Happy Anniversary

Today is our 7th anniversary - I guess we were supposed to give each other something copper, wool, or a desk set. I love the traditional and modern gift ideas for anniversaries; does anyone really try to do them every year?! I do love my long stem rose from Jon.

We celebrated yesterday with our annual trip to the delicious Blue Boar Inn in Midway. We stayed there for our 5th and decided it would be a fun dinner tradition. We dropped the boys off with Jon's folks (Thanks Doug and Kathy!) yesterday afternoon and went for a little drive through northern Utah and ended up in Park City. We hit the Banana Republic outlet and found Jon some nice work shirts. I'm pretty sure they're 100% cotton - that would be happy 2nd anniversary! We found me some cute "I'm not looking pregnant yet, just fatter" shorts for me, and some great summery sweaters - again cotton.

We then drove to dinner and enjoyed some amazing cuisine. I think the french onion soup is the best I have ever had. And Jon got Weinerschnitzel - the REAL thing- and he said it was the best he's had in the States. They have a new chef and my filet wasn't up to what it should have been. It was good, but I should have stopped with the soup. I think I could have had two bowls. Yum.

We came home to an empty house and it felt strange to not have our little guys here with us, however, we slept great last night!

So it being our seventh, I thought it would be fun to list seven things I'm grateful for:

1. An understanding, loving, patient husband, especially while I am pregnant with my head in the toilet.
2. Our sweet little boys and the spirit they bring into our home.
3. Having family nearby - on both sides.
4. Our amazing mountains - they make any drive more beautiful.
5. Good food - yep I am still thinking about that soup.
6. That we made it through the last year - new house, leaving a great area and people, mono, pregnant, new job, no sleep, etc...
7. Being married to my very best friend no matter what.

Happy anniversary babe, I love you!

Crazy Hair Day

Wednesday was crazy hair day at karate and Grandma Lorelie fixed Jade and Luke up just right. Jade wanted five purple ponies cause she's five and Luke wanted a black fauxhawk. Harry and I arrived during the hairdo-ing and he wanted a purple spike.

The big kids had spent the night at Grandma and Grandpa's (we dropped Luke off on the way home from camping) and had a Spiderwick Chronicles moviefest, so they were exhausted and karate wore them out even more. What a day!

Pictures from Palisade

We went camping earlier this week with our friends Brooke and Troy and a bunch of their friends to a nice little place called Palisade. It's five miles past Manti and it has a man made lake, bathrooms, showers and fun four wheeling trails. The kids had a blast and I survived even with morning (all day) sickness. It was a great break from the everyday stresses of life. Here are lots of pictures from the trip.

Harry is definitely a Fuller when it comes to mornings.

I took Luke for a ride Tuesday morning. He had fun, but about 20 minutes into it, he missed his daddy.

My two bright eyed-bushy tailed boys...

Brooke and Troy while baby Kate took a much-needed nap. The boys spent a lot of time in the water - in the lake and filling up squirt guns.
Luke met a friend named Issac and this is the view we had of our little guy most of the time.
Here are the new buddies.
The view of the lake from our campsite.

Two happy boys saying goodbye to Palisade. See you again next year!

Time for T-Ball

My mom and dad came with me to Luke's t-ball game on Saturday and my mom brought her camera. Our little "Green Goblin" was such a cutie and he is getting much better, as long as we remind him to watch the ball and pay attention! Here are some fun shots:

This is his "watch the ball" stance.
But really, this is more like the little guys looked most of the time! Listening to Coach. Look at the concentration on that face.

Running to first.

Big hug for big brother.

Our little crew.

Design for the Fourth

Each year my side of the family does a t-shirt for the family Fourth of July Extravaganza and this year I did the design. It will be silkscreened in white and everyone gets to pick their favorite color shirt. It is about eight inches long and will begin a little below the shoulder and down one side.

The wording is all related to things our family does, including this year's reality games otherwise known as "As Seen On TV." And yes, we really do have a trophy with names of each year's winners engraved on it. Let the games begin!

Five Year Old Math

Luke and his cousin Jade were playing at my Uncle Jim's pool and someone said something about the two of them and Luke quickly responded, "That's cause we're both five," he continued, "And if we stood on each other's shoulders we would look like we're ten, because five and five makes ten!"

