Ashlyn's 4th Birthday Party

We decided to have Ashlyn's friend birthday party several weeks early since we're not quite sure when the baby will come. This is the first time that she has invited friends over for her birthday and I think it was a lot of fun!

We decided to do a cooking theme and my sister designed these adorable invitations that looked like recipe cards!

My sister, Lorie, and my brother, Bryon, and his wife, Kari, were tons of help. Lorie made this poster of an adorable chef. I love it so much that I think I'm going to save it and hang it up for every birthday!

When the kids showed up, they sat at the table and decorated their own place mat with markers, crayons and stickers.

Kristen Hendricks, Bryon, Ashlyn, Sammy Jenne, Azelynn Smith, Natalya Miskin

When they were done with that, they went in the living room to play "pin the hat on the chef."

Natalya, Kristen, Haven Wright, Kyle Keck, Sammy, Azelynn, Story Wright

Nobody wanted to go first, so Bryon agreed to give it a try. For some reason he just couldn't figure out where to put the hat! All the kids thought he was hilarious and they couldn't stop giggling!

Ashlyn went next. She ended up getting it right on, but I don't think her blindfold was doing it's job!

The birthday girl laughing at Uncle Bryon.

Each of the kids wore one of these aprons to protect them during their "cooking" and to enjoy later!

Next, everyone made their own pizza with sauce, cheese, pepperoni and ham.

While the pizzas were cooking we tried to initiate a game of freeze dance, but it ended up being a game of "Kyle the lion chasing the girls." I think they were loving it!

We then proceeded to eat pizzas, open presents, and go on a scavenger hunt for the goody bags. Here is Natalya, Charlie Oldham, and Kyle running up the stairs to find the next clue.

You know, I think the scavenger hunt was their favorite part.

The treasure at the end of the hunt was a goody bag with a sugar cookie mix and cookie cutters.

We then decorated cupcakes with icing, sprinkles, marshmallows and gummy bears and ate them with some ice cream!

It was a fun and crazy hour and a half and I really wish that I had a picture of all of the kids together (preferably wearing their aprons). There were 10 of them total (including Carter and Ashlyn) and they sure kept us busy! Thankfully I had Lorie, Bryon, Kari, Brad and Karen helping me out, because there is no way I could have done it myself!

I think there are a few things that I might do differently next time I plan a party for 4 year olds, but we're thankful for all of Ashlyn's sweet friends coming and celebrating with us. We love them! We love our sweet Ashlyn too!

Brad's New Job

In April Brad started looking for a new job. Although he had enjoyed over 3 and a half good years with LexisNexis, he wasn't particularly happy with his work situation. A lot of that had to do with having to work from home. Well, after a little bit of searching and interviewing he was extended an offer from ancestry.com that he couldn't refuse. He started work there on July 1st and is liking it so far!

I must admit, I miss having him at home. It was wonderful being able to leave the kids while going to midwife appointments or leaving Carter napping while Ashlyn and I ran errands. I also loved the extra time he was around because he didn't have to commute. It was really a blessing that he ended up being at home during those several months when I was pretty much laid out with morning sickness too.

However, we are all adjusting to the new situation and are excited about the future! Here's to new jobs!

34 Weeks

I've never been good about taking belly pictures with any of my pregnancies. Usually I don't even try (I hardly ever like pictures of myself) and then when I do, I pose weird. But, this morning I made an attempt. Isn't my little sidekick adorable?

I'm feeling pretty good at this point of my pregnancy. I've gained more weight than I did with the other two and I also think I'm carrying the baby higher, but I like my obviously-pregnant belly. I don't, however, like my obviously fuller face!

And just for fun, here's a shot of our blue-eyed boy!

New Carpet!

Several weeks ago we decided to finally take the leap and replace the carpet in our house. Initially, it felt like we were living in a new home.

Here's a picture of our newly-arranged family room. We decided to change things up a bit since we were already moving furniture all over the place!

Here's the carpet up close and personal.

And just for fun, here's a picture of the kids eating dinner. Ashlyn told me about 7 times that she "did not like her dinner." Ah well. That's life.

While We Were Away

When Brad and I were in Las Vegas (back in the beginning of April) my mom watched the kids. The following pictures are ones that she took during that time.

The kids love "resting" their feet on the ottoman just like Daddy! I think it is more comfortable for Daddy.

Ashlyn gets out her play-doh as soon as Carter goes down for a nap. She plays with it almost every day. Recently we tried letting Carter play with it too, but he proved that he is not yet ready by eating half a container's worth.

Now that the weather is nice the kids love playing in the backyard on the swings. I think Carter could swing for two hours straight without wanting to get out.

They also like to dig in the dirt with Ashlyn's shovel and rake. They've even made their own "garden."

Ashlyn has some princess dress-up shoes that she enjoys playing with daily . . . Carter does too.

Why do the boys get the best eyelashes?!?

When we were going through Ashlyn's old baby clothes (getting prepared for girl #2), the kids had fun in the containers.

Take a good look at that carpet because you won't be seeing it in pictures again. Two weeks ago we had all our carpet replaced. Maybe I'll post a picture of the new stuff soon. It's pretty fun - we feel like we live in a new house!

Las Vegas Trip

At the beginning of April Brad and I went to Las Vegas while my mom watched Carter and Ashlyn. We were gone for 5 days and 4 nights, and while it was tough being away from the kids, it was such a wonderful break!

The day that we arrived, we enjoyed dinner at The Lotus of Siam and watched Sherlock Holmes at the dollar theater. We liked the movie so much that we ended up buying it when we got home!

The second day we did an endowment session at the Las Vegas temple. It was a gorgeous day and the temple grounds were beautiful!

The third day we went to Red Rock Canyon and did a little bit of hiking and climbing.

The fourth day we went shopping at two sets of outlets and at the local Old Navy. We had the best luck at the Disney Store Outlet and bought a few things there for the kids.

On our last day we packed up and headed home, but not before taking a few pictures of our hotel.

Yes, I know I look very pregnant. I feel very pregnant and I still have 3 months to go!!!

During our stay we also enjoyed eating at Viva Mercados, Pinks, and The Spice Market Buffet. We rented two movies from Redbox, bought Sushi at the grocery store (it was delicious!), and walked the strip and watched the Bellagio fountain show.

Thanks mom for watching the kids! It was so relaxing!

Ashlyn's First Dance Recital

In January Ashlyn started a two-day-a-week dance class at our local fitness center. Each class was 30 minutes long and she really enjoyed it, especially since her friend, Azelynn, was in it too! On April 1st her little dance class performed along with 6 other classes. They danced to Johnny Be Good and Pooh Corner.

Before her turn:

During the dances:

All done

It's over!

She was cute. There was a lot of the dance that she didn't do at all (probably because she just didn't feel like it). I think her favorite part was wearing the leotard with a skirt and tights. She didn't want to take it off.

Ashlyn liked her teacher, Amber Johansen, and especially loved that Amber let them pick out a sticker to keep at the end of each class. It's been fun and I think she'll be dancing more in the future!