Chugga Chugga Choo Choo!

We had a nephew's third birthday party today that included a train ride.  I just had to share how cute the kids were on the ride! :)

As we were all attempting to eat dinner, it was chaos.  Five adults wrangling six kids and finishing dinner led to lots of "time for dinner"s.  Sam waited patiently at the table for several minutes before loudly saying, "AMEN!"  There were several doubled over adults.  Funny boy.

Bedtime

Without fail, each night after we put the kids in bed, Sam will come out of his room and call down the stairway, "I'm scared, Mama."  Since I'm feeding Lydia, Roy gets to go up and put him back in bed and talk about not being scared.  On a side note, I don't really think he's scared of anything...he just wants to get out of bed.  Roy wasn't home tonight so the honor of putting Sam back in bed was mine.  When I got up there, Abby explained that she had taught Sam to say a prayer if he got scared, but he was still scared.  I handed each kid the teddy bear they got from Bedstemor (my grandma) when they were born and told them it was their brave bear.  If they got scared, they could say a prayer and hug their bear.  Five minutes after I got back downstairs, Sam called down the stairs again.  I reminded him about not needing to be scared and he could hug his bear.  His response was, "Bear go night-night, Mama!"

He has really reached this hilarious stage and cracks me up all the time.  The great thing is that most of the time the humor is intentional.  Love it!

Family Time!

Sam is so funny.  I seriously love watching him as he plays and love listening while he talks because he is just so funny.  A couple weeks ago, I told the kids that they had done such a great job eating lunch that they got a cookie (not normal at our house).  Sam held out both hands and said, "One, two?"  Sad for me that I can't resist that huge smile and the two hands.  What can I say...I'm a sucker for my boy!  It's so fun to watch him grow up and show off how strong he is at the playground by swinging from bars, hear him count his cars or animals, and go up to strangers to say hi and tell them some random information about his monster truck, ball, or stick he is holding.  Love him!

Abby gave a talk in Primary today and did awesome.  I'm so proud of how much she understands and remembers.  Sometimes, though, it doesn't work out so well with what she remembers because it gets me in trouble. :)  Yesterday as we were leaving the zoo, Abby declared, "I want to be an eagle scientist when I grow up!"  Roy was a little panicked and said, "You want to be what?"  Now, if you say it really fast in a 4-year-old voice, you'll understand that Roy heard "evil" scientist.  Abby thought it was so funny. :)  She is so happy and friendly, has 200% enthusiasm, and is incredibly creative and imaginative.  I love her!

Lydia, my perfect angel baby, has us all wrapped around her finger.  All she has to do is breath and she has a sibling at her side demanding she be fed, changed, or cuddled.  Seriously, the siblings adore her.  She is a cuddle bug and is growing up so fast.  I feel so spoiled by her!


We went to the zoo yesterday and enjoyed some turtles,

snakes,

gorillas,

turtles,

and more turtles.

(Okay, maybe the last two are tortoises, but we are obsessed with turtles and I had to stick with the theme.) 

So, It's Been a While

See that look of "I don't quite trust you"?  It reminds me a lot of the picture at the end of this post.  Doesn't Sam look so grown up now?  I can hardly believe how big he is!

On an unrelated to any picture side note, the other day Sam was in the rocking chair and Abby climbed in.  Wanting to be alone, Sam told Abby to get out.  When she didn't comply, he said in a very commanding voice, "5-4-3-2-1".  We all cracked up laughing and, needless to say, Sam counts backward from 5 much more often now.  As frustrating as 2 is, I sure love the animated 2-year-old I have!

All three kids have worn the pajamas pictured above and below.  It's funny how a pair of pajamas can bring back so many memories of cuddling, poo-throughs, happy and sad tummy times, and those moments when you and your baby stare at each other and you wonder how you got to be so blessed.

Sam spends a lot of time with Dad and technology.  The best times for him are when he can combine those favorite activities:

My girls!  Now that Lydia smiles more, she often smiles at Abby.  They are going to be such great friends!

Speaking of good friends, Abby and Sam are closer than ever.  And I love it!