Cameron laughing at the dinner table

Tonight at dinner I got Cameron giggling pretty hard. And it seemed like he couldn't stop. Even when I turned off the camera, he laughed for another five or more minutes. I love the good belly laughs that we get from him every once in a while.

Some Leah-isms

When we were driving the other day we looked back at Leah, and she was picking her nose and wiping the boogers on the window next to her car seat. After we told her not to do that and handed her a tissue, she said "We need a new car, daddy. This one has icky snots on it."

Tonight I kept trying to get Cameron to bed but just as I would leave his room, he would start babbling again. And I came to join Leah at the table to play with Play-Doh and she said "Cameron's not going to sleep. Go to sleep, Cameron!" She's heard me say that before.

After finally getting Cameron to bed tonight, I went to use the bathroom and Leah came to find me there. When she heard me going, she said "Good job, mommy!" and clapped for me. I felt so accomplished.

She is still learning how to phrase questions and will say a statement but in the tone of a question. For example she said "We're gonna go in your work, daddy?" OR "You want to play play-doh, mommy?" OR "It's okay to watch a movie, mommy?" It's pretty funny to hear her asking questions.

And if I can think of any more, I will post some later.

Logan's mom made Leah this skirt and gave us this shirt she bought to match. I think it is so adorable, and she is planning on making more to sell. So if any one is interested in buying one, let me know.






















And one last thing. Logan brought home these enormously thick rubber bands and tied them to make a huge stretchy thing. Leah was playing with it this morning, and I took several pictures to try and capture her funny face. And I finally got a good one!



Pulling, pulling, pulling




About to let it go....


























This was the funniest face I thought I'd ever seen her make. Logan and I laughed for like five minutes straight, and my eyes were watering from laughing so hard.

Father's Day and other fun pics

This week has been busy so I haven't had as much time to blog. I'm meant to blog about Father's Day, but kept forgetting. Our ward had a Pine Wood Derby last Saturday, but Logan barely got his wheels on his car that morning before we went. He carved his car earlier during the week and painted it black with gold flames. He didn't get first place or anything but we had a fun time at the activity and ate a good breakfast there.













Leah had a fun time watching him carve and paint his car. She wanted to help paint so we bought her some water based paint that she could do while he was painting. She loves doing that but we just get nervous about her mixing the colors and making a mess.

It had rained that whole weekend so we were trying to find activities to do with Leah inside.















I helped make cookies (his favorite peanut butter ones with chocolate chips) for our Relief Society to hand out to fathers at church, and I left some for Logan to eat at home. Then on Sunday he cooked some beef with a homemade barbeque sauce for dinner, and I made him a no bake cherry cheesecake for dessert. We had a fun time relaxing with Logan's sister Kelcy. I can't believe that Logan's been a father and I've been a mom for almost three years now. I'm so glad that there to set a good example for our children and spend one-on-one time with them when he's at home. I couldn't ask for a better daddy for my kids.

Here's Cameron in his car seat that he is rapidly getting too big for. He has already met the maximum length requirement and almost the weight requirement, and he's just barely turning 7 months old. We'll have to figure out the next car seat to move him up.


















Here's an exersaucer that my neighbors let us borrow. Cameron has enjoyed playing in it at his happiest times of the day. He doesn't want to be put in there if he's tired or hungry, though. It gives me a little extra time to get things done around the house.

Update on Potty Training

We started last Monday with Leah wearing underwear all day, and she's already mastered staying dry during the day (we are still working on her staying dry at night though). She loves using the toilet and telling us what she is doing on it. Even if I'm in the other room, she will go in and use it by herself but always calls out to say "Mommy, I tinkled!"

I'm just so proud of her. I really expected it to take a lot longer than it did. I guess the fact that we waited until she was a little older and was already using the potty at least twice a day helped her get the hang of it.

I'm just so glad that I'm not changing two kids' diapers anymore. And I can't believe that our little girl is now potty trained and turning 3 in a few months.

Kelly Clarkson Concert

I'm full of posts today because I have to write it down now before I forget or get too lazy to do it.

Last night I went with my friend Laura to see Kelly Clarkson at UVU's ballpark. I worried about still having a good time in the rain that night since it had rained on and off all day. But she put on an awesome show, and it only moderately rained during a portion of the concert. I brought my umbrella so we didn't get our hair wet.

And during the show there was a beautiful rainbow across the sky just above the stage. This picture doesn't even do it justice. The rainbow just kept getting brighter as the night went on. I was too busy jamming out to take more pictures. There were also some funny high school/college age kids around us, and it was fun to see them singing all the words and dancing with their friends.

I'm glad that Logan got these tickets for free, and I was able to get out of the house for a couple of hours with my kids. And Logan even cleaned up the kitchen after I made a mess making dinner.

Thanks honey for a great night!

Just before her nap,

Leah was singing "I am a child of God" while she was going to the bathroom. She knows the entire first verse and chorus. It's so fun to hear her sing Primary songs that we have sung to her.

My favorite part is at the end. The words go "Teach me all that I can do to live with Him some day" and she sings it "Teach me how to I can do to live with Him some day".

