Finally some snow

It's been the driest winter I can remember (except for when I lived in St. George, of course) so when we received snow a few days ago we were pretty excited. We knew it would melt fast so we had to take advantage of it even though it was a Sunday. Thank goodness we have a great snowhill in our yard. The kids were so happy to use their reindeer again!

Our stake holds a morning and afternoon session to accommodate everyone, so I went in the morning and Justin went in the afternoon. Luckily he made it home while we were still outside. The boys were pleased that Dad could see them playing in the snow.

New Look

Justin has a new look. I think his new glasses look great! He looks very thoughtful and sophisticated. And they're Nike frames, so that must make him sporty, too!

And the other day I captured Nolan looking an awful lot like his Dad, except sound asleep.

Knock and Run

I always thought Valentine's Day was so much fun because my mom would run me over to my friends' house, I'd sneak up and leave a valentine treat on the doorstep, then knock and run! My mom would park a few houses away and turn off the headlights. After hiding for a couple of minutes I'd make my way back to the car and start again at another house. So naturally I was excited to start this little tradition with my boys.
We took a few valentines to some friends that aren't in Nolan's preschool class (they got a treat at the school party) and to his cousins that live nearby. Well, at my sister's house she mentioned that the girls weren't taking valentines to their friends' house. They mentioned that none of their friends ever knock and run either. So I got thinking that maybe this tradition is out of style or people don't do it around here. I asked Justin and he said, "Well, it sounds fun but I've never heard of doing that before." What?! I asked him, "Well, what was the fun of Valentine's Day, then?" He said that he only ever gave valentines during school exchanges. So, am I crazy? Did you ever knock and run? I just don't know if I can give it up... it's too fun!

Valentine's Surprise

The boys were thrilled with their new play-doh set. We also got them Mariokart for the Wii. Nolan said to me after getting his surprise, "Happy Valentine's Day, Mom. I love you." This was quite a big deal because until recently Nolan had a hard time saying "I love you." With some new entertainment, it's been a fun morning for us. Except poor Dad is getting over a stomach bug. Not a great day for him.

We hope that all our loved ones out there have a special day. We love you!

Our January

It's nearly February so I thought I'd document a few of the fun things we did this month. We started out the month playing with leftover Christmas boxes. I feel like I've taken SO many pictures of my kids in boxes... but the joy that boxes hold never gets old for them. Ezra has been really into books, especially his "David" books that he got for Christmas. They love the picture of David running down the street with no clothes. Okay, I love it, too. There's just somethin' about a little bare bum. If you haven't read these books, they are so cute! And to sum up the other pictures below, Ez still makes lots of silly faces and Nolan captured a picture of me in deep thought (not really, probably just planning the weekly menu or something) at the computer - it's kind of a typical pose when I get a spare second.

Grandpa John and Grandma Sherri came for a visit. We went with Lacey and the kids to the new children's area of the Church History Museum near temple square. The kids had a great time! Afterward, we got stuck on a hill of ice and slipped around and spun for a good 5 minutes. After some maneuvering, my driving skills got us out (okay, I was nervous there for a bit, though).
We also went swimming at the indoor pool with our cousins last week. I was tired of the kids being bored. I really don't love swimming, but the kids love it and they eat and sleep well afterward. It's worth it! They also had so much fun going down the waterslide.

For family home evening one night, went out to a new yogurt and smoothie shop that opened recently. So yummy! Smoothies are the one thing I can count on Ezra to eat. Too bad he spilled the last bit on the carpet.

The boys love to help me cook. Don't worry, I wasn't using that colander!

When Ezra dozes off to sleep, it's Nolan's chance to love on him. Ezra likes his personal space and gets mad when Nolan tries to give him hugs, so Nolan takes advantage of when Ez won't fight back. He really is a loving big brother (but sometimes a tease).

And I thought this was a funny way to find Ez asleep in his crib... barely clinging to his greatest love in life. What would we do if we lost his blanket?!

