Easter 2016

As I'm writing this, there is a ton of snowy-slush outside.  I'm glad the weather was great for Easter.  What a blessing.  We enjoyed the huge Easter Egg Hunt at my parents' house on Saturday.  Calvin got some pretty good loot, I found a giant egg, and Mark has eaten his fair share of "dad taxes."  I made a pastel layered Jello ring to share with everyone.  I got to share my mooning story with some of the kids (it was from being in a musical... don't worry, I had pantaloons on).  I wish we could have stayed longer and that my body hadn't been so miserable.  Next year should be pretty fun.  Calvin got to participate in a smaller hunt with Mark's family.  There were only five kids hunting, but I think he enjoyed himself.  I didn't get to see him hunt because I had injured myself earlier in the day and could barely move without extreme pain.  I am grateful to know that because of Christ and His Resurrection, my body will always work perfectly someday.  I am grateful for His love for me and my little family. 

All the kids before the hunt

Photo bomb

Hunting

Some loot.

My Easter Jello

Calvin and his Lindsay loot.

Calvin during choir practice.  He was facing Mark and holding his music up and singing, but as soon as I tried to sneak a picture, he turned around.

Playing with Cousins

Yesterday, Calvin and I spent 9 hours babysitting his cousins who live in Newton.  Their dad had a doctor's appointment in Orem that took a long time.  Calvin had a great time playing all day.  Mostly they played with Lego blocks, dress ups, and watched some TV together.  Here are some pictures.

Calvin and Olivia in the Lego bin.

That was the best picture of the night!

Captain America fighting Thor.

Abby was all the super heroes, and Calvin was Captain Underpants. 

Silence is Suspicious

Someone was being extremely quiet.

Elite Hall Visit

When I started dating Mark, he was in charge of running the Elite Hall dances every first and third Saturday for the USU Big Band Swing Club.  Elite Hall is a historic building.  Built in 1917 it is one of the last remaining spring-loaded dance floors in the country.  The first time I hung out with Mark outside of Swing Club meetings, I drove up to Cache Valley and helped him run the dance.  When we got engaged 7 months later, he proposed to me at Elite Hall before the regularly scheduled dance.  It was lovely and perfect.  Last Saturday, when I realized it was the 5 year anniversary of our engagement, I mentioned it to Mark.  Luckily for us, there was a dance scheduled for that night.  Actually, it was the swing team fundraiser dance (which was my idea in the first place and they are still doing).  So, there was a live band, performances, competitions, and tons of people.  We took Calvin with us and he slept for the first hour and half, then he was a little clingy after he woke up.  Mark participated in the Jack and Jill competition.  We got some good dancing in.  It was a hard on my pregnant belly, but it was fun. I am still feeling the effects today, but it was worth it. 

The Cache Community Big Band

Sleeping Calvin

Calvin just wanted me to hold him.

Part of the competition

Calvin finally had some fun.

Calvin can almost reach the neon.

This is the room we got engaged in.  Woah.  Look at that huge belly.

All three of us were exhausted the next morning.

Haircut Day

Shortly after Mark and I got married, he wanted me to learn to cut his hair to save money.  I resisted the idea at first, but he talked me into buying a buzzer.  I think we spent about $35 on it.  I have cut Mark's hair every couple of months for the last four and a half years.  When Calvin's hair got so long that it would get bad tangles every time he slept, I knew it was time to cut it.  I was scared to do it and Mark's brother did it for us.  It was a little traumatic for Calvin I think. I had a friend come and cut his hair in January and she was patient and he did OK but got nervous a few times.  It's been a year since his first haircut, and I think he and I have finally figured out how to get the job done.  He has to have a rag in his mouth because it bothers him to have hair get in his mouth.  It also helps if he holds my phone and watches Netflix.  He lets me use the buzzer for most of his head, and then I do my best using scissors around his ears and his neckline.  I forgot to take a before picture, but here is the result from Saturday's haircut.

Spin Around

This was from about 2 weeks ago.  Calvin started spontaneously spinning and we took a few videos because he was being so cute.

