BIG BOY BED!

We decided to transition Matthew out of the crib a couple weeks ago.  We also attempted to have the boys share a room at the same time, but abandoned that idea pretty quickly because of the crazy wild party happening for way too long in there!  So, for now, we're working on getting this nearly-2-year-old adjusted to his new room and new bed while Andrew snoozes in the guest room.  So far, he's doing great and absolutely LOVES it!

Rain and such

We had a decent amount of rain here last week, which made me start focusing on the inside of the house and the arrival of fall.  We have a large maple in the back yard and the whole thing is still very green, but somehow it has started dropping 1-2 of these a day:

I am a little excited that the biggest tree in our yard is going to turn such a beautiful red!  

I've also completely switched modes in the kitchen--I've moved away from caprese salads, grilled goodies, and light pastas and moved into comfort food mode.  I made my first batch of chili for the season and we are looking forward to some stuffed cabbage (try this recipe--it's crazy good) this week! 

Oh, wait--this was going to be a post about the rain!  Oops--ok, so usually when it rains here, the storms pass through quickly and are followed by clear blue skies.  This has this really cool steaming effect and leads to some low-clouds and beautiful views.  I snapped a picture on my way home after dropping Andrew off at school last week:

Can't really complain about the drop-off/pick-up craziness when you get to look at that during your commute, eh?

Alright--and again, for those that just want to see the kids--here ya go.  While B was out rock climbing (ROCK CLIMBING!!!) for the first time this weekend, the kids and I headed out to the nearby farm and they spent quite a while tossing rocks into this creek:

And hanging out on this tractor:

And yes, I encouraged Andrew to wear his overalls when we decided to go to a farm.

Andrew's in School!

Andrew started 3-year-old preschool a few weeks ago!  He's going to the Catholic school connected to our church and so far, it seems like he's loving it!  He has happily gotten himself dressed and eaten breakfast long before it's time to leave, so we haven't had any issues getting out the door, which I'm very relieved about.

We've had at least 1 art project sent home with him every day and I'm a little unsure how many of these "masterpieces" I should save.  How do all you other moms out there deal with this?

Clearly, Andrew is heading right to the top of his class:

This totally cracked me up.  I was handed this while Andrew's teacher let me know he did great on his first day.  Seconds later, Andrew runs over to me and tells me he had a BAD DAY because he didn't get to use the tools AT ALL!  Uh oh--someone is going to be forced to work on things other than building.  I am definitely looking forward to his interests diversifying a bit!  

Here's Andrew all ready for his first day:

Since Andrew's gone 4 mornings a week now, I am getting a lot of great time with Matthew.  He seems to love the quiet time while Andrew is at school and the boys are playing together so much better when Andrew is around.  I'll take it!

What a Day

Yesterday was "Meet the Teacher" day at Andrew's school.  He got to go and meet his teacher and see his new classroom.  Andrew let me know he was a little scared on the way there, but when we got there, he marched right up to his teacher (Mrs. Lee) and asked her if she had any tools.  Luckily, the answer was yes.  And, after some searching, we managed to find 2 tool-boxes, a bag of tools, and even a drill stored neatly on her tall toy shelves.  Phew.  I think Andrew and school are going to get along just fine.

In other news--Matthew pooped on the potty yesterday!  He looked at me, pointed to his diaper and made a grunting sound.  He hadn't gone yet, so I sat him on the potty and he went!  I got a little break from changing a morning poop diaper!  How exciting.  :)

Here's the boys on the morning of their big days--awaiting some chasing and tickles from B, I assume.

 

Tram, Concerts, and Camping--Oh My!

I feel like we're cramming all sorts of fun into these last weeks of summer.  Andrew starts school on Monday!  What a fast summer!

Last weekend, we headed up to Snowbird ski resort and went for a ride on the Tram.  It was quite a view and definitely not something anyone afraid of heights would enjoy.  But, the views at the end were beautiful and we'll have to pack a picnic next time and enjoy lunch at the top.


See that teeny thing hanging by the cables?  That's the tram we went for a ride in--it's used for skiers during ski season to get access to more runs:

The goober and I:

I forgot to take pictures at the top, but here's a view from the ride:

B and Andrew just chillin' at Snowbird:

The following week, the boys and I met up with my friend Michele and her kids and saw a free concert up at Deer Valley Ski Resort.  It was a beautiful night and I'm sad we haven't made it up there for the other free shows--apparently they happen every Wednesday evening all summer long.  It reminded me of First Friday at Frick in Pittsburgh or Ravinia in Chicago.  Such a great way to enjoy a summer night...although I'd like to ditch the kids and enjoy some wine while watching next summer!

This is what a group looks like with 2 moms and 6 kids!

