Easter

I told you I was going to get caught up someday! Plus, I just wanted to stand out a little and do my Easter pics in April instead.

Our Easter was really fun. We did Easter baskets on Saturday because James had to work Sunday morning. We spent part of Easter Sunday at my mom and Kirk's, and went to church with them. Then for dinner my mom, Kirk, Scott, and our family all went over to my dad and Joanie's for a delicious dinner of ribs. Joanie and Dad used Brooke's recipe for ribs, and seriously, it is the best thing ever. Dinner was fabulous, and so much fun. I am so lucky to have parents and stepparents who are willing to spend the holidays together. It's so much fun and so much less work than having to celebrate everything twice.

This is Kenley doing her egg hunting at both grandparents' homes. Note her awesome bedhead. For Kenley, the color of the egg was the MOST important thing. At our ward Easter breakfast, she was content with grabbing about 4 pink and purple eggs, and then just stepped right over all the other more inferior colors.



Here are the Easter portraits I did of the kids. I was all proud of myself because I got them ready by myself with plenty of time to do pictures before going to church. But they just would not cooperate. I got some of just Kenley that I liked, but none of Parker that I was crazy about, and NOTHING of the two of them together. Two cats in a bag, I tell you. Impossible to get a cute picture of the two of them together. The first one of them together is just ridiculous, and then the fourth one down is the cutest one I got of them together. Which, as you can see, is not that great. I really need to lower my expectations I think.






Then the rest of these are just assorted cuteness. I loved these bunny ears. I got them at Big Lots for a dollar. Kenley wanted them so bad and I thought, hey why not? She still enjoys wearing hers. Parker, not so much.

A little help, please?

Kenley has two things on her list for her rapidly upcoming September birthday that I anticipate having a hard time finding. She would like an Aladdin toolset, specifically a screwdriver, and a Lightening McQueen violin. So there you go. She also has 439 other things on the list, so if we don't get her these two things, I doubt she'll notice. As long as she has her cake with Hello Kitty, Lion King, Barney, Cinderella, and Dora on it.

Funny little story: earlier this week Parker was chasing after Kenley, trying to grab toys out of the ever-so-precious Nemo gift bag she uses as a purse. She was really frustrated and finally stomps out the door of my room and shouts, "I am going to find someplace SAFE to live!" Funny girl.

Yappity yap yap

I think this post will probably bore most of you, but I wanted to ruminate a bit on language acquisition. Hee hee, have I already lost you? It's amazing. Toddlers are amazing, how much they learn and how quickly they learn it.

Almost exactly a year ago Brooke and I made a list of the words the girls knew, and Kenley knew about 30 words (including Mommy, Daddy, shoe, bye-bye, etc.). Then around Halloween, just six months ago, I remember being impressed because she said her most advanced sentence yet: "I want candy IN MY MOUTH!" And now, oh man. She is just this little person that says things like, "What is this blue on my leg? Hmmm... maybe it's marker," and, "Can I please break these markers apart Daddy?" and, "I can't reach it by myself!" All of that in a year! And using these phrases that are sort of abstract concepts too, like "reaching." It's so cool to me.

I'm telling you, toddlers are unbelieveable. They learn these phrases on their own, their little brains hear you say something, file it away, and use it in the correct context at some later date. I love hearing her say new words. "Actually, I want to wear the pink shirt." "That is Cinderella getting married." She is hard to understand, but she's a good little talker.

A funny phrase she uses right now is, "That doesn't match!" It has two meanings to her - one, that something is in the wrong place, and two, that something doesn't make sense in her head. A toy in the wrong spot? That doesn't match! Our dog Lucy is actually Daddy's doggy and not hers? That doesn't match! It always makes me laugh.

But her best phrase of all is the spontaneous "I love you!" Oh, I love it! What could be better than that sweet little face piping up from the back seat, "I yuv you Mommy! So much!" Awwww....

A big year for a big boy!

Happy Birthday Parker! One year ago today we welcomed you so excitedly into our little family. We were so happy to become a family of four, and to watch Kenley transition from the only little one to the big sister. The moment I saw you I couldn't believe how beautiful you were, and yet how different you looked from Kenley! You were so handsome, with this absolutely gorgeous skin, dark hair, and dark blue eyes. So teeny tiny - it's easy to forget how small babies are, how they just fit right into your arms, no gangly legs overflowing or daredevil leaping onto the floor to chase after a ball. Just miniature, sweet little things. That cry a lot.