I keep trying to correct her but she insists that the words are sung her way. Oh well, as long as she is trying to sing it I should be happy.

What happens when I'm making dinner...part 2

Leah was keeping herself busy while I was making dinner last night too (see Cameron's post below). This is what she was doing...






















She went to the bathroom on her own, and this is what happened right after. I guess she has a new found freedom while wearing underwear and doesn't want to put her pants back on.

(The second picture looks like one of her legs got chopped off at the knee. But don't worry, both legs are still intact. She was just running around the house).

What happens when I'm making dinner... part 1

While I was making soup for dinner last night, I needed to keep Cameron busy for awhile so I gave him part of a banana. I couldn't get him to take a late afternoon nap so you can see from the pictures what he did instead of napping.

He loved squishing the banana in his fingers and putting it in his mouth. So far he enjoys trying to eat real food compared to baby food. We are still working on him though. He loves to lunge for our plates of food while we're eating and gets mad when we don't give him anything. I think by the time he's old enough to eat our food, he will be loving it.

I was able to get a good dinner put together, but he was an absolute mess afterward so I had to throw him into the tub. And after we ate dinner, I put him down to sleep for the night at about 6:30 p.m.

What happens when you stay home all day....

Since we've been potty training Leah this week, I've been home more than usual so most of our playing has been in the living room. My kids are pretty creative in entertaining themselves, and here are a few pictures to show what they have been up to.

The first two are pictures of Cameron rolling around the floor and ending up under the piano bench. I will put him down sitting up in the middle of the living room, and within five minutes I'll turn around and he will have rolled to the other side of the room. And he was just happy as can be under there. I did put him up to the piano earlier today, and he was having a ball pounding away at the keys. Maybe we have a little Mozart in the making here.


































After cleaning up breakfast this morning, I came into the living room to find this: Leah's underwear on Cameron's head. And it seemed like he didn't know what to think about it. When I went to tell Logan about it, Leah came running to the bathroom with the same pair on her head.

































And the last one is both kids sitting on my lap. I was sitting at the computer desk with Cameron on my lap, and Leah just had to jump on too. She can't be left out of the fun. (It kind of looks like I have a lazy eye in the last picture - haha).

Potty training frustrations and celebrations

We have worked with the Leah the last month to use the potty right before nap time and bed time. I thought that since she had the hang of that and could usually tell us when she needed to go poop (sorry about the potty talk), we would start her using the potty all day. I have been putting it off because I had Cameron to feed, change and put to sleep. But I decided that since she is turning 3 in a few months, it was time for her to learn.

So far she has only had a few accidents. We have been staying at home so far this week, so that she would feel comfortable going at home. I think she is getting tired of me asking her if she needs to use the potty. I would if I were her too.

Here are my frustrations about the whole process:

1. When it's time for nap, she is already tucked in bed and I'm about to say goodnight,
she says "I have to go potty, mommy."
And I say "Are you sure?"
She says "Yeah, I have to go poop."
I just sigh and say "Okay, let's go."
Then she takes about 15-20 mins when it's already past time for her to go to bed. This process is sometimes repeated one more time before she finally goes to sleep. I don't want to discourage her but her nap and bed time routines are off because of it, and that makes me feel frustrated.

2. She wants to change her underwear several times a day like she did with her diapers and Pull-ups.

3. She likes to have me keep her company in the bathroom. But sometimes I just don't want to wait around so I have to leave while she is doing her business, and come back and make sure she is wiped.

Here are the celebrations:

1. She is excited to wear her Disney princess underwear, and she loves to put them on and off by herself.

2. She loves running to and telling Logan about how she went to the bathroom. He is equally excited when she does this. And she loves to look down and see what she has just done.

3. No more changing her poopy diapers. She is usually better at doing this in the toilet than remembering to pee.

4. And finally, I can't wait for the day when our little girl will be totally used to going to the bathroom and won't need my help any more. Until then we'll have to take it one day at a time.

If any of you moms out there have advice or just overall support for me, I would great appreciate it. My patience is running thin.

He loves to sit up

Cameron is getting really good at sitting up lately, though he has moments where he will tip over when reaching for a toy. I usually set him on the floor after his naps with the basket full of toys, and he will stay busy playing for a while. He is such a smiley baby and opens his mouth so wide when I smile and talk to him.





















































I caught him with his arms up, and it looks like he is showing off his muscles. He's my strong boy!!

At the park

I took my kids to the park a couple of days ago because we haven't been anywhere much lately. I usually get worried about running errands in the late afternoons because Cameron will usually takes a nap around 4:30 or 5.

When we've gone to the park in the past, I usually forget to take my camera and wish I would to capture some shots of Leah on the playgroup. But I finally remembered it!

Cameron and I found a shady spot on the side of the playgroup so he wouldn't get sunburned. He enjoyed playing on a blanket, but I also toted him around in my Baby Bjorn. He loves to watch the other kids playing. I know he's going to go crazy when he gets old enough to climb at the park.

Leah insisted on bringing her bunny to the playgroup. She usually wants to take a different animal with her in the car each time we go some where, which ever stuff animal she is attached to that day.