Pre-School for Grady-Bug

Today was Grady's first day of pre-school. He has been so excited looking forward to this day. It is at the school just around the corner so we got up early and walked over. The whole way there Hayden was giving his words of wisdom having been a pre-school graduate himself. He was so concerned for Grady. He told him to listen to his teachers. To raise his hand if he wants to put something on the board at story-time. He also instructed him on how to play with his friends on the playground. As I suspected, Grady had no issues being left at school. He was busy exploring the moment he walked into the room. What a difference from my other child. Hayden couldn't say good-bye enough. As Hayden and I walked down the hall he said "I think Grady's going to be O.K. mom". It was so sweet the concern he had for his younger brother. These milestones in the lives of the boys are exciting and sad. I wish I could get over the sadness I feel at watching them grow-up. I am thrilled to watch them have new experiences and to learn new things. Watching your child gain independence is a rewarding experience. I just can't help missing them when they are away from me. The other day I asked the boys what I should do next year while they are both at school. Hayden's answer: "You can practice the Wii a lot".

This is for you Paula and Vicky!

Cousin Noah with Hayden and Grady

Sorry about my lack of blogging lately too many excuses to list. The main reason is my camera broke, and what's a good blog with out pictures. My brother was married this past Saturday which brought Aunt Paula and my cousin Noah to town. Noah took some fabulous pictures both for the wedding and of my kids. Thanks Noah! It was fun to have them in town although it was too short a visit. My Grandma is also here to visit for a few weeks. That will bring many adventures.

In other news, we are moving. Ryan has been working in Warm Springs over the last year. His company recently established a long term contract and asked if we would move there for about three years. As sad as I am to leave our friends, family and my home, I am looking forward to a new adventure. We are looking to be gone by mid August. We are looking in a little town called Culver. It is right by Lake Billy Chinook. School will start for Hayden September 8th so I would like to be settled a few weeks before that. If you know anyone looking for a fantastic home in NE Portland let us know. We realize this is not the ideal time to be selling a home, but we will keep our fingers crossed.

Hayden Turns 5!

I am still in denial. I can't believe my baby is five years old. Time is going by too fast. We have had several celebrations for his birthday. We started Friday night at Red Robin for his free birthday kids meal. He opened presents from Grandma and Grandpa Doty. Tonight we had a birthday party with all of the family. He had all of his cousins, aunts, uncles, Great-grandma and grandpa Doty and Great-Aunt Jane and Uncle David. He requested a volcano cake which I think turned out pretty terrific if I do say so myself. Tomorrow he will have a little party at school and his cousin Sydney will spend the night. I think he will be birthday'd-out by then.

Hayden is special. He is the boy who made me a mom. I remember the night he was born. I was a little out of it, but he looked nothing like I had imagined. He was so huge! I couldn't believe that all of him had been inside of me. Our family would not be the same without him. He is a special boy who is good at making friends and a fantastic big brother. He and Grady are the best of friends. I love that they have each other to go through life with. He has his moments, but I have really seen him mature in the last year. He loves to learn. His favorite section of the library is the children's non-fiction. He is so interested in things I never would have imagined for a child his age. From the life cycle of the whale to the dictionary of dinosaurs he soaks of facts like a sponge. He loves books and is trying hard to learn to read. He is a great artist (a bit of a perfectionist like his dad) and loves to sing in primary. I am so thankful to have him as my son and only hope I can be the mother he deserves.

Everyday I become more aware of how my time with my children is passing. Soon they will both be in school and activities will overwhelm our lives. I cherish these lazy days I have with them. We can stay in our jammies until noon. We can sit down and read 20 books with no worry of somewhere to be. Life right now is simple for me and for them. I really am not looking forward to the change next fall. I will no longer be the main influence in his life. He will have a teacher and friends. I know this is the natural progression of things, but my heart aches a little every time I think about him being away from me everyday. I have never been a proponent of home schooling. Just not for me. I totally understand why people do it though. Oh how I digress.........

Anyway, I love my boys. I love watching them grow. I am so happy we have survived this first five years with no major set-backs.

Frosty The Snowman

What perfect snow for making a snowman. What a beautiful way to spend a morning. We were so happy the wind stopped blowing and we could just enjoy the snow falling. Of course you have to follow-up snowman building with hot chocolate!

Here is our man of snow-

Santa and Snow

We got our Christmas tree last weekend I am just now getting around to posting pictures of it. It is a beautiful tree. I probably feel that way because it was absolutely free. Ryan's boss invited us out to his property in Sandy and we were able to find a tree there. The pictures don't do it justice.



