West Family Blog

Baking with Isaac

2011-11-21T23:02:00.001-07:00

It's so fun having a two-year-old. I am really enjoying the range of activities that Isaac can now take part in. The other day we had a ton of fun baking cookies. Isaac really loved the measuring and pouring aspects of the activity, so eventually I just handed him a bowl and a tablespoon and let him have free range with the flour and a few other dry ingredients. A waste of food? Perhaps. But it kept him entertained for a loooong time and I'm counting it as a learning experience. Plus, he's so cute when he gets all intense and concentrated on something.

Plus he was even willing to help clean up!

Got Lemonade?

2011-11-21T22:59:00.001-07:00

Notice the perfectly good cup of lemonade being completely ignored. What can I say? He's definitely got personality.

Bad Parenting

2011-11-21T22:52:00.001-07:00

So, every once in a while I make a silly decision. You know, not often, but occasionally. Like, last month when I bought a giant bag of chocolate chips at Winco and decided that a good place to store them would be in a jar on our bar. Yes. In plain sight. In plain sight of the child.

Well, you can imagine how this played out, and here is the photographic evidence that our child is very good at getting us to let him do pretty much whatever he wants:

Come on, look how cute he is in that vest! (Thanks, Christian and Jennifer for sending it our way!) You'd give in, too.

Oh, the same day - Isaac had refused to take a nap, and so was super cranky and tired that evening when Allison and Michael came over for dinner. We gave in (hey, I'm sensing a trend here) and let him watch Diego while we had dinner. I got up to get something, and found this:

Silly baby.

Oh Zion, Dear Zion

2011-11-21T22:11:00.001-07:00

Trying to play catch-up here. Bear with me as I post about things that happened long ago in an attempt to keep this journal of sorts going.

So, back at the very end of September, we took a trip down to Zion's National Park with some of our very good friends and their kids. We stayed in a bed and breakfast, which in hindsight was a bad idea - next time we are opting for a place where we have to worry less about disturbing other guests (three 2-year-olds plus the need to be quiet = total stress). Despite minor drama, we had a really good time. It was fun to hang out with our friends and fun to watch the kids explore and do all kinds of silly things.

After arriving at the B&B, we let the kids play outside in what amounted to a giant rocky sandbox. Isaac and Johnny got all their cars out and played and played and played. When we finally decided it was time to go get some food, we realized they had buried half the cars in the sand. So, Shelly and I spent a good while searching through the sand for all the cars and sorting out whose was whose. Miraculously, we found them all. Can you say, "Hooray for the super moms?"

For dinner we went out for pizza at a cute little place in town. The boys were mostly very well behaved, and the pizza was delicious.

Isaac enjoyed smashing his cars together.

Oh look, Johnny has similar hobbies.


Yes, that's a soda. We are bad parents. Isaac loved it though. Funny story - the nice girl at the register gave us Isaac's soda free, saying he'd probably just drop it anyway. Which he did. You'd have thought they'd charge extra for that. Nice people.

After dinner we went for frozen yogurt. There was a small mixup as someone (a stranger) who reached the door before us couldn't open it and decided they must be closed, even though the lights were on. We were a bit confused for a minute, and had pretty much decided to go home, when I think James tried the door and it was indeed open. Strange.

Cute boys enjoying their ice cream.

Cutest. Kid. Ever.


Brad and Shelly enjoying their shake.

The next day we actually did not have breakfast at the B&B, as the owners had to attend a funeral in the morning. Instead, they gave us vouchers to have breakfast at a very nice place about five minutes up the road. It was super yummy, there was a ton of food, we got to eat outdoors in the sunshine, and it was a lot less stressful than hanging out at the B&B, so what was initially a disappointment ended up being a real blessing.

After breakfast, we headed into the park. The boys really enjoyed running around, playing on the various benches and statues, and they especially enjoyed the tram ride. Johnny announced we were getting on a bus and going to school. It was pretty adorable how excited he was. Hopefully that excitement will last him a few more years. ;)

We took a walk along one of the paved trails where the kids could be in their strollers and we could take in some scenery. It was gorgeous, and I really enjoyed getting to talk to James about anything and everything as we walked. Isaac actually fell asleep in the stroller--he was so cute slumbering away.

Once we hit the end of the trail, the kids had pretty much had it, so we left the park. There's so much to do there. We are definitely going to have to go back. Before leaving for good, though, we took a quick trip out to a little ghost town. There wasn't much there (uh duh, ghost town, I should have realized), but it was fun to just let Isaac run around before making him sit in the car for four hours again.

Just a cool guy with his carrots.

All in all a fun trip!

Happy Birthday, Isaac

2011-09-25T21:20:00.004-06:00

So, my darling wonderful baby boy officially turned 2 last month. We are so lucky to have this boy in our lives. He makes us laugh every day, and he makes our lives just so much better than they were before. We are so blessed.

We put off celebrating his birthday, since August was such a busy month, and we threw his big birthday bash yesterday. It was a great time, and we're only sad we couldn't have shared it with more of you. Here are a few pictures and highlights of the day:

Here's the invitation, created on Picnik.

Some of the decorations. This was the "photo booth."

Balloons

Ruffled streamers

All the kids enjoying the swing set. Thanks, Yia Yia and Papa!

Opening gifts. Isaac sure was spoiled -

he got trains, and cars, and books, and a superhero cape, and tools, and a puzzle, and he just loves it all.

The pinata. We did a pull string one - the kids take turns pulling various strings until one opens a trap door. At least that's how it's supposed to work. But we always have some kind of mishap...

So, first it fell out of the tree.

Then, I began to suspect that the trap-door-pulling string had actually broken, rather than opening the trap door when it was pulled. See, that's my suspicious face.

And my suspicious checking. Running low on ribbons here...

Yep, all the ribbons are gone, and still no candy.

Good thing I had a back-up plan.

Candy chaos!

Isaac's like, dude, I'm outta here.

Playing with toys.

Constance, aka Y-Girl, playing with Isaac's awesome Y banner he received from the Connellys.

Cake time!

Not quite tall enough.

A candle for each month (ok, really, Isaac just likes blowing out candles and I felt like 2 would just be a disappointment for him.)

All the kids eating the shavings off the sides.

Cutting the cake.

All in all, a very fun birthday party. Isaac loved it and is still having all sorts of fun playing with his presents and of course the balloons! :)

Swingset!

2011-09-25T19:47:00.001-06:00

Yia Yia and Papa very generously pitched in to buy Isaac a swing set for his birthday present this year. James and I searched long and hard before finding the perfect set at a good price before we settled on the Flexible Flyer Big Adventure swing set from Wal-Mart. We put in our order, waited ~~anxiously~~ patiently for two whole weeks and then it came! It very conveniently arrived on a Friday afternoon, so we had the weekend to set it up. James and I spent most of the afternoon on Friday trying to figure it out - the instructions were not super clear and the parts were not the best labeled, so we put the thing together wrong about 6 times, then later had to take things apart, turn them around, put them in the right place, etc. We were also ~~hampered~~ helped along by several eager neighbor children who very much wanted to play on the swings and prove just how savvy they were at building. Anyway, once we got rid of the neighbor children and Isaac (the kind neighbor parents took them all to their house), it went much faster, but by then we were losing light, so we only had the frame and the slide up before we called it quits. All the kids from the neighborhood came over to play on it, though, so even in its skeleton state it was a big hit.

Here's Isaac playing on the slide on Saturday morning.

Saturday afternoon, the rest of it went much faster, just hooking up the swings and attaching the see-saw. It was a big hit with Isaac and all his friends.

Our Summer

2011-09-25T19:35:00.003-06:00

This summer just flew by! We are excited for fall, but I thought I ought to take a ~~second~~ hour or two to recap all that has gone on this summer. When last we left you (unfaithful bloggers that we are), James had just finished his marathon. That was in June. So, here's July and August for you:

July brought visits from Yia Yia and Papa, which were very much enjoyed but very little photographed. We did get a few pictures during all the fourth of July festivities.

The balloons at the Kiwanis club breakfast.

Isaac getting some snuggles from Aunt Allison.

Isaac loves his "Sallison"

Isaac and Daddy

Yia Yia and Papa at the Brick Oven

Yia Yia with Isaac at the parade

A little later in July, we also enjoyed a wonderful trip to Nebraska to visit with Anthony and Heidi, and then to Nauvoo to spend a little Johansen time.

Isaac playing with all of cousin Tristen's toys in Heidi and AJ's new house.

Helping sand the walls

Such helpful little dudes.

Isaac and Tristen - they played so well together. I think they are going to grow up to be best buds.

Isaac with his cousin Beck at Nauvoo.

Isaac learns rope making skills.

This little girl built an awesome Nauvoo temple out of blocks.

Then she kindly allowed Isaac to knock it all over. What a sport!

Beck, Eli, Ainsley, and Isaac riding a wagon.

Happy cousins. Not pictured: sweltering heat. Is it terrible to think I'm glad the saints had to leave Nauvoo and settle in Utah? We just have it so much better here...

Isaac and uncle Christian

Back in Nebraska, visiting the zoo with Aunt Heidi, Tristen, and Natalya

Sharing juice boxes with the cousin.

Tristen and Isaac milking a fake cow. The dairy education center was air conditioned, hallelujah. You can see how hot it was - look how sweaty those boys are!

One last picture before leaving the zoo.

August was family reunion time! First the Johansens - Yia Yia, Papa, Cyndi, and Mila all came out for the Smith family reunion and my Grandpa Smith's 80th birthday celebration. I didn't get any good pictures at all :( Guess I was having too much fun.

Grandpa Smith - 80 years!

Dad and his brothers.

Later that month, we enjoyed a West family reunion. James and I were responsible for games, and we did a couple minute to win it games, with hilarious results.

Get the oreo from your forehead to your mouth without moving anything but your facial muscles.

I think everyone enjoyed this one.

There was also a water fight, which Isaac loooooved.

Ready to go.

Isaac loves this.

Here he is with his pants so soggy they are falling off him. After this we let him run around in his diaper - only to see him climb out of the bouncy castle with nothing on at all! The diaper had come off in the castle. Thank goodness there were no accidents!

While Grandma and Grandpa West were here for the reunion, Isaac turned 2. I can't believe my baby is so big! Grandpa and Grandma took Isaac shopping for a birthday present (he chose a car and a laptop) and also bought him a cake. Apparently he was so excited about the cake, he ignored the other presents - He just wanted to hold his cake. He also wanted to eat it as soon as they got back to the house, so that's why a chunk is missing. We shared the cake later that evening with Grandma and Grandpa and Allison and Michael. Isaac had a blast blowing out the candles over and over again.

