Autrey and Shilo

Colton and Dylan Updates

2012-01-20T17:08:00.000-06:00

Who is Colton? Barring an epiphany within the next 20 weeks, Colton David Duke will be the name of our little boy. I know I'm strange for wanting to pick out a name so early, but for me this is actually late. Dylan was named before I was pregnant. I thought this little one would be the same way, but that was when I was convinced this one was going to be a girl and didn't know my mother's intuition was broken. I actually asked Dr. White, "Are you sure?" when he gave the news at 15 1/2 weeks. But he was sure. Then I immediately read an entire baby name book on the way to New Mexico.

Here is Colton's 1st video, taken at my 20 week appointment. It shows Colton's heartbeat, measuring 149 bpm. He weighs .8 lb, even though I have gained 15 lbs already. I couldn't figure out how to easily download it directly from the DVD the doctor gave me onto the blog, so I just took a video of the DVD as it played on my laptop. Ghetto, but it works. I actually like that you can see Dylan's reflection as he quietly stares at it. Dylan asks me all the time to watch baby Colton again and to kiss baby Colton (he doesn't say baby Ava anymore). Makes my heart smile.

Now to play catch up with Dylan. I haven't done a monthly update since he turned 2. Here goes...

25 Months:

*Flew to Salt Lake day after his birthday for Thanksgiving. 1st time he wasn't a freebie. Also 1st trip we discovered he is too big to sleep in a pack-n-play crib.

*He LOVES to line up his cars in straight lines and rows. Could do it all day long all by himself.

*Maggie was playing "I Spy" and Dylan joined in saying, "I spy a Papa."

* I was teaching Maggie what a pedestrian is. Dylan repeated "pedestrian" clear as day.

*Dylan, Tommy, and Maggie have so much fun together, even though Dylan calls Maggie "Ashlyn." Autrey also taught him to call Joey "Gorilla Joe."

*At restauants he loves chicken nuggets, french fries, and "cloclate"(chocolate) milk. As soon as we walk in he tells his order to the nearest employee. And he'll never turn down a sucker, ever.

*Dylan has what I call "Anchor Man prayers" because he looks around and prays for objects he can see, just like the "I love...lamp" part of the movie. Example: Thank you for the windows. Thank you for lights. Thank you for trucks...

*He said "What you talkin' about?" to Aunt B when she was here and he didn't understand her. She and Aunt Elaine couldn't find a word he couldn't repeat so they tried to teach him supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. He can say "supercalifragi" "listic" "expialidocious" in 3 parts, but not all at once.

*He learned to plug in the big and little Christmas trees by himself.

*He cuddles with his singing elephant and his blue bear under a blanket when he goes to bed. He likes to burrow into the corner of his crib.

*He will repeat "Mama, mama, mama" or "Dad, dad, dad" to get our attention.

*He will say "How fun" or "How cute" when it's appropriate.

*He did his 1st finger painting. I gave him his 1st pair of safety scissors, which he tries to use with 2 hands.

*He'll say "I don't know that song" if he doesn't know one. That's because I will say that to him when he will request to sing songs I'm sure I know, but he will call them by his own nicknames and sometimes it takes a while to figure out which one he means. Examples: "The Mary Song" = Mary Had a Little Lamb, "The Dada Song" = George Strait's "A Father's Love" that Autrey sings to Dylan, "One for the Dame" = Baa Baa Black Sheep, "Glub, Glub" = 5 Green Speckled Frogs.

*He 'starts' his vacuum popper toy with his foot and vacuums next to me while I am cleaning.

*We could hear him from our room putting himself to sleep talking about Santa Clause and "the big nutcracker." He woke up saying "Feliz Navidad" over and over that next morning.

*He built a tower of 12 blocks multiple times.

26 Months:

*He said, "I have a question for G-ma in my room" like it was an object. haha.

*He sings the ABC song with only 3 mistakes: 1) He says "O" for "U" 2) He says "S" for "X" 3) He ends the song by saying "Now I know my ABCs" twice.

*Dylan LOVED the snow in Ruidoso. He was not happy when we had to drag him inside. He also really loved Nana's matchbox cars at her house...and Uncle TayTay (Terry).

*He holds up binoculars and pretends to take pictures.

*He has entered the "This is MINE!" stage. Yay... :(

*His 'special' drinks are "lemnade," "appa juice," and "choclate milk." He will say, "I want some ______" to request drinks, food, toys, etc.

*Me: "Can I have a kiss?" Dylan: (playfully) "No. Make mama sad." He knows it will get him tickled. We do that dialogue over and over while I pretend to get my feelings hurt when he refuses me and tickle him until he yells "No tickling!" He thinks it's so funny.

*Almost a month after Christmas he still sings them sometimes.

*He said, "I made some magic" the other day. I have no idea why.

*He loved G-ma's cinnamon rolls I made with her while she was here.

*G-ma gave Dylan his 1st haircut ever! He looks so grown up.

*Autrey asked him what his stuffed puppy's name is. Dylan said, "Diyan Duke Puppy."

*At the park he said, "I want to see the tree." He ran over to the closest one and hugged it.

*We made a matching game on 3 x 5 notecards with 2 bikes, 2 cars, and 2 puppies. He is pretty good at it.

*When I ask Dylan what color something is, he usually responds with "It's a blue one". Sometimes it is, sometimes it's not. That will be the 1st color we work on. Although he did see a blue Tahoe and called it a "blue Mimi's truck." I was impressed.

*Last week he got good at singing Happy Birthday. We practiced singing to GG, G-ma, and Tommy.

*We went to Chuck E. Cheese's with Tommy. Since then Dylan will periodically say, "Chuck E. went bye-bye. Oh, no! Where is Chuck E?"

*I think it's funny the way he says, "How now bwown (brown) cow."

*As I'm typing this, Dylan is watching out the window for Autrey to come home. He just unlocked the door and opened it for the 1st time. Stinker. That's my cue...

Tommy's 3!

2012-01-18T08:32:00.001-06:00

We drove 5 1/2 hours to Amarillo Friday night to celebrate Tommy's birthday with him. Dylan loved the "Construction Man Party."

PJ twins just waking up on party day:Cute Photo Op:
Playing with the machines in the beans:
Dylan still won't go in Mimi's bounce house they had set up, but at least he didn't cry this year. He enjoyed the vehicles instead:

He loved hammering the "nails" (golf tees) in the "wood" (foam):

Allyson had some great construction themed food, and I loved these cone cups:

After the official party was over and the 2 girls left we went to Chuck E. Cheese's. Dylan's favorite part is still riding the various vehicles, the police motorcycle being the one he kept going back to repeatedly:
He is quite fond of Chuck E. and keeps talking about him randomly:Maybe a little too fond:

On the way home we stopped at a truck stop with a really nice playground. However, I couldn't totally relax after reading the top sign. Yeah, the one in huge letters as if there had been a recent child-eating or pet-eating incident:

Dylan was looking at his snowman book and singing "Frosty the Snowman" and also "We Wish You a Merry Christmas." Way too cute for me not to record:

The next day I finally took down all my Christmas decorations. This was the 1st year we had a tree bigger than my little Charlie Brown tree I used in college that mom sent me freshman year. (Thanks for decorating it, Aunt Elaine!) Glad we could celebrate with you, Tommy!

The Reason We Paint Naked...

2012-01-12T15:25:00.003-06:00

...the pictures speak for themselves. He had sooo much painting on the paper, and himself. My little native in his war paint. Love the transformation from the beginning until bath tub time.

*Note: I added liquid dish soap to the paint to make the red and blue even more washable. Didn't even have to scrub when he took his bubble bath. Words of wisdom for the day. You're welcome.

This is when my other son...I mean, daddy came home and drew the smiley face on Dylan's chest:

Life's just better when you're naked. ;)

G-ma's 1st Visit to Our House!

2012-01-10T13:20:00.000-06:00

G-ma was able to come to our house for a visit this week. It was our Christmas part 2. She brought 2 boxes full of toys and clothes. Something I really wanted to do while she was here was to make her famous cinnamon rolls so she could watch and give pointers. She was there to document every step like a proud mama.

Spreading butter on the rolled out dough after it had been rising for 2 hours:Sugar and Cinnamon:
Rolling it up:
Posing:

Cutting:

Putting rolls on pans:

Shaping the rolls:

Ready to rise:After they sat for 1 1/2 hours and now ready to bake:

Hot out of the oven:

Frosting:

With my taste testers:

Ta-da! Proud of myself, just a bit.

With the Master Baker:

Perfection:

Longtime family friends, Adam and Adrienne Hanselman, came over for dinner that night. The kids had fun playing together. Let's just say AJ may look more like Adrienne, but he is definitely Adam's son! But, no, nothing in the house was broken. :)

AJ shares Dylan's love for Lightning McQueen:

G-ma played and went to the park and Cabela's with Dylan on Saturday so Autrey and I could go to the Dallas Temple and out to dinner (thanks for the gift card, Desiree'). I'm embarrassed to say it's the 1st time we've been to that temple. We've wanted to go, but our schedule and finding a babysitter had prevented us thus far. Actually, I think it was our 1st date for just the 2 of us since we moved to Texas 1 1/2 years ago. It was very nice. When we got home G-ma gave Dylan his 1st haircut! He did very well and didn't cry. He wasn't a fan of the comb and scissors by his head and kept trying to push her hands away, but we were able to distract him with a sucker and his new Bob the Builder DVD.

