okay, so um...

Disneyland with Kayla

2012-02-15T14:08:00.000-08:00

Getting ready to go to Disneyland. The boys each had a day to go with their dad recently and so I took Kayla. We're good partners because we can ride the same rides and she's good at handling my waddling pace. Our passes expire this month so it'll be a long time before we can go again. So sad.

Snow White is the new obsession.

Looking down Snow White's wishing well.

Don't know what this look is about.

She had to spin the teacup by herself.

Serious conversation about princesses.

Meeting the princesses was definitely the highlight of the day.

She didn't even care about rides after this. And I always thought
parents were wasting precious time waiting in line for characters.
Now I understand.

Kayla doesn't know Mulan but is a fan now.
Mulan was really sweet.

She couldn't wait to get to Belle to give her a big hug.

Of course the pink, sparkly shoes caught her attention.

She had to show Tink her Little Mermaid shirt.

And pose, hand on hip, just like Tink.

One last hug. Then Kayla asked where Terence was.
She loves Terence.

Had to stop and dance. She loved these guys.

Tyler's science project

2012-02-15T13:42:00.000-08:00

Tyler wanted to add baking soda to different liquids to see which one made enough air pressure to pop a cork off a glass bottle. Baking soda and vinegar won, with lemon juice as a close second. The cork from the vinegar bottle flew way higher than our house. He had a really good time, but I'm glad it's over.

The Bucket

2012-01-06T16:49:00.000-08:00

trampoline time

2012-01-06T16:42:00.000-08:00

Loving this California winter.

Kayla loves pockets and thought it was so funny to jump with her hands in them.

Tyler thought he could run fast enough to miss getting in a picture but I got him!

My handsome 9 year old!

Tyler took this picture of his sister. He did a good job!

Sock bunny

2011-12-19T10:49:00.000-08:00

This non-crafty girl (me) made a sock bunny! Every now and then I get my sewing machine out to remind myself that I hate it. All I had to do was sew the ears and legs closed but this was no easy project for me. If I didn't think this little guy turned out so cute, I'd be really ticked, but at least all the frustration was worth it. I'm putting my machine away for another year or so.

Tyler the Wizard

2011-12-19T10:43:00.000-08:00

Being a Harry Potter fan, Tyler turns every stick into a wand and every broom into a magic broom. Every good wizard has a magic broom right? But can they all balance their brooms on their heads?

Random Shay

2011-12-19T10:36:00.000-08:00

Kayla rarely falls asleep anywhere but her crib so Jeff really enjoyed cuddling on the couch with his baby.

Love

2011-12-12T13:39:00.000-08:00

Sunday

2011-12-12T13:35:00.000-08:00

"Mine"

2011-12-12T13:29:00.000-08:00

Lately, our conversations with Kayla have been going something like this:

"Kayla, are you eating a cracker?"
"No, it's mine!"

"Kayla, are you wearing a tutu?"
"No, it's mine!"

"Kayla, do you need to go potty?"
"No, it's mine!"

"Do you want to play with the ball?"
"It's mine."
"I know it's yours. Do you want to play?"
"No, it's mine."

I love 2 year olds.

ABC's

2011-11-29T13:37:00.001-08:00

=D

2011-10-11T12:55:00.001-07:00

2011-10-11T12:55:00.000-07:00

back to school

2011-10-11T12:54:00.000-07:00

2011-07-04T12:55:00.000-07:00

I should've cropped these before posting. Call it lazy. Whatever.

I couldn't help posting this one. I lOVE the korker bows.
And the girl, of course, but look at the bows! ;)

2011-07-04T12:53:00.000-07:00

Doing her own hair

How does it look, mommy?

So proud of herself

kids

2011-07-02T22:08:00.000-07:00

Being silly

Kayla LOVES her tutu. She puts it on every day and has to show everyone and say "cuuuuute." She felt especially pretty when I wrapped this scrap material around her.

The very talented Jaden! Roller skating, playing the guitar and harmonica, holding 2 shoes all while covered with a blanket.

Another very talented boy!

She was thrilled that Jaden let her borrow his cape!

They posed themselves!
Can't really see the wand (chopstick) in this pic but he's casting a spell on me.

The fun kind of art

2011-07-02T21:57:00.000-07:00

Hi Kayla, what are you doing?

This was after I washed it off. I wasn't mad at her, I just think she was sad that I was getting rid of all her hard work.

