May Photo Update

My kids don't like to pose for pictures.

I know, right?

First kids ever.

(I jest).

Because of this,

I don't like to take photos.

And....

I usually forget to.

But Chris's mom sent the cutest Sunday clothes for the boys.

Clearly snapping a few digital photos and emailing them to the giver is our modern day "Thank You" card....

or my modern day Thank You card....

or just posting it on my blog instead....

(I am so lame).

THANK YOU TRUDY!

(Just pretend everyone takes their pictures out back by their grill.)

She also mailed Indian Jones hats and bags.

(You have no idea what this means to my boys.)

...

.....

Naturally, this caused a need to explore.

(Andy had a hat and bag too, but I was carrying them)

Yay for May!

Today

True or False?

1.When Nate's friend tried to persuade Andy to stay in his room while said friend and Nate went down to the basement to play (so they could play alone), I overheard Nate say, "Declan, Andy is my braaaaw- thur. That means we are best buddies" and then put his arm around Andy's shoulder and said, "Come on Andy, you can come to the basement with us".

2. I found a suspicious puddle on the stairs that I am pretty sure is pee.

3. While squatting on the kitchen table Andy exclaimed, "there's pee-pee on the table, Mom". Sure enough, there was.

4. Nate asked me to sing the Star Wars theme and then , after I "passed", the Indiana Jones theme. He started to sing along with me with a huge smile on his face. So glad I had brothers so I know this stuff.

5.. Tonight as we were baking dinner and cookies for Chris (which we were then going to take up to him) Nate asked, "Sooo..... does Dad live at work now?" Though I choked on my words and my heart stopped, I calmly smoothed things over by replying, " No, he comes home every night and goes right in to your room. Tucks you in. And kisses you and Andy. The he stands there for a minute and just watches you guys because he missed you so much all day.

All true.

(and don't tell Chris about the dad living at work thing. It would break his heart)

Sick Day

Nate got sick on Easter and passed it to Andy by the end of last week who was just diagnosed yesterday with double ear infection and strep throat.

Needless to say, we have been lounging the last week.

Pajamas.

Jammies.

Popsicles.

Every night when I tuck them in and read them stories (and I have been sleeping in there because Nate was throwing up in the night and Andy has been crying most of the night) they say to me,

"Your the best mom ever!"

"No! You're the best mom ever EVER!"

and so on and so on.

It makes me feel good.

But I am not sure how we are going to get back to reality when all is said and done...

April Round-Up

Day trip: Headed to Chicago.

Spent the day at the Field Museum

(free admission with our Milwaukee Public Museum pass. Bonus!)

I'd like to say I did it because I am a really good mom.

Actually,

I bought a sofa table on Craig's List in Chicago.

I threw in the museum as an excuse

( so I didn't feel so lame hauling my kids out of state bargain hunting.)

We had a great time.

Love these little buddies.

The beach:

Down the street!

We have had a number of days warm enough to go to the lake.

And I fell in love with Whitefish Bay all over again.

This is Nate's go to pose right now.

I wonder where he gets it from......

Great Quote

I am preparing a talk and came across this. Too good to not share:

"Because love is the great commandment, it ought to be at the center of all and everything we do in our own family, in our Church callings, and in our livelihood. Love is the healing balm that repairs rifts in personal and family relationships. It is the bond that unites families, communities, and nations. Love is the power that initiates friendship, tolerance, civility, and respect. It is the source that overcomes divisiveness and hate. Love is the fire that warms our lives with unparalleled joy and divine hope. Love should be our walk and our talk."

-Elder Uchtdorf

http://lds.org/general-conference/2009/10/the-love-of-god?lang=eng&query=heavenly+father+loves+me

Conversations with a Four Year Old

Nate: Dad, you should get a Smart Car

Dad: What? A Smart Car? Why?

Nate: Because they only fit one person and you only drive one person to work so it's perfect!

Nate: Why does Dad want to learn Spanish?

Me: Because he wants to be able to communicate with more people in the world.

Nate: Well, why doesn't he learn Chinese then? Most people in the world speak that.

Me: ..... (how does he know this?!)

Jelly Belly Tour

There is a Jelly Belly Warehouse near by.

We visited Friday.

For the FIRST time.

Shocking, isn't it?

We rode on a train that wasn't really a train and,

to Andy's disappointment, did not drive on tracks or go fast.

But they did give us a free bag of jelly beans.

and they had a sample bar.

Barf? tried it

Baby wipes? yep

Tooth paste? sure, why not.

Nate would pick a flavor and then we both would pop it in at the same time

(it's so fun that he's getting old enough to do dares and double dares:)

When he picked the barf flavored one, (which to me, tasted more like bacon than barf)

the attendant gave us a toothpaste one and just said,

"you're going to want to follow with this one".

We tried almost every flavor, and some many, many times.

Nate was good about swallowing it even if he didn't like it.

Andy, not so much.

Nate's favorite: Birthday Cake

Andy's favorite: gummy worms

(they had non-jelly bean candies too)

My favorite: Berry Smoothie

By the end I was sick from the rapid sugar intake, as I at twice as much:

Andy would take one bite and if he didn't like it (such as, Sour Trout)

then he would give it to me.

