Jesus Wants Ikie for a...

It's tough to get a "stoked" 3 year old to stand still... even when there's a bribe involved:)

Sunbeam! Yep, it is official... Our little man has now attended his first three classes as a SUNBEAM! This means he is 3 years old and no longer in nursery at church. He goes to Primary first and learns new songs and does a little special activity and lesson and then goes to his classroom with his very own teachers and learns something about the gospel. What an exciting time for him! He is really blessed with two wonderful teachers (the first week during their introductions Sister Rose told the class her favorite food is Skittles and Ike just thinks that is HILARIOUS)! Anyway, they make cute little projects and are having a blast! He is joined in his class by some of his greatest buddies including Tatum, Drew, Tate and Rachel, among others. The first week he and some others decided it would be a good idea to take off their socks and shoes and sit in their chairs, but bend over so they're touching the floor (he fesses up later...) NOW the past two weeks, he has reported that they were very "bediant" and "doing what's right." I'm glad... I don't want my kid "black-balled" in primary! I can't believe he's old enough for all this, but I'm so proud of him. I can't get over how valiant these kids are. I'm amazed at our little ones everyday and think it's fascinating to think about what the Lord has in store for them. One thing is for sure... we're in for a ride!

What a Month!

I realize I missed the entire month of December. Whoa! I guess that could illustrate how busy we were. We had a great time visiting and running here and there and all around the square:) The holidays always bring such a special spirit and I LOVE every minute of it. This year was especially interesting being in Arizona where most of the time was spent in shorts, or at the very least, short sleeves! I guess it was a little harder to sing "It's beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas" in your flip flops, not that I'm complaining!

    So, back in October I had the BRILLIANT idea to fly to Nebraska with the boys during December while Ben was in school... I actually found SUPER CHEAP tickets on a small regional airline ($29 one way to Nebraska)! So, I packed up the boys December 9th and flew to the North Pole, as Ike affectionately calls North Platte now. We stayed for TWO WEEKS! Yep, I'm crazy and yes, Ben is fine. We had a great time with my parents and even had a small window to go to Laramie overnight and see the beloved Lovelands and meet up with my sister to go back to North Pole. It seems now like a whirlwind two weeks. I think it's safe to say we loved every minute of it. Gramps hadn't seen the boys since August, so they had certainly changed and Ike hadn't seen snow since last April, so he got his fix in. Zach, however, truly, madly, deeply, dislikes snow and cold... He was born at the end of May and lives in AZ, give him a break! I think some day he'll have a rude awakening, but oh well!

    

      It was a real treat to reunite Ike, Macy, Emry and Zach. My how time flies and things change, but their friendships will always remain the same;) Ike and Macy found almost every way possible to have fun and get into a little mischief! Their favorite things to do were:
    1. Play in the snow and make a really funny looking snowman with gourd eyes and a carrot nose
    2. Eat cookies- sweet little Macy can find her way to any sweet and just happened to share with Ike when she found the goods. What a good sharer!
    3. Make cookies and sneak eating dough
    4. Have a dance party
    5. Make a HUGE mess in Grandma's living room

    6. Pretend that Macy was Mary, Ike was Joseph and the doll (or whichever baby was awake) was baby Jesus

    7. Play "work" in the office moving papers around and "printing"
    8. Go to Cody Park and look at Santa's village and talk to Santa and ride the carousel
    9. Wrestle grandpa and snuggle in Grandma's bed
Lots more, but you get the idea... These cute little cousins really know how to have fun and drive their mommies a little bonkers:)

The boys, by the way, did a great job with all the traveling. In fact, I never had to even open Ike's monkey bag filled with toys, activity books, and dvd player. I hauled all that junk around the airport for nothing! Oh well:) We all missed daddy terribly and I suffered as a single parent. I can truly appreciate those who are single 'rents all the time. What a terrific job that must be. Ben and I both realized that that lifestyle may not be for us. Meaning that he's probably not thinking about joining the armed forces to pay for school. We are both VERY involved with our children and are VERY spoiled about being together as a family. We'll see... but, we sure did miss being together.