Before, with his uneven mohawk watching Bob (excuse the greenish/yellowish hue. These are the 1st pictures taken with my new camera and we hadn't/haven't figured out the settings yet):

Resistance is futile, my son:After, mission complete! He looks so grown up now:
Lounging on the stairs Sunday morning. He is almost as long as the width of the stairs:
My little stud with his new haircut in his new suit G-ma brought before church:

A bunch of videos:

G-ma teaching Dylan how to sing/spell his name. He's singing, just very softly:

"Itsy Bitsy Spider" Variations Singing Part 1:

"Itsy Bitsy Spider" Variations Singing Part 2:

Reading "Santa's Noisy Night" with Dylan helping out:

Dylan singing "I am a Child of God" and "I Love to See the Temple":

Dylan singing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game." He did pretty good with all the video G-ma took, considering it was after church, he hadn't had a nap yet, and those jets were quite distracting. But we pushed through because Dylan doesn't perform for the camera when I record him by myself.

So glad you could come, G-ma! Miss you already!

Dylan's John Deere

2012-01-03T16:28:00.005-06:00

Dylan liked his new battery powered backhoe loader while we were in New Mexico, but was wary about actually driving it. He still gets scared with some loud noises. But he did warm up to it and started to ride it in short spurts with Mimi and Papa after we drove back from NM and Amarillo.

Here are some clips of Dylan riding it:

Christmas at Nana's

2012-01-03T15:56:00.005-06:00

All the Duke crew drove to Ruidoso, New Mexico to be with Nana. We did it because we love Nana. The 10 hour drive also taught me that I love portable DVD players, Bob the Builder, and Between the Lions - for sanity's sake. Thanks, G-ma and G-pa for that well-timed gift!! I do not support kids watching shows and playing video games for hours every day, but it sure was nice to have something to entertain a 2 year old who was trapped in a car seat. Actually, I'm pretty sure it was longer than 10 hours because of all the snow we hit... Anyway, we all made it on Christmas Eve. Here are the kids with Nana, except Gorilla Joe: In their cute pjs that night:Boys kissing Maggie. They ought to have kissed Santa. Santa was VERY good to them, and the rest of us: We definitely had a White Christmas. Needed 4-wheel drive just to get to the rental house. The kids loved the snow. Dylan loved to throw it, roll around in it, and play in it:
Tommy and Dylan both got battery powered John Deere backhoe loaders from Santa. Dylan liked it but wasn't so sure about the noise it made. Tommy, on the other hand, wasn't afraid to run you over. Right, Maggie? Haha:
Autrey pulled the boys down the road:
See my sweet new Tahoe Santa gave me? Never mind that Dylan still calls it Mimi's Truck, because it allegedly used to be hers.
Big boys throwing snowballs at the house. You make Mimi's shades look good, Papa!

All bundled up:

Building Dylan's 1st Snowman:

Video of Dylan playing around in the snow behind the rental house:

1st time sledding at a place in town Jared goes:

The 1st run was hazardous (aka Autrey steered them into a tree):

The next 2 videos are of runs that ended better:

We went to Alomogordo to the Toy Train Depot to ride on the little train:

Then we went to the little zoo next door:
We went to have old-time western pictures with the older kids. Turned out pretty cute:

Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and has a Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-22T12:57:00.004-06:00

Our Christmas Card this year. (This is a picture I took of one of the actual cards, since the website wouldn't let me copy it or save it to another location. Figures they wouldn't trust people like me to do something like this. So you will have to settle for this lower quality version for the blog. Sorry. It's the thought that counts, right?) Merry Christmas, everyone! We love you!!!

Love, Autrey, Shilo, Dylan, & Baby BOY Duke

Grapevine Polar Express Train

2011-12-21T14:24:00.003-06:00

Mimi and Papa were here the past 2 days and took Dylan on his 1st REAL train ride on the Grapevine Polar Express. He was so excited before we even got there. He was wearing his train conductor overall outfit, but it was too cold to go without his big jacket over top of it. Here we are in front of the train. Dylan, of course, had his eyes glued on it in fascination:All aboard!
Lookin' out the window:
Santa brought Dylan a giant bell necklace. He has been wearing it every waking moment since that ride. (He is napping as we speak. The only way I could coax it off him was to have him put it around his elephant's neck, who sleeps with him. I was ok with that, since elephant won't accidently choke himself.) It's fairly loud. I know where he is at ALL times. I'm not sure if I want to feed him grass or throw money at him. Also, Dylan saw me trying to put his souvenir ticket with our other family keepsakes and he insisted on carrying it around. Too soon, I guess. He was pretty cute waving at Santa and saying, "Merry Christmas, Santa!"
Fun little train ride. Although, they had a very energetic pre-teen 'elf' MCing the ride. She came out of nowhere and shouted/asked me what I wanted for Christmas. Scared me so bad I about jumped on Autrey's lap. She did make it up to me by taking this picture after my heart stopped racing:

Thanks for the ride and the fun shopping weekend, Mimi and Papa! I got a sneak peek and Santa is being very generous this year!

Stockyard Santa

2011-12-05T11:35:00.005-06:00

Aunt Elaine and Aunt B were awesome enough to come down to be with us to help take care of Dylan (and the rest of us) while I had my cerclage on Friday. I had slept enough and was hopped up on enough vicodin that I felt well enough to go to the Fort Worth Stockyards with them Saturday night to get out of the house for a little while. We saw a Texan Santa: The funniest thing? This video of Autrey chicken roping:

We came home and Autrey finished building Dylan's tool bench. With the help of his assistant, of course:
Dylan loved it! He's a regular Bob the Builder.

Thanksgiving in Utah

2011-11-30T16:49:00.004-06:00

Since my parents went with the aunts and uncles/grandma and grandpa Holdaway on a Hawaiian cruise (I'm not jealous in the least *cough, cough*) we went with the Duke's to Utah for Thanksgiving so we could attend Tyler's blessing. Ironically, that's the event I don't have any pictures from. I'll have to steal some from Allyson's blog, after she takes a break from unpacking her new house to post them.

The Children's Museum: Corn clean up on aisle 5!The helicopter on the museum's roof: Video of Dylan dancing to the jukebox music with Maggie at the rental house:

Chilling with their string cheese on the warm windowsill:The ADORABLE turkey shirt I made with some of my ward friends:The Hogle Zoo on Black Friday, after we slept in until 8am thankyouverymuch:The Hogle Train:Mimi's Christmas outfits:D'ya hear there were some cute bears at Temple Square to see the lights? It was cold enough there to have Dylan put on his Lightning McQueen snow boots. There was snow when we first got there, but it melted when it rained. Oh, well: Video of Maggie and Dylan running down the hill outside the rental house:

We were lucky enough to see Aunt Elaine and Aunt Brenda twice while we were there. They took us to Guadalahonky's for dinner the night before we flew home: A better one of B:Happy Thanksgiving! I'm thankful to be in my 2nd trimester! Woo hoo!

Woo Hoo, Dylan's 2!

2011-11-18T15:31:00.000-06:00

This morning Dylan and I each had doctor appointments. I really like Dylan's new pediatrician, Dr. K. She's really nice. Here are his latest stats:

Head Circumference: 19.7 in. (85%)

Weight: 31.6 lbs. (85%)

Height: 36.25 in. (90%)

Generally, the rule is you take a child's height at 2 years old and double it to get their projected adult height. Dr. K. says that he will most likely be about 6'1'' or 6'2''. Not too shabby. Not nearly as tall as G-pa, but I'll take it. At least he'll be taller than I am. I'm about eye level with most of the men I'm surrounded by and it'll be nice to not feel so huge all the time.

And the latest update:

*When you ask him what his name is he will say "Duke." But when I start the sentence "My name is..." he will say "Di-yan Duke."

*When you ask, "How old are you?" He will say, "How old are you? I'm 2!"

*He counts to 10 all by himself, but doesn't have 1 to 1 matching yet. (See videos below)

*"Let's drive the train. I can do it." (8 word utterance) "You hear that? I hear the laundry. I do hear the laundry." (12 word utterance, after he heard the dryer buzzer go off)

*He consistently points out and says "extavator" (excavator) whenever he sees a real or toy one. He also knows the difference between a dump truck, loader, fire truck, ambulance, police car, motorcycle, airplane, "helicoptu" (helicopter), "cool bus" (school bus), train, boat, mail truck, garbage truck, and just about anything else I've forgotten that 'goes' and calls them by name as soon as he sees one.

*Dylan must think Old MacDonald is a dairy farmer. He only has cows when Dylan is choosing the animals to sing.

*He LOVES to read "Eensy Weensy Spider" and "The Toy Box". He has asked me to read both of them at least twice a day for at least a week or so. He is starting to be able to quote it.

*He Loves to sing the "Itsy Spider" and "Mary Song" (Mary Had a Little Lamb) many times every day. Who knew my kid would like spiders so much.

*When he gets really sad he sticks his lower lip out. But luckily it doesn't happen often, but he did get 3 more teeth this month within 1 1/2 weeks and was quite fussy. Luckily all his holes are now filled in so we should be good for a while. (read: We can lay off the Tylenol for a while.)

*He will say "good listening" when he obeys directions, and will tell you the rule he just broke when he doesn't listen. All without prompting.

*When I tell him we're going to the park or nursery, etc. he immediately says, "Be nice to the kids" and starts singing "Sharing our toys is fun to do, fun to do, fun to do..."

*He will want you to sit at his Lightning McQueen table with him and listen to him say prayers. He always prays for Mater, McQueen, his trucks, mom, and dad. You know, the important things. In that order.

*He was given a hexagon shaped cracker and popped out with "octagon." Very close. I was impressed.

*When I am putting him down for a nap, he and I make a 'hand tower,' which amuses him to bring his hand from the bottom to the top.

*He is like a puppy. He loves to play 'fetch' with a ball in the yard.

*He loves to sit in the driver's seat and 'drive'. He can also put the key in the ignition all by himself.