2011-07-02T21:52:00.000-07:00

We ask her where her eyebrows are and this is what we get.

Ruffle panties!

Getting ready to go swimming.

Olvera St.

2011-06-22T10:51:00.000-07:00

Union Station

I loved the seats!

Jaden really wanted to ring the bell but I told him to get his head out before he did. He didn't listen and rang it anyway. I said "was that loud?" and he said "WHAT?"

We ate here and I had the best vegetarian burrito EVER!

The new Mason Family! I like how Tyler's holding his churro.

Silly kids

2011-06-17T14:30:00.000-07:00

I don't know what Jaden's supposed to be but we encourage imagination around here.

This might be one of my favorite pictures of Tyler EVER! I love that he's wearing a Harry Potter shirt. That goes, right?

Last day of school

2011-06-17T14:28:00.000-07:00

Jaden and Mrs. Graham

2011-06-17T14:22:00.000-07:00

Jaden...just because.

Cute ponytails

2011-06-17T14:19:00.000-07:00

Kayla teeth

2011-06-17T14:14:00.000-07:00

Cute little teeth marks in an artichoke leaf.

Kindergarten Program

2011-06-17T14:11:00.000-07:00

Disneyland

2011-06-17T13:59:00.000-07:00

Disneyland hair

Watching the ducks

Oh so serious

Love these 3

twister

2011-06-17T13:51:00.000-07:00

Kayla's helping Dad stay up.
Poor sport trying to push Tyler over.

Right foot green, Kayla!

Kayla and Abby

2011-06-17T13:43:00.000-07:00

2011-06-17T13:41:00.000-07:00

I just love these korker bows!

New dresses

2011-05-14T13:42:00.000-07:00

Kayla's newly retired grandma has been busy sewing. These are two of her new dresses.

diggin...

2011-05-13T21:44:00.000-07:00

She really doesn't do this all the time (knock knock knock).

More yogurt

2011-05-13T21:38:00.000-07:00

The Snowy Day

2011-04-21T20:23:00.000-07:00

Happy birthday to me!! On my bday earlier this month we woke up to all this snow. Since we only get a few drops of snow one day out of each year, this was pretty exciting. I know it's not a lot compared to some places, but it seemed like a big deal because it was actually ON the ground.

Our trees had a rough winter and after the hit they took with the snow, I'd be surprised if they survive.

Kayla wasn't sure what to think at first. She touched it and tasted it, then ultimately decided she didn't like it and went inside.

kid train

2011-04-17T21:36:00.000-07:00

Yogurt

2011-04-17T21:32:00.000-07:00

Toon Town

2011-04-04T21:30:00.000-07:00

I took the kids to Disneyland (all by myself!!) a few weeks ago and we spent most of the day in Toon Town.

'05

2011-04-04T21:24:00.000-07:00

Just found some old pics. I love my boys!

finally new pics

2011-04-04T20:54:00.000-07:00

Forgive me for being all over the place with these pictures, but that's just how I roll.

Kayla has discovered candy. She knows where the boys keep their stash so here she is trying to open a starburst.

Two Sundays ago Shaybug wore this dress and I realized it was probably the last time so I snapped a picture. Nothing too exciting but she's holding her dress for me to see.

This was Tyler's first pinewood derby car which we are all very proud of because he made it ALL by himself. No, he didn't win but we're hoping he learns that winning is not the most important thing. He had a blast racing it and that's what counts.

Kayla's found out how fun playdough is...and how it's not good to eat.

Love this silly girl. Mom and Shay Jaden is always such a good brother and he was playing with her in this bucket. He wasn't cooperating for pictures though. That's unsual, I know.

Her hair is long enough for a ponytail now!

2011-02-14T06:37:00.000-08:00

The park has become our favorite place recently. Kayla starts squealing and jumping in her car seat when we're near.

She takes on all the equipment like a big shot.

Tyler's birthday

2011-01-10T14:31:00.000-08:00

I can't believe my boy is 8! Not a day has gone by that we haven't loved and cherished him. Happy Birthday!!

On his actual birthday, Tyler stayed home from school, hung out with grandparents, ate sushi and artichokes for dinner, and opened presents. He had a really great day!

Here he is with his chocolate cream pie that didn't set...it was still good. We got him a Bop-it. I had no idea how fun they are. He loved it.

His Aunt and Uncle gave him this card and $20. I think he liked it.

