Catching Up

Here's a little about what we've been up to lately...

A few weeks ago after Brandon got home from a business trip he was itching to do something fun with the kids.  Ruby suggested the Living Aquarium.  Since we have annual passes and hadn't been since Wyatt's birthday it sounded like a good idea to us.  It turns out that it was a great idea!  Wyatt is at such a fun age.  He walked around almost the entire time signing and repeating "go, go, go!"  He especially loved the penguins and sea turtle.  Ruby was a brave little toaster and petted the sting rays.

Brandon took me to the Blue Bird Cafe Concert at the Sundance Outdoor Theater.  Ever since we went last year I've been looking forward to going again.  It's probably one of my favorite dates ever-- song writers, acoustic guitars, story telling, and an incredibly beautiful setting.  Don't let the jackets fool you-- it only drizzled for about the first 10 minutes of the show.  Gotta love summer rainstorms!

Brandon started BYU's EMBA program.  Last week he had class everyday Monday-Friday from 8 am- 5 pm.  From here on out he'll only have class every other Friday afternoon and Saturday (all day).  In two years he'll have an MBA!  It is quite a bit of extra work and time to give up spending with us, but it will be so worth it. Honestly,the timing is perfect since we don't have a new born (and aren't planning on one in the near future) or a school-aged kiddo, yet; so he won't be missing out on midnight feedings or Saturday soccer games. For as long as I've known him he's wanted to earn an MBA.  I'm so proud of him for making it happen and wish him lots of luck.  So far, he's pretty impressed with the program and his cohorts.  I hope it will be an excellent experience from start to finish.

The kids are very entertaining.  These photos are from a recent trip to Ikea.  Not only did they really enjoy eating together at the kids' table, but Wyatt practically had me in stitches when his bib got turned around and he refused to let me fix it.  I guess bibs are for babies-- capes are for big boys!  The photo below is from safari day at the gym.  The kids went on a bonafide safari while I was upstairs burning up major calories on the treadmill.  When I picked them up Ruby introduced me to one of the sugar gliders they found while on safari.  BTW, she was much more gentle with them than Wyatt was (hence his distance from the poor animal).  His version of petting is a forceful pat still...

 Last Saturday was the last day of the Draper Days festival.  We missed most of the week long events, but decided to ride our bikes down to the park (3 mi each way) to check out the big party.  We all had a blast.  The kids got to ride ponies, pet reptiles, watch a bird show, jump in the bounce houses, eat cotton candy, and play at the playground.  We even got them balloons and while we were pedaling them uphill to our house they even took a quick nap-- lucky us!

Miss Ruby finished her second session of swim lessons.  She loved going and has asked (repeatedly) why she doesn't have swim lessons this week.  I have to admit, waking up and hitting the pool in this weather really has been a treat.  I'm so proud of her for the enormous amount of courage and enthusiasm she has shown us about swimming this summer.  Last summer's private lessons didn't go nearly as well... (even though we adored her teacher)

Wyatt is our little ham.  Recently he's taken to posing, smiling (and squinting) for the camera.  I adore his little marshmallow cheeks.  I can't resist kissing them all day long.  The other day a stranger told me he should be a baby model.  He is pretty adorable, but I'm afraid he would be something of handful for a photographer. lol

Toddler Talk and Wyatt-isms

I've been saving these up for the past few months...

Every 3 year old incessantly asks, "why?" a million times a day, right?  Our girl's favorite version of this phrase is "why not?"

R: "Hurry up, Mom!  The baby animals are waiting for me to pet them." (Getting ready for the baby animal party at the farm at Thanksgiving Point.)

Gobbles = goggles
cerdeel = cereal
hot gog = hot dog

R: "Mom, it smells like cat poop in here." (referring to the cow smell as we drove past a bunch of cows in a pasture)

No more high fives for Ruby.  She likes to fist bump and say "pound it!"

R: "Is the bad fairy in Sleeping Beauty a boy or a girl?"
M: "A girl."
R: "Oh, so does she use a potty for girls when she's out?"

"Kandee (Uncle Casey's dog) is giving Scout a horsey back ride!" (Guess what Scout was doing to pour Kandee...)

M: "Oh, Scout just tooted.  Or was that you?"
R: "That was me.  Scout doesn't know how to toot."