I was reading through your journal a few nights ago and I had written that each time I went to the temple when I was pregnant with you, I distinctly felt impressed that you would be a "joy unto our family." How true that has been. You bring so much joy and happiness to us. You are such a happy little guy, so loving and so sweet. You make all of us laugh with your little personality. Sometimes we will be driving and you and Kenley will just bust up laughing in the back seat and I feel like my heart is going to explode with how cute you two are together.

Parker, loving you has been the simplest, most unconditional love I have ever experienced. For me, loving your sister was (and will probably always be) more complicated. She's my first, and she's a girl, and there's just a lot of intense emotions flying around there. But with you it was easier. I have been more relaxed, I have stressed less, I have looked up fewer milestone and growth charts on the internet, and I have just enjoyed you so much. And you have loved me in some ways that were just simple and new to me (your big sis is not the snuggler that you are) - laying your head against my chest, snuggling up in my lap, and giving me the most heartwarming smiles that just radiate your love. It's amazing. You're amazing. I am lucky to be your mommy. Even though I mess up a lot, you make me feel like I'm doing a great job with your eyes full of adoration for such a faulty mom.

While I am looking forward to all the walking, talking, and playing this next year will bring, it is a little bittersweet for me to leave this simple baby love behind. I know that tantrums and arguments lie ahead, along with silly jokes that don't make sense and unreasonable obsessions with cartoon characters. I feel so lucky that for the most part I've had the presence of mind to enjoy this sweet time while it lasts. Thanks, my baby, for a great first year. I wouldn't have changed a thing.

Now we need a website!

I'm putting a plea out for our wedding cake business - do any of our loyal readers know how to design a website, or know someone who would do it cheaply?

PS: Name announcement and winner of the contest coming soon! The name we chose did come from one of the suggestions on this blog! Also coming soon, Easter pics. Cuz we know you wanna see the little monkeys in their bunny ears. :)

What the heck?

So I went to pick up a Subway party platter for our Playgroup Easter party, and the cashier goes, "Is this for the office, or your home?" Huh? There's no option for a party in there? They're for my home. Thank you for the THIRTY Subway sandwiches.

Guess who's napping? :)

Kenley! Her first nap since we took the paci away, almost a week. I thought for sure if she didn't nap by Thursday she'd be done permanently. I am so happy! I'm sure this is the beginning of the end of naps, but I'm happy to have her napping today! Thanks to our playgroup Easter party! PS: Guess who managed to collect ONLY pink and purple eggs?

The beautiful things....

I decided to post one more time tonight to get some pictures up. By the way, I think all my recent posting has bumped the business-naming post off the page, so make sure you read all the way back if you haven't read that yet.

Anyway, I took these of Parker today and I LOVE them. And I can hear you from here about his hair color. It's not. It's brown. It's just the lighting, I'll fix it in Photoshop (along with some other problems which are probably bothering only me). Anyway, isn't he precious? These pictures really capture his personality - so sweet and also a little bit salty. We love this little boy.

Warning: I'm posting lots because I couldn't narrow it down any more than this. Consider this his one-year photo shoot. :)

Okay, seriously

SERIOUSLY! Am I on Cadid Camera?

So if you read my last post you know that in addition to doing hard-core pacifier weaning all by myself this weekend, I am also without a car. So today I am trying to make the best of the situation and prevent another day like yesterday, and I think to myself, "Okay, we can't go to the park like I wanted to, but it's gorgeous outside, so we'll just play in the front yard." One Dora scooter, one tractor push toy, and two squirmy kids later, we're having an okay time, so I decide to water our front planter. At the exact second I turn the hose on, the sprinklers in the yard go on. Fine. Except, NOT FINE, because one is broken and just gushing water, right where Parker is sitting. So I'm on the phone with James trying to figure out how to turn the sprinklers off, Kenley is running amok, dancing in the sprinklers (it's not actually THAT warm), and Parker is splashing in the geyser until he decides it's actually traumatic and then he bursts into tears. Whatever. So I wrangle both kids and throw them in the house (amidst much crying) and I'm in the garage teetering on a stepstool, trying to read and push buttons on some panel that was designed for giants with magnifying vision, Kenley is bawling because she wants to come out to the garage, but she can't because (of course) a lightbulb broke out there this morning and James didn't have time to clean it up. But I get that whole thing figured out, thanks to my handy husband.

