Our Family

The weather has finally been somewhat decent around here lately. We have made it to the park several times in the last week. We have blown many bubbles and used much sidewalk chalk. Here is shot of sweet Isaac just loving being outside in his stroller. Look at that face...life is good!

We had some friends from Iowa City come into town and we were able to visit with them a little. They have a little boy that is 10days younger than Natali. Natali loved playing with him, more like bossing him around! He was a good sport. How cute is this photo...look at those faces!
This past week was also my birthday week. Yes that's right. In our house it's not a birthDAY but a birthWEEK. It was awesome. Anyway...I felt totally spoiled. Ben and I were able to get out to lunch by ourselves thanks to some great babysitters (thanks!) I had McDonald's breakfast (my fav. ) and spent the day as a family and with friends. I did get some beautiful flowers. I LOVE LOVE LOVE flowers. (I hate buying them because I know they won't last), but when I have them they just make life seem wonderful. I even tired to have a green thumb, we bought some planters and flowers and hung them on our porch. There is something so fulfilling about getting your hands in the soil and planting! LOVE IT!!!

This weekend we were lucky to go up to Minnesota with some friends. When we planned this trip I only had one thought..."I have to get to Mall of America". Ben had been there before but I had yet to have the "experience"! When we started approaching the mall I felt like I was going to explode with excitement!!! I was grinning from ear to ear...and yes...it was AMAZING! We actually only went into one store (it is kind of tricky with three strollers). But I could have spent literally days there. One highlight was the amusement park in the middle. It was a Nickelodeon theme, and they had these Backyardigan figures. The truth is I think I was more excited about it than Natali. I just about started running when I saw them from a distance. I took Natali on a carosel ride and Isaac was such a champ just hanging out in his stroller the whole day. It was nice to get away, even if it was just for the weekend. Here are a few pictures.

This weekend we attended the Rite of Passage ceremony at Ben's school. It happens towards the end of your 2nd year and marks the end of your lecture oriented studies and the beginning of your clinic oriented studies. It feels SO good to have two years under our belts. In May Ben will start in the clinic and get some hands on experience (he can't wait but at the same time is very nervous). It was fun to get out of the house with out the kids, thanks Wilsons! Here are a few pictures, courtesy of other peoples cameras.

Us and friends!

The Guys
Left to Right: Bryce, Phil, Jason, Colby, Ben

Class of 2010 DPM's

Isaac is 8 months old! Oh my gosh, how did that happen???? I love this age though, they start doing so much and are so interactive. It is so amazing to watch him and Natalie interact together. It is a highlight of motherhood. And can I just say that I LOVED Elder Ballard's talk from General Conference. I so needed to hear that! It was amazing and spoke right to me.

Last week we got Isaac and Savannah Wilson close enough on the floor to really interact. Here is the result! GO ISAAC...watch out Savannah!

So why is Natali eating a frosty at 7:45 pm? Um, because she wanted to and threw a massive tantrum until we completely crumbled and folded under her screams and tears. What really happened was she got a sliver in her finger and was complaining that it hurt. So like good parents we tried to look at it and get it out with a needle and tweezers. Well you can only imagine how that went over with Natali...not so much. So with me trying to hold her in a death grip and Ben trying to get it out we ended up bribing her that she could have a Frosty TOMORROW if she stopped crying and held still. We finally gave up on the sliver, but all Natali wanted was the Frosty. And apparently she chose not to hear the TOMORROW part.

Anyway to make a long story even longer...Natali ended up getting a Frosty and staying up way past her bedtime watching a movie and eating a frosty. Why you ask? Aren't I the parent? Shouldn't no mean no? Shouldn't I be able to control my two year old? Come on...let's not kid ourselves...all hail Miss Natali!!!


***We at least did not let her eat it all, I get some points for that...right! I know giving in was a bad choice, but I really didn't want to battle her anymore. Some days I just have to wave the white flag.