Anderson Adventures

Carving Pumpkins 2011

2011-12-05T16:42:00.000-07:00

Because the weather is so warm around Halloween you have to wait to carve your pumpkins. We were lucky my mom was in town for Halloween and got to help out with the mess.

I'm really proud of the kids this year they did a great job carving and mostly did it on their own. Of course they love carving so much that they had to carve both sides of the pumpkins.

Plus we had fun giggles at them being a little silly.

Carving pumpkins is one of my favorite things to do at Halloween. Hope you enjoyed the finished products.

Spencer's Spooktacular Monster 7th Birthday Bash!

2011-12-05T16:25:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my little man is SEVEN. Where does the time go. He has really made me feel old this year with going to 1st grade, playing baseball and now turning Seven. Spencer is such a creative boy with an outstanding imagination. He loves to build things and do all kinds of art projects.

The lucky thing about being born in October is that your birthday is close to Halloween. Spencer and I both love Halloween. So this year we decided to throw a Monster Birthday Bash for this party. The nice thing is the decorations were easy because the house was already decorated. Plus it is a good way to get some extra use out of your kids Halloween costumes. I'm glad that Spencer has been able to make some friends at school and at baseball so he could have a nice party. Usually we do a friend party and a family party but since the move a family party wasn't possible this year.

The invitations turned out pretty cute. I took ribbon and made the card look like little mummies. They took a lot of work and I wish I had one for his scrapbook but we ran out. Everyone seemed to think they were really cute.

I was surprised by how many parents we had stay for the party. I'm not used to that. Usually parents just drop kids off and come back later. Me being a bit shy was a little nervous and hoped everyone would have fun. We actually had more adults at our house than kids but everyone helped out and the party was a big success. Plus I had plenty of cake and snacks.

We started off the party making pumpkin monsters. The kids got to decorate mini pumpkins anyway they wanted. We had some pretty creative kids. I love the ones that used a lot of the eyes.

It was so fun to see that every kid dressed up. I was hoping everyone would but made sure everyone knew it was ok if they didn't want to.

For snacks I had popcorn, candy corn, chocolate pretzel eyeballs, cream cheese chocolate chip dip with gram crackers, and of course we made witches brew. I forgot to get a picture but we did the whole thing. I had the witches Calderon and I mixed some punch up to be a muddy purple color and we used dry ice. (Finding the dry ice is another story completely. Apparently it is not sold at very many places here in Arizona. When asked sell people at some stores would roll their eyes and say, "Why would we sell that?")

For our game we decided to play the mummy game. We had the kids get in teams of three and each team would choose who was going to be the mummy. Then the other two would take a roll of toilet paper (two if you were on Brendan's team) and wrap the person up as a mummy. It was so funny to watch.

The kids had so much fun with it we did a couple of rounds. There was so much toilet paper everywhere by the time they were done. I think we used close to 20 rolls of toilet paper.

So how is the fastest way to clean up a gigantic toilet paper mess? Easy! Tell the kids once it is all cleaned up we will got hit a pinata. All that toilet paper was in garbage bags within 2 minutes. Too bad they couldn't clean up all the dust left over. Oh well they had fun.

Ok time for the pinata. I bought a cheap mummy pinata at Walmart for like $10 bucks. I was worried when Doug wanted to use Brendan's metal baseball bat to break it. I thought it would be broken on the first swing (especially since some of these kids were on Spencer's baseball team and really know how to swing a bat). Well to our surprise the thing didn't want to break. We had like 12 kids and all of them had at least 3 turns hitting the pinata 3 times each turn. The thing still didn't want to break. It kept making a dinging sound like metal hitting metal (actually it was the jawbreakers) but it didn't want to break. I think Doug ended up helping it break by ripping a hole in it and letting Spencer continue to hit it over and over again. By the time it broke all the candy was pretty much broken inside too. Good thing I had some gummy candy in there or all of it would have been broken.

No party is complete without presents. Spencer was so happy and thankful for everything he got.

A monster bash needs a few monsters. So for his cake I made a very special monster cake. Complete with Frankenstein, Mummy and Dracula. It was a lot of cake and a lot of work. If you would like to see details on how I made it please check out my baking blog Delectable Addictions.

I really hope everyone had a good time. Spencer loved it and that is what is important to me.

Here are a couple of pictures from his birthday that were not part of the party.

My mom was able to visit about a week later and brought him his presents from the family. He was happy because it meant he got to celebrate again.
I love my baby boy. I am so proud of how hard he tries at everything he does. He is a great student and always (well almost always) willing to help out at home. Happy Birthday Spencer!

Pumpkin Patch 2011

2011-11-12T18:13:00.000-07:00

October just isn't complete without a trip to the pumpkin patch. And just so you know pumpkin patches are not as easy to come by here in Arizona. Back in Salt Lake you could pretty much find one on every other corner. Here there are only like 2 or 3 in the whole Phoenix area. It's strange to have to google pumpkin patches to find one. I love fall. We had a lot of squinting eyes in the pictures so the smiles aren't the best but still fun to see.

Home Sweet Home

2011-11-12T17:41:00.000-07:00

Now that things have settled down a little I thought I would post some pictures of our new home. Since most of our family and friends haven't seen our new home and might not be able to visit for a while.

I have been meaning to do this for months. Sorry I have gotten a little behind on my postings. We really love our new home. It is a very open and spacious floor plan. We also love that we are located in a circle that they boys can play in without worrying about a lot of traffic.

The boys are enjoying sharing a room and love their new bunk beds. Sometimes they have a hard time going to sleep because they can't quit talking to each other but they are loving being together. Instead of just picking one of the boys themes we actually used both in their rooms. So we have an airplane/firetruck room.
Right now the 3rd bedroom is being used for toys and for quests when they come. I didn't take a picture of that room or the bathrooms.

The master bedroom is really nice. I love the planation shutters. The master bathroom is so nice and spacious. It is definately the largest bathroom we have ever had. I don't know how we will ever be able to downsize from this bathroom next time we move. Plus both Doug and I have our own closets.

The living room, dinning area, and kitchen are all open. We have high ceilings with pretty planter shelves (yea fun decorating for me). I think it is funny that we finally have a large enough living room for entertaining but all of our family is hours away. Guess people will just need to come visit.

The kitchen is really nice for me. If you remember my last kitchen was a little corner with hardly any counter space. I love that I actually have room in this kitchen for all of my baking projects. I wish I had double ovens but oh well, that can be in the next house right?

Our backyard is all rock. You would think that would be easy maintenance but we actually do have to have landscapers come every month to rack the rocks so they stay looking nice. I do wish we had grass and maybe someday we will change that. The kids don't seem to mind the rocks. Brendan runs all around the backyard everyday in his bare feet (ouch to me).

We have two garden boxes and the boys have loved watching everything grow. Yes you can grow things Arizona. We planted carrots, greenbeans, peppers, strawberries, tomatoes, watermelon, and pumpkins. The watermelon plants kind of exploded and took over the rocks a bit.

We are enjoying the warm weather and are adjusting to all the changes. We miss our family and friends and hope to visit and have visitors soon. Love you all.

Baking blog

2011-09-18T16:13:00.003-07:00

Hey everyone, I just started a new baking blog where I can share recipes and some of the cakes and treats that I have made. Please check it out. Delectable Addictions

Double Bunny Trouble!

2011-09-10T13:18:00.004-07:00

Yesterday we added two cute little members for our crazy family. I found an ad on craigslist for some 6 1/2 week old bunnies. I thought they were so adorable, but didn't think Doug would ever agree to it. I sent him a link through an emailed and jokingly asked him if he wanted a pet Bunny. I told him that they wouldn't make any noise. I waited for him to write back right away and say no, but before that could happen something else did. My sweet four year old Brendan woke up from his nap and climbed up behind me and saw the picture of the baby rabbits. He instantly feel in love and grabbed the phone to call Daddy and ask if we could have a bunny. Of course he said no and Brendan was completely crushed. After a few hours Doug changed his mind and decided we would get a bunny. I was shocked!

The next day while Spencer was at school we made the hour drive to Scottsdale to pick up a baby bunny. Yes we had only planned on getting one. So how did we end up with two? Well that would be Doug. He fell in love with the little black one. While Brendan had his heart on the white and gray fluffy one. We actually walked out of the house with only one bunny when Doug turned around and got the black one. On the way home I fell in love with the black one too. He was so sweet.

Next came cage shopping. I had seen an ad on craigslist for a used hutch. We went to go pick it up only to be disappointed. It was in terrible shape, but the lady kind of told us a place to go look. So we headed to a small family owned pet store. They claimed they didn't have any hutch style cages but I figured they would be better priced than Petsmart on a metal one. Well we were in luck we found one small little wooden hutch with a wire cage attached. Since it was the only one in the store and the owner said he has had it for years, he gave it to us for like half the price. We were so happy. After loading up on bunny food and what not we went to pick up Spencer from school.

Spencer was so excited when he opened the car door and saw not one but two bunnies. Apparently he had been talking about us getting a bunny all day to his teacher and his friends at school.

Doug named the black one Jack. It seemed to fit and the kids didn't mind it at all. We had a little trouble naming the other one. I think we went through a few names. Finally we ended up with Mr. Fuzz. I think it fits pretty well because of how fluffy his hair is.

