the best dad

Who in their right mind would spend time building forts like this...

And making things like this...




When they are working 60+ hours a week and studying for the Utah bar? I'll tell you who. This man. He is the best dad. Even though he is busy and we wish we saw more of him, I am in awe of how committed he is to all three of us when he is home. We are so lucky to have him in our lives.
Oh...and you should have seen Thatcher's face when he discovered his "see-bee-prise" (that's how he says "surprise). I think it is safe to say that he was ecstatic.

"Thatcher so handsome, I so handsome"

This morning Thatcher was naked and on the couch with me when he stood up, looked into the mirror hanging above the love seat and said, "Thatcher so handsome, I so handsome." He makes me laugh so hard every day. Here are a few of the things that have made me smile in the last few days. He always talks about how "Dad's funny" and about his "funny baby", he loves Christmas song and after listening to any song that mentions Christmas, snow, Jesus, or Santa, he will say, "That's a good song", or remind me that, "Jingle bells my favorite song." He loves to make me laugh and after making me laugh with the handsome comment this morning he started jumping around saying "naked, naked, naked". The last few days have been filled with a lot of wishing "Happy Thanksgiving" to everyone he saw which I thought was so cute.

Thatcher also loves to narrate all day long. He tells me what baby james is doing..if he is sad, asleep, happy, laughing, etc. He tells me what he is doing. If he is in the bath, if he is happy, if he is eating and what he is eating. I love it. I love knowing what is on his mind.

Thatcher has been working with baby James on his talking. When they are in the car together he will say, "Baby James say gagaga" and lots of times James will say it. Thatcher will go through other sounds like "mamama" and "bababa" and I don't know where he got that. Maybe he has heard James make those noises and so he is just repeating what James says, but each time it happens it really sounds like Thatcher is telling James what to do and James does it.

Thatcher has had a few funny wardrobe moments this last week. It all started a few days ago when he tried to put on mom's yello underwear and said that he was, "Superman." I didn't know (still don't know) that he knows who Superman is, but he sure got it right that Superman wears yellow underwear. Thatcher wasn't super successful with that attempt and just ended up getting the underwear around his waist.


A day or two later Thatcher disappeared downstairs for a while and returned with my high heels. He put them on with his new Santa hat and only a diaper and said, "Ho, ho, ho".

Then today, Thatcher successfully put on a pair of his own underwear over his diaper. By 'successfully' I mean put each leg into a separate leg hole. The underwear were on backwards and it was a funny sight with his diaper underneath, but I was proud of the attempt.

Earlier this week we had a play date with Simon and Thatcher had a blast. He really didn't want to leave when it was all over. I love seeing Thatcher get along with someone so well. They play so great together and have a blast. Thatcher's favorite part was playing air hockey with Simon. He did great understanding the concept and got super excited every time he scored.


I just love my boy. Today I was exhausted and just trying to have a moment of calm while James was taking his morning nap. Thatcher was beyond hyper and climbing all over me so I told him to run around the room and I would count. He took off full speed and helped me count to ten before he explained that he was a race car and that he crashed, then fell on the floor. He has such an imagination. I loved that when he got tired he decided he needed to "crash like The King".

Update on James: He has started to play peek-a-boo in his crib when we put him down for bed. It is the cutest thing and I think he knows it works in getting me and Ty to stay in the room a little longer because we love it so much. James started sitting front facing in a big car seat this week. I can't believe my baby is old enough and big enough to do that. It is fun to be able to see his face while driving and I think he is enjoying the better view as well.

Black Friday vs. Disneyland

So this morning, at approximately 3:47am when I thought I was going to burst into tears because I had checked the time and been sorely disappointed that only 2 minutes had passed instead of the 7 I had thought, I started to wonder if this Black Friday thing could possible be worth it. I felt like I was in the longest line at Disneyland, except it wasn't Disneyland... I was in line to get into Target. It was 12 degrees outside and I did not dress for the occasion and it felt like the entire Navajo Nation had joined me in this adventure. But at 3:47 I had already been waiting in the freezing cold for 10 minutes and I was too stubborn to go home when I only needed to endure 13 more minutes of freezing temperatures. What I didn't know was that once I got inside I would spend a painful hour getting pushed and shoved, rammed in the back of the heels by oblivious shoppers, and then waiting in a checkout line that weaved throughout the entire store. Not so much like Disneyland, huh? Oh well. It was my choice. It is crazy what a few good deals on toys will provoke a mom to do. I am not saying it was worth it, but my boys definitely deserve an awesome Christmas and I think that is what they are going to get (that and a cranky mom today because I am beyond tired)!

