The Fab Four Freers

The Best Birthday Gift Ever

2011-03-16T10:54:00.000-07:00

...or why Alan Freer is a genius!

For my bday this year Alan surprised me by flying one of my bestest best friends out for a visit. Cammie and I met years ago working at the U of U and have remained close even though many states now separate us.

Cammie flew in on Friday morning (March 12th). It was so great to see her! The weekend flew by way too fast and before I knew it, it was was Sunday and I had to drive her back to the airport.

We ran a really fun 5K at Lake Mead that took us through old raliroad tunnels used during the construction of Hoover Dam.

Steph, me and Cammie with our cool medals post race.

This is what happens when you get a little slap happy from exhaustion. Delirious! We named it "Yogurt-drunk" since we just put down some big bowls of Yogurtland.

Trying to get a more refined photo before heading out to church proved difficult since someone (me) could NOT keep their eyes open.

For a more entertaining recap and additional photos from this weekend I encourage you to visit http://www.wildmeowzers.blogspot.com/

Thanks for coming out Cam! It was the best! See you soon! And thanks Alan for such a fun birthday surprise!

The Karate Kid

2011-03-16T10:24:00.001-07:00

Cole started taking karate at the beginning of January. He has been enjoying it. On February 26th they had a "graduation" ceremony where the students test for their new belt color. Cole was excited and nervous but he did great and advanced to the rank of orange belt. It was a fun event!

Cole wearing a serious look for the sparring section of the test.

Carson cheering on his big brother from the sidelines.

Cole and his instructor Mr. O'Hara.

The support crew minus Mom (who is taking the picture).

After we all went to lunch together to celebrate.

Yeah Cole! We are so proud of your achievements!

My Valentines

2011-02-19T10:36:00.000-08:00

My two cute Valentines at Cole's school celebration. They had a big ice cream social and a dance with a DJ. My boys can really tear up a dance floor. I love these guys!

A Fun TX Visitor and My Bday

2011-02-18T10:39:00.000-08:00

In February Leslie came to town for a quick weekend of fun, food and shopping. And did I mention food? We got the old gang together and hit up all of our favorite places. Including dinner and shopping at Town Square followed by Yogurtland! Pedicures! Retro Cupcakes! More food, Cafe Rio, Smashburger and of course another stop at Yogurtland! It was a fun packed weekend and we snuck in a little birthday celebrating too. Yes, I turned "29" again...

Leslie and Judy...

Alyson, Lana and Me with my bday cupcake at Claim Jumper...

Pedis (yes, my eyes are closed)...

We all miss Leslie and it's so fun when she comes to visit.

Carson is 4!

2011-02-16T17:11:00.000-08:00

I know every Mom says this on their child's birthday but seriously!? Where has the time gone? I can't believe my baby is 4! Carson chose to celebrate his birthday with an army themed party at Grandma and Grandpa's house. All of our local family came and he was so excited to open his fun new presents and blow out the candles on his cake. Later that night he gave the presents a goodnight kiss before going to bed.

We just love this little guy and his fun personality. It's his job to be funny and make us laugh! He is such a special member of our family!

We love you Carson!

Catching Up...

2011-02-16T17:02:00.000-08:00

Yes, we celebrated Christmas this year, lol! Here's proof! It was a very Lego, Nintendo DS and Kung Zhu Christmas for our boys.

Christmas Eve in matching PJ's...

Cole LOVES his DS!

Epic hamster battle!

Carson and the dragon to his really cool Lego Castle from "Hoho"...

It's Snowing and Happy New Year!

2011-01-03T10:37:00.001-08:00

Welcome 2011!

I promise to do better at blogging this year...

Staehli Farm

2010-11-19T15:37:00.000-08:00

Cole and Alan had the Friday before Halloween off for Nevada day so we decided to do something fun that we'd never done before. I'd heard about Staehli Farm in St George from a few people and thought it sounded like something my boys would love. Yep! They loved it! There was a corn slide, tire swings, a "train" ride, rope swing, pumpkin patch and a corn maze.

I Survived the Ragnar Relay

2010-11-18T15:08:00.000-08:00

What is the Ragnar Relay?

It's a 195 mile race that begins at the Valley of Fire north of Las Vegas on Friday morning and ends at the Redrock Hotel on Saturday. You have a team of 12 runners who divide the 195 miles into 36 legs, each runner taking three legs. A friend of mine texted me about 14 days before the race and asked if I wanted to fill in as a runner on her team. "Heck yes" was my response before I found out which legs I would be running. Well, I was going to be running two 7.2 mile legs and one 4.4 mile leg, all of which were rated hard. Yikes! But the morning of October 22nd came and I hopped in the suburban with a bunch of strangers and headed out to begin an adventure of a lifetime. I had a pretty good case of butterflies going before running my first leg but once I started running the adrenaline took over and it was amazing. The scenery was gorgeous and it was fun having my team driving beside me routing me on. The second leg I ran was around 10:30 that night and my little sister Stephanie came out and ran it with me. We geared up in our headlamps and reflective vests and hit the road. It was fun having her along and keeping me company. Thanks Steph! We tried to get some sleep that night before our morning runs but it was near impossible. There's nothing like being completely sleep deprived and slap happy as you set out on an all uphill 4.4 mile run on dirt/gravel . When I got back in the car after finishing my last leg I was seriously overcome with a feeling of elation! I was pretty darn proud of myself for completing my portion of the race. It was then time to relax and wait for the rest of our team to finish up so we could cross the finish line and head home for showers and much needed sleep.

We had a few bumps along the way; sick team members a couple injuries etc but everyone did great and I was so glad to be apart of a team filled with such great ladies!

And yes, I will do it again next year if they ask me!

Carson-isms

2010-10-19T14:37:00.001-07:00

A couple of funnies from Carson:

His full name is Carson Blake. The other day I was singing a made up song to him in which I used his full name. And he says, "Noooo, not Blake, it's Birthday Cake"! So I guess his new name is Carson "Birthday Cake" Freer.

Pick-up truck = hiccup truck

My First 5K

2010-09-18T10:42:00.000-07:00

A couple months back my little sister asked me if I wanted to start training to run a half marathon with her. It's one of those things on my bucket list so I agreed to it. Well, we decided we needed some motivation so last weekend on 9/11 we ran the Candlelighters 5K. I had no idea what to expect. I didn't expect that I would totally get sucked into it and love every moment but I did! I loved the hype, and the crowds of runners, I loved the competition and I loved the feeling of crossing the finish line! I had a runner's high all weekend long! I will definitely be doing another race soon!

The start and finish line:

Me and Snuff:

Where's Waldo? Can you find me?

Crossing the finish! Woohoo!

Official time 30:58, not bad for an old lady and her first race, haha!

Cole FINALLY Lost a Tooth!

2010-08-30T19:57:00.000-07:00

This is a scrapbook page I made to commemorate this HUGE event in Cole's life. The journaling reads:

Cole has been waiting a very long time for his first missing tooth. It fell out at 6:27 a.m. on the 4th day of 2nd grade. Cole proclaimed it to be the most exciting thing to happen in his life this far!

First Day of 2nd Grade!

2010-08-23T16:04:00.000-07:00

Ahhhh, the first day of school! It seemed to come quicker this year! But I think we were ready! This year Cole is a 2nd Grader! Wow!

A couple of things a 2nd grader needs for the first day of school are cool new Skechers!

