Laura Randomness

I was going through the pictures on our computer and realized that I had a bunch of 'Laura pictures' that I hadn't shared. So, here you go! (And yes, I still have another child named Cayden. I'm still working on taking more pictures of him.)

This is how Laura sometimes watches cartoons. I think it's cute. 

Longboarding with daddy. She really enjoyed it! Check out her tongue in the last picture.

 Not Laura, but our longboarding/bike riding snack. The starbursts had babies!

Our solution to having no hair tie. I put Laura's hair up in a ponytail daily, and she almost always manages to pull it out. Then she spends the rest of the day pushing her hair out of her face. Clearly I need to just start using Duplos since she can't figure out how to pull them out.

Wearing daddy's shirt. Lately Laura loves wearing anything of mine or Chad's. Shoes, shirts, socks - she's always putting them on. Love this picture of my sweet, happy little girl!

Pioneer Day Celebrations

Since it's Pioneer Day, Chad had the day off from work. It was really nice to just do whatever we wanted and spend the day as a family. Here's how we celebrated...

 This technically wasn't on Pioneer Day, but it was the annual Pioneer Day concert featuring Lindsey Stirling and Nathan Pacheco. Lindsey and Nathan were amazing. Lindsey made me love violin music like I never had before. And Nathan... watch out Josh Groban. I could listen to him for hours. Chad planned the whole date and even called me on the phone to ask me out. Super cute. :)

Lunch at Taco Bell. It was the first time Laura got something of her very own and she was excited! She ate almost half of it too!

Swimming! Cayden informed us that Laura was riding a horse. Nutcase. And check out Laura's hair. I about died from the cuteness.

A yummy grilled dinner! We made our own Italian dressing/marinade for the chicken and veggies. So good. I ate way too much, but it was seriously to die for.

How to Lick Batter from a Bowl

Check out his tongue. He really gets into it!

 You've got to get your whole head in the bowl.

Dang good stuff.

Colorado: The 4th, A Golden Birthday, Becomming an Old Man, and Other Adventures

We recently got back from a fabulous week in Colorado. It was so fun to see my family (though it was really weird to not have Greg there) and we kept ourselves busy with lots of celebrating and adventures.

The Zoo

We ended up going to the Denver Zoo early in the week. Cayden and Laura both loved it! We got to see a very active tiger - they're one of my favorites - who was not too happy about all the people. If there wouldn't have been glass between him and us I'm sure we would have been his lunch. But the best part of the day had to have been in the monkey house. We had Laura in the stroller sitting in front of a big window where the lemurs were. They were doing their thing up in the tree when one suddenly jumped off the branch, onto the window right in front of Laura, and back to the tree branch. Laura screamed and bailed over the edge of the stroller faster than I've ever seen her move. It was hilarious. I seriously wish I had a video of it. For the rest of the time we spent at the zoo Laura would freak anytime we got near an animal. Those lemurs... they're pretty scary. :)

Stopping for a WAY overpriced ice cream cone. This kid. What a goon. I love that he's wearing Connor's old hat.

Shoulder rides in the new Asian animals area.

Driving a taxi.

After the lemur encounter. Laura wouldn't leave Chad's arms.

Pointing out a bear. She still wasn't too sure of animals at this point and preferred to be far away.

Cayden's Golden Birthday and The 4th

We celebrated this little guy's fourth birthday! I can't believe he is getting so big!

Excited with the loot. Laura totally wanted in on the action and was upset that we wouldn't let her dive right in.

Sweet, sweet boy with his car cupcakes. Love him to pieces even though he usually drives me nuts. He said over and over that day that his birthday was the best day ever! Cutie.

Laura getting in on the fireworks action. The boys enjoyed throwing the 'pop things' at each others feet. Laura just liked throwing them.

Laura wasn't too sure of the sparklers at first, but by the end loved them!

Cayden also loved the sparklers and had to be told over and over to stop stabbing the grass with them. I have no idea what he was trying to accomplish by doing that.

Watching some fountains before bed. The best part of this picture is that both Cayden and Laura are holding their ears because it was so loud.

Becomming an Old Man... Over the Hill... Chad's 30!!!

I can't believe it! This handsome guy is 30! I love teasing him about being an old man, but really we just love him lots!

The birthday present. A grill and all the stuff to go with it. I think Chad's pretty excited about it.

For Chad's birthday my dad said he would take him out for sushi. Um, gross. Mom and I decided to make Chad our version of sushi - fruit roll-ups, nerds, and starburst. We gave it to him and told him here was his sushi so enjoy. Chad was really confused and I think relieved when they actually went and got real sushi.

Chad chose banana splits for his birthday dessert. I decided to add the big black candle. :)

Swimming

Towards the end of the week we took the kids swimming at the local splash pad. Thanks to the little bit of swimming we've done at the apartment, Cayden dove right in. Laura also had no fear and enjoyed the water. The kids swam for about 2 hours until they were exhausted. They took great naps that afternoon!

Laura's favorite part was playing in the fountains at the splash pad.

Cayden having fun. He ran off and got right in before we could stop him.

Other Adventures

Auntie Rachelle, Grandma, and I took the kids to the park while the boys drove up to Wyoming to buy fireworks. Laura loved this slide and went down it over and over and over.

Cayden found this ridiculous alligator/dinosaur hat down in the toy bucket. He literally wore it around all week and looked like a goober. I love his wide-eyed expression here. I have no idea what he was doing.

The kids loved playing on Grandma's piano. I can't say it was all that beautiful, but is sure kept them entertained. I secretly enjoyed it too. It was so fun to just sit down and play. I'm a bit rusty, but still have it. Someday I'll have a piano. *fingers crossed*

7-Eleven

Nothing is better than a free slurpee on a hot summer day.

 

MD and Wild Cherry. Funny how their choice in flavor is SO THEM. :)

Digging in. Leave me alone.

Perks of Apartment Life

One of the perks of living in an apartment is having access to a pool. We've only been once because 1) we've been out of town and 2) I'm too chicken to take the kids on my own so we have to go when Daddy is home, but the kids loved it! I wondered how Cayden would do as he is very timid and nervous around water, but after about 30 minutes he discovered that he wasn't going to sink and started to enjoy himself. Laura loved it right off the bat and only complained when she was too far away from mom or dad.

Uncle Steven came swimming with us. Cayden loved jumping in with Steven and eventually graduated to jumping in by himself. By the end of two hours Cayden was a little water baby!

Lots of smiles and giggles from Laura.

Too far from mom and no longer a fan of the water.

HUGE diaper bottom! We have since bought swim diapers and no longer have explosions.

Swimming tired the kids out. Cayden fell asleep in the middle of the floor while playing with his trains which never happens.

***As a side note, I've discovered several other perks of apartment life. We have AC, a dishwasher, a bathtub, and a washer and dryer. We also have covered parking, no yard work, and access to a small gym. Plus, there's no upkeep or maintenance. :)