Our mornings are usually very low-key, but these pictures were all taken before nap time! We loved spending time with our friends visiting from the east coast.
Monday, September 9, 2013
Austin Lately
My 2 year old went to the fridge, opened it up (this happens frequently, I can't tell you how many times a day I tell him to shut the fridge) found the carton of almond milk (I keep it on hand for when we run out of regular 2%) and just helped himself right to it. He opened it up and tipped it back like it was no big deal! He did not learn that from me, Parker.
He's also been known to grab the yogurt, applesauce or cottage cheese as he so desires.
Silly kid.
Do they make locks for refrigerators?
FYI-the picture below is from a separate occasion.
Sunday, September 8, 2013
Sunday afternoon while Parker is gone
This Sunday afternoon we:
1. Ate tomato basil soup for lunch.
2. Austin napped while I browsed pinterest and changed up my chalkboard. (It's read "congratulations Parker" since his graduation in April)
3. Austin discovered there are buttons on the TV to turn it on. I guess hiding the remote won't suffice anymore.
4. Austin posed for the camera.
5. I got in on the selfie action.
6. We wrote letters.
Yesterday
Yesterday was... interesting. Our Saturday began with Parker preparing for his trip to Toronto, Canada. He was wrapping a few things up with work and his calling and, of course, packing his bags. I was getting myself ready for the day, looking after Austin and helping Parker pack. We left our house at 11:45. Parker wanted to stop by Gram's and say hello/goodbye to Gram and Nancy before going to the airport to catch his 1:45 pm flight. As we got on the road, Parker mentioned he needed to make a quick stop at the bank and Walmart (he NEEDED floss. He is serious about his dental hygiene. :) I commented as we were entering the Walmart parking lot that I was worried he was pushing his luck and wasn't giving himself enough time. He assured me there was NO WAY he would miss his flight.
He took those words back when we got rear ended (by an uninsured driver!) pulling out of the parking lot. We were all fine, but our bumper, trunk, and tail light are not. After waiting for the police to arrive and filling out the necessary paperwork we were finally back on the road at 12:45, very concerned that Parker's flight would be leaving in an hour, and we were still a half hour away from the airport.
Well, he made the flight. Barely. Miraculously!
As I was laying in bed that night trying to fall asleep, I kept thinking about my day. It was certainly a rough start. However, we were all safe and sound. Parker made his flight. No one was injured in the accident. Our car is still drive-able. The guy who hit us was apologetic and agreed it was his responsibility to pay for the damages. Austin and I had a lovely afternoon with Gram and Nancy (who also treated us to dinner). I was able to have a nice chat with my mom, and my cougars beat Texas in an exciting upset.
I felt so blessed! Because I am. :)
Side note- There's nothing like having Parker gone for a night to make my imagination run wild with scary what-if scenarios. Why do I do that to myself!? Please tell me I'm not the only person who does this.
He took those words back when we got rear ended (by an uninsured driver!) pulling out of the parking lot. We were all fine, but our bumper, trunk, and tail light are not. After waiting for the police to arrive and filling out the necessary paperwork we were finally back on the road at 12:45, very concerned that Parker's flight would be leaving in an hour, and we were still a half hour away from the airport.
Well, he made the flight. Barely. Miraculously!
As I was laying in bed that night trying to fall asleep, I kept thinking about my day. It was certainly a rough start. However, we were all safe and sound. Parker made his flight. No one was injured in the accident. Our car is still drive-able. The guy who hit us was apologetic and agreed it was his responsibility to pay for the damages. Austin and I had a lovely afternoon with Gram and Nancy (who also treated us to dinner). I was able to have a nice chat with my mom, and my cougars beat Texas in an exciting upset.
I felt so blessed! Because I am. :)
Side note- There's nothing like having Parker gone for a night to make my imagination run wild with scary what-if scenarios. Why do I do that to myself!? Please tell me I'm not the only person who does this.
