Some pictures...

Here are just a few pictures of my boys.

Typical...

Gavin's newest thing: Reading while he goes to the bathroom. It is quite funny. The other day he said, "mommy, i have to go pee pee. I need a paper." I was like, "what? huh?" Anyway, it was funny. He caught me off guard. Also, Gavin started Sunbeams. He did pretty good. Our ward here had a transitioning class called moonbeams that he was in for a little while to prepare him for Sunbeams. He did so good. I saw him walking in the hallway back to his class from primary and he had his arms folded, walking very upright with a bouncy walk. He was feeling like a big boy - like a proud big boy. It was so cute to watch my little guy start sunbeams. He likes to tell us what he does... "we learned about Jesus. We sang songs." I think he tells us the same thing every week, but it is so fun hearing the same thing each week. We have an amazing ward here and i LOVE the spirit that is felt each week...I have learned so much from my friends here in the ward. They are all amazing examples to me. Through all of the hard times i have been through over the past year, i could not have asked for a better ward, better friends or better aquaintances. I know Heavenly Father has been looking out for me and my family. I know that it is by no coincidence that we ended up here.

Hhhmmmmm...

I have to give a talk in Sacrament meeting on the 20th. They found out that we still haven't spoke in church yet and we have been here for a year and a half, so they jumped right on that one!!! Anyway, i must say, i hate giving talks because i get so nervous. If anyone has a remedy on how to make the butterflies go away, please tell me! But, i love speaking at the same time b/c i love learning more about what i have to speak on, and i love feeling the spirit the entire time that i prepare for it. Feeling the spirit is the BEST part. I know when i am on the right track while preparing because i feel the spirit strongest during those times. Often times i think to myself, "is this even good? people are going to be bored. everyone already knows about this." But, i just try to have faith in what the spirit is telling me as i prepare, even if to ME it seems dull, maybe it won't be dull to just ONE person. :) Anyway, now that all my Ohio friends know that i am speaking, maybe just show up to church after Sacrament meeting. Save yourselves....save me from the huge crowd! thanks! :)

Please tell me i am not the only one...

I have been thinking a lot about babies lately. I have been watching The Baby Story on TLC, and i have been thinking about the idea of having another one, BUT BUT BUT when i think of the REALITY of it ALL and try to get the "ohhhh what a cute baby" out of my head, when i think about the torture of being pregnant, i then realize that there is NO WAY in heck i want another one for quite some time. Tell me i am not weird. It seems like i hit a point to where I naturally get this baby urge, but it doesn't mean that I WANT to have another one yet. It is so weird to me b/c my body is getting this urge, but my heart and mind are telling me NO WAY. My husband thinks i am getting this weird urge b/c i see a lot of girls at church who are pregnant. I SERIOUSLY don't want another one yet, so why am i getting a baby urge?! It is so annoying. Can anyone relate?!

Guess who is Finally TRYING to walk!...

Our little Tanner baby. He started taking his first steps yesterday. Holly and i were working with him while Shane was at school. He took about 4 steps on his own. Shane got home and we both worked with him on it and he took at most 5 steps in a row. He feels so proud of himself. It is so cute. He really does have strong legs and could easily take off on his own, but his overly cautious attitude is holding him back. It is alright though b/c when he does start walking i am gonna have to watch him even more! woah!

Just a few pics of our daily activities...

At bathtime the boys love playing with the running water. Gavin is pushing Tanner around in his Tonka truck. Gavin and i played chutes and ladders. Gavin and Tanne had a lot of fun throwing tennis balls around and chasing them.
I have to say how much i love my boys. My grandpa passed away yesterday, and for a few days before we knew that it was coming soon. Everytime i was feeling sad my two little boys were able to bring a smile on my face and cheer me up momentarily. They are so precious. They are such lovers. I am so grateful for them. Sometimes i wonder if i will get a girl. My mom and sister seem to think that i will have all boys and sometimes i wonder if they are right. I was thinking about it at church and the thought came to my mind... "Someone is looking out for me. When these boys get older they are gonna love their momma(they already do) and they are gonna be protective of me(they already are) and treat me like a queen." I know that is true.

Global Warming...

Talk about global warming! Either that or my friends brought back the nice California temperatures with them! Today is 62 degrees! Oh my goodness it is so nice! Gavin and i went in our backyard and played on the swingset. Auntie Holly enjoyed it with us for a little while. He also tried out his bigwheel for a little while. When i lived in Oklahoma, in the winter it would snow and melt the next day. That is my kind of winter. :) That is exactly what has been happening here, and it sounds like everywhere in the U.S.A.

Just a few things...

Okay, first item on the list...

