Michael is....SIX??? Yes, I just redid the math, he's SIX!!!!

I really can't believe my little guy is now 6! These last 6 years have gone by so incredibly fast, it's really crazy.

I was thinking the other day about how it doesn't feel like it's been six years since I was in the worst amount of pain I'd ever been in! I doesn't feel like that much time has gone by. I'm really missing the times we had when he was younger. I know it'll be fun to watch him get older, and we'll do more things that will be just so much fun! But, I'm going to miss the innocence of when he was in preschool and even when he was a toddler. I look at Xander, and I just can't believe that Michael was once that young. And the horrible thing is that I know it's just going to go by quicker and quicker! I don't think I'm ready! I want more time.

His birthday was really low key. The week before, I got in a car accident so I've been trying to figure out the insurance thing and medical bills and all that fun stuff. So because of that I wasn't able to make his birthday day what I would have liked. But we did make him a breakfast of orange rolls (thanks to Rhodes), eggs, and bacon. Then we brought out some presents that my parents sent up for him. And let me tell ya, he was excited!!

The boys spent the morning playing with Michael's new toys. Then it was time for him to go off to school. When he came home there were balloons around and he asked for Pizza for dinner. His cake was an angel food cake with mashed strawberries and cool whip on top. Easy and yummy!

At that point I put Xander to bed and then he and Nathan went off to Walmart and let him pick out a present. He chose a firetruck and a pair of hand cuffs.

Tomorrow (Saturday) we're doing a party for him. It's going to be fun, and I'm really excited. I had Michael invite a few of his friends and we're having a fire man themed party. I haven't decided on a game yet, but we'll play one and then do presents and cake and stuff. At that point we're going to pile into a few vans and drive to the fire station, where they will take the kids on a tour. It'll be awesome! Michael is SO excited. I'm excited, but also nervous. Like I said earlier, because of the car accident I haven't been able to put as much into the party as I'd like to, but I think the tour of the station will really overlook any lake of planning on my end. Oh, I'm also going to make him a fire truck birthday cake. Again, it'll be AwEsOMe! I'll for sure have a post just for that!

I just had to laugh when I saw this picture:

Because it reminded me of this one:

That picture was taken 3 years ago, on his 3rd birthday! I love seeing similar pictures and seeing my baby still in that older boys' face!

December...mainly Christmas

The month of December was just as crazy for us as it probably was for most of the 3 people who still read this blog! It's hard to think that Christmas has already passed, and even weirder to think that it was only about a month ago!!! I'm kinda stuck between thinking that it's still fall, or that we're already into Spring. I suppose that's what hardly any snow will do to me! (Not that I'm complaining! I really really really like having no winter!!)

We didn't get a tree until just a few days before Christmas, which was kinda nice because we didn't have to worry about keeping it watered and it didn't shed at all! It was a beautiful tree (although it looks a bit puny in the pictures) and was our last real tree that we'll get for a while. As soon as Christmas was over we went out and bought a discounted fake tree. It'll be good to have all Christmas up next year, and to not have to wait for paychecks or available time to put up the tree.
Michael was so excited when we were decorating it. Can you tell??
I don't really know how I got this picture, but it's kinda cool!
Our tree wasn't really decorated evenly. Most of the ornaments were low and in bunches. But, our kids decorated it and for me, that's what makes it so fun!
Xander was really into it this year! He just kept coming and coming for those ornaments. He was really proud of his work and took it really seriously.
Xander also found some old stockings and insisted on wearing them often! I think he may have even gone to sleep with them on. Silly boy!

HA! Mom's got the camera again!!

Christmas eve

For Christmas this year we just stayed at home and did our own thing. It was really nice and fairly relaxing.

Christmas Eve I made a few treats, we ate a yummy dinner of Bar-b-q chicken sandwiches from the crockpot, and then we opened up the traditional Christmas jammies. Here's the video:

After that we watched the new videos from our church about the nativity. It was a really nice touch and helped us teach our boys about the true meaning of the season! They were captivated and watched the whole thing. It was really cool.

