Our Easter in Photos

I am finding that sorting, organizing, and editing photos is not something I've been motivated to do lately. I am blaming it on the pregnancy and hoping this lack of interest goes away soon. I miss running to my computer for some free time to edit photos... now I just want to take a nap or read a book. I guess it's a nice break though. So here is our Easter... unaltered, straight from camera, and not put into a fancy collage :) But that's okay with me!

We had a fun easter this year. I really love this holiday, I just wish we didn't have to worry about rain interfering. Saturday we enjoyed dying eggs and going on a egg hunt. Sunday the kids got a surprise from the Easter Bunny and we had a nice relaxing day at church and at home. It surprisingly didn't rain and so we were able to spend sometime outside.

Kiah's new favorite food is hardboiled eggs and she has asked for them everyday.

Grandma Bateman... I can't tell you how much Evan LOVES his card you sent. Before he opened it he hugged it and said that he loves getting letters in the mail. He has carried his card everywhere ever since! Thank you for the cards!

Kiah got these flip-flops from the Easter Bunny... she just so happened to see them the day before at Walmart and was dying to buy them. Luckily the Easter Bunny saved the day.

These bubbles didn't last long... they spilled everywhere :( Oh well, we had fun. 

Curious Questions from my Little Guy

What kind of car did you have when I was a baby?

What car seat did I have when I was one?

What car seat did Kiah have when she was a baby?

What kind of car is that? (as he points out car after car while we are driving)

How did the baby get in your belly?

How does your baby eat?

Is your belly getting big yet?

What kind of helmet did daddy have when he was four?

What color of skates did you have when you were a kid?

What was your favorite thing to do when you were five?

Who hides the Easter eggs?

Is it Easter tomorrow?

How old are you?

How old will you be on your birthday?

Will your mom come to our house for your birthday party?

With these questions and more we hardly have any silence around here. Evan is constantly asking more and more questions. Half of the time I don't have an answer and that is very frustrating for him. The other half of the time I am answering the same question he asked yesterday. At least he isn't asking all the "Why's" yet. That will be fun.

Evan is obsessed with cars right now. It started with Honda's since we have a Honda. Evan can spot one a mile away. I am always hearing "Mom, Mom, Mom! There's a Honda!" while we drive around town. He now likes to find Pontiac's since that is the kind of car we had when he was a baby. He is learning other car names as well. He is quite the kid.

Evan is also very observant. Apparently he has been memorizing my aerobics routines. The other night he turned on some music and started doing some of the aerobic moves that I did last week. It was hilarious to watch :)

Oh and Mom... you are officially invited over for my birthday. Want to come? :)

For those of you who are wondering...

I am now 11 weeks along, and the baby is due November 4th. I had my first doctor visit on Tuesday and we (Dallas and I) were able to hear the heartbeat (so so cute!). If things were completely up to me I would've spread the news 4 or 5 weeks ago... if things were completely up to Dallas he wouldn't tell anyone and just wait to see who notices first. But in the end I kinda won (I guess), but honestly Dallas was getting anxious to share our news as well. I told him that it wasn't really worth it to keep it a secret since people already knew I was super baby hungry. People would start asking questions and I hate lying. I also wanted to tell my kids and I knew as soon as I did they would just give it away :) 

I have been feeling fine, but pregnant. If that makes sense. I get tired easily, yucky smells bother me, I have a hard time sleeping if I get woken up during the night, I have weird dreams, I get nauseous if I don't eat regularly and it's the worst at night. But really, I can't complain. This has probably been the easiest pregnancy for me so far. 

Oh and the pictures in the last post? That was one of the funnest photo shoots that I have done with my kids! I was taking the pictures by myself at first and then Evan joined in. He didn't even know what the signs said... he just loves the camera! I took the pictures for Dallas to surprise him... then I used the pictures to announce to our families that we are having a baby. Then I had to use them on the blog. One day I will post some of the other pictures we took. They are cute!

Months and months ago I found this idea and I fell in love with it. Go watch it now and you will see :) I decided right then and there that I would take weekly pictures of my next pregnancy so I could at least have something to document this time of my life. I really don't have any photos of myself pregnant with either of my kids. That makes me sad. Another thing that I want to do is a maternity photo shoot when I am in my last trimester. I just did a maternity shoot with my friend and I LOVE the pictures so much (you should take a look... here). 

So, about the weekly pictures... I started a series of photos for 6,8 and 10 weeks... but I am starting to get some different ideas for the series. I haven't decided exactly how I am going to do it yet, but I think I will start it at 12 weeks since I am starting to dislike the photos I already took. So hopefully by next week I'll have something to show you :) 

The Secret is Out...

We even heard the little heartbeat today... so I guess it's for real!

