The Burning Times

privacy please

2011-08-19T11:45:00.000-07:00

Alright, I'm going private. Put your email in the comments if you want an invite. Thanks.

BUGS: THE GROSS KIND

2011-08-08T09:01:00.000-07:00

Dear Blog Followers, I'm sorry we have been absent for most of this year. We have been busy, but now we are back.

I am going to deem this summer, the Summer of the Bugs. Last summer was definitely the summer of the bikes, but this one has turned out to include nothing but bugs (and swimming and other fun stuff, but mostly bugs).

Notice what is in the boy's hands...
I'll give you a hint....they are slimey, and sticky, and stinky, and gross! Jack found these beauties on the backyard fence. He proceeded to keep them in a plastic gatorade bottle until they stunk so bad when he opened the lid that he let them go. Honestly, I throw up a little bit in my mouth when I think about them.
Next, came the grasshoppers, butterflies, potato bugs, and dragonflys. Jack earned that bug catcher from doing jobs around the house (only a dollar at the dollar store), and it has held all of them at one time or another.
Brigham on the other hand would only hold rolly-pollys in the beginning, but has moved on to the sheer bravery of holding frogs.

And there he is. Many potato bugs have died along the way in our garage this summer.

This is Anndi. She likes to do whatever Jack does, which would include the catching of bugs. The girl even let him put a grasshopper on her head, if that's not love I don't know what is!

I believe this one's name was "Hoppy." He lived a short life in Jack's bug cage, but it was filled with lots of jumping and a couple of B. B.s put in there to play with.

I really have never been a big fan of bugs. I am a girl afterall, and being a girl I have never warmed to the feeling of something crawling on my hand or anywhere else for that matter. Bugs are gross. But, I'll be honest, this particular summer of my life, as a mommy of two crazy boys, I have been so ThankFul for bugs. They have saved my sanity!
p.s. pics of frog-holding coming soon

The Fourth

2011-08-08T08:41:00.000-07:00

The Fourth of July!! I have come to really love this holiday because my kids are finally getting old enough to stay up late and enjoy the fireworks.

And here we are....not sure how our legs got cut off, but you can see lots of the black sky!
I LoVe this girl.

These are girls in my boy's lives....we have fiery Avery, who Brigham ALWAYS insists on holding hands with, and mischevious Anndi, who will literally do anything for Jack. I'm told that Avery and Brigham guard all the toys in nursery, while holding hands.

Seriously, I can't enough of her.

Brigham was VErY scared of the fireworks. He refused to hold a sparkler and ran away from me when I tried to give it to him! I couldn't get a clear shot of him saying, "wow" over and over again as the fireworks lit up the sky. I really enjoy that he's a little more conservative than Jack.

And there he is, dressed in his favorite oversized Disney shirt and "richard simmons" blue shorts. It has been his choice of attire for most of the summer. Good thing school's starting and I can finally make him dress "cute" again, at least as cute as boys can dress.

We Are Alive!

2011-01-21T16:18:00.000-08:00

Alright, here we are again. Can I just say that 3 kids has ROCKED our world! Holy moly. This little girl is wonderful and precious and we totally LoVe her, but January is the soonest after she was born that I have had a minute to finally get some pics up here. So here are few from Christmas, a few from Jack's bday, and a few of the babe. Enjoy!

I wanted to put this at the end of this post, and leave you with a "Peace out" from Dave, but it didn't land in the right spot. So, we'll start with a little "peace", because that is hard to find at our house right now.
I know she looks a little Amish in this sweater, but someone hand-knitted this number and so we must take pictures for their enjoyment. Plus she's smiling, and looks so cute!

THE BIRTHDAY

Jack got a new bike because his old one was getting down-right too small for the lad. Honestly, he's not much of a morning person and walked right past the thing on his way to feed his face. I had to bribe him to sit there and half-smile! Seriously, who wouldn't be happy about this sweet Star Wars bike.

And here is the big birthday cake. I made it in about a 1/2 hour. It wasn't my best work, in fact the back of it wasn't even frosted because I ran out of frosting and didn't have time to make more. Those are Star Wars figurines he picked out himself. Don't judge me too harshly. I'll do better next year!

Here's the loot from family and friends. The Star Wars Guess Who has been a big hit.

And there's the birthday boy. 5 years old.

THE MIRACLE BLANKET

May I introduce you to the Miracle Blanket that truly has brought the "Gift of Sleep" into our home. You wrap the kid up and she can't move her arms one inch. These days she really is sleeping between 7 and 8 hours every night. Bless her sweet soul! On a sidenote, she did NOT sleep that long for many, many, many weeks.

CHRISTMAS

These pictures are in a very random order. Here is Baylee with all her goods. She was super excited about her new clothes and pacifiers. So excited in fact, that Christmas morning she slept-in until eight o'clock.

Jack with his DS. It has been both a life-saver and a hindrance. I had to set up a time limit for every day, but the DS has blessed us with less fighting between the brothers.

Here's Buzz Lightyear with his light saber. He has a laser and he will use it! I do really think that his favorite gift was his new shoes. He put them on and wore them the rest of the day.

Notice our delightful Christmas tree in the background. It was a Wal-Mart special last year. I made the boys ABC books. Brigham likes to read his every night. I think Jack has looked at his once, maybe twice. Boy, I really did a terrible job of Christmas pictures this year. I'm going to blame it on...

BAYLEE

I came home one day to find Baylee dressed like this. She had a onesie under all those layers as well. Dave said he dressed her and didn't want to have to undress her and go through the process all over again! Seriously!!

She's starting to smile people. And it's really cute.

I took her in for her 2 month appointment and the kid is in the 76th percentile for weight! She's a short, chubby little girl, with a perfectly round head. At least one of our kids finally likes to eat. I honestly think that Jack never even made the weight chart.

I love her!! As my friend Jacque said, "They start out like this, and then they turn into that!"

I tell you, these boys LOVE this little girl. They call her "sissy" a lot, and give her kisses all day long. Maybe someday they will get along with each other.

The Princess Has Arrived

2010-11-24T09:05:00.001-08:00

Our little princess has finally arrived. Baylee Eva Burns was born at 10:11pm on November 16th. She weighed 7 pounds 2 ounces and was 21 inches long. She has lots of dark hair and even came out with a big pink flower in her hair!!!

Sweet little girly.

She really did fit in this basket, not comfortably, but she fit!

Cute little baby hands.

Love her.

Here's Dave recovering from the whole birthing process. It was pretty traumatic for him. Seriously, he almost passed out!!! And he told me the next morning that he had birthing nightmares. I didn't get the epideral in time....ask me about that sometime!

Aunt Summer and Cousin Hallie came to see her at the hospital. I'm glad we could even out the gender numbers with another girl.

Dave took about 10 different pictures trying to get a good one of us. That would be why I'm not in any pictures ever!

The newlyweds even showed up to hold her. I think she made them a tad bit baby hungry, except for when she cried and then Dusty handed her back over!

I love that smile!

I have to say that this little girl has already brought so much calm to our house. The boys totally adore her. Now if we could just get them to like each other!

Swimming in the Rain

2010-08-25T14:55:00.000-07:00

Alright, well we've had a lot of fun this past month. Dave had a birthday and got lots of "work clothes" as he calls them, and P90X. We'll see if he really uses it this go-round!

We did a lot of swimming at the Farmington Pool, including the planning and carrying out of our ward swim party there.
Since that party Brigham asks me every time we go there if we get a popsicle this time!

Notice the fork, which he calls his "sword". He has a "sword" with him at all times, including when he goes to sleep. Silly boy!

Jack got very brave this summer as he climbed his way up to the top of the high dive and jumped off several times.

I really think he was just trying to impress his dad...

...who tried to talk Jack into doing things like this off of the high dive! Dave, he's only four. That's what I have to tell him over and over again.

And then there are the random summer rain storms.

They are just too fun to pass up!

What kid wouldn't want to run, jump, splash, and get totally drenched in that warm rain!

