Dallin's 3 year old Picture

Dallin's picture turned out great this year! Isn't he handsome!? Our little guy has really grown up. We had this done at JCPenny and I have the Smile By Wire code for anyone who wants to see the entire session (drop me an email for the code). Also let me know if you would like one of these pictures and what size.

Trunk or Treat

We went to our ward's trunk or treat last Saturday night. It was a lot of fun and the kids REALLY enjoyed it. Will, Tammy, and Maddie came with us and that made it really fun. They were dressed as an M&M family...too cute. They always make everything more fun. I am loving having them close by while it lasts. Plus they helped me not go crazy with my two mobile kiddos and the kids ADORE them.
It was WAY fun to debut our costumes and see everyone else's too. Dallin is still at the age where he thinks that character costumes ARE the REAL character. lol So he enjoyed seeing Buzz Lightyear and James the Engine, but especially MICKEY MOUSE! Oh yes, there was a sweet gal there dressed as Mickey Mouse and she was kind enough to play along and wave at my starstruck children as they followed her around the gym. She even gave Dallin a hug. Dallin made sure that Mickey got plenty of cheese on his/her chili too (because mice like cheese you know lol) It was very sweet.
They had a potluck chili dinner and little games for the kids. I was really surprised at how into the games my kids were (especially Dallin). I thought for sure he would be bored with it and want to "trick or treat", but he was totally excited to see all his friends and play the games. He caught on VERY quickly that you got candy when you played the game and REALLY thought that was great. They had a duck pond, beanbag tosses, stick the wart on the witch and a candy walk. They could have walked in circles for hours I think--just because they MIGHT get picked for candy. lol Dallin kept skipping. Kate thought it was a game of duck duck goose and kept walking along saying "duck duck duck duck" the whole time. It was so cute.
It was a good trial run for Halloween night too. I definitely WILL put glowbands on the kids even though we plan on trick or treating early. It is hard to see them in the dark. Also, we WILL trick or treat early to try to avoid the crowds. Dallin did pretty well at staying with me, but didn't quite get the concept of going from car to car in a row. He would run to whatever car looked interesting (and some were quite decked out with lights and decorations...even a live snake in one that Dallin got to "pet"/squeeze...poor snake). I was very proud of him for saying "trick or treat" and "thank you" at each car with little prompting. He had a hard time remembering to OPEN his bag though. LOL I will definitely bring a stroller for Kate on Halloween as well. She had enough walking after the second car and I had to carry her to the rest (there were at least 35). She would stare like a deer in the headlights and occasionally say "teat" (trick or treat) and "dah" (thanks) She was a lot more uncertain of the whole thing, but VERY pleased that people kept putting candy in her bag.
We had a great time, got lots of candy, and can't wait to do it again next year! VIVA TRUNK OR TREAT!

Halloween Costumes Debut!!

Just a quick post to show off this year's Halloween costumes! We made our grand debut this evening at the ward Trunk or Treat party, but I took a few pictures of the kids before we left--lookin all cute and unrumpled.
Dallin is a lion this year. Isn't his costume AMAZING!? We actually bought it off ebay 2 years ago and it fits him just perfect this year.


















Kate was the pick of the pumpkin patch this year in her little costume. What a cutie pie (pumpkin pie that is lol)! It was hard to get her to hold still for a picture though.





Here I am as WonderMom! I wore my apron (with timer, pen, first aid kit, sanitizer, and wipes) and Dallin's cape. I stuck on a nametag on the front and back that said "Hi! I'm WonderMom" and then I put a whole bunch of nametags with mom jobs on them all over the apron (teacher, doctor, mediator, chef, chauffer, nutritionist, hair stylist, personal shopper, etc.) It was a pretty fly costume even if I do say so myself. I have to add that I was super proud of their trick or treat bags that I made for them this year. Aren't they sweet? Dallin love scarecrows and pumpkins and Kate adores all things Elmo so it worked out great. I just used 2 yellow gift bags ($1 for 2 at the dollar store) and the Elmo Halloween coloring book and a few stick on jewels I had laying around and TA-DA!

