Utah, Here We Come . . . Again

I try to make a trip out to Utah at least once a year to visit Jules, Brrrian and their boys. It started when Kenner was born, and has worked out that we go out each year around his birthday by taking advantage of the Columbus Day weekend. It's always a quick trip and I don't always get to see everyone I'd like to see, but I'm glad to have the chance to go. Connor enjoys the trip "to Kenner's mountain" even though it's "far far away." We prepare for the trip with gadgets for him to play with along the way, and of course lots of DVDs to watch. We left fairly early Friday morning, picking up David at his house on the way out of town. Unbeknownst to Grandma, we had planned a surprise blueberry pancake breakfast at David's for her birthday. After we ate, we set out on our journey. However, we had only been on the road for 1/2 hour when tragedy struck . . . the DVD player died on us. Luckily, the other items we brought for Connor entertained him for the most part. Unfortunately though, the trip took 2 hours longer than normal due to making extra stops for Riley. So over the next 9 1/2 hours, I think Connor asked "Are we there yet?" at least two dozen times. We've never been so happy to arrive at a destination. Jules and Brrrian fed us dinner, and we just lounged around the rest of the evening. Even knowing how it would most likely end, we decided it would be fun for Connor to sleep in Kenner's room with him. It turned out to be a very BAD idea. Connor sleeps with a nightlight, whereas Kenner does not. That was just the beginning. We would periodically hear different noises while we were downstairs, so would go up to check up on them. Sometimes this kid was touching that kid or that kid was looking at this kid. It all came to a screeching halt around midnight when Kenner turned the light on in the room and Connor was crying because he had gone potty in his pull up. Connor slept in the room I was sharing with Riley for the rest of the trip.

The next day we lounged around some more, just spending time together and watching the kids play. Miraculously, the stars were aligned just right and all four kids went down for a nap at the same time. It will never happen again. Grandma stayed with the kids while the rest of us went birthday present shopping for Kenner. Of course by the time we got back, all four kids were wide awake. We had to prepare for Kenner's party, so it was just as well.











Kenner's "Red" grandparents came over for his party. (Brrrian's parents are U of U fans, hence they are "red." My parents are BYU fans, so they are "blue.") We were all entertained watching Kenner open his presents, especially when he opened one of his last presents and found his favorite character inside, Curious George. With that said, the REAL fun started when Red Grandma helped Kameron demonstrate his new skill. When his arm is raised, so is his middle finger.











The next morning, we woke up to snow on the ground. It was the first of the season for us. The boys were quite taken with it and wanted to go outside to play in it. However, instead of romping in the snow, they had to get ready for church instead. After church, lounged around some more and ended up amusing ourselves by dressing Riley in the infamous brown suit. The history of the brown suit goes back to when Micah was an infant. He wore this brown suit, which everyone says looks like lederhosen, and Nate thought it was so funny, it was handed over to him to keep. Nate didn't have it handy when Connor was an infant, but Kenner was lucky enough to model in it. Since then, Lexi has joined the brown suit club, as well as Kameron. It was only fitting for Riley to have to wear it as well.












Nate, Dre and Lexi were in Utah over the weekend for Dre's brother's wedding, so they joined us Sunday afternoon. Unbeknownst to Grandma, we had another surprise in store for her. Each time she's gone back to Utah, she has vowed to get in touch with a longtime friend, Vicky. However, it never seemed to pan out. Our families grew up together and we did lots of activities with together - camping, acting out Star Wars, etc. Knowing we were coming out, Julia took the initiative and contacted Vicky to invite her over for a surprise birthday party for Grandma. We were all sitting in the front room talking when there was a knock at the door. When Vicky walked in, Grandma glanced over at her, continued talking, then did a double take. She was very pleasantly surprised. Seeing them reunite was worth the trip in itself.

We headed home the next morning. It's always fun to see Connor and Kenner get together every few months since they seem to change so much in that time. Pretty soon, we'll be watching the progress with Lexi, Kameron and Riley as well.

Open Wide!

