The Wallace Word

Oh! Christmas Tree Disaster

2012-02-04T20:37:00.001-06:00

I decided to update our Christmas tree decorations this year. Which wouldn't have been a problem except TWO MOUSE FAMILIES decided to nest in our artificial tree.

So we bought a real one.

It was up for about a week when I realized it was covered in aphids. I spent the next three weeks vacuuming up aphid carcasses and praying we caught all the mice.

Christmas has sorry of lost it's appeal...good thing I've got ten months to gear up for it!

Happy Sixth Birthday Gavin!

2012-02-04T20:37:00.000-06:00

For Gav's sixth birthday, we went to his favorite restaurant for dinner. He also requested a strawberry camo cake (that's why it's pink) and lots of Halo Legos.

I think he got everything he wanted!

Native American Day at Gav's School

2012-02-04T20:26:00.000-06:00

Gavin invited me to join his class for a Native American celebration. We had a blast writing with pictographs, making necklaces, and hearing poetry.

I have no idea where the rest of the Halloween pictures went

2012-02-04T20:20:00.002-06:00

But at least I got a couple.

Uncle Joel Came to Visit

2012-02-04T20:17:00.002-06:00

My sweet brother was in DC for a few days and we had a chance to hang out for a little while. He's fantastic at entertaining my kids. They really enjoyed "decorating" him.

Gavin's First Day of Kindergarten

2012-02-04T20:13:00.000-06:00

Gavin's first day of kindergarten was...interesting. The school told parents they would not be allowed to walk their child to class, but they also assured us someone would be at the doors to guide each kindergartner to class.

But there wasn't.

They wouldn't let me in and I had to listen to my sweet baby chant, "A right, then left, look for a door with a tree."

Despite my nerves, Gavin made it just fine (by himself) but came home and took a three-hour nap.

Gavin really enjoys school and adores his teacher, Ms. Hanly. She's fabulous!

Cox Farms Part II

2012-02-04T20:12:00.000-06:00

Still posting from my phone, so normal posts are getting split into chunks. Oh well! Better something then nothing!

Fall Trip to Cox Farm

2012-02-04T19:58:00.000-06:00

Our annual trip to Cox Farms was so much fun! The weather was perfect, the colors were bright, and it was fantastic to spend time together.

Playing Catch Up

2012-02-04T19:40:00.000-06:00

I haven't posted in months. And I honestly feel sad that I've slipped out of the habit.

I just learned that I can post from my email account on my phone do I'm going to give it a shot!

Wish me luck!

Look alike...or not.

2011-08-31T19:38:00.000-05:00

This is Laynie and three-months old.

This is Audrey at three-months old.

Besides the obvious difference (troll hair vs. no hair) do you think they look at all alike?

Not that you can tell, but I think Audrey looks a lot like Gavin did as a baby...except that she has much more chub. (We love chub!)

But one thing all my kids have in common are beautiful blue eyes! I wonder if Audrey's will be pale like Gavin's or gray-green-blue like Laynie's?

Either way, she's DELICIOUS!!

Visits With Friends

2011-08-31T19:27:00.000-05:00

I didn't use my camera very much while we were in Utah...no record of the zoo, of our trip to Thanksgiving Point, Joel's wedding, or the regular goof-off stuff we do when I visit my family.

BUT, I do have this picture:

My friend Jen and I have babies that are all exactly the same age. So we had to get a picture of our new ones. This is little Liam and Audrey at my mom's house. They are eight weeks apart. Jen and I secretly have hopes that this picture will show at their wedding reception.

Later that week, her son Kai had an awesome birthday party at a rock climbing gym. It was a blast!

I have friends spread all across this country, but I'm lucky that we've managed to plan our summer vacations to overlap in Utah. If we all didn't have that central tie, I don't think we'd get to see the people we love!

Summer Sprinklers

2011-08-31T15:52:00.000-05:00

Can summer be complete without running through the sprinklers? (And having your aunt shoot you in the back?)

My awesome outlaw, Laura (Looli's mom), sent us this super fun beach ball sprinkler that watered my kids and my yard. Thanks Laura!

And this is our buddy Mr. Bones.

He lives in our yard and Gavin and Laynie rescue him regularly from our dog.

Blessing Day

2011-07-05T16:26:00.002-05:00

So it's official...She's Audrey Jane Wallace. I just call her Baby, and probably will for a while. (I still haven't mailed in her birth certificate...and maybe I won't until I need it).

We were so glad that Warden, Rick and MeMe were here to join us!

Nice job holding her head up, Jamie. I'm sure he's thinking, "What? She's my third! She'll live." Still pretty cute.

Her dress was so beautiful. I loved the big bow. And her blessing blanket was perfect! Thanks Grandma Ardy and Great Grandma Edie!

Random Things to Remember

2011-07-04T17:41:00.004-05:00

I have these random pictures that have no theme, but they are moments I don't want to forget.

Like when I got out of the shower and found MeMe and Audrey asleep together. It's awesome to have someone love your kids as much as you do.

Laynie loves dresses. She wants to wear a dress every single day, and she loves to have her hair done "fancy."

I made some delicious chocolate cream cheese frosting. Everyone loved it, including Jamie. I know that doesn't seem like a big deal, but it's awesome when he wants seconds of something I made.

Baby in Stages

2011-07-04T17:31:00.003-05:00

Sleeping baby...
Screaming baby...

Gooing..

Cooing...

Grinning baby.

Audrey is growing and changing every day! She still looks a lot like Gavin did (aka little old man), but we love her sweet smile and happy noises.

Saturday at the Fire Station

2011-06-12T18:38:00.004-05:00

Our local fire station hosts an open house every June. Jamie and I took Gav and Laynie, but left Audrey home with Aunt MeMe. It was good for the big kids to have a little one-on-one time with mom and dad!

The trucks were so shiny that the kids could see their reflections. Can you see Gav's little face?

The tires on the ladder truck were almost as tall as Laynie.

Almost the same picture as last year!

The kids favorite part: the bounce house!

And of course, the free hot dogs!

The bomb squad was a new addition. Gav thought the robot was AWESOME!

And the police patrol boat was a big hit!

The coolest part of the day, in my opinion, was how well my kids answered the fire safety questions! Even Laynie knew to crawl and check the door for heat. Not that
it's a relief exactly, but at least the aren't clueless!

And in typical crazy Saturday fashion, Gav also had his last t-ball game and end of the season party.

Here he is with his super cool trophy. He was so proud that he put it on my dresser.

First Two Weeks

2011-06-09T18:21:00.004-05:00

Audrey's two weeks old today! She has gained a little weight and is a pretty sweet baby...except at night. Not a good sleeper. I guess it should't be a surprise since she looks exactly like Gavin, and he didn't sleep at all till he was four months old.

The other kids have had plenty of attention from Aunt MeMe and Grandma Ardy. And Guggy sent an awesome package to keep them busy. Gav and his dad built this awesome castle. Think he likes it?

Laynie likes to play mommy's helper...some of the time. We've seen the green-eyed monster rear it's jealous little head on occasion.

My sister, Lizzy, sent this GORGEOUS blanket. Yes, she did crochet it herself.

And Grandma Ardy gave Audrey her first bath.

I was nervous to bathe Gavin when he was a baby, so I made my mom do it. Since then it's been a tradition.

Gavin's Preschool Graduation

2011-06-09T17:59:00.003-05:00

Phew! Preschool is over! Gavin had a great year in Ms. Vickie's class. He loved school, his teacher and new friends.

Here he is receiving his diploma.

Since I was in the hospital, Grandma Ardy, MeMe, Laynie and Daddy got to enjoy the graduation festivities.

And of course, the diploma became a sword. Gavin can turn anything into a weapon!

I'm sad I didn't get to hear the graduation songs, first hand. My mom said they were entertaining!

It's in my Jeans

2011-06-01T17:28:00.003-05:00

I always post a picture of my babies when they wear their first pair of jeans. Ninety percent of the pictures they have taken for the rest of their lives will probably be when they are in denim. So it seems important to document the first one.

I have a very similar picture of Gavin holding Laynie on my blog back in 2008. Here's the link. Looking back at that old picture of Gav...man he's grown so much!

And speaking of another right of passage, don't we all need pictures of our boys covered in dirt?

Poor hot and sweaty Gavin! T-Ball at 90+ degrees is MISERABLE!

Introducing Audrey Jane Wallace!

2011-05-30T10:56:00.002-05:00

(I'm not sure why blogger won't let me upload pictures in a normal order and format. So just ignore the layout and look at the delicious new baby!)

Audrey Jane Wallace joined the Wallace Family on May 26, 2011. She weighed 6 pounds, 5 ounces and was 19 inches long.

So far she's a great eater and sleeper! Will post more (especially the story of Jamie on the operating floor) later!

Frying Pan Park

2011-05-11T16:18:00.000-05:00

In attempt to be a "good mom" before the baby gets here, I took my kids to a local farm and park to play. Unfortunately they were both feeling camera shy, so I got pictures of animals instead of children.

Like these super stinky pigs.

And this grimacing monster.

And this brightly colored peacock.

And this fence-hanging monkey.

The animal herding was going well....

...until the stampede.

I didn't chase any animals or children down. My belly jiggles too much for that. I just let them run and then caught up with them when they finally slowed down.

Maybe next time I'll put them on leashes.

Easter 2011

2011-04-25T10:24:00.000-05:00

Easter is a time of tradition in the Wallace House. Even before Jamie and I had kids, we dyed eggs. It's sort of a sad time too! It reminds me of how far from home we are. I was glad to hear that MeMe and my Mom continued the tradition. And we missed our little cousins who we used to dye eggs with in Houston!

Rosy tried to get in on the action, but that would be a disaster beyond compare!

"See Mom! It's blue like my eyes!"

The Easter Bunny was generous this year! He brought Gavin a few new tag books and some legos.

Laynie was so excited about her new, purple tag pen that I couldn't even get her to look at me. Ah well...I already posted the pictures of them in their Easter clothes anyway.

Our Graduate

2011-04-25T10:12:00.001-05:00

After six weeks of puppy school, Rosy officially graduated with her degree in "Puppy Basics." She can sit, stay, lay, come, spin, shake and leave a treat until we tell her to take it. She's still not a great leash walker, but hopefully it will happen soon!

I will miss puppy school! She always came home so worn out!! Here she's burrowed underneath all the decorative pillows on our bed. Pretty cute, huh?

The Things You Learn at T-Ball

2011-04-09T13:30:00.004-05:00

So apparently, my kid is the team clown. You know...the one who always has something to say and tries to make everyone laugh?

I have no idea where he got that particular trait.

