Liam and Finn turn 2!

Liam and Finn, you are two years old today. At some moments, it seems like it's taken forever to get here and other moments make it seem like it's flown by incredibly fast! You are such a light in our family. I can't imagine our home without either of you in it...that includes all the noises, smells, and messes. :)

Liam- you are a heart melter. You have the sweetest little voice, but at the same time, you have a pair of lungs that belt it! You love to run back and forth and screech. You LOVE balls- any balls. You call basketballs "balls bass"(with a little lisp). You tend to get frustrated with your brother and we're still learning that hitting is NOT the answer...or biting. Yet, after mommy tells you "No!" and asks you to tell brother you're sorry and give him a hug, you offer him the sweetest embrace. You are a bit shy these days with strangers...especially kids. Nursery is hard at first, but you usually end up calming down and having a jolly time. You are cautious, but love to have fun. You LOVE your mommy and daddy. You LOVE to snuggle and wrestle and listen to music and follow your brother everywhere. You are our Liam Bug and we love you so incredibly much! Happy Birthday sweet boy!

Finn- you are so full of energy and life, that it's hard to sit still for too long! Great Grandma Shaw pulled out the old photo album and showed me pictures of Papa when he was 2. You look exactly alike! There's a reason you're named Finn Steven- and it's not just because of those brilliant blue eyes. You are busy, busy, BUSY! You are also fearless when it comes to people and have no problem venturing away from mom and dad. You LOVE trucks, cars, airplanes, helicopters, boats, etc. You like to push buttons, but you are seriously the sweetest little kid. You are a better leader than follower...you are INTENSE. You are really starting to find your words and it cracks daddy and I up when we sit and listen to you. You LOVE to watch the big kids play and want so badly to play with them. You also make sure there are always kisses and hugs after family prayer for both mom and dad. You are our Finner Boy and we love, love, love you!! Happy Birthday little monkey!

*****

For the boys' birthday, B took the day off 

and we were busy doing lots of fun things! 

I cooked some paleo banana waffles for breakfast. The boys were a fan.

They also loved "second breakfast" 

or the huge suckers they got for their birthday.

Hey, you're only two once, right?

Here's a little video of our morning.

DISCLOSURE: I literally woke up 5 minutes before we taped this. 

Also, I apologize for the garments hanging out of my shirt. 

Please forgive my inappropriateness, along with my bed head in all it's glory. 

5 minutes. Just keep that in mind. 5 minutes.

For lunch, we headed to the AC (Arctic Circle) 

for some chicken rings and indoor playground and moosetracks shake! It rocked.

After a nap, we packed our bags and headed up to Cherry Hill 

for an evening of water fun!

Auntie Taylour was kind enough to join us.

Happy Happy Birthday my little guys!

We LOVE you!

2nd Birthday Pool Party!

This week, we celebrate Liam and Finn turning 2! They aren't officially "2" until Friday, but we had a little family party last night to kick off the festivities. (I'm making it sound like my kids' birthdays are as big as Provo's Freedom Festival. Well...yeah.) We expressed to our family that each year is a victory- 1) Because B and I survived and 2) These boys have brought so much light and love to our family. And not just to our little family, but our extended family as well. They are the source of so much joy for many, many people. So, yes. We celebrate BIG.

This year, B's grandparents offered their clubhouse/pool,
so we had a pool party for the boys.

Instead of cake, we had an ice cream bar. We put two candles in a couple scoops of ice cream for the boys to blow out. It went a little bit better than last year. Remember this?

Boys and their grandmas, Auntie Taylour, and Uncle Shane.

The boys got lots of fun gifts! 

This morning has been awesome, because they have lots to keep them occupied. ;) 

Our gift to Liam and Finn were little balance bikes. They were pretty excited.

POOL TIME!

Thanks to our wonderful family for joining us last night to celebrate our boys!

Farewell, Sister.

You know when a certain day or event is approaching, 

but you feel it's so far in the future that you don't worry about it, 

then all of a sudden that day is here 

and you don't know what do, 

so all the feelings of your heart come out your eyes?

That was my day when my sister left.

As we speak, Whit and Joey are headed across the country.

To celebrate/relish time together before they departed, 

we gathered at my parent's house.

We put the boys in their swimsuits and played with bubbles.

And helped Grammy water her flowers.

And sprayed our brother with the hose.

And got in some good play time with our Auntie.

