Did You Know?

Baby #2 is a boy. The day that we found out it was a boy, Devin and Braden came inside with handfuls of dirt and worms and dumped them on our kitchen table. I had intense flash forwards to craziness, messes, and dirt all over the place and thought of my friends who have multiple boys. I don't know how it will be done. Braden has enough energy to knock me out cold at nap time so I can't imagine what two of him will be like, but bring it on boys. It is going to be so fun to have an automatic friend for Braden. January won't be here soon enough! Here is baby boy at 20 weeks.

Bishops Pumpkin Farm

Yesteray, we went and picked up Daddy for a long lunch break and a trip to the local pumpkin farm. We had such a good time, especially being with Daddy. We sure love having him around. And yeah thats just a pumpkin I am smuggling out under my shirt. No big deal.

Yup cutest 2 1/2 year old I know.

Braden loved, and was terrified by the goats. Sometimes he was squealing with joy, and the next minute he was cowering under our legs. It was so fun feeding the little goats.

Braden finally braved up and put some food in his hand to let the goats eat. I think that was the part he liked the most as long as there was only one or two little goats eating from his hand.

Daddy and Braden got sent to jail instead of to time out.

Tahoe

In October I got to go on a 3 day girls only trip to South Lake Tahoe. It was amazing to say the least. I got a ton of projects completed and enjoyed time with good friends, great food, lots of laughs and good sleep. It was such a blast. Then to top things off, all the girls left and Braden and Devin came up and met me for a little mini vacay. We had such a good time together seeing some of the sights and just enjoying a little time together away from home. Thanks to our friends the Prices for letting us stay an extra night. We had such a good time.

Sunday morning we spent some time at a lake front park feeding the ducks, geese, and obnoxious sea gulls.

Braden and I had a little movie date while Daddy watched the BYU game. It was AWESOME!! We should have gone and rented a movie though cuz I think I changed the channel like 40 times.

Ok seriously look how cute Braden is!!

Braden and Gigi

Braden is very lucky to have Gigi, my grandma, living close by to be able to play with often. He sure loves her and she enjoys him too. During General Conference, Gigi came over to watch with us and Braden "helped" her knit an afghan.

My Boys

In September we bid farewell to the beloved Bumblebee to make way for a new to us car that will be arriving after Thanksgiving. Yes its true. After 4 years of sharing our trusty '98 Accord we are taking the plunge and getting a second car. Hallelujah. Having one car is tough man!! After a month and a half Braden still asks every day when Devin leaves for work "Wheres your motorcycle Dad?"
Braden is into "dress ups" of sorts lately. There are always shoes all over my house. How he even manages to walk in Devins size 14's I have no idea. Somehow he does it though, and always declares as he is tromping down the hall that he is "going to work."
This summer we got Braden some sunglasses because he was complaining about it being "hot" in his eyes. For some reason he prefers them upside down.
I think that Braden will have a love of reading like his mommy. Every now and then when he isn't wrapped up in motorcycles, trains, cars and airplanes, I will catch him having quiet time with a book. Thats my boy!! I dream of one day having a reading room in my home with lots of comfy chairs and shelves full of books.

Grandma, Cranpa, and Genzelle

In the beginning of August G&G Christensen paid us a visit for a few days and brought Bradens new found buddy, Genzelle, Devins older sister Chantel. She was the perfect playmate for Braden, allowing him to climb all over her and harass her like crazy! Only a few times did she get annoyed with him. She was very sweet and now Braden asks where she is and when she is coming over again all of the time. We had a blast with G&G here and loved showing them our stomping grounds and having them in our home.

We ate a ton of great food and always enjoyed eating outside on "our patio"

We had lots of fun at the swimming pool on the days that we were home and really frieked Grandma out with Bradens crazy pool antics. She got nervous every time he jumped in by himself.

Braden has a thing for belly buttons and bellies and Chantelly was no exception to his fetish.

We had a great day in San Francisco, even though it was pretty cold and really windy. We did a lot of things that we had never done before so it was really neat.

Oh Cranpa!