We went to the park for Family Home Evening:

And then fed the ducks. It was his 1st time. He loved it!:

Some fun videos:

Feeding the ducks:

Counting to 10 at the park and swinging:

And lest you think that counting was a fluke:

Singing "Itsy Spider":

Daddy is great at random physical comedy. Funny what makes them laugh. Music to my ears:

Doing both of his transportation vehicle puzzles simultaneously:

Happy birthday, sweetie bug!

Baby #2 is on the way...

2011-11-10T16:38:00.002-06:00

...and will arrive in May! I had Dylan give this note to Autrey when he came home on Sept. 29, Meagan's birthday. I had thought I was earlier in the week, but I wanted to be sure. Nothing slaps you in the face like a failed pregnancy test. I learned that last time with Dylan. So this time I didn't fail any. Although there wasn't really a chance to. No long wait. No drugs. Nothing. I'm still holding my breath it's not too good to be true. I'm just about 11 weeks now and almost done with the 1st trimester. Hope the sickness and crazy food cravings/aversions leave with it. It's definitely worse than with Dylan. Trade off, I guess. When we ask, "Where's momma's baby?" Dylan kisses my stomach. He's going to be a great big brother.

Party Party "Lightna MaTween"

2011-11-09T20:13:00.000-06:00

Dylan was so excited for his "Party Party Lightna MaTween". I had tons of Cars food and decorations all over the house, which may have been part of it. However, I think it was the 11 cardboard box Lightning McQueens Autrey was cutting out and painting to get ready for the party (every spare moment on nights and weekends) that really got Dylan all revved up. I know that man loves his son for going along with the crazy car idea I had, since he was the one doing all the work. Totally worth it to see the 7 little boys (along with Autrey and Matt) running around in them. They made awesome favors for the kids to take home as well.

The food, all things Cars, even the mac-n-cheese car shaped noodles. As usual I WAY overplanned:

The Cars #2 racetrack cake I made. Cute, if I do say so myself. And I do say so myself:

The "Bumper Bowling" Game I invented, where the kids used toy cars to bowl the pins over:

Favor bags/bags for pinata candy, coloring pages, stickers:

After our "Piston Cup" race, the kids each decorated their own Piston Cup cookie trophy:

Cars and trucks to play with and the sweet Lightning McQueen table my mom got Dylan that I flew back from PA:

One of the 11 Lightning McQueens. Ka-chow!:

Some of the gifts:

Racers at the race, being hounded by the paparazzi (What? If Dylan's not even going to remember this awesome party and all the work involved with pulling it off, I was bound and determined to document the heck out if it):

Racers:

Dylan Duke

Tommy Duke

Matthew Brandenburgh (next door neighbor)

Joshua West (across the street neighbor)

Calvin Nordstrom (in nursery with Dylan)

Liam Nordstrom (Calvin's older brother)

Hayden Nordstrom (in my primary class-oldest Nordstrom)

Matt Duke

Autrey Duke

Spectators:

Mimi and Papa

Moms of the Racers

When G-ma gave Dylan this hoodie, she was afraid it wouldn't be cold enough to wear. Turns out it was. Perfect:

"Check out my headlights":

Joshua's car of choice:

Racer in training, Tyler:

Racing Footage:

Little Boys Pinata Whacking Video:

Re-fueling their tanks:

"Bumper Bowling" Game Video:

Video of Matthew and Calvin Coloring at the Lightning McQueen Table:

Singing Happy Birthday Video:

Dylan's favorite part of the cake was the "yum yums" (M&Ms):

...and the cars:

Opening the presents:

We had so much food I told Jennifer West to send over JD (in light gray shirt) and the other football players hanging out at Coach Jacob's house to have lunch before their PeeWee Super Bowl Game. Still had tons of extras after they left. Turns out big boys also like the cars:

The birthday boy:

Mimi and Papa and Matt and Allyson stayed the rest of the weekend. Mimi got the boys matching conductor outfits they wore to the park:

Don't ask me what they were doing with that pole:

Dylan's birthday technically isn't until the 18th, but if you ask him he'll tell you, "I'm 2!"

Maggie’s Halloween/Princess Birthday Party in our Newly Painted House

2011-11-09T16:56:00.001-06:00

Since I posted the original new house pictures we have removed/replaced the popcorn ceilings, tiled both upstairs bathrooms, recarpeted the upstairs, and painted just about every surface in the house's interior, including baseboards and doors. Clearly time to post the updated version. We still have a long way to go in decorating and getting curtains and furniture, etc. but we're pretty happy with how far we've already come!

Upstairs:

The Master Bedroom. Plain and kind of stark right now, but we’ll get a bedroom set someday:

Walk-in Closet, that I would love to fix to use the space better:

Master Bathroom:

Game room:

Guest Room:

2nd Guest Room/Will be new baby’s room eventually:

Guest Bathroom:

Dylan’s Room:

Downstairs:

Front Room:

Family Room:

Family Room into Kitchen:

Wall across from Table:

Kitchen:

Walk-in Pantry:

Bathroom:

Laundry Room:

Spread for Maggie’s Party. I went overboard, of course. It’s in my blood:

Lori had Maggie and Joey as a Princess and a Frog Prince:

Allyson dressed Tommy and Tyler as a Fireman and Dalmatian:

And the little Cowboy, complete with horse and personalized sheriff pin:

Balloon Pumpkin game with candy, confetti, and little prizes inside that popped out when they exploded. Difficult to do, by the way:

Ghost/Pumpkin Bowling Videos of Maggie and Kylie:

Pumpkin Pinata Video:

At Joey’s blessing that night:

Painting Tyler’s feet for the ghost wall hanging for Mimi:

What a fun weekend!

Dylan's 1st Trick or Treating

2011-11-01T20:58:00.002-05:00

In preparation for Halloween I made 3 wall hangings.

Mine, the trial run:

Mimi and Papa's:
G-ma and G-pa's (G-ma's paint pen wasn't working and I didn't have time to fix it before we left PA, but it won't be hard for her to fix.)
On Saturday, our ward had a trunk or treat at the middle school. Dylan and Autrey were cute matching cowboys. Dylan's little sheriff pin has his name on it. His belt buckle and boots were awesome! (Courtesy of Tommy and G-ma) I was going to be a cowgirl, but I couldn't find a hat or boots that 1. looked right 2. fit right and 3. weren't really expensive. It was also really cold and I didn't want to wear my jean skirt with lily-white legs all goosebumpy, so I was lame and just wore an orange top and jeans. Terrible, I know. How cute is the stick horse rigged up to the bike to look like he's riding along?
A sucker, his favorite. Victory!

Video clip of the costume parade:

Halloween pjs from Mimi:

Dylan's 1st trick or treating experience last night on his faithful steed:

Yee haw!
A few cute videos...

#1: Showing off his catch phrases:

"Trick or Treat, pardner"

"Howdy little lady"

"I love you, horsey"

*Mildly inappropriate making out with the horse* :)

"Yee haw"

"Y'all have some candy?"

"Happy Halloween"

"Marshall Dylan"

#2: His 1st trick or treating experience at a house, at our neighbor's (Jacob and Jennifer West):

#3: Going through a mini haunted house:

#4: A little shy with some people a street over that decked out their yard:

Highlights of Dylan's night:

1. Some people brought their dogs with them trick or treating and he liked seeing them.

2. He saw a kid dressed up like Thomas the Train.

3. He got to eat 2 suckers in 1 day...WOW! He was so happy about it last night but today he totally forgot he has a pumpkin stuffed full of candy. Did I remind him? Nope. :)

Laughing at Yourself is a Form of Bravery

2011-11-01T16:28:00.000-05:00

When I was looking for pictures of me around 2 years old for my last post I had so much fun looking at my old pictures, both the cute ones and the so-bad-it's-funny ones. I know this is probably only really interesting to family members (as most of my posts have been lately), but if you hang in there at least a few of these will make you laugh. I'm one of those kids that had many awkward phases. However, when this is printed out and looked at by my children in years to come, I want to point out to them that while I might not have ever been incredibly fashion forward, I was never made fun of for what I looked like and I did have friends. We all looked this silly together. Right, everyone?

