what started out as a normal breakfast...

12.29.09
...turned into a hair disaster.

Trey began eating a nice bowl of blueberries and a bottle of milk.

Can you see the mischief in his eyes?!!!

Next he wanted some pancakes and I was pleased to serve him some. He wanted to feed himself and rub his plate of syrup INTO HIS HAIR! This is NOW his new thing: Everything goes into his hair.

Keep watching this video to see Trey's "Masterpiece."

Scavenger Hunt at Mommy's work

12.28.09
My coworker Joy was taking charge of ordering Roaring Springs passes for next years season. (We decided to use our Christmas money from Grandma Marie and Grandpa Larry and buy our passes. We will think of you all summer long Grandma and Grandpa!) I had agreed to meet her at my work and knew the boys probably wouldn't be up for the trip. So, I thought I could turn it into something fun for Trey. I decided I would teach Trey a few vocabulary words (Radiologist, patient, x-rays and x-ray machine.) and we would go on a Scavenger Hunt throughout my work.

My plan worked and Trey was so excited to go to my work. My coworkers were so sweet, they showed him the x-ray machine (and somehow Trey remembered the time Joy let him shoot an x-ray of a boy who wasn't wearing his helmet while riding his bike. The memory on this boy is amazing.) and some x-rays. Trey also got to see a patient waiting in the waiting room. We ended up our "hunt" with giving Joy our money for our passes and receiving a bottle of water just for Trey from our friend and my coworker Deidra. Trey thought he was the coolest boy ever.
The only item on our Scavenger Hunt list we never did find was a Radiologist. I wasn't about to interupt them in the reading room!




Like Trey's New Year's beads? He is a few days early but very prepared. The clipboard is what he carried around my work. So official.

(I guess Trey didn't like my "X-Ray" drawing because he drew a picture of his bones and muscles right beside my picture. He also wanted to practice how to write Joy's name.)

Daddy, the human jungle gym

12.25.09
This is how the boys like to travel around our home. Tian now wants to do everything Trey does, therefore, when Trey gets a ride on Dad, Tian does too. Justin doesn't seem to mind, and usually ends up laughing hysterically.

Justin looks like he is getting choked!

Gingerbread

12.25.09
Our annual Christmas tradition of Gingerbread House making kind of flopped this year. I bought a kit from another store, other then Costco, and the frosting just didn't hold. So, we improvised and let Tray decorate the Gingerbread pieces like they were cookies. He didn't seem to mind. Heck, he was just going to be eating the candy in the end anyhow!

Christmas Morning Video

12.25.09

Christmas Morning take 2

12.25.09
This was our first Christmas morning EVER to spend it together as our little family. We had already celebrated Christmas in Bend, but Santa decided to drop a few more gifts for Trey and Tian at our home.

I LOVE this picture of my little guys, especially Justin in his gym shorts and his pajama top. (hehehe!) It is way too cute and reminds me of my Dad helping my brothers build their boyish contraptions. I remember my Dad spending all morning putting toys together for us kids, usually in his pajamas. Now, my husband is doing the same thing for our little boys. Next year, I will buy him a more "stylish" outfit to stay in for Christmas morning "construction."

Tian all bright eyed, looking VERY similar to the monkey on the front of his pj top!

So sad, the only "good" picture I took of the boys in their Christmas pj's. That camera strap can sneak into some of the greatest pictures.

Christmas Concert

12.24.09
Pictures of the sweet Christmas Concert we were treated to at the Bledsoe home.

Jared playing his rendition of Feliz Navidad

The amazing Tina, multitasking. Playing the piano and consoling a very tired and upset Tyson is what she does best!

James playing his cello while Grandma Joy listened. I was a bit worried about Grandma Joy. I think she is beginning to forget who we are, she barely spoke the whole night, and hardly moved an inch. She was probably scared to death of our crazy kids.

Christmas Eve take 2

12.24.09
After a 5.5 hour drive home from Bend, Oregon, we headed over to "the cousins" for a Christmas Eve program. The boys and their cousins dressed up for the Christmas Story, James read from the scriptures, and Grandma Joy watched with enjoyment. After the Christmas story, Jared treated us with a rendition of "Feliz Navidad" on his Saxophone. Listening to him play took me right back to Senor Falsa's Spanish 2 and Spanish 4 class my Sophomore and Junior year. (Do you remember the fun we had in his class Gina?! He was the greatest wasn't he!) The kids enjoyed the music, probably not knowing it was an actual Christmas song. After his 5 verse version of the song, it was his parents turn to play a duet. James brought out his Cello and Tina played on the piano. A week or so prior to Christmas, James and Tina were asked to play a duet at a singles ward Christmas fireside. Tina, being the amazing mother she is, being pregnant with a NOW obvious belly, played the piano with a crying Tyson on her lap. He didn't want to go to anyone but his mom and was probably ready for bedtime.