A new Star Wars backpack and lunchbox!

And breakfast in front of the computer? (I pick my battles...)

Of course I had to snap the traditional photo in front of the house...

And one by the car (and yes, they are drinking Dr Pepper at 7:45 in the morning but it's caffeine free)...

And one last quick picture in front of the school since Cole won't permit me to bring the camera onto the playground and embarrass him.

I got a good report from Cole after school. This year he gets to be "Cole F." since there are 2 Coles in his class, he likes his teacher and they had blue cupcakes. Yay!

One Last Hurrah!

2010-08-22T15:51:00.000-07:00

With school starting Monday (Aug 23rd) I was beginning to feel the urge to squeeze in one last fun adventure before it was back to the grind! We only had a small window of time to work with so we decided a "staycation" was the perfect idea. I booked our family a suite out at Lake Las Vegas and surprised the kids with the news of our mini vacation.

The hotel is surrounded by gorgeous scenery and has two pools, a water slide and a beach. The boys (and Mom and Dad) had so much fun playing on the beach and building sandcastles and taking multiple runs down the water slide.

It was the perfect way to end our summer vacation!

Carson Can Swim!

2010-08-14T16:45:00.000-07:00

Remember this picture from earlier this summer? The one where Carson refused to go to swimming lessons...

Well look at him now!

A Rainy Sunday Afternoon

2010-08-08T10:11:00.000-07:00

What do two little boys do on a rainy Sunday afternoon?

They strip down and run outside to float sticks and leaves down the gutter and jump in as many puddles as they can find!

Of course in true Las Vegas fashion, our fun summer rainstorm lasted about 10 minutes, but the boys made the most of it and had a blast!

*click to view larger

Flooded

2010-07-27T15:46:00.000-07:00

The boys left the hose on all night long and we woke up to find our sandbox completely submerged. Carson thought it was great, like having a second swimming pool. What a muddy mess! There is never a dull moment around our house.

Legoland

2010-07-06T08:24:00.001-07:00

Last week we surprised the boys with a trip to Legoland! We left on Wednesday morning, the boys were so excited, they are totally obsessed with Legos, so this was definitely going to be fun for them. I got them matching Lego shirts to wear, had them pose for a quick picture and then we hopped in the car for the 5 hour drive.

(The photos are in no particular order because blogger makes me c-r-a-z-y!!!)

The main gate...

Riding the duplo train...

Cole and his hero: George Washington...

No more photos...

Mommy and Cole by the wishing well...

Carson and his "delicious ice cream"...

This ride was for 4 yrs old and up so we told a white lie so Carson could ride..

Carson inside a shark...

Carson at driving school...

Inside the fire truck...

Cole posing by the mini Las Vegas...

Waiting for the 4D movie...

Oh no! Cole is being swallowed by a lion...

Now Carson...

***(More photos on facebook)***

Take A Hike

2010-06-28T08:41:00.001-07:00

Saturday I had the opportunity to go on a fun 6 mile hike with the Young Women in our ward. We met bright and early and headed up to Lee Canyon to hike the Bristlecone trail.

Our group right before starting the hike...

Cute beehives in a tree...

That would be me...

Hooray! We made it all the way to the end!

It was a really gorgeous day, the views were incredible and the girls all had great attitudes. What a fun way to spend a Saturday morning.

Seven!

2010-06-11T12:41:00.000-07:00

Today this boy is 7!

Seven?

Already?

It's gone by fast!

He celebrated with a party a couple of weeks ago at Chuck E Cheese and today he opened presents from the family, will have lunch at Buffalo Wild Wings and enjoy a night out on the town without his little brother bugging him.

We are grateful this little man joined our family 7 years ago today!

Field Day

2010-06-04T10:23:00.000-07:00

At Merryhill Field Day is always on the second to last day of school. The kids love it! There are lots of Get Wet types of games/relays and their Spanish teacher walks around spraying everyone down with the hose so no kid escapes dry no matter what! Carson and I went to watch and Carson really wanted to get out there and play with the kids, it was torture for him to stand on the sidelines. Fortunately he was able to participate in the popsicle eating afterwards.

*click on picture to view larger

A Couple Carson Funnies

2010-06-03T10:03:00.000-07:00

Carson calls sneezes "bless you's". The other day he sneezed about 6 times in a row and then looked at me and said, "Mom, can the Dr fix my bless you's"?

Of course my boys are potty-training challenged so Cars is still in diapers and he thinks its funny to tell me when he is peeing on me if I am holding him. Gross! It's time to start getting serious with the training I think!

Bubble Wonder

2010-05-20T16:21:00.000-07:00

Carson and I spent the afternoon playing bubbles in the backyard today. No housework got done and it was worth it. He was in total heaven popping bubbles to his heart's content.

PURE JOY!

I can't think of a better way to spend a warm afternoon day...

From Caterpillars to Butterflies

2010-04-19T13:46:00.000-07:00

Awhile back I purchased a butterfly house at Toys 'R Us and never got around to sending in the little coupon to have the caterpillars sent to us. I finally ordered the larvae and they arrived at the beginning of Spring Break. The boys enjoyed watching the bugs crawl around their jar, growing bigger and bigger. These things literally doubled their body size daily! After about 2 weeks they spun cocoons and so we transferred them from their little jar to the mesh butterfly house. After a week of "sleeping" the first two butterflies emerged. The boys were ecstatic! Over the course of 2 more days the rest of our butterflies "hatched". This past Saturday we decided to release the butterflies in our backyard. Cole got to unzip the house and then we sat back and waited for them to find their way to the door and fly away. The boys had fun running and chasing them all over the backyard. It was fun to watch the whole metamorphosis process and Cole is already bugging me to order more caterpillars. I'm sure I will, I kind of miss the little critters...

Our "baby" caterpillars. Imagine them about 10 times bigger...ick!

The cocoons and our first 2 butterflies...

Cole unzipping the house...

The boys watching and waiting...

Cole got to hold one, Carson was too scared to hold them...

Weekend Getaway

2010-03-30T16:03:00.000-07:00

(My Happy Place)

This past weekend Alan and I took a quick trip down to San Diego. We stayed at the Hotel Del Coronado (one of my favorite places on Earth). I had the best massage of my life, we had an amazing room with an ocean view, took lots of walks on the beach and ate tons of great food including a delish meal at my favorite Thai restaurant. It was lots of fun and the time went by way too fast, I'm already thinking about going back soon!

Thanks Mom and Dad for taking the boys for the weekend.

Science Fair

2010-03-25T15:39:00.000-07:00

Cole's first science fair!

This year as a 1st grader, Cole had the opportunity to enter the science fair. He and Daddy worked really hard to come up with a fun and interesting idea. His project was making and testing several types of invisible inks. Mommy helped him put together his display board. He was excited to take it to school and present it to his class. Today Carson and Mommy went to the school to check out all of the science fair projects. We thought Cole's was one of the BEST!

A 3 Year Old's Interpretation

2010-02-25T16:43:00.000-08:00

Today I went to Deseret Book to pick up a few things and I saw this DVD and thought the boys would enjoy it. After Cole came home from school I put on the disc containing the Book of Mormon stories. Cole sat watching, totally interested and eating it up. The story of Laban came on and Carson perked up when the narrator kept mentioning the Holy Ghost. The next thing I know he is running thru' the family room with a blanket on his head saying "whhhhoooooo I'm a ghost".

