The Backyard That Sealed The Deal

When we were looking at houses we had a few we liked, but we ended up choosing our house, the one with the biggest backyard. We have so enjoyed it! Every Spring we ask ourselves the same question, "Should we go ahead and get a pool this year"? Nope! Our girls love their yard so much and a pool would take that away from them, plus I'm so paranoid of having little kids around a pool, just me...

This weekend was a great one, we had The Pope crew over Saturday for water sliding, Slip N' Sliding, BBQ and S'mores. Lots of fun! The kids, minus Lane and Baby Bennett, were outside on the slide for 6 hours, crazy. It was wonderful because they ate good and fell asleep pretty easily last night, can't complain about that!

These are some of my favorite pics we got yesterday(look how BIG that sweet Baxter Boy is getting, such a good dog!).

And just because I've been in a baking mood lately, here's the recipe to some cookies I'm making later today. I'll be giving most of them away, no way my waistline could handle all of them;-)

Reese's Peanut Butter Chip Chocolate Cookies

1 c. butter

1 1/2 c. sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp. vanilla

2 c. unsifted all-purpose flour

2/3 c. Hershey's cocoa

3/4 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

2 c. (12 oz. pkg.) Reese's peanut butter chips

Cream butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla until light and fluffy. Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt; add to creamed mixture. Stir in peanut butter chips. Chill until firm enough to handle.
Shape small amounts of dough into 1-inch balls. Place on ungreased baking sheet and flatten slightly with fork. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Cool 1 minute before removing from cookie sheet onto wire rack. Makes about 6 dozen 2 1/2 inch cookies.

S'mores...

...is there really any better way to kick off Summer? Happy Memorial Day and the start of Summer!

Just Another Thursday

Except for the fact that a fire truck, ambulance and policeman showed up at my house, *sigh*.

It was 1:30 and Delaney was just waking from her nap when I ran out to the garage to get something. I turned around to come back into the house when the door locked behind me. I'm a freak about locking doors because Ryan's always traveling. I broke out into a sweat and thought about how I had to leave the house by 2:00 to pick up Addyson from school, and that Lane was inside by herself(thank goodness she was in her bed, the safest place she could be). I go to my wonderful neighbor Shannon's house and she suggests I call the Sheriff's department to come help me. Within minutes I had all these emergency vehicles in front of my house and I'm also grateful that most everyone on my street works during the day so they don't see what's going on, except Shannon of course, she already thinks I'm nuts;-)

I can hear Delaney crying from upstairs while these 6 guys from the fire department are trying to help me. There's nothing like the feeling of being separated from your baby when she's crying and you can't get to her. Awful. They were trying to figure out which window to break to get inside when one of the men yells, "I'M IN!" Ahhh, such sweet words.....I run upstairs to get Lane and all she says is, "Cookie Mama, Cookie" Haha, she was hungry!

Ryan was out of town, of course, so when I tell him what happens he says, "Didn't this happen at our old house when Addyson was like 15 months old?? How can it happen again?" Ugh. No kidding, right?

Crazy day yesterday. Ryan says he plans on bringing the guys at the fire department dinner from Carino's soon, they deserve it!

Potty Time!

So today just after Lane finished her lunch she looked at me and said, "Poo Poo". I picked her up, sat her on the potty, and a few minutes later we had poop! I was surprised she actually did it, but for the past month or so she's pretty much been telling me when she's about to "go", so I thought we'd give it a try. I'm not in full potty training mode or anything, it just surprised me that it happened this early, Addyson was just over 2 when she started showing signs.

Yay Lane!

A Gymnist in Training

The gym where Addyson takes her weekly gymnastics class held their Spring Mini-Olympics on Saturday and Addyson got to be part of it! There were 8 levels of kids all doing their thing and it was lots of fun to watch. She participated in the bars, beam, vault and floor exercise. I thought she did best on the bars, but my Mom said her favorite was the beam. Unfortunately Ryan and Delaney didn't get to see most of it because she was napping at home. They arrived just in time for the awards ceremony, Addyson is so proud of her medal!

She seems to really love gymnastics and I hope she goes far with it, but if not that's fine too. This Summer I've enrolled her in ballet, so this Fall she'll need to decide which one she wants to stick with. We'll see!