Trey and Tian in their Christmas pj's playing with Jacob. Jacob is one of the nicest boys we know. Always happy to see the boys, even if our boys are quite a bit younger then he.

I am so sorry, but I HAD to post this picture. Not only is Tacy the sweetest Mother Mary ever, this is one of the worst pictures I have taken in a really long time. When I pulled up this picture, it made me giggle just a bit. The red eye is horrible, the focus is a bit off, just awful. But, Tacy's face was all too sweet.

Trey was VERY happy to be a wise man!

James let Katie and Trey "read" from the scriptures. (Katie was able to read, Trey just repeated what James told him.) I am sure Jared will NOT be pleased at me posting this picture of him in floral bathrobe. He didn't seem to mind.

Thank you "cousins" for having us over for Christmas Eve AND Christmas morning!

thank you Grandpa Bend

12.22.09
The Friday before leaving for Bend, I received a phone call from the boys daycare. They have never called me, so I was a bit concerned. Tian's teachers said he was running a fever of 102 degrees. I was shocked and a bit nervous. They said he was acting fine, just tired and was ready for nap time. I called Justin, and thank heavens he was able to leave work early and pick both boys up. When he arrived, both boys were napping and Tian seemed fine. We thought their thermometer was inaccurate, and sure enough, by the time the boys arrived home, Tian's fever was gone. That afternoon he was very tired and lazy; NOTHING like this wild, active boy of ours.

The next morning, PRIOR to leaving for Bend, I took him into his doctor and the doctor said he had some post nasal drip (nothing new. This boy ALWAYS has a runny nose), red throat, and 4 teeth needing to pop through. The nurse practitioner said it ALSO could be "Roseola" which would present itself in a rash 2-3 days after his fever. We were JUST to treat the fever, nothing for the rash.

The night we arrived in Bend, Tian had quite the fever and Justin stayed home from church with Tian because he hadn't gotten much sleep the night before.

After a very relaxing day at the spa 3 days following the onset of Tian's fever, I was awoken the next morning at 2am to a screaming Tian. He was obviously very uncomfortable and distraught. I took him into the computer room at my parents home, hoping and praying I wouldn't wake anyone up. I was getting a bit nervous, not knowing WHAT could make this boy feel better when in walks my knight in shining armour. No, it wasn't Justin, it was my Dad, Grandpa Bend. He asked if I wanted to take a drive, and without even thinking for a nano-second, I said, "YES!" I grabbed Tian's blankets, a sippy cup of water, and out we went for a 2.5 hour drive around Central Oregon. Yes, 2.5 hours, and Tian cried off and on the WHOLE time. We drove with the windows rolled down, we drove with Tian screaming on the floor of the car (did I forget to mention we took my Dad's work car which did NOT have Tian's car seat? I didn't care at this point!) and eventually Tian fell asleep around 5am.

What an act of service this was from my Dad. He didn't need to wake up for us. He didn't need to drive us around. BUT, he did, and I am so grateful he did. He walked into the computer room at the perfect time, he calmed my fears and took my mind off of my screaming little guy.

As we drove, we talked about foreclosures, we talked about my prior calling as Gospel Doctrine Teacher (we were Gospel Doctrine teachers at the same time, different wards), my Dad's diligence in attending most of my volleyball games and my brothers wrestling matches and football games, his life as a child, and the woes of parenthood.

I will always remember our drive throughout the country. We didn't listen to the radio one bit, we just had a heart to heart which I will always remember.

Thank you Dad for putting me at ease, for calming Tian, and for our chat. I love you!

(the morning after our long drive, Tian woke up with a rash all along his back and his torso. Justin looked up the side effects of Roseola and the Internet stated a rash and irritability were the two most common symptoms of Roseola. NO KIDDING.)

Tian and my Dad have been inseparable ever since!

Sauter-Bledsoe Guys

12.24.09
I L.O.V.E. this picture of my two boys (Trey and Justin) and my two brothers (Robert and Taylor.) Trey's smile is so genuine (which is so hard to capture these days), you can tell by the look on his face how happy he is to be in the presence of these 3 guys!

Taylor's bike

12.24.09
Taylor has had this bike for over a year, and now, it has gotten a new paint job. My mom says he rides it everywhere; to his classes at the college, in parades, and at fairs. He doesn't get paid for his appearances but enjoys the reaction he receives from those who witness this enormous feat. Maybe we could hire him for the next birthday party entertainment!!!!

