Quick update...

Happy New Year 2014. I have pictures I need to post from Halloween, Paisleys 2nd birthday, new nieces and nephew, CamShans wedding, Thanksgiving and Christmas but I thought with the few minutes of quiet time I have right now I'd just do a quick post. Otherwise this stuff might never make it on here. 

We're excited to be expecting baby #3! I'm a little nervous to be out numbered but it will be great. I'm excited for the kids to have a baby in the house to love on. When we brought Paisley home as a newborn Beck really had no interest because he was still kind of a baby himself. This time around will be fun to watch. I love watching them with baby nieces and nephews. They are so sweet with them. Maybe too sweet at times. I've been really sick this pregnancy. I wasn't very sick with the first two so this is a whole new experience and it stinks. Especially because Beck and Paisley are so active and it's hard to keep up. I feel like a super bad mom these days and poor Justin has to pick up the slack... a lot of it. He's a good man. I'm also getting really fat really early haha. Below is a picture is me at eight weeks! I can hardly eat a thing yet I'm growing like a cow! I'm anxious to feel somewhat normal again. But I feel very blessed. 

Below is the latest family photo, taken with Justin's iphone. The last six months have been so busy we didn't have any family pictures taken. This was taken last week at the Ice Castles in Midway. We went with Oakley and Scotts little family and with some of their fun neighbors. It was cold. The kids loved it. They sang songs from the movie Frozen as we walked through. Oh and also licked everything. Paisleys poor little tongue got stuck for a couple of seconds on some ice and she cried for five minutes straight... but then got over it and continued licking everything again. The Ice castles are frozen fountains formed in tunnels and shapes created by a local artist. They light them up at night. It's really beautiful. The kids thought it was the coolest thing. After our trip there we grabbed dinner at a little chinese restaurant (our favorite Midway restaurant Tarahumara was closed) and then stopped to visit Justin's cousin Noelle and her family. We had a great time catching up with her. The kids loved playing with her kids, toys and cat "Pierre". Fun night.

Beck is now a big tough Sunbeam in the primary at church. He loved his first day but had a hard time letting me go. When the kids were asked what Heavenly Father gave us for Christmas, Beck raised his hand saying "me! pick me!!!" and shouted "Ninja Turtles!!!"as the answer. It was pretty funny.

Church is now at 1:00pm... which is nap time... Paisley needs her naps lol. Sundays are going to be rough this year. But she's such a cute little crier. Unlike her mommy. 

We're exited for a new year full of possibilities and a growing family. Life is hard but good. I'm trying harder than ever to enjoy the special little moments day to day and to stress less over dirty clothes and and crayon on the wall. I'm grateful for the blessing of family and for the wonderful gospel that guides our lives. Bring it on 2014!  

Beck's Nightly Reading

Tonight we had the Montagues over for dinner. After our plates were clean and the kids were up from the table running around like animals, Carley and I ran to Walmart and to get a treat for our families. It was nice to get out of the crazy house and leave the boys to babysit for a bit. By the time we got home and ate our treats the kids were exhausted and so were we. I think I started getting pajamas and toothbrushes out before our company had even walked out. By the time the kids were dressed and toys put away I was a ball of frustration eager to get them in bed but when we sat down on the living room floor for scripture and prayer (which we usually breeze through because the kids are all over the place) it all changed. Sweet Beck asked to read The Book of Mormon and we let him. His words were adorable and I felt so blessed as I listened. He started out with something along these lines...

"About the Book of Mormon there were swords and Nephi's pirate ship with good guys and bad guys. Monkeys in the forest saying oooh oooh ahhh ahhh in da trees. Jesus loves me and saves me from the monsters."

There was more talk of swords and bows and arrows and monsters and Jesus. His sweet and innocent translation of what we read each night made Justin and I smile. Paisley wanted a turn next and held the book quietly singing "Book of Mormon Stories". So cute. We are so grateful for these sweet and perfect little spirits. They bring us so much happiness.

Paisley

Paisley brings so much light into our home. She is so full of energy and smiles. I notice the older she gets, the braver and more opinionated she gets. Paisley will jump off anything and go down every slide and up every ladder. I think "no!" is her most frequently used word these days. And if theres something she wants, she doesn't give up easily. This girl knows what she wants and she's not afraid to tell you.

Paisley is very sweet though. She gives the sweetest kisses with a biggest pucker holding the back of your neck with one hand.

She loves singing songs. Her favorites are The Turtle Song and I Love to See the Temple.

