Can We Please Get ONE Picture?!

Family pictures have always been a challenge. Even when it was A and I, we had problems. My sweet husband, bless his heart, has always had a hard time smiling for pics. We try to count, try to make him laugh...anything. Now that we have three wee ones, the challenge has grown by leaps and bounds. One Sunday, I thought it would be nice to have a quick photo of the fam. It just wasn't a good idea.

W was not happy and that was our first and foremost concern. E was trying to get him to smile.

Oh, A has a pleasant smile! But I'm in the middle of energetically telling E to smile.

Take the PICTURE! Oh! A wasn't ready. He's busy muzzling W with a toy.

Oh! So close! W isn't crying, but what is E doing? O is tired.

A is bouncing W, attempting something positive...E is just goofing around.

I think this is our better shot. Even though W's crying. The rest of us look pretty normal. I guess it'll be awhile before everyone can cooperate for a few minutes. Here's hoping!

The picture attempt with the boys. Fun!

All the kids...hey E, over here!

Just us girls.

We can always count on E for a goofy shot!

Happenings in April

With everything else going on, I forgot to post these pics for April.

The freedom April brings! Big O decided to rid himself of his diaper, and yes, he freed his bladder.

We couldn't believe it either. W disappeared from us within seconds. We heard him under the car trying to retrieve a ball. He crawled on his belly from one end to the other.

Mission accomplished.

Play date with cousin Laurel.

Tutus on the head are quite the fashion.

Flying a kite with her cousins.

Date with Grandma. Look at her excitement!

Boys in, on, around, and below everything imaginable. Here O is stuck between the dryer and wall.

The one cupboard they're allowed to play...destruction in seconds and tupperware throughout the house.

They chew on anything. You should see their cribs and my windowsills! This is an old travel size shaving cream can that E got a hold of, which means the boys eventually got it as well. I caught W chewing on the bottom just as it started to foam.

The reaction when things are taken away.

The Easter dress I made E. She calls it her Cinderella dress.

The dress-up cape and skirt the "Easter Bunny" made for E.

These were actually made in February for Valentine's Day. Fun project.

Together Forever

Yip! This is our BIG news. This was our big plan for Saturday. Our adorable boys are officially ours and we had a wonderful experience being sealed together as a family. A lot of preparation went into this day and it was well worth it.

The weather was nice, the wait was long, the guests were patient, the clothes stayed white, naps were short, food was lacking, friends were all smiles, the party was a hit, and with all the craziness, the boys were absolutely AMAZING!

A big THANK YOU goes out to everyone who helped us out for the occasion. We greatly appreciate it. We loved seeing our friends and family there to share in our joy. To our friends, we wish we could have visited more! Hopefully, we can get together again soon.

We don't have all of our pictures yet, but when we do, I'll post more. Here are a few from our special day!






We love the gospel and the plan our Heavenly Father has for each of us. We truly believe that our children were meant to come to us, to be part of our family here on earth. We sincerely love our Birth Mothers who made the difficult decision to place their baby in our arms. They are strong women, full of love, who sought to give their baby more. "...One thing is for sure, and will be forever more, when such unselfish love has been given the world just made more room for heaven..."

"You didn't give me these feet, but you placed them on the right path.
You didn't give me my voice, but you taught me how to laugh.
You didn't give me these hands, but you taught them to open doors.
Look at all I am you'll see, I'm yours.

Do you think the ones who gave me life will ever know
The gift they gave to me by letting go.
I hope somehow that heaven will reveal
The depth of gratitude I'll always feel.

You didn't give me these arms, but you gave them a family to hold.
You didn't give me my body, but you've truly shaped its soul.

Your love has given me wings
And how my spirit soars
Knowing that I always will be yours
Forever and for always...I am yours"
~Michael McLean

"I have a family here on earth. They are so good to me. I want to share my life with them
through all eternity.
Families can be together forever through Heavenly Father's plan.
I always want to be with my own family and the Lord has shown me how I can.
The Lord has shown me how I can."