Introducing "Kate's Hair" Blog

I am starting a new blog at www.kateshair.blogspot.com to put all my pictures of Kate's cutie patootie hair dos (and VERY general how tos on how I did them). I have to say that I am totally getting into styling her hair and I really enjoy being creative and making her look even cuter than she already is (if that is even possible). My hairdos are not original(and they are certainly not perfect)-I get my ideas from other hair blogs (some of which are listed on my site), but I like to try them on my KatieBug and see how they do in lil girl hair. Hope y'all enjoy my "art" work and seeing how my little girl is growing and blossoming.

"I'm Freakin' Out!" - and other fun phrases

Dallin

• I think Dallin gets funnier and funnier every single day. I can barely keep up with all his creative thoughts and funny word usage. Other people seem to be amazed that he has such a good vocabulary and he is barely 3. It doesn't really seem that spectacular to me, but I guess I haven't really met that many 3 year olds who use the word "disrespectful" correctly on a consistent basis. LOL What a kick in the pants :)
  
• "I have brown hair mom" "No sweetheart, it's red" "No mom, it's BROWN! just like you!" "Nope, I don't think you'll be able to convince anyone it is brown" "I WANT it brown!" Poor kiddo, already wishing to drown in a sea of normalcy. I adore your red hair Dallin! I hope it never changes. I guess it must be awkward to have strangers touching your hair and pointing out the color everywhere you go.
• The kids have started telling on each other (which for now is mostly funny and makes my job a little easier most days) Today Dallin came tearing up the stairs to tell us this little tidbit.

Dallin: Kate touched the tv and turned off Mickey Mouse. Kate is in trouble. Kate is in BIG BIG BIG trouble. Kate not supposed to touch the tv. Kate is in BIG trouble (Kate comes up the stairs) There she is(points down the hall at his sister)!
Mom: Kate Alivia
Dallin: HA!
Christopher and I erupted in laughter over this one. Kate did get told not to touch the tv, but Dallin's moment of vindication was just too funny.

• "I am getting bigger everyday! I can go to work now? I go to work and Daddy stay home with Mommy" Are we raising this kid right or what!? Every day he asks at least once if he is old enough to go to work. He came up with the fact that he could work so Daddy could stay home! I was surprised, but thought it was sweet of him to be so concerned (too bad it won't last until he is ACTUALLY old enough to go to work...by then he will understand money, wants, and things!...ahh the sweetness of fleeting innocence"
  
• "Let's go to Nana's. She'll help us. Nana will save the day" Dallin has all the faith in the world in Nana and Papa to make things all better. Fortunately for him, he is usually right (it helps that his major crises are not earth-shattering issues) When I was trying to find my way to the sprinkler park for playgroup and just couldn't do it after an hour, Dallin said this when we passed nana's house on our way home. We stopped in and Nana hopped in the car and took us straight there. Hip Hip Hooray! Nana saved the day!
  
• "Grandpa lives far far away. Grandpa, you live far far away. You and Luke are far far away. Grandma is far away. The truck is far away" Dallin really misses Grandpa and Grandma K (and their truck...he LOVES that blue truck) and the Higginson family. He will often inform me (and anyone else) that they are "far far away". He will ask to call Grandpa or Grandma just to spend the whole 2 minutes telling them that they are far far away (bet that really lifts their spirits....sigh) Occasionally, Dallin will ask to go back to the brown house, but it is getting less and less and he is enjoying it here.
  
• "You figure it out mom! Good job!" Apparently, the lost for an hour sprinkler park incident really stuck with Dallin because the next time we were on our way to playgroup, he kept praising me for figuring out how to get there without getting us lost. LOL He is not like me direction wise (thank goodness) and he can already recognize how to get places and will often tell you if you made a wrong turn (and he's RIGHT!) It makes for a bit of a backseat driver for me since I am directionally challenged and get lost a lot. LOL He points out every time I have to backtrack. Sigh....maybe when he is older, I can just ask him how to get there instead of beating my head against a wall trying to figure it out myself.
• "Don't touch my hair. My mom combed it" We have really been working on personal hygiene and all of the sudden Dallin is very protective over his combed hair. He wants it to stay nice and makes no bones over telling ANYONE who thinks to touch his combed hair that I combed it that morning. LOL Funny little man.
• "I was freakin' out!" This is one of the funniest things that Dallin says. I don't think Christopher and I say this but he started using it one day when he was telling a story about a giant in his room. "There was a giant in my room, and I was FREAKIN' OUT!" LOL Since then he uses it periodically especially when he is pretending or when you startle him.
• This was Dallin's big announcement at the breakfast table the other day when he was talking about how much bigger/older he was getting.
  