Better Late Than Never...

2010-02-23T14:11:00.000-08:00

Here are a few photos from Carson's third birthday party. I took him shopping at the party store and let him choose his party's theme. He chose Batman! He loves Batman and for the two weeks leading up to his party he kept asking if it was his Batman Party day. When the big day finally arrived he was super excited and at times overwhelmed. We had all the local family over for cake and ice cream and a chance to be photographed with a Batman mask.

Birthday Boy!

2010-02-01T17:05:00.001-08:00

Today our little Bubba is 3 years old!

Where has the time gone?

We love you Carson!

Charlie Mountain

2010-01-11T15:34:00.000-08:00

On New Year's Day we took the boys up to Mt. Charleston or Charlie Mountain as Carson called it to play in the snow. We rented a little cabin up at the lodge and spent the night. Carson was so cute, he kept telling me he was so excited. The first day up there was frustrating and crowded, the roads up to the snow play area were closed so we spent the day driving around and getting nowhere. So we just checked in to the cabin and went to dinner at the Lodge. That night the boys snuggled up on the recliner chair and watched Peter Pan (or Peter Man in Carson speak) together. The next morning we got up early and went sledding. We found a campsite where someone had built a snow fort and the boys had fun playing in that and having snow ball fights. When they got tired we loaded up the car and came home.

Cole is fake sleeping:

Charlie Mountain:

Carson in action:

Cole is the king of the world:

On the cabin stairs:

Getting ready to hit the slopes:

The Last of the Christmas Posts (until next year)...

2010-01-08T09:59:00.000-08:00

Every year on Christmas Eve we have a somewhat silly reenactment of the Nativity Story. This year Cole "graduated" up to being a shepherd. He was so happy about this since the last few Christmases he has been the star.

Our two little guys bring so much excitement to Christmas morning. It is so fun to celebrate with them and see the magic of Santa thru' their eyes. This year it was a very Lego Christmas. Both boys got tons of Legos, a basketball hoop and new bikes.

After a busy and exciting day Carson passed out cold on the barstool while eating dinner.

Christmas Eve Jammies

2010-01-07T15:40:00.000-08:00

The traditional Christmas Eve jammies photo in front of the tree.

This year I found cute "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" jammies while we were in Salt Lake for Thanksgiving.

Advent{ure} Calendar

2010-01-04T15:26:00.001-08:00

Hand's down, one of Cole's favorite things this Christmas Season was his Lego Advent Calendar which he called his adventure calendar. On school nights, after homework was done he got to open a new door and find a Lego surprise inside, (I never saw a kid more excited to do homework, I might have to get these to use as bribes throughout the school year). He of course loved weekends when there was no homework to be done and he could tear into the calendar, no strings attached.

I love how he called it his adventure calendar. We thought it was so cute we never corrected him!

'Twas The Day{s} BEFORE Christmas...

2009-12-30T16:19:00.000-08:00

As if the holiday season isn't busy enough, I tried to cram in lots of fun activities to keep the boys busy and entertained and hopefully create a few fond memories along the way.

In the past one of our traditions is to make a gingerbread house together as a family. This year Daddy had a fun idea; instead of a house we made a Christmas Train! Of course this was a hit with the boys since they are both huge train fans. It turned out pretty cute but didn't last too long.

The week before Christmas Cole was home from school. One of the days I took the two little guys down to the Mandalay Bay to see the Shark Reef Exhibit. They were doing free photos with Santa Claus and Santa Jaws the day we were there. The boys loved it!

Also that week I talked my sister into going down to the Bellagio to see the Christmas decorations. One solo trip to the strip was enough for this Mama, I need reinforcements. There was a train display in the conservatory and we couldn't get Carson away from it. After checking out the decorations we decided to ride the tram over to check out the new City Center. Carson loved the tram (train) ride. It was the highlight of his day. There wasn't much to see at City Center but it was still a fun adventure.

Yankee Doodle's Dandy Christmas

2009-12-11T08:36:00.000-08:00

Starring Cole as George Washington!

This week the Kindergartners and First Graders at Merryhill put on a production of "Yankee Doodle's Dandy Christmas". Cole had one of the star roles playing the Father of our Country, George Washington. He was super excited and worked really hard to learn his lines and even convinced me to order him a new costume for his debut (ok, it really didn't take much to convince me). The night of the show he told us he was a little nervous but you could never tell. He walked right up to the mic and delivered all of his lines loud and clear, with expression and poise. He used what he called his "acting voice", which you just have to hear to understand. He's a character!

After the show we went to McDonald's with Grandma, Aunt GG and the cousins to celebrate. He told us he felt proud of himself for doing it even though he was nervous. We were so proud of him too. What a fun night!

Waiting in the hall before showtime:

Onstage:

At McD's:

Ashley, Morgan, Cole and Brett:

Big Boy Bed

2009-12-09T08:47:00.000-08:00

Carson has graduated from his crib...

To a big boy bed...

He is so excited! Every time he goes in his room he just giggles and runs around in circles saying, "my bed, my bed, my bed..."! Our baby is growing up!

Runaway Train

2009-12-07T10:08:00.000-08:00

Methinks the train around the Christmas tree is not such a good idea, would you agree?

This sneaky little thief was caught red handed stealing the entire train...

The Christmas Season Is Here

2009-12-01T17:24:00.000-08:00

...are you ready?
I'm not! Yikes!

"Happy December 1st". We dusted off our holiday countdown house, opened door number 1 and hung the little ornament on the little tree.

The countdown begins...

Thanksgiving Weekend

2009-11-30T17:41:00.000-08:00

As per tradition we travelled to Salt Lake to spend Thanksgiving with the Freer side of the family.

Our trip included dental check-ups with Grandpa:

A little construction work:

Some blacksmithing:

A ride in a rescue helicopter:

A trip to the moon:

And to Mars:

And of course lots of time spent with family, enjoying good food and family time:

We hope you all had a great Holiday too!

Veteran's Day 2009

2009-11-11T07:39:00.001-08:00

My favorite Vet and his "Best Girl".

Thank you Grandpa and everyone else who have fought so valiantly to protect the freedom of this great nation!

Cole's Award

2009-11-09T17:18:00.000-08:00

Last Thursday Cole was presented with the academic achievement award for the month of October. He had no idea he was getting the award and Carson and I surprised him at the awards assembly that morning. He recieved the award for being "An Enthusiastic Learner". I'm so proud of him and he is proud of himself. I hope he always remains excited about school and learning new things.

I love these photos of Carson checking out Cole's medal. Carson has a good big brother to look up to. I also love the photo of Carson choking Cole with the medal. That is just sooooo Carson!

Halloween '09

2009-11-04T12:25:00.000-08:00

Halloween is one of our favorite holidays. This year the boys both chose their own costumes. Carson chose Thomas (and refused to wear the actual Thomas part) and Cole of course chose a pirate (again). I searched a long time online to find an original pirate costume since he has been a pirate the last few years.

(here is a pic of Carson in his costume at Walmart the day he picked it out. I took it with my cell phone so it's not the greatest.)

Our celebrating began earlier in the month with Trick or Treating in Disneyland. Then when we came home it was time for Cole's class party and costume parade. Carson and I came and "helped" out with the party. One of the fun highlights of the party was playing the mummy game. The kids were divided into teams of 3 and they wrapped one of their teammates in toilet paper to resemble a mummy. Carson even got in on the action.

