Last day finish line fun!

Good buddies, Shawn and Justin.



Cheerleaders, Allie and Mom.



Videos to come...

It's a wonderful life!

Why do I always insist on an impromptu photo shoot on Mother's Day? Because even though I know they won't be perfect, these pictures remind me that life is sweet with my kiddos. Crazy, silly faces and all. And it makes me laugh to think of Travis perched in the bush taking these pictures!





I love you Justin, Tyler and Allie!

Spring Showers

What's on my mind...

Rain...every. single. day. But I'm o.k. with that. I love the smell of rain on cement and the sound of the rain on our rooftop.

Justin asked me the other day if I was alive during The Great Depression. I know I just turned 35, but really? He laughed..."Well, were you alive at the end of it?" I just have to laugh or I would cry. I remember when my own parents seemed so old to me. Seems that I have finally arrived. That's nice.

Tyler had a bad fall at school last Friday. He said another kid accidentally pushed him off of a high platform on the playground. He landed on his head. The recess teacher put a bandaid on a scrape behind his knee. Obviously no adults saw him fall. I watched him through the rest of the day and he seemed o.k., but the next morning he was complaining of a bad headache and woozy stomach. I was worried about a concussion. Thankfully, we have a wonderful chiropractor (who happens to live in our ward) who does such a great job. I called him at home in between conference sessions and explained the situation. He let us bring Tyler over so he could check him out. After adjusting his compressed spine, Tyler came home feeling so much better. He just took it easy and relaxed the rest of the weekend as his body regained its balance. I am just so thankful that he is alright and feel so blessed we knew how to help him feel better.

Waffle Sunday - A Guptill General Conference tradition we enjoy. Travis grew up with his dad whipping up a wonderful breakfast. This time, Travis prepared a yummy breakfast with the works...waffles, eggs, bacon, strawberries and milk. Delicious! There are so many reasons we look forward to conference.

Baby Echo - It was so neat during conference to hear Bishop Burton tell the story about my great-great-great aunt Echo Squires. My great-great-great grandmother is Echo’s eldest sister, Sarah Augusta Squires. What Bishop Burton didn’t mention was the story of baby Echo’s birth. It was too cold to have the baby in the wagon, so someone found a cave in Echo Canyon located in Summit, Utah. On November 27, 1856, her mother gave birth to Echo Lavina Squires in the cave while the men took off their shirts (or coats…I think shirts, though) and held them up to cover the opening of the cave to try to stop the freezing wind from coming in. One of my cousins was named Echo after this great-great-great aunt.

I wish my Grandma Jolley was still alive so I could ask her more about this story. If I remember right, Sarah and her other sister chose to leave the wagon train and their family for some reason. I’ll have to ask my mom and see if she remembers more details. (Thanks, Jeri!)

My kind of pets - Frog, Owl, squirrel, wood pecker...bugs. I have seen and/or heard them all this week in or very near to our backyard. They all made me smile. Well, except for the bugs found crawling in our house. Seems to be the sign springtime is here.

Digging us out...I have lots of laundry to fold. We seem to do laundry in bursts. It builds up in the hampers and then we do the marathon washing thing until we have the leaning tower of clean clothes in our bedroom. Sometimes several towers. It's lots of fun.

Everyone needs a blanket - Tyler was under a blanket looking out the front window the other day. He called to me in the kitchen and started telling me about what he learned in his Primary class at church. Apparently, his teacher had been trying to explain how the kids could recognize the feeling of having the spirit with them. Comforting and warm like being covered with a blanket. Tyler said, "Mom, the Holy Ghost is with me now." I walked over and told him that he can feel the Holy Ghost at any time...not just while he is wrapped in a blanket. "No Mom, you have to have the blanket."

