28 todays!

I have had such a wonderful day today.

Paxton woke me up telling me it was my birthday, and his. He is kind of right, its his and Gauge's half birthdays now.

Ryan let me sleep as he fed the boys, went to school, got them ready to take Paxton to school and did all of the other chores.

I received sweet messages from my family co-bloggers,

Wonderful cards from my grandparents and my mom,

Sweet messages from my co-workers,

phone messages from my siblings,

Two seasons of the office

(my most favorite show ever)

German chocolate cake,

I got a new hair-do,

hugs and kisses from my little boys

and a dirt bike.

I feel very loved. Thank you all so much!!!

A Wonderful Weekend!

Well, I am not sure anyone is still checking this blog but I thought I would document our most wonderful weekend. When Ryan and I realized that we had some time off to ourselves we realized we really needed to take some time for us. We had no idea what to do.
That's when I found out that Royal Bliss was playing a 10 year anniversary concert at the Port O'Call in Salt Lake. Now we just needed to find a place close by to stay.
TaDa!This is the Peery hotel.
I have decided since our wonderful stay in Seattle that I like to find the little hotel's that are harder to find then the Marriott, and that are way cool. I mean this for Ryan and my vacations. Not so much for vacations with the boys. This hotel was way down in the heart of Salt Lake. Built in the 1900 era and remodeled. It was a block away from the Port O'Call and really quaint! It was the perfect place. We arrived around 7 and the concert didn't begin until 9 at least, so we took a walk on the town. We realized how close we were to the Salt Lake Temple and we made that our destination. This is the temple that we were married in after all, and it holds a place in our hearts that is very dear to us!
Not only that, but it is so beautiful! The city is also beautiful and was actually pretty deserted down town. We had the place to ourselves!
I have to admit, its really hard for the two of us to relax and enjoy ourselves. We are such tired people. In fact when we first arrived at the hotel we just sat there, taking in the fact that we had nothing to do at the time. It was so nice. It was so nice to spend time with Ryan too. We don't get this kind of time together very much and I loved every minute of it!
At Nine we hit the Port O'Call (here's where we realized we're getting old) we hit it two and a half hours early to get tables and we sat through a band called the Spencer Nielsen band...that's all I will say about that guy...until we were finally able to hear the bliss.
They played until at least 2. 2 am is Not quite the type of hour that Ryan and I are used to so we were pretty tired by the end but to be totally honest, I loved every minute of it.
I really do think that they are my favorite band too!
It was so nice to listen to live music and to be so close to Ryan while we took it all in. It also made me realize how happy I am to have the life that I have. I mean we took a walk to the temple before hand and felt that spirit and that kind of feeling that we are able to have in our lives every day, and then we hit the bar.
We actually headed right home after the concert after contemplating Denny's quite a bit. When we got back to the hotel we zonked excited for what we had planned next...

St George

After our wonderful night in Salt Lake Ryan and I picked up the boys from my parents house and we hit the road. We had a plan in mind. It wasn't totally figured out yet but St George was a good destination and was going to help us with what we wanted out of this trip. Besides, the boys needed some relaxation time and we needed out of the terrible Provo weather. It was cold and windy while St. George promised 76 degrees. We couldn't wait.

The boys stayed in one of their first hotels. We stayed at the Hilton where there was an outside pool. They loved it there. Paxton told us he didn't ever want to go home.Everywhere we went, we ran. They had such a wonderful time being out and about. We got in pretty late on Sunday and after dinner we only had a few moments to enjoy the town so we hit...the temple.

This picture above is my favorite. I don't know if you can blow it up, but all three boys are walking in stride, almost like they are marching toward the temple. The weather was so beautiful too. Green everywhere!!

We actually came to the St George temple because we know that Ryan's ancestors have a lot to do with the settling of this town, specifically Jacob Bastian. But we hadn't done our research before we got here. I think we'll have to make another trip later!

After the dinner and the temple we hit the pool!!The add for the hotel promised a heated pool and a spa that were opened year round. What we found was an ICE COLD pool and a really nice hot tub. It was really fun taking the boys into the freezing water and then running to the spa. They had such a blast!

Later we found ourselves hanging out in the hotel room. This is where Ryan and I realized that to get the boys to bed we had to pretent we were going to bed. On top of that we found that Gauge just wouldn't go to sleep. When we turned out the lights it sounded like the taz-manian devil was awake and in his crib. Things were strewn about the room when we got up in the morning and we could hear heavy breathing...my poor mom. No wonder she was up with him until 1 am the night before!!

Can you believe we have two boys?!You may or may not have guessed by now, but our final destination was a quick trip to Vegas...

Vegas Baby!

Everyone, I would like you to meet my new Yamaha dirt bike. Dirt bike, meet EVERYONE!Ryan and I decided to get me a bike this year. We found a few really good options in Vegas and were headed there to find her. This is the one. Its actually the first one we looked at and it turned out she is Brand Spankin' New! A 2007 Yamaha TTR 230. We have been looking for my bike for quite some time and when we decided to go to St. George it occurred to us there might be bikes nearby, even though there was nothing listed in Utah. So we took a chance and I am so HAPPY! She hasn't even been ridden 2 whole miles yet.

The original owner thought she would love riding, bought it and rolled her off the showroom floor only to realize she didn't like it at all. She has had it for some time now and was quite ready to sell it to me. I can't even explain how beautiful she is, these pictures do no justice!