*click to view larger

Halloween night we went to Grandma and Grandpa's for our annual tradition of chili dog soup and trick or treating. My kids adore their older cousins and had a great time. It was fun because this was the first year Carson actually "got it". He was so cute going up to the door and saying "Tricktreat" and "Thank you".

*click to view larger
I have to throw in a shout out to my nephew Brett who had the best costume he was Michael Jackson with angel wings. RIP MJ!

Our Annual October Disney Trip

2009-10-30T13:15:00.000-07:00

We just got back this past week from our annual vacation down to Disneyland. The last few years we have chosen to go in October so that we are able to take the kids to the Mickey Trick or Treat Party at California Adventure. It's fun to dress up and run around the park collecting tons of candy and squeezing in a few rides along the way. This year Cole was a pirate (big surprise eh?) and Carson was Thomas, but he didn't want to wear the actual train part of his costume so I ended up wearing it all night.

Another highlight of the trip for all 3 boys (Daddy included) is going to the Lego store. The boys are obsessed with Legos and Daddy is a spoiler/enabler. A few days after we got back home to Vegas Carson informed Alan that he wanted to go to the "Gego" store again.

Of course it wouldn't be a trip to Disneyland without eating dinner one night at Goofy's Kitchen. This year Carson loved the characters and gave them all big hugs, last year they scared him to death. It's a fun way to get to meet the characters without waiting in line at the parks.

This year Cole was FINALLY tall enough to go on Indiana Jones and Carson made the height requirement for the Matterhorn. I don't think either boy liked their "new" rides too much. Carson loved the Toy Story ride and Cole's favorite is still Big Thunder Mountain.

These photos are in no particular order and have not been touched up because Blogger is annoying me and I have no patience for photoshop today. But if you would like to view any of them larger just go ahead and click on the photo.

I Want To Go To School

2009-10-04T19:59:00.000-07:00

It was bound to happen sooner or later. Carson finally figured out where Cole goes all day long. Recently while I was getting Cole ready for school Carson came down with a backpack on and said, "Mom, I want to got to school". He got in the car (with his backpack) and when we dropped Cole off Carson began to bawl his head off because he didn't get to go to school. He was so sad. The whole way home he said, " I want school, I want Coley". Poor kid! He was stuck with me all day.

A Very Special Guest

2009-09-22T08:47:00.000-07:00

This weekend we had a very special guest stay with us. His name is Mr. B. Bear. He is Cole's classroom bear and this past weekend Cole had the opportunity to bring him home. He was so thrilled! Mr. B. went everywhere with us, even out to dinner at Red Robin. He was very good house guest; quiet, neat, etc... When Monday morning rolled around I had a very sad Cole. He wanted to keep Mr. B. forever but he needed to go back to school and have the chance to visit other student's homes. Luckily Cole has a small class and I am sure we will get the opportunity to have Mr. B. visit again.

Proof!

2009-09-10T06:38:00.000-07:00

I got it!!!

Proof that my kid is a totally train obsessed, nocturnal goofball! Here he is this morning, asleep on the floor in Thomas PJ's, trains all around him and a DVD nearby. I apologize for the grainy photo quality but I didn't want to turn on any lights or disturb him in any way.

*click to view larger

Dino-Mite!

2009-09-09T13:32:00.000-07:00

We wanted to take the boys to do something fun on Labor Day since Cole and Alan both had the day off. Cole decided a trip to The Natural History Museum (aka The Dinosaur Museum) sounded like his and Carson's idea of a good time. Inspired by the book and PBS show Dinosaur Train, Cole decided to wear his train conductor hat. The boys had a good time running around the museum and checking out the exhibits. On the way out Cole spotted the Gift Shop (dang kid can read now, lol) and dragged Carson in with him. They picked out these dino head thingies that open and close their mouths and of course fight eachother. They had a great time! Cole is already planning a return trip to check put the upcoming Ancient Egypt exhibit.

Neither of them would ever look at the camera for a picture! Silly Boys!

Carson's Obsession!

2009-09-09T13:13:00.000-07:00

As most of you already know Carson loves all things trains! His love has turned into an intense obsession! All he talks about, thinks, about and dreams about is trains! He has multiple train tracks set up throughout the house so he can play with trains anywhere, anytime. He loves to watch Thomas and GeoTrax DVD's basically all day and all night. Which is a bad thing because he will come in our room at 2:00 am and toss a Thomas disc at Alan or I and demand to watch it right then. Ugh! This train thing is becoming eXhAuStInG!!! This morning when I went in to wake him, I found him lying on the floor beside his train tracks with a DVD in his hand sound asleep. I tried to sneak a photo but I woke him up. It was seriously hilarious! You will have to settle for a photo of him dressed as a Conductor wearing his Thomas pj's instead. What a nut!

First Day of 1st Grade

2009-08-17T11:25:00.000-07:00

Wow! Summer just flew by and today is the first day of school! I can't believe Cole is a first grader this year. He is growing up so fast! I hope he is having a great time at school. Right now he should be just about finished with lunch time. I hope he likes his teacher, that he's making friends and reconnecting with his pals from last year. I can't wait to pick him up and hear all about the first day!

Waking up was hard to do this morning. He finally got up and had a yummy breakfast of cinnamon toast and bacon (his request).

Then we went outside for pictures.

Soon it was time to put on his backpack and hop in the car.

When we got to school, he threw his stuff down in line and ran off to the playground to find his friends and hardly even glanced back at me. I honored his wishes this year and took NO pictures at school (even though every other Mom on the playground was...)!

We Love To See The Temple

2009-08-04T11:31:00.000-07:00

Last week me and the boys, my sister and her girls took a little trip up to Salt Lake City. We were privileged to get tickets to the Oquirrh Mountain Temple open house (pronounced "oaker"). What a special experience it was to tour the temple and teach our kids about the sacred nature of temples. They really enjoyed seeing it on the inside and asking questions. What a gorgeous building this temple is, I am so grateful for such a wonderful opportunity. The next day was the last day of the open house and then it was being closed to the public, cleaned and prepared to be dedicated to the Lord.

Carson's Artistic Endeavors

2009-07-27T15:19:00.000-07:00

Someone left the markers out and Carson found them. "Nuff said...

Cano, Cano, Cano!

2009-07-24T10:29:00.000-07:00

Earlier this summer Cole picked out a new book all about volcanoes. Well, Carson ended up loving the book and talking about "canos" all the time. We showed them clips of erupting volcanoes on YouTube and Carson would beg to watch them over and over saying, "again cano, again cano". I remembered seeing a volcano kit at Michael's and Alan and I decided to get it for the boys. They were super excited! After having to wait a few days for the plaster to dry, Cole and I painted it and then when Daddy came home from work we went out back and erupted it. Oh my gosh! The boys were so giddy with anticipation, they squealed when it started to bubble up. Good times! We probably erupted the thing about 20 times and it never got old. But then the vinegar ran out and the fun times ended. It was a fun family evening! We played with the volcano a few more times but sadly it just didn't hold up to the pressure and the bottom burst out and we had to toss it in the trash and bid it farewell.

No Love From the Sev

2009-07-12T13:10:00.000-07:00

July 11th or 7-11, the day Cole had been waiting for; FREE SLURPEES! Not the case this year. When we pulled into the parking lot we were greeted by the above sign. But my son, ever the optimist said, "Oh well, there is always next year". Of course Mom shelled out for a Slurpee anyways.

