Day 335 Balloon!

Zane loves balloons!  Today I took the kids to the dentist for their semi-annual checkups and cleaning and Zane of course got to tag along.  He loved playing with the balloons they got from the dentist's office.  He loved watching the balloon float up above his head whenever he let go.  Oh the simple joys! 

 Breakfast today was 2 pieces of buttered toast, plus some bananas.  Yes, he can eat!

Maddie always has to sneak in the photo somehow.  She is too funny!

Day 334 Bedhead

This is what Zaney looked like when he got up from his nap this morning.  I think he needs another haircut!

Day 333 Toybox Time

Zane loves non-baby toys.  He loves our family room toybox.  It has all the leftover toys that the kids might have taken from everywhere.  His most recent favorites are the Whac-a-Mole game and the telephone.

Day 332 Helping Out

So today I was gone for the whole entire day - at a Power of Moms retreat.  Kevin seamlessly took over for me just like he always does (and so willingly I might add, I really am grateful I have a husband who is so supportive of everything I do, more on POM in a separate post).   This is what Zane and Maddie looked like when I got home - they had just eaten snacks and with a few cheerios on the floor it was time to vacuum.  Zane loves to follow the vacuum hose around whenever it is on.

Day 331 - 11/18

Look who's an expert on the stairs!  He loves to go up and has recently figured out how to get down.   He likes to scurry up the stairs when he sees me come after him.

Collin's 8th Birthday

Collin had a "Golden Ticket"-Day on his birthday.  He got to stay home from school!  He had been looking forward to the day when he got to stay home for his birthday!  He was so excited to be home, and to get served breakfast in bed by us.   He requested buttermilk pancakes, scrambled eggs, and chocolate milk.

Gotta love that he got up and did his hair and jumped right back to bed before I served him breakfast!

Then he opened his first present - the scriptures.  It was so cute to see him super excited over his new set of scriptures.  He was so careful getting it out of the box and admired it like a new toy.  The scriptures came with a new journal and special pen to write his thoughts in (amazingly the first thing he did when he got home from his baptism the next week was write in his journal).

Anyway for lunch he requested Paradise Bakery.  Then went to Caketini to get cupcakes for his birthday cake.  He wanted cupcakes for his birthday instead of regular cake and with Kevin being out of town I chose to take the easy route and buy the cupcakes instead of make them. Ha!  So another notable thing happened at the cupcake store - he started picking out cupcakes I knew he didn't like or was not his favorite.  He then said to me that the cupcakes were for those coming to his birthday - he picked out, for example, a red velvet cupcake for his Pop, vanilla for Maddie, and mint-chocolate chip for Allie.  He even asked if we should get one for Kevin, but I told him the cupcake wouldn't be good in two days when Kevin got home from out of town.  It was sweet of him to think of others, and that's just how he is - we are blessed to have him in our family!

For dinner he requested homemade pizza - and then Pop and Grandma Lorraine came to help celebrate the rest of his birthday.  It was a fun day!  The next day was his first den meeting - he was so excited to get to go right after he turned 8.  He has lots of friends his age and loved being around the other boys!

Things we love about Collin:

- he is so thoughtful and kind to others

- he gives honest compliments!

- he loves his brother and sisters - and when asked to watch them he gives them full attention

- he is honest and super truthful

- he is sensitive to the Spirit and things of the Gospel - he loves to read the scriptures

- he is detail-oriented and likes to do things to exactness

- he is creative and is a good illustrator (I should really start scanning those drawings!), makes things out of cardboard and whatever he could find

- he has the gift of obedience

- he is funny and I love hearing his stories and his opinions about things.

Day 330

Zane can stand all by himself for a few seconds now and likes to practice walking - we just have to hold his hand and then he goes!   It won't be long now before he starts walking on his own.

Kevin's 37th Bday

I know... I am so behind on posting.  Way too many photos waiting here.  Kevin celebrated his 37th (I know, in 3 short years he will be joining the distinguished 40 club!) on 9/28.  We did a family dinner the Sunday before, and then on his birthday he and I went out and he enjoyed all the homemade cards (his favorite).  I love this man and glad to call him mine. :)

 Collin's awesome card

Allie and I made this together (that's Allie's handwriting, I just bought the goods)
the missing candy bars are:
Starburst (with joy)
mounds (of love)

Day 319 - 11/06

It is finally cool enough in Arizona to wear footsie pajamas!

I am so behind in posting all my Baby 365 photos, I have them but haven't gotten to posting - every once in a while I will find photos that catch my eye, and so I post them - like this one.  I love my little Zaney!

Made me laugh

I found this photo I took of Maddie in Zane's halloween costume.  Collin had it on too but he made me promise not to ever post it on my blog.  So I am not.  But this made me laugh. And made me remember that...

I will know my kids as adults for eternities, but I only have a few years to know them as children.

Every time I think about it, my perspective on all the crazy days as a young mother changes.  I am grateful for these busy, crazy, overwhelming, sometimes frustrating, but funny, good, and wonderful times with my children.