Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Just a little update...

I updated my paragraph on our family "browntown" blog and ended up writing a BOOK.  So I decided to post it here too.

We have been married 8 years, and have spent the last 7 living in West Valley. We love our neighbors, and our ward. Jay is a plumber with Harris Dudley plumbing. He will have to tell you his favorite hobbies, but I know he likes to play with our boys! He is a fun daddy. He is currently working with our deacons in the ward. This makes me happy because I taught most of them in primary and LOVE them. I feel like they are lucky to have Jay and he is lucky to have them :).


I (tara) am a homemaker, and am in the primary in our ward. I never imagined myself loving primary. I spent years avoiding it, or wishing I could avoid it. Now I can't imagine myself anywhere else. I can't believe how amazing, strong, and smart kids are these days. They inspire me to want to be better. I feel blessed to know all of them. I like to sew, and cook, when I get to do fun recipes anyway! My kids all amaze and humble me. I don't know why I am so fortunate! I KNOW I don't deserve them.


Jayden is so observant and seems to pick up on everything! He is constantly asking questions about why this is and what that thing I said means. It really keeps me on my toes! I have to really watch what I say. Not to mention educate myself so I can answer his questions! :) He loves transformers and constantly has one in hand. He loves to be creative and draw things himself, he never wants a coloring book, just blank paper. And then he'll show me all of the sharks, lions, whales, rainbows that he has drawn. He will list a hundred different items on one page, all in great detail.  He loves his new art supplies we bought.  I am so fond of the way he calls them "art supplies".  We bought several simple things to make different fun projects (scissors, glue, pom poms, pipe cleaners...).  It was like Christmas for him!  He is starting to understand gospel principles and it is so fun for me to see his testimony growing. I LOVE his gospel questions.

Ethan is my little sweet, sensitive man. He loves both Jayden and Kayleigh. He likes to play with Jayden, though I don't know why they play together...it so frequently ends in one or the other crying ;). He always wants to pat Kayleigh and help her. He is sometimes a little too rough and doesn't understand why I restrict his access to her. You know, like when he is "patting" her head with impressive force, or grabbing and pulling whatever limb is closest to him... All of those things that elicit screams of protest from Kayleigh. "But I just want to talk to her!"..."But I just want to pet her!" etc.. It makes him very sad. He does want to be nice, he will often offer her a toy or bring her bottle to her.  He simply doesn't know his own strength I guess.  He is obsessed with music, he absolutely loves it, any and every kind.  He also loves to talk about Jesus. One of my favorite memories of him was one week when I had to bring him home early from church. He was SO distraught and told me "Jesus wants me at church!" He loves his "friends" at school. I put it in parenthesis because he uses that term frequently lately. We'll go to the doctor or the store and he'll say, "Look at all of these friends!" SO CUTE. Jayden and Ethan both go to preschool and though it is only two hours four times a week for both of their classes, I feel like it keeps me pretty busy.

Kayleigh just turned one and she is so smart, and so involved in everything! She clearly wants to be as big as her brothers right now.  In fact her main pet peeve is just being tied down.  She doesn't want to be contained in a car seat, on a lap or anywhere else unless there is plenty of entertainment!  She is quick to smile and laugh, and has the funniest, low growly laugh. :). She loves peek a boo, reading, or any song or game that involves her. She actually initiates most of our peek a boo sessions. Tonight she covered her eyes with her hands and laid her face on my leg. Then after lots of coaxing. "PEEEEEEK, where's Kayleigh? Where did my Kayleigh go?" She'd peek up with a big grin, let out a low growl and grab my leg or arm to pinch/scratch"tickle" me. Cutest thing ever! She is quite the handful, and so adorable that we probably let her get away with too much!  She's our little sweetheart.

Monday, January 18, 2010

Kayleigh's Birthday Part two!!

We had a second birthday party for Kayleigh so we could celebrate it with Jay's family.  It was a really fun, low maintenance party.  (I am a more the merrier kind of girl and love our big families, but it is less stressful cooking for less people).  I made a second attempt at fondant...  Better, but still not good.  BTW, if anyone knows what I am doing wrong to make it not lay flat on the sides LET ME KNOW!  There was a great big flap on the back that I had to fold over, not to mention the ripples on the side there :(.  In spite of their imperfections, I still was happy with them.  It's fun to try and improve.

Aunt Nickie bought Kayleigh a beautiful dress from China town while she was visiting her family.




Deja vu?

I STILL don't like my hand shoved in my cake!!

It didn't take long to get her involved this time.

"Daddy, don't eat Kayleigh's cake!"  He's so protective of his siblings!  He is also the first one to protest if he thinks we are going to leave Jayden home.  Yes, we have threatened to leave him home alone.  And yes, we are evil, manipulative parents :).  He also flips if he thinks daddy will forget to wait till I get in the car to leave.  It's pretty funny, except to Jay who has to listen to the screaming. :)

Kayleigh didn't seem to mind, but her eyes never left daddy.  She was very curious what he was doing.

I love the look on her face in this one.

Can I have a lick?

All gone!

She loved her talking elmo.

In fact, in this pic she had just tried to dive at Jayden in an attempt to grab him!  Luckily she fell toward daddy.

Ethan still wouldn't put down his beloved traveling darth vader.

Jayden and Koda kept running in and hiding under the table.

Can you see why? :)

Ethan's gonna get me!

Doesn't he look pretty?  I love how half of his hand is hanging out :)

Here is how the snowman progressed...


Good Job everyone!!  We loved our opera singer.

I totally messed up this one, but since everyone else looked so cute, I had to post it :)

What cute cousins!

Sunday, January 17, 2010

New Years Eve!

We went to Laura's house for New Years Eve this year.  We had lots of yummy food and played.  Ethan got a little too curious about the pigs in a blanket and ended up with a burn on his cheek from the pan.  The worst part is I didn't know where he got burned.  I put a cold rag on his face and he said.  "NO!  It's my hand!!"  Then he didn't even want it on his hand.  A while later the long blister showed up.  I didn't take a close up, but you can see it a little on his right cheek.  Poor guy.  He got over it quick though and had fun playing with the kids.

Jayden wanted to take LOTS of pictures :)





Everyone else played games, but Jay and I just relaxed and watched the tv festivities.  (Well, okay, I kept interrupting the game with my questions :)  It looked like a fun game!)  We were party poopers and left before 11, but it was a fun night.  We sang happy birthday to Laura before we left.

The Kids are being candles while we sang :).



We forgot Kayleigh's coat :(  She wasn't very happy with our alternative...

But she was warm!! Happy new year!

Saying bye to Grandma and grandpa


These are just a couple pictures from the day my mom and dad left after Christmas weekend.

It seems like every time Jay falls asleep at Laura's, the kids want to play with him even while he's sleeping.  (I know, I need to wash their faces!!  Thanks to pictures, I am aware of how bad I am at forgetting/not noticing that!)

Here is Jayden piling toys on daddy.

Then Ethan took a turn.

Singing with grandma and grandpa.