Saturday was a very busy day. We took the boys downtown to see Santa at Macys. The wait wasn't very long, about 15 min. We then walked across the street to Pioneer Court House Square. They had about 300 tuba players playing Christmas songs. Then we headed up to The Chart House for Ryan's work party. We enjoyed tons of wonderful food and all the hot chocolate you could drink. They even had gifts for the boys. Next stop was our ward Christmas dinner. We were full from the previouse party so we just enjoyed the pie. We were exhausted! With the possibility of snow Saturday night we stayed up a little later then normal. Sunday morning I awoke to the phone ringing. It was 9:30 and everyone (even the boys) was still asleep. It was our Bishop calling to inform us that church was cancled. Now I know when you "out-of-staters" check out these pictures you will think we are a bunch of babies. It's not the snow that is a concern. It gets so icey! We wanted to get out of the house last night and slid right out of our driveway into the curb across the street. Thankfully no cars were parked behind us. It was very dangerouse out there. Anyway, we were able to spend a lazy day at home as a family. It was fantastic. We finally let the boys outside to play at about 3 p.m. It was so windy. They only lasted about 10 min. The windchill is like 7 degrees. They haven't asked again to play outside.











Uncle Nate the "horse"




Right after a gust of wind

Thanksgiving 2008

I know I am a bit late with our Thanksgiving festivities. Truly it is not my fault. Ryan and I are "sharing" a camera and with him out of town a majority of the week it has taken awhile to get the pictures.
We went away for Thanksgiving again. We have gone to Sunriver the last few years. This year we opted for a change. My aunt Jane knew of a cabin located in Mossyrock, Washington. It is only about an hour and a half from Portland. We headed up late Wednesday night. Ryan usually does the driving but he was tired from work and so I said I would drive. After we left I-5 we hit some pretty thick fog. You couldn't see oncoming traffic until they were even with you. It was pretty white knuckle all the way there. Thanks to my driving skillz we made it all in one piece. The house was fantastic. Plenty of room to spread out. It is only two years old so everything was nice and new. We took the boys fishing on Saturday. The first hour we didn't even get a bite, so Ryan drove Grady and I back to the house. He took Hayden back out to try a new spot. Low and behold Hayden ended up catching two Salmon. That was the high-light of his trip. Other than that it was just a lot of relaxing and eating. We spent the weekend curled up with a fire watching our favorite Christmas movies. No "Black Friday" for us. What a memorable Thanksgiving.

Here are a few of the pictures from our trip:



Watching Football!

Thanks x 29

Two weeks ago for family home evening we made a "thankfulness" chain with the boys. I thought it would be fun to do this for my blog. Since I am 29 years old, I thought I should make a list of 29 things I am thankful for. These come in no particular order.

I am thankful for:

29. Family - parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, brothers, sisters both in-law and out
28. My boys, Hayden and Grady
27. My husband and his never ending patience and love for me
26. That my kids have a close relationship with not only there grandparents, but there great-grandparents
25. Grady being potty-trained!
24. Living in such a beautiful state, close to the beach and the mountains
23. The Gospel
22. The opportunity to go to church every Sunday
21. My calling in Primary
20. My Savior Jesus Christ and his atonement for all of us
19. The freedom to vote
18. Ryan's employment and the blessing of providing for ourselves
17. Thomas S. Monson our living prophet and his divine instruction that gives much needed direction in our lives
16. Our ever growing food storage
15. A healthy mind and body
14. Foods of all kinds in all varieties, available anytime, anywhere
13. Our home, although bare in some rooms and a constant work in progress, much more than most the world has
12. A much needed Thanksgiving vacation away from emails and phone calls
11. Good friends, you know who you are, the ones I am on the phone with most weekdays days between 9 am and noon.
10. The color green (I love green!)
9. The ability to drive myself around town
8. Good books that keep me up much later at night than I should be
7. Holidays all year 'round and the traditions that come with them
6. Coupons, enough said
5. No moles in our yard for now
4. Kids that are fantastic sleepers
3. The funny things my kids say and do to make my day
2. The scriptures and the comfort found in them.
1. The sacrifice of our ancestors. For there examples of faith during horrific trials. For this great nation they established, for the Gospel they fought to preserve. I hope that one day I can thank them for paving the way for me and my children to enjoy the freedoms they gave all for.