Ode to Insanity

This is a little early, and I'm at work so I'm stealing these picture off my mom's blog.This is a funny, sweet little girl. Dylan was never much of a snuggler, but when she's tired she'll just lay her little head down on your shoulder. It melts me. Also she has the squishiest chubber cheeks on the planet that I could kiss a bajillion times a day.
Her little dimple when she grins, makes you want to see it over and over again. She loves her brother and is always getting in his way. I'd like to think that she loves her mom more, but it might be a toss up. She's getting better and more consistent at signing "milk" and "finished". She hasn't really picked up signing "more" yet. What I really love is that for the last couple of weeks she's started repeating sounds like, "babababa". This doesn't mean "bottle", it's just noise. And even though it's just noise right now, yesterday she started with the "mamamama". Cruising furniture is just beginning. I spend a ridiculous amount of money on clothes for her. I never knew how fun it would be to dress up a little girl.I'm nervous about her having a little play purse and tea set. I'm not sure how to do the ultra-girly thing. The saving grace is how tough she is. She's taken some good hits and spills without too much fuss. Give her another year and she'll really be giving it back to her brother; he'll deserve every bit of it.
Also her hair is starting to come it. I'm a little worried about fixing little girl hair. Headbands have been really easy.

I am about to step on to a BIG soapbox. Stop reading now if you're easily offended when it comes to your kids.

I was at a work party on Saturday and a fellow PT brought her little boy who is 2 months younger than Maisy. Cute kid; except for the helmet. I was flabbergasted. How could a PT let something like this happen? Just because we don't work in peds doesn't mean that we can't notice that our kid's head is always turned to one side creating a flat spot. So what do we do? We stretch them until they're symmetrical. It's what we do. How could you let something like this happen? I can't turn off the PT in me. I hold a kid and I'm facilitating their muscles or challenging them somehow. I can't stop.

Also as a PT we know what normal gross motor development is, and we should be freaking out if our kids aren't reaching those milestones. Just a refresher: (I'm super glad that someone else said this first on instead of me, because I'm strongly of the same opinion.)

Rolling back to stomach - may occur later because we do not place our children on their stomachs to sleep and therefore they are not playing in this position as earlier as children were in the past

3 – 6 months:
Hold head up in supported sitting
Rolls
Weightbearing on forearms, elbows, and hands when on stomach
Reaching with one arm when on stomach
Gross motor skills start to emerge at 4 months therefore increase floor time
Concerns: arching back – this prevents normal development

6 – 9 months:
Transitions into sitting from all fours
Sits independently
Uses trunk rotation
Pulling up to knees
Crawling
Protective reactions
More floor time – develop proximal control in shoulders for use later (handwriting)
Look for a variety of movement patterns
Spend less time in walkers and saucers – these increase toe walkers

I don't care if you sleep your kids on their back. SIDS is scary. But they need to spend every waking second (exaggeration) on their stomachs to ensure normal development. The fact that both of my kids crawled at 6 months does not make them freaks. So everyone quit being surprised. And to quote another study that I don't have the reference for kids need a minimum of 81 minutes of tummy time/day. Their back sleepers, they hate being on their stomachs. I get it. Be the parent and do what's best for them. Increase it slowly everyday, until they tolerated it better.

Sometimes I wonder if the head shaping helmets are some kind of racket with SIDS studies. No one is going to do a study to see how real SIDS is. In the mean time, kids have an increase in torticolis and flat heads. As a PT I should be stoked that the torticolis is increasing business, but seriously those head shaping helmets are around $3500. We know that cost is crazy inflated because it's a medical supply, but still.

Deep breath. Step off the box.

Dylan was in rare form tonight, so I pieced together this video. Just so you can follow it: he starts by calling in his "band mates", then sings Sugarland's "Stuck Like Glue", followed by some soulful crooning, and ending with the giant from Jack and the Beanstock. Enjoy.


But I couldn't leave out this Little Bit of drooly cuteness. What a great Saturday night.

