I know, I know...

I'm a slacker. I know. This past month has been one of ups and downs, ins and outs. We have all worked hard to prepare Ben for his first dental boards. By that I mean I held down the fort and the two children who desperately wanted to play with their daddy while he slaved away memorizing and internalizing bits of knowledge I never want to know:) We budgeted time and talents very wisely:) and hopefully that will pay off! They went well (we think)! and we should know results in the next couple of weeks.
Since that time, we have been tearing up the countryside, but I think it best for me to save those details for pictures (coming soon)!
I guess the reason for my lack of posting at least partially has to do with the departure of some very dear friends over the past month. I spent most of May and June sad and mourning the loss of three of Ike's favorite playmates (and consequently, my friends). I have had a difficult time with life moving on. I wish it could just always stay the same. Really, I'm not sure why the plan is for us to make close, eternal friends and then move away. How does that make sense? I know you are thinking I'm whining and I am... I just know that I am a person who needs friendship. I feel like these women (and their families) have sincerely blessed our lives and made a life in the desert with a husband studying *most* of the time bearable and even fun. I don't know how I could've made it through this past year without them and I know that they are in my life for reasons. So, thank you, dear friends... and please, don't forget to call:)
Honestly though, I feel like my heaven will have to be a reuniting of all my friends and family where we can all be together and never be separated again... wouldn't that be heaven? I know I don't see the big picture that our Father in Heaven sees, and I'm ok with that... I just miss my friends:)

Our Little 12 Month Old!

Post-birthday Cake:)

One Year Ago

First of all, how did this happen? It really has been the fastest year of my life (and probably busiest, but maybe happiest too)! I don't think much time goes by that we aren't laughing about something. Our boys truly bring so much happiness to our lives (even when things are way less than perfect)! Anyway, I wanted to describe our sweet Zachary at one year before time slips by and he's 5!
*Zach is H-A-P-P-Y. All the time, always. Ok, except maybe when his brother is putting his hands down his shirt to "keep his hands warm"- who would be happy with that, lets be honest! (Ike has done this since the day Zach was born... we're still trying to convince/threaten him to kick the habit! Maybe when they're married Ike will stop putting his hands in Zach's shirt... maybe.
*Zach loves to smile and laugh. His brother does lots to get this response in him and Zach is happy to be entertained... though mommy and daddy aren't always sure about the ends justifying the means (a lot of stuff ended up floating in the toilet to quote "make Zachy laugh!" hmm, gonna have to re-evaluate that one. He also loves "scaring us playing peek a boo and hide and seek and even knows itsy bitsy spider.
*Zach loves coming and going. He is a very laid-back kinda guy (obviously his father's child...) We often drag him to events/random parades/anything out of the house thus interfering with nap time at home or regularly scheduled anything. Don't get me wrong, we follow the same pattern everyday: Wake up, eat, play, snack, sleep, wake up, eat, play, snack, sleep... etc. But, it's not always at our house. I'm thankful for that b/c I'm obviously not a homebody.
*Along those lines, Zach loves new things and new people. He is the baby who will talk and smile and laugh to get your attention and then bury his head in mommy's shoulder when you stop to notice him. Funny funny boy!
*Zach has great hair! He has had 3 haircuts and never went through a really bald phase... it just changed colors! Now it's harder to see because it is so blonde, but it needs to be cut again... I'm just working up the strength to do it again!
*Zach eats everything! He loves everything he tries and is now being rather particular that his food not be too blended, he wants a little texture... but come on, until today he's only had two teeth... that's not much to chew with, buddy!
*You guessed it, Zach just popped tooth 3 and 4 (in succession, not dental terminology). They are his top front teeth and he already had his bottom front teeth (or as Ben put it today, "his maxillary central incisors (teeth E and F) and his mandibular central incisors (teeth O and P). Now he'll really tear the place up:)
*Zach is happy stationary. I've decided he absolutely could walk, crawl or belly dance his way through life, but he is absolutely and perfectly happy scooting on his bum. He has had x rays and is undergoing baby p.t. (on a very minor scale) to "light a fire under his diaper" and get him going. To be honest though, I think he is doing perfectly and will move when he feels a sense of urgency... hopefully before he turns 8!
*Due to all the scooting, we do a lot of laughing and I'm about to have lots of little 12 month old shorts with holes in the bum!
*Zach is great at building (especially when brother is off at a friends house)! He can stack about 4 blocks on top of each other! I think that's pretty good for his age, don't you?
*Zach can say 4 very clear words with lots of meaning (Momma, Dadda, buh-dah (brother), look (ook), and that). That pretty sums up everything you need to know as a baby in the English language! He also signs "more," "all done" and "big boy"- made that one up- it's a cute moment of pride when he accomplishes something!
*Zach is 18'12" (typical 4th percentile for my kiddos) with a huge appetite (eats more than Ike)! and he is in the 50th percentile for height
*Zach loves books and reading and music! Reading and Dancing is a large part of our life with kiddos and he gets really excited about it!
*Speaking of excitement, when Zach gets really excited, he makes this funny deep throated laugh/trill that I need to get on video... Very funny!
*Zach has asthma (Doc is pretty sure...) Sad, but it is very mild and he is even starting to not hate the breathing treatment every night! He also just battled a lovely case of pneumonia that I'm sure he picked up at Walmart or something! Through it all, he is a happy trooper- even with a high temp!
*This little boy is just the apple in our eye! I think all three of us are just enamored by him:) You can't help but love him and cuddle him to pieces! Ike put it best..."Zachy is my BFF!" I sure hope so because these two are in it for the long haul!

