School Daze....

The anual 1st day of school photo before heading out the door. H was pretty proud of his new pack. He even made me take a picture of his back. He is just growing up so fast. He was so excited this morning for school. He kept wanting to wake his sister and could barely eat his breakfast.
Here is P ready for her 1st day at Kindergarten. Remember she isn't big into taking photos most of the time. She too picked out her new Dora backpack, which is almost as big as her.
Love this photo of them walking into school. They are so adorable when they are being the best of friends.
H in his new 1st grade classroom. Mom remembered to get a kiss in the car before we got to the school, cause I don't think I would have got one there.
P in her class, getting ready to take her backpack off and hung up. She was a little hesistant to have me leave. She told me that school makes her sick. So there I am holding her and making sure she wasn't fevering. She was fine, just the school jitters, but it did make it harder for me to leave.
I did it without tears, but as I write this I am getting a little teary-eyed! I think we survived the morning. Gotta run and get P from school and we will see.

One Last Hur-Ray!

I decided to take the kids somewhere today for one last hur-ray. We decided to check out The Lutz Children's Museum. If you can't tell yet, we love to go to children's mueums, so much fun to be had by all!
Here is H - totally in his element once again. Building things. We spent a lot of time here and even came back when we were done seeing and doing everything else.
This is the transportation room. Gotta love motorcycles with sidecars! Aren't the tykes adorable!!!!
The tykes dressed up in the farm room. A cute cuddly dog and a warm fuzzy lamb. I would bring these home for sure!
P having a horsey ride. The farm room was alot of fun too!
I think the tykes and I had a great time, now only if the museum were a little closer. It was an hour away. H even asked if we could move closer so we could visit more often, but then decided he would be too far away from his school.
Tomorrow is the big day- Back To School. H starts 1st grade and P starts kindergarten. Hope I don't get too misty-eyed. Both tykes in school now. After 3 weeks P will be in full day kindergarten, which I am not a fan of, we will see how she does. So I will have a little more time on my hands. With being in the PTO, church calling (primary president), cleaning house, and really needing to work on myself- get in shape, I think I may have my hands full for the time being.

In Her Environment

Today we took the kids to ride the bike trail and play in the river a little, well Mudlside was sooo excited about being "in her environment" that she was running all over the place at the river. She would run and find the kids and race back to me and get in the water some and get some drinks. It was really fun to watch her being in her happy place, besides sleeping! Which is her #1 happy place and she does that too often.
My girl Mudslide!
Here's the tykes stripping their shoes and socks off to get into the river. P was so excited that she asked if she could take her clothes off and get in. Daddy said sure, but leave your panties on. The tykes were ready for a warm bath when they got home!
I so enjoy having Mudslide in my life. I grew up having a dog around so I am used to it. I am glad we have our own family dog to share the memories with our tykes. H is been very helpful of bringing Mudslide back in the house from being outside and giving her a treat, helping in feeding her and brushing her. Ode to the dog memories!!! We love you Mudslide!
PS as my husband put it in our family Christmas letter last year, he called Mudslide my "fawn shadow", which she is since where ever I am, Mudslide can be found too!

8 Things About My Marriage

I have been tagged by a new blogging find- Shaka. So here it goes....

1. Where did we meet?
The 1st time we met was at the University Mall. I was with my sister and Brandon was with his roommates who happened to be friends with my brother, so I knew some of them and we stopped to say Hello. That was the first meeting. Brandon does not remember this though. Guess I didn't make a good impression, or too many people around?

2. What was the 1st thing I said to my him?
Well, as mentioned above, it was probably mostly just a hello.

3. What was our 1st Date?
Our 1st date- I took Brandon to see Pearl Jam in SLC. You see I ended up having an extra ticket since my brother couldn't get work off in time to go, so he said call Brandon up and ask if he wants to go (I had told my brother after meeting Brandon that I wanted him to fix us up.) So I call him up and he wasn't home, so his roommate, who knew me, left a message for Brandon that said Free Ticket to see Pearl Jam with Traci. Brandon said yes and when he made it to my house the first thiing he did was slide to the floor cause he had forgotten his wallet and had no money. Which I said was ok, I would pay for anything. The concert was great. We went with my friends Yvonne and Jason. We went to eat afterwards at a Denny's.
Brandon's roommates were all waiting up for him to come home. He told them I was a little different and in my own world. He said I would stop dancing anytime he looked at me, but I don't remember that. When we got back to my house Brandon told me that it was his turn to ask me out now.

4. Where was our 1st Kiss?
Are 1st kiss didn't happen till like a month later. I had gotten off work and called Brandon cause I had some things of his to return and then he told me that he had a set-up date he had to go on, so I didn't go over. I went to visit my brother and I ended up calling home and my mom told me Brandon had called 2x. So I went home and called him back and he told me his date had cancelled on him and wonder if I would go with on this double-date with his roommate. So of course I was smitten and said yes. We went scurplunking. It was way fun. Come to find out Brandon loves dirt! That is when he kissed me down in a cave. It totally caught me off guard. Which he noticed too. He said I did much better after that first kiss.

