We've been...

Playing with Larry

Larry is the bunny that my mom got as a surprise for the boys. They LOVE Larry! He cracks Clayton up. One of our favorite things is taking Larry outside on his leash. Clayton also likes to help feed and groom him. I know that soon these boys will be asking for a pet!


We've also been...
Gardening

Since the weather is pretty perfect here, my parents have been doing a lot of gardening. Noah loves to "help" Grandpa and Grammy garden! He always wants to be in the dirt (but usually he wants to make a mess with it). Hey Justin, when we get home I think we need to let this kid help you with our garden!

He has also been eating a lot of dirt...it makes him so happy! Fortunately, Clayton is quite the informer and is quick to let me know when Noah is "snacking".

Additionally, we've been...
Spending a lot of quality time with Aunt Ash!

Aunt Ash is always ready for some fun! She is so good about coming home from work and scooping Noah right up and taking both boys out to play. (That water gun fight was hilarious!) Clayton loves to spend time with her! She's also a great crafting buddy! She took the time to make these sand pictures with Clayton. My boys are so lucky to have such great Aunts!

Finally, I've been...
Going out to dinner with Jen!

We went to Cheescake Factory (yum) and had this crazy guy as our server:

That's really our cousin Josh, it was so fun to see him! Jen and I had such a great dinner. It was so nice to catch up. Jen, we need to get together again before I leave, I still need to meet Todd!

This weekend Anisha comes back into town (hooray)! We are going to take the boys to the Logandale Fair. I can't wait! I can't believe that we are halfway done with our visit! It's going by so fast!

The Zoo!

On Monday we got a special treat...my mom didn't work and took us to the zoo! We had a blast! Here's what we did:
Clayton got to go into the goat habitat and feed the goats.

We saw all kinds of animals!
Monkeys:

Wallabys (which Clayton insisted was Kanga from Winnie the Pooh):

And all kinds of birds:

We also saw an aligator, a lion, a huge boa constrictor, tons of different lizards, a cougar, an ostrich, an emu, fish, turtles, and several other animals that I didn't even recognize! I really wish I had a better camera! I could have taken such better pictures (...hint hint Justin...)!
They also had all kinds of chickens and roosters running around free; Clayton got to feed them too!

The best was this peacock! It came right up to us and let Clayton feed it! He kept saying, "Wow, it is so so beautiful!" and "That's so pretty!" It really was!

Noah even had a good time! He liked looking at the animals, but once we let him out of the stroller his REAL fun began!
He mostly liked chasing the birds around. I was really nervous that he was going to pull this peacock's tail!

He was so happy and content just to be there!

Both boys also really liked this turtle. Sadly, Clayton face-planted off of it before I could snap a good picture of him!

I tried to get a good picture of both boys, but this was the best I could do (they might not have been looking at the camera, but at least they were both happy):

At the end of our visit, each boy got a souvenir. We tried and tried to talk Clayton into getting some sunglasses or a toy or even something blue or green, but all he wanted was this pretty pink giraffe cup:

It was a great day and a fun outing. Thanks Mom, this was wonderful!

Look Dad! No Cavities!!

Clayton went to the dentist today for his first real check-up. He has been to the dentist's office several times (because that's where Grammy works), but this was the first time he got to be the patient! He did so great!
It started out a little rough. He needed to get x-rays of his teeth, and he was not interested! I went first and got some done to show him that they were "fun", but he was not fooled. I had to sit in the chair with him on my lap, restrained by my arms and legs, in order to get the x-rays done. Actually, he only really whined about the first x-ray. By the time Grammy went to get the second one he realized that it wasn't that big of a deal and he handled it wonderfully!
Then he got to go into a special room with Grammy to have his teeth cleaned. Basically they just brushed really well and used a floride rinse (he's still too young for a real "in depth" cleaning). He was so good that he got a sticker!
Finally, Dr. Peterson (my incredible Uncle Mark) came in. They looked at Clayton's "tooth pictures" and counted his teeth. He was a little apprehensive about sitting in the big yellow chair and having the dentist come at his mouth with tools, but again, he was amazing. He sat with his mouth open and let Dr. Peterson do his thing with almost no complaining! Impressive!
My Uncle Mark was my dentist my whole life (still is) and he has this great way of making kids love the dentist. I have always loved the dentist and I think that, now, Clayton will too! I am so proud of him, he did much better than I could have imagined!! Way to go Clayton!!
Here are the pictures of the big event:
He got to sit in the big yellow chair and brush the big teeth.

So of course, little brother needed a turn!

Here is Grammy showing Clayton his "tooth pictures".

Here is Clayton getting his teeth counted by Dr. Peterson. He was so brave! (notice how involved Noah tried to be...this is becoming a regular occurance, he follows Clayton EVERYWHERE!)

Noah was so sweet at the dentist. I just love this picture of him!