Now the fun really begins. Doug set up the cage (he thinks he is such a handyman) while I helped the boys get used to the bunnies and talked to them about how to hold and touch the bunnies. I love how Spencer tells both Doug and me that, "The bunnies are a lot of responsibility".

Once the cage was set up on the patio we let the bunnies start to explore their new home. We were just about the leave when the unthinkable happened. Jack got out. The little sneaky squirt squeazed through the wire on the cage. The big problem with this is that even though we have a nice brick wall around our yard, there are small holes every so often in the bottom of the wall which they could easily slip through. I'm just glad he got out before we left instead of coming home to no bunnies. The question was what are we going to do now.

Well after a trip to Walmart with no luck and a trip to Petsmart spending another $100, we ending up with a small dog pen. We took the hutch part of the rabbit home in the pen. It is actually working out really well, it gives the rabbits a little more room to hop around when they are in the cage.

The boys love the bunnies and both had dreams about them last night and ran out to see them first thing this morning. It's have been a little difficult to explain to the boys that they need to let the bunnies rest and to leave them alone too. They are just so excited and thing every little thing the bunnies do is adorable.

Lizard Stew Anyone?

2011-08-14T13:07:00.004-07:00

It's a typical Sunday morning. Doug and the kids watching cartoons and I am getting ready to start dinner. On the menu today was beef stew. Well to my surprise as I pulled out my cookbook to set it on the counter I nearly squashed something. I jumped back when I realized that the little thing on the counter was a baby lizard (just to set the record clear, I was not scared I was surprised, that is why I jumped). At least I didn't squish it. I yelled for Doug because I had my hands full. He didn't believe me at first.

He caught the lizard and the kids were delighted.

Ever since we moved here the kids have been trying to catch a lizard. They think of new traps and use nets and duct tape, but so far have not been able to catch one. This lizard is cute because it is a baby. It is about the size of a quarter and the kids have now named him Hopper.

So say hi to Hopper everyone. The kids want to keep him, but we will see. I don't want my house to smell bad, and I don't want it to get loose and lost in the house. I have to admit he is pretty cute though.

And to think he could have ended up in our dinner tonight. What a surprise that would have been.I think I would rather have Beef Stew rather than Lizard Stew.

1st Day of First Grade adventures!

2011-08-08T15:09:00.005-07:00

August 8, 2011 was Spencer's first day of 1st Grade. He has hardly been able to control his excitement for weeks. Well nerves and excitement. Spencer tends to be a little worry wort just like his mom and dad. We went to meet the teacher night and he made friends instantly with a little boy. I love how kids can play for an hour and neither of them will ask the others name.(We now know that this little boy's name is Tanner. )

Spencer was so excited last night that when he went to bed he asked probably 6 times if we would wake him up. He made his lunch to put in his new lunchbox. And packed his back pack with all his new school supplies. He loves that his back pack and lunch box match.

At 6 o'clock am this morning just after the alarm went off for Doug to wake up for work, I see Spencer skipping into our room completely ready for school. He had put the ice pack in his lunchbox and everything. It was pretty hard to tell him school didn't start for nearly 3 hours. It was a very long morning.

The time finally came to head to school. That's when the nerves kicked in. Spencer latched on to me a little, when we got to his school and he saw all the bigger kids. He was nervous about getting lost. I promised to stay with him until his teacher came to get him. Once his teacher came out and showed him where his class is going to line up every morning, she said he can put his back back down and play on the playground until the bell rang. He gave me a hung and ran off to play. No more tears in his eyes.

It was strange only having Brendan home with me today. I picked up several preschool workbooks and school supplies for Brendan so I can work with him while we are at home just the two of us. Brendan lacks a lot of motivation when it comes to doing any kind of school work such as writing his name. He did pretty well today.

At about 10:oo am Brendan comes to me running into the room and says, "Mommy can we go pick up Spencer now?" He missed his brother already after an hour. He asked several times throughout the day. Over all I think Brendan did have a fun day with mom, but he was so excited to go pick Spencer up from school. In the car Brendan kept singing to himself, "we're going to pick up Spencer, so we can go to the park", over and over. I don't know where he got the idea of going to the park but it was cute.

Spencer spotted my car immediately. Big smile on his face. He said as he got in that he had a wonderful day and it was the first day so it was a great way to start out. He told me stories about recess and the monkey bars. He told me he did get lost once but someone helped him find his way.

I think this is going to be a great year for Spencer. He is growing up so fast and I'm so proud of him.

Adventures with Wildlife

2011-08-04T20:04:00.002-07:00

Our first week in Arizona was like a mini vacation. We stayed in a hotel and found a few adventures during the days. As we were looking through the vacation books in the hotel we found an ad for the Wildlife Zoo and Aquarium. It sounded like a lot of fun. Even included seeing white tigers and white alligators. I had no idea which zoo would be more fun the Phoenix Zoo or this one. The boys wanted to see the white alligators so we headed to the Wildlife Zoo. I have to admit I was really impressed. Even though the temperature was well over 100 degrees there was plenty of shade as we walked around and many of the animals seemed to be comfortable as well. There were a few rides we also went on. Brendan did not like the log ride (he got splashed a lot).

The white tigers were so beautiful but my favorite animal was the baby tiger in the nursery. So cute. Made me want to pick him up and cuddle him like he was a stuffed animal. Spencer's favorite was the white alligators and Brendan liked the fish. Everywhere there was water he was playing with the fish. He really enjoyed the aquarium part of the zoo.

We had a great day. However talking to neighbors and people at Doug's work, they say we should have gone to the other zoo. Apparently it is bigger with more kinds of animal. Maybe next time we will check that one out. I'm still surprised they let me walk out with all my monkeys with me.

Who knew warm water from a hose could be so much fun

2011-08-04T19:10:00.002-07:00

As you know Arizona is really hot. I think it was right around 100 or more degrees that first week here. And something you should know about me is I really hate the heat. In fact I saw my favorite licence plate the other day it said IH8HEAT. I wish I would have gotten a picture of it. I have always said that I would rather be cold than hot any day of the week.

My boys like the heat and hate being cold so I guess they will probably love living here in Arizona. They have never been much for running through the sprinklers because the water is usually so cold, so I was suprised when Doug called me out one day to look at Brendan. He was riding his bike and Doug was drenching him with the hose water. He was having so much fun.

Spencer immediately wanted to join in. They were not afraid to get wet because of how warm the water was from the hose. They took turns spraying each other and laughing. It was a great day. Who knew something as simple as a hose could make your day. I am really looking forward to getting to stay home with them.

Little helpers

2011-08-04T19:08:00.000-07:00

Moving into a new house is a lot of work and sometimes the most work isn't the work itself but helping the helpers help you with the work. The boys are adorable and want to help so much. This is all new and exciting for them. One the projects Doug has let them help with is hanging pictures. Brendan loves climbing on the ladder and Spencer loves to pose for pictures. They have also helped a lot with unpacking and making a lot of messes with all the packing paper. Hope you enjoy my little helpers.

The Hall of Flame

2011-06-24T13:30:00.002-07:00

So pretty much everyone knows that my little 4 year old Brendan wants to be a FIREMAN when he grows up. He wants to drive the truck, spray the hose, and rescue the people. His room has always been decorated in old fire trucks. So when we got to Phoenix the hotel travel book had an advertisement for THE HALL OF FLAME, the world's largest fire truck museum. Brendan was so excited when he heard about it. We had to go.

The museum was amazing. Some of the fire trucks and engines were so ornate and beautiful and dating all the way back to the 1700s.

I think Doug's favorite part was look at all the old fire helmets some from different countries.

The kids didn't want to take pictures, but I was able to get a few. The kids had fun but they wish they could climb and play on the trucks. There was only one truck they could touch and climb on. It was cute the boys dressed up as fireman and pretended to drive the truck on the way to a fire to save some people.

I was a great experience and I suggest going to anyone who makes their way out here.

Fireman's Prayer

Author Unknown

Another day, another shift,
he's out the door again.
Lord guide his footsteps, hold him tightly,
safely in your hand.
Keep him secure as he responds
with engine lights ablaze.
Protect him from the battlefield
of fires he'll engage.
Preserve and guard this fireman,
Lord shield him from the flame,
and bring him back securely, safely,
home to us again.

Family Pictures May 2011

2011-06-21T21:46:00.002-07:00

I haven't had nice family pictures taken for almost three years. So you can imagine how different the boys look. I raced to have a friend take them before we had to leave. I wanted them done outside and wasn't really sure how that would work in Arizona so I wanted them done in Utah. Amy Bennion Photography is awesome. I absolutely love the pictures. She was so sweet to mail me my CD too since we moved before it was completely ready. I now have my new house filled with family photos. I don't think I will wait another three years before the next time. Enjoy.

Goodbye Utah Hello Arizona

2011-06-21T16:35:00.003-07:00

GOODBYE UTAH

HELLO ARIZONA

Well I never thought the day would happen when I would move out of Utah. To be perfectly honest the idea has always terrified me. I am so used to the grid street system and I am familiar with everything. Good thing Doug bought me a GPS. Plus most of my family is in Utah. The boys love playing with their cousins and going to family activities. I will miss the mountains and the autumn leaves. I like the cold and watching the snow fall. Utah is pretty much all I know.

So when Doug told me he applied for a few jobs in the Phoenix office I guess I never really thought it would happen. Of course I am proud of Doug and he deserves the promotion, but I never saw us actually moving away. Well the day came and Doug had his pick of two jobs down in Phoenix. His new title is a Credit Manager. You would have to ask him exactly what that means I don't understand it all.

