This Kid is Ridiculous!

For months now, Logan has had a very specific taste in which sippy cup he wants to drink from.  One day he wants the Elmo cup, another day he wants his sister's Minnie Mouse cup, the next day he wants his robot one...you get the idea.  Often times when he asks for "wa wa," I will pull out a cup from the cupboard only to be greeted by a tantrum....which means he wants his water in a different cup.  Yes, it is all a bit ridiculous, but I humor the boy so that we can move past the tantrum and get on with life.  However, this week, he took it to a whole new level by insisting on several cups of water that he then lined up in a neat, little row on a shelf on the end of my kitchen island.  He would drink out of one and then rearrange the order of another.  This little game went on for quite sometime.  When it was finally time for lunch, Logan was NOT happy when I placed his sole sippy cup of milk on his tray.  After some quick, toddler communicating, I realized that he wanted ALL of his cups of water!  After I reluctantly placed all six cups on the tray, Logan finally agreed to eat his lunch while his army of cups looked on.  I just had to snap a picture of this ridiculous behavior!  What next?!

Logan's 2nd Birthday!

Although Logan's 2nd birthday is really today, we decided to celebrate it last night with my family on Sunday.  We gathered together at Chris' house and had a grand time enjoying cousins and good food.  I can't believe that this little guy is two years old.  The time has gone by so fast.  Logan has really started to grow up these past few months and just brings such joy (and such messes) to our home each day.  We sure love you, Logie Boy!  Happy Birthday!

Papa and Logan relaxing before dinner.

Logan loved having a room full of someone else's toys to play with!

Papa helping Logan open up his Elmo train set.  He talked about his "Elmo choo choo" the entire ride home until he fell asleep.  So cute!

Mama helping Logan open up a new Elmo movie.  Oh, how this boy loves Elmo!

After gift opening, Trenton attempted to pick up one of Logan's new gifts.  Logan was not happy about this  and immediately gathered everything into a pile and laid down on top of it.  Although he was not even attempting to share, it sure was funny to watch!

Although Logan's favorite thing on the planet right now is Elmo, I decided against making an Elmo cake since I made him one last year for his first birthday.  As a result, I went with the second best thing on Sesame Street--Cookie Monster!  I thought this cake turned out pretty hilarious!

Logan patiently waiting to begin the singing festivities with his Cookie Monster cake.

Singing Happy Birthday to Logan!

Logan knew exactly what to do when Grandpa brought the cake over to him.  He immediately blew out his candle.

Logan chowing down on his chocolate cake and getting covered with blue frosting.

Although Logan loves making messes with toys and various items around the house, he does NOT like messes on his hands!  Here he is begging me to clean off his hands after eating his share of cake.  Such a funny boy.

In closing, here is Logan's final monthly report!  After Lia turned two, I started writing quarterly reports through her second, third, and fourth year...so we'll see if I keep the same thing up for Logan with a third baby on the way!  Logan is definitely headed into the toddler years as he has really started throwing tantrums on a very regular basis whenever he doesn't get this way.  He will usually throw his entire body down on the floor and scream and cry for a minute or two.  If we are lucky, he will even bang his head on the floor which will produce louder screams and more tears.  Oh dear.  On a cuter note, Logan will now say, "Shhhhh," and put his finger over his mouth in the morning whenever I get him out of bed when Lia is still sleeping in the room next to his.  He also has started saying, "Okay," several times a day whenever he agrees with something Ron or I say.  It's just the cutest thing!  Logan still LOVES his blanket, Elmo, and reading books.  His new favorites to add to this elite list are his grandpa, trains, and coloring.  Logan has developed a highly-tuned ear for the faint train whistles that blows off in the distance and will always point them out by saying, "Choo choo," or just , "Wow."  It cracks me up.  Like grandpa, like grandson.  Logan has now moved into his big boy room as we have begun working on the baby nursery and he likes to say, "new room," whenever we walk to it.  Along those lines, Logan's vocabulary development has continued this past month with a bunch of two-word phrases.  Besides saying new room, he also will say things like new car, fall down, big truck, big bus, all gone, papa home, more wa wa, Elmo movie, and hi papa or bye bye mama.  He's not quite to the sentence stage like his big sister was at this age, but I am just grateful that he is talking!  Logan also has started going to his sister for comfort sometimes after he hurts himself.  It is just the sweetest thing to see him seeking her out for a hug or a kiss.  This is a big deal considering the fact that she tortured him almost nonstop for the first year and some of his life!  :-)  Although he is such a busy boy and constantly into things and making messes, I think that my two-year old Logan is the cutest, little boy around!  I just love him to pieces!