Apparently St George isn't that close to Las Vegas either. We hadn't realized how far Las Vegas really was until we got there. That's when we realized there was no time to play or to stop in the city. We did stop at a park so the boys could play and then we headed back to St. George for a second night before we headed home.

Something that Nevadians have learned that Utahan's need to pick up is that parks should be, and ARE shaded. They actually build shade as part of the playground.We hit the swimming pool again once we were back in St. George and we stared at my bike. After we were able to put Paxton and Taz to sleep we snuck out and sat on it in the parking lot. I love it!! We headed home the next morning to realize again, we need another vacation!Here are some shots of Paxton and myself in our gear. Ryan was so cute! When we decided to get the bike he headed straight down to Rocky Mountain to find me the rest of my gear. I had my Helmet and boots so he got me some goggles, gloves, my jersey and pants. I guess I am all set!

Here are some pictures of Paxton and myself in our gear. I have to add that Paxton is pretty excited that I have my motorcycle. At night we actually catch him looking through our motorcycle magazine and he chooses what he still needs to have the complete gear which will ultimately make him motorcycle man. Ryan loves it!

Coming up

I know I haven't posted much lately and I apologize for that. I have been a little under the weather and have been trying to get better.

This next weekend we were to go to Moab. That trip was cancelled however leaving me with a few extra days off and a lot of motivation to get out o' here! Not only that but my week off begins today and it is 50s outside and beautiful. I am looking forward to some rest, some relaxation and some traveling with my boys!
I hope you all have a wonderful weekend too!

Saturdays

This picture that I found is a perfect example of what has been happening all spring. Saturday was 76 degrees, today was low 40s and then there has still been snow.

What's going on?!Officials have advised that its officially official! I have a day off with my husband! Satruday is my day with my family. I have only had one Saturday off so far, but it was wonderful. We hung out--ALL day! To top that off, for that particular day the weather was in the 70s and just perfect.We pulled out Paxton's motorcycle and took a few spins around the yard.
Ryan took Gauge for a spin but somehow I didn't get a picture!! It was really cute, he had his feet up over the handlebars. Gauge loves his outdoor time so much that if I disturb him at all, this is the look that I get! I am not kidding!Its been so long since I have had Saturdays off it was kind of weird to see everyone out an about. yard sales everywhere, car washes, the parks are loaded with people. It was really nice, I can't wait for the rest of them!

Our Wrestler

We are really lucky to be able to get some hand me down's from Sid's family once in awhile. Sid and Leslie have 3 boys and always share what they have with us. While going through the bags of clothes Paxton found some things he liked

VERY MUCH!A singlet and some brand new wrestling shoes.

Ryan was so proud!

Soon

A New Post Coming Soon!

Spaghetti anyone?

I am a little embarrassed to say this, but I am not a good cook.
When I first married Ryan I attempted to make a few things, including Macaroni to which Ryan politely added cheese (or anything for that matter) that would make my dishes taste better. After a few of those incidences I decided that I was not the cook I thought I was and I would try again when I had kids. Since then we have just lived on Chicken and potatoes, Hamburger helper, take out and zone bars.
Well I am happy to report that for one of my new years resolutions I was going to start cooking for my little family. I am tired of the expenses of going out. I hate that we live off of processed foods, the ones out of boxes anyway, and its high time I tackle this deal.
***
I am happy to report that I made a mean dish of spaghetti and meat balls tonight. Real meatballs that I baked in the oven. I even went out on a limb and added tomatoes to my sauce. Homemade sauce thats right, I don't mean to brag.
Ryan loved it. The boys loved it. They ate it all up and I had the most wonderful time sitting down with my family with a dish that I made from, well, not from a box.
The last push and motivation really came from my sweet sister who told me that when I quit depending on a box, then maybe I would learn how to cook...
She was right. I am going to put my awesome multi-tasking skills to work now in addition to my awesome cooking skills and tonight who knows, maybe I will even get our meal made in under 2 hours.
At this point anything can happen, the sky is the limit!!

Getting Bigger

Well, spring is supposed to be here. It made a short appearance and then last week it became cold again. Snow, rain and wind.

We are making the most of it. We get out as often as we can to play and to go on walks. The boys all love jumping on the trampoline. When they jump with Dad they get pretty high, its one of Paxton's favorite things. Paxton and Gauge are getting so big. Paxton is my little talker. He doesn't stop talking. He tells me when Gauge needs something, when I need to do something and he reports to everyone else about what everyone did. He is still our little buddy. In fact he and I went to a movie yesterday on a Mother-Son date. It was way over due.

We watched Horton hears a Who, we ordered popcorn and then walked around the mall together as he told me, "Mommy, I love this" I love that he is getting older and that we can hang out together. He is very much a momma's boy right now. When I am home, I need to do everything for him. I need to sing to him, I need to help him get out of the car. When I sing him to sleep at night he lays his head against mine and he smiles the whole time. He is a good boy!Gauge is so huge! Every time we look at him it seems that he has gotten bigger. He has the funniest personality, everything is a joke. He smiles all day long and if he gets a chance to get out of the house, he is GONE. He is such a boy too. He makes car sounds, he climbs everything that he can find, he plays with sticks, he talks gibberish like crazy and he goes head first down any slide no matter how big. He has no fear! There is no obstacle that he can't figure out how to break through so far. We are still trying to figure out how to keep him in the basement when we are upstairs. He says Da Da, does a motorboat and he is a lover. When you finally get him tired out he will sit down in your lap and hold your hand. My favorite thing in the world.

Thats our update, not much as of lately. I hope your all doing well!