Then we took their pictures in front of the tree.
I was really bummed that this picture came out sooo blurry!! It was PERFECT!!!
And then these two are just perfect in that they capture their personalities SO WELL!! I love these kids!
My favorite! :)

Then we put Xander to bed and Michael and I threw some reindeer food together (oatmeal and glitter) and we sprinkled it around outside. Then we put him to bed and waited for Michael to falls asleep....and then we waited.....and waited some more. Finally he conked out and we set to work finishing everything else up. Of course we didn't go to bed until 1:00. So we finally went to bed.
After Santa came!
A pillow pet that Michael has been B-E-G-G-I-N-G for for at least 2 years! And Xander got an awesome dump truck.

The night of Christmas eve/the morning of Christmas day did NOT go as I would have liked. It would probably be best explained from my facebook post from Christmas day:

"Ugh, SO TIRED!! We stayed up until 1:00, woke up to Michael coming into our room at 2:10 to announce that Santa had come (he'd been waking up every hour since falling asleep around 9:30 to ask if Santa had come yet), let him take his new pillow pet to bed, Michael woke ip Xander talking to his pillow, Nathan brought Xander into bed with us, then Nathan decided to sleep in the guest bed. Finally went back to sleep, then woke up at 3:45 to the sounds of Michael playing in his room. Went to his room to tell him to go to bed and found him playing with Xanders toy that Santa had brought. Asked him sternly what he was doing, then he broke down bawling! Walked him back into the lving room to put the present back, and found that he had gone through each stocking, dumping out all the contents into a pile on the couch!!! Nathan came out, asked him sternly what was going on, michael broke down again! Had a talk with micheal that he bawled through, Nathan put Michael to bed. Finally got to bed at 4:20. Then I proceeded to sleep with Xander who was starting to get restless and crying out in his sleep, then passing gas and going back to sleep or coughing. He proceeded to do that until about 6:30 when he woke up puking. At that point Michael woke up as well as Nathan. Then we opened up our presents and threw breakfast in the oven. It's been a loooooong 9 hours!!! But, I did enjoy watching the boys open up presents and COMPLETELY SHOCKING Nathan with his! Now I'm going to bed......merry Christmas!!!!!!!!!"

Oh ya, it was awesome! It's funny. I've actually already forgotten a lot of that stuff! I must have really blocked it out! HAHAHA...

Christmas Day

The present of the YEAR were the super hero costume set that my dad bought for Michael. It. Is. AWESOME! There is a Batman, Robin, and a...superman?? I think it's superman. But it's been worn everyday since Christmas!

Michael helping Xander put his mask on.

Watching my boys open up their presents and play with them is so fun! I love Christmas day and the fun and excitement of so many fun presents and playing all day long, and the fact that there's not much fuss and fighting! I just love Christmas day!!!

But, the best moment of the day was Nathan opening up his present! Oh, this. was. GREAT!!!!!!!

Allow me to tell you a story--

Once upon a time there was a video game that a certain someone found out about. This certain someone decided that this game needed to come into our home. So he decided to talk incessantly about buying an Xbox just to play this game. This certain someone's wife refused! They did not feel there was a need for an Xbox and definitely not for just one game. But that didn't keep that certain someone from continuing on and on and ON about the stupid Xbox. (really, it was annoying!) Finally, one day this couple went shopping for some Christmas presents and wandered around Target. Much to certain someone's delight, he found that video game in the computer game section. He had forgotten that the awesome game was also available for the computer. He showed his wife, who made a mental note of the game and they continued on their way.

The next day the couple and their kids went to Walmart. They ended up in the computer game section and certain someone found the game there too, but there was only ONE game left. He B-E-G-G-E-D for his wife to just buy it for him. His wife refused and they continued on their way. The wife had planned on going back to Target with her kids the next day to buy the game, and there was no point in buying it at Walmart. Plus, the person is not supposed to know what they are getting for Christmas, and certainly should not watch it being purchased! Just the wife's opinion.

