The Best In-laws

I just have to say that I think I have the best In-laws anyone could ever ask for. I here people talk about how they struggle to get along with their in-laws, but I can honestly say I didn't hesitate once at the idea of staying with mine for 2 1/2 months when the option first came available, and after all was said and done, I'm glad I never wasted by time hesitating because it was Awesome. My in-laws are so easy to get along with and I am SO GRATEFUL to them for letting us come and stay for so long. The boys got a chance to spend some quality time really getting to know Grandma Suzie and Grandpa Judd, and I am so grateful for that, but I also really enjoyed spending time with them too. I will never watch Wheel of Fortune the same again after being there and we had a lot of fun playing a dice game on different occasions that was a lot of fun. I want them both to know how much I love them and really appreciate all they did and continue to do for us! They are wonderful. THANK YOU!
Well, we have arrived in AZ, after being bumped from our first flight and catching one two hours later at 2:00 a.m., and receiving $200 vouchers for each of us including Camden since we had to buy a one-way ticket home for him since he turned 2 one week before we flew home. We definitely won't complain! I keep forgetting everytime we fly that I am married to a man whose family thrives on being bumped. I never remember until Brady comes back from the desk by the gate and reports that we are on the list of volunteers to be bumped and reports the likelyhood of it happening. Usually it never happens, but they desperately needed exactly four people so when he walked up to me he was ALL SMILES. We arrived in AZ only 2 hours later than originally scheduled, and the boys slept the entire way, so it was all fine. Now we can fly somewhere else for much cheaper and possibly free depending on where it is.

Aloha Oe Hawaii!

Camden looked like quite the tourist at Pearl Harbor with his visor and his brochure. He spent quite a bit of time walking around and pretending he was reading the brochure. The other tourists were laughing, but unfortunately each time I tried to take a pic he stopped reading.


Camden with mommy's sunglasses. This kid has a love for sunglasses these days!

Unfortunately we have to leave this beautiful place tonight. We will truly miss it here. It really is an amazing place and SO Peaceful! We have all LOVED it here and hate to say goodbye, especially to Grandma Suzie. She and Grandpa Judd have been AMAZING! THANK YOU SO MUCH!! We spent our final days playing at the beach, watching whales, hiking, going to Pearl Harbor, and the boys and I went to the Dole pineapple maze (largest maze in the world). Tayson was pretty darn good at finding the different points in the maze and we all had a blast, while daddy stayed home and cut out a tree in the yard and did homework.
Not sure when the next time will be that we will post. We've got to figure out internet access in AZ. Goodbye to all our wonderful friends and especially Brady's mom here in Hawaii. We will miss you all dearly and have had a lot of fun hiking, flying kites and hanging out, and hello to our friends living in AZ that we get to see very soon. On to the next ADVENTURE! Aloha Oe for now.

Tayson "surfiing" as he calls it

Tayson loves the water, even when he gets trampled by a wave. Check it out!

Also, Tayson had a great quote this week that I can't pass up sharing. Brady was out fixing a sprinkler in the front yard for his mom, and Tayson came out and asked "Dad, what are you doing? Are you trying to get that thing to sprink?" Makes sense where he got that idea from. Brady busted up laughing, it was pretty cute though Tayson didn't have a clue what was funny.

Happy B-day Camden!

Happy Birthday Little Man! It's hard to believe you are two years old now. You're growing up too fast.

Happy Valentines Day!

Tayson made his Valentine for everyone, but still wants to keep it for himself so I told him we could take a picture and then all of his friends and Nana and Papa and everyone can see it. This Valentine is for all of his friends and family near and far away. In the past two days Tayson as really gotten into this holiday wanting to make Valentines at every possible moment. He seems to think any craft he makes at this time is somehow a Valentine, no matter what it is (truck, handprint, etc. ) just because it is around Valentines Day. Happy Valentines day from Tayson and Camden.