We don't live in a barn!This is what Travis tells the boys when he reminds them to pick up after themselves. It makes me laugh every single time. It has become a joke between the boys and me as I get them going with their jobs before Travis comes home from work. In the past, I have tried different chore charts but nothing seems to last very long. A couple of weeks ago, I decided we just needed a "schedule" for the after school hours. So far, it has worked wonders. Happy boys. Jobs finished. They each have time right after Justin gets home from school to watch a show or play the Wii. Just for about 20-30 minutes. Then at 3:15 they start working on their jobs until 4:15. They each have certain jobs that are always on their list and room for extras from me, if needed. Then they move on to homework and time for practicing talents. There is still time for free play before dinner. I feel so much more relaxed and I don't feel the need to nag. So nice.

Speaking of jobs...it's 3:15...off we go!

Basketball Baby Belly

My cute sister-in-law Shannon says it is time for a baby belly picture. How about five? A couple of weeks ago, my dad and Travis' parents came up to Portland for Justin's baptism. Here are some of the biggest belly pictures my dad took of me over the weekend. I'm 30 weeks now, but 28 in these pictures:







And here I am in my designated spot on the couch...with boys bouncing off the walls all around me.



Oh, this baby is in for some fun. I had another ultrasound yesterday and the baby looked so cute! She was opening and closing her mouth and even put her fist up to her mouth. Adorable!

The best of the best

This year I had an epiphany about Christmas music...a light went on in my head...we can borrow cd's from the library...I don't have to buy and then regret my bad choice in a new holiday cd. It is obvious to me now that a cute cd cover picture doesn't guarantee good music. And, as a bonus, I have been the proud "borrower" of nearly 15 Christmas cds this season. I love that we can reserve items at our library online and they call when they're ready to be picked up.

Here is my "Best of the best" or "You really should check these cd's out this year" list:

The best album for kids running around the house:
1. Los Lonely Boys - Christmas Spirit
2. BNL's "BN for the Holidays"(If you know what I'm saying...gotta be incognito here...He he!)
3. Jump 5 - All the Joy in the World

The best EVER "All I Want for Christmas":
1. The Andrew's Sisters Christmas - (Hilarious! Who can top a duet with Danny Kaye? We're still laughing! I was sad to return this cd to the library today.)

The best all around Christmas album:
1. Amy Grant's Holiday Collection (We all know that all of her Christmas albums are amazing, but this is a collection of the best of the best. My fav - Breath of Heaven.)

I just have to mention these since I actually own them and can't remember when I did NOT listen to them for Christmas:
1. Looney Tunes Christmas
2. Osmond Family Christmas
3. Rockapella Christmas
4. Primarily for Christmas

Really good, but not jazzy enough for me this year:
1. Faith Hill - Joy to the World

Best kids Christmas album:
1. Alvin and the Chipmunks

Nearly put me to sleep while doing the dishes tonight:
1. Christmas with Julie Andrews - (Mom, Don't worry, I still love her...in The Mary Poppins and The Sound of Music.)

Best new surprise favorite this year or "I can't believe I like this so much":
1. Los Lonely Boys - Christmas Spirit(I'm really groovin' on this one. I don't know what possessed me to reserve this cd, but I'm glad I did! I like every single song. I was getting my dance on in the kitchen.)

I'm impatiently waiting for the Christmas albums by David Archuleta and Sugarland...among many others waiting in the wings of my requests list at the library.

I'd love to hear your favorites...we still have weeks until Christmas. (Much to my delight and to my boys' dismay!) And if you consider in my holiday buffer zone, that means we'll be listening to Christmas music around here until at least the end of January. That's at least six more weeks of Christmas! It just doesn't get better than that.

So Crafty

Today at the bus stop waiting for Justin to arrive, I was chatting with two other moms on our street. You know, the usual...How was your weekend? etc., etc. I explained that I was helping to coordinate a Super Saturday craft day for the ladies at our church. So, I had spent most of the day on Saturday running errands to buy craft supplies and then finishing my project samples to show at church on Sunday.

