Our Latest Family Pictures

We spent this past weekend up Big Cottonwood Canyon with Ryan's family for a little family reunion. My sister-in-law, Becky, is always kind enough to take family pictures while we are together. I'll post more about the reunion later, but here are some of the photos that she snapped of us:

The Biggest Baby Ever Blessed...

We  finally got the chance to bless Davis today now that we are all together again. It was a beautiful day. Ryan gave him a blessing in my parents' backyard. We had both of our families present for the event. Weighing in at almost 20 lbs., he might be the biggest baby ever blessed. We love our Chancho so much!

Davis is named after his late Great Grandfather, Grandma Ruth's husband.

The Ikester

Isaac is three and a half years old this week. Where has the time gone? Here is the latest on my big boy:

• Isaac reminds me so much of Ryan. Not only his outward appearance, but his quiet nature and easy-going personality. 
• He may be Lightning McQueen's biggest fan. I would have thought that by now he'd have other obsessions (maybe Buzz or Woody?), but his heart belongs to that red car. Grandpa Mike even calls him "Lightning" and Ike always responds by making the sound of a revving engine. 
• His current food favorites are yogurt, raisin bran, pizza, his mama's homemade enchiladas, ice cream, chocolate, most fruits, and just about anything sweet. 
• One of Ike's favorite pastimes is riding his tricycle outside while Davis and I sit and watch him. He LOVES Davis and will do just about anything to make him smile or laugh. I love the special bond that they have. Just this afternoon, Davis was tired and cranky and Isaac just kept singing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" to him over and over because it kept big D from crying. It was one of those special motherhood moments that I don't think I'll ever forget. 

• He is learning all sorts of colorful phrases from my Dad these days, but one of his favorite new words (courtesy of Grandpa Mike), is "knucklehead." He often refers to himself, Maddie, and especially Grandpa, as a "knucklehead" and he always bursts into a fit of laughter after name calling. 
• He picks me a flower almost every day from the honeysuckle bushes outside my parents' house and insists that I put them in my hair. 
• He loves to boss Maddie around, and surprisingly, she usually listens to him. 
• He was so excited the night that Ryan pulled up to the house after being gone all summer that he started to shake when he saw him through the window. The next morning when he saw Ryan carrying his backpack in from the car, he got the saddest look on his face and quietly asked, "Papa, are you going back to school again already?" It just about broke my heart until he started smiling while Ryan explained that he didn't have to go back to school again for a long time. He sure loves his dad. 
• He is NOT a morning person, and has been known to slap his sister for talking to him too much, too soon in the morning. He does not appreciate her upbeat personality when he first wakes up. 
• He is the king of stalling, and will go to great lengths to delay nap time, bedtime, going to the bathroom, or any other activity that he deems unpleasant. 
• I am so proud of the little boy that Isaac has become and am so happy he is a part of our family.

Sharing his trike with his cousin, Fischer. They are only two days apart and two peas in a pod. 

Little Miss Spunky

Here's the latest on little amiga numero 2:

Trying on all of cousin Katy's bling.

Learning to swing with Ryan. Have I mentioned how happy we all are that daddy came home? We get to be together until November.

• She LOVES to sing and is constantly learning new songs. Her favorite toy right now is a little plastic thing she refers to as her "flute" and she always has it in her hand, ready to play at any given moment. 
• I try to refer to Maddie as "spunky" or "spirited" because it sounds less negative than "stubborn" or "sassy" or "head strong" or "strong-willed." But she is all of those things, too.
• She loves Dora with all her heart and will even respond to "Princess Dora" when Grandpa Mike calls her. 
• She calls me by my first name if I don't answer to "mama" right away.
• Still possibly the pickiest eater on the planet. And don't even try to bribe her into trying something new. She never buys into it. 
• She's such a chatterbox. I am constantly amazed at the things that come out of her little mouth, especially when she first wakes up. I think it's because she's trying to make up for the past 12 hours while she was sleeping. And she loves to talk about anything and everything. Her latest phrase is, "That's right!" and it is her response to just about any question you might ask her (i.e. "Maddie, would you like a banana?" "That's right!")
• Isaac is her best friend and she would follow him just about anywhere. She has no idea that they aren't twins and expects to be able to do anything and everything that he does.
• She is still a daredevil. Unfortunately, she is still a klutz as well. I cannot believe she has not inflicted more bodily harm to herself in her short two years of life. 
• Maddie is always either the happiest girl in the room or the most upset. There is no in between with her. Lucky for us, she is usually the happiest. 
• No one can tease her and get quite the reaction out of her that her Grandpa Mike can. He knows how to push all of her buttons and he pushes them all.the.time. 
• She insists on putting her shoes on as soon as she wakes up in the morning. Before breakfast, before taking off her pajamas, and before changing her diaper.
• The other day we were walking into church and she said excitedly to Ryan, "Oh! My teacher be so so happy to see me!" 
• Lately, whenever I ask her to help me with something, she says, "Si! Si! Con mucho gusto! (with pleasure!)" I love her zest for life. 
• Even though the terrible twos can be trying and difficult, I love the stage that Maddie is at right now. She is loving, kind, and "spunky," and she keeps us all laughing and on our toes. 

It didn't take her long to figure out that if mom says no, Grandma will still almost always say yes. Hence the potato chips for dinner. She rarely even asks me for anything anymore; I just get bypassed while she heads straight to Miss Softie (a.k.a. Grandma).  Hmmm, maybe Grandma should be blamed for Maddie being such a picky eater...

The Tank

Here's a little update on the youngest of our three little amigos and what he has been up to lately:

Davis and Grandma Bond--he has been tucking in his bottom lip like that since the day he was born.

• Our sweet baby loves to sing, squeal, and hear himself babble. His has definitely found his voice.
• Davis is 5 months old and weighs in at around 19 lbs. He has many nicknames that revolve around his sheer size, including Tubbers, Chancho, Tank, and Big D. We LOVE having a chubby baby and can't get enough of his thunder thighs and cankles. 
• He still loves to swing, but he has almost outgrown his baby swing, and seems to prefer the one in the backyard instead. 

Trying to decide if he should just sleep in the swing on Sunday night.

• Loves to bath and often irritates Maddie because she thinks that he splashes her too much in the tub.
• He is just learning to sit up on his own and is proud as a peacock every time we practice with him.
• Still loves attention from anyone and everyone and will beam with delight if he happens to make eye contact with you.
• He continues to be a content little guy as long as we don't make him skip any meals. Maybe it's time to break out the rice cereal already...
• After one excruciatingly long day of bottle boot camp (with tears from baby and mama), Davis finally broke down and took a bottle. While it was painful for both of us, I only wish I would have done it sooner. Ryan gets to help feed him, and I get a break once in awhile. Win/Win, right?
• We love our Big D so much and are so thankful for his happy personality and contagious smile. 

Hanging out with Aunt Corey during my mom's annual "Peach Pie" Sunday.