He went down the first week of May to look for a house. Because I didn't want to be let out of the experience I did a lot of research before he left. I sent him off with a binder of potential homes and questions to ask and school to look. I made myself an identical binder so we could discuss things later and look at the same house. We ended up in a beautiful house in Surprise. So we planned the move. The best part is the company paid for the move. The even moved our cars for us so we could fly down as a family. Well actually the best part is they PACKED everything for us. We all know that packing is the worsed part about moving. I worked up until the day we flew down while Doug worked with the movers that week. We moved down on the 26th of May, just before the memorial day weekend. We stayed in a hotel for a few days and waited for our stuff to be delivered on Memorial Day. We took that first week as kind of like a vacation and did some activities with the boys.

Anyone who knows me knows how much I hate the heat. So only in Phoenix when you check into your hotel does someone say, "oh you got here before the heat" (when it is already 101 degrees outside). I guess I might end up being a little bit of a hermit at the new place. Oh, and I get to stay home with the kids. It's going to be a great summer once the house is all put together. My parents are already planning a trip the end of June.

Doug and I will both be transferring to ASU to continue our schooling. The boys will start school in the fall at a private school. The boys miss everyone in Utah and it's funny the things they say. Sometimes I think they believe we moved to another planet instead of state. They make comments like "Is there ice cream in this land?" or other things like that. They are enjoying our new adventure here in Arizona and have already made friends with the little girl next door. They are excited about going to their new school and have lots of questions for their teachers.

Doug's Chocolate Berry Dream Cake

2011-06-17T11:30:00.007-07:00

I always try and make a new kind of cake for Doug's birthday every year. Usually it ends up with chocolate covered strawberries on it. This year I wanted to try something new. So I ended up with "Doug's CHOCOLATE BERRY DREAM CAKE". It not only looked beautiful it tasted wonderful. I made a two layer chocolate cake filled with a raspberry cream cheese filling. I frosted to whole cake with chocolate frosting. For the outer edges I used chocolate hazelnut pirouette cookies. The best part of the cake was the berries. I used strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries. I had never made sugar berries before so with a little help and research from my mom we figured out how to do it. The picture makes the berries look frozen but it is just sugar. In order to make them I used powdered meringue and mixed it like I was making an egg white. I then painted the berries with the mixture and rolled them in sugar. I think this was a great cake for Doug's 30th Birthday. I'm really glad he liked it. He the left overs to work the next morning and there was nothing left of it within a half an hour it had all been devoured.
View this cake and more at my baking site Delectable Addictions.

School Pictures 2011

2011-06-14T15:41:00.001-07:00

The boys are growing up too fast. These are there pictures that were taken at their school/daycare. One thing I can say about their school is that they are awesome when it comes to doing pictures. Not only do they take the kids pictures individually but they will also have the photographer take pictures of the boys together. This year I had a lot to choose from. They are all so cute. I love the few that show Brendan's little attitude. Brendan's preschool class. His teachers are Miss Shaeli and Miss Natalie. He had a pretty large class so I'm sure it was an experience trying to get everyone to look at the same time. At least Brendan is looking at the camera. I can't believe his teacher wore a superman shirt for picture day.
Spencer was in Kindergarten this year. His teacher was Mrs. Nicole Smith. His class was smaller and he learned a lot. He loves school. His teacher says he is very bright and will make a wonderful future Engineer someday (that is what he dressed up as on career day). My favorite thing that happen with Spencer's class this year was when I walked in and this darling blonde little girl came up to me and said, "is it okay if I marry Spencer?" Mrs. Smith says she always comments to her how handsome Spencer is. Made me smile.

Brendan's 4th Birthday

2011-01-06T13:33:00.000-07:00

I need to play catch up on my postings. Back in January Brendan turned 4 years old. Boy time really does go fast. He still seems so little to me. I guess he will always be Pee Wee. To celebrate his birthday we went to Incredible Company and played in the arcade and raced the go carts.

The kids both had a blast.

For his birthday Brendan got new knight sets with shields and swords. The boys are having a blast playing knights just like in Narnia.

We had a family party at our house. The room was full of people with little space but fun to have such great people around. Okay as you can see my family is a little crazy but it makes for a great party.

Everyone loved his birthday cake.

One of the best ones I have made I think. I think the big hit was actually cutting into it and seeing the strawberry cake made it look a little like blood.

I think Doug got a kick out of sticking the knife right in the minions head.

Great pictures and the cake tasted awesome.

Thank you everyone for coming to help us celebrate.

Brendan had so much fun with all of his cousins.

We had to wait a few days for his big present to be delivered. I

t was delayed in shipping. When we asked Brendan what he want

ed for his birthday the only thing he would ever say is, "A car I can ride in". Well we didn't get him a car, we got him something better. We got him his very own Harley. So adorable. He loves the music button and starts dancing every time he hops on his bike. It doesn't go too fast but it is just the right size for him.

Assemble the Minions Birthday Cake

2011-01-05T14:21:00.003-07:00

Brendan's favorite movie right now is Despicable Me. We were originally planning on doing a monster cake but as we were watching the Minions on the movie I got a brilliant idea for his cake. I think it turned out really cute. It was a little challenging. Brendan requested that the cake be strawberry. Not sure where he got that from. I don't think he has ever had a strawberry cake before. For the big minion in the middle I used a ball cake pan and a small round cake pan. The top of his head is half of the ball and then I used two round cakes. I made a strawberry filling and put that between the three layers. Crumb frosted the cakes and put them in the freezer. I have found that frozen cake is easier to frost. Once frozen I put a layer of frosting on and froze again. Then I added the fondant. The fondant work was fun but work for sure. For those of you who don't know, when you buy fondant it is usually pure white. Lets just say it took a lot of food coloring and kneading to turn white fondant black. My wrist hurt for two days. The smaller minions were make out of French Vanilla cake with the same strawberry filling. I started with a 9X13 cake and cut 6 small circles out of it and stacked them three high for each minion. I had to cut the top layer a bit to shape it. Once shaped I popped them into the freezer and decorated just like the big one. I made each minion a bit different. This is probably my favorite cake that I have made so far. I love the little expressions on the minions. I feel like I was really able to bring the movie to life a bit. I can only imagine what the kids will come up with for their next cakes.
Almost too cute to cut into. Don't you think? To view this cake and more cakes and tasty treats visit my baking blog at Delectable Addictions.

ChRiStMaS 2010

2011-01-05T14:09:00.000-07:00

What is more exciting than Christmas morning with you kids? Nothing in my opinion. I think I get just as excited as they do. Christmas Eve we stayed up and watched A Christmas Story with the kids. Spencer was so excited to go to bed. He kept looking out the window and as it would start to get dark he would get a huge grin on his face and say, "it's almost bed time." If only kids were that excited to go to sleep every other night of the year. I stayed up a little later to get breakfast going. We had sticky buns and a crock pot breakfast cassorole. Christmas morning I heard the little voices of excited kids watching up and peeking down the stairs to see if Santa came. I had told them not to wake up mom and dad but they couldn't help but sneak into our room and start to climb into our bed in hopes we would wake up.

The boys had a blast opening their presents. The big hit this year was that both boys recieved a Leapster Explorer with a camera attachment. They had fun taking pictures of everyone and stretching them all out. Spencer also got Dragonoid Colossus and Brendan got his remote control car. Brendan also got the movie Despicable me and he has watched it everyday any chance he can get. Love that movie.

Doug gave me a beautiful black pearl bracelet. I love it. It was a great morning. Later that night we headed to Grammie and Papa's for Dinner and gift exchanges. I love Christmas, it's just sad that it takes so much work and only lasts for one day. Hope everyone had a great holiday.

Christmas program at Little Critters

2011-01-05T13:35:00.001-07:00

You know you are a proud parent when you can't wait to go to your kids' school Christmas program. This year I was extremely excited. They boys had been singing their songs for weeks and talking about it constantly. The day finally came and I forgot my camera at home. I was so disappointed. Luckily Doug decided to skip class that night so he could come with us and was able to grab the camera on his way. Unfortunately I forgot to tell him to grab the memory card out of the computer. So I was sitting in the auditorium about to cry so my wonderful husband ran out and bought one at Best Buy for me. Good thing the concert started a little late.

At every school program you can guarantee three things.

1) There will always be the one child that is screaming for their mom or dad that just doesn't want to be on stage.

2) There will always be that one child that goofs off dancing around when he thinks his teacher isn't watching.

And

3) There is always one child that falls head first off the stage.

Well I experience two of the three with my kids. Anyone want to guess which ones?

Brendan was so adorable singing his two songs. He loves "I Want a Hippopotamus For Christmas" and "We Wish you a Merry Christmas". At the end of Brendan's second song he got a little excited and took a step for some reason and you guessed it, fell head first off the stage. Poor little guy. Luckily he fell into his teacher which broke his fall a little and the stage was tiered so it wasn't a long fall. I quickly climbed over parents and stepped on others to get to him. He sat with us for the remainder of the concert. As we waited for Spencer's class to perform he looked up at Doug and said, "Daddy are you upset that I fell." Poor little guy was worried he ruined the whole program. What a sweet little boy.