So naturally, all the neighborhood kids had to join in. Good times. I love the summer.

We also ventured to Arizona for a week, and then down to San Diego for two weeks. Someday I'll get those pictures on here.

oh baby

2010-07-03T09:32:00.000-07:00

It's a GIRL, and she's coming in the middle of November.

Wa-hoo!

Traveling without Me

2010-06-11T18:01:00.000-07:00

So Dave is gone to Venezuela for nine days. I know he doesn't count travel days as "gone days," but honey THEY count! Today is day 6. How long do you think it is okay to leave children in the bath tub? And how early do you think is too early for them to go to bed? I love them, dearly. It's just day 6 and I've only spoken to Dave once. That's all.

2010-05-09T14:21:00.000-07:00

I've missed the month of April completely! Here are a few highlights from our world.

SANDBOX

Grandpa Randy and Dave put a sandbox in the backyard, and these boys have LoVeD it. They go out there every day that it is warm, and somedays when it is not. The neighborhood kids always enjoy it. I'll get a picture of all of them in it one of these days. It really looks like we're running a daycare!!!

BRIGHAM'S 2ND BIRTHDAY
It was little boys birthday on April 7th, and he turned 2! He got an airplane geotrax thingy and loved it for the first day.

This little boy sat patiently and waited his turn for the airplane thingy. Yeah right, this is after many tears and a timeout. Birthdays are so hard for the other siblings.

Brigham's looking a little cautious here. I wonder why. These boys fight. They fight more than I ever thought possible, but they'll get along someday. Right? Right?

This is to document that I was actually at Brigg's birthday. I did get dressed that day and even put on make-up!

Brigham told me he wanted, "a green monster cake." I have no idea where he got that idea from, but here is what my mind thought a green monster cake looked like.

He was pretty nervous through all the singing, but finally smiled at the end.

Who needs silverware anyway?

Here's the birthday boy opening his presents, although Jack and his little girlyfriend did most of the opening for him. They are so nice!

Look at the camera. Up here Brigham. Cheeze.

He got himself a baseball set, a truck, and his favorite was Jessie from Toy Story.

SUNDAY SHOT BEFORE CHURCH

Can you tell that Jack was totally excited and even joyful to take this picture. Seriously kid, you're so handsome, just smile a little bit.

AT THE PARK

These are probably Jack's best and closest friends currently. They play just about every day and live across the street from us.

I introduce you to Princess Avery. She stole Brigham's heart from the very beginningwhen she was born only two weeks after him. And here he is trying to make his move.

He's workin' it baby!

My last picture for this past month is dear sweet Jack. He turned his hat that way and I just thought he looked cute!

The End (for now)!

Snow, Snow, Go Away

2010-03-20T11:54:00.000-07:00

This is what we think of it snowing in March.

Go away snow.

We can't handle you anymore.

You're ruining our lives!

Today on my calendar it says, "Spring Begins".

I think it's lying.

Anyone have the number to the weather company who told me "Spring Begins" today, because it's hecka cold out there.

This is how Brigham feels about his binky being taken away and sent to baby Makenna in the mail. We're going on 4 days here people, and the night time is not getting any easier. Maybe that balloon will give him comfort when he wakes up in the night desperately wanting some soothing instrument. Because right now, I am his substitute "binky" and it's not working out so well.

a little bit of mexican fun and feb. bordeom

2010-02-17T14:41:00.000-08:00

Greetings from the land of the Burns family. Here are some pictures from this past month. The first half is of a quick trip down to Cancun, Mexico. Dave and I left the kiddos in the hands of our highly trained parents and Tiff. And surprisingly so, they did AwEsoMe. In fact, we feel that we should leave them more often! Anyway, bienvenidos a Mexico......

We'll start out at the ocean. A little body surfing...a little beautiful water with white sand....a little topless ladies anyone! Whew, flaunt if you've got it I guess. Or don't!

Our one and only picture together. I know, you all want a sweet pair of glasses just like Dave's.

The beautiful ruins of Tulum. Therein lies the temple. Our tour guide was Limhi and his brother was Mosiah, and they know where Zion is....they'll take us next time we're in Mexico if anyone wants to tag along!

We played a little volleyball and tennis. Although I was dying to join in with the crazy locals playing soccer. I'm sure I would've only gotten my self-esteem shot to the ground. They were seriously soooo good.

Behold the coconut tree at it's finest. I LoVe palm trees. It means warm, humid, beautiful weather is nearby.

This creature, who I appropriatly named Lizard, was one of many who I encountered along the morning walking paths. They liked to worship the sun by pointing their whole bodies directly toward it. As I was slowly stepping backward one morning taking pictures I almost stepped on the dude. Not sure how that would've played out. Glad I didn't find out. And now...to enter paradise.

The pool. It was lovely. I sat by it every day for a few hours (and somedays I sat more than a few hours). I read my book, I chatted with our travel friends, I listened to some Ipod tuners, and I slept. It was pretty much picturesque. Plus I ordered all the pina coladas I could hold down, with or without alcohol.

Here is where Dave spent his time when "laying out" to "get tan". Although not much of his time was spent by the pool. I often think he has ADD or ADHD because after about 10 minutes he's off to try wind surfing or join in the tequila volleyball party in the pool. I have to admit he does have quite the gift of making friends wherever we travel.

Here are some flowers. I know most of you have probably forgotten what they look like because of the dull deadness that we currently are experiencing here in the winter of Utah. But, there is hope, for flowers will come again....and trees and grass....and greeness....and best of all, warmth. Until then, you can come back to my blog and look at this flower all day is you want!

This is the end of our Mexican journey. I hope you enjoyed yourself (I know I did)!

P.S. Dave also scuba-dived in some Cenotes (caves) and we swam with dolphins. It was sweet. If I could put the video of it on here I would, but it's copyrighted and I could go to jail. Probably not though, because really, truly, anything goes in Mexico!

And now we enter the second half of our program-pictures of the boredom that goes on at our house in this last month of winter (hopefully). There have been a few warm days and we have taken FuLl advantage.

Here are the brothers. The hope is that they will be best friends, and somedays they are.

But somedays, Jack leaves Brigham in the dust. And somehow, Jack ends up crying. Strange.

Ahhhh.....the-shooting-of-the-water-gun-into-the-garge. I found this picture so sweet because Jack actually took Briggs hand and helped him shoot the gun. Believe me, that's not always how it works out. Notice Jack's desire to go again the grain and "not match". SEriously, that's what he tells me. "Mom, I'm not gonna match today."

Sweet mercy. Look at those hands. I know I'm the only one who thinks this is cute. But it is.

We've been doing a little driving around the garage.

We've done a little running in the slush/snow/rain. And a little puddle jumping, which is quite entertaining to watch.

Brigham likes to go downstairs and play "bak-et-ball" with Dave. The kid loves balls. He would play all day long.

Jack does some InTenSE colorig these days. He's really into monsters right now, and is starting to put great detail into his pictures.

And every once in a while he'll send one of these smiling grins my way. I love kid. It's amazing to see how much he has matured in just one year. Sometimes he even lets me tease him these days, which is a big step for him! Then again, somedays the tears come as fast as I can snap! These crazy boys continue to keep me running, in a good way.

That's all folks.

Birthday Bash

2010-01-05T09:17:00.000-08:00

Jack's birthday was one crazy-exhausting event! I highly recommend only doing a friend party, or only doing a family party. Both in one day are a little overwhleming. We started the day off with Jack opening a few presents from mom, dad, and Brigham.

He told me at the end of the day that his favorite presents were the Bakugans Brigham gave him. I really don't see the joy found in playing with those little round things, but he and his friends sure enjoy them.
We then moved on to the friends pirate party, where there were swords, scooters, bikes, treasure, and a pinata. He invited a few neighborhood friends and his two favorite cousins. It was pretty crazy, and a lot of fun. I wish I could've gotten a picture of Dave playing all the games with the kids!