Best Hair Ever

Last Monday we had the opportunity to go hiking with Brady's brother and his family to a lighthouse down by Hanauma Bay. It was a gorgeous view of the island and we even got to see a whale way out in the ocean splashing around. Best part was Tayson's hair. Check out what a lot of wind and a little humidity does to this kid's hair. You all wish you had hair like this right? It was pretty cool. It was fun to do some hiking again, it seems like it has been quite a while since we've hiked as a family. The last time I hiked anywhere was with the young women in our ward in South Salt Lake up to Ensign peak when Camden was about five weeks old (Brady had to work so it was me Tayson and Camden that went. Tayson is quite the trooper when it comes to hiking. We are excited to get to Oregon and check out the hiking up that way. Brady and I used to hike quite a bit when we were dating here in Hawaii, but since having kids we haven't gotten around to it much lately. Hopefully we can change that.

Access Surf Hawaii

Last saturday we got to go with Brady to work. He got the opportunity to help with Access Surf Hawaii instead of going into work at the hospital(a program that allows disabled persons the opportunity to surf and just get comfortable with water. Check out the website www.accessurfhawaii.org They do it the first saturday of every month. The kids and I got to go down to the beach and spend the day with him and just hang out and play while he helped out. It was a lot of fun and he enjoyed the experience. It was awesome to watch people with amputations or paralyzed or other things like kids with autism, be able to surf. There were so many families there hanging out all day, you could tell there were a lot of regulars that come each month with their whole family to enjoy the experience. Talk about family bonding, it was so fun to watch.

Cute kids

Tayson and his ideas keep us rather busy trying to turn them into more realistic ideas. Tayson has all the confidence in the world! I don't know where he got it from, but he is sure he can do anything he can imagine! It has become quite the challenge trying to bring his imaginations to life without destroying them completely. Last weekend Tayson decided that when we got home (we were in town) he was going to get his tools and cut down a tree and build a truck he could drive in. What do you say to that? He thought for sure he could make it happen. I tried using the excuse that he didn't have any tools, but he countered with "Grandpa does in the garage". I then explained he is to small to use those tools and he can't cut down any trees because they are Grandma's trees. His idea then was "well then we can go to the store and buy me some wood". I tried to say it is impossible to make a truck that will really drive out of wood right now. He didn't buy it for a second, and I realized that if I use the word impossible I might shatter his dreams later on in life making him think everything is impossible. So I am now trying to avoid that word altogether. In the end I convinced him that he could build a truck with wood to drive in when he gets as big as daddy. He said "Thank you mommy!" in the sweetest tone and was very pleased with that idea. He then chose to make one with his toys in the meantime, he used a stool for the driver's seat and a flag pattern frisbee for the steering wheel. Camden was fortunate enough to be allowed to ride as a passenger, but he was required to sit rather far back. :) He says he wants to make a toy truck out of wood, so he keeps asking if he can still make a toy truck to drive in even when he is as big as daddy. This kid's imagination! He is stuck on trucks right now, we are interested to see what the next big idea will be.

Tayson and Camden also got sunglasses last week (both lightning Mcqueen). This pic of Camden was just too cute to pass up.

A Day in Luxury

My Aunt and Uncle came to Hawaii last week for a vacation and they invited us over to their condo one day to go swimming in the bay and the swimming pools at the Marriot Ko Olina Resort. Talk about Beautiful and luxurious! The boys had a blast, there was the perfect kid pool and the bays were wonderful too. There actually happened to be a Hawaii Monk seal lying on the beach when we got there. It had come into the bay and swam up to the beach and took a nap for a couple hours. Crazy, the marine biologist said that is very rare to see a seal and they aren't very common seals either. It was a fun experience to see it. The boys had a Blast all day! (unfortunately Brady missed out because he was working). It was so fun to relax. The last time I went to a resort like this was when I was living here for school and the Ades family (I nannied for them in Boston) came to Maui and I flew over there to spend a few days with them at their resort. Talk about luxurious. Thanks again Stan and Julie for the fun day!

