The things Ryan says . . .

Ryan is a very funny kid. More often than not, he says things that we think are hilarious, which he is perfectly serious about. For example, the other day he walked into my room to add his PJs to our ever growing pile of laundry. He took one look at the pile, and walked away shaking his head as he said with a look of disgust, "This laundry pile is going to be the death of me!"


When Ryan sees Laynie in her vibrating chair he always comments, "Duty Calls" as he goes over to her to try and keep her content.


Our new favorite "Ryanism" is what he says when we put Laynie in her carseat. Laynie absolutely hates her carseat. So, Ryan sits next to her and repeats over and over, "Your okay, your not in your carseat. Your okay, your not in your carseat." O.k., so maybe you have to be there to appreciate it, but it really is funny!

A Day Off From School

When we were in the process of moving to Colorado, I discovered that one of my good childhood friends lived here as well. While we do not get to see each other as often as I would like, my boys always enjoy spending time with her children and I always love spending time with her. I was especially excited for Laynie to spend time with her new baby (he was born the week before Laynie).

They are going to be good friends, don't you think?!

Lowe's Build and Grow

I love to find things to keep my boys occupied. I especially love when I find something that Kelly can do with the boys while I stay home by myself, well almost by myself. Lowe's has a cute clinic every other Saturday where kids can go and build something all by themselves. This week's project was a tabletop Tetherball. While it hasn't exactly provided hours of entertainment since they brought it home, they did have a great time constructing it and they haven't wanted to take off their "construction aprons" since they came home. I call that a success!

Laynie's Two Months Old!

Well, technically she is almost ten weeks old, but she just had her two month old appointment on Friday. She weighs 9 pounds 8.7 ounces (13th percentile) and is 23 inches long (67th percentile). It is pretty amazing Kelly and I have such tall children considering how short we both are. Thank goodness for good genes! The doctor confirmed she has both Colic and Reflux, no surprise, believe me! She told me both should go away by the time she is six months old. So, only four more months to go! It's a good thing she is so dang cute, otherwise all of this crying could really wear on a person!

First Day of School

We left Utah at 3AM on Monday morning so that we could be home in time for the boys to attend the Meet and Greet at their school. Then we got them to bed early so they could be well rested (ha ha) for their first day of school. Jacob is now in 3rd grade and Ryan is in 1st grade. So far Jacob is loving 3rd grade and I am sure that Ryan will love 1st grade soon enough. I guess considering kindergarten was two and a half hours and 1st grade is six and a half hours things could be worse. He has had a stomach ache two mornings, and even tried to fake a broken foot this morning in the hopes of staying home. He won't go to the restroom at school, so he may actually have a real injury to his bladder to use as an excuse next week! All kidding aside, he has a very kind teacher and as soon as he gets used to a new routine I am certain that he will be as enthusiastic about school this year as he was last year (fingers crossed!).

How Many More Pictures Can There Possibly Be?

I know that it seems impossible for there to be more pictures from our trip to Utah, but there are! Between me, my sister, Cammi, and Judy there are literally hundreds of pictures! So, I promise this will be the last, but I had to share a little more of the fun we had over the 4th of July weekend.

Celebrating Kelly's 34th and Tyson's 8th Birthday . . .

Grandma Judy holding Baby Laynie for the first time . . .

Katelyn and Jordan roughing around . . .

Fireworks . . .



More pictures from Laynie's Blessing and the brunch following . . .

Having fun playing at Grandpa Dennis's and Grandma Judy's hotel. Eating pizza, going swimming and having a special dinner and movie night with the Stohl cousins . . .

Visiting Temple Square . . .

And meeting our newest Sister in Law, Stephanie!

Laynie's Blessing

Kelly gave Laynie the most beautiful blessing. It was extra special for us because all of his family and most of mine were together for the event. We used the opportunity to take a picture with Kelly's family. The last time we were all together was shortly after Ryan was born.

The boys had a lot of fun playing with their Stohl cousins. Becca and Mallory (8 and 7) are Jacob's age and the twins, Carter and Reilly are Ryan's age which makes them perfect playmates!

