The Black Family

Birthday Boy in the House!

2011-02-02T09:20:00.000-08:00

I'm still trying to wrap my mind around the fact that I am a mom to a 4 year old! Seriously. Wasn't it just the other day that I brought him home from the hospital?!?! Our family is certainly blessed to have him in our home. He is the perfect little guy to be a leader and example to his siblings--being firstborn might not be easy, but Ethan is the man for the job! We love our little Ethan to pieces and love to watch him grow and learn and develop his personality!

Because he's 4 we figured it was time to have a birthday party for him with his little friends. I don't want to be the mom that has a party every year for their children, but I think every other year is perfect. Starting with 4 I figure I'll hit every "major year." 8 years old, baptism; 12 years old, Priesthood; 16 years old, dating; 18 years old, graduation. You get my point. Anyway, so we rented out Art Sports (a huge trampoline, obstacle course place) and invited his little Sunbeam friends. They had a blast! It was so adorable watching him run around with his little friends having a good time. Months prior to his birthday he had asked me to make him a gum-ball cake. I have no idea where he got the idea, but a gum-ball cake he got. I decided to kind of do a gumball theme. Because they only let you use the party room for 30 minutes I decided it would be best to feed the kiddos dinner (pizza and grapes and blueberries for the little ones, and chicken salad croissants for the adults), and let them take dessert (gum-ball cupcakes) home. Ethan also had fun picking out little favors to put in favor bags for his friends. Here are some pictures from his big day!!!

Ethan and Ivy

Ethan and his buddy Sam

E and Isaac

E and Hannah

E and Amanda

I tried to get a picture of the birthday boy with each one of his little friends, but that was easier said than done! I could hardly get the little monkeys to stop long enough for a picture!

Opening presents! Everyone was so sweet to pick out such fun gifts for him.

Cute water bottle labels

My first attempt at a gum-ball cake! And the gum-ball cupcakes-to-go. That took FOR.EVER! :)

A close up of the cake

Sweet Ethan chose Taco Bell for his birthday dinner. A few of the workers came over and sang happy birthday to him and passed out free cinnamon twists! So nice!

Family shot

Opening fun cards from Teigan

He was SOOOO excited to get money from Great Grandma and Great Grandpa Savage! He said he wanted to go to the store to spend his moneys. I asked him if he'd like to save it instead. He replied, "I'll save it until I get to the store." TOO FUNNY!

Sky bought him a bike helmet and Ethan loved it so much he decided to wear it for the rest of the night.

I don't know if it was out of fear of Teigan feeling left out or my serious obsessive compulsive nature to buy matching things for my boys but Ethan and Teigan both opened up new baseball hats. They loved them!

Me and the wonderful mama who taught me how to be a mama!

We had such a fun day celebrating our little guy who just isn't so little anymore! He is so smart and so talented and SOOO athletic that I really look forward to raising him to be a handsome young man! I can't wait to watch him excel in school, cheer him on at his sporting events, help him get ready for his first date, serve a mission, get married and have babes of his own! Hopefully in that order. :) WE LOVE YOU ETHAN BEAR!

Ethan Skyler, 4 years old. Seriously? I know I'm biased but........He is TOO STINKIN CUTE!!!

Water Fun at Villa Sport

2011-02-02T09:06:00.001-08:00

A few weeks ago we took the boys to the indoor water park at Villa Sport. Ethan loved it from the minute we walked in. Teigan, on the other hand, took a while to warm up to the idea of swimming around on his own and going down the water slide. But once he was comfortable there was no turning back! They both had the time of their lives and Teigan was out before we even left the parking lot!

Skyler and I took some books and magazines to read while my in-laws played in the water with their son, Brandon and my boys.

Ethan super excited after the water slide.

Teigan not so sure

Teigan the fish!

The awesome water park!

Family Pics

2010-12-30T15:50:00.001-08:00

My husband was a trooper this year taking 3 sets of family pictures! We did his family back in August. Our little family at the beginning of November. And the Savage side at the end of November. Whew! And I'm already planning our outfits for next year! Call me crazy. :)

Sky's entire family.

These pictures were taken by the fabulous Mandy Yates.

Nicole Valentine is awesome and took our little family's pictures.

LOVE LOVE this picture!

I seriously HEART this picture of my boys!!!

We used Mandy again for the Savage shoot too.

The whole fam bam

Daddy and his girls :)

All 6 of us!

I seriously love to take family pictures. I think it's so important to document your growing and changing family on a yearly basis! Sometimes I wonder if this would have been a deal breaker had my husband known about that before he married me. :) I know he secretly loves it too, though! He just needs to embrace it. He has the next 40 years to get used to it I guess.

It's a Festivus Miracle

2010-12-30T15:12:00.000-08:00

Seriously. Who is surprised to see a new post from Black land? You know when you put something off and continue to put it off until you just get so far behind it just doesn't seem worth while to do it anymore? That's kind of how I felt as of late. We're back in Colorado with both sets of grandparents who get to see the boys all day long--and I sort of figured they're the only ones who read the blog anyway........so it just wasn't a priority I guess. Plus, my camera stopped working sometime in August and we finally replaced it! So for those of you who happen to stalk my blog I'm back in business. :) Anyway, I was starting to feel guilty keeping your eyes from two of the most handsome toddlers around.

We love being in Colorado now! This was my first season snowboarding--thanks to an awesome husband who taught me how I actually really enjoy it! Ethan went up with us a few weeks ago for his very first day in ski school! He absolutely loved it and did really, really well!

Ethan was pretty upset when it was time to leave.....even after almost 6 hours of skiing! But we promised him he could go back to ski school soon and got him in the car--he didn't make it out of the parking lot awake!

Both boys really looked forward to Christmas this year. They were excited for Santa to come and asked almost every day to make cookies for him.

On Christmas Eve one of Santa's little helpers left new pj's and some magical reindeer food on the front steps. Ethan and Teigan looked like sweet little Christmas elves! The boys spread the magical reindeer food (oats and colored sugar) on the front lawn so Santa's reindeer could find our house and eat some food. They loved that!

They're showing off little flashlights Skyler bought for them....and E decided to wear the headband I use to keep my hair back when I wash my face. At least it matched his jammies :)

Teigan kept trying to pull the candycane out from the belt on his pajamas--so funny!

We had a great Christmas in Colorado!

Teigan: First One Out and the First One Back In

2010-06-27T22:29:00.000-07:00

I've been so bad about blogging. Everyday I tell myself that today is the day. But, alas, I always seem to find better things to do. Like clean up one pound of Epsom salt that Ethan artistically poured all over the bathroom floor. Or put every single book that WAS on the boys' bookshelf back where it belongs. Or sweep up the entire box of Cheez-it crackers Teigan spilled outside on the deck to keep the disgusting flies away. And in between there's lots of hugs and kisses, story-telling, diaper changes, meals and snacks to be fed, tickles, more hugs and kisses, laundry, dinosaur fighting, and so on. There just doesn't seem to be enough hours in the day!

You know when you feed the kids dinner, then put them in the bathtub and think you've made it to the home stretch because bed-time is near? And you think to yourself, what am I going to do for the next few hours? and you sort of feel giddy about it? Like the thought of popping popcorn and watching the ridiculous-gotta-watch drama of the bachelorette? Do you know that feeling? Well, some nights things just don't go as planned.

Take this example from a few weeks ago. The boys were in the tub and right after bath time is story-time and bedtime...and oh was I ready for bedtime. Their bedtime that is. I pulled Teigan out of the tub and put his jammies on. I went to the laundry room to grab Ethan's jams out of the dryer (I always throw their pj's in for a few minutes resulting in nice warm pajamas and snug little boys) when I hear Ethan say, "Uh oh mom, Teigan." I knew what I was going to find, and thankfully my camera was at the top of the stairs right outside the bathroom.

Exhibit A: I love that Teig's face is saying, "Uh should I not have done this?"(notice the lip bite) And Ethan is glad that for once it's Teigan causing problems!

Then he looks at Grandma for advice....

Hangs his head in shame

Tries to win me over with this adorable, toothy smile :)

And when I laugh, he laughs!

So, like I said, that night took slightly longer to get the boys down--but this memory was worth it!

On a completely different note, turns out my brother Scott is the fastest 200 m runner in the entire city of Colorado Springs. Third fastest in the 100 m dash, and his 4X100 team also took first. Boo-ya!
Scott is on the far left.

Ethan must have gotten his speed from Uncle Scott cause that boy is FAAAAAST! Or did he get it from his mama? Seems to me like my name is still hanging in the gym at Pine Creek along with the other girls on the 4x1 team with the record of fastest time or something. Just saying. :) Scott's got nothin on me. Well, except for a Varsity future in basically every sport. He's my ticket to fame. I'll be known as the sister of Scott Savage, NFL superstar. Or MLB superstar. Or NBA superstar. Ok, I might be slightly exaggerating. Emphasis on slightly.

After Scott's track meet, Ethan told me, "Mom I want to be as super fast as Uncle Scott so I can take gum out of your purse and run super fast and you can't catch me."

That's exactly what I was hoping he'd use his speed for. What more could a mother ask for? :)

Oh, and one more thing. See this handsome guy in robes on the jumbo-tron? Yeah, that's my dad.

Dr. Savage to you. Dear ol dad went ahead and got his doctorate degree. In 2 years no less. While working full time. Savages can do those kinds of things, you know. My brother Steve is about to begin his 3rd year in dental school and my dad said the only thing he wanted was to be Dr. Savage before my brother. Savages are also slightly competitive. Emphasis on slightly. Ha ha--mission accomplished! :)

Dr. Robinson said WHAT?!

2010-03-30T16:03:00.000-07:00

According to a sociologist at the University of Maryland, moms have about 30-40 hours of leisure time/week. What the what?! I think the last time I saw 30 hours of leisure time I was 10.

Now, let's be fair and admit that yes, sometime during my day as a stay at home mom I have time to ~~sit on the couch and eat bon bons~~ run a brush through my hair by noon. If I fit in a shower before that, I'm especially lucky. If it's a shower sans two little boys and I have time to deep condition my hair I'm even luckier. Really, though--I might have a few minutes here and there to steal a few minutes to myself but 30 hours of leisure time? Who is this guy?

Here are just two examples of something that Dr. Robinson considers "leisure time":

*Getting a root canal at the dentist.

SAY WHAT?! The last time I heard anybody say a root canal was a leisurely activity was.....oh wait, never. I would rather cover myself with honey and lay on an ant hill. That's a leisure activity, right? I mean, you're just laying there.

*Waiting on the side of the road for a tow truck after your car broke down (if no kids are in the car with you.)

Yes, technically you are sitting in the car with nothing to do......but how stressful is it that you're stranded?! It'd only be considered leisurely in my mind if AAA included a pedicure service while you waited for your tow.

Here are some types of "leisure activities" that turned out to be not so leisurely for me.....

Surfing the internet. That's great when you're not googling how to remove nail polish that your 2 year old "painted" on your jacuzzi tub.

Chatting on the phone. Wonderful if you're not chatting with an operator from poison control explaining that your one year old swallowed a bunch of your folic acid pills. Even worse when you have to call back a year later because your now 2 year old ate a half bottle of teething tablets and you find out that your information is already "in the system." (Turns out teething tablets are mostly sugar--how does that work??).

Driving to well, anywhere. During the 10 minute drive to Walmart instead of listening to your favorite playlist or taking in the beauty of nature you are listening to your 3 year old taunt his little brother with toys and books even after repeating a million times that you will "turn this car around!"

Watching T.V. Sure, leisurely enough. Unless you're on the floor surrounded by 4 loads of laundry that needs to be folded and you're 42" TV seems more like a 26" TV because 16" are covered with fingerprints that you've already wiped 6 times that day. Also, not so leisurely when you're watching a Dr. Phil episode (surrounded by said laundry) about some guy who claims moms have 40 hours of leisure time/week.

Eating lunch. Perfect if you're at a cute little restaurant. Or even a Subway. I'd take a McDonalds. Not a leisurely activity to clean up and eat the left-over remains of what your toddlers left in their highchairs. Ok, I've never really done that....well, maybe once. Or twice. But who's counting?

I love that Dr. Phil said according to a recent study, moms actually work 94 hours/week. And if they were to be paid salary, it would be around $117,000/year (or more)! To all you people out there who think being a mom is "easy"--put that in your pipe and smoke it!

***********Disclaimer*************

I LOVE my job as a SAHM :) Even if I did type this whole post with a 17 month old on my lap. And to be completely honest, I do have real leisure time that I enjoy on some days. Just don't tell my husband that.

Mind Your Own Business Trip

2010-03-19T13:57:00.000-07:00

Wanna know a secret? I mean, THE secret to accompanying your hubs on a business trip with two small children? We've gone on our fair share of "vacations" with Skyler, because the trip is practically free. Hotel is paid for, gas is paid for, food is paid for, etc. The only problem is the room is just that--one little room. Not a suite with an extra little room attached for little ones to go to bed at 8:00 and be uninterrupted or tempted to do what the mommy and daddy are doing. We've tried and failed miserably at putting our boys to bed then climb into our bed and turn the TV on without a little one standing up in the pack and play refusing to go to sleep. In a perfect world, the boys would lay perfectly still and not make a peep as to let their vacation happy mama enjoy being in a hotel where she doesn't have to worry about cheez-its being crunched into the floor, doing dishes, or cleaning bathrooms--because someone, for once, is actually going to clean up after her! In a perfect world.

You see, the problem with going with Skyler on his business trips with E and T is the fact that at night he has things he has to work on and also needs to get a decent amount of sleep. Well, when you have a 3 year old asking non-stop, "what are you doing? Can I do it? I don't want to go to sleep" and a 1 year old crying because he can see you and you are ignoring him, you don't get a whole lot done. There have been times where it would have been nice to go with Sky but he just couldn't justify the stress of traveling with toddlers when work is already stressful enough.

How do you guys travel with little ones?

I'm happy to say that I have found the answer to our traveling dilemma. How did I not think of this before? When the thought popped into my little head I swore I hit genius status. I remember feeling elated when, to my surprise, I got a 94% on my humanities final in college. This moment was SOO much better than that! Are you dying to know my secret? If you have already been doing this for years, please do not leave a comment. Let me believe that I just solved one of the biggest parenting dilemmas known to man. Applause is welcome. :)

Take a deep breath

***************************

Worked like a charm! Zipped 'em in and they were none the wiser to what was going on outside of that tent!

More on our trip to San Diego soon to come!

Groundhog's Day

2010-03-10T00:58:00.001-08:00

So I guess Punxsutawney Phil, the famous groundhog, saw his shadow this year. MY chubby little groundhog also seemed to have found his shadow--just last night. My closet light happened to be on and Teigan wandered into my bedroom. Because there was only the light from the closet, his sweet little shadowed appeared on the wall. I walked in and saw him staring at the wall. I wondered what he was doing until I watched him raise his darling little arm up in the air and saw the amazement on his face when his shadow did the same thing. Then he put his arm down. Then back up. Then he, oh yes...are you ready for this? He kissed his shadow!!!! And kissed it again and again. Then I wrapped him up and covered him with a thousand little kisses because you know what? He's just that delicious.

As he was walking out of the room, he noticed that his shadow was following him. So he started taking only two steps at a time probably wondering what the heck was going on.

Now I have some good news and some bad news. What do you want to hear first? Ok, the good news is that Skyler is done with this year's busy season. The bad news is that busy season isn't really over it's just some sick joke that his firm wants to play on me by making me think that because he's done working 15 hour days at the Venetian his busy season is over when really they're going to make him work a couple different clients that aren't even in Las Vegas so that I really can't see my husband. Phew. Felt good to get that off my chest--try to read it all in one breath because that is how I would say it if I were actually talking to you in person :) Yes my friends, that means my husband has to travel--a lot. And it sucks. But that is a whole 'nother post for some other day.

For now, I'm lucky to have two other men in my life to occupy my time. FBI special agents Aaron Hotchner and Derek Morgan. Just kidding. Of course I'm talking about my handsome kiddos!

Snips and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails

2010-03-10T00:16:00.000-08:00

That's what little boys are made of. Really? Do you ever wonder if perhaps the person who coined that phrase didn't actually have a little boy? Certainly they didn't have two of them 22 months apart. Certainly. For my boys the correct phrase would be something like bumps and bruises and cheeto-stained fingers....that's what little boys are made of. Sometimes my rambunctious little men are too much to handle! I try to convince myself that obviously this ~~madness~~ no, madness is the right word, comes from my husband's side of the family. After all, he does have 3 brothers. :)

However, the upside to continuously stepping on legos and cars and other pointy objects that would cause any educated, well adjusted and otherwise rational person to curse is the fact that my boys are buddies for life. I was just telling my mom the other day how I finally knew that my babes were becoming best friends.