I also learned that Gavin is a pretty decent fielder (if the ball is coming to him on the ground) and is great at throwing. But he has no idea where first base is.

Even when he's playing that position.

And I don't know how many times he had the ball before the runner got to the bag, but didn't know what to do with it...even though his coach, Jamie and I were all screaming "TOUCH THE BASE!"

Oh well. This was just week one.

Laynie had a blast even though it was freezing cold and muddy.

She and Jamie played catch for a long time. He would intentionally throw the ball past her so she'd have to go pick it up...

...and then laugh hysterically every time she bent over to get the ball.

It's a good thing her crack is so cute.

Not Quite Easter Sunday

2011-03-27T11:54:00.003-05:00

Since next week is General Conference, I decided to dress Laynie in her Easter dress today. I bought it a long time ago, and haven't been able to find anything coordinating for Gav to wear.

I'm so sad this compute doesn't have editing software. Sorry for the red eye and the un-cropped pictures! But, she's still pretty cute!

These are the best I could get at 8 a.m. I didn't have a lot of time to get her to pose or we would have been late for church.

Gav on the other hand was ready to model.

He picked this pose and wasn't going to change it.

When we got home from church, I thought we'd try it with the hat. But Laynie was too tired and hungry to pose. Maybe next week!

It's Baseball Season!

2011-03-19T12:09:00.004-05:00

Hooray! I love baseball season! I have so many good memories of summers at the diamond, and it's so fun to watch my little boy play! Today was his first practice, and here's what he did:

Here's Gavin in his "baseball ready" pose.

Chasing the ball (yeah...we're going to have to work on grounders).

Having Coach Bobby's help with the mitt.

Getting a batting lesson from Coach Bill.

Rosy got to come to practice too. Jamie did a little training and let her off leash for a while. She ran around like a maniac.

And then came home and fell asleep in a puddle of sunshine...with a little buddy nearby. Laynie can't leave Rosy alone!

Great Clips Does it Again

2011-02-23T09:27:00.004-06:00

So I decided NOT to chop Laynie's hair off, just get a trim. I held two fingers up to the lady at Great Clips and said, "Just two inches." She nodded and smiled. And then....

Chopped off a lot more than two inches...I'm guessing more like five.

It's a good thing that it's just hair and that Laynie is so cute.

And has so much personality...

And hates to pose for pictures...

But someone in my house loves to have her picture taken.

And she's pretty cute too.

Birthday Bummer

2011-02-16T11:39:00.003-06:00

As some of you may know, Laynie's third birthday was not a good one. At 2:37 a.m., she fell out of her bed and broke her collarbone. So the day started with a visit to the ER instead of opening gifts and eating cake.

Luckily I bought her a cardigan, so I didn't have to pull anything over her head. We did open up presents on the 13th, but waited until the next day to have cake.

She loves Jessie from Toy Story, so her "party" had that theme. Do you love that Jessie is knee-deep in frosting? And her hat...yeah. I had to use frosting to get it to stay on her head.

Laynie got a lot of wonderful gifts. SPOILED!

Including the Snow White dress (thanks Bri!) she insisted on wearing while we ate cake.

She spends a lot of time on the counter now. Rosy is exactly Laynie-collarbone-height. Jumping puppy+broken bones=sad little girl.

Don't mind that she's not wearing pants. Those are hard to put on one-handed.

Even though it wasn't a perfect birthday, Laynie was spoiled by lots of friends and family. Thank you all for your sweet and thoughtful gifts!

When My Kids Get My Camera...

2011-02-16T11:35:00.002-06:00

You get stuff like this:

Laynie took all those. They were much more...polite...than the pics Gavin took. None of you really needed a close-up of his nostrils or of my throat, right?

Visit with Gugs

2011-01-31T16:15:00.004-06:00

Everyday in the Wallace House is an adventure. Rosy is darling, cuddly, and a total handful. I get nothing done because I spend 90 percent of my day pulling things out of her mouth. Having a dog eat toys is one thing. Having a dog eat your children...well that's an entirely different matter. So when Jamie told me he had to take a "quick trip" to Asia, I felt a little hesitant about doing it all by myself.

But he had a really great surprise in store for me.

Yep! Jamie flew his mom in for a visit. We had a really great time and the kids (and Rosy)loved the attention. I loved being able to: empty the dishwasher without a dog licking the plates, change the laundry without a dog stealing the socks, and take a shower without a dog getting in with me...although that did happen one time. Rosy is very smart.

Warden was also a huge blessing when the snow fell. Together (yep, the pregnant lady and the grandma) shoveled half-a-driveway of the heaviest snow in history. Then some kind gentlemen from our church finished the rest the next day.

Here's the snowman Gav and Gugs built on our deck...which they later knocked down with snowballs.

And here is devil dog (psycho mutt, the evil creature...you get the idea).

While Warden was here we did a quick pre-birthday celebration for Laynie. It was fun!

Even though she left exhausted (Rosy has that effect on people), I think she enjoyed her trip. We were sure glad she came!

Thanks Warden!!

True Love

2011-01-12T13:47:00.003-06:00

True love is rocking your dog to sleep.

True love is hanging out with the puppy instead of your friends. (Rosy's in there too...look at the bottom of the picture).

True love is tucking your puppy in and sharing a scripture story.

True love is never having to sleep alone.

A Ruff Holiday

2011-01-03T11:51:00.003-06:00

Welcome Rosy Olivia to the family! We picked up our sweet puppy on January 2nd, and she is wonderful. The kids are in love...and so is Jamie. He carries her around like a burping baby. Rosy is a seven-week-old Vizsla, a Hungarian pointer. She's very mild for her breed, and has a gentle temperament.

She loves her animal toys, and acts like she's some sort of killer, growling and shaking them into submission.

But all that play makes her exhausted. She's a good sleeper, and hasn't had a single accident yet. Even during the night, she woke us up to take her potty.

The only ROUGH thing about our trip to Pittsburgh was Laynie and her horrible cold. I took her to the ER on New Year's Eve (which was a total waste of time and money) and followed up with her pediatrician today. We are now proud owners of a nebulizer! She just had her first treatment and sounds much better.

And the verdict is...

2010-12-27T15:51:00.002-06:00

Even though baby was being very uncooperative - laying facedown with head toward my back - we were able to get a pretty clear butt shot. Yep! It's a girl. Laynie is thrilled and Gavin is crushed. Jamie is...nervous. I'm just glad that baby seems healthy. Because we couldn't get a clean shot of her face, I have to go back again in a few weeks. But from what they could see, baby girl is growing and healthy.

Santa Claus Came to Our Town

2010-12-27T15:41:00.003-06:00

Laynie asked for a "big baby doll" and got just what she wanted. Baby Annie is almost as big as Laynie is.
Here's a very sleepy looking Gav with his remote control race car. Daddy has figured out how to powerslide it across the sunroom floor. Never can guess which boy will enjoy the toys the most!

Laynie also got a treasure chest full of dress up clothes. She's been in full princess mode ever since.

Here she is opening a present. She loved the "Bubba-dog" that Grandma Edie sent.

B-I-N-G-O! Thanks Grandma Edie!! We'll use that tonight.

Uncle Travis came through with an awesome Utah hoodie for Jamie. (He got a BYU one too! Hahahaha!)

Here the boys are working together to build heroes from "Hero Factory." Thanks Grandma and Guggy!

Here's outfit two of three...I'll have to get a picture of her in the pale pink dress.

Christmas was a lot of fun, and we had a lot more gifts to open than we expected. Jamie and I decided that we weren't going to buy gifts this year because our big gift is coming on January 2 in the form of a Vizsla puppy. The kids are thrilled! But it was really nice that Santa, Grandparents and Aunts and Uncles sent fun gifts.

Thanks Everyone! We love you!

But it's just my size!

2010-12-23T09:23:00.002-06:00

We picked up our dog crate at PetsMart yesterday (don't ask about the two times they shipped it to us broken). For now it's on the floor in the sunroom. We put a special pad in it to make it soft and comfy. Apparently someone else thought it was a perfect place to sleep.

She dragged her giant body pillow and her blankie down the stairs and tucked herself in.

And the best part...she's totally faking! She's practicing getting Bubba-Dog to "sleep in his own bed." I've said the same thing to her a thousand times this week.

So here's the question: If I bought another crate, would she sleep in it all night?

P.S. The best part of the story is that she carried down the waterless vaporizer and put it next to the bed. We've all had head colds here, and I guess it's one other thing that helps her sleep.

Naughty Babies!

2010-12-16T08:25:00.003-06:00

Caught in the act!

So while I was in the shower, Gavin and Laynie decided to finish off the chocolates from the advent calender.

Yes, that is chocolate across her nose.

I guess they are my children. Is there anything better than chocolate in bed?

And Mom, here's the picture I promised a couple of days ago but never got around to posting.

Thanks for the cute hats! She loves them!

The Annual Santa Visit

2010-12-07T12:46:00.002-06:00

Since it's Rexburg-like chilly outside and I had nothing constructive planned for the day, I decided it was time to visit our buddy SC.

Yeah....it's always a good idea. The line was only 40 minutes long to get into "Santa's Ice Palace sponsored by Narnia." And forgive me for sounding chauvinistic, but it was totally planned by a man. No woman would have put 55-inch TV screens at adult eye level and had synthetic snow falling from the ceiling. A cool idea (and a great way to market the next Narnia flick) but the snow sticks to our carefully selected Santa-matching outfits. Seriously! Look at Laynie's hair. Can you say horrific case of dandruff?

Luckily, my kids made it out of the "palace" in better shape than the kids who were trying to ball up the snow and throw it at each other.

Then it got to the smiling part of the portrait. You can all see how well that turned out. The elf-chick (who btw was at least 6'2" tall) took three quick pics and then said, "Well...I think this is the best one." In the other option, Gav and Laynie were both looking at the camera but their mouths were open ala reindeer in the headlights. I asked Gavin which one he liked better, and this was his selection. Awesome.

I hope your visits to Santa are memory-makers!

P.S. Gavin asked for dog toys (I'm totally not kidding) and Laynie asked for a "big baby doll." We stopped by Macy's on our way out and let them put their requests on letters and drop them in the red mailbox. Honestly, it was a pretty fun afternoon.

Lil' Biker Dude

2010-12-07T12:40:00.002-06:00

Gav's a natural. He hopped on his birthday bike and cruised down the street.

Laynie ran after him like a happy puppy.

This is what I got when I said, "Smile Gavin!"

Apparently it runs in the family.

I wish it wasn't so flipping cold! Then Gavin could be out there enjoying his bike now, rather than making me crazy!

