Rock-a-bye-baby

Tonight Nana watched the boys so Kyle and I could sneak away to the temple for a little bit. When we got home Preston was pooped, as you can see. Michael was pooped too, but he threw a tantrum. Love both my boys, sooo much. Night, night.

5 Finalists

I've been very busy deciding on the top 5 finalists for my makeover blog. It's been really hard for me. Probably too hard, but whatcha gonna do....I'm a softy and hate letting people down. I am so glad that people actually entered. I had over 40 entries, and they were all good. Anyhow, you've got to check out the finalists, and let me know what you think. I only know who one of them is, and of the 40 that entered I only knew who 2 of them were. So, please head on over to Make You Over and vote for your favorite finalist!

Time to clean my house, shower, and get some laundry done!

By the way, does it seem like everyone has a cold right now? The boys and I all have colds, and I was up for 4 straight hours last night hacking. I hate going to bed when I have a cough.

I'll be on the news tomorrow morning if anyone is up bright and early they can tune in to see me :)

One More Thing....

I've had a few people make comments on this blog saying they wanted to submit someone or themselves for the Make You Over makeover that I'm doing.  Could those of you who've done that make sure to email a picture and a summary/story to makeyouoverblog@gmail.com .  Go HERE for all of the details/dates.  I won't be able to count your "comment" on this blog as a submission, so make sure you email me.       

Pretty Princess

This is what happens when Aunt Tashy babysits Michael.

Let's just say there was a tantrum to end all tantrums when I made him take it off so we could go to the eye doctor. My sister suggested I just let him wear it. Pretty sure I wasn't about to take my SON in public wearing a purple princess dress. What you can't see is that there's yet another dress on underneath.

The rest of the day Michael told us that he loved being a princess at Kate's house. Don't worry, he's about as boy as they come, so that's why this makes it even more funny.

Shhhhh.....don't tell his Daddy!

Preston at 9 Months

I fall in love with Preston all over again every morning when I get him out of bed. He is just so sweet. This week all 4 of his front teeth are cutting through, so he's had some rough times. I'm a fan of the gummy smiles, so I'm always a little sad when my babies get teeth (although I'm not complaining that he took this long to get his first teeth). He's scooting (starting to crawl), eating us out of house and home, and wearing 18-24 months clothes! He's wearing clothes that Michael was wearing a matter of months ago. So funny!

It is such a blessing to have a baby that is healthy. We are so grateful Preston doesn't have allergies or ear infections like Michael did. At this same stage in Michael's life we were at the doctor almost every week, worrying about his weight. It's so nice to not have to spend the time, money and emotions (I was a wreck) on that. I know that there are babies with a lot more problems, so I'm not comparing. I'm just saying it's nice that we aren't dealing with that.

Michael is ALWAYS sitting and jumping on Preston, and often slams his bum down on him (I'm not sure you can get the visual but just imagine Preston on his stomach and Michael pouncing on him). Well last night Michael was doing that to me and I was telling him to knock if off because it HURT. Kyle informed me that Michael does that to Preston all day long and Preston doesn't make a peep. Preston is tough......and patient.

I took Preston to his well-child visit on his 9 month birthday and here are his stats:

Weight: 20.3 pounds (55%)

Height: 29 inches (83%)

Head: 18.3 inches (86%)

Loving Spring

Michael always wants to be RIGHT next to Preston. Whether that's knocking him over, pushing him back, stepping on his back or stomach, kissing him, hugging him, jumping in his pack 'n play while he's sleeping....I could go on. Preston is such a good sport. Kyle keeps telling Michael that he can't wait till Preston's old enough to beat him up as pay back.
Michael found the swim floaties in a drawer a couple of weeks ago, and insisted on going swimming. He stripped down, took of his diaper and wanted a swim diaper on. He had to settle for the bathtub.
We've also been busy doing missionary work. Our favorite Elder Baker left last week. We were all pretty sad about it. He reminds me sooo much of my little brother Andrew on his mission. They look and act alike.
Preston chilling in the high chair while the rest of the family tore out the front yard.
I couldn't ask for a better Spring so far. The weather has been so beautiful and peaceful. Having a fenced backyard has been everything I could ever have hoped for. Michael will play outside all by himself for a long time. It's actually amazing how well he plays by himself.