One of the mom's asks, "So, are you crafty?" I hesitated. I mean, do YOU think I'm crafty? My sister, Heidi, is crafty. I'm trying to allow my craftiness to flow freely. Haha! "Well..." That was all I could say. But then I admitted that I don't have to actually be that "crafty person" when I can just look online and copy other crafter's awesome ideas. Actually it was just a great excuse to figure out how to do the projects I have had my eye on for a while now. Plus, vinyl letting is just fun stuff. My kind of crafting.

Our enrichment committee came up with 14 projects all together. I think it will be tough to decide between them. Here are some pictures of the projects I will be teaching:



Kari, you get credit for these ornaments...your monogrammed ones inspired me. :)



Here's a fun one for a teacher or visiting teaching gift:



This one I love. My cousin, Dixon Leavitt, is the artist and we will be applying vinyl lettering with the title.



You know, this is liberating for me. I think I actually CAN be crafty. So crafty. I never thought I could before. Funny. I'm already coming up with ideas for things I might tackle just for the fun of it. But not until Super Saturday has come and gone. I think I have my work cut out for me...

Gramma Wamma & Grampa Wampa (Tyler)

Grandma & Grandpa Guptill came out to Oregon for a visit last week. We kept them busy and had a blast!

And now for our TOP 5 ADVENTURES with G & G:

1. Soccer

Travis is helping to herd (I mean coach) Ty's team this year.


I just love how Brynlee and Justin are looking at each other. Cute cousins!


Our neighbors moved a few weeks ago and left their teeter-totter with us to take care of for a while. This is all anyone wants to do in our backyard anymore...

2. Cannon Beach




Travis' Mom and Nicki holding Brynlee's hands with Lance in the background.
Justin and his Titanic.
Travis and his Dad

***We interrupt this TOP 5 to bring you...bedtime. More to come tomorrow.***

Go Yankees!

This weekend, Travis and I went to Seattle with our friends, Kaylynn and Tony, to see the New York Yankees play the Seattle Mariners. Travis' sister and her husband watched the boys at their place in Vancouver on Friday and Saturday so we could get away for a night. This was our first night away without kids in two years! Yay, we were excited! Before the game on Saturday, we spent the afternoon wandering along the Seattle waterfront. We ate some delicious salmon at The Crab Pot (The same place I ate with my family years ago...remember guys?) and tried some Italian gelato. My favorite part was going to Pikes Place and seeing some crazy fish throwing fun.



The New York Yankees have always been Travis' favorite baseball team and we have been dreaming of taking a trip to see them play for at least 10 years. The game was awesome and the Yankees won!



The view from the field was fantastic!



We are definitely going to go to another game...hopefully soon...any takers?

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

AAAAA!!!! I'm 33!!!!! I'm still getting used to being so old and wise! :) It seems so strange to say I'm a thirty-something! Yes, I know I have been there for a while now. But 33 just makes it more official, don't you think? I do have to say though, that each year gets better and better for me. I wouldn't want to turn back the clock because I'm excited to see what the future holds for me.

I had a wonderful birthday! Tyler and I hung out at home all day and Travis brought lunch home to us. I loved all the birthday wishes from friends and family! Then later, I drove to the airport to pick up my sister, Tawnya. We were laughing before she even got into the car! I love it when she comes to visit! What a great birthday present! We stopped at IKEA before heading home and I have to say that it was a totally different experience without kids along to chase. I could actually browse around and read the tags for things. :) After we arrived home, Tawnya broke out the presents from my sisters. Heidi made me two beautiful bracelets. I love them! Amber gave me DVD copies of "The Young Riders" TV show season. Those of you who remember this will know that we were in LOVE with this show as teenagers. I teared up over this present. And totally busted up laughing! Then we watched one of the episodes. Whoa, that took us way back! Too funny!

Tawnya's present came the next day when we went shopping all morning! Tawnya gave me new sunglasses and a cute clutch purse. She took the day off of work so we could play! It was a beautiful day, so we took the boys on a bike ride to the school to play and ride around the track.


