PIcture Upload!

Looking through the blog I realize how NOT updated I am on photos of Parker...I still take a ton of Connor because he is more mobile..but I DO get some of Parker and I need to post! These are from January!

California 2012!

We went to California last month and I finally organized my photos on my memory card! Which means I'll be doing some back up posting too...I don't even think I posted pics from our family Christmas party yet! Anyway...here are pics from our adventures!

Connor played with Grandma Tyrrel. They picked oranges off the tree and then made a home made bird feeder out of a pine cone, peanut butter and bird feed! Grandma showed him how to eat oranges by sucking on each slice and having an orange smile! Connor has eaten them that way ever since.

The fruit trees in the backyard. I have always been in love with these trees, and the fruit from them is by far the BEST you will ever taste. I think we brought home nine big bags of oranges! They have lemons and pomegranates in addition to the 8 or so orange trees! Connor had so much fun exploring the backyard and picking oranges. It was a little boy's paradise.

Connor hasn't seen his great aunt Jaelene since he was 8 months old! He saw grandma Pat at graduation but was so happy to see her again too! Parker got to meet lots of family as well! Everyone loved seeing our two fun boys! Grandma Pat got nervous with Connor on the trampoline and offered many times to babysit for us so we could go on vacation :) If only we had somewhere to go and money to get there!

We got to meet some new family members as well! I had never met Ben's uncle Alward, and I did so for the first time! They had brought Breanna back from Arizona so they stayed with the Tyrrel's for a couple nights as well. Alward, his girlfriend and her son all stayed so we had a full house! It was fun visiting and it was interesting to meet one of Ben's uncles because I got a glimpse into what he may look like in 20 years! Ha ha...

Grandma Tyrrel had fun laying with Parker on the floor and showing Connor how to play piano. They loved spending time with her!

Beautiful sunset and Connor picking oranges

Our rental van. They overly upgraded us because they didn't have the car we reserved so we got to ride in luxury! It was so fun! It had all the bells and whistles and there were still tricks we discovered at the end of the trip! We could have plugged our phones into the outlet in the backseat..or even hooked up our Wii haha. Connor had fun riding in there, watching movies and then going for rides in California.

It's scary how much he loves to DRIVE! He gets into every car he can! At one point when Ben was cleaning the van out for our return trip home I heard a little voice. I went in to the house and they all said Connor had gone outside. I couldn't see him anywhere but after looking again I saw him sitting in Grandma Tyrrel's car just playing and getting into her gum! Such a stinker!

So that's our trip in a nutshell! I did't get any pics at the Balboa Bay Beach club where Ben and I had brunch but it was beautiful! :)

The simple life

Life has been interesting lately. I have learned a lot of lessons and have felt the crunch of trials hitting me hard. I have been humbled time and time again and really started to feel like a "grown up". Which is hard to do when you live with your parents again and fight with your teenage sisters. It's hard to feel like a big kid. But I am, because I get to deal with big kid things. I am a mother of two wonderful but sometimes impossible little boys! I love it- and I don't like it at the same time.

Let me start with Tennessee. Ben almost got a job there. Almost has become one of our most frequented words. We "almost" have gotten a lot of jobs. But this one was better than the others because I actually wanted to live there. It was a cute town about an hour away from Nashville- called Sewanee. I was excited to live in a part of the country where we'd never even visited. Well it didn't happen. They hired someone not even close to what they were looking for. When that happens we just KNOW it wasn't meant to be. The Lord doesn't want us in Tennessee. So....what now?

So we decided let's just do things on our own. Ben will start consulting and freelancing for non profit organizations, and I am doing more with my photography business. I have booked one wedding so far, and have been doing more family shoots. I am loving it, but still have my days where I wonder....do I really want to have to work while I have these two babies? I mean yes it's part time and very fun- but my kids are so much work and I hate leaving them sometimes. It is a burden to have to leave my little two year old and 4 month old- even if it's with my mom. But I have really pushed myself to progress and I love it a lot. So I'm doing it- just not full time yet. It's VERY part time.

