For Love of the Game...

Braydon is playing for the Colorado Rockies this baseball season. He is so cute in his uniform and it is one of our favorite times of the year! There is just something about being at a ball field that I just love! (maybe it's partly b/c that was where as a teenager my friend, Lindsay, and I would go to flirt with and watch all the cute boys!)
Now I get to go watch my own cute boy~even better!
Braydon had his first two practice games Tuesday night and all was going great until one fast knuckle ball hit him square in the pinkie as he was up to bat. It gave him a pretty good cut and lots of swelling. He said it was very sore, but didn't continue to complain any more, so I debated whether or not to take him to the doctor. I finally followed my instinct today and took him in. 'Twas a good thing too, because he did in fact have a broken finger and not only that, but it broke in the "growth center" which means possible danger there that the finger may never grow anymore. He has to go see an orthopedist and get it all checked out. Tricky business.
Here is my positive little buddy- splinted finger and x-ray. Too bad this happened so early in the season, but I don't think it'll slow him down too much. It's just sometimes the price you pay for love of the game...

The sweet talk of a 4 year old...

This post is dedicated to the sweet things that Chaser says.


I just had my birthday and Chase was not going to forget it- at all!
Here is one of our conversations:
Chase: "I wish I could buy you a present for your birthday."
Me: "Aww...buddy, that is so sweet! What would you buy me?"
Chase: "Some ink for your computer."
Me: "I would love that! "
Chase: "But Mommy, Do you like old things?"
Me (curiously): "Umm.. yeah, I like some old things. How come?"
Chase: "Since I don't have money, I'll just give you my old police car."
Me (melting by this point): "I would love that more than anything!"

How precious is that? I NEVER want to forget that conversation!
Then for my birthday, my friend, Candace had us over for lunch. As we were leaving, she gave me this beautiful topiary for a bday gift. When Chase and I got in the car to go home, he asked, "Mommy, what did Candace give you for your birthday?"
Me: "She gave me a topiary."
Chaser: "Mommy, when I get big, I will buy you a topinary for every birthday."

(Isn't that just so sweet? He was mighty impressed with your gift, Candace!)

Just yesterday, I wasn't feeling too well. I had a bad headache, so I was lazy and laid around half the morning. Once I finally got up off the couch to start in on some responsibilities for the day, I said to Chase, "Sorry Mommy has been sick today, bud."
Then he replied in the sweetest voice,
"That's nothing to be sorry about."
Wow! How I love this little boy!


And for laughs, one final Chaserism. We were having a lot of rain a couple of weeks ago and the kids were riding their bikes at the church across the street. The rain brought the earthworms out in droves. When Chase came back home, he said very excitedly, "Mommy, it is raining worms! They are everywhere! On the street, on the road, on the grass, EVERYWHERE!"
As proof, he brought a few back in his trike.
Unfortunately, I forgot to let them go, and a few days later we were outside and Chase showed me his worms again-this time dried to a crisp. yuck!
Chase: "See, Mommy, They were alive, but now they're just corpse." (singular)

Not sure where he even learned that word, but it must be essential in "boy talk".

Spring Break

Even though our Spring Break started out like this:




It ended up like this:



* This is just at a local park. Even though I wish we had gone to the real Statue of Libery!

*This marina view was so beautiful- the pictures don't even give it justice!






What a difference a few days can make! And Thank Goodness for that!

Cute Chic...

This has got to be the BEST use of an Easter egg I have ever seen! (Even more so than Chocolate filled!)
We got such a belly laugh over this little chick! Which makes me realize one of the greatest benefits of having children: Pure, Unadulterated Entertainment!
Livvy was getting such a kick out of making us laugh...such a sweetie. When we showed her the pics, she replied, "bird, bird."
That's right, baby!
It really is the little things that make life great! Love moments like this!

Easter Fun...

Traditional Egg hunting, with, yes, the traditional terrible weather! We were drenched and cold, but I don't think the kids minded too much!
Livvy caught on very quickly. She can even peel the foil off chocolates. We start them out with the most necessary skills in our family. :)
For fun & something different, I made paper-mache eggs with a surprise inside. Then I let the kids paint them, but they had to wait a couple of days for it all to dry. Then on Easter morning, they got to crack open these eggs. This was probably one of the funnest things we did. Will I do it again? Maybe in a few years!

Quite the mess, but sometimes ya gotta make a good mess!

Easter Morning- Bedheads and all. Chase's face here says, "Are you really gonna make me take pictures this early in the morning???" With Sommer's baptism and all the Easter festivities, it was very busy, but such a fun weekend to spend as a family!

I Belong To The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints!

All dressed in white and clean and pure. Sommer was baptized on Saturday. It was a beautiful service and the Spirit was so strong. It's hard to believe my little girl is eight years old!

Being baptized by Daddy was a special blessing to say the least.

As parents, we are so proud that Sommer has a testimony of the Savior and wanted to be baptized like he was.

If you take a good look at the painting behind Sommer and Wade, it is of the Savior walking into the water to be baptized. It really is such a neat painting and we thought it was an appropriate backdrop for the photos on Sommer's baptism day.

