It's a....

....Baby! (for those of you who don't know I'm pregnant)

.....Girl! (if you want to get more specific)

I went to the doctor for my Ultrasound one week ago, and found out the big news. Not that it was a surprise to Noah or Jake. They have been convinced for weeks that it is a girl. Before the ultrasound I tried to prepare them for a potential shock if we saw boy parts instead...but Noah was adamant that it was a baby girl in there. He was happy to tell us afterwards: "See!? I told ya!" Kyle was instantly thrilled, and he is ready to figure out the experience of fathering a girl. As for me, I was surprised at the intensity of apprehension that I felt when I found out we've got a daughter on the way. But I have had seven days to adjust to the idea, and now I am nothing but happy. Well, ok. I'd be lying if I didn't say there are still some anxious flutters left in the mix! I know mothers are supposed to worry about kids. But something about mothering a girl seems so...scary. Without detailing all the specifics, I'll leave it at that. Because like I said, the excitement is coming and starting to replace some of those nerves. Probably the turning point was when I remembered that children start out as babies. Sweet, tiny, lovable babies. And this time I can dress mine up like a doll. What could be scary about that? Right??

(Feel free to leave a reassuring comment of the things you love about mothering your little girl!)

State Baseball Tournament

We headed up north for the high school state tournament.

We made a family vacation out of it, since they just kept winning. We ended up staying for about 4 nights and enjoying every minute. Noah especially thought hotel life was pretty posh.

He said he wanted to live in that big house forever. The breakfasts every morning were his favorite. As for Jake, he loved the pool, and recklessly threw himself into the water over and over again.

We also got together with some old friends from college: Laura, Megan, and Ella and their families. It was fun to get all the kids together and to see how much our lives have changed since our days at BYU.

We also found time for a family trip to the Hogle Zoo.

We heard they were having a dinosaur exhibit, and thought it sounded right up our alley.

It was. The boys were in heaven.

Who cares about the animals? Noah sure didn't. He ran from dinosaur to dinosaur, ignoring the animal life he passed on his dino hunt.

Here we are, a happy little tourist family. We had a great trip, even though the Warriors didn't end up taking state. (they were so close though!) We did get a good vacation out of it, thanks SCHS baseball program!

Out of the Mouths of Babes

I delight in Junior Sharing Time every Sunday. Why? Because of moments like this:

The Sister Missionaries were special guests in the Primary last Sunday. The children were a captive audience as the missionaries explained the joys of missionary work. Then, the missionaries posed a question and asked: "So how many of you boys and girls want to be missionaries when you grow up?"

Their inquiry was answered predictably by hands shooting up around the room, including my Noah on the front row. Noah was not content to answer the question with merely a raise of hand. He stood up and chanted: "Hey, Hey, Hey!" until the missionaries acknowledged him.

The missionaries called on him and asked him to share his thoughts. He said enthusiastically: "When I grow up..." (At this point, I held my breath, awaiting a spiritually-mature comment about how he wants to be the best missionary someday and teach everyone about Jesus. I prepared to flash my humble mother smile as my sweet Sunbeam son in his Sunday suit and tie continued what I assumed to be the aforementioned darling comment.)

He paused, then his eyes narrowed, his voice dropping into an ominous growl: "I am going to KILL ALL THE BAD GUYS."

A collective gasp sounded from the Primary children and the teachers alike. No one expected murderous confessions to be a part of this uplifting and motivational discussion about sharing the gospel. The missionaries, clearly caught off-guard, stammered for a moment and then recovered, cleverly: "But we should never kill people. Instead of killing them, we should teach the bad guys the gospel! And then, when they learn about Jesus, they will probably want to change, and then the bad guys will turn into good guys!"

Noah pondered on this alternative for a moment. The sister missionaries prompted him: "Don't you think that would be a good idea?"

(I looked desperately at Noah, trying to capture his attention with my feverish head nods and subliminal messages: "Yes, Noah! Just say 'YES' and tell the nice missionary ladies that you want to be a good non-violent man when you grow up and help Heavenly Father by converting every bad guy! Killing is BAD! Sharing the gospel is GOOD!")

Noah paused and then spoke up resolutely with a sense of finality in his voice: "No, I think I will just kill them all."

Oh, Noah. Apparently he did not get my subliminal messages. I did not know I was raising the Inforcer.

Our 2-year-old

Jake turned 2! There were only 2 possible parties I might have had for Jake--a football party or a horse party. We went for the horse theme because what other kind of party could you have on the day of the Kentucky Derby??

The Kentucky Piepers would never miss a good Derby Party so they came down from Provo, and my Mom flew out from Kentucky. We were so happy to have them here for the big day.

