A pirate says...

I was getting Liam ready for school today and Owen walked out
wearing this.

Liam LOVES to dress up and I think Owen is picking up on that. I'm telling you this kid has an old soul and I love every bit of it. He keeps me laughing, crying and screaming No NO NO (which is one of his new favorite words.)

I have a bunch to post about but will have to get to that later this week. So enjoy this for now!

Cinnamon Sticks GUEST GROSGRAIN GIVEAWAY!!!!

Cinnamon Sticks GUEST GROSGRAIN GIVEAWAY!!!!

All about Owen

The time just keeps passing me by, and my Little Owen is now starting to say BIG words and walk. His favorite words are: UP, UH OH, Gog (dog) wuf, wuf, moo, and eyes. It is so fun to watch him learn new words and use them correctly.

He has also decided that he no longer needs our help to eat. He can do it by himself! He loves when I give him a spoon and a brush and a bowl full of mush, well the spoon and mush part anyways.

Here are a few clips of these milestones.

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Doesn't that look delicious!

Boys will be boys...

Some people thought I was crazy when I told them i wanted another boy after Liam. (Not because Liam was bad, but because they thought I'd want a girl.)
But I wanted Liam to have a brother so they could be best friends. Especially while we live so far away from family!
I caught the boys playing on the stairs the other day. Owen wants to do whatever Liam does, but finds Liam so funny. And this is why I thought it'd be so fun to have two boys!

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Liam was NEVER a climber and still isn't he is the cautious obedient child of the family. Owen on the other hand is NOT! He climbs on EVERYTHING! That kid will take on any challenge and a few that he has conquered are the dryer and the dishwasher as of late. Liam wanted in on the dryer action when he was SURE I wouldn't shut the door or turn it on!









They also enjoyed putting empty boxes of diet coke on their feet. Liam did this first and then Owen had to try too, but needed Moms help. Liam took our picture. NOT BAD huh!

No excuses

There are no reasons as to why my blog has been left dormant for far too long yet again. Mostly because little sticky fingers (aka: Owen) has to type while I type and so it would look more like this: to9kimay wkoie went56354 354...You get the point. So I have put it off. However today is a different story. It's about 23 degrees, but it feels like 10. No I am not exaggerating. Go check out weather.com The wind is blowing and it is freezing so we (well mainly I) decided that we were going to make it a stay in the house, wear your cozy's all day and put a post up on the blog kind of day. (Ok so I didn't finish this post and it's no longer freezing, IT"S GLORIOUSLY Warm and sunny so I need to finish so we can get outside and enjoy it!)

For a recap, we had Valentines day. Liam had his class party the day before and I was able to help thanks to my friend Kristen who watched Destruct-O for me!
It was fun to see the kids give each other Valentines and see what the typical day for Liam is like. Here are a few pic that I took.





That night we drove to D.C. to stay with our friends the Jones, who BTW are some of the nicest people I know and went WAY out of their way to help us. They let us stay the night at their house, got US dinner, then drove us to the airport at 4 am. Then took our car home so we didn't have to pay for parking, then dropped it off in short term the day we arrived so we didn't have to haul the luggage and the kids on the metro. (SEE what I mean about them being Nice! One day I will repay them! Thanks again Melissa and Brady.)

Then Valentines day was spent flying from D.C. to Dallas to SLC and it took a total of 9 hours. The kids weren't very happy when we woke them up at 3:30 to go. Owen especially he needs his sleep so he's ready to destroy as soon as he wakes up!
I can't complain though, the kids did fairly well.

We then spent the next week visiting family and friends in UT. It was so good to be back home. Although at this point I am wishing home was in a tropical paradise that is always 80 degrees with a light breeze, not the frozen tundra of my Dad's house where he still has 3 feet of snow on the grass from snow blowing and a Northern exposure. The rest of the valley didn't have much but it fluttered a few of the days we were there.