You see, I typically bathe them after dinner every night. Ok, on my good nights. After bath time is a little bit more play time, then off to bed they go. Lately though, and I mean within the last week, I've been putting Ethan and Teigan to bed sweatier (more sweaty?) then they were before their bath. Besides being sweaty they usually have a bump or bruise or both right before bed as well (right now Ethan is sporting a mean black eye and Teig's got a pretty sweet battle wound on his forehead). That's when it dawned on me. They are my tough little men and they are best friends! They run and chase each other (you should see Teigan's cute naked little legs try to run as fast as Ethan!) and tackle each other and wrestle until one breaks free of the other. They zoom cars in circles around the house and equipped with swords (usually an empty water bottle or flash light) they fight mean dragons. They take turns going down their slide and stack their building blocks until one finally gives in to the temptation of knocking the other one's down. You'd think this would end in tears but thankfully, it causes laughter.

It's no secret really that I feel like I can't possibly be a mother to ALL BOYS. I don't know how my mother-in-law did it. In fact, at my last OB appointment my doctor asked if we were planning on having more children. Of course was my response and because he delivered both of my boys he jokingly asked, "what if it's another boy?" I answered his question with a question. "Do you deliver in the psyche ward?" :)

Seriously though, my boys are the best. If I have another couple of boys just like Ethan and Teigan I would be happy as a clam. ~~As long as they were followed by a little girl~~ :) There's just nothing like watching your two children build lasting friendships and bonds that can't be broken. I hope I always hear Ethan whisper to Teigan, "Let's jump on the bed Teigy bear, but shut the door so mom doesn't see and we have to be quiet." Because that right there--means they are buddies for life and will always watch out for each other.

Enough is Enough is Enough.......

2010-03-03T09:51:00.000-08:00

Alright. I'm lying. I couldn't get enough of the Olympics. And now they're over. I don't know what I loved most about the Olympics--the fact that they kept me busy and un-bored all the many many nights that my husb was working til midnight (or later!)??

Could it be the joyous pride you feel to be an American? On the blessed nights that Sky was home to watch with me, I'm quite sure I drove him mental (or he thought I was mental) asking him more than once, twice, three times, "Aren't you just so happy to be an American?"

It could very well have been those P & G commercials honoring mothers that made me tear up a time or two. Or three. "Is there anything better than being a U.S. Olympian? There is, actually. Being that U.S. Olympian's mom." AHHHHH! LOVE THAT!

Maybe the fact that I have a secret crush on Apolo Anton Ohno made it that much more enjoyable? Let me clarify, I'm not exactly thrilled by him because of his looks so much, rather it's something about the way he skates and all the records he was trying to break made me nervous and giddy to watch him! Luckily, I was able to disguise my school girl crush quite well. I think Skyler thought my sweaty palms and racing heartbeat was because he came home early those nights (I'm talking 10:00).

But really, my favorite part of the Olympics? That commercial about Dan Jansen. You know, the one where he promised to win a gold medal for his dying sister, Jane? But then he crashed and burned and Jane died never getting to see him win a gold. Until seven years later, he skated a victory lap of his first gold with his daughter.........JANE.

I. CAN'T. TAKE. IT! I was usually in tears by the time it showed him falling and knowing his dream of a gold for his sister was ruined. And then even more tears when he skated with his daughter. I probably mentioned the fact that I loved that commercial a bazillion times to Sky, too . Between that and my undying need to profess my love for being an American, Skyler is probably glad the Olympics are over.

Not quite there yet......

2010-02-19T17:28:00.001-08:00

As you can tell from this picture here........

........somebody is still learning how to use a spoon. What's it like cleaning up a mess like this on a daily basis, you ask? Would be frustrating if the face underneath the mess wasn't SO DARN CUTE!

In other updates, I'm still quite amused at the daily chatter that takes place in our home. Being a mom of little boys is something else, that's for sure.

Ethan likes to ask how to spell things lately, since I've been teaching him how to spell his name. Here's an example.
E: "Mom, how do you spell lego?"
M: "L-E-G-O."

E: "How do you spell book?"
M: "B-O-O-K."

E: "Mom, how do you spell buzz lightyear, defender of the universe?"
M: "Uhhhhhhhhh......."

Ethan has also entered the wonderful stage of "testing" us what he can and can't get away with. So I use phrases like, "If you do this one more time....." or, "the next time you don't listen to mommy........." and they are usually followed with a threat of some kind. Take away his computer, his toys, his movies, sit in time out, etc. Which really, as my dad would say, it's not a threat as much as it's a promise because trust me, I ALWAYS FOLLOW THROUGH. The day E realizes this--both of our lives will be much easier. Anyway, so today Skyler must have said something to Ethan along the lines of getting his computer (DVD player) taken away if he didn't listen. To which Ethan, in a very authoritative voice said, "DAD, IF YOU TAKE MY COMPUTER AWAY.........."and then he just sort of trailed off because he couldn't think of a good enough threat to use on daddy. Too funny.

I also find myself saying, "Get off of your brother right now." To both boys lately. Teig is starting to figure out that he's not so small anymore.

As I'm typing this both of my boys are throwing ridiculous fits (maybe trying to see which one can scream the loudest) which makes me wonder when the insanity will end :)

The big 3!

2010-02-11T09:25:00.000-08:00

We celebrated Ethan's 3rd birthday on January 29th. It's hard to believe that 3 years ago I had my first brand new baby! And now 3 years later I have two little guys who aren't babies anymore. We love E more than words can express. I can't believe he's ours and we feel so blessed he calls us mom and dad. Ethan has been on a Buzz Lightyear kick for some time now. He swears he's a space ranger and likes to use his laser beam on cars that are passing by. I love his little imagination! He can always be heard saying, "Buzz Lightyear to the rescue!" or "To infinity and beyond!" So obviously we went with a Buzz Lightyear theme. Those of you that know me well know that birthdays are no light matter for me. I go all out. Hey, it's their one day/year that they have all to themselves. Unless you're my dad. Then you have to share your birthday with your little brother. Lame. Ok now for some Buzz overload.
The moon cake didn't take long to make at all. The little alien heads? Took some time. Thankfully my brother Jared helped out by rolling out the blasted tiny eyeballs. 3 for each alien? Poke my eyes out.

Used a new brand of fondant for the aliens...Fondarific. And fondarific it was. Tasted just like buttercream. In Ethan's words, "So YUM."

A close-up. All the cupcakes were sprinkled with edible glitter. Disco Dust. Best. Idea. Ever. If you want your kids to eat their food--just sprinkle some glitter on it. Works miracles. I put some on green beans the other night. My boys wolfed it down. I'm not above lacing my children's veggies with glitter if it means they eat it....heck, I'd probably eat worms if they were served to me with disco dust. Everything is better with disco dust. 'Nuff said.

It takes some concentration to keep your 3 fingers up but your pinky finger down :)

Told him to smile and this is what I got.

Opening presents

Proud to have blown his candle out all by himself

Teigan might have been slightly miffed that the attention wasn't all on him.....he was just happy to finally get his cupcake!

Mama and Ethan sporting the big 3 again. Oh I love that man.

It was a fun day and we were so happy to have been able to celebrate in Colorado with both sets of grandparents and even one great grandparent! Happy Birthday to Ethan!!!

On a side note, my brother Jared turned 13 while we were in town. I used the leftover fondant from E's party to make Jared some pretty sweet basketball cupcakes. We are all partied out until Sky's b-day in April :)

LOVE.

2010-02-11T09:12:00.000-08:00

Looking at some of these random pictures just bring a smile to my face. This is my life and I love it.
I could watch Teig eat corn on the cob every single day without it ever getting less funny.

Gotta love 4 little buddies

Especially when 3 of them are little boys and 2 of them are wearing matching jammies

2 little monkeys....

Playing xbox with daddy. (Sky has his game face on)

The best place on earth for mommies and little ones

Can't imagine my life without this little nerd alert :)

BFF's :)

Family Pics 2009

2010-02-11T09:00:00.000-08:00

We had the beautiful and talented Marissa Moss do our family pictures this year. I don't know about anybody else, but I practically lose sleep over coordinating outfits. Skyler is such a good sport to go along with my antics because his thought is "can't we just wear whatever?" To that comment I could just roll over and die. And I would before I let my family just wear "whatever." Ethan and Teigan did great, and Marissa had the fabulous idea of incorporating hot chocolate into our session. It was a blast and I totally recommend Marissa to all of my Las Vegas peeps.

UGHH!!!

2010-02-11T08:40:00.000-08:00

The title of my post is exactly how I feel about updating a blog that has been neglected since Christmas. It's also Ethan's new form of expression whenever Teigan tries to take his toy, books, computer, etc. I hear, "Teigan no that's MY computer. UGHH!!!!!" at least a couple of times per day. That's most likely my fault because I say UGHH to pretty much anything that frustrates me. I need to be better about remembering that I have little ears around that listen and mimic pretty much everything I do. Ok, on to updating.

Christmas 2009 was good to us! Ethan was so excited to make cookies for Santa. We put some out with milk and a carrot for Rudolph and told Ethan that Santa would eat them when he came to our house to leave presents. You'd think that'd freak a little guy out a bit. It kind of freaks me out that it's tradition to tell your children that some big old bearded guy just slides on down the chimney and walks around your house while you're sleeping.....any time other than Christmas that just would not be acceptable! :) Anyway, this is Ethan being super excited that Santa has come.

Teigan got a new slide for Christmas

And this is how he felt about it :)

Daddy and E building with new legos--Ethan's absolute favorite thing to do!

Teig and Ethan celebrating Christmas at Grandma and Papa's house in January.

It's so much fun to celebrate the Christmas Holiday with two little guys who have such happy little hearts. We love them.

Celebrating FOUR Years

2009-12-15T08:41:00.000-08:00

Really? Where has the time gone? I know we have two boys now, but seriously--it feels like yesterday we were dating and falling in love.

I've heard it said before that marriage is a mirror. And I completely believe that. Initially the notion of marriage brought mostly thoughts of always loving Skyler, but now looking in retrospect at our years together, I’ve come to see that so much of it has been about me learning and growing to be a better person. I’m amazed at how much I have been stretched and challenged and made better because of my marriage. My marriage mirror has shown me that I can be stubborn and selfish. It has shown me that I need to support more and complain less; that I need to continually seek maturity and wisdom where I harbor irresponsibility.

When I look into my "marriage mirror" and see my unattractive qualities I feel so blessed to have an eternal companion who looks past them to see the good. Someone who helps me to be better. Someone who loves me when I am unlovable and respects me when I am not worthy of respect.

My husband makes me feel beautiful, treats me as though my spirit is gentle and worth loving, and that I am valuable; I have realized, although I don't always show it, that I have a heart for Skyler's happiness--that I only want to see him succeed and desire to take care of his spiritual, physical, and emotional needs. I've learned through marriage how important it is to love, support and understand my husband--to really be his best friend.

When I fell in love with Skyler and agreed to marry him--I knew I was beginning a journey which would require us to stand side-by-side, hand-in-hand no matter the trials we would face. What I didn't realize but now do, is that as much of our marriage is a collective journey to be done together, it is also an individual one. One where I am supposed to learn and grow and stretch my capacity to do things I never knew possible. It's just comforting to know that while I work on my individual weaknesses, I have a husband who loves and supports me.

To my honey on our anniversary, I want to thank you--for the memories, the joy, and the richness you have added to my life. I love you more than all of my favorites combined. Thank you for always loving me...especially in those times that I have been "unlovable." I know we are meant to last an eternity. I love you!

Out of the Mouth of Babes 2

2009-11-25T09:23:00.000-08:00

Wrestle. That's what my boys do. All day everyday. Teigan is usually an unwilling participant in this sport, but he does what he has to to survive. Typically I can see the look in Ethan's eyes before he attempts to tackle Teig and I tell him "Don't even think about it mister." To which Ethan has a look like "how did she know?!" Other times I will walk in mid-wrestle to Teigan's screeches (doesn't cry-just screeches at me to rescue him) and I have to say, "Ethan get off of your brother-he doesn't like it!" And then there are times like the other day when the boys are rolling/wrestling around playfully. Boys will be boys right? So I allow that.

I was folding clothes and the boys were wrestling behind me. I heard them stop rolling around so I turned to look at them and Ethan had pinned Teigan--I was about to say "ok, get off your brother now" when Ethan said to Teigan, "Copper, you're my very best friend." Teigan didn't respond. Obviously. Frustrated by this, Ethan said, "Tei-GAN, you're SUPPOSED to say 'and you're mine too, Tod." I choked on my water. It was sooooo funny!

In case you didn't know, these lines are compliments of Fox and the Hound. Tod (fox) and Copper (hound dog) are playing when these lines take place. My little genius memorized these lines to use at the perfect time with his best friend. How much do I love my baby boys?? Thiiiiiiiiiis much!!!

New Moon--Can't Wait to See You!

2009-11-19T09:15:00.000-08:00

So unfortunately because we have children and basically no family or friends here that we feel comfortable asking to watch the kiddos while we abandon them to run around like teenagers til all hours of the night so we can fill our selfish needs to get high on vampires and werewolves...(I might be grouping Skyler in on this without his full consent, but I think secretly he's into it too)--we are just going to have to act like the adults that we are and wait until a more appropriate timing. *SIGH* Thankfully, my sister is coming for the weekend so we won't have to wait TOOOOOO long for a sitter! Am I excited? Duh. Am I obsessed? More than you know. Am I Team Edward or Team Jacob? Both, and I can explain myself.

For years Skyler has been calling me Bella. I guess that's my pet name and I love it. And guess what? He started calling me that 4 years ago WAAAY before this whole Twilight thing got out of hand. So basically, if I'm Bella--Skyler is Edward. Or Edward is Skyler. Either way--Edward is my husband. So obviously I have to be team Edward. I can't diss my spouse like that.

However, if I'm looking at it like that, I certainly can't leave Jacob out. You see, Jacob is Jacob Black. And I am Kellie Black. So obviously I'm married to Jacob too. The last name proves it. I'm an old school kind of gal and taking the last name of my man is what I do. So you see my predicament. Most people are either Team Edward or Team Jacob and there is no gray. I have to stay true to my men so you see my friends, I am both Team Edward and Team Jacob. Don't hate. Don't judge. I obviously had no choice in the matter. The fates have sealed it.

I am uber excited and can't wait to watch my husbands on the big screen with my husband. Wait?? Does that make sense? Oh yes my friends, oh yes it does.

It's Fun Being ONE!!!

2009-11-16T11:08:00.001-08:00

This post is a little overdue--but I was in Colorado for 2 weeks and then home for a week and I just hadn't gotten around to posting.

Sometimes it's hard to believe that not only do I have a one year old--it's my SECOND child who just turned one. It feels at times like I should still be in drivers ed or going to prom or something. Life has gone by fast and I've been loving every second of it!

Teigan is our super sweet, cuddly baby boy. We love him for the spirit that he brings to our home. We know our family isn't complete just yet, but for now, we know we have these sweet boys for a reason. I don't have any stats on Teig yet because he hasn't been to the doctor because he's been fighting a cold and they only do "well" visits. He's not quite walking yet--he still prefers to crawl. I think he doesn't want to walk because he's smart enough to know that when he does Ethan is going to be ALL over him! Tackling, wrestling, pushing, etc. We love him and are so grateful to have him!!!

Teigan LOVES, LOVES, LOVES Elmo--so Elmo birthday theme it was!

The Birthday Boy!!

No day is complete without something like this: Teigan being held against his will!

Opening his first present

Time for birthday cake and ice cream!

Cupcakes Kristen and I made

A close up--super easy to make!

Teigan's 1st attempt--a bit timid.....

And his second attempt!

Onto his second cupcake

Grandpa Black giving Teigy a drink of sparkling champagne--loved his reaction!

Completely relaxed!

LOVE this CUTE face!

Tub time--ready to call it a night!! Until next year......

Birthdays are so important to me and I know Skyler might think I'm a little nutty when it comes to celebrating (I go all out)--but honestly, each year that I have a healthy, happy baby is totally worth celebrating in my opinion! I want each of my children to know, especially on their birthdays, that they are loved and appreciated individually. I'm so thankful for my family. Especially Teig on his birthday!

Out of the Mouth of Babes.....

2009-11-03T20:01:00.000-08:00

Ethan, Teigan and I are visiting in Colorado Springs while Skyler is away on business. This morning Ethan woke up and said he wanted to go up to see Scott and Jared. I told him that they had already left for school but Ethan insisted he checked it out for himself.

He came back downstairs about 10 minutes later and reported that Scott and Jared had in fact gone to school. While he was talking I could smell Snickers bar on his breath. Our conversation went something like this:

Me: Ethan, where did you get the candy??

Ethan: (doesn't respond-just stares at me)

Me: Ethan, who gave you that candy??

Ethan: Ummm.....(hesitation) Joseph Smith.

Me: LOL!!!!!!

Oh how I love my talking two (almost 3!) year old!! The things he comes up with just makes my day :)

That one time I signed up for a MARATHON and had to run with only one shoe....

