New Tricks

Elliot truly makes me laugh several times a day. Sometimes I just have to shake my head

and wonder how a three year old can be so observant. I put away his stuffed animals ages

ago because he has so many and I got tired of picking them up numerous times a day.

However, he "re-discovered" them the other day. At first, he just buckled Minnie Mouse

in the car seat (with no help) and then he put all the others in on top of her. Then he wanted

me to put the handle up so that he could carry them because he was "going to the store."

Who knows what he'll think of next? Minnie looks pretty comfy all by herself.

We have an excersaucer that I put Gabe in so I can fold laundry or clean or even check my email. At first he wasn't sure what to think of it, but now he will stay in it for 20-30 minutes without complaint. It has a small mirror along with the other toys, and as you can see in the picture below, he has discovered the baby in the mirror. He got really quiet the other day, so I turned around to see what he was doing. He was trying to figure out who that baby was.

My cutie boy! Ryan always says, "He is so fat. Look at these rolls!" I think he is adorable and his chubby cheeks are so much fun to kiss!! Ryan is just hoping that his eyes stay blue. Elliot started out with blue eyes and then his went brown, so Ryan is hoping he doesn't get gypped this time around. Gabriel is rolling over now (consistently) and is so proud of it. He makes sure that we take notice when it happens. He has got the cutest laugh and when he smiles, we can't help smiling back. I love this stage. He can't really get around (read get into things), and although he definitely has his own personality, he can't sass me yet!

Something's Afoot...

Sometimes Elliot is too smart for me. He has seen me put baby powder in my church shoes before, but I never realized how closely he pays attention. He was really quiet the other day, and I found him sprinkling (okay--pouring) baby powder in his cowboy boots. It was everywhere! I just laughed (what else are you going to do?) and sent him to play at the neighbor's house while I vacuumed it all up. At least it smelled good.

Hot Tin Roof...Day Three

So here the guys are in the final stages of the roofing project. The weather really wasn't nice enough to work until Friday, and then it was really nice. About the time I was taking these pictures, Ryan realized that he needed his hat, sunglasses and some sunblock. Lucky him, because although he burns, it turns into a tan the next day.

The east side of our roof is so steep. When we had that big windstorm, our Elder's Quorum president came over the help Ryan put tarps up. He almost slid right off. Chase also offered Shay $100 if he would do a back flip off the roof onto the grass. Ryan nixed that one. Thank goodness for older brothers. Wait...isn't Chase Shay's older brother too? Can you imagine what shenanigans would have taken place if we would have had Trav here too? The poor Idaho Air National Guard. What is it going to do with all four of them enlisted? At least none of them are in the same unit. They would drive their commanders nuts! Sorry about the butt shot, Denis. At least everyone can tell you were working! Ryan was too slow with the nail gun, so he tossed down shingles instead.

The roof isn't quite finished in this picture, but they did finish around four on Friday afternoon. Ryan has a few spots to finish, like the ridges and in the front, but it is mostly done. Yay!!! Thanks to Denis, Shay and Chase...Ryan would still be working on it if not for their help. I know Ryan walked around sore for a few days, so I hope everyone has recovered. After the outside is done, Ryan wants to rip out a wall. Any volunteers? :)