Fun Breakfast!

Yesterday, we decided to have a relaxing family day at home, since Matt had the day off, and no one had to be anywhere. So, our creative minds started working up a plan for a breakfast that was a little different from the everyday stuff. So, out came the cookie cutters, and the bread, and the eggs, and this is the result!

Matt wanted airplanes, Darren a truck. Darren got ahold of his before it made it to the pan - hence the bite taken out of the top of his!
I had a flower and a butterfly
Two happy, hungry boys ready to eat!
The spread!

4th of July!

We had a great time on the 4th of July! In the morning, we went into North Pole to watch their annual parade. Darren was engrossed the whole time - especially with the motorcycles, classic cars, and the whole slew of firetrucks (though the firetrucks scared him at one point - I was surprised!) Matt's favorite part was a solitary man playing his bagpipes. My favorite was the little circus organ (see the pic. below). Small town parades are very different from the big city parades, as I'm sure you can tell from the pictures. Still fun for little kids though - and DEFINITELY not as crowded! Then, later in the afternoon, we had some friends over for a little BBQ! I got so busy having fun and playing hostess, that I totally forgot to get out the camera. Oops! Oh well. We all had a good time visiting, watching our backyard turn into a toddler playland, and watching a movie on Matt's homemade projector! It was nice to just relax and have a good time. Unfortunately, we didn't get to watch any fireworks, because they are prohibited on base, and it's daylight for 24 hours, so we wouldn't have been able to see them anyway.

Havin' a good time while eating breakfast (this was actually a couple days before)!
Walking with Dad before the parade starts! Yikes, my baby is losing his baby face! He's looking so grown up!
In awe at all the motorcycles! There were a ton of them!

Just chillin' at the parade!
Only in North Pole do you see Santa in a 4th of July parade! Actually, about half of the floats had statues of Santa on them! His suit matches the color scheme!
This was a cool little organ thing. The lady was playing patriotic songs. I loved it!
Of course, someone had to put a moose on their float!
The picture says it all!

Dizzy! Dizzy! Dizzy!

Oh, the things that go on when Mom's trying to fix dinner! No, in all actuality, this is just another one of Darren's favorite games to play with his Daddy. Matt's such a great Dad! I almost get dizzy while watching this video clip though!

Tricks!

Darren just about gave me a heart attack the other night when he learned a new trick! He started out doing flips off the chair, and I thought for sure he was going to break his neck or something. Thankfully, he didn't, and after doing it for several times in a row, I finally relaxed and recognized that he was actually using fairly good control, and eventually agreed to let Matt break out the camera and enjoy Darren's little show. But, of course, with the camera out, he no longer did flips, but did this for the first time instead..... We laughed pretty good! No one was injured in the making of this film....

An evening at the park!

We went for a walk to the park tonight as a family to help Darren burn off some energy before bed, and took the camera just for fun! We all had a good time - especially Darren! Here are some of the pictures we took! They are a bit out of order, so sorry about that. Enjoy them anyway! By the way, for those of you nonalaskans who might care, these pictures were all taken around 9:00 at night with mostly cloudy skies (the sun did peek throught he clouds every once in awhile)! I love how bright it was!

Having fun climbing down some stairs!

Darren thought it was really funny to throw rocks on the slide, and have Matt brush them off. I think we're in trouble, since he's reached a "throwing" stage. But, I love the sideways tongue!

A lake by our house.

Same lake, same time, just different camera angle!

When we got home, Darren was super thirsty! He loves his silly straw and regular cup - I think it makes him feel big!
Darren's first time on a merry-go-round! They're hard to find anymore!
Having fun driving the truck! Typical boy!
He finally likes the swings! I love this picture of him!
On the move - as usual!
Darren had fun taking turns with each of us, "driving" us around. Too bad he can't see over the dashboard yet!

A Day With A Toddler!

Life with a toddler is never boring! Today was no exception! In sacrament meeting today, Darren threw his sippy cup, narrowly missing a couple of heads! The kid has a good arm, but how embarrassing! Then, after church, but before choir, I had to go grab music out of the car and do a little recruiting through the halls. There were a couple choir members in the room already that said they would watch Darren while I did the above. Anyway, I walk back into the room just in time to see Darren shove something in his mouth, say "Mmmm" while nodding his head and trying to run away from me! Upon inquiring what he was eating, I just received blank stares (not very encouraging)! With a short little investigation, I discovered that he had gotten into the pocket in the diaper bag where I keep my things he's not supposed to get into (wallet, keys, etc.). Since it was Father's Day, the ward passed out a little treat for all the dads. Matt didn't go because he wasn't feeling well, but I grabbed one for him, and put it in the "Mommy pouch" of the diaper bag. I had already taken Darren to nursery, so he never saw it and didn't know it was there. Anyway, on the floor I spy the wrapper of Matt's 100 Grand candy bar, and a big chocolaty smile from a mischievous little boy! Poor Matt only got half of his Father's Day candy bar!

As soon as we got home, Darren went tearing down the hall, looking for "Dada" who was in bed, sound asleep. That didn't stop Darren - he climbed up onto our bed, and jumped on Matt repeatedly saying "Dada!" with a great big smile on his face! He sure loves his daddy! Then he got down, went to his own room, grabbed his blankey, went back to our bed, and curled up next to his dad! It was very cute, though Matt's nap was officially over! Darren wouldn't hold still for any longer than about 3 seconds - literally! Then I fixed lunch, and for some reason, Darren felt the need to smear his peanut butter and jelly all over the back of his neck and in his hair! What a sticky mess! He had to be dunked in the kitchen sink to get clean!

Later, just before bedtime, Darren thought it would be very funny to become a little streaker! Off came his pajamas, then his diaper, then ran laps around the couch..... until Mom caught him! At least today, he was caught before there was a puddle to clean up on the carpet.... I'm not always so lucky! After getting him dressed again, about 30 seconds later, off come his pants - again! Thankfully he left his diaper on this time and started playing with his cars while Matt and I were finishing up a couple of things. Whew!

Next thing we know, we're looking in the kitchen to see this...... Darren had used his fire truck as a little stool to reach the kitchen counter (the end that has become the dreaded catch-all, and Darren's favorite place!), but the firetruck must have slipped out from underneath him. It didn't even phase him, and apparently he didn't need it anymore! He stayed dangling on the counter for a couple minutes, then just hopped down as if it were nothing. He's fearless! What a kid! Needless to say, Darren is a very busy boy, and therefore keeps me quite busy! I love it though! All of the cute little things he does more than make up for the other not-so-cute things!

Best Buds!

Darren absolutely loves his daddy and looks forward to when he comes home from work everyday! Most days, they end up chasing each other around the couch or play a very active version of hide-and-seek! Darren lives for these moments, and at the very least has a huge smile on his face - he's usually laughing! So, last night I decided to catch one of these chasing sessions on camera! It's too fun to not share! I have the privilage of watching it live all the time, and to be honest, it's usually my favorite part of the day. It's so great to watch my husband and son form such a great bond with each other. I fall in love with Matt more and more every time I see him create these fun memories with our son, and being the father that every child deserves! I have been very richly blessed with an absolutely wonderful little family! Enjoy the video clip!