We didn't do any skiing since A: we no longer have any snow gear after living in N.O. and B: it costs like $60 a person to go for one day and C: Nate and Liam were still getting over Pneumonia and Owen RSV and skiing isn't as fun by yourself. But hopefully next winter we will hit the slopes and let the boys have a go at it!

We did go to all our favorite places to eat. Especially the Mexican restaurants. You wouldn't guess it, but Utah has really good Mexican food and PA's is terrible! So we made sure to get our feel of it in the few days we were there.

It was a really fun trip and I'm so glad we got to go!




We did a late birthday party for Owen since none of the family was able to see the big guy turn one and devour his cake. The cousins got a kick out of it.


Say hello to my little friend. Ok BIG friend. This is my Nephew Graham BAM who is very serious about food as you can tell. He is 5 months old here and weighed the same as Owen does currently. He has the best disposition. And my favorite part about him is all you have to do to make him happy is take of his pants.




My boys warmed up quickly to the family and loved hanging out with Papa and Corinne before they went to bed.

Me, my SIL, and Cousin all had baby boys within a few months of each other. I can't imagine the trouble these boys are going to get into a few years from now.



We were able to catch them all awake and happy at the same time so took some shots of the male posterity we have going on.
























(The Studs: Owen 13 months, Graham 5 months and Ethan 3 months)


We also let Liam pull Owen and Graham in the wagon. I'm not sure who had more fun?



And that is basically our trip to UT in a nut shell.

Jesus wants me happy!

So Liam may have had one of his more outrageous tantrums today while we were in Kmart. I had to grab a few things and of course that meant a meander through the toy section. He found a toy on clearance for $2 that one of his other friends has and asked if he could get it as a "surprise." (How do you say no to that?) So I say sure if you are my big helper while we are here.

Things are going great he's staying by me, not touching everything he walks by, then he sees something else he has to have (this is not on clearance, so there is no way.)I tell he already chose a "surprise" and that maybe he can get the other one another day???

To which he screams at me, hits me and says YES he can. (Wait, what? who is this devil child?) I tell him NO again and then let him know that he is no longer being a good helper and will no longer be getting either toy.

Now he is screaming "sorry Mama, I'm so sorry Mama. Don't me mad. I'm not a naughty boy. I'm a good helper." I tell him thank you for saying sorry, but you still aren't getting that toy today. That is the consequence for acting so naughty.

He then proceeds to sob and say, " But Jesus wants me to have that toy, he wants me to be happy!" (Insert my horribly covered up snicker and all the other ladies standing in line behind us at the check out.) I tell him yes Jesus wants him to be happy, but he also wants you to obey your Mommy and not cry or hit her when you don't get your way.

He thinks about this for a minute and still comes to the conclusion that Jesus wants him to get this toy and that I am the only thing standing in the way of his happiness.

I almost caved because I was laughing so hard, and who comes up with an answer like that?
But needless to say, I stood my ground and he didn't get his toy, but I got a good laugh.

A Bunch of Randomness!

Since our house has been the black death as of late, I've spent most my time taking care of sick babies, or sick hubbie. My blogging has suffered so there are a a few things that we did before the plague attacked so here are pictures from these "events."

First and foremost, an update on Liam's eye. It has been healing more and more everyday. It only has a little red left in it. And he seems to be happy that I'm not bugging him to look at it every five minutes.








































This post would have been titled: Oh how traditions have changed.
A few years ago, our yearly tradition was to gather at Lee's circle and watch our favorite Mardi Gras parades. Now, our tradition is going to the PA farm show. Both are great people watching shows although there are some super crazy things to spot at Mardi Gras.















But you can also see things you wouldn't see everyday at the farm show too!



This is an entire sculpture made from butter! And to tell you the truth, I'm not sure what the kids enjoyed more. Catching plastic coded beads and beer soaked stuffed animals or filling buckets with corn and seeing a 1600 pound buffalo two feet from your face???

