WOWzers!

Ok, so I'm not even going to mention the HUGE HORRIFIC AND OUTRAGEOUS expanse of time that has elapsed since I last wrote!, so things have been going really well for us lately!  Those of you who know me really well know that I absolutely love to dance/sing- I'm a "roll the windows down, turn the radio up, let the wind blow through our hair" kind of girl!  So, I must say that I am LOVING this 80* weather we have been having!  I've passed this gene onto Calvin- as soon as the weather is nice he BEGS for the sun roof to be open or the windows to be down.  AND, both boys totally know the chorus to such songs as: I've Got The Magic In Me.. and various other bumpin tunes...  (Boston's aaaoooooooooooooh, is ADORABLE) complete with moves to go with.  You may think to yourself- those poor boys- but then, you just might not be the "jam out at a stop light" kind of family like we are- and that's okay, too! :)  Well, there was a purpose to this ramble, to explain why random songs meander through my brain.  Lately, the voices in my head have been singing: "I have been blessed, with so much more than I deserve, to be here with the ones that love me, to love them so much it hurts, I have been blessed!" (please keep in mind that I'm also the type of girl who has no idea what song titles, singers names, or actual lyrics are)
With those words buzzing through my mind, I have have pondered on the great miracles of being a mom.  I have come to love things I would have NEVER thought possible.  Let me give you an idea of what I mean: stampeding footsteps into my room at 7am, chocolate, toilet flushing, cold feet, snot-nosed kisses, laundry, the wheels on the bus, spitting, dinosaurs, and silverware.  Still seem like nonsense??? Let me explain....
1. Stampeding Footsteps at 7am- well, let's be honest, I've never really been a morning person.  But, ever since we decided to put the boys in the same room I find it completely ADORABLE how they wake up together and IMMEDIATELY run to find mom.  Then, they climb up on the bed and fight over who gets to wake up the "sleeping princess" (loose quotation at that time of day).  Jeff taught them that this is how you wake up a princess, and, I agree, it's a wonderful way to wake up! :)
2.  Chocolate- I know, I know, most of you are thinking.. "you needed a reason to love chocolate?!?!"  Yes, I did- I've been allergic to it all my life and, to be quite honest, the smell alone makes me want to vomit.  Now, exhale, and let me proceed.  Since I have always been allergic, the thought of baking with it was, well, less than appealing.  But, since being married and having children, I have had a great desire to fill my boys with love, in every possible way.  And, as every other normal person, my boys LOVE chocolate.  So now, I find myself baking, more often than not, something containing chocolate- and seeing those ooey gooey chocolatey smiles brings so much joy to me!  (plus, it helps when I'm trying to cut back on sweets!)
3.  Toilet Flushing- now, this is a recent one!  We just finished potty-training Calvin- which was, well, also less than appealing!  It was the first time in motherhood where I totally hated the experience.  But, as things usually do, it all worked out.  And now, as Calvin shuffles off to the bathroom and I hear the flush of the toilet, I have such joy and relief that all of that is over and that my baby is now a little boy. 
4.  Cold Feet.  Ok, I don't know what it is, but my feet are always cold!  I'm one of those weirdos who likes "hot car."  Oh, come on, you know.. when you get into your car and it's 110* outside and a blistering 120* inside- I leave the windows up and say aaaah.  (well, when my kids and husband aren't in the car that is)  So, anyways, at night, after Boston goes to bed, Calvin will take off my shoes and socks and ask, "are your feet cold, Mom?"  If I say no, he just insists they are.  Then he goes and gets our favorite cuddly blanket and we each sit in our designated spots on his favorite chair and cuddle while we watch a show.  He is so cuddly and sweet and this is one of my favorite moments everyday.  (especially since he usually proceeds to tell me how much he loves me)
5. Snot-nosed kisses.  Boston did not get the lovey/kissy gene.  Somehow it just skipped right over him and he likes a kiss about as much as he likes a "swift kick in the butt" (as my dad would say).  But, every once in a while, he will come up to me, with as much snot on his face as he could possibly muster up, and say "KI!!  KI!! and pucker up.  Because he is so stingy with his kisses, I don't even care what state  his face is in and just enjoy the moment!  He is so precious!
6. Laundry- I know, lame.  But, each time I fold their little clothes I laugh at the memories we made in them.  And, as I have now added little boy underwear to the laundry, I sigh as I have concrete evidence that my little baby is growing up.  I don't know what it is about little people clothing, but I just love to fold it!
7.  The wheels on the bus- I always wondered how moms could stand singing the same song OVER and OVER and OVER again.  Now, I know.  The GIGANTIC smile Boston gets as I sing this song to him is worth EVERY repetition!  He absolutely loves it.  And when Boston loves something (this song, The Brown Bear book), he wants to listen to it all the time!  But, as many times as we sing it, I still get a big smile, when I hear him start "whee on bus...rou rou..." and his emphasis on TOWN at the end, just melts my heart.. yes, EVERY time! :)
8. Spitting- Yes, one gross habit.  Let me explain how I find it heart-warming... Boston, the funny man that he is, now thinks he is a comedian.  His latest routine involves him making a spitting sound and then announcing "I spit, I'm FUNNY!"  As I write this, I laugh, because even after explaining it, I'm still not sure exactly why I find it so funny- but, I do!  I guess because it's my child, so it makes it cute??  Ya, we'll go with that!
9.  Dinosaurs-  In our household, there is just no getting around loving these big, ugly, extinct creatures.  In learning to speak, Boston decided to ignore the small words, and only say two syllable+ words- dinosaur being one of the first ones.  (along with cupcake, spiderman, and various other super important things like that)  He also has a passion for singing, and sings the deep part to the intro song of his favorite show: dinosaur train, all the time.  It is hilarious!  So, as a former not-interested-in-anything-dinosaur-er, I have now been converted, and, sadly, know every word to said intro song.  Wah Wah wahhhh.
10.  Last, but not least: silverware.  Now, what, you say, could be soo exciting about this?!  Well, if you come to our house at around 5pm, you will hear it.  After we finish dinner, we rock out with our silverware rockband- band name pending.  Boston on lead vocals (since by this time he has ditched his plasticware), Calvin on plate drums, and mom and dad on fork guitar.  Yes, that is a twinge of jealousy you're feeling towards our awesome-ness.  Okay, you're right, could just be the heartburn of sorrow for the embarrassment for me and admitting this.  Either way, I'm okay with it.  We have fun, we laugh, and we love.. and that, to me, is what family is all about.
Disclaimer: I realize there were no pictures in this post and you are feeling ripped off, because yes, my boys are growing up by the second- well, all I can say to that is: this just isn't that kind of post- sorry! :)

