long day! (Actually, that's what I thought of it too!) I really wouldn't recommend going to Lagoon all day with a 1 year old! They will let babies on the rides, but if the baby is determined to crawl out the little seat belt is really not secure enough! I think we'll go again for Stampin Up's Lagoon Day, but with out the baby!

Our First Family Photos!

Pitter Pat Photography

A friend from our ward took these photos for us at Wheeler Farm. Melanie did an awesome job, and I highly recommend her! We took individual pictures of Rowen, for his 1st birthday, and of Makaylee for her 4th birthday. (She was even willing to be silly, to get the kids smiling!) Thanks Mel!

Summer Update

Seriously, why does the summer fly by faster than any other time of year? I just can't find the time to sit and blog! Here is a few things that we have been up to:

The 4th of July: Probably my second favorite holiday, what makes it so fun? I still feel the same way I felt when I was a little kid, looking up at the big fireworks. There is no where I would rather be, than right there, with my crazy family, fried chicken, and the land of the free!

Yard work: I wish I had a before and after to post of our flower bed, Terry did an awesome job ripping out the old and adding a retaining wall and wood chips.

Picnic table: Again, I wish I had a before and after, I refinished an old picnic table that my dad made years ago. It went from embarrassing to fabulous! I didn't even realize it was redwood under all that gray wood and oxidation! Bring on the BBQ's!

Rowen's birthday BBQ: We had Terry's family over to celebrate Rowen's birthday, thanks for the good company, and nice gifts! (yes, it is still his 1st birthday, we just celebrated it for like two whole weeks!)

The track: We've been going to the track a few times a week, it has been so much fun, Makaylee brings her bike and rides around and Terry and I take turns pushing the stroller and running. I hope to be able to run 3 miles by the time the summer is over, but for now, I am up to about 1 1/2 miles.

Swimming: My Mom's subdivision has a pool and we have been hanging out there all summer. Rowen is a little water baby, and LOVES the pool, and Makaylee would literally swim from sun up to sun down if I would let her.

I LOVE THE SUMMER!!

Rowen is One!

Happy Anniversary!

Happy Anniversary Terrill! Seven years ago today we were walking out of the temple, starting our new life together. I thought I was so lucky to be married to such a handsome and funny man. I never knew how fast time would fly. I never could have guessed that our life would be this good, and that we would be so blessed! Two children, and 7 years later, and I am still the luckiest girl alive! I love you!

Our "Vacation" @ Homestead

Terry had to go up to Midway for a golf tournament for Stampin Up, so we decided to take advantage of his travel reimbursement and all go up and spend the night at The Homestead. We all had a great time during the daylight hours, but it was probably the worst night sleep of my life! Rowen was on an adrenaline high and he would NOT sleep. He wasn't crying, he was just awake and hyper, he kept standing up in his crib and jabbering, and bouncing all night long! Terry finally took him to the car at about 4:30 and drove around until he fell asleep. The problem was that he had to get up at 6:00 to go golfing, so we all got about 1 1/2 hours of sleep! The kids loved the pool and the duck pond though, and I loved the crater and the homemade fudge! Overall, we were really glad that it was just a one night trip though!

Happy Fathers Day (Or Something Like It)

On Fathers Day we went up to Crystal Lake with Terry's brother and sis-in-law for picnic. It was beautiful up there, and even a little bit chilly. There was still snow on the ground and some ice in the lake. Makaylee was not having one of her most coordinated days, and was acting kind of spacey, so I was naturally nervous about walking on the board walk. I even said to Eric and Heather "Guess whose child will end up in the lake?" we all laughed, and kept walking. I kept trying to hold Makaylee's hand, but she kept saying "I can do it myselfs! I will be SOOO careful Mommy!" You know where I am going with this. . . I look away for two seconds, and suddenly Terry and Heather are lunging toward the lake, I look up in time to see Makaylee falling through the ice and into the water!!!! She was so disoriented when she landed that she tried to run toward the LAKE instead of the boardwalk! Luckily it wasn't very deep, so she landed on her feet, and only got wet up to her armpits (and luckily Terry reached her before he had to dive in the lake himself.) Poor girl! We stripped her down right there on the boardwalk and wrapped her in a blanket because she was FREEZING! Hmmm. . . sometimes I wonder if I'm a bit of a psychic?

After the lake fiasco we went to visit Terry's parents, by the the end of the evening Makaylee was holding her head and saying her ears hurt. Late that night she had a fever of 103.7 so we took her to the instacare and she had strep throat! (Which explains the lack of coordination!) As we were falling to bed that night I turned to Terry and said "Happy Fathers Day Honey!" He rolled his eyes in a very exaggerated way and his only reply was "We aren't having any more children!"

Is Cake a Food Group?

We celebrated Rowen's 1st Birthday with my family this weekend. (His official B-day is in one week.) I put the cake down in front of him thinking there was no way he was going to touch it, as he hardly eats ANYTHING. I had my camera ready just in case, and all of the sudden he picked up the cake and tried to eat it all in one bite. I was so surprised! So now Rowen has 5 food groups: gram crackers, Ritz crackers, lucky charms, puffs, and now CAKE! Yummy!

Preschool Graduation

Makaylee graduated from her first year of preschool this week. Small Wonders Preschool put on an end of year performance at the Riverton Community Center. They sang tons of adorable songs and had a slide show. It was so cute, it brought tears to my eyes! My little girl sure is growing up fast!

Determination Pays Off!

I love how the warm weather brings people together, our neighborhood streets are literally crawling with kids these day. Makaylee wants to be outside playing with her friends CONSTANTLY! Today, I looked out the window to check on her and I saw my neighbor trying to teach her little girl (who is almost 6) how to ride her bike without training wheels. They kept trying for 30-45 minutes, with out much success. I started to reminisce about when I learned how to ride a two wheeler, how my dad took me to the big parking lot at the elementary school, and how I just kept trying and trying until I finally figured it out. I must have been 5 or 6. After I came back to reality I looked out to check on Makaylee again, and I saw her riding around the circle on her bike. I turned to continue cleaning but then I realized that it was not her bike she was riding. As I looked closer I realized that it was the neighbors bike WITHOUT TRAINING WHEELS! My determined little 4 year old taught herself how to ride a two wheeler by herself! I was so shocked, and proud of her! Makaylee came out of the womb, a very intense (and sometimes challenging) child. But as she has gotten older, I realize how those traits are going to be very beneficial to her. I know that she will be able to accomplish anything that she puts her mind too!

Allergy Testing

We had Rowen allergy tested on Thursday. He was tested for Soy, Dairy, and Egg (why not more, I don't know?) the good news was that he showed no sign of reaction to any of them! The bad news is that he still has a "protein sensitivity" to Soy and Dairy, but kids almost always outgrow that by the time they are two. After that news, I jumped the gun a little. We had friends over for a BBQ and I helped myself to a big piece of cheesecake, the next day Rowen had massive diarrhea! So I guess it is just a waiting game, you try a little on them, and if they have a bad reaction you hold off for a few more months. (My poor little guinea pig!) I still haven't figured out what he is going to drink once I wean him? He is actually trying to wean himself right now, he is totally resisting nursing, which is fine (he is almost 12 months old) except that he is also resisting ANY OTHER sippy cup or bottle. I don't understand why we have such issues with him eating and drinking, if there is anything I am REALLY good at, it is at eating and drinking!

Community Co-Op part 2

For anyone that was interested in the Community Food Co-Op, I had a quick update. We picked up our food on Saturday, and I was way impressed! The food was fresh and delicious, and it really was an awesome value. I took a picture of the food we recieved for $16.65. Next months order is due by June 13th!