Ward Christmas Party

2011-01-10T14:25:00.000-08:00

The boys and I had a great time at the ward Christmas party.

They're so crazy!

Jaden was scared of Santa and didn't say a word to him. He ran up real quick just so I could snap a picture.

Tyler didn't hesitate becoming fast friends and tell Santa everything he wanted.

Jaden loses a tooth...

2011-01-10T14:22:00.000-08:00

Another milestone! They keep growing up. Jaden lost his first tooth!

Halloween

2010-12-22T22:51:00.000-08:00

Since there was so much partying going on during the week, the boys didn't trick-or-treat. Instead, they had fun passing out candy. I think they ate more than they handed out...

Kayla didn't stay up for the fun but she wore her halloween PJ's.

Carving pumpkins was fun!

Really fun!
knife in head

Just checking it out

teamwork

The boys at "trunk"-or-treat the night before.

Kayla was in bed, as usual. I'm not sure why I even bought her a costume. Death Eater

The cutest Jedi I've ever seen

Kindy 500

2010-12-22T22:41:00.000-08:00

Jaden with his friend Nathan at the Kindy 500Kayla was so excited to see Jaden and his car

He was so proud of his sheriff car

2010-12-22T22:37:00.000-08:00

Kayla's 1st Birthday

2010-11-03T09:21:00.000-07:00

Kayla had so much fun getting presents. She LOVED everything.

She wore this little necklace for a long time. Such a girl!

Cousin Natalie

Why not taste a polka dot? They're all over!

It was such a fun day. I can't believe my baby's ONE! I love you, Shay!

Warning: a bragging post...

2010-09-26T14:13:00.000-07:00

This is for the grandmas so bear with me.=) I couldn't be a prouder momma! Both my boys got Student of the Month for the first month of school!
Tyler's teacher said "Tyler is an outstanding student. He is self-motivated and diligent in his work habits and efforts, and is a good citizen. I'm happy to have him in my class." Jaden's teacher wrote "Jaden is a great kid inside and out. He is thriving in our class, and puts his best foot forward at all times. Jaden completes all class work with ease. He is patient, intelligent and kind. Jaden's smile warms our class, and I'm lucky to be able to spend this year with him. You are a great kid, Jaden!"

They both got a free meal at Applebee's so we went there for dinner to celebrate!!

Unfortunately, I didn't find out about Tyler's until the end of the day so I missed his assembly. But here's a picture of Jaden with his award at school and with his principal.

2010-09-24T13:56:00.000-07:00

cake decorating

2010-09-24T13:52:00.000-07:00

Just for fun

Sleepy girl

2010-09-24T13:48:00.000-07:00

2010-09-24T09:52:00.000-07:00

Jaden and Ms. Teri at the end of his first year of speech (May '10). She taught him how to use the "k" and "g" sound!!

2010-08-26T19:39:00.000-07:00

Kinda blurry but he had water in his mouth and was threatening to squirt me for taking his picture. Bobo always pulling a face.

Swimming! We didn't go enough this summer.

Such a good big bro!

in the desert

2010-08-25T13:11:00.000-07:00

I wanted to visit Blythe before the summer ended because I knew once school was back in, we wouldn't have the time to see friends. Best thing was getting to see people I love. Worst...the drive. And this is what it looks like... Or this. I prefer the 1st. And yes, I did take pictures while I was driving. What else am I supposed to do on such a boring trip? I have to admit the desert is kind of pretty. Always clear blue skies.

I didn't have my camera while visiting so no other pics. =(

chess

2010-08-25T13:05:00.000-07:00

I'm pretty used to Tyler but every now and then he still surprises me. Like when he spent 15 minutes on the computer and taught himself how to play chess. He plays himself because all the dumb people he lives with have no idea how to play. He tried teaching me but...it's kind of complicated. :) Look at that concentration! Anyone have any info about a chess club?

more Kayla

2010-08-24T21:14:00.000-07:00

She'll be 10 months on the 27th. Transitioning from a baby baby to a fun little girl!

random

2010-08-24T21:00:00.000-07:00

Kayla's going on an adventure in primary...finally starting to scoot all over.
She can stand, too!! Love those little legs.

