Best Purchase Ever

It's been more exciting than Christmas morning here today!
I ordered Josh a Cloud-b ladybug a while back and it finally got here. I knew he was going to like it, but I had no idea he'd love it so much! From the second I got it out of the box and showed him what it did, he's been bouncing off the walls with excitement and hasn't put it down. We've spent half the day in the closet or the bathroom because those are the spaces without windows.

This is a conversation we had this afternoon.
Josh: that mailman is SOOOOO nice!
Me: Oh yeah, how come?
Josh: Cuz he gave me this present.
Me: Um.... Yup.....

He thinks that the mailman is pretty much the greatest person in the world.
I've tried to explain to him out how the mail works before, but he's still not really getting it.
Every time I order anything and it shows up on the doorstep (which is a lot lately...I've decided ordering online is WAY easier than going to the store), Josh get's so excited and yells, "the mailman brought me a present!" He's in love...

And I think I'm tired of the mailman getting all the credit :)

I also think the mailman is going to have a hard time topping today's present.

This picture was taken right before bed, after a whole day of playing with it, and his face shows just how excited he still is about it.

Coloring Rocks

While we were down visiting family last time, I was baby sitting my nieces and they asked if we could color rocks. It's something that I introduced to them a long time ago, and they think it's fun, so it's become something we do a lot when we visit. This last time we were down, I let Josh try it for the first time and he loved it! We hadn't done it since our visit home, but the other day when I asked Josh if he wanted to paint, he said he wanted to paint rocks. It took me a minute to understand what he was saying, because you don't actually paint the rocks, you put the rocks in the oven for about 10 minutes and then color on them with crayons and the crayons melt. Once I figured out what he was talking about we went outside and he picked out a couple rocks to "paint." He had so much fun that now he asks me every day if we can paint rocks :)

Going on a Safari

We've had lots of sick stay-in-your-pj's-and-don't-leave-the-house days this week, so in order to not get too bored, I had to come up with some new activities. I didn't take pictures of any of the other things we did, but I did take pictures of our safari. We made binoculars and went hunting for wild animals.
Josh was SO cute! He was 100% in character the entire time. I'm pretty sure he thought it was real. The binoculars never left his eyes.

I really love the age Josh is right now. He's so much fun! I love that I can come up with things like this and he actually gets it now. His imagination is huge! It's awesome to see him develop and grow.

State Fair

It was another fun year at the state fair!

Lots of animals to pet, tractor to climb on, and awesome food to eat.

What's not to love?

Labor Day

On Labor Day we decided to take Josh to play at Blast Off again. Beau wasn't with us the first time we went, so I wanted to go again on a day when he could come too. Josh has so much fun there and it's really fun to watch him! He was a lot less timid this time, he just took off on his own and had the time of his life.

A Fun Saturday Morning

Our favorite thing to do on Saturday mornings is to go to the Farmer's Market. I love the Farmer's Market for a couple different reasons, but mostly because of the food (obviously), and the type of people it attracts. I love hanging out with the hippies :)
This year it's especially nice to have the Farmer's Market since we don't have a garden, it's awesome to be able to go buy fresh produce.
We've made it sort of a tradition that after we do our shopping we walk around down town looking through the little antique shops and end up at Great Harvest for some bread and then go across the street to the toy store.

Saturday mornings are the SO nice!

A couple weekends ago we also decided to go to the library while we were down town. That's where these pictures were taken. I'm really excited that Josh loves the library so much. It will be nice to be able to go there a lot this winter.

Benson at 6 months!

HOLY COW! I cannot believe Benson is already 6 months old! Time's going way too fast.

This little guy is SO much fun!
I get comments almost every time I leave the house about what a happy baby I have because he is always laughing and smiling, no matter what! He just loves life.

At 6 months Benson:

• Weighs 19 lbs 8 oz - 85%
• Is 27" tall - 68%
• His head is 18.5 cm - 99%
  
• Sits pretty well by himself, but I always put the boppy behind him just in case
• Sleeps from 8 pm - 6 am, then eats and goes back to sleep until 8 or 8:30
• Takes 3 naps, one and 10, 2, and a short one at 5:30
• Eats baby food like a champ, but still loves hit oatmeal the best
• Still taking AR meds morning and night. I've tried to ween him a couple times, but as soon as he misses one day he starts having trouble eating and spits up tons. On the medication he has no problems.
  
• Wears 12 month clothes.
• Is in size 3 diapers.
• Rolls over the second I put him on his stomach. I'm pretty sure he's never going to crawl, and I'm totally ok with that. I don't want him to, mostly because church is a nightmare when that starts and it goes down hill from there until 18 months.
  
