SUMMER 2009 CHECKLIST

I know it has been a while since I posted last so here is our summer 2009 checklist.

Be so tuckered out that you fall asleep in your chair....DONE! Grow a GIGANTIC PUMPKIN.......still in process

Harvest Garden....DONE!!

Run through SPRINKLERS.....DONE!

Eat LOTS of POPSICLES.....DONE!

Go to Bear World.....DONE!

Take Time to Smell the Roses....DONE!

Go 4-Wheeling and sit on the back so you get REALLY DUSTY (Yes that is dirt, I am not tan!) .....DONE!

Be SILLY and CAREFREE.....DONE!

Celebrate both Grandma's Birthdays.....DONE!

Go down a REDNECK Waterslide....DONE!

PLAY in the RAIN....Done!

Take time to Lay in the GRASS and RELAX.....DONE!

Workout and get a NICE BODY.....DONE!

Play with the COUSINS.....DONE!

Jump on the trampoline with BUBBLES.....DONE!

Be a SUPERMODEL....DONE!

Go Boating .....DONE!

Build a SANDCASTLE.....DONE!

Go in the MOUNTAINS.....DONE!

Go FISHING......DONE!

See a Waterfall.....DONE!

As you can see, we had a FUN and BUSY summer!

Kailey is 3

We celebrated Kailey's 3rd Birthday in July. I can't believe how fast she is growing! She had a lot of fun on her birthday which included........Bubbles

......PUZZLES

.........a NEW PINK BIKE decked out with all sorts of PRINCESS accessories

......and who could forget the BEE CAKE

Thanks everyone! She had a great day because of all of you!

Trevor's Latest Projects

The job hunt has been a long and slow process, so these are some of the projects that Trevor has been keeping busy with the past couple of months. (and can I just mention that I have a dang talented husband that can do ANYTHING! I am so grateful for his hard work ethic and all that he does for our family!)

#1. Finish our basement. (I took these pictures before we completely finished hanging all of the doors and last minute stuff and I haven't taken the final product pics.)

We started finishing our basement in January and Trevor was done by March. When you can work on it all day and night, you can get it done pretty quick! It's been really fun to have out basement finished, however, we wish we could afford to get some furniture so we could enjoy it even more. Someday.....
Family Room (1st view)
Family Room (2nd view)

BedroomHallway

Bathroom

Storage Room. (This room is really big and I love it! I actually have room to put everything now, including our food storage!)

*Let me add that he did almost all of this work by himself so it saved us a TON of money!

#2. Make a Headboard.

We had Kailey in a toddler bed and was using the crib mattress that Grandma June let us use with her crib. Kayla and Jason are due anytime now, so we needed to get the mattress to them so they could use the crib. So we had to get a "Big Girl" bed for Kailey. We priced around and learned real quick that beds aren't cheap! We ended up finding a practically new bed and box spring on KSL for a dang good deal. Then Trevor made her a headboard. Here is the picture of Kailey helping him paint it.

Here is the finished project. I think it turned out really cute and Kailey loves the fact that she has a "Big Girl" bed. (She has only fallen out about 4 times, so I think we are doing pretty good.)

#3. Plant a Garden.

This has been Trevor's project and he takes full pride in it. You won't find a weed in it. He even takes the "weasel" tool to it to make it look really nice. (He made fun of me last year for even buying the tool, and now he uses it more in the garden than I do in my flower beds.) I'll have to post some more pics later of the progress of our garden.

#4. Make a Bench

We haven't really liked the back corner of our lot very well, so we ended up tearing out a pine tree and planting a maple tree. (let me just tell you that Trevor took the chain saw to the tree and loved every minute of it). Then I told him we needed a cute little bench to finish it off. and make it look appealing. So the next day, I come home from work and pulled into the garage to see this cute bench. He went to Lowe's and bought some Cedar Fencing (for pretty cheap) and built it. We spray painted it black and I planted some flowers in a pot to give it the extra touch. I think it turned out pretty good. Trev can make anything and everything with wood. He should go into carpentry or something. Too bad there isn't more money in wood work.

