I've been busy...

...just enjoying this sweet face! Can you blame me?! I really have been trying to take life a little slower and savor each moment. This is not an easy thing for me, and I am not always successful, but I think I have been doing alright. Having 3 kids is not easy for me. I was always late before, now I am just later. :-) I have been trying to do fun things, but maybe not as often. Here are some of our favorite moments:



4th of July- We live in a wonderful neighborhood and our favorite holiday is 4th of July. We have not always been able to participate in this big party due to Lake Powell trips or other plans, so I was looking forward to this one. We all rented one of those huge slides which was a big hit. We had a water balloon launcher and a great potluck barbeque. Suzie and her family even joined us! Lots of fun!! I think the dads enjoy the fireworks show more than the kids!






Camping Trip with friends- Last week we went on a camping trip. I was a little nervous to take a 7 week old, but I decided to give it a try! We planned this trip last year, but then one of the moms was very pregnant sick and I was overscheduled (big shocker) so we cancelled it. I am so glad it worked out this year. We had a fun time boating, roasting marshmellows, swimming, and just relaxing. The baby was great, it was my 2 year old screaming in the middle of the night! Other than that, we had a wonderful time. The kids got along really well, and we even got a late night game of Settlers in!

I have also just been enjoying playing with my kids. We have gone to the free movies, had friends over for fun in the sun, been to Oaks Park with Suzie and the gang, and we also went to Chuck E. Cheese. It is amazing how fast Dallin can blow through tokens playing ski ball!! Lots of fun!!




I love seeing their different personalities emerge. Emily still loves anything princess. (This is actually a 3/6 month onesie she found when I was going through clothes!)


Dallin still loves X box monkey ball and reading books with me. Here is one of his quiet time projects. Can you see his obsession with money?

Bryce is getting cuter and cuter. He is smiling more often, and started really cooing last week. He is still just a pretty happy baby, just don't make him mad. I am so grateful for my baby bjorn. I don't think I could get anything done without it! I will post more about him tomorrow on his 2 month birthday. :-)

The last thing that I have been doing is I am definitely back to running. It is still hard for me, but I love it! Please visit my other blog (Marathon Mommies) and meet these other amazing moms. And if anyone would like to post on that site just let me know!

You know you need a new post when...

...you realize your last post was all about breastfeeding. :-) Sorry about that. Anyway, here is an update of the fun things my new "freedom" has allowed me to do.

1. Go to the park for many hours with good friends. (Does this surprise you?)



We also played a lot in our own front yard. I love that I feel comfortable letting Dallin just ride his bike with the neighbor kids. We live on a great street with many kids. It is so much fun, especially in the summer.

2. Chase a balloon festival with Suzie's daughter Wavy Gravy.



We bought passes to the balloon festival. On Saturday morning at 6am we woke up all the kids and went to see the balloons take off. We were disappointed when the weather kept this from happening. We had an all you can eat pancake breakfast and walked around an empty field. We decided to try again that night for the night glow. Still kind of a disappointment but we had fun listening to "Elvis." Sunday morning at 6am, Dallin, Wavy Gravy and I tried one more time to see the balloons launch, and again they were sidelined by the weather. We were lucky enough to ride in a tethered balloon and it was still cool to see all the balloons. The kids were great sports. I am glad Wavy Gravy could come with us. I have always felt a special kinship with her.

3. Spend time with my sweet, fun daughter Emily.



Dallin was in soccer camp this week at the YMCA, so while he was playing with his 2 good buddies,


Emily and I had some fun. We played at open gym time, went to see Clifford at the free movies, and just played with her friends. I love spending time with just her and enjoying her craziness. She loves to dress herself up(as you can tell) and she is still so sweet with Bryce.


4. Hang out with my cool sister Crystal and her boyfriend Tony while they came to visit for the weekend.




I love when Crystal comes to visit. We always have a fun time together. She is such a great aunt and the kids are always excited to see her. I am glad she was able to meet Bryce. We took the boat out which was a lot of fun. I was a little nervous to see how Bryce would like the life jacket, but he did really well, sleeping most of the time. I guess he has no choice in our boat loving family! We also went to a baseball game and rode the train downtown. It was the happiest I have seen Bryce and he was smiling a lot while Crystal was holding him. Unfortunately we didn't have a camera, so I have still not been able to catch a "real" smile. I will keep trying, I promise! We had a great time playing Settlers(a lot! Thanks guys, I will win sometime) and just relaxing. It was a perfect weekend. We even had visitors today, good friends from home and BYU. Then Suzie and her family came over for games and dessert. Whew! We feel lucky to have such amazing family and friends. Thank you!!