***And no, Delaney was not cheering in the 2nd to last picture, she is about to go into full blown tantrum mode, I love this age, haha

18 Months Already?!

Say it isn't so! Our little Lane is 18 months old today, sniff, sniff....I took her in for her well visit and she's doing great! She weighs 28 lbs. and is 31.5 in. long. She's in the 75th percentile for height and 90th for her weight. Addyson was always off the charts for her height so it looks like our littlest might be just be the littlest ;-)

She's such a funny little girl, we enjoy her so much. When I hear her call out from her crib, "MAMA!" first thing in the morning, I can't wait to go in and get her, she's such a love...Lately she is really into phones; toy phones, real phones, cell phones, she loves them all. She loves books too. If you read her a short book she'll actually sit and listen to it, she won't sit long for much else! She loves Addy, as she calls her, and she wants to do just what sister is doing. If Addyson is outside, Lane is outside, if Addy is eating, she wants to be eating too, and so on. It's cute, in her eyes Addyson can do no wrong!

Her favorite foods are chicken nuggets, any and all kinds of yogurt, Life Cereal, bananas, Pirate's Booty, grapes, ice cream, pineapple, and spaghetti.

She's now old enough to attend nursery at church, YAY! Mom and Dad can actually get something out of Sunday School, Priesthood and Relief Society once again :)

Can't believe that in a few short months she'll be celebrating birthday #2, time is moving too fast......

Those That Made Me a Mom

I have some pretty special little ones that call me Mom, well, a few can't talk, but they're pretty great too...

It all started with a little cat named Chester. He was my first official "baby". Got him in the Spring of 2001 and he's been there for me through thick and thin. He's my snuggler at night while I'm asleep, a good boy!

Then when Ryan and I got married, Hammer Johnson the cat became my little girl. We call her our angel because she's such a sweet heart, she loves to love. She's definitely Ryan's cat, but the first night we came back home from the hospital after having Addyson, and we had to leave her at the hospital in the NICU, Hammer didn't leave my side the whole night. Sweet girl...

My first official baby, Addyson LeeAnn, is my true joy, and she's so much like me it's uncanny. When I look at her and see how she acts and reacts to things, it reminds me so much of the way I was as a little girl. I sort of get to re-live my childhood through her again. I tell her all the time she's my best friend, probably because she and I are so much alike.

Then came Miss Lane, the littlest girl and our "little warrior" we call her. She is into EVERYTHING! Did I say she's into EVERYTHING?? She's so funny though, she is mischievous, but in a subtle way if that makes sense. She's funny and we're always laughing at her and the things she does. She's the child that has taught me patience for sure! I told my sister I feel like I'm addicted to her. I'm constantly holding her and have learned to do just about everything while holding her, a real talent I think! Love her to pieces.

Last came Baxter Boy. He's a good dog and he and I have really bonded. He loves the girls and that makes me love him!

I had a wonderful Mother's Day today. My little ones and their Dad have been good to me. Ryan woke up extra early to make me some Chocolate Chip Scones and oh MY...they were so good! I told him he needed to quit his job and make and sell these things full time, haha

He and the girls also surprised me with a purse shaped ice cream cake from Baskin Robbins, can't wait to eat it after dinner tonight!

Right after breakfast Ryan got an email from him boss saying that the area directors needed to go to some of their restaurants and make an appearance today so yes, that meant he had to work for a few hours. I was bummed, but what can you do? I took the girls to the mall, we went to the Apple Store and I picked out a dock for my iPhone to play music on, love this thing, thanks Ryan! I then braved California Pizza Kitchen with the little ones for lunch. They were both so good! I can't remember them ever being that well behaved in a restaurant, it was nice...

I'm just so grateful to be a Mom to these 2 sweet and precious little girls. They mean the world to me and I really don't think I could exist with out them. They make me whole! Being a Mom is the best, most challenging, rewarding, meaningful and greatest accomplishment ever. And a thank you to Ryan for being their Dad, he has given me these precious little girls and that is the greatest gift of all.

A Mom's Day Visit

Since I won't see Mom this weekend to celebrate Mother's Day, we decided to get together today instead. She came out to see us and the girls and I are always glad to see her. She reads stories to them, we have lunch, and she always helps me fold my laundry while we get in a good visit.

We each had something for the other; she gave me a really great cookbook(I'm into those lately)and I gave her some yummy smelling kitchen hand soap and lotion to match.

It was a fun day and I'm glad we got to see her, it seems like we don't see each other as much as we should, and we only live about 40 minutes apart!

Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

***And notice the climber I have on my hands...My sister Brandy says that Lane is the boy I'll never have with all the climbing she does and the mischief she gets into, ha!