Growing Up

What a beautiful little girl we have been blessed with! She is growing so fast too. We took her to the doctor at the end of March to find out that she is in the 93rd percentile in height and the 82nd percentile for weight...what a tall drink of water! She's all healthy and happy. So, we started her on cereal after our 4 month appointment. She's getting pretty good at it too, but we're still trying to get her to take the spoon without her binky following it! That's ok, we'll get there.
She's also getting pretty good at grabbing things she wants. We have entered the grabbing phase, what fun! The other night we had strawberry shortcakes for dessert. Aaron had her on her lap while eating his, and she sure liked the way that bowl of sweets looked. She started reaching for it, and she was persistent. Aaron would move the bowl away from her, but every time he brought it in front to eat some, she was coming at it again! It's no longer easy to eat with her on our laps...what a fun phase we're heading into!

Honey-Do List: Yard Work

One of the things that Aaron has looked forward to the most is getting a Honey-Do list. He loves to work with his hands, and couldn't wait to get started on projects in our new home. The first thing he wanted to take care of was our yard. Our tree out front was grossly overgrown. Aaron wasn't sure if our homeowners insurance would approve the policy until the tree was taken care of, it was rubbing up against the shingles on the roof. I was anxious for him to take care of it because there was a branch that would rub against our bedroom window, really annoying in the middle of a windy night! Aaron did a wonderful job trimming up the tree, it looks so nice! Unfortunately we did see some shingle damage after getting the branches down, but we did expect it.
Our next project in the yard is our garden. We have a patch outside our patio that will be perfect for a small garden this summer. We got all the ground cover pulled out, and most of the big rocks out of the patch. We're going to plant some tomatos and peppers, perfect for sandwiches and salsa. It feels good to have our own place to take care of!

Day at the Zoo

Today we planned to make an outing to the zoo. Zack loves to play with his cousins so we decided to invite Britta and her kids, Abby & Landon. We have found that going earlier in the day is better because Zack is in a better mood and all of the animals have been kicked out of their habitats for cleaning. Because we try to make it so early we also try to go to breakfast too.

This was all planned thanks to Aaron watching Food Network. There is this show, Diners Drive-ins & Dives. It's not one of our favorite shows but it happened to be the only thing on at the time. Anyways, this show was doing a showcase on the places that they had visited in Utah. Ruth's dinner up Emigration canyon was shown. Aaron had also heard good things about this place and it is just up the canyon from the zoo. So, we figured we could try out a new place for breakfast and then hit the zoo. Aaron also thought that it would be a great idea to get a wagon for the kids to ride in. It would make it easier to keep them in one place and free up hands. Zack was very excited about this idea. We told Britta and she agreed to meet us there.

Unfortunatly that morning we were a little behind schedule. We were trying to call Britta to let her know that we were a bit behind as she was trying to call us to let us know that the diner was closed for remodeling. Darn cell phone dead zones. So, when we pulled up Britta had already been waiting there patiently with her kids. We tried to remember if there were any breakfast places up in that area but couldn't think of any too close. As we drove trying to find something we decided to go to the Original Pancake House in Sugarhouse. Unfortunatly so had a few other people. We had to wait for about 30 minutes. The kids were great! Plus the weather was nice too, so we could wait outside. Once the food came around everyone was very hungry and everyone ate very well.

Once we were done with breakfast we headed back up to the zoo. Being that it was the first warm day of the year several other people thought it would be a good time to go as well. The place was packed. This can be a good thing sometimes. When the zoo is busy it will open the South gate. This is just above the Asian Highlands. We have experimented and have found that as far as routes go, starting from the Asian Highlands and working our way towards the front enterance works pretty well. However when we entered the South gate they had not opened the rental shop for wagons yet. So, Aaron volunteered to run to the front gate and rent one and then bring it back.

Aaron was very tired running all the way to the front and a little put out. When he rented the wagon, the sales clerk asked it there was anything else that he could do, being the polite sales clerk. Aaron quickly retorted the they could open up the South gate rental shop if they were going to open the South gate. Then the clerk stated that they had just opened it. GRRRRR!

