The Reason Laundry is NEVER Done...

Is all thanks to this little angel...


He is a not just a spitter, but a puker like I have never seen before. I know his daddy held his own at this age, but holy cow! I'm not talking a little spit up here and there. I'm talking overflowing handfuls of ickyness. Using 3, sometimes 4 burp cloths per episode (I am in the process of making a ton more). It is not pretty.

I average three different outfits a day.

Kehlton is allowed three outfits a day himself. After that I give up and it's nothing but diaper.

I don't get that luxury!

Since I am "between" wardrobes, I run out of options quickly and move on to my husband's t-shirts.

Last night, David and I went through a total of 3 separate outfits in about 20 minutes. Kehlton managed to stay in the exact same outfit, totally unscathed.

It is getting better, but other than head to toe ponchos, I don't know what else to do.

Maybe I need to go shopping.

Best Day EVER!

So far, this has been THE best day...and it's only half over!!

Kehlton has slept great the last two nights; only waking at 2:30 and 5:30ish to eat. Yipee!

My visiting teacher came this morning. I love it when she comes! And because she came in the morning - it forced me to not only shower before noon, but to do my hair too.

(I have to admit I was a bit grouchy about the fact that my shower was cold, but then I realized I should just be grateful that I got to shower, and be extra happy that the reason it was cold was because my husband did all the dishes this morning before I even got out of bed. He really is the best.)

My house is clean.

The laundry isn't all caught up, but it's at least manageable.

Both boys fell asleep at the same time and have been asleep now for more than two hours.

The sun is bright and it's warm; meaning the dog just wants to be outside all day...

AND...I have lost 2-3 pounds in the last week and half!!

(even though I cheated this weekend and had cookies, brownies and ice cream)

It just makes me wonder...what will this afternoon bring?!?

**The afternoon brought the best news yet...David's first listing closed!! That means a nice paycheck by the end of the week and a celebratory Chinese dinner this weekend. Congrats to David - the hard work is finally starting to pay off!

New Friends

If you look back on our blog a couple of years, I'm sure you'll see similar photos of Brychan. Kehlton figured out today that the animals on his bouncy seat dance when he kicks his feet. He was SO excited!! He was jabbering away at them for the longest time yesterday. He does get pretty frustrated though when he wants them to dance a lot faster than his little kicks can control.

One of my favorite tricks to watch new babies learn is rubbing their eyes when they're sleepy. Kehlton has started this the last few days and I LOVE it!! Too cute!

Rain, Rain, Go Away!!!

I never in a million years would have thought I'd be sick of the rain. Especially in Arizona. We rarely get rain, and when we do, it's maybe on and off for a day or two. However, this week it has been non-stop. And, I have to admit, I'm one of those people who get very frustrated with those who don't know how to drive in the rain. I grew up in South Dakota and learned how to drive in a blizzard thank you very much! But last night was the scariest driving experience I have ever had in any snow/ice storm - and it was just rain!

Today it finally let up enough for us to get out and take a look around. Kehlton is obviously having the time of his life, and Brychan is mad that I stopped pushing him in order to take some photos.



This is directly across the street from us. Not the clear, blue skies we're accustomed to.I expected to see a lot more flooding in the streets this morning (we could have been boating down our streets last night without any problems). However, the only flooding I really saw was from people trying to empty their flooded swimming pools out into the street and away from their already drenched yards. By the way...Arizona streets have NO drainage systems, so you can imagine the mess we end up with.

This is the greenway at Rio Vista park (for those of you who were here for Kehlton's blessing, it is directly behind the park we went to), less than a mile from our house. It is typically bone dry. In fact, we were just playing down there last week getting ready for a scouting activity.


I was amazed at the roar of these "falls". It was so loud!! I cannot believe how much water is just gushing over. Not a sight we typically see in the desert.

More water...

We are supposed to get more rain tonight and tomorrow, and then hopefully be done. We are ready to play outside!!!

New Goals

Okay. So David and I have some weight to lose. He has pregnancy weight from Kehlton he's trying to get off and I am now working on getting the weight off from my pregnancy with Brychan (Kehlton's weight is already gone, although his inches are still here!). We need as many people as possible to hold us accountable just to help us along. Besides, a goal that is written down is a goal that is more likely to be met, right?

I'm not going to be specific in the amounts we have to lose (it's more than enough!), but we would much rather look like we did in the following photos than we do right now. :)

We came across this tiny little chapel somewhere in northern Arizona. Very cute and quaint!
At the Grand Canyon - where it happened to be freezing that day!

Goblin Valley in Southern Utah. In the middle of a massive sand storm.

