Christmas tree and Weather

Cutting down our Christmas tree
Tayson and Daddy hauling the Christmas tree to our van.

Tying it to our roof. By the way we have a minivan now. We got it the beginning of September and Brady finally got to say goodbye to his beautiful teal ford escort! Lets just say, he was more than ready to let it go. Long story short, we were offered this Awesome van at an incredible price from trusted people and it was too good to pass up, even though we weren't necessarily planning to buy one for another 6 months. We felt the Lord was watching out for us.
Decorating our Christmas tree

Well there won't be a post for a while as we are heading to Utah for the holidays, assuming the weather around here makes some kind of turn around. We're praying for that. We've got about 2 inches of snow on the ground and the schools have been closed for 3 days now. Lets just say, very different from Utah. Basically snow is VERY uncommon here and the roads turned to ice and they don't have snowplows around here so there's not much that can be done till it melts on its own. I don't think most kinds are complaining though as they seem to be getting an extra week of Christmas vacation. Tayson on the other hand was heartbroken that he couldn't go to preschool. He LOVES preschool. Oh well.

Okay finally a Pregnant photo

Lets just say I don't think I have taken more than one or two photos of me while pregnant with both of my last two kids, so this picture was very rare. But to meet some requests, here you go. I know later on I will probably regret having not documented my last two pregnancies, so I ought to try a little harder this time around. This is me at 17 weeks, well 2 days shy when the pic was taken last weekend, but you get the picture. I definitely started showing much sooner this time around. So far so good, or as far as I know. I guess I'll know more tomorrow at my appointment if things have changed. Hoping not though. Basically the photos of me pregnant will hopefully make others who are due before or around me and are much smaller feel better about how they look, cause I tend to get VERY BIG so beware, though things seem to be going at a different pace this time around, so maybe I will be wrong. I can honestly say that I am loving being pregnant. Seriously. I don't remember enjoying it this much (not the getting big and having to wear bigger clothes part, but just the idea of having a little one inside and knowing that we are going to be adding to this family of ours and having the boys so excited too). The other part might be that we aren't planning to find out the gender this little one till the baby is born this time around. There seems to be a little more excitement carrying me through this time so that might have something to do with it. Whatever the reason, I'm enjoying it.

Thanksgiving weekend

We have other pics since Thanksgiving to post, but I will try to get to them later. I wanted to at least post these for now.

We were invited by some great friends, Scott and Cielita from PT school to enjoy Thanksgiving in Seattle with them and their extended family. It was so much fun and they were all SOOO welcoming and nice and wonderful!!! Brady got one pic of the kids as they started eating their Thanksgiving dinner which was delicious. I'm embarrassed to say though that we forgot to take a lot of pictures that I wish we would have. The other four kids are Scott's sister's kids, who were SOOO cute and so nice to the boys too. Scott is next to Tayson near the back of the picture.

After dinner the kids all got to choose an adult to help them make a gingerbread house. Needless to say the boys were in heaven!! They had so much fun and ate so much sugar. Tayson chose Cielita to help him, they did a great job.

This is the one Camden and I made, though Camden was much more interested in just eating the candy and wanted mom to do most of it while he enjoyed the sweets.

Carly, the youngest niece was more focused on trying to get every piece of candy that she could onto the roof of her house. It was hilarious.

Scott then convinced Tayson and a couple of his niece and nephews to put frosting and candy on their noses to be Rudolph. Tayson of course will do anything Scott asks as he thinks Scott is SOOO cool.

Their niece Carolyn introduced the boys to the fun of paper cups. I've never seen kids occupied for so long with such a simple product. Tayson had SOOO much fun with them.

I did get one pic of Brady, Scott, Cielita, and Scott's mom setting up the Christmas tree.

The boys were priveledged on Saturday before we headed home to get to help Scott's parents decorate one of their Christmas trees. They were so wonderful to let them help. The boys had so much fun and are so excited for Christmas.

Tayson wanted a pic of himself with the beautiful Christmas tree.

We had a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving and are very thankful for family and wonderful friends. Thank you so much for the great memories Scott and Cielita and your family! The boys REALLY REALLY REALLY didn't want to leave, and kept begging to stay longer. They obviously loved the time there, as did Brady and I. Scott's parents have a Beautiful!! home and were so generous and kind. We appreciate it very much. We also did get to have our own little Thanksgiving the Sunday before Thanksgiving. We wanted to give it a try, or rather Brady did more than I. Hence he cooked the turkey, pies, yams, etc. I was in charge of the mashed potatos, that's it. It was fun, but once again we forgot to take a picture of it unfortunately. Brady did a great job especially for it being or first time having our own Thanksgiving. Thanks so much Hun for being willing to handle just about all of it!

