Life is constantly changing. I am very behind on blogging. But I just made a big ole list of my goals in life and one of them is to get this here blog updated. Eventually I want to print it into a book...a year at a time. I need money for that I think... :)

 Connor putting "gas" in his car!

 Mowing the lawn

 Connor milk!

 Show me your teeth!

 Sweet smiles

Yummy finger! I like to suck my thumb too!

So let me just highlight the goings on in our lives!

Connor LOVES to play outside and spring weather has treated us well. He can play outside for hours. One day I think he was out there from sun up to sun down with breaks to eat and take his nap. He goes out there before he even has his jammies changed into his clothes. He "mows the lawn" with the $1 lawnmower I bought him at a yard sale last year. He picks flowers and stuffs them in his pocket. He drives his car around as well as his bike. He climbs the stairs on the side of the house to his little playhouse and makes "food" which is really sand from his sandbox. His vocabulary has increased exponentially. He talks in complete sentences, and can communicate almost perfectly with us. He sings all the time, to himself and for us. He knows the words to a lot of primary songs, like Jesus Wants me for a Sunbeam" and "Whenever I hear the song of a bird"...he is a beautiful singer! I hope he gets some musical talent :-) He is hitting that phase where the things he says and does make us laugh so hard! His phrase that is most common is "Oh my heck!" which signifies his Utah upbringing....oh boy.  He knows it's funny so he says it more! He was a crack up on our cruise with all his "oh my hecks"!

Parker is at one of my favorite ages. 6 months old is SO fun! He sleeps better (mostly) he eats solids which means a little less nursing and more flexibility for me. And he is starting to babble! We love hearing his "bababa" and "dadadada". It's so fun! He smiles and giggles and is SO easy going. He has piercing blue eyes that people can't help but comment on when they see him. He's just a beautiful happy fun baby! So far he likes sweet potatoes, pears and apples. He doesn't love bananas too much, and he HATES carrots. Squash he can do..but it's not his fave. I think it's so funny how babies have preferences so young. He also hates taking medicine. He turns his head away and refuses to open his mouth! Connor used to love ANYTHING you gave him and still does! :-)  Parker spends his days taking frequent naps, eating, pooping, playing outside in his bouncer while his brother plays, laying on his play mat and talking to his dangling toys, being held and cuddled by all 8 members of the family and snuggling with his mommy. He is a darling boy and I am so happy to have him! I don't want him to get teeth...his gummer smile is my favorite!

They boys are best friends and are interacting with each other more and more. They make each other so happy and they are both fascinated with one another.  They can spend long periods of time cuddling with each other and talking to each other. It melts my heart!

Benjamin is taking a big turn in his life and pursuing some different avenues. He has an amazing talent and has been taking advantage of it for many years due to some bad experiences in the past. But he has slowly realized how happy it makes him and the denial is slowly melting away. I am rooting him on and hoping he keeps it up. He is taking voice lessons from Brodie Perry and I think he will be able to get Ben's voice where he wants it. If so, Ben may have his name in lights someday! I know he could make it big and his voice is at a stage where he could really be successful. He wants to sing in Operas and I think he would be incredible. Watching him perform makes me get chills and sometimes makes me cry, and in certain settings makes me giddy! He's just TALENTED!!!

I am still doing photography and getting more into it each day. It's not my #1 passion...my kids definitely are.  I love having something to do for myself and it helps make money for my family but I am careful not to get too obsessed and consumed with it. Funny how when I when I had a job before kids all I wanted to do was stay home and take care of a family. And I'm thrilled to be doing that, but I realize I still need to pursue my goals and interests and be a better me so I can help them be better people! It's a hard balance to achieve. As I type this post Connor is "raking" the lawn and I know I could be paying a little more attention to him but I never have time to post! And thank goodness he knows how to occupy himself. Sometimes that leads to mischief however....

I'm grateful for my career because it means I take more pictures of my own kids...for practice and because I love doing it. I find myself taking way too many and have to delete a lot of the dumb ones, which is hard because every single picture is so sweet to me!

Well there's the update and I'll work on getting caught up!