General Conference Weekend

Twice a year we get to listen to a prophet speak to us words of counsel and love. That was this weekend. You can hear what they had to say on lds.org. I love getting to spend the entire weekend together! It was awesome!

Tysonisms

He is the best brother...and he loves the dried mangoes his grandparents got for him! So much, in fact that when grandma took one and ate one he had the biggest fit of his life! I think he was a little tired, too!
Fish face!!
Tyson loves to play in the water--and actually always has (unlike his baby brother!) He can now get into the fridge, sink, closet...you name it! The world is his new playhouse!!


Tyson has been so funny lately! He is talking all of the time! Here are a few of his quotes from the month of March!

After Tyson unsuccessfully 'went pee pee' in the 'big boy potty'
Me (looking into the toilet): I don't see any
Tyson: I see any! (he really wanted his candy!)

Tyson likes to hide. This day he ran into his room and said, "Where did Tyson go?...Here I is!"

He's grunchy! (grumpy)

He prays every now and again and at dinner one time, Christian asked if he would help him pray. He copied everything Christian said and at the end I said, "Good job Tyson!" He in turn said in my exact tone of voice, "Good job Daddy!" It was so funny!

After taking a drink of water, "It's tasty!" "It spilled in there!" (talking about his mouth)

We've been working really hard on having him ask whether something has peanuts in it before putting something new into his mouth (not that he eats often...) Anyway, yesterday he came upstairs with a raw noodle and said
Tyson: Does this have peanuts?
Me (elated): No! Thank you for asking!
Tyson: I can eat it?
Me: Yes!
Then he walks over to the desk and pulls out a box of staples. He holds it up
Tyson: Does this have peanuts?
Me: No.
Tyson: I can eat it?
It was so funny! What a silly kid! We love our Tyson-buddy!

Spring Break!

Christian's parents are so kind to come and visit us during their spring break every year! This year, for the first time ever, it also coincided with Christian's Spring Break! This made it so much fun! We absolutely adore his parents and they are more than welcome here at any time!
We spent several days at Sea World, which Tyson loved (and I did, too!)
Greg carried Austin everywhere! It definitely was a nice break!
Checking out the seals! Thanks to Sandra, we were able to feed them! Tyson was so funny! He would only touch the fish very gingerly by the tails so as not to get too dirty! It was fun!
No straws allowed in the park!
Watching the shows was a lot of fun and since we went several afternoons we were able to catch most of them no problem! We even sat in the splash zone during the killer whale show. Tyson did NOT like getting splashed, but it was so cool to be so close to the animals! It really was amazing!
We also hit the Riverwalk and had a nice dinner! It was beautiful weather and the atmosphere was so fun with the mariachi bands and people strolling by! Thank you for taking us here!
We also saw several of the missions and went to the San Antonio temple. It was the perfect week! We miss them already!
Greg is the best kind of father-in-law! He will do anything to make your life easier and listens to anything you say, even if he disagrees. I like talking politics with him!
Sandra is of course also amazing! She is the sweetest, most thoughtful person I know and is constantly loving her grandkids! I love having her visit! Thank you guys!!

Four months!

In his high chair!
In the swing!
AUSTIN!

He is our happy, healthy boy! He's in the 40th percentile for weight and 85th percentile for height for his age and he is smiling, talking, shouting, spitting, gurgling, and laughing all the time. He is so patient when we are out and about but if we are home he wants to eat every two hours! He ALWAYS has a handful of my hair and he is tracking really well with his eyes! He is so much fun to have and we love him to death! He is already so long, it is crazy to think he ever fit inside of me! We love him so much and already can't imagine life without him!This is what happens when your clothes are too tight! Can you see the outline of the frog imprinted on his skin?
This is his second sunburn in four months of life (only half of his face). I am officially paranoid he's going to get skin cancer...blasted red headed genes!!!

rodeo!!

The petting zoo!
The cows!!
The bow-legged men!
Our friends, the Blairs, gave us their extra carnival tickets which was so nice! Tyson, however, had a tough time! First, he wanted to go on a mini coaster--during which he started crying after the first ten degree drop! After that we took him on the carousel--which he loved last year, but as you can see here, he is grabbing on to me for dear life!! At least the man didn't make me pay!! Next we let Christian ride a bigger ride by himself. Tyson cried all during this time because he wanted daddy to get off the ride! Finally Christian took him on what he deemed, "the lamest ride in existence!" It consisted of a train going around in a rectangle about the size of our kitchen...Tyson loved it!! He cried when it was time to get off!! So Tyson literally cried during every ride...and we're going to Disney land for Christmas this year!! We'll see how that goes!!
Tyson finally enjoying himself and Christian laughing in amazement!

The Zoo!

Christian, for the most part of this semester has had Thursday afternoons off! This day we took advantage and went to the zoo!! It was so much fun!!Enjoying the sunshine already...it's what, February??This komodo dragon is the same age as Tyson!!
I love watching Tyson wonder at the animals! It reminds me to look at things with new eyes again.
First time to the zoo!! Isn't he adorable?!!

Dan and Katie

CHEESE!!!
We are soooooo lucky to live so close to these two!! They have come to see us several times since moving here in August and I am always reminded how lucky we are and how much I love them both!!
Katie always laughs because in most of the pictures Dan is holding the baby....I think it's because she is holding the camera!! She will be a great mom someday! She also has a way cool blog candidlykate.blogspot.com which I think everyone should check out when they have the chance!
Thanks for being Tyson's favorites! We sure love you guys!!

Jake, Tenille and my dad!

The Montana/Utah folks brought snow with them!! School was canceled for two days! It was awesome!In case you didn't know, my dad is pretty wonderful. He is not a member of the church I go to, but he knew it was important for me to have my baby blessed. He made it possible for my younger brother and sister to come and be here on that special day and even made an effort to go to church with us. The level of support he has been over this past year is 100%. Thank you Dad! I love you!

Jake had just returned from serving a two year full time mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Philippines. He spoke Tagalog fluently and when I first talked with him on the phone he had developed quite the accent! It was so much fun to see him and talk to him after so long! He went running with me in the freezing weather (literally), hung out around the house, and made dinner twice!! It was delicious! It was funny because afterward he just started doing the dishes by hand. He had forgotten that dishwashers even existed! He washed his dishes, clothes, and showered by hand for two years. That is quite the experience! He is a great example to me of loving others. He is a great follower of Christ.I was so excited that Tenille skipped her math class and came to Texas! She is my favorite little sister and perhaps one of my greatest friends. It was wonderful to get to talk to her in person and catch up on the little things! She also was constantly helping around the house and with the kids. Thank you Tenille! I love you!

Mom and Andre

I was so grateful to have my Mom and step-dad stay a few days after the blessing so we could have some fun times with them! My mom was an angel and stayed for two weeks after Austin was born. I needed her so much! She worked the entire time and helped me to stay emotionally stable! Needless to say, it was nice to get them to ourselves for some play time!
My mom is such a wonderful person! She spent all her time with Tyson to help him feel loved! Here they are feeding the ducks!
We went on a boat tour down the Riverwalk! I love all of the amazing facts you can learn in so short a time!
Grandpa Coltrin and Tyson!

Andre had been looking forward to going to this Japanese restaurant for several months! It was so much fun to watch the chef cook the food right in front of you! It was incredibly delicious but Tyson was scared out of his wits! Thank you so much for your visit! We love you!!