Well, the next day certain someone called and talked the wife, saying that Target was....SOLD OUT...of the game!!!!!!!! So wife threw the kids into the car and drove to Walmart and got....THE LAST GAME for sale there! The son was there, obviously, and was told that he should NOT under any circumstance, reveal what game was bought and to definitely not tell his dad what we got. So we, I mean they, bought the game and went home. But when certain someone came home, the first thing the son did was blurt out, excitedly, we didn't get you the game you wanted!! haha, but gut wrenching and scary moment, right! The wife quickly jumped up and "clarified" that we did indeed get a computer game, but it wasn't the one certain someone wanted. The game certain someone wanted was all sold out and we bought a different one...but DON'T WORRY! We talked to an associate and they were certain that the game would be awesome and he would LOVE it!" The wife made sure to say this with as much as nervousness and happiness as possible, all the while just freaking out that he wasn't going to buy it and call her on it. But luckily certain someone reluctantly bought it and didn't question her on it too bad. At least not right away. And that, is when the awesome Christmas surprise began!!

Now, I should back up and tell you about a time when the wife went out to buy a poster for her sister in law. It was a poster that she knew her sister in law would love, and was really excited to get it for her. So when the wife got to the store, she looked for the poster, and IT WAS GONE!!!!! They were sold out of the poster and she had to choose a different poster. She was so nervous, and went back and forth so many times just trying to find the perfect one! Finally she decided on one, but was still so worried that it wasn't right. But, she had no choice and that's what she got. Even as she was giving the sister-in-law the present, she was worried she wouldn't like it. Heck, she's STILL worried her sister-in-law doesn't like it! (not because of anything sis-in-law has said, just her own anxiety riddled self setting herself up!). So wife had this awesome experience that she channeled for the next 2 weeks to keep certain someone from thinking that there was a chance the wife had actually gotten him his beloved game!!

And let me tell you, it was SOOO HARD for the wife to keep the story going!!! Certain someone would call randomly ALL. THE. TIME to tell the wife that he found the game at a different store and that he thought about just buying it and then taking the game that wife had bought back after Christmas (rude, right!). Or researching the amount the wife had said she'd spent on the game (which wasn't the correct amount, because the wife knew that if he knew how much she'd spent on said game he'd know immediately she'd gotten him the game!) He researched that price on walmart.com and "knew" what game she had bought and was "trying to get excited for it". He was really trying to figure it out, and each time he called, the wife would channel the poster experience and just act SO SAD that she wasn't able to get the game he wanted, even guilt-tripping him into feeling bad for pestering her so much! And really, he should have felt bad, it was a bit ridiculous!! So, this happened for the full 2 weeks before Christmas, even UP UNTIL he opened his present!

Because this was such a dramatic time in their lives, the wife KNEW she HAD to record him opening the gift!!!! And we are SOOO glad she did, because it was AWESOME!!

So, without much more confusing story telling (can you tell I'm really not that good at telling stories???), here's the best moment of Christmas 2011:

And for the record, the game was Skyrim. And he has been playing it for the whole month, any chance he gets. Which I'm fine with!! He works so hard for our family, he deserves some time away to relax and "get away" before bed time.

Xander being silly during Christmas dinner!

And one last picture!! Since Michael is always too busy to give me a normal picture that actually includes his eyes and nose and mouth in one picture, I was excited when I got a decent picture from him!! So here's his picture after getting his hair cut.
Also, if anyone has recommendations for a good styling product for thick and heavy hair, I'd greatly appreciate it!!! His hair looks so cute styled like this, but I can't find a good product to actually keep his up and cute!

August, September, October and November 2011

August

The month of August brought some changes to our lives. The best two changes were that we were able to move into a 3 bedroom apartment and Michael started Kindergarten. Our new apartment is so lovely! I seriously love it! We still have the boys sharing a bedroom, and the 3rd bedroom is now an office/guest room. The closet is also huge, so that has become our pantry. I need to post some pictures of our space, and maybe I'll do that someday, but you can kinda get a feel for where we are in this photo below. This was taken before we moved, and there was a HUGE rainstorm so Nathan took the boys out to splash in the puddles and listen to the thunder. I went out to take a few pictures, and didn't realize it at the time, but I was also taking a picture of where we'd be living a few weeks later! Our old apartment is behind me (you can't see it in the picture) and the new one is the apartment you see in the picture. Make sense??

We also love that Michael is in Kindergarten now!! He feels like he's finally arrived in life! He loves his backpack, and I love watching him learn and grow. I also love that he goes in the afternoon, while Xander is napping, so I get some nice alone time to relax and get some stuff done. It's really nice!