And those were the big moments in July and August!

Running Man

2011-06-30T20:49:00.000-06:00

Earlier this month, June 11 to be exact, James accomplished something awesome - he ran a marathon! He had been training for this marathon for months and months. He was very diligent, waking up in the wee hours of the morning to get to his office early and run on the treadmill so that he could still get home at a decent hour and take care of his family. As the day grew closer, his normally calm demeanor became noticeably more nervous. I actually thought it was cute, since it really takes a lot to disrupt James's calm.

The evening before the marathon, James's cousin Rick (who was also running the marathon - his 5th one) and his family came over to share a pasta dinner. We had a lot of fun with them, and I think it helped James relax a bit - though it didn't last long. Rick spent the night and the two of them woke up very early in the morning to get on the bus that would take them way way way up the canyon where the race would start. They had to be up at 3 for a race that started at 6 - can you believe it? James had a really rough night, too nervous to sleep, poor guy.

Anyway, since there was no way I was getting up at 3, I expressed my support after James had gone to bed by putting signs in strategic places where I thought they would see them - "You're awesome!" and "You can do it" on the bathroom mirrors, "26.2" on the door, "Have a great run" by the dining room table. James said that made him feel pretty good as he prepared to leave.

Interesting note - part of the preparations for the race included rubbing Vaseline in various places to avoid chafing - between the toes, the insides of the arms (where they hit the body), the chest, and the insides of the thighs. I don't know, for some reason I found that really funny, but James did actually get much fewer blisters running his marathon than he did running the half last year, so I guess it worked!

Anyway, James accomplished his goal - he finished! He wasn't trying for a great time, but I think he did pretty well, coming in at 5 hours and about 30 minutes. He actually improved his pace from when he did the half, so I think that's something to be proud of. He had some issues with cramping - his legs just seized up and he had to run-walk for a lot of the end of the race. He ran the last little way once he got into the "chute" where all the people are watching the finishers and cheering - when they're cheering you it's hard not to run. But poor guy was so shot and in so much pain! He said that as he ran that last bit to the finish line he was planning just to lie down and sob, but then he realized he probably wouldn't be able to get up again, so he decided against it. If you want more details of his agony, you'll have to ask James, but let's just say he's not eager to do it again.

Here are some of the pictures from the event:

Here's Rick greeting his family after he finished. I showed up at the finish line just in time to catch them. They had to leave before James finished, but they kindly lent me their oldest child to help with Isaac. So nice!

Isaac had a great time cheering the runners. He loved lifting his hands up and shouting Whoo-hoo! Although it came out more like Hoo-hoo! which I thought was adorable, of course.

You can't really see him, but this was my first glimpse of James. He's out there somewhere.

Here he is doggedly running to the finish line.

The clock time is a little more than his actual time, since they correct the time for when he actually got to the starting line - you know, since there's so many people they don't all actually start the race at the same time.

Yay! He's done!

He said he was pretty close to tears as he caught sight of us. Poor guy!

This is after we walked to the car and he'd had a bit of time to recover. :)

Seven Peaks

2011-06-06T13:53:00.000-06:00

So, on Friday, we headed out to Seven Peaks Water park to take advantage of our season passes. We have a pass that gets us into Trafalga, Orem Owls and Utah Flash games, and of course Seven Peaks. We were excited to take Isaac, as he is quite the water baby.

I was very pleased to see how many things they have there for the really tiny ones to do. They have a splash pool with zero-depth entry, and then a larger play area that has about five slides that kids are good to go down in by themselves, or their parents can take them down. There are floating alligators and snakes to play in there, too. Then there's Tyke's Peak with slightly larger kid slides, that we could take Isaac down as well. And we were able to take him to the wave pool, too. All in all, it is definitely worth the money to us, and I think we'll be spending lots of time there this summer.

Here's James and Isaac starting off!

And Isaac and Daddy on the slide:

It did not faze Isaac one bit to get completely dunked under the water.

He did get pretty cold though (it was only about 70 degrees out, and windy), so we got out frequently to wrap him in a towel and warm up.

(Side note - Isaac loves towels. After the bath he loves to just be wrapped up in his towel - almost swaddled like a baby - and just lie there all happy and snug, or sometimes he likes you to hold him and rock him in his towel. Sometimes he will find a towel in the middle of the day and hold it out to me and say "Please!" and something that sounds like "arms" though I'm not sure - but I get the gist that he wants me to wrap it around him. He saunters all around the house until it falls off and then he brings it back to me and says Please and Arms again and we start all over.)

Here's Isaac and me on the Tyke's Peak slide:

And after, in the towel again:

The last thing we did was the wave pool, which I didn't think Isaac would be into, but he totally was. Every time a wave would crash into us, he'd grin and say "Whoa!"

That was our first Seven Peaks Adventure! We celebrated with Little Caesar's pizza and crazy bread for dinner. Perfect Friday!

National Donut Day

2011-06-06T13:34:00.000-06:00

I am not sure why, but Friday was National Donut Day. We'll take any excuse to go have a donut (ok, that's not entirely true. James will, but I'm not such a huge donut fan. I like them when I eat them, but I never actually crave them or think, "That would really hit the spot right now." I think that much more often about pie). - so anyway, we decided to go ahead and head out to Krispy Kreme and give Isaac his first donut.

Well, the lines were really just too long and there was no parking, and we wanted to go to the waterpark, so... we decided to delay National Donut Day - and we celebrated a day late. People are always doing that, anyway. So, we went back on Saturday to a much less crowded Krispy Kreme.
\

Isaac was fascinated by the donut process - they let you watch how the donuts are made through a window - and kept pointing and saying, "Cookie!"

So, what did Isaac think of the donuts? He took a couple bites, but he was much more interested in wandering around and investigating the store.

He even played "Daddy Chase Me!" outside...

But at least he accomplished the most important donut feat - getting it all over your face:

All the Things He Says

2011-05-31T23:29:00.009-06:00

My dad asked me on the phone the other day what Isaac's vocabulary consisted of. So, for his sake, and for the sake of helping me remember, these are all the words Isaac can say at 21 months of age:

hair, head, eyes, ears, mouth, nose, cheeks, teeth, hands, feet, toes, tummy, knees, shoulder

no, uh-ha, hello, hi, bye-bye

diaper, shirt, pants, socks, shoes, boots, hat, jammies

car, truck, bus, train

water, drink, milk, juice

bird, dog, kitty, moo, duck

apple, banana, strawberry, grape, noodle, cookie, popcorn, cheese

there, this, that

mommy, daddy, grandma, grandpa, yia-yia, Johnny, Allison (he's trying on that one, anyway), Isaac, baby, Troy

please, thank you, you're welcome, sorry

sun, girl, tree, picture, clock, chair, show, door, knock-knock, bed, sleep, bath, sit, outside, bubble, puzzle, ball, bounce, go, let go, down, up, help, help me, prayers, amen, blocks, fork, knife, spoon, stir, more, dirty, stinky, cold, cool, hot, park, slide, swing, keys, backpack

I'm sure I'm not getting all of them, but those are the ones I can think of for now, so they're the ones he says most often. My favorite is when he hands you somethings and says, "gu-kum" which is, of course, you're welcome. I also love when he says "help me" - it's just so cute.

He definitely is talking just a ton more this past month or so - and he gets more articulate by the day. My sweet boy. How I adore him.

Little Stinker

2011-05-30T12:27:00.000-06:00

You know how you read in all the child development books and sites and whatever that it's totally normal for your toddler to want to run around naked and constantly be shedding his clothes. Well, what about the opposite? Isaac has a serious clothing adoration - he hates taking his clothes off and sometimes will bring me shirts or pants to try to get me to put them on him over the clothes he is already wearing. I'm sure it's perfectly normal, too, I just think it's pretty funny that while other parents are struggling with their little nudists, I've got a little never-nude on my hands.

Case in point: The other night James was trying to give Isaac a bath while I did the dishes upstairs. I heard a lot of whining from Isaac and a few exasperated "Child!"s from James, and then finally I hear "Honey - will you come down and help me? Isaac is refusing to take his clothes off. So I trot downstairs, James meets me at the door of the bathroom, and in the time it takes for me to give him a little commiserating pat on the shoulder, Isaac has done this:

Don't worry, he wasn't actually drinking soap. The bottle is empty.

Little stinker.

Ready for Work

2011-05-30T12:18:00.000-06:00

Isaac is a good little worker. He always likes to join in and add his muscle to any household job. But he's a smart one - he always makes sure to wear his protective gear.

Breakfast with Isaac

2011-05-30T12:07:00.000-06:00

Isaac and I shared a banana shake for breakfast a few weeks back. After a while, he decided to forgo the whole cup thing and went straight to the source.

Visit from Grandma

2011-05-30T11:58:00.000-06:00

Way back in April we had a lovely visit from Grandma Ruth. She came to attend Allison's graduation (hurray Allison!) and enjoy BYU women's conference. We really had a great time with her, and were so glad that she could come.

Grandma brought Isaac a much-beloved truck:

And played with him, which he enjoyed even more than the truck:

Etiquette by Isaac: The Proper Way to Eat Popcorn

2011-04-20T12:34:00.000-06:00

Now, some people think it's all right to just dig into a bowl of popcorn and cram it into their mouths by the fistful. But Isaac knows that a little more decorum is required when consuming such a delectable treat. He'd like to illustrate for you the proper way to eat popcorn.

First, you need to spread it out on the ground.

Then you must choose the proper eating tool.

Then you may commence your repast.

Be sure to carry yourself with the proper posture.

Elbows up.

Use of a second hand may be required on occasion.

This is the only way to truly enjoy popcorn.

This has been your etiquette lesson, by Isaac.

Isaac and Johnny

2011-03-14T21:09:00.003-06:00

So some friends of ours came over on Saturday, just to hang out. Isaac and their son, Johnny, are such good friends. It is adorable. When we have plans to go over to their house, it is so easy to get Isaac to do what I ask him to do - all I have to say is, "Isaac want to go see Johnny?" and suddenly he's willing to get a diaper change, put shoes on, go out to the car, whatever.

Apparently, Johnny (who is about 8 months older than Isaac) remembers things he has done with Isaac (like swimming or going to the park) and asks where Isaac is when they do that activity again. It's so cute.

They usually play together pretty well, too. I mean, of course there is the occasional scuffle over a toy, but mostly they crack each other up and have a good ol' time racing around each other in circles.