5. Did we have a long courtship/engagement?
We only dated for 4 months when we got engaged. Then are engagement was 5 months long. I think both went pretty quick.

6. Where did we get engaged?
Brandon worked nights and one night in February, he got off work a little early and came by my house. It had just snowed too. He said he wanted to take a drive up to Squaw Peek in the Provo Canyon. So away we went. We had a hard time getting to the top at the look out point due to old snow with new snow and ice on the roads, that we decided to go to a different look out point- not the top one. Then we pakred and Brandon said let's get out of the car. I was like no way. I had just gotten home from tanning before he came and got me and had just showered, so wet hair and birkenstocks on. So he talked me into getting on the hood of his Jeep Cherokee. I was like ok. Then he started to dance with me. Then he whispered in my ear, "Can I keep You?" (from the movie CASPER), I pulled back and little and said what? And Brandon said, "Can I keep you forever?" Then he pulled out a ring box from his pocket. I didn't know what to say. I was totally caught off guard, again! Brandon said I looked as if I was going to fall off the car, so he grabbed the box back and had us get in his car to safety. All I could say was, "What is my mom going to think?". Seen as I had a missionary from our church I was waiting for. We ended up talking a bit, then drove down to Taco Bell, since Brandon hadn't had dinner. We again were talking in the parking lot when Brandon tried to start his car and it would not start so he went out to look under the hood, then came in again to try and start it again. Then again back out to check under the hood and back in to start it, when he asked is this a yes? I said YES!!! And his car started right up! Since my parents are divorced, Brandon hadn't talked to any of my parents about asking my hand in marriage. So he asked who I wanted him to talk to and I said my mom. So he had to keep our new exciting news to ourselves for 2 days till he could meet with my mom. Of course I couldn't keep it in, so I told my friend Yvonne and my sister too.

7. How did our reception go?
Our reception was beautiful! The weather was gorgeous and we had an outside reception. The only thing was that we didn't get to have any of the yummy reception food. Thank goodness my family had sent a basket of goodies to the Bed and Breakfast we were staying at the first night.

8. How was our honeymoon?
Our honeymoon was great. Brandon kept it a secret where we were going until after we got married, so as we were leaving the Bountiful Temple and heading to our luncheon Brandon told me we were going to California!!! We went to Disneyland for a few days, since I had only been there once. I love that place. Then we went to San Diego to the zoo, and also into Mexico too. It was a week filled of fun! Good eats, drive-in movie, going to the ocean, seeing the town Brandon used to live in, shopping, swimming, Scrippts Museum. Thank goodness we get a yearly annivesary, not that we always get to go somewhere, but we should.

Thanks Shaka for letting me ahve a trip down memory lane. It's been 11 years for us and we are still going strong. I love you Brandon so much. Thanks for sharing your life with me!!!

I TAG Kristy, Stacy, and Yvonne.

Piano Gallery ROCKS!

My tykes were so excited to get a package in the mail today! It was from Uncle Randy. H & P scored t-shirts from his piano stores that he owns, called Piano Gallery! They are so adorable. So of course I made the kids pose for blog pics. H is always willing to do so. Today P was even being a team player too!
The back view says Delivery Team. They were both excited for the new shirts, that they immediately changed into them to wear for the rest of the day. And my sister said it wasn't anything too exciting to get the tykes all worked up about getting a package in the mail before it arrived. I think she may have been wrong.
Thanks Uncle Randy for thinking of us from a far. We love the new shirts!!! Now you just need a store out here so we can help advertise for you!!!

*Don't your tykes love to get mail as much as we do, especially if it's good mail?*

With a Carnival Too!

Our town's yearly carnival which is put on by the Fireman's Department. We love that it is in walking distance from our house.
The family all had a ride on the ferris whelel. Here is H and I. Daddy and P were behind us taking photos. The kids really enjoyed the ride. Again, P was so proud of herself for not being scared on the ride. Although she did have a tough time in the fun house- go figure!
P and I enjoying P's treat of pink-n-blue cotton candy.
We sure had a great night out as a family!

*So do you think my tykes are ready for a trip to Disneyland?*
*When did you first take your tykes to Disneyland?*

Let the Show Begin....

Our town has a great 2 night fireworks show every August. Plus our neighborhood is a much sought after spot those evenings too! We have the best view- you can't beat that for a fireworks show. We so look forward to them every year. I just love firework shows. Since they don't do them during the July 4th festivities, we get them a month later, so it's all a little spread out.
H and P enjoying the show from daddy's truck. Note P covering her ears. She was so proud of herself for not being scared this year, just a little noisy that's all!
Uncle Rory, Aunt Dione, and a DIVA! Oh, wait that is me. You have got to pose sometimes, right???

