Camping

So, we went camping last weekend up Hobble Creek and had a great time! It was our first real camping of the summer and we plan on going as much as we can until the weather turns cold.  Here are pictures of our little outing.

Throwing rocks in water is a favorite activity for her.

We taught Claire how to use our point and shoot camera. The first two pictures are proof that we showed her how to take a picture....then she puts her own twist on it.

LOTS of pictures of the ground. She'll be an expert in grasses if she keeps it up!

We were excited about this one since she shot up instead of down. Way to go! :)

Now she gets a "portrait". Haha

This one is back at home, but I think it's hilarious too. Maybe she was curious about what her nostrils look like.

I don't match...it's camping.

She was holding her egg in her hands and got a little to strong for it. It cracked and she was covered in egg.

Other than Brian and I falling asleep around 10 with the kids, we had a great time. Next time we're going to try and stay up later than them to get a boardgame in. :)

First day of being 2....an illness

This is more of a rant than anything. Claire played with one of her friends last Wednesday. After about an hour or so of them playing, the mom informed me that her child had a rash on her bottom. Uh....huge thanks for telling me that BEFORE they started playing. That was thoughtful and very considerate of you.

A few days pass and we're gathered in my kitchen celebrating Claire's birthday...and the mom calls again. "I'm so sorry, but my daughter looks to have hand-foot-and mouth. Hopefully Claire doesn't get it." Once again....HUGE thanks.

Monday comes and so do the oral blisters.

If your child is sick...LEAVE THEM HOME! I'm tired of Claire being sick!

That's all.

The Kids

Claire and Jared had their well child check-ups today. The poor little people are just that...little people. Claire was on a roll of being within the 20th percentiles and has moved her way down the ladder. Jared is almost off the charts...in the wrong direction. :)

Jared- 4 months

Height: 22.75 inches = 1st percentile- haha

Weight: 13 lbs. 1 oz. = 19th %

Head: 42 cm = 48%

Claire - 2 years

Height: 32.75 inches = 11 %

Weight: 27 lbs 1 oz = 58%

Hopefully someday they'll both catch up, especially little Jared. Boys need to be taller than the first percentile. :) I think it's his legs since his pants are always way too long. 

What else did the doctor say?

Oh, just that they are the most perfect, most adorable and well behaved children she's ever seen. 

Ok...maybe I just heard that without her speaking. You know. It's because they're mine. Oh...and because they ARE perfect. :)

So, here's the skinny on Jared. He is the biggest sweetheart and he love loves LOVES his mommy. He is my little pal and loves to be held. I think he's just a tad bit spoiled. He sleeps like a champ. After getting home from my grandma's funeral, he slept from 7 pm to 6 am straight. Then took a nap from 8 to noon. Must have been exhausted!  He loves sucking on his fingers and I'm happy to report that his thumb isn't as important anymore. He's a huge drooler; however, I haven't found any signs of teeth quite yet. He's very ticklish and will usually laugh for me when I tickle his neck. He still has a funny mohawk, but I'm attached to his hair, so we're not cutting it yet. He's a side sleeper-big time! If it were my first baby I'm positive I would lose sleep thinking of SIDS and of suffocation, but there is a blessing to having a little experience under your belt. I sleep soundly on my side and so does he. He likes to watch the TV (uh oh) and he can roll over from back to belly...although he usually gets upset about it after a few minutes. He still loves to snuggle with his mommy and I eat it up. He likes the phrases "Soooo sleepy" and "soooooo slowly". I don't know why, but he laughs at them every time I say them.

Claire is the big sister 2 year old starting on Sunday. 2?! It almost makes me sad knowing that they grow up so fast. I read her 4 month checkup stats and it is so hard for me to imagine her that small now. I wish you could always remember every little thing about them! I'm so grateful for camera's a video! She is such a ham and my little best friend. She, also, loves her mommy, but sure loves that daddy of hers too! He'll do anything for her. Claire loves to read and be read to. She loves to play with other kids and loves to be outside. It's a very dramatic thing taking her inside. I love how she has best friends already and hates to be away from them. She loves water and going to the pool/lake. My favorite sayings are: "Where did mommy/daddy/brother/Kylie go?", "Is brother sad?", "Na-Night (insert name/object here).", "MMMMM! YUMMY!". Yesterday was funny. I was singing the Wheels on the Bus for her and when I asked her what the mommy's on the bus say, she said "LOVE YOU" before I finished my sentence. I've told her that mommy's say "love you" and daddy's say "roar", so I guess the mommy's on the bus, of course, say "love you". She loves all things Woody, Buzz, Toy Story.