The next thing is-- we went to California a week or so ago. We haven't been down there since Connor was 8 months old..so a year and a half. He LOVED the visit. And so did I! It was relaxing and fun. Connor played with grandma Tyrrel and made a bird feeder out of a pine cone, picked fresh oranges off the tree and had LOTS of space to run around and nobody to annoy! Ben's sister Breanna was only there for the last 2 days so it was just Connor and his grandparents. He had a lot of fun...and we got to have a little afternoon off. Sunday just happened to be the annual Opera Pacific reunion luncheon. The old Chairman of the Board still puts on an annual lunch for all old employees of the opera to come and see each other and reminisce. We've never been able to go- and weren't planning on it- but happened to be down that weekend. So we left both boys with grandma and drove down. Driving around in our old neighborhood made me SO sad. We really had such fun times down there. Our newlywed months were SO fun. Going to Disneyland, working full time and having money to burn, the beach not far away....oh man. I was missing it badly. Then we drove down to the club where the luncheon was. It was called the Balboa Bay Beach club. It was- in a word- FANCY. Like the cheapest thing on the menu was $28- and that was for eggs Benedict. Thankfully we didn't have to pay- it was all covered by Mr. Musco. At first I was almost giddy--excited to be in this atmosphere again. Rubbing elbows with the wealthy high to do people. It was so fun! Everything was so nice- the flowers were real, the drinks were fancy....it was awesome.

By the end of the three hour lunch I was over it. I had sat across from Mrs. Musco and heard her talk about her grandkids, her life--issues that the rich society face. It was exhausting feeling like I had to hang on her every word- because she is rich and was paying for this meal. It reminded me how I actually HATE this lifestyle. Then to my left was Mary- OP's old secretary. She is so SO sweet and very talkative when you get her going. Her life was so REAL. She takes care of grandkids because of wayward children. She is helping out with a grandson who has autism and goes on walks for autism. She rambled for like 15 minutes and I wasn't anxious for her to stop- I was enjoying hearing her talk- over hearing the rich lady talk. It made me realize how much I've changed. But maybe I was always like this.

Having a family has made me appreciate simplicity. Everyone was proud of their jobs and accomplishments. I was proud to say that I have had 2 kids since the opera closed. They were amazed that we had two! We haven't had work in 3 1/2 years. That's a long time....a very long time. But life is so simple. We have hardly any extra expenses. We don't have i-phones, i-pads, or anything very new. We have nice things don't get me wrong...but we live a very simple life. I love it. I love my trials- they have truly made me stronger!!!

Life is really hard right now. I find myself feeling discouraged more than encouraged lately. I have a hard time doing the mundane things- but they somehow get done. People said being a mom was hard but I had no idea HOW hard. It's rough!!! But then I think of others...like my best friend Lauren who has tried for years to have a baby and it just isn't happening. And I hurt for her, and it makes me appreciate these mommy days where I literally pull my hair out. Love you La...and you can take my kids for a week whenever you want! :)

I was walking yesterday and saw my Honda parked in the driveway...and at first thought "I can't wait til we have enough money to buy a minivan.." then I realized people make do with MUCH less and far worse. We have two functioning vehicles...we don't need anything more right now. It made me realize how easy it is to be waiting for the next step in life instead of enjoying the phases we are currently in.

Lots of life lessons at the Tyrrel household...more than I can even post! I have so many pics to post of what's been going on. I feel so behind...I just need to get them uploaded! SO the next post will be all pictures!

We are alive!

I can't believe it's been so long. I'm overwhelmed by what I need to post to be caught up- but I'll use this few minutes of free time I have to post that our lives are good. Ben interviewed for a job in Tennessee last week and it went very well! We will hear the official word in a week...so a long wait but hey we're used to that. He loved it there and we both really hope this one works out. Cross your fingers and say your prayers!

The boys are both doing great. They both went to the doctor last week. Parker weighs 12 pounds and Connor weighs 31 pounds! They are both healthy and strong and doing GREAT! I am so proud of my sweet boys. Connor is talking so much more and has real conversations with me which is really entertaining and fun. He is in love with his Curious George toy which his dad gave him when he was born. He calls it "Gorge" like pronounced like the gorge you drive through to get to Nevada...ha ha. We love him and he is SO funny to us!

Parker is 3 months old now! Man time flies..and goes even faster when it's your second baby! Time went slow with Connor but it seems I can't keep up with life with this second baby! I don't know what I'll do when I don't have the help I have now- but I think I'm pretty well adjusted to what it's like to be a mom of two. They keep me on my toes but I do have time to myself at least a little bit each day! Parker is rolling from tummy to back but not back to tummy yet. Which is nice cuz we can still let him lay on the coffee table on his blankets and toy thing. He is almost giggling, trying so hard to get one out! He smiles A LOT and has the cutest little squint when he smiles. He coos and is for the most part a very happy pleasant baby. He screams VERY loud and has way more volume than Connor ever did! He really isn't a fan of the car and cries mostly when we have to go shopping. But he's a good eater which I am very happy about!