We went with our friends the Banzhafs and the boys had a great time looking at all the animals. The parents favorite part were the chocolate milkshakes. Seriously one of the best I've ever had!



I have one of the most creative and talented sister-in-laws in the world. She does EVERYTHING! She scrapbooks, quilts, runs marathons, races road bikes and has finished the LOTOJA twice now.
But most recently she helped me finish my "first" quilt. I wanted to make a quilt out of all Nate's scrubs, T-shirts and his Shortie from Medical school and residency thus far.
I'd cut the squares and sewn them into rows, but hadn't decided how to fit in the short coat and the backing. This is why she's the talented one and I'm not. For our birthday surprise this year she finished it for us and sent it all wrapped and ready to be cuddled in. Isn't it awesome! Thanks D you seriously rock!





Another post I would have titled: Snow Sledding...Sort of!
We haven't had a whole lot of snow during the two winters we've lived here. This year we've already gotten more than last year. The association actually had to shovel our walks and driveway (unfortunately with a bobcat that beeped every five seconds at 4am.)
Liam was so excited to see the snow he got into his snow clothes first thing. We waited for dad to get home and had our neighbor Christian join us for the fun.
The snow was less than perfect and was only about an inch thick so it meant a lot of sledding on the dirt. It was nice to have Christian there, he was always willing to carry the sled up the hill for Liam and was on the quest to find a higher path each time.

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And last but not least. Liam got his OWN digital camera for Christmas from his Nana and Bompa Poulson. I just downloaded the pictures he's taken so far. It's fun to see what he see's. Here are a few of my favorites! I love the ones that he and the B twins took of each other. Expect more pictures to come!

Quote of the day.

Liam: "Owen, you makin me crazy!"

Not sure where he's heard that before.

Color me pink revised

Liam is looking much better today. (well his left eye anyways.) Turns out that it's not just pink eye. All that rubbing made him get a conjunctival hemorrhage. (It sounds a lot worse than it is. Basically it's a bruise inside the eye.)

It means he's going to have a red/bloody looking eye for a few weeks. So if you do run into us, you don't have to run screaming holding your eyes and running them under an eye station. The CH is not contagious, but he'll be staying inside for a few more days.

I got some more pictures of him. This time happy. What a trooper he has been through this all!

Color me PINK!

So the last NINE days at the Poulson house have been less than fun. Late Monday night Owen starts to get tired eyes and acting really sleepy. He then spikes a fever, but sleeps through the night wakes up on fire (fever of 102.8) and stays around that for the next four days.
About three days into Owen's plague, Liam spikes a fever and so now I have two lethargic sick kids who cry at the bat of an eyelash.
I take Owen in for a "well baby" check up the day after he no longer has a fever and find out he has his THIRD ear infection all three in the last three months, so it's a trip to the ENT for him in March to which I'm sure he'll end up getting tubes just like me and Liam had to. (Sorry bud, you can blame the hair side for that one!)
At this point Owen is pretty much back to his normal self of destroying anything in his path and getting into all sorts of trouble.

Liam on the other hand was in the depths of despair. I've never seen him that sick. EVER! Even when he's sick he still runs around, wants to play with friends and would NEVER pass down a homemade chocolate chip cookie. But I could barely get him to lift his head off the table for more than a sip of juice. I think to myself, hold on only a few more days and we'll be out of this Black Death and back to normal in a few days. Right? WRONG!

Liam starts to complain that his eye hurts. I can see it's a little irritated in the corner, but figure his stuffed up nose was the culprit. Boy was I wrong. He has a raging case of Pink eye, which Nate assures me is viral and just needs to take it's course and it will get better on its own. Are you serious? We can put a man on the moon, or grow seedless watermelons, but have nothing to cure viral conjunctivitis? Seriously people where are your priorities?

I feel so bad for the little guy. He only complains about it hurting occasionally and assures me that he is all better and can play with friends again.
You tell me. I took these pictures today. Do any of YOU want him over for a playdate? I'd be happy to send him your way.

