{FLaShBaCk}

I am realizing more and more that, although I am an OCD planner and sometimes can't "enjoy the moment" because I am always looking forward to what's coming next, I really do love to "flashback" and see how much things have changed in a year or two! As I celebrated my birthday this week, I couldn't help but think about my last birthday....we were still living in Utah, but not really "living" there.....at least on that particular day! On Sunday, October26th last year, we blessed Zoe at church. All of our family from Cali came for her special day! My house was depressing.....it was mostly empty!! The moving van was in the driveway....full of our "life"! The only things that remained in the house were a few last minute necessities that we "needed" to get through one more night as we were getting on our way to Cali the next morning! My birthday morning was all about Zoe....which I loved! I was excited that we got to bless her on my actual birthday! And let's be honest....getting older is no fun, so it almost is better to pretend your birthday isn't really happening! After church, we had family and some close friends come over for lunch. I'm not sure if I would really even call it a lunch though....my kitchen was bare, the kitchen table was gone....we had a frozen lasagna from Costco and I can't even remember what else! I mean how gourmet can you get when your pots, pans, dishes, utensils, etc. are all sitting in boxes in a truck in your driveway! It was sad! That afternoon, family helped us pack up the remaining items in the moving van and then they all left for home in Cali. Jeremiah and our neighbor Chris drove the moving van to our storage unit in Provo to get a few remaining things we had left in storage.....the gate was locked and they couldn't get in! While they were gone, I put Ayden and Zoe to bed.....Zoe in a pack n play set up in her empty room and Ayden on his mattress on the floor in his empty room! And I set out to clean like a mad woman.....all night long!! It was necessary....we were leaving first thing in the morning and the people renting our house were scheduled to move in that same day! Keep in mind....this was still my birthday!!! Jeremiah and I went to bed that night on our mattress in the family room of our VERY empty house! It was our last night there....it was depressing! And it WAS my birthday!! I guess I shouldn't complain.....because I did in fact not want that 30th birthday to come anyway!!

Whoa....I just re-read this post and how did this turn into a post about me!?!?!? LOL!! Anyway, my birthday last year sucked and my birthday this year was great! =)

And one year after Zoe was blessed, I wanted her to try on her special blessing dress that Grandma Brenda made for her, to see if it still fit! It fit PERFECTLY!! It came right down to the floor and she looked like a tiny little bride....Ayden and I kept telling her that she was a princess....she loved every minute of it!

{an OFFICIAL nursery GO-ER}

Yay!! Zoe is finally old enough to go into nursery!!! After weeks and weeks of asking ourselves "why do we even bother going to church every Sunday???" (since we spend most of the block out in the hall with Zoe), we finally reached the 18 month marker and she is officially a nursery go-er!! I remember when Ayden had his first day of nursery which was not TOO long ago and I was an emotional wreck! I didn't want him to go....I wanted him to stay a baby forever!! With Zoe, we were trying to push her in the door a month early!! =) It's funny how we react differently to things with each child!

Jeremiah had taken her in a couple times before she was "official" and she fit right in!! We knew she was ready and she was going to be easy! She started playing with toys right away and loved having her big bro there with her....it is a great transition for her since Ayden will be off to Primary in January! We lucked out with these two...they have both been easy to send off to nursery! I always feel bad for the parents that get stuck in their kid's class because they will start crying if they leave! Ayden and Zoe both have taken the approach of "get me in there already Mom and Dad.....and be on your way! I will see you in a couple hours!!" It makes leaving them so much easier to know they are happy!

Zoe's first Sunday all by herself (without Mommy or Daddy in there) went great!! I think it helps to have her big bro in there....because he does have a BIG job each week! We tell him he needs to protect his sissy and make sure the other kids are nice to her!! =) He loves to be a helper (even though she thinks he is a little "smothering" at times)!!