Krispy Kreme Donut Tour

2009-07-02T15:33:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago (yes, I'm that behind again) Our playgroup met for a tour at Krispy Kreme Donuts! Carson was so excited hopping around the store saying" donut, donut, donut" over and over and over. They received balloons and hats from the manager and learned how the donuts were made.

Then they got to dip their donuts in chocolate icing and load them up with sprinkles. This was definitely the best part of the tour, well maybe the second best part...

The VERY best part was getting to eat the yummy donuts!

FUN AND YUM!

Summer playgroups are the BEST!

Father's Day Home Depot Style

2009-06-22T15:21:00.000-07:00

The quarterly primary activity this time around was a morning at the Home Depot so the kids could build their Dad's something special for Father's Day. Cole was counting down the Saturdays until it was finally the day to go. He and I went to the store bright and early. Cole received his builder's apron and chose his project. Are you surprised he picked a pirate ship? Luckily I'm pretty proficient at ship building these days and we got his assembled pretty darn quick. Then he painted it and added the finishing touches. He was really proud of his present and couldn't wait to present it to his Daddy the following day. Alan took it to work where it is displayed on his desk for all to admire.

*Cole and his partially built ship. *Cole and his buddy Brayden

Rockin' His 2-Wheeler

2009-06-20T15:10:00.000-07:00

The day after Cole turned 6 he decided he was ready to ride a 2-wheeler. So he took his training wheels off by himself and that was that. He rode like he had been doing it for years. We took him to the church parking lot to practice in a wide open space with no obstacles and Carson chased him around on his scooter. Afterwards, the boys stole mine and Alan's sodas to "cool" off. Those nuts! Like either of them need the caffeine...

What's Keeping Us Busy So Far This Summer

2009-06-17T13:42:00.000-07:00

So, I thought I would share some of the fun things we have been doing so far this summer in hopes that you will share your brilliant ideas with me...

*I found this idea on a blog to turn your salad spinner into a spin art machine. Simple and fun! You just cut a circle to fit the bottom of the spinner's basket. Squeeze in some paint, replace the lid and spin, spin, spin. We have these lovely beauties hanging all over the place.
*this photo is from blog whose website I didn't bookmark, sorry.

*We love these and they are cheap! $1 at Michael's.

*Cole is such a great reader and I don't want his skills to slide this summer so we are definitely emphasizing reading at our house this summer. We have discovered The Magic Treehouse series. So far we have read one about pirates and one about the Titanic.

*Cole got Martian Matter for his birthday and surprise! I like it too. We have had fun creating little Martians and dissecting them as well.

*These Crayola window markers have already provided the boys with hours of entertainment. I have them color allover the sliding glass doors while I make dinner. It looks messy but washes off fairly easily with windex and paper towels.

*Of course we have been doing lots of swimming and bike riding too!

Birthday-Palooza Wrap-Up

2009-06-16T14:27:00.001-07:00

It seems as if we celebrated Cole's 6th birthday forever this year. It all began with cupcakes on the last day of school. Then he celebrated on the 6th with a friend party at one of his favorite places to go; the Lied's Discovery Children's Museum. That was a blast! All the kids had a really fun time, they got to explore the museum, make slime and eat pizza and cake.

On his real birthday (the 11th) Daddy came home early from work and swam with Cole and then later we took Carson to my folks' house to be babysat so we could take Cole out on his own special birthday date. He chose to go to the Titanic Exhibit (his new obsession is the Titanic) at the Luxor Hotel and to dinner at the Rainforest Cafe. Both activities were a lot of fun, the exhibit was really amazing (but expensive) they have a ton of Titanic artifacts and an actual piece of the ship. Unfortunately they allowed NO photography inside. Anyways, Cole is now officially 6 and I think we are all celebrated out for the time being.

I Must Be Doing Something Right

2009-06-12T11:40:00.000-07:00

...because Cole just came up to me and randomly threw his arms around me and said, "Mom, you are the best Mom two little boys could ever have".

Those are the moments that make it all so worthwhile!

Brotherly Bonding

2009-06-11T04:24:00.000-07:00

This is how I found the boys watching cartoons together the other day. They really are turning into the best of buddies. Of course they can squabble pretty darn good too. I'm glad they love eachother so much and are building lifetime bonds.

Last Day of School

2009-06-10T16:13:00.000-07:00

The last day of Kindergarten has come and gone. This year has been full of ups and downs but mostly ups. Cole has come so far this year, he is so much more independent and confidant and man, can that kid read! Wow! We are so grateful to a wonderful and patient teacher who welcomed a late-comer into her class and made him feel special. We love Mrs. Cohen! On the last day of school Cole took some yummy cupcakes to share for his birthday (June 11th), they signed yearbooks and received their diplomas.

Cole humored me with a picture during yearbook signing:

Cupcake time! Cole was thrilled to be the birthday boy for the day:

Receiving his hard earned diploma and still hanging on the yearbook:

Look out 1st Grade! Here comes Cole!

Arrrgh! Pirate Cupcakes

2009-06-03T12:43:00.000-07:00

Cole's birthday is the week after school gets out for summer so his teacher said he could bring in cupcakes the last day of school. I got a wild hair and decided to make them rather than buy them; my usual m.o.

We found these cute pirate flags and cupcake papers a Michael's which were perfect. I think they turned out quite cute.

Field Day

2009-06-02T16:13:00.001-07:00

... aka the second to last day of school!

Team Cohen!

A bunch of drowned rats:

Some hula-hooping action:

Carson joins the class for post field day festivities:

Memorial Day 2009

2009-05-31T16:07:00.000-07:00

The Kindergarten Picnic

2009-05-29T15:56:00.000-07:00

...not to be confused with Field Day.
Once again I'm playing blog catch-up. The Kindergartners had a special end of the year picnic the Friday before Memorial Day. It was a fun-filled morning complete with games, food and popsicles. Carson and I went and hung out in the park and enjoyed the enthusiasm of the Kinder kids, and of course Carson thinks he is "one of the gang"!

Cole doing the Dino Stomp and Carson playing under the parachute...

(L) Cole and his buddies Sam and Jacob. (R) Cole with his teacher; Mrs. Cohen

Sooo Many Questions

2009-05-28T20:21:00.000-07:00

Seriously, Cole talks ALL day. His mind is constantly thinking of new things and he asks sooooo many questions. I feel bad admitting that it drive me bananas sometimes. But sometimes he comes up with some good ones that really crack me up. Here is one he asked today, I thought it was hilarious and clever...

Cole: Do terrorists talk with their mouths full?

Mom: Ummm, I don't know. Why?

Cole: Well it is bad manners to talk with your mouth full and terrorists are really bad.

Any Turkey Can Tango

2009-05-24T23:45:00.000-07:00

With the school year coming to an end Cole's class has been busy with performances, projects and picnics. The school put on a program that showcased all of the various things they have learned in their "specials" this year. The Kindergarten classes performed the Turkey Tango, a silly little song and dance.

Carson Makes A Splash

2009-05-21T13:07:00.000-07:00

Carson participates in a playgroup on Wednesday mornings while Cole is at school. This week we took the kids to a fun splash park in Summerlin. Carson had the BEST time! He ran and ran and splashed himself silly. We always joke that Carson is part puppy and true to his puppy ways he got down on all fours and slurped up some of the water. I know, NASTY, but hilarious too.

