Welcome Little Levi

We had a new nephew born in September. Unfortunately, he was born when all of us were sick, so we didn't make it up to Logan to see him until he was almost two weeks old. He is such an adorable baby and we're so happy for Taylor & Jon.

 We're also grateful for any excuse the family takes to come out and visit! We had Kelsey with us one week (she helped me paint the bedroom), Keaton with us the next week (who helped Austin with his projects), and went up to visit everyone during the last session of General Conference. We're looking forward to having the family visit this week.

John & Lynda Smith's grandchildren: Cadence, Kory, Levi, Sadi, & Cael

Shane, Cadence, & Kory - wearing the Armor of God

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Handsome Smith Boys and The Favorite Aunt

The Smith boys are growing up! I haven't taken new pictures of either of them since last December, so we ventured out for a photo shoot during the fall leaf change - General Conference weekend. Aunt Maria was a big help, and we got some good photos of her with and without the boys (the ones w/o aren't included). I'm really pleased with how they turned out, just wish I could've gotten some pregnancy photos of me... maybe soon? (though I realized the reason I don't ever have many is because of how awkward I feel taking pregnancy photos..). Then again, the ones after the baby is born are so much better :)

Little Daredevil

Kory has been a little daredevil lately.  He's gaining a lot of new skills such as climbing and jumping (without the trampoline) and tries feverishly to keep up with his older brother. Poor little guy has gotten a lot of bruisers lately because of it.

"Mom, don't take a picture of me!"

 The black eye came on a morning while I was curling my hair. He tried to get off the toliet (after climbing up to watch me), and while he was on his belly (horizontally), he slid forward instead of back and his eye met the cabinet door sticking out! Poor guy!

 

 The busted lip happened while he was playing on Cadence's bed. His mouth somehow hit the wood and his tooth and his lip didn't agree with each other. 

  People are always asking me where his bumps and bruises come from. Truth is, I don't always remember (they are frequent enough..). Part of his struggle is that he is small for his age, so he has to get extra creative to do what his brother does. Still, I'm impressed with how physically skilled he has become. He's a determined little boy and if you don't let him do something potentially daring, you'll hear even more screaming then what may happen with the bumps and bruises that follow. It's pretty funny going to the playground. I think he gives several other mom's heart attacks as he successfully climbs ladders that have rungs as tall as he is! Other time, mom's think I have a genius baby because their 12 month old can't do what Kory is doing! Then they find out he's 6 months older, and just small... :) Still, he is my little genius! He definitely keeps me running (I tell everyone that's why I'm think - I have two little boys to chase after)!

Joy School

We started a co-op preschool group with 3 other boys in our ward who are Cadence's age. They all turn 4 sometime within this "school year". We switch off which mom teaches, do a welcome, pledge, weather, days of the week, have a short lesson, a snack, and then LOTS of playtime!
  The first group was at our house. We had fun singing songs about the weather, going on an "A" hunt around the house, and learning about our 5 senses! It ended up being a really short activity, which I was aiming for, especially with this being their first "preschool" day. For our lesson we did:
 - Sight: Played "I Spy" - one of Cade's favorite games.
 - Hearing: Everyone closed their eyes while one person made a sound (clap, run water, etc.). Then, they had to guess the sound. They ended up making all sorts of sounds of animal sounds (which was funny because you don't have to close your eyes to guess those...).
 - Touch: Touch different items under a towel to see how they felt (smooth, rough, wet, etc.) and tried to guess what they were.
 - Smell: Used smelly markers to draw a picture.
 - Taste: For snack time, we made silly faces out of salty popcorn, sweet banana slices w/ choc. chips, tart/bitter apples (green), and sour lemonade. After tasting each part, I had a tray of everything they could pick whatever they wanted from (except the choc. chips).

  I also sang to them the song "My Heavenly Father loves Me" and pointed to the senses it describes in the lyrics. We talked about how Heavenly Father has given us our senses to help us enjoy His beautiful creations.
 We had a really fun time and Cadence spent the next week playing "school" with me and pretending he was the teacher! He really loves to learn and while we already did most of these things on our own, it's fun for him to get together once a week with his friends.

This is our semi-permanent "calendar" in the kitchen. It worked for today, but I'm still dreaming of making our own to use with the boys every day, not just preschool days.

Baron Family Reunion '12

We had a great time running up to Idaho for a short reunion and visit. The boys LOVE hotels because they get to go swimming. They are both such fish (though I must say hotel pools are exhausting for moms with kids who can't swim)

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Check out little Ethan! I'm glad summer is over so I don't have to buy a new suit.

The boys get Daddy time!

Just love the hair!

We brought some yard games and others did as well. Austin and I had a great time playing ladderball. I won (with a serious amount of luck).

 

 

 

And the family... (we were glad so many came)

Grandma loving on Kory - who was SO exhausted!

Cadence re-meeting his Great-Grandmother

Mom's new haircut - love it!

We got some good group shots and enjoyed catching up with everyone. It's the first time we've done one and I was grateful I could experience it with my parents! I was especially grateful to see Grandma. It's been almost a year! I've tried to catch her, even by phone, and it's been hard. It was fun see her just after her birthday!
With such a quick trip, we didn't really get to do much else. Dad really wanted to go to Maddox in Brigham City to eat. Everyone thought it was a po-dunk hole-in-the-road. Turns out, it has a nice formal sitting area (and a lodge you can stay at right next door) and a NINETY-minute wait. What a bummer! So we missed that this time but I think now Dad has convinced us and it's on our list of places to eat in December.
We also didn't get to do any of the touristy sites in Idaho. I was hoping to take Cadence to see Craters of the Moon, because he's been so interested in volcanos. We also missed the Brigham City Temple Open House. So, now we have a fun list of things to do next time. We just hope the trip can be a little longer!