2009-10-19T15:07:00.000-07:00

This weekend was the big weekend for me and my sisters. We signed up to run the San Francisco Marathon back in March and started training in June. The reason for signing up was because I read that at the end of the race you were given a necklace from Tiffany & Co--and I just couldn't pass that up (of course we wanted to raise money for lymphoma as well)! Training in Las Vegas was not fun because it was so hot over the summer that all of my runs were on treadmills in a HOT, SWEATY gym, but that's what I had to work with and I had to make it work. It helped that my sister lived with us during the summer so we got through some pretty grueling runs together.

Of course, me being the lucky gal that I am, got sick with death like 3 weeks before the marathon. I never once thought that I wouldn't run it, because it wasn't really an option for me. I had trained and I was going to run if it killed me. That's how badly I wanted the necklace! :) The week before the race I pretty much only had a bad cough so I didn't think it would be too bad......

So Friday afternoon I met up with my sister in the beautiful city of San Fran--we rented a car ($15/day more because I'm "under-aged" ridiculous) and headed to Union Square to pick up our race information and bib numbers. We didn't realize this was going to be such a stressful situation!!! Neither me or my sister are all that great at reading a map and we didn't have GPS so we just kind of went with it. It was so embarrassing!! Public transportation honked at me a couple of times, I flipped U's when I shouldn't have, ran red lights, almost hit a few bikers (they think they own the streets!) and saw a pedestrian laying in the road with a big gash in her forehead--and was so glad it wasn't my fault!! I also had a run-in with a fire truck that was coming up behind me with the sirens blaring but I seriously had no idea where to go! I was at a red light in the left lane and was seriously starting to sweat bullets, but I was able to move out of the way. Right around this point we decided to switch drivers so I could navigate. We saw much more of San Fran then we should have!!! Kristen wasn't any better of a driver in the crazy streets of San Fran--we laugh because she got honked at by the San Fran Trolley that goes like 20 miles/hour. It was sooo funny. I told her I'd rather be honked at by the public transportation. Finally we made it to Union Square after asking like a million pedestrians where the heck to go. It was certainly an adventure. The Nike tent was all set up and blaring great music. We got lots of free samples and saw lots of cool expos. One thing they had there were stationary bikes that blended smoothies for you by riding at a certain speed. The guy saw me and Kristen and pretty much forced us up on the platform and onto a bike! We were both wearing 5 inch stilettos!! Thankfully, we didn't embarrass ourselves any more than we had already that day and were able to blend up our smoothies. We walked away with a delicious drink and our pride still in tact :) Trying to get back to our hotel was another problem. Can I just say that California has the most confusing highway and interstate roads that I have ever seen?!!? Gosh darn ridiculous I tell you. So Kristen was driving again and at one point I think I could have wet my pants from laughing so hard when Kristen was put in a similar situation that I was in with yet another blasted fire truck. We were in the far right left turn lane at a red light and of course we hear the sirens coming up behind us. Kris was like, "Crap Kel what do I do??!" I didn't really have any suggestions other than to tell her to move out of the way. Before we know it, Kris is out in the middle of the intersection blocking all traffic and freaking out. The truck started honking at her so she flipped an illegal U at a red light. It was oh so funny in a not-so-funny way.

Saturday was rather uneventful. We went to an early morning movie and did some shopping near our hotel. Later that afternoon, we headed up to Pleasanton to meet up with our sister-in-law who's family lives there. They were gracious enough to fix us a delicious carb-filled dinner to aide us in our marathon.

A huge shout-out to Sherry and Rod Cross who did literally everything they could for us to make our marathon experience as less stressful as possible. We are so grateful!! They got up with us at 4 AM to drive us to the race so that we didn't have to worry about parking and stuff. It was such a relief! Brittanie's sweet dad even hand made and colored individual signs for us to encourage us along the race (they even drove around the course to meet us at every couple of mile markers--it was much appreciated support!). The race was set to start at 7 AM so by 6 AM we were in the front of our running phase line just waiting. And it was COLD from the wind. We were all getting pretty anxious and nervous and before we knew it we were off! Running through the downtown streets of San Fran. Kristen, Britt, and I were weaving in and out of the HERD of people (20,000) to try to find a spot that was less congested. Around mile 3 we lost Brittanie and then at mile 4 Kristen and I got separated!!! I was near tears and so was Kristen because we had planned on staying together--but such is life. We had to run the next 22 miles all by ourselves!!! I figured that Kristen was in front of me and so I ran FAST (which killed me) to try to catch up to her and she slowed down and even waited at the drink stations for me. Apparently I passed her (SO SAD) because I finished the race about 7 minutes before her. We really could have used each other for support because this marathon was EXCRUCIATING!!! There were far more hills than I anticipated. And by that I mean that it was all pretty much UPHILL!!! I wanted to kill myself. But there were yummy snacks for us along the way (bananas, oranges, luna bars, luna moons, CHOCOLATE) and there were drink stations every 2-3 miles. It's pretty invigorating to grab a drink that's being handed to you by a million volunteers then just throwing it to the side of the road when you're done with it. We ran through a beautiful park, forest, right alongside the OCEAN (which was beautiful!!!) and lots of peaceful neighborhoods. At mile 16-17 I thought to myself, "do I seriously have 10 more miles?!!? UGH! So I walked some. Then started running again. Right around mile 24 or so, some lady was running faster than she apparently thought and I think her intentions were to pass me but instead she stepped on the back of my shoe causing my SOLE to RIP and me to fall. It was terrible. I tried to keep running with my blasted sole not really attached to my shoe but it was tripping me up so I had no other choice but to ditch my shoe!! Yes friends, I finished the race with only one shoe on!!! It was slightly embarrassing because people were pointing at me--but actually I saw some crazy guy running the marathon BARE FOOT. So at least I had that guy.

Crossing the finish line was exhilarating. We were met by some gentlemen dressed in Tuxedos that handed us our little beautiful blue box! Then I got my awesome "Finishers" shirt. Then came the feast!! I put whatever I could get my greedy little hands on into my mouth. Power bars, bagels, chocolate milk, gatorade, bananas, etc. Food never tasted so good. We all met up with each other (we finished within just a couple minutes of each other) went to the massage tent and got a fabulous 15 minute massage, then took a million pictures. It was an awesome experience that I'm grateful I was able to do. I'm so thankful to have a strong, healthy body. I'm thankful for my sisters and their support. I don't know that I would have been able to do this without knowing that they were doing it too. I love you Kris and Brittanie!!!

Our sweet running tights!

Team Eggplant Savage :)

Us after the marathon at NikeTown--a huge wall with everyone's name on it who participated in the race--my name was up high under "Black" but technically I'm still a Savage so I got in on this photo op :) I'm not above putting a not-so-attractive photo of myself on the WWW :)

More pictures to come--we didn't take a whole lot with my camera but Britt's mom took a million pictures and we even have some "professional" ones we took after the race (when we were looking really beautiful I'm sure.....) :)

A huge thanks to my sweet husband who took care of our boys all weekend. I know they loved spending quality time with just Daddy. Sky even potty trained Ethan!! E is 4 days strong with NO accidents!! And he is super cute in his big boy underwear!! He doesn't even tell us anymore that he needs to go. He just DOES it. Way to go Ethan! It was a successful weekend for all :)

SO OBSESSED!

2009-10-10T17:59:00.001-07:00

Ok, Seriously?? I. AM. OBSESSED. Glee is my new favorite thing of all time. I pretty much have perma-grin the entire time I'm watching. Kurt makes me die laughing and that "Rachel girl makes me want to set myself on fire but she can sing!" Oh thank goodness for the simple things in life!!

(UN) Domestic Goddess

2009-09-21T10:44:00.000-07:00

So, I've been trying to be a little more domestic lately. And by a little more I mean actually making real home cooked meals. See, the problem is, Skyler is a pretty picky eater......if it were up to him he'd have pasta every single day. Lunch and dinner. Which really is fine by me--he could have it for every meal if he really wanted....but then he'd most likely have a 300 lb. wife as well. So you see, I'm trying to open him up to different meals every night. Ones that don't come straight out of a box. I'd like to think I'm a pretty good cook......I'm better at BAKING things like cookies and cupcakes and stuff, but hey, I can follow a recipe you know.

What I'm not good at: Sewing and scrapbooking and stamping and all that other "mormon" stuff. The thing is, I've tried. Really I have. I WANT to scrapbook and sew and stamp and such but it just isn't in me!

But anyway, back to cooking. The other night I made a de-lish homemade chicken pot pie......Sky came home from work and saw it sitting on top of the stove. He said, "What's this?" I said, "It's chicken pot pie-hope that's ok." Sky said, "Where did you find such a big one?" Me: "Uhh, I MADE it." And it was pretty tasty. So, for all you undomestic goddesses out there, here's the recipe (from a cooking blog I found but can't remember which one):

1 pie crust
3 chicken breasts
5 red potatoes
2 can Cream of Chicken soup
1 bag frozen peas and carrots - thawed
1 sweet onion - diced
butter
egg

1. Heat oven to 450
2. Heat two large pans of water - these are for the chicken and potatoes
*I usually add some chicken bullion to the water for taste - and we could all use a little more sodium right?
3. Trim fat from chicken and dice the potatoes, then add to the boiling water, separately of course
4. Cook the bottom of the pie crust first, in the oven. Just follow the directions on the back of the pie crust box for a "one crust pie" - I cook mine for 9 minutes. Make sure you set the timer. After cooking, turn the oven down to 400 to cook the pie
*this isn't a one crust pie of course but I do not like having a soggy pie bottom. noboby does. you'll add the top crust later.
5. saute the onion in butter until it is translucent and tender - it can even be a little golden
6. when the chicken is done shred it into bite size pieces
7. the potatoes are done when they break apart by being stabbed with a fork - strain them
8. combine the shredded chicken, potatoes, peas and carrots, onions and the 2 cans of Cream of Chicken soup in a large bowl
9. pour the glorious mixture into the already-cooked pie crust
10. now add the top crust and trim to fit the pie plate.
11. whisk the egg in a small bowl and baste over the top crust
*the egg is strickly for cosmetic purposes, it helps the pie keep it's color and provides a shine when cooked
12. make 4 slits in the top of the pie with a knife to provide steam release while the pie is baking
13. bake for 40 minutes and then let the pie cool for a few minutes on top of the stove

Besides being a cooking genius :) I also LOVE to decorate my house. So while some of you are sewing and scrapbooking and stuff...I'm out shopping for home decor! Also, another thing I think I'm good at is making some darn cute babies! And by "I" I mean my husband and me (but mostly me :)) Seriously peeps!! I know we all think our own babies are super cute but really, no really...mine are!! The other day at the store some older guy told me that E and T were the most beautiful children he had ever seen....then he said "and I have three of my own!" Ouch, but ok--it's true!! I mean, look at these faces!!!

I'd give you the recipe on how to make these but then that wouldn't be very domestic of me would it?! :-) Hope everyone has a domesticated filled week!!

3rd Annual Beach Vacation!

2009-09-21T09:40:00.000-07:00

Last week we enjoyed a much needed vacation to sunny California! Skyler had to go to training for work, so the boys and I tagged along because we love nothing more than a free vacation (transportation to and from and our hotel was paid for by Sky's firm)! We left Saturday and went straight to the beach! We loved Santa Monica beach so much from last year we decided to go again. This was Ethan's 3rd time at the beach and Teigan's first and they both loved it! It was a little cloudy but still plenty warm to play in the water.

Teigan's first time in sand

Seriously the cutest picture ever! Holding hands looking at the ocean. LOVE the matching shirts and swimsuits!

Running from the waves

Ethan got drenched!

And again.......

Mommy rescuing him

Stop the CUTENESS

Teigan loved the water!

On the Santa Monica Pier....the blue bird was originally on my shoulder but the guy who gave him to me walked away and I was starting to get freaked out because it was trying to eat my earring so I asked Sky to take the bird....he said no but he didn't really have much choice :) then the guy came back and put the green bird on Ethan. As you can tell, neither of my boys particularly loved having the birds on them!
I can never get both boys to look at the camera and smile at the same time! But seriously--how CUTE is Teigan?? Really people!
Tired after a looong dat at the beach. Watching a movie on his "computer" AKA portable dvd player AKA life saver!

Sunday we got up early and headed to Disneyland. We were there from 10:30 in the morning until 9:30 at night with not one single meltdown from either of our boys! Teigan slept when he needed to and Ethan did great waiting in the lines!! He so loved seeing his favorite movie characters. He's really gotten into the disney movies lately....he loves Cinderella, Jungle Book, Monsters Inc, Peter Pan, Finding Nemo etc etc.....so Disneyland was especially fun for him this time around. We did the Playhouse Disney Live concert in California Adventure and it was so entertaining and Ethan just laughed and danced through the whole thing! Teigan was such a trooper too. Oh, and Pirates of the Caribbean is still "not scary" according to Ethan. Ethan was tall enough to go on most rides like the Madderhorn....I didn't realize how FAST that rollercoaster was but Ethan seemed to enjoy it! It's crazy to think that the last time I went to Disneyland I was pregnant with little Teigy and this time he was enjoying it with us! Life goes by so fast!

Ethan with his favorite movie characters: Sully, Mike Wazowski and Boo

Ethan LOVED meeting Sully. You can't tell in the picture because I think he was a little surprised that he was actually meeting Sully....but when we walked up to him Ethan said, "I love your movie!" Then he said, "Where's Mike Wazowski?!"
Watching the parade

I couldn't believe they wouldn't let Teig sit on Skyler's lap! Made me a little nervous.....

Riding like a big boy!

Love this boy!!

On King Triton's Carousel. Ethan didn't want to ride the one with horses, but the one with fish......yes!

Teigan's cute little hands holding on!

The handsome boys in my life!

Mommy and Ethan

At Mickey Mouse's house

While Sky was in training all day--I ventured out around the Los Angeles area. I'm proud to say I didn't get lost once! And those California freeways are nuts I tell you!!! We did the L.A. Zoo, the Children's Museum, and a Bounce House. It really was a lot of fun to spend such quality time with my boys!

Teig at the Children's Museum

My little basketball player/football player/baseball player (he says he wants to be them all!)

Playing the Water Symphony at the museum

Climbing the waterfall at the museum

Teigan watching patiently as E plays in the water

E's favorite thing at the museum by far!

Ethan's very first art project!!! Made a dragonfly at the museum--he was so creative with the beads and buttons! Although, the dragonfly is missing an eye.....I'm such a proud mama!!

All in all it was a fabulous trip! We are looking forward to next year's trip to the beach!! It sure is good to be home though!

Teigan is getting TOO big!

2009-09-10T09:31:00.000-07:00

So I haven't been very good about posting Teigan's monthly pictures. Here they are:

Teigan's 6 months

Unfortunately someone "misplaced" the camera for his 7th month pictures so here are his 8 month pictures:

And his 9 month pictures:

I have a lot of pictures like this--as soon as I would sit him up, he'd slump down......

Lots of pictures like this.......

And this.........

Have I mentioned how much we LOVE this little guy?? He is absolutely perfect for our family. He's a great little brother and loves his big brother. I still think having two is a breeze because Teigan is just so chill!

He just broke his 2 bottom teeth (finally!) and was a trooper during the teething process. We didn't even realize he was teething! He loves loves loves to eat bananas. They are his favorite. I just cut them up and they are gone in seconds. He also LOVES avocados. He and Ethan both love when we have avocados for dinner. Let's see....he can pull himself into a standing position and can even stand on his own without holding on to anything for a few seconds. He says mama and dada and baba (for bottle) and loves to "sing" with Ethan. He's quite the dancer as well :) Oh we just love love love our little Teigan Grant!!! Seriously. So. Stinkin. CUTE!!! We feel so blessed to be parents to both our boys and are so grateful for their healthy little bodies and super sweet spirits!

Picture Overload

2009-09-10T09:02:00.000-07:00

When I say overload, let me assure you that that is an understatement. :)

One of my favorite pictures ever!!

A common mode of transportation for Teig....

Teig's first experience with an m&m.

Ethan said he was "feeding" Mickey. I laughed out loud.

A birthday cake I made....

Skyler's idea of "feeding" Teigan

Love this face!

Teig crawled up to sit on Daddy

At the zoo. I love having 2 boys. They are best friends!

E loved the train and rode it over and over and over.........

T fell asleep in the stroller. Comfortable, huh??

LOVE this picture. E comforting T.

Playing baseball....E said he needed a helmet like his Uncle Scott and came back with his Elmo halloween bucket. Again, I laughed out loud.

Being brothers....

Teigan "helping" Ethan eat his food.

Running through the water feature at the park

Ethan with his "girlfriend" Emme. Emme told him when they get bigger they need to have true love's kiss! I love it!

All Right, Already!!!