So then tonight I decide to bathe the kids, which is actually pretty noble because I hate doing it but I'm trying to be productive, and the kids like it. So it turns out that whatever I did this morning to shut off the sprinklers drastically reduced water pressure into the house, so the tub water comes out in a thick trickle. Nice. But I persevere, and just let the tub take 20 minutes to fill three inches. That's plenty for a bath. In go the bath toys, in goes the baby, and in goes the toddler, who promptly PEES IN THE TUB! Yes, the one that I just spent 20 minutes filling. I just had to laugh. What a day.

One of those days

This day, this weekend actually, is going to go in the record books as a low point as a mommy. Bear with me on my musings about sleep props, hopefully I don't offend anyone. This is also going to be a rambling, long complaining post but I don't do too many of those, so just put up with me. Please.

So Kenley has slept with a paci since she was a baby. I wanted to get rid of it around the time she turned one, but I was pregnant and she slept so good, and who was it hurting, really? Then Parker was born (not a good time to give up a paci), then I just had excuse after excuse until I ran out of excuses and decided it was time to break her habit. The truth is that I *might* have considered just riding it out until she was ready to give it up, but Parker's turning into an addict as well and I am not going to go through this again. So Thursday we all went to the zoo and "gave them to the baby monkeys" AKA threw them in the trash when she wasn't looking - no going back. She was so cheerful going into it that we knew she didn't really get it, and sure enough she didn't. As soon as we got into the car she asked for one, we reminded her that we just gave them to the baby monkeys, and she gets this quivery lip and goes, "But I want them back!" Thursday's "nap" was horrible - she didn't sleep. Today, oh my goodness. Picture this - two kids crying in their beds for TWO HOURS - neither of them take their afternoon nap. My plan to take them to the park to wear them out every day is foiled because James' car is acting up so he needs to take mine. I am homebound with two heartbroken babies. Kenley keeps asking me, "Where my nap go?" (Nap is her word for paci) and sometimes I say, "Where did they go?" and she asks hopefully, "Under my pillow?" and I say, "No, we took them to the baby monkeys because you're a big girl now," and her face just crumbles. I feel so bad for her, seriously it breaks my heart.

So I knew tonight would be bad. Both kids cranky from no naps, Parker falls asleep no problem. Kenley is crying and tantruming at the drop of a hat, and I just cannot take it. Plus my friend offered to have her daughter babysit for an hour or two tonight (before bedtime) while we went to this recipe exchange, and I was so looking forward to getting out, made my soup and everything, and then she calls and she's sick so I can't go because I don't have my dumb car. So that made me feel even more sorry for myself. James is at work all day and all night today and tomorrow, and I just feel overwhelmed by the difference in what I have to do versus what I want to do. I don't want to read freaking Zamp in My Lamp with Kenley crying because I inadvertently touched the pull tab to move the Nureau in the Bureau. I don't want to let her brush her teeth and cry because she didn't get to drink water out of my hand. I don't want to put her in her pajamas or ANYTHING. I just want to leave, go to Target, curl up in bed with a magazine, whatever. Just put Kenley in her room and let her kick and scream and tantrum, but instead I have to deal with it and I DO NOT WANT TO! My patience is seriously shot. I'm mean and snappish and don't even want to deal with this. So I'm trying to put Kenley to bed early and she's crying and throwing fits about everything, won't go to sleep, and finally I just burst into tears. Totally freaks Kenley out, she's going, "What's wrong, Mommy? It's okay," and comforting me and patting me. Totally more caring and affectionate than I am. So I just tell her I'm sad about the pacis too, and I just want her to go to sleep, and she promises she will, and she does. What an angel.

I am discouraged that she might drop her afternoon nap altogether now, I am so not ready for that. I don't think I can take another day like today all by myself. But really I am just mad at myself for letting her go so long with the paci. It was just selfish on my part. It's not like I was doing her a favor, like she'd thank me for another twelve months of sucking on a pacifier. I have learned this: the longer you wait to change anything sleep-related, the harder it is. On mommy and kid. And I feel bad that I'm putting her through this because I didn't feel like doing it earlier, because it was inconvenient for me. Seriously, I feel so selfish and mean right now. If you can't put up with the bad sleep habit for the long haul, do your kid a favor and break it early. Her sad little face... oh, I just can't tell you.

AND, everyone is just telling me stupid stories that do not make me feel any better! Oh yeah, when I did that my kid never napped again. Oh, I would never do that until my kid was READY. Oh, I would never give my kid a paci in the first place. Oh, my sister took my nephew's paci away and he turned into a thumb sucker. Don't leave me any of those kinds of comments on the blog, seriously. I only want to know about it if you have a story where the kid was a big-time addict and it only took a rough couple of days and then it was fine.