Thursday, June 20, 2013
Father's Day
We had a fun father's day. We went to church as usual. Afterward we came home for lunch and Austin napped. Once Austin woke up we all went to visit Grandma Hilton in her new assisted living home. She seems to like it there and be in better health. Yay! We took Grandma with us to Pioneer Park in Provo and let Austin play at the splash pad there. We enjoyed being together as a family, and Austin seemed to enjoy the water. He was a bit timid, and wanted to have Mom or Dad close by at first. After the park we took Grandma home, stopped by our house just to change and get our food to take to James and Cindy's for dinner. He had a wonderful time with them, as usual. Anna and Drew stayed an extra day (they were visiting this weekend for a wedding) so we got to see them again too. They sure know how to be the super fun aunt and uncle. :) We were late getting home and Parker and I chatted with our dad's that evening. Austin and I gave Parker the movie "Skyfall" and a few pair of dress socks for work. I think he was just as excited about the socks as he was about the movie. He has been in desperate need of them. We had a great father's day and loved celebrating the great men in our lives. Parker and I are blessed to have great fathers and grandfathers. Most of all I'm grateful to Parker for being such a super dad! I knew he would be a fantastic father when I married him, but he honestly has exceeded my expectations. Austin adores his daddy!
Anna and I were eating root beer floats in honor of our Daddy, who is a root beer float connoisseur. :)
Friday, May 24, 2013
Update on Austin's Little Things (22 Months)
For the first year of Austin's life, I kept a calendar baby book. Every day I would write down little things about him. I was glad when that year ended because by the end, I was trying to make mental notes of what to write and remember them for weeks at a time before I would finally write them down. It was hard to remember, and then I'd feel bad for not writing it down daily. Anyway, after that first year I pretty much stopped keeping track of any of the cute things about Austin, and I know I won't remember them all, so here's the SUPER LONG post to try and record all those little things (at least that most recent ones I can think of right now).
Austin was very slow to talk. For the longest time the only words he ever seemed to speak were mama, dada, ball and cracker. We were slightly concerned, but only slightly. I was very confident that he would talk when he was ready, but the doctor seemed a bit more concerned (granted, it is her job to catch problems early on) and therefore made me wonder if I was doing something wrong that was limiting his speech. Anyway, within the last couple of months his speech has taken off (although I think Parker and I are the only ones who can tell what he's saying), so I wanted to document the words of my cute little guy.
First word other than mama or dada was: "bah" for ball (by far his favorite toy) or "crahca" (or some similar variation) for cracker. FYI, wheat thins are preferred, teddy grahams are good, gold fish and Cheerios are acceptable.
Other words he can say in no particular order:
Nose
Eah (Ear)
Heh (Hair)
Ehbow (Elbow)
No (he learned this in the past couple weeks. It's awesome.)
Ah Duh (All done)
Uh oh
Uh now (Oh no)
Moh (More)
Dog
Ma (for Gram or Grandma)
Papa
Ehwah (Ella)
Tay Tay (For Uncle Taylor)
Mmm (don't know if that counts as a word, but he says it when he eats)
Hi
Bye (This involves a wave and, if your lucky, he'll blow you a kiss to go with it)
Bubble
Chess (Cheese)
Goga (Yogurt)
Nana (Banana)
Jesus
Whee (since turning his car seat forward facing he can now see out the front windshield. We randomly hear "whee" coming from the back seat as we drive. It's pretty cute, and a big contrast to the terrified whimpers we heard the first time he rode facing forward.)
I'm sure there's more... but that's all I can think of now.
He can sign:
more (which he seems to sign all. the. time. and is usually accompanied by the word craca)
all done
please
thank you (this sign frequently becomes a blown kiss)
book
If we say, "Austin, can you say __________ ?" he will almost always attempt it, but usually his "word" doesn't sound very similar to our requested word.