Paisley is starting to get into princesses. She loves Ariel and walks around the house singing like her in a little raspy voice, eyes open wide and very serious. So cute.

Paisley is a little copycat and loves to follow Beck around. They are such cute little friends. Beck keeps telling Paisley that she can be a ninja turtle like him and she responds "yeah, okay Buck!".

Paisley is a great sleeper. She sometimes giggles when I put her in her bed. She loves her blanket and wads it up by her face to sleep.

Beck just started "preschool" (mother goose time co-op with some of our friends) and goes twice a week for two hours. Last week was our first week and although it felt so weird dropping Beck off and leaving, it was nice to have the one on one time with Paisley. The first day she and I walked around PetCo and looked at fish and birds. Paisley broke a fish tank decor toy within the first five minutes but it was still so fun. Luckily the lady at the counter gave us a break assuring me it happens all the time. The second day we just ran errands but I could tell she loved the extra attention. I'm so grateful for the special relationship I have with this sweet little sassy thing.

Paisley loves animals and babies and walks around the house patting their back and reading them books. She loves tasting everything, from rain puddles to dog food. She loves to hug and hit new friends. Her mane of hair is often hanging in her eyes but she doesn't seem to notice. She can get messier than most little boys in a matter of seconds but she loves to look at herself in the mirror and tell us she's pretty.

Even though Paisley is still so young, I can can tell she will grow to be such an individual. She isn't much of a pleaser but can be so sweet and soft. She is so strong willed and curious.

Paisley loves wrestling with her daddy and snuggling with me. She bring such a sweet and fun spirit to our home and we are so lucky she's ours.

Beck

Beck is growing faster than a weed and it breaks my heart. But I am loving and am amazed by all the new things he's saying and doing. He has such a sweet heart and an adventurous spirit.

Beck is finally potty trained! Well for the most part, still wearing diaper to bed. I think he's so stinkin' cute running around in his little undies. He loves our cheering after every trip to the bathroom and reminds us he's a big boy.

Beck is getting freckles! I loves his little sun kissed face sprinkled with spots.

Beck can say The Pledge of Allegiance all by himself. We used to tell him to look for american flags when we drove places to keep him busy and then would say it after spotting one. He quickly picked up on it and now he repeats it every time we pass a flag holding his little hand over his belly.

He can also say The First Article of Faith. While first learning it he would say;

"We believe in God the ninja turtle, and in his son, Jesus Christ, Amen, and in the Holy cow".

He finally has it down correctly.

Beck loves the water. We were in California visiting the Clark farm a couple of weeks ago (pictures coming soon), and he swam all day every day. He would dive into the splash pool and swim back and forth under water while holding his breath. He was a little nervous in the big pool but he can totally swim! He's such a little fish.

Beck is so great with Paisley. I love hearing his little voice on the monitor in the morning (the mornings he actually wakes up in his bed and not ours... something that isn't super common the past few weeks) and hear him telling Paisley she's a "sweet girl" and "it's time to wake up and play".

We are starting a neighborhood co-op preschool group next month and I'm really excited. I think he'll love it. Beck is starting to show so much interest in learning and it's pretty amazing the things he picks up. Yesterday I told him to stop splashing Paisley in the bathtub and his response was "I'm not a child!"... I couldnt stop laughing because it caught me so off guard.

Beck keeps telling us he wants a big dog named Dude. We just had him tested for allergies and of course he's allergic. They told us to wait on pets until he's a little older. He's also allergic to every weed and grass outside. The worst.

We love our little Beck and although we wish he could be a baby forever, we sure love watching him grow into such a fun little boy. He's daddy's best bud and mommies little sidekick.

Beck is a BIG BOY!

Beck turned three today and I can't believe it. I love this crazy little shark wannabe more than anything and feel so blessed he's mine. Justin and I somehow pulled off an awesome birthday for him even in the midst of Aunt Summie having baby Rhea the night before, me getting food poisoning, Justin spending the whole night before moving a lady from work, Clark family being in town, and Beck having a double ear infection. Crazy week. But it was so fun and so worth it. He had a blast.