Aaron found Amanda, Britta and the kids by the giraffes. They kids were all very excited to see the wagon. They all piled in and we were off to check out the zoo. Aaron pulled the wagon for the most part. That is until Abby and Zack decied that they wanted to pull it. They both started to take turns pulling. This was great that Zack was willing to share and take turns. We have really been working on that. As Zack and Abby took turns Landon was quite content to just sit in the wagon and be chauffered around the zoo.
As we made out way to the front of the zoo, Amanda & Britta took the kids on the zoo train. We can't ever go to the zoo and not ride the train, it's the highlight of Zack's day. As everone moved off of the train, Abby asked to see the bats. So our next stop was the children's play area where you can see the bats as well as play near some of the animals. Here are some of the prairie dogs that we found. Aw, they are so cute.
By this point the kids were tired so we headed to the cars. Aaron told Amanda that if she would like to, she could ask Britta to go shopping and he would watch the kids. Both Amanda & Britta were very excited about this idea. So we all headed to our house and fed the kids. Then Amanda & Britta went out shopping and had a great time. Over all a very good day!

Our New House!!!

That's right everyone! After almost 5 years of being married and two children later we have finally purchased our first home! We are very excited. It was a very arduous process. Being that it was a short sale (I don't know why they call it that there is nothing short about it!), from offer to close it took about 2 1/2 months. But we finally signed our lives away (at least that's what it feels like after all that paperwork) on Feb. 27, 2009.

We have been in the position to purchase a home before but things fell through. We felt kind of stupid after telling everyone and showing off the house that we were looking at purchasing, just to have things not work out. So because we were warned that this home could take some time, we decided to keep things on the "down low" until we had worked things through. So sorry to those that are just now finding out.

We had a pretty good turn out for those that helped us move. Moving out seemed to take a lot longer then moving in. I guess 3 flights of stairs would have something to do with that. Between Aaron, Randy, Joel & Nun's trucks we made it all over. Nun also had his trailer as did Aaron. Thanks to all of those that helped out, and those of you that didn't (you know who you are) we hope that you had good excuses! J/K

Each of us has our own reasons to be excited about the new home. What made this move so great for Amanda is that she finally had her Christmas present delivered. She was a good girl last year and Santa had a refrigerator and freezer waiting at RC Willey to be delivered. They were delivered while we were still packing up the apartment and Aaron got this call saying that the fridge was too big for where is was going to be placed. Fortunately between Nun, Randy and Aaron they were able to make it fit. Well kind of, a giant hole in the wall and losing the pantry door later they made it fit. But hey, Amanda has a great big new refrigerator! She is also excited about the large new freezer that she has in Aaron's new garage. Amanda's sister, Britta, does a dinner exchange with freezer meals and Amanda has been wanting to get into it as well. It works out great when both parents work. Just pull it out in the morning before you go to work to let it thaw out during the day. When you get home all the prep work is done so you just pop it in the oven and serve. Makes things a lot easier.

Aaron was excited to finally have a "Honey-Do List". Sounds crazy but not if you know Aaron. The point behind a "Honey-Do List" is that Amanda gets to find all of these projects around the house that she would like to have done. So when she says "Honey, will you please make some storage shelves in the basement", she just puts it on the "Honey-Do List". Aaron loves to build things or even just fix things. He just loves to work with his hands. Plus the added benefit of doing things for his wife and family just makes his day. Amanda hasn't wasted any time getting started on that list either. Aaron is also excited to have a yard to work in of his very own. Weird huh?!

Zack has a great time with his "new house" too. For anyone that has come over to see us or for those who still haven't, plan on getting the grand tour from him. He loves to show off his new room. Mary Beth gave him a great area rug for his room that has train tracks and road ways on it. He is getting pretty good at building his own train tracks and can play for hours all by himself. Hope that he enjoys that while it lasts. Little sister will be wanting to play with his things here pretty soon.

