I ride the bus

Preschool

Max had his first day of Preschool yesterday.

Train Party

Well, I posted the photos backwards again.

Max had a Train birthday Party on Saturday. We had planned to serve PBJ sandwiches, chips and bug juice for the kiddo's and adults.

I made about 50 sandwiches and surprisingly, no one really ate them or the chips. The bug juice was a big hit though.

We had rented a train for the party. There was a little mistake on timing but the train did arrive. If you are looking for a train - I know a great conductor.

Max loved being on the train and he would only get off to change seats. He went on every train ride. The conductor even let him drive once.

As you can see, he was thrilled.

Happy Birthday Max! We love you

practice

Closing a chapter

Max had his last day with Kids Who Count. We are excited for him to move on to preschool and to ride the bus... However, Kids Who Count will always be a wonderful memory for us. I will miss the wonderful women who helped me and Max for the last year and a half. I will also miss the other mothers who have been a support to me. Max is going to miss his little friend Andriell. I hope she'll come visit.

Max starts preschool on Monday.

The Roast

We had a blast at Curtis's Roast. Only 7 of the 22 showed up but it was they had the best stories. Jennifer even arrived with photographic evidence.

The party was held in the "private room" at GoodWood. The stories started early and lasted a few hours. We had the game on but after the first minute we could tell the game was not going to be a distraction.

A Big thank you to those who made it, your stories were hilarious.

Big Day

Today is Curtis's birthday. He was able to take the day off and spend most of it with Max. We went to Max's play group this morning, then Curtis and Max spent some time playing at Grandma's while I took Kendall to the Dr. The boys crashed on the drive home and I got to have some alone time with Curtis (Alone time consisted of homework and dishes. Sometimes adult birthdays are a little boring).

After nap and lunch, we all went to Max's new school to meet his teacher. Miss Rachel is wonderful. I love her attitude.

Now Curtis is off to school (another thing you don't really want to do on your birthday). When he gets home, we plan on having delicious rootbeer floats.

Happy Birthday Curtis! Your family loves you.

Father - son

Tonight Curtis found a race on TV. Max was so funny... after watching for a little while, he started imitating the noise of the cars going around the corners. I think it kept his attention for an hour.

play time

new discovery

someone found their toes

Family photo shoot

It has been a while since we updated our family photo. We asked grandpa to meet us at Jolly's Ranch to take some new pictures. We had driven up the day before and the hay bales looked like a fun place.

There was a huge metal tunnel at the back of the lot. Max loved running in it.

Kendall didn't know what to think of all this so he decided to avoid eye contact with anyone.

I really love these boys!

Max was about done with photos at this point.

Thanks Papa and Nana

Master of the slip and slide

Max was invited to his first "friends" birthday party. Zoe is now 4...I can't believe it.
Her Party was at Petetneet in Payson. They had rented one of the largest slip and slides I have ever seen.

Max loved it! He was really good to go down with his dad until I felt comfortable enough to let him go on his own. I got to stay on the sidelines with Kendall. He really is the perfect excuse for me not going down the slide myself.

I'm sure max went down the slide over and over for 2 hours. Curtis was burnt out before Max.

They really did have a blast! Thanks for all the fun Zoe, we hope you had a wonderful birthday!

This should give you a better idea of how long the slide really is.

Day at the pool

Kendall's face makes me laugh.

We had a wonderful day in the back yard. The pool was a cool get away from the heat.

Max got in a good hour by himself then Kendall wanted in on the fun. We had to let out most of the water to make it baby safe but Max is a firm believer that more shallow water will splash better... so he was ok with that.

The Cabin

We Love the cabin! I am sure this is one of the top 10 reasons why Curtis asked me to marry him. Max found his love for the cabin this weekend. He took endless trips down the slide, we walked up to the steam over and over, and we took one ride on the swing.
We arrived on Friday and Curtis immediately went to work on an awesome dutch oven something. We had a few uncles, cousins and grandparents over for the feast.
After all our guest had left, we started the bed time rituals. It was about 9:30. Kendall was happy laying on a blanket and I was laying by Max to put him asleep. Max and I were talking about his day at the cabin while Curtis fixed a toasty fire for the night.