Mystic Seaport

Mystic Seaport is where the tykes and I decided to take Uncle Rory and Aunt Dione to visit. It is such a mystical little town to me for some reason. The boats are so fun to look at and alot of fun shops to check out too. Of course we got alittle seafood for lunch too.
H and P posing on the huge anchor. They loved it there.
When Dioen and I got out of the gift shope this is what we saw. Uncle Rory with the tykes. What a great uncle. Also such a good pic too!
Thanks to Dione's parents for helping watch the 5 cousins so we could see Rory and Dione. There was a lot of planning put into this whole surprise!!! We hope that the 2 of you had a great visit in our part of the world and know how much we love you guys!!!

I Know Something You Don't Know!!!

Don't you hate it when someone tells you, "I know something you don't know!" Well, that happened to me a few weeks ago. It was something my husband had said to me. I bugged him about it, then let it go. Now that he is back from his climb to Rainier, I thought I would bring it back up. I did so on Thursday when he arrived home a little early from work and he was wanting to get some ice cream, which doesn't always happen. The only thing was the kids and I had just gotten home from grocery shopping, in which Brandon for some reason begged me to go shopping that day and then he was going to take us to dinner that night, so of course I did it. On the way home from shopping I had gotten the tykes an ice cream cone for being good. So they didn't want to go get ice cream, but dad insisted that we all come with him so he could get one. Then I decided to get one since I didn't get one with the kids. So we pull up to the local Dairy Queen. Right before we order, I turned the corner to look at the poster of the ice cream treat I wanted to order and I notice a girl walking towards me that looked an aweful lot like my sister-in-law Dione. So I did a double take thinking there is no way that is Dione. Plus she had this huge grin on her face and I thought she was a very nice person too, just a smiling at me. So I go back to order when I notice out of the corner of my eye, my brother walking towards me!!! I was so SURPRISED!!!! My brother and his wife had flown out to New York City for their anniversary, by the way- Happy 10th Anniversary to you 2!!! Then they took the train to Connecticut to visit me and my family. They had never been back east before and it was such a fun surprise for me.
Here we are at Red Robin resturant at Hobie's request. Dione, Rory, and me.
Brandon, Rory, and Dione- Thank- You for the Surprise and for making my day!

Sweet Dreams are Made of These

The tykes and I had a great day at the in-laws pool with the PTO presidency and their tykes too. Lots of good food, friends and fun! The weather was perfect-o too! This is what I found when we got home late in the afternoon- H having a nap in his sisters room. I had to sneek in for a quick pic. It was too cute to pass up!
Here's P when we got home, lounging on the couch watching TV of course!! She also didn't want her picture taken .
I sure love my tykes and all the fun adventures we have been having together this summer! Can't believe it is already coming to an end!!! If there wasn't so much bossing going on at the homefront, I would want summer to last forever!!!

Welcome Home Daddy!

Dad and all his gear from climbing Mount Rainier. He is so glad to be home after over 14 hours or flying and or layovers.
Greeting daddy at the gate. So cute to see the kids get so excited to see their dad. Just like when he comes home from work each day, the kids are squealing with delight to see him.
Daddy with his tykes. Happy smiles and all!
We are so proud of daddy and his adventure on Mount Rainier!!

Tag, I'm it!

A Thanks goes out to Ashley for this one!
This would be my 1st official TAG, so here goes nothing-

Jobs I've held:
1. Mom
2. Opthamalogist assistant
3. Tech for Lasik and Catarac surgeries
5. Worked a ton of retail in family businesses- Check Point, Colorworx, and Suzy M.

Movies I can watch again and again:
1. How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
2. 13 Going On 30
3. Annie
4. The Holiday

Guilty Pleasures
1. Ice Cream
2. sleeping in/taking a nap
3. reading a magazine

Places I've lived:
1. Connecticut
2.Carlisle, PA
3. SLC, UT
4. Orem, UT

Shows I enjoy:
1. Lost
2. Heroes
3. The Office

What were likely the first things you thought when you saw your significant other (or best friend) for the first time?
1. Significant other-- He is so cute! My brother has got to set us up!


