Calvin's Baptism Day

 

Calvin decided to be baptized yesterday, October 13, 2012 at 12:00 p.m. at the Rio Rancho Stake Center in Rio Rancho.  We are so pleased with him and his decision to become a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  He said that he felt so clean and pure when he came out of the water.  He is a sweet and good boy.  Noah and I feel so blessed to be his parents.  It was a wonderful moment to share with him.

I was lucky enough to give the talk.  Cyrus and Wyatt did as best as they could although they were pretty restless by the end. He chose Burger King as his memorial lunch celebration.  He dined on a cheeseburger, fries, and chocolate milk.

We feel so blessed to have the gospel and proud of Calvin for taking such an important step in his salvation. We love you, Calvin.

Botanical Gardens, Explora Museum, Cyrus is a Klepto, and the Series "No One Knew They Were Getting Their Picture Taken"

First of all, what kind of mother lets her son go out in this outfit?  Her hat, orange pants, and red shoes??? Who does that?  This Mom.

 Exploring the giant carrots at the Botanical Gardens . . . .

 Sitting on the Giant Ant (or Tant as Cy says) at the Botanical Gardens . . . . 

  . . . climbing the bamboo and resting on the giant potato at the Botanical Gardens . . . . 

 looking out of the giant log at the Botanical Gardens . . .

 inside of a giant lemon at the Botanical Gardens . . . . (theme of the day, yes, you guessed it - - Giant)

We have been to Explora several times (it is the kids museum here), and my kids always love it.  There is so much to do.  That day we sat and built with these pvc pipes for at least an hour.  We were working on a house.  And by we, I mean me and Calvin, and Wyatt.  Cyrus was busy quickly undoing our work behind us.  

 Cyrus later found his knack for building at the blocks.  He was so proud of this tower and said, "Cheese!" for about a solid minute.  

 Wyatt also spent some time building with the blocks and smiling sideways.

 Cyrus is a kleptomaniac.  He is always stuffing whatever he can in his pockets.  This day it was a measuring tape he found at the shadows exhibit.  When doing the laundry, I have found all sorts of goodies: toys, buttons, spoons, socks, rubber bands,  toothbrushes, bits of trash, dry pasta.  Yeah, you name it, he stuffs his pockets with it.  

  . . . . . AND, as promised, the photograph series "No One Knew They Were Getting Their Picture Taken" by various artists in our home.

Wow, Katie, you look radiant after your nap.

 Calvin is excelling with lip pursing.

 I have a sneaking suspiscion that Noah knew this picture was being taken.  Clues: no one else is tall enough to take this picture and the pointing seems very deliberate.  Now we just have to figure out what he was doing besides looking so handsome.

 Wyatt is in the middle of being hypnotized.  "You are getting very sleepy.  Now go clean your room and scratch your Mom's back."  

May and June Recap

As with all great stories, it begins at Costco. Wy and Cy decided to take a break in a display tent one day.  It was a ton of fun until I had to climb in and coax them out.  I had bulk items to buy, and they were not interested in coming out!

We've been enjoying Sonic Happy Hour at least twice weekly.  We've also stopped at every snow cone stand we can find.  

And by the way, I'm missing one of Cyrus' sandals, and I want it back!  Has anyone seen it?  

We spent Memorial Day weekend up in the Jemez letting the kiddos play in the stream and eating lots of junk.  It was so much fun.  We missed Noah because he had to work, but we got to hang with some fun friends.

Cyrus' pants came off mid stream.  He was halfway "nakin" as he would say.  That is Cyrus speak for naked.    

We make a lot more waffles in the summer.  Cyrus grabbed an armful off of the counter and told me, "I yub waffuls."  I heartily agree!

Some crazy extended family stopped in for a couple of days.  We REALLY showed them a good time with a trip to Costco (of course) for churros, sodas, and ice cream.   

Cousin Mania!

Sweet Little Afton (I was so glad that she took a liking to me.  I need a sweet niece to take care of me and Noah when we get old and our sons are off taking care of their wives - - - you know that that is what happens. A daughter is a daughter for life, but a son is a son until he takes a wife.)

Then, we left all of those crazy cousins with the ever responsible Emma (wow! she's an amazing sitter, we came home to a clean house and sleeping kids), and Scott and Lori and Noah and I took the tram up the Sandia (which means watermelon) Mountains and out to dinner.  We had a great time catching up and visiting.  

It was a little high up and a little bit scary as the tram went over each tower.  But we did live.  

We had such a great time with the Super Cruzes!  Come Back Now, Ya Hear!  Now, all the rest of you relative, please come and see us.  We'll take you to the tram and out to Costco.  And if that doesn't seem like it's worth it, just consider that I'll throw in a hot breakfast.  And dinner.  I'll make you at least one dinner.  

