LAZY PJ Days....

The last few days being 8 months pregnant has really caught up with me (or at least that's my excuse for being tired and lazy!!!

:)
The boys and I have stayed in our PJ's until after nap time every day this week! We have watched a lot of movies, played a lot of games, and read a lot of books! I have meant to get pictures of them all week but I've been a little to lazy to do that too!

But TODAY I grabbed the camera and got a few pictures of the boys being goofy! This morning we read a few stories in Mommy's bed and then the boys hopped into the computer chair and started spinning around! They were giggling and laughing up a storm until I started taping
them:) But its a cute clip anyway!


Later that morning we made a little fort and the kids played in it on and off the rest of the day! It was really cute because Cooper would crawl under the table and growl! I don't know if he was pretending to be a bear or a dinosaur but it sure was funny!
After nap the boys started racing up and down the hall! We had a few casualties (as expected!!) but over all they had a fun time racing!
In all of these picture I am sure you will notice my not so tidy house! Along with my growing belly I have become less and less concerned with cleaning during the day! I still do the dishes as they get dirty during the day!!! And pick up so I have a clean house when I go to bed, but I have started to SLACK off picking up during the afternoon! I just hate picking up at nap time just to watch it go to POT as soon as the kids wake up! I haven't been as patient with the boys when they mess up what I just spent my QUIET time cleaning! SO my solution is to NOT clean it up and wait till they go to bed! :) LAZY... YES! But I don't get as frustrated so I am willing to call it a small success, instead of a failure!

Proud to be an American, and GLAD its OVER!

BJ and I went and voted today! We had to take the kids and once we got there Spencer kept asking where the "B-oat" was? He was a little bummed I said "V-ote" and that he wasn't getting on a Boat after all!

For some reason I always get a little sentimental on election day! I am glad I live in a country where we can all disagree and still go and vote for who ever WE feel is best for the us without the fear of what will happen to us for speaking our mind!

And No matter the outcome I am grateful I had the opportunity to cast my vote! BJ and I had fun discussing all of the different debates and hearing friends and families opinions!
BUT BOY I am GLAD its OVER!

I hope the country can change for the better and we can all unite behind whoever is elected!

Scriptures FHE

Tonight we had our FHE on the scriptures! We talked about the different books and where they came from! I tried to explain that the scriptures are stories the prophets have written down to help us be more like Jesus!
The we had a puppet show! YEA!!! I did a few little stories! The first one was about how Joseph Smith got the Book of Mormon. Then I told him about Captain Moroni and the Stripling Warriors! He thought it was really neat to see the swords and hear about the young boys we were soldiers! Then we talked about the Bible and how those stories are from Europe and tell about older prophets and Jesus! I told him the story of the Ten Commandments and Jesus walking on the water! We had to explain that walking on the water is different then swimming in the water! And then he was VERY impressed that Jesus could walk on it since he couldn't even swim in the water yet!
Some of the puppets!! I kinda love making these little puppets and the look on Spencer's face when we open the curtains for the show!

I made a little coloring page, because Spencer listens really well while he colors! So we kinda went over what the names of the scripture books are and who wrote them! Cooper really enjoyed coloring and didn't even eat any markers or color on any furniture! A total success!
At bed time Spencer was excited to sit down and read his scriptures and asked me to find the story about the young soldiers and the neat prophet captain! So I think it went well!

Friendship Bread with Friends

On Saturday night BJ and Caleb took a much needed break and went out to a "Man Movie!" Steph and I hung out and talked while the kids RAN AROUND and had a great time playing! We decided to finish up this Amish Friendship Bread BJ had been working on for the last 9 days! It turned out really good! I wanted to post this funny picture of the kids helping us clean up!
They both really wanted to help us make the bread! SO EVERY OTHER ingredient was added by either Tippy or Spencer! They were both really good about taking turns and LOVED to lick the beaters after we were done!

The boys had fun at their movie and we all enjoyed relaxing and hanging out! But next time the girls are hitting the town while the boys stay home! YEA!!!

Trick or Treat

We went down to St George this year for Halloween! Unfortunately BJ had to work but the kids and I had a great time going around to to Trick or Treat with all our family and friends!

We stopped by Jenise's apartment first! Cooper fell asleep on the way their so he was a little groggy but as soon as he saw the treats he woke right up! He kept taking handfuls! And then he would put them back in the bucket! :) Silly kid, you have to hold on to those treats!
After visiting with Jenise we went out to Hurricane to trick or treat with the Hanks and the Steele's. Megan's neighborhood was perfect for walking around with the kids and we knew they would all love to go together! Spencer was a bit grouchy before we got started but warmed up and was great at saying "trick or treat" and thank you (phew) Cooper wasn't really into walking all over so I ended up carrying him while he bit THROUGH the candy wrappers to get a taste! He wasn't really into waiting!
We ended up back at BJ's parents with all the cousins! By then I was completely WORN out but the kids had a great time running around! The buzz from the candy didn't wear off until 11:00!
We had a great time, next year I think the kids will be a little more into it! When we got home on Saturday Spencer asked if he could go around and go trick or treat at home?