Happy Birthday Gavin!

2010-11-22T15:56:00.002-06:00

We don't do "friend" birthday parties every year, just the special ones. (Don't ask what qualifies as a "special" birthday, I don't have the formula figured out.)

SO, this is Gavin's first birthday party! He wanted a Transformer themed party and this is what we ended up with.

Transformers! More than meets the eye. (The cake and goodie bags)

The guests.

Gavin got a little excited and blew out the candles before the song was over.

And the most memorable gift...

Laynie's claw marks! Yeah...sometimes he picks. She's finally realized she has tools to fight back. Great.

If you were wondering...

2010-11-16T10:02:00.002-06:00

...why I look green, wear nothing but warm-ups, am confused and forgetful, it's because Wallace Baby No. 3 is on it's way. Tres, as we having lovingly nicknamed baby, is due at the end of May 2011. My ultrasound picture wasn't very clear so this is the closest I could find.

Trunk-Or-Treat 2010

2010-10-29T19:56:00.003-05:00

The Royal Family.

We had to get a shot of Prince Philip with his helmet on...not that it stayed on his head.

Do you see the sparkly pink princess tennis shoes? Jamie's a total sucker. The went to Target today and they came home with three pair of shoes.

Ahhh...the handsome prince fighting to protect his lady's honor.

Pumpkinville (two weeks late)

2010-10-15T21:44:00.003-05:00

It was FREEZING with a Capital "F" when we went on Gav's field trip to pumpkinville (which is a total misnomer, but I'll get to that later.) Thankfully my friend, Stacy, had a bag of hand-me-downs, which included this darling hat. Too bad Laynie wouldn't pose.

Have you ever seen a cuter chicken? It reminded me of the costumes that samba dancers wear. You know, the type with the rows and rows of fringe down the pant legs?

This is our buddy, Titan. Yep. He's a big, slobbery camel. Gavin fed an entire bad of feed to him. Gav's cool with drool.

This is Gavin with some members of his class. The kid on his left is Matthew, his "brother." Don't worry he's not actually mine, but Gav would like to adopt him.

Gav going for speed on the super-crappy, super-bumpy slide. Pumpkinville is in Leesberg. That means that it's a little more hicktown than Cox Farms. (Nothing against all the Lesebergs we love though!)

See! I do have a friend! Laynie likes Stacy better than me too. In fact, she ran and jumped in Stacy's arms on Sunday when she saw her at church. I guess I'm just not that awesome any more.

Gav decided it was cooler to ride with his friends than with his mom (isn't he a tad young for that?). I did get a couple of fantastic shots from my trailer into his, which made it well worth being separated from my four-year-old for a few minutes.

See how red Gav's nose is? That's because it was cold! And after two hours in the weather he finally decided to put his sweater on. No amount of begging (or bribing) on my part could convince him.

Best picture of Laynie. Yeah...she's sassy. Check out that pout!

Pumpkinville is really just the Leesberg Zoo in disguise. And by Zoo I mean farm animals plus a few monkeys (and a camel...I guess Titan should count). The pumpkins for pumpkinville came in three cardboard boxes as you exit the park. Yep. And it's still called Pumpkinville.

Hair Today Gone Tomorrow

2010-10-09T15:01:00.002-05:00

BEFORE:

AFTER:

The good news is that this isn't the worst hair cut I've had. Anyone remember the Heidi Klum fiasco? If not click here.

My nine inches of hair is safely enveloped and waiting to be addressed. I just hope that Pantene will be able to use it.

Initial reactions:

"Wow. You just aged five years."
"It's okay. You just need more product."
"I just want to know why." (Jamie)
"It's ugly." (Gavin)
" I want my hair cut!" (Laynie in tears)

It's done. It will grow back. It's too short to pull up in a pony tails (there are some really short layers). But it's all for a good cause, right? RIGHT?

Wuv Weft to Woose

2010-10-07T12:41:00.004-05:00

Last week Gavin wandered around singing the lyrics to a song a didn't recognize. Perhaps that's because it sounded like "Wuv Weft to Woose." He and Laynie (aka Waynie) have a hard time with the "L" sound.

Finally I googled the lyrics (or what I thought I was hearing) and came up with a video from a band called Sons of Sylvia. The kids were entranced and built their own platform so they could watch it over and over and over again on my laptop.

Then they became the Sons of Sylvia. Laynie is apparently on vocals (with a lip gloss mic) and Gav...I guess he's playing the violin. When I tried to correct his axe and sword hold, he convinced me that was exactly the way they held it in Love Left Lose.

Here's a link to the video. You can decide for yourself.

Cake Balls for Breakfast

2010-10-07T12:32:00.004-05:00

Laynie is a world class thief! I helped with a baby shower last week, making a few treats and attempting chocolate covered cake balls. They didn't look like much, but they tasted great!

Saturday morning I heard my fridge chirping (it does that if you leave the door open too long) and found this waiting for me:

She got the stool, opened the fridge, pulled out the tupperware of left over (which really means too ugly to serve) cake balls and helped herself to a few.

I wasn't kidding when I said they were too ugly to serve. Here's the recipe and a picture of what they are supposed to look like, if you're interested. Out of the 50+ that I made, I had maybe thirty that actually looked like balls and not...well...chocolate covered turd.

So it's done...sort of

2010-10-07T12:21:00.002-05:00

The painters finished last week, and I've almost got my house put back together. I've been a little nervous to put holes in my freshly painted walls. I've got some things hung - the things that went back in their old places - but I'm debating on placing the old things in new ways.

Whatever. Nothing's going in the dining room for now, so here's what it looks like:

And here's the laundry room. I personally think it's a VAST improvement over lime green with flip flop wallpaper stickers. But, that's just my opinion.

I'm So Bright My Mother Calls Me Son

2010-09-27T16:24:00.003-05:00

Please tell me you can see the perfectly round bruise in the middle of Gavin's forehead?!?! He found one of those old-school-plastic-popper-things and got it stuck on his head. Awesome, right?

Boo Box 2010

2010-09-27T16:14:00.003-05:00

A few years ago my mother-in-law started giving (mailing) the grandkids awesome Halloween prizes. They've come in the form of books, bags, buckets, boxes and now lunch boxes, all handmade and decorated! We got the package today and couldn't wait to open it up.

The boxes have stamps, coloring books, scary-looking-rubber-duck things, a bevy of treats, puzzles, etc.

And of course a Halloween flashlight.

My sister-in-law Looli made the super cute shirts. I love Laynie's witchy boots!

Thank Guggy! We love our boxes!

FarmTastic!

2010-09-18T14:10:00.006-05:00

Today is a super special occasion: Jamie got to go to Cox Farm with us! He's been so busy, working lots of Saturdays, and we were so glad we go to share this special day with him.

At least mostly...

Don't worry. The day got much better.

The farm is two miles from our house. Need I mention how beautiful an area we live in?

This is a nervous little dinosaur turd.

And this was a turd the dinosaur was glad to let out.

Yeah. You know this tractor is sexy.

Some boys were meant to be farmers. Gavin would have been happy to do nothing besides sit on this tractor and play with the gear shift. It's all fun and games until you're actually plowing a dusty field.

There are so many funny things about this picture, but I'm going to let you guys try to imagine what I'm thinking. If you know me well, you can probably guess.

No trip would be complete until you've milked the cow.

Laynie was a little less enthusiastic.

Happy Cows come from Virginia.

Right....because we're the ones that get lost. Except for today. I lost Jamie for a little while.

That's me on the slide. I'm such a fun mom.

Gav on the obstacle course. He's going to be exhausted tonight. He climbed over, under and around things for at least thirty minutes.

And every good obstacle course must end with a rope swing. Luckily this one ends over a tramp, not a mud pit. That would be a true disaster.

Gav's in animal husbandry heaven.

"It tickles!"

The Goat Girl.

Hey from the Hay Ride!

I wish our Pig Whisperer was here. Aunt MeMe come see us!

King of the Mountain (of hay).

There it is! The proof that I 1) have a husband and 2) that Exxon doesn't dominate all of his time. Just the majority.

Gav had a hard time deciding which pumpkin was his favorite. Then he asked, "So Mom, when are you going to making pumpkin pie?"

My little pumpkin.

"Mom, can we please, please have a duck pumpkin?"

We'll get to go back to the Farm for one of Gav's upcoming field trip. We are excited, even though Jamie won't be able to go with us a second time. There will most certainly be a thousand more pictures on this theme. Stay tuned!

A Truly Horrific Dinner

2010-09-16T16:33:00.002-05:00

I'm not a great cook. I have some "safe" recipes that I take to sick folk that I know won't make them sicker. But I've never had a complete failure in the kitchen.

Until today...

This is what happens when you write down 13 instead of 30. Can you see the two beautiful Roma tomatoes in there? How about the multi-colored ravioli? I was supposed to add seven ounces of pesto to 30 ounces of ravioli. Umm....for future reference there is such a thing as too much pesto. And this is exactly what it looks like.

Mt. Dew and Macaroni for dinner. Yum. At least I'm guaranteed the kids will eat all their food. Gavin will probably lick his clean.

Snake Skin is IN!

2010-09-14T09:57:00.002-05:00

Yes, my son is holding up a four-foot-long piece of snake skin. We found it on our walk this morning. I saw it dangling from some rose bushes on Loudoun County Parkway and thought it would be a great "science subject." I intended to show it to the kids, talk to them about how and why snakes shed and then leave it behind. Ummm....no. It had to come home with us.

I stowed it in the stroller basket and tried not to look at it. Every time the wind blew it wiggled and I could just imagine it coming alive and hissing at me. Anyone want to guess what my nightmares will be full of tonight?

Gavin is 42 inches tall. The snake skin is longer than that and the head (with it's nasty inside out eye scale) had at least another six inches attached to it. Sorry. I couldn't bear to pick it up and bring it home. I'm a good mom, but not that good.

What would you do if you saw that monster in your yard? I can tell you right now that I would never, ever garden again. Ever.

The skin is rolled up neatly in the garage. It will stay there until my husband gets home and figures out what he wants to do with it. I personally don't want it in the house, but I usually don't get my way.

At least Gavin has something awesome to take for his "S" show-and-tell. Right?

Gatorade Wants Me

2010-09-11T18:00:00.002-05:00

Soccer started today. Gavin wouldn't play no matter the threats or bribery. Finally, I used the "I've-got-better-things-to-do-than-watch-you-sit-on-the-sidelines" card. It totally worked.

I walked home. Then he scored two goals, named his team the Cheetahs, and won his first scrimmage.

Where do my children get their bull-headed nature? I mean honestly!!