Onto some updates:

Noah - Noah finally laid down the law of comfort in our home.  Namely, great TV watching does not happen in a couch/ottoman set up.  Instead, he can only be king of the castle if it involves a recliner.  How could I resist?  How could I keep comfort from the man I love?  We bought two (from Costco nonetheless) and then I sent one of them back.  It was just a little too much comfort for my liking.  But anyhoo, now he is happy.  He has his relaxation spot, and he is generous enough to let the rest of us take a turn every now and then.  Also to report, he will be turning 32 on Tuesday.  Yes, we're cruising into our 30s and loving it.  I have big plans to serve him chicken cordon bleu, fancy potatoes of some sort, a delicious chilled beverage, and some cinnamon sugar concoction in lieu of birthday cake.  See, he does not like birthday cake.  So, we must turn to other dessert choices on his big day.  

Katie - Hmmmmmm, what to say, what to say.  I have been trying to give my kids a summer of their dreams.  So far, we've done a fairly great job.  It has involved, swimming, Sonic drinks, friends, and lots of reading.  We have decided to drastically cut down on our TV time, and so far, we haven't really missed it.  It has really helped improve the arguing that has always been the hallmark of the Calvin/Wyatt dynamic.  So, happy kids=happy Mom.  Writing this makes me say, what do I do all day?  I clean, I cook, I putter around, I organize stuff, I watch HGTV, I pin on pinterest, I take them to the library, I change diapers, I clean the kitchen (what seems like a trillion times a day), I comfort kiddos, I tuck them in, I chat on the phone to my peeps, I go to girl's night out, I go to book club, I help in the Primary, I crack jokes to kids who do not fully appreciate my sense of humor, I paint my toenails, and I sometimes take the kids on a drive when I get bored.  So, there you have it.  I do Mom Stuff, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Calvin - Today Calvin went to the bathroom at church, after a LLLLLOOOONNNNGGGG time in there, he emerged with a tie that was wet from the bottom about half-way up.  I asked him if he got it wet when he was washing his hands (and I was silently praying that this was the source of wetness because I know very well, as do you, that there is only one other source of water in the bathroom).  "No, " he says, " I bent over to pull up my pants and my tie dipped in the toilet."  So, I told him to go in the bathroom, take off the tie, throw it away, and wash his hands.  That tie was dead to me.  He did, and we survived.  Calvin is the creative genius behind many of he and Wyatt's schemes, some of which include: claw machine winning in which they pool their allowance for junk, the pretend zoo which has taken over my living room, "milk trampoline" (yes, it's exactly what you think it is), and Captain Underpants Club.  Just tonight we realized that he has a boil on his butt. And that makes him sad.  We will be working diligently this week to remedy the malady.  

Wyatt - He is the reigning Carrot Peeler in our home.  He peels many for himself each day and many for others as well.  He doesn't like the baby carrots.  No, he prefers that big ones.  I like the crunch from the big ones as well.  It feels hearty, no?  Speaking of eating, he must be going through a growth spurt as he has been eating like a champ.  He seems to be always hungry.  He loves a good ham and cheese and also pizza, of course!  He has fallen out of love with Hulk and instead loves Black Panther.  We know because of the following conversation between him and Noah while watching a Super Hero Show:

W:  Dad, I like Black Panther now.

N: I thought that you  liked Hulk?

W: What?!  Black Panther's sweet.

And so it is, he likes black panther now.  For the record, Dad is Thor, Calvin is Iron Man, Wyatt is Black Panther, Cyrus is Batman, and Mom is Ms. Marvel.  Now you know.

Cyrus:  He has picked up with Hulk where Wyatt left off.  He loves super heroes and he carries lots of them around in a Spider Man backpack.  He also found a Hulk lunch bag which serves a secondary super hero carrier.  I happen to loathe these new hoarding tendencies because it's like having two more children that I have to pack around.  It's hard to snuggle Cy with that huge, overloaded back pack on.  It's also difficult to balance him on my hip when he is hauling all of that stuff around.  If we leave them at home, he is very sad about.  But, alas, I am mean Mom and make him leave the luggage and just take one toy.  Cyrus loves to do just what Calvin and Wyatt are doing.  He says Calvin's name as "Talboiwn" and Wyatt's as "Watt."  Still, he is Cutie.  And still he is sweet.  

I'm Happy to Report That They Inherited My Moves

Birthday, Mother's Day, Field Trips, & Preschool Graduation

. . . and as an appetizer, here is a picture of Calvin at dinner.  He was so hot from jumping on the trampoline that he had to bring the fan out and point it right at himself during dinner.  By the way, this was one of the Top 5 worst dinners I have ever made.  The orange side is not carrots.  It's cheetos if that tells you anything. 

 So my birthday usually falls on the same weekend as Mother's Day.  My gentlemen never disappoint, giving me two separate celebrations.  Calvin made me this beautiful crown.  It was  a little too small for my head, but I taped it on anyway.  I think it was perfect.

 For my birthday, a few of my friends woke me up super early and surprised me by taking me to breakfast.  It was so much fun. They also wrote sweet notes and staked them in my yard. This was a labor of love considering yards in New Mexico are all gravel.  It made my day start so wonderfully.  I have made such amazing friends here.  I think it is safe to say that we know how to have a good time.  