More Snow Play!

With our temperatures dipping into the 20s last week, snow was on the forecast for the weekend, but as always, I really didn't take it that seriously!  However, we did wake up Friday morning to a light dusting which was enough to delay school two hours...meaning that morning Kindergarten was cancelled!  So, once again, the three of us bundled up, and headed out in the morning before the snow melted away later that day.  Lia only last 15 minutes this time before running back inside, but Logan was a trooper and had to be convinced to throw in the towel after 45 minutes of snow play.  Then on Saturday night, it started snowing again, and kept on going for several hours.  It was so pretty to watch and Logan was fascinated by it!  When we woke up Sunday morning, there was about four inches in our yard.  So, although I had a ton to do for church and to get ready for Logan's birthday party, I couldn't resist and headed out with Ron and the kiddos for some more fun in the snow!  Here are some pics of our backyard adventures.

Lia and Logan on Friday morning exploring the backyard.

Logan taking a break from some bike riding.

Lia checking out the swings set.

The view of our backyard from our kitchen window early Sunday morning.  So pretty!

Ron pulling Lia around in the sled.

Logan knocking the snow off of some of our bushes.

Logan going for a ride.

Lia chasing Logan in the sled.

Logan inspecting the snowman I built before pushing it off the fence!

My precious, snow bunnies!

Mama and kiddos.

Daddy Daughter Dance

For the second year in a row, our stake hosted a Daddy Daughter Dance in February.  Of course, Lia was thrilled to learn about it and eagerly awaited the dance's arrival.  I convinced her to wear one of her many, beautiful hand-me-down dresses after boycotting them for over a year due to the fact that they are all made out of scratchy, itchy, or bumpy fabric.  For this texture-queen, it was a miracle that this happened!  Anyways, Lia looked adorable in her "gown" and she and papa had a glorious time dancing, drinking strawberry milk, and posing for a professional picture.  If our stake keeps this up, Lia will be a pro long at this sort of thing long before her first formal dance!

My little princess striking a pose!

The happy couple all ready to go!

Lia's bosom buddy, Kaylee, and her little sister, Emma, drove the hour south to our  town so that they could attend the dance, too!  Lia was thrilled to also spend the evening with them!

Lia and her shades and Ron and his boa striking one funny pose!

Super Bowl Sunday!