We did a shark themed birthday party and got him a new bike. He was so cute in his excitement. He woke us up at 6am so we took him downstairs where his new bike was waiting and straight outside where Justin helped him ride up and down the street with Paisley chasing after. My heart melts watching my babies with their daddy. We borrowed mini pools for the party and bought one for the kids to swim in. They played and ate snow cones and cupcakes all afternoon long. It was great. Justin BBQ'ed and I made other goodies and decorated. I even painted a shark with a face cutout for the kids to take pictures with or ball toss in. I found shark shaped water guns at the dollar store and blew up a bunch of beach balls. We had such a great day celebrating Beck's special day and really feel so blessed we have so many wonderful people in our lives. Great family, great friends, yummy food and perfect weather makes for a great day. Paisley was a little fussy when the party started but a bowl of frosting perked her up and she has so happy as she walked around finger feeding herself in the messiest way possible. Beck was in heaven and we loved watching him squirt Papa Rock and play with his friends. We ended the day with a birthday cookie candle and all and sang happy birthday twice upon request. He smiled and giggled with embarrassment and loved blowing out the candle. 

We love you sweet Beck! Happy, happy birthday! You rock our world! 

It seems like just yesterday Justin and I decided to start our little family. I can't believe how quickly time goes by and that I already have two!

{I love this picture. I would ask Beck where the baby was and he's point to my belly and sometimes kiss it. So sweet.}

{We couldn't get a good picture of Beck actually kissing my belly so I bit off a little tine bite of a tootsie roll and stuck it on while i held his hands. Worked like a charm.} 

{In our front yard after naps one day.}

{4th of July}

{Jordan and Cristal's wedding}

sweet moments

This past week has been incredibly busy. I've been scrambling to plan Becksters 2nd birthday, two bridal showers, prepare for weddings and travel, sleep train Paisley, one on one time with Beck, working (jetblue) and then just the normal day to day clean up, laundry and so on. I'm tired.

With that said, I am so grateful for the sweet little moments that make the chaos so worth it. Two nights ago about an hour after putting the babies to bed I dragged myself into the kitchen to do the dishes and clean up before bed. While washing up the pots and pans I heard a whimper break from the monitor which quickly turned into a very loud little Paisley cry. I dried my hands and ran up hoping she hadn't woke up Beck. But there he sat straight up in his bed. I picked Paisley up hoping I could take her out and Beck would just lie back down and close his eyes but the moment I reached for the door knob Beck started fussing "mom mom"haha. So cute. Lucky for Beck Daddy was out in the garage playing with his tools and wasn't around to make mommy put the babies down to cry it out. He is stronger than I am. So I scooped up Beck in my other arm and sat in the rocker with both babies and rocked. It only took Paisley a few minutes to fall asleep again but Beck was just so sweet and cuddley I couldnt make myself move. We sat and rocked for what seemed like long time and I sat thinking about how perfect these two little spirits are.  

I love that Beck has such a vibrant personality. He's at such a fun age. He gasps and gets excited about everything. Amazed by life. His imagination is just taking off lately bringing sticks and rocks to life. Lately he loves sharks. He chases me around outside with bark saying "oh shark" pretending its biting me. He loves to watch bugs and bang on pots and pans and he is so sweet with Paisley. My favorite sound these days is hearing Beck's little voice saying "hi baby" over and over until she looks at him. Adorable. And Beck LOVES his daddy. He loves to sit and read books with Justin and play outside with the soccer ball. And I love how he says mom or "mom mom". Melts my heart. We are working on recognizing pictures of the prophets and the temple and saying the names. The way he pronounces words or the way he copies us is the cutest thing. Also very cute... the love he has for his stuffed moose. That thing smells like death no matter how much I wash it but it is his best friend. His stinky best little bud. 

Paisley is perfect. She has a smile that lights up the room and the sweetest temperment. She loves to watch Beck and laughs at everything he does. she loves to eat and pinch and roll around. She just turned 7 months and is already crawling everywhere. She is fast. I love having a sweet little girl to dress up and play with. I love the way she stares at me while she drinks her bottle as if to make sure I'm still there. She is pretty clingy to me lately and its hard to get chores done but who needs a clean house right? Most of all I love love love to watch her with Justin. Justin is so sweet with her and I know he will be the kind of wonderful my dad was to me growing up. I know how special a father daughter relationship can be and I'm so grateful she will have that. I hope and pray that she and Beck will be best friends since they are so close in age. So far so good. They are cute little buds. 

Justin is wonderful and I feel so blessed to have a husband that changes diapers without being asked and does the dishes. He is so helpful and he's an incredible father. The other night he sweetly hugged me and told me I was a good mom. I'm so grateful for him knowing I needed to hear it. 

Life is good. Even when it's stressful. And we are blessed. 

Good night:)