Holidays 2011

We had such a wonderful holiday season! I'm so blessed to have my family :-) For the second year in a row, Santa woke up both boys on Christmas Eve night! Corban just stared in awe and Cruz cried...because he was either tired(my guess) or he was frightened by the holly jolly man!






Then, five days later, we loaded up & headed cross-country to Phoenix, Arizona for the OSU bowl game...like any loyal fan would;-) *Warning...brag moment!! Both boys did SO well on our road trip!! We left Friday morning & headed to Albuquerque to stay the night, making a pit stop in Hereford, TX to see Caleb's old work & friends:-) After our stay in Albuquerque, we rose & shone & made way to the biggest hole in the Earth, better known as The Grand Canyon. Being the over protective mom that I am, I was secretly worrying about taking the boys there & the edge of the canyon...you catch my drift!! But we made it in & OUT & the boys loved it!!















We then made our way to stay with Caleb's Uncle Chris & Aunt Patty in Prescott, AZ. Fun!! Fun!! They have the most beautiful & modern house I've ever seen!! And, it was high up in the mountains:-) Breathtakingly gorgeous!! We spent New Year's Eve with Aunt Patty(poor Uncle Chris was sick that night) & had 3 celebrations(eastern time, central time & mountain time)!! Complete with "party favors." Poor Cruz wasn't impressed!


The next morning, we hiked 1 mile up Thumb Butte(that's some butte!! For you, Aunt Patty!)and 1 mile down! I definitely didn't need to use my thigh master that day;-)

Just starting out...



Lucky kid! Caleb wouldn't carry me on his shoulders:-(



Ahhhh! Finally made it to the top!




This kid would NOT let go of "his" rock!




The thinkers of the family;-)




After all the fun in Prescott, we headed to Phoenix Monday morning for game day. We made it to the hotel just in time for the Cowboy pep rally...and...TO SWIM!!! Swimming outside in January :-)




Corban loving the waterfall!







Cruz...not so much!! "Daddy! That's close enough!"
















Thank goodness for the swimming pool because it wore them BOTH out! :-) After baths & In-N-Out burgers(delish!), we picked Daddy up from the game & headed home! The boys slept from Phoenix until Amarillo...10 hours!! Awesome:-) Good thing I downloaded a ton of "peppy" songs on my phone, because mommy drove until sunrise...only having to slam on the brakes once for a herd of elk...yes, elk...in the road! It was a fast, but very fun trip :-)

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Birthday Boys!!

Another year has come & gone...which means big birthdays were celebrated! Corban turned the big "whole hand" on September 17th & asked for a "pajama party" for him & his friends :-) We ended up with four 5 year olds, one 4 year old & one 3 year old spending the night! They all had a blast together & behaved quite well!! The night included McDonald's chicken nuggets, a Cars 2 cookie cake(yumm!!), piñata fun & late night movies & snacks...with no potty accidents at night! Woohoo!!













Now, onto Cruz's 2nd birthday!! Cruz wanted a "Ni-ning Mayno" birthday, which translates to "Lightning & Mater" :-) Easy for mommy!! I just left the decorations up from Corban's party...sshhhh, don't tell! ;-) Our wonderful friend, Tabitha Steward, made Cruz's awesome cake!! Cruz liked his cake SO much that he didn't even bother using a fork!























I am so blessed God chose me to be their mommy!! I love my boys "to infinity & beyond!!" :-)

1st days of school

This day definitely snuck up on me. Corban started his first day of Pre-K at Bethel on Wednesday, August 10th! He's such a big boy & mommy & daddy are so proud of him :-) He loves it!! He looks forward to going everyday & playing with his new friends!







Outside of Mrs. Wade's classroom :-)




Corban wasn't the only one who started school...Cruz started his "school" the following week:-) He goes to Mother's Day Out twice a week to "socialize & play." Every time we turn into the parking lot, I hear "pay pay" (play play) from the backseat! He loves being a big boy like bubba & going to school :-)




Baby boy makes his own fun in the car while we wait on bubba to get out of school:-)







LOVE these boys of mine!!! :-)

Sally & Jessie

The newest members of our
family are Sally & Jessie, and they happen to be cows!






