Spring Break Week

Sunday we drove to PG with the rest of the crew.  It was nice to have Amanda ride with me and enjoy her company.  Mitch took Tanner with him and Tan loved it. 

We spent time during the week playing with cousins, getting to know baby Drew, I sewed, we had a weenie roast at Grandpa's house with our friend the Richards, Grandpa took the boys to a Jazz basketball game, and then took them fishing and hiking another day, celebrated Uncle J's birthday and played at his new house, and we just had a fun time being with those we love.  We drove home on Saturday so we could spend Easter Sunday with our Daddy.  It is a long drive straight through, especially large and pregnant like I am.

Spring Break weekend

The boys and I loaded the car on Friday afternoon and headed off for the week of Spring Break.  We spent Friday and Saturday night in Rupert at Grammy and Granddad's house and it was fun cuz all the Peterson fam was there too.  We enjoyed conference, riding the 4-wheeler (and Tanner learned to drive), blessing new baby cousin Drew, spending time with Aunts and Uncles, and playing and relaxing. 

Nesting? Spring Fever? Bored?

So, I don't know what you call it, but I feel the need to be busy.  So, here is what I accomplished last week.

We needed something to make us be better about our weekly family night.  I have been trying to dream up a great FHE chart that is perfect for us, and here is what I came up with.  It has been mostly done for a while, but we finally got it on the wall and have been using it the last 2 weeks.  It is awesome.  The boys do a great job when they are in charge of lesson, and we are working on sharing our testimony when it is our turn to teach.

 My friend Karrie has these great floating shelves, so Mindy and I went over to her house and had her help us make our own.  It was so fun and empowering because we were able to use the "big" tools and make the shelves all by ourselves.  I put mine in the boys room.  Perfect for our John Deere stuff.

 I had my friend Linda cut out letters with her scroll saw and then the boys painted them and I covered them in scrapbook paper.  I put them on the opposite wall from the floating shelves.  Love them!

 While at the craft store looking for scrapbook paper, we saw this cute easter garland made of plastic eggs that were decorated so cute.  So, we bought our own plastic eggs and got puff glitter glue and had a fun time making our own.

 Braden and I went to the new Good Will in our town and found this horrible bunny.  She was dressed in a very ugly dress and had pink checkered ears that were dirty and falling off.  Braden loved her and wanted to buy her for "ours baby".  I could see the potential so I paid the $3.50 and brought her home.  After going through the 18 months kids clothes I had and my fabric box, our ugly easter girl bunny turned into our cute easter boy bunny.  He is perfect on my shelf!  And Colt was so impressed!

 I am in a fun little craft group and this month we did moss covered letters.  Here is mine.  Tanner doesn't think it matches my Easter decor, but I like it.

 Joann's was having a big fabric sale, and I am ready to start getting ready for a baby girl.  So, after getting ideas on pintrest I decided to go through my fabric box and make a blanket before buying more fabric.  This is how it turned out!  I LOVE IT!  It is bigger than the one on pintrest, but I am glad, and I am going to use the same idea and make a car seat cover.  The strips are all gathered and then sewn together and this one has minky on the back.  I am so happy that I made it all by myself and only had to unpick twice...once when I sewed the ruffle around the edge right sides together instead of wrong sides together, and once when I used the wrong piece and it was too short.  I have really never done ruffles and am just so pleased with how it turned out!

 So, I went to Joann's and bought lots of fabric.  I have big plans for some of it, but some of it I just couldn't pass up.  I LOVE BROWNS AND PINKS!!

 Sunday we needed a new fun treat, so I found a recipe for pie pops and just tweeked it a bit and made them more like pie cookies.  Tanner and Dave ranted and raved at how yummy they were.  We bought a bunch of frozen fruit from Cash and Carry and have been using it for smoothies, pancakes, etc, and it was perfect with a little clear jel and sugar as pie filling!

 We have SERIOUS fighting, arguing, temper tantrum, lying, hitting, grumping, yelling, and unhappy kids and moms in our house.  I decided that something had to be done.  So Dave and I put our minds together and with a little help from pintrest we came up with a new job chart and reward system.  Today is day 2, and I am so happy to say we had no fights or grumpies yesterday, my dishwasher is unloaded before school, homework and piano is one before dinner, and the rooms are clean and stuff picked up before bed!  What a kid won't do for a colored ticket!  So pleased!