I took the boys to Frugos after their annual physical last week. Jaden got a topping for every poke. FIVE!!Tyler was happy he didn't get shots but not so happy he didn't get 5 toppings. Personally, 5 toppings sounds kind of gross.

palm springs

2010-08-24T20:48:00.000-07:00

At the Children's Discovery Museum in Palm Springs. This first picture is from a couple years ago, the first time we went. The boys look so little!

We went again just before school started.

These pully chairs are the favorite thing to do. There's lots to do but they both agree that this is the best.

I try not to worry about the thousands of dirty heads that have probably been inside that helmet. (shiver)

Painting the car is another favorite!

gotta catch up

2010-08-23T21:18:00.001-07:00

So I haven't been that great at blogging. I'll be spending a few days catching up. It's been the best summer ever. There are 3 new posts so make sure to keep scrolling.

Rina

2010-08-23T20:51:00.000-07:00

One of the most memorable things we did this summer was have an exchange student stay with us for a week. Rina came with a group of students from Japan. We all fell in love with her. Her English wasn't great...we played a lot of charades, but it was so fun!

She wanted to go shopping so we took her to Victoria Gardens and then to eat at Lucille's BBQ.

It's not a great picture but you can see what they're doing. Those who know Tyler might think playing wii was his idea but it was actually hers. They thought it was cool that nunchuk is the same in both languages.

Rina brought so many cool things from Japan, including paper for origami. She made this crane in just a few seconds.

She cooked us her favorite meal from home. It was pretty good....kind of weird, but good. Tyler said it was the best thing he'd ever eaten. Don't ask what it was because I have no idea. =) Something with pork and cabbage and flour and eggs. And she brought instant miso soup.

We spent a lot of free time playing games. It was tons of fun and I don't think we'll ever forget her.

4th of July

2010-08-23T20:34:00.000-07:00

My lovely baby has turned into the best sleeper. This wasn't her house or bed but she slept so good even through the crazy Fontana fireworks. We could hear the fireworks on the moniter but she hardly moved at all.

I think I have pictures like these from last year...maybe even the same shirts.

Here's Kayla before she went to bed. I'm in love with her crazy hair and FAT thigh.

1st day of school

2010-08-23T20:19:00.001-07:00

Jaden's on the right, on his way to class. Already made a friend!

Jaden was pretty nervous but managed to be brave. I was so proud of him. Tyler didn't want to go back to school because it's "sooooo boooooring" but it didn't take him long to find his friends and leave me in the dust. He looked pretty happy...from the back of his head anyway.

They both had a great 1st day and love their teachers!

Little Miss Kayla...

2010-06-22T15:07:00.000-07:00

...will hardly ever keep bows on her head anymore. Every now and then, I can stick one of these flowers in her hair and she'll forget about it. Luckily she has enough hair to hold it. But I'm going to miss the cute little headbands. Maybe if I keep trying...

last day of school

2010-06-22T14:59:00.000-07:00

2nd grade is over! This is a picture of Tyler with his teacher, Mrs. Lusk. She became the long term sub for his class when Mrs. Johnston went out on maternity leave. She did a great job. I loved that she taught the kids random stuff that had nothing to do with school.

pics from South Africa week

2010-06-22T14:41:00.000-07:00

My scary hunters

Loving their dinner

They both drew a giraffe because that's what they'd want to see if they went to Africa.

The flag

We also learned some facts and history which I'm pretty sure they've forgotten by now. But hey, at least we made a memory.

around the world

2010-06-19T11:39:00.000-07:00

For something fun to do this summer, we're spending each week learning about a different country. The boys both voted for South Africa for the first week and boy, was it fun! We looked up facts, learned some history, listened to music, watched traditional South African dancing, made masks, and cooked their food. This dinner was the best way to end a week of South African fun! It was sooo yummy! I'll be posting pictures of everything else soon.

Frikkadels

750 grams (1.5 lbs) ground beef or lamb
Olive oil for shallow frying
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 slices of bread, crusts removed
2 large eggs
Salt, pepper and barbecue spice to taste
Flour for dredging

Heat oil in a large, lidded frying pan and saute the onion for about 5 minutes.
Soak the bread in a little water and then squeeze dry. Mash in a large bowl with a fork until almost breadcrumb consistency.
Combine the onion with the ground meat, bread, eggs, salt, pepper and seasoning. Shape into balls, each just slightly larger than a golf ball. Roll each ball lightly in flour.
Heat a bit more oil in the frying pan and brown the frikkadels, a few at a time, for about 5 minutes on each side.
Once all the frikkadelle have been browned, return them to the pan, add a half cup or so of water and cover with the lid. Turn down the heat slightly and continue cooking for about 10 minutes or until cooked through.
Serve hot with mashed potatoes and either gravy or train smash (onion and tomato bredie).