Blog Stalking

So. I have a bunch of really nice/cool/fun friends. They all stalk my blog and leave me really nice comments. Thanks friends! I had fun reading all your comments this past weekend. I am glad I *ordered* you all to comment... you all had such nice things to say. Thanks! I also have fun reading all of your blogs.  You are all wonderful. If I don't comment enough on your blog, I will try harder.... but because of my lack of commenting I understand completely if you all read, but don't have time to comment on my blog. You all rock!

So this is random, but I had the time so I did it :) It always seems that when someone comments and then I reply in a comment, I end up wondering if that person will come back to read my reply. Anyway... this time I thought it would be fun to reply in a post. All of your last comments made me so happy and they all got me thinking so here are my replies....

@Tiffany: I like stalking your blog too... and aerobics rocks, I love it so much. One day I will come on Fridays too... but for now that is my lazy-sleep-in-till-nine-day :( One day though, I promise :)

@Bethany: Ummm, we are related sister! (I think you already knew that) And yes, Mom is my go to girl. I love calling her.

@Mary: Bedtime. Yes. No patience at all! My kids are getting to the stage where the just want one more drink or one more story. Ahhh! Just go to sleep please... thank you :)

@Kristen: Definetely enjoy those boys of yours, they are so cute! ...and I'll try to resolve the girl issues with Kiah. She really is a sweetie.

@Colleen: You will have a blast with those cute girls of yours! And I am glad you enjoyed the last post :)

@Kim: Yes. Someone I can confide in! You know all about the fun girl drama...though I am always impressed with Molly and how sweet she is!

@Sheena: Laundry? Really? I am impressed. I am glad someone can enjoy it!

@Christi: I love your posts too... it's fun to get to know you more and more :)

@Angie: We do have much in common! Our kids are so close in age and are going through a lot of the same things. I am always interested in what you have to say on your blog. I wish we lived in Utah so we could hang out so our kids can get to know each other!

@Celeste: I always appreciate your comments! Thank you! Thanks for sharing your April Fools joke, too funny!! It gave me a good laugh :)

@Julia: I hope you are enjoying that cute baby of yours! Enjoy your time off from Aerobics... but I will be glad when you can come back!

@Tracy: We should get together sometime! I always am so happy to see you! And about the clutter... I guess my only secret is to not have any. Dallas and I move almost every year and each time we just get rid of anything that we don't use. Since we won't be moving this year I am thinking of just going through everything and getting rid of anything that is non-sentimental and not being used :) It really helps to keep things organized and clean. I have never regretted getting rid of anything except an old computer... but I got over that :) But I have to admit that my house isn't always organized and clean! I try though! Also I try not to buy things that will just add to the clutter... unless I get rid of other things first. Hope this helps!

@Cami: I am glad you check my blog... maybe I'll have to start posting twice a day just for you!

@Heidi: Thanks for reading! You should start a blog too :) It would be fun to read what's going on... we should get together! It's been awhile.

@Alison: Yeay! I am glad that you and Joel both read. It makes me happy that he likes hearing about my kids! We miss you both!

@Emily: Dallas LOVES to surprise me. He always has something up his sleeve and is constantly bugging me about it (though it is fun to get gift etc. so I shouldn't complain!). He also likes to keep secrets... like when he got accepted to Purdue he didn't want to tell anyone until his graduation at USU. It drove me nuts! I am surprised that I was able to keep that a secret. When I have something exciting going on I'd rather just tell everyone and anyone right away.

@Ross: You and Dallas are a lot alike... I wonder what other similarities Melanie and I have... Thanks for reading! I didn't know you read my blog at all :)

@Kim: I love your blog too... and your pictures. It is so nice having a blogging/photographer friend that lives so close! We really should get together and do something photography related sometime. I bet I could learn so much from you!

Phew!

So... just a few things to add from my last post... or update rather.

1. I cleaned my bathrooms today... and swept, mopped, and vacuumed my house. Just for those of you who might have worried about my house being sanitary :) I really do clean my house I promise... I just don't do it as often as I should!

2. Kiah's clothing drama... WOW. I think she has a compulsive problem. Because of a BIG dilemma on Saturday I had to take away her white outfit and put it in a "timeout."  Now she has a pink outfit that she has to wear. We'll see how that goes. I am trying not to give into her crying. Wow. She is a fun one.

3. My kids still watch too much T.V. Especially during General Conference weekend. At least Dallas and I were able to watch conference while the kids enjoyed themselves... right? Maybe next year they will have the attention span to watch a little bit with us. Evan tried and even played a bingo game with me, but it didn't last long. We really enjoyed listening to all the talks. I have learned to LOVE General Conference! It is so nice to be at home, relaxed and able to listen to the Prophet and Apostles. I love it!