Not because we won. I never even finished a round. But because my grandma rode with me. It was so great to see her on a horse and ride with her. I also had my own cheering section which made me smile. We had a great event and raised the most money yet.

So to review my New Year's Resolution, it's a little disheartening.

1. Make a good friend in the new ward: kinda there; not BFF's, or call to talk to just because, but good to chat with in RS

2. Double my food storage: didn't happen. We've been eating through it at a rapid pace due to decreased grocery shopping habits.

3. Let Sampson hit full speed without being scared: barely ridden the old boy this year. Having a new baby makes it tough.

4. Win a sorting event: let's hope this happens at our fund raiser Saturday.

5. Find and participate in a Ride and Tie race: I've been researching this and the closest ones are in CA and NM. Too far to trailer a horse then race.

6. Don't eat more than 3 cookies/day: Definetly on this one since I started exercising again. Before, it was hopeless.

7. Learn to make 3 new dinners: I think I have this one down.

8. Lose 25-30 lbs: I think maybe I have 5-10lbs to go

9. Go camping to someplace new: So didn't happen

10. Take 10,000 steps/day: I never got a battery in my pedometer. Most days I'm really feeling like I've taken 10,000 steps.

11. Be more sincere: I hope I've improved with this one. I want to be a compassionate person, but it surely doesn't come natural.

12. Read only Church lit. on Sundays: Still don't have this one down.

13. Clear the wake with a grab: Got it, if just barely.

14. Do 1 tri-sprint and 1 10K: There's still time for a 10K. It could happen.

15. Have FHE every week: We're doing much better on this one.

They were all attainable goals, and yet I haven't done a great job. I'm a little disappointed because I know I could do better. There's still time for some of them.

I've noticed that the more I stay home, the fewer things rock my world. I just stay in a bubble thinking about how great my kids are. So for a change of direction; Wes and I went to California last weekend where I had a running conference and he went to play with friends. We ditched the kids at my mom's house and snuck in a few hours at Disneyland; the happiest place on Earth.

This is what I observed in my jaunt to the wide world. A few years ago I was somewhat behind this emo style. Now it's ridiculous. Why would boys and girls want to date each other when they look alike. Same clothes, same haircuts, same eyeliner.I'll admit I went through a dressing like a boy stage and about killed my mom when I bought boys shoes.I've had boy short hair and no figure to speak of.I shocked my brother when I bought a pink, flowered, sparkly wakeboard while on his mission. But at this point I've pretty well embraced being a girl, and think nothing is more fabulous than shoes like this... And maybe someday I'll stop wearing watches that look like this...I just wouldn't want to makeout with/grope someone who looked that much like me.

So we had an experience tonight that makes me want to bust. My kids got through to Wes' stone cold heart. His brother frequently asks me if Wes is dead inside. I'm not saying that it doesn't make him happy that Dylan gets so excited when he comes home, or occasionally he thinks Maisy is cute; but it's pretty fleeting. But it's not on a regular basis that he thinks our kids our so freakin' great that he almost wants to gush about them. And by gushing I mean he said, "that was a Kodak moment." I feel like I have about 50 of those a day.

Anyway tonight the kids had a bath; Maisy was done first and playing in the hallway outside the bathroom. She thinks her brother is so fantastic, that she's usually pretty content if he's just nearby. After a little bit, Dylan said he wanted to get out so he could play with Maisy. I have a feeling Dylan is not that different from most 2 year olds, that he's rarely interested in his baby sister, and usually only interacts with her to humor me. So they played for a little bit, then it was time to say prayers for bed. I was just going to hold Maisy, but Dylan wanted me to put her in his bed. So after prayers he climbed in next to her and wanted her to stay and sleep with him. Of course every time she looked at him she busted up laughing and it's the best sound in the world. It was too tempting to leave her there, but I'm pretty sure she'd fall out of his bed and not for the first time. Anyway, I'm always thrilled when something good can get under Wes' skin. Especially when it's as simple as our kids being happy.