The coach brought Gatorade and won his heart.

With those blue eyes...and lips...Gatorade should totally use him in their next print campaign.

He says he's not going to play next week. I guess we'll see.

P.S. See the bad haircut? That's a discussion for a whole separate post.

School Days, School Days, Dear Old Golden Rule Days

2010-09-11T17:44:00.004-05:00

Gav was less than excited to start school.

Despite his awesome backpack. The wings are zipped inside.

And his character shoes.

He's at a new school, with a new teacher and lots of new classmates. He only stayed the first day because I threatened to take the Cheetos out of his lunch box.

Miss Vickie is a real stickler for the rules and good manners. She's not touchy-feely and expects the kids to take care of themselves. If I can get him to go without a fight, then it will probably be a good fit for Gavin. He's the kind of kid who needs a lot of structure.

Laynie's glad to have her one-on-one time back. She had to grab her "purse" before we went to the store on the first day of school.

And even though I'm a little embarrassed to post this picture....here's Gavin's new bedding. Jamie and I had this discussion prior to going to the store:

Me: "I'm thinking something, maybe plaid, that picks up the colors of his room. I really want something he won't grow out of tomorrow."

Jamie: "Sure. That sounds great."

Do any of you see anything plaid about that blanket? I was hoping for something a little more collegiate, pennants on the walls, cute old-school sketches of sports scenes. Well...unless you say those exact words you end up with Ironman. Awesome.

Here's the follow-up conversation:

Me: "IRONMAN? I wanted something he wasn't going to grow out of."

Jamie: "It was $19! We can replace it next year."

Sigh.

It will be replaced soon.

Little Miss Independent

2010-09-11T17:32:00.002-05:00

Laynie spoiled me for almost two years. She was sweet, congenial and a perfect sleeper. The last six months have been challenging. Laynie is a girl with an opinion.

She was crawling out of her crib in the middle of the night. So we upgraded to a full-size, and let her choose the bedding (by the way, the mural was on the wall from the previous owner. Totally not my taste).

Can you say disaster? She got up at least three or four times every night, sometimes staying awake for three hours. I hope (fingers crossed) that she's beyond screaming, "This bed is yucky! I want to sleep at GArdy's!" The last two nights have been great.

That doesn't mean she's not exerting her taste in other areas. Like picking out her own outfits (sans pants), socks and sandals (she's a Utahn...I guess), and going potty without any assistance (and sometimes not wiping).

But she's a great conversationalist.

And quite an entertainer. I can't post the video of her singing and dancing naked on the fireplace. That will have to wait for her wedding.

Gav's Gear

2010-09-03T16:02:00.002-05:00

Gav is obsessed with "army men." Since we couldn't go to the pool today and it's too hot to play outside, Gavin decided to play army in the house.

He's got it all figured out: camo hat, goggles, binoculars, backpack with wings, and laser weapon. Look like he's ready for combat.

This is his life-long enemy. She looks super dangerous, huh?

Birthday Improvement

2010-08-30T11:49:00.002-05:00

My first 29th birthday was a little...creative. If you need a reminder, click here.

What I didn't post on the blog was that after I put the kids to bed last August 25th, I sat down to write thank you cards to all the people who had done so much for us prior to our move to Virginia. All the good memories and goodbyes, coupled with loneliness and another birthday, resulted in hysterical sobbing.

All the bitter of last year made this birthday even sweeter. I mean, how many times do you turn 29 again?

We celebrated my birthday early because August 25th is the worst work day of the year for Jamie. My sweet Grandma sent money to order a real cake this year. I promised to post a picture of it.

Can you say delicious? Dairy Queen's ice cream cakes are to die for! It had two layers of ice cream (vanilla and cookies and cream) with a fat layer of fudge in the middle. It was topped with crumbled cookies and whip cream. It took four days to eat. YUM!!! Thanks Grandma!

Gav loves to help blow out the candles.

My birthday was great. No tears this year. I still miss all my friends and family in Texas (and everywhere else, of course). I love Virginia, but I will never be able to replace all ya'll!

Thanks for the birthday thoughts and wishes! We love you guys!

When you have nothing to do...

2010-08-30T11:38:00.003-05:00

Goof around at the Air and Space Museum.

You can pilot a Cessna.

Look out the windows at huge bugs.

Pose for pictures against a rainy backdrop.

Become a traffic obstacle (but only if you sit on the floor in the air control tower).

Obey your mother ("Look at me with your eyes!" See how well they listen).

And watch a clip from Transformers over and over and over.

It's been a long summer.

Gavin's One Liners

2010-08-13T22:06:00.003-05:00

Gavin is the definition of juxtaposition. One moment he's wild, running through the house like his clothes are on fire. The next, he's sitting quietly reading a story to himself.

He loves to antagonize Laynie. Gav's become a master at making her scream without laying a finger on her. Sometimes he'll sneak up behind her and growl in her ear. Or reach out like he's going to take her toy, but stop a centimeter before actually touching it. Fifty times each day I have to say, "Gavin! If you're making her scream you're doing something wrong." I'll probably be deaf before I'm 35 because her shriek is so shrill and piercing.

Gavin's also her greatest defender. You mess with his sister and you are dead meat. He comforts her when she sad or hurt, and loves to recruit her for his "armies." The moments they play together nicely are delightful.

Today, Gavin alternated between sitting in time out and making me laugh hysterically.

The Taylor Swift CD was playing. The lyrics to "You Belong to Me" rip on the Cheer Captain. Gavin's listening quietly and then he says, "Mom, how come everyone hates the cheer captain?"

I reply, "I don't know sweetie."

He grins mischievously, "Weren't you the cheer captain?"

"Yes." I'm suddenly concerned where this conversation is going.

"Well, that's why you have no friends." He pointed it out like it was as obvious as gravity. I didn't even bother telling him that I do have friends...just not many in Virginia.

At bed time, we're snuggling. He smiles kindly, "Mom, you're breath really stinks." Love you to Gav.

As I'm giving him a good night hug, he quoted one of our favorite books Runaway Mummy. It's a parody of Runaway Bunny. He mimicked the lilt of my voice perfectly, "You can let go now, Mommy."

No Gav, I don't think I will.

I'm grateful for a little boy who keeps me on my toes. Sometimes I want to pull my hair out and scream in frustration, but I live for the moments when he wants to climb on my lap and cuddle.

Being a mom is awesome.

The Mt. Vernon Disaster

2010-08-05T13:55:00.004-05:00

Wouldn't the The Mt. Vernon Disaster make a catchy title for historical fiction novel? Too bad no publishing companies are buying that genre right now. Maybe if it was a true story about a mother's attempts to provide enjoyable, educational activities for her children but who fails at every turn, then some publisher would look at it with interest? Maybe?

Good thing it IS a true story. It's my personal disaster story. I will summarize the whole affair succinctly:

Putting the RIGHT address into the GPS would have been helpful. We got a lovely tour of the DC ghetto.
Gavin broke the stroller the instant we entered the visitor's center, which would have been fine had I two functioning knees.
It was 92 degrees and a billion percent humidity. My new purple purse - lovingly called "Barney" by my family - actually dyed my white t-shirt. The combination of sweat and friction will cause the color transfer (not just hot water in the washer).
Packed a huge lunch and a huge diaper bag, which my mom and I had to haul around since the stroller met it's demise. My poor mom got to haul Laynie around for a while too.
Stopped at a cupcake place on the way home. They only had four flavors of cupcakes and none of them were good. Bummer.

So on a happier note, I learned a TON about George Washington and his home. If you want some quick facts to use in your next battle of wits (or for the historical fiction novel you probably won't write), read on. If not, scroll to the bottom and glance at the lovely pics.

George Washington was a GIANT. At six-foot-four, he was eight-inches taller than the average man of that era. He died at age 67 of suffocation caused by a throat infection. Nasty.

This model of the Mt. Vernon Mansion is on hydraulics. The facade lowers to show the interior of the major rooms.

George Washington built a greenhouse on the grounds to house tropical plants and citrus trees.

The Upper Garden was a showpiece and many of the plants currently in bloom were the same types of flowers in GWs day.

And Laynie is cute.

Butterflies and bumblebees flitted all over the garden. We had to convince Gavin not to touch them.

Mt. Vernon is built of wood, not stone. Sand was mixed with the paint to give the exterior texture. The cupola on the roof was the last edifice Washington added. In the summer, they opened the windows to let the heat in the house out.

Laynie's cute again...this time on the ferry.

In three to four weeks each spring, Washington's slaves caught one million fish then salted and shipped them.

That's Ft. Washington. It was abandoned during the War of 1812. The commander only had 49 men to protect it from the British. He decided to blow up the armory, rendering the base useless, and vacate. After the war he was convicted of abandoning his post and executed.

In 1798, Mt. Vernon hosted 677 overnight guests. I don't know how Martha Washington managed. She must have been really organized and had an army of slaves....oh wait, she did. Nearly 200 slaves are interred in a small burial ground a few hundred yards from Washington's tomb.

The American Chestnut tree is nearly extinct. In Washington's time, it made up a third of the wilderness on his property. The Passenger Pigeon is extinct. The last one died in the New York Zoo in 1914. The bird was common at Mt. Vernon in the president's time.

Here Gav is separating the chaff from the wheat. This wheat was crushed in the two-story 16-sided barn Washington invented as a wheat mill of sorts. Apparently, horses won't defecate unless they have a corner to stop in. Because the barn is essentially a colonial indoor track, the horses circle continuouslycrushing wheat beneath their hooves. The workers load everything that falls through the floor to the lower level in the into a small wagon. One person picks out all the stalks (see picture below), and then another removes the chaff.

Wheat was a much more lucrative crop than corn. In Washington's day, each stalk only produced two cobs.

I have a whole head full of other random bits but if you REALLY want to know you will A) come visit me and we'll go to Mt. Vernon together or B) call and ask.

Any takers?

Oh Shenandoah!

2010-08-01T18:29:00.005-05:00

We took Grandma Ardy to see the Blue Ridge Mountains. They sure live up to their name. The range is nestled in fog making the surrounding peaks always look well...blue.

Laynie's been glued to her daddy's side since we returned to Virginia.

Thought we better get at least one mother-daughter picture.

I'm a little jealous of the owners of this beautiful little ranch. It's nestled in the heart of the Shenandoah Valley.

Skyline Drive is a 150 mile long drive that follows the hugs the mountain range. Since we knew the kids weren't going to look out the window for that long, we picked a rest spot along the road and stopped for potty breaks and treats. I LOVE that it had one pump at the gas station.

We entertained the kids by taking pictures in the back seat.