Putu Pap and Train Smash 20mins

Makes about 540ml/18fl.oz. Hot Savoury Sauces Accompaniment S. Africa

Ingredients
1 tbsp Oil
3 Onions, chopped
3 Tomatoes, chopped
240ml/8fl.oz.Tomato Sauce
120ml/4fl.oz. Water
5 tbsp Vinegar
5 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
2 tbsp Sugar
½ teasp dry Mustard Powder
Salt and Pepper
1 teasp Cornflour

Instructions

1. Heat the oil in a saucepan, add the onions and tomatoes and sauté gently until softened.

2. Add the remaining ingredients and cook for 2 minutes.

3. Mix the cornflour with a little cold water to form a paste then add to the saucepan and continue to cook, stirring constantly until thickened. Serve as a sauce with meats, fish or putu pap.

South African Marshmallow Dessert

Ingredients

1/2 lb marshmallow
1/2 cup orange juice, freshly squeezed
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup fresh cream
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions

Spray a tart plate with nonstick spray.
Cut the marshmallows into smaller pieces, and put in a heavy-bottomed pot with the orange juice and vanilla.
Heat and stir constantly, until the marshmallows start melting. Do not boil! You only want them to melt completely. Add and stir in the vanilla.
Remove from heat and cool to lukewarm.
Beat the cream until stiff, adding the salt, and then fold into the marshmallow mixture.
Scrape into prepared plate, and leave in fridge to set.

The rest of the pics...

2010-06-07T11:39:00.000-07:00

This is my FAVORITE!

This picture made me realize that Jeff and I both have chin dimples! Do we always have chin dimples? So weird. Do our kids have chin dimples? It's funny the things I don't pay attention to. I've lived with my chin for 32 years and never noticed. Actually, I think it's just the picture...right?

laughing

2010-06-07T11:25:00.000-07:00

What a lucky girl to have the most entertaining brothers.

Sena Zimmer Photography...

2010-05-05T20:06:00.000-07:00

A gift from my mom this last Christmas was a consultaion, portrait session, and portraits from Sena Zimmer, a photographer she heard about in Glendora. It was such a great experience and I love the pictures. There are still a few more to include, but they haven't been scanned yet.;)Kayla was really having a rough time during the photo shoot, a combination of tired and hungry, but I think this one turned out so sweet. She was 4 1/2 months at the time.

My handsome boys did so good. There were so many great shots of them, it was hard to choose.

Sena had some favorite pictures of the kids and posted them on her website. They can be viewed at www.senazimmerphotography.com under "babies" and "children".

I'll add the others pics as soon as I can.

Jaden's 5th...

2010-04-18T11:43:00.000-07:00

Birthday pictures not in order

First thing in the morning, Jaden wanted to check out his cake he knew I was working on the night before. I love his expression. He switched from Scooby Doo to Star Wars two days before I needed to start the cake. By some miracle, I found the time and energy to make this.

His day was special, for sure! He started out with a good ol' healthy breakfast with Dad at Yum-Yum donuts. Went to see How to Train Your Dragon with the whole fam except Kayla, who stayed with grandma. Then came home for a party with a lot of family, cake and presents, of course. And he got to stay up really late.

Crazy Uncle Doug trying to pose the birthday boy.

SUPER JADEN!!

My beautiful niece

Kayla's wishing Jaden would hurry up and open his presents so she could go to bed.

Poor baby was up so late.

I think these cousins like each other

Kayla being cute

2010-04-18T11:31:00.000-07:00

2010-02-14T18:14:00.000-08:00

I don't think they come any cuter.

I love my nerd...part 2

2010-02-13T20:42:00.000-08:00

We got Tyler's basketball pictures today (I'll post it when I can get my scanner to work) and the package came with a button. He was looking at the button and says "wow, this button has a high luster." I asked him where he learned that word and he says "Oh, from my encyclopedia."

2010-01-27T22:33:00.000-08:00

Every time I take a picture, it's my favorite. This is my new favorite.

2010-01-27T13:54:00.000-08:00

My little cutie is 3 months old today.

She's so talented, she can hold her head up...
AND SMILE!

