Easter!

We had a wonderful Easter this year! It was so fun because the kids understood what was going on. Holidays are so much more fun when you have kids and can watch the magic unfold for them. All of my siblings were able to be here for the whole weekend. I love when we can all get together and especially love to watch the kids with their cousins. My brother and sister-in-law have a little girl that is a year younger than Hanna and a boy that is just a few months younger than Tucker. My little sister and her husband have a baby that is just a few months old so he will be really close in age to our new little baby. It makes it really fun when we all get together.

On Saturday my Sister-in-law organized an egg hunt for all the kids. We got there around noon and we had about 200 eggs between four walking kids and two babies (my cousin Davis was also there with his wife Lindsey and their baby Aiden). They were all just set in the grass and the kids went crazy for them. Hanna and Raleigh had their baskets so full that they would spill eggs every time they bent over to pick up another one. Tucker found out very quickly that there was candy inside the eggs. He was trying to just get one at a time and eat all the candy out of it. They were all so cute and we couldn't have had better weather.


















After the egg hunt Dave and I took our kids to Big Juds for a burger. Tucker was so exhausted by this point, so he slept on the table almost until the very end.



Then when we got home we took the kids for a horse ride out on the desert. It was so fun and we had a great ride. Hanna got to ride "her saddle" for the first time this year. It is actually a Buddy Seat which it a seat with two handles and stirrups for the child. It straps behind your saddle, and we borrowed it from Dave's parents (thanks so much). She chattered the whole way. Tucker was a little more difficult. He was determined that he should "drive." I fought with him for a long ways. It was funny, but I still needed to be able to handle the reins and direct the horse. Finally Dave unhooked my rope strap and fashioned Tucker his own reins. As long as I kept my set lower than his we did not have an issue. It was so great to take our little family out and be together just the four of us. While we love our families, between the kids being little and Dave's job, we don't get to do that very often, especially during the winter.

Later that night we dyed eggs at our house and invited Dave's parents to come participate. The kids were both really into it and had 18 eggs colored in about 20 minutes.






The next morning (Easter). We got the kids up and they got their baskets and then hunted for eggs. I made our special occasion breakfast of monkey bread and bacon. Dave's parents ate with us and then we visited for a little bit while the kids played with their new toys.







Then we got ready for Church. The kids looked so cute in their new clothes. I made Hanna's dress and headband as well as Tucker's tie.

Church was wonderful as usual. Hanna is now a sunbeam which means we got to watch her go up in sacrament and sing with the rest of the primary. Tucker was wired on candy and struggled during Sacrament meeting. He even got his head stuck in a chair, which was oh so fun! The rest of Church was filled with wonderful lessons and testimonies on the Savior. I have to take the chance to say that I know that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world. I know that He atoned for our sins and suffered all pains and trials that had ever and would ever exist in this world. I know that He died for us, and was resurrected. I know that because of His sacrifice we will al live again after death. I am so grateful for Him and His infinite love for all of us.

After Church we went to my parent's house for a wonderful lunch. It was delicious! Then we came home and got ready for yet another delicious meal at Dave's parents house. We where so stuffed by the end of the day. We stayed at Mike and Amy's house for a little while and played with the kids outside. Our nephew Tyson was also there playing. Then we took our food and candy filled selves home to get ready to go to Utah the next morning and went to bed. What a great weekend.

- Posted by Brianna

Baby #3- 6 months along

This baby is coming so soon. I cannot believe that I only have 3 months (at the most to go). I am getting so excited to meet this little guy.

Due Date: August 8th
Maternity Clothes: Yes, why do maternity pants have to be so dang short?!
Weight Gain: about 12 lbs- hoping to slow that down a bit.
Sick: No- just very tired.
Cravings: lots of different things- basically anything sweet or fruity.
Gender: Boy
Moody: here and there- mostly because I am so tired all the time. I am looking forward to not being exhausted at some future time. Although I know from experience that this will not happen once baby is born.
Movement: tons! You can see my stomach move and roll now.
I Miss: I will be honest, I miss having a flat belly.
Preeclampsia: my blood pressure has started to raise a little bit, but nothing alarming yet.
Looking Forward To: hearing baby's heartbeat next week at my appointment.

This picture was taken 2 weeks ago. I have grown slightly since then.



- Posted by Brianna

Teaching Kids to Combat Today's Evils

How to raise my kids in this world of bombings, shootings, terrorism, natural disasters, and wars is something that has been on my mind a lot lately. My thoughts really started after the Sandyhook Elementary School shooting. After reading about the Boston Marathon bombings and the man hunt that followed, I could not sleep. I want my kids to grow up in a world of happiness, hope, love, and kindness. I felt like this was impossible.

I was so devastated for those who were hurt directly or indirectly by these tragedies. I was disgusted by those who used the tragedies to further their political or personal agendas. I was angry with those who participated in horrible arguments and judgements in cyber discussions. I was frustrated that the media would not just cover the story as it was, without adding their own spin on things.

Thankfully my prayers for understanding and direction were answered pretty quickly. It started with a few posts I saw in Facebook, and then I started to do a little Internet searching. What I found was wonderful.

I found a picture of man who despite his own horrific trials was at the Boston Marathon to spread kindness and love. When he heard the bombs go off he ran towards the explosions to help. In the picture he is clasping an artery closed of man who had his legs blown off. The man's life was spared.