This is the fire place he was using...you may notice something is missing.
As soon as Curtis shut the door on the fire, we could see some fire/ash coming from the connection between the fireplace and the flew.
Curtis diagnosed the situation as dangerous and while we were discussing the best way to distinguish our little fire...the flew detached and fell to the floor.
Now we had full flames coming out of the, now open-ended, hole. Because the cabin was quickly filling up with smoke, we felt it would be best for me to pack up our children and drive the short distance to get cell service and call Grandpa.
The conversation started with...The Cabin may burn down tonight. Grandpa stayed perfectly calm while I tried to explain the situation. He kindly offered to come up the canyon and bring up his generator (even though he would miss his 10 o'clock news broadcast).

By the time we returned to Curtis, he had found a shovel and moved the fire to the outdoor pit. The boys had fallen asleep in their car seats so we stayed in the car until Papa and Grandma arrived.
We connected the generator and found most of the smoke had cleared. We cleaned up the mess from the flew and tucked the boys into bed. Determined to have our annual night at the cabin, Papa taught Curtis how to work the old stove in the kitchen to provide heat for the remainder of our night.

Through it all, Kendall kept to his regular schedule and was ready to be up and going by 6:30.

Max, on the other hand, wanted to sleep a little longer.

We are happy to say, the cabin survived our stay.

Kendall

I'm not so good taking photos with my phone, but Claire really wanted a photo so here it is.

He's Here

Kendall Eugene Stevens
Born 4/11/11 around 6:45pm
Weight: 7lbs 12oz
Height:19 inches

update

The new plan is to induce on Monday, April 11th. My body is still not progressing, but the Dr. doesn't want me to go too far past my due date. I will go to the hospital on Monday morning at 11am. I'll get hooked up to some machines, then around 5:00 Dr Nance will come to brake my water. After that it should be some intense labor and, finally, a delivery.
Sounds like a great day.

Silly Cervix

I went to my "Last" Dr appointment for our baby. We were all set to induce on Thursday and we were conferming plans. Then...I was checked. Turns out I have a one in a million cervix. I can dilate then return back to...how do I put it... Not dilated. Lucky me. So, I will not be induced on Thursday and I will still have more Dr appointments until my cervix decides to do what it should be doing. Good thing I like Dr Nance so much.

Main feeling of the day - Disappointed.

Curtis took me out for Chinese. Highlight of my day.

Baby Date

I went to the Dr yesterday and he would like to start me on April 7th. I have another appointment before then where he will decide if I am ready. When I had Max, my water broke and we went to the hospital. I was not having contractions and the nurse put me on platoson to get the hard labor going. Max was born about 5 hours after that. My body seems to respond extra well to the meds. In fact, I'm not sure what happened, but my body started to shake uncontrollably...I had an epidural and the shaking stopped. I'm not really in love with the idea of being induced but Curtis' family is leaving town on Friday and my Parents are leaving on Monday. I'm still trying to decide. Dr. Nance was really against inducing me with Max so I was really surprised at his offer. I guess I still have until Monday to decide.

Train Day

Saturday afternoon we decided to make a Max day and do the things he likes to do. He is now into trains. We went to Park city to do some shopping (not really what Max wanted to do). After the shopping was complete, we went to Dairy Keen in Heber. Max loved to watch the train circle above him. Every time it came into sight he would yell, "Choo! Choo!"
After dinner we went to the Heber Valley Railroad. They are closed until May so we just looked at all the train cars. Once again Max would yell, "A choo! A choo!"
We headed for home but decided to make a quick stop at Toys R Us. We have been considering buying him a train set for a while now. We decided on the one shown above. Max loves it! The track sends off bells and whistles when the train cars move over designated spots.
He is using a lot of words to let us know what he wants when he plays. "Elp" or help is a favorite. The train cars are connected by magnets so if he has one turned the wrong way or if one comes apart, he will ask me or Curtis for help. I am sure this is the best Toy purchase we have made this far.