Jeff's Bucket List

Jeff's list is much shorter than mine.. I'm sure we will accomplish all of this! :)
1. Visit Mission with my wife
2.  Get MBA
3.  Become CPA
4.  Ride a cable car in SF
5.  Visit NY
6.  Visit Epcot & Animal Kingdom in Orlando

Cindy's Bucket List

One fine day, when Jeff and I were newly married, we decided to write down all the things we dreamed of doing.  Here is my list, Jeff's will follow.  We will also have Bucket Item Recaps as we cross things off our list!  Stay tuned for some FUN!
(No particular order)
1. Ride in a hot air balloon
2.  Eat a crepe in Paris
3.  Learn French (again)
4. Become a CPA
5.  Go on a Disney Cruise with our kids
6.  Go on a Mexico Cruise just us :)
7. Camp at Yosemite
8.  Coach Cheerleading
9.  See a Broadway Show
10.  Stay at Chalet and take a carriage around town
11.  Pull a hand cart a considerable distance
12.  photograph a high $ wedding
13.  take singing lessons
14.  play piano
15.  Grow a garden (successfully)
16.  Go to conference
17.  Go to Tahiti
18.  Swim with dolphins
19.  Ride an Elephant
20.  Own an I Phone
21.  Have a girl
22.  Get flowers at work
23.  Run a marathon (5k or 1/2)
24.  Stay at Belagio in a room over-looking the strip and fountain
25.  Walk across golden gate bridge
26.  Own a piano
27.  Do a benefit walk for a cause that relates to me or my family
28.  Live somewhere completely random for at least a year
29.  See a live taping of a tv show
30.  Be 100% on VT for one whole year
31.  Watch Gone With The Wind
32.  Have an amazing child shoot that gets posted on my fav blog

**I will try and get pics/stories up of all the ones I've been able to cross off in our marriage so far!!

Life is WICIOUS!!

