So, it's not so much that I am behind on my blogging, but more that we haven't really done anything that exciting lately. So much so, that I got out the camera to put some pictures with this post, and the only new ones on there are some randomness that Hayley took when I handed her my camera to stave off some boredom. If you are also looking to conquer your own boredom, here are some funnies for you from my kids:
Hayley calls Tootsie Rolls "Titsie Rolls."
Jackson calls Big Bird "Elmo Bird."
And this little chat with Jackson the other day:
Me: "Look Jackson, there are some geese."
Jackson: "Those are not geese, they are ducks!"
Me: "No, I'm pretty sure they are geese."
Jackson: "THEY ARE NOT GEESE! THEY ARE DUCKS!"
Me: "Hmm. Looks like they are eating the grass."
Jackson: "Ducks do not eat the grass!"
Me: "Then maybe they are eating the snow."
Jackson: "Ducks do not eat snow!"
Me: "Okay, fine. Then what do ducks eat?"
Jackson: "Um... um... hamburgers or something!"
I'd told Hayley about the Hunter High School Mini Cheer Camp that was
held last week. She had been kind of on the fence about whether she
wanted to do it or not. I think she was hesitant because some of her nervousness showed through at her Christmas Dance Concert performance. The "camp" started on Wednesday at 6:00. On Wednesday at 5:50 Hayley decided she wanted to do it, so we headed on over to Hunter High, home of the Wolverines.
She performed at half-time at the basketball game on Friday night. She did so great, I think especially since she was the oldest in her two to six-year-old group. They performed a little dance and then all of the mini-cheerleaders performed two cheers all together.
I got Hayley a little gift to show her how proud I was of her. Not for doing everything perfectly, but for remembering that dancing and performing are about doing the best that you can and having fun.
Why the little Ute bear, you ask? Well, because Saturday we used our flight benefits to fly out to Los Angeles to see the first Utes gymnastics meet, and I figured the little bear could help her to cheer them on.
We flew out Saturday afternoon from Salt Lake to San Francisco, and then from San Francisco to Los Angeles. Then a shuttle bus ride to our cheap, old-fashioned, yet clean and comfy-bedded hotel to drop off our stuff, and we were off the the Pauley Pavillion to watch some gymnastics!
Here's Hayley showing what we think of the UCLA Bruins.
I wish I could say that our Red Rocks did great, and totally won the meet... But, they didn't. They had three falls in their first four routines on bars, which is totally out of character, and it seemed to affect the rest of the meet for some of them.
But, it did make me super excited for our home meets to begin next weekend.
We were headed back to the airport super early Sunday morning to catch the LAX to Salt Lake flight and be home in time for Jeremy to pick us up, drop us off at home, and then head back to the airport for work. It was a quick trip, but really fun. I'm glad that Hayley is such a great little traveler, and is always up for an adventure with me. And I'm so happy that cute little girl is my daughter. :)
It's been really fun having Jeremy have the weekends off the last few months. It's a whole lot less stressful doing all the "weekend stuff" with both parents home. And, the "fun stuff" is more fun with our whole little family together too. :)
This last Saturday started with me taking Hayley to a free "try it out" karate class. She was all gung-ho about going, until we got there. Then she was a little nervous, but she did fine throughout the lesson... Until they got to the end, and the instructor was all pumped up, "Okay, you guys are awesome! We're gonna break boards! Are you ready?! Everyone's gonna break boards! You guys ready for that?!" Hayley's hand shot up, with tears in her eyes. He called on her, and got a "I'm not ready." He pulled her aside and talked with her and told her she could break it with her hand instead. She was still super nervous, but decided to go for it. Then this happened:
I was really proud her for going for the kick. She was proud of herself too. I was also proud of myself for not swooping in to save her at the first sign of her being emotional.
She earned her white belt with her mad skills and her board breaking.
Such a cute little karate kid.
Not to be outdone, this kid wanted his picture taken. He was cheese-ing it up.
Yeah, turns out that's the smile I get right before the dad tells me that the cute boy did something totally naughty.
To be fair, he was trying awfully hard to fix it, and notice how the door above that one is missing too? Yeah, that was Hayley's doing at about the same age Jackson is now. Perhaps we should just set the hooligans loose, and even out the other side?
It was super cold all day, but I didn't want us to be all cooped up all evening, so we headed out to the new Scheel's store. It was just as neat as we had heard about. Jeremy was impressed by browsing the gun section, but possibly more impressed by the array of fudge flavors at the eatery.
Jackson was more of an ice cream kind of guy.
Next up we rode the ferris wheel. Yep, there is a ferris wheel in the store. It was awesome. And it freaked me out a little. I'm glad I rode with Hayley who stays still a little better than a little wiggly, squiggly boy I know.
Oh my gosh, is this not the cutest father son picture you've ever seen? I love them so much.
We ended the evening with the "Big Moose" that Jackson had been talking about since we walked in the door. Except that we got within five feet of the moose and Jackson started to freak out. So, you only get a picture of Hayley with her moose ears.