Room Decor

Ten Things I love

1. Nap time; this is happening right now. I love this part of my day.
2. Tulips; they are still growing despite the bad weather.
3. Singing in the shower; I don't do this often because it is usually to early or happens during nap time.
4. A clean car; I need to work on this.
5. A good project; I'm still working on a few things for the "boy's room"
6. Banana pancakes; a new found love.
7. new babies; mostly when they are not crying...and I'm not so sleep deprived.
8. Friend phone calls; thanks for calling today Teresa, I needed a little adult conversation
9. Sunshine; it is finally starting to warm up...every few days.
10. Family; I love it when Curtis gets home and we are a family again for a few awake hours. Sometimes this doesn't happen until the weekend.

Max's final diognosis

Max has a double ear infection. Finally some antibiotics for the poor kid. He has been so sick for the past week. We've all really felt bad for the 'lil guy. Hopefully we are on the road to recovery.

Update

It has been a long weekend that went by too fast. Claire and Jared arrived on Thursday. We had dinner with them then had to take Max home to bed. His breathing was off and we were worried. Friday Morning we took him to the Pediatrician. He had a chest x-ray to make sure he didn't have pneumonia. Lucky for us, the image came back clear. Max was put back on his breathing treatments every 4 hours. Nana Kay watched Max during his nap while Curtis, Claire, Jared and I did some shopping. Grandma Christie watched Max that night while we attended Grandpa Finch's viewing. I kept it together most of the night. I didn't cry until the very end when we were all leaving and I went to find my dad. He was standing over grandpa - it was the sweetest picture. I'm crying just thinking about it.
Saturday we headed back for the funeral. Grandma Christie took Max for us again. I had no chance of keeping my emotions under control. It all started when the morticians asked grandma it she was ready for them to close the casket. It all seemed very final. I was searching for tissues but there were none to be found.
We headed to the chapel for the program. My dad was the first to speak. I had completely soaked my one tissue. Curtis let me have his, but it was soaked in a few seconds. I resorted to a baby wipe then my sweet sister Lindsey kindly brought me a whole roll of toilet paper from the restroom. The children in the two rows ahead of me started at me while I blew my nose over and over. My niece, Kennedy, asked me why I cried so much. I had heard her ask Claire that question earlier and I copied her answer, "Because I love him so much".
My dad has 7 siblings. Each one gave about a 4 minute talk. Each talk was filled with memories and attributes I love about my grandpa. They all love him too. I think watching them cry is what made me cry the most. Curtis even cried a little.
The grave site was beautiful. I don't think I have ever seen so many flowers in honor of one person. Grandpa was in the Navy so we heard taps and the 21 gun solute. It was wonderful.
We took a picture when we got back to the church. Only 9 of the 43 grand-kids were missing. Grandpa has 62 great-grand-children but I'm not sure how many of them made it.
That evening we had a small birthday party for Kennedy. She had a beautiful pink castle cake. It was a happy time but we were all worn out from the days activities.
Sunday morning all of my siblings met at my parents house for one last meal together before everyone went home. Jared lives in Australia and we have not seen him in over 2 years. It was so great to be together. It seems like we do a lot of laughing when we are all together.
Lindsey and I drove Claire to the airport so we could have a little sister time. I'm always sad when she has to leave. I really wish she could move back home.
Tyler, Lindsey and family were the next to leave. We had lots of hugs and plan to see each other soon.
Jared was the hardest to let go this time. I couldn't say goodbye at my parents so I asked them to stop by when they were leaving. I hugged him several times and kept it together until he was out the door. Curtis let me hug him as long as I wanted (good therapy) and I cried... again.
For having dry eyes, I did a lot of crying this weekend.
We stayed home that evening but Jim and Christie stopped by with a gift for us. It was a beautiful drawing of the Manti Temple where my grandpa sealed us. Very thoughtful.
Now here we are back to Monday. Max has just peeked out of his room so I better go play mommy.

Grandpa

Bitter sweet, My grandpa passed away Sunday evening. I was able to spend a little more time with him before he passed, I even got to see him for about an hour Sunday morning.
He is a wonderful person and I am lucky to have his example in my life. He was a hard worker and loved time with family. He had a special talent when it came to card or board games. He made wonderful caramel and peanut brittle. He loved to sing and was learning how to play the organ. He gave me my patriarchal blessing. Curtis and I were sealed by him. He loved camping and fishing. He almost always wore Green.
He was kind to others and served those who needed it. I love him and miss him.