He's pretty good about putting something back, or throwing something away when we ask him to (or don't ask him to. I honestly wonder what he's thrown away that I haven't caught). Lately I've been trying to teach him to put his own shoes away, and he's done it without a problem 4 out of 5 times. He's typically pretty good about cleaning up toys when we ask him to help us, but he won't do it on his own, we definitely have to be participating in the clean up to keep him on task.
He loves to be outside. The park is always a fun spot, and he particularly likes the swings and slides.
When the cabinet is unlocked, he loves to get the dishwasher tabs from under the kitchen sink and put them in the little compartment in the dishwasher.
He loves listening to music, but will really bust out his dance moves for One Direction
Diaper changes are torture. They usually involve a tantrum (varying degrees of severity) unless he's distracted with a cracker, or something on TV or a song. I've tell him that if he doesn't want his diaper changed he can start going potty on the toilet, but he doesn't seem to get it... yet. ;)
He gets beyond excited when we turn on the TV in hopes it might be a show for him. Usually the TV is off all day, but if we need to keep him distracted, the TV works very well for him. I try to avoid it because I think it's better for his brain, and he seems to be better behaved with absolutely no TV. Maybe that's all in my head, but I don't think so; TV makes him cranky. His favorite shows are Rio, Toy Story 2, The Lion King, and Blue's Clues. We have to keep the remote out of his little hands because he knows the one button to push to turn his show on and he does so any chance he gets.
Balls of any kind are his favorite toy. He's pretty good at throwing and kicking, but he's a little inconsistent with catching. He has a little fisher price basketball hoop that he can spend a lot of time playing with. He typically stands on a box to make him tall enough to make a basket, otherwise he's just too small to get it in and although he's persistent, he gets frustrated.
Austin loves the songs Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam and The Wheels on the Bus. He loves to do the actions especially to the verses for the Babies and Mommies on the bus.
Austin has always been really good for babysitters (at least as far as they tell us.) He never cries when we leave, and I think he enjoys having new people to play with. He goes to the daycare at the gym about 5 days a week, and again never has a problem going. He loves the nursery at church too. Hope I didn't just jinx myself.
He loves to play with our tablet. We have a hard time using it in front of him because he seems to think he should have full access to it whenever he wants. He's a pro at navigating it now. As I type this on the couch he's trying to use my laptop screen as a touch screen (it's not) to close the window.
We've had the same bedtime routine since Austin was about 4 months old. Around 8:00 or 8:30 we change his diaper, put on pajamas, brush his teeth, read a scripture story, read another book or two, turn off the light, say our family prayer, lay him down and that's it for the night until about 8:00 am the next morning. He's really a great sleeper, and takes a 2-3 hour nap around 1:00 in the afternoon every day.
Rose is Papa and Gram's black lab, and Austin adores her. Austin's a little wary of most dogs, but curious about them. Rose is his buddy at Gram's house and she is soooo good with him. I've never seem a better dog... she's so patient with his "petting" (he can be a little aggressive about it) and she minds very well.
There's the highlights I can think of now. Austin's a joy to have, really about as great as they get! He's such a sweet boy and we're so happy to have him!
Austin was very slow to talk. For the longest time the only words he ever seemed to speak were mama, dada, ball and cracker. We were slightly concerned, but only slightly. I was very confident that he would talk when he was ready, but the doctor seemed a bit more concerned (granted, it is her job to catch problems early on) and therefore made me wonder if I was doing something wrong that was limiting his speech. Anyway, within the last couple of months his speech has taken off (although I think Parker and I are the only ones who can tell what he's saying), so I wanted to document the words of my cute little guy.
First word other than mama or dada was: "bah" for ball (by far his favorite toy) or "crahca" (or some similar variation) for cracker. FYI, wheat thins are preferred, teddy grahams are good, gold fish and Cheerios are acceptable.
Other words he can say in no particular order:
Nose
Eah (Ear)
Heh (Hair)
Ehbow (Elbow)
No (he learned this in the past couple weeks. It's awesome.)