      We flew home just shy of a snowstorm on December 23rd and spent Christmas with just our little family. What a great time we had those few days with just us. It was nice to not have a lot of hustle and bustle to do. I finished all of our shopping early and with the exception of Santa's absent minded last minute wrapping, we were really relaxed. It was a nice 70 degree Arizona Christmas:)

     I will save my toy/present review for my blog, but suffice it to say. Ike LOVED everything he received and really didn't want to open anything after each present. He first opened a hotwheels ambulance from his buddy, Cohen. It was all downhill from there with threats of putting the ambulance away if he didn't come open more presents (what kind of parents are we?)! Zach LOVED the shiny paper and packaging and anything we'd let him touch:) He did learn how to rip paper. Ben and I LOVED watching our kids get such a thrill out of our relatively cheapo (or budget-esque) Christmas. Note to self: the kids just want us to play with them... they really don't care how much we spent or how much they get.

     We were lucky enough to get invited Christmas night to my dad's cousin's house here in the valley. It was fun to have a traditional Christmas dinner with family. What a great time. I'm so glad we are getting to know the Hoffmans better. What a wonderful family. It truly reminds me that it really is all about family in the end.

     December 26th everyone knows is a day of mass chaos... Packaging to clean up, yesterday's dishes (admit it....) and everything else you put off for Christmas day. We spent the day cleaning up for Ben's family and then spent this entire week with them here in Arizona. I don't know how to explain how much we enjoyed this week... It was just FANTASTIC! What a treat to have his Grandma, Grandpa, Coyote, Peter, Hannah and Mary for the week. These six people made us laugh harder, throw farther, run faster, play longer and stay up later than we have in a long time. We just loved every minute of it and it went by way too fast! Again, we did typical Pieper things that just crack me up...

     1. Exercised everyday

     2. Cooked awesome meals- I think the show stopper (if I can claim a show-stopper) was homemade Chimichangas- Piepers are sticklers for Mexican food!
     3. Picked fresh citrus
     4. Desert Botanical Gardens
     5. Temple Christmas lights (and we did sealings- one of the best sessions ever!)
     6. Played on their new Wii
     7. Mad gaming from racketball to tennis to boggle to the game of things (or the game of duh, as Grandma L nicknamed it, thanks to Peter)!
     8. a select few even took a dip in the barely heated pool- brr! They swam two laps and their internal organs were shutting down:) (that might be an exaggeration...)
     9. MOST IMPORTANT... found awesome grocery deals:) If you don't think this is most important, you've never met Ben's dad... I've never seen such joy produced by a good deal at a grocery store... It's like the elation most people show after winning the lottery. Granted, they were good deals... 10 kiwis for $1, 5 green peppers for $1, cabbage 33 cents. We still have the proof in our fridge! Lots more good deals, trust me:)
     10. Went real shopping, or "trading" from bum Christmas presents. The girls taught me some lessons on ugly bags (or maybe I taught them...) and we all taught each other about shirts that are just not right... V necks on men-- what do you think?
     11. Teased each other to pieces. In a good way, but really Pete, a v neck?
     12. Watched bowl games- though I think most people slept their way through some of them, with the exception of my husband!

The list could go on and on, but in the end, you get the idea... What a great December. It was such a blessing to be able to see *most* of our family. It makes me a little more homesick to be here in Phoenix tonight wondering how to get back to "normal." BUT, I know that these times are to be cherished and that they are WORTH whatever the driving distance or cost to be together:) Let's not forget that!

Here's to the beautiful start to 2010!

California Dreamin'

We have spent the past two weeks with our beloved daddy (and hub) at home! Dental School is set up on 11 week quarters. Lucky for us:) He completed his first quarter and 24 credit hours November 14th... and like a proud mama bear, I'm happy to report that he did so with flying colors! I am pretty proud of him! He worked really hard and it's nice to know it paid off!
    So, my mom flew in for a few days to help us celebrate (I will post about that later... I need to find those photos:) and then we spent the next few days chillin' in Phoenix by ourselves! It was so crazy to be able to get all those little things done and have a helper around for the kids and the house (I'm sure Ben could've thought of other things to do with his break, but he was a real trooper!) On Friday night, the 20th, our friend Jamie flew into town and Saturday morning we took off for San Diego! This was my first trip to Californ-I-A (does anyone know that song?) and I LOVED SD! I think I would consider moving there, if the state wasn't bankrupt and charging an arm (and a leg... and probably a finger...) to live there! Bear with me while I go through a few things we did on our trip...
      Nov 21st- Saturday- Drove to San Diego. What fun hopping from one desert oasis to the next to the next. I never could really grasp my friend, Cortney's disdain for Gila Bend (she and her husband's first job out of college) until we drove through. Wow. THAT would be a challenging place to live... made me a little sad. Anyway, I fullly appreciate Phoenix now:) We also went through Yuma, Caitlin:) I was thinking of you the whole time on this trip, as this is your "homeland:)" It was nice, if but a little close to the border! There is definitely a border patrol presence! As we pulled up to one of the border patrol checkpoints on the interstate, they had me roll down the window and asked where we were coming from... just looking for anything fishy... and Isaac says "Hey! Zachy looks like a mexican!" Oh my! That little boy is really going to get us in trouble someday! Anyway, lucky for us the b.p. didn't hear him or think anything of it:) It took about 5 hours to get to San Diego, but that included a long stop at the rest area where I fed Zach. The boys were SUPER good on the trip... Whew! Also lucky for us, Jamie has tons of rewards points at Holiday Inn, so we had a great stay in a nice hotel with big beds... always a plus with two little boys in the hotel room!