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That's the name of the co-ed softball team I'm on, due to sheer coersion on my brother's part. These are our intense shirts.(this picture does not do it justice for it's reflective nature.)I played quite a bit of rec league softball through jr. high and high school, but not more than whiffle ball since. Turns out I still have cleats, but no mitt. Evan and I have enjoyed the occasional game of catch over the last 10+ years since I've played, but I have not swung a bat.

Here's the run down of tonight's recent events. I struck out my first time up. I can't remember striking out since I was a sophomore and my boyfriend came to watch the game. (I was intimidated because he was on the school baseball team.) So embarrassing anyway. I was working right field the entire game, completely to my satisfaction. I wouldn't want to be anywhere else, because apparently when I get the ball my instinct is to throw as hard as I can with very little aiming. Bottom line: we lost the game 20-8.

Lo an behold, there would be a second game tonight. Yes, a double header. Information that would have been good to know ahead of time, before I brought my kids. The overall rundown goes as follows: I got out twice running to second (implying I did eventually hit the ball); I hit a ball into the outfield and felt pretty awesome about myself until they caught my fly; I missed a fly ball while working the right field, but I did make friends with a blue piece of plastic. Most importantly, I caught a fly ball...with the wrong hand!I don't know how well you can see the bruised spot just below my middle finger, but it's swollen too. Man that hurt. So I stopped the fly with my right, brought it to my mitt, it bounced out of my mitt, then I still caught it somehow. My right hand would barely respond to throw it in.

We did win our second game. Now I'm going to ice my hand.

For everyone, including me, who thinks Maisy looks like Alayna. I think this pretty well confirms it.

2 Chronicles 32:7-8
Be strong and courageous, be not afraid nor dismayed for the king of Assyria, nor for all the multitude that is with him: for there be more with us than with him:

With him is an arm of flesh; but with us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles.

I thought this was comforting for our time. We aren't fighting Assyria, but sometimes it feels like there aren't enough of us to make a difference. I think there probably are more of us than we realize and the Lord is on our side.

In the beginning, I was worried that Dylan would never warm up to Maisy. Now he's accepted her as a fact of life that's not going away. But tonight after baths, Dylan had her laughing more than I've ever heard. After a 10 hour day at work, and Wes at "man movie night" it made my heart happy. Having your kids laugh and play together is pure joy.

On a side note, I never thought I'd like going through this first year again. And I still think all this dependence is hard. But I want to freeze my kids so they stay like this forever. Dylan can always be two and a half and Maisy can be 4 months. Dylan is never going to get the backpack he wants so he can go to school, he's going to stay home with me and little forever. I never want him to stop saying the funny innocent things that he says. And Maisy is so sweet. You can cuddle her, she loves to smile and giggle. She's a stinker that rolls over because she can not because she wants to. And she loves her mama the most, and that's okay. I just can't kiss the 2 of them enough.

So in sacrament meeting on Sunday the scouts were reporting on scout camp. The first kid gets up and pretty quick off mentions how this year he brought chips for the poker game. I'm not offended by this, but I know plenty of people who would be.

Next up is a leader who mentions how he feels privileged to have been invited to the poker game. Really, so you were endorsing this?!?! It's one thing to know it's going on, perhaps say, "You know President Hinckley counseled against this?" Then leave them to make their own decisions. But maybe you shouldn't play with them.

The next leader, the YM Pres, gets up and says, "Don't worry. It wasn't poker. It was Texas Hold'em." So perhaps we can say he was innocent of the transgression, because he didn't realize that Texas Hold'em was poker.

Personally, I think this is what should go on at scout camp. You're supposed to do contraband things. Especially, if no one gets hurt. And we were assured by the first kid that no money was exchanged, just chips. No harm, no foul. But I can imagine there are going to be some folks busting down the bishop's door for this.

