Dads and Doughnuts

Today is "Dad's and Doughnuts Day" at Luke's school. He was so excited that Joey was able to take the day off and spend this time with him at his school. He gathered some books to take for Joey to read to him. He chose a Star Wars book and one about Snakes- could he be anymore boy?? When they were about to leave Luke asked Joey if he knew where his school was. So cute! I know that they had a great time. I am so grateful that Luke has such a great Dad. Joey is truly the best example to Luke and I am loving the close relationship that they have.

Trampoline Fun

Nash has now discovered the trampoline and to say he loves it is an understatement. I think he would stay on there all day if we would let him. He feels like one of the big kids and I think the excitement is written all over his face. We cannot wait until the weather is consistently nice and he can spend his days having so much fun on the tramp.

*We have to give a big THANK YOU to Joey (AKA Dad) for working so hard to move the trampoline. We just put in a walk out for the basement and the trampoline was so close to this new big hole. Joey hand dug the tramp out and moved it back so it would be safer for the kids. What a great man I married!

Nash's Favorite Spot

Nash has deemed the stairs his favorite spot. If you ever you wonder where he is, more often than not you can find him sitting on the stairs. He loves to take whatever snack you have given him (or he has helped himself to in the pantry- that little stink!) and go sit down on the steps to enjoy it. What a funny kid he is!

*Love his feet in this picture. That is another one of his favorite things. He is always crossing his ankles so his feet can touch and rub together. Is he really from the mom and dad who so don't love feet?

Our Sports Guy

Luke just loves his cousin Brody. He gets so excited when he is coming over and Brody is so sweet to spend tons of time with him. We had them over for dinner last night and I just had to take a picture of them together. After Luke got dressed for dinner he came downstairs to show me what he was wearing. He said "Mom, do you like my new look?" I told him I did and he said "Yeah, I'm a sports guy. I just love sports!". So cute. Brody is the biggest sports enthusiast and Luke wants to follow in his footsteps. We are truly grateful for the good example that Brody is to Luke and would love if Luke grew up to be just like Brody!

*Brody showed up with a red hat and shortly after they arrived Luke had his red hat on too!

First Day in Primary

For the past few months Harlee has dreaded nursery. She cries every week and ends up going to class with Joey and I. I am not sure if it is because she is one of the oldest in her class but she just refuses to go. Last Sunday I talked to the Primary President about the situation. Since the nursery is overflowing with kids and Primary is not, she thought it would be alright for her to try. Since Luke so willing goes, Harlee just followed him in this week and she loved it. I am hoping this will be a trend and Joey and I can somewhat enjoy our classes only having Nash to worry about for the next few months until nursery.

My Little Friend

Luke's friend Riley asked him to go see the movie "Diary of a Whimpy Kid" after school today. I had planned to put Nash down and spend this "more quiet than usual" time getting things done. I thought I could get Harlee interested in a movie or something involving princesses but I was mistaken. My little friend wanted to spend all of her time with her mom. At first I was a little bothered because I had so much to get done. But I gave up on that idea and just enjoyed our special time together. She even helped me make soup for dinner. Sometimes I just have to let go of the agenda and enjoy the little moments when she wants to spend time with me. She is such a cute girl and always makes me smile. Love you Harlee and thanks for helping me prioritize my day! You helped me remember what is truly important.

Living Planet Aquarium

Today we went to the Living Planet Aquarium. I have been wanting to take the kids there for a while and spring break seemed to be the perfect time to go. I think everyone else had the same idea because it was super crowded. I let Luke invite Riley and we had a great time. My friend Marissa and her kids came also. They were so excited and the time in the aquarium seemed to be on fast forward. We saw all they had to offer in about 50 minutes! They saw tons of fish, sharks, touched starfish, stingray, saw penguins, crabs, an octopus and a huge snake. They were so excited about everything. Then we went to Carls Jr and they played for an hour and a half. Nash even played on the playplace and had the best time. They were all so good and today reminded me of why I signed up for this mom gig! They had so much fun and I have so much fun watching them enjoy everything. What a great day!

Sure, I can take all three of them to the store!!