My Husband

I was tagged by my sister Erin. This is the first time I've followed through with a tag, so I am improving with the blogging thing.

MY HUSBAND....

What is his name? Brady Kent Whetten

How long have you been together? 5 1/2 years on Valentine's Day (how romantic!)

How long did you date? 7 months

How old is he? 28 in April

Who eats more? Definitely him, though I can hold my own often.

Who said I love you first? I think Brady did, but I really can't remember for sure and he says he doesn't remember, but I am 95% sure it was him, in fact I think it was out in front of the Laie, HI temple.

Who is taller? Brady (near 6'2"), I'm only 5'7"

Who can sing better? Uhh, I think I am a little better, though he sings the most. He is known for breaking out in song on the spur of the moment when someone says a word that triggers any song in his head. It is pretty funny, but also one of the things I love about him. Most times it is a very random song that comes to his mind.

Who is smarter? Not quite sure. I think we are both pretty smart, but he is so much less stressed than I am on school stuff. I stress to the max when studying and he is so much more relaxed, but we usually both do pretty well on tests and such in the end. (I'm going off of our BYU years, I really don't know much about his grades in grad school).

Who does the laundry? We both did when we lived in Salt Lake (it was just whomever remembered first, or whomever ran out of an item of clothing first). Since we've been in Hawaii, I've done most of the laundry as he spends 4 hours commuting alone each day.

Who pays the bills? I used to do it all, but Brady has really gotten into budgeting lately (once a week), so I let him. I stress out too much when I look at our finances and debt, so I think he has come to enjoy it because it keeps more peace in our home when he takes care of it. I take care of paying the cc bills, but he does all budgeting right now.

Who sleeps in the right side? I do... it's the closest to the bathroom and the boys room and I'm the only one who ever wakes up in the night (Brady will sleep through anything and everything.) :)

Who mows the lawn? Brady mows his parents lawn, does that count? When we have our own lawn he will be the one to mow it. That is the husband's job in my opinion.

Who cooks dinner? Lately, me, but Brady is a great cook. When I was working he did a lot of the cooking, but now that I am free from work, I've come to actually enjoy cooking (who woulda thought cooking could be enjoyable?!! My mom will be SO PROUD. Now if you asked the question how likes cookbooks the most, Brady will beat me hands down (he LOVES cookbooks!)

Who drives? When it is just me and the kids, Tayson drives. :) I do. When Brady and I are both there, he usually always drives.

Who is more stubborn? Me. Brady doesn't like to argue and just remains quiet to keep from starting an argument. Thanks hun

Who kissed who first? Brady!

Who asked who out first? Umm? Not quite sure. We hung out with my roommates and his friends for an entire semester and we both liked each other, but neither of us knew the other liked us. I finally started dating another kid and Brady stopped coming around for about a month (though I only dated the kid a week or two max)until he got word from his friends that I was no longer dating the other kid. Then he used his niece and nephew who came to visit to weeks before Christmas to get to me (they were pretty adorable). He had his niece call me up to ask if they could come over and play (she was 3 years old). When we both figured out the other liked us, it was then time for me to leave for 3 weeks to go home for Christmas. My mom will tell you that she knew he was the one when he called my home to make sure I got home safely and she answered the phone. I'm glad she at least knew, because it took us a while longer to figure it out. Glad she knew so early on, since we only gave her a month after we got engaged before we got married.

Who proposed? Brady. He had figured out that he wanted to ask me at my most favorite spot in Alpine on my Grandmother's farm in the middle of a big open field that overlooks Alpine. It is where I used to go to be able to think clearly. He had the ring in his pocket for two days before proposing because he was waiting for a time to ask my father for permission (let's just say my dad purposely makes it difficult for his son-in-laws to get a chance to ask - he's not in a hurry to give away his daughters I guess). By the time Brady got a chance to ask my Dad that last day while helping him on the farm while we were up visiting my grandmother, it was 10:00 at night. It was too late to go to my favorite spot, so when we got back to my house from my Grandmother's he finally just went ahead and ask me on our front porch. It was a HUGE surprise, as I had no clue anything was going on. I thought it was romantic, but he is a little embarrased when people ask the question "how did you propose?"