Mom and newborn me, the 1st of 4 girls. They had always envisioned having 5 boys. Not quite. Even all of my mom's 7 miscarriages were girls. Dad likes to say he's just a ladies' man': The blessing dress Aunt Elaine made for me:Dad liked to dress me up to entertain himself while it was his turn to watch me when mom was at work or school:One year old at mom and dad's graduation from Utah State. I can't imagine getting engaged a month after I turned 20, getting married 3 1/2 months later, having a baby 2 years later while my husband and I each juggled school and work on a tiny budget and lived in a trailer (married housing at the time). Makes my short stint as a working mom seem like a breeze: The horse Grandpa Great (Miller) fixed up and gave me as a baby before he died when I was 6 months old. Sad I never knew him. He was my dad's best man at his wedding:A piglet for Halloween. Yes, those are bottle nipples on pink footie pjs:At the MGM Grand right after Kristen was born when we lived in Reno, NV. Yes, that is a real lion. One look at my face could probably tell you that. Glass or no glass, that is scary when they roar that close:Living in our townhouse at 815 Allenview Drive, just blocks away from the house my parents live in now:Courtesy of Grandma Holdaway, family Cougar Nut:Walking in our sidewalk's wet cement. Not one of my finer moments:Sponge rollers. Not super fun to sleep in, but they get the job done: My dad loves the wildlife:Oh, sweet Grandma Great (Miller). So funny and so kind. She let me play with her cane. Always crocheting in her chair while she talked to me. She died when I was 14:Grandma Miller kisses:In the mountains with Grandpa and Grandma Holdaway, who doesn't get her hair wet if she can help it. If you ever noticed my rediculously freckled shoulders, they are the result of a bad burn just a few hours after this picture was taken that gave me huge water blisters. I'm sure my flesh is frying as I'm smiling:My dad, the big kid with the big...:At Hershey Park. The entire family wore matching shirts. None of us ever got lost, why do you ask?Kindergarten Halloween as Little Bo Peep, complete with little sheep. Costume courtesy of mom:My dog, Pongo, and I at my parents' house. Yup, 101 Dalmations came out right about that time. At least I didn't call him Spot. He was such a good dog. Broke our hearts when his epileptic seizures got so bad he didn't have any good days left. I know now why mom didn't tell us before she took him to the vet when I was in 2nd grade. She probably couldn't have gone through with it:On the top bunk in Kristen and I's purple room with Lucky, our Amazon parrot we rescued from freezing in a crabapple tree in our neighborhood one winter and never found the owners. We kept it until Meagan was learning to walk and shook it's perch, causing him to screech when he would see any of us coming. It was either Meagan or the bird...: I am definitely my father's daughter. Spitting image. I loved it. My dad was my hero and I always bragged about how tall and strong he was: Some of the matching dresses Aunt Elaine made us. These were for Easter one year:Hiking the 'M' in Manti:Manti Temple:I'm wearing the pants, but clearly Kristen wore the pants in our relationship and called most of the shots. And it worked for us. She had an opinion and I usually didn't. She's always been one of my best friends:My turn in the dress:The last time I was ever excited to paint...haha:My baptism at 8 years old in the dress Aunt Elaine made:After a violin recital. I would explain dad's outfit, but I can't:I never needed braces, but the year these bad boys grew in I'm sure it was considered:One of my 13 years playing softball:In Boston. Classic early 90s attire:Aunt Elaine bought the outfits and did our hair for this one:Recogine this shirt from the picture above? Wanted to be just like a momma and I already was as tall as her in 7th grade:I played field hockey in 7th and 8th grade. Pictures post practice is never a good idea:Eighth grade. Still have that sweater, actually:1st day of school with my volleyball stuff, freshman or sophomore year:Sophomore Varsity picture:I loved this picture so much at the time, but now it just reminds me of the stupid things I did to stay that skinny: compulsively exercise AFTER practice, restrict eating, occasionally throw up. Worst part is I wasn't ever completely satisfied. I'm bigger now, but I'm also healthier and a whole lot happier. Anyone that has eaten with me, especially when I'm on vacation, knows I've kicked that lifestyle. I pray any girl of mine doesn't repeat my mistakes. Not worth it:Prom dress Junior year, the stick of butter dress:Senior Pictures before senior year. Finally got rid of those bangs!: Many of the girls at my school had this pose. 10 years later, I have no idea why:With mom when I got one of my volleyball tournament all-star selections:Basketball, pre broken nose. I had a picture in this post of me playing with that awful mask, but I accidently deleted it. There were many pictures of it in the paper and I know my dad still has a copy:Injuries plagued me since my freshman year with ankle sprains, shin stress fractures, knee tendonitis, a concussion... but senior year was the worst. The dosey was I broke my nose near the end of the basketball season senior year. If I would have had it fixed immediately my season would have been over. I opted to play with an awful mask that restricted my vision and fogged up when I sweat so I could play. After we were eliminated just before we could get to States a month or so later I had it re-broken and corrected. Here I am just about healed, sans makeup. A few weeks later I had my 2 wisdom teeth out. That mas my 18th birthday month, bruised and swollen. I did get to stay home for a week during March Madness though:High School graduation:BYU with my twin:Go Cougs!:Autrey and I when we were dating. This is the picture Grandma Holdaway used on our Wedding Party inviations. I don't know why this scan has something on my chin, but oh well:Consider this my Reader's Digest version of my life before I got married, since this counts as basically the only family history I do.

At 23 Months, Dylan Looks More Like...

2011-10-27T19:48:00.001-05:00

...Daddy: or Mommy:

What do you think?

I know I'm WAY behind on this month's update and have been neglecting this blog in general, but I'm hoping to remedy that as soon as possible because I have a TON of pictures from various events. I've kind of been on survival mode the past few weeks, but more on that later...

23 Month Memories:

*New words/phrases: "naked," "lotion," "compuda" (computer), "yum yums" (candy...there was a lot at Maggie's party we hosted 3 weeks ago), "ding-dong" (when he gets to doors), "S-T-O-P means stop," "You want to go play?" "I dropped it." "Oh no, mama. Can you get it?" (Usually one of his trucks), "Where the _____ go? I found it!" "Peanu(t) butta bwead" (one of his favorite foods he asks for all the time)

*He got 3 teeth this week (#11-13), the 2 left of his front bottom teeth and 1 to the right of his bottom front teeth. (Read: lots of popsicles and tylenol with not a lot of sleep) They are the only 3 teeth not to come in straight so far. I have been accused of only writing good things, but generally there's not much else to report. However, either due to teething/fever or travel or both he has been REALLY fussy this week and came back after 10 days in PA very clingy to Autrey. I'm praying he didn't hit terrible 2's a month early.

*He heard G-ma telling someone her gmail email address and Dylan started saying, "G-ma.com."

*At Desiree's volleyball senior rec night game he would yell, "Yay, Desiree!" and "Go Cats!"

*Desiree' taught him to say, "I'm a parrot" (DeeDee: I need that video you took of it so I can post it). Ashlyn was showing us her ballet sashay move. Jackson and Dylan joined in. He would frequently say, "Sashake sashake" and go shuffling down the hall. Uncle Ken decided Dylan needed to learn something more manly and taught him, "I'm a studmuffin."

*He's still never seen the entire "Cars" movie, but he loves "Lightna MaTween" and "Maters." I'm excited for his little party.

*Dylan: "Daddy?"

Me: "He's at work, buddy."

Dylan: "Makin' money!" :)

*He finally says "1" when counting. He can get to 10, with help, but skips 6. He loves to say "7, 8, 9, 10" really fast.

*He loves to throw all 8 couch pillows on the rug and wrestle them.

*He handed me a plastic mail letter and said, "From G-ma. I love you very much." Cute.

*I found out at a play date at his nursery leader's house that after Dylan gets dropped off, he gathers as many trucks as he can in his arms and walks around with them during most of nursery. I don't even think he really plays with them. He is the youngest and I guess is afraid if he puts them down someone will take them. Someone is clearly an only child who hasn't had to deal with people taking his stuff, especially rough and tumble ones. She said he is one of the best behaved, but I am not thrilled that he is hoarding toys and being anti-social. He still doesn't enjoy coloring in there, or at home. But he sure is learning the songs well!

*During General Conference he referred to all the speakers as either "President Monson" or "L. Tom Pehwee (Perry)." He also sang his little heart out with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir during "I am a Child of God." Did my heart good.

*He can sing almost all of "ABC" and the "Bubble Pop" song (about a little turtle named Tiny Tim in the bathtub).

*He likes to watch the World Series with daddy (Rangers vs Cardinals...conflict of interest I think for me to root for either one) and sing parts of "Take Me Out to the Ballgame."

*He loves to read his "(S)kippyjon Jones" and "Curi(ous) George" books. When he reads "Diggers and Dumpers" he will say, "There is. I found the sc(r)ewdriver" and find it on every page. He will also say some of the facts about the machines before I do.

Big Double Deuce

2011-09-19T20:30:00.000-05:00

My big boy just chillaxin':Rockin' the post nap bedhead:Multi-tasking while talkin' to Mimi:

Video of Dylan singing his ending to "London Bridges" as "...My fair ladyBUG":

I am amazed I will have a 2 year old in 2 months. Because he loves all things transportation, and I know Tommy will get a huge kick out of it, I'm throwing Dylan a "Cars" themed party and got some of the supplies today. My baby can't really be this old, can he?

Proof that he is:

*Dylan got tooth # 10, it was the 4th tooth in about 2 weeks. This one was on his bottom right side, with space between it and his front teeth. It looks like he has 4 windows in his mouth.

*Out of his mouth: "belly button" "fishes" (also for whales and sharks) "cock-a-looda-loo" (cock-a-doodle-doo) "Come on, Shilo. Hold my hand." "I need some milk please." "I don't want it." "Gimme 5" "Ready, set, go!" "I love you very much!" "Thunder, ka-boom!" "For cryin' ou(t) loud" "Goodness sake" "Supa-man" (He has Superman jammies)

*When we read Eric Carle's book "From Head to Toe" he says, "Clap your hands" and "I can do it! Yeah!" (The "Yeah" comes from me getting excited when he would say it.)

*He can sing almost all of "I am a Child of God" and "Twinkle, Twinkle." He sings the "up" and "down" parts of "London Bridges" with his special ending. He laughs so hard during the chorus of "This Old Man." I am trying to get better footage of this, but performing on cue is not his specialty.

*It used to be when I told him, "Say please" he would just repeat "Please." Now he adds in the word "said" so it sounds like he's giving ME the command. "Say please, mama. Good mannas, sweet-a-bug!" I am going to be rendered obsolete if he keeps this up.

*He is learning to eat with a fork. He will say, "Poke it the fork. You did it, Di-yan!" Again, his own best cheerleader.

*He will hold his toy camera and say "Say cheese. Good one." Familiar?

*When he is deciding which book to read he will say, "Let's do..." It's the same thing I say when I am deciding what to feed him or what song to sing next.

*When he sees Tyler or Joey making grunting noises he says, "Push it out, ____." Yup, I say that too.

*Tommy and Dylan love to "steam roll-a" each other.

*He had his 1st escape from Mimi's porta-crib. He didn't fall. He climbed out and came to the top of the stairs. When he saw me he proudly called, "Hi, mama!" Turkey.

*Mimi taught Dylan how to successfully drink from a straw. Who knew all it would take is some cherry limeade?

*He still loves his bike and asks to go on a "bicycle ride" with his "heh-met."