Grandpa took us to Fairy Tale Town their first day here while Devin had to work. We had so much fun!! Braden and I had never been there before.

Look at that chubby face. And no I am not talking about mine. Braden is growing up so fast and is getting so skinny and boy like. I can't resist these pics of him still looking just a little bit like a baby.

San Francisco really is so enchanting. Even if you do see a crazy homeless woman licking the guardrails between the sidewalk and the sea.

January 2012

After everyone we know asking us when we are going to have another baby, here is the long awaited announcement!! Baby #2 will be joining our family on January 25, 2012. We are super excited about another baby, and Ashley is especially excited about getting through the next few weeks to hopefully get over this phase of morning sickness. Blech! Here is a pic of baby at 13 weeks, giving Dad a wave when he made it to the ultrasound. So far baby is looking healthy and happy and has been moving around A TON in both of the ultrasounds we have had so far. We look forward to this sweet little baby joining our family. After getting to know Braden, we feel even more excited about meeting baby #2. Braden is such a joy and has such a fun and spirited personality so we are so thrilled to see what this baby will be like. Babys head is in the top right of the picture, and his hand is in the middle there kind of above his mouth. YAY!!

Goose Pond

Braden watching not to closesly as Emily tries to catch a crawdad

If we ever live on a large property I would love to have a pond with geese. I don't

know why, but I absolutely love geese. I think they are beautiful and so amazing to watch.

Braden and Joaquin were both a little apprehensive about feeding the geese,

but with my help, they both warmed up to the idea and had a lot of fun.

My mom had been wanting to find a local duck pond since the beginning of the summer, and she somehow discovered this gigantic regional park and pond in Auburn, about a half hour from us. We took a picnic, and some bread and headed up one Saturday afternoon. We couldn't believe how big the park was, and how many geese and ducks there were. We quickly realized that we didn't bring nearly enough bread because as we began to throw out our bread, more and more geese came flying in. It was crazy!! They were hungry and excited and a little too brave at times, but we had such a blast at the park and enjoyed perfect weather in the 80's. If you are a local, with kiddos, check out Auburn Regional Park on Richardson Dr. It was so much fun. And don't forget to bring LOTS of bread!!

The Ultimate in Bathtime

When my brother Chad was babysitting, while Devin and I took a quick trip to the grocery store, Braden got a pretty awesome bath. When I give Braden a bath, it is usually quick, with only a few inches of water right before bed time when I am in a hurry to get him in bed. But Chad filled the tub all the way above Bradens armpits!! I think there was more than a foot of water in that tub and Braden was in HEAVEN!! I think he felt like he was swimming. Lucky boy to have such fun uncles who let him do things mommy doesn't ever think of.

SAFETY FAIR!!!

Braden is a boy through and through and love police men and firetrucks. Although recently he stopped saying fire truck and it turned into firework truck. Too funny. Anyway, the local police and fire departments put on this safety fair and we decided to brave having 3 toddlers, and took the kiddos to get in on the action.

Bradens first ever time sitting on a "real" motorcycle. Dads scooter, the bumble bee as Devins coworkers call it doesn't exactly count, although Braden can't yet tell the difference.

In heaven with a fireman hat and sitting up high in the fire truck

The best picture we could get of these three kiddos, Sofia(2.5), Joaquin(3.5), and Braden(2)

I started watching Sofia and Joaquin a few months ago and love these two little angels to death, although having the two of them plus my little rascal is a lot like having triplets and can be a lot of work at times. But mostly they are so kind to each other and are a lot of fun!!

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Exploring

I thought I knew a lot of what there was to see around here, but we found a hidden gem yet again. One weekend, the boys and I took a little walkabout near a park in Roseville that I had been too quite a few times. We were pleasantly surprised by the sights we saw off of the road less traveled and will probably go visit again next spring. When we came home, I decided that when we look for a house again, I would like to look over there because the wetlands are huge over there and there are a lot of walking paths, which are so lovely when one likes to run. :)

Cute right?!

Braden love his uncles oh so much!!

And they love him even more!!