The rest of the pictures are out of order. Oops.

Here's Briggs on his scooter. He's starting to get the hang of riding on it instead of just pulling it around. It's pretty cute. He's pretty cute!

Here's Cousin Bryker having a good time riding around on his bike. Although, he would have nothing to do with going across the "plank" while Dave was the crocodile.

I was impressed to see that Jack still knew how to ride his bike so well after these few months of snow. He swerved right through the obstacle couse cones without a problem. He always sticks out his tongue and licks his bottom lip when he's concentrating on something.

Dusty and cute Mckenna. I wish I could've gotten a full body shot of Dusty on here to show off his spandex, I mean skinny, jeans. They're in-style you know!

My mom and Jack opening his new bat cave. He was really excited!

Laura, doing her model pose, and Grandma Linda.

Bryker giving Missy a wrestling hug?!

The parents. Always a good time.

Here is the best picture I got of the cake. I decided on a snow cake because Jack kept changing his mind, and finally told me to just do a suprise cake for him.

Here are the pirates. Yep, they're pretty scary!

And finally, a picture of Jack attack in his karate uniform. We decided to get him karate lessons for the month of January for his birthday. He hasn't gone yet. It'll be exciting to me if he actually decides to stay.

He told Dave that karate isn't going to be any fun because mom's and dad's can't stay. Will the kid ever want to be away from us?!

Fall Family Photos

2009-11-27T13:00:00.000-08:00

Here are our token fall family pictures. This year we had my talented sister Linsey take them in good ol' downtown Kaysville. I think she did a pretty sweet job, especially with what she had to work with!

This is probably my favorite because Brigham FiNalLy decided to smile (because I tickled him)!
This one also ranks up there with favorites.

My boy Brig. I love him.

I think they're actually holding hands. Cuteness.

What a little stud!

So photogenic.

hee hee

2009-11-10T19:02:00.000-08:00

Alright, get ready for a picture overload! The month of October proved to be the busiest one this year so far. Thank goodness that both the primary program and the ward Halloween party are both overwith, as well as some big vinyl projects. Amazingly enough, the kids really did well with singing both loudly and reverently. I had my doubts on the Saturday practice before, but they proved me wrong. As for the Halloween party...it's over, and now we are planning the Christmas party. Maybe after that, I will join the blogging world again. Here are A LOT of pictures to hold all you avid Burns fans over for another month OR so.

Jack, being his ruggedly handsome self on the floor. This is a rare moment when he will pose for a picture for me. Usually he tells me, "no" with great amounts of unwanted attitude.
We went on a hike up Mueller Park Canyon and Jack had to go potty. I know, I shouldn't post this, and I probably shouldn't have even taken a picture of it, but it was just too a good a moment to pass up. Boys will be boys anywhere and everywhere!

We saw losts of these beautiful leaves. Love the blue sky against the bright leaves.

I love the fall!

Brigham finds happiness in carrying his football around....EveRywHere. The kid has to sleep with the thing. It's quite ridiculous (and really cute)! I'm pretty sure he's saying, "hike" in this picture.

HAppY HaLLoWeEN

Wow, what a fantastic picture of our family on Halloween! Seriously. Seriously.

I was Super Girl. This was my costume. I wish I could wear it every day (just like my wedding dress). P.S. Dave took this picture, that's why my hand is cut off in mid-air.

Jack was a Ninja. This, sadly enough, is the best picture I have of his costume. I am thinking about having him dress up in it tomorrow and taking better ones.

Brigham of course opted to be a football player. Since he can't be without his beloved football, we agreed it would be the best costume for him this year. He is sporting both a "Y" and a "U" on his cheeks so as to be fair to both sides. I know, I know, it's a terrible picture too. Don't worry I'll get better ones tomorrow.

P.S. Dave was a "nerd" (too close to home) and an army guy. He chose to not be pictured.

PumKiN PaTcH

Here is Brigham and his girlyfriend Avery Rice. The liked riding in the wagon. I liked that Rachelle pulled them the whole time because I was taking pictures.

Jack decided to throw straw at me. Such a sweet, submissive little thing.

All The OthER StuFf

Jack and his friends have been jumping on the trampoline just about every warm day. Have I mentioned that I love that it's not snowing yet.

Jack started riding his bike without training wheels at the beginnning of this summer. He goes really fast, and makes me nervous.

At least he's got a sweet helmet that Dave continuously makes fun of.

Brigham is really cute and makes me laugh. I wish we had a camcorder that would allow me to post a video of him running. I think he must run like Dave!

And that is our life for now.

September

2009-09-30T09:43:00.000-07:00

Nothing very exciting has been happening around our house this past month. We went to Cherry Hill one last time before it closed for the winter. That was a great investment.

We've gone to the park just about every day, and I am already dreading the snow. What are we going to do?! Brigham will probably continue to take Jack's toys and run away screaming with delight, while Jack runs crying after him with a scary I'm-gonna-kill-you-Brigham-look in his eyes. Then I will proceed to yell to/at Jack from the other room to stop and ask nicely. Then Jack will come crying to me, saying, "Mommy you have to say sorry because you hurt my feelings." Hope at least one of us survives.

On a happier note, Jack met his first girlfriend Emily at the park the other day. They held hands, they ran together, they helped each other up the slide, and then they said good bye never to meet again. Just look at the way he looks at her. It must be love.

Here is the only picture I've been able to get of the boys together lately. And no, Jack's head really isn't that much bigger than Brigham's.

Briggs learned how to climb up the slide and go down all by himself.

He also really enjoys riding his "bike" like the big boys. He pretty much just stands on it and I push him around. I think he'll have it down by next summer though.

We did go with our neighbors to Bear Lake and the kids had a really good time. Jack wanted to keep riding the tube over and over again, and even Brigham enjoyed the wind in his hair while riding with Dave.
He also enjoyed putting sand everywhere!

Briggs loves baseball, football, and soccer ball. He throws the football and chases after it over and over again all day.

And here's a little bum crack for your enjoyment!

2009-08-26T18:28:00.000-07:00

Ok, so one week ago at this time I was on a southwest airplane with 3 other lovely ladies traveling to the wonderful San Diego, California to hang out on this.....

beautiful La Lolla and Pacific Beaches.....

without ANY children (or husbands for that matter...we love you!).

We did a lot shopping, saw "Wicked", rented movies, walked the boardwalk, and basically just had the best time EvEr.
Now we are home.
And I wish I had a picture of that,
because today I almost pulled my hair out.
All of it!
I love my children, I love my children, I love my children.
Here's to the next girls trip!

BURNS FAMILY REUNION

2009-08-26T18:09:00.000-07:00

Well, here we are at the good ol' Burns family reunion that happens once a summer. This year the blessed event took place at Heber Valley Camp! Which by the way, is gigantic and beautiful. We stayed in cabins (16 bunks to a cabin), roasted marshmellows by the fire, canoed around the lake, played games, and went on hikes. Most of us slept extremely well from all the playing, except for Brigham and me. He decided he wanted to stay up and play at night EVERY hour.

Here is the infamous pair of cousins who couldn't get enough of each other. Jack and Gabe, they are little troublemakers, but you just can't deny them all the good times they have together.

Here is the Anderson family (most of them) canoeing around the little lake full of leeches and moss. Of course Dave tried to tip us over, even with Gabe, Jack, and Brigham riding with us. I decided he really is still a kid at heart. He is the one who started the water fight.

So, we did a little swinging from ropes. Doesn't Jack look excited?!

Here we have the youngest of the bunch who was able to climb up a tree, walk across a log in the air, and repel down to the bottom. Pretty brave if you ask me. I have TonS more pictures but it just takes me wAy too long to download them. So, that's the end for now!

2009-08-10T21:27:00.000-07:00

In honor of sweet Brigham I had to post some cuter pictures than the previous one on the last post because Dave said no one is going to think he's very cute! Personally, I thought the first picture was darling because it totally showed his funny personality, but I figured I should post a few cutey ones of his when he turned one.

