Keelian's First Cereal Experience

I fed Keelian her first cereal meal a couple of weeks ago. She's been giving all the signs, but I haven't really done it because the boys were such spitters that they didn't do well with solids until about 6 months. Plus, it's time consuming and I've been so busy. But we've done it a few times and she really likes it. The first time was a mess, but she's catching the hang of this eating thing pretty quickly. And whenever she watches me or the boys eating, she just smacks her lips constantly, eyes glued to the food going in our mouths. I think getting her started on solids and getting Creighton progressing on potty training are going to be my goals this month. Heaven help me keep my sanity!

Love this picture - wish it was a little more in focus!
This is her poor little burned foot. More on that next time.

Think Pink!

On Saturday we had a family party at grandma's house with my mom's extended family. So fun to see family! My cousin's wife has recently been diagnosed with breast cancer and so we had a pink party to show her our support.

One of my cousins found this bracelet somewhere. It says, "I love boobies! Save a breast." And he said that the $4 he paid for it went to support breast cancer research.
We all wore pink. And some of the boys shaved their hair. (As Wendy will be soon losing hers, due to chemo.)
A good looking mohawk is a serious and precise business.
We did pink tattoos, pink nail polish, pink streaked hair, and such. This is Wendy teaching another cousin how to do the tattoos.
Yes, I had to go D.I. shopping to find pink for my boys and hubby, but they were all very good sports about it! I have to say that I really admire Wendy for her positive attitude and sense of humor about it all. We're praying for you, Wendy!

Summer is for Swimming!

The boys did swimming lessons for a couple of weeks and loved it! One of my young women teaches private lessons and they took them from her this summer (Stratton has taken from her older sister for the past two summers) and she did a fabulous job with them. Stratton can now swim by himself for almost the entire length of the pool, and Creighton has come a long way towards being comfortable in the water and even doing some strokes. I am all for private lessons; I think it is very worth the investment. (Or maybe I just have had really good teachers for my boys!)

Fourth of July in Murray

I know this is way after the fact, but I just wanted to post a picture of me and my running boy. Stratton and I both ran in the Murray City fun days festivities. I ran the 5k with my dad (our first race together and Dad totally helped me make my goal of running it in less than 30 minutes - I ran it at about 29:50 or so). After me and Dad's race, there was the kids' fun run (1/2 mile) and Dad, Sharlee, and I ran it with Stratton. He did a great job! It was his first race and I was very proud of him.

Dairy Days

Last Friday my mother-in-law and I took the kids to "Dairy Days" down at Thanksgiving Point. They had all kinds of animals to feed, games to play, rides, butter to make, and learning opportunities. Creighton surprised me by riding a pony and really loving it (he's usually scared of any animal larger than he is! It was a hot day but we had lots of fun!

Keelian's Blessing

Daddy's Girl!

(Please don't have a blowout!)

Keelian was finally blessed this last Sunday! We felt very loved by all the support we received from family and friends on this special day. How we treasure our family!

Silly Stratton Sayings

There were some things that Stratton said a few months back (right before Keelian was born) that I jotted down on a piece of paper so as not to forget before I could journal it. Well I found the paper. These all happened on the same night.

I made something for dinner that involved spaghetti noodles that night. Whenever I do that, the boys pull out a noodle or two and it becomes their pet worm. This annoys me. That particular night, I was telling him to put his spaghetti noodle back in his bowl and eat it. This annoyed him. He finally said, "I'm tellin' ya for the last time: they're worms!" He also informed me, "He's seventy-eight and he's almost old!" When he finally did eat his dinner he said, "Mmm, this dinner is fabulug! How do you make it?" And then later in the bathtub that night I heard him hollering, "Bloody booger!" So I went in to see him holding this disgusting booger and he tells me, "I just felt it slime out of my nose." Gross. (But kind of funny!)

And then last week the Poulsens and I took our kids to McDonald's. I had Stratton and the girls in the back seat of the van and they were telling each other how old they were. Then I heard Stratton say, "I don't know how old my mom is, I think she's probably one hundred!" Ah, the perspective of a child!