Clearing up the Confusion

Apparently I confused a few people who thought maybe they had missed an announcement or something 6 or 7 months back and the last post was of our little guy. Though he's cute enough that I would love to have him be our little guy, he is only our nephew. So don't worry, you didn't miss anything.............. well that is unless you don't read this post then you might miss something. We are officially announcing that we are in fact expecting a baby in mid-May. We are all THRILLED! Especially the boys! However they insist it is a girl and that there is NO WAY it can be a boy. When asked if they would be happy if it ended up being a boy, they said No. YIKES! I'm planning on a boy as the tally on Brady's side of the family is 9 boys and 3 girls, our chances may not be so likely for a girl, but would love a girl of course too. We'll be happy with either. Boys are a lot of fun, and who knows if we get enough of them we can have our own little league team.

Welcome Little Guy!

Congrats to Brady's brother and sister-in-law on their BEAUTIFUL new addition to their family. They welcomed their fourth little boy into their family this morning. Nathaniel Clark. What a cutie! Glad to hear baby and mom are doing great! We are excited to get to meet him in person over the holidays. He is the 12th grandchild for Brady's parents. An even dozen now!

Video of Tayson

Our halloween pictures are in the post below this one. I just wanted to post this video of Tayson from this summer mainly for Nana and Papa and Grandpa Judd and Grandma Suzie and his aunties and uncles. He wanted to show them what he learned to do this summer before our pool closed down for the winter, but our computer was having issues with video for a while. Sorry it took till now to figure out a way that I could do it. He is pretty proud of himself, as are we. He is sure growing up!

Halloween Fun

Here are our pics from Halloween night and our ward party the week before:

A big strong superman and a cute froggy. If you ask Camden what he was for halloween, he says "a cute froggy". Tayson had his heart set on being superman two months before, so we were glad to finally get the perfect costume on Ebay.

Tayson at Brady's boss' house halloween night after trick or treating.

Camden at their house.

We went to Brady's boss' house for a halloween party after trick or treating. Tayson came to realize there that passing out candy can be as much fun as getting candy. He designated himself as the person to hand out the candy at their house. When we were getting ready to leave I found him here on the front porch all alone waiting for trick or treaters, though they were all long gone. He was sure someone would eventually come. This kid had SOOOO much fun on halloween, I felt so bad that the night was ending and it wouldn't be halloween for another YEAR!

AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST...

Buddy the Elf. Brady told me on Wednesday, THE DAY BEFORE HALLOWEEN that he wanted to dress up for halloween too. So Wednesday at work he emailed me and asked if I could somehow put together a "buddy the elf" costume, from his ALL-TIME FAVORITE holiday movie. WHAT?! The day before halloween?! Well, I have to admit, I think overall it turned out pretty well, especially on such short notice. Thank goodness for thrift stores, fabric, foil and a boss who ironically owns a bright yellow pair of spandex shorts. We were out of luck on the yellow tights, so we had to improvise with the shorts. It was also Brady's first time wearing tights I believe, and lets just say he has a new appreciation for women. He lucked out that the weather turned out quite nice by trick or treating time (it was cold and rainy in the morning) so he didn't freeze TOO much.

He even carried his syrup with him as we took the boys trick or treating. Though we didn't have any spaghetti to go along with it. The night before we also had to watch Elf as a family so that he could refresh his mind on all the lines.

Buddy the Elf and John McCain

Overall, the Elf costume was a huge hit with the ward members we ran into while trick or treating and anyone who had seen the movie. There were a few odd looks from people who hadn't ever seen the movie, but for the most part everyone recognized who he was. He got a lot of compliments and laughs.

The boys are loving sorting and playing with all their halloween candy every day since, and for probably weeks to come. Camden got the hang of trick or treating REALLY quick and began yelling "trick or treat" as soon as the doors opened. I had to keep reminding him to say it nicely, because he was becoming quite demanding. He loved trick or treating the first while till we came to a house where the guy opened the door dressed up with a "Scream" mask on. Camden FREAKED OUT!!! and started screaming and crying and stumbling backwards from the door. After that house, EVERY house we went to, he asked me if there was going to be a scary man there and was rather hesitant till I reassured him there probably wouldn't be anymore. He was much more cautious about the whole trick or treating thing. He hates masks, when we went to stores before halloween Tayson would occasionally try on masks, he'd even be standing right in from of Camden as he put the mask on, and as soon as he did, Camden would freak out and back away as fast as he could. So I told Brady he couldn't be a scary monster or anything for halloween because Camden wouldn't handle it. I don't think Brady quite realized the effects it was having on Camden until that guy with the mask opened the front door and Brady saw Camden's reaction. It was sad yet pretty funny at the same time. Oh ya, and no I did not dress up as anything. I don't dress up for halloween, I just enjoy dressing up my kids, and as of this year dressing up my husband.