My boys love each other, and it always calms Parker down when Connor comes and gives him a hug and says "A-boooo!!!" to him which is what he sees mommy do. Parker also loves watching Connor play and it is the sweetest thing to see him watching so intently. Connor is a mimic and copies EVERYTHING we say and do. Recently he says "uh up" which is "shut up". We say this to the dogs when they bark...and he picked up on it. My sisters have him saying some other interesting things- but so far no swear words which is great. It's hilarious to hear him copy our every word as we drive in the car or whatever.

So here are a few recent pictures of our litte family! We are staying busy and loving life...one day at a time!

"Ah done"...ok Connor just leave him there. It's fine.

My sweet boys

Poor bubba likes to scratch himself...

Parker has found his hands recently and LOVES to eat them! :)

Family picture

My baby and me! (check out ny hand in regard to story below)

Sweet boy with grandpa.

Looking at his toys

Some days this is all we see of Parker...the cry face. :) Hey we ALL have bad days yeah?

Connor and "Gorge"

Also a funny side story so I never forget...I lost my storage unit keys in my console of my honda. They kept falling further down there...since there is a little hole stuff falls into. Well long story short- my dad was pulling stuff apart and couldn't see them so he was giving up. I stuck my hand in a little hole in the back of the console...and it got STUCK. VERY STUCK. Like anxiety attack because we're going to have to call the fire dept. stuck. I freaked. We said a prayer- my dad said "Yeah I'll say a prayer after I stop laughing"...because it was funny at first. Then sad. Then scary! So in the end no matter what my dad did to get my hand out it made it tighter. So I had to scream my lungs out and just PULL. Well my hand was a hot mess. I should have taken a picture. (I actually just noticed a picture of Parker and me above shows a little of what it looked like) It had a huge goose egg on my wrist, and deep scratches and gouges all over my hand. I think I had an anxiety attack because I couldn't get a grip to save my life. It was sad. I cried three different times last week--thank you stress and hormones. But thank you hand for not having to be amputated! :-)

Ok...THE END.

My baby is getting so big!

Connor Scott Tyrrel

December 1st 2009

6:15 p.m.

7 lbs 4 0z 19 1/2 inches long

Perfect in every way!

Connor Scott Tyrrel

December 1st 2011:

Sleeps in until almost 9 a.m.

Has eggs, cereal, clementine and animal crackers for breakfast

Has successfully kept mommy running since he got out of his high chair- currently begging me to peel yet another clementine.

Plays in toilets, gets into his aunts rooms to play with their stuff, sneaks behind the coffee table to have his private poop time.

Big brother for 6 1/2 weeks- the best little helper mommy could ask for!

Gives brother his binky when mommy is busy, throws away diapers, brings mommy whatever she asks for, (had to just take a break to peel the clementine) and lights up whenever Parker is in the room! He gives him sweet kisses and loves, and has never once been mean to Parker. He adores him and is the perfect big brother!

Connor is a little smarty pants and I wouldn't even be able to post all the words he says. He has a book that has 100 words in it, things like different foods, activities, cars, etc. He can say just about every word! And his aunt Desi has him saying words like boobies and "botha" which is her signature word...it means "bother" haha. He copies just about everything we say and do! He loves to turn "bights" on and off, and will get his step stool so he can reach the light switches to turn them back on when he's turned them off.

He loves Thomas the Train and calls it "Toot Too-eht" He says certain words so cute! When it ends in an ooo sound he seems to add an ehhh. Like Juice is Jooo-ehs. It cracks us up and my mom loves to hear him say Toot Too-eht! Even though we go crazy hearing him say it at least 15 times as we are struggling to get it turned on as fast as we can! He definitely has the patience of his grandpa Scott-NONE. Haha.

He says his own prayers now (with help of course) which is sweet to hear every night. He knows the little patterns in the wording and at the end of his prayer it goes something like this:

Mommy: In

Connor: In

Mommy: the name

Connor: of

Mommy: Jesus

Connor: Christ

AMEN!