He is a handsome little dude really!
And so happy.

SuMmeR fUn

2009-08-09T14:41:00.001-07:00

Yes we are alive, and yes we have been having a ridiculously fun summer. Here is the proof!
This is Brigham. He is one of the funniest kids I've ever met, and he's only 16 months. He teases Jack ALL the time, and of course Jack can't take it! My current favorite feature of his: his lips!

We attended one of the temple open houses, and here we are looking happy for the cookies at the end. Sadly, instead of Jack saying something adorable like, "I love this place, and want to stay here forever" he said (in the celestial room), "When can we get out of this place!" Shoot. Maybe someday he'll want to stay longer.

Yes, we do still love each other. I know, it's sickening!

Here is a picture with our friend Ralphie from New York.

This is my cousin's daughter, which makes her Brigham's 2nd cousin I think? Anyway, they had a good time together on the beach at Bear Lake.

And of course Bryker (Jack's cousin) and him had a GreAt time together. They love to play super heroes, and truly NeVeR stop! I couldn't even get both of them looking at the camera at the same time.

Briggs calls this is "bubble" and he loves to float around in it whether at Cherry Hill, Farmington Pool, or Bear Lake.

This is Dave, he's really white, but we love him anyway.

And here is the all star swimmer. The kid could swim forever, until he wants a treat. Funny story, he wouldn't pee in his swimsuit. He had to take it off everytime and then go in Bear Lake. Sorry to all of you non-pee-ers in the Lake type.

New York

2009-06-14T14:25:00.000-07:00

There's the statue of libery in the background. I made Dave take this picture of me to prove that I really was on this trip with him!

Of course we had to see Wall Street.

I don't really find it that exciting, but it was a holiday so no one was there.

Here's the Ground Zero tribute museum. It was awesome!

2009-06-14T14:22:00.000-07:00

What a cutey! Gunther would pull him right over.

The church was located right in between buildings in the middle of the street.

This was the most extravagant McDonald's I've ever seen. It was right down by Times Square and I really wanted to go inside, but there was no time. I wonder if they served nicer food, like steak or something!

We went out to Coney Island and say the famous place of the hot dog eating contest. Ummm....yuck!

the cruise and more

2009-06-14T14:04:00.000-07:00

Alright, well here are a few pictures from our cruise and some other random ones that have been happening around our house lately. I am going to be posting them in sections because that's the fastest way from picasa, and they are in random order.

The beautiful flowers of spring have popped up and gone. Although, I'm not sure if this rain is every going to go away!

Here's Dave smiling for the camera.

Dave liked to order room service EVERY night that we were on our cruise. Cookies and milk were his favorite. Room service was available anytime of the day or night. It was pretty sweet.

When we arrived in New York, we stayed with some friends and their cute little Foxy was there to greet us. He liked taking Gunther on walks in Central Park.

2009-05-26T18:05:00.000-07:00

So Dave and I just returned home from a wonderful 7-day cruise, without kiddos of course! The cruise started in San Juan, Puerto Rico and ended in New York. Naturally we had to stay in New York a day or two to see the sights.

Yesterday, it being Memorial Day and all, we thought it very befitting to board the preferred mode of travel by New Yorkers, the subway, and head down to have a look at Ground Zero.

There is a little tribute building located to the south of all the construction, and it was quite impressive. There are two videos and tons of quotes from people who were in or affected by the attack on September 11th. I guess I just didn't realize the magnitude of all those events because as I read and watched all about it, as I heard firemans' voices on their radios, and looked at picture after picture of people who died because of those terrorists I felt a complete sense of overwhelment, and sickness. I literally had a pit in my stomache as I tried to imagine being a part of that situation.

How would I have reacted? What would I have done if I were on one of the planes? I know this may sound cliche, but I am truly GRATEFUL for all those firemen and volunteers who gave not only their service, but many of them gave their very lives to help others. So, this Memorial Day I wanted to honor them, and truly hope that we will not forget.

the end

p.s. pictures of the vacation to come

March Madness

2009-04-10T16:30:00.000-07:00

Here are a few of the exciting events going on around our house this past month.

A few of the spring flowers decided to pop up and show their lovely faces....and I must say that they smell delicious.

If they were part of Willy Wonka's candy factory I would totally eat them.

It was indeed Brigham's first birthday, and as you can tell, he enjoyed his ENTIRE cake along with his arm, hand, and fingers!

This kid totally cracks me up. He is so funny and such a little tease.

Highlights of Briggers first year here on earth:

*Happy and mellow baby

*Thinks everything is a game. When I tell him no, he turns back and smiles at me and goes after it even faster!

*Got his first tooth around five months and is currently working on his molars.

*Started crawling around 11 months

*Excellant eater

*Says the words, "dad, mama, ball, baba (bottle), and au-oh"

*Goes to just about anyone

*Loves to be around people

*Gives loves and hugs

*Survived his brother Jack!

We've been to the park when it was nice for a few days.

Jack rode his scooter to the park, even though I'm pretty sure his helmet is protecting him on that horse as well!

Brigham loves the sand. He picks it up and throws it in his hair.

One of Jack and his friends favorite games is to go under the stairs with flashlights and pretend they're in the bat cave. This particular night he decided to take the flashlight to bed and this is what we found.

We've had some fun bath time. Brigham is crazy in the bath tub! He crawls all over and splashes and dunks his head under the water. He is eating his current favorite bath toy in this picture.

The boys like to share the bath for the most part. Here Jack is helping Brigham wash his hair.

Dave gave the boys hair cuts. I always think hair cut day is so sad, but it turned out pretty cute I guess.

Here's Jack's muscle picture, or his painful face picture. This was right before Dave cut his hair.

And here he is hiding which is what he does most of the time these days when I try to take his picture. Aren't 3 year olds just a joy!!!

Ski/Snowboard Equipment Anyone?

2009-04-04T15:45:00.000-07:00

So, we have a lot stuff.

And we need to get rid of it because it's taking over our garage.
We'll give you a great deal. $10 for anything, $30 for a whole set.

There's pretty much all sizes, even tiny ones. Come have a look before Dave throws it all away!

He doesn't do well with clutter.

Funny Stories

2009-03-21T10:50:00.000-07:00

So lately Jack has been coming up with these ridiculous, crazy, not-at-all-true stories, and I thought for your pleasure I would share a few of them.

Telling Missy, Gary, and Bryker, "Last night I got ran over by a car, but I didn't die."

About a movie we were watching, "Mom, if I were in this show I'd just cut the guy's arm right off."

"Yesterday I saw some lizards and they got on my hands, and then they shot out of my fingers."

"The cars can't get me mom, because I'm way faster than them." (Obvioulsy we've been having a few chats about not riding our scooter in the road!)

"Well, if you take my toys away, then I will take all of your toys away, and I will never, ever, ever, ever play with you again!" (Ouch!)

And I have to say that one of my current favorite sounds around our house is Jack chasing after Brigham. He gets right down and crawls behind him. And Brigham loves it! He turns around squealing and takes off the other way. Then, to top it all off, he does a face plant into the carpet thinking that will help his escape from his maniac brother! If only our video camera hooked up to the computer!

Briggs has become quite the tease as well. Jack will ask for something from him, and he literally comes up, waves it around in his face and then takes off crawling as fast as he can. He already thinks he's so funny!

Vacation?

2009-03-05T09:33:00.000-08:00

Well, I've come to the conclusion that traveling with the kids is MORE work than vacation! We headed to Bear Lake for the Valentine's weekend and it was alright. Jack didn't have any other kids to play with, so we were forced to be the entertainment and that got kinda old. We did go sledding and rode the four wheelers, and the lake was beautiful.