Happy Thanksgiving

We had a very memorable Thanksgiving in Phoenix yesterday. The kids had so much fun with Elizabeth, Cooper, and Crew and I loved getting to see Thatcher run around outside and in the grass since Flagstaff is in winter mode and freezing right now. The food was great and it is always good to be with family. My assignment was rolls, banana cream pie, and place cards and I took it upon myself to make little feather headdresses for the kiddos. The turkeys were a hit with the kids and they looked so cute sporting their feathers. Thatcher left his on the longest and thought he was pretty cool. While we were eating our dinner I looked over and Thatcher was eating (voraciously as always) while the ribbon had fallen over his eyes like he didn't even notice he couldn't see. I love that he is such a good sport. It was a great Thanksgiving and definitely worth the drive (where we sang Christmas songs the whole way).






Poor James. He is just so cute that everyone wants a turn holding him. I love that in both of these pictures he kind of has the same expression as my uncle Kyle.

What are they thinking?

I love the age Thatcher is right now because it is so funny to hear what he is thinking about every second of every day (he never stops talking). His talking ability proved very helpful yesterday when I found myself in a very funny and slightly embarrassing situation. We have been going to "gymnastics" every week for a while now. For two hours, Thatcher gets to run around and do anything he wants a a great little gymnastics gym in town. He loves it, he talks about it all the time, and he has gotten a lot more daring in the last month which has been fun for me too. So yesterday we went and I was kind of distracted because a bunch of my friends were there and there were also a ton of kid (it was the first freezing day of the year so I think parents wanted some way to get out of the house). I would break from talking to my friends once every five minutes or so just to make sure Thatcher was alive and didn't need me. One of these times I couldn't find him but didn't worry too much about it...until I found him. He was standing in the front corner (where you check in, not where any of the kids actually play) and had taken off his pants and his diaper. He was standing completely naked (except for his shirt) and just smiling at me as I came to him. I was laughing because I was in shock as to how to handle the situation. Thatcher told met hat he just wanted to go on the big potty and that is why he took his pants and his diaper off. It was funny and I was definitely shocked, but it is so nice that Thatcher was able to at least explain himself instead of leaving me baffled. He is such a funny kid. I hope this is a sign that potty training is in our near future

Christmas is in the air

So I never thought I would be "one of those people" who decorates insanely early for Christmas, but it has happened and I have no regrets. We are heading for Utah on December 15th and Thatcher has already been getting excited about Santa and Christmas trees so we figured, why not. Thanksgiving hasn't even come and this is how excited Thatcher already is:
-Thatcher loves his Christmas stories (we read a number of them each day)
- he loves Santa and Rudolph songs and often demands that we spend time singing them each day
- he loves the nativity and baby Jesus. He plays with the Shepherd's crook from mom's Nativity every day and the other day when I asked him to take care of baby James while I was in the restroom I came out to find half of the pieces of my nativity on James's banana smeared hi-chair tray. Thatcher was so proud he had come up with a way to keep James happy.
- he loves dressing up like a reindeer with a red nose and an antler headband we have
- loves his "Mr. Tito head" who dresses up like santa and even puts Mr. Tito's beard on himself and says "ho, ho, ho"
- he loves his "jingle bells"
- he insists that his special Christmas tree is next to him when he sleeps and he gets excited if we let him sleep with a Christmas candle in his room
- the night we decorated we let him wear Christmas pajamas, and put a Christmas sheet and pillowcase on his bed and he was beyond hyper he was so excited
- he likes to wear the Christmas stockings and takes them down from the mantle and puts them on
- he loves his little snowglobe and is talks about snow and snowmen a lot
- when we ask him what he wants for Christmas he (without fail or encouragement) says "Buzz movie" which is perfect because my mom already got him Toy Story 3...he is going to go crazy for it. I am thinking it will have to be the last present he opens because he will want to watch it right then and that would put a damper on opening presents.

