no fall finn

It has been on my mind lately that much too often I hold my kids back. I find it easier/quicker/cleaner to just do things myself when my kids are completely capable. Not to mention the fact that I'm admittedly in denial about how quickly they are growing up--can't I just keep my babies safely tucked under my wing forever?! So I shouldn't have been surprised last Saturday when Brad took Finn's training wheels off and he just popped right up and rode circles around us. First shot, no falls! He is such a stud and now loves riding his bike even more than before--if that's possible.
Galla was a little less eager to learn, but I'm sure she'll come around soon. She is so independent and desirous to do things and I need to let her. And how cute is little Paisley back there on her trike?

first birthday fiesta

Mr. Cinco de Mayo turned one (What?! I know, how did that happen?) and we celebrated in style! We threw the biggest party we've ever done complete with:
a chili pepper pinata and a bounce house...
...dancing with Mimi...
...a taco bar completely home-cooked by Brad. It was sooo tastey and we had way more than enough of everything! We will be eating leftovers here for weeks and I don't mind because it is so yummy...
...a chocolate fountain and a Cookie Monster cake by mom.
I chose Cookie Monster not necessarily because Ryken loves the character, but because the way Ryken eats reminds me of him. He's always shoving food in his mouth and making a lot of noise in the process--it's so funny! Also, Brad's mom made him a Cookie Monster cake for one of his birthdays when he was very young.
Here's my little monster eating his cake! Look at that cute face!
Seriously, take a closer look! My little boy is so sweet and I couldn't love him more. Ryken is definitely the most cuddly of my kids and I love to snuggle with him. He is so playful and loves when I crawl after him and chase him and grab his feet.
Ryken is also a good sharer! I think he wasn't crazy about the coconut in the frosting because he kept trying to pull it out of his mouth.
Thank you to everyone who helped us celebrate our little man's birthday! Especially my parents and sister and her fiance and Brad's parents and Ryan and Stephanie and kids! Brad's family came up early to help us get ready and we had such a fun afternoon hanging out. Stephanie is like 36 weeks pregnant and made the trip up from SoCal and we're so glad they did! It was great to see Ryan and Steph and have the cousins play.
They so love each other--Steph, I'm excited for your new little girl to join the cousin clan!

Happy birthday baby boy. Now don't get any older!!

close call

Last weekend we had a near collision of fairytale characters! So, of course we had Easter complete with several celebrations during the proceeding week.
I never got a really good picture, but these were their Easter outfits (the headbands were Galla's creative contribution).
We went to an egg hunt at our gym. It was so sunny! I finally gave up asking them to put their hands down and smile for the camera and snapped this silly shot.
Gotta love licking melted chocolate from inside the plastic eggs. Like I said, it was sunny!

We had a really fun hunt and lunch with some friends from our ward.
And a good old-fashioned backyard search after church.
Ryken found his own fun. No, it's not chocolate--even better to a little boy..it's mud! Yum!
Here's where the close call came in: Easter morn Galla lost her first tooth! What was I just saying about my babies growing up too quickly? I told Galla I was kinda sad because that means she's getting big. I also told her that the Tooth Fairy comes and takes your tooth and leaves you money to save for college. She then walks into the other room and tells Brad, "Dad, Mom's going to cry when I go to college." She has no idea!
So the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy missed each other by one night. And this is what that crafty little fairy left under Gal's pillow. Galla loved it and is already working on losing tooth #2!