A Day at The Beach

Lion King 3D

We watch Lion King at least once a day around here and even on the hottest days Ford loves to wear his Lion costume so we were very excited to hear about the 3D version that just came out.

Wade took Ford to see it at the beautiful Grand Lake theater here in Oakland. Ford even got to wear his lion costume and as they passed friendly people on the street instead of a hello Ford would growl at them.
This was his first time at the movies and he did great. He stayed for the whole movie although he only wore his glasses at the beginning. When he first put them on he said "woah!" Then at one point when it got really quiet in the movie he belted out "in the jungle the mighty jungle the lion sleeps tonight." He had a great time on his special outing with his dad.

While those two were at the movies, my mom and I took Dock and Coast to Habitot a small museum/play place especially for little kids. Coast slept through it but Dock had a blast. He especially liked the craft room which had gack.

Coast

Here is our new little guy. He was born September 15th at 1:30 in the morning. He weighed 10 lbs and was 21 inches long.

On September 14th at a week over due, I begged my doctor to let me be induced. She called over to the hospital and they said I could come over anytime after lunch. Wade had a few things to finish up at work that morning and my mom left work around noon to come watch the boys. We sang happy birthday to Wade and had some birthday cake before we left.

Just as we got to the hospital, L&D got busy. They got us right into a room but I waited a few hours before they got me started. I had them start the pitocin and the epidural at the same time. I was a little worried at first when my right leg didn't go numb but everything that really needed to be numb was, so I didn't feel a thing when the contractions started.

We still hadn't decided on a name so when my doctors and nurses found out about our water theme they pledged to spend the rest of their shift on Google checking out names. Wade mentioned that whoever could correctly guess the baby's weight could name him. Shortly after that, every doctor and nurse on the floor came to our room to introduce themselves and guess the baby's weight. They had made an impressive list of names alongside the weight guesses as their shifts ended.

Things were pretty quiet for the most part. We just watched TV and slept when we could. Around 1:00 I was starting to feel those contractions so I asked for more juice in my epidural and someone to check my progress. The anesthesiologist and the doctors were all busy with a C-section, so no more meds for me. When one of the doctors stepped away to check me, I was at a 10 and the baby was ready to go. Two pushes later he popped out.

We knew our little guy would be big but still all of the guesses underestimated his massive size. The closest guess was 9 lbs so we had to name the little guy ourselves. I hope he doesn't hate us for it later. We get some strange looks when we tell people his name is Coast but I think it will fit him just fine.

A Big Dog Party

I haven’t updated the blog in ages although there’s been plenty going on during the last year but I’m not going to try and catch up in this post.

This little guy just turned 3 and since we’ve been reading a lot of books and watching a lot of shows about birthdays lately, Ford knew just what he wanted. On the top of the list were 1) a surprise 2) with decorations and 3) a blue cake. And since we’ve been reading a lot of Go Dog Go and Clifford’s Birthday we had a big dog party.

Here is the birthday boy and his dad just before we went to Antioch for the party.

When we got there I asked him what the sign said and he said “Happy Birthday Ford”. I’m not sure how he knew that but he was very excited about it. Dock just wanted a balloon. When we walked in the door everyone said SURPRISE! Party guest included Ford and Dock and their cousins Cash and Dodge and baby cousins Easton and Faith and all the grown up parents that came with them. Ford loved the surprise, but Dock was ready to turn around and go home.