Playing Outside

Warmer weather is finally here.  I think that this winter has been the snowiest one since I moved to Logan in 2008.  It is so nice to finally be able to walk down the sidewalk without big piles of ice on either side of me.  We are blessed to have a somewhat secluded backyard.  It is nice to have a place that is close that Calvin can just go have fun without too many rules (..don't play in the garden and stay out of the canal.. also don't touch dog poop).  I am trying to get outside with Calvin more.  Our backyard does need to be cleaned up.  We didn't rake in the fall, so there was a blanket of leaves to be moved.  Also, our neighbors had two huge dogs that were disgusting and pooped everywhere.  So, when I go out, I'm trying to work on the leaves and the dog poop.  I'm hoping to make our yard enjoyable so we can go use it whenever we want.  I also think it might be nice to have a luncheon here after we bless our baby in August or September.  Calvin loves to get the tools and help. These pictures are from a week and a half ago.

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That huge branch fell during a snowstorm.  Mark had to move it, because it was so big,

Bianca enjoys being outside too.

Calvin loves throwing snow/ice at the house.

Pez

We got a fish.  He is a Betta.  He lives in the bookcase in our living room.  He is light blue with a touch of purple-ish pink at the end of his fins.  Calvin loves to turn on his light and show him his toys.  We named him Pez because that is Spanish for 'fish' and his colors remind me of candy.  When we were buying him and his gear, Calvin chose a big pagoda.  He kept calling it a temple.  I was a little annoyed at the time, because it is too big for his container and it cost more than I really wanted to spend.  But Pez sleeps in it and sometimes hides underneath it.  I hope Pez will be with us for a long time. 

Mark Gets a Small Wish Granted

I think that ever since Mark and I found out Calvin was a boy, he wanted to have matching clothes.  I made Mark some homemade bow ties when Calvin was 3 months old or so.  I made a crappy one for Calvin out of the scrap fabric.  I think he wore it twice.  When we found out a month ago that we will be blessed with another boy in June, I knew I wanted them all to have matching ties.  We scoured the local JoAnn's fabric store for something appropriate with which to make the ties.  I found NOTHING!!  We seriously spent 2 hours looking.  Ugh.  Why can't they have what I am picturing in my head?  That shouldn't be so hard to ask.  Finally, Mark came up with a solution.  He found some navy blue duck cloth and suggested I cross stitch the Aggie "A" on them.  I was wanting to have the ties done by the next day so we could announce baby's gender on Valentine's Day with the matching ties.  Mark thought I could finish them in one day, and I said no way.  I agreed to make them, but I wanted something that I could do quickly for the announcement day.  After getting so frustrated at the lack of a perfect fabric, we went home.  I gave up on my dream of announcing on the holiday.  We had announced that we were pregnant at Christmas, so I wanted to follow the holiday thing (his due date is also on Flag Day, but no big deal).  I finished the ties the next Saturday.  I finished one each day.  Calvin and Mark have already worn their ties to church a few times.  Calvin's always comes back dirty after nursery.  We had to be creative and rotate the pattern 45 degrees so we could sew the ties on the bias.  I think they turned out great, and I can't wait for our little one to get here so he can wear the first of many things I hope to make for him.  

Bedtime Transition

With a new little brother on the way, Calvin needs to vacate the crib.  My mom has offered us a set of bunk beds and we are thrilled to accept them.  Calvin slept in our room for about 18 months of his life.  He has always been more fond of sleeping right in the middle of our bed than in his crib anyway.  Last weekend, Mark decided to take the front off Calvin's crib.  We are hoping this will make the transition to the bunk bed a little easier.  We think he really enjoys not being incarcerated in the crib. When he wakes up in the middle of the night, he just comes and climbs into his spot in our bed, then falls right to sleep again.  Since he comes into our bed every night, this makes it easier on us because we don't have to go get him out of his crib.  I know I'm breaking all the 'sleep rules' from the experts by doing this, but he won't sleep with us forever.