Places I've been on vacation:
1. San Diego, CA
2. Mexico
3. Moab, UT
4. Cape Cod
5. Boston

Favorite foods:
1. Sushi/ Japanese
2. Mexican, but it's hard to find good stuff out here in CT.
3. Roast Beef Dinner
4. Crab Legs at Red Lobster


Websites I visit daily:
1. hotmail
2. long list of blogs :)
3. news

Body parts I have injured:
1. broke my upper right arm in a car accident
2. had 2nd degree burn on my chin from a curling iron I pulled down onto myslef when a baby.
3. brick imprint on my chin from my sister dropping me on one cause she couldn't carry me anymore, 2 weeks after the curling iron incident.
4. cracked my tailbone

Nicknames I've had:
1. Big Mouth Tomma-Hawk - my sister called me this cause I wouldn't shut-up at night when we were suppose to go to sleep
2. TB- you know like the disease. TB is my initals.
3. Tiny Toon- back in the day, from a friend.
4. Peanut- I was my mom's smallest baby.
5. Peep- a nickname from Brandon (the hubby)

Your turn. I tag:
1. Kristy
2. Lisa
3. Shelby- who really needs to get in the blog bandwagon again!!!
4. Yvonne
5. Sondra
6. Collette

Who tagged me:
1. Ashley

The Mountains Are Alive!

Here is gorgeous Mt. Rainier! I sooooo love this photo my hubby took. I want to get it framed and hung in my home. The colores are so vibrant, it may be hard to tell in this pic.
Another good photo of the glacier.
Here are the cute "homey" cabins they stayed in before the big hike/climb. That is my father-in-law in the pic.
Here is Mt. Rainier a view from the airport, which my hubby and father-in-law spent some time waiting for their flight since their plane was having some problems. They had already turned in the rental car and where stuck waiting and this was one of the amazing views they had, but couldn't really act on it, bummer!
The tykes and I are soooooooooo glad to have our daddy/hubby back from a trip safe and sound, tired, a little sunburned, and toes that are just a little numb.

Visiting Hours Are Over

PA was sooo hot, humid, and muggy! It made you not want to do anything, but stay indoors! The kids got to slip-n-slide with the cousins. Here's P finally getting it down.
Whoa-who! Success and a happy girl!
H having his turn at it too. Great ending.
Here is Aunt Lisa and Baby Ryan who came from Utah to visit all of us, while her husband was climbing Mount Rainier with my hubby. Aren't they QT's!
Nothing is as refreshing as a nice watermelon on a humid summer day. Here is H, P, and cousin Nick enjoying some, except for the seeds- note they are all picking them out first!
We sure had a great trip to see the cousins. We also got to see Underdog while there. Very cute fun movie for everyone. Who doesn't love a talking dog??
Finally got the call last night that my hubby and Adam had made it back down the mountain safely! Whew!!! So glad to have gotten the call. They all sounded well and can't wait to see them tomorrow morning when they get in.

We're Off to See the... Cousins!

This does not have to do with our trip, but the tykes decided to build a stuffed animal hotel out of- you guessed it, Stuffed Animals!!! They were so excited about their creation that they asked me to put it on my blog!
Today we head out to Pennsylvania to see the cousins. We are all really excited about that. So we hope to have some fun photos of our trip. Daddy started his climb on Mt. Rainier today too and we probably won't hear from him till he is off the mountain on Thursday. So we are keeping our fingers crossed and saying our prayers that he is being safe.

*Would you allow your husband to do such an excursion?*

Mt Rainier National Park

This is where my hubby currently is. He and is bro-in-law will be climing this starting tomorrow. I am excited and nervous for thier adventure. But they have both reassured me that this is the best time to be climbing and it's really busy this time of year. B has been doing lots fo training for this climb this past year and now it's finally here! I wish them the best of luck and want them to come home in one piece. You 2 will be in our prayers.
We do get to visit with Aunt Lisa and baby Ryan while her hubby is out climbing for the week. See you 2 tomorrow!

The Children's Museum

Today we got to check another off our Summer List of Things To Do! Grandma C and I took the tykes to the children's museum. The kids loved it! We have been to a few and always have a great time. Here is H & P in front of a Sperm Whale outside of the museum. It happens to be Connecticuts state animal.
They had lots of things on display made out of LEGOS, which by the way H loves!! He builds with his daily. Here's the Statue of Liberty.
My sweet astronaut P
My dude astronaut H
H trying on all the gear he could find in the TEAM UP! area. Doesn't he make a good hockey player? Loved that padding!
Thanks for a fun day Grandma C!

Message In A Bottle

I joined in on a "Message In A Bottle" mailer between bloggers and what joy did I find today in my mailbox... My bottle. I knew I would be getting one, but kindof forgot about it, since I was thinking about when my person would get hers. We both ended up getting them on the same day!!!! Fantastic! It was loaded with lots of fun craft things to do with my tykes, a few new recipes to try, 2 shade lipgloss, eyepillow, fun bobble bracelet, cute flower headband for my daughter and...
some fake teeth for my son, who loved getting his picture taken for my blog! Thanks Clarrissa for the fun bottle and Thanks to Jenna for hosting such a fun thing to do!
*What treasures did you find in your mailbox today?* I also scored a 20% off coupn for a fun decore/candy store in a cute town called Collinsville, which is not far from me!