Here are a few pictures from Saturday:

They were having a great time playing on the stairs,

and then I guess they got tired. They decided to take a little nap.

Aren't their little bare legs adorable?

Here they are oh-so-sweetly sharing the rocking chair:

And here they were, not-quite-as-sweetly clambering into it:

Johnny opened up a book and started "reading" it to Isaac. It was so adorable. All the right intonations, just like he was telling a real story. Which I'm sure he was. Cuz Isaac sure got a kick out of it. He was laughing up a storm. I couldn't quite catch the laughter on camera, but just trust me, they were both having a blast:

Here's hoping they'll be life-long buds, cuz we sure love their parents.

Where's Isaac?

2011-03-14T20:51:00.000-06:00

One of Isaac's favorite games is "peekaboo," only for some reason we don't say "peekaboo," we just say, "Where's Isaac?" It works the same, though. :)

Where's Isaac?

Oh there he is!

Where's Isaac now?!

Oh, he was right here all the time!

Where'd that little scamp get to now? I can't see him!

Oh there's my sweetie!

So glad he wasn't lost forever!

Teeth

2011-03-02T00:00:00.001-07:00

This week at the library's story time, we learned all about teeth. Teeth are very important. You should brush them. At least twice a day.

You should brush the front of your teeth.

And the sides of your teeth.

And the tops of your teeth.

And then you will be handsome like me.

The end.

Before and After

2011-02-15T17:18:00.000-07:00

So, anyone who knows James knows that his nickname is "The Beast" and that he wears it proudly. Part of the origin of the nickname can be attributed to his beastly head of hair. In high school, he says, he cut it once a year for rugby season, and he has been trying to relive his high school days for a while now. Well, it's been exactly (ok, give or take a few days) a year since his last hair cut, and he decided it was time. A few of his reasons:
1.) His long hair got in his eyes while he was running. Sweat and hair in the eyes = no good.
2.) He wants to give a more professional impression.
3.) When his grandpa saw him on Sunday, he said to him, "James, I'm going to tell you what I told my son many years ago: You look awful."

So, it was decided. Time for a hair cut. James's wonderful cousin Stephanie was kind enough to come over to our house and teach me how to do a basic hair cut so that hopefully I can keep James's beastly mane in check during the year, since the man hates to go to the barber. Anyway, here are some pictures of the event:

James's hair was longer than mine for almost a week!

Pretty long, eh? I actually liked it, but he was ready to be done with it. So, here's the chopping:

Stephanie hacking off the longer parts so we could get to it with the clippers.

And here's me, doing my best to remember what Stephanie taught me.

Nervous face.

All the crazy hair clippings.

And here's the after. Not the best pictures, but you get the idea.

Smirk.

Creepy face.

Almost a real smile.

A Snippet #2

2011-02-01T20:01:00.002-07:00

Another glimpse at life in the West home:

James talks a little bit too loudly about something... working for the FBI or something.

Me: Honey, I love you and I don't normally think you talk too loud, but Baby is sleeping... so, could you please just lower your voi...

James stares blankly at me, a hint of shocked offendedness on his face.

Me: ... you know, just a little...

James continues to stare at me.

Me: Come on, honey, I'm just asking you to talk a little quieter, you're looking at me like I'm asking you to chop off your arm or something.

James (Clearing his throat, finally deigning to speak to me): Now, here's a question for you - how many times have you asked someone to chop off their arm, that you know what kind of look they would give you?

Me (Interjecting with rueful laughter): I have an imagination!

James (Not missing a beat): Are you lying awake at night, imagining this scenario - (mimicking me) What would you say if I asked you to chop off a finger? Now, what would you say to an arm? Continues mocking me until...

Me: This is going on the blog!

Communication

2011-01-22T21:19:00.000-07:00

So, Isaac is a little slow on the talking. So far, the only real words he says are "no," "uh-oh," and "whee". And yes, I realize I'm being a little liberal in my interpretation of word when it comes to those last two.

But still, Isaac has found many ways to communicate. He does know a few signs, and uses them mostly appropriately. His best one is "please," which he uses enthusiastically when chocolate is involved. He also knows "more," "drink," "milk," "sleep," and "all done," though I think he thinks "all done" means "pick me up." It accomplishes the same thing, so I'm all right with that.

The most interesting way Isaac has come up with to communicate, though, is what I like to call steering. He gets me to pick him up then he emphatically points in the direction of his heart's desire. So, if he wants to take a bath he aims me towards the stairs, then down the hall, then to the bathroom. If he wants to go to sleep (and yes, he frequently volunteers to go to sleep- probably because he knows he will get to nurse), he points me towards the bedroom. If he wants to watch a show (and yes, I let my child watch television. I am properly ashamed.), he points me toward the family room, then points up at the projector, then scrambles out of my arm and settles himself comfortably on the couch and stares at the wall while waiting for the projector to come on. It's cute. I tell you what.

It just amazes me how much he can understand and participate in what we are doing, and how well he is able to communicate his needs and desires using no words. Of course, I'd love it if he started chattering, but I'm sure that will come soon enough. :)

Spot the Blessings

2011-01-20T20:57:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I like to play a game with myself when I am in an ordinary setting. I named that game tonight - I've decided to call it "spot the blessings." It's a really fun game; I'll tell you how to play.

You just sit wherever you are and think of all the blessings that are evident in what you can see/experience around you.

Here's an example: Tonight I was at our institute class at the church. Within the first five minutes I came up with these blessings, in no particular order:

1. The freedom to discuss religion in the open
2. Shoes
3. A nice big building dedicated to the purposes of worship and fellowship
4. A teacher who volunteers his time to lead a thoughtful discussion on the Book of Mormon every week
5. My husband, who went with me to Institute tonight even though he is feeling sick, because I didn't want to go without him
6. Warm jackets
7. The slightly warmish weather we've been having
8. Snacks
9. The prophets who sacrificed so incredibly much to write and preserve the words in the Book of Mormon
10. General health, horrible sinus pressure and leaky nose notwithstanding
11. Heat in the building
12. My new Android phone, which I could use to read the scriptures and then slip into my pocket at the end of class, not having to lug around heavy scriptures (there is something to be said for the written word in physical, markable format, but I was grateful tonight that the holy scriptures were so dang handy)
13. My friend Brad, who generously gifted me his in-perfect-condition Android phone
14. Pianos and people who play them
15. Wonderful, willing cousins at home watching Isaac (ooh, that was downright alliterative)

... And I could have thought up a bunch more, but I was getting interested in the discussion, so I had to stop thinking about blessings. But have you noticed how many of these relate to heat? I'll tell you, I'll be able to spot many more blessings once spring arrives.

But, really, it's enough to make you feel darn spoiled. Just sit and look around and realize how good you have it. And it's fun. And you can do it anywhere.

What about you? Any blessings you can spot from where you are right now?

A Snippet

2011-01-18T16:02:00.000-07:00

A little glimpse at life at the Wests:

James: So, can I tell you my woes in life?

Charity: Sure, honey, just let me finish this text first...

Isaac and Daddy

2010-11-04T08:00:00.000-06:00

James came home today and for kicks he put his coat on Isaac. Isaac loved it, and he refused to take it off. He was walking all over the living room in it, falling all over the place since, um, it doesn't actually fit him. :) He was so cute we had to take a few pictures:

And here he is one Sunday after church in Daddy's suit jacket. The way the shadows fell, he looks a bit like Dracula. A very cute Dracula. Please ignore the mess on the floor.

A Day at the Park

2010-11-02T23:30:00.000-06:00

We took Isaac for a little jaunt in the park today. He had a blast playing on the slides and climbing up and down. But even with all the fun things there were to do on the playground, what he wanted to do was sit on the bench next to this woman and her 3-month-old baby. He just climbed up there and sat next to her, wiggling his little feet. It was hilarious. I have a funny child.

Pictures of the outing can be found here:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=555027&id=551240506&l=d2a3084638

When He's Helping He's Happy

2010-11-02T23:00:00.000-06:00

Seriously, this kid just wants to be helpful. Today he helped Daddy take in the trash. Oh my boy. I hope you retain this desire to participate in family chores your whole life.

Isaac Helping Around the House

2010-11-01T22:29:00.000-06:00

Isaac is a good little helper. Only 14 months old and already wanting to get in on the chore action. His favorites are scrubbing the tub and washing the dishes

He's no shirker when it comes to yard work, either. He gets right in there and toils away.

He really loves that lawnmower.

In fact, he may love the lawnmower a bit too much.

So nice of the neighbors to let him borrow one his own size. :)

What a sweet and helpful little boy we've got. :)

A Wilde Halloween

2010-10-31T23:03:00.000-06:00

So, a week after West Fest, we had the pleasure of attending the Wilde Halloween party. This holiday is so much fun. Pretty much everyone came in costume, and what costumes they were! Let me tell ya - no, let me show ya. Here are some of the pictures from the event:

Us again! This time James had his mask and Isaac had his ninja head band.

And I... well, I had a seriously red ponytail.

Isaac. Did we make a cute kid or what?

He actually really liked his shell. And didn't mind his headband... for about half an hour.

Then it was gone, baby, gone.

Emily and Max - he was the house from Up and she was Russell.

Is that not the cutest costume you've ever seen?

The Up characters with Ron Weasley. Presumably, he's responsible for turning Max into a house.

Jedis who mean business.

Jedis who know how to have fun.

Horses at the prom (otherwise known as Jacob and Valerie.)

Isaac again. He's too cute.

Maria and Hannah looking gorgeous on the balcony.

Allison and Michael coming as video game/cartoon characters Pikachu and Sonic the Hedgehog.

Isaac says, "Hey! I'm a video game/cartoon character, too! We can be a club!"

Ok, so we had a lot of fun this Halloween. We hope you all did, too!

West Fest Oh-10

2010-10-31T22:35:00.000-06:00

So, we had our (sort-of) annual Halloween party again this year. I was going to call it a semi-annual Halloween party, but technically semi-annual would mean every two years, and I think the last time we actually pulled off a party was in 2007. So, not quite semi-annual. But we are hoping to actually make it an annual thing, since we had a blast throwing the party.

This year, West Fest included many carnival-type games, including bobbing for apples (in the sink), eating-donut-off-string races (from the ceiling fan, no less), a cake walk, pumpkin painting, and a viewing of Hocus Pocus - a Halloween classic.