I should probably mention that I am excited too...really excited. Thatcher has already made this Christmas my best one yet and it is not even December. I can't wait for al the fun things coming up! It is going to be a crazy month!

two extremes

The last few weeks we have been able to enjoy some super nice weather and some seriously cold weather. A few weeks ago we spent a Saturday in Phoenix where Thatcher swam in the pool (which was way too cold for me), then we went to Cafe Rio with some friends and shopped at the outlets. Thatcher's highlight of the trip was discovering a kid-sized toilet in the family restaurant. He was so excited, he didn't want to leave his "Thatcher potty". A few days later I took the boys down to Phoenix again to hang out for the day with family and to see my cousin, Whitney's new house. Claire, Cooper, and Kristi came over too and we had a fun day talking, planning Thanksgiving, and hearing the kids laugh at each other.
I couldn't get Crew to turn around, but at least the other three toe-heads are smiling.

Then, in contrast, we spent last weekend at our cabin where it was FREEZING. The first night I thought I would die, but Ty's fire-building skills rapidly improved and we ended up sticking it our for two more nights. The days were sunny and we ended up having a lot of fun. We went fishing a few times (with no success), raked a lot of leaves, jumped in a lot of leaf piles, ate a lot of "P is for popcorn", went on a few walks while Thatcher went on 'hikes' (Thatcher wanted hike which meant him wandering the road or trail so he could be roughing it more), drank way too much hot chocolate, and did lots of snuggling (out of necessity to keep warm). Ty is insane and jumped in the water one day too. It was a fun cozy weekend and Thatcher loves the cabin. Because it was so cold the boys lived in their sweatshirts. I loved seeing James's chubby round face peering through his sweatshirt hood every day.




This is Thatcher's "cave". He loves going on bear hunts and we spent the weekend going on bear hunts in the leaves. Every time I buried him he told me he was in his "cave". I love seeing his imagination come to life.

Thatcher and Simon jumping off the coffee table. This ended badly for Thatcher, poor kid.

Ty's impressive wood pile and our little helper.


My boys.

A big tree fell on our cabin a few weeks ago and caused quite a bit of damage (thus the blue tarp on the roof). I didn't take any good pictures of it close up, but here is one that shows the entire length of the tree. The tree continued up and over the roof, but this picture was taken after that had all been cut up and removed.

thatcher, my singing story telling boy

Thatcher has started to really love songs and singing lately. He is excited about all the Christmas songs and about a couple weeks ago he started singing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" out of nowhere. I didn't even know he knew it. He helps me sing "I am a Child of God" to James when James is going down for a nap and he learned to sing "Happy Birthday" yesterday for Nanna's birthday. He caught on really quick and did a good job singing it to her. The other day while driving home from Phoenix we sang songs for most of the drive home and he did such a great job. He knows "If you're happy and you know it" and "The itsy bitsy spider" and lots of others. He is so smart and I feel like all of this has just happened overnight.

Thatcher also loves stories. Some of his favorites are what he calls "The Alligator Song" where the alligator snaps the monkeys out of the tree. He is also addicted to going on a "Bear Hunt" even though he sometimes gets scared when the bear starts to chase us. Other stories that Thatcher loves are "Go Dog Go", "How do Dinosaurs Get Well Soon?", "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom", anything pop up, "5 Little Monkeys" and others that I can't remember right now. He has such a love of books and is so good at paying attention whenever a book is being read to him whether it is at home or at storytime in the library or music class.

Thatcher has a new friend named Simon and they have had a lot of fun together. They have very similar temperaments and play well together. They like the same things and like to laugh, give each other hugs, and act like the crazy little boys they are. Thatcher will randomly start talking about Simon's dinosaur pajamas or hte duck bib he wore once when he was over for dinner. I love that he remembers little things like that and I love seeing Thatcher make friends.