AND, like I am not already feeling like world's worst mom, we drive by Taco Bell this morning and Kenley sings out, like she always does, "Bye Taco Bell! See you soon!" I suck.

We Need Your Help!

James and I are going to put his expertise to good use and start a dessert business! We will be doing mostly wedding and special occasion cakes, but also cupcakes, cookies, and specialty desserts.

We want our image to be young, trendy, and high-end. Maybe something that reflects kind of a Southern California feel, but we're not set on that. Anything would work. I really like the sound of a one-word name, possibly with the phrase "A Dessert Boutique" after it. But like I said, we're really open at this point.

So can I pick your brains? Please help us out! Any and all ideas are welcome, maybe it'll get our brains going in some different directions!

If you come up with the winning name, you will receive a dozen complimentary specialty cookies or cupcakes! Just type your ideas in the comments section - and for those who haven't commented before, you don't have to have a blogger account, you can post anonymously and just put your name at the end of your post so we know who you are. Thanks everyone!

Eight Things About Kenley AKA "Mommy, I love pink and purple all day long."

1. I love books. I want Mommy to read them to me all day long. One thing I am very particular about, though, is that if there is a picture of any sort of food, I have to take a pretend bite, and then also give a pretend bite to any other person or animal in the room. It's just good manners.

2. I am a very good eater. I do hate potatoes and corn (yes, I realize they are among the most bland foods on the planet), onions (too spicy), and soup (this is just to be inconvenient, because Mommy and Daddy like to eat soup at least once a week). I actually cover my eyes when they try to feed me soup. It makes sense only to me. My favorite healthy food is red bell peppers, my favorite condiment is ketchup, and my favorite treat is candy.

3. I have exquisite manners. I will be enjoying my quesadilla and then just look up and give Mommy a rapturous, "THANK you, Mommy!" I also habitually say please, thank you, excuse me, and bless you.

4. I love toys. Really anything, although commercialized characters score extra points. Target is just a huge temptation for me, and I am now banned from that store because I just emit a steady stream of, "Oh Mommy, I WANT that! I LOVE that! I need that! Mommy, I love that! Mommy, I want that!" I don't really see the problem there, I'm just telling you what my Mommy told me.

5. I am getting really into identifying things that match. Pajamas, it seems, are notorious for this. All my pajama tops match their bottoms, and this is really cool to me. Anything that is pink also matches, no matter the shade.

6. I LOVE church, especially nursery. I am learning all about Jesus too. Last week in Utah, I told Grandma Nancy, "It's sacrament! I think about Jesus! And eat YUMMY BREAD!"

7. I am very interested in learning people's names. Whenever I meet a new person, I will later need to ask my mommy, "What's Julia's mommy's name? What's Julia's daddy's name? What's Julia's baby's name?" and so on. Then I will remember them forever, although sometimes I'll ask Mommy again because it's fun. Oh, and I'll tack this on here: I remember everything. I have an amazing memory. I get that from my mom.

8. I love animals, and I am fascinated by learning about them. I love the zoo and the Wild Animal Park. My favorite animal is still a monkey, but I also love bald eagles, hippos, and bunnies. I sometimes try to find an okapi in my animal crackers, but so far no luck. I can tell you all about how some animals grow in their mommy's tummies, and other ones pop out of eggs. I learned that from my mom last time we were at the Wild Animal Park, and I still like to talk about it. If you see me in person and you don't scare me, I'll do some animal sounds for you and it'll be awesome.

Peace out.

Curse the new and improved jellybeans

Okay, this is totally stupid, but why can't jellybeans still be nasty? These Starburst jellybeans are just my nemesis. Finally I ate them all so they would be gone from my house but now James is sad that I finished them so I feel obligated to buy more during my trip to Target tonight. Grrrrr.....

We just got back from a week in Utah, and I'll be posting about that once we sift through our 300 pictures (I wish I was kidding). Did you miss us? I also have to get my 8 Things About Kenley done, but I admit, I'm feeling a little pressure. Oh, how I wish I was a boring and uninteresting person....

Eight Things About Parker

Parker has been "tagged" by his friend Noelle, and has dictated these 8 things for me to write:

1. I love to swing at the park! I just sit there with a big old content smile on my face, and I will swing as long as Mommy can stand it. Then I'll crawl away and eat some sand.