We had a great time, and are grateful for everyone who came. Sorry we had to cram you all in to such a tight space, but we appreciate your good humor about it. We are hoping next year to kick the Halloween season off early and just do the whole thing outdoors in early October while it's still warm. We'll see how it goes.

Anyway, here are some photos from the event:

Isaac getting ready for the festivities in his Leonardo costume.

The kids were awesome sports about bobbing for apples in the sink.

It was so much fun to watch them be so excited.

Isaac had his own method of bobbing.

"Hmm," he thinks. "Which one do I want?"

"I'll have this one thanks!"

The whole family: Casey Jones, April O'Neil, and Leo. Now we just need three more kids!

Once again, the kids were awesome sports - Danika was even willing to try to eat the donut while it was tied to the ceiling fan (yes, it was turned on!).

Take 2, with the donuts tied to Rick's wizard staff.

Isaac thinking, "Hey! Where's my donut?"

All in all, much fun was had, and we're hoping to do it again next year!

Happy Birthday to Isaac

2010-09-27T19:05:00.000-06:00

Isaac turned one back in August, but it was just too busy that month to celebrate in style. So we waited till September and threw a big bash for the little guy. We invited friends and family for a backyard BBQ and had food, music, and conversation. Isaac had a blast, thanks to all the fun kids that came and played in the dirt with him. Here are some pictures:

Isaac's robot cake. It says "Isaac 1" if you could see it 360.

Isaac is excited for his party. He's actually dancing here.

Ain't he a cutie?

I love my handsome boy.

Isaac says, "Dad, I can't believe you have this on your playlist! I'm going to change it to something more appropriate."

Here's the cake surrounded by cake pops I made. Tutorials for these have been all over and I really wanted to try them. So now I can say I did, and I am never doing them again. The how-tos all made them seem soo easy and fun. They were not. But they were really cute, huh?

Here's our awesome robot we made out of rice krispie treats, fondant, and candies. He's cute, huh?

Here's cute Johnny.

Jonas. He ate the robot.

The big boys like to pick Isaac up and carry him around. Here, he has been dropped. James snapped pictures while I laughed at my child.

Yeah, we're winning the parents of the year award. Hands down.

Allison and Michael enjoying the festivities.

The cute Bonnett family.

Some of Isaac's favorite playmates, our former neighbors the Dusbabek boys.

Isaac and his cake.

Isaac's favorite portion of the party. Playing in the dirt with Evan.

Thanks to everyone who came. To those who couldn't make it - we missed you.

May the Course Be With You

2010-09-27T18:39:00.000-06:00

Race course, that is.

On Sept. 11, the culmination of months of hard work and sacrifice finally arrived. James spent several months getting up early and running in the wee hours of the morning to prepare for a half marathon. He started out running 2-3 miles daily and worked his way up to 11 miles over several weeks. The hard work may have been on his part, but the sacrifice was all mine. I had to give up my sweet, happy husband for a grumbling, crotchety one. He hates running. And yet, he did it. Every. Dang. Day. And then came home and told me how much he hates running. And how bad his legs hurt. And how he was sooo tired. No, but really, he was still sweet and happy, just a little extra complainy. It was cute. Mostly.

Anyway, it all came to an end that day when James ran his 13.1 miles in 2 hours and 30 minutes. What did I do all that time? Well, it was hecka cold, and I was not prepared, so Isaac and I booked it outta there before the race even began. We wanted to stay and see him off to a running start, but they kept delaying the race time, and poor Isaac was all red-cheeked and sad. So, we left, went home to sleep for an hour, then got all bundled up and came back. By that time, the race organizers had started cooking pancakes and waffles, so I dug in while my dogged husband was pounding the pavement. I'm all about being supportive. So, after I had my fill, and Isaac had spent a good half hour playing at the playground, we wandered over to the finish line and cheered James as he crossed the line like a champion. I was immensely proud. Even though he claims to hate running so much, he had made a goal and he had achieved it. My husband is awesome. And you know what? He says no more half marathons. Hurrah. ... He's now set the goal of running a marathon next year. Can someone say masochist?

Here's the handsome man on race day:

Stretching before the race.

More stretching.

You can tell Isaac is loving this.

Bad Mom forgot a jacket for baby, so we improvised.

Luckily, James got a t-shirt from the race, so he gave Isaac the one he had come in.

Excited anticipation? Rueful disbelief that he's actually doing this to himself? You decide.

More stretches.

Here he is lining up to race. Right before I took off like the awesome wife I am.

And here's the reason they kept delaying the race. They wanted every one to get a chance to use the bathroom. Did they not have toilets at home? Come on, people!

I tried to get James to pretend to start running, but he thought it wouldn't be convincing, what with all the people standing still behind him.

See, Isaac, I got you a jacket. I'm not so terrible a mom.

Isaac, smile. You love the swing.

You love it.

I swear.

Yeah, Mom, whatever you say.

I tried to get a shot of him crossing the finish line. That gray dude is him. Getting his chip clipped off his shoe. It's not the best action shot, I'll admit.

Checking his time on his awesome watch.

He is the champion, my friends.

Aunt Martha's Tea Party

2010-09-27T18:15:00.000-06:00

In August, we celebrated Aunt Martha's birthday with a tea party. We got all dressed up in hats and dresses and enjoyed delicious finger foods, including real English scones and clotted cream. Delicious. Here are some pictures of the event:

Disney Land Trip

2010-09-27T18:09:00.000-06:00

Waaay back in July, we took a trip out to California for an awesome Johansen family reunion in Anaheim, California. We got to spend some quality time with our newest niece, Mila, and have some awesome fun with the entire Johansen clan. This is pretty rare, and we totally lived it up. We stayed in a really great house that miraculously fit all of us and allowed us to eat, play, talk, and tackle the children all in the same place. We spent two days at Disneyland, and the rest of the time doing what we do best - eating and playing. Here are some of my favorite pictures we came away with:

We took a trip to the Newport Beach temple. James was keen to see it, since it was still under construction
while he was serving his mission in Anaheim.

Here are a few shots from Disney:

Me, AJ, and the baby... waiting in some line. We try to keep it real.

It's a small world. Isaac actually liked this ride, thought you can't tell from his expression here.

Isaac munching on something waiting to go on the tram.

Dad, James, and Isaac in line. I'm sensing a theme here.

While waiting to go on the Winnie the Pooh ride, the ride actually broke down so a 2 minute wait turned into a 20 minute wait. We were too stubborn to leave, so we just found ways to entertain ourselves. Isaac favored acrobatics.

And making funny faces.

My cute family :)

Here I am with Eli and Isaac - they're one year and one day apart. :)

Cute Ainsley on the Cars ride.

I made James buy and Indiana Jones hat. Cuz he's so cute in it.

Isaac enjoyed taking it off more than putting it on.

Isaac fell asleep in line for Star Tours. Auntie AJ was sweet and held him so we could go.

Here I am with my favorite C3P0.

And here's James with a very dark R2D2. :)

All in all, a really fun time, and many thanks to my mom and dad and all the family members that made it happen :)

Where did summer go? ... and some funny stories.

2010-09-27T17:38:00.000-06:00

Wow, where has the summer gone? I've been a terrible blogger - I can't believe I haven't updated since June. So, I'm currently uploading all the 1005 pictures off our camera and will begin attempting to sort through them and post the relevant and good stuff. Meanwhile, I'll just share some funny things that have been happening around here lately that we haven't gotten on camera.

Lately Isaac wants to do everything Mommy is doing. Today I was in the yard, letting Isaac play in the dirt while I picked up apricot pits (it's a half-hearted effort to make the ground more hospitable to grass). I was just grabbing a few at a time and dropping them into a plastic bag. Well, Isaac eventually took notice, toddled over at full speed, grabbed the bag away from me and plunked himself down about a food away. He proceeded to rip up a tuft of grass and thrust it into the bag. See Mommy, helping! :)

Isaac also really enjoys playing the piano. James plops him on the piano bench periodically, and he bangs away. Recently he has found the demo button and, very cleverly, has learned what it does. He will turn on the oh-so-jazzy Bossa Nueva, stand on the bench and headbang. It's adorable.

The other day Isaac's little friend Johnny was over here to play, and he was entertaining Isaac by basically blowing raspberries on the ottoman. Isaac was giggling uncontrollably. Every time Johnny stopped, Isaac would toddle over and push Johnny's head toward the ottoman again. Don't stop, entertain me!

There are more stories, but I can't think of them right now :( I'm going to try to be better about recording and sharing these little nuggets. Isaac keeps us in stitches around here and I don't want to forget what a funny, loving, sweet little guy we're lucky enough to have around.

Pictures coming soon!

Carnage

2010-06-29T08:00:00.004-06:00

Oh, the humanity.

Family Reunion

2010-06-28T11:46:00.000-06:00

We had a blast this Saturday at the West family reunion. It was held up in Hobble Creek Canyon and was an all day affair. Unfortunately, we missed the 5k walk/run and the golf game in the morning, but we made it up the canyon (after a few episodes of getting lost in the foothills) in time for the picnic lunch. After the lunch, there was a water fight (headed up by dear Uncle Franklin, who brought a full-on arsenal of water guns in his trunk). There was even a slingshot for launching water balloons.

Later, there was a pie eating contest. Dad and James kindly represented the George West family for us. I claimed Weight Watchers as my excuse for not participating :P.

In the brothers' competition, Uncle John killed it. He ate that pie in like 5 seconds flat, and was only bested by his own son Michael, in the "all others" competition.Our two winners:

There was also a small hike (I went about .86 miles- James's watch told me - then started getting worried about my baby so kind Betsey went back with me and drove me back to the pavilion). Turns out I needn't have worried, Isaac was happy as a clam getting all the love and attention he could soak up from his adoring fans.

They even got him to fall asleep!

Most of the time in between and after all that was spent talking and just hanging out with some of my favorite people in the world. We roasted marshmallows and shared family stories. Oh, and there was a raffle, where several family members brought crafts to contribute. All proceeds will go to funding next year's reunion. We bought 5 tickets and I won 3 times! Gotta like those odds. There was also a silent auction, and Betsey and I had quite the battle going over a quilt, but I had to let it go to her in the end. Stinker. Anyway, lots of fun was had by all. Can't wait for next year's!

