It's TIme for an Update

It is once again, long past time for an update.   I feel like time is going by even more quickly than ever now.  Jacob has just over one year left of school.  Yep, you heard me right.  ONE YEAR. I can't believe it!  I have been thinking a lot lately about where life will take us once we are done here.  Not that I am in any way trying to hurry it along.  Yes, having my husband home more often sounds absolutely wonderful, but thinking about the wonderful people we have met here; our friends, this gorgeous place we live, all of the wonderful things do to here.....I'm not wishing that away at all.  It has been such a good experience to be out here.  Despite the challenge of being far away from family, this has been such a fun place to be.  We have had so many great experiences, and hope to have many more before we leave.  I feel  like I have learned so much about myself.  More of the good, the bad and whatever you want to call the middle:) I have learned more about the kind of person I want to be, more about the kind of mother I want to be, more about the kind of wife I want to be.  I feel like the struggles I have experienced here are helping to refine me.  I am learning so much as the boys grow.  They are teaching me more about love, selflessness,  patience, patience, and patience again:).  I am realizing just how quickly my time with them is flying by and just how much there is to do with them, so much to teach them.  I often wonder if there is time enough to do all of that.  And then I wonder just HOW I am going to do all of that.  I am learning that I need to take advantage of every moment I have with them.  Every moment with them is precious.  Even if it doesn't seem like spending time with an incredibly ornery little boy is precious, it is.

I am realizing more and more every day just how important it is for me to have time to myself to read scriptures, pray and reflect on being a more Christlike person.  I am learning to rely on the Lord more.  I can't get through this whole 'motherhood' thing without Him.  And the beautiful thing is that he wants me, and all of us, to rely on Him more.  I feel more peaceful, and like I am a better mom when I remember to have both personal and family prayer, when I read the scriptures or even just an article out of the Ensign.  I feel like I am setting a better example for my boys when I remember to pray before we eat.  They will learn so much by example.  I want our boys to grow up to be wonderful young men and followers of Christ.  They won't learn that on their own.  Jacob and I are here to show them how to be the best they can.  It's a serious job.  I love being a wife and mom.  It's a lot of work.  Anyone who says its easy has never done it.  As crazy and exhausting as it can be, I can't wait to have more kids.  I love my family more than anything.  I have been blessed greatly with the most wonderful, sweet and thoughtful husband, and the most sweet and beautiful little boys.

Speaking of the boys, they are just as crazy and busy as ever!  Both are walking and running everywhere and are into EVERYTHING.  Lately, Drew has been throwing tantrums all day everyday.  For the last week straight.  It's getting old:)  However, he's so stinking cute and I still love him like crazy.  They are both saying "uh-oh", "thank you" and "all done".  They wave and give high five.  Sammy is into mimicking everything I do.  He even pretends to chew gum:) He LOVES to sweep the floor when I have the broom out, and they both enjoy helping me load or unload the dishwasher.  They are turning into such little boys.  I can't hardly believe just how big they are getting or how much they are learning. 

Another Month Down

Seriously.  It's pretty much already February.  It can't be just yet...it was JUST Thanksgiving!!!! Although, I must say that we are VERY ready for the Spring and Summer seasons to come.  Warmer weather, blossoms, the pool, lots of walks and park days, tank tops and BBQ's.  Sounds good to me! I guess that also means my boys will be older, but I have come to the conclusion that there isn't a darn thing I can do to stop or even slow that down.  From what I hear, growing up is all part of life. 

We have been very busy over the past month.  Christmas was wonderful!  It was so nice to have Jacob home for a couple of weeks!  I realized just how awesome it is to be married again:)  I am pretty much a single parent, so I really LOVE it when Jacob is home to help. 

Jacob and Drew went to Missouri for five days right before Christmas and had a wonderful time with his brother Jared and his family, as well as his mom.  Sammy and I stayed home and had a wonderful time playing one on one, shopping, playing some more and just hanging out.  Having one child at a time is a piece of cake:) It was nice to get Jacob and Drew back home and be a family again. 

The boys got some new fun toys from family, and Jacob and I kept it simple (and cheap) and just did stockings for one another.  It was great!  I fixed us a yummy meal and we were just able to enjoy one another. 

Jacob and I also celebrated 5 years of marriage on December 29th.....WOW!!! Five years already?!  They have been the best five years ever! I am so grateful to be married to such a wonderful man!  And a big bonus for me that he's so handsome:) 

The boys are just about ready to walk.  They have each taken several steps at a time, but once they realize they are walking, they fall.  I'm sure it won't be long until they are running around like little maniacs! Sammy has completely changed and is now incredibly snugly and loves to hug and rest his head on my shoulder.  I LOVE it!  He will just come over on his own and hug my legs or rest his head on my shoulder.  Nothing like some chubby baby love:)

Drew is doing so well!  A few months ago we were so concerned that he was so far behind Sammy developmentally, but he has completely caught up overnight!  It has been so interesting to watch.  He is much more content playing by himself for several minutes at a time, while Sammy can't seem to focus on the same thing for more than two seconds.  Sammy is my curious little explorer and wants to see and do everything.  My concern now is that I am doing my job as a mom and am teaching them so that they can stretch and reach their full potential.  I am always concerned about that.....I am sure I will be for the rest of my life.  I guess that is what comes with motherhood.  I need to get them some toys and activities to help their development as well.  We have held off for so long in buying them things, but I think it's time to invest in a few items that have some sort of educational value and that will help them learn.  I am on the hunt.  Here are some pictures from the last month.  Enjoy!

Christmas Already?!