Sure, I can take all three of the them to the store was the crazy thought I had yesterday. I needed to run to JoAnn's fabric store to get a few more things before going over costume cost with Becky last night. So we left around 3:30pm. We were only in the store about 30 minutes but it seriously felt like a lifetime. I have never seen them act so out of line. Luke and Harlee were running around the store and not listening to me at all. At one point, I confronted Luke with a little squeeze of my fingernail in his finger to which Luke so manipulatively replied:

"Do you want me to drink alcohol?" I was thinking, no but I could use a little something right about now. We just had a talk about how bad alcohol was so I am sure he was hoping this comment would effect me. Then he also said:

"Do you not want to be my mom?"

"Do you wish I was in the grave?"

Seriously, who is this kid? It is like he is 5 going on 15! Can't wait until those teenage years. He is way too smart for his own good.

We made it out of JoAnn's, all still alive, barely. It is so funny now to think back on the craziness of it all but at the time I was not laughing. I guess we need times like this as a mom to help appreciate the normal, uneventful days. They have been such great kids today and I don't know if I would notice it as much if I had not just gone through fabric store heck!!!

*You look at all their cute, angelic faces in these pictures. How could they ever do anything wrong??

So Cute!!

Yesterday Nash was still in quite the grumpy mood from being sick. He needed lots of attention and was not afraid to let you know it! We found some 3-D glasses that Joey had stolen from the movie theater (he did not intentionally steal them, he thought you could take them home!) and Nash was in heaven. He kept putting on the glasses and laughing. Oh for a happy moment!

A Big Day

Ever since Luke was a baby he has loved this little blanket that we bought him at Target. He received so many, much nicer blankets throughout the years but he has always loved this one. He named it "Favorite". Whenever Luke was sad or tired this little piece of tattered fleece comforted him and made him feel better. Yesterday he decided that he did not need "favorite" anymore. He bravely wadded him up and threw him in the garbage. I could not believe what he was doing. I asked him several times if he was sure and he said yes. Our baby is growing up! What a big, brave boy.

Easter Morning 2010

We had let Luke and Harlee have a camp out in our room last night and by 6:15am we could hear them talking. "It is going to be awesome!" said Luke. He was telling Harlee that he thinks he saw the Easter Bunny, to which Harlee replied "In real life?" This seems to be her response to everything lately- so cute! Well I ran down to get the camera and then Joey brought them down to the front room where Santa leaves the presents and the Easter Bunny followed suit last year. You could imagine their disappointment when the room was empty. We asked the kids "Do you think you woke up to early and he had to leave??" They were so sad. (How mean is that Easter Bunny??) We suggested that maybe he left the baskets somewhere else and after a few rooms checked, they found their baskets in the kitchen. They were so excited and it was happiness again in the Childs home!

I am truly grateful for the opportunity to celebrate Easter and to reflect on the special gift given by our Savior. Because of His sacrifice we can live with Him again. I feel so lucky to have that opportunity and to be able to live as a family FOREVER. What drive that gives me to be better and to teach our children the gospel so that we can enjoy that blessing. I am so thankful for the gospel and for all of the many blessings that we enjoy as a family.

* Love the pics- the first set is the before and after. The second is the reaction to no baskets in the front room- so mean! And the next set is a few shots of them enjoying their treats. Love these kids!

How we survived

Grocery shopping is always an adventure when you have three little kids. We were shopping the other day and Joey was in charge of the Nash/Harlee cart. Things were a little crazy so he opened the oreos and enjoyed the rest of the shopping! I just had to take a picture of Nash, what a cute disaster. He does not seem to mind at all!

Love these boys!!

Nash has been really sick the past week. I finally (so third child, sorry Nashie) took him to the doctor yesterday and found out that he has double ear infections. He has been struggling with a high fever for a few days and it is so nice to have an explanation. Nash would not let me put him down but I needed to get dressed for dance. At the last minute I asked Luke to keep and eye on him while I changed. From my bathroom I could hear Luke, "I'm sorry you're so sick buddy". So cute. I walked out and saw Luke laying on his tummy on the floor and Nash was resting his head on Luke's back. Luke was such a good comforter to Nash and I really appreciate the love he has for his brother. Such a great moment!

*Poor Nash, he just looks so out of it. I hope he feels better soon.

Soccer Season

It is that time again! Soccer has officially started and gives us another activity for our Saturday. Luke is doing so good. It is a far cry from the "airplane" games Luke and Cade would play instead of focusing on the ball. It really makes me excited to see him understanding the game and enjoying it. Here are a few pictures to kick off the season!