"Kneel on your kneels." (Ruby's command while we were getting ready for family prayer)

R: "The chickens were chasing the dogs because the chickens think dogs are delicious!"
M: "Ruby, what are you talking about?"
R: "In Lady and the Tramp the chickens chase the dogs."
M: "Oh, the dogs are actually chasing the chickens."
R: "No, Mommy.  The chickens are chasing the dogs because they think they're delicious!"

M: "Thank you!"
W: (signs thank you) "dank you!" and then applauds for himself and laughs

Wyatt has been caught climbing onto the chair and then onto the kitchen table- SEVERAL times lately.

It's been like forever...

I can't believe how long it's been since I last updated our family journal.  Way too long-- thanks for the friendly reminder Mom.

Ruby Roo and Miss McKenzie dressed alike.

We've been enjoying our summer-- gardening, hiking, biking, visiting with old friends, playing outdoors, and doing lots of swimming (in our backyard, at the gym, and Grandma's house).

Riding the ponies at Thanksgiving Point

Drying off after an afternoon swim in the yard.

Ruby has developed an affinity for night gowns.

Wyatt loves his kick board.

We even had an impromptu road trip to Grass Valley, Ca to visit Brandon's grandparents, but sad news-- my camera was broken, Brandon forgot to bring his re-chargeable battery for his, and my phone memory was practically full; so I got just a handful of awesome pictures.  Sigh...  It was paradise, though.  You'll have to take my word.

The lake and river were both pristine and the weather was perfect.  It was an ideal vacation in so many ways-- we spent the day frolicking in the water, soaking up the sun, and building sand castles.

Oh, and visiting with his grandparents was good fun, too. It was so nice of them to host our rambunctious little bunch.  I wish we could do it more often.  

Even the car trip wasn't too obnoxious this time around--mainly because my mother-in-law went with us, so there was always an adult in the backseat to keep the troops entertained.

Poor sick baby girl

During our blogging hiatus we also had a round and a half with the most terrible virus.  No joke--we all had two and a half weeks of a seriously painful sore throat and congestion.  It even backed up and caused me, Ruby, and Wyatt to develop ear infections!  I slept on the couch most of those nights just so I wouldn't wake my family up from my non-stop coughing.  At one point we were all down and out with the virus and my mom rescued us by making us dinner and hanging out with our kids.  It was pathetic and awful.  I'm glad my mom took pity on us.  I hope it's gone for good.  I'm not up for being under the weather again any time soon.

Ruby is in doing her second session of swim lessons.  I can't believe what a brave little fishy fish she is this year.  She is so much more confident than last summer.  I really enjoy watching her jump in the pool and bounce around in the water with her friends and instructor.

Little fishy fish

They are currently working on swimming the length of the pool freestyle and also on their backs using "monkey, airplane, solider" arms and legs.  At the end of the lesson they always play a few games.  Her favorite is animals in a basket.  She frequently volunteers to be the first animal and almost always wants to be a unicorn.  She even makes a unicorn horn with her finger in the middle of her forehead-- it's pretty hilarious.

Popsicle face

Wyatt gets cuter and cuter every day.  He looks like a little cherub.  His big blue eyes, short red hair, and luscious chipmunk cheeks are too much for me to resist!  He is also communicating more (Can I get a hallelujah?!).  So far I've heard him say, "More, Mama, Dada, Dog, Baaaa (balloon), go, maa (milk), all done, ball."  He signs most of those words when he says them.  Sometimes animals confuse him-- he frequently calls cats dogs.  In time he'll learn... He loves, loves, loves to give kisses, hugs, and head butts, and sit in your lap if you're sitting on the floor.  Playing dinosaurs and airplane with Daddy is probably his favorite pastime.

Traditional 4th of July swim

If he gets hungry he'll walk over to his high chair, squawk, and sign eat or do the same at the fridge.  Even though he's only 17 months old, we sent him to nursery for the first time last Sunday and he seemed to really love it.  Because our nursery is so big he and Ruby aren't in the same class, but she didn't seem to mind.

Every day is an adventure.  We hope your summer is as marvelous as ours has been so far (minus the virus).  Keep the sunshine, sun block, and good times coming...