P.S. If you actually read all of that... wow! I really should put some pictures up... my past couple of posts need a little more color and variety :)

Just a few things on my mind:

I randomly decided yesterday that the kid's room needed a change. So I moved Evan's bed. It was easier than I thought it would be. And I like it. And it's a good thing, because I am not moving it back.

I really like it when the sheets on our beds are just washed and clean.... I just hate doing the laundry. But really, who likes doing the laundry?

I am pretty confident that I am a good at keeping my house clutter free and organized... but I have a really hard time remembering when the last time was that I vacuumed, mopped or cleaned either of the bathrooms.

My kids watch too much T.V. There. I admitted it. 

It's April fools day. I am really bad at telling lies and I can never think of anything clever to do on this day of the year. Anyone have any good stories from today? Do tell.

It's Dallas' half birthday today. Happy half birthday Dallas!

I am *this* close to just throwing away Makiah's "flag shirt" (as she calls it) She insists on wearing it every day with her white skirt and white shoes (she has this thing with matching lately). I am so very sick of having to wash this shirt every time it gets dirty... and then having to listen to Makiah cry while we wait for it to wash and dry. It is exhausting. Doesn't she realize that she has a drawer full of cute shirts that NEVER get worn?

I can justify throwing away said shirt. It's old, worn, and too small for Makiah. Should I throw it away behind her back or should I have Kiah help me? We could have some type of funeral for it... Hmmmm.

Having a little girl is exhausting in it's own way. Having a little boy is relaxing in it's own way (I don't EVER fight with Evan about hair or clothes).

Evan has an obsession with batteries and screwdrivers. He insists on unscrewing every toy he has to see how many batteries it needs. I find him searching his dad's tool box fairly often.

Sometimes I call my mom with nothing to say. I think she knows the times that I do this. Still she is nice and she talks to me anyway. I like my mom. I think I will call her today.

I don't like surprises and secrets. Dallas does. We are very different and not for this one reason alone.

We have flowers popping up outside... and buds on the tree. But I still wear my coat when I leave the house. It's cold.

Bedtime stresses me out. Really, it's the hardest part of my day. I don't know why I can't learn to enjoy it. I love it when Dallas is here to take charge, I just can't handle it.

My kids have been sleeping in past 8 everyday. I love it more than you know. Life is good.

Sometimes I get curious and wonder who even reads this blog.... if you have a minute do you mind leaving a comment? Even if it's just a quick hello? I just want to know who you are :) Thanks for reading!

My Dad

We got very lucky this past week and had a random visit from my Dad! He was actually working in Chicago and so we got to go visit him! It made me wish that family was only a 3 hour drive away all the time. So we headed up to the Windy City and had a short but sweet visit. I wish it could've been longer and I wish it would've been warmer... oh and I wish parking wasn't such a pain in Chicago :) BUT we did have fun! It was so nice seeing my Dad and the kids were SO SO happy to be with him. When Dad first got in the car we were trying to figure out where we were going to park (plan A wasn't working out for us) and so we were just talking. I looked over at Makiah and she had her eye on Grandpa... and she was smiling. When I told my Dad to say "hi" she looked away and became very shy. Haha, it was cute. No worries though, as soon as we got out of the car she was in his arms and good to go. We had a yummy dinner and then hung out at my dad's hotel. Both of the kids LOVED being with Grandpa... no shyness at all. I love that the kids know who family is, even though we only see them once or twice a year :) We did have a ton of fun though and we can't wait to see him and the rest of the family again. 

The next day we got to go to the temple. It was so nice to be there again. We saw some familiar faces and we felt so welcome. It was a nice trip! On the way home I wanted to head back into the city to see Dad again, but unfortunately we couldn't :( Thanks Dad for coming all the way out here just to see us! *wink, wink* Love you!

Backtrack.

When I went to Utah last August I had one thing that I HAD to do while I was there. And this is it (only 7 months late). I got married just over 5 years ago now and my sister Shannon is coming on her 5 year anniversary this month. Neither of us got our bridal portraits done. Why you ask? I honestly don't know. Something about being in front of the camera alone... too much money... not enough time. I don't know, but it never got done. Until last August. I am so GLAD that we did this. Reasons.... 1. I actually still fit into my dress and I am not sure how long that will last. 2. I almost kinda sorta look like I did when I got married. 3. Photographs are so very important to me. More important than I thought they were 5 years ago. 

So. We pulled out the dresses. Did our hair and makeup. Found our amazingly wonderful skilled little sister, and got to work. Bethany is the one we owe this too. She is the one with the photography skills. She took all these photos and more and I couldn't love them more. 

Oh yes. One more thing. Shannon, you are stunning. Absolutely stunning. 

Oh... that was only a handful... I might have to show you some more. And we have some not so posed, fun ones as well :)