I'll be honest with you...I have never been a football fan.  In fact, I would go as far as to say that I hated it most of my life.  The rules were too confusing, the progress of the game moved too slowly, and it would take FOREVER for a few minutes on the clock to run out!  In high school, I would go to the games strictly to socialize and would come home most of the time not even knowing who won.  In college, I stopped going to the games half way through my freshman year although I had bought season's tickets because it was just too boring!  And after I finished college and didn't even have a school team to follow, it just went completely downhill from there...meaning I never watched a game again.  Then fast forward to February 2006 when the Seahawks made their first appearance in the Super Bowl.  I was a newly wed living in Long Beach, CA and, at my mother's insistence, Ron and I sat down and watched the entire game out of loyalty to my motherland.  Ron was able to explain the rules of the game while we watched and I was actually surprised to learn that I could understand football which made it kind of fun to watch.  That experience made a tiny impression in my mind, but not enough to turn me into a full-fledged football fan.
A little over a year later, we moved back up Washington and the home of the Seahawks.  This really didn't matter for several years until their team suddenly got REALLY good last year and Ron started following them.  By the time they started their season this year, my curiosity was peaked and I began watching every game and fell in love with this team!  The players were all so different and dynamic and they were just so good!!  We would start every week by figuring out when the next game was being played and we would look forward to watching it.  Even the children got into it...Logan started calling them "Heehawks" and Lia began learning the names of our player's and their opposing teams.  We would all gather around the TV on Sunday afternoons and cheer our hearts out.  Somehow, I became a fan overnight, and was thrilled when they made it to the Super Bowl.  "Hawk fever" was everywhere--on cars, business signs, people's backs, and even in the schools.  Lia made a #12 Seahawk sign this past week in school as an art project and they even had a blue and green day on Friday.  She decked herself out and even packed a bag for Marabella, her doll, and her to "fly" to New York City this weekend to attend the big game!  So, last night, we gathered around the TV and screamed our way to victory waving the signs that Lia had also made for Ron, her doll, and me.  It was a most triumphant night and one I will always remember.  Go Hawks!

We rushed upstairs during halftime to make dinner and ate it during the first half of the third quarter.  Logan threw a fit when I put him in his highchair with his back to the TV.  It wasn't until I moved his chair to a place where he could watch the game while eating that he calmed down.  I thought that was so funny!

Here we are back down in the basement rooting on our team during the fourth quarter.  Please note that even Marabella is wearing all blue and holding her sign.

Logan kept himself busy at the end of the game by modeling a hat from the dress-up box.  Such a cute boy!

30 Weeks Along!

Well, we're finally into the 30s now!  It's hard to believe that this baby could be here in about two months.  I really don't feel that different than I did at 26 weeks and I really don't feel that bigger either.  In fact, a few more ladies at church just discovered that I was pregnant last Sunday.  Hah!  My biggest complaint is that it's a little difficult to bend over, but the energy level is still going strong and the appetite is still normal although I have now gained a whoppin' 30 pounds!  I'm really excited for this little girl to arrive, but definitely have a lot to do in the next two months before she comes.

I Didn't Want To Do It...

There were a couple of things that I decided for myself as a single adult in my twenties, and one of them was that I would NEVER be a minivan mom.  Never.  I figured that as long as I could choose my own cars, I would never have to own one.  I simply did not like how they looked and I did not like the stigma attached to them.  After all, why couldn't I be one of those moms that cruised around town in a cool looking SUV or crossover?  Well, never say never is what I have to say to that.  After we bought my sassy, orange, Dodge Caliber over two years ago, we quickly realized that the back row was not wide enough to fit three car seats.  As a result, we knew that the time would hopefully come (sooner than later) when we would need to replace it with a larger car.  So, ever since that day, Ron and I have casually been looking for our dream, family mobile.  From the edgy, Ford Flex to the sophisticated, GMC Acadia, the list of cool crossovers that we drooled over could go on and on.  But, there was always the same problem.  They were just too dang expensive!  Even the used ones were way more than your basic, brand new minivan.  And, once we found out that we were expecting baby #3, we started going back and forth between choosing the practical option and the dream option...and I fought the practical the entire way.  Until this past week that is.  It all changed when we found a steal of a car deal on a minivan and I suddenly found myself saying goodbye to the crossover fantasy and driving a brand new, minivan home on Thursday night.  I must admit, I was actually depressed leaving the car dealership in my shiny, new car that smelled so good.  But it had to be done.  And so I enter a new world with millions of other mothers and, hopefully, I'll find myself comfortable and content being there one day.

Farewell to my cute, little pumpkin that was always so easy to spot in a parking lot!

Hello to my silver, soccer mom car that looks like everyone else's!  Wah!