Brayden's First Haircut

So pretty much all of Brayden's life the whole 10 months of it he has had funny hair. So many people notice his hair and comment about how funny it is. I admit it is funny and sticks straight up. Even his grandma Harvey would try to slick it down by licking her fingers and patting it down when she babysat him. It needed to be cut, but there is some sort of nervousness that comes with letting go of the baby hair. I guess facing the fact that while still a baby he is getting older and growing up. So, I finally told Phil that I just can't let it go anymore.

We got everything ready right before bath time. I tried to just trim it and let it be a longer cut, but Phil didn't like it so he took the clippers and buzzed the poor kid. Fortunately I know it will grow back and I hope fast because he looks so funny. 

 BEFORE: Bushy and Uneven

AFTER: Total buzz. :( Ready to enter the army. 

 What have we done? I sure hope I can master cutting my boy's hair because he can't go around with a buzzed head for the rest of his life. At least I don't want him too. Phil loves it and probably wants me to keep it buzzed. I don't think so dad!

Brayden I am sorry your first haircut did not go as planned and you ended up with a practically bald head. I will try harder to keep daddy away from the clippers. 

Oh, and since we are talking about hair Summer needs to be mentioned. After her bath the other night I told her she needed to dry her hair and brush it out. She came back like this and with a lot of pride. She said, "Do you like it? A lot of girls at my school wear their hair like this. It's called a side ponytail." Summer I think the side ponytail is suppose to go slightly behind your ear on the side and not right at your forehead with all the hair combed over on top of your head. 

She makes me laugh. I love that she was so serious and so proud of doing her own hair. 

Exploring the Sunny Days

We sure do love the sun. Sometimes we are reminded of how nice it was to have so much of it when we lived in Houston. We enjoy every bit of it here as the sunny days are few and far between. There is so much to do here when the weather is not wet and mushy. 

 Brayden is starting to love exploring at the parks. He can't do much, but he just loves being outside and in the fresh air. We usually put him down the slide with Summer and in the baby swing. When we are at a park that doesn't have bark chips we put him on the ground to crawl around. I wonder why some places still use those bark chips they are so annoying. Anyhow we just play around them.

 Loving the freedom.

 This time of year I love because the bright green moss covers the trees and makes it look like Ferngully the Last Rainforest. Summer loves when we go outside together. Really who wouldn't love being outside exploring. There is so much to see and find.

 We found this interesting looking vehicle and I told her she could pretend it was her ice cream truck.

I can't believe how big she is getting.

 Crossing the Bridge.

 Really Summer's face shows just how awesome it is to be outside. It lights up her face every time. If she is ever sad I should just send her outside for a while.

Brayden having his first ride on the pooh bear bike. This was actually Summer's first birthday present. I 

am glad to put it to use again. 

Soon enough we will actually be able to put Brayden in the bike trailer. We did a short test run and he enjoyed it. Summer definitely went through a growth spurt since moving here. She really doesn't fit in it at all and before she fit with plenty of room to spare. She will just have to do her own peddling from now on. 

This was not taken on a sunny day, but the ice cream was fantastic and we plan to eat some on nice sunny days. 

I look forward to exploring some more. Perhaps farther from the house next time. 

April Fools Day and Big Roach

This year for April fools my intention was to make some fun cupcakes that looked like the main course. Well I did do some that looked like spaghetti and meatballs since that is Summer's favorite meal. While shopping for the ingredients I saw some large dates in the bulk section. I was reminded of when we first moved to Langley from Houston and Summer saw them. She said, "Mom, come look at these they look just like cockroaches."

When I remembered this I had to buy one and put it in her bathroom for her to find on April fools. That night I got practically no sleep since Brayden thought he would fool me and not sleep through the night. I was lying in bed the next morning while Philip watched Brayden and Summer downstairs. The next thing I know I hear Summer screaming and bawling at the top of her lungs. I know right away what just went down. I knew Philip was not going to let me off the hook because he had warned me the night before that it was a bad idea. Anyhow, I went to her rescue and calmed her down explaining that it was not really a roach, but one of the dates like she saw at the store. After calming down she thought is was a tad funny. I'm such a mean mom.

She immediately remembered the tricks she wanted to play on Philip. The problem was she didn't wait to do it. She went right downstairs and made a sandwich with mustard, lettuce, and cheese on it to give to her dad who HATES mustard. Well she didn't execute it well as he was not planning to eat a sandwich for breakfast and definitely not one with what appeared to be just lettuce and bread. Of course he opened it and caught her trick. Oh well Summer maybe next year. At least I fooled her. Haha.

Easter

I am late to post about Easter as I am to post about most things. We had a wonderful Easter as we were reminded of our Savior Jesus Christ, the Atonment, and especially that Jesus Christ was resurrected and that He still lives. What a wonderful message of hope to share with our children, family, and friends. There are some awesome videos about the ministry of Jesus Christ you can find here at  

www.lds.org/bible-videos?lang=eng

 Before heading to church the kids wanted to find their baskets. Summer had written a letter to the Easter Bunny asking all sorts of questions about how the Easter Bunny looks and if there is magic. I should have written it down or at least taken a picture of it but unfortunately I didn't. Summer found her basket on the first try. The Easter Bunny should have known she always hides behind the couch from us and that would be the first place she would look. Brayden didn't really get it of course, but next year will be more fun for him.

 We went to church and the weather was actually pretty nice. This made it possible for a quick photo before heading home.

It was really nice to spend Easter with family and also to be relieved from cooking duty. I loved it. Philip's mom and dad are leaving on a mission to Zambia, Africa in May so it was nice to spend quality time with them before they leave.

The kids enjoyed hunting a few eggs in grandma and grandpa's back yard. I have fun memories of my childhood Easter. Our community had a big easter egg hunt at the city park every year. The park grounds were filled with candy and when the whistle blew we just ran and picked up as much as we could. Those were good times.

Battle Wounds

 This is what happens when you horse around and land on your head wearing a headband. Yep Summer learned the hard way. The teeth on the headband went punctured right through the skin and left her in a lot of pain. I am sure she will remember to take it off next time she wants to be super woman. 

A month ago Brayden was trying so hard to tackle crawling. He wanted to go places so bad but couldn't quit get the hang of it. Well he was able to scoot over to the side table which has these metal legs. He learned the hard way that bonking your head on it doesn't feel too good. Poor guy. I need to get rid of the tables since they are not kid friendly at all. 

Unfortunately my sweet kids this is only one of many battle wounds you will have in life. I wish I could tell them they won't ever get hurt again, but I would be lying. Fortunately we all usually heal from life's bumps and bruises.