When I went to peek in the window of her first Sunday, I almost cried (and I remember feeling the same way with Ayden)!! It was the sweetest thing to see her sweet little self, sitting at a table with 10 other kids....having a snack! She looked SO big and all of a sudden I got a "flash forward" of her being a little Kindergartener and how that is not too far away!! She is not a little baby anymore and that is definitely evident when she is in nursery with all the big kids! But then I was reminded that she IS still a little baby because she dumped her cup of water right on the table!! =) I couldn't hold back the smile!!

When she came out of class, she was so excited and I could see it in her eyes that she knew that she was a "BIG GIRL" now! She couldn't wait to show me the picture that she colored and tell us all about it! Each week since then, she denies the fact that she has any sort of fun in nursery....we always ask her on the car ride home: "did you go to nursery?" NO!! "did you have fun?" NO!! "did you play with toys?" NO!! "did you play with your friends?" NO!! "did you sing songs?" NO!! "did you eat snacks?" NO!! "did Ayden protect you?" NO!! But each week, she almost knocks us down to get through the door and she kisses us goodbye and she is smiling whenever we go to check on her!! So that's just Zoe for you.....most of the time, "NO!!" really does mean YES!!! =)

{6 months and 3 pounds later....}

A couple weeks ago, we were cleaning out all our baby stuff and putting stuff in storage! I decided to take a picture of Zoe in her old infant carseat since I did that every month her first year!! Here we are 6 months later and she is 3 pounds heavier, but WOW!! She looks SO big in there!! I can't believe how much she has changed!!!

This is 3 days old and 6 weeks old.....



3 months old and 6 months old.....



9 months old and one year old.....



AND HERE WE ARE.......18 months OLD!!!!!

{FaLL FooLs DaY}

Just when we thought it was fall, we had another 90 degree day!! Ugh!! The last few days of cold weather, rain, clouds and soup were SO nice and such a teaser!! Yesterday, when we were stuck indoors on a rainy day, we made our first batch of cookies for the season!! For some reason, during fall and winter, my LOVE for baking quadruples!! I look for any and every excuse to bake something! Yesterday, we made pumpkin cookies! When I asked Ayden if he wanted to help me make some pumpkin cookies, he ran outside and brought our 2 pumpkins in from the front porch!! Silly kid....I guess I should've been more clear!! I then showed him the pumpkin cookie cutter!! =) The kids both had a blast helping! Luckily, Zoe doesn't realize yet how tasty cookie dough and batter is, so Ayden and I don't have to compete with her for who gets to lick the spoon and the bowl!! I'm sure it won't be long before we have to share it 3 ways, but for now, she is actually quite disgusted by eating it!











I think I should be thankful for this warm weather that takes the baking desire right out of me! I will be better off in the end with warmer weather because those cookies that we made just 24 hours ago are almost gone!! Uhhhh.....I think I feel sick!!!!

{FaMiLy DaY aT PrEsChOoL}

Last Thursday was "Family Day" at Ayden's preschool! Parents and grandparents were invited to check out the class and all the fun things the kids have been doing! It was so much fun and so great to Ayden in his element! He was so proud to show us all the toys he plays with, all the work he has done which was hanging on the walls, where he goes potty, where he eats lunch, where he reads books, where he does Circle Time! It was really fun and definitely made Jeremiah and I feel that the money we are spending to send him there is BEYOND worth it!! He is learning so many new things there and making some good friends!

Ayden showing us some of the activities he does....Zoe can't WAIT to go to preschool.....

Zoe (our little book worm) was in heaven with all the books to choose from.....



This was one of the pictures on the wall that Ayden was so excited to show us.....it is Ayden (on the left) and his best buddy Dylan.....all dressed up!! I guess they couldn't find the BOY dress up clothes and decided to dress up like girls!! Jeremiah wasn't too happy about this picture....I remember a comment along the lines of "THIS is what we are paying for.....him to come here and dress up like a girl"!!!! Ha!! I think it's cute!! =)



Getting some help from Grammie Con....



Making a craft.....



Zoe loved all the play stuff....especially the "pretend makeup" station....



Circle Time....listening to Miss Amanda!