We were also able to have a wonderful Father's Day. I love when we have a chance to honor Jeff. I really do feel truly blessed to have a husband who is not only my best friend, but a great father. The kids love their dad! (Isn't Bryce's outfit adorable?! It was sent to us by my good friend, Angi, who just had a sweet baby girl. (Angi, start a blog so I can see more pics of your cute family!)

The kids picked out a present they could play with their dad. Dallin wanted to buy another video game, but I nixed that idea! So, they picked out rockets. They love playing with their dad.

I also feel grateful to have a great father. Bryce is named after him (middle name) and I can't think of anyone I would rather him strive to be like. He is kind, generous, thoughtful, strong and faithful. He taught me to love and serve everyone. He is my personal cheerleader and I never feel prouder than when I am able to share an accomplishment with him. I love you dad!!

Bryce is a month old and I can't believe how fast it has gone. I hope I am doing a good job and making sure all my kids feel loved. I am glad that we don't have school right now so we can all be together. I love reading books with the kids and watching them learn. Babies are such a miracle, and especially my little Bryce. What a blessing he has been to our family.

Let Freedom Ring...

No, I am not being patriotic, (I will post about that later, I promise), I am talking about the beauty of a bottle fed baby. All three of my babies have been pretty good nursers, and I expected to someday figure out how to nurse in public, but it is just not happening for me. I just don't have the ability to be discreet. First of all, I have never understood how some women can "hook up" the babies without looking. So, I look like a big dork as I put my head under the blanket to try and get the baby to eat. Meanwhile, I am sure part of me is hanging out that no one needs/wants to see. Then, there is always the problem of the baby falling asleep on the job and your milk continuing to accumulate. Oh, the joys of nursing.
So, for Bryce, I am determined to get the pump'n go skillz down. The first time I tried a bottle I nearly drowned my poor baby. So, Suzie gave us some bottles that have slower nipples and voila, we have a happy baby that can be fed on the go. The kids are also very willing to help.



Today was very relaxing. It started off with a nice run with my favorite marathon mommy, and then I spent the morning cleaning and dejunking. Then I went to a little party with said marathon mommy and her darling 8 year old. We then had a cleaning party at home and we all took naps. Our night ended with an exciting family trip to Costco and Target. I love days like this that don't feel crazy. Remind me of this please.

Back to life, back to reality...

Jeff went back to work on Monday, hurt knee and all, so it was officially my first week on my own. I am surprisingly pleased with how well it has gone. We are still being taken care of by good friends who have brought food and friendship to us, so that definitely makes life easier!

I was able to get laundry done on Monday, woo hoo! I tried to take it easy the rest of the week and then today I decided it was time to get out. We met up with a bunch of friends at the park. Dallin brought his bike and played in the sand and of course Emily played in the mud!

Then I decided to be very brave and took the kids strawberry picking. We again met friends there, which always makes it more fun. I fed baby Bryce while Emily and Dallin did all the work. They did a great job, and when I told Dallin that I was going to make jam out of them, he promptly replied that they were HIS strawberries! I guess we will just have to see about that, won't we?! It was a good day, but I am definitely tired (Emily was as well!).



In other good news, I went to the Dr. on Tuesday and he signed me off to drive and exercise, including running! So, I went for my first run yesterday, and I will admit I was very humbled. It kicked my butt!! It felt great to be outside, though, and I will continue running slowly. So, that is about it for now. Bryce is a doll, and the kids love him, but hopefully they will stop fighting over him so I can feed him in peace. :-) He does look cute in the glasses his sister put on him! She also loves to put shoes on him. I love it!

Unexpected Date with Jeff

When Jeff walked in on Tuesday night after playing soccer with ice bags in his hand, I got a sick feeling in my stomach. When I asked him what happened, he said, "It's not good." He blew out his knee and can barely walk. This is 2 days into his staying home so he can take care of his wife who has just had a C-section. The irony of the situation hit me hard. Luckily, my recovery has been pretty smooth, so I was able to chuckle a little at the situation. He wasn't so amused. Word spread pretty quickly among friends and neighbors and Emily and Dallin have been taken care of during the day so that we can BOTH recover. The first day we were pretty pathetic, and I had to smile at us sitting on opposite couches watching "Finding Neverland." (Great movie, by the way!!) We were able to chat, read books and just relax. Now, it is starting to get a little old. I want to be able to take care of my husband and my household. He feels bad when I have to get up to get something that we forgot. But I would rather do it myself than watch him hobble across the room. I am feeling pretty good, and tomorrow I am hoping to feel up to going to the park, just to get out of the house. I hope Jeff feels better soon. As for now, we just enjoyed the extra time together.