So, I'm beginning to see a trend here... I honestly feel I'm going to make an effort to write more, but then get busy with life and go months without a word, then end up with a GINORMOUS entry every now-and-then.  My sincerest apologies.  Now that we got that out of the way, time to recap the last few months. 
One of Calvin's latest words is: WICIOUS (as in, delicious), and that is the best way to describe our life right now.  Summer is here and the weather has been great, but best of all Jeff is home everyday around 4, A-M-A-ZING!  Love it!
Since I wrote last, Cody has gone on his mission, Boston turned 1, I did a baby fair, and a lot of other menial and mundane super exciting things!

First things first, my little brother Cody is now Elder Murdock!
And, boy is he working hard.  He LOVED the MTC and even served as District Leader in his last few weeks there.  Now, he is in El Salvador and doing great!  He's already had 2 baptisms and has been able to play a lot of soccer.  His companion is a native to the country, which has really helped his spanish come along.  I am so proud of him and love hearing about all of his El Salvadorian adventures!

Next up: Whirlwind Baby Day!  So, my sister and I decided to join forces and get a booth at the local baby fair.  I was pushing my photography and she was pushing her party printables.  The big bonanza was originally scheduled on June 3rd... but, to the surprise of most, it was RAINED OUT! IN JUNE!  So, they rescheduled to June 25th.. which, if you are an avid blog follower, you remember that this is Bostonian's FIRST BIRTHDAY (followed by horns and trumpets).  Since I had already invested in the afore mentioned fair, I decided to buck it up and do both events in the same day... what was I thinking?  Days lineup: Baby Fair from 8-3, Boston Pirate Party at Avila from 4-6.  CARAZAY!  The fair went well, lots of people admired and took business cards, then we crashed early and raced to Avila, where I had 15 min to put together an entire party.  However hectic and stressed I felt, the party was a success, complete with Captain Jack Sparrow, yummy cupcakes, and a treasure chase.. kids all around were wondering how they could be apart of the festivities!  Happy Birthday, Sweet Boston!  PS, my sister created the paper masterpieces, she is oh-so-talented! :)  Also PS, if you're wondering who the other little buccaneer is, we did a combined party with our friends who have a little boy that is about a week older than Boston. 

Last week, Jeff and I were able to go on a Pioneer Trek with the youth!  SOO much fun!  It included 4 local stakes, 400 kids, and 40 families.  We had 9 amazing kids in our family and had so much fun trekking along with them!  It was long and hard, but we worked through it together and were so excited when we did it!  It was a 3 day hike, with 7 miles the first day, 12 the second, and 4 on the last.  We slept on the ground under the stars and totally had a blast!  I am so glad we went!  Although the Ma and Pa's weren't supposed to push the hand cart, Jeff and I couldn't stand by as our youth struggled, so we stepped in a helped a lot during the 12 mile push.  What a great experience!
We are now getting everything together for our vacay-extravaganza next week.  We will be going to Bear Lake for my family reunion, then staying in Vegas.  We have worked really hard the last few months and are now ready to play hard!  'Till we meet again!

WHAT A DAY!

So, at approximately 7:30am, as Jeff rolled out of bed to get in the shower, I begged kindly suggested that he stay home with the boys and I.  Since, a: I was tired, and b: we just did not get enough of him yesterday. (this quarter's schedule is horrendous and he is gone from 7am-9pm Mon/Wed)  Anyway, so he decided to spend the day with the family!!  WOOHOO!
First, we had a family council to decide what exactly we should do with the afore-mentioned family day.  (which of course was accompanied by Jeff's DELISH pancakes!!)  After much discussion, we concluded the only plausible solution was to go to the beach!  (did I mention it was GORGEOUS today?!)