Who has more friends? Brady- Brady has more high school buddies that he keeps in touch with than I do, and since we got married we've had mutual couple friends. With Brady in PT school with 43 other classmates and taking classes for three years straight with the same people and doing labs and other assignments together, he has gained even more friends. He has me outnumbered big time, fortunately I knew a few of his high school buddies while going to school out here, and they have married great girls who have become my friends too! Thanks guys!

Who is more sensitive? Me, I get emotional very easy, but Brady has a sensitive side on occasion too.

Who has more siblings? Same, both come from families of five kids

Who wears the pants? Beats me? Brady might have a different answer though.


Brady is wonderful especially for putting up with me! He is very patient with me. He is the optimist and I am the pessimist. I always imagine the worst things that could happen in every situation. He helps me to enjoy life and tries to keep me from worrying too much about everything. He is a wonderful father to the boys. They LOVE him so much, and love to wrestle with him or play hide and seek. He is so dedicated to his schooling so he can provide for our family. Thank you Hun! I love you!

What kind of ice cream are you

"You're as popular and relaxing as vanilla ice cream. You go with the flow, and get along with all sorts of people. You appreciate peace and simplicity, so you sometimes find crowds and loud noises overwhelming. You are a chilled-out, calming influence on the people in your life, and your friends appreciate how supportive and flexible you are." I don't know that Brady would agree with this though, he thinks I need to chill out most of the time.

An Outing to Find Seashells

One day the boys and I went out in search of seashells at Sunset Beach. The boys love finding seashells, though they are just tiny ones. Tayson especially likes to. Camden on the other hand dumps them out after a while and then I find a few more and put them in his bucket and he dumps them out shortly later to play with the sand. When we finally got in the car, he couldn't understand why he didn't have any seashells. (he dumped them out four or five different times!) Fortunately Tayson was nice enough to share two with him so he was happy in the end. What a nice big brother! (too bad he isn't that way all the time with Camden right?) I filmed this while we were hanging out in the sand. Camden loves to watch himself on the video and stands by the computer everytime I play it and answers all of the questions I ask all over again. It's pretty cute!

Hawaiian hut

Funny story about this house. Tayson asked me the day before to help him make a house outside. I didn't think much of it, but we didn't have time that day so when Brady got home later he played outside with them and Tayson again requested him to help build a house for Tayson. Tayson gather a bucket of rocks from the neighbor's house and when I stepped out I saw him with a large coconut on the ground and Brady was putting some small things on top, but it was dark so I couldn't see much ( I just assumed Tayson was wanting to make some small strange house, the coconut being the house). Brady told him they would have to finish it the next day. Well, the next day he asked me to go help him with his house. I went outside with him and realized he had taken his bucket of rocks and dumped them on top of the coconut mixed in with a few small seashells. I asked him what he wanted me to do and he said he needed more coconuts and rocks, so I thought he meant he was just going to put four coconuts on the corners to make it a little bit bigger house. It then dawned on me that he thought with lots of coconuts and rocks, he could some how stack them up and around and create a real house (big enough for him and Camden to play it, and somehow it would just magically all stick together and not cave in. I then had to show him how coconuts will not stack up on top of each other and we couldn't really construct an actual house out of the coconuts and rocks (especially since we couldn't steal all of the neighbors rocks and dump them on Grandma and Grandpa's sidewalk and I didn't know how to make it all stick together anyways without mortar or something.) He was so disappointed at first till I suggested the chairs and beach towels, and he decided that would be perfect (crisis solved). They loved playing in their house till we went to the beach a couple days later and needed to use the towels.

Another day in the sun

Just another day at the beach a week or so ago. The boys love the sand, though I'm not as fond of it when they rub their heads in it and it gets stuck in their hair and I have to scrub it out. But, hey, they are having fun right?