The party was a success, mostly thanks to the planning of my mother. She came into town last week and brought with her many derby favors all the way from Kentucky--like this background for the perfect photo op:

Each guest selected a derby contender, at random, by drawing from a stack of these nifty cards Grandma and Chief designed in honor of the occasion.

We snacked and talked during all that pre-derby commentary, but then the bugle sounded and we crowded around the tv. We passed out lyrics to "My Old Kentucky Home" and while singing it, I got the chills thinking of "my old Kentucky home, far away." Even though we are far from Churchill Downs, I doubt anyone celebrates the Derby with more enthusiasm than we do every year! And Jake and his love for horses made this year's celebration all the better!

Our little house was packed with friends and family cheering for their horses through what has been called "the most exciting 2 minutes in sports." The birthday boy sat on my lap and yelled and neighed through the whole race. Noah on the other hand, had to be consoled by Kyle through most of the race because his horse, who started out strong, fell behind and wasn't a winner. The champion was Christian and his horse Animal Kingdom. Congrats, CJ!

After the race, we had birthday cake and that was the most excited I have seen a kid during a happy birthday song. Jake's smile was from ear to ear, and he looked around the room in awe at all the people singing for him. After the song, we finished up with Jake's trademark "Party! Party! Party!" chant and double fist pumps. He was beyond happy. He deserved a day like this!

Happy Birthday, Jake! You are a delight!

Beach

Interesting how different Noah and Jake's experiences were at the beach.

Starting with Noah. He had the most fun burying and excavating the dinosaurs we brought, all in the biggest sandbox he's ever seen.

and collecting beach treasures like shells and seaweed.

after playing for a long time, he ventured down to the water's edge.

But a few minutes later, a wave came and knocked him down. He cried for a long time. After a few minutes of offering sympathy, I couldn't help from taking a picture of the aftermath (cruel, I know).

He told me later when we were walking to our car that he had been afraid that he "was going to die." Even though there was no serious threat of that, it was still traumatic for the kid. Knowing that, I feel even worse for taking a picture!

I wasn't sure with all the trauma if he would have any positive memories, but this is what he just told me about his beach experience: "I liked playing. With the toys. I mean, in the sand. I did NOT like when I put my feet in the water. Because there was a big wave coming and I fell down. That is not my favorite." Well at least his memories were partly positive! One last contemplative picture of Noah.

What about Jake? He dug in the sand too,

but only for a few minutes before moving on to more exciting adventures like chasing seagulls.

Of course he had to bring his "mimi" along on his beach wandering. That is something I'll never forget-- seeing him run up and down the beach with all the energy in the world, dragging his blankie behind him.

He put his feet in the water too.

You can tell as he clung to Aunt Debbie's leg for dear life, he was a little timid at first, especially after seeing Noah's experience. But after the first minute or two, he loved it. And when he went down in a wave like Noah did, Jake only laughed!

All of us at the end of the day...still smiling!

Beautiful Backyard, Oranges, and Goats

During our California visit, we spent some time at Aunt Debbie's house who lives near Redondo Beach. She showed us a good time--which included exploring her spacious terraced backyard, picking and eating oranges, and visiting the zoo of animals at her neighbors' houses.

The backyard:

can you spot little Jake?

Noah enjoyed stomping through the rocky paths and shrubbery, pretending to be a --what else--dinosaur.
The oranges were delicious and so juicy! The fruit trees are one reason to love California.
Jake especially loved them.

Noah loved climbing the trees.

And then, the animals. Besides Aunt Debbie's pet dogs that the boys fell in love with, we saw wild peacocks, chickens and roosters, snakes, hamsters, and the cutest little baby goats.

Beach pictures to come...

California

We spent some time down in California for a week this month and had some good quality time with Kyle's family. Our first reason for going was Tayler's baptism. The timing of the trip worked out so we could also attend Cousin Whitney's missionary homecoming. But the third family event was a sad one--just before our trip, Kyle's uncle Kenny passed away suddenly. We were able to attend his funeral while we were down there. It was a beautiful service. Funerals are certainly not happy gatherings, but that kind of thing really makes you appreciate those family relationships and the time spent together.

A visual expression of the sweetness of family relationships:

The boys had a great time with the Morgan girls (and boy!). We were lucky to stay with Brooke and her family in their brand new house!

I wish I had a picture of the real house, it was beautiful. Curtis and Brooke did a great job of fixing it up and making it amazing. We had a blast staying with their family for the week. I'll never forget those dance parties! Those Morgans know how to have a good time! We were so proud of Tayler for being baptized. We really love her (which must be why Kyle butted in on the sweet mother-daughter picture)!