If You're Happy and You Know It

2010-06-28T08:00:00.005-06:00

Your face

will surely

show it

Isaac is a Stinker Face

2010-06-25T08:00:00.003-06:00

Isaac has gotten a lot more mobile lately, and that means a lot of getting into things he shouldn't, while his parents scramble to keep up. Here are just a few examples of things he has gotten into lately:

Chocolate

Yogurt

And then of course there are the things we don't stop to take pictures of, like:
the lettuce in the garden (2 plant victims thus far)
dirt
rocks
forks from the dishwasher
my clean laundry
scissors, ashamed as I am to admit (don't worry, he had them for .00003 seconds and he did not hurt himself.)
phones (always a favorite)
etc.
etc.
etc.

Baby Bam Bam

2010-06-24T13:34:00.000-06:00

So, we recently started to use cloth diapers. The reasoning behind this is ... still unclear. I think I wanted to do it because it was something I always said I would at least try. It sort of fits in with my general philosophy of life - it's frugal, it's better for the environment, and it's weird. I'm weird, let's face it. And James, well James is the best husband ever (no contest), and so he just goes along and supports me in my weirdness. Even when it means taking some extra steps I'm sure he would rather not take.

All that being said, I found a good deal on some cloth diapers through KSL, and went ahead and bought some just to try it out. (The trial has gone well, and I've bought more, so I guess we're sticking with this.) The funny thing is, I didn't have much choice in the design of the diapers. So, I got animal skin print. I was a little worried that Isaac would look at pictures later in life and just think I was cruel putting him in "girly" diapers. But then, once I got them on him, I realized how manly they made him look. Like a little Bam Bam, or perhaps Tarzan? Maybe Mowgli. See for yourselves:

Max and Jonas

2010-06-22T09:02:00.001-06:00

At the beginning of June, we had two little visitors - our friends Max and Jonas stayed with us for a week. We had so much fun with them, and I can honestly say I have never been so tired in my life. Here's a quick rundown of everything we did (that I can remember!):
Thursday - the boys arrived in the evening, we had a little bbq with hamburgers and hot dogs. Then it was time to put the kids to bed. I'm pretty sure we let them watch Scooby Doo.
Friday - the boys helped me with grocery shopping, then we picked up a pizza and went to have lunch with James at his office. After lunch, the kids and I went to the Bean museum, where I learned that a whale's tongue is the size of an African elephant. Crazy. Later in the evening, James came home and after dinner, he took the boys back to the office to watch a movie on the big screen and I stayed home and put Isaac to bed.
Saturday - the day the boys were most looking forward to. We had promised to take them swimming at the neighborhood pool (which is awesome and has water slides and a big splash area for the smaller kids). The pool didn't open til 1, so we had to kill some time. First we jumped a bit on the neighbor's trampoline.

Then we all went to Wal-Mart to buy beach towels (mostly cuz James and I wanted some. Yeah, we used the kids as an excuse.) Here's a picture of the boys cuddling their towels:

Then finally, 1 o'clock came around. We slathered sunscreen all over the boys and we were off! They don't let you take picture at the pool, so here are a few of the sunscreen:

(They liked putting it on much better when it involved war paint.)

Sunday - Sunday was beautiful Baby Lily's blessing, so we went to their church with all of the Wilde family and afterward enjoyed a luncheon at Jeff and Diane's. The boys really love playing over there, so we even went back for dinner. :)
Monday - This is where it all stopped being very structured and I can't really remember what happened any more. The boys played inside this day, mostly I think. They liked making forts out of the couches. One morning they made a baby trap for Isaac. They caught him pretty easily. The captive seemed to enjoy himself a bit too much though:

Yeah, I can't remember by day any more, so here are just a few other things we did -

Max and Jonas made great friends with our neighbors' four boys, and they played in the yard together a lot. We all took a trip to the library one day to have a story time and get some books.
We crashed a neighborhood birthday party. The boys really wanted to play with some kids, and the Dusbabeks weren't home. So I went looking for other families in the neighborhood with kids. No one was home, oddly, but I kept trying until finally - I found all the kids! They were all at another neighbor's house for a birthday. They very kindly invited us in. The kids had fun, got to play on the trampoline, eat cake and ice cream, and I got to say that I have crashed a party.
James took the kids for another movie night at the office.
We chased the marching band around the neighborhood. :) Some kids from Provo High marching band knocked on our door asking us to sponsor a march-a-thon. So, we gave them a check, then later we heard the band. I hadn't realized the march-a-thon was right then. So, the kids all ran outside (the neighbors were out there too) to watch the band. We followed them down a few streets - Max and Jonas really wanted to see Cameron. Then we all went home again.

We probably did a bunch of other things, too, but it's all a blur now. I think once the boys discovered our neighbors, they mostly just wanted to play with them. So much fun. Here are a few other random pictures from the week:

It was fun.:)

A Lunchtime Conversation with Isaac

2010-05-28T11:19:00.000-06:00

"Hey Mom, what's for lunch?"

"Oh, peas again."

"Oh wait, I like peas!"

"Peas are my favorite."

"Just don't make me eat bananas again, ok?"

"Because, Mom, no offense, but bananas make me burp."

"And the burps taste like bananas. It's gross."

"But peas are really good. So let's have those!"

"Mom, this is taking way too long."

"I'll just bless the food while I wait."

"Awright! Let's eat!"

Anthony and Heidi's Visit

2010-05-28T11:04:00.000-06:00

Anthony and Heidi came to see us back in April to watch the draft and enjoy some time together. We had a really nice time with them, and it was so good to see baby Tristen. He is so big and so darn good looking. We decided that if these two ever went to the same school, the girls better watch out! :P Is that bragging? Well, if so, oh well :) Here are a few pictures from the visit:

Wow, just realized I hardly took any pictures at all. Gotta get better about that.

Tea Party for Grandma

2010-05-28T10:48:00.000-06:00

James's Grandma Wilde, one of my favorite people, celebrated her birthday this Wednesday with a tea party. We were all invited to wear hats and dresses and gloves, if possible. Well, I jumped at this chance to get dressed up and, with the help of Aunt Kathryn, secured a lovely garden party hat for the occasion. My friend Alayna came into town and helped me shop for a dress and gloves, and by Wednesday I was super excited to attend the party. When I arrived, I saw that it was going to be a lovely party indeed, with all the other guests having just as much fun as I did with the theme. So here are the pictures for you all to enjoy:

Shorts, the Dog

2010-03-25T11:57:00.005-06:00

We spent a lovely Monday evening with James's Aunt Martha and Uncle Eric and their family. We had a lovely FHE lesson given by Caroline and enjoyed some great conversation. While there, Isaac met a new friend, whose name is Shorts. Luckily for us - and Isaac- Shorts is a very patient, easy-going dog who very kindly allowed Isaac to poke, prod, and pull at him throughout the night.
Isaac loved it, and hopefully Shorts is not too damaged from the encounter. Here are a few shots of the new friends:

Isaac also enjoyed stealing Shorts's toys. What a sweet, patient dog. Hopefully we can teach Isaac to be sweet and patient back.

Growing Up

2010-03-25T11:54:00.002-06:00

Isaac is growing up - he's got two teeth now. Sharp ones. It is hard to get pictures of baby teeth though, so this is the best one I got:

You can see 'em, right?

Isaac and His Friend in the Mirror

2010-03-25T11:49:00.006-06:00

We have a big mirror, courtesy of Grandma and Grandpa Wilde. I still haven't figured out where exactly to put it, so it's been hanging out in the play room. This happens to work out quite nicely for little Isaac, since he loves to admire his reflection. And who can blame him, handsome man that he is?

As you can see, he also adores playing in that curtain.

Matchy-Matchy

2010-03-25T11:42:00.005-06:00

James usually gets up and goes to work before I wake up (fully) in the morning and get myself and Isaac dressed. So, one day last week, James came home from work and was holding Isaac and I just had to laugh when I saw how closely their outfits matched. So of course I made them pose on the couch for some cute matchy-matchy pictures.

Welcome to the world, baby girl

2010-03-08T22:42:00.004-07:00

Milenna Jean Deal was born to Cyndi and Guy today, March 8th, at 1:43pm. She weighed 7 lbs 11 oz and was 20.5 inches long. She is the most gorgeous baby girl ever.

Welcome to the world, and welcome to our family, beautiful niece.

Apology

2010-03-07T22:28:00.001-07:00

I would like to formally apologize for my lack of blogging lately. I just realized it has been about two months since I last posted anything on here. I hang my head in shame. I am making a goal right now to do better, and I will try to post at least once a week.

Isaac is six months old now. (!) He is almost crawling, he has a tooth (well, almost), and he is gobbling up solid foods with gusto. We love our little cutie pie.

I wanted to post a video, but I can't remember our YouTube password, so I'll have to wait until tomorrow and ask James. He is sleeping right now.

So - here's to better blogging.

Video Isaac: Isaac Lectures on the Benefits of Flexibilty

2010-01-13T07:49:00.000-07:00

Isaac Makes His Parents Giggle

2009-12-28T10:44:00.001-07:00

Man, do we love our baby. He cracks us up every day. He has recently started making some very interesting noises, and as luck would have it, James bought me a simple little video recorder (which is AWESOME, by the way) for Christmas, so I have a little sample of these strange sounds coming from our baby:

James No Longer Looks Like the Abominable Snowman

2009-12-02T13:16:00.005-07:00

For a while, James was growing a beard. At the time, I quite liked it, but now looking back at the pictures it seems he looked a lot like the abominable snowman from Monsters, Inc.

Compare:

No wonder they call him the Beast, huh?

Well, now he has shaved and is looking more like himself:

Ok, just kidding. Here he is:

as "Chuck"

Isaac Finds His Hands

2009-12-02T13:08:00.003-07:00

Isaac has recently (within the last 2-3 weeks) begun to show serious interest in his hands, especially attempting to eat them. He gets either his whole fist or anywhere from one to three fingers, but never his thumb, in his mouth and smacks away. Actually the best is when he tries to get both hands in there at once. It's hilarious cuz he doesn't really get good suction, so he really makes a lot of slurpy-smacky noises. So funny.

Isaac Loves Technology (But not as much as you, you see)

2009-12-02T12:54:00.009-07:00

But he still loves technology. Always and Forever.

Man, all this work tuckered me out.

Dad, that's not helping.

Isaac is Two Months Old

2009-10-26T13:13:00.010-06:00

Isaac is now two months (and six days!) old, and growing! At his two-month check up he weighed 11 pounds, 8 ounces, and was a whopping 23.2 inches long. People are always remarking on how long he is (and how handsome). I guess you have to be able to stand up before people start calling you tall.
These past two months have gone by so fast, and at the same time it feels like a lifetime since we brought our little guy home from the hospital. A good lifetime. Isaac has brought so much joy into our lives, and our little family is a truly happy one. James and I laugh about how we are now those "lame parents"--all we can talk about is our kid and we think everything he does is amazing. Because it is.
Here is a pictorial representation of just some of the things we love about our beautiful boy:

His sparkly eyes.