Hopefully I didn't leave anything out so when I read it in 20 years, I'll be able to picture my perfect little  life just the way it is.

I love my sweet family!

Lake Powell

We went to Lake Powell and it was a blast! We haven't been in years and I forgot how beautiful it is. I don't particularly love Red Rock all by itself (I could never live in St. George) but I love it when it's by the water. I love the red/blue contrast. It was a different lake vacation than we've had before. Usually we spent all of our time on the beach and camp in tents, but since I had a little 3 month old with me, we needed the RV to keep him cool and for better sleeping. I'll be honest....I love not having to sleep in a 95 degree tent! 

We got there Wednesday afternoon and spent a little time on the beach playing, but we couldn't do much because our boat sounded so funny. 

The next day was spent waiting for the bearing in the boat to get fixed. We thought it would be done by noon at the latest, but we waited until 4:00 and then made other plans. I was kinda sad that one of our precious days on the water was lost, but we made the best of it. 

Brian really wanted to go to Natural Bridges National Park, so we left around 4 thinking we'd be back by 7. He told me not to get gas and to just go. After insisting that we do get gas he assured me that we'd make it just fine. We make the hour long trek from Hall's Crossing to the park and GUESS WHAT?! We were almost out of gas! There was no way that we'd make it around the park and back to Hall's. What did we have to do, you ask? Well, since there is no gas for MILES and MILES, we had to drive another 35 minutes to Blanding, UT. Who in the heck lives down there? Anyway, I was right. We made a "crap bucket list" on our way down there just so we could cross of "going to Blanding" off of the "crap bucket list". 

Back to the park. It was pretty cool! It was the first national park in UT (who knew) and it was way better than I expected. These "arches" or bridges rather, are older than the ones at Arches National Park....and to be honest....a little more awesome. Since we had our kiddos we couldn't hike down to them, but I wouldn't mind going back and giving them a try. I don't think Brian's insides could handle the cliffs though. He's a "little" afraid of heights. He was getting a little squirmy the ENTIRE TIME. "Watch Claire", "Don't go there", "You're driving too close to the edge!", "MOVE OVER". You get the drift.

Looking at a lizard.

Hello Sunspot.

Back to the lake. Here is what our mornings were like. Crazy Claire and sleeping in.

Our real day on the water was my favorite. Both kids fell asleep on our long look around the lake for a decent beach. Those life jackets make pretty good pillows.

Claire had to be in the water almost the entire time. She just loved to float and find "Shhhheee-sells" and throw rocks in the water.

Jared was a champ and slept for hours. Thank goodness for the cool breeze to keep him cool. The first day we had to run to the marina to get him looking less hot.

This was...HILARIOUS! We would catapult each  other out of the water and Trevor was by far the funniest. He didn't bend at all. He was stiff as a board and would land with quite the splash.

Jason....oh...he looked a little ridiculous as well. :)

Brian looked pretty haus doing his flips in his wetsuit. 

Day 4: Rainbow Bridge. Man, it a longer walk than I have ever made to the bridge. You used to be able to dock and walk right up to it. Not anymore. It's quite the walk. Jared only made it part of the way because mommy got nervous about him being in so much sun and heat. We walked back to the shady cove and waited for everyone else.

He sure loved that turtle.

Me wakeboarding

Brian wakeboarding

Brian tubing

Jason tubing. The poor guy had really ROUGH water to bounce through. 

On the ferry leaving Hall's Crossing. Claire fell in love with a cute Maltese these people had with them.

I'm ready for Lake Powell round 2!!!!