Thatcher loves to help me in the kitchen and brings his little chair over every time I start cooking. This morning I caught a naked Thatcher using his chair to sneak a brownie.

Potty training...I really need to buckle down and learn what to do to help him in the right way, but it is frustrating. My approach has been if he wants to sit on the potty or be naked or wear big boy underwear...let him. I am learning that the freedom I am giving him is probably not a good thing. Just this morning a naked Thatcher in Lightning McQueen tennis shoes pooped on the floor in the bathroom then stepped in it as he was coming out saying, "big poop". By the time I realized what was going on he had already crossed the carpet and made quite a mess. Then this afternoon, he came down naked from his nap (thank goodness he took it off after his nap unlike a previous time where he peed all over my bed)...then, after begging for big boy underwear after his nap, he peed all over the floor. Obviously something isn't working.

Thatcher takes such good care of his brother, he is so obedient (90% of the time), he is funny, and he is so loving. He is the greatest and I love my boy.

james, my snuggler

James snuggles with anyone and anything, but this week he has amazed me even more with his snuggling abilities. This morning he rested his head on my head and kept it there while his drool made its way down to my eye. He loves to stand next to the couch or the toddler bed and lay his head on it, and crawling over to me or Ty while we are laying down and nuzzling into our shoulder is one of his favorite past times. Two separate times this week James woke up kind of early and Ty had already gone to work, so I brought him in bed with me. Both times we laid together on the bed, with the lights on, for at least a half hour. While we laid there together, James was completely still while I tickled his face and his head. It was so funny and at the same time got me kind of emotional it was so sweet. He is the most beautiful baby and looking at his angelic face, wide awake, staring up at the ceiling while he is being tickled is the happiest thing for me.

A few other things about my baby James right now:
- He is really starting to cruise. The other day he was pushing Thatcher's little chair all over the kitchen tile. He cruises all over the couches and loves to walk when me or Ty are holding him up a little. He stands up in the tub and pretty much anywhere he can. It is so cute and makes me think he will be walking sooner than Thatcher did. It is a good thing too, because whenever he does start to walk...we are going to Disneyland.

- His second tooth is officially in. I love my little toothy boy.

- A week or so ago James got his first goose egg. It was a pretty good bump the first night and then turned into dark bruise for a few days. The funny thing about it is that I have no idea how it happened, and I was right there. James was playing around by a pile of laundry on the carpet. There was nothing close by that was hard in any way but when he started crying I knew he was hurt by the way it sounded. I ran over to him and picked him up and sure enough he had a goose egg. It is a mystery.


- James is good at making car noises and I don't know where he has gotten it from. He has either picked it up from Thatcher or just likes the noise but it is great. He drives cars around all day and is great at playing by himself (unless he wants to be held of course).

- He loves his brother. He and Thatcher laugh at each other all throughout the day. They are so cute together and you can tell that James really watches everything that Thatcher does. I love those two together and can't wait for them to love each other even more throughout the years.

activity days

I have been in activity days for over two years now. Sometimes it is exhausting...coming up with ideas, wondering if the things we are doing are helping the girls in any way, worrying about the quiet ones, getting slightly annoyed with the obnoxious few, etc., but I really do love it. This week we had a big recognition night that took a lot of time to prepare. It was short and sweet and everyone and their families came to help recognize the girls and eat super-loaded sundaes. The theme was 'The Articles of Faith' and we had ice cream flavors and toppings galore...it was supposed to add up to 13 but I think we ended up with more. Here are the pics:

friends

I have been thinking a lot lately about my friends. I have been so blessed. I have recently made a new friend and one of the first times we hung out, as our boys were getting acquainted, she said, "It's good to see that it's uncomfortable for kids too" or something like that. I loved that she admitted that it really is hard to become friends with people. It takes a lot of time and service and a definite connection for a real friendship to blossom. I feel like after more than two years I have begun to have friends here in Flagstaff. These friendships are still developing, but it makes me sad when I think of moving to Utah or to Phoenix, to think that I would have to start all over again when I have come so far.

