More Cute Things...

I wanted to record some of the cute things my kids have said and done lately before my crazy life makes me forget them.

• Ethan - He just learned how to ride his 2-wheeler bike about a week ago (5 years old) and he was having a great time riding it around in our cul de sac with the neighbor kids. He was so happy and said, "Look! Everyone is riding a 2 wheeler bike. It's a 2-wheeler jamboree!"


• Eli gave me his very special teddy bear named "Snuggy" to take with me on my trip to Denver for the Love and Logic Conference. He said he wanted me to take it so I would have some company and think of him. What a cutie?!


• Ellyse loves to play peek-a-boo right now. She really likes to hide under her blanket and then throw it off her head revealing her BIG smile, as if to say "Surprise!" She also loves it when Eli and Ethan read books to her. She just giggles with delight as she looks at the pictures and enjoys the company of her awesome big brothers.

Love and Logic Conference

So, right now I am in Denver, CO for a Love and Logic facilitator training course. I am actually killing time in the hotel while I wait to catch my plane back home in a few hours. I just finished a full 3 day conference on how to become a Love and Logic trainer. It was incredible. I am so pumped to share what I have learned here with so many people back home. I love the skills and principles taught in Love and Logic. My plan is to start teaching "Becoming a Love and Logic Parent" classes through the community, schools, private groups and clubs, churches, etc. I want everyone to at least hear about Love and Logic and then be able to decide if it is right for them and their personality. I was lucky enough to have my mom also come to the conference. She heard I was going and thought, 'hey, I would love to learn too and it would be a great excuse to go on a 4 day vacation with you!' I am so glad she came. We have had so much fun laughing, learning and meeting people from all over the world. Now we are both excited to go home and share the Love and Logic program with as many people as possible. If you happen to read this and want to know more about how to become a Love and Logic parent or want me to come and teach a seminar or parenting class, then just let me know. I have used Love and Logic with my own kids and I see first hand how great it works. I want everyone to have the same opportunity to raise their kids in an easy, healthy, loving way.

I'm Back....

Hello again to the blogging world. I thought I would just jump right in and start updating my blog again....finally!!!! I was a little out of it with moving and renting out our house, moving in with my parents, building our new house, moving again and then having the everyday events of life take over!! Anyway, no more excuses. I am back to posting and journaling so I don't forget these crazy days of my life.

The Cute Things They Say....

I just wanted to record some cute things the kids have said and done lately.

Ethan: "My Dad has something worse than a cold. He has a diet."
(He said this the Kim Watson who was driving carpool home from preschool)

Eli: "Daddy, stop!! I am not a toy."
(Tim was wrestling and playing around with Eli)

Ellyse likes to stick out her tongue all the time. She reaaly likes to make funny noises with her throat and then she smiles so big about it.

Eli: " I am so amazing. I am your special Eli boy!"
(He says this alot. Usually he says it after he puts his shoes on by himself or rides his bike really well.)

Ethan: "I command the rain to stop. Look I am just like Jesus."
(I had recently told him the story of Jesus calming the stormy seas, and a few days later I heard him in his bedroom saying this to the rain outside his window.)

Anyway, I just wanted to write these things down before I forgot them. I love hearing what comes out of their mouths.

Silly Photo Time

On July 6, 2010 the kids and I had fun taking silly pictures of oursleves. Oh, the joys of digital cameras. Ethan took a lot of the pictures and we took a bunch ourselves too. We had a ton of fun just being goofy!
Our happy Ellyse!

AHHHHHH!!!!!

Sweet kisses from my boys!

We took a lot more pictures, but I didn't think they were all blog worthy. They were mostly just for fun!

Playing in the Sprinklers

On June 7, 2010 we had a fun family night outside. Tim had to fix the sprinklers so we thought it was a good chance to run wild in the sprinklers. The boys loves and so did Tim and I. It was so hot and the cold water felt so good. Ellyse was taking a little nap so she missed out on the water fun, but I think that was probably for the better :).

Summer Reading

Ethan and Eli joined the summer reading program through the library. They are loving it!!! I got this chart for Ethan and he gets to put a sticker in a box for every book that he reads. In the first 2 days he had 2 1/2 rows filled up -that is about 65 books!!! Wow - he is really taking to this reading thing. He is getting really good too since he is practising so much.
Eli isn't reading yet, but he sure memorizes books fast. Here he is "reading" a new Thomas book that I have only read to him a few times. Eli gets a sticker for every book Ethan or I read to him.

The library gave them cards that they get to color . Each day they do their reading goals, they get to color in one of the fish on their card. Then they get prizes from the library each month.