So here's our plan starting on Monday. (We originally planned on starting this past Monday, but we've both been too sick this week to care about anything)

• Working out in some way, shape or form 5 days a week. I'm not gonna lie...some days may just mean taking the boys for a walk, but at least it's something!
• Dessert one day a week, on the weekends, only. We both have massive sweet tooths.
• Less meat; more fresh fruit and veggies. Those of you who know my husband will understand why he will be getting his from V-8 (for those of you who don't know my husband, he like his veggies about as much as any 8 year old boy), and that's fine. I've already cut out 99% of red meat from my diet; I'd like to learn how to like fish though!

Seems simple enough, huh? Hopefully it works. David wanted to make it a race, but I am at a severe disadvantage: Not only am I a girl, but I'm also nursing. So I can't drastically cut calories or take the latest weight loss supplement. Plus, I have more to lose than he does. So, slow and steady wins the "race" and we will both be much happier in the end. We are counting on all of your to keep us on our toes. And feel free to join us and let us know how you're doing!!

Heaven Help Me

Today is the day. I knew it would come eventually. Friends have been warning me of it and telling their stories of "survival". The day it hits me that I have two children and I feel almost as if "my" life were over. That endless diapers, whining, crying and sleepless nights are now the norm for, what right now, feels like forever.

The baby is appearantly going through a growth spurt and feels the need to eat every single hour. You can now just call me Bessie.
All the shoes from my closet are now piled on my bed (all 30+ pairs of them) while the blankets are on the floor.
A tiny pair of glasses are missing. I pray they're not broken. Again.

The house is a disaster from all of us being sick all week and my inability to be Super-Mom. The laundry is out of control for the same reason.

Today is the first day I feel that I have really run out of patience with my son. I hate that feeling. It's not even his fault. Well, it's 85% not his fault (see the statements above about my bed and the glasses).

I know I'm complaining and taking my two minutes to vent, but I really DO love being a mom. I love that I can stay at home with my boys and watch them learn and grow every day. I wouldn't trade it for anything...I really wouldn't. I love ALL my boys more than anything in the world.

I think I just need a night out with my husband. No children, no nursing, no messy house, no dog. Just my honey and me. Eating a quiet dinner and discussing something other than icky diapers and constant spit up.

That AND a nap.

Maybe once we're all feeling better and caught up from this super long week...

*Michelle - your Christmas gift for Brychan arrived today. LIFESAVER!! He absolutely loves it and I'm sure I won't see him for the rest of the day as he is as happy as can be playing with it in his room. You know my son all too well! Thank you!!

Smiles

One major difference I'm already noticing between the two boys is their willingness for photos. From day one, Brychan always seemed to be completely cooperative with the camera and it was very easy to get the shots we wanted. Kehlton? Not so much (I will do another post later to show what I mean). I've been trying for two weeks to get photos of him smiling and I finally managed a couple on my cell phone today.

Brychan was a huge help; he's the reason Kehlton is smiling!

Our Apologies...

To all those who were at our house over the weekend should you come down with the sick bug that we've been hit with this week! I got hit Monday morning, David got hit hard this morning. So far the boys seem to be okay...

We really hope we didn't get everybody sick!

Kehlton's Blessing

Kehlton James

(yes David said the right name...)

Our little family (looking right into the sun) The family members that were able to make it. We really missed all those who were unable to come, but we greatly appreciate Grandma & Grandpa, Michelle and the Krull's for traveling so far for the blessing. And it's always nice when Ashley comes over. Jeremy and Michelle - we hope you guys are feeling better!!
Brychan and Ellie had a blast playing all weekend. Makes us sad that the rest of the cousins were unable to make AND that we live so far away from the cousins! I tried so hard to get a good photo of the two of them together but they were too fast!!

For those of you who are not on FB

I took these photos of the boys this morning...not the best quality seeing as I took them with David's blackberry and there was no light, but the boys are cute nonetheless!

I love that Kehlton is SO wide awake seeing as he was up all night long last night (meaning Mommy and Daddy were up all night too - third time in a week). He should be so exhausted and simply passed out, but no. Also explains why it's not even 8:00 yet and I'm headed to bed. Gotta catch my zzz's when I can (David is also currently fast asleep in the family room)!

Where's Brychan?

I was working in the office this morning and heard nothing but deafening silence. Almost always a bad sign. I went to check on Brychan, and this is what I found...
If you look really close, you can see a little boy hiding. I heard him giggling quietly as I went back to get the camera. He stayed there perfectly still and almost just as quiet until I started asking "Where's Brychan?"

Grandpa Davis taught Brychan how to play hide and seek during their several visits over the last month. Thanks, Grandpa! Brychan loves this game!

Temple Lights

A few days after Christmas, we went to see the lights at the Mesa temple. It was the perfect night to go...wonderful weather and hardly anybody else there!

Not the best quality photo, I guess, but I love the effect of the lights. Brychan was in heaven and was quite upset when it was time to go home.