His pointy little ears.

His chubby baby hands.

How he has recently discovered those hands.

This little half-smile that he got from his dad.

And this big, gorgeous smile that is all his own.

Even when he's not smiling, his little mouth is so sweet.

We love how he loves to cuddle.

And how peaceful he looks in his sleep.

And so many other things that we haven't (yet) caught on camera - like the funny little sounds he makes (and is making more and more), how his eyes slowly droop as we rock him to sleep, how he snorts when his nose gets stuffy, how he laughs in his sleep, and how he smiles when he hears our voices.
All in all, we have loved the two months we've had so far with our happy little guy, and we're so glad we get him for the rest of eternity (ha ha, kid, you're stuck with us!).

Isaac's First Game

2009-09-26T21:10:00.007-06:00

So today we took Isaac to his first BYU football game. I spent the early afternoon preparing him for it--taught him the fight song, practiced the hand motions, reviewed who the players are... just kidding. What I actually did was made him a little outfit to express his future love for BYU football. There's not much in the way of BYU paraphernalia for tiny people, so I got to express my own creativity and make him this little version of the BYU uniform:

We put Isaac in his carrier and by the time we had walked from the parking lot to the game, he was sound asleep - and that's pretty much how he stayed throughout the entire game. The game was really fun; the team made short work of CSU, so nothing to complain about there. We had a lot of fun sharing our passion for the game with Isaac.

One really cool thing-- in the women's bathroom in the lower part of the stadium, there is actually a little area set aside, like a little mother's room. I was able to go down there at half time and feed Isaac no problem. Coolest thing, though, I met another girl with a baby about the same size as Isaac. We got to chatting and comparing ages and found out they were both five weeks old --and born on the same day! In the same hospital! How neat is that? And they both weighed the same when they were born. Crazy huh? She was a really nice girl, and I hope we'll run into each other during future half time feedings. :)

Isaac's Two-Week Checkup

2009-09-08T19:30:00.012-06:00

So, we took Isaac to the doctor again for his two-week checkup. My handsome boy is doing great - healthy and growing! When we left the hospital, he weighed 7 lbs 5 oz - 8 oz less than his birth weight. At his two week appointment he was up to 8 lbs 5 oz - so he's gained a whole pound in two weeks. He has also grown a bit taller: he is now 21.4 inches tall. It's crazy how much a little guy can change in two weeks. Every day I look at him and his face seems a little different. There's more alertness in his eyes, his expressions get more and more varied. We've even gotten one or two smiles out of him. All in all, this is just incredibly cool. I love being a Mom, James is the greatest Dad, and Isaac is the best kid ever. No offense to anyone else's kids. Your kids are the best ever, too. It works like that. Anyway, here are some more pictures of my handsome boy:

Here he is, just chillin' on the couch.
He looked so cute all stretched out like that, I couldn't resist taking his picture.

We had a lovely visit from Emily and Max the other day - Max was super good with Isaac and Emily brought me the most delicious cake. Thanks again Emily!

Hanging out, having lunch with Grandma at the Burger Supreme.

Once again, just looking cute on the couch.

This is at his checkup - you can see how chubby his little tummy is getting :)

This is one of my favorite things he does - right after nursing he just cuddles up on my chest with his face looking up at me, resting on his crossed arms - it's just so cute. I can't take it.

Seriously, is that adorably or what?

Plotting and scheming.

Playing with Daddy.

Introducing: Isaac David West

2009-09-01T18:53:00.006-06:00

Sorry for the long delay in updating - my days have been occupied with staring in awe at my newborn son. Oh, and feeding him. He's a little hobbit - always eating :). But no more excuses - at long last, may I introduce: Isaac David West.

For those of you who have not heard the story yet, Isaac was a tiny bit overdue and we were planning to go in to be induced on Thursday the 20th at 6am. Well, on Wednesday the 19th at 6pm I started having contractions. The hospital called to confirm my induction and I told them I thought we'd probably be in on our own. Mom and I started timing contractions and they were pretty regular - 4 minutes apart and lasting about 30 to 40 seconds. So, we did all the things you do in early labor - I took a bath, we went for a walk, Mom made me a little sandwich. We kept counting contractions. And things just progressed pretty much how they are supposed to - I spent most of my contractions hanging onto James and rocking back and forth, either standing and doing the "labor dance" or sitting on the exercise ball that my doula had brought. As things got more intense, Mom turned down the lights and we put on my John Schmidt playlist, which helped me stay relaxed. At about 2:30am we decided to go to the hospital. I say "we" but it was really my mom... I was so scared they were going to tell me I was dilated to 4 and still had a long way to go. I didn't want to make the decision to go; luckily Mom is awesome and knows what she is doing. We got to the hospital and as I handed them my insurance card, I felt my water break. We got all checked in and the midwife checked me and confirmed my water had ruptured and then she said, "Oh wow - you're at 9 centimeters." I was so relieved. So I then spent an hour in the tub, getting through the last of the contractions. Then it was time to push. I will spare the details on this part - those of you who have been through it know and those who haven't don't want to. I'll just say I cried a lot but I made it through and the second I saw Isaac's face it was all forgotten. He was born at 5:01 am after 11 hours of labor. I didn't care what they did to me after that, which was good because I was hemorrhaging and they were poking me with all sorts of needles trying to get an IV in. They eventually did and got the bleeding under control fairly quickly. Isaac had a little fluid in his lungs so they were working on him too. When I finally got to hold him after that, it was just the sweetest moment.

So there's the story. Here are the stats:

Weight: 7 lbs 13 oz
Length: 19.5 inches (though at his doctor's visit he was 20.5 or thereabouts - can't remember what they said, whoops)Birthday: August 20
Hair color: blonde, but sometimes it also looks a bit reddish
Eye color: starting to look more and more blue
Favorite things to do: Eat, sleep, and suck on his daddy's finger

And, for those of you wondering about the name change, I promise we didn't pull a fast one on you on purpose. Up until the week before he was born, we really were going to name him Anders Octavian. We still think it's a pretty great name. But one night about a week before he was born, James and I were talking and James told me he didn't think we had the right name. I felt a sense of relief - I hadn't realized til that moment, but I didn't think we had the right name either. So we stayed up all night that night brainstorming new names. One thing I really wanted was to name the baby after my dad, so we decided on David for his middle name. We came up with a whole bunch of names we liked and then throughout the week we narrowed the list down to three - Benjamin, Charles, and Isaac. I think Malachi was in the running there for a little while too. But anyway, while I was pushing, the name Isaac kept coming into my head and I used it to encourage myself mentally ("Come on Isaac - come out!" etc.) so, I told James that I thought his name should be Isaac and he agreed. And that's the story of the name change. Sorry for the confusion.

James and I are extremely happy to be this special little guy's parents. He is already bringing so much joy into our lives. We feel incredibly blessed. Allow us to share a few more pictures of our little guy:

Update

2009-08-17T14:08:00.002-06:00

The phrase of the last ten days: Still no baby.

Yep, our little boy has not yet decided to grace us with his presence. I still feel good though, which Aunt Katherine says is a sure sign I won't have him for a while - I have to be fully miserable before I'm really ready to give birth :P

But just to give everyone a little update on what's happening - tomorrow I will go in for a non-stress test and ultrasound, and then if things still haven't happened on their own I will be induced either Thursday or Friday.

So, we promise a baby by the end of the week - for all of you anxiously waiting :)

Thanks to everyone for your support and love, and we'll let you know once anything exciting happens.

Love,
James, Charity, and Son

My DIY Nursery

2009-07-30T01:40:00.010-06:00

So, this is a big first for me - I'm linking up to the DIY Thursday party over at A Soft Place to Land. I have been a blog stalker over there for quite some time - I think I've pretty much read every post she's ever written - and I've gotten a lot of inspiration. And I've been using a lot of the inspiration I find there (and the Nesting Place and Centsational Girl and Thrifty Decor Chick and... the list goes on) to put together the nursery for Andy (due date is just a week and a half away!!). So, without further ado, here are all the projects I've been working on:

First an overview (you'll probably have to click on the picture to enlarge it if you really want to read my clever in-picture commentary.) :

My inspiration for the whole room was (were? I hate antecedents. I think it's was.) these three prints I found as I was wandering around on etsy. (They can be found in Gumball Grenade's etsy shop.)

I fell in love with them and knew I had to have them. Once I decided to base the whole nursery theme around them, though, I found that there really wasn't a lot out there in the baby realm to complement them, which necessitated many DIY projects - which suits me just fine.

So here are some of the projects I did:

I would have loved to have these prints custom framed, but I'm cheap and working on a small budget, so I bought those super cheap unfinished wood frames at Ikea ($2/per I think?), painted them, and then made "mats" out of scrapbook paper. They deserve so much better, but for now this will have to do.

Also in this picture you can see my shelves that I painted (same color as the blue frame). They look better in person. Really, they look better than the unfinished wood condition that I bought them in. So that's always good.

Here you can see the quilt that I made- it's a rag/shag quilt and it's fairly simple. Just blocks of color that echo the colors in the paintings. I also made that dust ruffle out of a plain red flat sheet I found at DI (like Goodwill). I just ripped two long pieces from it and sewed them together. The bottom was already hemmed hallelujah, and then I just tucked it around under the mattress in a ruffly sort of way. Totally pleased with myself there. Oh, any opinions - to bumper or not to bumper? I'm tempted to make one, but then I keep hearing how you shouldn't use them. Thoughts?

And here's the mobile I made using this tutorial. It uses the red, white, blue, and yellow motif from the paintings (and the rest of the room) and also the sail boat that is in one of the three prints. I like it. It's not amazing, but it's kinda cute.

And, my piece de resistance, the window "mistreatment" ala Nester. When I bought sheets for the crib (from Ikea) I was saddened to find that one of them had a hole in it. I couldn't be bothered to take them back (I'd lost the receipt and Ikea is a bit far away), so I racked my brain thinking what I could do with them. Then, after seeing several curtains and window treatments, I finally hit upon the idea of this, my own window mistreatment. I used 1/2 yard of 50" dark blue fabric for the top, the rest of the red flat sheet (from the dust ruffle) for the trim and ties, the crib sheet (that's the big blue part), and - as the lining - a curtain from Savers that I originally bought for the room and discovered was too small. Oh yeah, and some left over yellow fabric from the quilt, which I used to make the stars to cover the hole in the sheet. Whew. I only sewed one seam (across the top). Everything else I did with hemming tape, which I loved because I have issues sewing straight lines, especially when the fabrics are all different textures (that crib sheet was danged stretchy). Oh yeah, and of course I used the glue gun. How could I not?