• Loves his dad! All Beau has to do is walk into the room and Benson starts going nuts, squealing and flailing his arms around for him.
• Loves to blow raspberries.
• Smiles constantly.
• Wakes up SO happy in the mornings. I love going up to get him because he's so happy to see me.
  
• Nurses every 3-3 1/2 hours.
• Is content to sit on the floor with the simplest toy for a long time.
  
• Doesn't like the jumperoo for very long. I think it's too much exercise for the chunker.
• Absolutely loves to read books!
  
• Doesn't like Bananas.
• Lays his head on my shoulder when he's tired! I always wanted Josh to do that, but he never would.
  
• Doesn't take a binki at all. I finally gave up trying to force it on him.
• Is very curious about everything I'm doing.
• Doesn't fall asleep very often outside is crib. It's always a sad day when that happens.
• Thinks Josh is just so funny.

We are so grateful for Benson and can't imagine our lives without him. He is such a good little guy and melts our hearts daily with his sweet smiles and hugs.

Sept. 15

It's been a rough few days around here! We have all had the stomach flu for going on 4 days now and it just doesn't seem to be getting any better for Beau and I. Josh is finally over it, but just when Beau and I think we are, it hits us again. And on top of that, I came down with a cold 2 days ago. I probably shouldn't even be writing right now, I'm on so much medication I can't even see straight, but if I don't now I'll get too far behind.
Beau's had a good first week of school, other than being sick. He likes his classes a lot and has one particular professor that he really likes, his names Bro. Earl. Of course his favorite class is a business class, Beau loves what he is learning in college and is able to apply it to his businesses.
I've been in survival mode all week. Just trying to get over this darn sickness and take care of kids. I've had 2 nights this week with less than 3 hours of sleep because I was throwing up all night one night and then next I just couldn't breath. It's totally drained me. I haven't done much other than the necessities, and I haven't done a very good job at that. Today I needed to run to Sams to get stocked back up on fruits and veggies and after I put a hat on to cover my greasy hair I went to get Josh in the car and realized he was still in pajamas. It was 5:30. Then we came home and had the saddest dinner ever because it was all I felt like I could hold down, and Beau felt the same way so it was pointless to make anything. I guess as long as he doesn't care, I shouldn't. I do feel like we are starting to get better though. So hopefully in a couple days we'll be back to normal.
Josh has been so good this week, thank heavens! The end of last week when he wasn't feeling very well, he was having a rough time minding. I didn't realize he was sick for a couple days and was worried about him, then when he stopped eating I figured it out. Now that he's feeling better he's back to his sweet little self. Man, he makes me laugh all day long! He's so funny! I'm going to write a whole post on the funny things he's been doing and saying lately.
I think Bens has had a bit of a stomach bug too, just not as bad as the rest of us. He hasn't really been himself the last couple days....but today was better than yesterday.
A friend of mine just had a baby 2 days ago and she was born with a heart problem so she had to be flown to Primary Childrens. I haven't been able to stop thinking about them. Just hearing about it brought back so many memories of the day we got the news and had to go to Primaries. The first 2 days were so hard because of the fear of the unknown. I have so many good memories from those two weeks, and over all when I think back on the experience I just remember feeling so at peace and loved...other than the first 2 days. All I remember about those days is being so scared and worried, and stressed about what to do with Josh, and where we were going to stay, and for how long. And that is what my friend and her husband are going through. I feel so bad, and wish there was something I could do. It's been two days now and the baby had a persidure done today that went really well. From the sounds of it, they'll be going home soon. I'm so happy for them and hope everything goes smoothly.
This weekend should be nice. It's supposed to rain, and I love the rain. I think Fall is coming soon! Fall is my favorite season, I love it, but hate that winter follows. We'll be spending as much time as we can outside the next few weeks. We need to soak in as much sun and warmth as we can!