2009-09-10T08:39:00.000-07:00

I know, I know....I've been slacking a little on the blog lately....ok, I've been slacking a lot! Things have been pretty crazy busy over at the Black residence and well, to be honest, blogging just isn't up on my list of "to-do's". There. I said it. But now I'm back and have waaaay too many pictures of the cutest little boys I have ever seen. Some of the things we've been busy with:

-Kristen has been living with us all summer (her break from school) and we've been busy entertaining the boys during the HOT summer months lovely Las Vegas has to offer.
-MOVING. Yes, we've moved. Sadly, it's just around the corner from where we used to live. But the good news is, we moved to prepare ourselves for a different move coming up here shortly........details on that to come.
-Traveling.
-Having lots of visitors.
-Training for a marathon! My first (and possibly last :)) marathon is October 18th. There's something about running 15 miles in one day (and 40+/week) and oddly enough I just can't find the energy to do much else. Let alone, BLOG. Keeping up with 2 little boys after running just one mile is exhausting enough :)

Ok, so now it's September and Kristen is back in school. I've experienced a few withdrawals here and there but I should be getting a Kristen fix in about a week so I think I should be ok. My sweet Ethan misses his Aunt terribly and asks about her all the time. When Kristen left I didn't just lose a babysitter/cook/housekeeper...I lost my running partner!!! I didn't realize that watching someone next to me on the treadmill suffer as much as I was could offer such motivation....but alas, now that she is no longer running next to me--my motivation has dwindled. It can be a motivation killer when after running for 2 hours you realize you still have 5 more miles to go.......but I'm not complaining. I love the blisters on my feet. :) And let me just say that the Tiffany jewelry that I'm running this race for (pretty much why I signed up) better be good.

Oh, and hopefully they cure cancer too.....

We're off to our annual beach vacation on Saturday. I know the boys are going to be thrilled to run and play in the sand. Skyler has training the rest of the week so I get to explore Los Angeles with my boys...Ethan has been asking if he gets to go to Disneyland today everyday for the last week......I think someone is excited to see the Monsters Inc characters at Disneyland!!! I'll post those pictures next week. For now, enjoy the picture overload!!!

Come home Mr. E!!!

2009-05-21T13:18:00.000-07:00

Kristen had to drive her new truck from the Price is Right back to Colorado to trade it in for something new--and she thought that since she was only going to stay for 3 or 4 days that she should take Ethan with her so he could visit his grandparents. I thought that sounded like a fun idea....well that was almost 2 weeks ago!!!! And my little boy is STILL in Colorado!! I miss him! Although, it has been kind of fun pretending that we only have 1 child....and I bet Teigan has loved all of the extra attention!!

I have talked to Ethan every day since he's been gone and he tells me all about his day: what he's doing at the time that we're talking, what he ate for breakfast, lunch and what he's going to eat for dinner, how he plays with our dog Copper, etc. Then he asks me what I'm doing and what Teigan is doing and informs me that daddy's at work. He's so stinkin smart! And when we get off the phone he says, "Bye mama, I love you!" It just melts my heart everytime! I so love that he can express himself now!! He comes home tomorrow and I can't wait to spend some time with my little Ethan!!!!

Here are some fun pictures of the boys!

Ethan loves to hold Teig all by himself

Kristen feeding Teigan before our fun Cinco de Mayo party!!

A yummy choco taco for Cinco de Mayo...and he LOVED his pina colada!

My adorable Teig

Ethan "reading" Teigan a book--what an awesome big brother!

Some fun cupcakes I made for a Relief Society get together

Teigan drinking all by himself!!

Six months (actually almost 7 months!!)

2009-05-21T12:55:00.000-07:00

I have been so bad about updating my blog lately!! I'm just having too much fun with my sister being here! And Skyler has been working a TON lately. Some really late nights--so any of my free time is spent trying to find time to spend with my husb! And of course, having two active, fun little boys keeps me pretty busy!!

Ok, so because we've recently had to switch doctors (our pediatrician moved) he hasn't been in for his 6th month checkup yet. He goes in on Tuesday so I'll post stats then. Teigan is still just our chill little guy. He eats fruits and vegetables like a champ, loves drinking his juice all by himself (he holds his own bottle!!) which is a little bittersweet for me because he's just getting to be such a big boy!!! He isn't crawling quite yet (Ethan was crawling at 7 months) because he has realized that he can get from point A to point B by rolling and rolling and rolling. It's quite cute. Teig can get up on his hands and knees....he just doesn't really know what to do after that!! He babbles a ton, blows lots of raspberries, puts his paci in his mouth by himself, and gives us constant smiles! I love this age!!!! Really, I'm just so thankful that he's healthy. So, here are his pictures!

5 months

And 6 months!

Stop the cuteness!

Stop it I say!!!

Oh how we love our little Teigitty!!!

New Addition to the Black Fam--and it's a GIRL!

2009-04-24T14:08:00.001-07:00

Well, an honorary member that is..........what did you expect??? That I could possibly be pregnant again?! Gotcha! My sister Kristen is bunking with Ethan for the summer! We are so excited to have her!!!!!! We need more estrogen in the Black household! On a different note--her NEW truck is being delivered TODAY! Hooray!

E and T playin

2009-04-20T13:02:00.001-07:00

The video is a little dark because I didn't have time to turn the light on--but this video is so cute of E and T being buddies! I can't wait until Teigan is a little older so he can really "play" with Ethan! Ethan is the only one who can really get Teigan to do a big belly laugh! I love to hear my boys' laughter! Life is good!

Happy Easter!

2009-04-20T12:49:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful Easter Sunday! Skyler and I had to speak in church so our good friend's the Coopers watched our 2 boys during the meeting. Which was quite the task for them and I'm so glad they were up for it because they have 3 boys of their own. They said they are going to hold off on their 4th for a while.....hahahaha! Ethan and Teigan were both well behaved though, so I am proud of them! The Easter bunny came and brought some sweet gifts for the boys.

Ethan had fun dying some sweet eggs....

And hunting for them!

Do you know how hard it is to find matching outfits for a 2 year old and 5 month old?!?! I can't wait until Teig is 1--it will make shopping so much easier!! Here are my handsome men!

Random Pictures

2009-04-20T12:23:00.000-07:00

Yes--the Black family is alive and doing well!! I'm really behind on my blogging--so I have a ton of fun pictures to post! Get ready for the ride!

Skyler was mentioning in this picture that he can still hold Teigan in one hand.....

Somebody realized he has feet!!

Skyler's birthday was on the 1st. Yes, he is an April Fool's baby. I can't believe my husband is 26 years old!!! I love him to pieces. We are truly perfect for each other. He is the best, most caring husband and an incredible father. Me, Ethan and Teigan (and future chitlen) are sure lucky to have him around! He works so hard for our family and although I know his job isn't easy--he is so willing to help out with anything I need at home. Did I mention how sexy he is, too?! It's hard not to love someone who is so easy on the eyes! He has also given me two of the most handsome boys ever and I love him even more for that! I can't wait for many more birthdays with my man--it really has gotten better every single year I've known him! We went and had a couples massage to ring in his 26th birthday--it was very relaxing!! Because my husb doesn't really care for cake but loves the game Halo--I made him some awesome Halo sugar cookies!

Ethan loves anything that isn't is. Mainly, anything that is for Teigan. He rides around in his walker multiple times a day. Just climbs on in and out whenever he wants. He even tries to shimmy in even if Teigan is in it.

Baby Shower cake I made for a good friend who just had her second baby boy!

Purse cake I made for my cute friend, Aimee's birthday! A bunch of us got together and went out for sushi--it was De-Lish and the company was better!

First time Ethan has EVER fallen asleep during lunch. Thanks to the soothing voices during General Conference!

Bath Time!!!

5 months down....a bazillion more to go.....

2009-04-20T11:59:00.000-07:00

This post is only a few weeks old......just goes to show how much time I have on my hands with 2 little ones now!!! Teigan is SUCH AN EASY BABY!!!!! We are beyond blessed to have him in our home. He is alike Ethan in some ways but completely different in other ways and it is so much fun to see their different personalities. For example, when Ethan was 5 months old when he woke up in the morning he was UP and ready to play. He didn't want anything to do with laying in bed with us or anything. Teig on the other hand, looks forward to waking up and laying in bed with mommy and daddy. He loves to be held obviously, but also is totally ok with hanging out wherever I lay him.

He didn't visit the doctor this month but I can tell he is growing. That might have something to do with the fact that he started vegetables this month!! And let me tell you---he LOVES all of them. He is the noisiest eater-- you can literally hear him saying um um um in between every single bite. He is a pro at rolling over and scooting. He recently found his feet and loves to play with them. He also has the cutest laugh ever! Oh I just love my little guy to death. I'm so grateful for his healthy, strong little body.
4 months...

And 5 months....

I had the hardest time taking his picture this month because he kept trying to sit up away from the couch!

And of course a photo shoot is not a photo shoot without Ethan in the picture. Ethan loves the camera!

He also loves to "share" with Teigan. See what I mean......... :-)

Disneyland Pics

2009-04-20T11:26:00.000-07:00

While we were in California for the Price is Right we also went to Disneyland for the day. It was fun because it just worked out that Grandma and Grandpa Black were going to be there the same day too. One day at Disneyland was perfect for my two little guys. Ethan had a lot more fun the second time around and Teigan was a champ all day long!

Aunt Kristen and Teigan with his sweet Mickey ears

The girls at the Lego Store

Me and Teigy waiting for Ethan to get off the airplane ride with Grandpa Black

Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters...can you tell how excited Ethan is?? :-)

He LOVED being inside Mickey Mouse's house!!

I know my son is super tired when....he falls asleep with a sucker in his hand!!!

Uncle Scott and Teigan

Kristen Savage, COME ON DOWN....

2009-03-25T20:30:00.000-07:00

....YOU ARE THE 1ST FOUR CONTESTANTS ON THE PRICE IS RIGHT!!!!!!!!! Yes, it's true! She was the last name called to be in contestants row. She ran her cute little butt up there--and had to bid on a 5 piece COACH purse set. Being the true shopper she is, and thanks to my infinite wisdom of all things fashion that I have passed onto her--she bid $1375. The actual retail price was $1378!!! She was only $3.00 away! Can you even stinkin believe that???? So she ran up stage kissed Drew Carey, and they revealed her prize as a 2009 Ford Ranger! My mom and I were going crazy in the audience and I could tell Kristen was really nervous on stage. She was nervous because she, more than anybody, really needed a new car!!! Just a few weeks ago her car broke down and she ended up selling it for $150 to a junkyard and was forced to ride public transportation!!!!

Anyway, she played a game called Switcheroo. Basically, she had 5 number cubes with different numbers on them and 5 prizes with one number missing and she had to fill in the missing numbers in 30 seconds. The timer started and Kristen just stared into the audience not really knowing what to do. Finally, she just started filling in the spots without giving much thought to it. I was dying laughing in the audience because obviously she didn't understand the game quite yet. After the 30 seconds were up Drew asked how many she had right and a big old ZERO flashed on the game and the loser sound rang. Luckily, she got another 30 seconds to get her act together and at the end of the time she had 3 of the 5 right!!!! It was pretty nerve racking wondering whether one of the winning prizes was the car. First, they showed her the Burberry perfume, then the bendable keyboard, and the last thing that lit up was the CAR!!!!!!!!!! She went over on the wheel so no chance at the showcase but she won a CAR!!!!!!!!!!

We are so ecstatic for Kristen!!!! I called dibs on the purses and when she sells her car she's paying for Sky and I to get laser eye surgery and taking me on a shopping spree!!! What a great little sis I have!

Our shirts said, "We support you Drew Carey!!!" It had a picture of a bra on it too. Get it? SUPPORT YOU?! HAHAHA!

Her Ford Ranger is red, but this is the first picture I clicked on....

Make sure and watch her on the Price is Right April 10th!!!!!!! Disneyland pictures to come!

A little bit of this--a little of that.....

2009-03-20T13:44:00.000-07:00

Nothing new has really been happening lately in the Black Family. Just two little boys who are growing up way too fast!!! Skyler's dad was in town this week for business and was able to spend a lot of time with his grandsons!!! The highlight of that for Ethan was the new shiny red tricycle that Grandpa bought him! He absolutely loves it. It took him a minute to figure out how to pedal instead of using his legs on the ground like all of his other riding toys. I almost wanted to cry when I saw him pedaling down the street. I can't believe I have a son big enough to pedal!!!! His steering is a bit rusty though....he's gone into many a bushes!! Skyler also surprised me this week by taking the entire week off!!!! Can't get enough of my man! My mom and little brothers got in last night and we are off on Sunday to sunny California for a trip to Disneyland and The Price is Right!!!

Teigan soaking up his grandpa

This next picture is so funny. Sky and I were sitting on the couch the other day not really paying attention to Ethan with his new stickers. What caught our attention was hearing Ethan talking to Teigan. He said, "Teigan which sticker do you want?" And this is what he got!!!! It was hilarious!

Teigan chillin'

Ethan eating his fajita like a pro!

Teig sleeping like a big boy in Mama and Daddy's bed!

Skyler made a "clubhouse" for Ethan out of a huge box with a door and windows--and Ethan absolutely LOVES his clubhouse. He takes toys and books and snacks in there. Ethan even likes to watch his morning cartoons from inside his clubhouse. Sometimes, before he gets in he'll say "Miska, Mooska, Mickey Mouse!" Because those are the magic words to make the clubhouse appear on his favorite Mickey Mouse show. Sometimes we joke about taping him in there though!!! In fact, in the last picture, Skyler put the door up against a wall so that Ethan couldn't get out!! He wasn't too happy about that.

This is the cake I made for my ward's auction tomorrow night--obviously a giant Snickers Bar. Yummy!!! Everything is edible except for the Hungry? Why Wait? banner.

Has it really been 4 months?!?!

2009-03-06T10:21:00.000-08:00

Yes, it's true. Our sweet little Teig is 4 months already. He weighed a little over 13 pounds (25th%) and was 26 inches (90th%). Because he is so long, he has to wear 6-9 month clothing. The doctor said as soon as he starts eating baby food he will definitely fill out. Apparently 13 lbs is pretty good for not being formula fed. I'll tell ya, Teig has some pretty cute fat rolls on his thighs! Why is it only cute on little babies??? :-) Teigan is rolling over, smiling a TON, babbling, blowing bubbles, sleeping through the night, and laughing at Ethan!! They are going to be best buddies! Oh we love our little Teigan! So with tradition, here are his pictures:

3 months

And 4 months!

All of his pictures his hands are up by his face because he LOVES to suck on them!

Ethan is also doing well. The crazy thing about having 2 kids now, is I can't always keep an eye on Ethan, especially when I'm feeding Teigan. The crazier thing is I'm pretty sure Ethan knows this! He always gets into things when I'm feeding Teigan.

For example:

That is Cream of Wheat poured all over my floor! I never knew Cream of Wheat would be so hard to clean up!!!

Other cute pictures of my boys:

With Cream of Wheat dust on his face

Ethan really loves his little brother! ("It's OK Teenden!")

So handsome in his church outfit!!

I love his cute little smile!!

Like I said, Teigan babbles a lot--so I pretend to have conversations with him. "Goo Goo Gah Gah" "What's that? You have a little sister waiting to come to our family?" Ha ha. Well, the other day I was having "pretend" conversation with Teigan and Ethan came over confused and said, "Mom, how you know Teenden saying?" Cause I'm the mom, that's why!!! :-)

I'm so blessed to be trusted with 2 healthy sweet little men!!

Bottoms Up!

2009-03-06T10:12:00.000-08:00

I was asked to make a baby shower cake for a good friend's friend who is having a little girl. This is what I came up with!!!

The "diaper" is a half ball pan covered in fondant, the legs and feet are rice krispy treats covered in fondant, and the daisies and blanket are also fondant. The rest of the cake is covered in buttercream. I hope the mom-to-be likes it!! :-)

Too Cute for Words

2009-02-20T09:27:00.000-08:00

Prepare for a picture overload--I haven't updated for a while...we are all doing well though! Skyler has been out of town for the last two weeks. Boo! The only good thing about him traveling is at least his firm allows him to come home for the weekends. Otherwise I would have been Valentine-less! But we had a wonderful Valentine's Day mostly because my sister was in town and watched our boys for us! It was nice to have a night out with the husb.

Ethan continues to learn and grow. He's too smart for his own good if you ask me. The other night Skyler was trying to get him to eat his vegetables at dinner and Ethan said, "Daddy be nice!" hahahahaha! So so funny! Teig is almost 4 months old! I can't even believe it. Actually, I can, because he is huge! He treats every meal as though it's his last and drinks for dear life!!! I sure love my little boys even though I feel hugely outnumbered!

The Valentine cookies I made for Sky and the girls I visit teach

The more appropriate cookies I made for Skyler:

Sky was doing some work and Teigan managed to find himself in this position and he loved it!!

He also liked when Sky held him high

Our little hand sucker--Ethan never did this

Sooo tired! Sleeping babies are just presh!