What am I suppose to do?

Throw away candy?

Not likely.

Besides, I didn't see a garbage can (or look for one, for that matter as you can clearly see one in the picture above).

It was a great day.

Welcome Spring!

It was really warm this week.

The remaining snow melted.

We had a lot of mud and happy boys.

and then two days later it snowed.

naturally.

So we made heart shaped crayons from all or our broken crayons.

and had movie night.

Cats vs. Dogs

A favorite of Nate.

Not a favorite of Mom

If I had a fireplace and I knew how to knit I would have no other wants in life.

Except to know how to play the violin

or cello

or guitar

and maybe a big dog.

and a yard.

But other than that, my life is a dream.

Okay, okay. Even with out all of that life is a dream.

I'm blessed.

Family

(doesn't he look like caden here?)

Nate was over the moon Uncle Ben came up to go to the Bucks game with us tonight.

(they were playing the Magic (Dwight Howard) = why Uncle Ben drove 4 hours for the game)

Ben sat by him.

Nate offered him cotton candy, which was already half crystallized to his hand

(from previous hand lickage)

Ben ate it.

He's a good uncle.

We love him.

We have a good family.

And a picture of my main man just because he's so handsome

(yes, Andy was that tired)

Another great blog

I could look at this blog's archives for hours. What a talented woman

http://jordanferney.blogspot.com/

BYU Ballroom

I wish so terribly I could go to this. My brother dances ballroom at BYU (pictured above). In case you have any family or friends (or you, yourself) that live in Utah, this is definitely worth checking out: (and yes, this is a shameless plug for my brother).

BYU Ballroom Company

April 7 &8

tickets $12

Hey Everybody!

Its that time of the year again when I am selling tickets for the BYU Ballroom company. It is apart of my team responsiblity to sell at least 10 tickets, but they really push for us to sell 30. The concert will be very exciting this year and will feature my team mutliple times. The finale is also going to be very cool this year because it is going to be a black light dance number that will incorporate some fun video game favorites like pac man, mario bros, ninja turtles, tron, and much more. The show will be running from Friday April 8th till Saturday April 9th only. There are a total of 3 shows. Friday night, Saturday Matinee, and Saturday Night. Please let me know ASAP if you want tickets as I have access to better seats and tickets before they even go on sale to the public. If you happen to just buy your own tickets at the box office please mention my name. This way I will be able to get credit for the sale. Tell your friends, ward members etc. It makes for a fun family or date night! All tickets are $12. Remember, if you buy your own ticket or your friends buy their own, mention my name: BRIAN YOUNGBLUT (incase you forgot) :P thanks! Love you all

--
Brian

new appreciation for FB

I don't know how, or why, but this photo was no where to be found in my photo files. It was, however, found in my Facebook photo uploads?! Thank goodness. I am so glad I still have it.

Bad mom moment

It was warm out yesterday.

We went to play out in the snow.

Which ended up to mainly be slush and an bunch of puddles.

I dressed Andy in a pair of Nate's snow pants.

When wet, his little 2T frame could hardly move in soaking 4T snow pants.

Why, might you ask, did I not just take them off (like Nate took his off)?

We were building character.

Stroller Deal

For any looking for a stroller, this is a good deal

Buy a Phil and Ted stroller and get the double add-on seat for free right now from Amazon. I always felt bad for the child stuck down there in the bottom. Now that I know that these strollers all come as singles and you add on the seat (which would be great to buy it and use it as a single and then add on the double seat when you have your second and not have to get an entirely new stroller), I don't think the parents are so crazy!

http://www.joggingstroller.com/Baby-Jogger-Performance-Double-20-Double-jogging-stroller.pro

Great new (to me) website

I stumbled upon a great new website that's all about home-made BOY stuff.

First one I've ever seen.

Lots of great ideas here.

The one I'm most excited to do is this pillow (think Mr. Potato Head- change out the face)

It's one of the first things I saw that I thought I could actually make:)

I know they would love it.

Check out this website:

http://www.dana-made-it.com/

Father's Night

and then they went and bought this

nate's interview:

I call him Chris and sometimes Dad. He has brown hair , and I think his eyes are green. Mymom told me that his eyes are green. He is tall. He is 9 years old. Is 9 a lot? Right now Dad is at work. He just do's stuff that is really boring. He has 3 computers at work, but there are no toys at work. He has some friends there, and sometimes my dad gives me candies at work. When Dad comes home from work, he plays Lego Universe on the computer with me. You have to put the disk in the computer, and then you can play it. You can even fight skeletons with it, and you can make your own guy. Andy made the worst guy ever! We also play Lego Pharaoh Quest. It is awesome! Dad likes to eat hot dogs and hamburgers, too. He loves apple juice and sometimes he drinks soda. I eat spaghetti, and I love macaroni and Scooby fruit snacks. I love Dad, because he's the awesomest dad ever, and he gets me candy at work!

Life As We Know It

Chris has been working every waking hour. I kid you not. I see him for 10 minutes after he gets out of the shower while we do scriptures and prayer and he wrestles his way out the door (while the boys cling to each leg and I stuff breakfast in his mouth).