Doing the Pledge of Allegiance!! This is one of my favorite parts....Ayden almost has it memorized and it is so cute to hear him say it! I will have to get that on video soon!



Ayden, Daddy and Lion.....oops, how did Lion end up at school?!?!?!



Ayden with his two besties.....Grammy Con and Nana Brenda! Thanks so much for coming!! =)



Ummm....can you tell that Ayden is IN LOVE with his teachers!! Here he is with Miss Amanda and Miss April.....



Our family.....



Ayden showing off one of his crafts on the wall....



And here is a video of the kids at Circle Time. Miss Amanda sat down to read them a story called "Heaven is Having You" and I might just be the ONLY lucky Mommy whose child said, "Heaven is Having you Mommy" right after Miss Amanda announced the name of the story! Yep, I caught it on video....the cutest moment ever!! Ayden said that for all to hear and the parents followed with "Awwwww"!! How lucky am I!?!?!?

And here is another video of the kids singing a couple songs! When Miss Amanda said they were going to sing a song, Ayden jumped around saying...."Buzz Lighyear to the Rescue!! Buzz Lightyear to the Rescue!! I want to sing that song!!!!" It was definitely interesting to see my little ADD child not able to sit still for even a minute!! =) Oh and not sure what was up with his bum....but he was obviously having SOME type of issues with it!! LOL!!!

{aYdEn}

We have been talking lately about all the funny things our kids do and say and how we should be writing them down! So today, when Ayden was being a little "scientist", I had to take some pictures!!

We woke up to a very foggy day. I was getting ready and he was playing around in our room. Next thing I know, he is out on the balcony with the fan from his room plugged into the wall! I asked him what on earth he was doing and he said he was blowing the fog away with his fan because the horsies (behind our house) couldn't see and they were hungry and needed to eat their breakfast. So, what else would you do in this situation than get your plug in fan and "blow" all the fog away?!!?!?! Silly kid....it didn't work and he was bummed! I'm sure this is something he saw on Phineas and Ferb at some point!

(Please excuse the underwear pictures....we have a child that prefers the undies over clothes)

{18 mOnThS oLd}

This is old news, but last week (on the 4th), Zoe turned 18 months old! I can't believe she is 18 months old for so many reasons! The first 6 months of her life seemed to last so long, but this past year has flown by!

She has changed so much since her birthday! It's crazy to me that 6 months ago, she wasn't walking and now she is RUNNING everywhere!! And she is talking up a storm!! She gets cuter and cuter every day! She is becoming a blondie.....her hair has lightened up SO much and gets curlier and curlier every day!! And let's not forget to mention that she gets more and more strong-willed and stubborn every single day!! =) Good thing she is cute!!

On Friday, we went in for her 18 month check up! Zoe hates the doctor's office! As soon as we go into the room, she starts crying! She hates the nurses and the doctors and anybody else that wants to poke, prod or even look at her!! I am guessing this stems back to her first couple months of life when we had to visit the doctor's office every other day for a weight check because she was having trouble gaining! When the doctor walked in the room this time, she started to tremble!! She was terrified of him acted as if he was going to hurt her! She screamed the entire time he was in there! And during her 5 shots!! Poor girl!! I hate that part! The doc said that she looked great and was a healthy little girl! She weighed 24 pounds (50th percentile) and was 33 1/4 inches long (75th percentile). She is still on the tall side which I love!

Here are a few of Zoe's favorites right now!! This is gonna be long and boring, but I have to do it for scrapbooking purposes, so feel free to skip!! =)

Favorite Subject - At Zoe's birthday, I wrote that she hated books, didn't like to look at the pictures and couldn't even sit still through a story! That has TOTALLY changed now and she is a book lover!! We often joke that she will be our little "nerdy bookworm girl" when she grows up because she loves to have a book in her nose! When we go anywhere in the car, I bring a few books and she literally sits there reading them for up to 30 minutes! And she is constantly "reading" books by herself at home and her favorite time of day is "night night time" when Daddy reads her a story! She LOVES this!! And she sits there as still as can be until the story is over.....and then asks for another one! It must be the teacher in me, but I am SO glad to have kids that have the "love" for reading!