Then, because we didn't think that was enough FUN for all of us, we decided to venture down to St. George for a weekend getaway. Dave had to do some work, so the boys and I swam and swung, and went on a lot of walks. Just for your information, 11 month old babies sleep way better in their cribs than in pack n' plays in the bathroom (with the fan on high). They also do not enjoy 5 hour car rides...AT ALL! Jack did surprisingly well in the car. I mentioned to Dave that we might want to go back to St. George at the end of March, and he said he's done with family vacations for a while. I have no idea why! I wish I could've gotten a picture of him squished between the two car seats on the ride home trying to get Brigham to go to sleep and playing with Jack while I sped us home! He is such a superstar dad, truly he is.

Jack didn't swing very much in St. George. He mostly wanted to play pirate ship on the playground and dig in the sand with a spoon.

I just thought this was so cute. Sometimes in the midst of craziness, Jack really does love his baby Brigham.

Cute daddy.

And yes, the boy is finally on the move. He's a crawling champ these days, and after 10 1/2 months I finally had to lower the crib. I am truly glad that this day took a little longer than anticipated. He is such a sweetie when he's not getting teeth.

The beautiful, arctic Bear Lake. I really wish I could put the pictures I touch-up on here, but I don't know how to do that yet. I really like all the blue in this picture anyway.

Jack and Dave rode on the four wheeler over and over again. They are both sticking out their tongues in this picture. Like father, like son I guess.

Here's a sweet picture of Jack. Looks so innocent, little do you know!

Here he is sword fighting the snow. That's right, sword fighting the snow. Hey, whatever keeps them busy!

The Month of January

2009-02-02T17:02:00.000-08:00

Here is what we have been up to in the month of freezing January. Honestly, January usually seems to drag on forever, but this year it seems like it flew right by. Maybe it's because the sun has actually come out once or twice!

We (more like I) have been trying to take sweet pictures for this photography class I am taking Thursday nights. There is a whole lot more to taking pictures than I ever thought or knew!

We have been playing with dad on Saturdays. Seriously, Jack asks me every day if it's Saturday so he can play with his dad all day long. What an awesome daddy. His boys love him, even Briggs gets all excited and flaps and flails his arms and legs when he comes home lately. I must be one boring mommy!

We (yeah right, we all know it's me!) get to wake up in the night to this smiley guy (he truly does not like to sleep when his teeth are coming in, but he sure is a happy boy).

Jack and I had a little photo shoot last week with the new camera, and he cooperated as long as I promised a treat at the end.

Here he is saying, "cheese." I know it's blurry, but I still thought it was a cute picture.

Then we tried a few jumping shots, and they look much better touched up by picasa (which I have recently discovered, and absolutely love!).

Briggs has been playing with blocks and whatever else Jack leaves behind. No, he still does not crawl, but is anyone complaining?!

We've been doing some wrestling. As you can tell Jack isn't very happy that Brigham is totally rocking him!

We've been playing soccer and riding scooters in the church gym with our neighborhood friends. Dave is on the "lock-up" committee and it definitely has it's perks.

This is my slave labor that shovels the drive-way for free, and thinks it's fun.

I painted Briggers room and Jack enjoys pretending his crib is a pirate ship. He throws everything out and then proceeds to "kill all the bad guys" with his foam sword.

January was also our month to have "joy school" at our house. So each week 5 kiddos came over for an hour and a half and learned stuff. Although if you ask any of them I don't think they would remember anything except maybe the snack! It's been a good month of trying to entertain my kids amidst this nasty weather. Hopefully this next month will have a few warmer days to offer us.

Christmas and Birthday

2009-01-08T20:06:00.000-08:00

This post is FULL of pictures, and I could've put on a ton more! Dave surpised me with a
Saa-weet camera and I just can't bring myself to stop taking pictures. It is becoming an obsession. Although I can't say that they are extremely professional or gorgeous or anything like that, but I do LOve my new camera!

Briggers sitting by the Christmas tree. I really liked the lighting with the tree on this one.

This is Jack with his cousin Gabe. Can you tell they are buddies?!

Cousin Bryker and Jack are striving to get along these days. The same toy is always wanted by both of them, as well as the same book or the same chair or the same sucker or the same Grandma! Sheesh, two and three year olds can really dish it out!

So I found these amazing bubbles that last forever at the Gymboree outlet, and Jack even caught one on his finger. They're pretty cool.

Brigham decided to catch one in his hair on on his nose. He is very talented.

I let Jack choose the color of frosting he wanted and put all the sprinkles on his birthday cake this year instead of making a pirate ship or some other sweet elaborate cake! He turned 3!

I had to throw this picture in because Dave and I got to go skiing with our good friends the Johnsons, and we had a wonderful time. It was 0 degrees and below (night skiing, what do you expect!), so we didn't get the camera out much up there, but this is a before picture. We like playing way too much!

Here would be Jack's favorite Christmas present from Santa, a bike. Now he can join the neighborhood bike gang across the street and try to keep up with his stellar training wheels.

Awww....cute. I'm pretty sure I showered that day, but I do have a really bad memory.

I'm not sure what happened to the coloring on this picture, but Brigs just looks SO dAnG cute! How can you resist that cheesy grin!

Here's Christmas morning. I really wanted to put a picture of Dave in here with his new toy, an Air Hogs helicopter, but I haven't been able to catch him in action yet. He took it downstairs and I think he secretly plays with it all day in his office instead of working!

This is Brigs latest pose. He sticks his lips up and makes this funny sound. Man I love that kid!

2008-12-10T18:54:00.001-08:00

Dinner.

So tonight at dinner Dave and I were trying to discuss leaving the kids next week for a little much-needed vacation run down south. Jack of course needed Dave's full attention at that exact moment so he started with a soft, "Dad."

Which turned into screaming right into his face, "Dad, Dad, Dad, DAD!" Dave finally turns to Jack and asks, "What?" Jack grins at him, holds up three fingers, and says, "I'm gonna be three."

That was all he had to importantly say. That's it. That is how our life goes. Jack demanding our attention and us holding back the laughter at his crazy responses.

And of course Brigham sat chuckling quietly in his high chair. He thinks Jack is hilarious!

2008-11-30T17:30:00.000-08:00

So I decided it was finally family picture time since Briggs is almost 8 months old, and Jack was 8 months old when we had our last one taken! Here are a few of the best ones. My friend Amy did a fabulous job. Enjoy! Sweet baby boy!

I thought this one was cute. Jack's just doing his thing with his arm around Brigham. And Briggs is wondering why someone doesn't save him!

Love the mirror pictures.

I love all the leaves. Although, a week earlier they probably would've been more colorful.

Jack just loves his brother, a little too much sometimes.

Photoshop can work wonders!

This is my favorite. It was the last one we did and I think it turned out the best.

Testimony

2008-11-09T19:31:00.001-08:00

Alright, I have to share this story because it is too good to pass up! Today in church it was fast and testimony meeting. Jack decided that he wanted to go up and bear his testimony. We told him that he could only go up if he would go all by himself. He said he'd do it! I asked him if he knew what he was going to say. We went over a few words and I asked him if he could remember all that. He said yes, jumped down and headed up to the stand by himself! Now Jack's just a little guy so he couldn't quite reach the microphone. A member of the Bishopric lifted him up and these were his simple, sweet words, "I'd like to bear my testimony. I know this church is true. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen." I know that maybe that doesn't sound as cute to anyone else who reads this little blog, but hearing the testimony of your child (especially your 2 1/2 year old child) has to be one of the greatest, most fulfilling events ever. That is JOY!

2008-11-04T20:52:00.000-08:00

Happy Halloween!

Pirate Jack! Watch out because all he wants to do all day is sword fight, and it hurts!

And he stayed!

2008-10-19T12:36:00.000-07:00

It is finally here, the day has finally come...Jack officially stayed in nursery by himself for the last hour of church! Some of you may laugh at me, saying, well our kid stays all two hours and doesn't even cry. Well I have news for you, maybe your next kid won't, and then I just might be the one laughing as you relentlessly try to reassure him/her that you will come back and get them, they will be okay, nursery is "fun."