The more competent he becomes at work, meaning, the more he learns, improves, etc. the more work he gets. He has made a lot of sacrifices the last year and a half to come home for an hour for dinner to see the boys and then returns back to work after they go to bed.

The last few weeks he hasn't even been able to do that.

How are we dealing with it?

Running around in our underwear (notice I am the only one with pants on in pictures below)

Tearing up the house ( as displayed below.. and their bedroom.. could not even see carpet- every inch of it was covered in LEGOS!)

And eating junk food (waffles for dinner. yeah, i'm that cool of a mom) (... and this would be the reason I needed to by that jogging stroller...)

two funny stories

While cleaning up lunch, the following conversation occured:

Nate: "Mom, do you know about those diarrhea blimpy kid books?"

Me: ...... (all of the entries in "the diarrhea diaries" (believe me, we had many last month) are flashing through my mind simply at the mention of the word "diarrhea" but that doesn't seem to be what he's thinking of)

Me:.... what? Will you say it again?

Nate: DIE- A- REEE- AHHHH BAAA LLLLLIMP PEEEE KID!!!!

Me: ( I try really hard to not ever laugh at my kids, but I just couldn't help it, and once I started, I was hysterical. )

Once I regained composer I was able to ask, "Do you mean Diary of a Wimpy Kid?"

Nate: ....... nooooo mom. It's Diarrhea Blimpy Kid! Anyway, do you know about that book?

(end scene)

Tonight while lying down with Andy (Chris and Nate are at Father's night at school. Bless his heart, he made it.. just barely.. but he made it!), I was pretending to be asleep (a trick that usual works and gets him to go to sleep) he said, "mom, open your eyes! I wanna look at dem" I did and he studied them for a minute and they he said, " MOM! They're BROWNIES!!" (yeah, I told you we've been eating a lot of junk food lately)

And lastly, for school they interviewed the kids about their dads (for Father's Night) and when Nate was asked how old his dad was Nate said, "I think he's nine..... Is that old?" Tonight we were talking about it and Nate asked Chris how old he was. Chris said "twenty seven". Nate's eyes got really big and he said, "WOW! That's as old as an adult!" Again, couldn't stop from laughing at that one either.

(pictures get less focused, but more adorable as you go)

( yeah, I'm that good at using my camera. I know, you're jealous)

Speaking of said jogging stroller. The run was a little rough. First, there's still snow all over, and where there isn't snow, there's ice. Oh yeah. Forgot about that little detail in my excitement to get out and run again.

Also, it is really, really hard to turn. Really.

And, the seats don't recline very deep.

But

-The boys still fell asleep in it yesterday afternoon when I took it out (and stayed asleep).

-It has great storage (individual mesh pockets on the back of each kid's seat that are good size and a zipper compartment in each one which I love for holding keys, phone, money, etc. All this as well as a basket underneath) (and now you all know where I hold my money and keys when I run so you can rob me).

-The canopies adjust individually and at 3 different extensions. The most extended almost covers the entire stroller (think of a baby carrier how it can close over the whole thing, or adjust back to 1/2 way or 1/4 way).

-Major shocks. I ride right over curbs like no big deal- it's just like being on a bike. Little potholes on the sidewalk that can give a normal stroller a bump are not even noticeable.

- The wheel lock release down by the wheels are incredibly easy to release- I know you know what I am talking about, some of those locks give the top of your foot a bruise when you try to pop the release! It's amazing how gentle the release is on this.

- there's a handbrake

- the grip on the push bar/handle bar is rubber and not that foamy crap that rubs off after a few months and leaves you with spotty wear holes down the the metal frame.

It does not fit through door ways and I have to take it apart every day, but it's a snap to put it together and take it apart so it doesn't bother me. Everything about it is really quality. My favorite stroller so far (and I have owned 5)

Christmas in March!

On Monday morning before Chris left work he casually suggested we should get a new jogging stroller as our old one broke last fall.

It would be interesting to know what happened first that day:

1)Chris drove the 10 minute commute, parked in the ramp, took the elevator up to the 30th floor, walked down the hall to his office and sat down at his desk

or...

2)I purchased a new jogging stroller.

I think #2 :)

In other words, the boys and I didn't waste any time. As soon as he was out the door we jumped on the computer and started shopping.

selling points:

150 lb. weight capacity

.

...

yeah, that's pretty much all I cared about because the boys almost weigh 100 lb. so when you add books, snacks, water bottles, blankets we are well over that 100 lbs.

oh yeah, and a stationary wheel. We broke our swivel wheel lock. Lesson learned stationary wheel = runner and swivel wheel = mall walker

After I found the one I wanted I let the boys pick out the color. I am hoping they will feel like this is for them and will be excited to get in and go for a run. They helped me assembly it this afternoon and now asked if they can watch a cartoon in it.

Can't wait to go for a run tonight!! I will write a review tomorrow in case anyone else with 2 are in the market for a new stroller. Warning: this thing is a beast. The size of a smart car. It was also about the price of a smart car. Okay, not quite, but it was a lot. I just think of it as our family gym membership.