The weekend is only 1/2 over and we're already exhausted from the celebrating. We started off early Saturday morning with a parade in Liberty. Dylan was really excited because he got to ride a horse in it. (no pictures, my hands were full) From there we were off to Tooele to spend the day with cousins. I've decided that one of the advantages to having 2 kids is so you can dress them alike because it's so cute. But you will not find a picture of them together. A few families in their neighborhood rented an inflatable slide that was sheer chaos.DVS only felt brave enough to ride once most of the bigger kids went home.After that he was going down yelling, "rock and roll!"Once some of the kids started to get tired the grown ups had a turn. It was really fun if you jumped, then you bounced as you slid, hit your heels to end with a tumble and crash. My head was spinning for a while since I did that over and over. Tons of fun though. Not my kid but I really love Canyon's face in this one. I showed it to him, then he wanted me to take more of him, and had to check with me after every time he went down to see if I got a good one of him. I've got to put my favorite sis-in-law Melissa on here because she held my baby the whole time and she's super hot. You would all be so lucky to be related to someone so awesome.

Then time for the rodeo. To me a rodeo is about as American as it gets. I cry at the opening of every rodeo where they acknowledge all the armed forces and sing the national anthem. I wish I were awesome enough to compete in a rodeo(doing what, I don't know), but maybe I would just settle on being the girl that rides around with the flags. It's closer to my skill level. Evan and Whitney joined us for the rodeo. I would like to say we ended this crazy day with the beautiful sunset followed by fireworks.But no, we don't know when to quit. We went back to Matt and Melissa's to watch the UFC fights. Or at least the parts I could unglue my eyelids for. Happy Birthday America!

It's been a long time since I've blogged about anything but my kids. Since moving we now have basic TV channels in our room. We didn't have any TV at our last house and we still don't in the rest of the house. But since having Maisy I'll lounge on our bed to feed her and I'll turn on the TV. I am truly irritated when companies use foreign accents to sell their products. I realize that research shows people fall for this ploy all the time, but I don't think that someone with an accent is more sophisticated, cultured or educated than I am. So why would I do what they say. Seriously why would I buy insurance from a lizard with a British accent, or allergy medicine from a bee that sounds like Antonio Bandaras.

Also that Abby Barnell, or whoever she is, that does the radio news updates with the accent makes me want to tear my eyes out. I can't stand her, I think she's snobbish. I don't really know her, I just don't want to listen to her.

My sister, Michelle, said it best so I'm just going to copy it. This is who he was for us.

Thanks Uncle Wayne for being a constant in our lives. You were always there, you never moved away from us, you never changed your beliefs, you were always there to entertain us, whether it was a joke, a cartoon voice or sing to us. I think you knew so much trivia that you could have put my husband to shame. Thanks for sacrificing so much to be our Uncle here on earth, I will miss you!

Once I start sewing one thing, I can't stop. I want to just make more things, regardless of whether they are necessary.

This first set is necessary. I needed padded covers for my new trailer/jogger so the nylon straps didn't cut into my kids necks. To take the new stroller and covers for a test run we went roller blading. Unfortunately Maisy needs to grow a little to really fit. And this is what I look like after my first aerobic workout in 2 months.

Then just because I liked this material and I felt that I needed a bag for the library, I made this.Please pretend like I don't have a closet full of bags that could do the same thing.

In the middle of all this sewing we had a couple of bloody noses. This is what one looks like mostly cleaned up.I feel like I need to teach Dylan to say, "You should have seen the other guy." Poor kid. I had to take a picture because I just couldn't believe the amount of blood.

So, I trying to copy Claire's cute headbands this is what I came up with. It's a little big and unproportional to Maisy's tiny head, but I think it's moving in the right direction. All of these were just scraps of material I had left over from other sewing projects, so this headband isn't exactly the cutest material. But try to catch the vision.

So we had our first waterski trip of the season. Hopefully the first of many more, since it rained almost every weekend last summer.