*For a while when he would realize it was time to go to nursery he would fuss but would stop either when he got a toy or as the door was closing behind Autrey or I. This last week he didn't fuss or really even say good bye. He has Christi Taylor, his nursery leader, wrapped around his finger.

*Ever since we went to Houston this last time and Dylan was around Maggie and Tommy, every time we change his "diapoo" he says, "I go potty big by" (I go potty like a big boy). I put him on the toilet, and though he has only tooted twice he sure gets a kick out of trying. When he is done sitting on it he will say, "All done, Di-yan?" I have visions of him potty training himself. A girl can dream, right?

Playing and Singing with Tommy

2011-09-18T18:18:00.006-05:00

Allyson, Tommy, and baby "Ty-o" (Tyler) came over to BBQ and play the other night. We are trying to spend as much time with them as we can since they are moving to Amarillo this week. These are some of the random candids:"Howdy pard-ner":Dylan loves to buck himself/dive off:Video of Dylan singing most of "Twinkle, Twinkle." It also captures Dylan taking trains from Tommy. I promise we are working on that. I'll show Dylan this video when he is frustrated younger siblings/friends are learning to share to prove he used to take toys too:

New way to do "Papa Rosie" (Pocket + Rosie...Ring Around the Rosie). Tommy and Dylan both loved it and asked to do it over and over. I love Dylan's dizzy walk:

Labor Day for the Little Manly Man

2011-09-07T21:11:00.000-05:00

While we were out and about hitting the Labor Day sales we stopped at Bass Pro Shop so Dylan could see the fish and other animals:As much as he enjoyed the wildlife, this is what he really enjoyed:Target practice with Daddy:Playing with a coon skin hat: At Toys R Us we got Dylan some Man Store tools (Home Depot. Not to be confused with the Blue Man Store, Lowe's.) We decided it was a good idea since they are a safer version of Autrey's he always wanted to play with:Assisting cutting chair rails:

Cute video of Dylan hammering some scrap wood and 'fixing it' with his tools:

Houston Children's Museum

2011-09-01T18:49:00.006-05:00

We drove down to Houston last week to meet up with all the Duke crew. Matt and Autrey joined us for the weekend, but the rest of the week it was just the girls and 5 cousins...and Doug at night. Between sick/teething kids, nap schedules, and all the effort involved in going out and about most of the time we stayed and played at Mimi and Papa's. No problem there. Mimi has a pool and lots of toys. Dylan played with the trucks and kitchen set "making food" most of the time.

Eating at the 'big kid table': Treat time. They love Mimi's suckers:However, we did visit Mimi at her school, go shopping, and spend an afternoon at the Woodlands Children's Museum. The museum was the only place I really took any pictures, and as you can see Dylan was having way too much fun playing to hold still and look at me. I'm glad he loved it so much!

What I really wish I had pictures/video of are the morning dvd workouts Lori, Allyson, and I did with the 5 kids in the room. It really kicks it up a notch when you have to avoid stepping on kids/toys and have your kid climbing on you as soon as you get down on the ground to do sit-ups or push-ups. Tommy was an excellent trainer. He kept yelling, "Jump, Shilo. Jump!" and I didn't stop. Pretty funny. Today I started day 1 of the P90X workout. Brutal. Way harder than anything I've done before and I'm out of shape. Should be fun. I wish I could borrow Tommy so he could keep me motivated. Although Dylan does a great job keeping me hydrated. He hands me my water bottle about every minute or so. Such a great little helper.

21 months old

2011-08-18T20:25:00.008-05:00

Update time again. Almost my bedtime, so I'll cut to the chase. Pictures at the end:

*Dylan got teeth # 7, 8, and 9 this week. I was beginning to wonder, since he got #6 back in April. His streak of weird teeth placement continues. All three teeth are 2 spaces away from the nearest tooth (one top right, one top left, one bottom left).

*New Words and Phrases: "paghetti" (spaghetti), "ha-ba-gas" (hamburgers on the grill), "cuddah" (cuddle...he will ask to. Love it.), "Dis way" (This way), "Dere you go" (There you go), "I got it/you," "I hab (have) it," "No touch it," "No problem," "You ok?" "I go fast," "No thank you," "Juice/Milk/Wada (Water) please," "Howdy pardner," "Daddy painting" and "Mommy cleaning" (Yup, that about sums up our last month's activities).

*He still loves his transportation vehicles. He has learned to identify and say "Fire truck/man," "Tracoo/Fahmah" (Tractor/Farmer), "Dump truck," "Gah-bage truck," "I see a big truck."

*When he puts his toys away he tells himself "Goo dob, Di-yan!" (Good job, Dylan!) because I usually do.

*When he sees traffic lights he will say, "Red means stop" and "Green means go. Go, go, go!" He is also quick to point out a "bumpy road."

*Dylan LOVES to push the button to make the garage door go up and down. Sometimes he will whine for it in the middle of the day randomly. He will say, "I push the button." Then afterwards he says "garage open/close" although he mixes up which is which.

*He tells other kids (and TV characters) to "Be nice" and "Don't push."

*He said his 1st prayer all by himself while he was eating a snack. He folded his arms and said, "Hevly Fadder. Amen!" and ate his grapes. He has done it since inserting the word "happy." He also will say one word at a time while Autrey and I pray and we fit that into the next sentence we say. He was shy with the missionaries tonight, but he is getting pretty good at prayers.

*He sings his version of the song from Annie "Tomorrow, tomorrow, I love you tomorrow, I love you tomorrow." He fills in words for the song that goes "I love you, a bushel and a peck..." and "I am a Child of God."

*He loves the book One Duck Stuck, which he calls "Help, help". He says that phrase at the right time and also says "'Thank you/Thanks!' said the duck."

*He likes to sing The Wheels on the Bus. He makes the motions and says "beep, beep, beep" "up and down," "vroom, vroom, vroom," and "town."

*He randomly said "Call G-ma" one day. So we did. He also hands me his toy mail letters and says "from G-ma/Mimi/Papa" wanting me to 'read' what they say.

*He will occasionally still ask me about where "Tay-Tay" (Uncle Terry) is and then answer himself saying "Tay-Tay working." Amazing. He's only seen Terry once he would remember and it was over a month ago. I need to teach him to say, "Tay-Tay on E-bay." Haha.

*Tommy pops up all the time in Dylan's conversations throughout the day. I'm REALLY sad they are moving. That's all I can say about that right now. *sigh*

*The Boston's were our 1st house guests at our new house. He still asks, "Where's Kate?"

*Dylan is great at putting clothespins in an empty big plastic apple juice container with a small opening. (Dexterity skill Kristen told me about.)

*He likes to use his spoon to feed himself. All by himself. He still shoves as much food in his mouth as he can fit without taking smaller bites of dry food, such as bread.

*He walks and runs while swinging his left arm only.

*He loves his tunnel and his play tent, even though he trips on the entrance as he barrels in and out.

*He loves to climb moving boxes, chairs, coffee tables, and ladders. He had WAY too much fun while we were unpacking.

Trust me, little man, I'm not fooled at all.

Popping Packing Bubbles

2011-08-11T14:28:00.001-05:00

Random video of Dylan's 1st experience timidly popping the big, loud packing bubbles last week. Enjoy!

High Quality H2O

2011-08-09T16:04:00.003-05:00

This weekend we went to the new Sea Life Aquarium at the Grapevine Mills mall with Mimi and Papa. (For those of you close by, we decided it was nice but probably more expensive than it was worth. We even went after 5pm when it was discounted.) Tommy and Dylan liked looking at everything and going through the underwater shark tunnel. That thing was trippy because even the floor was glass. Just about the only animal Dylan was allowed to touch was the hermit crab, and he just wanted to look at it:Lookin' at the fish with daddy:
Then we decided to get in the water ourselves in Dylan's new little pool in the shade on the deck. Dylan thought it was great to squirt his bath toys, even when he shot himself in the eye in the 4th picture down:

Cute video of Dylan and Autrey in the pool. I haven't been great at getting video of Dylan talking, but he says some things in this one:

Thanks for the water fun, Mimi and Papa!

Indoor Cycling

2011-08-05T13:26:00.000-05:00

Dylan loves to ride his bike. We take him almost every night on a ride through the neighborhood, but during the day it's WAY too hot. The last few days it's been 110 degrees down here. So when he asked to go on a ride this afternoon I had to get creative. Yes, I pushed him around the air conditioned house. He loved it. Pay no attention to the cardboard boxes still under the furniture. Haven't gotten around to removing them yet. However, DO pay attention to the personalized Texas vanity plate on his bike with his name on it. I got a kick out of it, but I'm very easily amused. Something Dylan obviously inherited.

Daddy's New BBQ

2011-08-04T17:09:00.004-05:00

It's no secret Autrey LOVES to BBQ. My parents always told him they would get him one when we got a house. Well, now we have a house. And a manly BBQ. We fired it up twice this week. We had green chili cheeseburgers and Hawaiian hamburgers with the best grilled pineapple ever. Needless to say, Autrey had a fantastic week. When I was shopping for the ingredients I saw the onesie Dylan is wearing and couldn't resist. It says "My Daddy's King of the Grill!" Very fitting.

Dylan watching Autrey scrape the grill. Turns out Autrey is as meticulous about cleaning his grill, tools, and paint brushes as I am about everything else.

Thanks, mom and dad!

20 Month Update...A Little Late

2011-07-29T15:23:00.001-05:00

I'm still playing catch up with a lot of things after being gone for a month, but I'm going to squeeze in Dylan's 20 month update before it gets to be next month. Stick with this post. At the bottom there are some cute pictures and videos I took at the splash pad playground this week...