This last picture is more for me and Jeff than anyone else. We both cracked up when Dallin was holding Bryce and asked for my water. This has been a joke of ours since Dallin was a baby because every time I started nursing, I immediately asked for water. Jeff soon learned and would bring me water without me having to ask. I am always amazed at what kids pick up on.

A week in the life of Bryce...

welcome to my world little man! It has really gone by quickly. The stay at the hospital really was wonderful. My nurses treated me like royalty, the food was great, and I had my laptop, a few books, visits from friends and very little unwanted interruptions. The night before I went home, my sweet kids came for a visit and I was reminded why I needed to be in the hospital to recover. Thank Heavens for a mother who was willing and able to take care of Dallin and Emily. I will admit that the drive to my house was very scary. I didn't know what to expect or how my kids would react knowing that I was home, but couldn't do very much for them. They are absolutely in love with Bryce and I love watching them with him. Emily is much softer than I thought she would be, thanks to all of her practice on Baby Alice.



My dad was at my house when I got there on Thursday and that was awesome!! He was very tired, but was able to spend a lot of time with the kids. He asked them for a kiss every night before bed, and it was so sweet to see him with him. I don't think he will ever know how much it meant to me to have him there. We went to the park on Friday night for a birthday party for a friend and it was beautiful weather. Dallin rode his scooter, and Emily finally was able to wear her "Ariel water shoes" in the water. My mom kept checking on the kids, so I was able to relax. It was also fun to see Bryce next to his "buddy" Spencer. They are only 2 months apart. We know they will be good friends because they have no choice!




On Saturday, Jeff's parents came into town and we had fun teaching them all about the WII. We will be sad when we have to give it back to Erik. It sure has been a lot of fun to have at our house. Jeff called me outside to show me a "surprise." I had no idea what he was going to show me. I walked out the door and saw Dallin cruising down the sidewalk without training wheels!! He had the biggest grin on his face! He was so proud! I had no clue that's what they were outside doing, but Jeff said he learned in less than 10 minutes. We had taken off the training wheels in September and he tried for a few days and got frustrated. So, he got a scooter for Christmas and that is all he rides. Now, he can ride his bike!! It was such a cool surprise!!

The Meltdown- My poor mom had the bad luck of taking me shopping. She had brought me a new skirt that actually fit, and I had cute new shoes that Sarah had been sweet enough to buy me(that match hers!), and I thought surely I would be able to find a shirt at Target that would fit. Wrong!! 5 days after having a c-section is not the time to buy new clothes. I started bawling in the Target dressing room when nothing fit. My mom was very sweet and tried to reassure me, but I was very depressed. I left very upset, just reminding myself about the cute new shoes.

Sunday went perfect. I found a shirt in my closet that I had forgotten about and all was well. :-) It was so neat to have both sets of Bryce's grandparents at the blessing. Jeff did a wonderful job and it was just a beautiful blessing. Every time I look at Bryce, I am just still amazed that he is even here. After the blessing we had a few good friends over to share in the joy with us. What a great Sunday. Unfortunately, we had to say goodbye to my mom and dad, but I am so grateful they were able to share this week with us. My mom has truly been an angel, the kids had an awesome time with her and never put up a fight. Emily especially loved being with Grandma and it was sweet watching them together.






Today, we spent the morning searching for a Wii with no luck. Then we went to downtown Portland for a great lunch and took Dallin's bike for a spin on the waterfront. It was a beautiful day and we all enjoyed the weather. We took Grandma and Grandma Marker to the airport for another sad goodbye. I am so glad they were able to be with us also.


We ended the day with a picnic in the park with Sarah and her family. I just sat and chatted with Sarah and Nikki while the kids played. I didn't actually see Nikki's baby because he was in the carrier and I didn't move from my seat, but our boys are only 2 weeks apart so it will be fun to have the 3 babies together this summer. Now, Jeff has taken the week off and he has already started laundry- good job!! I look forward to a great week with my new little family of 5! Reality won't set in for one more week. So far, Bryce is a sweet little baby. He is eating and sleeping well, let's just pray it lasts!