First OB Visit or "Is there anything we can do to make you feel less comfortable?"

I forgot how completely uncomfortable the first OB visit is. From the little visit to the restroom, to the weigh-in (holy cow do I REALLY weigh THAT much?!) to the dreaded pap, it's just not my favorite experience.

That said, it wasn't so bad today. Jon was able to meet me at the appointment while the kids played at Grandma and Grandpa's house. I don't remember the last OB visit he was able to go to...probably Harrison's ultrasound. Usually he's on kid duty. Our doctor has a little portable ultrasound machine and we got to see our little cashew today. I was surprised how much it already looks like a baby and for a brief moment all the puking seemed like it just might be worth it. We watched its little heart beat and it wiggled a little. I guess it's already almost two inches long and in a couple weeks we'll find out for sure when we're due.

Luke was a little disappointed he didn't get to see the baby, so he might have to accompany mom on a future visit. He was also a little let down when I told him there is only one baby inside my tummy. Sorry buddy, no twins this time. I guess the Lord really does know what we can and cannot handle!

A "Little" Announcement

I made these cute shirts for my boys to wear when we had Jon's fam and my folks over for dinner in May. Harry wouldn't wear his(it's red with the design above), but Luke wore his "December" shirt proudly, not quite understand its meaning.

Nobody noticed for a good 45 minutes, when finally Uncle Nate sent Luke downstairs to show Aunt Meri his shirt. The secret was out and the trick apparently works on all sides of the family! I emailed it to my mom that morning as a "can you check out this design for me?" and it took her a second too. Tom gathered the whole California clan around the computer to see the email announcing their newest cousin and Aunt Amy got a little surprise on her way to a business trip.

I have my first appointment on Wednesday, and we figure we're somewhere near 12 weeks, which does mean between Christmas and New Year's Day. We do what we can to make the worst possible timing for our children. But we'll take 'em when we can get 'em and if I stop feeling so sick and puking all day, everyone will be a lot happier around here! Right now, all I can say is thank heaven for DVR. Luke never gets sick of Arthur and Harry is always happy watching Little Einsteins!

So there it is. It's on the blog so it's official. Guess I should get one of those baby tickers now!

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day Jonny! Since this is your fifth year as a dad, I thought I would post mine and the boys' top five things about you!

Luke
1. I love that he takes me to movies.
2. ...and that he buys me treats at the gas station.
3. He plays games with me.
4. He teaches me things in family home evening.
5. I love getting in pillow fights with Dad.

Harry (this actually came from nursery yesterday...the italics are what harry said.)
1. My dad is the greatest dad because he loves me.
2. My dad is stronger than a tiger.
3. My dad makes me laugh when he tickles me.
4. One of the most important things my dad has taught me is to play ball.
5. My favorite thing to do with my dad is watch movies.

Ok, here are mine:
1. He works hard, and as a wife of a straight commission sales guy, I'm just impressed he can provide a nice living and stay level-headed.
2. He puts the boys to bed every night and when they call for him in the middle of the night, he always takes care of them.
3. He is REALLY committed to living the gospel, and shares his testimony with our kids often.
4. He appreciates me and what I do, even if dinner isn't on the table when he gets home (is it ever?) and the house is a wreck.
5. Family always comes first. Period.

I just realized this is actually your sixth fathers day, but Luke wanted five since he's five! Thanks for being such a great hubby and daddy, we love you!

The Plan

I've been working on this a lot lately, so I thought I would take a picture and stick in on the blog. It's not perfectly to scale...but I tried, our yard is a pretty funky shape. We've been expecting the concrete guys to come any day and the ball will then begin to roll. We were hoping the yard would be in by the Fourth of July, but maybe the fourth of August will be more like it thanks to the wacky weather this year.

This year we'll just focus on concrete and grass, filling in the flower beds as we go. We've got years ahead of us in this house to make it pretty. Hopefully this is the last yard we do!