1. We have illustrated stories of the BOM. I was reading one of them to Gavin the other night. We started talking about Jesus and i tried telling him how much Jesus and Heavenly Father love him and how he can pray to them and how they listen. You can't see them, but they see you and listen. Then for some reason it must have made him think of Santa because randomly he said, "I like Santa." I was like, "you do?" kind of puzzled why he thought of Santa. Then i talked about Jesus again. Gavin then interrupted me and said, " Does Jesus have any candy?" haha. It was soooo funny.

2. I lost a lot of hair after having Tanner. My hair has been thin and it has been making me nervous because i wasn't sure if i was going bald or something. Well, when i went to get highlights in my hair my stylist told me that i have tons of little hairs that are growing back in. I was sooooo excited to hear that. I guess that would explain why i feel like i have all these little hairs sticking up all over my head. I look like i've been electricuted, my husband says. :) She told me that maybe next year i will want to cut my hair to sort of even out the look, otherwise i will look like i have thick hair on top and stringy hair towards the lower part of my hair. My plan is to chop my hair off in June next summer, but let's see if i have the guts to do it when the time comes. :)

Out of Gavin's Mouth...

This morning we were eating breakfast and here is what happened...
Gavin said "Mom what is that?" pointing to the glade plug-in. I said, "It makes our house smell good." He said, "oh it does? I can smell it." He puts his nose up to it and sniffs. I said, "oh you can?" He said, "I sure do."
Then we hear a crash of something. He said, "oh no, what happened mommy?" I said, "i don't know." He said, "I better go see. I will be right back." I hear him ask daddy, "what happened daddy?" He came back in the kitchen and said, "the toys fell. That's what happened." I said, "ohhhhh, okay."
Then we were about to leave to take Shane to school and he was in his pj's and i planned on leaving his pj's on. He said, "mommy i need to get dressed. Change me mommy." I told him that we are going to leave him in his pj's. He said, "i need shoes mommy. I need to put my shoes on." I told him that we are going to carry him to the car. He said, "I need my jacket mommy." So, i put his coat on him.
He has been coming up to me lately, while i am sitting, and he puts his arms around me and holds me and says, "i like you mommy." I tell him i like him too. Then he says, "i love you mommy." I tell him i love him too. Then he starts playing with my hair and caressing my head. Then he rubs my belly and says, "you have an ouwy mommy?" referring to my surgery i just recently had. I say, "yes, i have an ouwy, but i am not hurting anymore." He says, "ohhhhhhhh," in such a gentle, high-pitched and concerned way while he continues rubbing my belly. He is so sweet. He is so concerned for everyone.

Hugs and more HUGS...

Gavin kept insisting that i take pictures of him hugging Tanner. Here are just a few out of 20 that i had to take. It was really sweet. He loves to take care of his little brother.

Winter Storm Warning...

Later afternoon yesterday we were put under a winter storm warning. It snowed a lot and almost looked like a blizzard outside. It went on for about 10-12 hours i believe. I got a phone call from Holly, my sister, last night asking if i could pick her up from work b/c there was no way her car would make it home. I went to pick her up at about 11:00 p.m. Since we have a 4-wheel drive and brand new tires i felt safe. I have never seen the roads of Cleveland look so empty! Everybody that was on the road kept fish-tailing and doing 360's on the road. The snow was so thick. Anyway, i picked her up and dropped her off safely. We are supposed to get more snow today, but his weekend is supposed to be in the 40's. Hopefully that will melt away our snow in our driveway b/c we don't have a snow shovel anymore. Shane was shoveling a little last night and the thing just bent in half. I was surprised by how many people i saw at midnight shoveling their driveways.
In other news, Shane is back at school today...back to studies. I can't believe we are so close to being done with our second year. We will be third years. I feel like we just got here!!!! CRAZY!
Gavin has picked up singing big time. :) I listen to Josh Groban's CD Awake a lot. He picks up on the music fast b/c he sings along to a lot of the songs...especially the song "You are Loved(Don't give up)....he sings really loud to that one. I wish you could see it. It is so cute. We like to dance to that song while we sing it.
Tanner has picked up walking, but he has to use a little walker thing he got for Christmas to help him learn how to walk. He uses that thing to get around the house now. It is hilarious how much he uses it. I made popcorn yesterday and instead of crawling into the other room to get some he had to get his walker and walk himself into the room.

The New Year

School starts tomorrow for Shane. I am not too thrilled about it. I will like getting back into my routine, but i like having him here with me(most of the time). :) It has been very blizzardy out today. I wish i were in sunny California right now. I am sorry for those of you who are coming back to Ohio from a nice warm place. We will have to get together when you get back. I very much dislike this part of the year- January through April. There is usually not too much to look forward to and the boys and i are stuck in the house for those months. For my emotional well-being I need the sun to shine, which won't happen much for the next few months. I hope i don't go crazy! I just have to think about things to look forward to for the year.... 1. D.C. trip 2.Riviera Maya trip 3.Going to Idaho 4.My parents coming to visit ... This is what i will be thinking of when i am going nutso during these next few months. Wish me luck! Pray for me(j/k).