Ants, Ants, Ants

Well, Katie's worse nightmare with the ants has come true. I walked into her room this morning to find those horrible little creatures everywhere! They were mainly in these two toy boxes that she has.. one has her baby dolls... the other one has her purses. They were everywhere! I quickly got Casey and we began sucking them up with the vaccum. The kids were helping us by pointing out the ants to us. We soon realized why they are SO attracted to Katie's room... they were working very hard at taking her yummy fish crackers from her church bag! We got it all cleaned up and things washed (yes, they were even in her laundry basket) and Casey went to the store for MORE ant bait. With the fish crackers gone now maybe that will be the end of Katie's nightmarish ants!

Trent 5 months

Trent turned 5 months old this week! He is such a little ham and we love watching him develop his own personality. I still need to weigh him but, can tell he's grown quite a bit this month.. his 6/9 size summer blothes are already getting snug on him! He'll definitely be in 12 month clothes by the end of the summer. I've been giving him rice cereal in the evenings and, he recently started green beans. He's a good little eater and has, so far, liked both of these. For a while he was sleeping through the night however, he's now gone back to waking up at 1am to eat... sigh... I knew that whole "sleeping through the night" thing was just a dream :) Showing off his chipmunk cheeks!

Trent absolutely loves his siblings and is always laughing at their funny faces! He also likes to see himself in the mirror and is beginning to grab at anything he can get his hands on.

Tummy time isn't his favorite thing in the world but, he's not even trying to roll over yet so I've been making him do it more often. He usually only stays on his tummy about 5 minutes before he's had enough!!

Bike rides

Dad cleaned up our bikes and the kid's bike trailer yesterday so, Mom and I took the kids out for a ride after dinner last night. We stopped by the park to play and the store for ice cream along the way! This is Tys and Katie in the bike trailer last year... Tys was so small he couldn't even sit up very well!! And, I remember that his bike helmet was too big and kept falling down into his eyes (which meant he usually fell asleep because there wasn't anything to see anyways!) And, here they are this year! Both bigger and loving every minute of it. Tys was pretty intent during the whole ride watching things as they zoomed by. Katie did her usual chatter and singing! And, that purple princess dress she's wearing is her current favorite one. She wore it three days in a row until I finally convinced her this afternoon that it needed to be washed! Playing at the playground last night was a bit tricky but she quickly learned how to lift her dress like a lady to climb the stairs :)

Memorial Day

For Memorial Day, today, the kids and I went with my parents to a nearby picnic/camp area called Mill Creek. Our friends Skye, Aria and Jeff came out for a little while too. It was a beautiful day to be outside and we all had a great time! Too bad Casey had to work and missed out on all the fun... Trent hanging out in the stroller.

After unloading and getting our picnic site set up, we did some exploring and "digging". And, yes, Katie wore her Princess Hawaiian lei to the mountains :)

Tys doing some exploring

Tys and Nana getting ready for a ride on the 4-wheeler.. one of many for Tys. He is currently in love with the 4-wheelers and is always asking his Papa for a ride (which sounds more like "ry")

For lunch we roasted hot dogs over the fire. Katie thought that was pretty cool!!

Papa and Trent on the wooden bridge.

After lunch we walked down to the river and let the kids play in the water. It was too cold for them so they just got their feet in and, played with their sticks in the mud.

My awesome mom and I hanging out by the river... watching the kids (although not close enough because we almost lost one of Tys' shoes. Thankfully Katie pointed it out to us as it was floating away)

Trent after a long afternoon of exploring....

Katie and I roasting marshmellows. Actually, I was roasting her marshmellow for her. She had been waiting for DAYS to roast a marshmellow and was so excited when the time came! The interesting thing was she wouldn't actually eat it. She carried that poor little mellow around on the stick for the rest of the afternoon... it eventually ended up stuck to Papa's camp chair!! lol
Tys wouldn't eat one either... I don't know why our kids won't even try a marshmellow?? Oh well, the rest of us ate enough smorses for them :)

Tys and I getting ready for one last ride before going home. Katie rode a couple of times too but for some reason I didn't get any pictures of her. With help from my dad, she is learning how to stear the quad!

Now once Casey gets home we're going to bbq steaks and have dinner with my parents.