Dallin: Today I am getting married.
Dad: Really? Who's the lucky girl.
Dallin: It's Kate.
Dad: Oh ok. Well she is a nice girl. What do you think about it Kate?
Kate: Yep.

• "Drive safely!" Since Christopher works nights, the kids make a big deal of seeing him off in the evenings and welcoming him home in the mornings. I must say this a lot because Dallin will wave and say "bye dad, drive safely! I love you!" as Kate stands by the window and waves/blows kisses and says "Bye!" LOL It is so sweet. Every morning the kids run out in whatever they are wearing (or not wearing...hmmm) and jump into Christopher's arms screaming "Dad! Dad! Dad's home" (even Kate)
• "It's just a dog dad" At dinner one night, Christopher heard the washer filling and asked "what's that?" right as a dog barked. Dallin didn't miss a beat! He looked so smug.
  
• (after putting on his sister's tiara) "Look Mom, I'm a princess! I need you to take me to the ball" Oh yes, every mother waits for the day when her son will utter these words. I'm so proud. LOL
  
• "Don't worry mom. It's just a little pee" Should that make a difference? I mean really...when you pee your pants and get it on the carpet, does it Matter if you just let out a little pee or released the flood gates? Apparently though, this is supposed to make me fine with the fact that he just wet his pants....again. He can use the bathroom, but we are really struggling with him consistently initiating when he needs to go. I won't let him sit on the nice kitchen chairs (with the cushions) if he has had an accident that day and I am starting to set the timer and make him go every hour and pee. I hope he has it down before high school.
• (as we were brushing teeth/doing hair one morning)

Mom: It is important to brush our teeth and comb our hair. We want to look nice so we can feel proud and confident about the way we look. It also keeps us healthy. (yes, I actually talk like this to the kids when we are doing mundane tasks like brushing our teeth)Heavenly Father gave us our bodies. They are a very special gift and we need to take care of them. (see how I casually slip in a gospel lesson...mom points!)
Dallin: (pauses for a moment, then looks horrified) Jesus take my body away if I no take care of it!!! Jesus take it away! (umm...ok gospel lesson backfired when confused with parenting lesson of not take care of things = mom takes them away)
Mom: (trying HARD not to laugh) No, Dallin. Jesus loves us very much and so does Heavenly Father. Heavenly Father would not take our bodies away if we don't take care of them. If we don't take care of our bodies, we can get sick and it makes Heavenly Father sad when we don't take care of our bodies since he gave them to us. ( at least his misunderstandings take some critical thinking skills)
Dallin: Oh. Ok.

• "It's somewhere" This is now the standard answer that I get whenever I ask Dallin where something is. "It's somewhere"--completely serious, non sarcastic, innocent and hopeful kind of way...thank you Dallin for all your "help"
• Dallin is discovering family relationships and how different people are related to each other and himself. It took weeks to convince him that Aunt Tammy could be Mommy to Madison and still be his Aunt Tammy. We were talking about sending a box to Aunt Carrie and this is what he came up with.
  

Dallin: I have Aunt Carrie?
Mom: Yes, Dallin. Aunt Carrie lives in California
Dallin: I want to go see Aunt Carrie.
Mom: California is really far away Dallin so we won't be able to go visit for a long time.
Dallin: Aunt Tammy turned into Aunt Carrie?
Mom: No, Dallin. Aunt Carrie is Daddy's sister. Aunt Tammy is different than Aunt Carrie.
Dallin: I want to go visit Aunt Carrie in California.
Mom: We can't right now Dallin. It is really far away.
Dallin: Just take a right and a left and go to Aunt Carrie's.
LOL If only it were that easy. I love his logic.

Kate Alivia

• Kate is TALKING!!! New words are appearing so many times every day I can't even keep up with them all. Here is a list (well what I can remember of individual words she says drink, hi-eeee(hi), bye-eeee(bye), no, don't, mine, sorry, my turn, some more, wash hands, up, bahn(banana), yummy, bapple (apple), boo, pee pee, see ya, pease (please), dah (thanks), ball, there!, Dallin, mom, da (dad), aunt tammy, madison, book, yep, yay, train

• "Juice" Kate is an addict. She learned this word and now brings her cup to me all the time "juice, juice juice!" If it was up to her, that would be a staple of her diet. Fortunately (for us) we don't have juice in the house often at all.
  
