Birthdays

So, Izzy & Seth's birthdays were months ago but, I still want to document them. We were having a hard time finding a good time to have Seth's birthday party so, I ended up throwing it together last minute in about 8 hours. I called a couple of his friends the morning of and we went cosmic bowling and to cold stone afterwards. The kids had a lot of fun dancing to the music and bowling.


For Izzy's birthday, she wanted to have a pedicure party. So, we took her and 3 of her friends to get a pedicure ( a nail salon near us does mini pedicures for girls under 12). They had a great time getting pampered. Then, we came back to our house for some pizza and cupcakes. We kept both of the kids parties really small this year but, it was still a lot of fun.




I can't believe they are 4 and 6. Time really does fly. They are both such sweet kids. Isabelle is the little mini mother of our house (if I am not careful she will take over). She is also really compassionate and caring of others. I love it when she tells me she wants to be a mom when she grows up. I know she will be a great one. Seth is our little comedian. He really thinks he is funny and usually has a big double dimple smile on his face. He really adds entertainment value to our home. It is hard to discipline him when he does something wrong because he always flashes that big grin and it melts ya a little. Unfortunately, he already likes girls (especially older ones) quite a bit and his dad has taught him how to wink. I can't help but laugh at him most of the time ( I think that is his intention).

Seriously??!!

Caught in the act. Need I say more?

Got Ribs???

I know I am way behind on a lot of other posts but, I couldn't resist posting these pictures of Cooper from dinner tonight.

A Saturday Adventure

On Labor Day weekend we wanted to head to the beach. We checked the weather and the beaches about 1 1/2 hours South of here were supposed to be cold but a few beaches about 2 hours north of here were supposed to be warm. So, we packed up the car and headed out on a day trip. We got all the way to Bodega Bay and it was FREEZING!! Overcast, very windy and like 59 degrees. It is usually not a good sign when you see people basically in parkas standing on the beach. Needless to say we did not get out. We checked the little tourism office for other things to do in the area. We found out there was some horseback riding for the kids and a lighthouse about an hour south heading back towards our house so we set off that direction. We had some lunch at a yummy restaurant that had VERY slow service (not good for kids who have been in the car for basically 3 hours).
After that we took the kids horseback riding. They loved it! They were supposed to ride on ponies but, as you can tell from the picture those were NOT ponies. It was cool because they took them on a little trail ride instead of just around the arena. Paul and I walked alongside to make sure they were safe. After that, we headed to the lighthouse it was about 20 miles of winding back roads to get to it. Unfortunately they close the steps down to the lighthouse at 4:30 and that is exactly when we got there so the kids were a little bummed and keep asking to go back. As you can imagine, it was pretty windy and chilly up there. It had a beautiful view and it was still cool to see the lighthouse even if we couldn't go down to it. After that we headed home and were blessed to make it to a gas station since there were none for like 40 miles! It was a lot of driving but still fun to see a lot of the beautiful country up here and be together as a family.

First Day of School and Cooper Walking

Izzy started school last week. She loves her teacher and has been very excited to go to school. We walked everyday last week (up a giant hill). Maybe if we keep it up I will finally lose my last 15 lbs from having Cooper. I forgot the camera that morning so here is a picture after school. About a week and a half ago Cooper started taking a few steps and then the other day he took off across the room. He is still walking and crawling but I am sure it won't be too long before he is running with the rest of them. He walks with his arms up in the air and does a little side shuffle. We joke that he is doing the basketball shuffle and trying to play defense.

Hiking with Uncle Chet

Chet had to work in San Francisco a few weeks ago so he stayed for the weekend to visit. We decided to hike to a place called Little Yosemite. What we didn't realize is that during our dry season there isn't much to it. So, after wandering for a long while in what we termed "the lone and dreary wilderness" we headed back to the car. Even though the hike was a little bit of a bust, it is always fun to be with Chet.

I know you are going to love me for this picture Chet!



Seth LOVES sticks, I think this qualifies as a little more than a stick but every time we hike he has to have one. He has a smaller one in another picture.