These are the binoculars that Gav got at the rest stop. He "saw" a black bear, deer, fox, and squirrels through them. Notice that he has them backwards...totally the best way to use them.

I LOVED this tree! How cool is that against the background?

More mountains....if you can call them that. We were a whopping 3,000 feet above sea level.

One more shot of that cool tree.

Happy Birthday Gardy!

2010-07-29T20:55:00.007-05:00

Grandma Ardy's birthday celebration wasn't traditional in any sense. We decided to go to the Smithsonian American History Museum. And the day was off to a great start!

We were able to avoid a lot of the traffic and found a parking spot immediately. It seemed like a sign. And it was...sort of.

I was a little nervous that the kids would be bored at the museum, but there are plenty of hands on exhibits. Here the kids are trying to wring clothes dry the old fashioned way.

I know what it looks like...but it's really just a bucket of wash water. Each bucket holds 21 pounds. I felt very grateful for my washing machine today.

This is one of the original Dumbo carts from the Disney ride.

Hey Bay! These are Dorothy's real ruby slippers. Super cool, huh! My niece loves (or at least used to) the Wizard of Oz.

This is a gunboat from the War of 1812. A 24-pound dumbbell (at least that's what it looked like) did enough damage to sink this ship. Technology - especially the technology of warfare - has come a long way.

Here's Gavin the Riveter. That's hard work! I don't know how all the World War II Rosie's could manage those machines!

Here's a Huey from Vietnam. Gavin was very concerned about the fallen solider. G: "Is he dead, mom?" Me: "No, he's just hurt." G: "Goliath probably looked like that after David got him." Me: "Sure Gav. If you say so."

Yep. That's the original C3PO. Gavin was so excited that he had to take this picture all by himself.

Laynie: "Thomas, he's the cheeky one!" Gavin: "That's not Thomas, that's James!"

Notice how nicely Gavin posed for this picture. Right.

This is actually a really cool story. This light house is from GALVESTON, TEXAS! Read the little blurb below for your history lesson for the day:

Gavin: "Look at the mouse, Mom!"

Me: "Gavin. That's a cat."

Gavin: "No!! It's a mouse. By the train!"

Me: "Gavin, that's a cat....oh, there is a mouse."

Gavin: "Open your eyes mom."

Remember how I told you I thought that the day was going to be perfect? Well...not exactly. As we were walking to the exit, we saw a man step to the side, take off his shoes, and wring out his socks. We thought it was a little weird. Then we noticed the MONSOON that was turning the Mall into a puddle-ridden disaster. But, we HAD to get home. Here's the best picture of the day.....

It's the Smurfs.

Can you see the little fingers peeking through poncho? Laynie was sound asleep in the back so we draped the plastic over the top of the stroller. She stayed nice and dry and slept till we got off the train and headed to our car.

Then we had homemade pizza for dinner (not my mom's favorite food, but she suffered through it for the sake of speed). And had a delicious homemade cake. Don't look too closely. whip cream doesn't make pretty frosting, but it sure was tasty.

We love you Grandma Ardy. And according to Gavin, she's still 30. Funny that she and I are almost the same age.

Happy 24th of July!

2010-07-29T20:50:00.003-05:00

Gavin, Laynie and I joined my family in their almost-annual 24th of July celebration at the Salt Lake Bees Baseball game.

It was hotter than Hades, but we had a ton of fun. Well....at least till it got to the firework part of the show. Laynie hates fireworks. She screamed hysterically and trembled. I hurried her out to my mom's car and she and I enjoyed them from there. Thanks for a fun evening Valletts and Winks! We love ya'll!

This was pre-firework fake sleeping. Obviously.

Thank Goodness for Thankgiving Point!

2010-07-29T20:21:00.009-05:00

Grandma Ardy took the Wee Wallaces to Thanksgiving Point for another Fun Day on the Farm. Joel and MeMe tagged along, but Papa Dave did more manly stuff. He went to Cabelas.

A quick apology for the zillion pictures...it was so much fun to have my siblings around, that we got some great goofy (blackmail type) shots.

If anyone is interested, you can buy baby chicks and turkey for $4. They don't guarantee the "gender" of the animal. Which really got me thinking how they could tell in the first place?

My mini-milkmaid.

This is the best they could do...honestly.

Check out the beard on this Bad Billy Goat Gruff. I wonder why they don't trim that off when they shear the rest of his coat? Anyone out there have some animal husbandry info? If not, I'll just google.

Such a cute picture of the lovely ladies!

Like I said, good blackmail. Right? Joel is such a blast to have around.

Gavin is quite the mule whisperer. He fed this little guy a dollar's worth of animal feed. And his hand was covered with drool. Awesome. Every little boy's dream come true.

Too bad Lizzy wasn't there!

Laynie and Gavin decided to take a carriage ride rather than ride the ponies. Whatever.

At least we all got to go together. The horse that pulled our carriage was named Annie. She's fourteen-years-old. Gavin was very interested in her age for some reason.

And then we had a MAJOR meltdown. Like the worst public meltdown in the history of Laynie.

Which is why we thought this sign was particularly funny...and appropriate.

Have I mentioned how much fun it is to have Joel and MeMe around? Did I also mention that they do just about anything to get a laugh?

As I was saying...

...they are both so mature for their ages.

I think the kids' favorite activity of the day was crawling through the tunnels at the vegetable growing exhibit. And I got a picture of Gavin's face with a smile. Miracles never cease.

Laynie was still a little miffed and wouldn't give me her cheesy grin. I had to settle for snapping photos when she didn't realize what I was doing.

Souvenirs, huh? Well, I guess that's a nice way to put it.

Hello Mr. Bean

2010-07-29T20:15:00.003-05:00

Jen, McCall and their kiddos joined as at the Bean Museum on BYU's campus. Sadly, this is the only picture I took. No one was being very cooperative.

After the reptile show (which no one was all that interested in), we went to the BYU Creamery on ninth. My brother Joel met us there and was entertained by eight children under age 10.

The best part of the whole day was when the old lady at the table behind us walked to another table (with only three children at it, by the way) and complimented the mother on her excellent parenting skills. We all had a good laugh at our own expense. Awesome.

Snowbird in the Sunshine

2010-07-24T23:28:00.003-05:00

Snowbird Resort is incredible...even without any snow. The mountains were verdant and lush. My kids love spending time outside, gathering pine cones, chasing ground squirrels, and swimming in the pool.

Oh...and of course, being dangled dangerously over the pond. Joel was trying to convince Laynie that she could catch a fish with her bare hands. Good luck with that.

And then of course there was the Alpine Slide. Laynie is fearless. She screamed, "Wee!" the whole time. When she ran out of air, she took a deep breath and continued shrieking. Aunt MeMe took her down a couple of times, and she's a much faster driver than I am. If that's possible.

Gavin was a little less...enthusiastic...about the Alpine Slide. If I knew how to work my mom's computer, I would crop the pic a little closer so you could see the terror on his face.

And speaking of terror, my fear of heights kicked in on the tram. I was so nervous that I sent Laynie up with my dad. I was afraid she'd fall out, and trusted her safety to my father's burly arms. She had a blast, while I shivered. You can see her bows peeking up over Papa's shoulders.

Draper Days with the kids!

2010-07-24T23:20:00.002-05:00

Lizzy and Travis are awesome! They saved seats along the Draper Parade route for us. Travis got something small stuck to him that wouldn't let him go...that something was Laynie.

Liz had a similar problem with Gavin!

Travis didn't get to sit down. Laynie decided to be the "big girl" in his chair.

Gav loved picking up the candy. I took him a few minutes to figure out the concept that people were throwing candy at him and that it was actually okay to pick it up. That whole "don't take candy from strangers" thing doesn't apply to parades.

Here they are with their mouths full. "MMMM!" said Laynie, "This stuff is good!"

If You Teach a Child To Fish...

2010-07-15T22:53:00.003-05:00

The next generation of Vallett (or in this case Wallace) Fisherman is born! My Dad and Uncle Joel took Gavin up American Fork canyon for an awesome fishing trip.

Gav followed all the "rules." He stayed on the path, stayed out of the water and stayed with Uncle Joel and Papa. We should have added one more rule: Don't throw rocks in the water.

The fishing was great...the catching, on the other hand, was not so good. Joel snagged one monster five-incher as they were cleaning up their gear.

Gav is thrilled that we will probably go fishing again this weekend.

The Animals at Gardner Village

2010-07-15T22:45:00.003-05:00

Gardner Village is one of our favorite places to visit while we're at GArdy's house (that's how Laynie has shortened Grandma Ardy's name). It's only $2 to get into the petting zoo, and $3 for a pony ride. Worth every penny!

Laynie said the pig was "pokey." Honestly, it was really bristly. I can't imagine using their bristles to comb my hair like the pioneers did. YUCK!!

Usually MeMe accompanies us on our outings, but she had to work. We are so glad that Liz was able to come along. She has quite a bond with my kids. Laynie sometimes calls her Mom!

As with any goat, we had to stop them from eating Gavin's clothes. He really didn't mind.

Wheeler Farm 2010

2010-07-15T22:30:00.003-05:00

Not really sure where Gavin was in this picture. He was probably boycotting the photo shoot...but seriously, aren't we a cute family!

Laynie's mooing at one of the calves. I love her super pursed lips.

At least there weren't any major melt downs getting Gav off the tractor this year. I'm not sure what the bribe was, but it must have been good.

I know they looked like caged animals, but this is actually the "tree house" on the Wheeler Farm property. Liz was the only adult small enough (and brave enough) to climb up.

Lots of fun with the family!

I Will Go Into the Zoo..

2010-07-08T17:32:00.002-05:00

Today Gav, Laynie and I went to the zoo with Grandma Ardy, Papa Dave, Uncle Joel, Grandma Edie, Aunt Emma and Uncle Paul. With that crowd, how could you not have fun?

Hogle Zoo has a new baby elephant. Her name is Zuri... ...and she has the cutest bum in the world. Sorry, but I've got a thing for elephants.

Grandma Ardy and Laynie posed with the tortoise.

Then Uncle Joel fed her to the lion.

Gavin did not sleep well last night. He was a party. He sat in the stroller and sucked his fingers for a large portion of our trip. Perhaps he should go to bed and stay there?

Now he's taking a rest on the bronze rhino. Not my first choice for a pillow.

This is what happens if you let Joel hold your camera.

We watched the elephant show and then went to the bird show. The birds flew directly our over our heads. One almost clipped Aunt Emma!

This was the least irritating animal in the show. I will never have a parrot as a pet.