Ah Duh (All done)
Uh oh
Uh now (Oh no)
Moh (More)
Dog
Ma (for Gram or Grandma)
Papa
Ehwah (Ella)
Tay Tay (For Uncle Taylor)
Mmm (don't know if that counts as a word, but he says it when he eats)
Hi
Bye (This involves a wave and, if your lucky, he'll blow you a kiss to go with it)
Bubble
Chess (Cheese)
Goga (Yogurt)
Nana (Banana)
Jesus
Whee (since turning his car seat forward facing he can now see out the front windshield. We randomly hear "whee" coming from the back seat as we drive. It's pretty cute, and a big contrast to the terrified whimpers we heard the first time he rode facing forward.)
I'm sure there's more... but that's all I can think of now.
He can sign:
more (which he seems to sign all. the. time. and is usually accompanied by the word craca)
all done
please
thank you (this sign frequently becomes a blown kiss)
book
If we say, "Austin, can you say __________ ?" he will almost always attempt it, but usually his "word" doesn't sound very similar to our requested word.
He's pretty good about putting something back, or throwing something away when we ask him to (or don't ask him to. I honestly wonder what he's thrown away that I haven't caught). Lately I've been trying to teach him to put his own shoes away, and he's done it without a problem 4 out of 5 times. He's typically pretty good about cleaning up toys when we ask him to help us, but he won't do it on his own, we definitely have to be participating in the clean up to keep him on task.
He loves to be outside. The park is always a fun spot, and he particularly likes the swings and slides.
When the cabinet is unlocked, he loves to get the dishwasher tabs from under the kitchen sink and put them in the little compartment in the dishwasher.
He loves listening to music, but will really bust out his dance moves for One Direction
Diaper changes are torture. They usually involve a tantrum (varying degrees of severity) unless he's distracted with a cracker, or something on TV or a song. I've tell him that if he doesn't want his diaper changed he can start going potty on the toilet, but he doesn't seem to get it... yet. ;)
He gets beyond excited when we turn on the TV in hopes it might be a show for him. Usually the TV is off all day, but if we need to keep him distracted, the TV works very well for him. I try to avoid it because I think it's better for his brain, and he seems to be better behaved with absolutely no TV. Maybe that's all in my head, but I don't think so; TV makes him cranky. His favorite shows are Rio, Toy Story 2, The Lion King, and Blue's Clues. We have to keep the remote out of his little hands because he knows the one button to push to turn his show on and he does so any chance he gets.
Balls of any kind are his favorite toy. He's pretty good at throwing and kicking, but he's a little inconsistent with catching. He has a little fisher price basketball hoop that he can spend a lot of time playing with. He typically stands on a box to make him tall enough to make a basket, otherwise he's just too small to get it in and although he's persistent, he gets frustrated.
Austin loves the songs Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam and The Wheels on the Bus. He loves to do the actions especially to the verses for the Babies and Mommies on the bus.
Austin has always been really good for babysitters (at least as far as they tell us.) He never cries when we leave, and I think he enjoys having new people to play with. He goes to the daycare at the gym about 5 days a week, and again never has a problem going. He loves the nursery at church too. Hope I didn't just jinx myself.
He loves to play with our tablet. We have a hard time using it in front of him because he seems to think he should have full access to it whenever he wants. He's a pro at navigating it now. As I type this on the couch he's trying to use my laptop screen as a touch screen (it's not) to close the window.
We've had the same bedtime routine since Austin was about 4 months old. Around 8:00 or 8:30 we change his diaper, put on pajamas, brush his teeth, read a scripture story, read another book or two, turn off the light, say our family prayer, lay him down and that's it for the night until about 8:00 am the next morning. He's really a great sleeper, and takes a 2-3 hour nap around 1:00 in the afternoon every day.
Rose is Papa and Gram's black lab, and Austin adores her. Austin's a little wary of most dogs, but curious about them. Rose is his buddy at Gram's house and she is soooo good with him. I've never seem a better dog... she's so patient with his "petting" (he can be a little aggressive about it) and she minds very well.