I love seeing Ethan and Eli enjoying to read. I hope they keep it up. They are going through books so fast that we are making lots of trips to the library.

Father and Sons Camp Out

Tim took Ethan and Eli on a father/son camp out with our ward. They had a blast!! It was kind of a last minute decision for them to go and they ended up sleeping in the van since (of course) our tent is packed up in storage. I think they were all super happy that they decided to go.

Right after they arrived at the camp ground, Ethan tripped and scraped up his hand. He got a pretty good battle wound.
Happy Campers!!!

My sweet boys

Ethan loved roasting his marshmellows. He liked to burn them,

but then he wouldn't eat them :).

YUMMY!!!

Tim and the boys

A good lookin' self photo

Eli is enjoying his marshmellow - he loves them!

Having fun

Eli loved riding his cars on the benches with one of his buddies

Happy boys sleeping in the minivan. They folded down all of the seats (you gotta love stow-n-go seating).

Craft Time

My boys love doing crafts. We fiund fun little ceramic banks that came with paint at the dollar store (I love the dollar store!!). Ethan and Eli had a great time painting.
It was so cute; they were very focused on their project!

Dinner with the Newman's

Here are a few pictures from a Sunday dinner with the Newman side of the family. We were at my brother, Dave's house and we had a great time. The cousins always love playing together.

My brother Dan with our little Ellyse. All of the kids love their Uncle Dan. He always makes silly faces and makes them laugh!
Eli dumped a whole bunch of salt on his dinner plate - YUCK!

And then he proceeded to eat it- WHAT??!! He has some crazy taste buds!

We love Sunday dinners with the family!

Let's Go Fishing

We are getting really good at coming up with new and different ideas for play time since nearly all of the toys are packed up in storage. I found some paper fish in my primary singing time folder and we made fishing poles out a piece of string and a paper clip at the end. The boys had a great time casting their string over the chair and I would attach a fish to their paper clip. We had a great time and it kept us all busy for quite a while. Maybe when we eventually get into another house we might not need to unpack their toys. It is fun getting creative.

We're a Little "Corny"

We love summer time and all of the fresh corn we can eat!! Ethan and Eli REALLY love corn on the cob and will eat several ears of it in one sitting. Eli likes to eat it raw off the cob. They also love helping to shuck the corn. They are such good helpers. Yeah for summer time corn!!!

New Chore Chart

I decided to make a new chore chart for the boys. So, I took pictures of the jobs they needed to do and put the pictures on a chart. Ethan and Eli are all over this idea. Every morning they can't wait to look at the pictures and do the job and then put a sticker on their chart. After a whole row of stickers is filled up, they get a reward. The first one they picked is a McDonald's ice cream cone. I can definitely handle that incentive, especially since it makes them so excited to help out. They don't really even put stickers on their chart anymore, but they still love doing their jobs and being good helpers. I sure hope this lasts !!!

Make their beds
Brush teeth, clean the bathroom

Pick up the toys

Feed Harvey

Load their dishes

Tim's New Car

Tim went from this 1993 Mazda 626 pile of junk with 200k miles:

To THIS:

A 1997 Honda Civic that gets GREAT gas mileage (35 mpg), looks nice, AC/heater.

(okay, it is still not a brand new car or anything, but it is sure better than what we had)

Tim is waxing and washing his new car. He is loving his new ride! (We sold Tim's junker for $500 - a nice bonus!)

The boys had fun helping Tim wash his new car.

Ethan had A LOT of fun spraying us with the hose.

Ethan's Preschool Graduation

Ethan graduated from Altta High School's Minihawk preschool on May 20, 2010. He and Eli are standing in front of the 'A' outside the school.
Here is a picture of Ethan standing proud all by himself. It is kind of fun because I graduated from Alta High school and now my son is graduating from their preschool -
wow, crazy how time flies.

Each kid in the preschool gets a high school student "teacher" assigned to them. The kids get great one-on-one attention. Ethan is sitting with Sarah, his "teacher."

Here he is with all the pictures of the graduates.

What a handsome boy?!!

Grandma holding Ellyse. I was so glad she held her most of the time so I could just focus on Ethan and enjoy his day with him.

Ethan singing songs for the graduation.

Getting his certificate - he covered up his cute face - oh well!

Grandma and Grandpa came to support Ethan.

Ethan with his friend Natalie Watson. They are such good buddies.

The whole fam!

Ethan with the main teacher Mrs. Crapo. She was so complimentary of Ethan and proud of how smart he is and the sweet boy that he is. Of course, I totally agree with her :).

Ellyse is wearing a "future minihawk" onesie that the preschool gave to her when she was born.