Character confusion

Jax is not a fan of many things that may not seem so scary. For instance, when we went to Carter's school Halloween Parade Jax saw the mascot, a 5-foot tall Eagle. He was terrified and was worried the whole time we were at the school that he would see the Eagle again. He survived that day but for the next few weeks when we would take and pick up Carter from school he would worry that the Eagle was going to be there. I'm not sure if this fear of characters started at Disneyland when he saw Goofy for the first time and about passed out, but nevertheless he has a fear of such things. We have been trying to explain to him that it is just people dressed up in costumes. Well tonight I think the concept finally sunk in.

We were driving around delivering Christmas goodies and we were having the boys take the treats to the doors. When we told the kids that we were going to the bishop's house, Carter got a little nervous (not quite sure why) and said he didn't want to go. We kept encouraging him that he could do it. Then Jax pipes in, "Carter, it's just a costume!" Just had to share.

Carter is getting Smarter!

Just puttin' around!

Carter loves Smore's and would have them for every dessert if possible. He always asks for dessert after dinner. If we end up having something, he usually takes a few bites and then he is done. He doesn't have a huge sweet tooth.

LOL! That title made me laugh as I was reading it, but it is so very true! I am amazed at how much Carter has learned in his first quarter of school. He is doing some very basic reading and has learned how to sound out many different words. He loves to rhyme and this has even gotten him in trouble a couple of times as he has tried to rhyme words that rhyme with other words. At the same time, sometimes he thinks that if a word has the same number of syllables then it rhymes, so we are still working on this. He can almost read "Go Dog, Go! all by himself. He loves school so much that the minute he gets in the car after I pick him up, he immediately pulls out his binder and shows me all his papers. It still cracks me up though when I ask him what he learns his reply is always, "I don't remember" or "I don't know." I think to myself, it was only 10 minutes ago, how could you forget already. :) Also, the minute he gets home from school he asks if he can start his homework. If it is a Friday and he doesn't have homework, he usually complains about it!

Carter on his first day of school. This happens to be his favorite shirt too. He loves Mustangs!

Carter also just finished his first season of soccer. It was only 6 weeks long, but he had a blast nonetheless. He tends to hang back and follow the other kids kicking the ball, but he did make 2 goals. He also play goalie/defender and he can pretty much boot it from one end of the field to the others so I think he might end up being a good defender! He loved every minute of it, although he told me in the beginning he didn't want to play soccer, only golf. The same coach will be forming a tee ball team in February and he couldn't be more excited. He tells me several times a week that he can't wait for tee ball. I'm glad he is giving them a try and having fun.

Carter and Jax being "Shirt Heads!"

Carter is still very particular and likes things a certain way. He is very good with details and can almost explain instructions from his teacher exactly. (I wonder why he can't remember what he did). He has memorized his address and phone number and is working toward tying his shoes. He gets to go on his first kindergarten field trip tomorrow to a farm and he is super excited.

Carter is really excited to have a little sister. He loves to feel her kick, even though he makes mommy feels bad when he says things like, "Mommy, your tummy is really fat." I think to myself, Just wait, I'm only 5-1/2 months along, you ain't seen nothing yet! He wasn't always so excited as he was shooting for a boy in the beginning. In fact, during the ultrasound after the tech had told us it was a girl, he looks at me and sticks out his tongue because he wanted a boy. I thought it was funny. The idea has grown on him and I'm sure he will be a great big, protective brother.

Carter and Daddy at IHOP before our ultrasound and trip to Utah. After eating there, he said to me, "Mom, can we eat here every time we go somewhere for breakfast?"

Jax's Birthday Bash

Jax turned 3 this week and the festivities seemed to be ongoing all weekend. I didn't initially have a "theme" for the party but as I was buying all the party decorations it soon turned out to be a BLUE party. I asked Jax what he wanted to do for his birthday and he gave me a list: 1) Go to Sonic and get a drink, 2) Go to McDonald's and play, 3) Go to Chuck E Cheese.Jax woke up to a breakfast of Blue Mickey Mouse pancakes, peaches, and sausage. He got to open one present before daddy went to work which was a truck pulling a trailer with a speed boat attached (definitely his favorite).

Pancake Breakfast

Truck and Trailer

After breakfast I was scheduled to help in Carter's class in school, so Jax got to go to his friend's Reese's house and her mom took them swimming. He had a blast. I felt guilty leaving him for 3 hours on his birthday but when I picked him up and learned he had had so much fun, it made me not feel so bad.

We went and did the Sonic run right after this. Jax wanted a Blue Coconut Slush. After we got out of the drive-through I looked back and asked him if he liked his drink and he was fast asleep. I guess all the partying got to him. Needless to say, Carter and I enjoyed the rewards of this even though Jax didn't get to enjoy it.

Next, we went to a friend's house and made cupcakes. Then we all sat around the table and sang Happy Birthday to him. (I even caught him throughout various times of the day singing the song to himself).

Cupcakes with friends!

Once daddy got home from work we headed to Chuck E Cheese. This was definitely the highlight of the day. We loved watching him run (literally) from game to game. Our booth that we had picked out was right by a wave runner video game where he got to sit on the wave runner and drive. I think he did that one about 10 times before we talked him into trying another one. Some of his other favorites were shooting the water gun at the target, basketball, and the rocket ride (seen below).

The night was not done yet. Our last and final stop for Jax's birthday celebration was Krispy Kreme. The boys love watching the donuts be made, plus did you know that Krispy Kreme will give you a free dozen for your birthday! Can't beat FREE!

Krispy Kreme fun!

Because we were beat after all the fun of the night, we decided to hold off on cake until the next day. I guess it was fun to drag the fun out for another day as well. Jax got a huge cupcake with gumballs garnishing the top(his favorite)! We are so grateful for the fun, laughter and spontaneity Jax brings to our family! Love you bud!