Last of all, some advice? This room is doubling (tripling? quadrupling? It's also my office and craft space.) as a guest room while my mom stays with us for a month or so after the baby's born (thanks Mom, you are the best). I feel like that wall needs something, but I don't know what. I've got four prints by the same artist who did the sail boat painting over the bed - they are gorgeous prints of Greece, but they don't really go with the nursery. I was also thinking of doing an alphabet wall, but then I'm worried things will get too busy in the space ... and also that it isn't fitting for the "guest room" zone of the room. Any ideas? Should I just leave it? Really, I should just leave it, seeing as 1.) The guest room will only exist for the month that Mom is here and 2.) we're looking to move out of this apartment (I wonder why?) and into a house in the next few months, so it's probably just not worth the aggravation. Still open to suggestions though.

Anyway, thanks for looking at my DIY Nursery :)

More 4th-Themed Fun

2009-07-09T09:31:00.000-06:00

4th of July Festivities

2009-07-08T10:22:00.009-06:00

7am - the race begins - James and select family members (Dad, Anthony, George, Allison and her *friend* Michael) run the 5k:

The race was followed by the parade:

Then there was a family BBQ at Greg and Mary's, at which I was too busy eating to take any pictures.

Later that evening we went to see the fireworks - we watched it from a field that used to be my Freshman dorm! (Let us all sadly shed a tear for DT)

But, Mr Adams

2009-07-08T10:12:00.001-06:00

I love this song from 1776, and while we're still basking in the glow of Indepence Day, I'd like to share it with you:

What We Did this Fourth of July

2009-07-06T11:30:00.013-06:00

What you didn't know is, the fourth of July really starts on the third. Early on the third.

It starts at 6am with the Kiwanis Club Charity Breakfast and Balloon Launch:

The delicious breakfast is followed by a waterfight at Discovery Park, starting at 8:

Then milkshakes at the Purple Turtle. Sadly I did not take pictures, but here's one of a milkshake:

The rest of the day was less scheduled, but we still managed to cram a lot in there. There was Tiger Woods Golf on the Wii, a nap on the couch, a trip to the fair, and a dinner at Brick Oven:

All in all very fun. A post on the actual fourth(and the fifth!) to follow.

Take On Me

2009-06-30T13:44:00.000-06:00

This video is hilarious... I finally found a full version of it. Enjoy! :)

Take on Me: Literal Video Version - watch more funny videos

Zions

2009-06-22T16:17:00.017-06:00

Sorry for the lame blogging activity lately - things have been going on, but - I just never seem to think of blogging about them these days. Can I pull the "pregnancy card" as James calls it? Lame excuse, but still... it's there. Plus there's the issue that I'm on the computer all day for work and by the time that's over, I pretty much want to pretend computers don't exist (not an easy feat in our home), so that may be another cause of the blogging apathy. However, we did just have an amazingly lovely vacation that I'd love to tell you all about, so here I am, blogging again.

First the big and best news and the reason why we were vacationing - James graduated! Well, he's done with classes in any case and technically graduates in August - but he's done and that's the main point of interest. :) We are both pretty excited (and a bit trepidatious) to begin the next, post-school, chapter of our lives. Couldn't have asked for better timing, that's for sure. Hurrah for James!

So, to celebrate we took a trip down to Zions National Park. We stayed in a little bed and breakfast called the Desert Thistle, which I would highly recommend to anyone going down that direction. The couple that owned it were just the sweetest, kindest, friendliest people I've ever met and they totally made us feel right at home. The place itself was beautiful, and the bonus was we had it all to ourselves! I guess that's the benefit of going on vacation on a Thursday :) Here are some pictures of the b&b:

Outside - aren't those flowers gorgeous? They have hummingbirds that come and feed through out the day - just charming.
The breakfast room - Maureen, the owner, did all the decorating herself. Quite a talented woman and such a warming personality. We loved her.

The common area - we actually spent most of our time in the kitchen dining area, talking to Maureen and Warner (James fixed their camera and helped them download Timez Attack - they were very impressed :) ), but the common area was beautiful. We are definitely going back.

The neighbor's llamas, which you can see from the backyard/pool. Maureen and Warner also have a sheep (but he was hiding) and two dogs - one huge Newfie and a tiny Scottie. You just don't get this kind of experience at a hotel ;)
Us at the pool
James getting sunscreen in his eyes and lamenting the fact that his wife wants pictures of this.
Me and my round belly in my preggie swimsuit.

We spent the first day at the b&b and then Friday morning, after a delicious breakfast and hours-long chat with Maureen and Warner, we finally decided to get going and went to the park. We found a parking spot just outside the entrance (what luck!) and then walked in to the park. They have this awesome shuttle you can take around and get off at the various trail heads. We did very easy walks (you can't actually call them hikes... they were even paved), and really enjoyed our time there. Here are some pictures:

8 months pregnant. By the way, it is a bad idea to look at pictures of yourself on your wedding day and then pictures of yourself 8 months pregnant right after. I'm proud of belly for carrying my baby for me, but . . . sigh . . .

Here's me dipping mmy feet in the Virgin River. Nice view of the belly, I'd say.

For more pictures, you can see the facebook album here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=269268&id=551240506&l=2b41d397d7

So, in any case, we had a real blast, and then had the special treat of coming home to James's family! They are here for a few weeks for family reunions and fourth of July festivities (boy I love this time of year) and we got to spend a little time with them (after we had showered, because boy did we smell.)

Anyway, I think this post is sufficiently long. I'll try to be better at posting in the future.

The Children Really Are Listening...

2009-05-24T14:09:00.002-06:00

So, I have learned today that you have to be careful what you say around kids, even - or especially! - when you don't think they're listening. Today in nursery, we had had snack and the official singing time and we were seeing how long we could keep the kids entertained before letting them go back and drag out all the toys again. Two of the children entertained themselves by jumping all over James, while the other sister and I entertained the other two by singing a few more songs.

We had just sung "If You Chance to Meet a Frown" and then there was a lull - so I just started singing a random song to the same tune - I really didn't think that Maija or Bryce (the kids that were jumping all over James) were listening at all. So I started singing "James is not a jungle gym, but he's pretty fun, so let's crawl all over him..." then I couldn't really think of anything to end with and lamely finished with "and kick him in the head." I chuckled at my own lack of creativity, then turned just in time to see sweet little Maija following the song's suggestion. Boy did she give it to him - one swift kick to the side of James's head with her sweet little white sandals. And she turned to me with the biggest grin on her face like "See! I did it!" Oh boy, I felt bad for that one.

So, watch what you say - and what you sing - around the little ones. They really are listening.

(James later suggested that perhaps a better - and rhyming - ending would have been "and kick him in the bum." That at least would have had a less painful outcome for dear James.)

Brielle

2009-05-03T13:47:00.001-06:00

Today my cousin Hailey blessed her beautiful daughter Brielle Charity Steadman (who has a truly awesome middle name). I love baby blessings - they are so filled with love. The love the parents have for their new little miracle and the love our Heavenly Father has in giving a special blessing to a special little spirit. It definitely has me thinking ahead to when we bless our little son in a few months - and how he will bless us by coming to our home. :)

Mah Jongg Madness

2009-05-02T13:41:00.000-06:00

Remember how I said this is not a photography project? Well this proves it. I have no skills. But I do have a pink Mah Jongg set! My mom is the greatest mom in the world, and while I was in Greece she rekindled my love for Mah Jongg, which she gave me in the first place. Well, after many hours of playing - and even winning a few rounds - I lamented the fact that I didn't have a set of my own. Well, today, while I was cleaning and organizing our gigantic mess of a bedroom, a knock came at the door and I was completely surprised by the giant box that was awaiting me. And inside it - this lovely, oh-so-pink, Mah Jongg set that I cannot wait to play. Just waiting for the rule/hand books to come in the mail and it's on!

A Pic a Day in May: May 1st

2009-05-01T13:34:00.002-06:00

I've wanted to do this for a while. It's not a photography project, it's more of an appreciation of life project. I'm going to take a photograph every day, of mostly everyday things, but also some big events, and share them on this blog. Hopefully it will help me appreciate the small things in life and remember the daily goings-on that I would normally forget. So here it is, "A Pic a Day in May" photo number one:

Here's my amazing husband studying while tending the grill. I was in the kitchen, feverishly chopping away at potatoes and seasoning the beans, when I decided to go check on James. Seeing him study while making sure the chicken didn't burn - it just made me realize what a great partner in crime I ended up with. Instead of telling me he had to study and leaving me to my own cooking devices, he found a way to do both. Love that guy.

Date Night

2009-04-30T12:38:00.005-06:00

James took my on the loveliest date last night. We packed up a little picnic and then went to the Tulip Festival at Thanksgiving Point. We went with James's dad while James and I were still dating, so it has a sort of reminiscent feel to it. And this time around, the tulips were actually still out in abundance (we went a little late in the season last time), so we got to see all of the beautiful varieties. Here are my favorite pictures from the evening:

Idaho Visit

2009-04-30T12:26:00.005-06:00

This past weekend we went up to Idaho to enjoy watching the NFL draft with Anthony and Heidi (yes. seriously.). We had the distinct pleasure while we were there of babysitting for our little niece Bella, as Melanie was visiting from Ohio for a wedding. Bella is the sweetest little baby girl and we had a ton of fun playing with her. Check out these adorable photos of James with his niece. Isn't he gonna be the greatest Daddy?

Aren't those stockings just so sweet?

Baby Bellsy's like "I am ready for my closeup."

I really adore the look on Bella's face in this picture. I don't know quite how to describe it, but it's charming.

So cute, huh?

Who needs toys when your uncle has a foot?

Watching Anthony and James play with Bella was just priceless. These West men are just the greatest in the world, I've decided.

Oh, and P.S., Austin Collie was drafted by the Colts in the fourth round and Fui Vakapuna went to the Bengals in the 7th round. Go Cougs!

I Love Chuck

2009-04-27T21:11:00.003-06:00

Everyone should watch this show.