I had intended to get Connor in to the dentist when he turned 3. However, being 8 months pregnant at that time, it just didn't happen. I finally managed to remember to schedule an appointment for him about 6 weeks ago. In preparation for his first visit, we read a couple of books to help him understand what to expect. Thanks to Spongebob Squarepants and The Berenstein Bears, it actually went pretty well . . . for the most part. A new pediatric dentist office opened in the town center close to our home, so that's where we went. I'll admit my expectations of the office were a bit different. Being a pediatric dentist, I assumed it would be geared towards kids. The office itself was very modern and not at all what I consider kid friendly. The chairs for the cleaning were regular adult size, so Connor had to use his legs to keep his head propped up where it needed to be. However, I will say the staff was great. Connor was fairly impressed from the start when he settled into the chair and realized there was a TV in the ceiling for him to watch. Not only that, but it was playing one of his favorite movies, Ella Enchanted. That provided a great distraction for him for the first part of the cleaning, while the hygenist was poking and prodding around in his mouth. When it came time to the actual cleaning, however, he was done. He was out of his chair and through the door before I caught up to him. Apparently he didn't like the noise or the vibration in his mouth. We weren't able to convince him to hop back in the chair until the dentist came in. He introduced himself as Dr. Patrick. Connor asked, "You mean like Spongebob's friend?" He was immediately in Connor's good graces. Dr. Patrick finished the checkup by using a manual toothbrush with no further incidents.

When it was time to leave, Connor was allowed to pick out a prize from a treasure chest. Dr. Patrick also suggested that we check out their fish tank. I was pleasantly surprised. It's the one thing in their office that is actually kid friendly. It was a Finding Nemo themed tank. They had every fish you can think of from the movie - Nemo, Marlin, Dory, Flo, Gil, etc. Connor was pretty impressed. He was mesmerized by watching them swim around, which is a good thing. I may have to use it as a bribe to get him to go back.

Rollin'

Riley's newfound skill is rolling over. He does it when you least expect it. For instance, he can be in the middle of the bed one second, and on the floor the next. (Yes, I'm sorry to say that was the first successful roll over that I witnessed.) I've been trying to get it on film for a while now, but he does it on his own terms, when he wants. I was finally able to catch it on film.




P.S. In the video, I refer to Connor's crazy outfit that he was wearing. I made him pose so I could take a picture of his getup. Yep, those are Daddy's socks he's wearing.

FIVE MONTHS

He's such an adorable little chunk!

Misunderstanding

After picking Riley up from Grandma's house, then Connor from daycare, we headed over to Aunt Tin's to drop off an electric sander. She's in the process of doing some home improvements and is learning to use all sorts of tools. Since it was already late and we still needed to eat dinner, I had to break the news to Connor that we were stopping by her house but wouldn't actually be going inside. When we arrived, she came out to the car to get the sander. After talking for a few minutes, we said our goodbyes. As I was pulling away from Aunt Tin's house, Connor had a few questions . . .

Connor: Why did we have to give that to her?
Mommy: She needs it to do some work in her house.
Connor: Why?
Mommy: She wants her house to look nice.
Connor: Because her house doesn't look nice now?
Mommy: Well, no. It looks nice now. She just wants to make it better.
Connor: [silence] Is it sick?

Randomism

Connor was unusually quiet on our way to drop him off at daycare this morning. As we were sitting at a light, waiting for it to change, he blurts out the following - completely out of the blue.

Connor: Mommy, I love Spiderman.
Mommy: Well, he's pretty cool.
Connor: Well, actually . . . I love Spiderman AND Jesus.

And there you have it.

Labor Day

In honor of Labor Day, we invited my family over to play and have a BBQ. Connor showed Lexi the ins and outs of playdoh, with help from Grandma.

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When both kids grew tired of the playdoh, we headed outside. While most of the family played some croquet, Lexi hung out on the patio. Sadly, we had not mowed in preparation for the croquet, so the game was played "in the rough."

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Hungry Monkey

Since he's just 4 months old, Riley still has a ways to go before he'll be able to sit up by himself. Maybe in a month or so. Standing will come even further down the road, but he still likes to try. The one thing he doesn't have a problem doing, however, is sticking things in his mouth. If it's within his reach, it will go in.

I coaxed him into sitting up a second time, but he wasn't as focused the second time around. I think he was more determined to try to get the camera.

My Big Boys

I know I sometimes comment on Riley's size (admit it . . . he's huge), so I thought it was time for some comparison. Although I don't know much about football, I often joke that Connor will be our quarterback (you should see him throw!) while Riley will be our linebacker.

FOUR MONTHS

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Just too cute for words. And look at those rolls!

Bouncy Babe

If you've seen Riley's legs, you know that they're massive. And I say that with love. The rolls of chunk make me smile every time I see them. You can't help but squeeze them! Once he starts getting more active, I'm sure the chunks will melt away. Until then, he's found a fun way to put them to use.