Jaxisms

Jax has been saying some pretty funny things lately:

Yesterday I asked Jaxon to help unload the dishwasher and he says, "Mom, I don't want to." I said, "Well, this is your job, you have to." Jax, "But, I don't want to." Needless to say, I won that battle. Ever since he says that every time I ask him to stop doing something. "But, I like to."

It has been so hot lately that I've been wearing my hair up most of the time. Jax comes up to me the other day and says, "Mom, put you hair down." Yesterday it was the first thing he said to me when he woke up. I always explain to him that I will put it down after a shower. So now when he asks he follows it up with, "You put your hair down after a shower?" Funny kid.

Jax, like me, is not a big fan of the heat wave here in AZ. He has a hard time getting in his "hot" booster seat and says he's hot almost every time we walk outside. Then if we are eating some warm food, he asks "Mom, Do you like hot?" I say, "Yes, sometimes." He says, "Me like cold." Sooooo cute!

Today Carter and Jax were eating breakfast and Carter was being naughty. Jax turns to Carter and says, "Carter, you are going to make Jesus really sad!"

Jax loves playing with the Geotrax train and uses all of the trains to make one big, huge, long train. He is really serious about it and I will try to catch a video of him being the engineer!

Jaxon has the cutest disposition and sometimes it makes it hard for me to get mad at him (even though there are plenty of times I want to). Most of the time he makes me laugh and I just couldn't love him more!

Utah and Carter's Birthday...finally!

These pics are from the D-Backs Game for the Fourth of July! I love the huge bobble head guy. Jaxon was deathly afraid of him (of course)!

We had so much fun in Utah and we have been back for a few weeks and to no ones surprise I'm finally getting to blogging about it!

Ragnar was amazing and I had such a blast! The girls on our team were so much fun and I seriously had probably the easiest legs out of anyone (I don't know how I lucked out on that one, maybe they know my secret that I'm a wussy runner)! I was definitely grateful that my last leg was only 3.2 miles too because I was beat after having only 4 hours of sleep on a hardwood, nursing room floor. I was grateful for shelter, a place to sleep, and a real bathroom though so I really can't complain!

I couldn't help but feel a little guilty the whole day on Saturday knowing I was missing Carter's birthday. To my relief though, when I got to my parents' on Saturday night I learned that Carter had been spoiled from the moment he woke up with a pancake breakfast, presents, Sonic for lunch, bowling, and Toy Story 3. Then I was just sad I missed all the fun! What would I do without grandma, grandpa, and Aunt Debbie, Janice, Kaylee, and Katie! You guys saved me... XOXO!!

We had a great time visiting Utah and I think it was harder to come back to AZ then actually moving and coming down the first time. I guess I knew that we would be coming back in a month for Ragnar when we moved, and now I don't know when I will be back next. Guess I better get something planned.

On our way home from Utah we stopped by Lake Powell for a few nights with my grandma and grandpa, Kaylee, Brooke and Troy and their family. We had such a great time and that was a great way to end our vacation...

Today we finally celebrated Carter's birthday with all his new friends. He wanted a race car birthday, so I did my best to live up to that request. We played a few games, ate pizza, opened presents, and someone hid the cake so we had to do a treasure hunt to find the cake. That was definitely the highlight of the party, as all the kids were screaming and having a great time searching the house for clues. If anyone wants a good idea that will be a hit at a birthday party I suggest this new favorite!

I finally feel like we are settling in and we are getting used to the hot weather (as much as you can). Carter and Jaxon love the pool and Carter is becoming quite the little swimmer. We went to a friend's house yesterday to swim and Carter took off his floaties and started floating and holding his breath under the water for the first time. I need to get him in lessons.

Utah Baby!!

So after only a month living in AZ I'm headed back to Utah for Ragnar and a visit with family and friends! On the way to St. George yesterday I had a cute conversation with Carter.

Carter: "Mom, Are you excited to see your sister, Brooke?"

Me: "Yes."

Carter: "Cuz you miss her and love her?"

Me: "Yes, I do."

Carter: "Good. I miss Darrin and I'm excited to see him too, cuz he is my cousin."

Too cute.

PB&J, Being HOT, Socks at bedtime, and Kids Club!

So Carter is OBSESSED with PB& J. I usually give the boys a few different options for lunch time and lately the answer is always PB&J - even if it happens to not be an option. Lucky for me, it's easy to make, cheap, and semi-healthy (especially if you use Orowheat Double Fiber bread)! I would say in the past week he has had a PB&J sandwich about 10 times. Sometimes he has it in lieu of cereal for breakfast or for a midafternoon snack. He just can't get enough!

Now that we are in the 100 plus degree weather it feels stinkin' hot. I keep saying, "It's hot!" Every time we go outside Carter says, "I love being hot!." Even yesterday when I told him it was too hot to ride his bike (105), he says, "Mom! Remember...I LOVE being hot!" Needless to say he won that battle and rode his bike :) Luckily the sprinklers in the grassy common area down the street turned on and they ran through them to cool down!

Jaxon on the other hand doesn't care for the heat. Every time we walk outside in the middle of the day or get in the car, he moans..."Mom, it's hot!" and detests getting in his car seat (I don't blame him, as those metal buckles can get super hot). Funny how different they are!

One other thing Carter is persistent about is wearing socks to bed. First of all, I can't stand to wear socks anytime of the year, but especially not in the middle of the AZ summer. We have to tried to explain to him night after night that he will get hot, but guess what he says..."I love being HOT mom." Guess that's not gonna work with him. :)

Yesterday we also went to something at the mall called Kids Club and they get to sing and dance, go to a movie and ride the carousel for free! Here are the boys riding the carousel. Carter had to ride on the eagle!