Dylan was very excited to drive fast and splash off the swim deck. The real danger in letting a 2 year old drive is you have to have room for a full serpentine pattern. He turns the wheel all the way one way then back again. But he was not too happy about me taking a picture of him in his cute suit before we left. Maisy on the other hand looks adorable even though she had been crying too.
I was really surprised when Wes got right in to wakeboard. He hasn't done it much since he broke his eye in a face plant a few years ago. And I thought he'd wimp out from the cold water, seeing as how it's still so early in the year. Well the water was 71 and Wes was going for it. As a side note, I'm really impressed with Wes. He's biked to work the last couple of days in an effort to get into shape. Heaven knows it's not to help the environment. He says he needs more leg strength and endurance for wakeboarding and skate boarding, so he can do what he wants. I'm very proud, but we'll see how long it lasts.

Dylan was a cheerleader, clapping and saying, "Good job, Unc Ev." That's when he wasn't putting the moves on Evan's girlfriend Whitney.
Maisy was a trooper in a life jacket that was way too big for her, but the smallest they make. And she was definitely happier when the boat was going.

My pride couldn't let Wes get in and me sit on the boat. So I sucked it up and did a very little bit of wakeboarding too late in the day. The water was really rough, so we'll call it a practice run, seeing how it's the first trip of the season and all. Not because I had a hungry baby on the boat.

We ended the trip in the new tube so Dylan could get out and do something.He has no fear just going back and forth between Evan and I like he couldn't go flying off if we didn't have a hold of him.

I'm lame. I haven't taken my own pictures. I'm stealing these from my mom's blog.

I had my magical 29th birthday on the 29th of May. I would like the point to be taken that I will not get any older than this. It's done. I might reconsider if I can turn 30 on a beach after a good dive.This year we had my birthday party in the back yard. Not because it's amazingly nice, but because the river in the canyon scares me with little kids around. It was great and thanks everyone for coming to the last birthday party I'll ever have.

I have the best husband who got me everything I wanted for my birthday even if he wasn't planning on it. I'm spoiled. I got a bike trailer/jogger, and I've already biked to the grocery store twice with Dylan. On a side note I'm super out of shape and thought my legs would fall off. I have also joined the 21st century by getting an ipod. I'm still not allowed to download songs at our house, but it's a start.

Maisy had her 2 month check up today and though you might not be able to tell from the picture, her head is too small. We have to check back in a month to see if her head has grown together or if we need to get x-rays. All I know is that I don't want to have another baby have a major surgery. This time feels less life and death so I'm not so worried. She's a beautiful baby with wonderfully squishy cheeks that are the best to kiss. She has the cutest dimple when she smiles, and she thinks it's funny to stick her tongue out at you. If she gets upset while on her tummy she pushes with her legs and has done a lap around her crib. And her hair is growing back in quite nicely. There may be piggies by 1 year yet.

This little kid is a chip off the old block. Here he is dressed like his dad. He flips his sunglasses to the back of his head to be like dad. He told me he goes to the "man store" with dad, not mom. Today he told me he needed a backpack to go to school. I told him he had to have another birthday before he could go to school. It made me kind of sad that he wants to grow up at all. I want him to just stay little and drive his trucks all over the couch.

About once a week we go to my dad's shop to have "big fries with Grandpa and Unc Ev". After our lunch Dylan went upstairs to raid the Tootsie Roll bowl, and came down with one in each pocket. My brother grabbed one from him and dropped it down his shirt to hide it from him. Then said, "Look. I'm going to be a magician." So he told Dylan to close his eyes and pulled the candy out of his shirt and told Dylan to open his eyes as he magically pulled it out of Dylan's ear. Of course DVS squealed about it because it was the coolest thing. My brother was feeling like the most awesome uncle in the world. And if it's fun once, then naturally it's still funny a second time. So he did it again, but Dylan didn't think it was as neat this time. Dylan took his candy back from Evan and said, "Unc Ev, close you eyes."

My boy is no dummy.