Our Crew w/ Organ in BackgroundThe Boys Playing around at Balboa Park

    
     Nov. 22nd- Sunday- Today we bummed around and went to church at the San Diego first ward. Cute building on the side of the hill. I think everything is on a hill here though:) This place is beautiful with so much vegetation and tropical trees! It is a little cooler than Phoenix though! This is the first time since we left Laramie that we are wearing jackets- weird! Oh, one thing from church... In the mother's room there were about 5 women nursing, none of which felt the need to cover up! Hallelujah! Welcome to California! I just felt good that for once I didn't have to worry about offending someone if Zach didn't want to stay covered up... I guess I'm turning more hippy than I thought:) What'll be next?!?
      After church, we took a picnic down to Balboa park and walked around to all the cute little international houses (only open on Sundays- lucky break!) and saw the Bohemian/Czech House (my ancestry). It was great because the little old couple working there were giving out traditional pastries, poppy seed bread and the most fantastic cheesecake Ben's ever had! We also attended a organ concert at the Spreckles Organ (the largest outdoor organ in the world) at Balboa Park and took a trolley tour/walked through the rest. It turns out this park got its start for the 1915 World Fair. It has some amazing architecture and was just a real gem of the city. I highly recommend it! There are museums all throughout and then the world famous zoo is adjacent. There are lots of gardens and beautiful huge trees around too. Definitely something for everyone!

      Around sunset, we crossed a huge bridge to go to Coronado. I have been dreaming of this place since I read the book, Somewhere in Time (the movie by the same name is good too- with Jane Seymore and Christopher Reeves. The beach there was amazing and the hotel is just as magnificent as it looks in the movie, or in my imagination:) We had fun walking around and taking lots of pics. I could've stayed there forever! When it got completely dark, we decided to catch some fresh fish at Joe's Crab Shack, which happens to be located in an old historic building on a pier on the ocean. Really awesome building, and really awesome food:)
     Monday Nov. 23- We spent today at the world famous San Diego Zoo. It was just as amazing as everyone says:) I think we all really loved it! The coolest part for me happened before we even got in the gates though. We were trying to do this trip on the "really cheap." Well, this was the one activity we decided to splurge on, but I was still feeling like it was a lot of money... $35 adults, $25 children. Anyway, a lady came up to me in line and just said she'd like to give me a free adult pass to the zoo and $5 off for everyone else! Wow! So, we saved $50! Awesome:) I told Jamie, and I really do believe it... that these sorts of things are little blessings Heavenly Father gives us just when we need it (not that we NEEDED to go to the zoo, but you know...) Ike loved the panda bears (a real treat... I don't think they have them many other places) and we also loved the sky tram and they had an amazing elephant habitat. Ben LOVED taking pics of everything and was really good at it:)

    After the zoo, we headed to the temple, not thinking that it was Monday and they were closed:( So, we got pics through the gates, but it is just as striking and beautiful as I could've imagined:) I loved it!

     Tuesday Nov. 24- Today we spent the day at Cabrillo Lighthouse, on a peninsula with a great view of the ocean, harbor, and downtown. Everything is just so beautiful! Oh, Ike has been into saying funny things on this trip... As we were coming out of the bathroom, he said "That was Chinese!" hmm. I ignored him and rushed him out of the bathroom as fast as I could... HOPING no one heard him:) Well, then this morning, I asked him how he slept and he said "I slept so Chinese!" Now I'm thinking he says that because we love Chinese food and he knows it's good food, so Chinese = good! Oh, his little 3 year old mind! Anyway, we spent the rest of the day at Mission Beach... my new favorite place in the world. There really is nothing like watching your hub and son play in the sand and ocean as the sun sinks slowly behind them... Don't worry, I got in on the action too, and we all came away stinking like ocean and a little wet... Well, Ike was soaked, but had a dandy of a time. I don't think I've ever seen him so amused for so long! His favorite thing to do was run down to the edge where the sand meets the water and wait for a wave to roll in so we could run back through the water. So cute! So serene. I could've stayed there forever in that moment! Zach on the other hand, was not as amused with the ocean breeze that kept hitting him and taking his breath away... he'll love it later!