The Olympics

Our kids have been loving watching the Olympics. Seth enjoyed watching the swimming, gymnastics and diving. Izzy in particular has loved the gymnastics. We would tivo it and then snuggle on my bed and watch it. It has really inspired her. I think it really connected what she has been doing in class. It helped her to see what they mean when they say straighten your legs and point your toes and to see what she could be able to do in the future. She has been doing gymnastics all over our house and has really improved over the last couple of weeks. It has been really fun. Her teacher talked to us about possibly joining the developmental team but I am not sure we are ready to commit to that yet. I wouldn't trade my years as a competitive gymnast for anything but I was much older and it was definitely my choice. As a matter of fact, I had to beg my parents to let me compete. She enjoys so many other activities I know she is not ready to give everything else up ( not that she would have to yet). So if and when she ever wants to I just want to make sure it is her choice and she is basically begging me because it is a big commitment! I know she doesn't look that happy but I think she was just so focused on watching she didn't know daddy was taking a picture. That is Seth's trademark position when relaxing. It cracks me up.

Pictures from Alice in Wonderland and Cooper's 1st birthday

I forgot to post the pictures from when Izzy got to play Alice in Alice in Wonderland. She remembered all of her lines and had a great time. What can I say, she loves to perform!! This was a picture with her teacher after the performance. Since it is just a class through the recreation program, they don't have very many costumes so she asked the girls to wear a dress. Izzy was very excited that her teacher told her she was dressed so perfectly like Alice they didn't need to add anything. This was the beginning of the show. We were so proud of her.

Here are a few pics from Cooper's birthday if you remember from an earlier post there was quite a bit of excitement with Seth hitting his teeth on the side of the pool. All I can say is it goes WAY TOO FAST!!I know, I know, how did I get a light haired, blue eyed child. Good question. It must be somewhere in the gene pool. I am happy to say that each child has different colored eyes (green, brown and blue). It looks like he may end up having curly hair too. So fun!
Cupcakes! Glorious Cupcakes! This was his first real taste of sugar. With his reflux and other allergies I have been pretty tight on his diet. I got made fun of for wanting organic cupcakes but, they were delicious! Thanks Marissa!

The Space Museum

In an effort to try and squeeze in a few more fun activities before school started, we went to the Space museum. Seth has been telling us he wants to be an astronaut (to ride in a rocket of course!) so I knew it would be a hit with him for sure. Isabelle enjoyed it as well, especially since her friend Grace's family came along. We saw 2 shows in the planetarium and looked at all of the exhibits & telescopes. Both kids asked to go back, especially to look in the telescopes again. On Friday and Saturday nights they open them up for free so we will definitely have to do that. Cooper was a good boy as usual always content to just go along for the ride.
These were the water rockets that they launched!! They got to fill them with water and then pull the string that launched them about 30 feet.

Boys will be boys

I swear, every time I turn around Seth is hurting himself. He is SO accident prone. Some of you already know that when he was 2 he broke his leg riding his scooter. He is constantly tripping and when he does he ALWAYS hit his forehead. Ever since he could walk he has had goose eggs on his head. So, here is the latest one and I think this one may take the cake. He was chasing his sister and tripped and he of course hit his forehead. Luckily he did not have a concussion, just 2 black eyes and a major goose egg. Mind you, this picture is after icing it on and off for 2 hours.


Later that week Izzy was trying to pretend she was a doctor and poked something in his ear. He started screaming and his ear started gushing blood so I called my pediatrician (yes, I have his cell phone number on speed dial) and he told me to bring him in to make sure his eardrum did not rupture. Luckily it was just a scratch in the inner ear. Izzy felt SO bad, she was really broken up about it. The other recent injury of his happened at Cooper's birthday. We were all outside watching Cooper eat his cake and I look over and see Seth jump off the diving board. I run over to the side of the pool and get there just as he is coming up out of the water. He jumped to close to the side and hit his mouth on the concrete stair on the side of the pool. His mouth was gushing blood and his teeth were pushed back a bit. My brother-in-laws friend is a pediatric dentist so he came over to check his teeth out. He did push them back a bit but they were not too loose so it looks like they will not fall out for now.

Here is a pic of Cooper at our friends birthday party. I swear it just comes ingrained in their brains to play with cars and guns. Look at his finger, Uncle John and Uncle Chet would be proud.