Grandma Ardy bought three carousel tickets per child. Joel and Gavin chose the wolf. Here they are howling together.

Grandma Edie got to accompany Laynie on one ride. Laynie chose the elephant. It was so tall that Grandma had to stand on her tip toes to hold Laynie in place.

Here they are on the tiger.

Joel and Gavin again...This time Gavin is on a leopard and Joel is on a baby elephant. Apparently my brother and son are on the same mental level.

Laynie with Grandma Ardy giving us her "Princess Wave."

Our last stop was aboard the train. It was a blast!

Laynie and Gav enjoyed the ride on "Thomas."

This fountain ball is pretty awesome. The kids work together to change the direction it rolls.

We stopped at Crowne Burger on the way home. Laynie didn't get to enjoy her food until later. She was a little to sleepy to eat.

Sea World 2010

2010-07-03T10:45:00.005-05:00

Sea World is more than three hours from the Wallace's home in Houston. We decided to make a one-day round trip. I wasn't worried about entertainment. We have a small lap top loaded with DVDs. But we totally didn't need it!

Laynie was totally hamming it up in the car! It's not quite the same as Grandma Ardy's gummy worm boogers, but nearly as comical.

Between her and the awesome '80s rock station, the drive was a breeze!

The 4-D Pirate Movie was our first stop. The movie itself is in 3-D, but the theater is equipped with water cannons, air puffers (I'm sure that's the technical term) and vibrating seats.

It was a little intense for Laynie. Bats came flying at her while the air puffers were doing their job. She screamed hysterically and began sobbing. I had to take her out.

Next stop: The Killer Whale show called "Believe." The trainers aren't allowed to swim with the animals as a result of the incident in Florida (if you don't know, google it). Laynie posed with the Shamu statue. Gavin was...being Gavin. No posing for him.

The kids were really excited for the show to start.

But we had to wait for such a long time that I was afraid they would fall asleep and miss the show. It came close.

But then the whales started jumping and they perked right up!

I got some great shots of the orca in action.

We were sitting six rows from the pool and got drenched. Laynie got a Shamu-created wave to the face and screamed and cried hysterically. Again.

My blue-eyed boys.

All Laynie's crying resulted in a emotionally-induced slumber. So she missed the dolphin feeding. I didn't mind so much...I got to feed her tray of smelly fish to the dolphins. If I had the money, I would do nothing but hang out at the dolphin alcove all day.

Laynie slept through most of the aquarium fish-feeding time. It was pretty incredible. A scuba diver hand fed all the sting rays. Their barbs were only a few inches from his head. It made me wonder what happened with the crocodile hunter, Steve Irwin.

Rain threatened the entire day. But we still managed to get to the kiddie pool before the rain started. Jamie didn't bring a swimsuit and was on camera duty. Darn. He didn't get any shots of me in my suit. I'm sure you will all feel sad about that.

The management closed the pools because the rain finally broke through. It was pouring too hard to see the water. While we waited for the deluge to end, we grabbed some snacks. Strangely enough, there was a stage show with all the Sea World mascots.

At the end, they invited all the kids to come up and dance. Laynie thought that meant on the stage. She was almost there before one of the "human" dancers pulled her back to the floor. I think she was a little offended that she didn't get to be the star of the show.

She recovered enough to pose with Sandy the Shark.

Jamie doesn't get to go to Utah with us this summer, so at least we got some quality family time. Sea World was awesome and we hope to come back soon!

Mt. Vernon with Gugs and Papa

2010-07-03T10:22:00.003-05:00

We took a water taxi from Warden and Rick's hotel to Mt. Vernon. It was 50 minutes each way, but my kids could have stayed on the boat all day!

Warden and Rick spoiled them with popcorn and treats while we boated along.

I love this 'in-depth' conversation between Grandfather and Grandson. I think they were discussing birds of prey. A brood of osprey were nesting in a buoy that we passed.

I loved this shot of a sailboat in front of Fort Washington. Such an interesting juxtaposition of peace and war.

Here is the mansion at Mt. Vernon as seen from the river. It definitely looks like a home worthy of our nation's president.

Here Gav and Rick are posing with General George. Gav was more interested in the weapons George used - sabers, muskets, cannons - than any other piece of history.

This tree is on the path to the Washington's home. That's me in the background. It gives you a good perspective of the tree's size.

My children's favorite part of Mt. Vernon is the green behind the mansion. It is speckled with ancient trees and has a beautiful thick lawn. If it hadn't been so miserably hot, we would have spent more time playing on the grounds.

Rick - and after a while Gavin - sought some shade on the back porch. Can you imagine George and Martha enjoying summer evenings in the same place?

It was a long, hot day. Laynie totally zonked out on the boat ride home. We all wish we could have!

Guggy and Papa's Awesome Hotel

2010-07-03T10:05:00.004-05:00

Jamie's dad had to come to Washington D.C. for a conference and Warden thought she'd accompany her husband. For the first couple of days the Wallaces stayed at an incredible hotel in the National Harbor.

The kids and I drove up to visit and had a great time.

Gavin was a little nervous around the wax statues and wouldn't pose without me.

The entire roof and backside of the Gaylord Hotel is made of glass. The view of the Potomac River and Harbor are stunning...too bad I didn't get a picture of that! A portion of the interior is devoted to shops and arboretum. The trees and flowers are beautiful. Gav and Laynie decided to stop for a sniff.

During the summer, the hotel has professional sand castle builders create Washington D.C.-themed artworks inside the building. Pretty fancy pants if you ask me.

The "backyard" of the hotel is terraced with different gardens and fountains at each level. My kids would have climbed in this fountain if we hadn't stopped them.

The luxury pool had a splash pad that Gavin and Laynie couldn't get enough of! I love that Gav's face is directly in the spray of water in this picture.

His other swimsuit was too wet to pack. Gav had to wear the next size up. Love the Coppertone shot! Too cute to be called plumber crack.

Laynie wasn't as excited about having the fountains spray her face. She had her own method of fun - she backed in!

Warden took this picture of Laynie and I thought it was one of the cutest I've ever seen. Of course, I'm her mom so I'm prejudiced.

I didn't get a picture of us enjoying room service in Warden and Rick's hotel room. They totally spoiled us!

Thanks for a great day Guggy and Papa!

Not Your Typical Anniversary Celebration

2010-06-13T21:18:00.004-05:00

Jamie and I are anniversary-challenged. Did we go out to dinner and a movie? No. Did we escape for a romantic weekend together? No. Did we walk a mile to Panera, have breakfast as a family and then visit the Safety Center Open House? Yes.

Even after six years of marriage, my husband and I have been unable to reconcile our differences on what should occur for an anniversary celebration. Given that we've both been spastically busy the last few weeks, I didn't even try to argue for anything fancier. Sometimes the stress of going somewhere, makes the destination undesirable.

The Fire Station was a total delight. Gavin and Laynie had a blast, received free child ID cards, and got fire man hats and sheriff badges. Their happiness made me realize that an anniversary isn't JUST about the day Jamie and I got married...it's really about the day we became the Wallace Family. So we had a Family Anniversary day. I hope we do it again soon.

Laynie was so little that she couldn't stay on her feet in the bounce house.

She doesn't look very scared, does she?

Two great stories for the day: 1) The officer with the Harley is none other than Deputy Sheriff Dufek. The very man who gave me my first ticket two weeks ago. I asked Gavin if he wanted to have a picture taken with the motorcylce cop. I mean, how cool would it be to sit on a Harley, right? His response, "No way! That's the cop that busted my mom!"

2) Behind DS Dufek is the Loudoun County Mobile Command Unit. They use it to run SWAT ops. Gavin's question for the police officer who was giving the tour: "Where do you keep your rockets?" The cop first looked shocked and then responded with a laugh, "We don't have any in here today."

Our little Fire Station even has their own HAZMAT truck. I'm pretty sure it will never see anything akin to the spills Houston deals with on a daily basis.

Yep, that's my baby using the fire hose to put out a "simulated" fire. She's pretty tough for a tiny little creature.

Gavin was pretty hands on. He wanted to do it "all by himself." Can you even imagine what Gavin would do if they actually let him hold that hose by himself? All I can say is run, Laynie, run.

We did drive out to the Leseberg Outlet Malls and pick up a couple of new ties for Jamie. Then we grabbed some Arby's on the way home. Nothing like roast beef "toots" to top off the perfect anniversary celebration.

It may not have been romantic, but at least it was memorable.

Not Exactly Hell's Angels

2010-06-11T14:37:00.003-05:00

Gavin's preschool has some awesome end of the year festivities. One of which is the annual Bike Rally. All the children were rolling (literally) with their homies on an in-parking lot "obstacle course" constructed out of masking tape on the black top.

I did get some of it on film, but it wouldn't load. So this is the best I could come up with...it's sort of like an illustrator's flip book.

Get ready, get set...

Go!

You are speed demon Gav!

Put the breaks on Gav. Seriously, HIT THE BREAKS!!

Too bad I couldn't get a picture of my near-death experience. He took out my knees with his Big Wheel. It's cool. None of us are worse for wear.

We are sad to tell Chantilly Academy goodbye. It was a great preschool with wonderful teachers. BUT, we're looking forward to Dulles South and the one minute commute.

Pool Party!

2010-06-02T16:52:00.003-05:00

The kids are greasy, their swim suits are hand-me-downs, but they were so excited to go to the pool that they posed together!

AAHHHH!!! They do like each other...at least some of the time.

Don't mind the blurry pic. I just love that I got these shoes at Walgreen's for $3.50. Super cute, super deal!

P.S. The pic of me in my swimsuit will post later. YEAH RIGHT!

Super Heroes and Incredible Friends

2010-05-25T19:30:00.006-05:00

Today was one of those days. You all know exactly what I mean; it's the kind of day when nothing goes according to plan, your house is a mess, you lose your temper and make your kids cry.

Or maybe you ate too much, none of your clothes fit right, your hair looks greasy, you didn't get any sleep, your kid pours soup all over the floor, and you won't see your husband for three to five more days.

I could go on and on, but the particulars don't really matter. It's just that type of day when you wonder aloud, "Why in the world did I ever think I was qualified to be a parent?"

So you spend the day moping, groaning, gorging on a bowl of ice cream (temporary satisfaction). You may yell at your kids a little more, wonder why nothing around the house ever gets done, and then settle on the couch to watch some trashy TV.

Luckily for me, my day turned around just before bed time. A little package came in the mail that contained three literal bundles of joy.

My friend Jen is Incredible with a capital I. In fact, she's the entire Incredible Family rolled into one tiny person.