Don’t even think about making me wear this hat mom.
Dock and his cousin Dodge happened to be wearing the same shirt, as if it isn’t already hard enough to call them the right name when there together. At one point Dock had gone missing for a while but I didn’t even notice because Dodge was there running around in a blur making me feel like Dock had never left. Dock was later found in the bathroom eating soap.
The birthday meal for the kids included the appetizers that you see here, cocoa puffs served in dog food bowls. Hotdogs and side salads came later. I wish I would have gotten more pictures of all the cute dog stuff. The whole place was decked out with dog balloons, stuffed animals, streamers, banners, and puppy paw prints. Number one and number two could definitely be checked off Ford’s list.
And here’s number three, the blue cake!
Everything was just perfect for Ford but it still got better. I don’t even think he knew about presents. He got toys, art supplies, and clothes. As soon as we got home we of course opened everything up and immediately played with it all.
And meet the hit of the Dog party, Chandler the dog. Our friend Robyn brought her very kid friendly dog and the kids loved him. She even brought a brush so they could pet him, brush him, hug him and generally bother him, but he was great and let them be all over him. Ford loved the dog! I feel like a bad mother for not getting him one and selfish for not even wanting to.
We didn’t do any structured games but the boys had a lot of fun when we pulled out the parachute. Each time the parachute when down and came back up it was like a battle had been fought underneath and all the casualties were lying down in different positions.

Ford loved all his presents, many of which came in handy at church today, but I was really excited to give him this lion costume. He’s been pretending to be a lion for weeks and makes me tie a blanket around his head as a pretend mane which usually gags him but he doesn’t care because he’s a lion.
Last night when he put this on we had a hard time getting him to take it off when it was finally time to go to bed. He just wanted to look at himself in the mirror. He said “I have a lion mane, and lion pants and a lion shirt, and a lion’s tail – stamp your self and go by mail” that last part is a funny little reference he remembered from his Dr. Seuss book Marvin K Mooney.
I just love this little guy and I’m so glad he had such a fun birthday. It really couldn’t have been better. Thank you Marmie for making it happen and all our cousins, and Aunt Peg, and Papa for coming and all the great gifts! And of course to Robyn for bringing Chandler, the best part of the dog party.

Summer Fun

Here is some of what we've been up to this summer when we get a chance to hang around at home....The boys love playing in the water. Yes, I make them wear T-shirts and lots of sunscreen. Dock even has socks on in the picture.
We've been remodeling the basement- that is a separate post- but I got new appliances and a new sink when the old ones went into the kitchen we put in down stairs.
I love this new sink and since I spend a lot of time washing dishes or babies, I'm frequently reminded how nice it is. Black composite granite with two deep bowls, installed by my very handy hubby. I love washing both babies in it at the same time and they love it too. Look at those happy faces.
We saw an add in the paper that mentioned they would be launching hot air balloons so we just went to watch. When we got there they let us take the boys up for a ride for a small donation of $20 - what a deal.

Ford went up with Wade and Dock went up with my mom and Me. I'm terrified of heights so I was a little freaked out but Dock loved it.

We've been having a fun summer. Most of it's been spent here or there but not at home. We are glad to be back for a couple of weeks but the next few months each have a trip planned so it won't be long until we are off again.

My boys are so cute! Dock is sitting up well and loves tummy time but not crawling yet. He thinks food is fantastic and takes a bite of anything put in front of him including toys, people, paper, anything! We love his cute chubbiness. He is super happy and smiley except for right when he wakes up, it takes him a little while to warm up. He is a good napper and is sleeping through the night. He likes other people and is usually pretty willing to let anyone hold him.

Ford is a good boy. He is getting so big and so smart. Can I brag about my smart baby for a bit? I'm going to because this is my blog and that's what it's for. Ford isn't quite two yet and he can count to 20 and say his alphabet as well as recognize the individual letters. He can spell his own name and Dock's name. He knows the names of shapes but isn't quite interested in colors. He is great at remembering people's names when he meets them which is more that I can do. He talks a lot and speaks pretty clearly for a little guy. He is starting to say some cute things. He calls all balls meat balls. I love when he asks for "song bout rain-bows" or "five widdle ducks" (he can hold up one, two, four, and five fingers, but not three, that's a hard one. He asks his Dad "what's goin' on dad?" and asks me "You feel better mom?" He still loves to read books and will finish most of the sentences of his favorite ones. He also loves Sesame Street and singing songs. He has recently started to look at himself in the mirror while he sings, which I love because he carries a tune about as well as I do and I used to look at myself in the mirror while I would cry when I was little. Just in the last couple of weeks he has finally let go of the wall and taken those first few free steps. It has taken a long time and he still has a lot of practice ahead of him but he is getting more brave everyday. He loves to be held and a get soft tickle, he says "that tickles - feels good." He is at such a fun age. I love my boys. Thanks for letting me gush a bit.