• "Bum bum bum bum" Kate thinks it is really funny if I sing "bum bum bum bum...bum bum bum bum bum" (I think it is from dragnet or something) while I change her diaper and she will sporadically start singing it and giggle when I join in.
• "Go Dog Go" Kate LOVES the book Go Dog Go. I think it is because she can say most of the words and she ADORES dogs. She practically chases them down the street yelling "dog dog! woof" It is funny when she gets her Go Dog Go book and starts "reading it" "Dog! Go Dog! GO GO!"
  
• Kate is still a dancin fool, and will spontaneously burst into dance with or without music if she is especially happy. At times she will even provide her own music by singing. She really loves it if I sing "She's a maniac, maniac on the floor, and she's dancin like she's never danced before". She will shake her little head and giggle and dance super fast.
  
• "eye" Kate will say eye and poke her own eyeball. LOL Sometimes if you ask her where her eye is, she will point to her ear or nose first and then giggle and point to her eye.
• "I built it" Yes, ladies and gentlemen we are entering the world of simple sentences. It is still surprising to me when our little pixie comes up and all of this spills out of her mouth. She had put two legos together and kept taking them apart and putting them together to show me what she built. Wow! Maybe we have a future engineer!
  
• " all done" and "more" We haven't really done signing with Kate like we did with Dallin--she is pretty able to get her point across anyways..lol However, she does sign all done and more to get what she wants. She will say the words too which is helpful. It is funny when she chases you around the house "mo mo mo mo" putting her fingertips together.
• "cheese" Kate will say cheese for the camera, but also she LOVES to eat it (much to Dallin's chagrin) She gets really excited on the cheese aisle at the grocery store "Cheese! Cheese!" and she will ask for it constantly at dinner. We pretty much know we can get her to eat some of anything if it has cheese on it. I think she would live on it if we let her.
• "Melmo" Kate is obsessed with all things Elmo (melmo) She will even ask to watch it by going to the tv and saying it over and over and over while pointing at the screen until you put the DVD in. Then she will quickly grab her blankie, sit down, and spread it over her lap expectantly. She also loves her Melmo dolls.
• Kate pooped in the potty!! Twice! It is a big deal. It was mostly luck on my part since it is not hard to tell when she is trying to go. She is soooo excited and proud of herself when she does it. Plus it helps that Dallin is there to make a big deal of it too.
  
• Kate can walk downstairs and upstairs by herself UPRIGHT! She uses the wall or the handrail for balance, but she is doing it--what a big girl! We have been holding her hand so she could do it for some time (even Dallin has helped hold her hand on the stairs) but she has recently started to do it on her own. She is so stubby it takes her a long time to climb up and down them. Dallin gets tickled everytime she does it "Mom! Mom! Look at Kate! She is doing it all by herself! I'm so proud of you Kate!"
• "my teeth" Kate will ask to have her teeth brushed. She will go in the bathroom and try to climb up on the counter where the toothbrushes are saying "my teeth my teeth"
• "boots" Kate has a pair of girly rain boots that she want to wear all the time. She will go get them out of her drawer and follow me around with them "Boots, mommy, boots!" and when you ask her if she wants them on, she will nod so vigorously you wonder how she is still standing. They are cute boots, but sometimes she looks awfully funny in her dress or shorts with big ol rain boots up to her knees.
  
• Kate weighs 22 pounds now (I know, such a lightweight) and is really growing up. We sure love her.

My big kids- growing up fast!

Happy Birthday, Dallin!

We Made It! Dallin is 3!!