First bath together! Teig's face is like "No mom! Don't let him hold me!"

Copying Aunt Kristen. His pajamas are size 4T. 4T!! He's only 2! Thanks Grandma Black--he loves his SD pj's!

Shopaholic

2009-02-05T09:12:00.001-08:00

I am a shopaholic. There. I said it. Isn't that the first step when fighting an addiction? To admit you have a problem? I don't think me admitting it is going to help anything though. And I think if there were some sort of shopaholic anonymous meeting--Skyler would sign me up in a heartbeat. He'd have to tell me there was some sort of huge sale going on at some warehouse to get me there though......

I mean, so what if I like to shop? And what if I really can't help myself? You know in movies and T.V. shows when an object is lit up and you can hear angels singing in the background? I see that everytime I'm at a department store. A handbag or some fantastic shoes are literally lit up and I can hear angels singing.....like some sort of higher power is forcing me to buy them. Unfortunately Skyler doesn't hear anything and he doesn't believe that I do either. Maybe, just maybe it is a figment of my imagination but I would never ever admit that. It's the only excuse I have for some of my finer purchases. Even though Skyler tries to reassure me that I won't, in fact, "just die without them." I'm not quite convinced--and I'd rather not take my chances...

Plus, I'm like the thriftiest shopper ever. Let's say (hypothetically, of course) I see a Dooney and Bourke purse marked down from $400 $110.00. It's like a no-brainer for me. I HAVE to get it because I'm SAVING about $300.00! And because it's totally the best deal of the century. Too bad Skyler doesn't see it my way. He doesn't see it as saving money. He sees it like it's still $110.00 for a purse and don't you have a million of them stashed away at the top of your closet anyway? Oh well. We've only been married for 3 years. There's still plenty of time for him to understand my point of view.

And so what if I "accidentally-on-purpose" forget to tell Skyler about some of my major purchases. Does he really need to know that I practically bought out all of Kirkland's (home decor) inventory at their going out of business sale? And so what if I "accidentally-on-purpose" forget to leave some of my purchases in the car to smuggle in at a later time when the coast is clear? And is it really a big deal if I "accidentally-on-purpose" fabricate (just slightly) the cost of my fantastic new shoes just so Skyler doesn't have a heart attack? I really am only looking out for my husband's well being. And who cares that I bought the most adorable skirt from Express and when my husband asks, "Is that skirt new?" I reply, "What, this old thing?" :-)

I think I have officially bought all of my birthday, christmas, anniversary and valentine's presents for the next ten years of my life....because that's another of my famous lines. "It can be my birthday present!" Nevermind that my birthday is in November and I'm buying stuff in January.

Skyler is learning as my poor dad has learned, it's easier for me to ask for forgiveness than permission! :-)

And FYI, I didn't buy the Dooney purse. Hypothetically, of course.

We have a 3 Month Old!

2009-02-02T15:09:00.000-08:00

Has it really been 3 months?? Teigan is the most easy going baby and we just love him! He has been sleeping almost through the entire night since he was 2 months old--which definitely makes my life so much easier. I joke with Skyler that Teigan is being so good on purpose because he knows there's a little girl waiting to come to our family! :-)

Teigan rolled over from his back to stomach a couple of times today! He wasn't very happy once he realized what he did, and since he can't roll himself back I had to rescue him. He's also giving us tons of smiles--especially when he hears Daddy's voice. Of course, I think he just gets more handsome everyday. He doesn't see the doctor again until he's 4 months old, so no updates there. He are his pictures though!

2 months (I changed his stuffed animal because Grandpa Black got him this adorable dog for Christmas):

And 3 Months:

I can't believe how fast they grow!!! I'm already missing his newborn stage--in fact, I sort of miss pregnancy in general....there will be more though!! :-)

Homemade Granola Bars

2009-01-29T13:36:00.000-08:00

Since today is Ethan's birthday I thought it would be fun to bake something with him because that is something that he really likes to do. We went to the park earlier and I figured we could make something to occupy the time before his afternoon nap. But since I spent 2 days making his birthday cake I wanted to do something simple. So we made granola bars. The recipe is super easy (compliments of Marie) and can be made with stuff that you probably already have in your pantry. And they are delicious! Ethan loves them.

2 1/2 c. Oats - quick rolled oats
1/2 c. Rice Krispies
1/4 c. Coconut
1/2 c. M&M minis
1/2 c. Brown sugar
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/2 c. Butter, softened
1/4 c. Honey
1/2 tsp. Vanilla
Add all of the ingredients and mix together until combined. Press into a square 8×8 pan. Bake at 350° for 18-20 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes and score into bars. Let it set completely and then cut into bars. For thinner bars, press mix into a 9×13 pan. They seem to set a little better in the 9×13 pan. I like to put half in one 8x8 pan and half in another 8x8 pan.

Today I didn't have any M&M's so we made S'mores granola bars by chopping up marshmellows and chocolate chips--you could use anything though, really.

Also a good tip: Spray your measuring cup with vegetable spray before you add a sticky substance, like honey--it should slide right off!!!
Finished Bars

Mom, I think Ethan likes to wear Mr. Potato Head stuff more than playing with it! Thanks for the great gift!!

Enjoying his birthday cake!

Even Teigan got in on the festivities!!!

Another Year Down.......

2009-01-29T11:07:00.000-08:00

Today marks Ethan's 2nd birthday! I can hardly believe I have a precious little 2 year old! We have so loved having him in our family! His sweet spirit is a constant reminder of how richly blessed my life truly is. Ethan had his 2 year check up and is growing well! He weighed 27 lbs and was 36 inches tall.

Some of Ethan's favorites are:
*ELMO
*The color Blue
*Dried apples
*Coloring
*Nursery
*Singing Primary Songs
*Holding Teigan
*Sneaking pieces of Daddy's Gum
*Showering all by himself
*Playing outside
*Doing whatever HE wants to do instead of what WE want him to do
*Going to Target (mainly for the popcorn and drink)

It's crazy to look back on these last two years and see how Ethan has grown and developed. He talks more and more everyday and is learning "attitude" when he talks. The other day I was standing in front of our silverware drawer cutting an apple and apparently Ethan wanted something out of the drawer. He started pushing on my leg, but I wouldn't move. So he says (with all the attitude he could muster while stomping his feet), "MAMA, move now...MOVE!!!" I gave him a look of "don't you dare talk to me like that" and he says so sweet and innocently, "Please?" :-)

Today when he was opening a few of his presents, before he could even get a good look at what it was he was unwrapping, he was saying ever enthusiastically, "Oh my goodness!! Oh wow!" What a funny little boy I have. I look forward to many more happy years with my little man!!!

The birthday cake I made! Everything is edible.

Even though he is 2 and a big boy--he still likes to pretend he's a baby!

The Birthday Boy in action

Wearing his Mr. Potato Head glasses--So funny!!

The handsome boys in my life!

How cute is Teig smiling up at Skyler?!

Shout out to Aunt Kristen

2009-01-22T10:21:00.001-08:00

Ethan adores his aunt Kristen--she came and visited this weekend and we had a blast! She kept me company while Sky was super busy with work...I had to post this video from Christmas to show just one of the many things that Ethan and Kristen like to do together--DANCE!!!

Mts. Edge Park, Spawn of Satan, Clippin me some Coupons

2009-01-22T08:59:00.000-08:00

The other day was a beautiful, warm day so I decided to load up my boys and have a picnic at the park with them. Ethan absolutely loved eating his lunch at the park's picnic tables and Teigan really enjoyed the sun and warm weather. I thought I would have to force Ethan to eat before he went to play, but he understood that he had to eat all his food first, and then go play. After the yummy picnic, Ethan was off to explore the park. Because it was such a nice day there were a LOT of people there. We made our way over to the giant snake that Ethan loves to climb on--I was sitting on the bench watching Ethan play with some other kids. He really really loves to play with other little children and it is so cute to watch him interact with them. Soon, the other kids left, so he was left alone to play for a bit (which he doesn't mind either).

Enter spawn of Satan and our day suddenly changed. A boy probably 3 or 4 years older than E started to play in the snake with Ethan. It seemed that they were getting along nicely until I see the kid pick up a handful of dirt and throw it on Ethan's clothes!! I thought surely his mother will come over and say something to him, but after looking around nobody came forward, so I say to the kid, "Um, we don't throw dirt--it's not nice to throw dirt." Which is exactly what I would have said to Ethan had he been the one to throw dirt. The kid just looked at me and kept on playing. A few minutes later the kid picked up another handful of dirt and when Ethan turned around he poured the dirt in his hood! I was in utter disbelief that someone could raise their kid to be so rude. Again, I waited a few seconds to see if whoever was responsible for him would step in but of course no one did. So I had to go over to him again and say, "Do not throw dirt at my son again!" Ethan had a look on his face like Thanks Mom! But Lucifer just looked at me with his beady little eyes and didn't say anything. I sat back down on the bench and thought that I should just try to get Ethan to play on the swings or something to get him away from this kid, and as soon as I was getting up this kid threw a handful of dirt right in Ethan's face! In his face! Poor Ethan looked at me like "what the heck is this kid's problem???" I didn't even wait this time to see if someone would claim him because let's be honest, if it were my kid, I wouldn't claim him either!! I went right over to them, started wiping off Ethan's face and told the kid, "If you can't play nicely than you need to leave." And then I hear it......

Lady with too much makeup on: "Don't talk to my son like that, I'm the only one to discipline him!"
Me: "Well, perhaps if you were around to discipline, then I wouldn't have to."
Lady with overdrawn eyebrows: (with lots of attitude) "I have been right here the whole time."
Me: "Then you should have said something to your son when he threw dirt at my son the first time. I wouldn't have allowed my son to throw dirt."
Lady with lip liner on 10 shades too dark: "My son would NEVER throw dirt."

Are you freaking kidding me?!?!

Right then Lucifer picked up another handful of dirt and threw it on Ethan's clothes. Right in front of Medusa. She looked at me, then looked at him, started yelling something in spanish and took off. Really, now. What. Is. Wrong. With. People?!?!?!?

The thing is, Ethan doesn't know how to be mean yet. Yes, he disobeys, and yes, he gets into things he shouldn't--but I have never ever seen Ethan be mean just to be mean. Even when the kid was mean to him, he didn't understand what was going on.

Skyler said Ethan should have thrown dirt back to stand up for himself--and I said uh, no....he should have punched the kid right square in the nose. That would have taught him. So, now, amongst all the other things I have to teach Ethan, I have to teach him a mean right hook! That's how us Savages do it!

In other news, I have to give a shout out to my friend Sesily for hosting an awesome coupon money saving class. I learned about this website that tells you exactly when to use your coupons from the Sunday paper to save the most money--it even tells you which ad to find the coupon in. It's fantastic. Now, I don't think I had really ever used a coupon before in my life--I just figured it was too much hassle or something. But I used my coupons yesterday and my grocery bill was $52.84 BEFORE coupons, and I payed a total of $15.18 AFTER coupons! I saved $37.66!! I told Skyler that I was going to tally up all the money I saved using coupons and at the end of each month go and buy me some awesome new jeans or shoes or jewelry or something....but then he reminded me that that would defeat the whole purpose of saving money....why oh why did I have to marry an accountant?!? :-)

We are right in the middle of busy season right now--and I say "we" because if Sky is working a million hours/week then that means I am too. Somedays I would just love to switch positions with Skyler because he at least gets to have adult interaction (even if it is boring audit talk). Sometimes the only adult interaction I get is, "Would you like paper or plastic?" And if I have to sing Popcorn Popping one more time.......Also, Sky sometimes gets to eat at fancy restaurants, and even on the days that he doesn't eat at a yummy restaurant he at least gets to indulge in the Employee Dining Hall (which he claims isn't very good, but secretly I think he loves). The EDR is like buffet style of some sort and I still tell Skyler that is a lot better than me having to think about what to cook for breakfast, lunch and dinner--then actually cook it--then clean it up. This week I think I have seen Skyler a total of like 40 minutes. 10 minutes each morning before he leaves for work. The last two nights he didn't even get home till almost 3 in the morning!!! And at least 3 days this week I don't think he even saw Ethan or Teigan! Ridiculous I tell you. I just have to keep my eye on the prize to get through the next couple of busy seasons....which had better be a fatty diamond someday to remind myself of all the lonely hours I've lived through.....after all, diamonds are a girls best friend. So Skyler, if you are reading this, so are True Religion jeans, MAC makeup, SHOES, trips to exotic places, and fancy restaurants. I love my man!

Here are some cute pictures of my darling little boys!!!

2 Month Well Check

2009-01-07T10:56:00.000-08:00

Teigan is already 2 whole months old!! It seems like just yesterday that I got a positive pregnancy test...where does the time go?! He is such an awesome, chill little baby! He weighed 10 lbs. 4 oz and is 25 inches long. He's in the 25th percentile for his weight, which, I guess is normal for breastfed babies. The doctor was actually surprised that he put on more than 4 lbs. in only 2 months. Especially because we aren't supplementing formula. He's my little milk monster for sure. We are starting to get lots of smiles from him too! We love him so much!! Here are his pictures!
His one month picture...

And 2 months!!

Does he look bigger?!?! Again, and I can't say this enough, we feel so blessed to have 2 healthy, beautiful children!

Christmas in Colorado

2008-12-31T12:25:00.000-08:00

We spent Christmas in Colorado Springs this year. Both sets of grandparents live there, and we love going home! Although, Christmas just wasn't the same without my little brother Jordan, who is serving his mission in Brazil.

We drove to Colorado-yes DROVE with 2 little boys. I'm not exactly sure what we were thinking, or if we quite knew what we were getting ourselves into....but a 15 hour drive with an almost 2 year old and a newborn was exhausting! Luckily for us, both the boys did amazing. As amazing as possible for sitting in the car for so long! Teigan slept the whole time, with the occasional break for feedings. On the way to Colorado, Ethan was awake for 10 of the 15 hours! What he did to occupy himself for that long--I don't even remember! I do know that he loves to read books and loves LOVES to sing. He started singing "a sunbeam a sunbeam, Jesus a sunbeam!" We didn't even know he knew that song! Thanks nursery! Other favorites are John Mayer's "Say", Ne-Yo's "Closer", Pink's "So What", and pretty much any other popular song! Who knew he remembered the lyrics??? Crazy I tell ya.

Teigan was blessed on December 21st, it was such a wonderful blessing and a beautiful day!

I don't have a lot of time to blog--the boys will be waking up any minute--but here are some fun pictures of our vacation!
Ethan and his new buddy Isaac Housley at Teig's blessing--thanks for coming Taylor and Val!!

Teigan in his blessing outfit

Black Family minus 1

Best friends are we, my sister and me!!

Me and Scott

Jumping off the fireplace in his new Christmas jammies

Daddy and Teigan--I LOVE Teig's expression!

Ethan's 3 favorite things: Elmo.....

...and Cookie Monster......

...and Papa!!!

Savage kids minus Steve and Jordan

Savage Family

My two darling little boys!

Aunt Kristen and Teigan

Now that the holidays are coming to an end--it means busy season is upon us. Ew. I hate busy season. HATE IT! So, we won't talk about it. For now.

Black Family's Top Ten of 2008

2008-12-31T12:21:00.000-08:00

For those of you who didn't get our Christmas card this year--here it is!

THE BLACK FAMILY’S TOP TEN OF 2008

10. Our little baby, Ethan, isn’t a baby anymore! He turned ONE on January 29th. We sure have loved having him around! He constantly amazes us with his intelligence and abilities and is always good for a laugh.
9. After five weeks of eating mushrooms for practically every single meal (and I HATE mushrooms), we discovered that I was pregnant! What a fun surprise! I spent much of 2008 pregnant—good thing I have easy pregnancies.
8. We enjoyed our 2nd annual trip to the beach in May. We accompanied Skyler on a business trip to Santa Monica, California. We had a blast watching Ethan run and play in the ocean.
7. We purchased Rock Band this year and have become quite obsessed. You may be wondering how this could possibly make our Top 10 list, but what you should be thinking is how could it not?! We have dedicated too many hours, sacrificed too much sleep, and gained a few extra pounds for it not to be on our list!
6. I managed to go a full year without being robbed, slamming any of my fingers in doors, or being involved in any hit and run accidents. Although, Ethan managed to lock me out of the house with both ovens on and his new baby brother alone on the couch. Thank Heaven for little boys, right?
5. Papa and Grandma Savage took the entire family to Disneyland at the end of May. Ethan was so excited to be able to meet all of his favorite characters. Especially Mickey Mouse.
4. Skyler’s beloved Halo playing partner (a.k.a. my little brother) left for his mission to Curitiba, Brazil in November. I was sad to see him go because I will definitely miss him…however, a break from Halo is very welcomed! Too bad Halo is also a one-player game…
3. With the completion of all four parts of the CPA exam and all the hours necessary, Skyler is now an official CPA—which means I officially began my training in retail therapy! ☺ Way to go, Skyler!
2. Skyler and I celebrated three years of wedded bliss on December 17th. We are more in love than ever three years and two little boys later— and we look forward to many more. Years, that is. Not boys!
1. Rounding up the Top 10 is our sweet, new little addition to the family! Teigan Grant Black was born weighing in at 6 lbs. 3 oz. and 20 inches long. We love him to pieces and love to watch Ethan fulfill his role as big brother!