We also had a visit to the Utah Firefighter's Memorial Museum. There were 6 moms (myself, Kimbrey, Brianne, Amber, Marilee, and Rachelle) and our 11 boys! One of the moms has older daughters... it's nice to know that one of us is capable of having girls! The boys loved climbing all over this fire truck and checking out the many others that are there. What a perfect outing for little boys. The best part for me was going to Taco Tuesday afterward at Cafe Rio.

I hope all of you are coping with winter time okay. We're so glad to have lots of friends to help these long afternoons indoors to pass quickly.

Cookie Monster

Grandma Petersen sent us home from Logan with a big tin of chocolate cookies. Ezra loves to help himself to the cookies by pushing a chair or stool up to the counter. But he won't finish them... I'm constantly finding the remnants of his munchie moments. So I'm eating lots of cookies, too, because I don't want them to go to waste after he's only taken one nibble! He's such a terrible eater that he can't even finish a treat!

New cousin!

We're so excited to welcome little Ryan Sorenson into the family. He's so precious. He was named after Ryan Andrews, one of Justin's cousins. And now our boys have two cousins named Ryan! (My niece is also named Ryan; she's nearly 9 years old.) There will be several "Ryans" to keep track of. Jodi seems to be recovering well after her c-section. I enjoyed holding a tiny baby. I love to hold other babies and then give them back to their rightful owners when they squirt their pants or need feeding. Ezra wanted baby Ryan to see the Elmo toy.

Grandma K. now has 5 grandsons age 6 and under: Ezra, Jack, Nolan, David, and Ryan.

We spent two nights at Grandma Petersen's house. We had several visits with Grandma K., Jodi, and our fun cousins (David and Jack). We even spent the afternoon with Grandma and Grandpa Moulton. We had plenty of time to visit by their fireplace since both of our boys fell asleep. It had been 7 months since we'd seen them so it was good to have some quiet time to catch up on all that's been going on. That last evening, Conner and Courtney Petersen hung out with us. Conner was teaching Nolan all about fishing.

It was a quick trip to Logan since we were home in time for church. Our boys always have trouble going to sleep when we're away from home but luckily Grandma Petersen has a king size guest bed that we could all fall asleep in together. Nolan and Ezra sure are cuddlers! After they doze off we take them to their own bed, but it makes for a long bedtime routine. It's always nice to get back to our own house where they fall asleep easier. Hopefully, though, it won't be as long before we get up to see the grandparents again.

Just thought I'd give an update on our boys really quick:

Nolan's favorite thing to do is play Zelda with Dad (still, after 4 weeks since Dad got it for Christmas). He has started playing with friends more often, and is beginning to learn some sight words at preschool. His most common phrase lately is, "I just don't wanna talk about it!" or "I just don't want to hear it!" I'm working on lecturing less so that he doesn't have the need to say that all the time.

Ezra's most common phrase is "You idiot!" I think he heard it on a show I was watching (of course he wouldn't learn it from Mom or Dad). We've really tried to put a stop to it (soap in his mouth and time out) but I think our only choice now is to try to ignore it. Hopefully he'll stop when he doesn't get attention for it. But the rest of the time he talks so cute. People are always commenting that he talks so well for how tiny he is.

One more present

Our kids are getting easier and easier to travel with. The ride home from St. George went really well. Justin got the idea in his head that he could hook up the Wii and play from the backseat of the van. I wasn't sure that sounded fair since I'd be doing most of the driving. But he pulled it off and the kids were so entertained with him playing the new Zelda (his favorite Christmas present this year). They beg for him to turn it on all the time.

We stopped in Beaver... my boys love this giant rocking chair. Even Justin joined in the fun!

The day we arrived home, we told the boys we had one last Christmas present for them. We had taken it to the cabin but decided it would be a pain to set up and then take it down again. They were so excited for their new mini trampoline! It's a great way to get their energy out during these long winter months.