Snow day

We got snow yesterday. I bought Tanner a snow suit and boots so we tried them out. He loves the snow until his hands get too cold.





















Wish I had Dallin's flexibility.









You can see Dallin's teeth in this one.

Me and the boys

I love my boys. They make life interesting and so full of joy.










Poor Dallin. I love how it looks like Nate is right there in the background just letting Tanner stick his foot in Dallin's face. :) He really wasn't I just caught it right when it happened.












Nate made this wreath. He and Jordan went to campus where they were doing it. Good job huh? I guess all the women there were impressed with Nate and Jordan because they came for their wives. It was nice of them.

Ok, not my most interesting post

But, I have got nothing else to talk about.
So you know how when you make stuff with pumpkin you almost always have pumpkin left? Well, I found lots to do with it these last couple of weeks as I tried not to be wasteful. I tried to use it in healthy things, not so much cookies and cakes.
Pumpkin pancakes (so yummy)
Pumpkin oatmeal (just ok)
Pumpkin carrot cake (good)
Pumpkin turkey chili (couldn't tell there was pumpkin in it, so good)
Pumpkin chocolate muffins (to die for)
Then I snuck some pumpkin in stuff like spaghetti and crepe batter too. It is healthy stuff.
So if you have pumpkin puree left, try some of these or these.

Finally, it's time

I love putting up the Christmas tree because it instantly brings the Christmas spirit. This is my favorite time of year. We don't have a lot of traditions yet, mostly because we can't think of many. Anyone have any fun traditions? Inspire me. Here's a video of Tanner showing his muscles.

And here is one to show how quick he is. I think it is hilarious, but maybe it is just me.

Brothers

Tanner enjoys making Dallin laugh. Unfortunately, Dallin laughs even when Tanner is smacking him, so it eggs him on.

No cavities!

Yay for Nate! So neither of us have been to the dentist in about 5 years. We went today and Nate has no cavities. He has never had a cavity! Can you believe it? I had 2. :( I am praying our kids get his healthy teeth.

By the way we are shopping for a laptop for Nate's graduate school. We figured now is the best time of year. So which do you all prefer between HP and Dell? (don't think we are interested in anything else) And why?

Cant' have a blog post without a picture or two.

Yum! Feet!

At least he is coloring on the bottom of the chair.

How long do the terrible 2s last?

Ok, I realize a couple of my more recent posts make me look like a bad mother; leaving my kids--more like Tanner--unsupervised to make mischief. But I am not kidding, if I leave the room for 30 seconds Tanner finds trouble to get into.

Mmm, I'll just eat this pudding off my tummy.

Bath toys in the potty.

At least it hasn't been used yet

Do you know what this white thing is? It is a toilet bowl for a toddler training toilet. Not sure if he is quite ready for potty training yet, we are just getting ready.

Dallin's favorite place

To the ER again

I took Tanner to the hospital last night. He was coughing constantly and having a hard time breathing; wheezing pretty bad. They took X-rays of his chest and did some breathing treatments. Turns out he has RSV. He had to take some yucky medicine that made him throw up on his clothes, so they put him in this cute gown to wear there and home. The nurse and respiratory therapist said he is the best 2 year old they've had. He loved the breathing treatments even though he had to sit there with a mist in his face for about 10 minutes, 3 different times. I am glad he is an angel for other at least. Nate was throwing up all night the other night and Dallin is coughing pretty bad now. So I have been busy!

Hilarious

My sister-in-law, Mickie, sent this to me a long time ago, and I couldn't stop laughing. So I am passing it on. Sorry, some are hard to see. Enjoy!
Baby Care 101

Well, when you put it that way. . .

I read a talk by Elder Hales that my friend Alicia suggested and this paragraph stood out to me as I've been upset about the protests against our Church recently regarding our views on gay marriage. Experience shows that seasons of negative publicity about the Church can help accomplish the Lord's purposes. In 1983 the First Presidency wrote to Church leaders, "Opposition may be in itself an opportunity. Among the continuing challenges faced by our missionaries is lack of interest in religious matters and in our message. These criticisms create . . . interest in the Church. . . This provides and opportunity [for members] to present the truth to those whose attention is thus directed toward us." What optimists! I haven't been so positive. I was just thinking how scary it could be to talk to non members about my religion these days because of all the negative publicity, but it really is a great opportunity to clear up all the misunderstandings and to share the gospel. Let us have Christian Courage and be BOLD, but not overbearing.

Too BIG Too fast

Dallin is 5 months today and got his first tooth this week. He's also sitting in a walker without wobbling too much. My baby is growing up. It's kind of sad, oh well, I guess there will be other babies.

Winter

Winter is here. [sigh] The only thing that keeps me from being depressed during this dreary time of year in Idaho is that my favorite holidays are in the winter. Thanksgiving & Christmas. Come January though, it is depressing. Any ideas on how to keep kids busy indoors during the winter?

This is just a random picture that Alicia took that I never posted. I think it is hilarious. I am glad Tanner has friends his age. We love David, and his mom. :)

Hopeful

My #1 goal as a Mom is to help my kids build a strong foundation so they can stand for what is right on their own later. I am grateful Tanner has already made prayers part of his daily routine. When one of us takes Tanner to bed he always says "prayer" and he kneels down by his bed. He will repeat after us, but isn't saying full sentences so usually just gets the last word. Here is a video. All you can see is his night light.

I tried to take it with the light on, but this is what we got. :)

What the boys are up to

Cleaning up crayon he colored on the wall. He enjoy cleaning. Cleaned really well too! You can't tell there was crayon there. When he was done he asked for a crayon. LOL.

Dallin learning to eat solids. The scratches on his head are from Tanner. I caught Tanner sitting on Dallin's face the other day. Dallin will be tough; he'll have to be to survive Tanner as a big brother.
Dallin has discovered his feet. Is always playing with them.

One of Nate's many talents

Just kidding. I mean, he does a good job, but he was just helping me. I am trying to finish Dallin's stocking before Christmas.

By the way, I am pretty proud of myself. I got $100 worth of groceries yesterday at Albertsons for $35, $25 if you deduct the $10 check I am getting for doing a survey about formula I bought there. I love a good sale & coupons!

And my sweet Dallin

Our Halloween

Nate was "Sick & Tired" and I was a pirate, thanks to Michaela.

Tanner and Joel went trick-or-treating together. They loved it. We had pizza and donuts with the Drakes (The bishop of our singles ward in Medford and his wife; they moved here) before they went.

Dallin spit up on his pumpkin outfit.

Walgreens did a free picture. Here is one I took on my own camera, hopefully theirs is better. But it appears that Dallin may be allergic to straw, or hay, whatever it is. He got the hives soon after and here is a picture of his hand after he got a scratch from some of the stuff. My poor allergic kids!

Chillin with the pumpkins.

My Skeleton & Pumpkin

Isn't Tanner scary? Most 2 year olds are cute things, but Tanner is a scary skeleton. I'll get more pictures later.

This was the sunrise this morning as Nate was leaving for work at 7:30. Gorgeous! It is usually in the 20 degree range these days and it is about a mile walk. Crazy! That is what we get for having one car. Works for us though (easier for me than him). :)

Picky eater

Well, not much is going on to post about. Tanner will go trick-or-treating this year (Nate's idea) so I'll have pictures tomorrow. I would have put off trick-or-treating for at least another year. Candy is the last thing Tanner needs. He has a horribly unbalanced diet. The only veggies he likes are corn and potato, which are more starch than vegetables. Any tips on how to get him to eat better???

Dallin will start solids soon. I wanted to put it of until 6 or 7 months, but he's showing interest in it already.