*New things he says: "pay" (play), "show-a" (shower), "mowtain" (mountain), "bodo/boo-bodo/stwa-bodo" (grape, blueberry, strawberry...but now he is starting to say "gape" for grape), "Weh-come" (You're welcome.), "Cue me" (Excuse me.), "I sorry" (I'm sorry.), "I give you" (I forgive you...which he says immediately after he says sorry before the other person has the chance.), "Oh by goness" (Oh my goodness), "Uh-oh ghettigio" (Uh-oh Spaghetti-O), "Uh-oh, fall down," "taco," "juice," "sweetie," "tweet tweet," "raining," bumpy" (and says it when we drive over rough roads)

*Family names in Dylan speak: Tyo=Tyler, Jo-ay=Joey, Mangee=Maggie, Awison=Allyson, Tay Tay=Terry, Ashes=Ashlyn, Jahson=Jackson, Dahnny=Danny, G-ma and G-pa=my parents, GG=Grandma Holdaway...We told him GG-ma for great grandma, Gampa=Grandpa Holdaway, Gwamma=my Grandma Miller

*The kid loves 'big trucks' and 'choo-choo trains.' He will play by himself with them for quite a while, occasionally saying things like "crash" and "ka-boom."

*He will say "I bake it" (I broke it) and then bring me whatever he broke and say "Fic ic" (Fix it).

*He loves "Ring Around the Rosie" and laughs the entire time. I think that song's why he calls Ashlyn "Ashes." He also fills in a few words for "ABC," "Twinkle," and "You Are My Sunshine."

*When he sees someone or just wants to get your attention he'll say "Hi, Dylan" or "Hi, Dyl" (like Papa says) for people.

*He likes to "drive" golf carts and push "buttons."

*He's ok with the sound of the garage door opening and the vacuum. Finally. He also calls electric pumps 'vacuums' also.

*At Nana's her cat, Buddy, likes to go under her bed. Now he likes to look under beds and say "Hi/Bye-bye, kitty".

*He loves to say "open/close" while playing with doors.

*He was in the car with Mimi laughing and then stopped and randomly said, "I funny."

*He likes to put on adult shoes (and Maggie's). His feet grew like crazy this month and he wears a size 7. His feet are pretty wide, like his dad's.

*G-pa taught him to do the "ET" pointer finger thing. Now he says "ET" when people point at him.

*Dylan will say "Yee haw" and "Howdy" whenever he sees a hat or is playing with his stick horse. But he also says it randomly. All the time. The kid just may have to be a cowboy for Halloween with his stick horse.

*When he wants something, especially a toy, he will come up to you and say "trade."

*When I've been in nursery he watches singing time but doesn't join in. However, at home he sings "Do as I'm doing. Follow, follow me." Because of our traveling schedule and lack of a constant location the first time I left Dylan alone for 2 hours in nursey was actually in Utah (because Aunt JaNae is the nursey leader, and just awesome in general). She said he fussed for a few minutes until he got a truck and was fine after that. Figures. The kid loves his 'big trucks'. He was the youngest one in there and the only one that said "please" and "thank you" on his own. Yeah, pretty proud of that. Last week he went to our ward's nursery by himself. The leader said he used his manners and said "I sorry" anytime any of the kids cried, whether it was his fault or not. At least he knows someone is supposed to say it.

*He still loves to go to the park and play in the water, as you can see in the pictures and videos of he and Tommy I took the other day:

He also gets a huge kick out of puppies (and kitties):

Last night at dinner Autrey and I decided Dylan is at a perfect age and we don't want him to grow up. We made him promise to stop growing after he is potty trained and can talk a little better. We'll see if he keeps his word. Just in case he doesn't I'm getting all the cuddles and kisses I can.

Autrey's Birthday & 4th of July in Ruidoso, NM

2011-07-28T22:22:00.001-05:00

The day after my last post, many moons ago, we moved our stuff in and had carpet installed upstairs. On the same day. Everything we own was crammed into the 1st floor. It looked like this: Yikes. Thankfully, Matt and Allyson are good sports about everyone hanging out at their house. Dylan loves to play with Tommy. This is a video of Dylan 'racing' Tommy to Mimi:

...and winning! (But I think Tommy was more interested in watching Dylan.)

3 days later we drove with Mona and Tommy to Nana's in Ruidoso to spend Autrey's 29th birthday and the 4th of July weekend. We split the drive there into 2 days. Everywhere we stopped people were raving about the adorable 'twins'. They do look similar and dress alike. I expected this reaction, especially since Matt and Allyson weren't there, but it happens even when they are. Matt, Allyson, and baby Tyler came 2 days later. These two are pretty funny together. At the hotel they 'talked' to each other on the room phones:Dylan hadn't ever seen a phone like this before and was a little confused at first in this video:

Doug, Lori, Maggie, and baby Joey joined us in New Mexico. This was the first time we had met Joey. Autrey affectionately called him "The Silverback" because he is solid with little neck. He is such a cutie: The boys loved Maggie's shoes for some reason. Look at their feet. Goobers:

The rental house had a nice hot tub:
Cool handle, apparently:

Come on. Gimme a real smile: Too much:

That's better:

We rode bikes in the morning. The hills were brutal. Don't know what I expected. Hello, it's the mountains. Dylan didn't mind, of course:

Mimi and Papa with the 5 kiddos. I'm not including all the outtakes, but they are pretty funny. At the Rio Ruidoso:

Right next to the river they had pony rides:

Dylan was the only rookie. Took him a minute or two, but he warmed up:
I got a video of all 3 kids riding:

In this one you can hear Dylan say "Yee haw!" and "Howdy!"

Next to the pony rides was a 'train' ride. We thought it was going to be a short one, but they returned 30 minutes later. Autrey and I had gotten an ice cream to share. I had to eat all of it while he was gone. What? It was melting.

We love Nana! She steals everyone's 'sugar'.
And she has amazing baby sleeping mojo:Mimi got the kids the cutest matching 4th of July outfits. Love boys' flag shoes!
Dylan and I flew straight to Utah for reunions and Meagan and Ken's wedding on the 4th. Dylan is a pretty good traveler, I must say.
Pictures of our Utah trip will be pending until my dad compiles the pictures from everyone's cameras and sends me a CD. No pressure. *cough, cough* :)

Moving, Then and Now

2011-06-24T12:52:00.000-05:00

Moving Day is here. Crept up on me, actually. We thought a month was going to be plenty of time to fix up the house the way we wanted before our apartment lease ran out. Ha! Turns out we sorely underestimated the time it would take. The upstairs bathrooms are tiled, the popcorn ceiling is gone and replaced, a lot of the upstairs is painted, and the new carpet will be installed tomorrow, but that's as far as we've got. We had to take a break to pack up the apartment and tie up loose ends in Euless. Thank heavens Mona was here this week to take Dylan during the day to play with Tommy so I could get stuff done without stepping on my little shadow, literally. Dylan and Tommy are hilarious together:

Just for memory's sake, first thing this morning I wanted to record Dylan talking. He said a few things, but didn't perform like I wanted him to. Go figure. He did redeem himself at the end of the clip though:

It was exactly one year ago this week we moved from St. Louis. I found this video I took of Dylan right before we left. I never posted in the chaos so I might as well now, just for fun. Amazing that only a year ago he was just scooting around the floor, not even crawling yet.

Ok, break's over. Back to business. Autrey'll be home soon so we can go pick up the moving truck. So long apartment life. Hello, new house!

19 Months Old Already?

2011-06-18T07:32:00.001-05:00

Yeah, a little sad it's been an entire month since I posted last. Just a reflection of the busy lives we have been leading lately traveling and going between the apartment and house all the time. I haven't been taking pictures either. These are the only new ones I have. This was taken at the park with a few of the kids from Mona's week long summer camp I helped with in Houston after Memorial weekend: Dylan's 1st popsicle...
...and 2nd. Tried to eat the Otter Pop like a regular popsicle:
Fun outside with Tommy and his toys. Dylan LOVES to ride and push anything with wheels:

Cute Tommy:

Playing with the pirate water table:

And now the 19 month update:

*New words: "awesome," "funny," "hug," "almos" (almost), "be-ja-ble" (vegetable), "noda book" (another book), "app-a-sauce" (applesauce), "ah kean" (all clean), "eh-phan" (elephant), "beda" (bread), "fiss" (fish cracker), "ca-coo" (cracker...no longer "tattoo"), "beep, beep" (watch...because Autrey's beeps)

*Dylan will start so say "Kean up, kean up" and start to put a toy or two away all by himself at random times or after I have started to clean up a "mess."

*He can say "meow." He can also identify a "frog" and say "rrrr" for ribbit.

*After someone sneezes he says "Bess you" all by himself.

*He says "Here go" when I hand him things because I usually say "Here you go."

*Dylan will say "Ah you, Mama" (Thank you, Mama) after anyone gives him something and says "Sawee, Mama" (Sorry, Mama) whether he has done something wrong or not.

*He will randomly say "Oh, fun!"

*He will say "walkee walkee walkee" while we are walking or he is making toy animals 'walk,' and "run run run" when he is going fast.

*Out of nowhere he started saying "Shi-o Duke." We have no idea where he picked that up since no one calls me that. When I try to get him to say Dylan Duke he will either say "DinDin Duke" or "Dada Duke."

*His favorite breakfast is still "egg a cheese" (eggs and cheese) and he won't ever just say 'eggs.'

*While we are driving he will say "big truck" if he sees any sort of large vehicle. He will say "bike-o-bike" or "da bi-ckle" if he sees or hears (or thinks he hears) a motorcycle.

*He says "Yee haw" and "Howdy." Last week a guy greeted the congregation with a "Howdy" (He's Tongan and was being funny.) Dylan responded with a very loud "Howdy!" of his own. Everyone got a kick out of that. People also frequntly have to stifle laughs when he gives a loud "Amen" after EVERY prayer, talk, or testimony. Needless to say, he is less than reverent duing Fast and Testimony meetings.