Greece Pictures

2009-04-24T11:04:00.002-06:00

I know I promised Greece pictures, but there are just too many to choose from! I've uploaded them all on facebook, so if anyone wants to see them, go here:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=244310&id=551240506&l=4d662458f7

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=244315&id=551240506&l=6770427cd9

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=244318&id=551240506&l=33748cdcd4

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=244324&id=551240506&l=9e7116f9f1

These are the public links so everyone should be able to see them. Sorry about before!

Pretty Much How I Feel about Twitter

2009-04-23T10:03:00.002-06:00

*Greece pictures coming soon!

So Long, Farewell!

2009-04-09T15:59:00.004-06:00

Well, I'm off for a Greeky adventure! :) I'll be gone until the 19th when I hope to bring back lots of lovely pictures of my wonderful excursions and mostly of me soaking up some mom and dad time. :) Happy Easter to all, and don't miss me too much.

P.S. James will be all alone, so he may appreciate a well-placed meal invite from time to time?

Things We Did in March

2009-04-06T16:40:00.014-06:00

So since I didn't blog throughout the entire month of March, I will try to recap the month in simple pictorial fashion.

In March, we:

Had a lovely, if short, visit from our brother-in-law Tim

Had another lovely visit from Christian, Jen, and the Kiddos

more picture on my facebook page

Said goodbye to Battlestar Galactica

Found out my mission president is now our stake president

Had Family Home Evening every Monday

Memorized the first three paragraphs of the Proclamation to the World on the Family

Watched Willow with my awesome friend Megan

Read "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy

Went to the temple with the awesome Wilde family (Grandpa Wilde, Denise and Kelly Roundy, Elliot Wilde, and Jacob and Valerie Russell) to do sealings

Bought another robot that will clean our home for us

we call her Roo-by

And, last but not least,

Found out we are having a boy!

Hopefully we will have ultrasound pics and possibly a video to share with you soon. James has been swamped with school and I'm too tech un-savvy to figure it all out. So you will just have to be patient. But we are so excited for our little boy!

Favorite Quotes from Conference Weekend

2009-04-06T11:28:00.004-06:00

I haven't posted in over a month (shame on me) mostly out of sheer laziness. Also, I've been feeling less and less inclined to spend hours in front of the computer and more and more inclined to clean house. Strange I know. Not like me.

Anyway, here I am again to share some funny things that were said during conference. We spent Sunday with James's awesome family over at his Uncle Franklin and Aunt Kathleen's house. We stayed after to sit and gab because that's what we like to do, and in these conversations, some funny things were said.

After hearing me tell a crazy story about James:
"Have you ever seen a couple more suited to each other than these two?" -Aunt Kathleen
"Yeah - salt has pepper, and James has Charity." -Aunt Ann
(how sweet is that?)

When we drove the little kids home (they were having too much fun playing Guitar Hero to leave when their parents were ready to go), they were talking about "the most ferocious of the girls" they had been in a play with recently:
"Franklin, she could hit you with a pair of glasses and you would bruise. Okay?" - Linford. That was just so funny. I think you had to be there though, Linford had such attitude in his voice. Okay?

Then later:
"I'm flopping like a potato in the summer." - Linford again, master of the simile.

Conference is so great. I loved so many of the talks and I always love feeling the love and concern our leaders have for us. They are such wonderful examples of Christlike love and service. And of course, I love getting together with family and sharing food and stories and laughter. Ah, conference. I think it's my new favorite holiday. :)

(Thinking about it, conference really is a holiday - a holy day - a day (well, two) set apart for the edification of our souls. Yay for Mormon holidays!)

Victory Garden

2009-03-04T13:11:00.002-07:00

So, spring is coming, and I want to plant a garden. I like the idea of calling it a victory garden, cuz that just makes it sound so much cooler. Big problem, though, I have no idea how to grow plants. I don't know what to plant, where to plant it, when to plant it, how to grow it... I don't know ANYTHING. We had a garden a few times growing up and you'd think I'd have learned from all the hours of weeding, watering, and protecting the seedlings from the chickens. (They got all our good stuff and we were left with zucchini. Lots and lots of zucchini.) What do I do? Anyone know anything about growing a garden? James and I have discussed buying earth boxes, since we don't have a yard to speak of. But heyond that, all I know how to do is stick seeds in the ground and hope. There's more to it than that, isn't there?

Westley's a Jerk

2009-02-27T11:54:00.004-07:00

Hee hee, I wanted to share this comic from xkcd.com but it was a little dirty, so I edited it for a more family-friendly version. If you want to see the original, just visit the web site.

Too Legit?

2009-02-25T13:13:00.005-07:00

Apparently MC Hammer and Vanilla Ice are performing in concert just around the corner at the UVU events center - this weekend! How wiggidy whack is it that we didn't know about this in time to plan our perfect 90s extravaganza complete with parachute pants? If only it had been in March, you know I would have been there, doing the running man like we did on the stage in the cafeteria on rainy days back in elementary school. Singing Oh-oh-oh Oh-oh-oh Oh-oh-oh until Hammer told me to Stop - Hammertime. Fumbling through the lyrics to "Ice Ice Baby" that I never quite learned, but loving it all the same. You know I would have been there with my sparkly pants, pregnant belly and all - but this weekend is just too soon. No time to save for the, admittedly low (considering what it might have cost to see them in their heyday) but still too high, entrance fee of 32.50 plus fees. Apparently, I am just not too legit to quit. It's not Hammertime for me, and that makes me a little sad. My remedy? Download the six MC Hammer and Vanilla Ice songs that I know (yes, that includes the Ninja Rap) and have my own pretend concert here in the living room. Anyone up for an "I wish we could have gone to the Hammer concert, but since we can't we'll hang out in the West's living room" party?

Anyone?

It's Coming!

2009-02-24T17:33:00.003-07:00

The couch is coming tomorrow! James and our awesome neighbor Duane are moving the old (ugly) couches (that nobody wants - any takers?) out tonight and then tomorrow there will be glorious new comfortable furniture in our home. Anyone wanna come visit?

Update: Someone took the couch! We left it on the curb last night with hopes none-too-high. But this morning, sometime while James was at his dentist appointment, it disappeared. Poor James. He wasn't quite ready to say goodbye. I'm sure the new couches, which should be here any minute will cheer him up.

Our Weekend

2009-02-24T10:03:00.002-07:00

This weekend we had the very enjoyable experience of babysitting for a full 24 hour period, from Friday evening to Saturday evening, for James's cousins. Their kids, Jonas and Max, are so much fun, so we were really looking forward to the weekend. We exchanged our babysitting services for Max's old crib, so we are really feeling like we got the better end of the stick here, but sh, don't tell Emily.

We had a real blast with the kids, but unfortunately I forgot my camera, so we have no pictures of all the things we did, but here's a quick rundown of the highlights of the weekend:

Friday night - we had pizza for dinner (yum) and just played with the kids til bedtime. Max wanted to play with puzzles (probably cuz we did that last time we babysat) but I couldn't find them so I promised him we'd find them the next day. Kids went to bed without a fuss, whew!

Saturday morning - 7:15, James comes in with the boys and Max jumps on the bed, saying "Charity! Can we play puzzles?" He hadn't forgotten. He's good at remembering, that kid. We settled on playing puzzles after breakfast.

Breakfast - since the kids had gone to bed so well the night before, we had promised them a fancy breakfast. We made eggs and bacon and some orange juice. James did the bacon, I did the eggs - it was fun to cook together.

Puzzles - I texted Emily and found out the location of the puzzles, and Max was ecstatic. He was doing little hop skips and rubbing his hands together. If you have never seen an excited 2 year old, you have not lived.

Playing outside - we spent a good chunk of the late morning/early afternoon playing with the boys and their cousins/neighbors outside. James watched the kids for a bit so I could shower and clean up a little, but Max soon came and demanded that I come play with him, so... no makeup that day :P

After the cousins had to go, the boys came inside and we made cookies together. That was the most adorable thing I have seen in a long time. They wanted to help with everything and they were so good at sharing and giving each other turns stirring and mixing in the ingredients. The best part was when I let them crack the eggs (I'll admit, I really just wanted to see what would happen). The eggs sort of exploded in their little hands and we had to pull out the shells, but it was just so fun. Don't worry, they washed their hands afterward. Jonas then had fun sculpting cookies into all sorts of weird shapes, only to watch them melt down into pretty normal looking chocolate chip cookies as they baked in the oven. Science!

While the cookies baked, we made sandwiches and Jonas had the brilliant idea to take them to the park for a picnic. So we packed up everything for the lunches, got in the car and went off to find Discovery Park. I thought James knew where it was and he thought I knew where it was and it turned out neither of us knew anything, so we just drove around Pleasant Grove for about half an hour before finally calling a friend (thank you Jordan!) and having him look up directions for us. We found the park, had a lovely picnic (I swear it was like 60 degrees outside on Saturday, beautiful!) and then played on all the fun equipment. Max did not want to get out of the swing, I actually took a few pictures of that on my cell phone cuz he was so adorable. I'll try to figure out how to upload them later. Then we went for a walk around the park and watched the snow melt, which I must say is much more exciting than it sounds.

After the park, we came home, popped popcorn and watched a movie, finishing just before Ryan and Emily got back. All in all a pretty successful day. Jonas at one point said, "This day could not get any funner." That's what I like to hear ;)

I'm in Love

2009-02-13T14:59:00.005-07:00

Have you ever been in love, but you couldn't be with the object of your affection? And every day feels like a week because you are counting down the minutes until you are once again reunited? Well, that's how I feel. About our new couch.

James and I went shopping last night "just to look" at new couches for our living room. I guess I've been "nesting" or whatever--I've been feeling like we need some nicer things in our home (you know, some things that didn't come from a garage sale for five dollars and have gross yellowed cushioning popping out all over the place, yes couches I'm talking about you). So we went to R.C. Willey with the intent of picking out some plush leather couches that would be classy and comfortable. Comfortable over classy, but class was still a goal. But then we saw this sectional, and sitting on it was like all your dreams coming true at the same time. So soft. So big. So dreamy. Here, I'll show you what I mean:

See? See what I mean? Who wouldn't love that? And no, it's not leather . . . but sometimes love doesn't come in the form you're looking for. But when it comes, it's infinitely better. It's microfiber, so it will clean almost as well as leather, and it will be nicer for guests to sleep on I think.

So, now you know the love story, but it's not quite completed yet. We have to wait a few more weeks for our tax rebate to come in so we can go in and pay the rest of the price and take our beautiful couch home. Until then, I will dream . . . and cross days off the calendar.