Another Surprise!

Tanner felt he needed to one-up me so for my birthday he planned a surprise trip to Seattle, where he served his mission 10 years ago. We have always talked about going back to visit but just haven't ever gotten around to it.  We really enjoyed a few days to ourselves (thanks to Connie and Amy G. for watching the kids for us).  Although it rained most of the time I really enjoyed it since I haven't been around moisture for 8 years.  There are a few things I really miss living in the desert. We were able to visit the family of a missionary serving in our ward--Tanner actually served in their ward 11 years ago-- and when they found out it was my birthday they had us over for dinner and made me a cake.  One of the things I really wanted to do was drive over to the coast so I could get a visual of where the Twilight series takes place and hopefully see some filming but I felt like a dork asking Tanner to do that.  Maybe next time.  We did make it to Pike's Market in downtown and then to the Seattle Temple. Washington really is beautiful and I miss that kind of color here in Nevada.

An old man

A few weeks before his birthday Tanner informed me that I had never thrown a party for him (because I never really had a reason to)! So I planned a surprise party and had lots of friends show up.  He was very surprised and felt loved to have so many of his close friends. Thanks to all who came out. At Wild Island we had our own bowling garage with four lanes and lots of pizza and cake. They let the "birthday boy" get inside the wind tunnel and catch as many free vouchers as they can. I don't think they plan on big ol' bear paws like Tanner's--he caught about 30.  They limited him to 10. All in all it was very fun and because of all those free vouchers we get to go back all year long!  Woohoo!

Hudson Turns 1!!!

Hudson gave us a rough go at first and never did get the hang of being a good sleeper until just recently. Fortunately he's a very silly little b

oy and keeps up laughing all day long.  We have a tradition of getting our baby's their own little ca

ke on their first birthday. Hudson didn't know what to do with his. After about five minutes of looking at it I had to shove it in his face. Then he loved it!  He likes to fling his hands in the air whenever there's something on them so I ended up having to clean the whole kitchen after his cake.  He wasn't too interested in opening presents because he learned how to open the lid on my piano.  That is much more exciting.  So now I hear the same three notes his chubby little fist can touch all day long. 

Bryson's Birthday

Poor Kid! Bryson was born on Jan. 5 and so far almost every birthday has been accompanied by a storm. This year was no different. But fortunately he's young and thinks its really fun when it snows. We spent the day shoveling the driveway and then had to wait out the storm at a friends house (he was bummed we didn't have to spend the night with them). He's a trooper though and enjoyed his birthday none the less. His favorite present was a pair of coveralls that match his dad's.  He wore them around the house for hours! He also got some matching Wolf Park Basketball stuff. We were going to take him to one of the games-Tanner even called and had his name and birthday put on the big screen- but because of the storm the game got cancelled. Oh well!  Bryson just loves having anything that matches his dad's. 

Spring!

Now that the weather is changing our life changes too.  We can actually go outside and play, we can go to the park, ride bikes, do yard work, etc.  This translates to less housework-when the kids stay outside I don't have to spend all day picking up their toys, and vacuuming.  Of course, they still eat all day long but generally it's a lot better now that the weather has changed.  

We have had a fun few months with birthdays and stuff so I wanted to show a few pictures from these events.  For Bryson's birthday we got a blizzard and spent the day shoveling snow.  For his dinner we got stuck at a friend's house so he was excited about that.  For Hudson's first birthday he got his own mini cake and then I made a big Frog cake for the rest of the family.  I surprised Tanner with a big party for his 30th with lots of friends at Wild Island.  We had our own 4-lane bowling garage and had pizza and cake. Lots of fun!  And then for my birthday Tanner surprised me with a trip up to Seattle where he served his mission 10 years ago!  How fast the years have gone!