This picture makes me want to cry because Braden is such a big boy now!!

Six Flags

In June we went with my Mom, sisters, and brother to Six Flags Discovery Kingdom about an hour and a half away. My family got season passes and can get us in for free a few times. Sweet deal for us. Braden had a great time riding the few rides he was tall enough for and especially seeing the animals. The zoo in Sacramento is pretty lame and although we have been there a few times, I don't think Braden had ever seen elephants, lions, or tigers in real life, let alone dolphins, seals, whales, walrus, penguins, etc. etc. He had a really great time and surprisingly did well all day even without a nap and didn't even fall asleep on the way home. Can't wait to take him again later this summer.

Braden is really into real trains, since we live about 200ft from the train track, so he was thrilled to actually be able to ride in one, and kept saying "All aboard!" which he learned from an amazing segment on the Disney Channel called "Choo Choo Soul"

He is really into it being "Bradens turn" so he was excited to do all the rides he could by himself!

Braden was in love with all the animals. We had a fun time going to all of the shows and sitting in the shade to watch.

Dont ask why I let him touch a snake. Now that I look at the pictures, I think it is disgusting, but he is a boy right?

Bappy Hirthday

We can hardly believe our baby is not a baby anymore. He is two!! What the!! And man can we tell. He is so delightful though. We are sure loving watching him grown and develop as his kittle personality is exposed more and more every day. We celebrated his birthday in style and inside. It was pouring rain for several weeks in May and June, and what a bummer it was for a supposed pool party. But it kept things simple for us and we just ended up having family over for pizza and homemade ice cream. We took Braden to donuts for breakfast, watched Kung Fu Panda and ate popcorn, all took naps, and then enjoyed pizza!! What a relaxing day! Love our little man!!

Braden and Grandma

Blowing out his candle, he loves blowing out candles, so he was excited that it was all for him!

Something made us feel like Em was more excited about the gifts than Braden was.....

The party planning commitee

Too Cute

One afternoon after church and lunch the boys were so tired they both just conked right out. Braden doesn't ever sleep in our bed. He always thinks its tent time, or jumping time, or book time whenever we are in bed, so I was so in love with them sleeping there. So cute. Love my boys!

Maui Wowee

WARNING: Pictures are totally out of order. I cant figure out how to move anything. Its been a long time since I have blogged and I have already spent a while getting this post together so Im not going to take the time to figure it out. Just read and view and enjoy.

Our last night in Maui, hence the amazing tans!!

In front of Cheeseburgers in Paradise. A bunch of the restaurants we ate at had windows that opened all the way, or no windows at all, so it was basically open air and so much more enjoyable that way.

Our last stop at some waterfall on the road to Hana

A view at the Seven Sacred Pools

Seven Sacred Pools

The Beginnings of the sunrise on top of Haleakala Crater

Mr Muscles

Amazing sunrise above the clouds at Haleakala Crater at 10,000 feet

Devin took a little walk and found these vines to swing on. I got video, and was just praying the vines wouldn't break and he wouldn't fall into this 6 inch rocky creek bed.

This waterslide was so fun it was hilarious!!

The Gazebo: Best breakfast ever, including fried rice at 10am

Our sweet off roading shot

A picture near the blow hole and tide pools

The jungle was so dense it was amazing! It reminded us of Guatemala!

At the lava rock beach

At the beginning of May Devin and Ash got to go to Maui with some of our good friends, Mike and Jess. It was amazing to say the least. Whenever we get asked what our favorite part was, its hard to pin down just one event that could have been our favorite just because every single thing was so incredible!!

We arrived in Maui on Saturday, and were immediately struck by the perfect weather. The airports in Hawaii that we stopped at were both mostly outdoor and it was so fun just smelling the clean air. We read somewhere that air in Hawaii is more clean than almost anywhere on earth because it is surrounded by so much water that the pollution from big cities far away gets wiped out. And we could sure smell the clean air. We were instantly in love. We took an evening swim in the ocean right outside our hotel and couldn't believe how warm the water was. We all just walked right in!! It was nothing like the freezing California ocean water we are used to. We also went to the grocery store and spent more on a weeks worth of groceries, than I do in an entire month. It was a little depressing, but it was still cheaper than eating out for every meal, or at least thats what we are thinking. We also found this random little beach with these round lava rocks all along the shore. It made a sound kind of like one of those GIANT rain sticks every time the water would go out. It was fascinating!!