Spencer is my little wild dancer. He performed wonderfully but when they were having technical difficulties and the teacher walked away he began to do all kinds of crazy moves. What can I say my children sure do know how to make a memorable impression. Spencer's class sang the 12 days of Christmas, which in my opinion is a pretty long song for 5 and 6 year old to remember. My favorite was 10 lords a leaping as Spencer was leaping in a circle. His class also did the alphabet song in sign language. Spencer is learning so much this year.

I loved every minute of the concert and I am so proud of the hard work that they both did. They later performs their songs for my parents one night just as excited as they did at the concert.

Ho Ho Ho 2010

2010-12-05T01:27:00.000-07:00

Well as usual photo time can be a bit tricky. The kids had there moments but I think the over pictures turned out adorable. I took these for my Christmas cards this year.

TuRkEy PuMpKiNs

2010-11-14T18:25:00.001-07:00

Well today was turkey pumpkin day. We took the little mini pumpkins from Halloween and turned them into colorful and adorable turkeys for Thanksgiving. The kids had a lot of fun and it was nice to have a little special craft time with the boys. I love this kind of thing and wish I had more time to do it with the boys. Hope everyone has a wonderful TURKEY DAY!!!

HALLOWEEN 2010

2010-10-31T19:54:00.000-07:00

Halloween has always been my favorite holiday. So naturally I was worried when Brendan was so sick. He went to the doctor on Wednesday and they did some tests. On Saturday he was just getting worse so we headed to the doctor again. They think he has asthma but we need to follow up again next week.

Saturday night the whole family headed to Grammie's house. We had homemade stew, dinner in a pumpkin, little smokies and who could for get GRAMMIES HOMEMADE SPUDNUTS. What a great night. The kids all headed out for trick or treating. The little ones didn't last long in the rain. My sister in law Ali and I took a few of the older ones around the neighborhood.

The next morning the boys were adorable matching their candy (they don't trade just match eachother with the same kind). I'm glad they had a nice time.

Until next year.

Spencer's 6th Birthday!

2010-10-31T15:09:00.000-07:00

My oldest boy is now 6 years old. I can't believe how fast the time flies.This year we did a whole Bakugan theme. We did a friend party at our new house. Likely the weather was still nice so we could do the pinata and let the kids run around a bit.
We played Bakugan BINGO. The kids enjoyed it. Mostly eating the M&Ms I think.

We also had the family over the next day. Spencer got a new bike and lots of great presents. I think he ended up with about 20 new bakugans for his birthday.

Everyone loved the cake. I'm glad he had such a great birthday. I love my little man.

Bakugan Cake

2010-10-31T14:53:00.002-07:00

Well here is my latest attempt on cake decorating. Spencer wanted a Bakugan birthday this year so naturally he wanted a bakugan cake.Those of you who do not know what a Bakugan is they are little toys (usually round) the when you place them on their card they open up into little creatures, such as a dragon.
I did a little searching online and found a great idea. My sister had a cake pan for a ball. I made the ball chocolate with strawberry filling and the bottom of the cake was french vanilla with strawberry filling. I think the cake turned out pretty well, but I must say that trying to cover a round ball with a flat piece of fondant was interesting and frustrating.

I can only imagine what kind of cake Spencer will come up with next year. Brendan is already talking about a monster cake for his birthday. Anyone have any ideas for me?

See this cake and more at my baking site Delectable Addictions.

Autumn Leaves

2010-10-03T19:09:00.001-07:00

My favorite time of the year is Autumn.I love the cooler temperatures and the beautiful colors. So naturally I love to take pictures up in the canyons. With our busy work and school schedules it is hard to find time to take a drive. Well today we finally made it. The whole way there I kept staring at the sky. Definitely rain clouds. I knew that the overcast would be nice not to have the sun in our eyes but I was worried I wouldn't get to take and pictures.We didn't have to go far to see some gorgeous leaves. I would have liked to have taken a few more family shots but the storm started blowing about 10 seconds after the last picture. Crazy winds and rain. Well at least I got a few pictures today. Maybe we will find time again another day. HAPPY AUTUMN EVERYONE!!!

PrEsChOol GrAdUaTiOn!!

2010-06-06T15:46:00.000-07:00

Introducing the newing graduate of the class of 2010. Okay I know it is just preschool but I'm excited. I'm so proud of my little boy. He graduated from Preschool on the 4th of June. His little program was so adorable at one point Brendan shouted "I LOVE YOU SPENCER" and Spencer jumped up from his chair and started waiving. They sung songs and did the pledge of allegiance. After the program was over they received there little diplomas and shook hands with their teacher and also received a little brass ring that says 2010. Spencer is so proud of his ring and he really did look so cute in his cap and gown. So grown up. He can't wait to start Kindergarten in the fall. Way to go Spencer we are so proud of you.

Petting ZOO

2010-06-06T15:39:00.001-07:00

So the other day we went to Gardner Village for dinner. We stopped at the petting zoo to let the kids have a little fun. They rode the ponies and made a few new friends. I wish the animals were a little cleaner but it was pretty cute watching the kids play with them.

2010-04-20T17:59:00.001-07:00

Ok so I know I never ever post things anymore but I am going to try and do a better job. I recently had to take some portraits for class. Here are just a few of the ones I like plus a few just to be silly too. Spencer is 5 now and Brendan is 3. I can't believe how big they are both getting. Hope you enjoy.

Little Guy

2009-11-15T10:45:00.000-07:00

A little bird flew into our window twice today. We think it's wing may be broken. The boys are very worried about him and call him "Little Guy". Doug pulled him out of the snow and made him a little place. He gave him some food and a stuff to keep warm.

OcToBeR!!!

2009-11-02T21:04:00.000-07:00

Well October was a busy month just like it is every year. October and Autumn has always been my favorite time or the year. All the decorations and fun activities what's not to love about this time of year.

There are several birthdays on both sides of the family including Grandma Ila on the 14th, Spencer on the 19th, Melissa and Heidi on the 23rd, mine on the 27th and we even had a new little nephew born on the 22nd. Welcome baby Gage.

Spencer turned 5 on the 19th. My little boy is growing up and getting so big. I can't believe how fast the time went. For his birthday this year we did a family party with a transformer theme. I was put in charge of the cake and felt a little overwhelmed with all the ideas Doug came up with such as a pyramid and pillers all eatible of course. The cake took me pretty much all weekend and I was up late cutting transformer symbols out of fondant and molding pillers and a pyramid out of rice krispy treats. The cake itself was a total of 5 cakes french vanilla with a cream cheese frosting filling and one small chocolate cake on top. I must say I was pretty pleased with the final product considering how stressed I was about it. My mother is a fantastic cake decorater and I have never been that talented at it. Spencer loved the cake and it was a great center piece for the party.

He got everything he asked for on his birthday, bakugans, transformers, power rangers and no girl stuff. If I had the time I really wanted to wrap up a barbie doll just to see how he would have reacted but maybe next year. Thank you for everyone who came to the party to help us celebrate.

One of our fun activities was the Pumpkin Festival.

What a blast. Rides, games, food and even pumpkin and corn blasters.

It felt like something you woud see in a Hannah Montana Movie but very fun complete with corn mazes and giant jumping pillows.

My favorite part of the day was watching Doug get bucked off the mechanical bull. And to make it even better after he was bucked off, as he was standing up the bull head butted him and knocked him over again. I love ya Doug thanks for the laugh.

Oh and Spencer rode the bull too.

And of course the is HALLOWEEN!!!

Which includes a trip to the pumpkin patch and carving jack-o-lanters.

This year our little guys became the little heros of the house.

We had our brave Police Officer Spencer.

And our courageous Fire Fighter Brendan.

Trick or treating was fun with my little heros although some of the houses were a little too spooky for the boys. Too bad Doug was sick and spent the night in bed.

I absolutely adored their costumes this year and am sad that Halloween is over already. I love the smell of the fall rain, the beautiful colors, the spooky decorations, the joy on the faces of little trick or treaters, the smell of burning jack-o-lanters. Until next year.

Hope everyone had a great October like we did.

Now onto another adventure...

Trip to St. George

2009-09-09T09:14:00.000-07:00

This last weekend we headed for a road trip down to St. George. My sister is selling her house down there so it was our last chance to stay. My sister's house is beautiful and it is right on a golf course with the most amazing views.

The car ride down went pretty well. Brendan slept most of the time. Spencer was the typical little boy in the back say constantly saying, "Are we there yet?". We didn't stop the whole way. We wanted to get there as soon as possible because we had tickets to a show that night.

Friday night we went to Tuacahn Theater so see Annie. It was cute. Not the best show we've seen there but it was fun to watch to kids get into it. They didn't exactly "sit" through the show. Heaven knows Brendan can't sit through anything. The kids just kept going from one lap to another. But for the rest of the trip they we singing "Tomorrow, Tomorrow, I love ya Tomorrow". So cute. I love their sweet little voices.

Saturday morning we went back to the theater for the farmer's market. I am happy to saw I got two new very pretty blown glass necklaces. I love jewelry. But the boys were bored so we head to Snow Canyon. Snow Canyon is beautiful. We went on a nice little hike and the boys were super excited and jumped out of the stroller every time the saw a lizard. The "creatures" as they would call them were awesome.