In the car on the drive home he passed out cold, he was totally exhausted.

Mountain's Edge Hoedown

2009-05-15T13:00:00.000-07:00

My parents and sister live in a community called Mountain's Edge and every year they have a big western shindig in the park. We decided to take the boys over to it this year and in true Cole fashion he dressed the part. I love that kid! When we first walked in there were some actors performing a wild west shoot-out type show. When Cole saw this his chin about hit the ground. He couldn't believe there were real live cowboys there. So afterwards he posed with these cowboys by their real life stage coach.

Cole climbed the rock wall and made it all the way to the top! Way to go!

He also panned for gold...

I rode a mechanical bull! What a blast!

My graceful landing...

Carson rode a little tiny Carson-sized horse...

And when it was time to get off he had a full blown 2 year old tantrum. Of course! We wouldn't expect anything less.

It was a fun time, one Cole still talks about. I'm sure we will go back next year, especially since I'm dying to get back up on that bull, lol!

Blog Neglect

2009-05-15T12:59:00.001-07:00

Holy cow! Have I really not blogged since April? My apologies! I promise to get some new posts up and on here asap!

Happy Birthday

2009-04-29T20:01:00.001-07:00

Today would be my Grandpa's 87th birthday. We lost our sweet Grandpa last May after a long, brave fight with cancer and today was the first birthday since his passing. Last year we had a big birthday bash in St. George, he always loved a good party! As I remember and reminisce today, I am filled with love and gratitude for the wonderful man who was a part of my life for 36 years.

I LOVE YOU GRANDPA!

Cole presenting his Great-Grandpa Barney with a painting of a rainbow he made for him in preschool at his 86th birthday party one year ago.

See It See It

2009-04-29T11:48:00.000-07:00

Recently, Carson has discovered that he can see himself on the back of my camera after I take a picture of him. He is fascinated by that. As soon as I click the camera he is running towards it saying, "See it, see it". Needless to say, all of my recent photos of him look about like the ones above, close up, hand grabbing at the camera, a little blurry...

Crazy Mixed-Up Clothes Day

2009-04-26T12:25:00.000-07:00

After a long week of boring testing at Cole's school, the students were rewarded with a crazy dress day on Friday. Cole thought out his outfit all on his own, his favorite part of his ensemble was the one Christmas sock and the one regular sock. What a nut!

A Gold Medal Day

2009-04-14T16:25:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I learned that Cole was earning the citizenship medal for his class at an awards ceremony this morning. It was a surprise to Cole, he had no idea he was getting this. Carson and I dropped Cole off at school this morning and then went to the multi-purpose room to await the assembly. All of the students filed in and Cole saw me and waved still not knowing he was getting an award. His award was the first one that was announced. I could tell he was surprised. He was so cute up on the stage standing there so proud. When he came down he was giving high 5's to all of his classmates.

After school I took a few more pictures...

We are so proud of you Cole!

Easter Dresses

2009-04-13T16:19:00.000-07:00

I have major Easter dress envy! These new matching outfits are almost as good as dresses though. Aren't the boys handsome?

Perfection on a Stick

2009-04-12T09:01:00.001-07:00

It's no secret that I love Peeps. Seriously, I do! I've been known to stock pile them after Easter is well over. Well, I found a way to make them even yummier, mmmmm...

What's not to love?

sugary marshmallows + creamy milk chocolate = PERFECTION!
Have a Happy Easter!

Spring Break

2009-04-10T19:31:00.000-07:00

Spring Break! I admit I was dreading it but it flew by and we were pretty darn busy the entire week. We visited LOTS of parks. The boys had fun playing and exploring "new" parks all over town. A favorite was The Arbors park in Summerlin since it had a train!

Carson is inside too...

Cole scaled a dinosaur "fossil" at the Springs Preserve...

Carson snuck off with my diet coke and found a nice shady spot under the slide at Lone Mountain Park to relax and enjoy "his" drink...

The boys consumed a ton of popsicles during the week...

And they swam, swam, swam with friends and cousins...

Carson is a pro at doing butt bombs onto the splash deck. He is full of silly tricks...

Monday it's "Back to School"! Cole enjoyed his week off and Carson liked having him around to play. Mom survived too and rewarded herself with an afternoon out with her girlfriends on Friday; no kids allowed.

Police Day at Merryhill

2009-03-18T11:05:00.000-07:00

There are some things you just don't want to see as a Mom when you pull up to your child's school such as police tape, officers everywhere and a police helicopter. That was the scene that greeted us today when I was dropping Cole off to school. But don't worry! It was Police Day today and the officers at Metro were out at the school to talk to the kids and teach them about safety. They brought along all their units including the K-9's, the horse mounted officers, helicopter officers, bike, motorcycles and more. Cole was buzzing with excitement as I walked him to class. He kept saying what an exciting day this was going to be. I agree, it looked pretty cool. Carson was very interested in all of the activity going on and wanted to stay but unfortunately only the students get to participate.

It is days like these that I am so happy with our decision to switch Cole to a new school. These are the types of memories he will have forever and looking back Kindergarten will have been a wonderful time in his life.

Happy St. Patty's Day

2009-03-18T10:52:00.000-07:00

That pesky little Leprechaun struck again this year! He turned our apple juice green and delivered a box of Lucky Charms to the boys for breakfast.

At school, Cole's day was filled with lots of of fun green snacks and activities. After school we met some friends at Retro Bakery for green cupcakes. Mmmmm...

Poor Carson is still feeling sick and laid on the couch the whole time, he was totally uninterested in the yummy cupcakes.

Then Morgan came over and helped Cole make a cute little St. Patty's Day craft.

What a fun, busy, GREEN day!

Revenge of the Juicy Cough

2009-03-12T13:18:00.000-07:00

Poor Coley!
He has always been plagued with cough attacks ever since he was a tiny baby. Anytime he catches a cold or has allergies it goes straight to his chest. He named it his "juicy cough". Yesterday as I was loading the kids in the car to run Cole to school I had noticed his juicy cough sounded worse than usual. Trusting my mommy intuition I scheduled him an appointment with the pediatrician. That afternoon we learned his Oxygen levels were on the low side and he had a lot of wheezing in his chest. The Dr. immediately got him doing a breathing treatment in the office and then prescribed a machine for us to take home so that we could continue these treatments every four hours for the next week or so. Cole was really really scared of the machine and the funny mask. But he was really brave and now with four treatments under his belt he is an old pro.
A bad side effect of this med is that it makes him super hyper! Yikes! My sister suggested I strap the mask on and take a hit so I can keep up; if you can't beat 'em join 'em. But don't worry I won't...

Never Too Old

2009-03-10T13:07:00.000-07:00

...to roller skate! Saturday night me and two of my sissies braved the scariness that is Crystal Palace roller rink on Rancho and went skating. WOW! Saturday night is a little sketchy there and we got quite the education. Plus it was crowded, like skating on an L.A. Freeway crowded but it was so fun! We have plans to do it again, just maybe not on a weekend night. Anyone care to join us? It's really fun...

Gretchen, Me and Stephanie

Yep, we all have our own skates!

*The reason I have no photos of all 3 of us together with our skates on is because I was scared to hand my camera over to a stranger. They probably would have skated off with it...