September 11, 2011

I'm feeling the need to update...for family history purposes.
I've been thinking a lot this week about how I can make this blog more of a journal and not just pictures of whatever the boys are doing at the moment. Although I LOVE that and don't plan on ever changing it, I just think it needs more. I don't like writing information about myself and my feelings or thoughts; however, I think some day I'll look back and be sad that I didn't document more details about our current situation. Because I'm uncomfortable about putting everything out there for the whole world to read, I've considered going private, but honestly, a huge motivator for me to blog all the time is because it's the only way our extended families get to see our kids as they are growing up, and I know if I go private a lot of those relatives wont be able to see it anymore. I love that my dad bookmarked my blog on my grandpa Hulet's computer so all he has to know how to do is open a browser and click one button. And I love that my grandma and grandpa Anderson can check it too. My grandma tells me all the time how much she loves reading this blog, and sometimes when I really don't feel like posting, I think of her and how she's probably waiting for a new post, and it motivates me to do it. There are others too, that I know would miss it if they didn't know how to sign in to look...
My point is, I'm really going to try to put more details of our life into this blog because I want it to be in our family history forever. Even if that means I sit down and just write about something I've been thinking about that day, or a big change in our lives, or something that I've gained a testimony of, or even something that I'm struggling with right then, because that's what a journal is for. Some day hopefully me or my posterity will be able to look back and maybe learn something or at least get a good laugh.

Starting today!

Sept. 11, 2011
Beau starts school again tomorrow. I have mixed feelings. It's been so nice being able to spend time with him the last month and a half, but the sooner he starts again, the sooner he finishes. The count down is on! As of right now our plans are to move back to S. Utah when he graduates next July, but we will have to wait and see what happens. Recently whenever I think about moving back it makes me so sad to think about leaving here! I never thought I'd say that, but it's true, I think Idaho Falls has grown on me. It feels like home. It's almost all Beau and I have known as a married couple, and it's all our kids know. We love our house, our neighborhood, our ward, and have really made some good friends who will be hard to leave behind. I think for the first couple years we were here, we lived with the mentality that living here was temporary and we were just doing our time, and I think that really kept us from ever settling down and establishing ourselves here. We didn't care to get involved or go out and make friends, because we were leaving soon. However, in the last year that's really changed. I'm not sure why or how, but we are established. This is our home. It breaks my heart to think about leaving...so for right now (and for as long as I can get away with), I'm just not going to think about it :)
Beau's really excited to start school. He's a total nerd and has spent the last couple weeks reading his texts books at night. Seriously, from cover to cover! He makes me laugh. I'm glad he's so excited about what he's learning though.
He's still as busy as ever with work. He gave Netmark his notice last week and has agreed to stay on and train his replacement over the next 60 days. After that, he'll be doing a little internet marketing and running he and his dad's trucking company. So here we go, starting another new adventure. I have a feeling our lives are going to be full of new adventures. But that's ok, change is good.
As for me, I'm just busy being a mom. I feel like I've gotten the hang of having two kids. I had myself pretty psyched out that it was going to be the hardest thing ever, but it hasn't been near as hard as I thought. It took some adjusting, but that didn't take long to get use to and now I feel like having two kids isn't all that different than one. I've started decorating the house a little bit. Last week I made drapes for my room and finished the nursery, and then on Saturday I bought a dresser to refinish and turn into an entertainment center. It's going to be a lot of work, but I'm excited to have a project. My next project is going to be turning the basement into a play place for winter. We're going to move the tramp back inside and probably come up with some sort of indoor sandbox. I've also thought about making a ball pit and setting up a class room down there too. I'm really going to be more proactive this winter to keep us from going too crazy. Other than the occasional project and everyday mom and wife jobs I don't have time for much else. If I do have free time it's at night after the boys are in bed, and I usually like to get on the internet to check blogs and pinterest for more project ideas and new recipes to try. My life is pretty exciting, I know. but I love it! I love being a mom to these two boys. It's the most important and satisfying job there is.

The Beards

Check out these grizzly men!
Man I wish I could have been there when Kathy saw Gary for the first time today!

Trickster

Benson is getting super tricky these days!

Here's Josh at the same age.
They are definitely brothers.

The Ice Cream Truck

Beau heard an ice cream truck outside and decided to take Josh out to get a treat. They chased the truck down and got him a push up.
Boy was he excited!
It was so cute.

Huge!

We laid the boys down next to each other to compare their size, and just about died laughing! Other than Josh being a foot taller, they are almost exactly the same size.
Benson is huge!

I think that he might be able to beat him up too!
Check it out

Or maybe he'll just eat him.

Another Trip to the Zoo

Going to the zoo is one of our favorite things to do during the summer. We have a membership and live 2 blocks away so we go quite often and love it. If we move away next summer, it will be one of the things we miss the most.

First Foods

Benson boo had his first taste of real food! And surprise surprise, he love it, even though it was green beans. He didn't know what to think for the first couple of bites, but quickly warmed up to the idea. Now he's a BIG fan!

I also gave him a biter biscut one night while Beau was out of town so I could get dinner made...he was very serious about the whole thing :)