He does that throughout the prayer and always ALWAYS blesses the piano. He LOVES THE PIANO or Mano as he calls it. A sign? I think so! Right now he's sticking his bowl in my face and all over me so I will get him more clementine. PIG! Pause....

Ok wow that was a long pause. One of those moments I'm still getting used to as a mommy of two, Connor fell and bumped his head and Parker was screaming for the boob. Ha ha...one kid on each arm both screaming is what you might call a bad moment but for me it was a heart warming one, reminding me of my most important role in this life. To comfort, raise and teach these beautiful children. Anyway, that was a big side note in this post that is supposed to be ALL about CONNOR! :)

I used to do a funny thing where I'd talk like I was the announcer at a horse race starting with "And he's off!" when Connor would wake up in the morning. He has such a routine that we can't stay ahead of! He opens cupboards (which now are almost all locked), dumps all his toys out, opens all the doors and runs to get the most forbidden toys (we have door locks but he outsmarted them so now we have to lock the doors....) and he'd constantly go up and down the stairs just to make us crazy! He loves going down there to get into my sisters rooms, play the piano and just make a mess. It's too big of a house for a little boy! He has been in his terrible twos for 6 months now. My mom tells me often "Man my girls were never this busy....he's SO BUSY!" He really is. I don't know if all toddler boys are like this, but he's adopted certain nick names in this house which I'm trying to stop...such as "Psycho, demon child, crazy, etc." There have been times when even with Ben, me, my parents and my sisters we STILL can't keep up with him! NO EXAGGERATION!!!!

But man is it fun. This is what he's supposed to do and I'm so thankful he's healthy, strong, smart, happy and continuing to be more of all of those things everyday! Not to mention he's SO CUTE! We love his big eyes, long eyelashes, sweet little lips, and everything that makes him Connor. He has been such a joy to me. I have gone through phases with him when he's especially naughty where I just don't think I can do it! But more often than not I look at him and my heart skips two beats and I thank Heavenly Father for entrusting me with his sweet little spirit. I know he will grow to be a very good and sweet man. It is a lot of pressure to do my job right to make sure of that, but he makes it such a fun job! :)

Happy 2nd Birthday my first born sweet son! Mommy loves you!!!

Two times the love

The only thing better than being a mom is being a mom of two! And I'm sure I'll change that each time I have another sweet baby. I used to blog a lot about how hard of a baby Connor was...or at least I feel like I did. That kid had COLIC. I looked at moms who also had babies who didn't look totally beat and wondered how they did it. My neighbor in Cedar had a baby about 6 months after me and she told me how she had gone to see the midnight showing of the newest Twilight movie. She timed the feedings and went to the movie with her friends. It was her THIRD baby. I had NO comprehension of how she mustered the energy or desire to go to a midnight movie. But I sorta get it now. She had a good baby that had no colic! Connor was round the clock crying, feeding, and more crying. He didn't sleep in his own cradle for the first few months, rather in our arms or in the middle of our bed. It was really REALLY hard. I was prepared for that with Parker. I was even prepared mentally for the agonizing feedings that would accompany this new baby. I had a REALLY hard time breastfeeding Connor. I was still crying a month after he was born cuz it hurt so bad. They were bleeding, and I thought about to fall off- literally.

WOW what a difference this baby is! Parker is the polar opposite of Connor. He has been on a sleeping schedule that he created on his own for the past week and a half at least. Funny thing is even with daylight savings he is STILL basically on the same schedule! Asleep for the night by 10:30 or 11, and up for a feeding at 4, then asleep til about 7 and then a nice long morning nap. Sometimes it fluctuates and he'll sleep even longer, til 6 or so which is AWESOME. That usually happens if he has a good feeding and poops before bed. And he sleeps in his cradle. Rarely in my arms, and if he does fall asleep in my arms he doesn't wake up when I put him in his bed.

