Cruisin'

At the end of January, Casey took me on a cruise to the Mexican Riviera. I have always wanted to go on a cruise, so I was super excited. It was a 7 day cruise and we left the boys with my sister and her family. They were in such good hands and had so many people to meet their every need that they had a few withdrawls when we finally got home. We got to see a little of the fun they were about to have before we left:

Our first two days were out at sea. We sailed with Holland America and they had so many onboard activities, it was impossible not have something to do. We took advantage of everything that we could and volunteered for a lot of the activities. We even went on stage during the Welcome performance and participated in a game. Some of the things we did was watch movies, pool games (our team won too), scavenger hunt, trivia challenge, name that tune challenge, wii challenge, culinary classes, swing dance class, etc. Like I said, tons of stuff to do. Did I mention the food? A-MA-ZING. We got to try a lot of new things: mussels, escargot (a little squishy, but not bad), scallops (for Casey), lamb chop (for me), fruit soups. It was so much fun for me ordering whatever I wanted and be able to try some new things. Here are a few pictures from our first few days:

Waiting to leave.

The beautiful San Diego Harbor We tried hitting the a ping pong ball into the lifesavers. I got really close. Casey entered a ping pong tournament. He made it to the semi-finals.

Enjoying one of our many delicious meals.

Monster Jam + Friends = Twice as Fun

Towards the end of January, we got to go to Monster Jam again with the boys and our friends the Nartkers. It was even more fun going with friends this time.

Grave Digger doing his thing. The kids playing with Weston's little Monster Trucks.

All of us. Dang those bright lights.

The most exciting part. Grave Digger crashed.

Malcolm and Lark's Visit

In January, Casey's cousins from Pennsylvania (but attending BYU) came for a visit. We took them to San Francisco, played a lot of games, took them to the Forresthill Bridge, they went on a hike with Charity, and really enjoyed their visit. These are a few pictures from our trip to San Francisco. Jason and Ashley watched the boys for us, so it was a much quicker trip.

We drove through China Town

After Pier 39 and clam chowder in a bread bowl, we made the usual stop at Ghiradelli Square. This was Lark's first visit to California and the Pacific Ocean.

Casey and I tried to take a picture in front of the bridge, but it was bright and Casey had a hard time keeping his eyes open...

...so we tried with sunglasses.

We were finally able to get a good one after about 10 tries though.

10 Months

A look into the life of Benson at 10 months:

-Took 4 steps

-Pushes off the ground and stands up

-Eats a ton. Stopped eating babyfood. Loves, loves, loves cheese.

-Started crawling to Casey more and isn't as attached to me anymore.

-Likes reading books.

-Finally started sleeping through the night. 8pm-8am. It's been nice.

-Is a very happy little guy. He even wakes up happy.

On the big day. Not the greatest picture, but he wouldn't stay still and it shows how happy he is to be with his Dad. He just pulls books off the shelf and starts reading. Loves climbing into things.

"Shake it off"

One night Weston came out to me while I was on the computer and we were talking abut something or other, then I say to him, "Weston, you love me, don't you?" He says, "No," so I proceed to fake cry and say, "What? You don't love me?" playfully. Weston looks at me and says, "What's wrong?" I say, "You said you don't love me." (as I'm still fake crying) He ends with, "It's funny. It's okay. Shake it off. Shake it off." (as he shakes my shoulders)

We wish you a very Merry belated Christmas

Well, here we go. We had a great Christmas this year. We saw lots of lights, ate a lot of good food, and got to spend a lot of time with family. Here are a few of the highlights:

Went and looked at Christmas lights with Charity

Had a pre-Christmas dinner/party with Charity because we had each others names for Christmas. A silly picture of Weston with my lens cap.
Benson loved his hanger, I mean shirt

Weston got a BYU baseball bat and ball from Charity that he loved, if you couldn't tell from his reaction.

We decided to ride the train to Utah for Christmas and it ended up being a lot of fun. Weston got to watch a lot of movies.

Both kids got to roam around and we didn't have to make stops. It was nice.

I got to see temple square with all the lights for the first time. It was pretty, but I think I was expecting more lights.

Jaleen and Ethan helping Benson to walk

My dad treated us all to some yummy hot chocolate

All of us

We also went to a BYU basketball game with my family. We won and it was fun to see Jimmer play this year.

Christmas Eve we all opened our Christmas pajamas. Weston hugging Benson while in their matching pajamas from my parents.

All the grandkids in their pajamas

Weston always loves being with his cousins because they are always willing to read to him

Our little marshmallow playing in the snow

Weston sledding down the hill with Casey. Unfortunately it only snowed one day we were there, so they took advantage of it.

Christmas day. It can be a little chaotic with such a big family

When we got home we gave one of his presents that was too big to take. A Radio Flyer tricycle.

Tuckered Out

One day Weston was swinging his little heart out and I was taking pictures of his cute smile.

We switched swings, and next thing I know he is dozing off. I guess waking up at 6:45am can do that to you.

9 Months

Benson turned 9 months on Dec 5th. It has been a fun 9 months with him in our family. He is such a happy kid. This is what he was up to:

-Can stand up for a long time by himself and let's go of things to stand by himself a lot.
-Took 1 step
-Learned to clap
-Waves his hand to say "hi"
-Dances when there is music on
-Rocks in his high chair while he is eating
-Likes to play with cars and push them around.
-Likes to throw balls
-Hi-fives
-Says "Da-da" all the time.

Here he is on the big day!

Is always happy when there is food around
Loves to play in Weston's room

Happily playing in the tupperware drawer with Weston

We are grateful...

...that we were able to have a great Thanksgiving spent with friends and family. We had a wonderful day filled with running, football, food, laughs, talking, hanging out, more food, and Harry Potter that night. Who could ask for more?

The morning started out bright and early with me running the Roseville Turkey Trot. Charity signed up all the sister-in-laws and it was fun. Charity and I ran the 5K and Ashley ran the 10K. I ended up getting 4th in my age group, which was a pleasant surprise since I had only ran one other time since having Benson.

The kids as they were cheering us on. This picture kills me because it is typical Weston and Paisley.

The three runners in our shirts

My fan group

Playing football in our cul-de-sac

The kid's tables. It was nice being able to have it in a house this year. I got to use all my nice dishes and decorate the table, which I really enjoyed.

Benson and me

The adult table

My centerpiece