Thursday, April 23, 2015

Happy 4th!

Fourth of July is such a fun holiday! I love getting together with friends and celebrating with swimming, food & fireworks. We love partying with the Brown's, they always know how to have a good time.
This is my favorite picture of Nate and Crew. They are a cute little duo.
 Snakes? Not sure what's so cool about these? I think it's just another excuse to play with fire, hahaha.
 Sparkler fun, I am surprised no one has gotten burnt yet. These things are so dangerous.
 Don't be deceived by Crews face. He loved the sparklers and was holding back his smile the entire time.
 Beck was our little pyro, going to town.
 Oh dear, that flash is bright! This picture just cracks me up. Love these squinty eyed boys.

More FuN!!!

So, we had just about a week in between Ansley's visit and Merilee's visit to get some potty training done. This is something that is a must for me before I have a new baby. Having two kids in diapers does not sound fun to me, nor does potty training with a new baby. Crew was a champ! He did such a great job and caught on so fast. He was probably my easiest to potty train during the day, night time is a different story. Three days and he had it pretty much down. Now only if he could figure out the nights.
Kelan and Beckham were such great helpers. They loved potty training because they got treats every time they cheered on Crew for making it to the potty. Crew LOVED all the attention.
 Potty training is such a chore! At the same time I kinda love it, I can only say that now since I am done with it, well until the next one. It is so fun to take a few days off from being a "mom" and just sit and focus 100% on your kid(s). We had a little set up in the kitchen with toys, games, arts/crafts, computer games and shows on the computer. It was a PArTy!!!
 Juice for days!!! Crew loves his big brothers.
 Potty training is hard work.
 Merilee & Kenndy Came to visit!!!
These boys seriously love their Aunt Meme and Uncle Kennedy. It was sooooo fun to have them. We love when people come to visit so we can play with them. We met up with Merilee and Kennedy at the Jelly Belly factory because they were driving down from Utah. This was the boys first time ever going, it was so fun!
 You have to wear these hats as you go through the factory, Crew was not a fan, his hat made it maybe 5 minutes.
 Kelan was not wanting to smile in front of the Jelly Belly art, so Beckham had to Change his smile to a frown too. Monkey see, monkey do. Thank goodness Kelan is a good kid and great example for his younger brothers, 99% of the time. If Crew was the ring leader we would be in serious trouble, haha.
 We went to the Stanford Shopping Center and got some Sprinkles cupcakes. Everyone raves about these things, they were delicious but not as good as Nothing Bunt Cakes. The Shopping Center was AMAZING and the cutest I've ever seen.
 Tide pools! We love this place!!! The weather was actually perfect, minus the fact that we all didn't realize we were roasting. Overcast weather is very deceiving, poor Kennedy's forehead got the worst of it.
 We played at this place forever! This was the perfect time to go because the tide was so low. The boys found so many cool treasures, thank goodness you're not allowed to take any home with you. That's just what I don't need, more "treasures", we've got plenty, in the boy's junk drawer! Hahaha.
 Playing at Pier 39 is always a must when people come visit.
 The boys were hanging out on the stage while we were waiting for the show to start. I should've taken a picture of all the Asian tourists taking pictures of my blonde haired boys, it was pretty funny! 
 Ghirardeli deliciousness!
 We skipped out after sacrament meeting to go walk around the temple grounds. I seriously love this Temple, it is so beautiful. Like father, like son... none of them could keep their eyes open.
 Cute Merilee & Kennedy still in the newlywed stage. Look and them smooching away. We sure love those two, we're lucky Merilee snatched up such a good one.
The fair was in town while Merilee and Kenndy were here, so we had to go!
 The best part of the fair is the over priced greasy food. Who doesn't love chili cheese curly fries? Me!!! My treat was funnel cake with strawberry sauce on top! Yummy!
 Merilee and Kennedy brought the boys these cute swords. They seriously love these things! They look pretty safe, right!? The boys battle and battle and battle until the foam slips off and all that is left is the PVC pipe, Beck took an awesome hit to the face. He got a great battle wound from it, didn't stop him from fighting with his favorite sword again. We're working on raising tough boys at our house, haha.
Thanks for visiting us Aunt Meme and Uncle Kennedy! We love you guys!