Princess Katie and ants

Princess Katie having a fun time on the swing! The weather has been beautiful lately and we've been spending quite a bit of time outside.... blowing bubbles, playing with Tys' new bat and ball from Uncle Jake and watching the beans grow in our garden (so far that's all that is showing up) This evening the kids and I went my mom to the park and out for ice cream ~ that was lots of fun!
When he's not working overtime, Casey has been doing quite a bit of work at our property... getting things ready to begin the construction on the foundation for our new house! The kids and I have been over there as well this week... The kids have been doing lots of exploring and playing in the dirt. Katie WAS having a great time until she sat on an ant pile without realizing it and was soon covered in ants. Of course, this was pretty scary for her! Now, she would rather sit in the suburban whenever we go there because she is "scared of the ants and doesn't like the property" I'm thinking "great... we'll soon be living here and Katie won't even get out of the vehicle"!! We've tried showing her that the ants are actually pretty harmless but she isn't convinced :) It isn't helping that we are having "ant issues" in her new bedroom. Not bad, just a few here and there. I get rid of them and Casey has put out ant bait but they're still showing up. So, throughout the day she comes running to me "mom, I found an ant" and, I go take care of it. However, she won't go in her room without the light on because she's afraid of the ants (I have to turn the light on for her) Anyhow, I'm hoping this little phase passes soon!!

A few pictures of our happy little boy! We thought Tys was easy-going and content... well, thankfully Trent is even more so. He is perfectly happy to just hang out and watch his older siblings play. And he's always ready to give you a smile or tell you one of his stories. He has also recently learned how to blow bubbles with his slobber ~ not very appealing but highly entertaining for him! Rarely does he cry... just when he's hungary or tired. When he does cry it's a high pitched shrill that sends a shiver up your spine! Like I said, thankfully, we were blessed with a happy baby!!

Katie and her little brother hanging out

Meredith was in town, from Boise, over the weekend. She stopped by to visit us and, as always, it was great to see her!

Princess Katie

My little brother got laid off from his job today. He worked for a medical supply company (in Boise) and with this stressed economy people just aren't into specialized equipment right now. His roommate was also recently laid off from HP and, we have two other good friends without jobs right now. This is all hitting close to home for us. I am so thankful we live in a community with a pretty stable economy and I'm not stressing whether or not my husband will have a job tomorrow (although I realize that could always change) Even if it is a dry, dusty town and known as the "arm pit of America" :)
My mom arrived home from Boise today with a new plastic ball and bat for Tys... which, of course, he loves! He is a natural at throwing and we're always telling him to quit hitting things SO, his new bat and ball gives him an excuse to hit and throw something :) I don't know if it's just because he's a boy but, Tys really does have a great talent of throwing. His throws are accurate and go far... I see a pro baseball player in the future (even though his Uncle Jake is training him for football!)

Joe

Our OSO (aka. Joe) became a member in the church yesterday... He proved to everyone that he cleans up pretty well!! However, we all laughed when he and Casey showed up wearing pretty much the same "attire" (I would call it an outfit but Casey said "men don't wear outfits"!!)
Casey and Joe... missing Nate and Jerry.... trying to do their impression of Nate but not getting it quite right :) Guess we needed Nate for that one

A few pictures of Trent from the weekend.... Uncle Joe and Trent on Saturday night. Uncle Joe and Papa came over for dinner and ice cream; this was after a day of work for Casey and, a day of playing outside in the sun for me and the kids. (I also cooked food for Sunday and cleaned house)

After church last night, we went to the Kelley's house and had a good time hanging out with friends. Here is Trent with his buddy, Josiah. It's hard getting both boys to smile at the same time!

Trent with his Lola Troy and Uncle Brad. This is for our friends in the Philippines!

I am so excited because Trent has been sleeping through the night every night this week! He goes to bed around 9 and has been waking up at 5:30... this morning it was 6!!!

Also, Bernice had their baby yesterday so I am an aunt again!! Lucas Abraham was born at 7:20pm in Crown Point, Il. He weighed 8lb 6oz and was 21 inches long. I am excited to have another nephew and look forward to meeting him this fall.