Owen's "B" day

I can't believe that a year has come and gone. I seriously feel like it was just a few months ago that Owen arrived here on Earth and became a part of the Poulson family. I have loved almost every minute of it. (The minutes I don't enjoy include Poop explosions up the back and down the legs, diaper rashes because of the blowouts, teething and ear infections...)
He is a really happy baby who is content to do most things by himself and wants to be BIG just like his brother.

Owen never took to baby food and went straight to the big stuff. He doesn't want you to cut up his food and prefers you give him a whole Banana that he can demolish to his liking. (Sometimes he eats it so fast I think he must have dropped it on the floor, but to my continual surprise, it is no where to be found and he's asking for Mo Mo Mo.

Owen rarely watches TV. He is such a busy body! TV actually means he has to stop what he's doing and sit for five seconds. I've found the one thing he'll watch for maybe five minutes is Barney which I am not the biggest fan of, but what can you do. He will occasionally sit with Nate and watch a few minutes of Basketball which seems to be his favorite sport to watch.

Here is some pictures of his "B" day party. We focused on the letter B and the transition of going from Baby to Boy. We ate Bowtie chicken pasta, bean dip and chips, a berry slush and blue brownies. I made Owen a Block cake which ended up being a LOT harder than I anticipated, but turned out pretty well after the second attempt! All I can say is cake decorators deserve a lot more credit than I have previously given them!

We got Owen a walker/ride on toy that he thinks is AWESOME! He does this funny laugh every time he walks with it, like. " this is all I needed to walk? Look I'm doing it all by myself." It's been really fun watching him enjoy this new toy.

We had a great day celebrating his birth and the fact that we made it through that first year.

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Happy birthday little guy! We love you!

Not a creature was stirring... except at the Poulsons

The night before Christmas Eve, I was on the phone (so not like me!) talking to my Dad and suddenly I see a brown furry something running across the floor from Liam's room. I scream "Nate, it's a mouse. Get it!" to which he replies, "with what?" Me: "I don't know, get the broom, but don't kill it, I'm in the Christmas mood and so he gets to live..." Nate: "How exactly am I going to get the mouse out of the house without killing it?" Me: Can't you play a magic flute and lure him out onto the deck and then it's up to him how he gets down?" Nate: "NO." Me: "Fine then let's corner him and...wait he just ran back into Liam's room." we both run in to see if we can find it, but with NO luck. Me: "Sorry little mouse, I gave you a chance, but you are not welcome to bunk with my baby, so the trap it is." (Bah Hum Bug!) We pull a sleeping Liam from his bed, put him in our bed and then set a trap and leave it in Liam's room with the door shut, along with a few extra precautions: (Yes it makes me feel better to stuff towels under the doors.) The next Morning, there it is, in the trap, (what is it about peanut butter that attracts EVERYTHING?) Sorry little mouse but you are gross and carry diseases and chew on things that shouldn't be chewed on.

I thought to myself, how did the little guy get in here in the first place? We live on the top floor and our house is new so I don't see holes for him to get in???
I go about my business as usual. Then New years, I go to put a plastic bag under my sink and almost touch mouse #2 to which I SCREAM, slam the door shut and Yell "NATE there's another one!!" Nate: "No way." Me: "yep!" So we don't waste anytime and put a trap inside the cupboard and again find a mouse surprise the next morning. I'm starting to worry now cause I don't like this one bit!

The following day we have a friend over to watch the U of U bowl game and I just finish telling him about our extra house guest and he says, "Hmmm, well you got another one, I just saw it run under your fridge." Me: "Ahhhh" Nate: "You can't be serious?" He goes and sets trap #3, we catch mouse #3. Then started Operation Find and Destroy.

To make this Tail (ha)shorter, we've caught 6 mice total. The most impressive part is that #4 & #5 we got in the same trap at the same time. That's got to be some record right? We haven't caught any for a week now, so I'm hoping that we got them all or they moved next door, (Sorry neighbors, your turn?) or my real fear, they are getting too smart for the traps and have seen their numbers diminishing in a hurry?