Later, Travis and I had a surprise visit from our good friend, Lincoln, from Maryland. Justin was busting out laughing at things Lincoln would say. :) Wish you were here too, Jeri! Travis had a good time going out to dinner and a movie with his buddy.

Tawnya worked on Thursday and then we had a girls movie night. We watched "The Secret Life of Bees". I had read the book for book club last year and was happy the movie was as good as the book.

This morning, we drove Tawnya to work and then she will go straight to the airport to catch her flight back to Salt Lake City. We are sad to say goodbye, but are so happy we were able to have such a fun week with Tawnya doggie and Lazagna! Thanks for coming Tawnya!

My 25

1. I love popcorn. REALLY love popcorn. I have eaten it for dinner before and no movie is complete without it.

2. I have been scuba diving with sharks in Utah and sea lions off of the California Coast. But sailing with dolphins and snorkeling with sea turtles in Hawaii took the cake.

3. I served a mission for my church in Boston, Massachusetts. Dale Murphy was my mission president.

4. My kids will eat anything if I say it is from Rachael Ray! I like to try new recipes and Rachael Ray is my hero! I own many of her fabulous cookbooks and I record her talk show on the DVR every day.

5. My life is so much easier with the use of a timer. Just 5 more minutes kiddos!

6. Travis and I almost got arrested on our honeymoon.

7. I love a good rain storm. I get so excited. But I love a good thunderstorm even more. We used to race to open the big front window when I was a kid. It was a fun thing. Never scary.

8. I love my friends and girls' nights out. Blogging is fun, too!

9. A clean kitchen sink makes my day!

10. I had never flown in an airplane until I was 19 years old. My oldest son, Justin, has been on an airplane over 40 times and he's only 6 years old. My boys have got it down. They could be flight attendants.

11. I love back scratches. Now Justin can't go to sleep without a back scratch, either.

12. Travis and I have been married for 8 1/2 years. He served in the same mission as my older sister, Amber. (Spain-Canary Islands) But that's not how we met. It was in a BYU ward.

13. If I could sleep in every morning, I would. We go to bed very, very late!

14. I have a cell phone, but I hardly ever hear it ringing when I'm out shopping. (Travis loves this about me!) But I always call him back...later. When I'm out with someone else, he just calls them first. And I just laugh!

15. Travis and I don't go on regular dinner dates very often. We like to save it up so we can go to awesome concerts, sporting events or Broadway shows.

16. Both of my kids were born in the water. Not at home, but not at the hospital, either.

17. My husband and I played in a co-ed softball league this past fall and we won first place in our division. I played slow and fast pitch softball every summer through junior high, high school and some of college. Travis and I used to play on a team together before we had kids. It feels great to be out on the diamond again!

18. I don't like to open the door to strangers. Door-to-door salesman give me the creeps. Especially after I saw one yell at my neighbor and hop over her fence. Yikes!

19. I always have a midnight snack. Usually a bowl of cereal with banana slices. Yum.

20. I like to play my guitar. I have played for 16 years and used to teach as my job through college. I stopped teaching when I had Tyler because now I think I'm too busy. I hope to teach again one of these days.

21. I'm always up for a good game night!

22. I'm always cold. I wear 30 layers and think everyone else must be too cold as well. My boys have to beg to wear a short-sleeved shirt during the winter.

23. I love that Travis comes home for lunch almost every weekday.

24. Spiders give me the heebie-jeebies. I have trained my boys to squish them for me. It is lovely.

25. My birthday is on St. Patrick's Day and I have a special place in my heart for all things Irish and GREEN! Oh, and I would love to visit Ireland some day, too. Another nifty birthday fact is that Justin's birthday sometimes falls on Mother's Day and Tyler's birthday sometimes falls on Easter. I think that is so much fun!