Layna and Cammi Lynne

This picture is priceless to us. Kelly and I are so blessed to have the most wonderful sisters. We did not even have to go through a list of names to decide what to name our little girl. From the moment I learned I was pregnant, I knew exactly what her name would be. It was not a name I had thought of before I was pregnant, but I just knew that Laynie Lynne was what her name should be. Despite the fact that I think it sounds a little like the name of a Country Western Singer, we love it and hope that she can live up to the legacy of her name.

Here is why the name is so special to us:

Layna is my best friend. I love her because she is fun, funny (at least I think so!), a great mom, and such a good listener. We talk on the phone several times a day and never run out of things to talk about. She is extremely loyal, and I know she will always be on my side.

When I asked Kelly why he loves Cammi (Lynne) so much here is what he said: She is my only sister and she has always taken care of me. Despite her overwhelming health problems, she does not focus on herself. She has always wanted the best for me. I hope that Laynie is organized, beautiful, and fun just like her.

It meant so much to us that Cammi came to Utah for Laynie's blessing. We know that this was not easy for her to do. We feel blessed to have her in our life and pray for her each day.

UTAH TRIP

Wow! What a fun trip we had! The boys spent five weeks (can you believe it!) in Utah and I spent the last two being called "grandma"! My mom is so great, kind, generous, beautiful, fun, etc. etc. and we owe her more than we could possibly ever repay! She hopped on the plane the moment we called to tell her Laynie was coming. She stayed until the boys finished school and then generously offered to take the boys back with her so that they could enjoy some summer fun. I joined her the moment I could (as soon as Laynie's due date) and we stayed until the 4th of July when we blessed Laynie. I truly do not know what I would have done without her. I know that she would never hesitate to do anything and everything for me and my family! We are so lucky!
Now, enough gushing about my mom (I really could go on and on!) . . . and on to the rest of our trip. Where to start . . . let's see . . . Jacob got a horrible infection on his neck which is really no surprise considering that he is all boy! If there is a puddle or dirt, or heaven help us, mud he will find it, step in it and even roll in it if possible. So, when we make our trip to the Emergency Room to have to sore lanced, squeezed and packed with antibiotics, I could not even tell the doctor where exactly Jacob was exposed to the infection. He was very brave, especially considering he had just returned home from his friend, Peyton's house in Price. He had the time of his life (which was evident by the clothes he brought home covered in pig mud!) and was so upset he had to come home. He was exhausted from all of the fun and I was in the process of putting him to bed when we took a good look at his neck and realized how much bigger it had become while he was away. Jacob took his two different meds like a pro and all is well now!
P.S. I chose to post a picture of the sore covered up so as not to make anyone sick! Take my word for it, it was horrible looking.

One of the highlights of the trip was giving Laynie the opportunity to meet her great grandma! My grandma lived so close to us when we were in Price and my boys became very attached to her. She is an amazing woman with a strong testimony of the Gospel. She is one of my favorite people, and I hope to live up to her example.

My sister just bought an adorable house in Lehi, Utah. In honor of their new home, we attended the city's parade. As you can tell, it did not necessarily live up to the kid's expectations. We even left early because it was sooo hot and the parade just kept coming and coming. Every ward in Lehi had a float along with one for the Stake Presidents! You've gotta love Utah!




We celebrated Kelly's birthday at my parent's cabin in Fairview Canyon. My boys love, love, love the cabin, and of course Kelly loves it even more. The boys had fun riding the four wheeler, camping out in a tent, going on a scavenger hunt, eating s'mores and hanging out with their cousins. Jordan, our oldest cousin was so patient with all of the younger cousins. Here he is enjoying the spoils of the scavenger hunt.


Katelyn, loved helping with Laynie. She helped me bathe Laynie, put lotion on her, and she especially loved holding her. She is such a cute girl and I know Laynie will have so much fun playing with her in a few short years!


We were so glad that Jason and Shannon, along with their children spent the week with us. The boys always look forward to seeing their cousins each summer. The kids love being together, especially when it involves ganging up on their Uncle Marc and Grandpa. Tyson, the cute blond with the BYU hat on, is getting baptized on July 12th and we are so sad that we could not stay in Utah to be there for it. We did not want the boys to miss the first day of school and despite all of the fun we had, it was definitely time for us to go home!