Spring

The earth surprised me today! My tulips are coming in. I'm so excited for them this year. I plated about a 50 new bulbs (well..new to me, my mom gave me hers cause the deer eat them).
Hooray for Spring!

Grandpa and Grandma Finch

Saturday Curtis and I went to Santaquin to visit my grandparents. I love them so much. It is difficult for me to visit them, getting old is hard. Grandma woke up grandpa to let him know we had come to visit. He kept his eyes open the rest of our time there. He seemed so tired and I felt bad to make him work so hard for us. He doesn't say much because it hurts to talk but when we left I heard his say I Love you.
I cried for about 5 minutes after we left. I love you was seldom said growing up. It wasn't until my brother, Jared, returned from his mission and decided we all needed to say it more often. Grandpa started telling me he loved me right after he had his stroke. I always knew he did but it really touches me when he uses all of his energy to tell me.
Happy Valentines Day! I love you.

Tree

So...by tradition, Curtis and I get a live tree for Christmas every year. We love the smell and there is something magical about picking out a tree. After new years we run into a little problem, we have had some hard times getting the tree out of our yard. The first year we had a truck so we took the tree to a green yard. The second year my dad took it away for us. Last year the city picked it up.
This year...We don't know what happened.
The city asked all trees be out on the curb by January 10th. We had ours out by January 3rd. It has been on our curb for about 5 or 6 weeks. I have notice the tree keeps moving. One day the truck will be facing the road then the next day it is turned 90 degrees. Today it is missing completely. We had talked to a few people about possibly moving the tree for us but we never had solid plans.
To whom ever took our tree, Thank you. We don't think the city would pick it up on a Saturday a month late. I really hope it's not an annoyed neighbor, I'm sure the tree has been an eye sore.

baby bump

Here he is. 2 months from today is my due date.
Yes, it is 6:30 in the morning....Max woke up at 3:30. Luck for me, he went back to bed. Not so lucky for me, I couldn't sleep.

ABC

I just finished making this poster for Max's room. I'm really excited to get it printed.

Alone?

Yesterday My Mother-in-law offered to take Max for a few hours after I finished work. Curtis was finishing up work so i ended up with 2 hours to my self. I can't remember the last time I was at home alone. It felt really nice. I wonder if I wasted all that time by taking a nap.

More reading

I tried again last night and Max recognizes/reads the words: Ball, Car, Mom and Dad.
Thank you Signing time! Max likes the praise he gets from reading. I tried to show off his new talent to his dad but Max just started signing whatever he wanted...I wrote car and he signed baby. I think he was testing me to see if I would notice.

DOG

I am so proud! Max read his first word today. I was writing on his Magna-doodle and showed him the word DOG. He first made the sign then said "Dog". I was shocked! Usually he just tells me the letters I used. I tried other words like Mom or Dad, cat, eat... He just pushed it away. I guess I will try again tomorrow.
I love him so much and I really need to celebrate his accomplishments more often.

Christmas

I know this is going back in time a bit, but I never posted our Christmas.
We invited my Parents and Claire over for gifts and breakfast. We started out with gifts...we couldn't wait.

We sat in a circle and each took turns opening up gifts. This usually gave Max enough time to play with what he had opened - or walk around to see what everyone else had.

We had a wonderful morning. Max still loves to play with all of his toys but he will not touch the training potty he got - no matter how fun we try to make it look.

Curtis cooked a ham and I made breakfast casserole for everyone. I got a citric juicer for my bosh and a box of oranges so we all had fresh orange juice with our meal. It was so yummy!

The crash

Curtis was driving to school to buy his books and was broad sided around 10:30am Monday morning. The other guy ran a red light completely and didn't even brake.

Lucky for us, Curtis was not hurt...well he is sore but not seriously injured.

The passenger side was the side that was hit and the glass shattered and showered Curtis. The car is at the impound for the adjusters to look over. Lee and Faye were kind enough to lend us their car until we are approved for a rental.
We are all thankful Curtis was not hurt. I pray every morning that he'll make it home safe and I give gratitude every night that he does. With all of the road construction and unsafe drivers, I'm suprised this is the first incident in the (almost) 5 years he has been commuting to Salt lake or out of state.