Books I Read in 2008:

I hope to read more in 2009! How about you? If you have a Goodreads account, let me know so I can add you as a friend. Let me know if you have a good book to recommend. I feel a read-a-thon coming on!

Fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la

I love Christmas music! I could listen to it all year, although I don't. I usually have a little Christmas music craving in the middle of July and then I put the Cd's away again until the day after Halloween. We put the Christmas tree and most of the decorations away over the weekend, but out Christmas Cd's are still front and center. We listen to them every day.

Today Tyler was cozying in our bed listening to Christmas movie music. You know that song from "Santa Claus is coming to town" that goes "...just put one foot in front of the other..."? Ty loves this song and so I put it on repeat. He has been singing it around the house as he plays with his toys. I love the message it is teaching him. What a great attitude for a new year!



I'm so giddy for Tyler right now! This is going to be his favorite blog post to go back to for forever! I'll include the lyrics also so we can have all the words somewhere I'll be able to find next year. :)

Put One Foot In Front Of The Other
Lyrics by Bass, Jules

Put one foot in front of the other
And soon you’ll be walking cross the floor
Put one foot in front of the other
And soon you’ll be walking out the door

You never will get where you’re going
If you never get up on your feet
Come on, there’s a good tail wind blowing
A fast walking man is hard to beat

Put one foot in front of the other
And soon you’ll be walking cross the floor
Put one foot in front of the other
And soon you’ll be walking out the door

If you want to change your direction
If your time of life is at hand
Well don’t be the rule be the exception
A good way to start is to stand

Put one foot in front of the other
And soon you’ll be walking cross the floor
Put one foot in front of the other
And soon you’ll be walking out the door

If I want to change the reflection
I see in the mirror each morn
You mean that it's just my election
To vote for a chance to be reborn

(repeat chorus twice)

Travis took Justin out to lunch one day last week to celebrate his Jackson Jaguar with his free meal coupon at a pizza place. Then he got to help Dad take the van to the car wash. Big fun for Justin and Tyler is glad he didn't get roped into going because he's terrified of it. While they were gone, Ty and I got out our guitars and played Christmas songs. We sang at the top of our lungs for about an hour. I love that he is my little musical guy. He was strumming away on his ukulele and singing every single song with me. So cute. I really need to get that on video. We stopped for lunch and he wanted to do it again as soon as we were done eating. It's so much fun to have a little guitar buddy.

Here's a picture from summer 2007 of me and my ukulele boys:

8 Things Tag

Thanks, Jeri! Here it is...finally!

8 TV shows I love to watch:
1. Dancing with the Stars
2. Rachael Ray
3. 24
4. Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
5. Knight Rider
6. CMA Awards
7. FIT TV Workouts
8. Man vs. Wild

8 Favorite Restaurants
1. Swaggath (Indian)
2. Costa Vida (Mexican)
3. Cheesecake Factory (A book for a menu. Everything under the sun!)
4. Baja Fresh (Mexican)
5. Olive Garden (Italian)
6. P.F. Chang's (Chinese)
7. New Seasons Market Grill (The best grilled chicken sandwich on earth!)
8. Daphne's (Greek)

Yum! I'm hungry...it's Sunday...let's change the subject.

8 Things that happened yesterday
1. Woke up at 6:35 a.m. to Tyler climbing in bed with us and Justin watching Saturday morning cartoons. Tyler says he likes to watch "The Care Bears" and both boys love to watch "Tom & Jerry".
2. Piled everybody in the van so Travis could drop me off at the church at 8 a.m. to help set up for Super Saturday. I'm the new Assistant Enrichment Leader in our ward. I see many crafts in my near future! :)
3. Sliced my finger royally while trying to shine the glass in my picture frame. Did you know there is an emergency first aid kit in the janitor's closet and in the church library? Here are some pictures of the projects I signed up for:





4. Took Justin and Tyler to a neighbor brother and sister's birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese's. We had never been there. (Except for when I had my birthday party as a kid!) I have one word to describe it: crazy!
5. Picked up our Christmas cards at Costco (I love that place!). It feels so good to be on the ball this year. Now to write a clever letter to go with them...
6. Weeded the yard. I mean pulled out my precious wild flowers from the summer that look just like WEEDS. I had to tell everyone they really were going to be flowers. Silly plants!
7. Finished my Snapfish photo book, caught up on blogs and brainstormed for Christmas presents for everyone on our list.
8. Ate my designated "midnight" snack of pumpkin granola from Costco with cut-up banana and went to bed at midnight.