So, we packed up the essentials, loaded up the boys, and took off to Cambria.  Our first stop was the beach-side version of Firestone.  I'm really not even sure what it's called, since everyone refers to it as "the Firestone in Cambria."  We all shared in a HEAP "basket" of fries, a pig sandwich, and a hot dog.  As you can see in the photos, sometimes Calvin needs some reassurance that things taste good!  He's only REALLY interested in something if you are interested in it as well! :)  While, on the other hand, Boston can and will gulp down anything, edible or not.
After filling our bellies at the local hot spot, we headed down to the shoreline, taking a momentary pause to enjoy in some swing action.  Once hitting the waves, we just sat and admired the beauty.  The day, the ocean, and the beach in general were just BEAUTIFUL!  I am so grateful to live in such a beautiful world!  Calvin found a most desirous stick and contented himself in the sand while we admired.  Then, with no warning at all, he was over the beauty and ready for some more park action.  But, alas, how could we blame him?  It is an amazing park- completely shaded, with recycled tire pieces as cushioning, and oh so clean! :)
We then went on our merry way, stopping here and there to get some menial errands accomplished.  While in the midst of a LONG, HOT line at Target, I decided a dip in a pool was a necessity to top off our already spectacular day.  So, we payed for our loot and headed to Grandpa and Nana's for a quick dip.  Due to the lack of planning, nobody was home, so we got the pool to ourselves!   SCORE Too bad we missed them!  Although, Calvin was less than impressed with the lack of heat to the water... it takes much more than 90 degree weather to heat that beast!  So, he, once again, found a stick and entertained himself while Jeff, Boston, and I took a dip.
Top it all off with a HILAR movie and some DELISH leftovers from last night (check here for the recipe) and we had ourselves a wonderful day!  I LOVE LOVE LOVE my boys and ADORE my husband, just spending time with them makes me so happy! :)  What a beautiful life! :)
ps.. while at our breakfast council, we also came up with our bucket lists of things we want to accomplish... keep your eyes peeled for our posts regarding those lists! :)

Holy SHNIKES, it's been a while! :)

Okay, so even I had to read the last post to recap on what I have and haven't told you in the last while!  And, I must admit, the "haven't told you's" way outnumbered the "have's!"  So, here it is, in the shortest version I can muster up (Jeff teases me about writing too much):
So, I left off in Novemberish... I told you how much I enjoyed teaching cupcakery to beehives... well, guess what?!  THEY CALLED ME TO YOUNG WOMENS!!! Whoohooo!!  I was made 2nd Counselor in the Young Womens Presidency!  Nobody was more excited than me!  So far, I've spent a lot of time getting to know my beehives, put on a fun/fanciful New Beginnings with a Princess theme (be loyal to the royal within), made adorable wallhangings (temple pic with saying: I'm going there someday), and just recently put on our YW auction as our ONE fundraiser for camp (which far exceeded our goal amount)!  Whew, it's been a busy couple of months!! :)
I also have been at the cupcakering (yes, cupcake is now a noun and a verb).  I did a cupcake night with the RS, after which the women decided I was a "blonde Rachel Ray," and needed to go into business.  I am currently undecided, since my husband is soo busy and I'm pushing my photography, but it's definitely fun to think about! :)