I can hardly believe it is already Christmas time!!! I say this all the time, but time is flying by so quickly!  Already the year 2013 is just around the corner.....that's crazy!  I have been meaning to update my blog now for the past month and am just now getting around to it.  I think it has something to do with the fact that I have two little boys who don't ever take a nap.  By the time bedtime rolls around, working on the computer is the last thing I want to do....having a treat and catching about 30 minutes of TV is about all I am up to before going to bed myself.  These two little ones have been into EVERYTHING!!!! I am honestly chasing them around all day long.  I have found that several days out of the week I actually prefer to run errands in the afternoon because it gets us out of the house and I don't have to chase anyone around:)  Besides, the boys really like going to the store to watch everyone.  Costco is their favorite (and my favorite due to the fact that there are TWO seats in the cart) to go.  We go once a week to Costco and it is always a fun trip for us!

Sammy has been pulling himself up onto things and wants to walk everywhere (with the help of moma's hands).  He is going to be walking on his own very soon!  His favorite things to do right now are to tackle his brother, get into the drawers and cupboards in the kitchen and pull everything out, despite the fact that he already has two million other toys out, take a bath, play with cords and eat crackers.  He is deathly afraid of the vacuum and cries his little heart out anytime it is on.  He LOVE LOVE LOVES his bedtime bottle. He has 8 teeth (four of them are just about all the way in, the others are already in) and is, overall, a happy boy.

Drew has just recently decided that he wants to start crawling on his own, and climbing on his knees to sit up AND pull himself up all at once.  He also FINALLY learned how to suck on a binki!!! YAY!!! We are hoping this will help him learn how to drink from a sippy cup.  Forever we wondered if he was ever going to crawl and all of the sudden he is doing everything all at once!  We are SO proud of him!  His favorite things are to eat, eat and eat. Besides eating, he loves to pull out the drawers on his dresser and pull all of his clothes out, turn himself around in circles while he sits on the floor-he laughs so hard at himself when he does this...it's hilarious! He also loves to play with his brother and walk around the house in the walker and bump really hard into everything like he is in a bumper car (this also makes him laugh).  He enjoys seeing if he can get away with getting into the side table drawers and pull their contents before I get over to him and ask him not to get into them. Then he waits for me to take two steps away and attempts to get into the drawers again.....the little sneak:)

Needless to say, these two keep my running around like crazy.  And they have recently discovered that their moma has little patience for certain things.   Sometimes I feel like a terrible mom because I get frustrated and lose patience with them.  It's something that I am trying to be better about.  They are such sweet little boys and I know they are just curious about everything.  It's good that they are both such explorers-just not when they are doing something or getting into something that can hurt them in some way.

Thanksgiving was nice!  We enjoyed a day at home together...I was in the kitchen ALL day, but I REALLY enjoyed it!  I tested out some new recipes for us.  We ate quite well!  We had an herb roasted turkey, mashed potatoes and parsnips with gravy, roasted Brussels sprouts and carrots, sauteed green beans with pearl onions, homemade cornbread and sourdough stuffing, homemade rolls, cranberry chutney and mini cheesecakes for dessert.  I am so sad our leftovers are all gone!  It was such a yummy meal! 

We are really excited for Christmas!  However, We will miss our families.  Jacob is taking Drew back to Missouri for a few days right before Christmas for a little visit and I am staying here with Sammy.  Hopefully next year we can all be together.  I miss my family dearly.  I am DYING to see my brothers and sisters!  I love living out here, but being so far away from family has been a lot harder than I thought it was going to be.  Especially with kids.  My boys don't know any of their cousins, aunts, uncles, or even grandparents.  I have realized more and more how much I would love to be back in Utah and at least be within a few hours drive or shorter of family.  We will see where we end up! 

Well, I have rambled on long enough.....on to some pictures!

Pictures Say It Best

Lately, this is what we've been up to......

 Baking lots of things like Artisan bread, pumpkin muffins and gingersnaps!!! Welcome to our house fall flavors!!! The boys seem to be turning more and more into little boys and not babies anymore.  Especially Sammy!  That boy is into EVERYTHING and likes to climb on anything he can.  Lot's of times he thinks his brother makes for the best stepping stool.  Drew isn't convinced that Sammy had a good idea about that.  Drew is a bottomless pit.  The child screams almost the second I take the spoon out of his mouth to get him another bite and screams even LOUDER when I feed his brother.  Im serious.  I think in his mind THIS meal will certainly be his last.  Im trying to teach him that Sammy has to eat just like he does and that he needs to learn to share feeding time:)  Needless to say, we are still working on that!

The boys are really starting to like playing with each other. As long as it doesn't involve Sammy climbing on top of Drew and sitting there, Drew is always so very interested in what Sammy is doing and watches him very closely.  Drew still isn't crawling, so he likes to watch Sam go all over the place.  Although many times he just gets really frustrated that he can't also crawl around like his brother.  Hopefully he will be crawling soon!  The boys both love taking baths, and let's face it, naked baby bums NEVER get old:)

We drove up to the Napa Valley and had a picnic while Jacob's mom was in town.  WOW!  Now I know why everyone is so in love with the Napa Valley.  It's beautiful!  Absolutely beautiful!  We seemed to enjoy it just fine without having any wine:)  It was great to have Jacob's mom here for a couple of days.  Jacob and I were able to go to a movie!!!!!! YAY!!! I can't even remember when we went to a movie last....It was way before I had the boys.  Well over a year and a half.  The boys loved all of the extra attention from Grandma Jennings too!  Thanks Lori! 

The last picture is of my sweet little Drew all curled up while taking a nap.  Occasionally the boys will take a nap.  And I LOVE it when they do:)  Enjoy the pictures!  Until next time.......