My Beautiful Sweet Girl

This bow in her hair is the same bow that was her blessing bracelet as a baby. We have a little poem that goes with it that reads like this:

A bracelet for her tiny wrist

For the special day she's blessed.

Another blessing in her life;

She turns eight and will be baptized.

Tie this bow in her pretty hair

And all in White She'll Happily Wear.

She's all grown up and ready to say,

"I'm all getting married. It's my Wedding Day!"

The bouquet she carries with great pride

Will have this bow all tied inside.

This little keepsake will last forever,

Throughout her life, she'll always treasure!

Isn't that the sweetest? It seems like yesterday I was putting it on her wrist for her blessing day. Where does the time go??? However, it is such a blessing to see your children grow and make good choices! We are so proud of our little Sommer-shine!

Invitation...

Yes, this Saturday @10:30 am is Sommer's baptism. I've removed some of the information off of this invite, but anyone who would like to come, we'd love to have you. Just get in touch with me for address, etc.!
Thanks!

Don't Judge Me!!!

Warning: She is Contagious!
Her Laughter, That IS! I can't help but crack up over this sweet baby! The purpose of this post is to show everyone some of Livvy's many expressions. So many people think she is oh, so sober. But I hate it when people say that because She Really is not! She is just so much more lively at home than in public! I think she has the cutest personality and gives us the cheesiest grins. She also has a definite "Miller" temper.
I think this is a funny pic that I snapped in between her purposeful tumbles on Sommer's bed. This girl is a climber and busy-busy!!! She loves to play, but she also loves to hug and kiss and just be her sweetheart self!
Her talking and words are so cute right now!
Here are some of my current faves:
Mama (when does that ever get old? Never!)
Baby
walk
Chase
STOP!
Hot!
Meow
Moo
Ruff-Ruff
Book
ni-night

PLUS:
"I think I have my Daddy wrapped around my itty-bitty finger!"
"Look at me- How big I am!"
"SOBER??? I DON"T THINK SOOO!"

Wizard of Oz

Sommer just had her 1st dance recital. It was The Wizard of Oz and she was one of the poppies that puts Dorothy, etc. to sleep. Here are just a few pictures of Sommer's special evening that I thought she looked so cute in!

I think she did a great job and is a beautiful little dancer!
Sommer is on the left in this photo. Aren't these costumes so cute?
Here is Sommer and her dance teacher. It was such a fun night! She had a lot of family come out and support her. As a mom, I really love moments of celebration like this! I am glad she got to feel the fruits of her labor! She was a little surprised, she says, when she looked out and saw so many people in the audience, but she didn't miss a beat. I'm so very proud of her! Sommer is such a good girl! I love her to pieces!

Chaserisms Part VI

The Face of Innocence


Do you wanna know what kinds of things kids say when they are raised in a home where they are taught to:
LOVE ONE ANOTHER
DO UNTO OTHERS...
CHOOSE THE RIGHT
ETC., ETC.,

Here are a couple of examples:

We were watching a Baby Einstein. It is a favorite around here. Hippos were on the screen.

CHASE: "You know why I don't like Hippos?"

WADE & ME- a little confused: "Umm...Why?"

CHASE : "Cuz they're DANG FAT!"

nice, huh?

Also, Chase thinks he has to sleep in our bed. It is getting harder these days too, if ya know what I mean. Anyway, this one night, he was in the middle and Wade and I were carrying on with a little night-time conversation when Chase lets out this aggravated sigh? "What?" we ask.

Then he replies, "YOU GUYS ARE DRIVING ME CRAZY!!!"

(THEN GO TO YOUR OWN BED!!!)

Adding to that, last week Chase wanted me to read him a book about life's lessons for parents as a bedtime story. (He likes to read the most RANDOM books. Mostly textbooks, how to books, etc. For real! It is weird!) Anyway, we were kicking back in my bed (of course) and I began reading.
#1- Be Around
I read each one to him, but for blog sake, I will skip to
#17- Don't let him sleep in your bed, even if he's scared or sick. Sleep in his room on the floor. ( I just give him THE EYE)
(Keep Reading) Skip to #31-An unhappy boy is often one who is hungry or tired. Or both.


Then he interrupts me and says in the sweetest voice says, "But Mommy, I can sleep in your bed, right?" (Funny, how he couldn't stop thinking about that one!)
Me, "The book says no."
I'm so mean! However, he did still sleep with us that night and every night since!

lastly, I walked into the kitchen the other day and Chase had made himself a sandwich. Are you ready for this? It was honey and pickle. (ugh!) In his words, it is "SOOOO GOOD! IT tastes just like pickles and honey!" Gee, Imagine that?! He offered me some, which I declined . :)

Disclaimer- I REALLY don't tell my kids they drive me crazy! I'm not that mean!
This can be proven by the fact that I never use the words, "You Guys". I'm a "y'all" gal! So, I don't know where Chase got that one!

Actually, I know one day I'm going to really miss this!

Oh, and by the way, I realized that i have been blogging for exactly one year today! Wow- So much can happen in a year! I am so glad that I have my blog to help me document our lives! Soon, I am printing out all of last year's post as a journal. I'm excited to do this every year!