I have also started watching a little girl named Africa.  She is sooo cute!  She's 7 1/2 months old and fits right in with us! (and by fits in, I mean I make her match our outfits for church!! LOL)  Since she's so close in age with Boston, it just feels like twins on the days that I have her... further affirming my HUGE desire to have twins!!  So, the hours are crazy, but the pay is great, so we'll keep her around for now! :)
Speaking of Boston, he just had his 9mo checkup yesterday!  (i know, my little baby is not so little anymore!)  He weighed in at a WHOPPING 19 1/2 lbs and stood a sturdy 29in long.  Which, for those of you not up-to-date on relative baby weights and heights: he's 24th percentile in weight and 75th in height.  Good size boy!! :)  And, to really put it in perspective, he and Calvin wear the same size diapers and pants!  But, let's get back to Boston.. he's as sweet and lovable as always, with a smile that melts hearts and a belly laugh that is to die for!  He just got his first tooth and learned to crawl last week.  We were soo impressed since he was not moving one day, then the next he was CRAWLING!  (no army crawl transition)  He can also say Calvin (ca-ca) and growls like a lion.  Boston is also quite the singer- he even has hand motions to go with his high pitched lullabies.. it's adorable!  He's just so cuddly and sweet, and irresistible!
On to the big boy: Calvin!  Calvin is as funny as ever!  He puts himself in "mime out" if he ever hurts Boston, but is also quick to put me or Jeff in "mime out" as well!  He went through a short hitting/grumpy stage, but already seems to be back to my sweet boy.  Calvin LOVES "bean-beans" (green beans), gogurts, and "bunny" (chocolate milk to you and me).  He talks so well, and is always impressing his pediatrician, since he's long since surpassed the two word phrases that are normal for his age.  Cal still loves sports and can name any kind of ball.  We are signing him up for daddy and me soccer this summer!  Calvin LOVES being the big brother.. he's constantly trying to teach Boston new things.  Currently, he's taught him to growl and is working on "pound it."  (the fist bump after a high five)  They are SOO cute together, it just warms my heart to see them get along so well!
Since our last post, we enjoyed a wonderful Christmas with family and Calvin had a Rootin' Tootin' fun 2nd birthday surrounded by TONS of family and friends!  Jeff's bank got shut down by the FDIC and taken over by First Bank of California.  They originally told him they wouldn't have a job for him after June, but have since decided they would try and find a spot for him. (we're praying they do!)  Jeff has had a GREAT winter quarter where he was top of 2 of his classes!  He just started Spring quarter and we're back to never seeing him... :(  But, he only has ONE YEAR until he graduates with a Bachelor's!  I am SO proud of him and so thankful for all of his hard work and the endless hours  he puts in for us!  I know, in the end, all of this time will be so worth it!

My brother, Cody, also got his mission call, to El Salvador!  He leaves next Tuesday!  I cannot believe it, it just seems so unreal!  I'm SO excited and proud of him, but will miss him tons!  Jeff's brother, Brian and his wife Ang had their fourth child last week, Garrett Brian.  We are so excited for them and can't wait to meet him!! 
I think those are all of the HUGE events that took place in the last few months of absence... I will try and be better at keeping up, so that you can hear all of the boring and mundane fun and exciting things that go on in our daily lives!! :)

Whistle While You Work...