A Summer Update

So obviously I am way behind but instead of trying to catch up I am just going to give a brief overview of what we have been up to and then move on. So, obviously school ended and Isabelle finished kindergarten. In 2 weeks she will be starting first grade and I am really sad she is going to be gone all day. Seth finished his first year of preschool and he loved it. A week after school was out Izzy had her dance recital and we were scheduled to leave for Vegas the next day. But, if you know us, you know we can never go too long without some health crisis. The day before we were supposed to leave I had to take Cooper to the emergency room because he was wheezing really badly. He had gotten Croup (we think) and as usual with him, it always goes straight to his lungs. After another course of steroids and some breathing treatments, we were off to Vegas. Izzy was also suffering from 2 ruptured ear drums from ear infections. Anyway we had fun in Vegas with our family and went to Virgina for a week to visit Paul's family. They were both great trips. My mom came home with us for a few days which was fun as well. Since we have been back we have been trying to enjoy our last few weeks of summer. Izzy did a 2 day cheer camp and a 2 week long theater camp where they practiced and performed Alice in Wonderland. She was so excited because she got to play the part of Alice. She did a great job. Seth has been enjoying his activites, going to the library and playing with his friends. He is really looking forward to his 4th birthday in a few weeks. While in Vegas, Cooper had his 1st birthday. He is getting so big. Cooper is unfortunately on the brink of another asthma attack. He started wheezing and coughing again today. With a few breathing treatments, he is sounding a little better. Well, so much for a short update. Hopefully I'll be a little bit better at updating.

Take your kid to work day & Father & son camp out

I know I am way beyond behind but, whatever! So, Seth got to go with Paul to take your kid to work day & he loved every minute of it. We met for lunch and I took him home so Paul could actually get some work done. Seth was so upset. I should have told him ahead of time that he only got to go for half of the day. He frequently asks to go to work with Paul so when we told him he could go he had the biggest grin. I loved the look on his face when they pulled away in Paul's truck. One of the technicians took him for a ride on the fork lift which he of course thought was awesome. Then, he got to check out some of the other big machines in the yard. He brought home a TON of earplugs. He had an amazing time.

Wearing Daddy's earpiece

His desk next to Daddy's

Exhausted after a fun filled morning, on his way to lunch

The next fun adventure was the Father & son camp out. This was the first year that Paul & Seth went to the camp out. They had a blast and Seth is constantly asking to go camping again. The night they got up there they had dinner and a bonfire and Seth played with friends and ran around the campsite. Paul texted me at 10 pm to let me know that he was not asleep yet. He was so excited to be sleeping in a tent and the air mattress and the flashlights, he could not relax and fall asleep. I think he finally fell asleep around 11. The next morning Paul had to wake him up early because the Elder's quorum presidency was making breakfast and the campfire was to far away from the tent to leave him there. Paul woke him up and Seth said it's time to go.... before he could finish his sentence with make breakfast, Seth started crying saying I don't want to go!!! Paul finally got him calmed down and explained they were just going to make breakfast. After breakfast they went to this cool place called Rock City. It is a bunch of huge boulders that you can climb all over and into. Needless to say he was in heaven and had a blast! I know it is going to be a fun tradition he looks forward to. I am so behind I haven't even downloaded the pictures yet. I will add them soon.

A visit from Sarah (Marissa, Grandma & Grandpa too)

The week before General Conference, Mom came up to give me a short break from all of the stress that we have had between Isabelle & Cooper's medical troubles. Since the kids had not gotten a chance to see their new cousin Sarah yet, Marissa & her decided to tag along. Mom came a little earlier in the week and then Dad, Marissa & Sarah came on Friday. I wish they could have stayed longer but it was fun while it lasted. All of the kids enjoyed her but Isabelle especially had a wonderful time holding & feeding her. She would have been content to hold her all the time. She always tells me that she wants to be a mom when she grows up and she wants 5 kids (down from 10). I have no doubt that she will be a great one!
This is one of Sarah's first documented smiles.
Izzy loved feeding her. Since I breastfeed she had never had a chance to give a baby a bottle.
Seth wanted to hold her too.

That Friday, Isabelle was given the all clear from the doctor to return to school and normal activity. We celebrated by going to the park on Saturday after conference.