And the feedings- yes they are sore but NOTHING like before. I think I had to condition these stupid nipples of mine! Guess what? I have actual scars on them...you can see where the damage was done with Connor. I don't know if they are just better now cuz I've done it before and the worst is over, or if it's since the weather isn't as cold and they aren't as dried out...or if I just know what I'm doing more now. The nurse at the hospital told me I had great technique. Well that's cuz despite what everyone SAID...I DID know how to latch my baby on...I just have (Let's be blunt as the nurse said this very thing to me) really big boobs and he has a very small mouth hahaha. Ok nuff of that. But seriously feedings are a joy and Parker has something Connor didn't have at this age--fat rolls on his thighs! Haha they are small but they are there! I'm so proud. I prayed so hard to have better success with nursing and this is just what I needed. I feel like such a good mom and like I have a better perspective on the whole experience. My mom NEVER had the pain I had which makes me realize some women are lucky and it's only sore for a little while. Then there's me...it takes a good 6 weeks - 2 months to not feel a stab of pain! :-)

Parker is my answer to prayers. Everything about his little existence has been so EASY. We got pregnant with him on the first try, he had a flawless pregnancy, easy birth and now he's a gem of a newborn. Thank goodness cuz if we had a repeat of Connor we might be DONE. Now thank goodness we both want more babies! (Assuming we ever get a job and can provide for more chillens).

I had a special moment with Parker today. Connor was at lunch with his aunt Desi and I had just changed a big poopy diaper and gotten Parker all dressed. He was just happy as can be hanging out on my bed so I started talking to him. He was looking me right in the eye and listening to my every word. And then he gave me the cutest little smile! I thought it was a fluke at first but I KNOW he was smiling at me. Then a minute later he did it again! I sent a text to Ben and my parents and they all said yeah it was probably poop...but as mentioned above he had already DONE that ha ha. Mommies just know and I KNOW he smiled just for me. Ben is in California and said "I always miss something" because when Connor started cooing he was in New York. Even my mom who is at work said she's sad she missed it. But I personally think those smiles were just for me...I am after all the one who feeds him and holds him the very most and takes care of him all day! He knew that smile was just what mommy needed to get through the day after last night. Connor kept us up kicking us in our bed all night...oy. Again- Parker is our better sleeper haha.

But let's not make Connor out to be too horrible...he weaned himself off of his binki. That's something this kid has always been a champ at. He transitions well with EVERYTHING. The bottle wasn't hard to take away, and he was always a great eater (now he just wants to play and hates to sit there and eat) and now he's tossed his binkis. He still steals Parker's a lot and chews on them. But he started realizing bed time and binki go hand in hand so he would throw the binki out of the crib and think that would make bed time go away. NOPE! He even chewed the nipple part off of the binki a couple times. So that's that. I know he has a stash somewhere and probably sucks on them for a minute when we're gone but after 2 days of screaming in his bed for every nap and bed time he is finally adjusting and didn't cry today. Speaking of BED...that's another awesome treasure from Connor, he has not yet tried to get out of his crib. He will scream in there for an hour sometimes and still not even try to get out. Which is funny cuz he has a night stand right by his crib and it'd be REALLY easy I think to try it. But thankfully he doesn't. His room doubles as our storage/misc junk room right now and there'd be WAY too many things for him to get into. We're going to have to figure that out though...we bought him a big kid bed for Christmas. Can't wait to post about that! Anyway, in spite of his awesome tantrums- Connor is SUCH a good big brother.

He loves to throw away diapers, bring me clean ones for himself and Parker, throw other things away, put dishes in the sink (sorta scary sometimes) clean up his toys, and talk sweetly to Parker when he's crying and mommy can't run right over to get him out of his swing. He is so tender with the baby and touches him softly and carefully. He is not even 2 yet and has such a respect and love for his baby brother. Makes me want to cry. I know Parker was meant to come into our lives right now. We've had struggles and his sweet spirit has just brought joy and love into our home. My sisters love both of our kids and have fun keeping Connor occupied when I need the help, or holding Parker when he's not fussy :).

My mom and Ben both got hired for seasonal part time jobs at Deseret Book and it has been a totally different life the past 3 days. Not having them here has forced me to be more assertive with my life and taking care of my kids. The first day my sisters basically watched Connor but yesterday I made dinner and actually felt pretty great. And today both boys are napping as I type this and I'm going to join them if I ever stop...

I'm so thankful Ben got at least a little job to help pass time and keep us out of debt. He's really enjoying it so far. He is in California today for a job interview. We want this one SOOOOO badly so we'll see what happens. I told him the other two jobs were just practice rounds for this one. Man I really hope this is it.

If you read all of this you're amazing. Mostly it was for my own memory and history. :)

I really should get a picture of me with my boys...the only ones I have are in the hospital. hmmm....