     Tonight we went downtown (after stopping at Target to buy Ike some new clothes... his were covered in sand and ocean water:) and walked around the huge ships. There was an awesome aircraft carrier that we will tour next time. I've noticed a huge military presence in San Diego, of course, and just so appreciate all that they do for us. I don't think I've ever thought so much about those that protect us as I have this year and I just am so proud to be American and have these individuals protecting our freedoms. I'm trying to teach Ike about the military too... He's actually caught on quickly and really gets it... I think! We also saw the ship from the movie Master and Commander and a few others- really cool to see!

      Wednesday Nov. 24- Headed home to Phoenix to prepare for Thanksgiving. I think all of us LOVED the trip and were sad to say goodbye to our new found love:) I know we'll definitely be heading back to San Diego:) The trip home was really uneventful, other than a stop at a Yuma historical site (so I could feed baby)! What a perfect trip for Ben's little vacay!

CoNfEsSiOn...

Ok, I'm finally going to put it out there... Somewhere in my sleepless nights of babyville, I decided it was a good idea to make up another blog. A blog for me, Jamie, and my thoughts. I know you're thinking, "but, you already MAKE me read this one... NOT ANOTHER BLOG!!" That's ok, you don't have to check it out... but, if you have a shameless side to you, check it out... www.mommasbeenthinkin.blogspot.com. It's a little bit of thinking, a little nonsense and a lot of whatever. THAT's the beauty of your own blog:) More to come, I'm sure...

Our Little Outing

I forgot to post these pictures sooner, but for Ike's actual birth day, I took Zach and Ike to Anthem, an outlying community "almost" out of Phoenix on the north side for a day at the park. Anthem has acres and acres of park with lots of little parks and a train that goes through it all. Unfortunately, the train derailed before we got there, so we had to resort to playing all day at the different parks. We packed a lunch and had a great time! I hope Ike thought it was special, because it really was a fun time with just the three of us. After spending the last 2 1/2 months exclusively in Phoenix, it was nice to go somewhere almost out of town. It is totally out of my nature to stay in one place this long! Luckily, there is a lot to keep us busy! Anyway... enjoy the pics!

Sleeping...

My weird little Pieper sleepers can and do sleep anywhere! Ike on the cedar chest in the office and Zach sleeping with his feet straight out in front of him and his head bent down... comfy! 

So sleep in our house, and I'm sure yours, is the most important GIFT we have to give ourselves and each other:) Over the past couple of weeks, I have noticed that *certain someones* are beginning to sleep in a different pattern including Ike staying up too late, getting "hungry" again, needing more stories, and awaking in the middle of the night whereupon he decides his bed just won't do and joins us in ours. hmm. I have decided on the relatively rare occasions that he does leave his bed for ours, he is so distraught by the time he makes it across the house to our room that he would be DEVASTATED by the time I sent him back to his room. So, we'll save that battle for another day... Usually if he does come to our bed, it's around 6 am anyway, so it's not like we're missing out on a ton of sleep. AND by "us," I clearly mean me... Let's face it, those Pieper genes have made it possible for Daddy and Ikie and even Zach to sleep through anything. I happen to be the only one who cares if other peoples limbs are resting upon my face, etc.
    Now, on to boy #2... Mr. Zachary "tricked" me into awaking 2 times in the night (again) after months of only 1 feeding in the night. I am a s.l.o.w. learner, but finally caught on to the new ploy and took the hint. You see, confession. Zach is a nomad. He was "permanent bed-less." Meaning, I never set up his bassinet after our move and relied upon him sleeping either on the couch (real safe... I know.) or in the swing... The holdup: looking for a new toddler bed for Ike so I could give Zach Ike's 3 in one crib. Anyway, that problem solved itself when I "gained" a new wooden bed frame that needs refinished... a project for "one of these days."  So, after a couple of weeks of far less than enough sleep, we have finally returned the 3 in one to a crib, and Ikie has graduated to a twin bed! Life is much better and EVERYONE is sleeping a little more around here, well, except daddy, who still happens to be in dental school... Hey, I can't solve 'em all!

Halloween 2009

Make a Smilebox scrapbook