Feelin' a little "Shwanky"

2008-12-17T20:36:00.000-08:00

Last night a bunch of my good friends from the ward got together for a girls' night out. It was desperately needed and much enjoyed! Aimee said she was feeling "shwanky" and wanted fondue--although, the fondue restaurant closed at 9 and it was 8:15 by the time we all met up....so Mimi's Cafe it was! We of course, being the good mormon girls that we are, requested-nay-demanded the winery room even though they had closed it for the night. Once settled, we enjoyed a few funny stories-like laughing so hard tears are coming out your eyes-stories. Laughter truly is the best medicine! :-) We also did an ornament exchange that was a lot of fun. A few of us even sat out in my driveway till 1 or so in the morning...my husband doesn't understand what us women could possibly have to talk about for so many hours--if he only knew! :-) Thanks, girlies for a fun night out!

Me, Brandy, Stephanie, Aimee, Taylor, and Molly

2008-12-13T15:53:00.001-08:00

In the middle of the night Thursday, I was awake feeding Teigan when I heard a loud noise coming from our loft area (Ethan's playroom). It sounded like toys being knocked over or stepped on...my initial thought would have been that Ethan let himself out of his room--except we put him to bed in his pack and play that night because he wouldn't stay in his own bed. Cue scary music......

I was a little nervous at first, only because I've seen one too many Lifetime for Women movies. So I laid in bed for a minute contemplating whether or not I should go check it out. I kept thinking what could have made that noise?

A giant rodent of some sort?

A Christmas Elf perhaps??

I cautiously walked out to the toy room to see what was going on and what do I find?? Ethan standing in the middle of the room. How in the world did he manage to climb out of his pack and play? He had knocked his blocks over and his Tickle Me Cookie Monster was laughing and rolling around on the ground. I was a little relieved that my night didn't turn into a Lifetime movie with an intruder in my house. I was more relieved that it wasn't a Christmas Elf.

As I'm not quite sure how I would explain a Christmas Elf playing in my toy room. Unless, of course, he was fixing all the toys that have met Ethan's wrath.

I'd probably spend the rest of my life updating my blog from inside a psych ward...

In other news, Christmas is up and running at the Black Household. I pulled down my giant tupperware(s) a couple of weeks ago and the decking of the halls began. We have so many lights up I don't quite know what to do with myself. I think Skyler was quite shocked to come home from work one day to see our house looking like an airplane landing pad all lit up. He doesn't quite get into the decorations of holidays like I do. He would be fine with just the tree. Actually, he could probably go without the tree too. Anyway, I told him if he thinks this year is overboard, he has no idea what's coming his way in coming years. I already have great ideas for next year. I may very well blow a fuse.

And if Sky thinks the holiday decorations are over kill--just wait until my post for next year--when I can blog about forcing Skyler aboard the Polar Express in matching family flannel pajamas that we don't own just yet. Can you believe there is actually a Polar Express? It's in Williams, AZ. You board the train (in your pj's) and ride to the North Pole eating chocolate chip cookies and drinking hot cocoa. Once at the North Pole, Santa comes on board to pass out little silver bells to everybody. Ethan and Teigan will love it. And Skyler will secretly, too.

This is long overdue....

2008-12-11T10:45:00.000-08:00

Pictures of Teigan's nursery! When I found out I was pregnant with another boy, I knew that I didn't want to do tons of blue because Ethan was my blue boy. So Skyler and I agreed to go with the green with browns and blue--and it turned out so cute!!!

Pretty Sure....

2008-12-07T19:21:00.000-08:00

...I just ate my body weight in pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. Let the holiday feasting begin! Good thing I've already lost the weight from my pregnancy--although, I don't think you could tell that from looking at me right this minute.

I don't know if it's my Christmas decorations, my minty new candles, my oversized Christmas pj's, or the very low budget Christmas movies on the lifetime network---but lately I don't even want to leave my house! Enough of this funny business messing around on the computer though.

It's time for Grinch and more cookies.

Open the door Ethan!

2008-12-07T16:47:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was quite the day for me. Skyler has pretty much started his "busy season" (which I HATE), and because of this, he was at the office yesterday. Leaving me alone with 2 little boys....which, is really no big deal--all week I took care of both boys by myself without incident. Yesterday I wasn't so lucky!

I had baked ziti and crescent rolls cooking in the oven last night at 7:30. Both were to be done at 8:00. That's what time Skyler was SUPPOSED to come home. Teigan woke up from his nap around 7:35 and ate for about 15 minutes. I knew he wasn't done eating, but I looked at the clock and it was 7:54--Ethan had a dirty diaper that needed to be changed and dinner needed to come out of the oven. I put Teigan down on the couch and chased down Ethan. So the plan was to change E, get the dinner out, finish feeding Teigan, then eat dinner as a family ( I know that sounds late to everyone, but Ethan had a late lunch and looong afternoon nap...otherwise Ethan would be in bed at 8!).

I only made it to step 1 of that plan! I changed Ethan's diaper and walked outside to the garage to dispose of his diaper in our large trash can. Just as I was walking back to door, I hear the dead bolt lock. AHHH!!! Then I hear Ethan laugh his adorable laugh which wasn't so adorable at the time. I'm trying to tell Ethan to unlock the door--to which he starts jiggling the doorknob. He clearly had no idea as to what he had just done. So, I'm in the garage thinking: I don't have my cell phone (to call Skyler), no keys, no key hidden anywhere...what the heck am I going to do??? At this point I hear the oven beeping and all I can envision is my house up in flames! Enter panic mode. Then I remember that a couple from our ward lives across the street and I am just crossing my fingers that they are home on a Saturday night. Sure enough, they were and I was able to call Skyler. Remember now, that he was SUPPOSED to be home at 8 and it is now a little after 8. Our conversation goes a little like this:
Me: Hey, where are you--you almost home? (thinking he should be, because it's after 8 and he was SUPPOSED to be home-in which case wouldn't have been a big deal, because then the kids would have only been left unattended for a few minutes).
Skyler: Uh, no.
Me: Where are you then?
Skyler: I'm still at the office......
Me: STILL. AT. THE. OFFICE?!?!? (about 30 minutes away--without traffic!!!) Let's just say that it was a very good thing that Matt and Amanda were in the room with me because I had a few other words I could have said....
Skyler: Yeah, I just had to finish up one last thing.
Me: Well you need to leave NOW and come home NOW because Ethan has locked me out of the house and both ovens are on and Teigan is alone on the couch with Ethan!!!!!!!!

After that, Matt and Amanda came over to my house with me and again, we tried to coax Ethan into opening the door again. No such luck and by this point Teigan is SCREAMING! Which of course, made me start crying because I just felt so helpless. It didn't help that I could smell food burning from outside my front door. Enter picture of house on fire in my head again! So we decided to call the new fire department up the road to see if they could get in my house. They tell me that they can only come help if my house is on fire. IF MY HOUSE IS ON FIRE??! Really, we're gonna let it get that far?! So it's not a big enough emergency that my two small children, one of which is a newborn, is alone in a house with the ovens on??? Let me understand--firefighters rescue CATS out of trees--CATS--but not children locked inside a home that could possibly catch fire!!? Makes all the sense in the world to me. They tell me to find an object and break a window to let myself in. REALLY?! Like I hadn't thought of that already and decided that wasn't a very good idea. So much for the fire station.......

Ethan was a very good brother throughout all of this and put Teigan's paci in his mouth when I asked him to. Luckily, Ethan has no parent-child separation anxiety....he was totally chillin inside the house. I was peeking in through glass on my front door and saw him giving Teigan kisses, "It's ok Teenden!" and reading books to himself. Oh that little stinker!

30 minutes later we see a car fishtail around the corner--YES! Skyler was home! My rolls were like bricks and the ziti was as dry as the desert. Bless Skyler's heart for still eating it!! He even told me it was good. So moral of the story? Hide keys in my garage, back yard, at Amanda's house, in the sole of my shoe--because with a son like Ethan, who knows when or where I will need it!!!! Another moral of the story? Come home when your wife asks you to! All you men out there: GO HOME WHEN YOUR WIFE ASKS YOU TO! :-)

I'm grateful for the comfort that Amanda was able to give me, reassuring me that I'm not in fact a horrible mother. And the comedic relief that her husband, Matt brought. Because it was quite humorous (and quite evident that he doesn't have children) when he told my almost 2 year old to "turn the dead bolt to the left." HAHAHAHAHAHA!

I'm glad I can laugh about this now.................

Teigan is 1 month old!

2008-12-07T15:11:00.000-08:00

Ok, I'm already off to a bad start with this! I want to document each month of Teigan's life with updates and pictures (a good friend of mine did this--and I'm stealing her idea :-) ) however, I'm already a week late! Anyway, Teigan now weighs 8 lbs. 4 oz. and is 22 1/2 inches long! As a reminder, he started off at 6 lbs. 3 oz. and 20 inches. So two pounds in one month! Way to go Teigan!!! The dr. was really surprised that he did that with just breastfeeding alone--he is a milk monster!!

He is starting to be "awake" a lot more, although, he still doesn't do much. Aside from the occasional "gas" grin that he gives us (which is adorable by the way!!!). He still is constantly being mauled by his big brother Ethan, and I have found random pieces of food around his neck, chest and face that Ethan tries to share with him. The other day was kind of scary too, because I went into the kitchen to throw something away and came back into the living room and Ethan had picked Teigan up out of his bouncer! Imagine my panic as I ran over saying as calmly as I can, "Ethan doesn't pick up Teigan without mommy--no, Ethan you can't hold Teigan right now!" Such is life. Also, (and yes I'm bragging) my 5 week old is sleeping 7 hours through the night!!! I didn't think it would come this soon, and since he is gaining weight well--I'm not worried about not waking him. I'm one refreshed new momma! Although, it's a blessing that he does sleep so well, because I have to get up with Ethan at 7:30 in the morning. I had the luxury of sleeping when Ethan slept as a newborn--no such luck this time around....someone has to keep up with child number 1! So remember that before you add a 2nd child to the mix! We love Teigan to bits and are so grateful to have his sweet spirit in our home. We also love hearing Ethan comfort Teigan by saying, "It's ok Teenden, it's ok Teenden--here's a paci." Ha ha--how cute is that?!?!

Now for his pictures:

Teigan sleeps like this all the time--with his hands in the air! Even when I tried to lay his hands flat on his chest--he would lift them back up! How funny, huh?!

Flying with 2, Thanksgiving, and Steve's Wedding...

2008-11-30T19:46:00.001-08:00

My older brother Steve got married on November 28th to his love in the Oakland Temple. We were grateful to be able to go and be apart of the celebration! But in order for us to go, we had to travel with 2 small children! We knew that Teigan would be fine because he still sleeps so much--although, just the extra necessities that come with a newborn can be quite the hassle! We also knew we'd have to get pretty creative to keep little Ethan entertained on the airplane. Luckily, the flight wasn't full and Ethan was able to sit in his own seat even though we didn't pay for one. He surprised us with how calm and easily entertained he was!! We had absolutely no problems on the flight there or back! We flew out on Thanksgiving Day and met the rest of my family later in the afternoon. We waited a little too long before going to dinner, and since it was Thanksgiving nothing was open! So our Thanksgiving feast consisted of Whopper Jrs. and french fries! Which, to be honest, is all the same to me anyway. It was just fun to be with the entire family.

Friday was Steve's big day. They are a beautiful couple and we are excited to have Brittanie in our family!

We left early, early Saturday morning--it was such a quick trip for us! I'm just glad to be going to Colorado for Christmas because it just wasn't enough time with the family! Ethan absolutely adores his Papa (he asked, "where's papa?" the entire week before the wedding and hasn't stopped asking about Papa since we've been home) and loves his Uncle Scott and Uncle Jared to pieces. Grandma spoils Ethan way too much and he knows how to work her! :-) And Aunt Kristen is Ethan's favorite book reader. Ethan misses his Uncle Jordan (on his mission) terribly-and talks about him ALL the time! Of course, Teigan got passed around too! My grandparents were able to come as well, so it was nice for Ethan and Teigan to spend time with their great-grandparents!
Thanksgiving Din at Burger King!

Great Grandma Savage and Teig

Great Grandpa and Ethan

My beautiful sister, Kristen

The newly married couple: Steve and Brittanie Savage!

Ethan loves to lay next to Teigan like this

Life with Kids

2008-11-14T09:35:00.000-08:00

Yes, kids.....I still can hardly believe that Skyler and I have two sweet little boys! Ethan has done very well adjusting to life with a little brother. He is a wonderful help to have around--he gets diapers for Teigan, brings me blankets, and throws diapers in the trash for us. When Ethan isn't preoccupied with something else, he can usually be found smothering his brother in kisses, poking him in the eyes, nose, mouth and ears, holding his hands and playing with his feet. He very much loves his little brother!

Teigan is seriously such an easy-going baby! I remember saying how easy we had it with Ethan and I didn't know it was possible to have a more mellow baby than Ethan--but Teigan definitely is easier than Ethan was (and Ethan was soooo easy)! We rarely hear Teigan cry, he eats like a champ, and last night Teig and I went to bed around 10 and I didn't have to get up with him till 3:45 and then he slept till 9! So my life is pretty great right now. Plus, Skyler has like 5 weeks of paid paternity leave--so he's been home with me all month and won't go back to work until December. It has been wonderful having him home!!! Although, I think I might be driving him a little nuts because I'm already talking to him about babies #3, 4, and 5! It's hard not to want lots of children when my pregnancies are a piece of cake and when the finished product is so sweet and cute!

Because of my easy pregnancy, labor and delivery--I have been working out since Teigan was probably 2 days old. It feels so good to have "my body" back! I love being able to run again too--I ran while I was pregnant with Teigan until I was 25 weeks--so 15 weeks of not being able to do anything but walk at an incline got VERY monotonous!

Now for a ridiculous amount of darling pictures!

Loving his 1st bath!

Ethan and his baby Mickey.

Ethan loves to hold Teigan!

Making baby faces

Guess who's here?!?!?

2008-11-04T10:35:00.000-08:00

And two weeks early! We went into the hospital with some pretty strong contractions, they admitted me and broke my water around 7:00 pm and Teigan Grant was born at 10:22 pm! My labor was so stinkin easy--I feel bad for any moms that actually have to work to get their babies out!! I only pushed 3 times and less than 3 minutes later he was here! We love him so much and are so excited that he is finally part of our family! He looks a lot like Ethan in the face but Sky and I were kind of shocked to hear, "He's got blonde hair!!"

Teigan Grant Black 6 lbs. 3 oz. 20 inches

Daddy and Teigan

I sure love my boys!!

Ethan meeting his best friend for the first time! Such a tender moment!

Giving little brother kisses

Nana(my mom is no longer Grandma--Ethan prefers Nana) and Teigan

We are going to have fun these next couple of days adjusting to life with kids! Yes, plural! We feel so blessed to have two healthy, beautiful children!

Cutest Turtle Ever!!

2008-10-31T17:06:00.001-07:00

Fun video of Ethan enjoying himself at the Halloween party!

Happy Halloween!!!

2008-10-31T13:00:00.000-07:00

The other night was our ward's Trunk or Treat and we had so much fun! There was a huge blow up bounce house inside the gym, great food, lots of fun little carnival games and of course, the trick or treating at the end. Ethan is so adorable when he says, "Trick or Treat"! I wonder if he ever wondered why he was dressed like a turtle and getting candy thrown into his bucket after saying trick or treat.....his best friend Emme also came with us and they both really enjoyed themselves! They are going to go around together on Halloween too. I absolutely love this part about being a mom!!!

Now for the pictures!
A cute little pumpkin and handsome little turtle!

There was a photographer taking pictures in front of King Kong--Ethan wasn't too sure about that!

Daddy and Ethan (Do they not look EXACTLY alike?!)

Doing the sucker pull

Bean bag toss

Me and Jordan before he leaves for his mission in a few weeks!

Family of 3 (soon to be 4)!!!

Trick or Treat!

Time to go home

I should have taken pictures of our decked out Halloween decorations in our house! I am obsessed with decorating for the holidays....poor Skyler.....I tell him to keep working hard to fund my insanity! We had cobwebs outside our house, lots of lights, pumpkins, spiders, etc etc. I can't wait until my fund for holiday decorations increases!! Thanks Sky for working so hard! :-)

Cute video

2008-10-08T16:57:00.001-07:00

I've been meaning to capture Ethan and his "sounds" for a while now...he is just so cute! Do you think I'm preparing Ethan well for the life of a football player?! For some reason, I have this picture in my head of this video being played on a Jumbotron in some stadium for Ethan's first football game of his professional career! :-) Wishful thinking??