Also, Nathan's sister moved down to Rexburg in August. She got accepted into BYU-Idaho and stayed with us for a few weeks until her apartment was available. She's been a HUGE blessing for Nathan and I and our boys. We really love her and enjoy this time we're able to spend with her.

She's so fun!

And then here are just some other random pictures and a video from the month of August:

Xander and Michael both enjoy looking at books. Because we have more room, we're able to keep their bookshelves out in the living room, and it's allowed them to be more interested in reading their books! It makes me happy.

My cute Xander-Mander!
Becca has a way of doing Xander's hair that I just love! For some reason, I'm not able to duplicate it very well.
Sometimes the boys' pants get put into the wrong drawers. Usually Michael comes to me and lets me know, but this day he just went with it. Turns out, Xanders pants fit Michael in the waist, just not in the length! The horrible thing, is later in the day I forgot that Michael was wearing these pants and took him out shopping. At least it was just Walmart!
Xander has discovered how to get his way, even if we say no. This was the first time I saw him find a can of pop and a cup and pour it himself.
and then finally, a video of the boys dancing. Mainly Michael, but you can see Xander a bit as well.

September and October

As far as I remember, September was a pretty mild month. We got used to our apartment, got moved in and fairly organized.

I bought a shoe organizer for our entry closet that Xander got himself stuck in a few times.

Becca and Xander really have fun together.

Notice his cute hair style! And I love his big blue eyes!

The weather here has been AWESOME! The first part of October we spent some time outside with the camera, and I actually got a few pictures of the boys that I liked.

This looks more scary than it was. They were wrestling, and Xander was okay with it.

For Halloween Michael was a knight and Xander was a dragon. I really like to have my boys coordinate costumes!!

November

I have some videos from this month. The first week I was able to go to St. Louis Missouri for a Parents As Teachers conference, and while I was gone, Nathan stayed home with the boys. During that time, he taught the boys about Hide and Seek and tag. Xander kinda has those games confused. When we play hide and seek, he runs around the couch screaming, and then hide and seek he runs after Michael. It's hilarious! So enjoy the videos. They're kinda long, but really fun. You also get somewhat of a tour of our new apartment as I follow them through the end of the apartment trying to find Michael. Just beware---the boys' room was messy!

One day after school I let Michael have some kids over to play. For about 10 minutes they sat on the couch and watched a show on Netflix. I just thought they looked so cute sitting there all together!

Sitting next to Michael is his best friend Kyler

As I said earlier, the weather has been so great!! We've had hardly any snow and just really nice warm temperatures. That said, we have had a bit of snow here and there, and here is Xander one day just dying to go play in it! He's all dressed up in his gear.

And Xander playing on his "computer".

Xander Turns 2!

We've had such a fun day today!! I love birthdays, I really do, and I hope to pass on that love to my boys. I think I'm succeeding...
Xander was such a happy boy today because he was getting so much attention. I've been prepping him for the "how old are you" question for about 5 weeks, and he's finally got down today and we've all been having fun with asking him. Here's a video I did trying to get him to say "two", I wasn't successful, but it's a good example of his personality. I also think the end is kinda funny.
He's just so cute!
The other day I was cleaning out our storage area and layed the car seat down on the floor, and Xander started sitting in it and playing. I thought it would be fun to compare pictures of the first time he was in that seat and was so tiny!
Coming home from the hospital:

I also thought it would be fun to compare pictures from last year and this year. He's grown so much!!

1 year old:2 Years old:We've basically skipped the 24/2T clothes! I brought out the 3T box thinking the clothes would be huge on him, but they actually fit him really well! I have to roll the pants up, but otherwise, they fit great. What's wierd, was that Michael stopped wearing the 3T stuff only 2 years ago! So, even thought they're almost 4 years apart, the clothing sizes are really close...if that makes any sense at all!
I can't believe how much he's grown up! He's just so much fun. He has a great smile and loves to laugh and talk. It's so fun to hear him talking and having short conversations with us. He's truly such a joy and such a fun addition to our family!
Here are a few of the cupcakes I made. They really looked a lot better in person, I promise! Xander enjoyed them!
The video singing Happy Birthday and him figuring out the whole "blowing out the candles" thing:
And another video after he was done with his cup cake...Again, he's just SO CUTE!And finally opening up his presents!