Blessed....

Today WORE ME OUT! All I have to say is that after 2 1/2 hours of begging, hoping, yelling and giving up the kids DIDN'T NAP! AND they woke up BJ so we left the house to try and give him a FEW good hours of sleep!

There were a few points that I wanted to
STOP, SIT and CRY!

After getting the boys in bed I saw this video on another blog and I realized how BLESSED I am to have what I have EVEN on days like today!

Footprints in the Sand! (It made me CRY)

THANK YOU Heavenly Father for loving me enough to give me my sweet, spirited boys, my compassionate and understanding husband and a
BEAUTIFUL FULL LIFE!
I am sorry for not seeing all that I have!

Halloween Playdate With Amber

Amber invited us over for a Halloween Play date with the kids in her Daycare! There were TONS of kids there! Amber is really incredible, she has her 2 kids plus 5 others! So with my boys there were 9 kids all under the age of 5! It was a lot! But she handles it so smoothly! I wish I had her easy going attitude!

I brought a really simple craft over! Everyone got to pick out a pumpkin shape and then their own eyes, noses and mouths! We talked about shapes and the conversation ended up on scary verses silly pumpkins!
This is Spencer's MONSTER pumpkin with 4 eyes!

Then Amber had a YUMMY activity where the kids put together cups of dirt and worms! It was really simple and delicious! Crumbled up cookies, chocolate pudding and whip cream and gummy worms! TADA! The kids loved eating the dirt!
I wasn't able to get a lot of GOOD pictures because it seemed like we were always helping or cleaning or stopping a potential fight!
We had a great afternoon, even thought it was very INTENSE! I truly don't think I could EVER do a Daycare! But I love visiting with Amber and the boys really enjoy playing with AJ and the other kids! Hopefully they will crash and take a nap! I am looking forward to a quiet afternoon..... crossing my fingers and my toes!

Halloween Test Run

Yesterday was all about Halloween!
I hate to admit it but this year we didn't make it to the Pumpkin Patch so we had to buy our pumpkins at the store (grumble grumble grumble!) Of course the kids didn't even notice, they were so excited to see all the different sizes and shapes they just got right in there and found "their" perfect pumpkin!After nap time we decided to carve our pumpkins! Spencer was really excited to use the "special" pumpkin knives! He was a little surprised about all the pumpkin mush inside! Both Spencer and Cooper were a little nervous to dig in and help Mom clean it out! Of course my messy boys eventually jumped right in and got all "PUMKINY", Spencer uses the big words to describe new experiences!He picked out the picture he wanted on the pumpkin ( after I let him down easily about not having a Superman or Backyardigins pictures, what can I say I am not THAT into pumpkin carving!!) He helped me trace the picture and then cheered me on as I cut it out! He was really nervous to get in there! After our 2 big pumpkins were carved Spencer asked if he could try all by himself? So I let him experiment! The outcome was a mini pumpkin with LOTS of stab marks and small circle wholes cut into it! But he was VERY PROUD of his carving job, so I am TOO!
In the evening we had our
WARD HALLOWEEN PARTY!
The kids got all dressed up! Spencer was SO EXCITED to get into his costume! And for the first time IN HIS LIFE, was willing to let me style his hair! With one IMPORTANT condition, that I be sure to put the Superman "S" curl in the front! He was very still while I styled it and VERY careful to not bump anything so that the "S" could dry!Cooper was a DIFFERENT story! He hated putting on the costume (screaming for about 10 minutes) and then FREAKED out when we tried to put the mask and cape on! We held firm, and let him cry it out! Because looking cute for Halloween is fun and YOU WILL LIKE IT! :) Don't worry he totally came around and had a great time at the party, we aren't COMPLETELY heartless!The ward party was A LOT of fun! They had lots and lots of games! Spencer said his favorite was bowling and the "Cat-A-Polt!" The kids really enjoyed the party and loved seeing all the other costumes Spencer is really excited for FRIDAY! Hopefully this little bit of time as Batman will help Cooper have a better time while we are trick or treating!Looking very enthusiastic, while waiting his turn in line!
Our mellowed out little BATMAN!

Cedar Canyon

Sunday was a beautiful day here in Cedar City! Warm 75 degrees and Sunny! So we decided to get out and have an afternoon drive! BJ took us up Cedar Canyon! None of us knew where we were going, which made it even more fun! Even though every 2 minutes Spencer would ask if we were going to the park? We reached a great scenic overview and decided to get out and have a little walk! ( I called it a hike at first and BJ told me it was much more of a WALK!)

This was the view from the top, where we stopped!
We walked down a trail that goes all the way back down to Cedar City, of course we only walked 30-35 minutes of the trail! But the kids had a lot of fun being outside! I was a little nervous about Cooper running the trail! But once we let him down he giggled and chased after Spencer till he was worn out!