As we have now been trying to get Jackson to stay by himself in nursery for about 16 months, which would be what......like a lot of Sundays', it is one BIG HUGE breakthrough that he has now finally come to the conclusion that we will indeed come back to get him. I personally believe that it was the giantic bag of gummy bears that has recently swayed him to the side of independence from his parents. Blessed gummy bears! I will forever be in your debt!

So, to anyone out there who is wondering if their child will ever stay anywhere anytime without them...here is a bit of hope. They do get bigger, and they do become somewhat more logical, and they do stay without you (without crying)!

On a side note, Jack is officially potty trained and has taken up becoming a pirate. He literally jumps on the couch and fights captain hook with his pirate sword every day! Silly boy. I wish I could explain the amounts of personality that ooze from him!

2008-10-07T11:42:00.000-07:00

Don't those people who only update their blogs once a month just annoy you! I mean you go to stalk people's blogs and they haven't updated in forever, and you're like, "why don't you update your dumb blog people!" Well, here is my once a month update!!!

We are doing well. Brigham is 6 months old today and can I just say I love him! Oh, how I love him. He isn't the greatest sleeper or napper, but he is such a happy baby. He takes a bottle fine and smiles at just about anyone. He's quite the polar opposite of Jack who would have nothing to do with a bottle (went straight from me to a sippy cup) and hides behind me when someone smiles at him! Here are a few updates and hightlights of this past month.

We go on walks just about every day. Here are the boys, with Jack actually looking at the camera smiling.

We recently went to the Hogle Zoo with our cousins. This is cousin Ethan and Jack on a rhino.

Here's another cheeser from Jack and a dazed-I'm-about-to-go-to-sleep-look from Briggs.

This is just cute. Look at those eyes.

We went up to our friend's cabin at Pineview Lake and Jack rode on the tube....Dave was on there with him, but somehow fell off, so Jack just kept holding on.

Jack took this picture of me from the backseat. Pretty good job if you ask me.

Here are the kiddos at a little church carnival bouncy house. Hallie, Prez, and Jack.

Jack went on his first pony ride at the carnival, and surprisingly really enjoyed it.

We have also gone to the Kangaroo Zoo in North Salt Lake. Love it, and totally recommend it.

He finally conquered his fear of this dragon slide and made it to the top and back down.

Here he is wrestling a sea monster.

Here are his beautiful baby blues poking out of one of the jumpy toys.

We went to the treehouse museum (can you tell Dave was in Mexico for a week, and I had to get us out of the house or we would go crazy!) and Jack would not look at the camera this day.

My cute boys. Yes, they are friends most of the time. Whenever I lay down Jack to change his diaper, he wants to hold Brigham's hand. Although he is just about potty trained now! Yea!

So, yes it's true, my husband did go to Mexico for 8 days...and no, it was not for business. I know, I am a wonderful, superb, excellant, etc. wife. But don't worry, I'll get him back somehow...someday!

2008-09-03T12:40:00.000-07:00

As I was looking through my latest pictures from our most recent adventures I realized I just don't have much to show for our days of non-stop excitement! So, these will have to do for now.
I know you're probably thinking that he's just too pretty to be a boy. It was his idea I promise!

Yes, this is how he fell asleep the other night. He didn't want any other clothes on besides his motorcycle shorts. That can't be comfortable on his neck. Crazy kid.

And yes, this is how Briggers fell asleep the other day too. He is definitley a cat-napper. He fell asleep right in his chair with his little fingers in his mouth. He is 5 months now and getting his bottom teeth, poor chap.

We take many trips to Costco and Jack loves the samples of course...who wouldn't. I can practically just feed him his whole lunch there. It's great. Although I don't really understand how it all ends up down his shirt and all over this face.

Here's the crazy man in the front yard in his diaper. Potty training. Wow. That's just a whole other world that I don't want to understand quite yet! It makes me nervous jst thinking about it! Someday...hopefully.

Here's the happiest guy ever. Truly he is a fabulous baby, and I will brag about it because my other child pushes me to my limits each and every day.

Can We Go Somewhere Mom

2008-07-28T14:51:00.000-07:00

Both of my boys are asleep at 4:00 in the afternoon and I really need to wake them up, but it is soooo quiet and peaceful and WONDERFUL! So, instead of taking a much-needed nap myself, I am going to post some pictures for all of your enjoyment!

Here are a few pictures of the exciting life Jackson leads (along with Brigham and me)! He tells me every day that "our house is bored," and asks me, "Can we go somewhere?" To which I replay, "Where do you want to go?" and he replies, "Somewhere." So, here are the "somewheres" we have gone in the past few weeks (with my sprained ankle and all).

Our good friends took us up to their parent's swimming pool for the afternoon and here is Jack in the little kid area. He is getting way too brave. He tells Dave not to catch him and gets mad if he tries too. The little daredevil still won't brave nursery though!

Here's a picture of Jack and the two neighbor boys his age. Someday they will all get along!

Here's cute Brigham at Lagoon-A-Beach. He's a funny little guy.

Here is the classic picture of the Fountains at the Gateway that everyone goes too. It's fun to see the kids get braver as they get older. Jack still won't go in the middle without me.

Here is Jack and his friend Bridger playing in the bark under the steps at the park because it is soooo hot outside.

This is the lovely face I get to see when I go in to get Brigham in the morning. He is such a happy baby, and I love him. I love him for many reasons, but one of the biggest is that he can't talk back yet and he doesn't know what tantrums are. We will survive the terrible twos right?!

Here is Jack in our back yard. This is our sweet homemade water slide. The pool was ten bucks off of ksl.com and the pool was twelve dollars from Wal-mart. Cheap, yet practical! And it did entertain him for a whole hour.

Oh Man!

2008-07-21T17:19:00.000-07:00

Here's a picture of both my ankles...notice the cankle on the left!

Here is my normal-looking right foot.

And here she is, the poor dear, finally fitting in my shoe but not wanting to walk anywhere.

A quick update as to why I am ridiculously slow in writing on this dear-to-my-heart blog! You see Tuesday night I decided to go play a little indoor soccer at 10:20pm because I thought it would be "fun". Well, you can only guess what happened to my poor left ankle...nope, not broken luckily, but definitely sprained a 2nd or 3rd degree sprain (whatever that means!). Here are a few pictures of the sad thing as of today...almost a week later. I can finally put my shoe back on. Dave says the bruising will be "cooler" in a couple more days, so I'll put some pictures of it on without the shoe then. Or maybe I just couldn't bear the pain of taking my shoe off once it was finally on!

2008-06-13T15:08:00.000-07:00

Here are the pictures promised of Brigham's baby blessing on June 8. He was seriously an angel baby that day. He smiled through the whole blessing, then fell asleep, then woke up to smile for pictures. I love this kid!

Here he is kickin' back on the couch. Notice the rolls forming on his little legs...Jack still doesn't have any rolls anywhere on his whole body!

Cute baby boy. I just love his little blessing outfit with the bowtie and all.

Here's the fam...notice the new haircut. I went in and got 6 inches taken off....don't worry it always grows back. (This is for you Missy!)

I had to include a picture of the beautiful flowers my mom and I planted the day before the blessing. She was kind enough to help me pick them all out and plant them. They actually go all the way around the yard, but this shows a few of them. It's a good thing my mom knows everything there is to know about flowers or our yard would've looked terrible!

A picture with Grandma and Grandpa Meyer.

Jack did NOT want to take this picture. I tried to get him to pose with Brigham and the stubborn little thing would not have it!

2008-06-11T20:43:00.000-07:00

I guess it's time for another fun-filled update on our family for all of you out there checking every day in anticipation of our next post! Here are a few pictures of the past month. Enjoy!

We took Jack to Lagoon for the first time, and yes he chose the pink boat!

The swing ride was his favorite, although I think Dave enjoyed it more! I feel Dave was deprived as a child and is now reliving his childhood through Jackson. I think he has taken him to Lagoon like five times already. What a spoiled little tyke!