So, having two young boys has proven to keep us busier than anticipated, so once again, we are behind on our blogging.  Fortunately, it's never too late to write a few thoughts down.  Especially during a period like this, where, miraculously, both boys are sleeping at the SAME TIME! lol.  It's been a while, so I will do my best to recount the big events in the McCauley household in the past few weeks.
Speaking of sleeping, that has been a big event for us.  Boston is finally sleeping through the night, going a good 8-10hrs each night.  Which makes for a very happy mommy and daddy! :)  Since we are on the topic of our youngest bundle of joy, I will talk about his blessing weekend.  That Friday, Calvin, Boston, and I took Aunt Kim down to Avila Beach to play.  Well, let's be honest, Boston didn't do much besides sleep in his stroller, but the rest of us played! :)  Aunt Wimberly, as we refer to her, loooves to swim in the ocean, so she convinced Cal and I to join her.  Though, I must admit, Calvin took much more convincing than I did.  That cold water just doesn't speak to a 21-month-old like it does to us crazies!  The rest of my family made the trek over to the coast and joined us for some sun-bathing and sandwiches later that day. (and by sunbathing I mean COMPLETELY FRYING my legs knees- yes, knees, I've never burnt them either and would not recommend it to anyone- needless to say, leggings-not jeggings- were a must for sunday's outfit)  After more than our fair share of sun, the boys and I took Aunt Wimberly to the hot-spot on the coast as far as clam chowder is concerned: Splash Cafe.  As expected, she love love loved it!  We finally got home that night, licked our wounds, tidied up for Aunt Kaylene and Uncle Mark, and tucked everyone in for bed.
   The next morning, I arose early to make strawberry pancakes for everyone (Mark's choice) and boy were they yummy.  We then all proceeded to scramble upstairs and make ourselves half way presentable before rushing off to Casi's soccer game and then on to my Dad's FIFTIETH BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION (in a loud, high-pitched annoying voice).  Aunt Wimberly made/taught me to make german chocolate cake- yum, yum, YUMMY!  There, I took some family photos and presented my dad with a photo book of his life... I know, presh, right?!  It took some work, but with Casi's help, he managed to blow out all 50 candles!  Even Calvin was impressed at the light extravaganza on the cake!!  That night, Calvin pleased all of his Aunties, first by saying, in the clearest possible voice, "Kim."  Later he said "Maaawk," which was, impressively, shortly followed by a "Kaywene."  He can even say Gramps now (which is what we call my hoot of a Grandpa, so as not to cause confusion between him and my dad) though it sounds a little more like "gap."
  Sunday, the day Boston had been so eagerly awaiting, (oh, wait, maybe that was me) finally came and Jeff blessed our youngest son.  It was such a sweet blessing, there were even a few comments regarding his words during testimony meeting.  We retired to my parent's house and took pictures and ate, as you might have guessed, CUPCAKES!  We also had to say farewell to our traveling family members who made the trek westward to join us in these joyous celebrations.  :(
The following weekend was conference weekend.  Saturday, we had a breakfast feast at our house and invited Jeff's parents over for some biscuits and gravy (my fav!).  That was also the day of my favorite talk, a talk on simplicity by President Uckdorf.  He quoted DaVinci by saying, "Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication."  Loved it!
A couple days later, I had a great experience.  My friend who serves in Young Womens asked me to teach her Beehives to make cupcakes.  Surreal, I know.  I love cupcakes and love young womens!  It was so much fun chatting and baking with them, they are all so cute and fun!  Calvin also loves cupcakes, so the next night when we had Jeff's parents for dinner, I reenacted the strawberry cheesecake cupcakes.  He helped me saying, "chake, heeelp," (russian accent) the whole time.
Saturday was C-A-R-A-Z-Y!  Cuz I had a bad day... sing a sad song just to turn it around.  I know, lame, but it was.  We just tried to cram too much into one day so that nothing quite went as planned.  My mom and CJ spent the night, since she was in the Pioneer Day Parade.  So, we decked ourselves in our farmiest country drags and headed to the parade, however I had to be at a super saturday, so we didn't get to see much before wizzing off to the next event.  Once at the craft extravaganza, I had enough time to say hello, get the supplies I needed for my crafts and somewhat construct them, then we were off again, this time to a birthday party for one of Cal's friends.  We arrived an hour late and were assigned the potato salad, which we had to assemble there, in front of a roomful of people who had already eaten.  Embarrassing, I know, even worse, we were the only ones to eat it.  Though, for being thrown together, it was BOMBY! :)  We could only stay for an hour, so we said our hellos, dropped off the present, bounced in the bounce house, sang the usual bday song, had some pie, and bolted- off to a photoshoot.  That night, as I made some cookies for an event the next day, it came as no surprise when they did not turn out how they are supposed to.  At that minute, I decided to make the rest the next day and give up on that day altogether.  Jeff so graciously took care of the boys and I face-planted in my pillow, not to be woken until Sunday morning.
