Utah

 There is a lot of family in Utah and we have been able to let the kids play with their cousins several times a week.  In fact, last Friday evening we babysat all the kids so my brother and his wife, and my sister and her husband could go out.  The kids had a great time!

 Here is Annalise, Brock, Vaden and Asher.  They are all about the same age and have a great time together.  The older cousins are fun to have around also because then I don't have to babysit quite as much!

 Emmet is a cute, cute boy!  He had a hard time adjusting the first week and was up several time during the night.  He is doing better now and is starting to sleep longer, which is nice for everyone.

 I love this!  I told them to make a funny face and this is what they did.

 We have gotten to play with my best friend Leeah and her kids Otto and Rowan.  They are my kids ages so it works out perfectly.  One of the times we got together was to visit the Farm.  We walked the kids to the Dairy farm and showed them all the animals.  We saw horses, cows and pigs.  Leeah's kids loved the baby calf barn, but my kids didn't enjoy it very much because they aren't afraid of us and would try to lick them.  It was quite terrorizing for Vaden!

 My kids are great kids and are so funny.  They have a great relationship and get along great, but also fight terribly.  Sibling!

 Another funny photo opportunity.  I wonder what they think sometimes.

 We have also taken advantage of the great weather here. It has been perfect for going outside.  We have played at the park several times.  It is right across the street from my parents house and is a perfect walk for the kids.  We have played in the backyard jumping on the trampoline and riding the merry-go-round.  We have also gone on bike rides.  I do like spending time outdoors and am glad to have a yard for the kids, finally.

Of course it is very fun for the kids to have new toys to play with.  We have spend several mornings building train tracks or raceways or building towers with blocks.  It will be nice to finally have our own space with a playroom!

Move

We moved to Utah the beginning of this month. It was a lot of work and we are glad that portion of our move is over, though we still have a ways to go.  After loading our moving van and cleaning our townhome(Thanks to all who helped move, clean, and watch our kids), I flew out with the kids and Ryan drove. My mother-in-law, Susan flew with us to help me with the kids.  Richard, Ryan's brother, helped drive our van and moving truck with Ryan.  It was a 30 hour drive and took 3 days so we were very grateful for all the help!
Now that we are here, we are staying with my parents while our house gets built.  It should be done in about 6 months, but we'll just have to wait and see:)  I am very excited about our new house and all the possibilities we'll have with it.  We are also excited to start a life in a new community with our kids. 
It has been 8 years since I have lived in Utah.  We have lived in Chicago, Alexandria, and Sterling, VA.  All of those places are very different from Utah and big cities, next to tourist attractions.  It's a different lifestyle, not to mention we have been away from family most of the time.  So it will be a bit of an adjustment moving back.  I'm optimistic though that our experiences have made us more diverse and accepting and will help us really make the most of our new home and community.
Some things in Utah are great: Fry Sauce, LDS bookstores, Mormon displays in Costco, Family, No rated R movies playing at the gym, the library movie section is watchable, etc.
Some things in Utah I don't think I'll ever get use to: Big hair, sparkly back pockets on everyones jeans(I can't believe I use to wear these),  driving everywhere at high speeds, the bright sun, etc.
We sorely miss our friends in VA and will try to stay in touch and keep those friendships alive, but for better or worse we are here now and we plan to make the most of it and live the best we know how.

Asher turns 4

Asher is now 4 years old!  He is 42 inches tall and weighs 45 pounds.

Here are a Q&A I did with Asher:

What is your favorite color?

      -Blue

Who is your hero?

      -I don't know. . . Mom

What do you want to be when you grow up?

      -Lion

What is your favorite food?

      -bananas

Who is your best friend?

      -Mom.  Vay.

What is your favorite show?

      -Dora

What is your favorite toy?

      -The train tracks

Where do we live?

      -Grandma's House

Where did we use to live?

      -I don't know

 

 Asher is a good boy.  He is still shy in social settings and he would rather stay home with me then go run errands with Dad.  He likes stability and comfort.

He is a great big brother and a good example for his younger siblings.  He is super healthy.  He is a great eater and loves fruits and veggies.  He always wants to go running with us when we go.  He loves school and to learn.  He knows the alphabet, his numbers (he can count to 100 with a little help), and knows how to spell and almost write his name.  He is also getting more precise with his coloring.  He will take the time to color inside the lines and to completely fill it in.

He likes brushing his teeth and does so quite often as he is afraid they will fall out if he doesn't (I'm not sure how things are going to go when he actually does lose his baby teeth).

As always, he is very active and loves to be outside.  He loves jumping on the trampoline and pushing himself and Vaden around on the Merry-go-round.

He still gets upset about little things and needs hugs and kisses.  Even though he growing up and getting bigger and older he is still our little baby.  We love him!