Sunday we headed to Zion National Park for more hiking and taking pictures. We went on a small hike because we had the kids. I love this park it is so beautiful. On our hike Spencer kept stopping to pick up handfuls of dirt. A another hiker gave him a water bottle to put his dirt in. So all along the hike he kept stopping and scooping up dirt and mud into his bottle. When I turned to him to ask what he was doing he proudly stated, "It's DNA". I think that was the hardest I laughed all weekend. It was like he was a little investigator trying to solve a crime. The things kids come up with.

It was a great weekend. Thank you Mom and Dad for letting us come with you.

Adventures at the zoo with my little monkeys

2009-08-30T15:46:00.001-07:00

The weekend of family fun continues. Because we saw all the dead and extinct animals yesterday at the museum we thought that today we would take the boys up to the zoo. We rode the train and the carousel and had a blast goofing off. Brendan loves to roar at the tiger and other animals and Spencer loves the snakes. We watched the bird show and saw some amazing and beautiful birds.

After the zoo we went up to one of my favorite restaurants Ruth's Diner.

It has been a great weekend and I'm sad it is coming to an end.

FaMiLy DaY oUt!!!

2009-08-29T17:51:00.000-07:00

Today has been a great day. We started by heading up Big Cottonwood Canyon and up to Silver Lake. So beautiful. We walked around the lake and the boys had fun finding chipmunks, ducks, butterflies and pretty much what ever they could get their eyes on.

After the lake we went to Thanksgiving Point to the Dinosaur Museum. This is always Brendan's favorite. His little eyes got so big and bright when he say the dinosaur on the side of the building. Needless to say the kids had a great time looking at all of the bones of the extinct dinosaurs and playing in the activities.

2009-07-26T21:21:00.000-07:00

Okay so it has been a while since I have posted anything. Well this weekend I was finally able to get some pictures of the kids. I hope you like them. It isn't easy getting them to smile at the same time. They are such funny boys. I love the funny things they say and the way they same them. I love being a mom and I'm so happy to have such a wonderful family.

A day with the ducks

2009-05-26T21:57:00.000-07:00

This Memorial Day weekend after getting the house cleaned, the yard taken care of, and cleaning out the vehicles we thought we would do something fun as a family. One of things the boys love to do is go and feed the ducks at my old work.

We always stop at a store along the way and buy a loaf of cheap bread and head out. The boys get so excited especially this time of year because there is a chance that the ducklings might come out. The bread always runs out fast (mostly because Brendan likes to throw full pieces in the water) but the boys have a great time seeing the ducks and pointing out to me their favorites. Brendan is already asking if we can go back tomorrow.

We ended the day by having Grammie, Papa and Grandma over for a BBQ. It was a great weekend.

Meg and Zoe's Place

2009-05-17T17:26:00.000-07:00

So we love our puppies. They are really sweet and oh so cute. Well usually they behave very well but while Doug and I were away in London they got a little naughty. They tore up our grass and ate the fence. Chewed through the satellite and sprinkler cables.
Well now that the weather has warmed up it was time for some damage control. Not wanting to give up the puppies and make the kids sad but also not wanting to constantly fix the back yard from destruction, Doug came up with a great idea. Give Zoe and Meg their own place.
Over the last few weeks Doug, Topher (Doug's little brother), and I (really mostly Doug did all the work)have tilled the backyard, rewired the sprinkling system, rewired the satellite dish, layed new sod and built a nice dog run in the back corner. We laid bricks in the dog run so that the dogs would not be in a huge mud pile all the time. To prevent the pups from digging under their new fence we bordered it with some colored rocks. I really think it looks nice.
We still have a little work to do like planting some flowers and building a nice Dog House but the yard looks 300 times better. Doug the boys and I are very happy to have our back yard back and still be able to keep the puppies a part of our family. After all they are only puppies they are still learning.
I want to say thanks to Doug for all his hard work. He really has done a great job and has worked in the sun and rain trying to get the yard back in order.

Dr. BrEnDaN rEpOrTiNg FoR sUrGeRy

2009-05-12T17:19:00.000-07:00

Brendan got his tonsils out today. He was a very brave little boy and did a great job. All the nurses said he was acting more like a six year old rather then a two year old. The doctors loved his little scrubs and many of the parents were asking why their kids weren't wearing some too. I think it was pretty safe to say he was the cutest kid there.
After surgery Brendan of course just wanted to be held but he also wanted to call Spencer. He loves his brother and he wanted him to know he was ok.
Brendan is doing great and is already wanting to eat. The hard thing now is going to be trying to keep the boys from running around. Boys are crazy, but I love them.

Happy 28th Birthday Doug!!!

2009-05-09T12:11:00.000-07:00

Today my wonderful husband is 28 years old. I thought it would be fun to post of few pictures of him growing up over the years.

Doug I love you with all of my heart. I don't know what I would do without you. I hope you have a very Happy Birthday.

Chocolate Strawberry Heaven Cake Anyone?

2009-05-09T11:16:00.000-07:00

Two Layers of Chocolate Cake with sliced strawberries inbetween. Milk Chocolate Frosting and Stawberry Glaze on top. Need I say more? I made this cake for Doug's birthday today. Doug loves stawberries. I hope he likes it. I think I will. Who doesn't love chocolate cake?

London Part 3 - Final Few Days

2009-03-06T21:08:00.000-07:00

I love London. In fact I think if I were to tell Doug let's move he would already be applying for a job at The Tower of London or The British Museum. I'm sad to say goodbye to London but so happy to see my boys. I missed them so much. Thank you to everyone who helped watch them while we were gone.

The last few days we spent in London were great. We would walk around for hours in the parks and gardens and just talk like we used to when we were dating. I especially love Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park. Some of my most favorite times on this vacation were just walking, talking and enjoying the scenery.

One of the highlights of the trip was going to the theater. I had been looking forward to seeing Wicked from the day I found out it was playing there. Doug was a little apprehensive about the show just because he wasn't familiar with the story. It is sort of a twist on the Wizard of Oz however it is not the same story and it is more about the Wicked Witch and Glenda in school. I loved every minute of it and now Doug is even recommending it to people to go see. I knew he would come around. I wish we would have had the money to see another show or two. Heck if we had the money I would have gone to a different show every night and still not have seen all the shows playing.

We had a great flight into Chicago (who wouldn't in 1st class). However we had to rush through the airport just to make our flight into Salt Lake. It was a good thing the plane was a little late taking off because by the time we made it through security and customs and crossing the entire airport our plane should have already left. That might explain why our bags didn't make it on the flight and we just received them about an hour ago. The flight to Salt Lake sucked. We were no longer in 1st class and we were in the very last row of the plane next to the bathroom. The plane was extremely hot and I was getting a ton of motion sickness. The lady that was sitting in front of us had a very young child who was screaming at the top of his lungs and they kept bouncing their seat making it bang into our knees. I really wanted to be back in 1st class, but I guess my days as being special on an airplane are done.

It was a great trip but went way too fast. I hope we can return to London someday as it has become one of my very favorite cities. It is beautiful and the people are some of the most friendly I have ever met.

Paris

2009-03-04T08:22:00.000-07:00

Beware of the gypsies with the gold ring. Seriously we spent one day in Paris and we had the gold ring trick done at least 4 times to us throughout the day. What happens is this as you are walking around in a square or some other tourist place a man or sometimes a woman would bend down and act as if you had dropped a gold ring. They then proceed to tell you about how the ring is gold and want money for finding your gold ring. This is an easy way for them to find out where you keep your money on you. We have seen them work in pairs so watch out for the pick pocketing gypsies.

Paris what can I say? I thought it would have been better. We didn't like Paris at all. In fact I can pretty much state that we will never go back. The day just didn't start off well from the beginning. We missed our first train because we left our credit card that we had purchased our tickets at the hotel. We had the conformation number and everything. We had our passports to show that we were who the reservations were made for, but since we didn't have the card we didn't get our tickets. So we rushed back to the hotel grabbed the card but by the time we got back to the train station it was too late. Grrrrrr.... And the train was not a very good ride. I got really sick and pretty much didn't feel well all day.

We finally made it there and we saw a few of the sites such as Notre Dame and the Eiffel Tower. Notre Dame was pretty but not nearly as pretty as some of the other churches we have seen in Europe. It would have been cooler if we saw the hunchback (ha ha ha). The Eiffel Tower was a bit disappointing. Not as pretty as I thought it would be and you are hounded by men trying to sell you little statues as you are standing in line. We did make it to the top and saw the amazing view. Word of the wise if you go make sure you pack warm clothes it is freezing up there and you will spend hours sometimes the whole day standing in line and being very crowded. I can't imagine what would happen if there was a fire and everyone had to get down right away.

The biggest disappointment we had was when we arrived at the Louvre Museum only to find that it is apparently closed on Tuesdays. How stupid is that? I still can't believe it.

We did not find the people in Paris to be friendly or helpful at all. In fact you get the feeling like they are annoyed that you are even there. Very different from the English people. No one spoke English, not even the cab drivers, so it was very difficult to get around. The one person that we thought was nice was a cab driver and he happened to be from England so there you go.

We didn't have enough time to go really anywhere else so we went back to the train station hoping just to get on an earlier train since we didn't want to stay any longer. No can do we waited for about 3 hours in the train station then our train was delayed. And I ended up having to ride backwards on the train again. So that didn't help me feel any better with my motion sickness.

Doug and I decided that we will not go back to Paris again. Everything was very expensive and well we bought museum passes and bus passes that we weren't even able to use so we felt like it was just a big waste of money. We don't know how we even spent as much money as we did. We didn't do much and we didn't even eat in a restaurant.