8 Things I'm looking forward to:
1. Thursday @ midnight! (Jeri, funny that this is my number one thing, too. But for me it means the midnight showing of "Twilight"!)
2. Getting my visiting teaching done early this month.
3. Thanksgiving with the Guptills. We're hosting this year!
4. Christmas decorations.
5. Mailing our Christmas cards.
6. Christmas music on XM radio.
7. Christmas books and Christmas parties.
8. Christmas vacation. Two weeks in Utah!

8 Things on my wish list (just in time for Christmas!):
1. A new guitar.
2. A nap.
3. A piano.
4. The new Rachael Ray Big Orange Book.
5. Organized closets.
6. Already planted flower bulbs in my yard for pretty spring flowers!
7. A fun girls' night out!
8. More time to go on fun family outings.

I am now supposed to tag 8 people. I tag you.

Crafts and Stuff

We have been just boppin' along this week and I don't have much to blog about. Maybe that's a good thing. Well, it has been too long. So, here's my random post:

I have Thanksgiving and Christmas on my mind. O.K., it's on Travis' mind, too, and he is making big old lists to keep us organized. When we were dating those lists drove me nuts, because I don't like seeing all those things I still HAVEN'T done written out so clearly. But we have made peace after 8 years and now we know I don't make lists and Travis does. I really have learned to appreciate his lists during the holidays. He has lists for all different categories of things we need to buy and accomplish before those two big days coming up. Sometimes I'll make a list (Hey, calendars count, right? Don't tell Travis, it will blow my cover!), but usually it is just all in my mind. When my mind wanders and I forget all that I have to do, I am so glad that I can just ask Travis and he will pull up that LIST! I tell him that's why I married him...among other things! :)

My cousin, Kristen, just posted about a fabulous blog site checker-blocked full of fun, crafty ideas to do with your kids. Click here to check it out. It's awesome and I'm excited to try out some of the Thanksgiving ideas. Nothing brightens up a rainy day like CRAFTS!

Did I mention we LOVE to shop at Trader Joe's? Going there tonight...

I was just at the police station twice in the last 24 hours. I hope to never return. Those holding cells look awful! I took the boys with me on a Cub Scout field trip to the station yesterday afternoon since I am now one of the Bear Den leaders. I'm excited to learn lots of new things with these fun boys! When the police officer took us into the staging area (a huge garage) to look at police cars and the huge LOUD garage door opened, Tyler about lost it. He was so worried the loud police sirens would suddenly go off. But a dog saved the day! We were so happy when a big police dog named Malloy came out of a police car to meet them. This morning when we drove over to the station again for Tyler's preschool tour, Ty was a little pro. When we stood outside looking at a police car, Tyler told the officer, "I'll just stand over here and watch for fire trucks." The second time was a charm and he wasn't scared during the tour...so I could enjoy it, too.

Speaking of preschool, it was my turn to teach this week and we had so much fun! Tyler's little preschool friends are so cute and they get so excited to learn new things. I'm so happy we found a little co-op group to join this year. We are having a blast!

Did you know "24" starts up again on November 23rd? I can't wait!

Now I need to go figure out what in the world we are going to eat for dinner...

Yankee Love

This time of year brings one thing to mind...BASEBALL!