My sweet/handsome/funny boy!

2008-10-08T16:15:00.000-07:00

Have I mentioned before how in love I am with Ethan?!?! I so love being able to stay home with him throughout the day--I would miss so many funny things he says and does if I wasn't around.
Ethan being silly with his Elmo Halloween bucket (thanks Grandma Savage!)

Last week was so wonderful because Skyler took an entire week off of work to stay home and be lazy with me and Ethan. Except-we weren't so lazy (at least Sky wasn't)....we were hard at work getting the baby's room put together, and Ethan's room got some new furniture as well--so Sky was busy putting together the crib and dressers. We also painted the baby's room. It was so refreshing to spend a full week with my wonderful husband!

How lucky am I?!

Here are a few pictures for the grandparents to see how big Ethan is getting!

We are so blessed to have a healthy, beautiful son!

Conference Time

2008-10-05T10:55:00.000-07:00

I so enjoyed President Monson's talk today! I was really able to relate to his message of enjoying today instead of looking toward tomorrow or thinking about yesterday. I loved what he said about raising children and enjoying every minute with them because it really does go by too quickly. Tears (of happiness) filled my eyes as I watched President Monson through a mess of sticky fingerprints on our television--as I recalled the many, MANY times I have instructed Ethan not to touch the TV with his little hands...or the numerous times I may have mumbled about picking up the toys that Ethan loves to strew about the house...and realized then, that there will absolutely be a day that I will wish that I had toys to step over, or fingerprints to wipe, or crumbs to vacuum--oh how I love being a mom!!! I think I will think twice before I chastise Ethan again for just being a messy little boy!

Anyway, with that in mind--let me share a little story of what Ethan did last week. Sometimes, when I get ready in the morning, Ethan likes to get in the shower and shower like a big boy. He washes his hair and body and stomps around the shower while I put my makeup on. He also likes to open and close the lid to the body wash (making it a bit runnier when we go to use it the next day), take the lid of my shaving cream and spray it on the walls, and once he even completely dumped out a bottle of my brand new, somewhat expensive, shampoo! That, however, pales in comparison to what he got himself into this time.

When I was ready to pull him out of the shower, I could see through the glass door that the shower was filling up with water!! I quickly opened the door (if I had been even two minutes later, the water would have flooded up over the lip of the shower) and Ethan was sitting in the water saying, "It's ok, it's ok, it's ok." He says that every time he does something wrong. Anyway, I noticed that Ethan had pulled up the drain cover so I knew that he must have put something down there to block the water. I went to get Skyler and when we got back to the shower the water was slowly, S-L-O-W-L-Y draining itself around whatever Ethan had managed to shove down there. I looked around and thought that I had accounted for every bottle of shampoo and conditioner, body wash, and shaving cream and couldn't for the life of me think what Ethan could have possibly shoved down the drain. Then I realized that a new bottle of hair glaze was missing......yes, a bottle that was so perfectly shaped for a little boy to drop down deep into the drain. Skyler and I had no idea how we were going to get it out. We thought about waiting for the water to completely drain then blow drying the bottle and threading a roll of tape down to the lid to hoist it out--but that just seemed like so much work. We thought there had to be an easier way. Well, Sky finally decided to take a screw driver down the drain and screw into the bottle's lid and was able to pull it up that way. Anyway, it was quite the ordeal--and I am glad that we were able to laugh about it....but that will probably be one of the many memories I will keep of raising my sweet little Ethan.

Sky and I just think though, "What's it going to be like with TWO little boys?!" What will Ethan be capable of with a little accomplice?? I guess we will know soon enough--I can't believe how close we are to the end of the pregnancy! This one has just flown by. And we may be welcoming this new little bundle sooner rather than later because I have already started to experience some pretty crazy strong contractions! Ethan can't wait to meet his little brother!

Chatterbox

2008-09-25T11:05:00.000-07:00

I put Ethan down for his nap probably 45 minutes ago and I can still hear him chattering away!! Who is he talking to?? He has been in a big boy bed for a while now, and at first we had problems keeping him in bed at night--ie: we put him down, shut the door and 2 minutes later he's running out the door...repeat every five minutes. But for the last 2 weeks or so, we haven't had any problems with him! Even in the mornings I can hear him playing in his room on the monitor--it used to be that he would come running into our bedroom yelling, "Teeth, teeth!!" (He ALWAYS wants to brush his teeth first thing in the morning and that is usually followed by "EAT, EAT!"). Sometimes he still runs into our room, but he will crawl up on our couch and read a book or play with a toy at the foot of our bed...he still likes to get in bed with us (between us I should say) and wrestle with his daddy!

Today, though, was different. I was scared nearly half to death at 5 in the morning when a little hand reached up and grabbed my arm!!! He was saying "Book, book, book" and was trying to hand me his Winnie the Pooh book to read to him! Skyler got up and put him back in bed explaining that it wasn't really morning yet and that we would read to him later. He went back to sleep and woke up at a much more reasonable time of 8:00. What a funny little boy! We sure love his silly personality!

Speaking of silly--he has been making the funniest faces when I tell him to smile at the camera......

Funny huh?!

We pulled out the infant car seat--and of course, Ethan was all over it!

He loves to eat corn on the cob now too! He even helps me peel the corn. He is getting so big I can hardly stand it! Good thing we have another one on the way because Ethan is just not a baby anymore (although, he will always be my baby!).

Our newest addition to the family is growing well, and things are looking great! He is much more active than Ethan ever was (I didn't know that was going to be possible!!)....and is the cause of some restless nights. Skyler can even feel him kicking him in the back in the middle of the night! How crazy is that? Skyler asked how I get any sleep at all--and that, my friends, is why women have children and men do not. I started feeling the joys of contractions about a week ago--and no, they are not the painless braxton hicks contractions--they are the stop-you-in-your-tracks contractions and last about a minute. I only have them a few times a day so it's nothing to be concerned about--more annoying than anything else. But we're getting close and can't wait to meet our new little guy!!!

Bump pictures at around 6 months--I had a really bad eye infection, hence the glasses.....

Other exciting news--I bought Ethan's Halloween costume a few weeks ago! I love love love Halloween! I love decorating my house, buying costumes, CANDY!! Everything, I love everything about it and I am sooo excited that Ethan will be old enough to go trick-or-treating to get candy for his (will-be) very pregnant mama!! I'm trying to teach him how to say "Trick or Treat" so hopefully he will have that down over the next month. He is going to be the cutest little turtle anybody has ever seen! The Children's Place has absolutely adorable Halloween costumes! It was hard to pick between a penguin and a turtle so I left it up to Ethan and he picked the turtle. Very wise decision on his part! :-)

Lastly, Ethan has learned to ask "What is that?" And being the ever inquisitive boy that he is--that's pretty much all I hear day in and day out. Seriously-I love it and think that it is so stinkin cute, but to be honest, sometimes I don't even know what he's asking "what is that?" and pointing to--so I just make it up as I go. The funniest part is when he asks what something is and I tell him--he'll be very satisfied and completely trusting in what I tell him! If only that would last into his teenage years........

Random Thoughts and Pictures

2008-09-05T10:43:00.000-07:00

So like I said, we flew home to Colorado--so I thought it would be nice for Ethan to pull his own little carry-on bag. I found the perfect one too--it's an Elmo/sports themed carry on and it is darling!! I think I got more compliments at the airport than in the whole 19 months that we've had Ethan. And I must admit--he was pretty dang cute wheeling his luggage around!!

He looks like such a little man!!!

Ethan is also starting to talk a lot--and I mean A LOT! I am sometimes caught off guard at the words that come out of his mouth. I taught Ethan to say "Hut, Hut, Hike!" when I ask him what a football player says about 2 or 3 months ago but my mom thinks he's brainwashed though, because now I don't even have to say "what does a football player say?" to hear him say hut, hut, hike--all Ethan has to hear is the word football and he starts yelling hut, hut, hike! That's my boy!!!

Pregnancy is still going well--although, I am ready just to have him here! I'm so thankful for easy, non-complicated pregnancies!

Now for some random pictures.....

Ethan can now pull himself into our computer chair to "play" on the computer (even though he knows he isn't supposed to). Here's how I found him.

And him realizing that he was busted--just trying to butter me up with that cute face!

His reaction to me telling him to get down....

Riding his scooter bike at Grandma Savage's.

Again, the funny face he makes when I try to take his picture....

He sure loved the nice weather of Colorado--where he was actually able to go outside and play during the day!

We also recently had to get Ethan a new pair of tennis shoes because he outgrew his old ones way too fast. He now wears a size 7!! He loves to run and play in his new shoes!

Eating like a big boy

Whew! August was a busy month!

2008-09-05T10:22:00.000-07:00

Skyler's brother, Cory, got home from his mission in May and was able to come out and visit us the second week of August and meet his nephew for the first time! It was fun having him around for a week.

Then, my brother, who is getting ready to leave for his mission, came out the week after Cory left. This allowed me to fly to Salt Lake to meet up with my mom for my cousin's wedding. It was the FIRST time I have EVER left my sweet little boy for longer than a couple of hours!!! It was nice that Skyler was able to take some time off of work to spend with Ethan and Jordan, and when Sky had to go in for meetings, it was comforting knowing that Jordan was with Ethan. They have a very special bond--maybe Ethan can sense the athlete in Jordan?! Ha ha. Anyway, going through the airport and security without my little man was a quick process (something I'm not really used to!) but the whole time I felt like I was forgetting something! I even teared up a little bit while I was sitting in the terminal by myself. But, it was the first time in a long time that I was actually able to read a magazine on the plane--quite refreshing if you ask me. It was great to spend some time with my mom that week....but I was sure ready to get home to my boys!! I got home on Friday night, and Skyler had to leave on Sunday to go to Mississippi for 2 weeks! Normally, when Sky is gone longer than a week his firm will fly him home for the weekend, but because the travel would have taken him so long, he decided that he would take the flight to New York City and spend some time with his buddy Scott and his wife. He loves New York so I'm glad he was able to go.

I got the idea, though, to fly home with Jordan on Monday and spend almost 2 weeks in Colorado since Sky was going to be out of town. We flew in Monday and it turned out that my mom was leaving on Tuesday to take Kristen to her first semester at BYU. So of course, Ethan and I decided to make the trek out there with them. He did wonderful in the car probably because of the built in DVD player that allowed him to watch Elmo over and over.

Lately, he's been making a really funny, random face when I take his picture....it makes me laugh every time!

It was fun helping Kristen get settled in and spend time doing more shopping! Ethan was such a sport walking everywhere we had to go because we didn't have his stroller--especially walking all over campus. He has this new thing, where he believes a set of keys will open ANY door he wants to open.

Too Funny....

2008-08-05T20:04:00.001-07:00

....and yet so true!!!

18 Month Checkup

2008-08-01T08:43:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was Ethan's big day at the doctor's office! Why? Because it was the very last immunization shot that Ethan had to get until he goes to Kindergarden!!!!! He handled the shot like a real trooper (after 18 months of getting pricked in the leg--he probably got used to it!).

He is in the 98th percentile for height/weight/head development. Yes, 98 percent! He is going to be a big boy. I guess that's what happens when you combine the Savage bulk with the Black height. I've been told before that if you double a child's height at 2 years of age, that will give you a close approximate of how tall the child will grow. Well, Ethan was 37 inches tall so, by those standards he should be around 6"2' and probably taller because he still has 6 months of growing before he even turns 2. He was 27 lbs. too. And believe me, I can feel that every time I put him in his car seat!

We sure love our little man!!! I can't imagine a lifetime without him.......

Pregnancy Update

2008-07-28T14:59:00.000-07:00

Well I am now in my 6 month!! This pregnancy has gone by so fast! I went to my dr. appointment today and everything is looking great! He is quite the kicker, although, he prefers to curl up in a little ball whereas Ethan was all stretched out all the time. He is head down, and hopefully will stay head down....I don't know why some babies decide to be difficult from the very beginning and get in the breech position...but if this baby knows what's good for him he'll stay in the head down position and give me an easy delivery just like his big brother.

I'm measuring right where I should be, and have only gained a whopping 8 pounds!!! I was nervous to step on the scale this week though, because I feel like I've been eating like a deranged pregnant lady for the last couple of weeks! I only gained 17 pounds total with Ethan, and it looks like I'm headed in that same direction with this one. Made losing the weight pretty easy--so hopefully it will be the same this time around because Steve, my brother, is getting married oh about 2 weeks after I'm due to give birth!!!

Outdoor Fun and Ethan's New Best Friend....

2008-07-26T08:52:00.000-07:00

Well, it's really really starting to heat up here in Vegas. I'm talking 115 degrees. And by 115 degrees I really mean 130 degrees when you get into a car that has been sitting out in the hot sun. Ethan has learned to say, "Phew! It's hot!" when I put him in his car seat. It's so cute when he says it, but I just feel so bad for him! And because it's so incredibly hot, we can't really do anything during the day, aside from me going to the gym and the grocery store. No more park play dates or walks around the neighborhood....even swimming is almost out of the question just because I have to reapply his sunscreen every 45 minutes or so.

So I try to entertain him in other fun ways. We've taken him and his good friend, Emme, to Chuck E. Cheese (his first time and he LOVED it), the Fun Zone (a place that has lots of blow up castles and slides for him to bounce around on), he saw his first movie, Kung Fu Panda at the movie theatre and sat through the entire movie like a big boy! We even go and look at model homes together!

It cools down at night a bit (about 95-100 degrees) so that's when we try to let Ethan run around outside. One night Skyler had to pull some weeds (to get HOA off our backs!) so Ethan and I went out to join him. Ethan rode his little dump truck up and down the street and then asked to go for a walk, so we walked around the block together. He really enjoyed walking all by himself and looking at flowers and rocks.

I guess he really enjoyed his walk that first night because every night since he has asked to go for another walk. So I took him for another walk the next night and he was picking up rocks and trying to carry 3 or 4 rocks at a time, but he kept dropping them....so I decided that he needed a little wagon! We went to Target the next day and I bought him the cutest little wagon! It was a big hit on his walk that night. When cars would drive by, they would slow down and smile and point at Ethan....what can I say? He's adorable!!!

Picking up rocks....

....And putting them in his wagon

As for his new best friend--Emme's little brother, Lane, was born on May 11 and Ethan absolutely loves that little guy! He is always very concerned for Lane and very protective of him (he's going to be an awesome big brother). He loves to help feed Lane his bottle, cover him with his blanket, and shower him with kisses. Lane and Ethan are going to be very good friends!

NUDISTS!

2008-07-15T21:38:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, it rained for a bit here in Las Vegas. The only nice thing about Las Vegas is that when it does rain it usually stays pretty nice outside--it was still probably 90-95 degrees. Anyway, Ethan and I were hanging out with our friends Emme and her mom Melanie. They asked if they could go outside to play in the rain and we figured there was no harm in that. Well, as it turns out, they really wanted to "shower" in the rain--so both of them stripped down to their birthday suits and rain around and danced in the rain. I practically had to pry Ethan through the sliding doors to get him back in the house. I swear, if that kid had it his way, he would NEVER wear clothes. Taking off his clothes and diaper is one of his many talents. I guess I can't blame him though!

Oh, and check out Ethan's cute tan lines! I am in love with that little boy!

Guess who's almost 18 months.....

2008-07-13T14:28:00.001-07:00

Ethan!!! And with this glorious half birthday comes.....NURSERY!! Although, I do feel it is somewhat bittersweet. Some parents can't wait for the day to drop their children off at nursery, and to be honest--I don't really feel that way at all. Maybe it's because Ethan is such a good, easy baby that we've never really had a problem taking him to classes with us.

The primary president told us that it would be a good idea to start taking Ethan to nursery a few weeks early and sit through it with him just to get him used to the idea of going to nursery by himself. So today I took Ethan to nursery while Skyler taught his primary class. He played with play dough, read books, did awesome during singing time, played nicely with the other children, flirted with this adorable little girl named Ella, ate his snacks quietly--just all around had a good time. And I don't think he even really noticed that I was there or not. Unlike these 2 little girls who cried and cried and cried for their parents (those poor, poor nursery leaders!).

So at the end of the month Ethan gets to start going all by himself. And it will most likely be me crying on the other side of the door wanting to hold my baby. *SIGH* And really, I suppose I will be right back where I started 18 months ago in just a few short months when I have another baby to pack along with me everywhere I go.

If this is how I'm feeling about just taking him to nursery--I don't want to know how I will handle (*GASP*) kindergarten, elementary school graduation, his first day in high school, graduation, first day of college, sending him off on his mission, getting married.....! I know I'm getting ahead of myself quite a bit--but I can't help but think about it!

Look how big he is!!