No biggie, guess we'll have to go back for another round, and to orient Jackson with the fake animals, and how they are not scary. Such a super duper fun family Saturday. :)
On Christmas Eve we headed up to Grandma and Grandpa Bachman's house. The kids acted out the Christmas Story. Hayley still has the default of Mary for the next few years until she's usurped by Emme. Baby Noah is Jesus. Apparently this Jesus likes bananas. These are the faces of the Nativity who have just seen a angel of the Lord.
And this is the face of... I don't know... Christmas? Cuteness? Most Darling Boy in the World? Man, I love that kid so much. :)
When we got home, this was the letter that Hayley left out for Santa.
Not sure how well you can read it, so here's what it says:
Dear Santa,
Here are some cookies for you and some carrots and apples for your reindeer. I want a big pillow pet and a silver bell.
Love,
Hayley Alyssa Bachman
P.S. I tride to be good.
And although it took some doing, Santa came through on the big pillow pet.
She was really excited about all of her presents. Lucky, sweet girl.
Jackson was also very impressed with his Squinkies and fire truck from Santa. In couldn't tell from the "Wow! Wow! Wow!" in the video below.
Next up was gifts from Mom and Dad. A Zinkie House for Hayley and a Little People car slide for Jackson.
Then, much to Jackson's dismay, there were no more presents to be opened.
He was fine once we started breaking new toys out of their boxes for him to play with.
Such an absolutely fun Christmas season with my favorite people!
We usually do Christmas at my mom and Robert's house on the 23rd. Since that was a Sunday this year, it didn't work out for everyone, we went over on the 22nd. That was great, since it meant we got to open presents three days early. My kids were all for it.
They both really, really loved their DreamLights. I really like them too, and they've been a hit every night at bedtime since.
Jackson opened about two presents, then disappeared to the playroom to play with them. He showed back up to open the rest of his presents after everyone else was done. He was happy to be the center of attention. I'm glad he was happy at all, since he was running on about a twenty minute nap.
Hayley got a super cute hand-made Minnie Mouse beanie hat from Aunt Whitney. All I wanted was a cute picture of the two of them, but apparently both of them are crazy. Fourth time was the charm.
It was a great, fun start to the Christmas party season!
To gear up for the holiday season, we headed up to the Dicken's Festival at the fairpark with my dad and sister Whitney. As soon as Hayley spotted this cut-out, she wouldn't let up until we took a picture. We obliged.
And one in the sleigh before seeing Father Christmas. I had big plans this year to spring for the $$$ picture package, but Jackson wasn't feeling well and ended up staying home with Jeremy.
Yeah, turns out this boy had Strep Throat and Scarlet Fever. :( Poor kid. For the next few days he kept saying how his "mouth hurt" (I think he meant his throat...) and saying, "Mommy, I'm so sick." So sad.
After a few days on antibiotics, Jackson was feeling much better, and we decided to go see the Christmas lights at Temple Square. My kids had never been. Jackson was kind of indifferent, but Hayley was impressed.
I like this picture of my mom and Whitney. If you squint, it looks kind of like, "There's a raging fire behind us, and we're just sitting her smiling."
It was super cold, but I'm glad we all got bundled up and made the journey downtown.
I think Jeremy's favorite part of the evening was after the lights are done. On the Trax ride home, there was this cute family with a little baby that kept smiling at Hayley. Our stop was before theirs, and as soon as we got off the train, Hayley burst into tears. When Jeremy asked her what was wrong, she said, "That baby was so cute! I just want it to be in our family so bad! Can you go steal that baby for us Daddy?" Umm, creepy! Jeremy laughed, and we went over with Hayley why that was not a good plan. She still whimpered about it most of the way home in the car. Silly, tired girl.
When I signed Hayley up for dance this year, she was dead set on doing a cheerleading class. I was concerned, knowing that she would be among the youngest in the class, and knowing that many times with Hayley, she likes the idea of doing new things more than actually doing them. I tried to talk her out of it, but she had her mind pretty well made up. She does make a very cute little cheerleader.
Here's her Christmas dance. She was very excited to get picked to do a toe touch "by herself, with just one other person."
After she performed, I told her that she had done great. She, in turn, started crying and told me, "I messed up a lot." In looking back at the video, there are a lot of girls up there, and a lot going on, and she does look a little lost sometimes, but her little tears just broke my heart. I sat her down and told her that everyone messes up, that's not what dancing is about. It's about having fun and doing it because you like it. I told her that as long as she did her best and had fun that's all that matters. She calmed down and got her dancer medal and seemed better. She has talked about her cheer class since then, and doesn't seem quite so jazzed about it, but I think it's good for her to follow through on the choice that she made. After that I'm okay if she doesn't do any more cheerleading. I don't need her long legs in that short of a skirt anyway. :)
Jeremy and I have been married since 2003. Jeremy does aircraft maintenance for SkyWest, and I teach fourth grade at Jordan Hills. We have one sweet girl, Hayley, who was born in February of 2006, and had little Jackson in August of 2009.
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