Because of this, I have been scouring my entire house. I've accidentally bleached two shirts that I like (why you might ask did I wear them to clean? Good question.)
This is reason I haven't been out of my house, blogged, or responded to emails in awhile.

I am still freaking out and can't sleep at night cause I sit and listen for any sound that might mean there is another one in my house. Nate is so annoyed with me that I can't even talk about it with him anymore. Liam Screams like a girl every time he walks into the laundry room (that's where we caught tweddle dee and tweedle dum) then says "I scream like Mama. That's Funny." Then Owen joins in screaming for fun of it. Needless to say I am ready to go crazy. Please leave any comments on how to get rid of these pests, and how to know you got them all. Or I'd be happy to take your cat off your hands for awhile.

Leaving that subject to a much more enjoyable one: Christmas!
We had a wonderful Christmas. We stayed in Hershey again this year and had a fun "Christmas around the world" dinner with some friends. (Thanks McCullough's!)It was really fun, and the food was fantastic! You should definitely try this one year. We each brought a main dish from the country of our choice and then did a short presentation on how that country celebrates Christmas.

Then the kids helped put on the Nativity. But we quickly noticed we were short on males, Liam was outnumbered 6-1 (not including Owen who was the star (The North star) Hence the reason Joseph is wearing a crown and cape.

Then we got home and told Liam if Santa got to Hershey before he was asleep that he wouldn't leave him his word world toys. I have NEVER seen him fall asleep so fast. Seriously like 5 minutes. Too bad the "Santa Claus won't bring you any toys if you do this or that" threat has been put away with the decorations. It was amazing how well it worked.

Santa came through BIG time! Liam got his word world toys, Dada got his guitar, drums and microphone (Rock Band) and Owen got an awesome ball popping toy that he is thrilled about. I'm getting a massage (one that is longer than five seconds and actually feels like a massage. Thanks Babe! Can't wait.)
Here are some pictures of the day. And a video or two.

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Quick story about the bike Liam got for Christmas. Well a few months ago, I was driving to church and stopped by our dumpster to throw away some diapers. As I pulled up, I noticed someone had left some used but still could use some love toys, next to the dumpsters (but inside the fence.) I got really excited, cause there was a big wheel and a little play gym for Owen.
As I got out of the car to put the garbage in the dumpster, I noticed a little farther back was a boys BIKE with training wheels!!! I looked all summer long for a bike for Liam last year, but the only ones I found were for girls, had no training wheels, or was I fooled by what I thought was a boys scooter. (here is that post!)
I looked around me thinking, "Is this a trap?, Hmm no one's around. Quick, grab it and run before the person who realized they threw a great bike away changes their mind and it's back to riding the pink and blue scooter for the summer."

So I grab only the bike throw it in the car, and drive off. I get to church and want to take a closer look at the bike. With further inspection. I find that this just isn't a boys bike with training wheels, this is a BRAND NEW BIKE with the protective cardboard still around some of the framework. My first thought now is, why would anyone throw away a brand new bike? Maybe they were teaching their son a lesson and said they were going to throw it away and took it over to the dumpster to teach him why hitting his sister is not OK. And while explaining this, I drove up and took it! Well lesson learned I guess. For both parties. He'll believe his parent's next time they threaten to throw something away, and his parent's learned not to throw a brand new bike in the dumpster.

Or maybe the it's because the tires are flat and they didn't realize that you can pump them up.

Or MAYBE Santa decided that since I searched so diligently all summer that my efforts should be rewarded and Christmas came a little early.

I decided it was #3. Then thought to myself, Why didn't I take the big wheel and the gym? Darn. That was dumb! but don't worry, to my relief they were still there after church and I took the other two toys home to. Gave them all a good wipe down with clorox. Hid the bike in Nate's trunk for three months, and Voila! Merry Christmas Poulsons.