She sent two specialized capes and an awesome photo book of her visit to D.C. Jen turned my kids into Super Heroes AND saved the day. See, I told you. She's Incredible.

Jen, you have no idea how perfectly timed your package was. Not only are you uber-talented and thoughtful, but because of your gift I was able to send my children to bed with smiles on their faces. Thank you a million times over! I laughed and cried (reliving the zoo hike) as I read the photo book to my children. I'm so lucky, blessed and grateful to have a friend like you!

Here are some shots of my kids enjoying their surprise presents:

Laynie totally got into Super Sister mode and stripped down to her pull-up. Check out her face. That's the don't-mess-with-me look.

Super Gavin! He flew around the house for about thirty minutes until I could convince him to put on his pajamas. I'm totally going to have to sneak into his room to take the cape off while he's sleeping.

It's got the Obama campaign symbol on one side. You may not have known, but my little boy thinks President Obama is pretty much the bomb.com. Gavin gets so excited every time we see him on TV. "Look Mom! That's President Obama!" And he loves to visit the President Obama House (not the White House) when we're in D.C. No matter your political affiliation, you have to admit it's pretty cute that my little boy knows the president's name.

Laynie's cape has a princess crown on one side.

And the Super Man S on the other.

Don't worry, Gavin won't be sporting his lefty-love when we head back to Texas to visit. Jen had that covered too. She put a Super Man sign on the red side of his cape. Although if you ask Gavin he thinks it's Prince Phillip's cape and the S is for "Sleeping Beauty."

As I've been writing this post, I've had a few seconds to think about the other awesome, creative, wonderful people in my life. Even though I had the kind of day you don't want to relive, at least I have friends and family who love me even in my failures.

Love you guys!

No matter how hard you try, something will always slip through the cracks

2010-05-19T13:16:00.004-05:00

A lot is going on in the Wallace Household. In addition to the regular stuff--the monotonous Mom stuff you can never, ever escape--this weekend is the VIP Luncheon and Open House for our new church building.

I'm going crazy, like near-panic attack crazy, worrying about representing the LDS church and the primary organization appropriately. To illustrate my point, let me tell you some of the things I've been thinking about today:

Is the movie (yep, I made a movie about primary) okay? Are people going to understand it? Are they going to ask me questions about it? What are they going to ask? What am I going to say?
What should I wear? My forehead sweats when I talk to people. Should I wear my hair up? If I wear my hair up are people going to think Mormons are polygamists? Don't polygamist women always wear their hair up? Maybe I should wear it down, but if I sweat it will stick to my face.
I'm going to be at the church from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. I better have comfortable shoes. If I wear comfortable shoes, are the VIPs going to think I'm frumpy and as a result think all Mormon women are frumpy? I better wear heels even if it hurts. But if my heels are too tall is that going to give people a bad opinion of me? Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, what am I going to put on my feet?
I can't wear sandals. I don't have a pedicure. Aren't open-toed shoes inappropriate? Are they? Is it frumpy of me to think that? Am I frumpy? Oh my gosh, I'm frumpy!!
Are all the displays going to be ready? Can I get everything set up by myself? Where are all the pictures of Christ people promised? Are there going to be enough? Am I going to need to go buy easels?
What am I going to do with my kids for 6.5 hours? Will my friends still love me if they are stuck with my children for that long?

I wouldn't be so worried if Jamie was going to be around. But he's not. He's going to be in Europe.

Obviously, I need to find some balance. I tried to give myself a break last night and host writer's group at my house.

Gavin won't sleep if he knows someone is having fun at our house and he isn't involved. So I put him in my bed and put a movie on hoping (against all odds) that he would: 1) fall asleep with the movie on or 2) at least give my writer's group a little peace while we worked.

Things didn't exactly go according to plan.

Yep, he fell asleep...but not in my bed. Sometime while we were meeting (I'm not exactly sure when; he's a stealthy little creature), Gavin snuck to the living room, flopped over the chair and fell asleep. How can anyone sleep like that?

I honestly didn't even notice he was there until I got up from my computer to shut off all the lights. I have a serious case of Mom Guilt. My poor baby! I didn't even think about him! I could hear the movie playing, so I assumed he was watching it.

The lesson I've learned today: no matter how hard you try, you can't worry about everything. Something is going to slip through the cracks.

This very instant I just realized I don't know if I have the right length table cloths for the primary tables. Oh crap. I guess I better find out...

The Fruits of our Labor

2010-05-11T08:52:00.004-05:00

Can you handle it if I boast for a minute about something other than my children?

Look what I grew in our garden!

On Sunday Jamie went out to check, and sure enough we had strawberries ready to harvest!

I bundled up the kids (I know, harvesting fruit in winter coats is a pretty ridiculous concept), but then I realized it was colder inside the house than it was outside.

The kids didn't complain, they thought picking strawberries was awesome.

I felt so domestic that I ALMOST made strawberry jam. Then I realized that it had been 12+ years since I've done anything jam-related.

So we ate them for breakfast. Yum!

Mother's Day Dance at Chantilly Academy

2010-05-07T13:07:00.004-05:00

Can you say, "Best Mother's Day Ever"?

I can!

Gavin's school hosted an awesome Mother's Day Dance. We had a blast.

The kids made us crowns and jewelry, sang songs and taught us dances. Each mom became Queen for the Day!

Here's the awesome picture Gavin took of me in all my royal finery!

And here's the stunning shot I got of the two of us together!

My friend Debbie and her son Austin are some of our closest friends here in Virginia. We are so sad they are moving in a couple of months :(

After the dance, we went back to Gav's classroom and he showed me his favorite book and gave me MORE incredible Mother's Day Gifts.

Like this cute packet. I personally love that Gavin thinks I'm 56 years old, have blond hair and that my favorite food is fries from McDonalds.

Here's his beautiful art work. I'm the person with the "big eyes."

Is any Mother's Day complete without a handprint? I'm going to have to save this one.

Thanks Gav for all your hard work! Today really was the best Mother's Day I've had so far. Love you!

Soccer Stud Returns

2010-05-07T12:16:00.003-05:00

Every athlete has off days. Chuck Knoblauch was the second baseman for the Yankees back in late '90s. If anyone who reads this blog knows what the yips are, then maybe you'll also remember that poor "Blauchead" had a serious case. One day he woke up and could no longer throw to first base. He overthrew, underthrew and bounced balls to the first baseman (including a throw that went into the opposing team's dugout). He never recovered and was traded to the KC Royals and then released.

A couple Saturdays ago, Gavin had his own case of the yips. For some inexplicable reason he decided that he "hated soccer." I kid-you-not, no bribery, pleading or promises for punishment could get him to step onto the soccer field. He spent 30 minutes standing on the endline crying. Finally I told him, "You WILL stay here. I am going home. I have better things to do then watch you stand around."

He didn't believe me. So, I left (Jamie stayed of course). Strangely, my love-and-logic parenting actually worked. Five minutes after I walked down the street Jamie went onto the field to participate in some particular exercise and Gavin decided to play along.

This Saturday, Gavin had a blast at soccer. He listened, participated and even demonstrated some skills for the rest of the team.

My point: If you don't know what the yips are, you should look it up. They really exist.

The proof is posted below:

Gavin listening to Coach Michelle.

Gavin showing his "awesome soccer muscles" because Coach Michelle asked him too.

Gavin listening to his ball "talk". Apparently Coach Michelle said that if you listen close enough the ball will tell you exactly what to do, how it wants to be kicked, and who you should pass it to.

The Yips are gone. Our Soccer-loving Gavin is back. Thank Heavens.

Hooray for the Hutch!

2010-04-17T09:58:00.003-05:00

The China Hutch Jamie ordered for Valentine's Day finally arrived!

It is such a beautiful complement to our table, and fills up a very empty room. (So much for my great idea to leave it bare so that we don't seem like pretentious North Easterners. Teehee!)

I'm an admittedly horrible interior designer. Every wall in our Houston home was bare for three years. I like stark simplicity. But, my taste is definitely not popular.

Since moving to Virginia I've realized I also like American Colonial and British East Indies styles...Can you say completely opposite of "stark simplicity?" Thus the more "ornate" dining room set.

Since I'm terrible at design, I looked up a couple of articles about the "correct" way to organize a display cabinet. I quickly realized that I don't have enough pieces for my hutch (this is where you start crying for me, "Oh you poor dear! How can you possibly live without a complete set of China?"). I don't have the serving dishes, the platters, tea pot, gravy boat. (You say: "No gravy boat! What a travesty!").

So I had to be a little creative. On the third shelf from left to right: there is a crystal candy dish from one of Jamie's work projects (it actually says Exxon Mobil on it), then the candlesticks that I got on clearance at Pottery Barn five years ago (they're turning green) and then the ice cream dishes (the previous owners of our home left them behind).

Since my taste stinks, maybe my friends who read this far will want to vote. Does it look horrible? Can you suggest a better way to organize it?

So now you're wondering how I can possibly not have enough China. All the boxed stuff you see is my "Christmas China." My mother-in-law buys a piece for us each year. SO, by time Christmas comes my hutch will rock!

Home Improvement

2010-04-14T15:53:00.005-05:00

Good bye ugly pine trees! We will NOT miss you. Sadly the landscapers got to work so quickly that I didn't have time to snap a before shot.

The kids were fascinated by the "worker men" and wanted to watch. I thought the boys should mimic their heroes. Austin is in the yellow coat. He and his sister Emma are staying with us till Friday. He was a great sweeper and Gav was an awesome pile scooper.

The girls observed politely.

But they also got bored really quickly. So the backyard was a good option.

Here's the finished product. No overgrown trees blocking the front door. WAHOO!!

We replaced the trees with Camilia bushes. They have bright red blooms and thrive in the shade.

So much better!

What do David Beckham and Gavin have in common?

2010-04-14T15:39:00.005-05:00

Great hair? Check.
Modeling skills? Check.

A fearless attitude? Check.

Some awesome fans? Check.

A great team? Check.

A little hottie who follows him around? Check. (I mean Laynie of course. Lol.)

Product placement? Check.

A rad goal dance. Check?

But Gavin has done one thing that David Beckham will never be able to do. He named is team. They are the (wait for it, wait for it....)

GIRAFFES!

I'm totally not kidding. The coach asked for ideas for team names and Gav's suggestion got the most votes. I'm sure we'll have more stories to tell about Gavin's first year of soccer later.

The Easter Haul

2010-04-05T14:10:00.002-05:00

The Easter Bunny was extremely generous this year.

Gavin got a HUGE box of Legos and kits to build a helicopter and firetruck.

The Easter bunny hid a TON of eggs full of delicious snacks all over the basement. Laynie was not at ALL interested because...