Trey's goodbye

12.24.09
Before we left Bend, Oregon, Trey had to cram all of his favorite things to do in the last few minutes we had left. Saying good-bye to one of the greatest uncles ever, Robert, take a ride around the property with Grandpa Bend on the 4-wheeler, and one last jump on the tramp with Derek. As we drove down the driveway, Trey said in the saddest voice EVER, "I am going to miss Grandma and Grandpa Bend. I don't want to leave." He said this as he looked out his window, and not only a second later, Grandpa Bend came driving up on the 4-wheeler to wave "Good-bye" to Trey through his window. Trey's saddness went out the window and his frown turned upside down!

Doesn't he look sad? Robert is immitating his pouty face!

Riding with Grandpa Bend on the 4-wheeler is one of his favorite things to do

Jumping with Derek is always a highlight to a trip to Grandma and Grandpa Bend's!

4 wheeler for Tian

12.24.09
It was the morning of our departure from Bend, and Tian didn't want to leave. He led me to the shop where the 4-wheeler is parked. He wanted one last ride, which Grandpa Bend obliged.

mustard

12.23.09
Tian will eat just about anything. And tonight, it was MUSTARD. I don't know if it was the color that caught his eye, but he couldn't get enough of that yellow stuff.

games

12.23.09

This was one of the most fun nights! We really aren't big game players (Justin's family is into games like nobody's business. Mine, not so much.) but this night we played and laughed, and cried-because we were laughing so hard. We played a game Justin has named "Signs", because we don't know WHAT the name is. We played with UNO cards. Each number is assigned a sign, and when the dealer lays down that number, the first person to act out the sign wins the card.

Some of the signs we made up were:
#2-we pounded our chest. When you first begin pounding your chest, you don't realize how hard you are doing it, which makes everyone else laugh, and you are left with bruises!
#3-we would have to say, I am a Tree, and hold our hands above our head like we were a tree.
and my favorite one was...
#9-we would say, Doin' time, and place our hands behind our back as if we were being handcuffed. This one was Roberts idea and he had the funniest accent when he said it. This one was the one that made me laugh the most.

I wish I would have remembered all of the signs because my brothers made up some great ones!

This night will always be remembered with such fond memory!
The following pictures are a "reinactment" of our card game. Of course I couldn't take a picture WHILE I was playing! Notice my mom in most of them, she was crying!

Christmas Dinner

12.23.09
My Dad went over the top this Christmas and served a delicious dinner. Justin said his slice of meat was the largest piece of meat, and the most delicious, he has ever eaten. Although the meat was pink, I had a slice myself and agree, it was soooo good! He also made ham, just for me and my Mom. I barely touch the ham because there were so many other things to choose from.

Thank you Dad for the delicious Christmas Dinner! You always treat us to such nice cuisine!
Love you Dad!

Wii

12.23.09

Trey spent a majority of our Christmas vacation playing the Wii with Derek. Derek was a great teacher and was so kind to let Trey play with his Wii. Trey was excited to come home to find his cousins got a Wii for Christmas and he was able to show them how good he was at it. He truly is pretty good and schooled both Robert and Taylor, my younger brothers. Of course he couldn't beat Derek who is the all-star running champion at any Wii game he plays.


Taylor, Derek and Trey

What was supposed to be a nice stroll...

12.23.09
...turned into a nightmare-ish 1/4 mile haul.

While my Dad, Robert and Justin were at the movies watching Avitar (one of the greatest movies Justin has seen in a long time. In his words of course!), we decided to take a walk to the mailbox. This is not just a walk out your front door and up the sidewalk, this is a 1/4 mile walk down my parents dirt driveway. Trey needed to express some energy, Tian needed the fresh air, and my Mom and I enjoy the time spent together doing just about anything! So, we bundled up the boys, Derek grabbed his bike, and we were off.

Not too long into our walk, Tian wanted to be held. This was a bad sign and I should have turned back, but didn't.

This is Trey after running the whole way down the driveway. Notice the transformer in hand. (Dumb Mrs. Claus didn't read the packaging at Wal-Mart and got a Transformer Figure, NOT a real Transformer. Oh well, he didn't seem to mind.)

Here is sweet Tian walking beside my Mom...

and here is monster Tian throwing a royal fit because I wouldn't hold him the entire way back. I know, I am the world's worst mother, but I HAD to take pictures JUST to prove to those who THINK Tian is all smiles and happy ALL OF THE TIME. He is not, and these are the pictures to prove it...

No, he is not hurt, just refusing to walk.

Look at this sad face. This is actually the face he made on a regular base during our Christmas break. More on that later!!!
Needless to say, my back ached for days and days after our walk due to carrying this 23 pounder 1/4 mile.

We made it home, alive, and in one piece.