Recall issued on foil-wrapped chocolate coins.

A friend emailed this to me and I also checked it out on snopes to make sure it is true, and it is. The only difference from the email I got and what snopes says is that it says on snopes it has taken place in Canada, so hopefully we don't run across any, but just to be safe, thought I would send out the word, I'm sure candy can cross the border on occasion so just be aware.
A recall was issued for foil-wrapped Pirate's Gold chocolate coins because they contain Melamine. "With Halloween fast approaching comes a warning to parents and kids regarding Sherwood brand Pirate's Gold milk chocolate coins imported from China . The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is warning the public not to eat, distribute or sell the candy. It is sold across Canada by Costco and may also have been sold in bulk packages or as individual pieces at various dollar and bulk stores. The chocolate contains melamine which is the same chemical responsible for killing several babies in China , and sickening thousands more."

Kite Festival

We spent the day at the kite festival at Lincoln City on the shore a couple weekends ago. It was a blast and it was amazing to watch these professionals with their kites, dancing them to the music, flying two or three kites all alone (one in each hand and one tied to his waist). It takes a LOT of skill I've figured out. It was a BEAUTIFUL day! and it was so fun to be a short distance from home, yet feel like we were on vacation somewhere far away. The shore is always a great place to go here.
Five people flew these kites together. They made the kites dance to music and everything, it was AMAZING! Brady thinks he's found a new hobby. Kite flying! Who knew you could do so much with a kite.

The boys and their sand castle/fort. They didn't have any buckets/shovels so they did it with their hands.

This was the boys favorite part. The GIANT Octupi. I guess last year they had 22 of these huge wind octupus in the sky at the same time, all on a short stretch of beach. Crazy.

Tayson's a Preschooler!!

Tayson officially started preschool on Oct. 14th. He has been so excited and after going to orientation the week before and seeing what a great place he gets to go to school at, he was even more excited. We are VERY impressed with the preschool run at one of the local high schools, by the high school students. I'm amazed at how qualified all of the students are to be running the preschool. They are AMAZING and the kids adore them. Tayson's transformation from the day before he started to 12:00 pm when we picked him up the first day, was crazy! He seems to think he is SOO much older and acts so much older (in a good way most times). He has sort of taken Camden under his wing and tells him all about what he learns in preschool. It is so fun to watch, and Camden of course is so excited to see Tayson when we pick him up, he runs and gives him the cutest hug. These past two weeks, the two of them have become even more so the best of friends. They play so well together it makes me so grateful they are as close in age as they are. Makes my life as a mom a little easier, which is great too. It is just so fun to see Tayson growing up and learning new things.

Homecoming Parade

Tayson got to be in the homecoming parade for the high school his first week of preschool. It was fun to watch him and Camden had a blast catching candy, especially since he was the only child around where we were and all the high school students loved him and tossed all sorts of candy to him.
Camden showing of just of few of his MANY MANY MANY treats.

Tayson and one of his many GREAT teachers

This is how he finished the parade. It was quite a length to walk, and apparently he got tired on the last block. He had a lot of fun though and got some candy along the way. Of course Camden was happy to share his huge stash of candy and now we have no need for going trick or treating. j/k of course we still will.

Soccer season has come and gone

Tayson played soccer this Fall with Daddy. We signed him up through the city but turns out they don't let kids his age play games. Instead, alongside a parent, they teach them skills. It is odd to me, because what kid under 5 has the attention span to learn and practice skills and techniques? Tayson played soccer on a team a year and a half ago (it was a funny to watch, as most kids, including our son, danced on the field, gave hugs to friends, etc, rather than chase the ball, but it was still a game). Tayson was a bit disappointed when he was told he wouldn't ever play a game. The perk of the lessons was that he got to practice with daddy, who is LOVES!!! He is very much a daddy's boy when daddy is around, especially weekends. Tayson was pretty proud of his certificate at the end, but also proceeded to tell us that he wants to play soccer games next time he plays soccer, not just practice. Camden had fun running all around kicking a soccer ball too, though he wasn't signed up for the class. Camden could kick a soccer ball all day if you let him. I'm curious to see what he does when he gets old enough to play the game.

Costume hint

I guess you could say if you look closely at the boys you will get a hint as to what they each want to be for halloween. These were taken at the Harvest festival at the children's museum that we now have season passes too. The boys had a lot of fun making fall leaves, seeing over 500 lit pumpkins and making scarecrow hands (basically because it entailed POPCORN!).