Sunday we went to church, and then did a little sightseeing. We traveled around the west end of Maui, about a 3 hr drive with a few stops along the way. We enjoyed the amazing sights of being the only people around!! We saw a couple of really neat blow holes, where when a wave comes in, the water shoots up really high and fast through a hole in the lava rock. To celebrate mothers day, Devin took me to what quickly became my favorite restaurant ever. We got dessert at a small place on the beach called Leilani's. We got my new favorite dessert, Hula Pie. An Oreo crust, macadamia nut ice cream, a thick fudge topping, whip cream, caramel, and more macadamia nuts. OH MAN!! It was amazing I think we went and got it 3 or 4 times. Devin made it for me again for my birthday and it was just as amazing as I'd remembered.

Monday we spent the day acting like kids! We had one of the best breakfasts ever at a little place called the Gazebo. If you go to Maui, go there. It was so yummyWe swam pretty much all day long in the ocean and in our pool. The pool at our hotel was INCREDIBLE!! We went down the water slide probably 30 times and sat around watching people go down and were just dying laughing at how much fun grown adults, and silly kids, were having going down this little 30 or 40 ft water slide. We even learned all the tricks to make the slide faster. It was so much fun.

Tuesday, we got to do one of the most amazing things I have ever done. We got up at 2am, a little crazy if you ask me, and got in a van and drove to the top of this mountain to watch the sunrise around 5:30am. It was quite breathtaking being there above the cloud cover. We then got to ride bikes down the mountain from 8,000 feet and down. We hardly had to pedal at all and just got to FLY down the mountain at 6am. It was so much fun until Devin ate it trying to jump a 1 inch curb. He scraped his shins up pretty good and got bonked on the head by the sidewalk, but we weren't going too fast at that point and he was able to ride on. It was honestly one of the funniest things I have ever seen. AFV worthy. And I couldn't stop laughing, even to ask him if he was ok. It was a little scary when he wouldn't respond because I was laughing so much. It was such a beautiful experience, and although I was exhausted for the next 2 days, it was definitely worth it. We enjoyed long naps that afternoon, and just relaxed for the rest of the day. We went to dinner at Cheeseburgers in Paradise and fell in LOVE with coconut shrimp. Yum Yum!!

Wednesday we enjoyed some snorkeling which was so fun. The ocean is so beautiful. We really had a fun time just being out in the open water. Wednesday night we went to a magic show called at a place called Warren and Annabelles. It was not only hilarious, but mostly impossible. We were sitting in the front row, and I still cannot imagine how in the world this guy pulled 2 bowling balls out of a hat right after he put it on Mikes head.

Thursday Devin and I did a little snorkel and kayak trip. We saw an octopus, that our guide decided to stick to my leg. It stuck really tight and hurt so bad when the guy pulled it off. I thought it was going to rip my skin off, but it didn't. Somehow on Devs stomach it didn't stick as tight. By the time we kayaked over to "turtle town" I had gotten seasick, forgot to take the Dramamine, and didn't want to swim anymore so I didn't see the turtles. But we snorkled at another spot later in the day where we saw a few turtles. It was so fun. They seem to be as relaxed as Crush in Finding Nemo. I still haven't developed the underwater camera, but I think Braden will want to look at the pictures all the time.

Friday we drove the road to Hana. We took a few stops along the way at some beautiful pools and waterfalls. It was a long and tiring drive, but it was so beautiful. By the end of our trip, we were excited to go home and see Braden, but very sad to leave the perfect weather and atmosphere of Hawaii, not to mention the amazing vacation.

As a sidenote, when we came home it rained for like a month and a half and wasn't really warm enough for swimming so we lost our Hawaii glow. It was really depressing!!