She got trike.

It's WAY too big. But she could care less. She loves to sit on it and push all the irritating buttons. The princesses on top dance in a circle around the castle to horrible music. Horrible, irritating, twangy music.

Here is the firehouse with the Dalmatian (I built those because I am a Lego hog). Gavin and Jamie built this helicopter.

I have since built a truck and smaller helicopter. I love Legos and don't want to share.

Easter Egg Dye-saster

2010-04-05T13:56:00.003-05:00

Saturday night was our annual Easter Egg Dying Event. And it was...so sad! I missed my nieces and nephews SO much. Especially my Bay! She loved to decorate eggs and was so meticulous and methodical in her dying. It was always so exciting to see the moment when she would decide that the egg was just the right shade. Bailey, I miss you!

Even though it's not as much fun without our cousins, we dyed the eggs anyway. Here are the awesome pictures.

Waiting, waiting. Can you tell I asked Laynie to say "cheese"?

Laynie put a tiara on this egg.

Gav wasn't thrilled about the "princess" egg dying kit. But, the castle was cool because "a knight in shining armor" lived there.

Gavin also dyed a blue egg that was named "plane" and a green egg named "frog." He also picked out all the blue bird stickers - because those are obviously more boyish - and put them on his and his dad's eggs. "Cause Dad and I like to fly."

In all the year's that I've dyed eggs, I've never had a disaster...until this year.

Yep. The entire cup of orange dye all over the floor and my feet and legs. Luckily my floor is "orange tinted" so it disappeared. No big deal.

Knight and Shining Armor

2010-04-05T13:23:00.003-05:00

Gavin is a hero. Really. Laynie is always a damsel in distress (which is usually his fault), or a princess that needs rescuing, and sometimes she is even allowed to be the sidekick.

He is also incredibly creative. This week he made a Transformer Reindeer. He has a large stuffed animal reindeer that he strapped guns, syringe "lasers," wings, and all sorts of tools onto. The reindeer also wears sunglasses because he has "night vision."

So now that you've had a few moments to study his suit of armor, you'll notice his "cape." Yep, feety pajamas.

I love it. I love the way his mind works. He is so my child.

Randoms

2010-03-30T13:25:00.004-05:00

Every time a good friend visits, you have a few moments that really make the trip. We saw some incredible things, experienced history firsthand, enjoyed our beautiful country. Those are things we will remember.

But the downtime, the conversations, the giggles and disasters are just as important. I may not remember the exact thing that made me laugh, but I will remember laughing with Jen and the kids over and over. Like when Teagan lost her shoes for the third time at the zoo, or me having to run into the airport because I had to pee so bad, or Jen emptying my dishwasher for the 60th time and making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches over and over and over. Sites define a trip, laughter defines a friendship!

Wegner Family, we love and miss you! Thanks so much for being our friends.

Here are some things I'll remember from this trip...even though I may want to forget them.

Gavin refused to smile for the camera. So I have to post the one picture have of him in the Air and Space Museum even though it's out of focus.

And catching him with a digit stuffed up his nose...well, he's four. I guess we need to remember that too.

The kids probably had as much fun playing in the backyard as they did traipsing about the city. Love Teagan in the helmet holding the "gun." Sorry about the weapon Jen...even if we don't buy 'em, the boys figure out how to build 'em.

And me being a dork. What trip would be complete without that? There were a lot of dorky moments...this just happened to be one that Jen caught on camera.

And then you see the things you don't expect (and I'm not talking about an anti-war rally in front of the White House). Mickey Mouse bushes? Really?

I wish I had taken a picture of Jen hanging through a little opening on the top deck of the ship we sailed on at Mt. Vernon. Kai is a total coin collector, and his awesome mom shimmied her way out over the edge to grab a dime someone had dropped onto the 18-inch wide overhang. He was so excited!

I don't know what was funny, but something was! Maybe it's that we were all covered in mud and the Wegners bags hadn't made it to our house yet?

Mt. Vernon? Maybe? Jen was lucky to get Gavin to look at her!

Cutest little booty-bums! Love it.

We had such an awesome time. Who's coming to visit next?

No Repeats!

2010-03-30T13:05:00.003-05:00

I know, I know, you've already seen pictures of the Air and Space Museum three or four times on my blog. But, after 4 p.m. the parking is free. So Jen and I took the kids for one last hurrah. And it was really fun! We ditched the strollers and let the kids run around like maniacs.

They had a ton of fun.

Can you guess the boys' favorite exhibit? Yep, Transformers was a hit. The Udvar-Hazy Center is the backdrop for one scene. The SR-71 Blackbird (which you can't miss) is a Decepticon (that means he's on the bad guys' team). A flat screen TV shows a clip of the plane turning into a transformer. The boys would have stood there and watched it till their eyes fell out of their heads. The "shark" plane was another favorite.

Strangely, the Cherry Blossoms were in full bloom for our second visit to the Museum. Just another good reason that we went!

BEAUTIFUL!

What should you do when you're in the Air Traffic Control tower? Act like a plane of course. Jen and I sat on the floor and watched our kids fly around for a few minutes. They were so happy!

Sorry...she's just so cute.

Her face is hysterical.

Don't worry we didn't leave Gavin out. He and I probably had to pause to have a good heart-to-heart about appropriate behavior in the museum.

Sunday Trip to the Temple

2010-03-30T12:51:00.003-05:00

We took the Wegners to the Washington D.C. Temple on Sunday. The weather was incredible and the grounds were beautiful.
Who needs bluebonnets when you have wild daffodils? They grow all over the place!

Not a perfect picture, but I love that she is laughing so hard!

I don't know why I only got the thumbnail size of this picture, but I love Teagan's face! Her hands are full of acorns.

Too cute!

Thumbs up for a great trip to the temple!

Smithsonian Natural History Museum

2010-03-30T12:40:00.004-05:00

Gavin hates to have his picture taken, but at least we tried! We are standing inside the dinosaur exhibit at the Smithsonian Natural History Museum.

Laynie loved looking at the live bug exhibit.

And Gav loved holding the caterpillar. He wouldn't touch the cockroach. Good boy!

Kai was a little braver about all the disgusting bugs!

And he loved the turtle. We could hardly pull him away.

The girls favorite part was the "ant tunnel." Can you see the ant window on the left?

We stopped at Famous Daves on our way home. Laynie's favorite part was the Oreo cookies. Can you tell?

Thanks for dinner Jen! I owe you like ten meals.

Not Your Weekend Trip to the Mall

2010-03-30T11:33:00.003-05:00

So we were a little early to get the Cherry Blossoms in full bloom, but Jen did get this awesome picture of our trip to the National Mall.

No one was really all that enthused to go...but someday they'll be glad they went. Right?

No. They aren't holding hands. We only make them do that when they cross the street.

One of my favorite pictures of the day. What exactly is Gav looking for in the WWII Monument Fountain? Pennies?

Nothing more honest than this picture. The weather was beautiful. We couldn't have asked for a more perfect day. See how much the kids enjoyed it? (Gav's nursing a bumped elbow).

Then we crashed on this bench on the way to "President Obama's" house. Jen's cousin, Ariane, lives in Washington D.C. She was an incredible help. We could not have taken the kids as far as we did without her. Thank you Ariane!

Who's Vernon Mom? It's a place, Gav.

2010-03-25T10:16:00.002-05:00

I'm finally posting some more pictures from Jen's visit. Here the kids are outside Mt. Vernon. I had to convince Gavin that Mt. Vernon was just a place, not a person. He kept asking, "Then why are we going to see them?" My response: "It was President George Washington's House." He's answer: "See, I knew we were going to see people."

Okay then...
A lot of endangered breeds of farm animals live at Mt. Vernon. Sadly, they don't let you pet them. The kids had fun looking and in some cases bleating at the sheep.

Mt. Vernon is very hilly, and the boys took every opportunity to rest. Even if they'd only walked ten feet.

The coolest picture I've ever taken! This hawk had just launched itself out of its nest. Incredible!

We took a boat tour on the Potomac River. It was awesome and I learned so much (i.e. Did you know that walls of Fort Washington are 25 feet thick at the base and 12 feet at the top?) I won't bore you with all the details, but I loved it!!

Laynie was posing all day. On the water...

On land....

Running like a crazy person...

One quick note: If you are going to a farm don't let your children A) wear khakis and B) wear pants that are too big. You end up with dirty pants that fall down all day.

Mt. Vernon was awesome. I can't wait for my next set of visitors so I can go again!

Story Time in South Riding

2010-03-20T21:08:00.004-05:00

After the Air and Space Museum, we decided to rest...at least for a little while. That evening, my community was hosting a storytime. They invited teachers, firefighters, pilots, military members, and of course a dad dressed as Captain America to read to the kids.

It was actually a really fun, well-organized event. But my favorite part of the night was when Laynie walked to the front of the classroom, smiles at the teacher and says, "I pooped my pants!" The teacher smiled politely and said, "Excuse me?" Sure enough, Laynie had loaded her britches and I had to do a quick clean-up.

A few moments later she met the fireman. This time she said, "Do you like my slippers?" He smiled at her and told her they were beautiful. She flirted with him for the rest of the night.

Beasts Take Flight

2010-03-20T20:58:00.003-05:00

Gav and Kai loved the Air and Space Museum!
Since Gav has been here a couple of times, he decided to be the tour guide.

Kai and Gav loved the "gun planes." See the awesome tough guy face?

The girls kept each other entertained...neither was terribly enthused about the airplanes. Oh well, can't please everyone!

Animals Out of Their Cages

2010-03-20T20:16:00.004-05:00

On St. Patricks Day, we Jen and I took the beasts to the zoo!
We rode the train into D.C. to begin our adventure.

The monkeys were showing off all their best tricks!

Some animals like to press themselves against the glass.

They were getting a good look at what Laynie called the "Teddy Bear."

The boys quickly moved onto other interests. Here they are sitting on a Giant Salamander sculpture. But where were the girls?

Still watching the panda. He was hungry! We actually saw him eat. He peels the skin off bamboo with his teeth. He also likes to eat apples and yams.

The tiger was AWESOME!! Later he got up, started to pace and ROAR!!!

It was a long hot day that we probably won't repeat any time soon. The D.C. Zoo is built on a hill. You walk all the way to the bottom, then after you've seen everything and are exhausted, you trek all the way back up. Miserable.

Our favorite part of the day was when the baby gorilla, who as smaller than Laynie or Teagan, started wrestling with another gorilla. The big gorilla picked it up like a football and ran across the cage. After a few moments the mother gorilla got upset and chased it. It was so fun to see the animals having fun!