What makes me the happiest these days is when Dylan says, "Okay, Mom." These two little words are heaven on my ears and my heart. It means he's going to do what I asked without arguing, and I don't have to decide whether or not we have to have a fight about it or not. What may make me the second happiest is to hear, "Okay, Dad." Because that means I'm not going to hear, "I need Mom!" screeched at the top of his lungs. Which is a phrase that may make me the craziest.

The whole family snuggling in our bed on Saturday morning while I doze makes me happy.

Sneaking time to read a book makes me happy as much as a clean house.

That Dylan can say complete sentences that I understand most of the time makes me happy. I love this picture because Dylan is reading a book to Mela. It makes me happy that he thinks she's his friend.
Dylan showing me a happy face makes me happy. Him saying, "I need to kiss you cheek," makes me very happy.

Dylan singing "Sunbeam" to Maisy so that she'll stop crying makes me happy. Then I laugh when he says, "He hurt my ears."

Maisy only waking up once during the night makes me happy. Unfortunately this doesn't happen every night.

Maisy's hair falling out makes me sad. Her male pattern baldness is getting worse, but she's still cute. She's started smiling and cooing a bit and she's adorable.

My husband makes me happy, because he's worked hard doing something he hates. Manual labor. He's pulled out all the awful bushes in our backyard so that someday we can have something nice back there.

Today we were in the backyard blowing bubbles. Mela has to be put in the house while we do this, because she jumps up and tries to eat all the bubbles regardless of who's in her way. So we were all outside, when I decided I needed to call Wes about something or other. Well, Mela had jumped up and hit the lock on the sliding glass door, effectively locking us out. I had to go across the street to the neighbor's to use the phone to call Wes to let us in. Seriously, how did she hit the lock?

Also today, I asked Dylan who loved him the most. When he hesitated, I said, "I love you the most." He said, "No, I love trucks the most." Just in case I was wondering where I stood in my son's affections, it's below trucks.

When Dylan woke up from his nap today, his hair was all wet and sweaty. So he came out telling me that he'd washed his hair, because it was wet. He was just a little confused. Lots of us are when we first wake up.

Dylan has said some things lately that just crack me up and I need to get them down before I forget.

Like: Mom, carry me. I'm too big to walk.

Or: Put him in him bed.

Unfortunately I think my mushy brain has already forgotten the others I was thinking of.

Today I want to quit. Yesterday was insane and I had Wes to help. Today Wes is doing things that need to get done, like digging up the rotten fence posts in the pasture. But that means I am el solo one more day this week. My house is disgusting. I'm disgusting. My kids are starting to border on disgusting. Really we'll all be fine and I'm being a whiner.

Anyone who knows me, knows that I'm not a fan of girls who think they're princesses. But that I can also be a bit of a diva about my hair. So now I have this little girl who is starting in on the hair diva route. Dylan has always and to this day hated washing his hair. Maisy on the other hand thinks it's divine.

So you know in Star Wars III when Anikin says, "If you're not with me, you're against me." Then Obi Wan says, "Only the Sith deal in absolutes." Which is incorrect unto itself by saying, "only." But in Empire Strikes Back, Yoda says, "Do or do not. There is no try." Again that would be a Jedi dealing in absolutes. So does that mean that Obi Wan just has not idea what he's talking about?

Am I getting enough sleep if this is what I'm thinking about while I clean the house?

This sweet little girl was born April 2 at 4:14 PM. She weighed 6lb 11 oz, 20 inches long. It was a super easy delivery and we were able to go home after only 24 hours to be home for Easter. Dylan is not a huge fan of hers but he's doing better today. Whether or not she has bright blues like her brother is yet to be determined, and she has more hair in the sides than on top. She does have a dimple in her right cheek just like her dad. She's pretty precious for only four days old.

Last night around 10 Dylan started screaming, "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!"

Wes went into his room and picked him up out of bed. Rocked him a bit until he calmed down. Then asked him what was wrong.

Dylan: "scared"

Wes: "What are you scared of?"

Dylan: "Monsters"

Wes: "Where are the monsters?"