We celebrated Dallin's 3rd birthday on October 1 at the park near my parents' home. You have never seen a little boy so excited. It was pure magic for him. He had his party at the park with a Mickey Mouse cake (just like has been telling me for the past 6 months). We didn't know how many kids to expect so we made a bunch of cupcakes as well. I even tried to be creative and arrange the cupcakes so they looked like Mickey (kind of...use your imagination). Having a social outlet has really become important. I was so happy that Dallin had so many friends come. It was his first birthday party inviting kids outside of family and we are new in the area so I was really excited when about 15 kiddos showed up.
The playgroup kids, many of the kids from nursery, and Phillip (of course) were able to come. Every time someone came up the sidewalk, Dallin would yell "There are my friends!" and run towards them "Hi friends! Hi friends!" My entire family was also able to attend. This is the first birthday of Dallin's that they have all been able to be there. Nana, Papa (who postponed a business trip to be there), Uncle Willie (who scheduled his interviews around it), Aunt Tammy, Maddie, and Uncle Michael (who left school early to be there on time). Dallin was thrilled! He adores his extended family. He always asks if each person is going to be there. Is Papa coming? Is Uncle coming? Is Maddie coming?" and so on and so on. It was really sweet watching the cousins play together on the teeter totter.
The kids all played hard on the playground. Then they ate pizza and it was time for cake. Dallin was very excited. It was all we could do to keep the wind from blowing out the candles before they made it to Dallin. Christopher held the cake, Uncle Willie shielded the candles, and finally they had to call Dallin over to blow them out. Dallin then plucked the candles out of the cake, licked them, and carefully placed them in his cupcake. During this whole process, he kept singing "happy birthday to me. happy birthday to me." It was just precious. Kate enjoyed the cupcakes too....or the cupcake enjoyed Kate (we're not sure which).
Finally, it was time for presents. Dallin had so many wonderful gifts this year from family and friends. It was really fun to see his face light up and hear his little gasp after each gift. He got trucks, a garage with cars, a superhero cape, a helicopter, finger paints, playdoh, hungry hungry hippos, sesame street books, mickey mouse shirt, car race track, mickey cd, dinosaur head/feet that make sound, geotraks, geotrax train, my first leappad and books, crayolas, coloring book, and so much more!!! He was WAY spoledAfter a few gifts, Dallin wanted to quit and play and it got a bit long so in the future, I think that I will only have him open friend gifts at the party. I am learning about kid parties as I go so by the time my kids are grown, I will be a pro. It was funny because as he opened gifts, all the boys took off to go and play on the playground and all the little girls gathered around to see what he got. They gasped, they "oohed" and "aahed", they giggled, and jumped up and down as he opened presents. They even picked up the trash. LOL They were his little groupies. At one point, he he opened some Mickey mouse underwear and I remember thinking that he will be so embarrassed someday soon to get underwear for his bday, but ESPECIALLY in front of girls (who will probably have cooties and not be invited anyways) but this year....it was a WAY COOL gift and the girls were adorable. The kids played some more till they were exhausted.

We gave out goody bags and balloons at the end, (yes, Kate lost her balloon at the park....at the next one at the house...Dallin cried and cried because Kate lost her balloon...he still had his and she was fine..he was pretty broken up about it though)
Dallin was WAY excited to take everything home and tear into it after bathtime. At one point, he was a guitar playing super hero dinosaur.

It was really magical for him this year and he still talks about it.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DALLIN! We LOVE You!

Making Memories...........and cupcakes

Before I post Dallin's birthday pictures, I wanted to post these. The day before Dallin's party, I baked 40 cupcakes. My mom, Will, Tammy, and Maddie came over during nap time to help get ready for the party. Kate woke up early/never actually went to sleep and came down in time to "help" out. Nana immediately invited her up to help ice cupcakes. Kate was thrilled! It was really adorable to watch the two of them decorate cupcakes.


Nana would have Kate put out one finger and squirt a dob of frosting on it. Kate's eyes twinkled and she kept smiling and squealing with delight.









Kate kept leaning so far over the table that she was actually balancing on her belly with her little feet in the air. Nana would laugh and give her some more.


After all of the cupcakes were done, Nana let her have the spoon (more giggles erupted) and even put some sprinkles out for her to have.

While I was watching, I wanted to just freeze this moment forever. The way they were looking at each other, eyes sparkling, smiles on their face, and laughing together....it was a moment that you could see the bonding happening.




For me, it was like a dream come true. I always wanted that for my kids and it is happening right before my eyes. It was so beautiful. We ended the day with 40 iced and decorated cupcakes (which I am sure will be forgotten) and a beautiful memory for mother, daughter, and granddaughter.......which we will hold forever.