~Ruth M. Gardner

Busy, Busy, Busy

Tomorrow is a very big day, a very big deal. So the past couple weeks have been pretty busy around here for us. Here are a few things:

-Shopping for new clothes...which can be frustrating when you can't find what want or need
-Sewing clothes for all the kids
-Sewing clothes for me
-Making decorations (banners, centerpieces, cards)
-Baking and assigning desserts
-Talking with lawyer
-Collecting all needed paperwork
-Creating and reviewing guest lists
-Getting a camera to make the video
-Getting "photographers"...and why is it that when you do plan to take pictures something always happens...your face breaks out, E bruises her cheek, or O, who is constantly moving, has an entire head full of bruises and scrapes. Why? Why this week?

-Then aside from that, I have been working on the ward activity at the park, which is next week.
-A has started umpiring for the baseball season
-O is now a wobbly walker...hence the banged up face
-And my favorite...I hurt my knee. Silly me, I knelt down on the stair to talk to E and POP! I've gone to the dr. and they are inconsistent over it. An x-ray later, still inconsistent. So, I'm on prescription strength Ibuprofen and limping around here unable to lift my leg or put a lot of weight on it. I go back to the dr. in about a week if it feels the same. I'll probably need an MRI. This puts a slight damper on my big plans tomorrow.

-Anyway, back to happy news. As far as the big plans....that'll be another post. ;)

Food Snatcher

O is constantly looking for food. If someone is eating anywhere near him, he's making a move.

W is turned away. Perfect opportunity to snatch his waffles and peaches.

What? I'm not doing anything.

He turned again. I'm going in for more.

Big Birthday Boy

I can't believe it! My baby boy has turned ONE! It's scary how fast time flies. Well, we started the month reflecting on our baby and all the people who love him. For his actual birthday, we celebrated with just our family and then later with extended family. W loved the attention and E was thrilled to sing the Birthday song, yet again. O just loved being there seeing the action.

The cake was a hit. Birthday boy attacked the cake and the candle...yes, he started eating the candle.

He was quite happy to devour his slice of goodness.

I'd like to say that he's blowing me a kiss for his lovely birthday celebration and scrumptious cake, but really, he's just stuffing his face.

Here he is 2 weeks later before his second birthday bash. Notice the hair. It must be cut...again!

New hairdo, showing the love for being ONE, and playing with his presents.

What a cutie.

Birthday Cakes

So far I haven't repeated any birthday cake recipes. Each one has been different in some way. This one was no exception. I saw it online and instantly knew I had to make it for W's birthday cake. Oh, yum. It was just like a warm moist Cinnabon that melted in your mouth. This was the first of two cakes for our little man.

Brown sugar and cinnamon swirled in the middle.

Warm icing drizzled...or should I say poured on top.

Saucy Chocolate, what do you think?

For the second birthday gathering, I saw these and I wanted to try them. They're Cake Pops and she has a million variations. I was a little hesitant to do them. I don't have a great reputation of successfully dipping things in chocolate and having it look neat. Plus, it would be hard to get the pops perfectly round. I decided to go for it.

Made about 50. Some more round than others.

Dipped in white chocolate. This takes forrr-evv-err! I was going to have several colors, but it was just taking too long.

Here are all the balls for W's birthday: tennis, softball, basketball,soccer, baseball, bowling, golf. I was going to have a football, but I was afraid the shape wouldn't hold.

Overall, they were good. Fast and easy to eat. Everyone can throw away their own stick. Kids could eat them as they played outside. Super cute to put a candle in one and sing. It was the perfect size for W to eat. However, they took way too long to complete and I'm just not sure it was worth it. Birthdays...I'm always experimenting with something.


Here's the recipe for the Cinnamon Cake, which is called Honey Bun Cake.

Honey Bun Cake

Source: Allrecipes.com

Ingredients:
1 (18.25 ounce) package yellow or white
cake mix
4 egg whites
1 cup sour cream
2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce

For Filling:
1/2 cup packed brown sugar (I may have used more)
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon ( I think I used more on this too)

For Glaze:
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
1. In a large mixing bowl, combine dry cake mix, egg whites, sour cream and applesauce. Beat on low speed until moistened. Beat on medium for 2 minutes.
2. Pour half into a greased 9 x 13 or bundt pan. Combine brown sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over batter. Cover with remaining batter; cut through with a knife to swirl. Bake at 325 degrees F for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. (If using bundt pan, bake for 40-45 minutes). Cool on a wire rack. Flip over onto serving dish.
3. For glaze, combine confectioners' sugar, milk and vanilla until smooth; drizzle over warm cake. Store at room temperature.

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