When he was all done, he got a toy for being such a great patient. Grammy was hoping he'd choose this:

(Don't worry Justin...he put that crown right back and chose a monster truck!)
We had such a great time at the dentist today. And, best of all, NO CAVITIES!! Yay! Great job Clayton!

One fun week!

Well, we have been having a great week! We miss Justin a ton and we know that we would be having even more fun if he were here, but other than that, I have no complaints! We are slowly settling into a routine around here, one that I'm sure we will be quite happy with for the next month. We get up and eat breakfast and then it's right outside to play! I love that it's warm enough here to go outside and play at 9:00 in the morning!
Then, twice a week, Clayton has been invited to participate in a "preschool/playgroup" at the house of a very sweet and patient woman in my parent's ward. So I load both boys up in the jogging stroller and we run over there.

Today was "Water Wednesday" so Clayton got to wear his swimsuit and they did water activities all morning. He never wants to come with me when I go to get him.
While he is at the Berkabile's, Noah and I have quality time playing or running errands. I love being able to spend this time with Noah, he's so sweet!
Then, after lunch and naps, it's back outside! This is what we do outside:
Ride bikes.

Color on the sidewalk.

Dig around in the dirt (he's showing me his dirty fingers). I tried to get a picture of him in the act, but I just couldn't get a good one!

Play on Grammy's fun backyard toys.

And play with the "puppies".

Basically, playing outside makes us feel...

(I don't know if you can tell, but he is really getting a nice tan. I'm jealous of it.)
I bring the boys inside just in time to eat dinner and go to bed. Clayton is so tired at the end of the day that he asks me if he can go to bed!!! Then we start all over again! It is soo nice! I love this weather!

Sadly, we had to say goodbye to Anisha. She had to go back to work and her hubby, Ben. We miss you Nish! Hopefully we will see her in a couple of weeks though for the Logandale Fair!!

Sorry about the ultra-detailed narrative, but I want Justin (and everyone else) to have a good idea of what we are doing and how much fun we are having!

Our traveling adventure!

We made it to sunny Las Vegas! I already have a sunburn (seriously, I love it)! The trip was long, but the boys were great (even though they were sick). We started out with a three hour drive to Manchester, New Hampshire. To make this trip, we rented a mini-van and I have to say...I WANT ONE!!! I never thought I would be the mini-van type, but I am now. It was such a smooth ride and you gotta love the two TV's! So here I am with my new love:

Once we arrived at the airport, we had a three hour flight to Chicago. Since both boys were sick and they had slept on the car ride, I was really nervous. However, they both did fine. Noah was slightly grumpy, but (fortunately for us) there was a screaming little baby in the back of the plane, so no one even noticed Noah! Here are the boys with their aunts on the plane:

Once we got to Chicago, we had a two hour layover before our four hour flight into Vegas. The boys were so good! We got so many compliments on this flight. After we landed I even had one woman say, "Oh my goodness, I didn't even realize that there were kids on this plane. They are so well behaved!" (Obviously she doesn't know them TOO well.) I was really impressed with how well they did. I must say though, that we flew with some really nice people. Even when Noah would get fussy or Clayton would get restless, no one was rude or impatient with them. That was a blessing.
We got into Vegas at 7:15 Vegas time (10:15 VT time). Poor Noah! He didn't nap one bit on the planes so he was exhausted! He fell asleep on the drive to Grammy's house and would not be woken. It was a long trip, but I am so glad to be here (and so glad we don't have to do that again for a month)! I am also really glad that Ashley and Anisha were with me. I don't think I could have done this without them!
Here are a few pics from our first few days here:
Noah took a bath in Grammy and Grandpa's sink. It was really fun! And yes, that is a tattoo on his arm. Thanks Aunt Ash and Aunt Nish!

Yay, the boys can finally play outside (and wear SHORTS!)!!

Noah didn't know what to think of the grass (it had been too long since he'd seen some).

Well, this is the beginning of our Vegas adventure. We miss Justin and wish he were with us! However, it is nice to be here and be with family that we rarely get to see. It's a real treat! I hope I can post fairly often so that Justin can be kept up to date!

So long winter!

Well, the time has come for us to go to sunny and warm Las Vegas! I am so excited to see my family! We are going to miss Justin though. I have never been away from him for this long and it makes me sad, but I know that he will be able to get a lot done here without us!
I will try to post while we are on vacation, but no promises!

Here are some pics from our Easter. I tried to take some cute ones of both boys together but, those of you with more than one kid can back me up, this is nearly impossible. I had to settle for a pic where they are both looking my direction. I hope you enjoy!!
Searching for Easter baskets.



Here are my handsome men in their Easter finest! They both look so grown up, I can't believe it!



The boys and their super cute aunts!

I have more pics from my sisters' visit, so I will try to include those in a later post! For now, wish us luck on the plane (both boys are sick)! Sin City...here we come!!!!

When it's too quiet...

...bad, bad things happen!!! What am I going to do with this boy!?!