On September 22nd, the New York Yankees baseball team played their final game in Yankee Stadium in New York City. The old stadium will be demolished so a new stadium can be built to replace it. Travis is a long-time fan of the Yankees and he is so disappointed that he never had the chance to watch his favorite team play at Yankee Stadium. We have always dreamed of visiting Yankee Stadium together someday. Now, when we finally go it will be to the new stadium.

One of our dating memories that stands out to me is the time the Yankee's won the World Series in 1999. Travis was watching the big game at my parents house while I was doing homework. How boring was I? Now I know that was love that he chose to watch the game alone instead of with his buddies. I had no clue how big it was.

Here we are at a Halloween party in October 1999 at my parents' house in Provo. These pictures were taken at about the same time the 1999 World Series occurred...

When they won, Travis screamed and jumped up and down. Then as we all watched him with wide eyes, he ran outside to race around and around my parents' house. All the while, yelling at the top of his lungs. Then he came in all red faced and bouncing around like Tigger. That's when I realized that this guy was quite the Yankee's fan. I love him for it and even though I'd say baseball is my favorite sport to follow, he has me beat by a home run. Travis LIVES for baseball season. He knows all the history of the team and would smoke anyone on Yankee trivia. To top it all off, we got married right during the World Series in 2000 (and hunting season for his dad). Yes, Travis watched the highlights during our honeymoon and I was being so distracting. Looking back I can't believe that I didn't fully understand the magnitude of that. He chose me over baseball. It makes me all foggy eyed to think about it.

I think he fell in love with me when he found my autographed Dale Murphy baseball in my mom's curio cabinet. The fact that Dale Murphy was my mission president in Boston, Massachusetts, just sealed the deal. Just kidding! But it is true that my autographed baseball has now found its place in Travis' lineup of collected baseballs. He would REALLY love me if I ever surprised him with tickets to a Yankee's game. And I would love to see a Boston Red Socks game. The wheels in my brain have been turning for 9 years now. One of these days I'm going to knock his socks off!

It's a date!

This week I got asked out three times by three different boys! Yeah, it's still legal and I loved it!

First date, Justin asked me to go see his teacher at back-to-school night. He watched the calendar AND the clock for a week before to make sure I was still planning to go and would not be late. The kids weren't invited, but it still counts as a date because I went just for Justin and ended up being the only parent meeting with his teacher during the second session. So I enjoyed getting to know his teacher, Mrs. Anderson. She told me that she has enjoyed having Justin in her class. She is happy that he is good at following instructions. Keep up the good work, Buddy!

Second date, Tyler took me on his first preschool field trip to the library on Thursday. We cuddled during the library's story time as we listened to stories about rats and mice. He told me I could go run some errands while he picked out some books "by mine-self". He's my independent guy! He told me I could come on this outing with him if I brought lots of bread to feed the ducks and geese in the ponds behind the library. (I freeze lone bread loaf heals and then combine them into a bag so we can share the love with all the quackers. Boy were those happy ducks! And yes, they like frozen bread.) We walked around the ponds with my friend, Adrianna, and her cute kids. The kids had a lot of fun crunching in the fallen leaves and hiding behind the big tree trunks.



On a side note, Tyler is totally potty trained now! Yippee! I can't believe it only took ONE DAY! Of course, this totally came from him and I don't think I had anything to do with it. When he decides to do something, he's going to do it by himself! I always made fun of those books about toilet training in just one day. I didn't think it was possible. Boy was I wrong! I think I like being wrong!

Third date: Last the best of all the game! Travis took me to a Counting Crows/Maroon 5 concert in Vancouver, WA. We took advantage of our trip through Portland with no kids in tow and stopped at IKEA before the concert. Our quick 45 minute shopping trip was worth 2 hours for sure if we had been chasing kids around the store. Travis is going to be a busy boy this week assembling away.


The concert was awesome! Travis has been a huge CC fan for a long, long time and has been so keyed to go see them again! I am more of a M5 fan, so we were both happy to be there. I loved seeing him groove to the music with the biggest grin on his face!