So, I might be a little tired and sore and pregnant, and I might like to just stay home and do whatever I want, but I feel pretty good about my projects in the last few weeks!  And, we are headed home for Spring Break on Friday and I simply can't wait!!!

Little Athletes

For most of February and March, Tanner and Colt played city basketball.  Colt was way excited, and Tanner was talked into it, but it ended up being super fun for everyone. Tanner has decided that he likes basketball and got to be pretty good.  We never played games, just learned skills, and then after it was all over we bought a hoop for our yard.  The boys have fun playing ball at home now too.  The boys had 2 friends, Cy and Izzy, play with them, which always makes it fun to know someone, and is great for mom and dad to have someone to visit with during practice.

Leaving on a jet plane

I knew Dave had something up his sleeve, but what I wasn't quite sure.  On Valentine's Day I opened a card from him to find the ticket information for airline tickets to Las Vegas.  We left the following Wednesday, Feb 22 and flew out of Pasco to Vegas that morning.  We flew home bright and early Friday morning so we were only gone 2 nights.  We had made arrangements to go to Blue Man Group that night and stayed at the MGM Grand.  We ate an awesome buffet dinner that ended up coming with our hotel room.  The crab legs, shrimp, prime rib, fish, salads, and other things were great, but nothing compared to the wonderful little desserts.  Had we known, we probably would have started with them!

 The Blue Man Group was so much fun.  We both laughed until we cried. It was worth every penny!

It was a LONG walk for a little pregnant girl to get to the show on time, and then getting back to our hotel was another LONG walk, but it was fun to see all the "sights" on the way to and from. Vegas is a crazy place that really comes to life at night.

Thursday we spent the day doing whatever we wanted.  We explored the different shops and casinos, enjoyed the M&M World, ate when we wanted, stopped when we wanted, and didn't have anyone to check in with or worry about.  It was so fun to just be us and to remember how much fun we really do have when we are together.

 Of course we had to try our hand at a little gambling.  Lost our whole dollar in the penny slots within minutes.  Good thing it was only a dollar!

 Thursday night we went to dinner with friend that moved to Vegas a few months ago.  It was fun to catch up and visit with people we enjoy.  Then we caught more night sights on the way back to our hotel (and of course had to shield our eyes from some of the sights as well.  Definately Sin City!)

Wonderful friends took the boys during the day and at night a couple from the ward came and stayed at the house and got the boys dinner, bed, and breakfast.  It worked out so nicely, and the boys had such a fun time they keep asking when Tyson and Chelsea are coming to babysit again.  I don't think they missed us at all!  And to be honest, we didn't really miss them either!

Feeling sure

I thought I had already done this...guess not.

When we had our first ultrasound at the hospital the ultrasound tech was very "challenged" by the fact that he couldn't tell the gender of our baby.  He told us to come back in 4 weeks and he would look again.  So, at almost 24 weeks, on Feb 16th, Dave and I ran to the hospital and had the tech take another peek.  Here is what he saw:

 This it the 3D ultrasound.  It reall looks like a baby.  She had her arms up by her face the whole time so it was hard to get a full face shot, but I see the little profile of a real baby!!

There is nothing between those little legs!!  IT'S A GIRL!!!

Hearts

Since we had our first theme night, Safari, the boys have been begging to do it again.  I told them we would do it one weekend night each month, so the weekend before Valentine's Day we had heart night.

We had a heart dinner in a wacky menu, the boys picking each item with a name of a valentine word in any order they wanted, and then I decided what each word represented and served it in the order they decided.  So, Brady got dessert first, salads next, and pizza last.  Tanner got his drink and fork and spoon as first course, pizza next, and dessert last, and Colt had his salad first, dessert next, and pizza last.  It was fun to do and everyone had a great time.

Then we played heart search (find the hidden conversation hearts in the family room,) heart bingo, valentine matching games, and told each other why we loved them. 

It was a fun night.