Here he is in the spaceship. Warning: this ride goes much faster and higher than we anticipated!

Here's Jack and one of his favorite cousins (who he says he's gonna marry) Prezley playing in the chair at Grandma and Grandpa Hunt's home.

We had a little celebration for my birthday in May. I was so glad to have three kids spit all over my cake while helping me blow out the candles!

Jack still LOVES his stripey blanket and would not trade the thing for anything in the world!

Cute Brigham is getting chunky and smiling so cute. I love when they start to respond.

He is sooo cute and a great baby. I love when they are too little to talk back yet! We also blessed Brigham this past Sunday and I will put some pictures of it on soon.

2008-05-08T15:40:00.000-07:00

Well we haven't been up to too many exciting adventures at our home, seeing as all I do all day is change diapers and feed the babe. Now I could've taken a picture of either of those wonderful events for all our viewers, but I figured no one would ever look at our blog again if that was the case! Or if you did look at those pictures you might be a little bit of a crazy freak! Anyway, we are all glad that the sunshine has finally come out and that Jack can go have "parties" in the dirt and throw it everywhere including in his hair. Crazy child. Here are a few pictures of the boys.
I thought this was funny. I went in to check on Jack and he was completely out at 7:30 with his face all smashed on the pillow. Drool and all. Pretty classic.

Here's little Brigham in his dress that I make him wear at night for faster changing purposes. It's more so I only have to do the minimal...lazy me. Anyway, sorry about the angle. He's gaining weight like crazy.

Alright, here is Jack "getting ready" in our bathroom. He decided to get into "mommy's drawer" and put on my eye shadow. Little stink. I couldn't resist taking a picture just to blackmail someday. I've tried to explain the whole make-up thing is for girls and shaving thing is for boys, but he doesn't care, and that really bugs Dave!!!

2008-04-12T19:13:00.000-07:00

Here is the newest addition to our little family. His name is Brigham Lloyd Burns and he was born on April 7th at 12:36pm. He weighed in at 6 pounds 10 ounces and was 19 1/2 inches long. So far he is a great baby and we are so happy he is finally here.

Here's a picture of the fam.

Here's the little guy looking so cute and innocent, then he spit up all over his clothes!

I thought this picture was sooo cute.

Here's my boys!

2008-03-02T18:49:00.000-08:00

Here we are in the month of March and I missed Feburary...where did it go?! A few of the eventful moments included a "business trip" to Scottsdale, Arizona where Jackson and I went on warm walks and swam in the heated pool while Dave met with his new boss and began training.

A big highlight for me in Feburary was going on a little girls weekend trip with my mom to visit my sister Missy in Chicago. We went to some fabulous museums and even got in to see the awesome play, "Wicked", on the front row for $25! We really lucked out. The only downside to the whole trip was being 8 months pregnant and trying to keep the swelling down from flying, but it was a much-needed and fantastic break from reality for a few days. Yes, it's true, Jackson did stay with his dad for four whole days and I am happy to report that they both survived. The night I got home Jack woke up at one in the morning and I went in to check on him. He looked at me and started saying, "Dad, I....Mom...you came back from Cah-go" (his word for Chicago.) I think the poor kid was in some super shock!

We are looking forward to this wonderful month of March when things get warmer and the sun shines at least once a day. Although, today to make sure we still know it's not the summertime, it did snow AGAIN! Jack and I have started doing school and he is picking it up pretty well. Everyone always comments on how great he speaks for his age, and I sure wish I could take some credit for it, but I really think these little tykes come quite hard-wired. He is quite the little negotiator and always wants to play for, "just five more minutes, mom!" Where does he get that?! Hopefully we will get a few more "picture moments" this next month.

This picture cracks me up. I'm not sure if I've already posted it or not...Jack came out with his sunglasses (which are missing one lense) and pointed his toy gun at me, saying something like, "Stick them up!."
Here is Jack on Valentine's Day. My mom bought him some "real sunglasses" of which he had to wear all night before he went to bed and then the next day.

This is a new-found wonderment called the Fun Center, located in Layton, Utah where we can go and play for $5.00. We barrowed the scooter and he was getting really good by the end of the day.

This is the wonderful minivan we rented in Arizona. Everyday that we drove that baby, I was extremely thankful that we decided to go with the Honda, Pilot instead!

Here we are on the airplane. Jack did really well. It was a lot of fun to see his excitement. I am actually getting really excited about traveling more with the family as it grows.

2008-01-04T19:29:00.000-08:00

Well it has just about been a full month since I last posted some pictures, so here we are again. Everything is going well at the Burns household. Now that Jackson is back on a good schedule the EXTREME tantrums have slowed down, and we are all much more pleasant to be around. I never thought my child would throw the uncontrollable-don't know how to stop-everybody stare at me like I'm a terrible parent kind of a tantrum. I guess they are so-called "normal" at the terrible two stage, and I just couldn't bring myself to believe it. But, believe I do now!!!

Dave starts the training for his new job this next week. We are excited for the change and hope all goes as planned. Today we traded three cars in for one! Dave will be given a company car, and so we decided to sell the beloved Nissan, Altima as well as the Hyundai, Elantra and the Mercedes. We have both grown quite attached to our little cars and it was hard to turn them over for such low prices, but it had to be done.

I am ashamed to admit that because of the whole tantrum drama I failed to take many pictures of both Christmas and Jackson's birthday. Honestly, I think we came out with a total of 8, maybe 10 altogether. Sad, sad, sad. The big news of the week is that the doctor told me we had to be finished with Jack's binki because it was pushing his teeth forward, and so it "broke" the other day when I was putting him in the car (or I accidentially ripped the end off!). He was devastated and now takes a good hour to fall asleep without the thing. Sleep seems more of a necessity than straight teeth, but what can ya do! I guess doctors know best?!

Things continue to go well with this pregnancy...4 more months and then we'll have another little buddy to love. I've heard good things about 2nd children and hope they all turn out to be true for my little guy. Down below are a few of the very few pictures I took this season.

This is Jackson with his santa hat on. I believe this is when he had crupe and we were trying to make him drink gaterade to get some electrolytes in him (the blue juice on the side.).

This is his handsome GQ suit we bought at Mervyn's and then returned because it would only fit him for a month or so. He is a handsome little devil in it though.

I laugh every time with this one! He won't keep his gloves on so after about 5 minutes in the snow this is the face we get, complete with tears and "my hands, mom."

Dave and Jack in one of the big snow storms this year.

Dave is always so good to play with him. In fact, I think he would much rather play than shovel the driveway (that's a big surprise!).

This is our first fishing experience on one of the last warm days at Farmington Pond. We didn't catch anything, but at least my brother did.

2007-12-05T11:31:00.000-08:00

Okay, well I do apologize to you few out there who check our blog from time to time and have found nothing new for almost two months now! I think I wait way too long and then I have way too many pictures, especially with the fun holidays around this time. We are all doing well, including baby boy #2 who is going to make his big appearance around April 10th! No, no names yet. Any ideas?

We have had a lot of fun over the past couple months. Jackson loves corn mazes! We went to the one at Thanksgiving Point with my sister, sister-in-law, and brother. Jack's favorite part was jumping in the big lion. We also went to a free corn maze right down the street with our neighbors and he loved the kid-sized part. The last corn maze we went too (yes we went to a total of three!) was down in Holladay for cousin Sophie's birthday party.

I think Halloween might be Jack's new favorite holiday. He always tells me he's driving to "Costco" to get a "treat," and so with a lot of free treats you can only imagine his joy. Dave dressed as Spiderman and I couldn't quite get the best picture of him (probably because he wouldn't let me!), and I was going to be a princess but couldn't fit into the costume (depressing, I know), so I was an M&M.

What else is going on....we've decided to finish the basement. Well, at least Dave decided and then the wood guy dropped off the wood and the framer came that day, and I guess we're going to finish our basement! I know, I know, sometimes when Dave gets working really hard with the medicare stuff around this time of year he forgets to communicate with his dear family. We are all very excited for him to be finished with this busy time.