Prayers for my Niece

I want to take a moment if it is okay and ask for prayers in behalf of my niece Peyton. She is battling a severe case of croup, and is really struggling. Her little body is sure fighting, but unfortunately it didn't want to react to the first dose of steriods last weekend and has continued to worsen, so they have attempted a different kind. After multiple checkups and talking with her doctor and with the pros and cons of admitting her to the hospital (she would be monitored, but the fear of her catching something else, etc), her parents feel it is best to keep her home at least for tonight and monitor her themselves (fortunately my sister is blessed to be an RN so she's in good hands). However, if things don't improve, she may likely be admitted to the hospital tomorrow. I know my sister is very stressed and worried, who wouldn't be. Listening to Peyton breathing into the phone today while she was sleeping and then hearing her trying to cry/cough at the same time broke my heart. Her little body is sure having a hard time. My heart broke for my sister as well and the worry and fear she is going through as a mom. It reminds me of my most scary moment as a mother when I sat in the ER with Tayson in my arms and burns all over his chest not knowing what would happen. Its so hard to watch your child suffer and not be able to take away the pain. I feel helpless being so far away here in Oregon, though I don't know that there is much I could do if I was in Utah for my sister and niece. This is the only thing I can think of and I figure this is a good way to get the word out to a lot of our extended family and friends who can also pray for her. Our prayers are with you guys. Hang in there Peyton and Mommy and Daddy! We LOVE YOU, and Tayson and Camden sure love you too and are praying so sweetly for you to get better! Tayson's prayers earlier today consisted of something along these lines, "....Heavenly Father please bless Jesus that he can bless Peyton that she can get all better." He sure loves and adores her!

Quilt Giveaway

You could win this beautiful Fall quilt. Go to: http://www.pigtailsandsnails.blogspot.com/

End of Summer

The last month or so of summer consisted of hiking, running, and riding bikes of course. We are proud to announce Camden became Fully potty-trained this summer!! Hip Hip Hooray! Way to go little Man!
Brady and the boys competed in some fun run races the month of August at a park downtown . Tayson took 4th place two out of three weeks for his age group. I ran with Camden, and Brady ran alongside Tayson, hense we have no pictures of them actually racing. Brady then ran the bigger race later on in the evening each day. The boys had a blast cheering him on.

Hiking again at some beautiful Falls. Seriously one of the most beautiful places to live by.

Tayson riding his bike. Every day he is coming up with new tricks to impress us. Riding with one hand, going off curbs and now he is trying to pop a wheely as he goes off the curbs. So far...no injuries.

Camden found an old snow beenie of his a couple weeks ago and became attached to it and wore it everywhere, no matter the temperature. So of course he still had to wear it with his helmet while riding his bike. This summer he has really figured out how to ride by himself, without needing to be pushed or get stuck. He loves riding now, and it is so fun to watch the progress he has made.

Checking the mail- a daily ritual

They say they get so tired riding their bikes so they will stop for a periodic nap on the sidewalk at times, sometimes every 20 feet.

Tayson bought a flower plant at farmers market this summer that he is SOOO proud of. He didn't want anything that produced fruit or vegetables, he just wanted flowers. On occasion he will pick one and give it to mommy. He is such a Sweetheart!

Camden being silly walking around with his t-shirt over his knees.

Camden LOVES to run, if you click the picture I think it might enlarge and you can see the pure joy on this kid's face.

Tayson loves to take pictures with his camera, especially if dad is taking pictures too. Wants to be just like dad.

Camden posing for one of Tayson's pictures.

Tayson pretending to be a pirate.

Tayson and his funny faces. He keeps us laughing!

Tayson is also playing soccer right now, though it is more of a soccer practice type thing. He doesn't play a game, he just gets to learn skills with dad by his side. Not sure just how much they expect these little kids to learn. Tayson keeps talking about how he wants to play an actual soccer game, but he has to be in kindergarten to do that. Hopefully next year.

Other updates: Brady still LOVES his job and is learning a ton, which we are very grateful for. The boys and I go to the park at least twice a week while the weather is still WONDERFUL! It hasn't rained much at all, so I'm sure I'm in for a rude awakening when winter really hits. Hopefully we'll adjust, but for now we'll enjoy the great weather. Tayson also starts preschool Oct. 14th with he is SOOO excited about it. He tells Camden all the time that he is going to learn all kinds of things, the most random things. He will even at times tell Camden he has to practice some sort of trick at home in preparation for school. I'm just hoping he isn't disappointed when he doesn't get to learn some of the things he wants to learn. He has the mindset that he will be learning everything there is to know about everything when he goes to preschool. He is SOOO ready to go, and I'm excited for him. Well, that's all for now.