Trip to Vegas

We drove to Vegas on Friday night and stayed till early Wednesday morning. We had a blast with Dad, Bev and Ryan. We ate lots of good food, as always. Beverly makes wonderful meals (flank steak, eggs benedict,) they have tons of snacks, and we eat out every now and then.

 Our days are similar to this schedule: Ben and I take turns waking up with the boys in the morning and try to keep them quiet until most everyone is up. We eat breakfast and then head to the clubhouse (which is like having a Gold's Gym in your neighborhood) and play basketball, tennis, or work out. Troy and Liam played in the playroom or threw around balls on the basketball court. We go home and get ready, the boys eat lunch and take a nap, and then we head out for shopping or doing whatever. We come back and eat dinner, play games or watch a movie, and eat ridiculous amounts of treats and soda. The best part is just being with everyone all of the time. It's really fun joking together, talking about political issues, and having fun playing games. It's a fun, family vacation.

The only pictures I have are of "Christmas morning" which we had on Sunday night.

Here is Dad and Bev. Dad is showing off the Nautique hat that Ben and I got him. The Nautique shirt is in the box still. Nautique is a boat brand, for those who don't know, and Ben's dad is a huge boater. Thus, the Nautique gear. Last year we got him a street sign that said "Barefoot Blvd" because his dad is a passionate barefooter.

Here is the rest of the crew. Brayden, Brittany, Alit on top and Ryan is laying down with a flash of Troy in front of him.

Troy loved opening the presents. 

He made sure to help everyone else too. We got Bev a hand blender. 

This was Troy's favorite present. A Lightning McQueen VTech Toy. I didn't get a picture of him with it, but it was for Liam as well. So Liam is sporting it in the next picture.

This is the clubhouse kid's room. Talk about child heaven.

We got McDonald's breakfast on the way home and I just had to post this picture of Liam. 

His first McMuffin :) He ate is just like that too. He only got through about half of it, which is surprising. He eats more than me sometimes. Both of the boys did amazing on the way there and home. Alit and Brittany were troopers and sat in the back, squished together next to Troy. Troy keeps asking if he can sit next to them again, every time we get in the car. Haha.

My Grandparents

About a week ago, I was brave enough to take Troy and Liam, BY MYSELF, and visit two of their grandparents that live here in Provo.

First was Grandma Shirley Andersen, my dad's mom. She is 92, positive, patient, a little forgetful ;), and loves to play with her great grandchildren. I really wanted to get a picture of the boys with her, and so we attempted...

Going....

Going....

Gone.

Grandma just laughed. She had three boys, then 7 girls, and then another 2 boys. She said that the three boys were much more difficult than all of the girls combined. Haha. She probably just said that to make me feel better, but it worked. 

p.s. Troy is her #187 great grandchild, Liam is her #223 great grandchild. Devin said that if she lives a few more years, she will have the largest posterity from one woman. 

Troy and Liam loved her balcony. Liam tried to throw rocks at a dog below and Troy kept going in and out because he was fascinated by the sliding door. I'm not sure why though, we have one.

Grandma made sure they had snacks and a ride on her chair. Troy thought it was really fun. Liam was just scared.

We couldn't stay very long because the boys start to get comfortable after 20 minutes and that's when the trouble starts. Liam had a close call with some glass ornaments on a shelf, but luckily none of them broke. 

Second was Grandpa William Farnsworth. He is my mom's dad. He is 91, sharp in the mind, cheerful, and very loving. My grandma, his wife, passed away last year and it has been a tough change for him, but he is plugging along. Liam was instantly excited about staring at the basketball standard in the backyard, so he couldn't be pulled away for a picture. Troy was ready for a nap...

I love that smile of my Grandpas. And I think I got my thick, dark eyebrows from him.

Again, we didn't stay very long. I was only so brave. But it was good to see my Grandpa. He has been a great help in my life and I love him very much. We are blessed to have our grandparents close by.
p.s. Grandpa informed me that Katelyn will be #111 great grandchild. Crazy!

December!

I'm excited for Christmas and all of the family, friend, and ward gatherings. The decorations and spiritual experiences. The songs and words that remind me of Christ. The lights on the trees and the glow of the snow. The service to render and the softened hearts to give a little more. It's just a beautiful time of year.

I tried to start a tradition with Liam and Troy. We made a Christmas countdown chain while listening to Christmas music and eating popcorn. I had them color pictures on some paper, and that is what we used for the chain. Troy likes to show me each individual drawing before he moves on to the next one. I love it.

Liam actually colored! For about 2 minutes... and then he just ate popcorn. So, his paper is a little crayon and a lot of spots made from the popcorn. He LOVES popcorn, just like his mama.

The finished product.

Troy did the honors of the first cut.

I'm not sure why he made this face, but he was proud of his cutting skills.

I said "tried" to start a tradition because we have not touched the chain since. Troy and I both forgot about it. I guess we will just cut a bunch today if I remember..

On Friday I decided that I was tired of my house being toddlerified, so we went to the mall. I spent most of the time watching Liam open the doors. Troy was a sweet helper and trying to get Liam to come play. "No Liam, come this way to the slide!"

Troy showed a little bit of hope in potty training yesterday. He pooped on the potty after only sitting there a couple of minutes. Crossing my fingers for more progress. He was very excited to get two cars as his reward. But not as excited as I was!

p.s. Liam is very interested in the potty and wants to try and pee before nap time, just like Troy does. He pulls his pants down and stands over the toilet, nothing happens, then he laughs and pulls his pants back up. What a little ball of joy!

Pizza Party with Aunt Sarah and Uncle Devin

Sarah and Devin are SO sweet and had a pizza party for Troy and Liam while Ben and I went to dinner and shopping. I mentioned in my last post the reason for the pizza party, so if you care, go to the previous post.

Here are some adorable pictures from the pizza party that Troy still talks about.

Here is Sarah and Troy rolling out the dough. 

I'm guessing that Troy wanted to be involved in every step. He is a big helper lately. I like his pose, "I am aware that you are taking a picture, so I will hold still... but I'm not going to smile or say cheese." I think he would make a great kid model for serious pictures :)

Liam probably wanted to eat every step... 

So, Devin fed him pears while Troy finished making the pizzas with Sarah.

Mmmmmm. They brought some pizza home and it was delicious!

Thanks again Devin and Sarah! They loved it. After they ate pizza, Troy and Liam played with Jimmer. They love that dog. I hope Liam wasn't too crazy for them. He looks so innocent, but is so sneaky. He got into the sour cream this morning and finger painted on the floor. This happened while Ben was watching the boys because I had a doctor's appt. for Katelyn. It's much funnier when you are not there. :)