I guess that's enough of a novel for now. I will truly try to post sooner because I have some really cute pictures of Jackson in the snow when the storm came last week. Stay tuned!

This is our cute neighbor Kaitlyn and Jack sitting on the hale bay at the corn maze.

Here are Jackson and cousin Gabe playing on the hay bales.

I love this picture! He actually posed for, or I took about two hundred pictures and finally got a good one!

Here is Jack and Dave getting ready to go out trick or treating. We didn't have a bag for him, so he used his easter basket. Maybe he should've been a bunny instead of a pumpkin!

Well, here is the great fun we have at our house! He decided to get all the tupperware and build a big tower. The kid really deserves some blocks don't you think!

Oh, this is a sad picture. I just couldn't get a good one of all the kids. Wow, they all look so unhappy. Maybe I shouldn't have posted this one!

This picture is to prove that Jackson and Bryker really were happy at one point in time!

Is it the middle of October already?!

2007-10-11T15:25:00.001-07:00

Well, here we are in the month of October and I once again have not written for quite some time. I apologize for my lack of blogging enthusiasm! I am working on it. Anyway, here are a few photos of what's been going on with our family. Last month we decided to go to the Hill Air Force Base Museum with all the airplanes. Jackson kept saying, "aahh-plane" which translates to "airplane" of course. I think he really enjoyed it. I also took a few shots of him smelling the roses in the front yard (which smelled delicious by the way!). He would lean way in and try to smell them. I kept having to remind him not to fall into the rose bush because it is very sharp, but sometimes they just have to learn themselves I guess! Needless to say, I did end up saving him a few times. Other exciting news...he stepped on a bee and got his first bee sting. That was quite the drama. He cried and kept saying, "hurt." After a few hours he was up and running again, so I guess it wasn't too bad. His current favorite movie is the Wiggles, and we watch it every day. Kill me now!

Dave has started a new job working with a few new guys investing in dental clinics. He is also still working with all of his old clients, so he has become somewhat independent. We will see what this new job brings. The best part of it all is that his office is in Farmington, so he comes home for lunch every once in a while. He is in the transition stage right now, but I think everything will come together nicely in a short while.

What else...what else...oh yeah, we are having another little Burns terror! He or she will be joining us somewhere around April 7th and we are all very excited. The best part is when Jack says, "Mommy, my tummy hurts." I ask him why and and he replies, "Baby in there." He is talking a ton these days. Anyway, that's the big news. We are excited and probably have no idea what we are in for! So, that is our life for now. Hope all is well with all of you bloggers out there that get ahold of ours.

This is an airplane called the "Jenny plane." It is one of two that can still fly in the whole museum. Most of them are just made of reused parts.

This airplane can fly from London to New York in like 3 hours or something like that! It was really fast, and doesn't Dave just look so nice in his work clothes!

Here is Jack Jack supposedly smelling the roses. He's pretty cute I think!
Here's another pictures of him and the rose bush.

And here he is watching the wonderful, and always entertaining, "Wiggles."

August Fun

2007-08-21T15:50:00.001-07:00

Well, the end of August is coming quickly and so I decided to put in a few pictures of what we have been doing this month. We finally got our sod and laid it a few weeks ago. Jackson and the neighborhood boys played in the dirt while we did the work! It is so nice to have it in and I am excited for when we can actually play in it. We also celebrated Gary, Dave, Dusty, and Missy's birthdays' this month (although I only have a picture of Gary's b-day at the park). Dusty returns home from his mission in October...crazy!

I cannot believe that the summer is coming to an end. Jackson and I are both sad to say that our beloved past time of Cherry Hill will be closing in a week and a half. I have no idea what I'm going to do when he wakes up every day and says, "wimming" which translates into swimming. I definitely need to get some photos of him "wimming" before it closes. I have even toyed with the idea of getting and indoor pool pass.

Dave celebrated his big 27th birthday on the 16th. He up and decided to go to Alaska with a buddy to do some serious fishing...even though he's not a serious fisherman!! He was scrambling at the last minute to find all the "gear" necessary for Alaskan fishing. He bought a fishing pole there, and sold it back before he came home. I guess maybe fishing isn't really his thing! He did return with a box full of salmon, so at least I got something out of his trip, and sorry but he is a guy and he didn't take any picturs. Not one! I told him I don't believe he really saw a black bear or bald eagles because he didn't take any pictures!

Anyway, things are good with the Burns family. We are looking forward to the cooler weather but winter is going to be a tough season to keep Jackson entertained. Oh yes, I was going to mention that Jack has been obsessed with tunnels lately. He loves to under then in the car. He always wants us to make tunnels with blankets and play in them. Lately he even sleeps under his tunnel in his crib. Crazy kid!

Here's the boys playing in the dirt while we laid the sod. Jack is in the striped shirt gettin' dirty.

Here's the back yard half-way finished.

Bryker and Jackson swinging in my parent's backyard. Yes, they weigh about the same!!!

Gary's birthday party at the park.

Summer and Prezley at the birthday party.

Jack Jack playing with is trucks in the dirt. The kid could stay outside all day and be happy.

Okay, Alright, I'll Update my Blog!

2007-07-30T09:33:00.000-07:00

After a brutal lashing I am finally going to update our little blog, even though it has only been one month since the last one! We have had a great month of July. The 4th of July fireworks amazingly kept Jackson's attention for more than two minutes and he loved getting "can-nie" (candy) at the parades. We have been to Bear Lake for a family reunion, where Dave got his usual burn (I mean tan!), and we have also been to a few fun-filled neighborhood barbecues.

We are patiently awaiting the day when we will be rolling, running, and jumping in our backyard grass. At least the sprinklers are in, even if they put the tractor through our window and broke the window frame as well as the stucco! But hey, at least we have gotten a good deal by having a friend do the yard!!!

Gary, Missy, and Bryker have been here for the summer. They head back this Saturday and we will sure miss them. Every time we go to Cherry Hill now Jack looks frantically around for "Mis-sy" and "Bry-ker." The kid's obsessed. Anything else....I read the last Harry Potter and it is good. I actually couldn't put it down for a couple days and I think Dave wanted to throw it down the stairs or into the mud or something. Jack even came up and put his hand on it and said, "no moe" (no more!). I just had to finish it!

Well, that's all for now. Maybe I'll try and write again before the end of August. Here are a few photos for your enjoyment.
Playing in the Sand at Bear Lake

Playing on the slippin' slide on the 4th of July

Grandpa Hunt's birthday party with cousins

I Love the Summertime

2007-06-27T11:32:00.000-07:00

What a little stud!
Here's Jack playing in the sprinkler in our front yard.

He folds his arms for the prayer and is starting to copy our words when we say the prayer.

So far this summer has been wonderful. We have been swimming about 3 times a week and Jack is fearless. He doesn't just jump in to the "big boy" pool, he has to run and jump into the pool! He makes me laugh every day and he is just my little buddy. Cherry Hill has provided us with excitement and joy. Jackson fights me every time on going down the big blue slides, but when we get to the bottom he says, "gin", which in his talk means, "again." I love the summer time. I especially love the summer nights. We can sit out on the porch and watch the sun go down, or go on a nice walk.

2007-03-26T20:48:00.000-07:00

The kid never stays inside!But he sure is cute!

Here are my X-Box champions!

Well welcome to our little blog spot. We have finally decided to join our fellow bloggers and get on the train that takes us out of the ancient times of phone calls (too bad because I liked phone calls!). The two pictures below basically represent what we do these days. The first one is what Jackson wants to do the first half of the day, and the second one shows what the little guy wants to do the second half of the day. I could leave him all day to play in the dirt and he wouldn't even know I was gone until he fell into the window well and couldn't get out! Anyway, our little family is doing well. We have moved into our new home in Kaysville and love it. That's all for now.