He comes up with these projects and finishes them all while watching and taking care of all of Kailey's needs. (and we all know 2 years olds are pretty demanding). I think maybe I should continue to work while he stays home because I could never do projects like this. Thanks Trevor for all that you do for our family! You continue to amaze me every day with your talents and abilities.

The Last Few Months

I haven't been the best at blogging lately. It seems like once it gets nice outside, we don't want to spend any time inside. Here's what we've been up to lately.

We went with Amber and the kids to Baby Animal Days. Kailey loved holding the baby animals and spending some time with her cousins.

We spent easter up at Grandpa and Grandma M's house. Kailey had fun at the Easter Egg Hunt and coloring eggs. She even had fun looking for eggs that the Easter Bunny left her.

The Easter Bunny got her a puzzle, bubbles and side walk chalk. Kailey discovered that a jetted tub will give you the best bubble bath that you can ever imagine.

Trevor went bear hunting a few weekends ago, so I went home to my parents house. Kailey had fun spending time with Grandpa and Grandma "Pumpkins" and playing with her cousins and having a sleep over with them. We went up in the mountains with Nate and Denise to do some cookin' and enjoy the outdoors. Trevor had fun cutting down wood for our fire with his dad's chainsaw. Kailey and Buddy enjoyed eating their hot dogs!

Kailey got a new fishing pole from Grandpa Mick and Grandma Teresa. She had to practice at home before we actually went fishing.
She caught her first fish on her new "Princess" pole. She was grinning from ear to ear and couldn't quit talking about it.

Look at that GRIN! She is learning a lot from Dad and I'm sure Great Grandpa Hopkins would be proud!

5 Years Down....Eternity to Go!

Yesterday was our 5th Anniversary! I can't believe how fast time has gone by! We celebrated by going out to dinner at what Trevor calls, "A Nice Sit Down" restaurant. We got a babysitter and enjoyed our hour and a half of peace and quiet with just the two of us. Trevor gave me the sweetest thing. He made (out of wood that he got out of the mountains) a little box. He put it together and stained it. Inside the box was 3 letters. One letter he wrote in April of 2005, the next letter was dated December 2008, and then the last one was dated April 2, 2009. Those letters were letters of gratitude and appreciation for all that I did for him. He planned it out years ago that he would write me notes and give them to me in the future. It was the nicest thing ever. On the letter from yesterday, he told me that this box was "Rough" just like him and that the box was to hold all of the special letters that I receive from him so I make sure to keep them in a special place. Of course, I cried. Who wouldn't? I have the best husband in the world. I am so grateful for you Trev and the kind of husband and father that you are! I look forward to many years to come!

This is my "treasure" box that he made.

Kailey's 1st Hair Cut

I know, I know, I can't believe we waited almost 3 years to have her first hair cut. Why I waited so long, I don't know (probably because Trevor wouldn't let me cut it), but I love it. The sad thing is that it makes her look so grown up! (I still want her to be a baby!) Thanks Rachelle for cutting her hair. It looks adorable!
BEFORE....



































DURING.....



































AFTER:

Two peas in a pod....

Kailey and Buddy are potty training. It's nice because when we all get together, if Kailey has to go in the "Big girl potty", then Buddy wants to too, and vice versa. They are both encouraging each other to go potty,a nd don't even know it. It works out great because we can tell Kailey to go Potty like Buddy and she'll do it. She'll do anything that Buddy does. They are two peas in a pod! Last night they decided to wear their underwear as hats. They ran around the house naked with their "Hats" on. It was pretty entertaining.

They had fun together riding the bike. Kailey hitched a ride on the back and let Buddy do all of the work. It's a good thing Buddy has so much energy.

We finally got them to sit down for 1 second (literally) together and SMILE.

Happy Birthday and Pooping Moolah!