2. I adore my sister. I think she is the funniest person in the world. I especially love to grab her face and slap the top of her head. Luckily she is very patient about it. I just found out that I can reach over and hold hands with her when we sit in our carseats. We are very cute little buddies.

3. I like food, but I'm not very good at eating it. I gag on food every single day. My favorite thing to eat is Saltine crackers. I mean, homemade pureed squash. My mom thinks she's cutting me off of formula next month when I turn one, but that's not going to happen.

4. I look just like my daddy, and also like my Grandpa Jim. I am 100% Hampton. I look nothing like my mommy, but I really love her anyway.

5. I like to push buttons on things. If I see Mommy or Daddy push a button on a toy or electronic of some sort, I will push it again and again. I also enjoy slapping things, particularly tables.

6. I don't wear shoes. Seriously. You can try, but you'll just get frustrated. I will totally contort my feet to prevent the shoes from being shoved on, and if by chance they do get on, I immediately rip them off. I have probably never worn a shoe for longer than two minutes.

7. I love to throw things. The noisier, the better. I especially love to throw Kenley's metal pots and pans onto Grandma Kerry's laminate floors. That's the best sound ever.

8. I am a SUPER fast crawler. Unbelievably fast. You'd better not take your eyes off me for a second, because I will instantaneously disappear into another room. I really would have been better off being born to a more attentive mother, but I love it because I can get into all kinds of trouble while she checks her e-mail.

And that's all you need to know about me! Oh, and I'm turning one next month, can you believe it?

Don't even try not to laugh out loud

Kenley: "Where's Ellis?"

Mommy: "He's probably eating lunch, just like we need to. Do you think he's eating a grilled cheese sandwich?"

Kenley: "No, a BOY cheese sandwich."

Mommy: "Do you think it's called a GIRL cheese sandwich?"

Kenley: "Yes?"

Mommy: "That's awesome."

The Kenleykins

Some random things about Kenley...

Her favorite song is song #4 on the Wicked soundtrack, "What is This Feeling?". She always wants to listen to it in my mom's car and she can sing along with most of the words. What can I say, it's better than "Wheels on the Bus." Sample lyrics:
LET'S JUST SAY -- I LOATHE IT ALL!
EV'RY LITTLE TRAIT, HOWEVER SMALL
MAKES MY VERY FLESH BEGIN TO CRAWL
WITH SIMPLE UTTER LOATHING
THERE'S A STRANGE EXHILARATION
IN SUCH TOTAL DETESTATION
IT'S SO PURE! SO STRONG!
THOUGH I DO ADMIT IT CAME ON FAST
STILL I DO BELIEVE THAT IT CAN LAST
AND I WILL BE LOATHING
LOATHING YOU
MY WHOLE LIFE LONG!


Tonight in Target she wanted an Ariel swimming suit, but it was size 4T. Oh, first I asked her if she wanted to hold it, and she said, "No, BUY it!" like I was an idiot. So then we told her it was too big but maybe we could find a smaller one for her at a different Target. She nodded solemnly and agreed. Then as we were about to check out she goes, "I bigger now! Have the Ariel swimming suit, okay?" Sadly, she only grows one size every year or two, not two sizes in ten minutes. But it was a good effort.

Every night after she brushes her teeth, she gets some water in a little yellow cup and drinks some. Then she looks down and says, "Too much," and pours the rest out. Every single night. This kid, I am telling you, she is the best.

Disneyland!

We decided to buy Disneyland passes with some Christmas money this year, since both our kids are still free! We went on our anniversary last week, along with my mom, and we had a great time! A lot has changed since we last went to Disneyland, so there was something new for all of us. I'm about to overload you all with pictures, so get ready...







So my advice to anyone going to Disneyland with a toddler is this: Don't have any expectations. Even if your child lives and breathes for anything Disney, don't anticipate capturing their joy on camera. Even if your child NAMES HER CLOTHING after the Disney princesses, ("My Belle jacket!" "My Ariel swimsuit!") don't think she'll smile when she sees them. This was Kenley: serious stoneface in EVERY character picture.







As we waited in line I was having her practice her cute smiles, and then when she got up there: NOTHING. Then as soon as we left, her whole face would light up as she would tell me about meeting the character. Ah, life with a two-year-old. But I did get a few shots of her having fun, and one super cute one of Parker sleeping.







Here's the best part, though. Later that night I asked her who her favorite person was that we met and she said Mulan. How fine and dandy. We didn't meet Mulan.