Happy Birthday Tate!!

Tate turned 5 this week!  Five, I think, is one of the best birthdays.  They're so cute at this age and 5 is so big and exciting.  We took cookies to school on his actual birthday and had a big birthday costume party on Saturday.  It was a lot of fun having the kids over all dressed up and excited to celebrate!  We had a lot of princesses, a few faries a power ranger (birthday boy),ninjas and more.  Happy Birthday Tater, we sure love you!!  

Spring???

Here is what our spring is looking like.....

Corey's such a good dad!  Last weekend when we woke up to a ton of snow he went out with Tate and Avery to build a snowman.  Good job guys!  Meanwhile....I keep going outside to shake the snow off of my beautiful daffodiles and I've got potted flowers and baskets in my garage waiting until it warms up.....someday. 

In the nick of time...

I was enjoying our spring yard this week and took a few pictures.  I thought I'd post them since we woke up to 6+ inches of snow this morning.  Gotta love Utah!! 

St. George

Last weekend we went down to St. George for the True Grit 50-mile endurance race.  It would likely take Corey a good majority of the day to do the race, but that was okay because it was St. George right???  Nice and warm with quick access to a park that we could spend all day at, basking in the sun....well, it was a nice dream. 
Corey's Mom left at about seven for her ride and Corey and Stan left shortly after.  The boys got dressed and headed out to play at the "dirt hill."  I was at the condo with the twins getting lunch ready.  At about nine o'clock it started to rain.  It started out soft but then got harder and harder and very consistent.  I called the boys in (had them strip down outside, threw them in the bath and their clothes in the wash) and thought about the bikers riding in the rain. 

Blyth was supposed to be back at about eleven but didn't show so I called her cell with no answer.  At about twelve I received a shivery call from her taking me up on my offer to pick her up.  Corey gets his determination from his mom...and that's no small thing.  When we got to our rendezvous point her whole body was shaking cold and didn't stop for a good while. 

I'm so sad I didn't get pictures of the wet/muddy riders.  I'm sure it was a sight to behold.  Corey and Stan cleaned up a bit before they got into the truck to head back to the condo so I never saw them completely muddy.  Ironically it stopped raining and warmed up for the late afternoon and all day Sunday.  At least the boys got to play at the park while we cleaned up the condo. 

In spite of the rain it was a good weekend.  We got out of the house and spent time together.  The kids were great on the drive and we finished reading "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix."  Stan finished  a muddy 28 miles and Corey 38.  Great job men!  Here are a few of our indoor highlights!

Paper airplanes off the loft of the condo. 

Beautiful babies fresh out of the bath!

 

Collecting lava rocks on our way home (note Keaton's rock in his pocket!)

Avery discovered the art of painting with licorice! 

A sleepy little girl after a fun-filled weekend!

 A great weekend all in all. 

Un-"Fredettable," & my love of talk radio....

I'm hooked!  Corey laughed at me a month or so ago when I said I hadn't really considered myself a BYU fan...ha ha.  So here's the story.  I started to listen to our local talk radio during the last presidential election.  I've always felt it so important to stay informed about politics and the world around you in general, but found it hard to get information convieniently...then came Doug.  I love Doug.  Doug Wright is the host of the 9-12 show on ksl.  He is a political junkie but covers all sorts of stories and I really enjoy his show and I can do it all while cleaning just about anything in my house, or changing diapers, cooking, etc. 
Then came "The Night Side."  It's on every night from 7-10 and hosted by my friends Ethan and Alex.  Ethan is a political junkie and Alex a sports junkie and they make quite the duo.  I started listening to them after the twins were born and I spent insane amounts of time in my bedroom nursing, pumping, changing diapers, etc.  Radio helped me feel like I was connected to the outside world. 
And last but not least....Greg Wrubell, the voice of the BYU Cougars.  Seriously fun radio listening to Greg call the games.  I've always enjoyed sports, but haven't been this excited about it since Karl Malone and John Stockton rulled the Jazz (my 12-year-old heart was broken to find out they were both married). 
Now the BYU basketball team is competing in the NCAA and have  made it to the sweet 16 and I just had to send a shout out and say GOOOOOOOOOOOOO BYU COUGARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Best of luck to Jimmer, Jackson, Noah, Charles, and the rest of the team!

Retraction..

I've been on crutches now for about the last month trying to get rid of this stress fracture and it just wasn't getting better.  So my doctor decided to send me in for an MRI in case it was a "bad case."  I heard phrases like "pin your hip," "six weeks of crutches," and "total hip replacement!"  So I obediently made the appointment and got an MRI last friday.  They said the results would be ready on Monday and guess what????  NOT A THING.... my bones are completely healthy and whole.  So my doctor proceeded to appologize for making me get that expensive test and really having no idea what's going on with my leg, he sent me some stretches to do by e-mail and said to call if it doesn't get better.  So the marathon's still out, but at least I'm walking, we'll see about running in a few weeks. 

A few things about our backyard...

The boys are Corey's best "helpers."

We have a GREAT yard.  Our yard is pretty much the reason we bought our house.  It's big, has big trees and a lot of dirt, which is a must-have for a family of mostly boys.  It is a lot of work, and we don't pretend to keep on top of it all, but it's enjoyed by our family, friends, and others...as you can see here. 

Summertime is the ideal time to appreciate our yard,
but by far the most work. 

Discovering snow in their new boots.  Sweet babies.

The deer frequent our yard in the summer too, just not as frequently. 
Stay away from my tulips deer!!!

The ground is covered in new snow...I guess I'm craving summer.