When we got back to our wonderful hotel in London Doug was talking with a friend of his and his friend was telling him how much he loves Paris. We couldn't believe it based on our experience. Maybe it was just a bad day. The weather wasn't great, we didn't feel good from the train, and well it is the off season right now. Maybe we will have to give Paris another try but I doubt it will be anytime soon. We are very glad to be back in London.

The Adventure Continues - London Trip Part 2

2009-03-01T14:06:00.000-07:00

The adventure continues in London. And I hope I don't bore anyone but there is so much to see. London is one of the world's most historical cities and it is hard to take it all in even in over a weeks amount of time.

We have tried to take in many of the sights in the last few days. We headed to Kensington to see the Palace and we came upon a very beautiful church on the way St. Mary Abbots. This church was filled with stained glass windows, beautiful archways, statues and memorials. In back of the church there wer tombstones that were from the 1600's and even before. Those grave sites are older then the United States. Too bad many were so old that they were crumbling and were no longer able to read. I love all the detail that goes into everything in the old churches in Europe.

Kensington Palace is a cute and smaller scale palace then the Buckingham Palace. We took a tour of the state apartments and saw belongings and heard stories of Princess Victoria who was born and grew up in the palace. We saw different clothing styles that Princess Dianna wore to many occasions. We saw spectacular painted ceilings and artwork the belonged to previous royalty. Although Kensington Palace is smaller it has a sweet charm about it. I love the small rose garden out back. I could imagine if I lived there that is where I would spend a lot of time.

The British museum is a nice spot to see many things from all over the world. Although we didn't walk through the whole museum (we were both dead tired and in need a of good nap) we saw items from ancient Egypt like the mummy of Cleopatra and statues of Pharaohs.

After nap time (I don't know why children fight about taking a nap I love naps) we headed to Buckingham Palace. Much bigger then Kensington. I heard the Queen only lives there part time and you know what I say to that? "Let me live there the rest of the time." Although we were too late to see the changing of the guard we headed to the Queen's Gallery. We saw a collection of paintings painted by artists like Rembrandt, Canaletto and Winterhalter . My two favorite things I saw in the gallery were a tiara made for Queen Victoria that was covered with rubies and gold flowers and a painting of Victoria when so was 11 years old. The young girl looked so sweet and happy. She looked like any other young girl growing up. A beautiful painting. Doug and I both liked looking at the old armor too.

One of the sites Doug was most excited to see was the Imperial War Museum. I really wasn't dying to go but I knew that it was important to him. We enjoyed looking at the old bombs and air crafts. I must say that when we left the museum we wished that we never would have went, that is due to the Holocaust exhibit. Although well done and important it is extremely depressing and made me sick. I don't do well with things like that. Doug even said if he knew it would be that depressing he wouldn't have wanted to go.

We are having a fantastic time but miss our boys greatly. Thank you to everyone who is helping watching them. Make sure to give them hugs and kisses for me.

London Trip part 1

2009-02-27T14:14:00.000-07:00

Well we finally made to London after about a year of talking about it. London is beautiful. I love all the old buildings and the people have been really friendly.
With the help of a few friends our trip has started out wonderful. We have been able to fly first class (love it the only way to fly now) and we are staying in a 5 star hotel (The Grosvenor House Hotel) that is so beautiful. I am still in disbelief that we are not staying in the Holiday Inn where we had originally planned and paid for.

We got in yesterday and we just wandered around the city. Watch out for those crazy taxi drivers!!! Crossing the street reminds of me crossing the street in Rome. Basically in Rome you cross and smile at the people who had to stop. In London you run across the street hoping no one will hit you then you smile in relief that you made it. Either way no one waits for the signs that say it is safe to cross.

Today we started seeing the sights. We visited the tower of London. Amazing place! It is so interesting to see and the different periods of the construction of the fortress. We got to see the crown jewels and the largest diamond in the world (can I have it please?). Unfortunately they don't allow you to to take pictures in the Jewel House. I suggest to anyone who comes to go see it. We also saw the many towers and walls that make up the ancient fortress. We even learned about the torture that was done at the tower and saw the place where Ann Boleyn was beheaded.

The other major activity we did today was the London Eye. The world's largest observation wheel. It is like a giant ferriswheel. We were advised to go at night and it was incredible (thanks Vi). We saw the lights of Big Ben, Parliament and other sites while being high above the river.

Well that is the update of our trip. More to come. Hope you like to see pictures as much as I like taking them.

Pictures = CHAOS

2009-02-18T19:30:00.000-07:00

I love photography. I have always said if I could do anything that I want I would have my of photography studio. I love pictures.
Well my camera broke a few months ago and I haven't been able to take pictures of the boys. I never got a chance to do Spencer's 4 year old or Brendan's 2 year old portraits. Well I just got a new camera and I was very excited to try it out. I got the boys all dressed up and set up my back drop and tripod. Madness. I don't know if I just picked the wrong time or what. The boys just didn't want to listen or hold still. They were running and throwing candy, jumping on the furniture, you name it. It was complete chaos. Doug wasn't feeling well tonight so he wasn't able to help. They usually are very good about their pictures being taken. Anyway I was very disappointed so I will have to try again another day. I was able to get 1 cute picture of Spencer and 1 of the two of them together. Hopefully next time will go much smoother. That is the trick about children's photography sometimes it goes great other times it is a bust.

Introducing SNICKERS

2009-02-13T21:27:00.000-07:00

So this post is a little late but I thought I should introduce you all to Snickers our cute little hampster. It is actually a funny story.
Anyone who knows Doug might know how he is terrified of rodants of any kind. So one day we are walking through Petsmart getting some dog food for the puppies and Spencer is just staring at the hampsters and mice and talking about how cute they are. Doug looked at me and said, "What would we need to get to have one?" After I told him all of the supplies needed he turned around and under his breathe you could hear him saying, "I can't believe I am doing this." He bought all of the stuff and two hampsters (Spencer really wanted a mouse but the long tail freaked Doug out too much).
Well sadly our two hampsters did not get along very well and just a few days later (Christmas Eve) Spencer's hampster took the life of Brendan's little hampster. Being a Mom of young children who are new to pets didn't know what to do. I went to work asking everyone if I should try and replace the hampster without telling the kids or just tell them it died. Well after talking to Petsmart, I had to dig through the garbage can and pull out the dead body and bring it back to get the replacement. They were out! I couldn't believe it. We had no choice but to tell the kids about the lose of Jumper. The kids took the new pretty well. Spencer kept asking if he could see the dead body but sadly I had to explain that it was back at the pet store.
A week or so later we bought a second cage and a different kind of hampster. This little guy was way too jumpy the kids couldn't even hold it and it was biting all of the time. So took back that one and ended up with a mouse. The mouse still freaks Doug out all of the time.
So in the last couple of months we got 2 dogs 3 hampsters (one died and one returned) and one mouse. I think my house is turning into a zoo. No more animals please. However the kids couldn't be happier so I guess it's all good.

New Camera

2009-02-12T16:09:00.000-07:00

Okay so I know that I haven't posted anything new for a while and that is because my camera was broken. Oh sad. I love taking pictures and with our trip to London coming up I have to have a camera. So I am happy to say that I have a new Camera and I'm so excited. New pictures and posts will be coming soon.

VeRy SnOwY dAy!

2008-12-28T13:06:00.000-07:00

The day after Christmas was very snowy. Since I had the day off I thought it would be fun to go out and play in the snow and maybe make a snowman. So I bundled up the kids and headed out the door.

Spencer just loved climbing up the mountains of snow and sliding down.
This was Brendan's first time playing in the snow. He loved it.
And hated it at the same time.
Brendan quickly said hi to everyone he saw out side. He definitely is not shy. We did snow angels and make a few snowballs. Unfortunately we never did get a chance to make our snowman.

I thought the pictures were pretty cute. Hope you like them too.

My Little Guys

2008-12-17T11:33:00.000-07:00

So I know it has been awhile since my last post. Things have been really crazy.

I wanted to show you the cute pictures that were taken of the boys. The daycare that they go to had a company come in and take pictures of all the kids. So cute. They were going to give every family a free 8X10 just because. Well I ended up spending a lot more than just my free 8X10. I love the pictures and they turned out so cute. I hope you like them too. The company provided all of the outfits and props for all the children. What a great idea.

Super Spencer just turned 4

2008-11-11T21:53:00.000-07:00

Spencer's Birthday was on October 19th. He just turned four and he had a Super Hero party. I gave all the kids their own superhero capes with their superhero names on them. Spencer helped me pick out the fabric for the capes and I must say I worked really hard to make them look nice. A very fun part in getting ready for this party was giving each kid their own superhero name. At the party the follow superheroes attended:
- Super Spencer
- Mighty Mischief (Brendan)
- Captain Chaos (Cash)
- Action Jaxson
- Atomic Ashton
- Jetstream J.J.
It was a superhero party galore. We played games,broke a pinata, and got spiderman tatooes.
Spencer Also had a family party where his Grammie made him a great SUPERMAN CAKE. It looked great Mom thanks for all your hard work. At the family party Spencer was given ZOE our first puppy he was so excited that when it came time to have cake and icecream it didn't even want any. It was a great birthday and I am glad it turned out so well. I can't believe he is FOUR YEARS OLD it seems like I just found out I was pregnant with him. Time really does go by fast when you have kids.

all girls love a PICKUP TRUCK!