*He calls real and toy cows "moo cows."

*When he hears music he says "song."

*He puts my hand on his toes and says "wee wee home" (wee wee wee all the way home) when he wants me to do 'This Little Piggy' with him.

*He can identify and say "neck."

*He likes to work out with me. He imitates squats and tries to help lift my feet for leg lifts.

*Dylan is able to climb up the ladder on his playground equipment by himself. He only needs minor assistance on the way back down. He is great about going down the house stairs backwards on his belly.

*He really likes nursery. However, because he was doing so well we tried to leave him in there without warning him. Bad idea. He became very clingy. Totally my fault that he's afraid I'm going to disappear. To help, every time I leave a room I say "Be right back" and "I'm back" when I return. Now when I come back he says it for me before I have a chance.

*He is quite the little parrot. And, yes, he always wants a cracker.

18 months old!

2011-05-18T14:53:00.002-05:00

Last night we went to Lowe's, our home away from home, and bought all our bathroom tile and supplies for our 1st big house project this weekend. Dylan doesn't mind going because he loves the race car carts! Dylan went to his 18 month check-up today. Here are the stats:

Height: 35 inches (When I asked for a percentage Dr. Walker said, "Top of the chart. There is no such thing as 100%, but he is over 90%" Not bad for a kid born in the 3rd percentile. He is exactly 1/2 of my current height. Math problem for the day: Dylan + Dylan = Shilo)

Weight: 27.14 lbs (75th percentile)

Head Circumference: 19 cm (75th percentile)

And for the run down of latest and greatest:

*New words: "Tie" (His suit tie), "Home Wun" (Home Run), "Mak" (Milk), "Poonah" (Spoon), "Buddah" (Bird), "Boonah" (Balloon), "Tia" (Tortilla), "Cuck/Tuck" (Truck), "Bawk" (Book), "Pah" (Pass - During basketball games Autrey will commentate and say Dribble, Pass, and Shoot, which cracks Dylan up.)

*He loves to count "2, 3, wee!" before he goes down the slide himself or when he wants to be tickled because I always count before I do it.

*While reading his book about opposites I said "up" and he said "down," I said "day" and he said "night" before I turned the page.

*He refers to any piece of fruit as "apple," except bananas, to which he says, "mena". He has a food shape book and learned to say "peda" (pizza) and "ovoh" (oval).

*At breakfast the other day he said, "Sa-reahl pease, mama." (Cereal please, mama.")

*He loves trains. When he sees or hears a real one, a toy, or a picture he will say, "Choo choo."

*He sings "E-I-E-I-O" in the right spots during Old MacDonald or when he is all by himself. It will also frequently occur when we are reading animal books. He will sometimes go "Moo moo moo" because that is the first animal I sing about. He also tries to sing along other songs with Autrey and I. He usually gets the melody and then rambles, interjecting a few words. At the end of ABC he will say "Now I now I now I" (Now I know my...). He also does it for Twinkle, Twinkle since they have the same melody.

*The kid loves books. His favorite is "Old Black Fly," an ABC book that constantly repeats "Shoo fly. Shoo fly. Shoo!" He asks for "Shoo Fly Shoo Fly" EVERY time I go to read him a story. I know the book by heart. Sometimes he requests additional readings during playtime by finding it, bringing it to me, putting it in my hand, saying "a peda" (please), and plopping on my lap. No mistaking his desires there.

*He knows he is not supposed to throw food and will say "No no fow foodah" before or after he does it. Now I am taking him out of the high chair when he does it to break him of it. It's gotta stop.

*When people clap or cheer, he joins in...loudly.

*He loves pretending to talk on the phone using my phone, old phones, toy phones, calculators, remotes, etc. and loves when I 'talk' on them. My fake conversations (and many of my real ones) usually end with "Love you. Bye." Now when we say, "I love you" he will quickly say, "Bye!"

*He folds his arms for prayers.

*He does the Patty-cake motions. Not exact, but very cute.

*He pats my head and says "head".

*Dylan will say "poo poo" just before or after he poops.

*He loves his "Nommy". If we are in the car for more than just a short ride he starts asking for him, thinking that is where we are going. Also, as we are walking up the stairs to our apartment or whenever the car stops and turns off he will say, "We're home!"

*In Austin over Easter Dylan would say, "Eh ah you, Papa?" (Where are you, Papa?) and run around the corner to find him. Now he will say, "Weh ah you, airpane?" (Where are you, airplane?) if it disappears behind the trees.

*When I say, "Where are you, Dylan?" he will run around the corner and shout, "I see you!"

*Dylan loves to squat walk to sneak up on things (like people and squirrels) and to be funny. He has plenty of personality and makes us laugh. Nursery, here we come!

Our New House

2011-05-17T16:43:00.002-05:00

It's official! Autrey and I are now home owners. So exciting! Since many of you have been asking for pictures, pictures is what you get. We love the size and layout of the house, but we have our work cut out for us to make it 'our own'. We are planning on tearing out the carpet in the upstairs bathrooms and putting tile in instead. We also want to repaint most of the house interior but are struggling with color schemes. I'm a great imitator, but not a great innovator, so PLEASE give me paint suggestions. And don't hold back. I truly want your input. Anyway, the tour...

Curb appeal (That is a real plum tree on the right):

The Upstairs Floor

Master Bathroom:
Master Bedroom:Master Walk-in Closet:
Game Room:
Bedroom #2:

Bedroom #3:

Kid/Guest Bathroom:

Bedroom #4

Top of Stairway:

The Main Floor

Front Door into Stack Formal Living and Dining:

Family Room:

Eat-in Kitchen:

Textured Built in Table:

Laundry Room off Kitchen that goes to Garage:

Guest Bathroom:

Walk-in Pantry:

More of the Kitchen (and, yes, that is chalkboard paint):

Backyard Deck:

Dylan's Personal Playground:
(Dylan with Lorraine Miller, our FABULOUS realtor, smelling the gardenias)

Cute video of Dylan playing and counting "2, 3" on his slide our 1st night as home owners:

We are thrilled! Now we're off to Lowe's and Home Depot (our other new homes) to get tiling supplies...

Bead Roller Coaster

2011-04-28T15:49:00.003-05:00

Autrey and I were walking around IKEA last week. We didn't get any furniture, but I did get the best toy ever for Dylan: a bead roller coaster for only $7.99. Sweet, right? I was just a little excited about it (read: It's all I could talk about that night). Dylan has always loved these and I finally found one at a great deal! In case you can't picture what I am talking about: This toy was in lieu of candy. Yes, Dylan played with EMPTY Easter eggs all weekend and was happy as a clam...and so was I.

Easter in Austin

2011-04-25T13:51:00.007-05:00

We drove down to Austin for Easter weekend. The usual fun with the usual suspects: Golfing, swimming (outside!), eating, and playing. We also went to the mall to get some Easter outfits for church. The boys match...and so do their dads. Love it! The Wakefield family wasn't able to join us because Baby Joseph was born Easter morning. Can't wait to meet him!Trying to get both boys (read: Dylan) to hold still and look is near impossible. They really were so adorable in their different matching outfits all weekend. Dylan sure loves "Nommy." Thanks, Mimi and Papa! Happy Easter, everyone!

17 Months Old

2011-04-18T14:44:00.003-05:00

*Dylan finally got his top right front tooth, #6.

*He loves knocking on doors. He also loves pushing his toy vacuum at home and his jogging stroller at the park.

*His favorite number is 9. I sing a counting song to 10. If I stop after 8, he will say "9."

*He will lift his shirt and say "belly." He can also say "hair," but sometimes points to my eyes instead.

*As soon as he sees a phone he will say "a pho".

*When he burps he says "buhp," but also says it after he toots.

*G-ma was peeling potatoes and taught Dylan to say "puh-tato." She also got him to say "I you you" or "I you" for I love you. Now he will say "I you, Mama." Melts my heart.

*He says "yummy" especially while eating grapes or scrambled cheesy eggs. He also loves "ta-toos" (crackers) and I will give them to him occasionally, mostly at church or when we are traveling, but only if he says "a peda" (please).

*He can say "a chee" (cheese) and "a food." Banana is either "nana," "bana," or "manana."

*When we say it's time for prayer, he will say "payer" and sometimes repeat the last word in a sentence.

*One time we were walking to the bathroom with both of his toothbrushes (one for me and one for him to use) and he said "ABC," the song I sing while brushing.

*Autrey was calling my name to get my attention a few weeks ago and Dylan picked up on it. He will still sometimes call me "Shi-o," probably because he got such a good reaction from Autrey.

*He will say "Bye-bye, Mama," "Let's go, Mama," and "Night-night, Mama" at appropriate times. He said "I sorry, Mama" out of nowhere the other day. He hadn't done anything wrong, and I have no idea where he picked that phrase up. I'm guessing he heard Maggie or Ashlyn say it, since Allyson told me he probably didn't get it from Tommy.

*The countdown to nursery continues. Soon there will be no more walking the halls or wrestling during Relief Society. Woo hoo!

*He is so excited to move into our new HOUSE in Fort Worth this summer (or maybe that's just me). He will have lots more room to run around and play!

Man Day

2011-04-11T17:54:00.003-05:00

We are keeping the Wash U tradition alive and celebrating Man Day today. Dylan is almost big enough this year to wear the shirt that was given to him last year on his 1st man Day. We had burgers this weekend, so instead I made homemade pizzas (one pineapple and one supreme) and chocolate chip cookies. Sidebar: The Toll House recipe on the side of the Nestle chocolate chips bag is the best one I have ever found. However, it says it's supposed to make 4 dozen. Ha! I baked one dozen and froze 1/2 dozen worth of dough for later. Could be because I make really huge cookies. Could be that I may have over taste-tested. Could be both. Anyway, while I was baking Dylan and Autrey went to the park for some quality male bonding time. My good lookin' men:

Video of little man having a ball pushing Tommy's tricycle in circles. Quite literally spinning his wheels and going nowhere. Typical man, haha:

Happy Man Day, men!

