NCAA Tourney

Our great friends, the Hancocks, came up from AZ to visit last week (really, the guys wanted to see BYU play in the tournament).  We had a fabulous time at the zoo, playing games, and just hanging out, but the true highlight for all the kids was the snow!

Before they came, Tiffany had mentioned how fun it would be if it snowed.  We haven't exactly had much "winter weather" this year, so it looked doubtful.  Even the forecast predicted the weather to be in the mid 50s and warmer.  

We lucked out!  We woke up to about an inch of snow Friday morning.  There was just enough on the grass for a snowball fight, some snow angels, and even some sledding down our front hill.  

The kids really wanted to build a snowman, so he stood about 18 inches tall, had blueberry eyes and a tangerine slice for a mouth.  That afternoon, the kids went out to the porch and found a puddle, 2 blueberries, and a shriveled orange slice.

I think the only bad part about our little "snowstorm" was that Miles had to wear pink.  We had enough jackets, gloves and ski bibs (thanks to winter clearance last week!) for all 4 kids--but only in girl colors.  He didn't seem to mind one bit, though.

 The kids wanted to clean the snow off the car.

 Good thing it was fresh snow!  All the kids wanted to eat it!

Miles and Sadie licked the snow on the grass when we took a walk!  Yuck!

We played a quick game of hide and seek.  If you've ever seen our yard, there's not much to hide behind.  Brian found a pretty good spot, but Sadie always seemed to be found...

 We rearranged some stuff down in the basement so the kids could have room to ride bikes.  They loved it!

The Hancocks left pretty early in the morning to start their long drive back.  Miles and Hailey decided to warm up by the vent before heading out to the car!

All the kids enjoyed making art projects downstairs.  I am still finding "projects" around the house!  We didn't have enough room to put them all up!

Thanks, Joey, Tiffany, Miles and Hailey for coming to visit!  We had a blast and can't wait to get together again!

Go Jimmer! Go Jimmer! Go Jimmer!

BYU's in town for the NCAA tournament.  While only Brian's going to the actual game(s), we took the girls down to the Pepsi Center for the open practice.  They loved getting to watch Jimmer from the 5th row!

Here's Morgan, watching the team come onto the court.

Sadie kept saying, "I want to go see Jimmer.  Mommy, can I go down to Jimmer?"  Obviously, she couldn't join the practice on the court, so she settled for as close as she could get--the bottom step.  From there, she raised her hand, like the "rah, rah" part of the fight song, shouting, "Go Jimmer!  Go Jimmer!  Go Jimmer!"

At the end of practice, the team headed straight to the locker rooms, out the door opposite the fans.  But, Coach Rose was nice and came over to sign autographs and take pictures with the kids.  The girls thought it was pretty special to give high fives to the coach!

Ladybug on the mail

Today, we received a Lands' End package in the mail (welcome summer swimsuits!!)  It was waiting on the doorstep when we came home this afternoon, complete with a resident ladybug that seemed to have been sitting there a while.

I called the girls over to show them the ladybug and the first thing Sadie did was stick out her finger.  I thought she was going to squish the poor thing, so I gasped and said, "Careful, Sadie!"  She replied, "Mom, I just going to pet it."  Ummm, okay.  Pet a ladybug??  I guess there's a first time for everything.

So they watched it for a few minutes as it crawled around the box.  Sadie tried to pick it up, but it had better plans and flew onto her shoulder before I helped it fly away.  She thought that was pretty cool.  "Look!  Mommy, the lady bugger is on my dress!" (We call her Sadie Bugger sometimes, so she calls insects "buggers.")

Update

We received our first "baby boy" care package in the mail last week from Grandma Tammy. I let the girls open the package. Morgan kept saying, "Oh, it's so cute!" and "It's adorable!" So, I think she's warming up to the idea of a brother.

Oh, BOY!! We've got joy!

We had our ultrasound yesterday, so beforehand, the girls and I made girl and boy signs to share the news.  Weeks ago, while checking baby's heartbeat at an appointment, my doctor jokingly said, "Oh, there's a fast heartbeat.  It's a girl!"  

I, obviously, knew she was teasing, but Morgan took the statement very seriously.  Ever since that day, she's been telling Sadie, "I want a girl so you have to want a boy.  But, I'm right.  Dr. Dena said it's a girl."

So, you can imagine the fiasco that followed the announcement.

Sadie didn't really much care, other than to say, "Oh.  I having a budder." (brother)

Morgan, screamed, shouted (sorry you had to see it, grandparents) threw things, flopped on the floor in hysterics...you get the picture.  She was very disappointed.

This morning, I asked her if Heavenly Father would love her if she was a boy.  She said, "Yes.  He loves everyone."  Then, I told her that Heavenly Father wanted our family to have a boy.  Her response: "But I think sisters are more fun.  I want it to be a sister.  It's a girl."  (How would she know which was more fun?)

I continued by talking to her about all the things we would now need to get for a boy, since we don't have boy things at our house.  She piped in with, "We need to find him some boy slippers.  He can't wear girl slippers."

Brian is ecstatic. I'm super excited (but kind of nervous now--how do you raise a boy??).  Sadie just walks around poking my belly, saying, "You having a budder."  Morgan--well, I think she'll have a change of heart when she meets the little guy in person.

What Do You Get...

 ...when mom is pregnant and sick, and has a terrible cold on top of that???

Answer: A 2 1/2 year old and 4 1/2 year old who decide to "dress" themselves in their swimsuits, sandals, mittens and snow hats, and wear them ALL DAY.  And a mom who doesn't have the energy to do anything about it.  (But I did have the energy to find the camera!)  

Silly Girls!!

Happy Valentine's Day (a few weeks late)!!

Just before Valentine's Day, I wanted to get new vacuum.  It also happened to be my final week at work, thus my final paycheck.  So, Brian sweetly reminded me that without my income, we wouldn't necessarily be able to get those "little extras" all the time.  So, he proposed that I if I got this new vacuum (which, by the way, I LOVE!), we didn't have to do anything for Valentine's Day.  He even went as far as listing it out.  

His list went something like this:  "If I let you get a new vacuum, I don't have to get you flowers, or a card, we won't go out to dinner, and we can't exchange gifts of any sort."  Well, I have the vacuum, so you know I agreed.  (Oh, and for the record, he took me out the following week anyway!)

All that being said, I still wanted to do something for Valentine's Day.  So, the girls and I made chocolate  covered strawberries.  I don't know if we lucked out with a fantastic batch of strawberries or we've just missed them so desperately these cold winter months that they were delicious.

I think Sadie enjoyed them most of all!  And, even though her hand and face got pretty messy, she managed to keep her dress clean!

The Children's Museum on our Trip

Since I forgot to bring the camera when we went to the Children's Museum with Jenny and her boys, I had to borrow her camera, so these pics are a little bit late! 

There was a little one-room school house, complete with desks and chalk tablets, a flag, and a full-size chalkboard.  Morgan led us in the Pledge of Allegiance, and Sadie sat quietly in her desk while Brian taught two quick lessons in Math and the Alphabet.

Sadie LOVED the bubble table!  I'm surprised she wasn't more wet and soapy! She actually stayed mostly dry!

 Morgan LOVED putting herself in a bubble!  She was pretty good at it, too!