 Wyatt's preschool this year was awesome.  My friend, Lisa, was the teacher.  She is the lady in the back of this pic in the brown shirt.  She was able to get the kids into a field trip to Costco, which you know I wasn't going to miss.  I was lucky enough to be a chaperone and the tour just solidified my deep and abiding love for the wholesale giant.

 It's a good time to like Hulk.  We have been loving all this Avenger stuff.  We have been getting pictures with any poster or cutout we come across.  You can see that Calvin is avenging.

 Our second preschool field trip was to Dion's.  It's a yummy pizza place around here.  I wasn't going to miss this field trip either, especially since they had free pizza at the end.  You can see that Wyatt is throughly interested in what this guy has to say.

 And Wyatt is officially a preschool graduate.  Ms. Lisa said that he is sure to be president, boss of something, or king of the world.  I guess his preschool superlatives indicate that he liked to take charge.

 And here I wanted to show you how cute Cy is.  He (much to Noah's dismay) loves to wear necklaces.  He wears them all the time.  I think it's pretty cute.  I always wanted a girl! And since we never had one, I'll take a necklace wearing toddler instead.

 On Mother's Day we took a drive to the top of Sandia Peak.  I don't know how high it is, but I think VERY.  It was warm in Albuquerque, and it was snowing on the point.  This is a view though it doesn't do it justice.  It was beautiful up there.  Our house, if you could see it, would be in the upper, right hand side of the picture.

 Poor Calvin.  Poor Calvin who looks like he doesn't have arms and is wearing the world's shortest shorts.   He must be over-compensating with his leg, since we can't see his arms.  Can you tell that we didn't know it would be that cold, and that we didn't think we would get out of the car?

 Noah was going to throw Cyrus off of the mountain, but I was able to convince him not to.  You know, since it was Mother's Day and all.  

10 Years = Trip to Las Vegas

It's not quite our ten year anniversary.  That comes along in July, but we decided to treat ourselves to a fun get away while the weather wasn't so hot, and it wasn't so crowded.  We had a wonderful time just hanging out by ourselves and doing whatever we pleased.  My Mom came out and stayed with the boys while we lived it up in Sin City (translated: ate at 4 buffets, stayed up late, lost money on the slots and roulette, saw a live Price is Right, Cirque du Soleil, and Phantom of the Opera, not to mention, we ate and ate and ate and ate). You wouldn't think that two Mormons could have that much fun in Vegas, but we did!

Here at the Bellagio Fountains.  We enjoyed the water show a few times and decided that we liked Sinatra's "Fly Me to the Moon" the best.  (I secretly like "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" the best.  My love for the Fab Four will never die). Did you know that this little pond is 8 acres?  Neither did we until we read about it on Wikipedia.  

 We thought you might like this picture of what the inside of our nostrils looks like while we stand under the gorgeous ceiling in the lobby of the Bellagio.   

 I found this lovely chocolate fountain and had to have my picture taken with it.  I love flowing chocolate.  This gem was behind glass or I might have taken a few sips.

 What would a vacation (or day for that matter) be like without Noah taking a picture of me when I wasn't expecting it.  It's one of his favorite tricks to play on me.  I don't even know what I was doing or thinking.  I may have been daydreaming about our next meal while gazing at the skyline.  It's too hard to say.  

 Later I tried to get him back and get a shot of him mid-bite.  I wish it weren't so blurry.  I also wish that maybe he would have had a stranger look on his face or maybe even a booger hanging out of his nose. All in good fun.  all in good fun.

 We ate a fancy, delicious dinner at a late hour and felt very grown up.  We didn't have to order a single chicken nugget or chocolate milk, and we didn't have to apologize to anyone around us as we were leaving.  It was all rainbows and butterflies.

 As mentioned, we went to a live Price is Right show.  No, we didn't win a single thing, but it was fun to watch and fun to get name tags.  

And I played this ginormous slot machine and won three dollars.  With that kind of winning, I might just start using my grocery money to gamble.  

In case you're wondering, this is what winning $3 looks like:

Not pictured, but to be mentioned:

• We did miss our kids a lot, but not too much.  We had a GREAT time, but we were happy to get home to our babies.  Mimaw Kay had it under control  Phew!
• We liked the Cirque du Soleil show very much, and we liked Phantom of the Opera, but we did get a little, teeny tiny bit bored in Phantom.  No judging please!  
• Our feet hurt.  They hurt a lot.  We were out of practice from our jaunts around the city in New York.  
• We stayed at the Vdara, which we would highly recommend.  It was so nice and fun.  We loved sleeping in.  
• Our bell boy, Zachary, was the closest thing to a best friend that we had there. 
• A Snickers bar from the mini-fridge is $5.  
• Clearly, Noah and I neither knew when to hold them, nor when to fold them.  If we did, we might have made some dough.
• There is a secret path from The Vdara to The Bellagio, and it made our day to discover it.