Binky-Free Delson

Last night we finally took Delson's binkies away.  We wanted to get rid of them before he turned 2 which is next month and I thought it might be nice to have them gone before we go visit my parents in Las Vegas over Thanksgiving.  So.....we did it last night.  Like so many of my friends have done, we cut the nipple of the binkies off and then when we gave them to Delson, he said "Uh oh" because he knew they were broken and had to be thrown in the trash.  We threw them away and when he realized they were all gone, he was pretty sad.  He cried for about an hour and half before he finally fell asleep last night.  It was heart wrenching to listen to.  He kept crying out "B" because that is what he called them.  He is such a sweetheart and he was pretty much mourning over the loss of his comfort prop.  I only hope that if I was to die today and Alex told him I was all gone that Delson would cry like that over me. It was pretty pathetic.  It made me feel bad, but I know it is for the best.  He woke up one other time in the night and started crying, but I just went in and reminded him that they were broken and he laid right back down and went to sleep.  I was really nervous for nap time today too, but he only fussed for a very short while.  He is such a good boy and he is doing much better than I thought he would.  I am so proud of my Delson!  Yeah for no more binkies!  (At least for Delson....we'll still have to get rid of Kambria's at some point, but I don't even want to think about that right now.)

9 Months Old & Other News

Kambria is now 9 months old and she had her doctor appointment on Monday.  She weighed 20 lbs 10 oz (85th %-ile) and measured 29 inches long (90th %-ile).  She is still a big girl.  She is getting to be so much fun!  She started pulling herself up to stand and she loves it.  She is constantly trying to do it even though it is not without its falls and bumped heads.  She is getting stronger every day though and she is so so smiley as usual.  She also nearly has 8 teeth.  She has 3 teeth that have just surfaced and it is craziness.  She has been a little whinier lately and I think it is because of her teeth, but overall, she is very happy.  Here are some pictures of the things that have been going on lately.

Kambria is trying out her new skill.

Delson thinks he is so funny sitting in Kambria's small car seat.

Here, Delson's friend Jaylie is loving Kambria.  She is so sweet and just wanted to hold her and cuddle her all night long.  She will be a wonderful big sister someday.

Delson in his new white shirt and tie all ready for church and smiling sweetly for the camera.

Halloween 2010

For Halloween this year I took the kids to our ward's trunk-or-treat/carnival with Daneen, Dexter, and Sarah with her 2 kids Braden and Gemma.  Alex was out of town over Halloween so I was so grateful for the help I had on Halloween because I am on the activity committee in our ward and I had to help with the activity.  It was chaotic, but fun!  The kids just stayed for the trunk-or-treat because the carnival was too crazy and they couldn't really participate, plus it was late.  But they had fun and they looked so cute all dressed up. 

Mommy and her pink bunny.

The cute bunny and the handsome giraffe.

Braden was dressed as a puppy dog.  Obviously the 3 of them didn't fit very well on the chair, but it looks super funny.

So cute!

I just had to take a picture of Kambria trying to fit in her car seat.  She looked funny all stuffed in there in her costume.

Grandma Karen's Visit

Last weekend my mom came to visit while Alex was gone for a week at the Produce Marketing Association Convention in Orlando, Florida.  I was nervous to be alone for so long without help especially since Alex is leaving me again next weekend for another trade show.  I couldn't handle 2 weekends alone with the kids.    Fortunately, my mom said she could come and, of course, she always loves to visit.  We had a lot of fun and she sure helped me a lot since I had to drive to Mattawa twice while she was here to attend a wedding and to do some work.  I would have gone insane by myself I think.  Also, I have been called to be the new ward organist, so someone had to watch my two crazy kids for me while I sat on the stand playing the organ.  We went to a really fun pumpkin patch on Saturday afternoon and we picked pumpkins, ate cotton candy, took Delson on a carousel and train ride and took lots of pictures. Thank you for coming, Mom!  You were a life saver and so much fun to have!  Here are some pictures she took.  

Delson mowing the lawn.

Kambria enjoying the sun.

Grandma and Kambria on the hay ride at the pumpkin patch.

Delson and Momma on the hay ride.  He loved the tractor that pulled the wagon.

In the pumpkin patch.  

Delson got to ride to the car on a wagon with the pumpkins.

Delson on the tractor, which he LOVED.

Bath time!

Grandma and the kiddos ready for church.

Momma and the babies before church.

End of the Summer Boating

Before the summer was over, we finally made it out on the boat for a river trip with the kids.  Delson loved the water even though it is freezing cold.  He couldn't get enough of it.  And he didn't mind the life jacket at all either.  He was a trooper.  It will be fun to go more next summer because he REALLY enjoyed the boat.  It is too bad we only made it out on the boat twice this year, but the time we had was super fun.  Kambria loved it too.  

Delson enjoying the water with his daddy.

Kambria enjoying the boat with Grandpa Del.

Momma and baby.

New Car

The day after we returned home from Utah, we purchased a new vehicle, a 2011 Toyota Sienna.  It was too bad we didn't have it for the drive to and from Utah, but we are grateful to have it now.  We had been looking at the Sienna's for sometime and my parents have one, so while we were in Utah Alex and I had plenty of opportunity to drive it and we loved it.  So apparently we had to buy one the minute we returned home.  It has been wonderful as far as having extra space for transporting the kids and getting grocery shopping done.  We love it!  Alex was even so sweet as to trade in his beloved pickup for it.  I know.....CRAZY, huh?  He is a great husband and father though and I hope he knows how much I appreciate it because I love my new van!  

No....We Haven't Fallen Off the Face of the Earth

Hello everyone!  Yes, we are still alive.  This is the longest time I think I have ever gone without posting to my blog.  It's been nearly 2 months!  I'm so sorry.  Two days after we returned to Washington, some major changes occurred at my father-in-law's companies, and I am now working a lot more.  I am doing the payroll for his 3 companies and so my life is a lot busier.  I work about 30 hours every 2 weeks and I am able to do most all of it from home, which is wonderful, but I hardly have time to blog, and when I do have time, I would rather veg on the couch.  Sorry.  But I decided it is finally time to catch everyone up on our lives and what has changed.

Since Utah, Delson is talking a lot more.  He is obsessed with airplanes, trains, and trucks, especially garbage trucks.  He still loves to dance and we are doing a lot better overall just communicating with him.  However, I have noticed that he is moving into the terrible two's phase because he has a really difficult time actually listening to what we say and he does not like to share his toys much.  He is starting to throw more tantrums when he doesn't get what he wants too.  I can see that the next year is going to be awesome with a 2 year old.  And when he is done, Kambria will move right into it.

Kambria has really become more and more interactive.  She loves to feed herself and she especially loves crackers.  She has started crawling in the last couple of weeks and she is super quick now.  She is already working on trying to pull herself up to stand, but she hasn't quite mastered it yet.  She is SUCH A GOOD baby!  I am so grateful to have her because when I am pulling my hair out over Delson, her smiles and sweet calm personality just melt my heart.  Here are some pictures of the kids for now and I will continue with more posts of different activities we have been up to in the last 2 months.

Delson loves to wear his bunny ears as well as talk on the phone.  Here he is doing both.

Delson loves to run down the hill in the backyard.

His new favorite thing to do is buckle anything with a buckle.  

Crazy man hair after waking up from a nap.

He just woke up from a nap. So sweet.

Kambria loves her crackers.

She loves being able to get to whatever she wants now.

Eating her feet.

Playing together in the laundry basket.

They both love to play at their music stand.

They play nicely in the bathtub together which makes bath time very fun!