She even let us play in her big moving truck.

It was pretty traumatic for two little boys when they had to get out.

And then we said goodbye.

Everyone kept saying "It's not the end of the world!" And it's not. But it doesn't make saying goodbye any easier. It doesn't dull the sting of bidding farewell to a best friend who has filled the role of helper/confidant/encourager and who has helped me survive the past two years. My little Liam has especially attached himself to his sweet Auntie, which means a lot, considering his little anxious self has a hard time with different people and places.

Thank you, Whit. Thanks for everything.

We love you Rinos!! 

Make sure you set up your guest room, 

so we can start planning our trip to New Hampshire!

Dinner Fail

B and I have started eating paleolithic, which has been a great experience so far- especially with the recipes I've tried. Before dinner tonight, the boys and I were outside working in the garden, so I thought I would serve a cool chocolate avocado smoothie and some boiled eggs with a guacamole filling. 

I DON'T KNOW WHAT I WAS THINKING. 

That doesn't even sound good together. 

And let me tell you...it didn't taste much better. 

If that wasn't enough, I thought it would be a good idea to add some spinach to the smoothie. As we sat down and I looked at B's face after taking a bite/sip, I remarked "You don't like it." His response was "I'm just not super fond of chewing my smoothie.", referring to the spinach chunks at the bottom that didn't get blended very well. I happened to look at Finn just as he was gagging on the spinach as well. 

Then, Liam slammed his cup down and B yelled out "I've been hit! I've been hit!" Chocolate smoothie was in his hair, shirt, and all over his eggs. As I took it all in, I just burst out laughing and laughing and laughing. EPIC FAIL. In order to save what I could, I took out my strainer and drained the smoothies to get as much spinach out as I could. But, you know what? B refused. Instead, he drank the entire thing and ate every single egg on his plate- chocolate and all.

That is a man who loves his wife. :) 

The most wonderful time of the year!

Nope, I'm not talking about Christmas. 

Summer is my favorite season of the year for so many reasons. 

Today was one of them.

(Liam biffing it on the splash pad.)

The last day of school for the elementary kids was today. 

We could hear all the children laughing and playing outside and 

decided we should celebrate summer vacation as well.

SUMMER♥LOVE

Deso River Trip 2014

For Memorial Day weekend, B and I left the boys with grandparents while we headed to Green River for a rafting trip with family and friends down Desolation and Grey Canyons. It's a trip I did many times with my family as a kid, but it's been years since I've been down. Having B with me was a fun and new experience! I think he enjoyed it...for the most part! ;)

Day 1: The put-in at Sand Wash

We had 5 boats and 3 families on this trip (Shaw, Baldwin, and Wilson/Lloyd)

(The whole gang.)

(Our boatmen. Super awesome guys. 

The middle one's a bit young, but the other two are single and ready to mingle. C'mon ladies.)

1st Camp: Stampede Flats

Day 2: Turtle Shell Fossil and Moonshiners Cabin

(Cheesy grin in honor of Elder Shaw's signature smile.)

2nd Camp: Rock Creek Ranch

(Randy Wilson was a good friend and father/grandfather to a majority of the people on this trip. He is responsible for getting my dad started in white water rafting. Randy passed away almost 14 years ago. In honor of his legacy, a time capsule was buried under this mulberry tree at Rock Creek Ranch with his rafting memorabilia and letters from each of his four children. This trip down, the time capsule was uncovered.

(Bathing in Rock Creek. Pretty chiiiiilllly!)

Day 3: McPherson Ranch

I swear we have a million pictures of our family in front of this rock cabin over several years of trips.

Seriously, a million.

Along with remnants of McPherson's Ranch, there is an old, abandoned motel.

It's a little creepy...

This day was a bit cold and windy. A $0.98 poncho originally purchased for a high school dance activity seemed a good idea for staying dry. Beta testing was unsuccessful, but a good laugh about looking like a certain type of Disneyland tourist was had by all.

*****

NOTE: It appears this is where I decided to retire my camera. No documentation of our last camp and boat take-out can be found. 

4 days on the river. It was a blast. It was an adventure.

I forgot how beautiful and peaceful it is- a home away from home.

"Just another day in paradise!"

Steve Shaw

*Thanks to Whitney for getting the permit and letting us tag along, to my dad for outfitting us a bit, and to Baldwins for letting us be guests on their boat and giving us a good ride.