Happy Halloween!

Who's Who?

You all did a great job! (Although it's not fair copying their old babysitter, Gin.)

1.Sam 2. Gabe

3. Max

4. Gabers

5. Sammers
6. Maxer

P.S. I'll make cookies for anyone who comes to visit!

We're Home!

Turns out I'm a little bit of a wuss.

Yes, I know that I frequently proclaim to my husband that I'm "hard-core" but it's all talk. He and I both know I'm not the most athletic jock in the strap box. (I don't even know what that means.)

So it was with much trepidation I embarked upon one of our first Maine adventures.

After staying the first night in a hotel, we drove further North to Acadia National Park to a nice "Family Campground" (translate: has flushing toilets, a swimming pool, and grass.) After setting up camp, we drove into Bar Harbor (or Baa HaaBaa as the locals say) to rent....*drumroll*...
mountain bikes!

Now, it seems--in retrospect--that 74-89% of my college dates somehow involved out-doorsey stuff. Of course, some guys were more prone to dragging me up mountain sides than others, but hiking, biking, rock climbing, and even skiing dates seem to be popular favorites in Utah Valley.

In fact, I met my darling husband at The Rock Garden (an indoor climbing gym) in Provo while there with...another guy. (But that's a whole other story.)

This might lead you to believe I am, as previously proclaimed, hard core. Not so. (In fact, it may speak more to my acting abilities that I was able to disguise my out-of-shapeness and act like I was enjoying myself while hyperventilating my way up to "the Y"...) Although I do really really love rock climbing, and although I have experience doing lots of different athletic things, I'm not even remotely athletic or in shape as a rule. So I was scared to get on a mountain bike after probably 8 years of sluggishness.
(Sam's facial expression perfectly illustrates my feelings.)
But I supported the activity. Nay, even ENCOURAGED it. (I'm trying to shift my paradigm from "future mother of girls" to "current mother of boys".) Because THIS is what families with three boys DO. They go BIKING!
(This is how we started out but Doug and I had to trade 'cause that trailer was darn heavy!)
Despite my misgivings though, it ended up being really fun. Yes, it took us a long time to do a wimpy 3-mile loop, and yes I was totally worried I was going to eat it and dump Max into the gravel, but I SURVIVED. (and got sore in all sorts of crazy spots!)

( See! The above picture was taken post trip and I'm still standing upright with only minor support!)

I guess I'm a little hard-core after all!

Cape Cod Report and Other Important Matters

As you may have gathered from the post below, we've just returned from a quick over-night trip to Cape Cod accompanied by my mom. It was very beautiful and very fun. We stayed in a room right on the beach and had a great time relaxing and taking in some of the sights. I even broke out my travel Watercolor set! (Which I always take on vacation and never before have had the chance to use.)


Unfortunately, the trip culminated with us dropping Faezer off at the airport in Boston where she took a flight to D.C. to visit my sister Jenny. (I'm trying not to begrudge her equal time, but it's hard...) All of us were very sad to see her go, but especially me. Having another mom in the house made my life so much easier.


In other sad news, my friend Jen (aka Fabulous Photographer Jen) just moved to Utah three weeks ahead of schedule. I'm really sad she's gone and sad we didn't get to see her one last time before she went. (And I'm sad she wont be around to take any more beautiful pics of my kids!) We'll miss you Jen and family!


Now for an update on the Dub boys:

Douglas came home from work tonight and fed the boys, mowed and edged the lawn, made cornbread with the boys, bathed the boys, and got the boys ready for bed. All while I went grocery shopping. From my perspective, I'd say Doug is doing well. REALLY well. Also, he's been blogging more lately which I think is fabulous.

Maxwell recently finished Pre-K and has the summer off. He's recently developed a love of painting and wants to spend his summer days creating colorful works of art, going on walks to the beach, and violently playing pirates. He really REALLY likes pirates, so if you're at all interested in sword fighting, please schedule a play date with Max.

Samuel is working hard at potty training...again.
He had it down pat until the arrival of his baby brother, and then decided he needed to mark his territory to remind us of his presence. (We hadn't forgotten.) He accepts bribes for good behavior in the form of "Cars" cars. He's collected quite a few. In fact, I don't know if they are helping or hindering his re-training. Hmm...

Gabriel is taking daily smiling lessons from Mommy and Max. This is where we both beam down at him while tickleing around his mouth and making silly cooing noises while asking "Where's your smile?" in baby talk. So far, all we managed to do is give him gas. Doug and I are also giving him "sleeping through the night" lessons which are equally effective.

Also, Gabriel is exactly 6 weeks old now! And you all know what that means...it means I can start EXERCISING. Not that I'm going too, but I COULD if I wanted! (All of you who thought I was referring to something else, get your minds out of the gutter.) ANYWAY, Gabe is such a sweet baby and he's only slightly spoiled from being held non-stop while Grandma Fae was here. We're all in love with him.

That's all the news I've got for you! But don't worry, if Gabe smiles or Sam goes on the potty without a reminder, YOU will be the first to know!

TTFN!