I read a story of a mother who was running in the marathon about a mile from the finish line when the bombs went off. She knew her family was close to the bombs. She was diverted away from the finish line. When she finally confirmed her family was alright she fell apart, overcome with emotion. A man who finished the race and his wife came to check on this woman. He gave her his marathon medal.

I saw a picture of a police officer bringing milk to a family with young children. They had been on lockdown and had run out of milk. This really hits home for me, as my kids would not make it more than an hour or two without milk.

I found a news report if a couple who had lost their daughter in the school shooting. They had reached out the the father of the shooter. Something that as a parent I would find nearly impossible.

I found a wonderful quote by Mr. Rogers "When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” To this day, especially in times of “disaster,” I remember my mother’s words and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers – so many caring people in this world."

Lastly, I read a blog post by Ashley Sullenger at Sullengers.com entitle Boston Love. She wrote about not being able to protect her son from all the evils of the world, but instead teaching him to "counteract evil with kindness."

I concluded that it is very possible to raise my kids in a world of happiness, hope, love, and kindness. I have to teach them to look for the good, and wherever possible to be the good. As long as there are still people doing good in this world the evil will not win over.

I also decided that I would need to do a lot more to teach my kids about service. Since I have been telling them a lot about babies, their own births, and NICUs I decided to have them help me with baby leggings (cover babies' legs to help keep them warm without interfering with the monitors, tubes, and IVs) for the babies in the NICU where Hanna stayed after she was born. The kids helped me pick out the socks, place bows on the legs for girls, organize and deliver them. It was a lot of fun, and the kids did great with it.


I look forward to many more service projects with our family.
Posted by Brianna

Baby #3- 5 Months Along

Isn't he cute?! I think his profile looks just like Tucker. I am a little behind. I was so busy and side tracked that I didn't do a 4 month post.

Due Date: August 8th
Maternity Clothes: A few but I still prefer my regular clothes. They are snug but I can't fit into the maternity clothes yet.
Weight Gain: 5-6 lbs
Sick: no
Cravings: still pizza and strawberries- not together. I have also been craving all fruits lately.
Moody: no mostly happy although when I do snap I really snap.
Gender: Boy! And he is proud of it.
Movement: finally yes! He is moving more every day and his movements are getting stronger and stronger.
I Miss: not having to use the bathroom a thousand times a day.
Preeclampsia: none. My goal is to make it 5 more weeks without it. At that point a healthy baby can be born and sustained with lots of medical help. If I get that far I will set a new goal.
Looking Forward To: figuring out a name for this little guy. We are really struggling. We are just not coming up with anything we both like. Suggestions?


- Posted by Brianna

Riding the Pony and the Buggy

The weekend that my brothers family came to visit we were able to take Mike's horses and buggy to my parents house. We had a lot of fun, and I think my dad is still smiling.



These big beauties are called Kate and Sara.


Despite his face in all the pictures, Tucker loves this kind of stuff. He just takes it very seriously.



My brother's cute family.


All the guys rode in the front.


And the girls in the back.

We also played with our new pony.



Heath and Raleigh riding.





Hanna and Tucker riding, and believe it or not Tucker likes it a lot more than Hanna.


Even my mom rode the little guy even though she is terrified of horses.



My sister-in-law also rode the pony and was totally sold on it.

We all had a great time getting to visit with family.

SNOWMEN

Hanna has been asking to make a snowman for two years now. Last year we never had enough snow. This year our snow has been powdery or icy. Well last week we finally had some good sticky wet snow. So we took full advantage and finally made a snowman.



I have a really cute snowman kit, but it got buried in the snow during one of our snowman attempts earlier in the year. So our snowman was plain.





Isn't Hanna so cute!


Tucker went back and forth from having a blast to being completely ticked at his hat and gloves.


In this picture Tucker had fallen over and could not get up. He decided to just lay there and eat snow. Hanna was impatient with my insistence to get my camera and get pictures.

The following day my brother and his wife and kids came to visit from Gooding. The kids made another snowman with my mom in her yard.






Heath, Hanna, Raleigh, and Tucker- cutest little snow bunnies ever (my mom didn't loose her snowman kit).

- Posted by Brianna

Baby #3 A BOY!

We are having a boy! We are so excited. We weren't going to find out until next month. But, last week I started to get really nervous. I was 16 weeks and not showing at all or gaining weight. The movement that I thought I felt had gone away and I just didn't feel pregnant at all. I started showing with both of our other kids by this point. With Tucker I was showing by 12 weeks. I called my doctor's office to see if I could just come in and hear the heartbeat, but when I told the nurse my concerns she felt like I needed see Dr. Leavitt that day. So we went in that afternoon and heard the heart beat and talked to the doctor. He agreed that it was concerning and ordered a growth ultrasound for today. Everything looks perfect! And we found out the the baby is a boy!




He was curled into a tight little ball so it was hard to see much.




But we finally got this shot. I kept thinking that I saw a boy but just as I would think that I for sure saw a boy he would move. I finally asked the ultrasound tech and she said yes we are having a boy. He looks extremely healthy and he is growing perfectly and has enough fluid around him. I am just hiding him well. We just need to figure out a name for the little guy. We took the kids with us and Hanna was so excited. She keeps telling me that he is an alien baby. She told me when we got home "Mommy, your belly is going to get taller and taller and then the baby boy alien will come out! I am going to hold him." Picture her saying this with a huge smile while jumping up and down. Tucker just keeps pointing at my belly and saying "baby boy."