There's the highlights I can think of now. Austin's a joy to have, really about as great as they get! He's such a sweet boy and we're so happy to have him!
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Mother's Day 2013
Mother's Day was perfect. We had a delightfully relaxing day, well, at least I did. :) Parker and Austin gave me a sweet card, a mini rose bush for the planter on our balcony, and the lipstick I had been wanting to try (Covergirl Lipperfection.... I really like it!)
After church we got to skype with Bobby, who is on his mission in Chile. We miss him and loved seeing him! Afterwards we went to an awesome park for a picnic and playing, then came home and I skyped with my dear Mom. I'm pretty sure I'm her favorite because every Mother's Day she still wears the heart shaped pin covered in colorful mini shells that I made in second grade. ;) Love you, Mom! I loved spending time with my little family.
I really appreciate all the motherly figures in my life, and there are many! My mom and mother in law are great examples of women of charity, as are my grandmothers, sisters, aunts, cousins, and friends. I've got awesome women in my life!
The picture above was right after church... I'm wearing the same outfit I wore last Mother's day (that wasn't planned.) The picture below really needs no caption. On a related note, Austin has learned the word "NO."
After church we got to skype with Bobby, who is on his mission in Chile. We miss him and loved seeing him! Afterwards we went to an awesome park for a picnic and playing, then came home and I skyped with my dear Mom. I'm pretty sure I'm her favorite because every Mother's Day she still wears the heart shaped pin covered in colorful mini shells that I made in second grade. ;) Love you, Mom! I loved spending time with my little family.
I really appreciate all the motherly figures in my life, and there are many! My mom and mother in law are great examples of women of charity, as are my grandmothers, sisters, aunts, cousins, and friends. I've got awesome women in my life!
The picture above was right after church... I'm wearing the same outfit I wore last Mother's day (that wasn't planned.) The picture below really needs no caption. On a related note, Austin has learned the word "NO."
He's saying "cheese"
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Uncles
Austin's Uncle Taylor is awesome. He babysits for us a lot, and without complaint. Austin loves him, and since Austin has spent so much time at Uncle Taylor's house, Taylor's roommates have kind of become honorary Uncles (who have also baby sat Austin on occasion). Thanks for your help guys! :)
Monday, May 20, 2013
Parker's Graduation
After one semester at LDS business college, a two and a half year break (on a mission in Nicaragua,) one semester at Utah Valley University, and eleven and a half semesters at Brigham Young University, Parker graduated with his Bachelor's Degree in Construction Management and a Minor in Spanish (and technically he completed the requirements for a management minor, but due to unfortunate decisions by BYU administration he didn't officially get that... we don't need to get into that, Parker's over it).
Congratulations Parker! Now you're all smart and stuff. We enjoyed the graduation ceremony, then with lots of help from others, Debbie and I planned a little graduation celebration.
The professor above, Mark Lords, was one of Parker's favorites. Parker's friend, Alejandra, (below) was a huge help when Parker had to occasionally take Austin to school when I was at my internship. She loved Austin and would help entertain him while Parker worked.
I had to make cookies... obviously. These are some of my favorites I've ever done.
Having my sister (and dad) there was so fun, and she was my right hand woman, helping me with anything I asked. Love her.
These ladies were a huge help getting everything put together (and taken down) at the party.
Congratulations Parker! Now you're all smart and stuff. We enjoyed the graduation ceremony, then with lots of help from others, Debbie and I planned a little graduation celebration.
I had to make cookies... obviously. These are some of my favorites I've ever done.
These ladies were a huge help getting everything put together (and taken down) at the party.
I don't know why I think the picture above is so funny to me... but it is. :)
It was so nice to celebrate this great accomplishment in Parker's life, and we appreciate the support of those who celebrated with us in person and in spirit. :) Oh, and I designed the announcements/invites and really loved how they turned out. I had so much fun with them.
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