We have been busy working on our yard, fixing up the house, and every thing else that goes along with being a homeowner. No complaints here though. Oh, except for the fact that when we came home from church on Sunday my Vietnamese neighbor was having her house painted neon yellow with neon green trim. I'm not exaggerating either. It's bad, really bad. If I would have known, I seriously would have gone over to try and talk her out of it. Then again, she doesn't speak one word of English, so that wouldn't have done any good. Oh well.

As apparent in the above picture of myself, it's time for me to get into shape. I've started running in the mornings and I'm training for a Sprint Triathlon over the 4th of July weekend. I need something to motivate me to get out of bed!!!

Have you thought of who you want to submit for the makeover? I can't wait to see the submissions. Don't be scared!!!

New Makeover Site....Go ENTER!!!

I'm going to have a lot of people coming to my blog for the makeover, so I decided to start a new blog for the makeover.

You can find the makeover and ALL of the details at Make You Over . For those not tech savy, just click on the blog title and it will take you to my new blog.

I have over 1,430 dollars in services donated so far, so go over and enter!!!!!!!!! Don't forget to add the site to your "list of blogs."

Makeover Update....HOLY SMOKES

Okay, I'm so excited I can hardly stand it. So far I have over $450 dollars of donated goods and services for the makeover, and it ain't over yet. Seriously, I can't believe it. You better all start thinking of who you want to submit because this is going to be good, really good. Just make sure that whoever you submit either lives in Tri-Cities, WA or can travel here the first week of April. I should be able to open up for submissions by tomorrow morning. I want to wait until I have all of the vendors in place. Seriously, I'm so dang excited!!!!!!!

Details forthcoming......

The Cook Next Door Product Website

Checkout The Cook Next Door's new product website. I will soon be ordering some cookie dough paddles for my Bosch, and a wheat grinder. You can't beat their prices! If you have debated getting a Bosch, debate no longer. I use mine all the time, and couldn't live without it. A definite necessity in the kitchen.

My brother-in-law designed the website all by himself (never having previously done it).

Knock Out

This was how Michael said goodbye to one of his favorite missionaries. Warning you now......mute the volume! Make sure to watch it till the end.

Makeover Madness

Doesn't this look like the face of someone who you would want to give you a makeover? Let's just say I might have something up my sleeve, and I'm hoping it works out so that I can offer this service to you. I've been in a rut myself lately when it comes to fashion. I'm a girl who used to love to get dressed up, look good, and do my thing (on a major budget of course). Lately, that hasn't been happening to often. So, I'm going to try and go back to what I love doing and that's making people over. So start thinking of who you want to submit for a makeover....yourself, your mom, your aunt, your best friend! Let's just say there will be before and after photos, and lots of things in between.

Some of the vendors I'm soliciting services from will be reading this post, so please comment to let them know you're reading!

****Man, I used to have great hair!!! Seriously, I hate this picture because I covet my own old hair. Dang pregnancy!

M.I.C.H.A.E.L.

He finally did it. Michael finally said his name!!!!!!! Michael can say any word, sentence, or phrase, and is quite the advanced talker if I do say so myself. However, one word that he has NEVER said is his name. It is a game to him. If you ask him to say his name, he just laughs hysterically. We have tried bribing, tricking, and everything under the sun. We've offered him his favorite treats, but he won't give in. Our favorite game is to play the "copying game," where we have him copy every word we say, which he will do, until we throw in Michael and he stops, and just starts laughing. Lately he won't even repeat someone's name if it's remotely close, such as Mike and Marcus.

Tonight I was telling him a story about his friend Beckham. I said, "Beckham has a best friend named Michael," and just then he responded by saying "Michael!" He must have liked the way it felt to finally say his name because I couldn't get him to quit saying it. He probably said it 50 times and thought he was so funny. Hilarious (or maybe it's just funny to those of us who have been trying for a year to get him to say it).

This picture goes great with the post, doesn't it?

****Post Edit: My mom told her brother that she would give him 1,000 dollars if he could get Michael to say his name, so he started bribing him with chocolate, gum, money (all of Michael's favorite things....yes he's still allergic to chocolate), and he still couldn't get him to say it! Michael really wanted the treats anyways.

I HATE PEA GRAVEL

And it just so happens that the people who lived here previously decided to fill 1/3 of the yard with the stuff. Seriously, never put pea gravel under your play yard, you will regret it!!!