Casey's 31st birthday

Today was a very busy day! I got bags unpacked from the weekend, did 4 loads of laundry, picked up the house (Casey had it clean before we arrived home!) took a nap, made half of dinner (mom made the other half) helped mom plant the garden, iced my back a couple of times, and celebrated Casey's 31st birthday!! The kids "helped" mom and I plant the garden! We planted cucumbers, beans, yellow squash, zucchini, watermelon and sqallions. Next week we'll finish up with the tomatoes, carrots and herbs

My awesome husband and sweet boy

Tys helping his daddy celebrate his birthday! For dinner we had my parents and Joe over... we bbq'd steaks and garlic basil chicken. Some garlic mashed potatoes, rolls, corn on the cob, asparagus, peach pie and ice cream to go along with that and, it was a great dinner :)

Mother's Day weekend

We arrived home from our trip to Boise around 9 last night and, had a great weekend! Mom and I left with the kids early Saturday morning and had an uneventful trip there. Amazingly, Trent did awesome on his first big drive! He played with his toys and slept the whole time... Tys was a whole different story. He really doesn't like to sit for more than 5 minutes... so, a 5 hour drive was considered torture for him :) First, we went to my Aunt Debbie and Uncle Arnie's house for a bbq. It was good to see our family and my cousin, Tonya... whom we hadn't see in about a year. Then, we went to my little brother's place before heading to our hotel. Uncle Jake and Trent

Aunt Judy and Trent ~ it was such a beautiful day outside!

Sunday ~ We went to church in the morning and it was great to see our old friends again! Then, Katie spent the afternoon with her Auntie Ri and Oma. I took the boys and went to lunch with Jake and my mom at the Texas Roadhouse then, back to the hotel for naps. My mom and Jake got to go golfing... After the boys woke up, we went to Marie's house and visited with her and Mom for the rest of the afternoon/evening. We had a great time hanging out in the front yard and playing at the Camelsback park! Marie is still recovering from her recent foot surgery so she got to just sit and hold Trent. It was a very nice, relaxing Mother's Day. Too bad I didn't get any pictures of me and my kids :)

Tys with his Oma... they were looking at the squirrels

Trent and Oma

Katie and Oma.. having fun at the park

Auntie Ri and Trent

Monday morning we did errands and some shopping before heading home around 3. The kids were exhausted from their busy 2 days and had good long naps in the car!

This week has been busy as usual... my excuse for not blogging since Tuesday! My mom and I are taking the kids to Boise tomorrow for the weekend so, I've been busy doing laundry, packing and cooking meals for Casey (who has to stay home and work nights) Mom and I will be visiting our family on Sat. afternoon then, I'll take the kids to visit Aunt Ri and Oma on Sunday. We'll drive home on Monday after doing some shopping.... even though it'll be a quick trip, it'll be good to see everyone :) And, this will be Trent's first big trip so we'll see how he does! Tonight Amy is taking Tys and Katie to the carnival that is currently in town. Katie is so excited to go to the "carminal" and Tys hasn't a clue what's going on but is excited anyways! I'm going to take Trent and go to a friend's Pampered Chef/Homemade Gourmet party this evening. And, to the local salon where I get my hair done for their customer appreciation/late Cinco de Mayo party... it's always nice to get "out" and have a little adult conversation :)

Cinco de Mayo

Trent has recently found his fingers/hands and is constantly trying to eat them! This morning I thought I'd try to take some pictures of all three kids. Usually the challenge is getting all three kids to look at the camera at the same time however, today it was getting Trent to keep those yummy fingers out of his mouth! Tys has nicknamed his little brother "rent" since he can't say "Trent". We call Tys "roo" so, we now have a "roo" and a "rent". Interesting.....

In celebration of Cinco de Mayo today, tonight's dinner menu includes Mexican Chicken lasanga and sopapillas... and don't forget the Coronas :) It's days like today when I miss my favorite mexican restaurant in Kuna. The place will be hopping tonight with celebration and at least a two hour wait to get in.... but well worth the wait! We do have a great Mexican restaurant here but, there's just something about our favorite one in Kuna that can't ever be replaced!!

Trent's first cereal

Trent began eating his food first on Friday night! At first he made all of those funny faces that babies make when they get some unknown substance shoved into their mouths but then, he actually began enjoying it! He ate all of the rice cereal and was hungary for more :)