Happy Halloween

Here are some pictures of our halloween fun.

Hyrum painting his costume

Fireman Hyrum and his little dog William




Dave let Hyrum do all the "dirty work"

Balloon Fiesta

Albuquerque is home of the annual Balloon Fiesta. It is a spectacular event where hundrends of balloonists come from all around the world to participate in mass ascensions, flying competitions, and other fun events. Yesterday morning we got up early and drove to a place where we could park and watch the balloons ascend. It was amazing to see the sky fill with color. It's hard to describe just how awesome this is and the pictures don't do justice at all. I guess you will all have to come out and see it for yourselves. You are welcome in our home anytime!!!

These are "special shape" balloons, meaning they are not the normal hot air balloon shape. It's amazing what shapes and characters they turn into balloons. I have no idea what these are, but they look cool since we were so close to them.

Wells Fargo stagecoach

Creamland dairy cow

Albuquerque truly is the "Land of Enchantment"

Summertime Fun!

Now that the leaves are starting to fall and the air is cooling off, fall is on the way and the days of summer are gone. I've been meaning to post some pictures of all the fun projects we've been doing throughtout the summer, so before it gets too late, here they are. (This post is for you Jen)

PROJECT #1: BRICK PATIO

We learned a great lesson while laying down the brick; "If you're going to do a job, do it right the first time." We didn't level the ground as well as we should have and it really showed once we got the brick in place. We decided to pull it up and start over. It was worth the extra work because when it was done, it looked great!

Dave did an awesome job at cutting the brick to fit around our curved patio...way to go sweetie!

Putting the finishing touches on by filling in the cracks with sand. The best part of having our new patio is not having dirt blow up into the house, and fewer weeds to pick...you can't go wrong with that. Hyrum also loves the extra space it gives him to ride his bike.

PROJECT #2: GARDEN

If you plant it...

It will grow!

An abundant crop.

The zucchini just keeps coming and coming. Zucchini anyone?

PROJECT #3: FLOWERS



Gerbera daisy is my favorite flower. How can you not be happy when you see one of these flowers; they scream "Happiness"! I've always wanted to learn how to plant and care for flowers, but have never really had the opportunity. This year I decided I would never learn if I didn't try so I bought these plants and have done my best to keep them alive. I love seeing color in our backyard and what I love even more is going out in the morning and cutting a few flowers to put in vase on the counter.

Just playing around with the camera...isn't this beautiful!?!

I also experimented a bit with hanging baskets. I really knew nothing about what flowers grow well together or how to care for them, but once again I decided I'd never learn unless I tried. This picture doesn't show the flowers very well, but I've been pleased. Red begonias and yellow marigolds look great together and they've lasted all season. In fact, I thought the begonias were gone and they're starting to bloom again. My mom was a florist and probably laughs and how amateur these are. I'm grateful for her love for beautiful things that she passed on to me.

PROJECT #4: DAVE'S VIOLIN SHOP

Dave built two sets of drawers to store his tools and supplies in.

Now his shop is up and running. Dave has been working most evenings and mornings on a violin. This will be the first instrument made in his own shop.

The violin hanging from the bench is almost done. The varnish is drying.

PROJECT #5: CANNING

I absolutely love canning. The actual process is a bit more stressful now that I have two busy boys to care for, but I still find great enjoyment in being self-sufficient and seeing my cupboards full. This year I canned green beans, tomatoes and salsa, all from our garden. I also did peaches and applesauce.

Animals, animals, and more animals...

We took our first trip to the zoo here in Albuquerque and loved it. Hyrum and William had a great time. Hyrum tells us that his favorite animals were the "big gorilla" and the "polar bears". Here are some fun videos to show you why they were his favorites.

Hyrum put his hand up on the glass and the gorilla tapped the glass with his hand. They played this game back and forth several times, but our camera wouldn't capture it all. Hyrum wasn't sure what to expect at first, but soon caught onto the game and found a new friend.

This was for sure the highlight of the day. This polar bear was so playful

I've been trying to post a video of Hyrum talking to the gorillas, "gorilla-style" but it won't work so here's just some still photos of our fun day.

I LOVE My Hyrum!

I just posted a blog about my frustrations with Hyrum not taking naps anymore and now I'm feeling guilty for making Hyrum seem like a "criminal". I love my Hyrum so much and want to share some of the things he does that puts a smile on my face.


1. He finds joy in the simple things of life.

2. He is silly and sometimes crazy; always laughing and having fun. (How can you not smile when you see a face like this?)

3. He can entertain himself for hours with a pair of black gloves and a bicycle helmet.

4. He wants to be just like his dad.

5. He loves being a big brother.

Oh, life would be so dull without Hyrum!

I need help...and quick!

Ok, so here's the trauma as of late. Last week Hyrum decided that he didn't need naps anymore. He absolutely refused to sleep. He would cry (which quickly turned to screaming) and would wake William up from his nap, leaving me with two tired and cranky kids for the rest of the day. On sunday we tried to put Hyrum down for a nap. This time William was not napping at the same time so we thought we'd let him "cry it out" (or as our pediatritian says, "rearrange his expectations"). Well, that didn't go over so well because Hyrum learned that he could easily climb out of his crib. I can't contain him anymore and I just don't know what to do. Today we tried putting him in the corner for time-out each time he got out of bed, but time-out just doesn't work for him. I can't give up naptime because he gets so cranky and it's just chaos in our house (it makes me think I'm going crazy sometimes) So, I need advice from all of you who have been in this situation before; what do I do?

All About William

Our little William has grown so much in the past few months; I thought it would be fun to share all that he's been up to. As of today it is official that he crawls!!! He has been able to crawl for awhile now, but has chosen to scoot on his stomach because it's much faster. Well, today he has crawled everywhere and there is no stopping him. This is a video clip of him crawling for the first time.

He also can pull himself up to anything and everything. He loves the new freedom this brings. I'm realizing that a toddler proofed house is not necessarily a baby proofed house. Just tonight he pulled open the drawer underneath the oven and closed it again with his hand still in it. It took off a layer of skin (luckily it was a thin layer and it didn't bleed, but it looks icky). William (and Hyrum) definitely keep me on my toes.

Another recent development for William is table food....yum yum! He loves to eat as you can see in the pictures below. He eats cheerios, puffed rice, pretzels, cooked carrots, peas, corn, scrambled egg yolks, pancakes, yogurt, macaroni and cheese, bread (oh, he loves bread), gummy bears (thanks to his daddy who gave him his first taste of sugar tonight during family home evening treat) and anything else he can get his hands on-rocks, toilet paper, wood chips, fingers (watch out). So far he shows no signs of food allergies, hurray! (Hyrum continues to be allergic to milk and eggs)

Aside from crawling and eating, William loves to do whatever Hyrum is doing. He plays blocks, cars, ball and piano with his big brother. It is so fun to watch him as he tries to do what Hyrum does. William is full of love and gives hugs and kisses always when I seem to need them most. He is such a delight to have in our home.