Sam I Am

2009-03-05T10:15:00.000-08:00

I am Sam.
Sam I Am.
Do you like Green Eggs and Ham?

This week at Cole's school they have been celebrating Reading Week and also Dr Suess's birthday (which was on the 2nd). Today is Green Eggs and Ham Day. The Kindergarten classes are having a big Green Eggs and Ham breakfast this morning. All the students were encouraged to dress as their favorite storybook character. Cole chose Sam I Am from the Green Eggs and Ham book which has been a favorite of his for years and one of the first books he could read all on his own. I think he looks pretty Sam I Am-ish. I can't wait to pick him up this afternoon and hear all about it.

C'mon Ride The Train

2009-02-24T06:43:00.000-08:00

All aboard! A couple of mornings ago Carson started dragging chairs around the family room and lining them up. I kept scolding him and telling him to put the chairs away to which his reply was "No, choo-choo train". That's when I realized he was building a train by lining up the chairs. Then he got his big brother and dragged him over to his train, both boys climbed aboard and Carson said, "All aboard! Choo-choo"! The boys had fun playing on their chair train until it was time to get ready for school.

FLASHBACK MOMENT:
Later that morning after I dropped Cole at school I remembered him being not much older than Carson and doing the same thing. I found the old pictures of Cole playing trains, what a cute little guy he was. When did he grow up so fast?

Cole, March 2006

Bitten! (Not a Twilight Post)

2009-02-23T11:08:00.000-08:00

My poor little Carson got bitten today while in the childcare at the gym. Some bigger child chonked into Carson's cute little face and got very, very close to his left eye. The thing that angered me the most is that they couldn't find the other kid's mother anywhere. They checked all over the facility even the showers and bathrooms and she was nowhere to be found, hopefully she wasn't across the road shopping at Target and abusing her gym childcare privileges.

Carson is a champ; he never even cried!

Random Recent Pictures of the Boys

2009-02-17T13:42:00.001-08:00

Carson eating a cupcake at a recent birthday party:

Cole in his Abe Lincoln hat and beard (I'm not sure why George Washington's picture is on the hat):

Carson eating spaghetti at Grandma & Grandpa's house:

Cole at a swimming birthday party earlier this month:

Do You Blog?

2009-02-15T13:20:00.000-08:00

The other day someone asked me if I blogged and I was quick to answer with a "yes". But then I realized I have been really negligent in posting to my blog and that maybe I should update this page so I wouldn't be considered a liar.

So what's been going on? Well, I had a birthday on the 9th. My 29th again... We did lots of celebrating over the course of the weekend. On the Saturday before, the boys gave me an early present...A BIKE! I've been wanting one for a while and now I am wishing for nice weather so I can take it out for a spin. Also that night Alan and I went to dinner and a movie and then he surprised me with a night at a hotel. He had arranged for Gretchen's fam to stay with my kids so we could stay out all night. Fun! The next night (Sunday) we partied at my parent's house. My Mom outdid herself with the cooking and we stuffed ourselves sick. It was so fun!

The day after my birthday my awesome girlfriends took me to lunch at In 'N Out (Mmmmm) and then we went for cupcakes at the retro bakery afterwards. It was the bakery's first birthday and they were giving out free cupcakes and we even made it on the evening news, lol.

Thanks everyone for making my birthday special!

Carson Turns 2!

2009-02-02T12:55:00.000-08:00

Wow, time flies! I can't believe my little baby is a two year old kid, complete with all of the terrible two tantrums too.

Some fun things about Carson are:

He loves Little Einstein's and calls it Pat-pat.
For awhile all food was called pizza even if it was a cookie.
He loves Cole and does everything that Cole does.
He hates the sun in his eyes and screams every morning when I drive Cole to school because the sun hits him right in the face.
He has no fear, he will jump from pretty much any surface no matter how high.
He likes to snuggle teddy bears.
He is discovering his independance.
He is a Daddy's boy.
He is a sweet boy with a huge smile and we all adore him!

We had a Mickey Mouse birthday party for him at Grandma and Grandpa's house (which ran concurrent with the Super Bowl). At first he was not so sure about the presents and the candles on the cake. But then he started figuring everything out and had a great time!

He loved his cupcake and ice cream cone!

He got a little quad from the family and he was so excited.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CARSON BABY! WE LOVE YOU!

Hanging Out With Clifford

2009-01-30T13:24:00.000-08:00

Last week Cole had short days on Thursday and Friday so I promised him we would do something fun after school on Friday. We have an annual pass to the discovery museum and so that's where we headed. There was a new Clifford exhibit that we hadn't seen yet and it sounded like a fun way to spend the afternoon.

Here is Cole, Clifford and Emily Elizabeth:

Carson, Clifford and Emily Elizabeth:

The boys liked the doggy dress-ups. Cole is Clifford and Carson is T-Bone. They put on a show for me on this cute little stage:

Carson loved putting the giant Clifford sized doggy bones on the conveyor belt which Cole was turning so that the bones would fall into Clifford's big doggy dish:

When I asked Cole if they were having fun, this is the face I got. What do ya think? Looks like a fun time to me:

Hooray for the 100th Day!

2009-01-29T12:46:00.000-08:00

Cole was super excited to celebrate the 100th day of school. He has a really fun teacher who goes all out and makes everyday a special day. They started talking about this day quite awhile ago and all of the kids had to come up with a collection of 100 things. Cole thought long and hard about his collection and with a few ideas from Mom he/we decided to "hatch" 100 little spongy vehicles. So we went to Michael's and bought enough packs of those silly little capsule things you drop in water and they turn into whatever the package indicates. In this case they grew into trains, planes, cars, etc. Cole and Carson gathered around the tub and had so much fun throwing in the little capsules and waiting for them to "hatch". It took a lot longer than I thought it would but it was a fun activity for both boys and good counting practice for Cole.

At school his class had a big party and the parents could come. Carson and I went despite my better judgement that it was naptime and Carson could possibly have a meltdown because Cole really wanted us there. He showed us around his room and the kids ate 100 day cake and played some games. As it was time for the kids to settle down and show the Moms and Dads what they were learning Carson decided to get crazy and so it was time for us to leave.

Cole said it was the best school day ever! Everyday I am grateful that we made the decision to switch schools. It has been such a huge relief to see him love school again and be a happy fun-loving Kindergartner.

What We've Been Up To

2009-01-20T11:03:00.000-08:00

Well, since January is close to over I decided I better get caught up on this blog and let you know what we've been up to.

We had a fun New Year's Eve this year. My family decided to go out to eat early to beat the crowds and we thought it would be fun and different to try Japanese table cooking. So we went to Sushi Fever and had a fun fiery dinner. Our chef was just hilarious (in fact Cole told him "you're hilarious" at least 50 times) and he was really into lighting fires. Carson was not to keen on the fires but the other kids loved it.

We headed back to our house to play games and eat junk. We had a few incidents (the random exploding light bulb) but had fun.

Towards the end of the holiday break we took the kids to Mt. Charleston to play in the snow, (or Mountain Charleston as Cole refers to it). Dumb me didn't think to take sleds or anything fun to play with so we owe the kids another trip. We had fun eating lunch in the rustic old lodge which Cole informs us was built by cowboys a very long time ago.

Hooray, school started up again after a long and fun break. Cole was excited to go back. It took us a while to get back into our routine. The pictures below depict Carson's crazy bed head he always has when we pick up Cole in the afternoon and Cole modeling a Swedish fish mustache he made from his after school snack.