About a week ago we celebrated Trevor's birthday. Trevor's parents came down and we had some friends over. Buddy is quite the entertainer and was showing us all how he "Poops Moolah". He takes some change and then grunts and drops the change from his behind to the floor. Then he laughs and laughs. Well he was teaching Kailey how to "poop moolah". So she had a penny and Buddy had a nickel and they were laughing and dropping the change constantly. After a while, we weren't as amused as at first so Trev and I started talking with Nate and Denise. The kido's disappeared and were playing on the stairs with their "Moolah". Next thing we hear is Kailey choking. We run over to her and try to get the PENNY out of her mouth, but she ended up swallowing it. She acted normal and wasn't coughing or anything, but we were still concerned. We called the doctor on call (keep in mind this is at 10:00 p.m.) to see what to do. He told us to just watch her and if it doesn't pass in the next 3 or so days to bring her in for an x-ray. I did some researching online and saw that lots of kids have swallowed money before and it will eventually pass. No big deal, right? But you forget what you have to do in the process....Search for the Penny. Let me tell you, this was fun! I just love sticking a plastic fork in a poopy diaper and digging around. As if changing a diaper isn't enough, now we have to thumb through it. Gross! 3 days came and went. No Penny. We called her pediatrician to see if we should bring her in and he said if she is still having bowel movements and acting normal, then it will eventually pass, but it may take a few weeks. How can something stay inside you for a FEW WEEKS? Are you kidding? So we just kept scrounging through her poop.

Finally TODAY, 10 days later, guess what, we found.....THE PENNY! It was very noticeable when it came out, Trevor didn't have to examine the specimen to find it. And I will spare you the picture. Trevor had to take a picture "for her scrapbook". Like I'm going to scrapbook a picture of THAT! Kailey really did "Poop Moolah" Literally! What a week. I hope we don't have to do any searching ever again!














Trev's birthday was fun! We enjoyed going out to dinner and being with friends and family. Trevor we love you and are so grateful for you and all that you do for us. We hope you had a great day!

Nightmares....

This was my conversation with Kailey at 4:30 a.m. this morning:

Kailey: I want momma, I want momma
I get out of bed and go into her room
Amy: What's wrong Kailey...
Kailey: Bee will sting you
Amy: No, honey, there aren't any bees in here to sting you
Kailey: Bee on bug blankey will sting you
Amy: There isn't a bee on your bug blankey. It's okay!
Kailey: Bee on bug blankey..(she starts to sound frustrated)
Amy: Here, I'll get it off.
I proceed to shake off her bug blankey to get the "Bee" off.
Amy: There, now there isn't any bees to sting you.
Kailey: I want to go in Daddy's bed
I give in and take her into our bed
Kailey: Bee will sting my toe...Bee will sting my foot
Amy: Kailey, there isn't any bees in here. It's okay.
Kailey: There's bees out in the snow.
Amy: There's not any bees outside in the snow either. It's too cold.
Trevor is now awake and listening to the conversation. Kailey is still freaking out that a bee is going to sting her foot and she is kicking off the covers.
Trevor: Kailey, lets cover up your feet with your bug blankey and the bee's won't sting you.

She finally settled down and wanted to go back into her bed (as long as Trevor would lay by her).

The poor kid had a nightmare about bees. And I think I know why. We read a book together before I put her to bed. It was a book about "Ladybugs Birthday" and there were two bees that came to the ladybugs birthday party and brought honey. I was pointing out every creature on the pages and I pointed out the stingers on the bees. So I think this nightmare was all of my fault. The poor kid was stung by a bee last summer and is terrified of being stung by a BEE again.

Too Many Cookies.....Nah!

I made some cookies yesterday and Kailey was sitting on the cupboard being a good little helper. She managed to eat quite a bit of the cookie dough (I know, I shouldn't let her eat it because of the raw ingredients, but I do it all the time and I'm okay, right?) Well, she kept eating the cookie dough, and then when the cookies were done, she ate a few of those too. Trevor was sitting on the couch and Kailey went and sat by him in the chair. This was our conversation:

Kailey: Mommy, my tummy hurts
Amy: Your tummy hurts because you ate too many cookies!

And what was Kailey's response: No Mom, I'm sicky!

Eating too many cookies could never make your tummy hurt. Her tummy hurt because she was sick. She told me how it was!