Here are some or the things that have gotten me thinking about how blessed I am to have the friends I do:
- Going to a music time with my boys where I was the only mom who knew the "beaver song" and when they asked me if I had sung it when I was younger, I said, "no, I learned it in college from my friend, Maggie"
- A few weeks ago, Samantha's husband and I made the connection that he served his mission with Emily Mitarai. I love having friends like Emily who I am proud to call friend.
- Maggie finding out that her baby had a heart defect and that the baby would probably need open heart surgery right after birth. Even though baby Maisy is a lot healthier than hoped, crying with Maggie brought back so many memories and made me remember all that we have been through together.
- Going out to dinner with the Paynes a few weeks ago and remembering that there really are kindred spirits out there who are placed in your life at specific times because of a loving Heavenly Father.
- When Ty and I had to find a costume for a Halloween party I pulled out all my mission stuff and so many memories of Astyn Shaw (and other great companions) came flooding back and the huge blessing she was to my mission.
- Thinking about how Bekah and Maggie and Nicole just had babies and how Heidi and Em will have theirs soon...it is crazy!

These are just a few things that have happened in the last few weeks and don't begin to describe the memories I have and the significance my friends have had in my life. I am grateful for the new friends I am making and I am grateful for so many of my friends who have been there for so long (some of them are going on 15 years) and been through so much with me (the good and the bad).

reading rampage

I have been reading a lot lately. At least a lot for me. Last year I read more fiction and more for pleasure than I had in a very long time...I am thinking since elementary school age. And this year I have read a lot more. I love it. I am addicted. I probably shouldn't do it quite so much because I know other things suffer. But I also think it has been good for me. It gets me thinking outside of my little moment in time. Outside of my little townhome with my two little boys. So, since January, here is the tally in order of most favorite to just ok...I guess I am not that picky because I enjoyed all of them:

-The Guernsey Literary and Potatoe Peel Pie Society
-The Help
-The Book Theif
-These is my words
-A Town Like Alice
-Mockingjay
-The Actor and the Housewife
-Silent on the Moor
-The Traveler's Gift
-The Uglies
-The Pretties
-The Specials

Books I Mostly Read:
-Babywise
-Master Your Metabolism
-Parenting with Love and Logic

Books I have started:
-John Adams
-Fire in the Bones
-Sarah's Quilt

I feel like I am missing one or two, but maybe not. My goal this year was to read one book a month. I have picked it up a lot in the last couple months so we will see what December brings.

meet Buzz..and other Halloween memories

Thanksgiving is a week away, but I don't want to let introducing Buzz pass me by. So...I now present the cutest Buzz Lightyear to grace this galaxy (which is saying a lot since EVERYONE seemed to be Buzz this year). Thank you Nana for making Thatcher thoroughly convinced he was the coolest thing ever. The Buzz costume arrived in the mail one day and didn't come off Thatcher until four days later (I would wash it at night when he was asleep). Buzz made appearances at the library, the grocery store, and every where else we went in those few days.

The week before Halloween we visited Bearizona and we got to see a bunch of animals. It was fun to do something different and Thatcher sure loves bears. He even kissed one wearing a witch hat!

The week of Halloween a friend gave us some home-made black licorice caramels that Ty and Thatcher obviously loved. Here are the two goofballs (and a cute spectator in baby James).



The night before Halloween we had our ward Trunk or Treat. Thatcher got pretty good at saying "trick or treat" and "thank you" but what he was most interested in was the bounce house. He outlasted most of the kids who went in there and held his own when a bunch of big kids were in there with him. Maybe it was the Buzz costume that made him invincible. Whatever it was, it was hilarious.

After the trunk-or-treat, we joined a bunch of friends for a couples' Halloween party. Ty and I went as super nerdy tourists and we had a blast seeing what everyone came as, eating great Halloween-themed food, and playing games. The men were all playing pool so the girls took a big group picture.

Then on Halloween, which was a Sunday, we had some friends over for pumpkin soup baked in a pumpkin. We had no trick-or-treaters which was nice and had a nice relaxing dinner. It was a good Halloween!