Andrew had a blast dancing and running around:

On Friday night we finally got out for our first night of camping!  It's so sad that it took us until August to make it out there, but with buying a house and B's lack of weekends off this summer, we haven't had any other chance to get out there.  Anyway, we loved getting our tent and gear out and giving the boys a chance to eat, sleep, and play outside for a night.  Hopefully we can get out again soon and for longer!  The boys did great sleeping in the tent, although Matthew decided there was no frickin' way he was gonna sleep in the pack-n-play when the rest of us were all together on the ground.  Thus, I spent the night attempting to share my sleeping back with a nearly 2-year-old.  Can't say I slept great, but everyone else did!

The men:

Have I told you that Matthew LOVES saying "CHEESE" whenever I try to take a picture?

Best idea ever--glowsticks to play with by the campfire!  So fun!

Good morning Matthew!

 Matthew attacking Andrew:

Not so into saying cheese anymore:

Can't beat the fun of early morning at a campsite:

Matthew really enjoyed throwing rocks in the fire while Andrew worked on using the hammer as a lever to turn over big rocks:

So glad we got to do all this fun stuff last week and hopefully we can cram a bit more in before the snow starts falling.  Although, B already has his ski pass and we are getting a little antsy for the snow.  Hm, that's definitely the very first time I've said something so crazy!

Let's go (Iowa) Cubs!

We got a sitter the other night and B and I went on a date to a baseball game!  We only have a minor league team here, but the game was a lot of fun.  We got to see the Salt Lake Bees vs the Iowa Cubs.  I wore red and my Cubs hat and was all set to cheer for the Cubbies, but it quickly became clear that, sadly, the Iowa Cubs are a pretty accurate reflection of the Chicago Cubs.  We are talking tons of errors, very few hits, and a loss by the Cubs. 

Anyway, being a Cub fan has gotten me used to being disappointed and we enjoyed the game anyway!  I'm looking forward to going again soon with the kids and getting a chance to cheer for the Bees.

Yes, I'm this big of a dork:

Bumble the Bee

 

July Recap

Whew--since I last wrote, we traveled to Illinois for a very fast weekend trip and then moved into our new house!  I'm impressed with all these blogs I read that have several updates weekly.  I don't think that'll ever happen consistently for me, but I do apologize it's been so long since posting!

Here's our last month (Seriously? Where did July go?) in pictures:

Andrew and a neighbor friend having fun with sparklers on the 4th of July:

Craziness on our flight to Illinois the next morning:

Trip to Atwood Outdoor Rec Center.  The boys got to hang out with all 14 of their cousins!

Night Hike fun:

Lots of walks with cousins during the weekend:

Of course, uncle DJ brought his remote control helicopter and the boys loved the "round round!"

Cute lil' guy throwing some wood chips:

Andrew conquering the balancing part of the rope's course:

Came back to SLC just in time to see workers refinish the wood floors:

Before

After

With the floors done, we were ready to tackle lots of this:

We've also been dealing with our SEVERELY overgrown yard.  This is all mint!  It's everywhere!  Help!!

Andrew's loving the yard work:

Pleasant surprise--our own nectarine tree:

The boys are also hard at work on their new house:

6 days after moving, we got to host our Pittsburgh friends while they were on their way to move out west.  They were with us 2 nights and we were able to get out and hike to Doughnut Falls:

And, of course, we've had a few post-dinner ice cream trips.  Matthew's getting really great at saying "CHEESE" whenever I pull out the camera:

Whew--that's July for ya!  What a whirlwind!  

A CRANE!!

We've started making some changes to the new (old) house and today was a pretty exciting day for the little guys.

In climates without much humidity, you can use something called a swamp cooler, or evaporative cooler, to cool your home.  They are very energy efficient and take the edge off the heat we hear, but the idea of water in a box on top of our roof with a spongy material just kinda grosses us out.  We wanted to make the switch to central AC and had workers at the house the last 2 days getting it done.  Here they are getting the swamp cooler ready to be removed.  It kinda looks like an RV parked on top of the house, doesn't it?

Then, the really AMAZING part happened!  They brought a big crane truck in to lift it off the roof.  Our very own crane!  The boys were a little impatient when it was just parked and getting ready, but man did they think it was cool when it was working!

Brothers and a crane:

See ya swamp cooler!

Nice new central AC!  What an exciting arrival after a week straight of over 100 degrees and sunny!

Andrew the Builder is pretty excited about meeting all sorts of builders.  He stood back and watched them every step of the way, asked lots of questions, and I'm sure provided a useful tip or two.  Next week, he'll get to meet an electrician, movers, and a floor guy!  Oh boy!

Have a wonderful 4th of July everyone!