These baby beauties were born in November, and Corban-ized in July :-) They truly are the sweetest little heifers! They're almost like a dog...and here's why:
#1-they already give kisses:-)
#2-they will eat out of our hand.
#3-they are a low line breed(dwarf per se), and therefore eat & drink significantly less than "normal" cattle...which is fantastic in this drought!
Hmmm...how did we decide on their names? When you have a 4 year old who loves Cars(Sally) & Toy Story(Jessie), it's really a no-brainer ;-)
Growing up, I NEVER pictured myself doing "farm" things w/my children, until I married Caleb, then it was very evident :-) I did somewhat grow up on a farm...I would always help my dad count his calves...it was always fun to see if we came up w/the same number:-) I also went to pennings(mini rodeo)w/my dad when I was little & he would always let me warm up his horse! I remember being his side kick when he would "doctor" his calves...he was the doctor & I was the nurse!
Caleb, on the other hand, was 4-H King of Cattle, and pretty much knows everything about them...at least in my eyes!! When he was 8, his grandpa Winsett gave him his first heifer for his start in 4-H. Twenty years later, the tradition continues w/Corban. Grandpa Butler bought him his first 2 heifers for his start in 4-H.
Corban looks forward to every evening, so he can go feed his cows! I'm so excited about his future & Cruz's future in 4-H!

Fantastically FUN 4th of July!!

Best 4th of July yet!!  We started out at Grand Lake with extended family and blue-green algae...:o) At least Uncle Jordan had some great co-captains by his side!


Corban likes absolutely loves "driving" the boat!  Cruz seemed to enjoy the ride, too!





After our boat ride, we loaded up and went on a mini vacation to Branson(since we were already halfway there!!) The hotel we stayed at had a waterpark!!  Corban was in Heaven!! :o)  And so was mommy...because Branson had a Coach outlet!!


Before we spent the next 41 hours in the waterpark, mommy and her helper boys went outlet shopping while daddy played golf(apparently, he wasn't on top of his golf game that day he didn't play as well as Greg Norman or Payne Stewart...!) Beautiful golf course, though!!


And here comes the FUN!!!


Daddy definitely couldn't let Corban have ALL the fun...;o)


Cruz had a blast...for about an hour!



Naptime!!  Then, it was time for a chocolate malt! :o)



Such a fun trip with my 3 favorite boys!!!

BIG boy bed!!

It's official!!  Well, it's actually been official since the beginning of May when I made an Ikea trip, but Cruz is in a BIG boy bed!!  Corban(aka Bubba)got a new HUGE bed, so of course, Cruz got the hand-me-down of Bubba's bed ;o)


"Daddy, is this really happening? I can play with my toys all night long?!"



"NO DADDY!  Don't leave me!  I'm not sure I'm ready for this!!"



He was a pro the first couple of nights.  He stayed in his bed and NEVER got out!!  Then, he got a little more lackadaisical when it came to his bed, and started "exploring" his room :o)  He's only pulled ALL of his clothes out of his dresser a mere 20 times!  Haha!  And he'll tell me "Uh-Oh. No touch."  He must be mocking me! ;o)  Cruz, oh the places you'll go!!

Cruz's 1st HAIRCUT!!

I can't believe how fast time flies with the second kid!!  Cruz is getting to be such a big boy...he has a "new do" to prove it!! :o)  Cruz got his first "trim" on March 25th, 2011(18 months old), Corban was 27 months old before he got his first trim!!  We have a tradition in our family that we must uphold when it comes to haircuts!!  Caleb's parents(Nana & Papa) have an antique barber shop chair that is upholstered in soft, red velvet. Well, who's the "barber" you ask?!  It's DADDY!!!  He's pretty much a jack-of-all-trades kind of guy ;o)  Cruz did such a good job!!!  Here's his "before" crazy normal hair!!




"Okay Daddy!!  I'm ready for this!!"




"Wait!!!  I'm having second thoughts!!"




"Daddy, you're just jealous your hair can't do this!"




"Maybe if I hold my breath and count to 10, Daddy will be done!"




"Wait!  Is that a cheerio on the floor?"




"Does this new haircut make my cheeks look chubby?"