1st Bubble Bath

2011-04-06T16:56:00.007-05:00

Dylan had his 1st bubble bath...and loved it! Splashing with bubbles made bath time even more fun. 3 cute videos of him playing. You can hear him say "bubble," "woah," "help," and "all better":

Olde Oaks Boys Reunion

2011-04-02T08:20:00.004-05:00

The Olde Oaks Boys had their 1st post-BYU reunion weekend in Houston a few weeks ago, hosted by Rob and Christa Ellis. We had waffles, went on a walk with the 3 prego girls, played basketball, volleyball, and ultimate frisbee, went swimming, had a BBQ, and watched the BYU basketball game. Some of the guys that couldn't make it Skyped in. Good times.

The blind taste testing. Judges: Autrey and I (Dylan recused himself), Gavin Parker, Jeremy Jones and his wife, Amanda Wolfe, Taylor and Diane Goggins, B.O. (Brian Osborne), Russell, Kim, and little Bennett Hill, Rob (photographer) and Christa Ellis. Round 1: Lays vs. Walmart brand sour cream and onion chips. Round 2: Barq's vs. A&W vs. Walmart brand root beer. In my opinion, the Walmart brand came out the winner in both categories. Surprising, I know. Hope we make this a tradition!

Frequent Flier for Sure! The tally for Dylan is...

2011-03-31T12:13:00.005-05:00

Dylan and I have done A LOT of flying since his 1st airplane ride to PA last spring break and I have been curious to figure out exactly how many trips he has taken. I think Dylan has to have set some sort of record for the number of flying days in a year for a baby: 22. That number doesn't include the additional flights taken when we made stops and switched planes along the way, but I'm not going to take the time to figure out the exact number of take offs and landings. The official tally of trips, courtesy of G-ma and G-pa and Mimi and Papa, is as follows:

Round trips to PA: 2 Spring Breaks, 1 Christmas, 1 Fall Visit (at least 8 flights)

Round trip to Utah: Jackson's Blessing (at least 2 flights)

Round Trip to New Mexico: Easter at Nana's(at least 2 flights)

Round Trip to Pagosa Springs, CO: Labor Day Weekend (at least 2 flights)

Last Memorial Day at beginning of June: From St. Louis to Houston: 1, Houston to San Diego: 1, San Diego back to Houston: 1, Houston to Dallas: 1, Dallas to St. Louis: 1

From St. Louis to Dallas: Moving to Texas end of June (at least 1 flight)

From Houston to Phoenix/Phoenix to Dallas: this Spring Break (at least 2 flights)

Wow. Dylan flies free until November and we have made the most of it so far! I heart Southwest Airlines!

Spring Break in PA

2011-03-30T14:32:00.006-05:00

It has been a whirlwind 2 1/2 weeks. On the 11th we drove down to Houston to stay with Doug and Mona and have a reunion with the guys Autrey grew up with. The next week we were in Phoenix. Flew home, unpacked, did laundry, repacked, and Dylan and I flew to PA 1 1/2 days later to spend a week with my parents, Desiree', Kristen, Ashlyn, and Jackson. We went to the YMCA, of course:

Looking at Dylan's face playing, you would never expect he would have to go to urgent care 24 hours later (on my birthday) due to a double ear infection. We ended up celebrating my birthday every day this trip except my actual birthday. Because Dylan was in a lot of pain and very clingy, we stayed home most of the time hanging out, eating way too much, and watching movies in 'G-ma's infirmary'. Luckily we had fit in 2 shopping trips before Dylan needed constant attention. Since my closet is full of clothes I don't really wear I am excited to 'Rambo clean' it this week to make room. Ashlyn more than made up for Dylan's lack of energy. Such a cute girl:

Video of the 3 kiddos 'playing' the piano:

Don't bother pointing out I am wearing the same thing in all the rest of the pictures. I know. Reason being they were all taken Monday, the day before I left. That day I got to see a few people from high school. I visited with Kristin True (Runyon) and little Tabitha while Dylan took a much needed long nap:

Kristin Sassaman, Tiffany Metzler, and Coach Brown came over for a mini basketball team dinner. Standing by them makes me feel like less of an Amazon woman. Funny thing is, we are all wearing flat shoes:

That night we had another birthday cake. It was a good ice cream cake, but wasn't nearly as good as the pumpkin cake with cream cheese frosting Kristen made earlier.

It's a good thing she made it, because the day we arrived she accidently ate my Boston creme doughnut in addition to hers, not realizing I hadn't eaten mine yet. It is my favorite kind and I had to settle for sugar-free pudding that night instead. It became the joke of the week. Mom went back to Giant's bakery and I still ended up getting 2, but not the 4 Kristen did. Here are the antics associated with me attempting to enjoy my 2nd one:

Fighting off the savages:

Ya got some in your teeth, sis. Payback:

Cuddling in the comfy chair:

Thanks, G-ma and G-pa, for a trip full of laughs and helping with my sick kidlet! PS-The ear plugs and beanie idea worked pretty well on the plane so Dylan didn't scream the entire time with the pressure.

Sweet 16 Stats

2011-03-24T21:39:00.003-05:00

Betcha thought this was going to be about the NCAA tournament, BYU, and Jimmer. Not so. It was a great game tonight, but I am still disappointed they tripped at the finish line. Focus, Shilo. Dylan has reached sweet 16 months. The stats/highlight reel:

*He has 5 teeth. He added his top right lateral incisor, right next to his missing top right front tooth. It looks like he has already lost a tooth. Sweet grill.

*He grabs his feet when I ask, "Where are your toes?"

*He will spontaneously say "Happy day" and start laughing.

*He loves to go "ouside" (outside) and take a "ride." He didn't say the final 'd' sound until recently. I emphasized it so much that he now does also. Kind of funny.

*When I make the bzzzzz sound he says "bee." At the Phoenix zoo he saw some cows and said "moo."

*He points to the moon and says "moon" and to his knee and says "knee."

*He says "Hi," "Hey-oh" (Hello), "Bye-Bye," "Hi, puppa" (puppy), and "Hey baby," though sometimes he has a few second delay.

*He picked up on one of idiosyncrasies. He says, "I know!" with the same tone I use. Little parrot.

*He says "heo" when he needs help and "ow" when he wants out of something.

*He has learned to say "go," "apple," "hat," "sha-ba" (shovel), "wa-tee" (water) and "yigh" (light).

*When saying good night to his family picture collage, he can say "Mommy," "Daddy," "Mimi," "Papa," "Nana," "Maggie," "DeeDee," and sometimes "Ash."

*In an act of shameless self promotion, I taught him that when I ask, "Who loves mommy?" the correct response is, "I do!" Now he will also do it sometimes for others.

*He hasn't done it many times, but he can make a tower using 4 blocks.

*When given a veggie medley, he always eats his peas, then carrots, then the corn. Not sure if it is a taste or color thing.

*We are trying to break his habit of throwing food. Also the one where he thinks it's funny to high-5 people in the face. Oh, and squealing like a little girl. Not cool.

*When music plays he stomps his feet and/or waves his arms.

*He loves any type of "bahwh" (ball) and throws them, interestingly enough many times with his left hand.

The stat I need to figure out for him is how many airplane rides he has been on since his 1st one to PA last spring break. He is quite the frequent flyer and loves the "airbahs"...especially the Southwest ones. Haha.

Phoenix Golf Trip

2011-03-21T21:35:00.009-05:00

This past week we went on a golf trip to Phoenix with the Duke crew. We stayed in a nice rental house that was beautiful but NOT kid friendly. Between the stairs and the landing areas there were 8 areas inside the house with stairs Dylan tried to fall down. I counted. That didn't include the steep driveway or stairs up to the pool. A case of false advertising that turned into a comedy of errors for the 3 kiddos. Makes a funny story. Anyway, we had a lot of fun swimming and playing around town.

At the Phoenix Zoo:At the zoo "Little People" playground:
Mini-Golfing at Cracker Jax (I don't have any pictures from the REAL golf courses since the girls/kids opted out). Tommy is turning into a golf prodigy, but Dylan was more interested in the landscape and taking everyone's balls. Maggie and Tommy were really patient with him this trip:

I think Lori and Allyson look great, but I'm sure they're going to love me for including this one. Lori is due April 21 and Allyson is due June 16.

At the driving range:

In St. Patrick's Day green:

We went to a place that had an aquarium and zoo. Dylan was pretty brave at the petting zoo:

Added bonus to the trip is that Autrey's old roommate, Pat Hobbs, and his wife, Anndalyn, live in Phoenix with their 3 kids (one named after Autrey) and so does my BYU roomie, Alison Merritt. Autrey watched Dylan on Friday and I got a 'hall pass' to party with her all. night. long. I'm too old to stay out that late, in any time zone. I had to take a post party nap the next day and could use a few more. Weak sauce, I know. But totally worth it to be with my twin for her birthday.

Dylan's 1st big carousel at a local amusement park:

Still happy half way through the ride...

...then he got scared, but didn't cry. I didn't mind. He gives great squeezy hugs!

Thanks for a fun trip, Mimi and Papa!

Mini Me

2011-02-27T16:39:00.000-06:00

G-ma just sent us an awesome care package with some fun clothes and toys. I was so excited to have Dylan wear these outfits to church. Turns out Autrey got a kick out of dressing to match the past 2 Sundays. Makes Dylan look like such a little man: Cute little Mini Me!