Family Weekend

This last weekend was filled with all kinds of family fun. Jon's brother Rob and his wife Nicole came to visit us from Cali and we all managed to make our schedules match for some fun family times. We missed the big post-airport arrival and dinner from Ab's in West Valley (GREAT burgers if you're ever out in WVC wondering what to eat), but we did join up for the next few days. Jon's dad generously took us all to Texas Roadhouse for a yummy dinner and I embarassed the entire table when I got a "to go" container and dumped the whole bucket of peanuts in. Hey, the boys were loving them, so how could I resist?

We then went bowling and had a blast. Yours truly managed to squeak out a 170 for the high score of the night, almost a personal best. I did take a picture for proof, I'll post it when I get it from Em. The boys had fun but got a little freaked when the lights went out for the psychedelic bowling with disco balls and stuff, but it worked out ok.

Luke had his first T-ball game on Saturday and Grandpa Louie and Daddy also came to watch. I will take pictures, but wanted to give him some time to get used to the game. The kids were very cute and a little timid. I am sure that will change as the season progresses. I'm still trying to convince Luke that because mommy played college softball, she does know a little about t-ball. He's not so sure, so we'll let daddy and grandpa teach him for now. I think someday he'll realize mom really can throw and catch, and might be able to teach him a thing or two about hitting!

Saturday afternoon we headed up to Kaysville for more fun family festivites. We mostly played Rockband and MarioKart and some joined in a game of Settlers of Catan. We slept over and stayed up way too late and slept in Sunday morning. I have to admit it was nice to wake up to the boys playing upstairs with Grandma and not in my lap wanting to watch Little Einsteins and drink chocolate milk!

We all went to church together and the kids did great as visitors. Doug and Kathy had their new building dedication so they went to that while the rest of us played more games. We then ate a yummy dinner, had a little FHE and headed home.

It was a great weekend and so fun to see everyone and spend some time together. I guess it was as close as we'll get this year to a family vacation together. It was the first time since Emily's wedding in September that all six siblings were together and with five spouses and our two kids, we were quite a group! Thanks everyone for a fun weekend. See you all at Christmas!

The Many Faces of Luke

Several years ago I made a card for Jon for Father's Day with Luke's greatest faces. It's not the best quality, but here it is. I was reminded of this a few weeks ago when Luke was pulling faces at the camera. Here are more of the many faces of Luke.

The classic cheeser...
Bored...
Surprised...
So sad...

Don't Mess With Our Little Zohan

Harry saw the preview for the new Adam Sandler movie and cracked us up.

Here's a link to the trailer if you don't stop your DVR to watch silly commercials during So You Think You Can Dance.

Luke's Belt Promotion

Saturday we had the opportunity to watch Luke get his next belt for Karate. The Little Ninjas don't have to test to advance belts like the big kids, but they did show us all they've learned and our little guy is getting pretty good. Here are some pictures from the day.

A little stretching - 9:30 am on Saturday - notice the bedhead! Great little kickers!
Paying attention to the teacher...
He flashed mom and dad a quick smile.
Getting his cerificate and belt...he wouldn't turn my way!
Here's the whole group.Proud dad and litte brother. Way to go Luke!

Weekend Update

I just realized this is like th fourth post in a row without pictures. I'll get some up tomorrow...I'm being lazy and the camera is in the car.

We had a pretty packed weekend beginning with Uncle Steve's graduation on Friday. Jon's youngest brother is officially done with high school and his parents have no more kids in school. What a foreign feeling for me as my first is just starting kindergarten in the fall.

About halfway up to Weber State, I realized I had left my camera home. What a day to forget it. Luckily everyone else was packing so we were ok, I just didn't get to click away like a camera happy fool throughout the day. I did survive.

We then took Chili's fajitas to my inlaws and had a great dinner together...so much easier than cooking for all of us! It was fun seeing almost everyone and next weekend we'll all be together for the first time since Christmastime....or was it September for Em's wedding? I will not forget my camera next weekend and will document all the festivities.

Yesterday afternoon we ended up swimming at Uncle Jim's (my mom's brother) and it was a refreshing way to spend the afternoon. The boys had fun, mostly (there will soon be a post about Harry's experience) and wore themselves out for bedtime. Luke has become a little fish since last summer and all fear seems to have vanished. He's growing up so fast. We had a fun weekend and it FINALLY feels a little bit like summer!