2010-01-04T17:03:00.001-08:00

On the way home from school today, I asked Tyler what his favorite part of the day was and he said "When no one realized that all the high frequency words had consonent clusters." For some reason he thought that was really funny and I was going along with it, but thinking, "that's the best part of your day?" School either sucks or he's a bigger nerd than I thought!

2010-01-04T04:56:00.000-08:00

So she's been smiling and almost laughing for a few weeks but I haven't had time to post anything. This is her game with Dad and they play it all the time. All he has to do now is start counting and she's looking around for him smiling. One day I'll post something other than Kayla but right now this is what it's all about. Now I feel like I should do the Hokey Pokey...I'm tired.

my baby

2009-12-29T06:51:00.000-08:00

She's two months old!

6 weeks

2009-12-09T11:12:00.000-08:00

Jaden breakdancing

2009-12-01T04:23:00.000-08:00

Kayla's sleeping noises

2009-12-01T04:16:00.000-08:00

Halloween

2009-11-26T22:26:00.000-08:00

It's better late than never, right? Here's our Halloween this year. Kayla was only 4 days old so it was a little different. Jeff took the boys out while I stayed home with the lights off. I wasn't about to get up over and over after having just pushed out this gigantic child. She was a sleepy girl all day and didn't get in her pumpkin shirt until the boys were already home.

Kayla was sleeping but they wanted their picture with her on her first Halloween. They're so in love with her.

I love re-using Halloween costumes. Tyler was Darth Vader last year and a knight 2 years ago. I love Jaden's face. He's always such a happy clown. They ended up getting lots of candy, and as always, Jaden's was gone in a few days and Tyler's bucket is still 3/4 full.

I'm thankful for...

2009-11-26T13:59:00.000-08:00

...good grandmas. My kids' lives are so richly blessed because of their grandma. My mom just adores them. I didn't have any kind of real relationship with either one of my grandmas so it's really fun to watch how great my kids have it.

...pumpkin bread. One of my happiest memories from my childhood is during the holidays when my mom would make pumpkin bread and she let me lick the bowl. She never scraped it completely so I'd have lots to eat. I made some last night and it was really cute to see Jaden waiting anxiously to taste the batter. Plus it made the house smell so good.

...lots of other things but, HELLO, I'm a little sleep deprived so that's it for now.

3 weeks

2009-11-17T08:55:00.000-08:00

2009-11-10T07:14:00.000-08:00

2009-11-02T13:50:00.000-08:00

Kayla

2009-11-01T05:56:00.000-08:00

Born Tuesday, October 27th at 12:08 am

8lbs 15.5oz

22.5 inches

Here are a bunch of pictures, some at the hospital and some at home. I'm not even going to try to put them in order. Just wanted to get them posted.

3 days old
Tyler held her for the first time. He was so excited. Her ride home from the hospital.

Just waiting to get discharged.

The fun part...HA!

Dad's first good look.

Jaden can't contain his excitement.

a name

2009-10-19T20:56:00.000-07:00

Thanks to everyone who voted on a name! It was fun to see which one got the votes. For those of you who read my mom's blog, you already know, but if you don't, I get to tell you. Sorry to disappoint the Kara fans but we're naming our baby Kayla Shay! Out of all the girl names out there, we just kept coming back to this one. Kara was just a thought to have something a little less trendy than Kayla. But we really like Kayla and have officially decided. I suppose we could still change our minds but it's not likely.

For some reason, I have had the hardest time picking a name for this girl. I didn't feel confident about anything. People said maybe I just had to see her first but I still didn't think I could just leave it to the last minute and choose at the hospital. I'd be so stressed. So the other day I was standing in line at the store talking to some lady about my name dilemma. She wished me well and left. Then the checker, who wasn't really involved in the conversation, told me as I was leaving "don't worry, it'll come to you in a dream." It was a really old lady and the way she said it was a little eery. I just said "okay" and thought "yeah right". That very night Jeff had a dream that he was giving our baby her name and blessing (a church thing for you non-mormons) and he said "kayla shay mason". He said he woke up right after that and knew that's what her name was supposed to be. He must have felt it pretty strongly because his vote was actually for Kara. After he told me, I told him about the weird lady who said we'd dream it and we had our little goosebumpy moment. Anyway, that's all I needed to make a decision.

Here's her name in her room. Not the best picture but it's all I've got.