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Sleeping... Again

I don't know if I'll ever get over my family's funny sleeping quirks! This little boy falls asleep on a regular basis with his head on the tile floor and his body on the carpet so "he can be cold!" These are a few of the ways he has fallen asleep lately...

This happened while he was watching a movie one evening. His body is in between the futon and the armrest with his knees touching the magazine rack... weird, I know.

We are always looking for ways to reflect the sun here in Phoenix... I never thought about sleeping with a windshield visor over my face inside... Not to mention an empty box from amazon on my other side...

This is one of Ike's BFF's. They PROMISED if she stayed for the afternoon, they would take naps. True to their word and SO CUTE:)

Better Late Than Never...

As you know, the boys and I found VERY cheap (like $30 cheap...) plane tickets to fly home for a week at the beginning of May to visit my parents. We had such a great time! As always, it went too fast! Here are a few pics I took that week... The boys both discovered their love for 4wheelers. Zach was really funny all week. He preferred Grandpa over almost anything all week! Gramps is pretty awesome, but I'm still wondering if he wasn't sneaking Zach candy or something when we weren't looking... Ike and Gramps also took a few opportunities to kick back and relax:)

It was a really great week for everyone but Ben (I think he missed us a little)! 

 

Party Like Its 1980!

Yep, that's right... Ben is 30! I remember when my parents turned 30... They were so old an uncool (I only type this b/c I know they never read what I write in my blog... they only look at pictures)! Anyway, I'd like to think that Ben and I are way more COOL than them... at least Ike thinks we are for a few more minutes! So to commemmorate the occasion, I secretly invited a bunch of our daring, punky 80's loving friends to a Mexican Restaurant and blindfolded Ben (he didn't even know what shirt he was wearing or why in the world I was tight-rolling his jeans or why his wife's knee felt like it was covered in spandex)! There's nothing like a good surprise or a good time with friends! We played 80s sitcom trivia and reminisced "the old days" of high-waisted jeans, high pony tails, crimping, and tight rolling. I think I ruined another babysitter- they all must think we are so bizarre- if it's not crazy kiddos, it's crazy spandex mini skirt blindfolded adults! Oh, and yes, Ben "wears his sunglasses at night!" If you don't get that, you are too young to be reading my blog:) Happy Birthday Babe! (he also never reads what I write)!

Scary Easter...

Apparently Easter at our house has come to represent a time to reflect on how scary the Easter bunny is! This year, we were able to go to lots of easter egg hunts and a few easter shindigs. Among them was the Easter Egg Hunt at Ben's school. It was a beautiful, hot summer-like day:) We really loved all the fun activities and even the Easter bunny made an appearance... So, when we went to go see the Easter bunny (who we never talk about and do not emphasize...) Ike was really excited! Once we got to the bench, Ike turned into his typical self and decided to hide behind daddy's leg. So, Daddy (being the awesome Daddy he is) GAVE our BABY to the DREADED Easter Bunny to hold while he picked up Ike to sit next to said bunny (Mommy had the camera). Zach (our always happy, go to almost anyone baby) screamed like we had dropped him on his head and shrieked like nothing we had ever heard before). Please note in the picture he is still TOTALLY UNCOOL with sitting that close to the dreaded bunny. Maybe next year we'll just skip the bunny...
     The rest of Easter weekend was a blast! I always love watching conference and am still so excited to reread all my favorite talks:) I LOVE how much the family was emphasized and just how much comfort I feel when I hear the Prophet speak.
     Ben's birthday happened to fall on Conf. Easter Sunday this year... 30 Years?~! So, we had some of his dental school buddies over for a really yummy (if I do say so myself) Easter dinner. It was a great weekend with friends and family and we couldn't have asked for more...