Random Fun

2008-07-12T11:27:00.000-07:00

Ethan is officially a big boy now. He sleeps in a big boy bed and we are still "trying" to potty train him. He loves his new room--actually it's the freedom of no bars that he is loving. The first few nights were a nightmare trying to get him to stay in bed! We would tuck him in and leave the room and Ethan would follow 2 seconds later. I think the first night we had to stand outside his bedroom and put him back in bed about 7 or 8 times. We don't say anything to him, just pick him up and throw him back in bed. He's gotten rather smart about it though, because each time he tried to get out of bed he would wait a little bit longer...probably assuming that he had tricked us into thinking that he was actually going to stay in bed. And one night when Skyler was out of town, I put him to bed and took my usual post outside of his bedroom...sure enough I saw the doorknob begin to turn and as soon as Ethan opened it and saw me standing there, he shrieked and slammed the door in my face and began his mad dash back to bed. He thinks he is so clever. So I decided on the next round to hide around the corner to see what he would do. I saw him open the door (he couldn't see me, although he looked like he knew this may be a trap) and he was very hesitant to step outside of his room...but he poked his head out first to make sure the coast was clear and started running as fast as he could down the hall into my bedroom. He was pretty shocked when I ran up behind him! He is sooo funny!!

As far as potty training goes, he has gone on his big boy potty a few times now. He still just doesn't understand the "feeling" of needing to go yet. Although, Skyler has taught him that if he goes on the potty he gets a cookie. Sky has been out of town this last week so it's just been me and Ethan. The other night I changed Ethan's diaper, put his pajamas on, and brushed his teeth. I brought him downstairs to read a book before bed and Ethan walked straight into the bathroom where his potty is. He sat down (fully clothed) and looked as though he was really concentrating. A few seconds later he stood up and said, "I get cookie!!" Well, as it turned out he had peed in his diaper!! If he could just figure out that he's supposed to take his clothes off.....

A few weeks ago we went up to St. George to visit Skyler's grandparents...Ethan had his first experience on a tractor and had a blast!

Ethan loves to read books. He can always be found with a book in his hand. He sits through a whole sacrament meeting with no disturbance because he is so busy looking at all his books. We are so lucky that he behaves so well at church--because there are always a handful of kids running around during the meeting. Not our little guy!!!

Ethan is really starting to talk a lot--which has been wonderful! Life gets SOOO much easier when your child can actually tell you what he wants or doesn't want. He tells me when he's hungry and what he wants to eat....cheese, cracker, cookie, hot dog, milk, and water are among his new vocabulary. He also understands very clearly, what yes and no means. If I say, "Ethan do you want some cheese?" He will either say yes or no. I seriously can't believe how much nicer this 2 way communication is! What else does Ethan say?

"I need help." That's a huge frustration reliever for all of us.

"Brush teeeeeth" He really emphasizes teeth! And he LOVES to brush them. Morning and night, he always reminds me to brush his teeth.

"Read a book." I hear this about a million times a day.

"Talk to daddy." He says this when he wants me to call Skyler so he can "talk" to him (when really I think he just likes to hear Skyler's voice).

"Elmo, Elmo, Elmo!" He either wants to hold his Elmo, watch his Elmo DVD, or read his Elmo book.

"Want Emme's house." He loves to play at his friend, Emme's house. We go there almost every day.

"Blah, Blah, Blah!" He overheard me say this to my mom over the phone one day, and now he says it constantly! We have to be very careful what we say in front of him!

The other day before Skyler left for work, he bent over to give me a kiss (I was sitting on the couch and Ethan was standing at my feet) and said goodbye to Ethan without giving him a kiss. This didn't sit well with Ethan because as Skyler began to walk to the door Ethan yelled, "I want a kiss too!!!" It was sooo cute! And Skyler and I sort of had a moment where we just looked at each other like "did he just say that?!" We are both so very grateful for Ethan's sweet little spirit!

Those are just a few of the sweet conversations I have with my son on a daily basis. I love him oh so much!! He also talks a lot about his new baby on the way. I really believe he knows far more about this baby than anybody else and he is soo excited!

Oh, and another milestone--Ethan can swim all by himself! Well, with the help of his water wings. He slips one on each arm and just dives right into the pool. I don't even have to get in with him, although, I'm never far away. He and Emme will swim around like little puppy dogs until they literally can't swim anymore. I will have to upload a video of this new feat! I'm one proud mama!

Rock Band Superstars!!!

2008-07-12T11:08:00.000-07:00

Well, our little obsession began with guitar hero--and while that was a lot of fun, we (us and another couple) had to use XBOX controllers because we didn't have 4 guitars...and the controllers just didn't do our talent justice. So after about an 8 hour streak of guitar hero one night, Kevin and Kenna decided to go and buy Rock Band, a game that allowed one person to go to town on the drums, another person strum like a maniac on a guitar, and yet another was the lead singer of the band (everybody's dream, right?). You could also buy an additional base guitar as well, but we didn't cross that bridge until a few nights later.

So let me just say that I have been completely exhausted from completing a "world tour" with my band mates. We have played in all the major cities in the U.S. and actually received enough fans AND a private jet to allow us to continue to amaze the world in Paris, Japan, Switzerland, etc. with our amazing talent. Who knew? I suppose obsession is probably an understatement when it comes to how much we love this game. Kevin and Kenna will come over around 6 for pizza or wings, and we will rock out till about 2,3, or 4 in the morning. Yes, I said 4 in the morning. We take our work and our fans very seriously.

Even Ethan is a ROCKSTAR!!!!

A Father's Day Tribute

2008-06-14T18:14:00.000-07:00

I figure while I'm at it, I might as well write a Father's Day post a little bit early....when I married Skyler, I knew, firstly that he would be an outstanding husband, and secondly that he would be a fantastic father. He has exceeded my expectations and more with the love and patience he shows our sweet little boy. Nothing makes me happier than to see my two boys playing together. It's even sweeter to know how much Ethan loves his daddy and looks up to him. It's funny, because when Ethan does something good or new, he usually looks to Skyler for his approval. Ethan and I are blessed to have Skyler in our lives.

I'm not going to say that Skyler is the most perfect husband or perfect father in the world, because I know that there are many, many wonderful husbands and fathers out there--some of my dearest friends and family are married to them--however, I will say this: Skyler is the perfect husband FOR me and the perfect father FOR Ethan and really, that's all I could ever want. They say that "the most important thing a father can do for his children is to love their mother" and Skyler does just that and Ethan knows it. So thank you Skyler for being everything a girl and little boy could ask for! We love you--Happy Father's Day!

Lots of new posts...

2008-06-14T17:28:00.000-07:00

...and I mean LOTS of new posts! I'm all caught up for now.....I suggest you get comfortable!

Child Labor

2008-06-14T17:26:00.001-07:00

We recently bought a new treadmill and Ethan was VERY curious the first day we had it--we figured we'd let him try it out. It's pretty cute...I tell you--we have an athlete in training!

Our little boy is growing up!!

2008-06-14T16:48:00.000-07:00

I can hardly believe we've had Ethan in our home for 16 whole months! He has brought us so much joy and laughter and we can't wait to add another little baby to our family! So here's a run down of fun new things that Ethan does.

1. He is starting to (try) and dress and undress himself. After a nap one morning, this is how I found him....

2. He likes to "read" anything he can get his hands on--even if it is the Albertson's ads

3. He LOVES to dip his food in ketchup AND mustard now! It used to be that he just liked ketchup, but now, I think he likes mustard more...he is his mama's son!

4. He can eat a popsicle all by himself now! By actually holding it from the stick.

5. He is starting to feed himself with a fork or spoon....

6. ....Well, sort of! He does well for the first couple of bites!

7. Ethan folds his arms and bows his head at prayer time--he will sometimes close his eyes, but doesn't understand that he is supposed to do that for the entire prayer. And when the prayer is over Ethan says, "Amen!" We didn't even have to teach him to fold his arms or anything...he really did learn from our example. That's pretty rewarding as a parent!
8. He has officially moved into a big boy bed! He sleeps in a very large (for his body) full size bed! We were somewhat forced into this--we probably wouldn't normally put a 16 month old in a big bed, but he left us no choice! I've said before that we had problems with him getting his Division 1 thighs stuck in the crib railings. About a month ago, we actually had to take apart the front of his crib to release his thigh--it's a good thing Skyler was home to do that otherwise I probably would have had to grease him out of that mess! We still didn't think he was ready for the big bed yet, so instead, we went and bought one of the child mesh rails to keep kids from falling out of bed and we just attached that to his crib. That worked well for about 3 weeks. Until he actually fell out of bed by falling OVER the crib rail. We didn't want that to happen again, so we moved the full size bed into his room. The first night, he thought he was pretty smart to get out of bed after Skyler and I had left the room. After about 7 or 8 times of us repeatedly putting him back in bed and telling him to stay in bed, he finally understood and stayed put. We wondered if in the morning he would just let himself out of his room, but to our surprise we actually had to go in and get him! And that was definitely short lived. I feel like I've been in a power struggle with my 16 month old for the last couple of days. And power struggle and 16 month old shouldn't even be in the same sentence!!! Nap times are especially hard because he either constantly lets himself out of the room or he helps himself to his books and toys and plays in his closet and pulls clothes out of his drawers....it's hard to be upset with him though when he is so dang smart! Today, I put him in bed and then shut the door. I've learned to just stay right outside the door for a few minutes and sure enough, not even 2 seconds after I shut the door, I see the door handle turn and there's Ethan! He will shriek if he sees me, slam the door in my face and run to get back in bed! Does that sound like a 16 month old to you???! And he's so smart because he'll open the door, and wait a minute (like he's expecting me to be there) and if I'm not, he'll make a mad dash into our bedroom. Ugh! I really miss his crib days! But, I guess he's got to learn sometime......Now, I get woken up by my adorable son trying to rummage through my night-stand every morning (yes, he lets himself out of bed).

I just ordered his adorable bedding set--so pictures to come as soon as his room is put together!

We certainly love Ethan to pieces!!!

DISNEYLAND!

2008-06-14T15:15:00.000-07:00

We have been so busy with lots of little vacations lately! And we still have quite a few coming up! Anyway, thanks to my wonderful parents, we were able to all spend 3 days at the happiest place on Earth! It was great getting together with the family one last time before Jordan heads off to Brazil for his mission. My grandparents were even able to come which was very special. I don't have a lot to write about--I figure a picture is worth a thousand words right? So, I'll just post a bunch of pictures of our trip. Ethan did so well spending all day at the park--we were worried that he wouldn't sleep in his stroller with all the commotion of Disneyland, but he did so well!! He enjoyed lots of the little rides too. I think his favorite was Pirates of the Caribbean because he was in a boat floating on water. Ethan was Skyler's little sidekick on the Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters and had fun spinning the cart so Dad could shoot at the targets. It was pretty dang cute! He also enjoyed spending lots of time with Grandma and Grandpa Savage (who rode with him on most of the rides)...they did Peter Pan, Toad's Grand Adventure, the Jungle Safari, the Haunted Mansion, etc. He just couldn't figure out why we had to wait in such LONG lines! He was a trooper though. We can't wait to go again (hear that Grandpa???)!

Eating yummy food from a yummy buffet

Shoving a whole pancake in his mouth!

He insisted on holding both of our hands!

The girls

Great Grandma and Grandpa Savage

Soaking wet after Grizzly River Run

1st bite of cotton candy! He didn't know if he liked it or not....but he ate it!

Trying to pose for a family picture

In line at Pirates of the Caribbean

Fast asleep after a long 3 days at Disneyland!

Awake just in time for the fireworks!!

Thanks again Mom and Dad for a fabulous, fun vacation!!

Santa Monica Beach Vacay!

2008-06-14T12:15:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, Ethan and I were able to join Skyler on one of his "business/training" courses out to Los Angeles. Skyler's firm pays for him to fly out, the hotel for the week, and all of his meals. So instead, Skyler checked to see if they would reimburse him for gas money and we all drove out instead! We spent almost a week in a beautiful hotel with a huge swimming pool and an awesome outdoor mall right across the street! Ethan and I were in heaven while Skyler was hard at work!! Sky's training started at 8 every morning, so Ethan and I would go to breakfast every morning at this delicious cafe inside the hotel (luckily we had meal vouchers for this, seeing that 3 scrambled eggs cost about $18.00!!). Then we would either go for a walk or head back up to the room so Ethan could watch Sesame Street (he's obsessed with "Melmo"--that's Elmo in Ethan's vocab) and take a nap. Sky would join us for lunch, then Ethan and I would either go for a swim or head to the mall. It was a lot of fun being able to take this mini vacation together.

And of course, the whole reason we made this happen was so that we could take Ethan back to the beach for his 2nd time! Skyler and I have decided that we've started this little tradition of going to the beach at least once/year. We are also planning on upgrading beaches as the years progress. Think Hawaii and the Caribbean....we just love the beach!!! Anyway, Ethan was about 5 months old the first time and he was NOT a happy camper. It was a lot colder and windier our first visit so we think that had something to do with it. This time, it was about 85 degrees and very, very nice!
Not very happy at 5 months....

....and couldn't be happier at 16 months!

We really had so much fun at the beach together. Here are a few pictures from our beach adventure!

We hadn't even left the parking lot yet!!!

So that was our day at the beach. A few nights later we went to Santa Monica Pier.....

Beach Fun

2008-06-14T12:14:00.001-07:00

Here's a fun video of Ethan enjoying his time at the beach!

New (BIG) Purchase!

2008-05-23T15:41:00.000-07:00

Here it is....after a lot of research (and a few test drives that we borrowed from a friend)...we've decided to purchase the 2008 BOB Revolution 12" Duallie...

Why? You ask? Yep, you guessed it....there is going to be a new baby in the Black family. Ethan is going to be a very good BIG BROTHER to a LITTLE BROTHER!!!! I can't say that I wasn't maybe a little disappointed that it wasn't a girl--because I know it's going to be quite a few years before we have anymore children, but I really do just love little boys!!! It's also kind of nice being the only girl in the house--I get treated like a queen!! :-)

The BOB costs a little bit more than we wanted to spend, but hey, you get what you pay for and it is so important to have a good stroller! Plus, I really wanted to find a nice double stroller that would allow Ethan and his brother to sit side by side rather than front and back....

I'm about 4 months along--the baby is due November 13th and we are so excited to meet him! Skyler and I had agreed to hold off on telling people until we found out what we were having--and boy was it hard to keep this secret!!! Especially because I found out almost immediately after I actually got pregnant. How did I know? I had an INTENSE craving for mushrooms. And I HATE mushrooms! One night we ordered pizzas and Skyler always gets a cheese pizza with just mushrooms on it. We've been married for almost 2 1/2 years and I have NEVER had a piece of his pizza. Until about 4 months ago--I ate probably 3 or 4 slices of Sky's pizza and it tasted soooo good! The next night and the next night and the next night I made stuffed mushrooms, and it finally got to the point that I was just eating plain sauteed mushrooms!! Crazy, huh? So I knew way before I even took a pregnancy test that I was in fact, pregnant. Skyler and I weren't even really trying to get pregnant either--we had been talking about having another baby, but still wanted to wait a few months. The thing is, my birth control prescription of a year ran out the second week in February and I just didn't get around to seeing the doctor to refill my prescription...well, that ended up being our downfall--because I got pregnant the 3rd week in February!! I still can't believe how quickly it happened, but it was definitely supposed to happen. Anyway, I think I ate mushrooms for breakfast, lunch and dinner for about 5 weeks straight. Now I can't even look at a mushroom without wanting to puke! These pregnancy cravings are way more often and crazy than my pregnancy with Ethan--and my cravings usually happen in spurts. For example, for about 30 days, I ate an ice cream sandwich every single night after dinner. Lately, it's been soft pretzels dipped in cheese. I get one anytime I'm at the mall or Target. And I usually make an excuse to go to either place just for the stinkin pretzel!!! It really is bizarre.

Anyway, the baby looks healthy, and actually at the ultrasound today (we went to a 4D place) we got a picture of him smiling! He was moving around like crazy too. He did a 360 as we were watching him....it was like he knew we were watching him and he had had enough, so slowly but surely he turned his back on us! Funny, huh? Ethan talks about the baby all the time too. It's always, "Mama has baby?" and "Baby in mama." I know he doesn't really understand what is going on, but it's still fun to hear him babbling about "baby."

By the way, this isn't actually a picture of our baby--just one I found on Google--our baby is WAAAAY cuter! :-)

How Could I Forget????

2008-05-13T14:42:00.000-07:00

I can't believe I haven't posted this sooner! My little brother, Jordan, received his mission call a few weeks ago! On September 3, 2008 Jordan will report to the MTC in Sao Paulo, Brazil where he will become educated in the Portuguese language! After completing his time at the MTC, he will have the opportunity to serve the wonderful people of Curitiba, Brazil!! We are all so excited and proud of Jordan. I know he will be a great missionary!

The Curitiba LDS temple is scheduled to be dedicated June 1, 2008!