Contagious

Beginning when he was just days old, Riley has been smiling and chuckling in his sleep. Starting when he was about 6 weeks old, he's been all smiles when he's awake. However, until today, he had only laughed in his sleep while in la-la-land. He loves to stand up, so I decided it was time to drag out the exersaucer. If I had known that's all it took, I would have dragged it out much sooner. Big Brother seems to bring it out in him as well.

THREE MONTHS

It's no secret. Riley is a big boy. And he likes to eat . . . a lot. I decided to jumpstart giving him solids, and gave him his first taste of rice cereal today. He ate it like he was born with a spoon in his mouth. I have a feeling we won't be having the picky eater issues with him like we've had with Connor. He's our Chunky Monkey.

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........Riley's first taste of cereal . . . ............................ and his "deer in headlights" look

Ice Cream Social

Our community has an ice cream social at the town center park each year. It happens to be within walking distance for us, so I loaded the kids up in the stroller and walked over to check it out. We ended up meeting up with Rita and her parents, which was a godsend. It would have been near impossible for me to handle Connor running all over the playground while also taking care of Riley. Thankfully, Rita's parents were able to help out, especially when it came to Connor trying out his Spiderman abilities. Both Connor and Rita seemed to enjoy running around even more than the ice cream.

Jake's Party

One of Connor's buddies from daycare, Jake, is turning 3 this week. To celebrate, he had a big birthday party this afternoon. Jake's parents hired someone to do face painting and balloon animals. Connor wanted nothing to do with the face painting, even though he thought the snake Jake's brother got on his face was pretty cool. Instead, he settled for a snake tattoo on his arm. Rita didn't want anything to do with the face painting either, but settled for a fairy tattoo on her arm.













Like two peas in a pod, Connor and Rita followed each other around. At one point, the two of them were standing at a water table. Another girl was standing between them, and out of the blue she decided to splash Rita, which did not make Rita happy at all. Connor looked at the girl and immediately splashed her as payback. Later, Connor and Rita were jumping in a blow up "bouncy house." The same girl knocked Rita down. Connor came to Rita's rescue again and helped her stand up, reached out to smooth down her hair, then continued jumping. What a little gentleman!

Watching TV

Oh boy. He has the TV blank stare, just like Daddy and his big brother. It appears we have another couch potato. The picture says it all.

Do Me A Favor

Connor's teacher at daycare called me last week to let me know there are a few openings in preschool and they think Connor is ready to move up. There's only one catch - he has to be potty trained. We agreed to increase our efforts in getting him to the point where he can make the switch. Connor has known for a while now when he needs to go potty. He just doesn't want to go. In fact, he's been known to stand in front of me, look me in the eye, and actually tell me he's in the process of doing his business in his pull up. It's been so frustrating! Luckily for us, his best friend Rita has moved up. As he puts it, she's now "in the big girl class." Surprisingly, this has lit a fire under him and he is now very willing to do what he needs to do so he can be in the big boy class. The other night, he announced he had to go potty. We were so excited to hear those words and rushed him into the bathroom. He asked for some privacy, so we closed the door. After a minute or so, he called out from the bathroom . . .

Connor: Hey Dad?
Daddy: Yeah buddy?
Connor: Can you do me a favor?
Daddy: Sure. What do you need?
Connor: Can you give Riley a hug for me?
Daddy: Sure.
Connor: Thanks.

A few minutes went by. Then . . .

Connor: Hey Dad?
Daddy: Yeah buddy?
Connor: Can you do me another favor?
Daddy: Sure.
Connor: Can you give Riley a kiss for me too?

This morning he woke up a bit early. I went into his room and asked him to play quietly while I got ready. Right after I finished blow drying my hair, I heard him rummaging around in his closet. I couldn't fathom what shenanigans he was getting into and soon heard him calling for me. When I opened his door, he greeted me with a big smile and wearing nothing more than his pajama top. He excitedly told me he had gone to the bathroom in his potty. It's a little portable potty that has been more useful as a step stool for him than as a potty. Until today. Realizing that he had to go, he took it upon himself to drag the potty out of his closet and took care of business. I think my eyes actually filled with tears of joy.

4th of July

The 4th of July was pretty low key for us this year. We stuck around the house most of the day, waiting for dinnertime for my family to join us for a BBQ. As in past years, we didn't have to go far to see the fireworks display. We can sit in our front yard and have a great view. Riley didn't last long enough to see the fireworks. He pooped out early, so snoozed in his crib while the rest of us watched the sky light up. Lexi wasn't sure what to think of the fireworks at first and ended up falling asleep in Nate's lap.

TWO MONTHS

He's such a happy baby . . .