Playgroups have also resumed again. Carson really enjoys them. Last week's group met in the church gym and everyone brought their kids' bikes, scooters, 3 wheelers etc. Carson loved riding the other kids' 3 wheeler so I think I better find him one for his birthday.

Today we are home relaxing. Cole has been running a fever and not feeling so good since Sunday night and Carson is napping so I decided to finally upload pictures.

And that is our 2009 thus far!

My January Blogging Slump

2009-01-14T19:44:00.000-08:00

Wow, I can not believe I haven't updated our blog once since the beginning of the year. I guess I'm in that post Christmas/January slump. I promise to get back in the swing of things soon and get this crazy blog current!

Since I can't leave a post totally pictureless here is a link to something I find incredibly funny. Anyone want to book a trip? Just kidding!

The Spiderman Potion Kit

2008-12-30T18:31:00.000-08:00

Ok, I just have to share the photos of Cole's Spiderman bath he took Christmas morning. This silly little bubble bath kit came with beakers of bath beads and goggles kind of like a science set. He was in the tub mixing up potions until he had raisin fingers and toes.

Isn't this picture hilarious!?

Our Christmas 2008

2008-12-30T14:53:00.000-08:00

Christmas with two little boys is so much fun! This year Cole was really excited and into every aspect of the holiday and Carson fed off Cole's energy so he was super excited too, although I'm not sure he entirely understood. He did say "ho ho ho" every time he saw a Santa Claus though.

This year at Cole's school they had a little Santa shop where the kids could bring money to school and shop for gifts for their family members. Cole had lots of fun picking out presents for me, Alan, Carson and a couple of his cousins. He was very thoughtful in his choices and got things people would like. He was most excited about his gift to me and had me open it a few days before Christmas. His entire face lit up when I opened this lovely blue "diamond" ring and I told him how much I loved it. Now he is always checking out my finger to make sure I'm wearing this special jewel. I love that kid!

Christmas Eve the boys dressed in their matching jammies and we took a few pictures by the tree before heading to my parent's house for our traditional dinner and nativity program.

Cole and I baked some cookies to leave out for Santa's visit later that evening.

Santa came!!! And he loved the yummy cookies!

The boys slept until about 7 am Christmas morning and when they awoke they found a lot of cool gifts (some that they asked for and some that were surprises).

Funny, one of Cole's most favorite things was this Spiderman bubble bath set, he literally stripped down and ran for the tub shortly after opening presents. What a nut!

I think Carson liked Cole's Star Wars stuff more than Cole. He calls it "star" or "star toy".

Carson got lots of "pat-pat" stuff (which is Rocket from Little Einstein's; Carson's favorite).

And he LOVES his new rocking horse from Grandma. At first he was scared of it but now he is quite a little daredevil.

Cole got some great new Star Wars jammies from yellow Grandma which he put on after his Spiderman bath. He has pretty much lived in pj's this entire school break.

The day after Christmas it pretty much looked like a tornado blew thru' our house depositing the entire inventory of Toys 'r Us. And can you believe Cole had the nerve to say he had nothing to play with? Wow! Kids!!!

It was such an awesome Christmas. We were really blessed this year. Thank you everyone for all of the lovely gifts. I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday as well.

Merry Christmas

2008-12-24T08:16:00.001-08:00

Wishing all of our family and friends a very

Merry Christmas!

Snow Much Fun

2008-12-17T13:03:00.000-08:00

The boys had a ball playing in the snow Monday afternoon.

Cole kept telling me over and over it was the best day ever. On the way home from school he made plans to dress in his Pirates of the Caribbean hat and scarf and to make a snow angel and build a snowman. At first Carson was too mad at me for making him wear a hat to go out and enjoy himself but he got over it and discovered how fun the snow was to play in.

Cole in his cold weather POC gear.

An unhappy (but adorable) Carson in his snow hat, which stayed on maybe 5 minutes.

Cole's 1st snow angel!

A brothers shot.

A much happier Carson in his hooded compromise.

After the snow the boys had hot chocolate and brownies.

Well Carson had chocolate milk and brownies.

When Daddy got home it was time to build Mr. Snowman.

And this is my new FAVORITE photo!

I Looked Out The Window & What Did I See?

2008-12-15T11:15:00.000-08:00

SNOW!!!!!

Remember this is Vegas, so we tend to get a bit excited by the white stuff!!!

Christmas Down Under

2008-12-15T08:34:00.000-08:00

Cole had his school Christmas program last week and it was a little play called "Christmas Down Under". It was about holiday traditions in Australia and so they were supposed to look like "Aussies" which the music teacher interpreted to be khaki pants and white shirts. The kids were cute, they had practiced very hard to learn all of their songs. I was proud of Cole for learning his songs so quickly since he had only been in school there for such a short time. Cole definitely had the biggest entourage of any of the kids. Grandma and Grandpa came, as did Aunt Gretchen and his cousins Brett, Morgan and Ashley. Unfortunately the show was a tad long and got pretty darn boring, but it was worth the torture to see Cole look so handsome and sing his heart out.

A side note: The kid to the left of Cole was so naughty through out the show, he even got his candle taken away. Plus the music teacher had sent about 4 different notes home telling the kids to wear khaki. I guess he didn't get the memo. Apparently (according to Cole) he is the class trouble-maker.

All Aboard The Polar Express

2008-12-10T12:54:00.001-08:00

Last Friday our family and four other families headed to Williams, Az to take a ride on the Polar Express. This trip had been planned for a little over a year and the anticipation was almost too much for one little boy I know (Cole). When Cole was about Carson's age he was obsessed with the movie version of Polar Express. It was his "repeat movie", you know the one that a kid has to watch over and over and over. Carson too has recently discovered choo-choo's and so he was pretty excited to see a really big train up close and personal.

Two cute brothers enjoying cookies and hot chocolate.

Our little family just before the train pulled out of the station.

Cole was enchanted! Isn't that just the pure look of wonder on his face?

Alan looked "elfy" with Carson's crocs on his ears. I couldn't resist taking his pic with the train's resident elf.

Santa boarded the train at the "North Pole" and gave all of the children a special bell.

Cole and The Conductor

Carson found a train set to play with at the depot.

What a fun trip! We can't wait to do it again! The only bad part was that poor Cole sobbed his heart out for an hour when it was time to go. He had such a great time he was sad to go. He said he liked it as much as Disneyland which is saying a LOT!

Clone Trooper Invasion

2008-12-03T14:13:00.001-08:00

A Star Wars Clone Trooper has somehow infiltrated our home.

He's short, but tough and armed with a clone blaster.

Who could this masked fighter be?

I think he is going to unmask and reveal his true identity...

Could this Clone Trooper really be our cute Carson?

SURPRISE!

It is Carson.

He is 100% pure boy and we love him!

The Turkey Hat

2008-12-02T14:04:00.000-08:00

Dear Cole,

I love that at 5 years old you are not embarrassed to wear a silly turkey hat on your head all day long. In fact, you were quite proud of this hat, describing to me in detail why certain areas were colored with certain colors. You were so excited to be able to participate in the Thanksgiving feast at your school this year. Last year you missed it because we were travelling but this year they did it on Tuesday and so we were still in town. I love your enthusiasm for the holidays and the spirit of excitement you add to these special occasions. You are a great kid!
Love, Mommy