2008-11-11T20:31:00.000-07:00

So the other morning I woke up and I went downstairs to get the boys some milk. While I was downstairs I took a look out on the patio to see how the pups were doing. Well it was so cute. During the night the two of them had climbed into Spencer's power wheels ford pickup truck and were huddled together asleep. I tried so hard not to wake them as I opened the door to take a picture and I was almost successful. I'm glad I was able to catch a glimpse of this cute scene. EVERY GIRL LOVES A PICKUP TRUCK even the four legged ones.

I have officially falling in love with the pups. I love to let them in the house and just cuddle. When we got Zoe we thought she was just the sweetest and most calm puppy we had ever seen. Well she is still sweet however since we got Meg Zoe has become a little bully and Meg is the calm one. We love them both. It is very cute see the boys interact with them and see their smiling faces.

Pumpkin Patch

2008-10-30T12:05:00.000-07:00

Well I know we were a little late but we had to make it to the pumpkin patch this year. It is a tradition. I love looking at picture from previous years and seeing how big Spencer has grown. I love fall and Halloween is my favorite holiday.

AM I SEEING DOUBLE?

2008-10-23T19:31:00.000-07:00

Well not one puppy, but two. Can you believe it? I was joking with Doug the other day and told him we should get another puppy so the other one wouldn't be lonely. I really promise I was joking.

Well when I came home today I saw two puppies in the back yard. We now have Meg (Megatron) who is Zoe's sister. She is also very cute and they play very well together.

I know most of you are probably saying that we have lost our minds but the kids are happy and labs are good dogs and maybe having two won't be so bad. Meg has taken a real liking to Brendan. He loves to pick her up and hold her. Spencer still gets a little nervous when either of the puppies are really excited.

You can be sure there will not be a third puppy coming around. I don't have enough hands.

A PUPPY! A PUPPY!

2008-10-20T07:05:00.000-07:00

Okay so I have stated many times that I do not want a dog. But I guess I gave in.

Zoe is Spencer's new puppy. I still can't believe we just bought a dog. As I was driving home a few days ago I was stuck in traffic and I saw a big sign in the back yard of a house that said "lab puppies for sale", I must have seen close to 10 puppies playing in the yard. They we so adorable. Well yesterday was Spencer's birthday and Spencer was with his grandparents for a little while that day. His family party wasn't until that evening. As we were driving we were coming by the same house and I mentioned to Doug about the puppies. He saw them in the yard and turned the car around and went straight to the house. We are going to try to have her be an inside dog (we will see how it goes). She is very sweet. We love her white color.

We suprised Spencer at his party. He was so excited and so suprised that he didn't even want ice cream and cake after seeing the puppy. She slept on Spencer's bed last night. I think she is going to be a great addition to our family.

Oh something funny about Zoe is that she has an extra toe on her right back paw. Just something to make her just a little bit more special.

Orange belt

2008-10-18T15:49:00.000-07:00

Spencer tested in karate last week and now is an orange belt. He was very nervous and scared but did a pretty good job. It is hard to get up in front of a bunch of people when you are that little. He is excited to be learning some more and even harder moves. He even gets to learn a few jump kicks. The next testing day is December 6th and he can go for his tiger animal patch. I have to laugh when he is learning new tricks he trys so hard and it is so cute. I'm glad he enjoys it. I'm so proud of him.

Brendan's X-RAY

2008-09-05T12:44:00.000-07:00

My sweet little baby is really hurt. He has a broken arm. Right now he is is a splint and on Wednesday they will do some more x-rays and determine if he has to have surgery or if they can just cast it. He is having a hard time and wants the splint off. As you can imagine he is in a lot of pain. Without going into a lot of detail I ask and hope everyone will keep us in they prayers as we go through this very difficult time. It has been an extreme emotional roller coaster the past few days and I'm not sure when it will end.

Brendan in the BOX!!!

2008-08-02T10:12:00.000-07:00

Who needs a Jack in the Box when you have Brendan. Ever wonder how small Brendan really is. Well take a look. The other day Brendan decided to climb into a box. It was not a very big box. I love that all you can see is his little head poking out. PEEK A BOO. I thought it was pretty funny hopefully you will too.

Wedding Day Memories!

2008-07-29T07:34:00.000-07:00

Today is our 5 year anniversary. Time really can go by fast. I remember everything about our wedding day. The flowers the smells they way everyone looked all dressed up. I remember how I waited for Doug at the temple because he was late (they parked way far away). I remember it was over 100 degrees that day and trying to take pictures at the temple grounds. I remember how relaxed I felt as Doug and I waited in the temple together in the celestial room. I remember getting tears in my eyes during the ceremony. It was a beautiful day. And although things weren't perfect, the flowers, the heat, people being late for pictures, the cake sliding a little. It was still an amazing day. We were married on July 29, 2003 in the Salt Lake City LDS Temple. After the ceremony we had a few hours before the reception so we went to lunch just the two of us at Olive Garden down town. The reception was at Seven Oaks Reception Center. The night just flew by. We got some beautiful pictures and had some wonderful memories that night. I remember how tired I was after the whole day. Thank you to everyone who helped out my friends and family I love you all.

I am truly greatful to be married to the man of my dreams. Douglas is so sweet and caring. He always tries his best. He is a hard working. He always puts his family first. I thank my father in heaven every day for bringing him into my life. And for our sweet boys. My family means the world to me and it all started just 5 years ago today. On the day that I married my soul mate. I know the next 50+ years will be fantastic too come what may.

Our Little Karate KID!!!

2008-07-19T12:23:00.000-07:00

Spencer has starting taking KARATE classes. He actually is doing very well. He listens to his instructors and he even makes the noises. But my favorite this is how cute he looks in his uniform. Last week he earned his first stripe on his belt, he needs four to test for a new belt. He is really enjoying it and I think it will be really good for him. Right now he is taking one class a week but as he starts to learn more and move up we might get him into additional classes. He promised Mr. D (his teacher) that he would not use his karate moves on people but only on monsters. His teacher said it would be okay to fight any monsters that he might see. Spencer is a TINY TIGER WHITE BELT.

The GLOWING boy!!!

2008-07-05T20:20:00.000-07:00

Well like most people we went to a firework show on the 4th. We bought a few weeks before a bunch of glow sticks and brought them to the show. We had fifty so we had plenty to work with. We decided to decorate Spencer. We turned him into the amazing glowing boy. Everyone around thought it was pretty cute especially we he started dancing around. I'm glad I had my camera with me.

All American Boys!!!

2008-06-29T20:53:00.001-07:00

7 year (1st date) Anniversary

2008-06-17T07:50:00.000-07:00

7 years ago yesterday was our first date. I know it might seem silly to celebrate this anniversary but we always do. I came home from work and Doug had taken the kids to my parents house and surprised me with dinner. He had the table all set up nice with the China and sparkling cider and flowers in the middle of the table. I have the best husband. He is always doing things to show me he cares. I remember our first date. Doug was really nervous to even ask me out. We went to the Alpine slide in Park City, miniature golfing, went to Chili's for dinner and then ended up bowling the rest of the night. It was quite a night. The next time I saw Doug he seemed so excited he asked me out again. And we have been together ever since.

An ear of corn

2008-06-15T10:34:00.000-07:00

I have finally found something that Brendan loves to eat. CORN ON THE COB. He loves it. In fact he got made when we tried to take it away. When he was finished he had corn stuck in his teeth, corn in his ear, and probably corn in places I haven't even checked yet.

Lagoon!!!!

2008-06-11T20:15:00.001-07:00

Thanks to Doug's wonderful family we have season passes to lagoon. We have already gone 3 times this season. Spencer loves it. Brendan is still deciding and hates any ride having water even around it. Recently we went with some friends. The kids had a blast from riding the train to the terror ride (Spencer keeps his eyes closed but continually begs to go on it). Kiddie land has finally updated with some new rides that even the adults can enjoy. Only thing is that some of the rides even in kiddie land Brendan is still too short. We also love the games. Spencer is really good at darts and break a plate.

Fort Anderson

2008-06-11T19:42:00.000-07:00

Welcome to FORT ANDERSON!!
As I have stated in previous posts boys will be boys. Well the boys in my house are all boy. One of our favorite things to do is build forts. Tonight for our family activity we built one big fort. After we completed our master piece we sat inside and told ghost stories. Those of you who have ever heard Spencer tell a story know he has quite an imagination. His face gets so animated. Even if we are taking turns telling stories he somehow always becomes the one who finishes and makes the story the most creative. Brendan was our little pretend monster. As he was continually trying to destroy our fort. I love how sometimes the silliest things can be the most fun as long as family is around.

Looking for a good boot camp

2008-05-26T08:06:00.000-07:00

Those of you who have young kids can understand what it might be like raising two extremely active boys. It seems like they are always getting into trouble. I guess boys will be boys. They want the toy the other one has (even if it is the same toy they already have in their hand). All I can say is it is a good thing they are so cute or I might really be looking to send them to boot camp. I found the perfect shirts for them to wear. It pretty much sums up everything.I love my kids but sometimes I wish I could go back to the times when you could put them down and not wonder what they are going to get into next. We always knew that Spencer was very active but we had high hopes that little Brendan would be a bit more mellow. Well we were very wrong. If you can believe it I think Brendan might actually be more on the move then Spencer. Only he is the silent trouble maker. So when you add it all up I have two very active trouble makers and ONE husband who usually is the brains behind it all. I think you could say I have more than my hands full. But I wouldn't give any of it up. Although I might need a good babysitter from time to time.