Monday, April 20, 2015

Christmas came early!!!

Look who came to visit!!! We were so excited to finally reunite with our long lost buddies. We used to get together with these guys all the time when we lived in Omaha. They were always just a few short hours away. We have missed our quality time with them. It is always so much fun playing with this Crew. T.J. got to do a 2 week externship with Highland/Spencer while Ansley and I got to do a 2 week vacation with each other, we definitely got the better half of the deal.
They fit right in with our crazy bunch.
 The boys seriously loved Ivy. Ledger and Crew were constantly fighting over her, she was too cute to resist.
 We took these guys to one of our favorite dirty boy spots. It is a recycled park in Berkley, it is messy but so, so fun! There are nails, hammers, paint and they let you go wild with it all. There is also a super fun zip line that the boys loved, technically Kelan was the only one who was supposed to go on it but they all wanted a chance to ride.
 Crew checking things out from the top of the fort.
 The zip line was their favorite part.
 After we were done at the recycled park we went and played at the park right next door. Then the boys went for an "accidental" swim in the bay. They were just supposed to be getting their feet wet, so much for that. They were all soaked!
 Picnic at the Oakland Temple.
This seriously was the best picture we could get. IMPOSSIBLE! Hahaha, they are all thinking "please no more pictures Aunt Nikki." I couldn't resist, they were all looking too cute in their Sunday clothes, it was a good try.
Crab Cove 
Sweet Little Ivy & Aunt Annie looking so tute.
This place is so fun! I love it because it is in the bay, which means you don't have to worry about your kid getting pulled under by a huge wave you can just let them go wild.
U.S.S. Hornet
This was our first time going here. It was really cool but not super kid friendly. It was a bunch of volunteer elderly people working and they didn't appreciate the wild bunch we brought with us. Thank goodness we got a bunch of tickets free from our library, this way we didn't feel bad for making it a quickish trip.
 It was amazing how big these ships were. 
Oh, these two. Great minds think alike.
 Closing Ceremonies
Kelan had his closing ceremonies and we definitely couldn't miss it. Getting a trophy may be one of Kelan's favorite parts about playing baseball.
 He had a pretty awesome cheering section in the outfield.
 When did my Kelan get so big!? He had a fun year playing baseball, we'll see how long he sticks with it. He's like his mom when it comes to baseball, a little bored. He says it's his favorite sport though?
 San Francisco
Spencer hates this place!!! T.J. had never been before so Spencer was nice enough to suck it up and take them on a tour of the city.
Pier 39.
 Sight seeing.
 1st Grade Graduation
Kelan finished up 1st grade. He was so embarrassed to get up and receive a certificate in front of his whole class. Why is this kid so shy in public? He definitely isn't at home. He got a certificate for being the best at science in his class. He is such a nerdo and loves, loves, loves school. He's going to miss school this summer.
He was hauling down the "red carpet". You can even tell that his face is red from being embarrassed. Oh Kelan, you are too cute.
 Preschool Graduation
One year of Preschool down, one more to go before Kindergarten. Sweet little Beckham has loved his little school group. They have all become such good little buddies. Lucy, Beckham, Riley(Crew's GF), Ayla(Beckham's GF), Grace & Brant(Also Rileys BF). Riley really could care less about these boys, she's gonna marry her Grandma's dog, bahaha.
 While I was handing out the preschool certificates to each kid...
...Crew was helping himself to the cupcakes Ansley & I made. He can only be patient for so long.
 These cupcakes turned out so cute thanks to Ansley, she's seriously the best!
 Golden Gate Park
I love this place, it was perfect for all of our wild boys. I just love how this park runs right through the city. The views are amazing of the city, bay and ocean. It is just beautiful!
 Brudder cousins are the best!
 Ivy was just the sweetest the entire trip. She just went with the flow and didn't even complain once. Sweetest baby ever!
 Kung Fu Panda house.
 The poor animals may have been a little tormented by the boys. 
Lands End
Another beautiful spot and another great spot for the boys to go wild.
 Lets just say they slept well every night. We wore them out and they wore us out. Too much fun!