Alexis is happy with the new home. Well as much as one little girl can. She definitely could tell how stressed out we were about getting this home. The last week before closing on the house, she had this astounding sense of the stress and didn't like it one little bit. Now that we are moved in and things have moved into the normal routine, she is much happier.

Over all we are very happy with our new home and the great new area that we have moved into. The ward has been very welcoming as have our neighbors. It's located near everything and the new Day Break temple is just down the street too. We think that we have made a great move and are happy to have been able to make it our home!

Super Hero!

Zack is entering the age of super heroes. What fun! Aaron bought him a t-shirt that says "My Dad is My Hero". Zack insists that it says "Zack is My Hero". The other day Aaron and I were watching Lord of the Rings. Zack came in the room and saw that there were people in trouble on the TV. He quickly informed us that we needed to rescue these people. He was Batman, daddy was Superman and I was Spider-man. He always gets to be Batman in these situations. Today I got a phone call from Zack while he and Aaron were getting ready to go. He had something he needed to tell me:

Zack: "Once upon a time there was scary monster eating all the people."
Me: "Oh no! What are we going to do about it?"
Zack: "We need to rescue the people! I am a super hero and I will rescue the people!"

What an awesome phone call! It absolutely made my day. I love getting little glimpses into his imagination.

Bonding

I love this picture because it shows how much Zack likes to dote on his sister. She sure is starting to respond well to him too. At least 10 times a day Zack insists on giving Lexi kisses. He loves to talk to her and look at her. He even shares his toys! We'll see how long that lasts when she actually wants the toys :). I can't wait to see them interact when he can make her laugh and smile by showing her how silly he is. He loves to be silly, show off and make people laugh. This kind of reminds me of the days when I was little. I remember when I was in kindergarten Ranna was very jealous that Christina and I left or school and she was left at home. Christina and I used to act extremely silly just to make her laugh before we left, hoping this would make it easier for her. I have a feeling things like that will be a common occurance with my children in the future.

"Brother's been picking on me in my sleep!"

Blessing

We blessed our new bundle on Sunday. It was so much fun to see everyone who came! We have been looking forward to doing this for months. Aaron has always wanted to show my family what real barbecue tastes like and the timing has always been off. We asked his dad if he would be willing to smoke some brisket and pork shoulder for the occasion months ago. He said that he couldn't do it in the winter because it would be too difficult for him to maintain the heat of the fire in the cold weather. So we bought the meat while it was still warm out, smoked it, then froze it until this weekend. It tasted wonderful!!!! (If I hadn't just told you it was frozen you would have thought it was smoked the day before, guess I just spilled the beans!) Aaron's parents were also wonderful enough to let us use their house to host the party after the blessing. Our apartment is just not big enough for this kind of function. Aaron helped out at their house a lot last week to help them get ready. They decided they wanted to re-do the kitchen cabinets before the blessing and it turned out so beautiful! Thank you so much for letting us use your beautiful home!

I am also so thankful for a wonderful sister in our ward. When we blessed Zack we were surprised when she caught up to us after sacrament meeting with a notes of the blessing for us. What a wonderful gift! It is now in his baby book and is a great reminder of that wonderful day. I was very grateful to see her after sacrament meeting this time with the same thing for Alexis. I am so excited to have these wonderful blessings in writing. Aaron can never remember what he says when he gives a blessing, side effect of following the Spirit I guess, and he has enjoyed being able to read what he said. He is so eloquent when he gives blessings, I love it!

Mostly I am thankful to be married to such a wonderfully spiritual man. So many blessings have come to our family because Aaron is close to the Lord and knows how to listen to the Spirit. Having the Priesthood and a worthy Priesthood holder in my home is such a comfort in trying times and good times. I am grateful that the Lord has blessed us with the power and authority of His Priesthood on this earth. I am thankful that I was raised in a home with the Priesthood and it's blessings. My appreciation and testimony of its power grows with each use. Thank you to all who joined Aaron in the circle for the blessings of both our beautiful children!