Meanwhile..

2009-10-17T07:54:00.001-07:00

To make Tyler's day special when Dad and Jaden were at Disneyland, I took him for frozen yogurt after school. He always gets vanilla...boooring.

Then we went to Petco to look at some animals. Jeff hates rodents of every kind and a mouse would be his last choice for a pet. So we decided to have a little fun. We took this picture and sent it to his phone and said we were coming home with a new little friend for him. Tyler was laughing so hard, he couldn't even breathe. Jeff called us right away to make sure we were joking.

Fun Dad!

2009-10-14T06:27:00.000-07:00

What a lucky boy to get a day with Dad at Disneyland. Tyler's day will come next month. It was Columbus day and a little crowded but they still had a great time.

What would we do without Bo's funny faces?

Crazy driver!

Love this picture.

On the rockets way up high.

If You Give a Mouse a Cookie

2009-10-12T10:01:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, my mom treated us to a play at Victoria Gardens. We have this book and it's really cute so it was fun to see it on stage. They did such a great job and the boys loved it.

so cute...

2009-10-11T19:44:00.000-07:00

I took the boys to visit their cousin for a little bit yesterday. Tyler finally wanted to hold her. I guess she's getting sturdy enough that he wasn't so afraid of breaking her. I think it's funny how big his hands look next to her.

school stuff

2009-10-03T12:31:00.000-07:00

Tyler's teacher let him do this 3D book report during class and then present it to all the 2nd grade classes as well as his old first grade class. He was SO excited about it that he came home and did another one on a book we have here. Personally, I'd be horrified if my teacher asked me to present something in front of my 2nd grade class, let alone several others, but Tyler thinks it's fun!! I can't believe this kid sometimes!

Sporting his Eagles t-shirt.

Another fun project he did in school.

A favorite...

2009-09-23T05:44:00.000-07:00

This picture is almost 2 years old! I'm just wondering why big boys stop sleeping like that.

2009-09-18T13:12:00.000-07:00

When we put away the old crib after Jaden was done with it, I carefully put all the screws and other peices, along with the instructions, in a bag and duct taped it to the bottom panel of the crib. Then we moved. Now that we need a crib again, we went to put it together and realized that the bag that had been taped to it was gone. We looked everywhere with no luck. My darling mom thought a new crib would be a perfect gift. Thanks mom! And since she said she got a good deal on everything, she got us the dresser/combo to match. So this is our new crib and dresser. I love them and think they look beautiful.

Then, my BFF Erica came to visit with her husband and surprised us with ALL this stuff. She got me upstairs by saying they needed help with laundry. Once we were by the laundry room, she said, "Oh, since we're here, let's go look at the baby's room." It was such a fun surprise.

We had to put all the bedding on right away. Too exciting!

So do I have nice friends or what? Thanks Erica and Andrew!

2009-09-18T13:08:00.000-07:00

What a good big brother. Jaden helped Dad put baby sister's new crib together.

2009-09-18T05:52:00.000-07:00

This is the cutest version of eenie meenie I've ever heard.

I love my nerd...

2009-09-11T06:59:00.000-07:00

When I asked Tyler what the best part of his day at school was, he rather enthusiastically told me that he had to do 50 math problems in 2 1/2 minutes! He said "It was SO exciting!"

"butt-naked"

2009-09-11T06:38:00.000-07:00

One day, I was telling the boys that all babies come out of their mommies naked. Tyler was a litle embarrassed but brushed it off by reminding Jaden (who was laughing hysterically) that he was naked too. Being sweet and concerned about his sister's feelings, Jaden said that "baby sister's going to come out butt naked but we can't laugh at her." I asked why we shouldn't laugh and he said "we might make her cry."

Is there a name for these?

2009-08-29T20:55:00.000-07:00

Tyler brought this home from school the other day. I think it's just the coolest thing. The teacher wrote the students names and then copied it on the other side. Then they were supposed to turn it on it's side and make it into a person, maybe themselves...or something. So Tyler explained all the little things he added to his, including sword hands, fire booster shoes, lava spraying from the legs, horns, and ropes like spiderwebs. He loved doing it so much that he made another one at home. This one has all the cool gadgets, of course, but a few extras, such as fireworks, poison, and three eyes.

This is just sideways so you can see it really does spell his name.
So does anyone know if there's a name for these? He couldn't remember what the teacher called them.