We all really enjoyed getting outside! I am hoping for a few more Sundays of SUN! So we can go find a few more fun walks (or HIKES depending on who you talk to!! :) to explore!
Oh and on the way home we DID stop at a PARK for Spencer since he was so good, and very PERSISTENT about stopping!

Jenise's Bday Celebration

Jenise came up to celebrate her Birthday on Saturday! We had a lot of fun! She brought up a Haunted Gingerbread house to decorate with the kids! The boys ate a TON of the candy and frosting! And a few times they went right to licking it off the house!
Spencer and Coop made Jenise a Birthday Girl crown and card! Spencer was so proud of it! He said he wanted to put pretty beads on it because Jenise is pretty!
In the afternoon J and I went to see Eagle Eye, IT WAS CRAZY intense but REALLY good! IT was nice to just get out together! Then BJ and the kids met us at Chilies and we had a yummy Birthday dinner!
Jenise had to work super early on Sunday so we went back to the house for a Mint Chocolate Cake, which we all had trouble eating since dinner was so filling!

I know the kids and I had a great day hanging out with Auntie J! I hope she had a great Birthday DAY with us too!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY J WE LOVE YOU!

Just a Bowl and Spoon

Cooper has this funny habit I have been meaning to capture! Whenever he has a snack, even if its a finger food he goes and gets a bowl and a spoon! Most of the time he gets MULTIPLE bowls out so he can transfer the food to lots of different containers!

I cant decide if the does it because he is SO proud of his ability to use a spoon and fork? Or if he just likes to be big and thinks that if he gets out EVERY dish we have he will be more like Mom and Dad?And after a while he pulls out the big guns and just goes for it with his fists, still holding onto the spoon! He doesn't want to let his image go!
It is so funny and he NEVER FAILS to do it! I hope these pictures portray the scene! Cause it makes me grin every time!

Just a Little B-Ball in the Living Room

This afternoon BJ had a couple hours after class before he had to leave for work! SO we brought the basketball hoop into the living room and the boys had a ..... BALL!

I had a hard time getting great pictures because they were all running around so fast!
This is Spencer throwing the ball backwards!
And this is Cooper trying his very best to lift that big ball over his head so he can get a lot of power behind that throw!

Whenever BJ has time to play with the boys they just EAT IT UP! They love spending BOY time with Dad, and I know he treasures the time he gets to play with them! And luckily for me nothing was broken during this
BOY BONDING TIME!

Old Fashioned Ice Cream

About a week ago I found this Old Fashioned Ice Cream Parlor on main street! It was super cute and SUPER cheep! We have been meaning to go since last week and tonight we FINALLY got some friends together and headed over!
Trevor and Marita and
Dang, Amber and their 2 kids AJ and Aubry came with us!

We all got something yummy and relaxed while the kids ran around and enjoyed all the stuffed animals and toys! There was no one else in the store and the kids were really good listeners so it was a lot of fun!
Spencer loved his cotton candy ice cream and sprinkles! That face is a happy one, just in case you were concerned!
While Cooper couldn't separate himself from Mom's HUGE drink (that was only 1.09!!!!) We usually don't let him have Mom's pop but we were all indulging so why not!!! And as you can tell he was shocked and excited!
It was a lot of fun, I cant wait to go back!

Painting Pumpkins

After a busy day of errands and a nice long nap Spencer reminded me that he had 3 CTR stickers on his chart and that he wanted to do the pumpkin craft we had prepared for earlier in the day! I was thrilled he had done so well during the day and that he was using his chart the only problem was it was 6:00, I had to make dinner, keep the kids quiet so BJ could sleep till 7:00 so we could then go to a Ice Cream Parlor downtown with some friends! AHHHH!! I couldn't say no and he HAD earned it! SO I decided to jump in and put on the "SuperMOM" cape!
(Or go down trying)

So we got out the paint and the pumpkins and went to work! Luckily our apartment is so small I can see the table and cook up dinner at the same time! Spencer did a great job on his pumpkins, he had fun painting faces and using all the colors he could! He was very patient with my attempts to multi task, and would ask me to come over every once and a while to check his progress! And was very understanding!
Cooper (as always) was DESPERATE to be involved! So I let him climb up on the table with a dry brush and pretend to paint, that lasted just long enough to get the pesto sauce and chicken under control so I could help him with the real paint!
He was SO thrilled to try!
He ended up getting most of the paint on the pumpkin or the paper below him! Every now and then I would remind him to aim for the pumpkin, which he would do! As soon as he saw the paint hit the pumpkin he would drop his brush and start clapping! He had such a great time! After seeing the accomplishment on his face I am re-dedicating myself to being patient enough to include him in our crafts! (Even if it does mean taking the magic eraser to the table after each craft:)
Coopers Special Pumpkin!
The finished product!
And just as a recap we did get to eat and get out the door by 7:15! YEA! Nothing was cleaned up but BOTH the kids loved the craft, they eat dinner and we all left the house without any yelling or tears ALMOST on time! I'm not saying I've earned the "SuperMOM Cape" completely yet but it turned out to be a good evening and the dishes did get done before bed!!!