Dylan: "Under bed"

Wes: "Do you want me to get rid of the monsters?"

Dylan: "No"

Then he just crawled back in bed and went back to sleep. Sometimes he's a strange little kid.

Just last week he was under my bed and told me that was so the monsters couldn't get him.

The logic of a 2 y/o will never be understood.

My friend Erin was making a list on her blog of "freakish tendencies." I thought I'd copy since my list in her comments space was getting too long.

I have a routine I must do before bed in order to sleep. I will add it's been cut down significantly since college, but Wes still makes fun of me.

Most food on my plate can't touch.

I can imagine my thighs/butt growing by the minute if I don't exercise daily.

Once I start cleaning, with the exception of the dishes, I can't stop until the house is done top to bottom.

Never chew/bite on a sucker, or any other hard candy.

Never touch a public door with more than a pinky finger if necessary.

Face lotion must be applied the minute I get out of the shower.

My toenails have to always be painted even when no one's going to see them.

I count when I walk or run by myself. And I make up patterns for stepping over the cracks on the sidewalk.

I have to eat something sweet after every meal except breakfast. It's like my body's way of knowing the chow wagon's closed. If I can't find even an M&M, I will want to keep eating.

I have to clean the tub before I can take a bath.

My cousin had this on facebook. It speaks straight to my heart. I'm glad CNN is pickin' up what's going down. Finally.

My MD committed to induce me next Friday (April 2) if I don't have the baby before then. I guess I should plan a birthday party for Wes this weekend so he doesn't feel overshadowed by the baby coming.

Now I'm going to put on some sweats and pull my hair back. I'm done being dressed for the day.

I occasionally feel like my body is what it used to be. Like my brain isn't registering all this extra weight I'm lugging around. As though I could run outside and start turning cartwheels. I could dive into a swimming pool, run a few miles, touch my toes, ride a horse, ski a black diamond.

Then I go through the effort to change position and remember what reality is.

I'm not complaining. I love the snow, I just wish I could enjoy it a little more intimately at high velocities.

Earlier this week we went to Powder Mountain for a couple of days with Wes family. And we thought this was the perfect opportunity to introduce Dylan to one of our favorite pass times. I had planned on doing it personally much earlier in the season, but we moved, and now I'm grateful that Wes could. I believe in exposing kids early to activities, but not requiring them to attain any skill at the activity. I just want him to have fun at first and he can learn how to do it later (like we did it last summer on the lake.) So Wes started out dragging Dylan around on skis, but by that afternoon he said he could go 15-20 feet by himself. I didn't witness this and I'm kind of sad about it. We also figured since his cousins would be there skiing he would be more motivated to ski, and we were right. This kid worships the ground his cousins walk on.

Speaking of his cousins, they are fantastic and I love them, but they crack me up. While we were swimming, his cousin Canyon who is about 15 months older than Dylan asked how old Dylan was. When I told him he was two, Canyon said, "Oh, he's almost same tall as me." I love seeing those 2 boys play together. Then later that night we put a movie on in 1 condo for the kids while we all went next door to play games. After awhile Dylan came in with a bag of popcorn, all unwrapped from its cellophane, and asked if we'd make it. We did just to keep everyone away and quiet so we could play. Apparently when Wes walked Dylan back over with the popped popcorn, Dylan was applauded by his cousins for mission accomplished. Why wouldn't you exploit the youngest? You've figured out that you'll get said no to.

Sorry to expose you to even more snowman pics, but my kid seriously loves snowmen. Yesterday, Wes took him out in the front yard to make a snow man. I looked out the window after a while to see how it was progressing, if Dylan was freezing, and instead I started laughing. Wes is pulling wood out of the garage to make a ramp to get the second ball on top of the first. I had to put on some snow gear to go help Wes stack the monstrosity. But Dylan did like his big, big snow man.Please recall when I help Dylan make a snowman, it's about the same size he is. When Wes helps, the bottom ball is taller than Dylan. Men. Apparently size does matter.