Favorite Person - She is still a MAJOR Daddy's girl! Zoe would much rather be with her Daddy than with me. I love it!! I always feel bad for Mom's whose kids won't let Daddy do anything for them! Every morning when I get Zoe out of bed and am changing her diaper, I say "Zoe, guess what??" and then I would go on telling her what fun things we were going to do that day or who we were going to see. Well, every day when I do this, whenever I say "guess what??", she gets wide eyed, a big smile on her face and says, "Daddy home?" Unfortunately, almost every day I have to break her heart and tell her that no, Daddy is not home yet! She gets so excited because she loves her Daddy so much!

Favorite Person #2 - It is so fun to see Ayden and Zoe growing up together and interacting with each other! Zoe is such a copy cat! And she LOVES to say and do whatever her big bro is doing! It's so funny! She is learning so much and picking up on so many things....we are definitely seeing the benefits the 2nd sibling has by learning from the 1st! She is a sponge and takes it all in! She listens to everything we say and interacts! It is so fun!

Zoe is learning how to fight back and "protect" herself against a big brother....maybe a little too much! She may look like a sweetie in this bath picture below, but seconds later, she did a full mouth bite on Ayden's back! It was even bleeding! I'm afraid he better watch out....she is not going to let him get away with ANYTHING!!!

Favorite Word - She says a TON of words....I can't even put a number on it because she can pretty much say any word! We can tell her what we want her to do, she can ask for what she wants and she will repeat ANYTHING we say! This is always a really fun stage when you can start to communicate with your little ones! Her favorite word might be "NO!"....and it's not just a sweet, simple "no"! It is usually "NO NO NO NO NO!!!!" She loves the word! And this is usually "the look" she gives when she says her favorite word!!

Favorite Food - She is the pickiest eater ever! She loves snack food....she would eat snacks all day any day! She hates meals....hates dinnertime....throws a tantrum almost every night at dinner! Knowing all that, you might agree that it is the STRANGEST thing that her favorite food is fresh tomatoes! She eats them like candy!! Last night at dinner, she ate 12 grape tomatoes!! Crazy girl!

Favorite Place in the House - She LOVES her crib! She loves to sleep and when she isn't sleeping, she would prefer to be in her crib! I'm no sure if she likes the quiet time away from crazy Ayden or if she likes that last drag on her binky (since she is only allowed binkies at bedtime)?!?!!? Or maybe she likes to read books in there because we always have a handful of books! But she sleeps (or stays in her bed) for 13-14 hours a night and naps for 2-3 during the day! The funny thing is that sometimes I peek in her room and she isn't crying, fussing or making a peep, but she is wide awake....just hanging out!

Favorite Thing to Wear - EVERYTHING!!! She LOVES to play dress up and put on layers and layers of clothing! Things don't always match and sometimes she puts undies over pants or pants on as a shirt, but at least she tries!! She already has a passion for shoes!! She would pick out what shoes she wore every day if I let her! And she loves to put on Mommy's shoes! She is also an accessorizer at heart! She loves to accessorize!! She loves hats, necklaces, hair bows....whatever she can find to add to her glamorous self!

Favorite Color - She is a total girl and loves everything girlie!! She loves princesses and barbies and babies and dollies and tea parties and anything that comes in the color PINK!!! Anytime we ask her what color something is, she says "pink"!! If we give her two choices of something and one is pink, she will ALWAYS pick the pink one!

Here they are getting ready to set up a tea party in the backyard! Notice Ayden's shoes....when Zoe got "all dressed up" in her pettiskirt, Ayden said he wanted to get on his "dancing shoes" (AKA his church shoes) and dance with Zoe!

It's a good thing she's so darn cute because she can also be a little firecracker at times! She can throw tantrums with the best of them (AKA Ayden)!!

Hmmmm.....wonder where she learns that from?!?!!? Oh, THAT's where.....