Elko Rodeo

Don't let anyone tell you there's nothing to do in Elko. It may feel true during the winter but even then there is the Cowboy Poetry Festival. During the summer there is the Basque festival, the Fair, Arts and Craft shows at the park, the beautiful Ruby Mountains and the Rodeo. My mom came all the way from California and my grandparents came from Idaho to see this big event. It may have had something to do with these two tough cowboys pictured below. My cousins Ace and Cole were part of the bronc riding portion of events and it was very fun to watch. Ford was excited to meet real cowboys. He can now identify all cowboys by big hats, even when Wade wears his big floppy gardening hat Ford calls him a cowboy.

Ace and Dock Cole, Ford, and Elmo of course

Hugs

Ford and Ace

Dock and Cole

Let's Back Up

I have a little catch up to do. In the beginning of June my sweet Aunt Audry died and we were able to go up to Idaho for her funeral and to spend time with family. I'm so glad I was able to go even though it was a sad reminder of how quickly time is going by. Growing up I spent every summer in Blackfoot Idaho and it is still one of my very favorite places to be. Grandma and Grandpa are still there in that same house where I would spend those fabulous summers. Now my kids get to wander around the farm exploring, discovering and making friends with the curious cows. Ford checking out the rocks as Wade helped my grandma with her yard. My grandparents both think Wade is pretty wonderful (which he is). He is unpretentious and easy to talk to, he works hard, is always willing to help out, and knows a little about growing stuff - all things that are important to my grandparents. I think grandma and grandpa have been pretty pleased with all the spouses of their grandchildren so far, not to mention the grandbabies.
Speaking of grandbabies, here is curly Dock. I had to post some documentation of these curls because they are no more. Dock recently got a haircut and curls were clipped away.

My boys don't need much more than a couple of potato boxes to keep them entertained. They even come in Dock size - Dox Box...

My grandma is great at throwing together a dinner for a big crowd and since everyone was in town she threw an impromptu dinner. It's always fun to see my cousins and the weather was perfect for a little outside play.The traditional weenie roast. We can't go to grandmas without having one.

Ford enjoyed digging in the garden and getting dirty.

Ford and his cousin Zaida.

We put up lots of tents and this teepee for the party. This is the same teepee I played in when I was little.

I love this cute little guy and his funny faces.

That's all for now. I have a few more weeks to catch up on so there is more coming soon

Is This Heaven?

We just returned from a long weekend in Oak City. It feels good to be there. Time slows down and we can just relax and enjoy ourselves and our family. The boys love it. Grandma and Grandpa Fin spoil them and they get to play with all their cool cousins. It's paradise for little boys, they have sheep, pigs, cows, birds, a horse, puppies and a school bus right outside and when they come in Grandma gives them chocolate milk and reads them books and lets them do whatever they want. Here are some of my favorite pictures from this weekend...

Wade, Lafe, and Ford had a good wrestle in Grandma's living room. Wade would pin Lafe then Ford would count to ten. Lafe always managed to get away before time was up. Dock in his fire hat with Grandpa just watching as the other kids play, taking it all in. Pat and Mel's dog had puppies so they brought them over for the kids to cuddle. Ford thought they were great, he helped them wag their little tails, but he didn't like being licked in the face.

Here are the cousins with the puppies. 10 out of 14 made it in this picture. We tried to take a family shot after this but it was a mess. From left to rightish - Lexa, Rylee, Myia, Kaetly, Millie, Sage, Raynee, Kaige, Lafe, Ford, and Wade. You can see that cool school bus in the background, Ford was very into it, we sang a lot of wheels on the bus this weekend and Grandma even let him get on and look around.
And here are my boys just relaxing in the grass. The weather was perfect and it was nice to be outside enjoying the sunshine.