Mommy TAG!

2008-03-30T09:07:00.000-07:00

Mommy TAG!
This is really cute! (I tag Annette)

Mommy and Spencer age 3 months

Mommy and Brendan age 4 months
1. Typically, what time do you wake up?
Usually wake up at about 5:30 when the alarm goes off for Doug but he resets the alarm for 6:30 so as long as the kids stay alseep I get that extra hour of sleep.
2.On a good night, what time are you kids in bed?
We usally start our bedtime story at about 7:30 or 8:00 so once story and prayer are done they are all tucked into bed at 8:00 or 8:30. They go to bed really easy so that is good.
3. How long have you been a mommy?
About 3 and a half years. Spencer was born on October 19, 2004. I can't believe how fast time flys when you have kids.
4. How old were you when you became a mommy?
8 days shy of being 21
5. What is your favorite kids tv show?
The Backyardigans is a favorite we watch it every morning
6. What is your least favorite kids tv show?
I have never been a fan of Barney!
7. What is your favorite chore?
A "favorite chore" does that exist??? Even Doug says I don't have one.
8. What is your favorite meal to cook?
Probably chicken rolls
9. What meal do you cook most often?
enchilladas we have made them a lot lately
10. What is your kids favorite meal?
Spencer loves cereal and eggs. Brendan I don't think we have found a favorite yet but he does love cereal too.
11. What is your favorite thing your husband does with your kids?
I love it when Doug reads them stories. He does little voices it is really cute. He also likes to wrestle with the boys, but he is always careful.
12. What are 5 things that make you smile when you're being a mom?
1. I love watching spencer play with his cars. He loves his cars and always has some with him. Usally he has his pockets full. He has more cars then any other kid I know and he knows each and everyone of them. He will search the house for just one car.
2. I love it when they laugh together. No one can make Brendan laugh like Spencer can.
3. I love how just out of the blue I will hear Spencer "Mom I love you. I missed you!" It always just melt my heart to hear him say he loves me.
4. I love how tiny Brendan is. He is so little, I forget that he is over a year old now. I love how he is run around. He can not sit still for anything always on the go.
5. I love Spencer's stories. Next time you see him ask him to tell you a story. His eyes get really big and his voice get so serious when he starts "once upon a time..." usually his stories involve ghosts or monsters. He is all boy and has quite an imagination.
13. If you could take your kids anywhere, where would it be?
Disneyland or something like it. Just a place where we can have fun and let the kids go a bit wild.
14. When was the last time you went out without your kids?
2 days ago. We got to go to the spa go to dinner and to a movie. It was very nice.
15. What is your favorite past time / activity to do with your kids?
I love singing songs with them. Spencer loves to sing and Brendan trys but is usually dancing with us.
16. Name one thing you said you would never do as a mom.
I don't know on this one I will have to think about it more.
17. Name one thing you do, that your own mom did?
I hope I do a lot of things that my mom did - she is 'super-mom!'
18. What is your favorite quality your mom has?
My mom is wonderful. I think she trys to do everything for the right reason and with the best intentions. I hope I am as good as a mom as she is to me.
19. What is your favorite kids book?
Probably "Are you my Mother?" it is a cute book and I love when Spencer reads it to Brendan very cute. He gets it pretty close to the read story.
20. What is your advise for new moms?
Take time for you too. When someone offers to watch your baby it is okay to go out? You need time for you and your husband too.
21. What is the scariest / most heartbreaking moment as a mom?
Always when your kids are sick you feel completely helpless but the scariest moment I think I have ever had was when Brendan stopped breathing in the ER when he had RSV. I had never seen how fast a baby can turn blue and I almost didn't understand what was happening at that moment. It was so fast but it still scares me.
22. What is your most joyful moment being a mom?
I love the little moments when your kids will come and climb on your lap and tell you how much they love you.
23. When was the last time you were told "I love you" by one of your kids?
This morning when we were eating our breakfast Spencer told me. Brendan can't say it yet but I know he loves me too.
24. When was the last time you told one of your kids "I love you?"
About 10 minutes ago I put Brendan down for a nap. I tell my kids and my husband all day long how much I love them. I am so lucky I have a great family.

A cold day at the park!!!

2008-03-29T06:59:00.000-07:00

Big slide!

Hanging like a monkey!

Daddy and Brendan
Spencer and his friend Della!

Even though it was cold and was snowing earlier in the day. We thought it might be fun to take the kids to the park. We went with some friends Annette, Jake, and their little girl Della. We didn't stay long because of the cold but the kids had a good time. Afterwards we went out for icecream.

Boys will be BOYS!!!

2008-03-24T06:53:00.001-07:00

Easter Sunday while waiting for our Easter family get together to start we stopped by a local park and let the boys go a little wild, even Doug needs a little wiggle time sometimes. I love their matching outfits I can't wait to get family pictures in them.

Easter Time!!!

2008-03-22T19:34:00.001-07:00

It's Easter Time in our house. We love Easter Egg Hunts and coloring Easter Eggs.

AHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2008-03-05T16:38:00.000-07:00

We had quiet an adventure on our trip. This is some of the pictures of us zip lining in the rain forest of Jamaica.

Formal Night on the Ship

2008-02-17T14:30:00.001-07:00

Our Trip to the Carribbean!

2008-02-11T07:59:00.001-07:00

This is a vacation I will never forget. We got to know the doctor and on the ship very well between Spencer, Doug and my Mom all having to go see him. We Had a great time and I will always remember the look on Spencer's face when he got to hold a monkey. We missed Brendan so much but we are very thankful to the people who helped look after him while we were away. I hope everyone enjoys a few of the pictures from our trip. Doug is already trying to plan the next one.

THESE BOOTS ARE MADE FOR WALKING

2008-01-22T20:29:00.000-07:00

Spencer is all dressed up and ready to go from Dad's hat and belt all the way down to Mom's boots. I can't believe he walked up the stairs wearing those boots. Notice they are on the wrong feet but he was so proud and he looked so cute. I love this little boy. He is growing up so fast.

I'VE BEEN (HUBBY) TAGGED!

2008-01-22T11:43:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Melissa for tagging me(& Doug).

Hubby Tag!
What is his name?:
Douglas Jay Anderson
How long have you been together?:
6 1/2 years
How old is he?:
26 he finally has stopped lying about his age
Who eats more?:
toss up I hear Doug snacks all day at work. In fact ask him about when he starting choking on a gum ball.
Who said 'I LOVE YOU' first?:
Doug. He lost a bet and had to buy me flowers. The card said "Just because of who you are and everything you do. Rebecca I LOVE YOU".
Who is taller?:
Doug. If you ask him he will tell you he is 5'10" or even 5'11" but he is really only 5'8"
Who sings better?:
I don't know we both sing. That is how we met singing in a musical.
Who is smarter?:
Doug is smarter but sometimes he can give way too much information and it goes over my head. I learn a lot from him. He is a big history buff.
Who does the laundry?:
Doug usually does the laundry as far a putting in the machines but I usually end up the one folding everything. I am lucky most men do not even do that.
Who does the dishes?:
Both we take turns.
Who pays the bills?:
Doug is the one incharge of anything having to do with money. I married a banker.
Who mows the lawn?:
Doug and Spencer likes to help. It will be fun to see if Brendan trys to help too this year.
Who cooks dinner?:
I usually do. But Doug does too. We eat out way too much.
Who drives when you are together?:
Doug. I really hate driving I would rather be a passenger.
Who is more stubborn?:
I think it depends on who you ask.
Who kissed who first?:
Doug kissed me after one of our first dates but then called me the next day to say sorry for doing it. Maybe I wasn't a very good kisser.
Who proposed?:
Doug did but I talked him into asking me a few days early. He came over and showed me my ring let me try it on and then tried to take it back. I didn't think that was very fair. I wanted it then.
Who is more sensitive?:
Me all the way.
Who has more friends?:
I don't know. With 2 little kids we really don't get to do anything with friends very often.
Who has more siblings?:
I do but probably Doug if you count all his half siblings and step siblings.
Who wears the pants in the family?:
Most of the time Doug does. And I am perfectly happy with that, but if it is something really important to me I will take the lead.

I am so blessed to have Doug in my life. I really do feel like he is my other half and together we are whole. Thank you so much Doug for making me so happy. I love you.

I tag anyone who wants to but especially Annette.

Brendan's First Birthday!!!

2008-01-10T19:35:00.001-07:00

Brendan Age 1 Birthday Photo Shoot!!!

2008-01-05T10:46:00.001-07:00

Christmas Morning

2007-12-27T08:20:00.001-07:00

Christmas Morning was a big excitement at our house. Spencer woke up to see that Santa had eaten his cookies and brought a bunch of beautifully wrapped gifts for him and Brendan to open. Spencer was constantly asking for his toys to be opened and Brendan just wanted to play find where mom and dad put the scissors. Do you like their matching pjs? Mom and Dad have some too.

The cutest little boys you will ever see!

2007-12-26T14:46:00.000-07:00

It is amazing how fast your life can go when you are chasing around 2 very active little boys. As you can imagine it is very difficult to keep both of them still for a picture so I have learned to treasure the great pictures that do come out.