That Sunday, we had all kinds of fun.  First, the Spanish Branch Pres asks us to speak in Spanish Branch on November 21.  Which is the Sunday before Thanksgiving, Which is the same Sunday we've spoken the past TWO years in TWO other wards! LOL.  I was pretty nervous and wanted to say no, but then I realized they won't know what I'm saying, and it all of a sudden sounded genius!  Later that day, I finally got my patriarchal blessing.  I know, it's taken me a while, but it was a wonderful experience!  After that, we attended a party at Jeff's parents in honor of our friend and her promising beau.  It was quite the fiesta, however, after Jeff had loaded up Cal's plate with all kinds of Mexican food, he looked up and raised both his hands and said, "where beans?"  We all cracked up, even he knows Mexican food is not complete without some refried beans!  Calvin entertained everyone with his sweet one liners (yes, he is speaking in sentences now) and impressing them with his ball knowledge (he can tell you which ball is which ex: football, soccer ball, bouncy ball, big ball, etc).  We also entertained each other with our embarrassing/funny engagement stories.
Monday was Play Day since Jeff had the day off.  We just hung out and ran errands.  Later that night, Calvin and I were cuddling in bed and giggling, then he decided daddy should be there, so he yelled, "OOOOH DADDY!!!" until Jeff came bounding up.  We then wore Calvin out with tickle fights and scare fests, so he jumped off the bed, headed for the door and turned to reply, "night guys," followed by a huge kiss of the hand.  He cracks us up daily!
I got some quality girl time this week, starting with Zumba on Wednesday night.  It's a latin/african dance class at the gym and is so fun!  I hardly noticed I was working out for an hour!  Friday night was a girls dinner for a friend who is moving to Colorado.  My friend Sara and I went for a little bit then headed off to the movies to see "The way you are" (don't quote me on that, I didn't even know when I was ordering my ticket what the title was) which happened to be hilarious!  It was nice to be able to get out on my own and enjoy some quality time with friends!
Saturday was Pumpkin Patch Day!  We were expecting to get some unbelievably cute pictures, especially since Calvin loves everything Halloween-ghosts, the word boo, and pumpkins, which he calls "punks."  We met Jeff's parents there, but were quickly brought to reality as our son was glued to the cow pen.  It was so impressive to him that cows do, in fact, say mooooooo! :)  We did, however, score some cute pics of our Baby Bear Boston, who was surprisingly in the better mood that day.  Then it was off to Panda for some yummy dinner.  Have I mentioned lately how much my son eats?  He packed away his own side of rice and moved on to tidbits from our meals like it was nothing!  I can't imagine what kind of debt we will go into trying to feed him as a teenager!
Today, Sunday, I got to teach the lesson in Relief Society.  It was a lot of fun, as I got a lot of participation!  Jeff thinks I'm crazy, but I don't feel apart of a ward until I speak or do something, so it felt great to get up there today!  Ok, I probably am crazy, but thanks to my friend Josie, I had a great display! (she taught me the week before how to make a really cute chalkboard)
I love my family!  I have a great husband and two amazing boys!  We are all growing all the time and it is so much fun to look back at our lives and see the progression in each of us!  Now here is my sweet husband with his recap of events:
I am not going to bore you with my take on all that has happened. But I did teach Calvin some new things. Cindy only watches Food Network or HGTV, so Calvin is deprived from the good things in life, aka Sports Center. So I taught him to say "I want to watch Sports Center!" Calvin is also in a phase where he is using our first names, not all the time, but sometimes. Like today after church we were getting ready to leave and he just started yelling, "Jeffrey, Jeffrey!!" I am not sure what he wanted but it was pretty funny. Calvin is soo smart. He comes up with new phrases and words all the time. We should really write them down because I can't think of a lot of them off the top of my head. His favorite phrase is probably, "I want ditza." For those that don't speak Calvin ditza means pizza, which happens to be his favorite food with gapes (grapes) being in close second. When we were at the pumpkin farm yesterday, they had a bull and he was really interested in it, more so than the pumpkins. He wanted to pet it and figured that if he gave it food, it would let him. He started with dirt, apparently cows don't like dirt. So then he went to the stroller and started looking around. He finally looks up and shrugs his shoulders and says "gape?" I have a couple midterms this week, so it should be pretty uneventful, just a lot of studying. I am so grateful for Cindy and all of her patience with me and the boys. I am so excited for the day where I come home from work and can just concentrate on my family. Until then, I owe Cindy big time.